1997–98 NBA season

The 1997–98 NBA season was the 52nd season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls winning their third straight championship and sixth in the last eight years, beating the Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 in the 1998 NBA Finals. It also marked the departure of Michael Jordan and the end of the dynasty for the Chicago Bulls.

1997–98 NBA season
League	National Basketball Association
Sport	Basketball
Duration	October 31, 1997 – April 19, 1998 April 23 – May 31, 1998 (Playoffs) June 3 – 14, 1998 (Finals)
Number of teams	29
TV partner(s)	NBC, TBS, TNT
Draft
Top draft pick	Tim Duncan
Picked by	San Antonio Spurs
Regular season
Top seed	Utah Jazz
Season MVP	Michael Jordan (Chicago)
Top scorer	Michael Jordan (Chicago)
Playoffs
Eastern champions	Chicago Bulls
Eastern runners-up	Indiana Pacers
Western champions	Utah Jazz
Western runners-up	Los Angeles Lakers
Finals
Champions	Chicago Bulls
Runners-up	Utah Jazz
Finals MVP	Michael Jordan (Chicago)

This was the last time that both NBA and NHL regular seasons ended on the same day.

Notable occurrences

Coaching changes

Offseason
Team	1996–97 coach	1997–98 coach
Boston Celtics	M. L. Carr	Rick Pitino
Denver Nuggets	Dick Motta	Bill Hanzlik
Golden State Warriors	Rick Adelman	P. J. Carlesimo
Indiana Pacers	Larry Brown	Larry Bird
Orlando Magic	Richie Adubato	Chuck Daly
Philadelphia 76ers	Johnny Davis	Larry Brown
Portland Trail Blazers	P. J. Carlesimo	Mike Dunleavy Sr.
Vancouver Grizzlies	Stu Jackson	Brian Hill
In-season
Team	Outgoing coach	Incoming coach
Dallas Mavericks	Jim Cleamons	Don Nelson
Detroit Pistons	Doug Collins	Alvin Gentry
Toronto Raptors	Darrell Walker	Butch Carter

• The 1998 NBA All-Star Game was played at Madison Square Garden. However, the Slam Dunk Contest was not held, due to the risk of player injuries, lack of new dunking tricks and lack of big-name players in recent competitions. Instead, a 2Ball competition was held. Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant became the youngest All-Star starter at age 19. Michael Jordan won his third All-Star MVP.
• The Washington Bullets were renamed the "Wizards". They began the season at US Airways Arena, then in December, they played their first game at the MCI Center (now Capital One Arena) during this season.
• Due to the demolition of The Omni and the construction of the new Philips Arena, the Atlanta Hawks split home games between Georgia Tech's Alexander Coliseum (Their original home where they played for four seasons when they moved to Atlanta in 1968.) and the Georgia Dome.
• Golden State Warriors swingman Latrell Sprewell made headlines by choking Warriors head coach P. J. Carlesimo during practice on December 1, 1997. Sprewell was ultimately suspended for 68 games, at the time the longest in NBA history. Sprewell would be traded to the New York Knicks in the off-season that followed.
• Michael Jordan passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the all-time leader in points scored in the NBA Playoffs.
• The Utah Jazz and the Chicago Bulls shared the league's best record at 62–20, and met each other in the NBA Finals. The Jazz had home-court advantage by virtue of the head-to-head match-up (the Jazz won the season series 2–0).
• Two new records were set in Game 3 of the NBA Finals: biggest margin of victory (42 points) and fewest points scored in an NBA Finals game (54) in the Bulls' rout of the Jazz.
• The San Antonio Spurs set a league record for the biggest single-season turnaround (36 wins), breaking their own record set in the 1989–90 NBA season; it was later broken by the 2007–08 Boston Celtics.
• Following head coach Phil Jackson's decision to not return to the Bulls, Michael Jordan announced his second retirement from the NBA during the following offseason. This was Jordan's final season with the Chicago Bulls. Scottie Pippen was traded for Roy Rogers (who was released in February 1999) and a conditional second-round draft pick from the Houston Rockets. Dennis Rodman was not re-signed either, leading to the end of an era for the Bulls and the NBA.
• Houston Rockets guard Clyde Drexler retired after fifteen seasons, twelve of which he spent with the Portland Trail Blazers, where he led the team to two NBA Finals, in 1990 and 1992. He won his only NBA championship in 1995 while playing for the Rockets.
• Dallas Mavericks forward A.C. Green breaks the NBA's Iron Man Streak of most consecutive games played, surpassing Randy Smith who played 906 consecutive games.
• The restricted area arc was allowed.
• On February 27, the Indiana Pacers defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 124–59, marking the first time in NBA history that one team scored more than twice as many points as its opponent.[1]
• Nike became the official outfitter for select NBA teams (Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs, Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards), which ran for seven years. Other NBA teams were outfitted by Starter Clothing Line, Puma, Reebok or Champion.
• The Denver Nuggets lost 71 games, joining the 1972–73 Philadelphia 76ers, 1986–87 Los Angeles Clippers, and 1992–93 Dallas Mavericks (plus subsequently the 2009–10 Nets and 2015–16 76ers) as the only teams to lose 70 games in a season. The Nuggets also equaled the longest single-season losing streak with 23 consecutive losses, sharing the mark with the 1995–96 Vancouver Grizzlies.
• All the Western Conference teams who missed the playoffs had 55 or more losses. Four of them lost more than 62 games. The ninth-placed Sacramento Kings finished the season with a 27–55 record, losing nineteen of their last twenty games. The Kings finished fourteen games behind the #8 seeded Houston Rockets at 41–41, whilst the tenth-placed Dallas Mavericks ended with a 20–62 record. All the Eastern Conference teams who missed the playoffs had 31 or more wins except for the Toronto Raptors, who finished with a 16–66 record.
• Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner became the first two female officials in NBA history (as well as any of the four major professional sports leagues). Kantner would be fired following the 2001–02 season, while Palmer would go on to have long 19-year career before retiring after the 2015–16 season.

1997–98 NBA changes

• The Atlanta Hawks split their home games playing in the Alexander Memorial Coliseum and the Georgia Dome, due to the demolition of The Omni.
• The Charlotte Hornets changed their uniforms adding teal (home), and purple (road) to the side of their jerseys.
• The Chicago Bulls removed the pinstripes from their alternate uniforms.
• The Cleveland Cavaliers slightly changed their uniforms.
• The Golden State Warriors changed their logo and uniforms, changing their colors to navy, orange and gold.
• The Indiana Pacers changed their uniforms adding pinstripes to their jerseys.
• The New Jersey Nets changed their logo and uniforms, replacing blue with navy to go with red in their color scheme.
• The New York Knicks changed their home uniforms, adding blue to the side of their jerseys. Meanwhile, the alternate uniforms they wore for the past two seasons became their primary road jersey.
• The Philadelphia 76ers changed their logo and uniforms, replacing their red and blue colors with black and gold.
• The Vancouver Grizzlies added new black alternate uniforms.
• The Washington Bullets changed their name to the Washington Wizards, and got a new logo and new uniforms. They scrap the Red, White & Blue colors to Blue, old gold and black. Also in December that season, they moved into their new home arena called the MCI Center (later the Verizon Center, now Capital One Arena).

Final standings

By division

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div y-Miami Heat 55 27 .671 – 30-11 25–16 18–6 x-New York Knicks 43 39 .524 12 28–13 15–26 13–11 x-New Jersey Nets 43 39 .524 12 26–15 17–24 12–12 Washington Wizards 42 40 .512 13 24–17 18–23 12–13 Orlando Magic 41 41 .500 14 24–17 17–24 11–13 Boston Celtics 36 46 .439 19 24–17 12–29 12–23 Philadelphia 76ers 31 51 .378 24 19–22 12–29 7–17 Central Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div y-Chicago Bulls 62 20 .756 – 37–4 25–16 21–7 x-Indiana Pacers 58 24 .707 4 32–9 26–15 19–9 x-Charlotte Hornets 51 31 .622 11 32–9 19–22 16–12 x-Atlanta Hawks 50 32 .610 12 29–12 21–20 19–9 x-Cleveland Cavaliers 47 35 .573 15 27–14 20–21 14–14 Detroit Pistons 37 45 .451 25 25–16 12–29 12–16 Milwaukee Bucks 36 46 .439 26 21–20 15–26 9–19 Toronto Raptors 16 66 .195 46 9–32 7–34 2–26

Western Conference Midwest Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div z-Utah Jazz 62 20 .756 – 36–5 26–15 22–2 x-San Antonio Spurs 56 26 .683 6 31–10 25–16 18–6 x-Minnesota Timberwolves 45 37 .549 17 26–15 19–22 14–10 x-Houston Rockets 41 41 .500 21 24–17 17–24 14–10 Dallas Mavericks 20 62 .244 42 13–28 7–34 9–15 Vancouver Grizzlies 19 63 .232 43 14–27 5–36 4–20 Denver Nuggets 11 71 .134 51 9–32 2–39 3–21 Pacific Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div y-Seattle SuperSonics 61 21 .744 – 35–6 26–15 19–5 x-Los Angeles Lakers 61 21 .744  – 33–8 28–13 16–8 x-Phoenix Suns 56 26 .683 5 30–11 26–15 17–7 x-Portland Trail Blazers 46 36 .561 15 26–15 20–21 14–10 Sacramento Kings 27 55 .329 34 21–20 6–35 6–18 Golden State Warriors 19 63 .232 42 12–29 7–34 6–18 Los Angeles Clippers 17 65 .207 44 11–30 6–35 6–18

By conference

# Eastern Conference Team W L PCT GB 1 c-Chicago Bulls 62 20 .756 – 2 y-Miami Heat 55 27 .671 7 3 x-Indiana Pacers 58 24 .707 4 4 x-Charlotte Hornets 51 31 .622 11 5 x-Atlanta Hawks 50 32 .610 12 6 x-Cleveland Cavaliers 47 35 .573 15 7 x-New York Knicks 43 39 .524 19 8 x-New Jersey Nets 43 39 .524 19 9 Washington Wizards 42 40 .512 20 10 Orlando Magic 41 41 .500 21 11 Detroit Pistons 37 45 .451 25 12 Boston Celtics 36 46 .439 26 12 Milwaukee Bucks 36 46 .439 26 14 Philadelphia 76ers 31 51 .378 31 15 Toronto Raptors 16 66 .195 46

# Western Conference Team W L PCT GB 1 z-Utah Jazz 62 20 .756 – 2 y-Seattle SuperSonics 61 21 .744 1 3 x-Los Angeles Lakers 61 21 .744 1 4 x-Phoenix Suns 56 26 .683 6 5 x-San Antonio Spurs 56 26 .683 6 6 x-Portland Trail Blazers 46 36 .561 16 7 x-Minnesota Timberwolves 45 37 .549 17 8 x-Houston Rockets 41 41 .500 21 9 Sacramento Kings 27 55 .329 35 10 Dallas Mavericks 20 62 .244 42 11 Vancouver Grizzlies 19 63 .232 43 11 Golden State Warriors 19 63 .232 43 13 Los Angeles Clippers 17 65 .207 45 14 Denver Nuggets 11 71 .134 51

Notes

• z – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffs
• c – Clinched home court advantage for the conference playoffs
• y – Clinched division title
• x – Clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Home court advantage does not necessarily belong to the higher-seeded team, but instead the team with the better regular season record; teams enjoying the home advantage are shown in italics.

First Round

Conference Semifinals

Conference Finals

NBA Finals

E1

Chicago*

3

E8

New Jersey

0

E1

Chicago*

4

E4

Charlotte

1

E4

Charlotte

3

E5

Atlanta

1

E1

Chicago*

4

Eastern Conference

E3

Indiana

3

E3

Indiana

3

E6

Cleveland

1

E3

Indiana

4

E7

New York

1

E2

Miami*

2

E7

New York

3

E1

Chicago*

4

W1

Utah*

2

W1

Utah*

3

W8

Houston

2

W1

Utah*

4

W5

San Antonio

1

W4

Phoenix

1

W5

San Antonio

3

W1

Utah*

4

Western Conference

W3

LA Lakers

0

W3

LA Lakers

3

W6

Portland

1

W3

LA Lakers

4

W2

Seattle*

1

W2

Seattle*

3

W7

Minnesota

2

* Division winner
Bold Series winner
Italic Team with home-court advantage

Statistics leaders

Category	Player	Team	Stat
Points per game	Michael Jordan	Chicago Bulls	28.7
Rebounds per game	Dennis Rodman	Chicago Bulls	15.0
Assists per game	Rod Strickland	Washington Wizards	10.5
Steals per game	Mookie Blaylock	Atlanta Hawks	2.61
Blocks per game	Marcus Camby	Toronto Raptors	3.65
FG%	Shaquille O'Neal	Los Angeles Lakers	.584
FT%	Chris Mullin	Indiana Pacers	.939
3FG%	Dale Ellis	Seattle SuperSonics	.464

NBA awards

Yearly awards

• Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls
• Rookie of the Year: Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
• Defensive Player of the Year: Dikembe Mutombo, Atlanta Hawks
• Sixth Man of the Year: Danny Manning, Phoenix Suns
• Most Improved Player: Alan Henderson, Atlanta Hawks
• Coach of the Year: Larry Bird, Indiana Pacers
• All-NBA First Team:
  • F – Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
  • F – Karl Malone, Utah Jazz
  • C – Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles Lakers
  • G – Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls
  • G – Gary Payton, Seattle SuperSonics
• All-NBA Second Team:
  • F – Vin Baker, Seattle SuperSonics
  • F – Grant Hill, Detroit Pistons
  • C – David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs
  • G – Tim Hardaway, Miami Heat
  • G – Rod Strickland, Washington Wizards
• All-NBA Third Team:
  • F – Scottie Pippen, Chicago Bulls
  • F – Glen Rice, Charlotte Hornets
  • C – Dikembe Mutombo, Atlanta Hawks
  • G – Mitch Richmond, Sacramento Kings
  • G – Reggie Miller, Indiana Pacers
• NBA All-Defensive First Team:
  • F – Scottie Pippen, Chicago Bulls
  • F – Karl Malone, Utah Jazz
  • C – Dikembe Mutombo, Atlanta Hawks
  • G – Gary Payton, Seattle SuperSonics
  • G – Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls
• NBA All-Defensive Second Team:
  • F – Charles Oakley, New York Knicks
  • F – Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
  • C – David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs
  • G – Eddie Jones, Los Angeles Lakers
  • G – Mookie Blaylock, Atlanta Hawks
• All-NBA Rookie First Team:
  • Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
  • Keith Van Horn, New Jersey Nets
  • Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Ron Mercer, Boston Celtics
  • Brevin Knight, Cleveland Cavaliers
• All-NBA Rookie Second Team:
  • Maurice Taylor, Los Angeles Clippers
  • Cedric Henderson, Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Tim Thomas, Philadelphia 76ers
  • Bobby Jackson, Denver Nuggets
  • Derek Anderson, Cleveland Cavaliers

Note: All information on this page were obtained on the History section on NBA.com

Player of the week

The following players were named NBA Player of the Week.

Week	Player
Oct. 31 – Nov. 8	Dikembe Mutombo (Atlanta Hawks)
Nov. 9 – Nov. 15	Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
Nov. 16 – Nov. 22	Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Nov. 23 – Nov. 29	Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
Nov. 30 – Dec. 6	Wesley Person (Cleveland Cavaliers)
Dec. 7 – Dec. 13	Glen Rice (Charlotte Hornets)
Dec. 14 – Dec. 20	Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Dec. 21 – Dec. 27	David Robinson (San Antonio Spurs)
Dec. 28 – Jan. 3	Rik Smits (Indiana Pacers)
Jan. 4 – Jan. 10	Steve Smith (Atlanta Hawks)
Jan. 11 – Jan. 17	Allen Iverson (Philadelphia 76ers)
Jan. 18 – Jan. 24	Jayson Williams (New Jersey Nets)
Jan. 25 – Jan. 31	David Robinson (San Antonio Spurs)
Feb. 10 – Feb. 14	Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
Feb. 15 – Feb. 21	Nick Anderson (Orlando Magic)
Feb. 22 – Feb. 28	Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs)
Mar. 1 – Mar. 7	Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
Mar. 8 – Mar. 14	Jason Kidd (Phoenix Suns)
Mar. 15 – Mar. 21	Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
Mar. 22 – Mar. 28	Alonzo Mourning (Miami Heat)
Mar. 29 – Apr. 4	Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Apr. 5 – Apr. 11	Sam Cassell (New Jersey Nets)
Apr. 12 – Apr. 18	Jason Kidd (Phoenix Suns)

Player of the month

The following players were named NBA Player of the Month.

Month	Player
November	Eddie Jones (Los Angeles Lakers)
December	Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
January	Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
February	Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
March	Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
April	Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)

Rookie of the month

The following players were named NBA Rookie of the Month.

Month	Rookie
November	Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs)
December	Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs)
January	Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs)
February	Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs)
March	Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs)
April	Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs)

Coach of the month

The following coaches were named NBA Coach of the Month.

Month	Coach
November	Lenny Wilkens (Atlanta Hawks)
December	George Karl (Seattle SuperSonics)
January	Larry Bird (Indiana Pacers)
February	Pat Riley (Miami Heat)
March	Jerry Sloan (Utah Jazz)
April	Del Harris (Los Angeles Lakers)

References

1. "Portland Trail Blazers at Indiana Pacers Box Score, February 27, 1998". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2020-04-02.