1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers season
| 1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Del Harris, Bill Bertka, Kurt Rambis |
| Owners | Jerry Buss |
| Arena | Great Western Forum |
| Results | |
| Record | 31–19 (.620) |
| Place | Division: 2nd (Pacific) Conference: 4th (Western) |
| Playoff finish | West Conference Semifinals (eliminated 0-4) |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Fox Sports West, KCAL |
| Radio | AM 570 KLAC |
The 1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers season was the 53rd season of the franchise, 51st in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and 39th in Los Angeles.[1] It was the Lakers' final season at the Great Western Forum. They finished second in the Pacific Division with a 31-19 record. The attendance for the Lakers was 430,007 (12th in the league). In the playoffs, the Lakers defeated the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Quarterfinals, but were swept by the San Antonio Spurs during the Western Conference Semifinals.
The Lakers lost three members from the 1998 team; Elden Campbell and Eddie Jones were traded mid season to the Charlotte Hornets and controversial All-Star point guard Nick Van Exel was traded to the Denver Nuggets for the draft rights to Tyronn Lue and Tony Battie, who would never report to the team and was dealt to the Boston Celtics for Travis Knight. The Lakers move continued mid-season, acquiring rebounding specialist Dennis Rodman, who was well known for winning championships with the Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls. However, after 23 games, Rodman was released by the team.
Draft picks
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 | Sam Jacobson | Guard |  United States
|
Minnesota |
Roster
| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Roster Notes
- Forward Dennis Rodman was wavied on April 16th.
Regular season
The Lakers went through three coaches during the season: Del Harris (6–6), Bill Bertka (1–0) and Kurt Rambis (24–13). Fourteen different Lakers started at least one game during the season.[3] From February 25 to March 12, the Lakers won ten consecutive games. Outside of the streak, the Lakers were 21-19 in all other games. During the season, over half of the Lakers' games were televised nationally.[3]
At season's end, the Lakers ranked second in the league in scoring at 99.0 points per game (only Sacramento averaged more points: 100.2 ppg). Despite the high scoring, the Lakers were the fourth worst Free Throw shooting team in the league with a percentage of .683. Shaquille O'Neal had a percentage of .540.
Season standings
| W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Portland Trail Blazers | 35 | 15 | .700 | – | 22–3 | 13–12 | 15–7 |
| x-Los Angeles Lakers | 31 | 19 | .620 | 4 | 18–7 | 13–12 | 14–8 |
| x-Sacramento Kings | 27 | 23 | .540 | 8 | 16–9 | 11–14 | 11–9 |
| x-Phoenix Suns | 27 | 23 | .540 | 8 | 15–10 | 12–13 | 9–10 |
| Seattle SuperSonics | 25 | 25 | .500 | 10 | 17–8 | 8–17 | 11–10 |
| Golden State Warriors | 21 | 29 | .420 | 14 | 13–12 | 8–17 | 8–11 |
| Los Angeles Clippers | 9 | 41 | .180 | 26 | 6–19 | 3–22 | 3–16 |
| # | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | |
| 1 | z-San Antonio Spurs | 37 | 13 | .740 | – |
| 2 | y-Portland Trail Blazers | 35 | 15 | .700 | 2 |
| 3 | x-Utah Jazz | 37 | 13 | .740 | – |
| 4 | x-Los Angeles Lakers | 31 | 19 | .620 | 6 |
| 5 | x-Houston Rockets | 31 | 19 | .620 | 6 |
| 6 | x-Sacramento Kings | 27 | 23 | .540 | 10 |
| 7 | x-Phoenix Suns | 27 | 23 | .540 | 10 |
| 8 | x-Minnesota Timberwolves | 25 | 25 | .500 | 12 |
| 9 | Seattle SuperSonics | 25 | 25 | .500 | 12 |
| 10 | Golden State Warriors | 21 | 29 | .420 | 16 |
| 11 | Dallas Mavericks | 19 | 31 | .380 | 18 |
| 12 | Denver Nuggets | 14 | 36 | .280 | 23 |
| 13 | Los Angeles Clippers | 9 | 41 | .180 | 28 |
| 14 | Vancouver Grizzlies | 8 | 42 | .160 | 29 |
- z - clinched division title
- y - clinched division title
- x - clinched playoff spot
Game log
Playoffs
West First Round
(4) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (5) Houston Rockets: Lakers win series 3-1
- Game 1 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 9): Los Angeles 101, Houston 100
- Game 2 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 11): Los Angeles 110, Houston 98
- Game 3 @ Compaq Center, Houston (May 13): Houston 100, Los Angeles 88
- Game 4 @ Compaq Center, Houston (May 15): Los Angeles 98, Houston 88
Last Playoff Meeting: 1996 Western Conference First Round (Houston won 3-1)
West Conference Semifinals
(1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (4) Los Angeles Lakers: Spurs win series 4-0
- Game 1 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 17): San Antonio 87, Los Angeles 81
- Game 2 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 19): San Antonio 79, Los Angeles 76
- Game 3 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 22): San Antonio 103, Los Angeles 91
- Game 4 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 23): San Antonio 118, Los Angeles 107
Last Playoff Meeting: 1995 Western Conference Semifinals (San Antonio won 4-2)
Player stats
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
Season
- Shaquille O'Neal averaged 26.3 ppg (2nd), 10.7 rpg (8th), and shot 57.6% (1st). For his efforts, he was named to the All-NBA second-team.
- Kobe Bryant had a career high 19.9 ppg and added 3.8 apg. He was recognized as an All-NBA third-team.
- Dennis Rodman played 23 games with the Lakers in 1999. He averaged 11.2 rebounds per game and the Lakers went 17-6 with Rodman in the lineup.
- Glen Rice played in 27 games with the club and averaged 17.5 points per game. With Rice in the lineup, the Lakers went 16-11
Playoffs
Awards and honors
- Kobe Bryant, All-NBA Third Team
- Shaquille O'Neal, All-NBA Second Team
Transactions
![[icon]](/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (February 2013) |
References
- ^ 1998-99 Los Angeles Lakers
- ^ "1998 NBA Draft History - Round 1". Mynbadraft.com. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
- ^ a b "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 24, 2012. Retrieved December 13, 2014.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "1998-99 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-04-18.