1988–89 NBA season

43rd NBA season

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Sports season

1988–89 NBA season

League| National Basketball Association
Sport| Basketball
Duration| November 4, 1988 – April 23, 1989
April 27 – June 2, 1989 (Playoffs)
June 6–13, 1989 (Finals)
Number of teams| 25
TV partner(s)| CBS, TBS
Draft
Top draft pick| Danny Manning
Picked by| Los Angeles Clippers
Regular season
Top seed| Detroit Pistons
Season MVP| Magic Johnson (L.A. Lakers)
Top scorer| Michael Jordan (Chicago)
Playoffs
Eastern champions| Detroit Pistons
Eastern runners-up| Chicago Bulls
Western champions| Los Angeles Lakers
Western runners-up| Phoenix Suns
Finals
Venue|

* Great Western Forum, Inglewood, California
* The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan

Champions| Detroit Pistons
Runners-up| Los Angeles Lakers
Finals MVP| Joe Dumars (Detroit)
NBA seasons

← 1987–88

1989–90 →

Los Angeles Lakers facing the Boston Celtics in Dec. 1988. This would be Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's last jump ball at Boston Garden.

The 1988–89 NBA season was the 43rd season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Detroit Pistons winning the NBA Championship, sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers. This was the first season of the Miami Heat and Charlotte Hornets.

## Notable occurrences

[edit]

Coaching changes  Off-season

Team  | 1987–88 coach  | 1988–89 coach
Boston Celtics | K.C. Jones | Jimmy Rodgers
Charlotte Hornets | Expansion | Dick Harter
Houston Rockets | Bill Fitch | Don Chaney
Miami Heat | Expansion | Ron Rothstein
Phoenix Suns | John Wetzel | Cotton Fitzsimmons
San Antonio Spurs | Bob Weiss | Larry Brown
Golden State Warriors | Ed Gregory | Don Nelson
In-season
Team  | Outgoing coach  | Incoming coach
Portland Trail Blazers | Mike Schuler | Rick Adelman
Los Angeles Clippers | Gene Shue | Don Casey
Indiana Pacers | Jack Ramsay | Mel Daniels
Mel Daniels | George Irvine
George Irvine | Dick Versace
Utah Jazz | Frank Layden | Jerry Sloan

* The NBA adopts the three-official system used in college basketball permanently. The league experimented with three officials per game in 1978–79, but went back to two officials per game for the next nine seasons, although they actually have three with the inclusion of an alternate referee for all playoff games and selected regular season games.
* The Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat become the league's 24th and 25th franchises.
* The Heat plays its inaugural season in the Midwest Division. As a result, the Sacramento Kings move to the Pacific Division.
* The Hornets play their inaugural season in the Atlantic Division.
* The 1989 NBA All-Star Game was played at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas, with the West defeating the East 143–134. Karl Malone of the Utah Jazz takes home the game's MVP award.
* New Arenas: The Milwaukee Bucks move from the MECCA Arena to the then-Bradley Center, the Sacramento Kings move from ARCO Arena I to the then-ARCO Arena (later Power Balance Pavilion, now Sleep Train Arena), and the Detroit Pistons move from the Pontiac Silverdome to The Palace of Auburn Hills.
* Michael Jordan records ten triple-doubles in eleven games near the end of the season.
* Prior to the season, the first-year Hornets announce that they choose teal as their primary color, which gave them immediate attention. In the next decade, expansion teams in the other professional sports leagues (most notably the San Jose Sharks of the NHL, the Florida Marlins of Major League Baseball's NL, and the Jacksonville Jaguars of the NFL) further popularized the use of the color. The Hornets also popularized the use of pinstripes on the uniforms, which were later adopted by the Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls (alternates only), Toronto Raptors, Indiana Pacers and the later Charlotte Hornets' predecessor franchise, the second incarnation of the Hornets (formerly known as the Charlotte Bobcats).
* The Chicago Bulls started a playoff tradition by wearing black sneakers. Prior to that, the Boston Celtics were the only team to wear black sneakers. Following the Bulls' unlikely playoff run, other teams began adopting the style, beginning with the Philadelphia 76ers in 1990.
* This was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's last season.
* The Los Angeles Lakers became the first team to sweep two consecutive best-of-seven series.
* The Celtics, who had never won fewer than 57 games in any of the previous nine seasons, slump to 42 as Larry Bird played only six games due to injuries.
* The Indiana Pacers had four different head coaches during the season, a rare occurrence that has not happened since.
* Seattle SuperSonics guard Dale Ellis won the All-Star game's 3-point shootout.
* The first postponement of an NBA game due to a civil disturbance. In the wake of the Miami riots, the game between the Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns on January 17, 1989, was postponed.
* Utah Jazz coach Frank Layden, citing burnout, resigns from the Jazz after 17 games and an 11–6 record. Assistant Jerry Sloan begins the first season of 23 for the Utah Jazz, at the time of his retirement, the longest tenure of any professional coach for one city and franchise, but since surpassed by Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs.
* This was the only season for Ricky Berry, who was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the 18th overall pick in the 1988 NBA draft, who committed suicide during the off-season.
* On January 6, 1989,[1] the Bullets franchise played its first regular season game in Baltimore since 1973; this was the first of 35 regular season "home" games the Bullets played in Baltimore through the 1996–97 season.[2]
* Akeem Olajuwon becomes the only player in NBA history to accumulate over 200 steals with over 200 blocks in a season.[3]

## 1988–89 NBA changes

[edit]

* The Detroit Pistons moved into The Palace of Auburn Hills.
* The Los Angeles Clippers changed their jersey number colors on their road uniforms from blue to white.
* The Milwaukee Bucks moved into the Bradley Center (now as BMO Harris Bradley Center).
* The Sacramento Kings moved into ARCO Arena II (now as Sleep Train Arena).
* The Washington Bullets split home games at the Capital Centre and the Baltimore Arena during the season.

## Final standings

[edit]

### By division

[edit]

Atlantic Division

* v
* t
* e

|  W  |  L  |  PCT  |  GB  |  Home  |  Road  |  Div

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y-New York Knicks | 52 | 30 | .634 | – | 35–6 | 17–24 | 18–12
x-Philadelphia 76ers | 46 | 36 | .561 | 6 | 30–11 | 16–25 | 19–11
x-Boston Celtics | 42 | 40 | .512 | 10 | 32–9 | 10–31 | 19–11
Washington Bullets | 40 | 42 | .488 | 12 | 30–11 | 10–31 | 17–13
New Jersey Nets | 26 | 56 | .317 | 26 | 17–24 | 9–32 | 9–21
Charlotte Hornets | 20 | 62 | .244 | 32 | 12–29 | 8–33 | 8–22

Central Division

* v
* t
* e

|  W  |  L  |  PCT  |  GB  |  Home  |  Road  |  Div

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y-Detroit Pistons | 63 | 19 | .768 | – | 37–4 | 26–15 | 20–10
x-Cleveland Cavaliers | 57 | 25 | .695 | 6 | 37–4 | 20–21 | 19–11
x-Atlanta Hawks | 52 | 30 | .634 | 11 | 33–8 | 19–22 | 20–10
x-Milwaukee Bucks | 49 | 33 | .598 | 14 | 31–10 | 18–23 | 11–19
x-Chicago Bulls | 47 | 35 | .573 | 16 | 30–11 | 17–24 | 12–18
Indiana Pacers | 28 | 54 | .341 | 35 | 20–21 | 8–33 | 8–22

Midwest Division

* v
* t
* e

|  W  |  L  |  PCT  |  GB  |  Home  |  Road  |  Div

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y-Utah Jazz | 51 | 31 | .622 | – | 34–7 | 17–24 | 19–11
x-Houston Rockets | 45 | 37 | .549 | 6 | 31–10 | 14–27 | 19–11
x-Denver Nuggets | 44 | 38 | .537 | 7 | 35–6 | 9–32 | 18–12
Dallas Mavericks | 38 | 44 | .463 | 13 | 24–17 | 14–27 | 19–11
San Antonio Spurs | 21 | 61 | .256 | 30 | 18–23 | 3–38 | 9–21
Miami Heat | 15 | 67 | .183 | 36 | 12–29 | 3–38 | 6–24

Pacific Division

* v
* t
* e

|  W  |  L  |  PCT  |  GB  |  Home  |  Road  |  Div

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y-Los Angeles Lakers | 57 | 25 | .695 | – | 35–6 | 22–19 | 25–9
x-Phoenix Suns | 55 | 27 | .671 | 2 | 35–6 | 20–21 | 23–11
x-Seattle SuperSonics | 47 | 35 | .573 | 10 | 31–10 | 16–25 | 20–14
x-Golden State Warriors | 43 | 39 | .524 | 14 | 29–12 | 14–27 | 15–19
x-Portland Trail Blazers | 39 | 43 | .476 | 18 | 28–13 | 11–30 | 17–17
Sacramento Kings | 27 | 55 | .329 | 30 | 21–20 | 6–35 | 12–22
Los Angeles Clippers | 21 | 61 | .256 | 36 | 17–24 | 4–37 | 7–27
A ticket for a November 1988 game between the Dallas Mavericks and the season's eventual champions Detroit Pistons.

### By conference

[edit]

#  |

Eastern Conference

* v
* t
* e

|

Team  |  W  |  L  |  PCT  |  GB
1  | z-Detroit Pistons | 63 | 19 | .768 | –
2  | y-New York Knicks | 52 | 30 | .634 | 11
3  | x-Cleveland Cavaliers | 57 | 25 | .695 | 6
4  | x-Atlanta Hawks | 52 | 30 | .634 | 11
5  | x-Milwaukee Bucks | 49 | 33 | .598 | 14
6  | x-Chicago Bulls | 47 | 35 | .573 | 16
7  | x-Philadelphia 76ers | 46 | 36 | .561 | 17
8  | x-Boston Celtics | 42 | 40 | .512 | 21
9  | Washington Bullets | 40 | 42 | .488 | 23
10  | Indiana Pacers | 28 | 54 | .341 | 35
11  | New Jersey Nets | 26 | 56 | .317 | 37
12  | Charlotte Hornets | 20 | 62 | .244 | 43
#  |

Western Conference

* v
* t
* e

|

Team  |  W  |  L  |  PCT  |  GB
1  | c-Los Angeles Lakers | 57 | 25 | .695 | –
2  | y-Utah Jazz | 51 | 31 | .622 | 6
3  | x-Phoenix Suns | 55 | 27 | .671 | 2
4  | x-Seattle SuperSonics | 47 | 35 | .573 | 10
5  | x-Houston Rockets | 45 | 37 | .549 | 12
6  | x-Denver Nuggets | 44 | 38 | .537 | 13
7  | x-Golden State Warriors | 43 | 39 | .524 | 14
8  | x-Portland Trail Blazers | 39 | 43 | .476 | 18
9  | Dallas Mavericks | 38 | 44 | .463 | 19
10  | Sacramento Kings | 27 | 55 | .329 | 30
11  | San Antonio Spurs | 21 | 61 | .256 | 36
12  | Los Angeles Clippers | 21 | 61 | .256 | 36
13  | Miami Heat | 15 | 67 | .183 | 42
A ticket for a game between the Miami Heat and the Charlotte Hornets during their inaugural season.

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

## Expansion

[edit]

The League expands from twenty-three to twenty-five franchises, with new expansion teams in Charlotte and Miami.

The Heat began its season as a member of the Western Conference despite its geographical position, enduring its longest road trips when playing Western Conference teams. It also began the season 0–17, at the time the worst start in NBA history. The Hornets finished at 20–62. Such records are typical of expansion NBA franchises in their initial seasons, with 15–67 being the poorest record repeated by the Cavaliers, Grizzlies, Rockets, and Mavericks, as well as the Heat.[4] The Sacramento Kings were belatedly moved to the Pacific Division in their fourth season after leaving Kansas City.

A ticket for Game 1 of the 1989 Eastern Conference Semifinals between the New York Knicks and the Chicago Bulls.

## Playoffs

[edit]

Main article: 1989 NBA 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 |

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|  |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  |  |  |
| E1 | Detroit* | 3 | | | |
| E8 | Boston | 0 |
| | E1 | Detroit* | 4 |
|  |
| | | E5 | Milwaukee | 0 |
| E4 | Atlanta | 2 |

| E5 | Milwaukee | 3 |
| | E1 | Detroit* | 4 |
| Eastern Conference |
| | | E6 | Chicago | 2 |
| E3 | Cleveland | 2 | |

| E6 | Chicago | 3 |
| | E6 | Chicago | 4 |
|  |
| | | E2 | New York* | 2 |
| E2 | New York* | 3 |

| E7 | Philadelphia | 0 |
| | E1 | Detroit* | 4 |
|  |
| | | W1 | LA Lakers* | 0 |
| W1 | LA Lakers* | 3 | | |

| W8 | Portland | 0 |
| | W1 | LA Lakers* | 4 |
|  |
| | | W4 | Seattle | 0 |
| W4 | Seattle | 3 |

| W5 | Houston | 1 |
| | W1 | LA Lakers* | 4 |
| Western Conference |
| | | W3 | Phoenix | 0 |
| W3 | Phoenix | 3 | |

| W6 | Denver | 0 |
| | W3 | Phoenix | 4 |
|  |
| | | W7 | Golden State | 1 |
| W2 | Utah* | 0 |

| W7 | Golden State | 3 |

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

## Statistics leaders

[edit]

Category | Player | Team | Stat

|
|
|

Points per game | Michael Jordan | Chicago Bulls | 32.5
Rebounds per game | Akeem Olajuwon | Houston Rockets | 13.5
Assists per game | John Stockton | Utah Jazz | 13.6
Steals per game | John Stockton | Utah Jazz | 3.21
Blocks per game | Manute Bol | Golden State Warriors | 4.31
FG% | Dennis Rodman | Detroit Pistons | .595
FT% | Magic Johnson | Los Angeles Lakers | .911
3FG% | Jon Sundvold | Miami Heat | .522

## NBA awards

[edit]

* Most Valuable Player: Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers
* Rookie of the Year: Mitch Richmond, Golden State Warriors
* Defensive Player of the Year: Mark Eaton, Utah Jazz
* Sixth Man of the Year: Eddie Johnson, Phoenix Suns
* Most Improved Player: Kevin Johnson, Phoenix Suns
* Coach of the Year: Cotton Fitzsimmons, Phoenix Suns

* All-NBA First Team:
* F – Karl Malone, Utah Jazz
* F – Charles Barkley, Philadelphia 76ers
* C – Akeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets
* G – Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls
* G – Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers

* All-NBA Second Team:
* F – Tom Chambers, Phoenix Suns
* F – Chris Mullin, Golden State Warriors
* C – Patrick Ewing, New York Knicks
* G – John Stockton, Utah Jazz
* G – Kevin Johnson, Phoenix Suns

* All-NBA Third Team:
* F – Dominique Wilkins, Atlanta Hawks
* F – Terry Cummings, Milwaukee Bucks
* C – Robert Parish, Boston Celtics
* G – Dale Ellis, Seattle SuperSonics
* G – Mark Price, Cleveland Cavaliers

|
|

* NBA All-Rookie First Team:
* Rik Smits, Indiana Pacers
* Willie Anderson, San Antonio Spurs
* Mitch Richmond, Golden State Warriors
* Charles D. Smith, Los Angeles Clippers
* Hersey Hawkins, Philadelphia 76ers

* NBA All-Rookie Second Team:
* Rex Chapman, Charlotte Hornets
* Kevin Edwards, Miami Heat
* Chris Morris, New Jersey Nets
* Brian Shaw, Boston Celtics
* Rod Strickland, New York Knicks

|

* NBA All-Defensive First Team:
* Dennis Rodman, Detroit Pistons
* Larry Nance, Cleveland Cavaliers
* Mark Eaton, Utah Jazz
* Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls
* Joe Dumars, Detroit Pistons

* NBA All-Defensive Second Team:
* Kevin McHale, Boston Celtics
* A.C. Green, Los Angeles Lakers
* Patrick Ewing, New York Knicks
* John Stockton, Utah Jazz
* Alvin Robertson, San Antonio Spurs

|

### Player of the week

[edit]

The following players were named NBA Player of the Week.

Week  | Player

|

Nov. 4 – Nov. 13  | Akeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets)
Nov. 14 – Nov. 20  | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Nov. 21 – Nov. 27  | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks)
Nov. 28 – Dec. 4  | Magic Johnson (Los Angeles Lakers)
Dec. 5 – Dec. 11  | Michael Adams (Denver Nuggets)
Dec. 12 – Dec. 18  | Robert Parish (Boston Celtics)
Dec. 20 – Dec. 25  | Clyde Drexler (Portland Trail Blazers)
Dec. 26 – Dec. 30  | Magic Johnson (Los Angeles Lakers)
Jan. 2 – Jan. 8  | Dale Ellis (Seattle SuperSonics)
Jan. 9 – Jan. 15  | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Jan. 16 – Jan. 22  | Chris Mullin (Golden State Warriors)
Jan. 23 – Jan. 29  | Tom Chambers (Phoenix Suns)
Jan. 30 – Feb. 5  | Ron Harper (Cleveland Cavaliers)
Feb. 6 – Feb. 19  | Akeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets)
Feb. 20 – Feb. 26  | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks)
Feb. 27 – Mar. 5  | Chuck Person (Indiana Pacers)
Mar. 6 – Mar. 12  | Isiah Thomas (Detroit Pistons)
Mar. 13 – Mar. 19  | Kevin Johnson (Phoenix Suns)
Mar. 20 – Mar. 26  | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Mar. 27 – Apr. 2  | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Apr. 3 – Apr. 9  | Clyde Drexler (Portland Trail Blazers)
Apr. 10 – Apr. 16  | Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
Apr. 17 – Apr. 23  | Xavier McDaniel (Seattle SuperSonics)

### Player of the month

[edit]

The following players were named NBA Player of the Month.

Month  | Player

|

November  | Charles Barkley (Philadelphia 76ers)
December  | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
January  | Chris Mullin (Golden State Warriors)
February  | Kevin Johnson (Phoenix Suns)
March  | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
April  | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks)

### Rookie of the month

[edit]

The following players were named NBA Rookie of the Month.

Month  | Rookie

|

November  | Willie Anderson (San Antonio Spurs)
December  | Mitch Richmond (Golden State Warriors)
January  | Mitch Richmond (Golden State Warriors)
February  | Charles Smith (Los Angeles Clippers)
March  | Mitch Richmond (Golden State Warriors)
April  | Charles Smith (Los Angeles Clippers)

### Coach of the month

[edit]

The following coaches were named NBA Coach of the Month.

Month  | Coach

|

November  | Chuck Daly (Detroit Pistons)
December  | Lenny Wilkens (Cleveland Cavaliers)
January  | Del Harris (Milwaukee Bucks)
February  | Don Nelson (Golden State Warriors)
March  | Chuck Daly (Detroit Pistons)
April  | Cotton Fitzsimmons (Phoenix Suns)

## See also

[edit]

* List of NBA regular season records

## References

[edit]

1. ^ The last time the Washington Bullets played in Baltimore United Press International
2. ^ "Bullets leave Baltimore with win Mavericks fall, 94-87" The Baltimore Sun
3. ^ "$300 million Hakeem Olajuwon outdid Michael Jordan with 200+ blocks and steals but lost DPOY to 7'4 Jazz star". September 11, 2022.
4. ^ List Expansion Team & Date: http://www.nba.com/analysis/00422957.html Archived 2011-03-12 at the Wayback Machine

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NBA seasons

1940s|

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1950s|

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1960s|

|  1959–60 |  1960–61 |  1961–62 |  1962–63 |  1963–64 |  1964–65 |  1965–66 |  1966–67 |  1967–68 |  1968–69

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1970s|

|  1969–70 |  1970–71 |  1971–72 |  1972–73 |  1973–74 |  1974–75 |  1975–76 |  1976–77 |  1977–78 |  1978–79

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1980s|

|  1979–80 |  1980–81 |  1981–82 |  1982–83 |  1983–84 |  1984–85 |  1985–86 |  1986–87 |  1987–88 |  1988–89

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1990s|

|  1989–90 |  1990–91 |  1991–92 |  1992–93 |  1993–94 |  1994–95 |  1995–96 |  1996–97 |  1997–98 |  1998–99

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2000s|

|  1999–2000 |  2000–01 |  2001–02 |  2002–03 |  2003–04 |  2004–05 |  2005–06 |  2006–07 |  2007–08 |  2008–09

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2010s|

|  2009–10 |  2010–11 |  2011–12 |  2012–13 |  2013–14 |  2014–15 |  2015–16 |  2016–17 |  2017–18 |  2018–19

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2020s|

|  2019–20 |  2020–21 |  2021–22 |  2022–23 |  2023–24 |  2024–25 |  2025–26 |  |  |

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* v
* t
* e

1988–89 NBA season by team

* 1988 NBA expansion draft
* 1988 NBA draft
* All-Star Game
* Playoffs
* Finals
* Transactions

Eastern|

| Atlantic|

* Boston
* Charlotte
* New Jersey
* New York
* Philadelphia
* Washington

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Central|

* Atlanta
* Chicago
* Cleveland
* Detroit
* Indiana
* Milwaukee

Western|

| Midwest|

* Dallas
* Denver
* Houston
* Miami
* San Antonio
* Utah

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Pacific|

* Golden State
* L.A. Clippers
* L.A. Lakers
* Phoenix
* Portland
* Sacramento
* Seattle

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[ W ]: Games won
*[ L ]: Games lost
*[ PCT ]: Winning percentage
*[ GB ]: Games behind
*[ Home ]: Home record
*[ Road ]: Road record
*[ Div ]: Division record