1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers season

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers season
Head coach
General managerJerry West
Owner(s)Jerry Buss
ArenaGreat Western Forum
Results
Record31–19 (.620)
PlaceDivision: 2nd (Pacific)
Conference: 4th (Western)
Playoff finishConference Semi-finals
(Lost to Spurs 0–4)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionKCAL-TV
Fox Sports West
(Chick Hearn, Stu Lantz)
RadioKLAC
(Chick Hearn, Stu Lantz)
< 1997–98 1999–00 >

The 1998–99 NBA season was the Lakers' 51st season in the National Basketball Association, and 39th in the city of Los Angeles.[1] It was also the Lakers' final season at the Great Western Forum. During the off-season, the Lakers signed free agent Derek Harper.[2] After a lockout had cut the season to just 50 games,[3][4] the Lakers played around .500 with a 6–6 start as head coach Del Harris was fired. After one game under interim Bill Bertka, the team hired former Laker Kurt Rambis as their new coach.[5] The Lakers had signed free agent and rebounding specialist Dennis Rodman, who was well known for winning championships with the Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls.[6] However, after 23 games, Rodman was released by the team, averaging 11.2 rebounds per game.[7] At midseason, Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell were both traded to the Charlotte Hornets for All-Star forward Glen Rice, J.R. Reid and B. J. Armstrong, who was released to free agency and signed with the Orlando Magic.[8] The Lakers won ten straight games between February and March, and finished second in the Pacific Division with a 31–19 record.[9] Their attendance for the season was 430,007 (12th in the league).

Kobe Bryant finished second on the team in scoring with 19.9 points per game in his first season as a starter, and was selected to the All-NBA Third Team, while Shaquille O'Neal finished second in the league in scoring with 26.3 points, and averaged 10.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, made the All-NBA Second Team, and finished in sixth place in Most Valuable Player voting.[10] Rice played in 27 games due to an elbow injury he sustained in Charlotte, and provided the team with 17.5 points per game.[11] In the playoffs, the Lakers defeated the Houston Rockets 3–1 in the Western Conference First Round,[12] but were swept in four straight games by the eventual champion San Antonio Spurs during the Western Conference Semi-finals.[13]

Following the season, Rambis was fired as head coach,[14] while Reid signed as a free agent with the Milwaukee Bucks, Sean Rooks was traded back to his former team, the Dallas Mavericks, rookie forward Ruben Patterson signed with the Seattle SuperSonics, and Harper was dealt to the Detroit Pistons, but was released and then retired.

Draft picks[]

Main article: 1998 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 26 Sam Jacobson Guard  United States Minnesota

[15]

Roster[]

1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY-MM-DD) From
G 8 Bryant, Kobe 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1978–08–23 Lower Merion HS
G 2 Fisher, Derek 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1974–08–09 Arkansas-Little Rock
F 17 Fox, Rick 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1969–07–24 North Carolina
G 12 Harper, Derek 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1961–10–13 Illinois
F 5 Horry, Robert 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1970–08–25 Alabama
G 7 Jacobson, Sam Injured 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1975–07–22 Minnesota
F/C 40 Knight, Travis 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1974–09–13 Connecticut
G 10 Lue, Tyronn 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1977–05–03 Nebraska
C 34 O'Neal, Shaquille (C) 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 340 lb (154 kg) 1972–03–06 LSU
G/F 21 Patterson, Ruben 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 224 lb (102 kg) 1975–07–31 Cincinnati
F 11 Reid, J. R. 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 247 lb (112 kg) 1968–03–31 North Carolina
F 41 Rice, Glen 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1967–05–28 Michigan
C 45 Rooks, Sean 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1969–09–09 Arizona
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster
Last transaction: April 16, 1999

Roster Notes[]

  • Power forward Dennis Rodman was waived on April 16.

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.[16] 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.[16]

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. Following the season, Rambis was fired as coach.

Season standings[]

Pacific Division
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
# Western Conference
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

[17]

Record vs. opponents[]

1998-99 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIA MIL MIN NJN NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA TOR UTA VAN WAS
Atlanta – 3–0 3–0 3–1 2–1 0–1 0–0 1–2 0–0 1–0 3–1 1–0 0–0 0–3 1–2 0–0 1–2 2–1 2–2 2–1 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–0 2–1
Boston 0–3 – 1–2 2–1 2–2 0–0 1–0 0–3 0–0 0–0 0–3 1–0 0–0 3–0 0–3 0–1 1–2 1–2 1–2 1–2 0–0 0–1 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–2 0–0 1–0 3–1
Charlotte 0–3 2–1 – 2–1 2–1 0–0 0–0 3–0 0–1 0–0 1–2 0–0 0–1 1–2 2–2 0–0 3–0 1–3 1–2 1–2 1–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 1–0 0–0 2–1
Chicago 1–3 1–2 1–2 – 0–3 0–1 0–0 0–3 0–0 0–0 0–3 1–0 0–0 1–2 1–3 0–0 2–1 1–2 0–3 1–2 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–1 0–1 1–2 0–1 1–0 1–2
Cleveland 1–2 2–2 1–2 3–0 – 0–0 0–0 1–2 1–0 0–1 0–3 0–0 1–0 0–3 1–2 0–0 3–0 1–2 1–2 1–2 1–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–0 2–2 0–1 0–0 1–2
Dallas 1–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–0 – 2–1 0–1 2–2 2–2 0–0 3–0 0–3 0–1 0–0 1–2 0–1 0–0 1–0 0–0 1–3 0–3 2–2 1–3 0–3 0–0 0–3 2–1 0–0
Denver 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–2 – 0–0 1–3 0–4 0–1 3–0 1–2 0–1 1–0 0–3 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–3 0–3 0–3 0–4 2–2 0–0 1–2 3–1 0–1
Detroit 2–1 3–0 0–3 3–0 2–1 1–0 0–0 – 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–0 0–0 2–1 2–1 0–1 2–1 2–1 0–4 1–3 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–1 1–0 2–1 1–0 0–0 2–1
Golden State 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–1 2–2 3–1 0–0 – 0–3 1–0 2–1 1–2 0–0 0–1 2–2 0–0 0–0 0–1 0–0 1–2 2–2 1–2 0–3 1–2 0–0 0–4 4–0 0–0
Houston 0–1 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 2–2 4–0 0–0 3–0 – 0–0 3–1 1–2 0–1 0–0 2–1 1–0 0–0 0–1 0–0 2–2 2–1 3–0 0–3 2–1 1–0 0–3 4–0 0–0
Indiana 1–2 3–0 2–1 3–0 3–0 0–0 1–0 1–2 0–1 0–0 – 0–0 1–0 2–2 3–0 0–0 3–1 2–1 1–2 1–2 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–0 3–0
L.A. Clippers 0–1 0–1 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–3 0–3 0–0 1–2 1–3 0–0 – 0–4 0–0 0–0 2–2 1–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 0–3 1–2 1–2 0–3 0–3 0–1 1–3 1–3 0–0
L.A. Lakers 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–1 3–0 2–1 0–0 2–1 2–1 0–1 4–0 – 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–0 1–0 0–1 3–1 2–2 1–2 2–1 2–2 0–0 1–3 2–1 0–0
Miami 3–0 0–3 2–1 2–1 3–0 1–0 1–0 1–2 0–0 1–0 2–2 0–0 0–0 – 2–1 0–1 3–1 2–2 2–1 2–1 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 3–0 0–1 0–0 3–0
Milwaukee 2–1 3–0 2–2 3–1 2–1 0–0 0–1 1–2 1–0 0–0 0–3 0–0 0–0 1–2 – 1–0 2–1 2–1 1–2 1–2 0–1 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 3–1 0–0 0–0 2–1
Minnesota 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 3–0 1–0 2–2 1–2 0–0 2–2 1–2 1–0 0–1 – 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–2 0–3 3–1 2–2 2–1 0–1 0–3 3–1 0–0
New Jersey 2–1 2–1 0–3 1–2 0–3 1–0 0–1 1–2 0–0 0–1 1–3 0–1 0–0 1–3 1–2 0–0 – 0–3 0–3 1–2 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–0 2–1 0–0 0–0 2–1
New York 1–2 2–1 3–1 2–1 2–1 0–0 0–0 1–2 0–0 0–0 1–2 1–0 0–1 2–2 1–2 1–0 3–0 – 0–3 3–1 1–0 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–2 0–0 0–0 2–1
Orlando 2–2 2–1 2–1 3–0 2–1 0–1 0–0 4–0 1–0 1–0 2–1 0–0 0–1 1–2 2–1 0–0 3–0 3–0 – 1–2 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–1 0–0 1–2 0–0 0–0 2–1
Philadelphia 1–2 2–1 2–1 2–1 2–1 0–0 0–0 3–1 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–0 1–2 2–1 0–0 2–1 1–3 2–1 – 0–0 0–1 1–0 0–1 0–1 2–1 0–0 1–0 1–2
Phoenix 0–1 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–1 3–1 3–0 0–1 2–1 2–2 0–0 3–0 1–3 0–0 1–0 2–1 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 – 0–3 0–3 2–2 3–0 0–0 2–2 3–0 0–0
Portland 0–0 1–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 3–0 3–0 0–0 2–2 1–2 1–0 2–1 2–2 0–0 0–0 3–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 3–0 – 4–0 1–3 2–2 0–0 1–2 4–0 0–0
Sacramento 0–0 1–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–2 3–0 0–0 2–1 0–3 0–0 2–1 2–1 0–0 0–0 1–3 0–0 1–0 0–1 0–1 3–0 0–4 – 1–2 2–2 0–0 1–2 4–0 1–0
San Antonio 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–1 3–1 4–0 1–0 3–0 3–0 0–0 3–0 1–2 0–0 0–0 2–2 0–0 0–0 1–0 1–0 2–2 3–1 2–1 – 2–1 0–1 2–1 3–0 0–0
Seattle 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–0 3–0 2–2 0–1 2–1 1–2 0–0 3–0 2–2 0–0 0–1 1–2 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–3 2–2 2–2 1–2 – 0–0 2–2 2–1 0–1
Toronto 1–2 2–1 1–2 2–1 2–2 0–0 0–0 1–2 0–0 0–1 1–2 1–0 0–0 0–3 1–3 1–0 1–2 2–1 2–1 1–2 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–0 – 0–0 1–0 2–2
Utah 0–0 0–0 0–1 1–0 1–0 3–0 2–1 0–1 4–0 3–0 0–0 3–1 3–1 1–0 0–0 3–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 2–1 1–2 2–2 0–0 – 3–0 1–0
Vancouver 0–1 0–1 0–0 0–1 0–0 1–2 1–3 0–0 0–3 0–4 0–1 3–1 1–2 0–0 0–0 1–3 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–1 0–3 0–3 0–4 0–3 1–2 0–1 0–3 – 0–0
Washington 1–2 1–3 1–2 2–1 2–1 0–0 1–0 1–2 0–1 0–0 0–3 0–0 0–0 0–3 1–2 0–0 1–2 1–2 1–2 2–1 0–0 0–1 0–1 0–0 1–0 2–2 0–1 0–0 —

Game log[]

Playoffs[]

1999 playoff game log
First round: 3–1 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 May 9 Houston W 101–100 Glen Rice (29) Shaquille O'Neal (11) Derek Fisher (6) Great Western Forum
17,505 		1–0
2 May 11 Houston W 110–98 Shaquille O'Neal (28) Robert Horry (10) Shaquille O'Neal (7) Great Western Forum
17,505 		2–0
3 May 13 @ Houston L 88–102 Shaquille O'Neal (26) Shaquille O'Neal (10) Derek Fisher (6) Compaq Center
16,285 		2–1
4 May 15 @ Houston W 98–88 Shaquille O'Neal (37) Shaquille O'Neal (11) Kobe Bryant (8) Compaq Center
16,285 		3–1
Conference Semi-finals: 0–4 (Home: 0–2; Road: 0–2)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 May 17 @ San Antonio L 81–87 three players tied (21) Shaquille O'Neal (15) Kobe Bryant (6) Alamodome
25,297 		0–1
2 May 19 @ San Antonio L 76–79 Kobe Bryant (28) three players tied (8) Kobe Bryant (4) Alamodome
33,293 		0–2
3 May 22 San Antonio L 91–103 Glen Rice (24) Shaquille O'Neal (15) Derek Fisher (9) Great Western Forum
17,505 		0–3
4 May 23 San Antonio L 107–118 Shaquille O'Neal (36) Shaquille O'Neal (14) Fisher, Lue (6) Great Western Forum
17,505 		0–4
1999 schedule

Player stats[]

Legend
  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

Regular season[]

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Corie Blount 14 3 11.6 .394 .000 .500 3.3 .1 .1 .3 2.3
Kobe Bryant 50 50 37.9 .465 .267 .839 5.3 3.8 1.4 1.0 19.9
Elden Campbell 17 1 19.1 .436 . .613 5.6 .5 .1 .9 7.4
Derek Fisher 50 21 22.6 .376 .392 .756 1.8 3.9 1.2 .0 5.9
Rick Fox 44 1 21.5 .448 .337 .742 2.0 2.0 .6 .2 9.0
Derek Harper 45 29 24.9 .412 .368 .813 1.5 4.2 1.0 .1 6.9
Robert Horry 38 5 19.6 .459 .444 .739 4.0 1.5 .9 1.0 4.9
Sam Jacobson 2 0 6.0 .600 .000 1.000 1.5 .0 .0 .0 4.0
Eddie Jones 20 20 36.2 .423 .313 .738 3.8 3.1 1.8 1.2 13.6
Travis Knight 37 23 14.2 .515 .000 .759 3.5 .8 .6 .7 4.2
Tyronn Lue 15 0 12.5 .431 .438 .571 .4 1.7 .3 .0 5.0
Shaquille O'Neal 49 49 34.8 .576 .000 .540 10.7 2.3 .7 1.7 26.3
Ruben Patterson 24 2 6.0 .412 .167 .710 1.3 .1 .2 .1 2.7
J. R. Reid 25 10 18.9 .407 .000 .717 4.0 .9 .6 .0 5.0
Glen Rice 27 25 36.5 .432 .393 .856 3.7 2.6 .6 .2 17.5
Dennis Rodman 23 11 28.6 .348 .000 .436 11.2 1.3 .4 .5 2.1
Sean Rooks 36 0 8.8 .405 .000 .708 2.0 .3 .1 .3 2.7
  • 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[]

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Kobe Bryant 8 8 39.4 .430 .348 .800 6.9 4.6 1.9 1.3 19.8
Derek Fisher 8 8 29.8 .418 .345 .800 3.6 4.9 1.0 .0 9.8
Rick Fox 8 1 22.6 .400 .190 1.000 2.8 1.5 .5 .6 6.6
Derek Harper 7 0 16.1 .419 .100 .500 1.4 2.1 .3 .1 4.3
Robert Horry 8 0 22.1 .462 .417 .786 4.5 1.4 .8 .8 5.0
Travis Knight 3 0 3.3 .333 . .500 1.7 .3 .0 .0 1.0
Tyronn Lue 3 0 11.0 .412 .000 . .7 2.0 .7 .0 4.7
Shaquille O'Neal 8 8 39.4 .510 . .466 11.6 2.3 .9 2.9 26.6
Ruben Patterson 3 0 1.7 .000 . . .0 .0 .0 .0 .0
J. R. Reid 8 8 22.3 .357 . .750 5.3 .4 .5 .6 3.3
Glen Rice 7 7 43.9 .446 .357 .966 3.9 1.6 .7 .1 18.3
Sean Rooks 7 0 6.9 .333 . .833 .3 .4 .0 .1 1.3

Awards and honors[]

  • Kobe Bryant, All-NBA Third Team
  • Shaquille O'Neal, All-NBA Second Team

Transactions[]

References[]

  1. ^ 1998-99 Los Angeles Lakers
  2. ^ "N.B.A. TRANSACTIONS". New York Times. January 22, 1999. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  3. ^ "BASKETBALL; It's Their Ball, and N.B.A. Owners Call for Lockout". New York Times. June 30, 1998. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  4. ^ "With Lockout Over, Players Work Out". New York Times. January 24, 1999. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  5. ^ "PRO BASKETBALL; Rambis Hired To Lead Lakers". New York Times. February 27, 1999. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  6. ^ "Rodman Signs Lakers Contract". Chicago Tribune. February 23, 1999. Retrieved July 28, 2017.
  7. ^ "N.B.A. : ROUNDUP -- LAKERS; Rodman's Act Finally Wears Too Thin". New York Times. April 16, 1999. Retrieved July 28, 2017.
  8. ^ "Lakers Swap Rumors for a Victory". Los Angeles Times. February 17, 1999. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  9. ^ "1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  10. ^ "1998–99 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  11. ^ "1998–99 Los Angeles Lakers Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  12. ^ "Lakers End Rockets Flight". CBS News. May 15, 1999. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  13. ^ "Spurs Upend L.A. To Advance". CBS News. May 23, 1999. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  14. ^ "Not So Fast There, Rambis Might Stay". Los Angeles Times. May 27, 1999. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  15. ^ "1998 NBA Draft History - Round 1". Mynbadraft.com. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
  16. ^ a b "CNN/SI - 1999 NBA Draft - - Tuesday June 29, 1999 02:59 am". Archived from the original on October 24, 2012. Retrieved December 13, 2014.
  17. ^ "1998-99 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
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