1998–99 New York Knicks season
The 1998–99 New York Knicks season was the 52nd season for the New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association. Due to a lockout, the regular season began on February 5, 1999, and was cut from 82 games to 50.
Head coach Jeff Van Gundy entered in his third full season coaching the Knicks. To give All-Star center Patrick Ewing more help offensively and defensively, the Knicks acquired controversial All-Star guard Latrell Sprewell from the Golden State Warriors, acquired Marcus Camby from the Toronto Raptors, and signed free agents Kurt Thomas, and three-point specialist Dennis Scott during the off-season. However, Scott was released by the team to free agency after 15 games, and later on signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Because of the lockout shortened season, and injuries to Sprewell, who missed 13 games due to a stress fracture in his right heel, and Ewing, who missed 12 games due to a knee injury, the Knicks played mediocre basketball around.500 in winning percentage. The team won six of their final eight games of the regular season to finish in fourth place in the Atlantic Division with a 27–23 record, earning the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
Ewing averaged 17.3 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, while Sprewell played a sixth man role off the bench, averaging 16.4 points per game, and Allan Houston provided the team with 16.3 points per game. In addition, Larry Johnson contributed 12.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while Thomas provided with 8.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, and Charlie Ward contributed 7.6 points, 5.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Off the bench, Camby averaged 7.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game, and Chris Childs contributed 6.8 points and 4.0 assists per game. Sprewell also finished tied in tenth place in Most Improved Player voting; despite a stellar season off the bench, he did not receive any votes in Sixth Man of the Year voting.
In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 1999 NBA playoffs, and for the third consecutive year, the Knicks faced off against the top–seeded, and Atlantic Division champion Miami Heat, who were led by All-Star center, and Defensive Player of the Year, Alonzo Mourning, All-Star guard Tim Hardaway, and Jamal Mashburn. The Knicks took a 2–1 series lead over the Heat, before losing Game 4 at home at Madison Square Garden, 87–72 as the Heat evened the series. The Knicks won Game 5 over the Heat on the road, 78–77 at the Miami Arena, in which Houston hit the game-winning buzzer-beater, as the Knicks defeated the Heat in a hard-fought five-game series, and became the second 8th–seeded team in NBA history to defeat the first–seeded team.
In the Eastern Conference Semi-finals, the team then faced off against the 4th-seeded Atlanta Hawks, a team that featured All-Star center Dikembe Mutombo, All-Star guard Steve Smith, and Mookie Blaylock. Despite the Hawks having home-court advantage in the series, the Knicks won the first two games on the road at the Georgia Dome, and then won the next two games at home, including a Game 4 win over the Hawks at Madison Square Garden, 79–66 to win the series in a four-game sweep. Camby, who had struggled through most of the regular season, emerged as one of the key players off a deep Knicks bench; Camby's 11 points and 13 rebounds in Game 2 of the Knicks-Hawks series proved to be his coming-out party.
The Knicks became the first #8 seed to sweep an NBA playoff series, as the team advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals to meet a familiar foe, the 2nd–seeded and Central Division champion Indiana Pacers, who were led by All-Star guard Reggie Miller, All-Star center Rik Smits, and sixth man Jalen Rose. The Knicks won Game 1 over the Pacers on the road, 93–90 at the Market Square Arena. However, the team lost Ewing in Game 2 of the series, in which the Knicks lost to the Pacers on the road, 88–86; Ewing had been battling through an Achilles injury, but it was learned that the tendon, which he had played on in Game 2, was partially torn, and he would be forced to miss the remainder of the playoffs. The Knicks were rescued by Johnson in Game 3 at Madison Square Garden; standing outside the three-point line with 11.9 seconds left, Johnson held the ball, and then began to dribble; he leaned into Pacers defender Antonio Davis before jumping up. The referee called the foul about a half-second before Johnson released the ball, but it was counted as a continuation shooting foul; the three-point basket, and the ensuing free throw gave the Knicks a 92–91 victory.
The Pacers managed to win Game 4 on the road, 90–78 to even the series, but the Knicks won Game 5 at the Market Square Arena, 101–94. The Knicks won Game 6 over the Pacers at Madison Square Garden, 90–82, despite losing Johnson to a knee injury in the first half. Led by Houston's 32-point performance and defense against Miller, who struggled and only made 3 out of 18 field-goal attempts, the Knicks won the series over the Pacers in six games, and advanced to the NBA Finals for the second time in six seasons. The Knicks' 27–23 record was the worst for a team to reach the NBA Finals, since the Houston Rockets did it with a 40–42 record in 1981. They also became the first #8 seed to reach the Finals, a feat that has since only been repeated once by the Miami Heat in the 2022–23 season.
In the 1999 NBA Finals, the Knicks faced off against the top–seeded San Antonio Spurs, who were led by All-Star forward Tim Duncan, All-Star center David Robinson, and Sean Elliott. The Knicks lost the first two games to the Spurs on the road at the Alamodome, but managed to win Game 3 at home, 89–81 at Madison Square Garden. However, the Knicks lost their next two home games, including a Game 5 loss to the Spurs at Madison Square Garden, 78–77, despite Sprewell's double-double performance of 35 points and 10 rebounds, as Spurs guard Avery Johnson hit the game-winning shot. The Knicks lost the series in five games, as the Spurs won their first ever NBA championship in franchise history. In the Finals, Sprewell averaged 26.0 points per game, and Houston provided with 21.6 points per game; the Knicks defense did not allow any opponent to score more than 96 points against them in their 20 playoff games.
The Knicks finished third in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 494,075 at Madison Square Garden during the regular season. Following the season, veteran center Herb Williams retired at age 41. The team's season roster has been featured in the basketball game series NBA 2K since the 19th installment NBA 2K18.
Offseason
NBA draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | School/Club team |
| 2 | 38 | DeMarco Johnson | PF | UNC Charlotte | |
| 2 | 44 | Sean Marks | PF | California |
Transactions
- On 6/25/98: Knicks traded Charles Oakley and Sean Marks to the Toronto Raptors for Marcus Camby.
- On 1/18/99: Knicks traded John Starks, Chris Mills and Terry Cummings to the Golden State Warriors for Latrell Sprewell.
Regular season
Schedule
Feb.Feb. 5 Orlando 93, New York 85
Feb. 7 Miami 83, New York 79
Feb. 10 New York 101, Washington 88
Feb. 11 New York 73, Chicago 68
Feb. 15 New York 78, Detroit 69
Feb. 16 New York 95, Toronto 85
Feb. 18 Cleveland 98, New York 74
Feb. 19 New York 78, Philadelphia 67
Feb. 21 New York 79, Chicago 63
Feb. 23 New York 82, New Jersey 74
Feb. 25 New York 115, Minnesota 113
Feb. 26 Boston 94, New York 80
Feb. 28 Detroit 89, New York 68
Mar.
Mar. 1 New York 85, Cleveland 78
Mar. 2 Miami 85, New York 84
Mar. 5 Milwaukee 88, New York 87
Mar. 7 New York 97, New Jersey 86
Mar. 9 Milwaukee 87, New York 86
Mar. 11 New York 98, Washington 86
Mar. 12 Chicago 76, New York 63
Mar. 14 New York 94, Charlotte 86
Mar. 15 New York 108, Milwaukee 102
Mar. 16 New York 113, Los Angeles Clippers 89
Mar. 18 Orlando 86, New York 78
Mar. 20 New York 96, Boston 78
Mar. 21 Toronto 85, New York 81
Mar. 22 Atlanta 80, New York 71
Mar. 24 Sacramento 92, New York 91
Mar. 26 New York 94, Phoenix 87
Mar. 28 Los Angeles Lakers 99, New York 91
Mar. 30 New York 94, Indiana 93
Apr.
Apr. 1 New York 78, Cleveland 74
Apr. 4 Indiana 108, New York 95
Apr. 6 Orlando 81, New York 72
Apr. 7 Charlotte 106, New York 82
Apr. 9 New York 86, Atlanta 78
Apr. 11 New York 93, New Jersey 78
Apr. 13 New York 91, Philadelphia 72
Apr. 14 Washington 95, New York 89
Apr. 16 Detroit 80, New York 71
Apr. 17 Toronto 93, New York 90
Apr. 19 Philadelphia 72, New York 67
Apr. 23 New York 110, Charlotte 105
Apr. 25 New York 82, Miami 80
Apr. 26 New York 91, Charlotte 84
Apr. 28 Atlanta 76, New York 73
Apr. 29 New York 85, Philadelphia 70
May
May 2 Indiana 94, New York 71
May 3 New York 95, Boston 88
May 5 New York 101, Miami 88