1997–98 New York Knicks season

1997–98 New York Knicks season
Head coach	Jeff Van Gundy
General manager	Ernie Grunfeld
Owner(s)	Cablevision
Arena	Madison Square Garden
Results
Record	43–39 (.524)
Place	Division: 2nd Conference: 7th
Playoff finish	Lost in Eastern Conference Semifinals to Indiana Pacers, 4–1
Local media
Television	MSG Network
Radio	WFAN

The 1997–98 New York Knicks season was the 52nd season for the team in the National Basketball Association (NBA). During the offseason, the Knicks acquired Chris Mills from the Boston Celtics and Chris Dudley from the Portland Trail Blazers.^[1]^[2] At midseason, they traded Herb Williams to the Philadelphia 76ers for Terry Cummings.^[3] In the regular season, the Knicks had a 43–39 record, which placed them in a tie for second in the Atlantic Division.^[4] Despite their lowest winning percentage since the 1990–91 season,^[5] the team qualified for the NBA Playoffs as the seventh seed.^[6] They also hosted the 1998 NBA All-Star Game.^[7]

The season saw All-Star center Patrick Ewing break his wrist trying to catch an alley-oop during a game against the Milwaukee Bucks on December 20.^[8] The injury kept Ewing out for the rest of the regular season and the entire first-round series against the Miami Heat. Ewing did return for game 2 against the Indiana Pacers in the conference semifinals.^[9]

The 1998 NBA Playoffs matched the Knicks against the #2 seed Heat, who had eliminated the Knicks in the 1997 playoffs in a series that featured a brawl during Game 5.^[10]^[11] The altercation led to the suspension of six players, including five Knicks.^[12] In the 1998 series, another brawl occurred in the closing seconds of Game 4, which the Knicks won to even the series at two games each. Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning exchanged punches, and Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy clung to one of Mourning's legs at one point in an attempt to separate the two.^[13] Three players were suspended for Game 5, including Johnson, Mourning, and Mills, who left the bench during the fight.^[14] New York won Game 5 to advance to the second round, where it lost to the Pacers in five games.^[4] Following the season, Charles Oakley was traded to the Toronto Raptors, John Starks was dealt along with Mills and Cummings to the Golden State Warriors,^[15] and Buck Williams retired.^[16]

NBA Draft

Main article: 1997 NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
1	25	John Thomas	PF	United States	Minnesota

Roster

New York Knicks roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	No.	Name	Height	Weight	DOB (YYYY–MM–DD)
2.0 !SG	13	USA !	Bowie, Anthony	7000198120000000000♠6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Oklahoma
1.0 !PG	1	USA !	Childs, Chris	7000190500000000000♠6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Boise State
4.5 !PF	35	USA !	Cummings, Terry (from PHI)	7000205740000000000♠6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	DePaul
4.5 !PF	4	USA !	Davis, Ben	7000205740000000000♠6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	Arizona
6.0 !C	14	USA !	Dudley, Chris	7000210820000000000♠6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Yale
6.0 !C	33	USA !	Ewing, Patrick	7000213360000000000♠7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	Georgetown
2.0 !SG	20	USA !	Houston, Allan	7000198120000000000♠6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Tennessee
3.0 !SF	2	USA !	Johnson, Larry	7000198120000000000♠6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	250 lb (113 kg)	UNLV
3.0 !SF	42	USA !	Mills, Chris	7000198120000000000♠6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Arizona
4.5 !PF	34	USA !	Oakley, Charles	7000203200000000000♠6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Virginia Union
2.0 !SG	3	USA !	Starks, John	7000190500000000000♠6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Oklahoma State
1.0 !PG	7	USA !	Thompson, Brooks	7000193040000000000♠6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	193 lb (88 kg)	Oklahoma State
1.0 !PG	21	USA !	Ward, Charlie	7000187960000000000♠6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Florida State
4.5 !PF	52	USA !	Williams, Buck	7000203200000000000♠6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Maryland
6.0 !C	32	USA !	Williams, Herb (traded to PHI)	7000208279999999999♠6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	242 lb (110 kg)	Ohio State

Head coach

Jeff Van Gundy (Nazareth College)

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(DP) Unsigned draft pick
(FA) Free agent
(S) Suspended
Injured

Roster • Transactions

Regular season

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

Record vs. opponents

1997-98 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	—	2–1	4–0	1–3	4–0	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	1–3	3–1	0–2	1–2	2–2	2–2	3–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	4–0
Boston	1–2	—	1–2	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–2	1–1	2–2	2–2	2–2	3–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–0	0–2	2–0	3–2
Charlotte	0–4	2–1	—	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–2	1–3	3–1	2–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–2
Chicago	3–1	3–1	3–1	—	2–2	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	2–1	4–0	1–1	4–0	4–0	3–1	2–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	3–1
Cleveland	0–4	3–1	2–2	2–2	—	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–2	2–0	3–1	1–2	2–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	3–1	1–1	2–0	1–2
Dallas	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	—	3–1	0–2	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–3	0–4	0–2	0–2	2–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–4	0–4	0–4	2–2	1–1	0–4	4–0	1–1
Denver	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–3	—	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	2–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	2–2	1–3	0–4	0–4	0–2	0–4	1–3	1–1
Detroit	2–2	2–2	1–3	1–3	1–3	2–0	2–0	—	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	1–2	2–2	0–2	2–2	2–2	1–2	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	4–0	0–2	0–2	2–2
Golden State	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	3–1	3–1	0–2	—	1–3	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–4	1–3	2–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–2
Houston	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	4–0	4–0	1–1	3–1	—	1–1	4–0	1–3	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–3	4–0	2–2	1–3	2–0	0–4	3–1	1–1
Indiana	3–1	4–0	1–3	2–2	2–2	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	—	2–0	0–2	3–1	4–0	2–0	2–1	2–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	4–0	1–1	2–0	4–0
L.A. Clippers	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	3–1	2–2	0–2	3–1	0–4	0–2	—	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–4	3–1	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–3	1–3	0–2
L.A. Lakers	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–0	2–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	4–0	—	1–1	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–2	2–2	4–0	4–0	1–3	2–0	3–1	4–0	1–1
Miami	3–1	4–0	1–3	1–2	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–1	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	—	3–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	3–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	0–2	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–2
Milwaukee	1–3	2–2	1–3	0–4	2–2	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–0	0–2	1–3	—	1–1	0–4	3–1	2–1	2–2	0–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	1–2
Minnesota	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–2	3–1	2–0	4–0	3–1	0–2	4–0	0–4	1–1	1–1	—	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	3–1	1–3	3–1	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–3	4–0	0–2
New Jersey	2–1	2–2	2–2	0–4	1–3	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	4–0	0–2	—	2–2	3–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	3–1	0–2	2–0	1–3
New York	2–2	2–2	3–1	0–4	2–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–2	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–3	1–1	2–2	—	4–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	2–0	1–3
Orlando	2–2	2–2	1–3	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–0	2–1	1–1	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	1–3	1–2	2–0	1–3	0–4	—	4–0	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	2–0	3–1
Philadelphia	1–3	1–3	1–2	1–2	1–3	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	0–4	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–2	0–2	1–3	2–2	0–4	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	0–2	2–0	3–1
Phoenix	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	4–0	4–0	1–1	4–0	3–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	2–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	—	2–2	3–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	1–3	4–0	1–1
Portland	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	3–1	3–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	0–2	0–2	3–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–2	—	3–1	2–2	0–4	2–0	3–1	2–2	1–1
Sacramento	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	4–0	3–1	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	1–3	—	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1
San Antonio	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	4–0	4–0	1–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	3–1	0–4	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–2	4–0	—	2–2	2–0	1–3	4–0	1–1
Seattle	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	4–0	2–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	4–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	4–0	3–1	2–2	—	2–0	2–2	4–0	1–1
Toronto	0–4	0–3	0–4	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–0	0–2	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–4	1–3	1–1	1–3	1–3	1–3	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	—	0–2	1–1	0–3
Utah	2–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	4–0	2–0	4–0	4–0	1–1	3–1	1–3	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	2–2	2–0	—	4–0	0–2
Vancouver	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	3–1	2–0	3–1	1–3	0–2	3–1	0–4	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	2–2	2–2	0–4	0–4	1–1	0–4	—	1–1
Washington	0–4	2–3	2–2	1–3	2–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–1	2–0	3–1	3–1	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–0	2–0	1–1	—

Playoffs

East First Round

(2) Miami Heat vs. (7) New York Knicks Last Playoff Meeting: 1997 Eastern Conference Semifinals (Miami won 4–3)

Game	Date	Home	Score	Visitor	Score	Record (MIA-NYK)	Venue	Box score	Television
1	April 24	Miami	94	New York	79	1–0	Miami Arena, Miami, Florida	1	TBS 7:00et
2	April 26	Miami	86	New York	96	1–1	Miami Arena, Miami, Florida	2	NBC 12:30et
3	April 28	New York	85	Miami	91	2–1	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York	3	TBS 7:00et
4	April 30	New York	90	Miami	85	2–2	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York	4	TNT 8:00et
5	May 3	Miami	81	New York	98	2–3	Miami Arena, Miami, Florida	5	NBC 12:30et
New York wins series 3–2

East Conference Semifinals

(3) Indiana Pacers vs. (7) New York Knicks Last Playoff Meeting: 1995 Eastern Conference Semifinals (Indiana won 4–3)

Game	Date	Home	Score	Visitor	Score	Record (IND-NYK)	Venue	Box score	Television
1	May 5	Indiana	93	New York	83	1–0	Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, Indiana	1	TNT 8:00et
2	May 7	Indiana	85	New York	77	2–0	Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, Indiana	2	TNT 8:00et
3	May 9	New York	83	Indiana	76	2–1	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York	3	NBC 1:00et
4	May 10	New York	107	Indiana	118	3–1	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York	4	NBC 12:30et
5	May 13	Indiana	99	New York	88	4–1	Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, Indiana	5	TNT 7:00et
Indiana wins series 4–1

Awards and records

Charles Oakley, NBA All-Defensive Second Team

References

↑ "Knicks trade four players for Mills". The Register-Guard. October 23, 1997. p. 4C. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
↑ Shapiro, Mark (September 8, 1997). "Dudley's Trade To Knicks Approved". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
↑ Smith, Stephen A. (February 20, 1998). "Cummings Dealt By The 76ers For A Pair Of Knicks: The Forward, Swapped For Herb Williams And Ronnie Grandison, Landed With A Winner". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
1 2 "1997–98 New York Knickerbockers Roster and Statistics". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
↑ "New York Knickerbockers Franchise Index". Basketball-Reference. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
↑ "1997–98 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference. Archived from the original on July 4, 2011. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
↑ Iannazzone, Al (September 24, 2013). "League source: Knicks, Nets to co-host NBA All-Star Weekend in 2015". Newsday. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
↑ Roberts, Selena (December 22, 1997). "Pro Basketball; Wrist Surgery Sidelines Ewing For the Season". The New York Times. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
↑ Tatum, Kevin (May 10, 1998). "Knicks Prevail With Childs' Help". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
↑ "1997 NBA Playoffs Summary". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
↑ Wise, Mike (May 15, 1997). "Not for the Faint-Hearted: Knicks-Heat Turns Nasty". The New York Times. Retrieved October 28, 2008.
↑ Wise, Mike (May 16, 1997). "5 Knicks Barred for Melee; 3 to Miss Game 6". The New York Times. Retrieved October 27, 2008.
↑ Sutton, Larry; Standora, Leo (May 1, 1998). "Knicks & Heat Slug It Out Johnson–mourning Fight Clears The Benches". New York Daily News. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
↑ "Tough play big part of Rileyball". Associated Press. The Augusta Chronicle. May 3, 1998. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
↑ Zwerling, Jared (February 25, 2011). "Top 10 trades in Knicks history". ESPN New York. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
↑ "Pro Basketball; Buck Williams Ends Career". The New York Times. January 28, 1999. Retrieved May 13, 2016.

1997–98 NBA season by team

Eastern

Atlantic	Boston Miami New Jersey New York Orlando Philadelphia Washington

Central	Atlanta Charlotte Chicago Cleveland Detroit Indiana Milwaukee Toronto

Western

Midwest	Dallas Denver Houston Minnesota San Antonio Utah Vancouver

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

New York Knicks

Founded in 1946 Based in New York City

Franchise	Franchise All-time roster Draft history Head coaches Seasons Current season

Arenas	Madison Square Garden III 69th Regiment Armory Madison Square Garden IV

General Managers	Podesta Boryla Donovan Holzman Donovan DeBusschere Stirling Bianchi Checketts Grunfeld Layden Thomas Walsh Grunwald Mills

D-League affiliate	Westchester Knicks

Administration	The Madison Square Garden Company (Owner) James Dolan (Chairman & CEO) Steve Mills (GM) Phil Jackson (President) Jeff Hornacek (Head Coach)

Retired numbers	10 12 15 (McGuire) 15 (Monroe) 18 19 22 24 33 613

Hall of Fame members	Walt Bellamy Bill Bradley Hubie Brown Larry Brown Nathaniel Clifton Dave DeBusschere Patrick Ewing Walt Frazier Harry Gallatin Tom Gola Richie Guerin Spencer Haywood Red Holzman Bernard King Jerry Lucas Slater Martin Bob McAdoo Dick McGuire Earl Monroe Dikembe Mutombo Don Nelson Rick Pitino Willis Reed Pat Riley Lenny Wilkens Phil Jackson

NBA Championships (2)	1970 1973

Eastern Conference Championships (8)	1951 1952 1953 1970 1972 1973 1994 1999

Rivalries	Boston Celtics Brooklyn Nets Chicago Bulls Indiana Pacers Miami Heat

Culture and lore	Dancing Harry Eddie Spike Lee Disputed foul against Scottie Pippen Diedrich Knickerbocker Knicks–Nuggets brawl Whatever Happened to Micheal Ray? Mike Walczewski George Kalinsky John Starks' 2-for-18 in Game 7 of the 1994 Finals Linsanity

Media	TV MSG Network Radio WEPN-FM Announcers Mike Breen Walt Frazier Kenny Albert Mike Crispino

New York Knicks seasons

1940s

1950s

1954-55

1960s

1970s

1969–70

1972–73

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

Bold indicates NBA Finals victory

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