The Greatest Era In NBA History (Entire 1990's Recap)

Every NBA decade is special in its own right, but the 1990s I've never seen that come real might be the most iconic of all time in the middle for the win. During the '9s, we witnessed the greatest scoring run ever. Here's Jordan for three. Yes. The greatest rebounding reign ever. Rebound run. And he's unbelievable at that. And the continued excellence of the all-time assist leader. Oh, baby. want to play by stock. We saw the best team ever assembled. We saw records that will likely never be broken, as well as notable rule changes, and the continued

globalization of the NBA as it became the most popular basketball league on the planet. Legendary feuds, iconic gamewinners, open three, tattoos, dyed hair, and cornrows were all part of the decade that produced some of the greatest moments in NBA history. This is the full recap of the '90s. from the 1990 season until 1999. The 1989 NBA season ended with 25 franchises and the 90s started with 27 as the Minnesota Timberwolves and Orlando Magic joined the league. But one of the biggest changes came from the coaching side as the Chicago Bulls hired an unproven coach who

looked like a hippie and used Sage during practices but would end up retiring with more rings than fingers. NBC and TNT became new broadcasters. unsullied by sponsorship since 1989. The 1989 90 season was historical due to the first influx of international players who would all end up in the Hall of Fame. Vlatty Dvich, Drazzen Petravvic, Serunis Marcelonus, and Alexander Volkov. However, the first pick of the 89 draft was one of the biggest busts of all time. The Sacramento Kings select Pervis Ellison from the University of Louisville. But it wasn't all bad as Shaun Kemp, Glenn

Rice, and Tim Hardaway also got drafted. And yet, the biggest addition to any team was the one of David Robinson, who was the first overall pick in 1987, but decided to stay in the Navy for 2 years. With the Admiral in the lineup, the Spurs improved by 35 games, which was the biggest turnaround in NBA history at the time, and Robinson became just the second newcomer who won rookie of the year unanimously. Jordan led the league in scoring for the fourth consecutive season. But in one of the closest MVP ballots ever, where four different players

had a realistic chance to win, MJ finished third in MVP voting behind Charles Barkley and Magic Johnson, who won his third MVP award. Dennis Rodman won his first defensive player of the year even though he averaged less than one steal and block per game, while Hakee somehow finished second despite averaging 2.1 steals and a league leading 4.6 rejections. Elijahan also notched a quadruple double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so. In the all-star game, East dominated the West, but Magic took home the MVP, and it was only the

third time in history a player on a losing team won the All-Star MVP. In the dunk contest, Dominique Wilkins defeated Kenny Smith, whose knees weren't as crooked yet, to win his second slam dunk title. In the playoffs, despite having the MVP and the coach of the year, the Lakers struggled in their first year without Kareem Abdul Jabbar and got defeated by the Suns in the second round. It is all over. The Lakers have been eliminated. However, it was the Portland Trailblazers who won the West behind a great backcourt duo of Terry Porter and Clyde Drexler.

In the East, Michael Jordan got his second conference finals, but for the third year in a row, he got punched, kicked, and grabbed by the Pistons and their Jordan rules. MJ still pushed the Pistons to game seven where he would score 31 points with eight rebounds and nine assists. But the rest of the Bulls starters shot an abysmal 23% from the floor, scoring just 43 points, and the Pistons blew them out to advance to their third consecutive NBA finals. In the championship round, it was very close as four games were decided by less than a

six-point margin of victory. But the Pistons proved their championship pedigree, winning the title in five games with Isaiah Thomas as the finals MVP. Isaiah played the best series of his life, scoring 27 points, five rebounds, and seven assists, shooting 54% from the field, and an unbelievable 69% for three. Drazzen Petravvic, who was by far the best player in Europe and one of the 10 best shooters in basketball history, played garbage time minutes, which shows how much the NBA teams didn't trust the Euros back then. And when the 199091 NBA season rolled around, it came with

a lot of changes. Eight teams changed their coaches, most notably the LA Lakers, whose Pat Riley resigned as the head coach after nine years and four championships. Pat Riley, of his own doing, resigned as coach of the Lakers. He knew as early as February he was going to do it. After the season, he made an agreement with Jerry Bus not to announce it until his replacement had been selected. The Orlando Magic didn't change their coach, but they changed conferences. And after they had more travel miles than any other team, they unsurprisingly returned to the East

after one year. There were also some rule changes. The NBA instituted the Trent Tucker rule, named after Trent Tucker, who hit a walk-off three-point field goal at the buzzer in the previous season with 0.1 seconds left on the clock. The new rule prevented any shot from being taken with up to.2 seconds left in the period, except for tip-ins. And after years of hacking, namely by the rough bad boy Pistons, the NBA introduced the flagrant fowl. In the otherwise weak draft class, Hall of Famers Gary Payton and Tony Cuckoo were drafted. Even though the Croatian forward

would stay in Europe for the next three seasons, the season started in Tokyo, at least for the Suns and the Jazz, who played their first game of the season in Japan as the NBA became the first major professional sports league to play outside North America. On December 30th, 1990, Scott Skylles handed out 30 assists in a game against the Nuggets, which set an NBA record that still stands today. Rodman repeated as the defensive player of the year. Hakee changed his name. Barkley spat on a little girl sitting courtside while Jordan won another scoring title and

his second MVP award. This was also the first season since 1981 that the Lakers didn't have the number one seed in the Western Conference, which is insane and tells you how great of a player Magic Johnson was. The Lakers would defeat Hakee's Rockets and the Run TMC Warriors in the first two playoff rounds. But in the conference finals, everyone expected the number one seated Blazers to advance to the finals again. However, Magic showed that he still owned the West, making his ninth trip to the finals in 12 years. Another crazy feat. The stage is set

for the Air Magic show in the NBA Finals starting Sunday. It'll be Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls against Magic Johnson and the LA Lakers. But the biggest story happened in the East. After years of bullying, Michael Jordan and his Bulls finally shook off the Detroit Pistons in a clean series sweep. And before the final buzzer sounded in game four, Isaiah Thomas and the Pistons walked off the court, passing by the Bulls bench with their heads down, refusing to congratulate the winners. MJ took this personally, and one month later, he had his revenge on Isaiah.

But more on that later. In the finals, things didn't start so well for the Bulls as the Lakers won game one in Chicago. But then Scotty Pippen started guarding Magic, which changed everything and turned the series around. Jordan was absolutely spectacular with 31 points and 11 assists and nearly three steals on average while shooting 55% from the field and 50% from three. The 1991 Jordan was the best version of Michael and it produced one of the most famous layups in NBA history. A spectacular the Bulls won the series in five games and of course Jordan

was the finals MVP. But now let's talk about Michael's revenge on Isaiah Thomas. One month after the season, around the time when Terminator 2 ruled the box office, the NBA league, Commissioner Stern, and the US Olympic program agreed to send NBA players to the Olympics after the collegiate athletes only won bronze in 1988. The first call was for Michael, who famously accepted to play, but only if Isaiah Thomas wasn't on the team. And on September 21st, 1991, it was officially announced that NBA stars would participate in the Olympics. The 10 players chosen were Charles Barkley,

Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Carl Malone, Chris Mullen, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, and John Stockton. When the public saw Isaiah off the list, the Olympic Committee received a lot of backlash because Thomas was widely considered the second best point guard ever behind Magic. And speaking of Magic, he would soon become the biggest story in all of sports. After a physical examination before the start of the 1992 season, Johnson discovered that he had tested positive for HIV. And on November 7th, 1991, Johnson organized arguably the saddest and the most memorable press conference in

NBA history because of the HIV virus that I have attained. Uh I will have to retire from the Lakers uh today. In Magic's honor, Charles Barkley switched his number from 34 to 32, which he wore for the entire season. DMBBE Matumbbo, Steve Smith, Larry Johnson, and Kenny Anderson got drafted with Larry Johnson winning rookie of the year in another relatively weak draft class. Pat Riley, after a year of commentating, returned to the NBA. Pat Riley won four NBA titles in his nine seasons with the Lakers. He left LA three years ago, worked here at NBC

for a year, and then joined the Knicks for the 9192 season, who would become a defensive force and a perennial contender in the East. But as the Knicks grew stronger, two other East powerhouses were at the end of their glory days and would soon fall into obscurity. Larry Bird played his last season with the Boston Celtics. And despite having to stretch for 2 hours before the game because of his bad back, he still averaged 20, 10, and seven and shot over 40% for three. The Celtics won 51 games, which would be their last 50 wins

season in 16 years. So today I'm retiring and u I'm still going to be around, but not in the capacity I once was. The Bad Boy Pistons were also falling apart as Chuck Daly resigned by the end of 1992 to coach the dream team. On the brighter side, 1992 marked the start of the rebounding reign of Dennis Rodman. The Worm averaged an unreal 18.7 rebounds per game, which was the highest average since Wilt Chamberlain in 1972. It is the first of an NBA record seven consecutive rebounding titles for Rodman. And during this span, Dennis averaged

16.7 boards per game, which is insane for a 6'7 forward. The run TMC Warriors error also came to an end after Mitch Richmond got traded to the Kings. I had a great career here. It was fun. Just got to take it. Luke Longley became the first Australian player to join the NBA while Larry Brown became the first head coach to coach two different NBA teams in a single season after resigning from the San Antonio Spurs to join the Clippers. Brown led the Clippers to the team's first winning season since their relocation to Los Angeles, ending

their 15-year playoff drought. Another NBA record worth mentioning was the Cavaliers beatdown of the Miami Heat. On December 17th, 1991, the Cavs crushed the Heat by a score of 148 to 80. This 68 point win stood as a record for nearly three decades until the Grizzlies defeated the Thunder by 73 in 2021. But the biggest story of the regular season wasn't any record nor Jordan winning another MVP or John Stockton leading the league in assists for the fifth consecutive season. The biggest story was again Magic Johnson. 3 months ago, he announced his retirement from the

NBA after testing positive for the HIV virus. But he was voted by the fans as one of the starting guards for the Western Conference Stars. Even though some people had reservations about Johnson playing with HIV, as Charles Barkley eloquently said it, the players weren't going to have unprotected sex with Magic. Before the game started, Isaiah Thomas hugged Magic and kissed him on the cheek, which calmed everybody and provided one of the most sincere moments of camaraderie in sports history, including the final shot of the game, a three-pointer with 14 seconds to go, which ended the

game prematurely. Yes. Oh wow. As all players ran onto the court to congratulate Johnson and exchange high fives. Magic was the MVP with 25 points and nine assists. In the three-point shooting contest, the best shooter of all time was sitting in his father's lap, watching Dell Curry lose the competition to Craig Hodgeges. After the All-Star break, the Lakers struggled without magic, failing to win a playoff series for the first time in 11 years, losing 3 to1 to the Blazers, who would go on to make the NBA finals. If I had have been playing with them,

we wouldn't be in this situation that we're in now. We're missing the emotion. And I thought that's what I br to the team where emotionally every night we were we were up and ready. And right now, we don't have that emotional leader. In the East, Riley Snicks pushed Jordan to the limit. But Michael was too good for John Starks. And the Bulls won the series in seven. Then after the Bulls eliminated the Cavs in six, it was time for a showdown between the two best shooting guards in the league, Michael Heir and Clyde the Glide.

Some analysts speculated that the advantage Drexler had over Jordan was his outside shooting, to which Michael responded with the best half of basketball in finals history. In the first half of game one, Jordan scored 35 points, setting records for most points in a finals half and most three-pointers in a half with six. After his sixth three-pointer, Jordan looked at Magic Johnson, who was commentating the game, and shrugged, forever marking his performance as the shrug game. And even though the Blazers kept the series interesting with the series tied after game four, MJ was simply on another

planet and the Bulls clinched their second NBA championship in six games. Jordan, of course, was the finals MVP with averages of 35 and six, including 43% shooting from deep, while Drexler only shot 15% from downtown as the short-lived debate on the best shooting guard in the world was settled. But MJ and Clyde would become teammates just several weeks later as they joined the rest of the dream team in Barcelona. The 1992 Olympic dream team became legendary for the amount of Hall of Famers that cruised to a gold medal with the hype around a single basketball

team that would likely never be repeated again. But before the Olympics even started, one guy that was supposed to be on the dream team just got drafted to the NBA. The Orlando Magic selects Shaquille O'Neal from Louisiana State University. Shaquille O'Neal was the number one overall pick in the 92 draft which also had other notable players like Alonzo Morning, Latrell Spreewell, Robert Horry, and Christian Lightner, who famously got selected to the dream team instead of Shaq. But when the NBA season started, O'Neal quickly asserted his dominance and showed the Olympic Committee they made a mistake.

Shaq's unique blend of power, size, and agility made him a nightmare for opposing defenders as well as NBA rims. Shaq famously brought down the entire stansion in Phoenix, resulting in the entire basket construction collapse. When he did it again in New Jersey, destroying the shock clock that landed on his head, the NBA realized that they needed to change something to withstand the shack attack. Starting from the 9394 NBA season, the NBA had to shockproof the rims, switching to tempered shatterresistant glass and stronger backboard braces. With 23 points, 14 rebounds, and three and a half blocks

on average, Shaq convincingly won rookie of the year, two votes shy of winning the award unanimously. Shaq's dear friend, Charles Barkley, finally forced a trade out of Philadelphia before the start of the 1993 season, becoming a member of the Phoenix Suns. Barkley was the best American player on the dream team, and he carried that form to the NBA, winning the MVP award with averages of 25 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists per game. Jordan won his seventh consecutive scoring title, tying Wilt's record. And after eight years of leading the NBA in combined blocks and steals,

Hakee Alajuan finally won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award, averaging 4.2 rejections and 1.8 steals per game. On the negative side of NBA history, the Dallas Mavericks had the second worst season of all time. Don't blink. Mavericks throw the inbounds away. Jeff Hornesk to Spoon again for the layup. winning just 11 games with 71 losses. But when the playoffs started, there were no surprises as four teams with the best record in the regular season made the conference finals. In another classic matchup between the Bulls and the Knicks, New York won the first two

games at home. And it seemed like Pat Bryley, Pat Yuing, and John Starks finally had the goods to dethrone Jordan. Michael had one of the worst series of his career as the Knicks played the best defense he ever faced apart from the bad boys. In five games of the series, MJ shot just 35% from the field and the Bulls heads were kept above water because of Scottie Pippen, Horus Grant, and BJ Armstrong. However, Jordan couldn't be shut down forever. And in game four, he shot 18 for 30 from the field, including 6 for9 from three,

finishing with 54 points. At the time, it was the eighth highest scoring game in the playoffs. The Bulls tied the series and then they won the next two games as well, advancing to their third consecutive NBA finals. In the West, Phoenix and Seattle kept exchanging leads and the series would eventually be decided in game seven. And after he closed out the previous series with a gamewinner against the Spurs, Charles Barkley dominated in the clutch again, finishing with 44 points and 24 rebounds and pushing the Suns to their first NBA finals since 1976. God want us

to win the world championship. I don't know if I go that far, y'all. I talked to him the other night. But two days before the final started, a tragedy struck. While driving to the Euro Basket qualifying game in Munich, a Volkswagen Golf crashed into a truck. Drazzen Petravvic, who was sleeping on the passenger seat and wasn't buckled in, died in the crash. For Drazzen Petravich, the Netar was killed on Monday evening in a car accident in Germany. Petravvic had just come off the best season of his career where he averaged 22.3 points per game and

got named to the AllNBA third team, becoming the first European player to make the AllNBA. At the time of his death, Petravvic was the all-time leader in three-point percentage. And he's currently number four on that list. The finals started with a minute of silence for Drossen. But when the game started, the Suns were awful and clearly afraid of the biggest stage as the Bulls won game one on the road. In game two, Barkley finished with 42 and 13, but it wasn't enough as Jordan scored 42 of his own along with 12 rebounds and nine assists.

Game three was a triple overtime game where the Suns finally managed to win. But in game four, Jordan had the second best game scoring in the history of the NBA Finals, finishing with 55 points. The Suns managed to extend the series by winning game five in Chicago. But in game six, thanks to the dagger three by John Paxton, the Bulls won the game and the championship. Michael Jordan scored 40 or more points in four consecutive games of the NBA Finals and averaged an NBA Finals record of 41 points per game for the series. But before

the next season even started, another tragedy as the NBA family lost another great player. On July 27th, 1993, Boston Celtics all-star guard Reggie Lewis collapsed during practice and died of a heart condition later that day, and the Celtics honored him by retiring his number 35. A week later, on August 3rd, another tragedy struck the NBA as the police had found a dead body in the swamps of South Carolina, and it was identified as the body of James Jordan, Michael's father. What is still unclear and will be for some time is what effect this tragedy will

have on Michael Jordan and his future with the Chicago Bulls. Only a month later on October 6th, Michael Jordan shocked the world when he announced his retirement from the NBA following that tragedy. When I lose uh the sense of motivation and the sense of to prove something as a basketball player, uh it's time for me to move away from the game of basketball. However, the rest of the league had to keep going and there was some new notable additions as Chris Weber got drafted first overall by the Orlando Magic, who became the first team to

earn the top overall pick in consecutive years in the lottery era. But because of Shaq's influence, who became good friends with Penny Hardaway during the filming of the movie Blue Chips, the Magic traded Weber to Golden State for Hardway, who was the third overall pick. Jamal Mashburn, Alan Houston, Sam Cassell, and Nick Van Exel also got drafted in this class. Then Magic Johnson returned to the NBA as the coach of the Lakers. I do know that uh what it takes to win and I do know what it takes to be a good basketball player and

that's hard work. Joining the team for the last 16 games with a record of 5-1. The Lakers ultimately missed the playoffs for the first time since 1976. And just like he did when he was the Lakers GM, I'm not going to be here. Johnson quit the job. The Celtics also missed the playoffs. And this was the first time in history that neither historic franchise qualified for the postseason. This storyried rivalry has been reduced to a couple of clubs barely over break even. Magic's good friend Isaiah Thomas suffered a torn Achilles during the season which forced

his retirement from the NBA just like Bill Lambir who also decided to hang them up. On the other hand, another bad boy was thriving. Dennis Rodman, now playing for the Spurs, continued to dominate the glass with 17 rebounds per game. On top of his encourt performance, Rodman fully embraced his inner bad boy and started to dye his hair almost every game. His front court teammate David Robinson notched a quadruple double, which was just the fourth and the last time it happened in an NBA game. And to win a scoring title over Shaq, Robinson went berserk

in the final game of the regular season, scoring 71 points, the seventh highest scoring game ever at the time. Reggie Miller became just the third player in NBA history to shoot 50 40 90 for the season, joining Larry Bird and Mark Price. Mahmud Abdul Rau shot 95.6% from the free throw line, which was the second best mark in NBA history behind Calvin Murphy's 95.8% from the 81 season. Abdul Ruf hit 219 out of 229 free throws in '94. And if he had made just one more from the charity stripe, he would have broken Murphy's record.

But without Jordan in the league, Hakee Elijahan took the throne as the best player in the NBA. His Rockets started the season 15-0, which was the best start in NBA history. Hakee became only the second player in history to win MVP and defensive player of the year in the same season after MJ did it in 1988. This was the closest defensive player of the year voting in history as Hakee won with 23 points out of 101. In front of David Robinson with 22, Dembbe Matumbbo with 19 and Scotty Pippen with 11. In the playoffs, Matumbbo

and his Nuggets became the first eighth seed to upset the number one seed, defeating the 63 win SuperSonics 3-2 in the first round. Denver did a big favor to the Rockets, who didn't match up well with Seattle. And after a tough battle with Charles Barkley, Hakee and the Rockets made the NBA finals. In the East, the Jordanless Bulls nearly defeated the Knicks in the second round, but New York eventually advanced after seven tough games. In the conference finals, the Knicks were losing 3-2 to the Pacers, and game five will forever be remembered by Reggie Miller's

choke sign towards Spike Lee. However, the Knicks had the last laugh, winning games six and seven to advance to their first NBA finals since 1973. The finals between the Knicks and the Rockets were one of the toughest physical and defensive oriented finals in NBA history as neither team scored more than 93 points in the series. After six games, the series was tied. But then in game seven, John Starks, who was the leading mixed scorer coming into the game, had an absolute dud. Starks shot just 2 for8 from the field, including 0 for11 from three, and

the Rockets won the game 90 to 84. Elijahan won the finals MVP with averages of 279 and four with four blocks per game limiting Euing to just 36% shooting in the finals. And after such a low-scoring finals and overall decrease in offensive output compared to the 80s, the NBA wanted to increase scoring before the start of the 9495 season. So they shortened the three-point arc to a uniform 22 ft around the basket compared to the 23 ft 9 in it was before. The league average from downtown was 33.3% in 1994 and with the shortened distance

it rose to 35.9%. And Steve Kerr led the league with 52.4% accuracy on three-pointers which was the NBA record that stood until 2010 when Kyle Corver broke it with 53.5%. Also, starting from the 1995 season, players fouled while in the act of shooting a three-point attempt would get three free throws instead of two. Jason Kidd, Grant Hill, Jaylen Rose, Joan Howard, and Glenn Robinson got drafted with Kid and Grant Hill winning the co-ookie of the year award. Grant Hill and Jason Kidd, the co-ookies of the year in the NBA. Hill also became the first rookie

in professional sports to lead fan balloting for the NBA All-Star game. Coach Lenny Wilkins passed red hourback to become the NBA's all-time leader in wins, a record that stood for 15 years until it was broken by Don Nelson. Shaq won his first scoring title. Dmbbee Matumbbo won his first defensive player of the year while David Robinson won the MVP award. 1995 was also the last season for Moses Malone and Manoot Bowl. However, the biggest story was Michael Jordan, who returned to the NBA after a 15-month absence playing baseball. The economy has produced 6.1 million jobs

since I became president. And if Michael Jordan goes back to the Bulls, it'll be 6,100,01. Jordan's announcement became legendary as it consisted of just a two-word facts. I'm back. That's all Jordan said on Saturday. That was really all Jordan needed to say as his 17-month retirement came to an end. Since the Bulls had already retired his number 23, MJ started wearing number 45. And in just the fifth game since he returned, MJ scored 55 in the Madison Square Garden in the famous double nickel game. But the number 45 wouldn't last long. After game one of

the conference semi-finals against Orlando when Nick Anderson stole the ball from Michael in the final minute, which clinched the game for the Magic, Anderson boasted that 45 is not 23, alluding to the end of Michael's dominance in the NBA. So for the next game, Jordan returned to the number 23, scoring 38 points in game two and tying the series. However, due to the inferior front line, the Bulls couldn't battle Shaq and Horus Grant, and the Magic won the series in six games. The Indiana Pacers played another memorable series against the Knicks, highlighted by Reggie Miller's

legendary eight points in 9 seconds to steal game one in New York. And a steal. Miller retreats to the three-point line and hits again. In a series where four games were decided on the final possession, the Pacers defeated the Knicks, winning 9795 in game seven. And it's all over. The Indiana Pacers have defeated the New York Knicks. The East Finals would also go to seven games with Orlando edging out the Pacers to advance to their first NBA finals, becoming the first of the 1980s expansion franchises to reach the championship round. In the West, the Rockets

overcame a 2-1 deficit against the Jazz to win the series 3-2. But their championship dreams seemed to be over against the Suns, who had a 3-1 lead in the second round with a double-digit advantage in game five. But Houston persevered and completely turned the game and the series around. In game seven, the Rockets won 115 114 on a Mario Ellie three-pointer, later dubbed as the kiss of death. Mario Ellie with a In the conference finals, Hakee embarrassed David Robinson with this filthy move. Elijahan was mad that Robinson won the MVP over him and he completely

outclassed his rival with 35 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and four blocks per game. Before the finals, Shaq was partying with teammate Dennis Scott for a week straight. But still, they were inches away from winning game one. Up by three, the Magic's Nick Anderson had two free throws, but he missed both. However, Anderson grabbed his own rebound, and with 10 seconds to go, he got fouled. If he made only one free throw, Orlando would have won. But Anderson missed his two freebies again. And he misses four straight. The Rockets had the final possession, and Kenny

Smith tied the game with a three-pointer, which was the seventh three he made that game. And that set an NBA record for most three-pointers in a finals game, which wouldn't be broken until 2010. In overtime, the game was tied with 5 seconds to go when Elijahan tipped in the miss by Clyde Drexler to win the game for the Rockets. Houston then won the next three games to repeat as NBA champions and their seven consecutive wins on the road was an NBA playoff record. Houston was the lowest seated team ever to win the NBA finals, winning

as the sixth seed. The Rockets also became the first team to defeat four opponents who had 50 or more wins on route to a title. And one day after the finals concluded, the first ever NBA lockout ensued due to the labor dispute with the salary cap, free agency, a rookie salary cap, and revenue sharing. But unlike some future lockouts, a new collective bargaining agreement was reached before the season started, and no games were lost. The NBA established its first Canadian teams since the 1946-47 Toronto Huskies as the Toronto Raptors and the Vancouver Grizzlies made their

debuts as the NBA's 28th and 29th franchises. Pat Riley became the new head coach and team president for the Miami Heat, for which Miami paid a $1 million fine and firstround pick to New York because they were found guilty of tampering with the former Knicks coach. During the offseason, Jordan was filming Space Jam while also maniacally training to get himself into the best shape of his career. Kevin Garnett got drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves, becoming the first high school player to enter the NBA since Moses Malone in the late '7s. Rasheed Wallace, Michael Finley, Jerry

Stackhouse, and Damon Stoutmire also got drafted in this class with Stoutmier winning rookie of the year. Magic Johnson returned to the NBA after a four-year absence, playing 32 games for the Lakers before finally retiring for good at the end of the season. But it was actually Magmud Abdul Rauf who became the most talked about player in the NBA when he refused to stand for the American national anthem, stating that the flag was a symbol of oppression, uh, of tying. On March 12th, 1996, the NBA suspended Abdul Ruv for his refusal to stand, costing him $31,77

per missed game. Two days later, he worked out a compromise with the league, whereby he would stand during the playing of the national anthem, but could close his eyes and look downward. John Stockton led the NBA in assists for the ninth consecutive year. And during the season, he became the all-time leader in assists and steals. Hakee Elajawan became the all-time leader in blocks, while Robert Parish broke Kareem's record of most games played. And 4 years after the movie White Men Can't Jump came out, Brent Perry won the slam dunk contest as the first white player

to do so and the only one until M. McClung won in 20123. Ladies and gentlemen, it is over. Dennis Scott made the NBA record in three-pointers made in a season with 267 and it stood for 17 years until Steph Curry made 272 threes in 2013. Gary Payton became the first point guard ever to win defensive player of the year and Jordan won his eighth scoring title, which broke the NBA record MJ previously held with Will Chamberlain. Michael also won the MVP as his Chicago Bulls won an NBA record 72 games with the best net rating

in NBA history, a record that still stands today. This year's Chicago Bulls squad just may go down as the greatest team of all time. The Bulls steamrololled through the playoffs, losing just one game on their way to the NBA Finals where they met the Seattle SuperSonics, led by Gary Peyton and Shawn Kemp. The Bulls won the first three games, but then the Sonics came alive with two wins of their own after Payton started guarding Jordan. However, in game six, the Bulls finished the job, winning their fourth title with MJ becoming the first player ever to

win four finals MVP awards. But just one season after the first lockout, the NBA had another one. The lockout was imposed after the league and the players union could not reach an agreement involving $50 million in profit sharing from television revenue. But after just a few hours of negotiations, the players union and the league reached an agreement. In the 9697 season, the NBA salary cap was roughly $24 million. Only four players in the league were making over $10 million per season, led by Horus Grant and his $14 million salary. But then there was also Michael

Jordan, who earned $30 million that year, which was more than what 21 other franchises paid for their entire roster. This was possible because at the time there was no maximum salary rule, and teams were allowed to go over the salary cap to resign their own free agents. So Jordan took advantage of that, signing a big one-year contract. MJ's deal was trailblazing and it led to other superstars soon demanding and getting more money. The 1996 free agency was the first modern free agency where a plethora of superstars started talking to the entire league in order to

get the best offer. Before 1996, no NBA player had signed a $100 million contract. No player had made $20 million in one season. But then a big splash as the biggest fish in free agency changed oceans, deciding to move from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific. If there is demand for a product, the price of the product goes up. If a bidding war ensues, the price of the product goes way, way up. And that brings us to Shaquille O'Neal. On July 18th, 1996, Shaquille O'Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers agreed to what was then the

largest contract in the history of sports. The contract was worth $120 million over 7 years, while the Orlando Magic were left stranded for their indecisiveness to resign. The Heat signed Morning to a 7-year deal worth 112 million. But Riley wasn't done there, wanting to also sign Jawan Howard. It appeared that the Heat had Howard locked into a 7-year $100 million deal, but the NBA voided the contract, citing the Heat for incentive bonuses for Tim Hardaway and PJ Brown. Howard then signed a $15 million deal to stay with the Washington Bullets, while Charles Barkley got traded

to the Rockets to join Elijahan and Drexler. But before the season even started, a new crop of rookies join the NBA, arguably the best draft class of all time. The Philadelphia 76ers select Allan Iverson from Georgetown University. Alan Iverson was the number one overall pick, but there was also Kobe who followed KG's path and came directly from high school. I have decided to skip college and take my time to the NBA. Zeve Nash and Ray Allen. All future first ballot hall of famers. Other notable players include Germaine O'Neal, Pa Stoyakovich, Stefan Marbury, Marcus Canby, Antoine

Walker, Sheriff Abdor Raheem, Zadrunuskis, and Derek Fischer. After a three-5 start to the season, the Spurs GM Greg Papovich fired coach Bob Hill and started coaching the team himself, starting his 28-year coaching tenure with San Antonio. The Utah Jazz broke the NBA record for the biggest comeback, winning a game against the Nuggets after trailing by 36 in the second quarter. Kevin Garnett became the youngest player selected for the All-Star game. It's the youngest man since Magic Johnson to make an All-Star team, Kevin Garnett. And during the All-Star weekend, the NBA celebrated its 50th anniversary by

naming the 50 greatest players in history, where Wilt and Mike enjoyed some trash talking while Kobe won the slam dunk contest. Some of the most memorable regular season moments were when Dennis Rodman got suspended for 11 games for kicking a cameraman and when Alan Iverson crossed over MJ. AI also became the first rookie to string five consecutive 40point games. Iverson won rookie of the year and Jordan won his ninth scoring title. All while Carl Malone won the MVP over MJ even though the Bulls won 69 games, narrowly missing being the first team with consecutive 70

win seasons. For the first time in 10 years, John Stockton wasn't the league leader in assists as Mark Jackson led the NBA with 11.4 dimes per game. In the playoffs, the most intense series was the second round matchup between the Knicks and the Heat, which would start one of the most bitter rivalries of the entire decade. In game five, PJ Brown flipped Charlie Ward on the hardwood, inciting a brawl between the two. As a result, Brown was handed a twoame suspension while Ward was suspended for game six. However, as a result of leaving the bench

during the brawl, Patrick Ewing and Allen Houston were suspended for game six, while Larry Johnson and John Starks were suspended for game seven. And even though the Knicks held a 3-1 series lead with all the suspensions of their four best players, they couldn't battle the Heat and Miami advanced after seven games. But in the conference finals, Jordan and the Bulls made quick work of the Heat, limiting Miami to just 78 points on average and beating them in five games to advance to another NBA finals. In the West, the Rockets defeated the Sonics in a close

sevengame series to make the conference finals, while Utah defeated the Lakers in five games in a series that will mostly be remembered by Kobe's four airball misses. In game four of that series, Carl Malone hit all 18 of his free throw attempts, setting a playoff record for most attempts without a miss, since broken by Paul Pierce and Dirk Nitzky. In the West, despite the Rockets big three, Utah was a better team and they advanced after John Stockton hit a buzzer beating three in game six. Open three. Hit it. Game one of the finals was tied

with 10 seconds to go. And Carl Malone was at the free throw line when Scotty Pippen told him the infamous line, "The mailman doesn't deliver on Sunday." The game was played on Sunday and just like Pippen predicted, the mailman didn't deliver, missing both free throws. On the other end, Jordan dribbled the ball down the court and then made a 20ft jumper at the buzzer to win game one. Malone had another poor performance in game two, which the Bulls won with ease. But in game three in Utah, the Mailman finally delivered, leading the Jazz to victory

with 37 and 10. In game four, even though the Bulls had a 7369 lead with a minute to go with a series of misses and turnovers, the Jazz outscored the Bulls 12-2 in the clutch and tied the series. Game five was the most famous game of the series and probably one of the most memorable games of Michael Jordan's career. Despite a heavy fever and a weakened body, Jordan came out of bed an hour and a half before the game started and suited up. However, it was clear that he wasn't up to par as the Jazz

generated a 16-point lead. But then Jordan started hitting and the Jazz lead was slowly starting to melt. In the last minute, with the game tied at 85, Michael made a clutch three-pointer that would secure the victory for the Bulls. Jordan played 44 minutes, finishing the game with 38 points, seven rebounds, five assists, three steals, and one block before collapsing into Scotty Pippen's arms. In game six, MJ was feeling much better, scoring 39 points. However, it was Steve Kerr who was the unexpected hero, hitting the game-winning shot, while Scottie Pippen made a crucial steal at the

end of the game to secure the fifth NBA title for the Bulls. And the 199798 season was the year of the coaches. First, an NBA legend returned to the court. But this time, Larry Bird was not playing, but coaching the Indiana Pacers, where he'd immediately win the coach of the year award. Secondly, Phil Jackson and the Bulls announced that the Zen master would stop coaching Chicago at the end of the season, which created constant drama around the team in a season known as the last dance. Thirdly, the Warriors head coach PJ Carisimo grabbed all the

headlines when he appeared at a press conference with clear marks around his neck, which would later be discovered to be marks from Latrell Spreewell's hands. Spree threatened to kill him, and he nearly succeeded, for which he received a 68game suspension, at the time the longest suspension in NBA history. And speaking of violence, the Washington Bullets didn't want to be associated with guns, so they renamed the team and became the Washington Wizards. Tim Duncan got drafted first overall by the Spurs, who won 36 games more than the previous season, which was the biggest turnaround in NBA

history. Hall of Famers Tracy McGrady and Chanty Bilips also got drafted. The NBA reverted the three-point line back to 23t 9 in at the top of the key, while the distance from the corners remained at 22 ft. The league average dropped from 36% accuracy and six made threes in 1997 to 34.5% and 4.4 made three-pointers in 1998. Now, for comparison, in the 2024 NBA season, teams averaged 12.8 makes from downtown with a 36.6% accuracy. Violet Palmer and Dantner made history, becoming the first female officials in major American sports leagues. The Denver Nuggets made the history

books as the fourth team ever to lose 70 games in a season, finishing with an 11 and 71 record. On February 27th, the Indiana Pacers defeated the Portland Trailblazers 124 to 59, marking the first time in NBA history that one team scored more than twice as many points as its opponent. AC Green joined the record books as the NBA Iron Man, surpassing Randy Smith's record of 96 consecutive games played, and Green eventually increased the record to 1,192 consecutive games. Kobe became the youngest all-star in history and for the first time since the 84 season, there

was no slam dunk contest as the league believed it was getting too repetitive. Jordan claimed his third consecutive all-star game MVP as well as his 10th scoring title and his fifth MVP award. DMBBE won his third defensive player of the year award while Tim Duncan won rookie of the year. Timmy also made the first team allNNBA, becoming the first player with this accomplishment since Larry Bird in 1980 and the last to do it as it hasn't happened since. In the playoffs, the Knicks and the Heat played each other again. And they didn't pull any punches

in another physical, emotional, and borderline dirty series. There was another brawl. This time between two guys who couldn't stand each other, Larry Johnson and Alonzo Morning. A 5'9 coach, Jeff Van Gundy, tried to get in the middle of it, and he nearly got run over as he tried to hold on for dear life by grabbing Morning's leg. Johnson and Morning got suspended for the deciding game of the series. But this time, it was the Knicks who advanced. However, in the second round, the Knicks lost to Larry Bird and his Pacers, who made the conference finals

against the Bulls, and Chicago was on its last legs. Pippen was hurt, and all the other players were tired on the back end of a third consecutive year with over 100 games played. On the other hand, Reggie Miller was playing the best ball of his career, which he proved in game four, hitting a game-winning three-pointer after an uncalled offensive foul on Jordan. Gets it on the Miller for the win. The Pacers pushed the Bulls to the brink of elimination as they held a double-digit lead multiple times in game seven, but the Bulls defeated them on

experience, proving once again to never doubt the heart of a champion. In the West, it was much less dramatic as the Jazz lost just three games on their way to the NBA Finals, defeating the Rockets and the Spurs and sweeping the Lakers. Now, the finals were another super close series with each game decided in the final minute, except for the inexplicable blowout in game three. The Bulls defeated the Jazz 96- 54. Beaten by 42 and held to the lowest scoring output in the history of the NBA. Now, in game six, the Bulls were trailing by

one point when MJ stole the ball from Malone. And what happened next was one of the most famous sequences in NBA history. Jordan open Chicago with the lead. And when Utah failed to score, the Bulls completed their second three. And Jordan left the game with six titles and six finals MVPs. And after the season, Phil Jackson stepped down. Bill Jackson cleaned out his office at the Chicago Bulls practice facility and made it official. After nine years and six NBA titles, he is done as the Bulls coach. And Jordan stayed true to his word that he

wouldn't resign if Phil was gone. Michael Jordan said if Phil wasn't back, then he wasn't back. But the NBA had even bigger problems than the retirement of their best player. Because for the third time in four years, there was a lockout. And this one was major. question everyone wants to know is whether or not this season can be saved. The NBA owners wanted a limitation on players salaries, not wanting to be pushed around by the players who started demanding more and more money. On the other hand, the players association opposed their ideas and wanted bigger

minimums. After the two sides failed to reach an agreement, the owners began the lockout. By October, it became the first time in NBA history that games were cancelled due to a labor dispute. Further games were cancelled by November and December, including the league's Christmas games, which had been played on an annual basis since 1947, and the All-Star game, which was not played for the first time since 1951. The lockout continued into January of 1999, threatening the cancellation of the entire season. I think we sit and we wait and we watch as the ticks away. And

despite a division within the players union, on January 6th, the union, the owners, and the NBA commissioner finally came to an agreement. The settlement put a ceiling on maximum salaries for players and a pay scale for firstear players, which ended the lockout after 204 days. On January 13th, 1999, while the lockout was still ongoing, Michael Jordan officially announced his retirement for the second time. I want to say thank you uh to both of the gentlemen here, Mr. Stern and Mr. Rined off uh for presenting me with an opportunity uh to play the game of basketball.

When the play resumed, the regular season was shortened to 50 games per team as opposed to the normal 82. And to preserve games between teams in the same conference and shortened flight time, some teams didn't meet each other at all during the course of the shortened season. Durk Noitzky, Paul Pierce, Vince Carter, Antoine Jameson, Jason Williams, Mike Bby, and Rashard Lewis got drafted. Scottie Pippen joined Hakee and Barkley in Houston, while the Bulls missed the playoffs completely for the first time in 14 years. They would also become the second defending champion in NBA history that

failed to make the playoffs, joining the 6970 Boston Celtics, who missed the playoffs after Bill Russell's retirement. Car Malone became the oldest player ever to win the NBA MVP. Vince Carter won the Rookie of the Year, and Allen Iverson won his first scoring title. In the playoffs, the Spurs lost just one game on their way to the NBA Finals, sweeping the Lakers in the second round and then the Blazers in the conference finals. In the East, the Knicks had another nailbiter against the Heat, winning the series with Alan Houston's buzzer beater in the deciding game

five. The Knicks became only the second number eight seed to advance in the playoffs by defeating a number one seed. The Knicks Cinderella story continued as they swept the Hawks in the second round and then defeated the Pacers in six games to reach the NBA finals, thus becoming the first eighth seed to reach the finals, something that would later be repeated by the 2023 Heat team. However, in the series against Indiana, the Knicks lost Patrick Euing to injury, which proved to be an insurmountable loss against the Spurs and their Twin Towers. And even though they

had two great scorers in Allen Houston and Latrrell Spreewell, Tim Duncan destroyed the Knicks in the post, leading the Spurs to a 4-1 victory and their first NBA championship. Thus, the '9s concluded as arguably the most legendary era of NBA basketball. Thank you for watching, and if you like this one, subscribe and watch some more non-stop.