1992–93 NBA season

The 1992–93 NBA season was the 47th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls winning their third-straight NBA Championship, beating the Phoenix Suns 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals.

1992–93 NBA season
LeagueNational Basketball Association
SportBasketball
Duration
  • November 6, 1992 – April 25, 1993
  • April 29 – June 5, 1993 (Playoffs)
  • June 9 – 20, 1993 (Finals)
Number of teams27
TV partner(s)NBC, TBS, TNT
Draft
Top draft pickShaquille O'Neal
Picked byOrlando Magic
Regular season
Top seedPhoenix Suns
Season MVPCharles Barkley (Phoenix)
Top scorerMichael Jordan (Chicago)
Playoffs
Eastern championsChicago Bulls
  Eastern runners-upNew York Knicks
Western championsPhoenix Suns
  Western runners-upSeattle SuperSonics
Finals
ChampionsChicago Bulls
  Runners-upPhoenix Suns
Finals MVPMichael Jordan (Chicago)

Notable occurrences
Coaching changes
Offseason
Team 1991–92 coach 1992–93 coach
Denver Nuggets Paul Westhead Dan Issel
Detroit Pistons Chuck Daly Ron Rothstein
Los Angeles Lakers Mike Dunleavy, Sr. Randy Pfund
Milwaukee Bucks Frank Hamblen Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
New Jersey Nets Bill Fitch Chuck Daly
Philadelphia 76ers Jim Lynam Doug Moe
Phoenix Suns Cotton Fitzsimmons Paul Westphal
Sacramento Kings Rex Hughes Garry St. Jean
San Antonio Spurs Bob Bass Jerry Tarkanian
In-season
Team Outgoing coach Incoming coach
Dallas Mavericks Richie Adubato Gar Heard
Minnesota Timberwolves Jimmy Rodgers Sidney Lowe
Philadelphia 76ers Doug Moe Fred Carter
San Antonio Spurs Jerry Tarkanian Rex Hughes
Rex Hughes John Lucas
  • The 1993 NBA All-Star Game was played at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, with the West defeating the East 135–132 in overtime. Much to delight of the local fans, Karl Malone and John Stockton of the Utah Jazz were named co-MVPs of the game.
  • The Phoenix Suns played their first season at America West Arena.
  • The San Antonio Spurs played their final season in the HemisFair Arena.
  • The Charlotte Hornets became the first of the four late-1980s expansion franchises to win a playoff series on Alonzo Mourning's 20-foot jumper at the buzzer in Game 4 of their first round playoff series against the Boston Celtics.
  • Michael Jordan scored his 20,000th career point and tied Wilt Chamberlain's record of seven scoring titles.
  • In Game 3 of the NBA Finals, the Suns defeated the Bulls in triple overtime, 129–121. This marked the second time a Finals game lasted three overtimes, along with Game 5 of the 1976 Finals, which also involved the Suns. Coincidentally, in the 1976 game, Paul Westphal played for the Suns, and in the 1993 game, he coached the Suns.
  • Michael Jordan scored 40 or more points in 4 consecutive games of the NBA Finals, setting a record, and averaged an NBA Finals record 41.0 points per game for the series.
  • The Chicago Bulls defeated the Phoenix Suns in the NBA Finals to become the first team in almost 30 years to win three consecutive championships.
  • New Jersey Nets guard Dražen Petrović was killed in an automobile accident in Munich, Germany on June 7. Almost two months later, on July 27, Boston Celtics guard Reggie Lewis collapsed during practice and died of a heart condition later the same day. Both were later honored by their respective teams by retiring their numbers, and Petrovic would be eventually inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
  • The Dallas Mavericks became the third team to lose 70 games in a season, after the 1972–73 Philadelphia 76ers and the 1986–87 Los Angeles Clippers, they finished 11–71. They would later be joined by the 1997–98 Denver Nuggets, the 2009–10 New Jersey Nets and the 2015-16 Philadelphia 76ers.
  • During the regular season, there were three instances where games had to be stopped due to damage to the goals.
    • On February 7 in the game between the Orlando Magic and the Phoenix Suns at America West Arena, Magic rookie Shaquille O'Neal went up for a dunk and the recoil due to his massive size was too much for the stanchion to bear; the supports detached and the basket folded in on itself.
    • On March 12, during a game between the Chicago Bulls and New Jersey Nets at Brendan Byrne Arena that was televised nationally on TNT, Nets forward Chris Morris shattered the glass behind the rim with a forceful dunk.
    • On April 23, in another game played in New Jersey between the Nets and Magic, O'Neal struck again; this time, he dunked with so much force that the entire backboard, including the shot clock positioned above it, was pulled off the goal.[1] This led the league to provide stronger shatterproof backboards. However, every team is still required to have a spare backboard in their home arenas just in case.

1992–93 NBA changes

Standings
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