Head coach Larry Brown Arena HemisFair Arena | Owner(s) Red McCombs Record 56–26 (.683) | |
Place Division: 1st (Midwest)
Conference: 2nd (Western) Playoff finish West Semifinals
(Eliminated 3–4) | ||
The 1989–90 NBA season was the Spurs' 14th season in the National Basketball Association and 23rd season as a franchise. They finished with a franchise-best 56–26 regular season record, surpassing the 53-win season of 1982–83.
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As the 1980s ended, the 1989–90 season proved to be the rebirth of the Spurs franchise. With his tour of duty over, David Robinson arrived to the Spurs along with the newly added Terry Cummings, who was acquired from the Milwaukee Bucks, and 1989 first round draftee Sean Elliott. The team also acquired Maurice Cheeks from the Philadelphia 76ers during the offseason, but traded him at midseason to the New York Knicks for Rod Strickland.
Although there was speculation that Robinson might choose not to sign with the Spurs and to become a free agent once his Navy commitment ended, Robinson decided to play in San Antonio. Robinson joined the Spurs for the 1989-90 season, and he helped the team produce the second greatest single season turnaround in NBA history. Robinson had one of the most successful rookie seasons for a center in NBA history, finishing the season as Rookie of the Year while averaging 24.3 points and 12.0 rebounds per game.
In the first round of the playoffs, the Spurs swept the Denver Nuggets in three games. However, they would lose in a full seven game series to the Portland TrailBlazers in the semifinals.
For the season, the Spurs introduced a new logo, which featured the fiesta colors of turquoise, fuchsia and orange although the uniforms remained silver and black. The logo lasted until 2002.
Regular season
The Spurs went from 21–61 in the 1988–89 NBA season to 56–26 in 1989–90, for a remarkable 35-game improvement. They advanced to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs where they lost in seven games to the eventual western conference champions, the Portland Trail Blazers. Following the 1989–90 season, David Robinson was unanimously named the NBA Rookie of the Year, and subsequently SEGA produced a game featuring him entitled David Robinson's Supreme Court.
West First Round
(2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (7) Denver Nuggets: Spurs win series 3-0
Last Playoff Meeting: 1985 Western Conference First Round (Denver won 3-2)
West Conference Semifinals
(2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Portland Trail Blazers: Blazers win series 4-3
Last Playoff Meeting: Not available (first playoff meeting)