Head coach Jerry Sloan Record 62–20 (.756) | Arena Delta Center | |
Place Division: 1st (Midwest)
Conference: 1st (Western) Playoff finish NBA Finals
(Lost to Bulls 2–4) Television Fox Sports Rocky Mountain, KJZZ | ||
The 1997–98 NBA season was the Jazz's 24th season in the National Basketball Association, and 19th season in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Jazz struggled early in the season without John Stockton, who was out with an injury that forced him to miss the first 18 games. However, Stockton would return as the Jazz finished first in the Midwest Division with a 62–20 record. The Jazz's top scorer, Karl Malone, who averaged 27.0 points per game, was part of a Jazz offense that had two other players, Stockton and Jeff Hornacek, averaging double-digits in points. Malone was the only member of the team to play in the 1998 NBA All-Star Game.
Contents
- NBA Draft
- West First Round
- West Conference Semifinals
- West Conference Finals
- NBA Finals
- Awards and records
- References
In the first round of the playoffs, the Jazz trailed 2–1 to the 8th-seeded Houston Rockets. However, they won the series in five games. In the semifinals, they defeated the San Antonio Spurs in five games. After that, the Jazz swept the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals in four straight games to advance to the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year, and once again, met the Chicago Bulls in a rematch of last year's NBA Finals, in which they lost to the Bulls in six games. In the Finals, just like last year's NBA Finals, they lost in six games to the Chicago Bulls. Following the season, Antoine Carr signed as a free agent with the Houston Rockets, and Chris Morris signed with the Phoenix Suns.
The team's season roster is featured in the video games NBA 2K16 and NBA 2K17.
NBA Draft
The Jazz used two picks; a first round pick on point guard Jacque Vaughn and a second round pick on Nate Erdmann. Vaughn would play with the team for four seasons before going to the Atlanta Hawks and Erdmann was cut from the team right before regular season, therefore signing with Idaho Stampede in the CBA.
West First Round
(1) Utah Jazz vs. (8) Houston Rockets Last Playoff Meeting: 1997 Western Conference Finals (Utah won 4-2)
West Conference Semifinals
(1) Utah Jazz vs. (5) San Antonio Spurs Last Playoff Meeting: 1996 Western Conference Semifinals (Utah won 4-2)
West Conference Finals
(1) Utah Jazz vs. (3) Los Angeles Lakers Last Playoff Meeting: 1997 Western Conference Semifinals (Utah won 4-1)
NBA Finals
With home-court advantage, the Jazz were favored by many to end the Bulls' dynasty, as they took Game 1 at the Delta Center. However, the Bulls rallied to take Game 2 and jumped out to a 3–1 lead by taking the first two games in Chicago. Facing elimination, the Jazz edged the Bulls by two points to send the series back to Utah. In Game 6, the Jazz had a late lead, but Michael Jordan, playing in his final game with the Bulls, led the Bulls to an 87–86 win, hitting the game-winning shot with two seconds left.
Legend: OT denotes a game decided in overtime
Bulls win series 4–2