# 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.

## 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 |
| San Antonio Spurs | 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. 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.
* On April 14, during a timeout in the third quarter of a Chicago Bulls-Miami Heat game, spectator Don Calhoun made a 75-foot shot through the basket from the free-throw line at the opposite end of the court, winning himself 1-million dollars.

## 1992–93 NBA changes

* The Atlanta Hawks changed their uniforms.
* The Chicago Bulls changed their uniforms.
* The Dallas Mavericks changed their road uniforms from green to blue.
* The New York Knicks changed their logo.
* The Phoenix Suns changed their logo, uniforms, and moved into the America West Arena.

## Teams

1992-93 National Basketball Association :
| Eastern Conference |||||
| Division | Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
| Atlantic | Boston Celtics | Boston, Massachusetts | Boston Garden | 14,890 |
| Atlantic | Miami Heat | Miami, Florida | Miami Arena | 15,200 |
| Atlantic | New Jersey Nets | East Rutherford, New Jersey | Brendan Byrne Arena | 20,049 |
| Atlantic | New York Knicks | New York, New York | Madison Square Garden | 19,812 |
| Atlantic | Orlando Magic | Orlando, Florida | Orlando Arena | 17,283 |
| Atlantic | Philadelphia 76ers | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | The Spectrum | 18,176 |
| Atlantic | Washington Bullets | Landover, Maryland | Capital Centre | 18,756 |
| Central | Atlanta Hawks | Atlanta, Georgia | Omni Coliseum | 16,378 |
| Central | Charlotte Hornets | Charlotte, North Carolina | Charlotte Coliseum | 24,042 |
| Central | Chicago Bulls | Chicago, Illinois | Chicago Stadium | 18,676 |
| Central | Cleveland Cavaliers | Richfield, Ohio | Richfield Coliseum | 20,900 |
| Central | Detroit Pistons | Auburn Hills, Michigan | The Palace of Auburn Hills | 22,076 |
| Central | Indiana Pacers | Indianapolis, Indiana | Market Square Arena | 17,171 |
| Central | Milwaukee Bucks | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Bradley Center | 18,717 |
| Western Conference |||||
| Midwest | Dallas Mavericks | Dallas, Texas | Reunion Arena | 18,293 |
| Midwest | Denver Nuggets | Denver, Colorado | McNichols Sports Arena | 17,171 |
| Midwest | Houston Rockets | Houston, Texas | The Summit | 16,285 |
| Midwest | Minnesota Timberwolves | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Target Center | 18,798 |
| Midwest | San Antonio Spurs | San Antonio, Texas | HemisFair Arena | 16,057 |
| Midwest | Utah Jazz | Salt Lake City, Utah | Delta Center | 18,306 |
| Pacific | Golden State Warriors | Oakland, California | Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena | 13,335 |
| Pacific | Los Angeles Clippers | Los Angeles, California | Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena | 16,161 |
| Pacific | Los Angeles Lakers | Inglewood, California | Great Western Forum | 17,505 |
| Pacific | Phoenix Suns | Phoenix, Arizona | America West Arena | 19,023 |
| Pacific | Portland Trail Blazers | Portland, Oregon | Memorial Coliseum | 12,888 |
| Pacific | Sacramento Kings | Sacramento, California | ARCO Arena | 17,317 |
| Pacific | Seattle SuperSonics | Seattle, Washington | Seattle Center Coliseum | 14,252 |

## Standings
### By division
#### Eastern Conference

| Atlantic Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-New York Knicks | 60 | 22 | .732 | — | 37–4 | 23–18 | 23–5 |
| x-Boston Celtics | 48 | 34 | .585 | 12 | 28–13 | 20–21 | 19–9 |
| x-New Jersey Nets | 43 | 39 | .524 | 17 | 26–15 | 17–24 | 14–14 |
| Orlando Magic | 41 | 41 | .500 | 19 | 27–14 | 14–27 | 15–13 |
| Miami Heat | 36 | 46 | .439 | 24 | 26–15 | 10–31 | 9–19 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | 26 | 56 | .317 | 34 | 15–26 | 11–30 | 11–17 |
| Washington Bullets | 22 | 60 | .268 | 38 | 15–26 | 7–34 | 7–21 |
| Central Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Chicago Bulls | 57 | 25 | .695 | — | 31–10 | 26–15 | 19–9 |
| x-Cleveland Cavaliers | 54 | 28 | .659 | 3 | 35–6 | 19–22 | 22–6 |
| x-Charlotte Hornets | 44 | 38 | .537 | 13 | 22–19 | 22–19 | 12–16 |
| x-Atlanta Hawks | 43 | 39 | .524 | 14 | 25–16 | 18–23 | 12–16 |
| x-Indiana Pacers | 41 | 41 | .500 | 16 | 27–14 | 14–27 | 11–17 |
| Detroit Pistons | 40 | 42 | .488 | 17 | 28–13 | 12–29 | 12–16 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | 28 | 54 | .341 | 29 | 18–23 | 10–31 | 10–18 |

#### Western Conference

| Midwest Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Houston Rockets | 55 | 27 | .671 | — | 31–10 | 24–17 | 19–7 |
| x-San Antonio Spurs | 49 | 33 | .598 | 6 | 31–10 | 18–23 | 17–9 |
| x-Utah Jazz | 47 | 35 | .573 | 8 | 28–13 | 19–22 | 16–10 |
| Denver Nuggets | 36 | 46 | .439 | 19 | 28–13 | 8–33 | 13–13 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | 19 | 63 | .232 | 36 | 11–30 | 8–33 | 10–16 |
| Dallas Mavericks | 11 | 71 | .134 | 44 | 7–34 | 4–37 | 3–23 |
| Pacific Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Phoenix Suns | 62 | 20 | .756 | — | 35–6 | 27–14 | 21–9 |
| x-Seattle SuperSonics | 55 | 27 | .671 | 7 | 33–8 | 22–19 | 22–8 |
| x-Portland Trail Blazers | 51 | 31 | .622 | 11 | 30–11 | 21–20 | 19–11 |
| x-Los Angeles Clippers | 41 | 41 | .500 | 21 | 27–14 | 14–27 | 15–15 |
| x-Los Angeles Lakers | 39 | 43 | .476 | 23 | 20–21 | 19–22 | 13–17 |
| Golden State Warriors | 34 | 48 | .415 | 28 | 19–22 | 15–26 | 9–21 |
| Sacramento Kings | 25 | 57 | .305 | 37 | 16–25 | 9–32 | 6–24 |

### By conference

| # | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte |
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
| 1 | c-New York Knicks | 60 | 22 | .732 | – |
| 2 | y-Chicago Bulls | 57 | 25 | .695 | 3 |
| 3 | x-Cleveland Cavaliers | 54 | 28 | .659 | 6 |
| 4 | x-Boston Celtics | 48 | 34 | .585 | 12 |
| 5 | x-Charlotte Hornets | 44 | 38 | .537 | 16 |
| 6 | x-New Jersey Nets | 43 | 39 | .524 | 17 |
| 7 | x-Atlanta Hawks | 43 | 39 | .524 | 17 |
| 8 | x-Indiana Pacers | 41 | 41 | .500 | 19 |
| 9 | Orlando Magic | 41 | 41 | .500 | 19 |
| 10 | Detroit Pistons | 40 | 42 | .488 | 20 |
| 11 | Miami Heat | 36 | 46 | .439 | 24 |
| 12 | Milwaukee Bucks | 28 | 54 | .341 | 32 |
| 13 | Philadelphia 76ers | 26 | 56 | .317 | 36 |
| 14 | Washington Bullets | 22 | 60 | .268 | 38 |
| # | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte |
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
| 1 | z-Phoenix Suns | 62 | 20 | .756 | – |
| 2 | y-Houston Rockets | 55 | 27 | .671 | 7 |
| 3 | x-Seattle SuperSonics | 55 | 27 | .671 | 7 |
| 4 | x-Portland Trail Blazers | 51 | 31 | .622 | 11 |
| 5 | x-San Antonio Spurs | 49 | 33 | .598 | 13 |
| 6 | x-Utah Jazz | 47 | 35 | .573 | 15 |
| 7 | x-Los Angeles Clippers | 41 | 41 | .500 | 21 |
| 8 | x-Los Angeles Lakers | 39 | 43 | .476 | 23 |
| 9 | Denver Nuggets | 36 | 46 | .439 | 26 |
| 10 | Golden State Warriors | 34 | 48 | .415 | 28 |
| 11 | Sacramento Kings | 25 | 57 | .305 | 37 |
| 12 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 19 | 63 | .232 | 43 |
| 13 | Dallas Mavericks | 11 | 71 | .134 | 51 |
Notes
* z – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffs
* c – Clinched home court advantage for the conference playoffs
* y – Clinched division title
* x – Clinched playoff spot

## Playoffs

Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Home court advantage does not necessarily belong to the higher-seeded team, but instead the team with the better regular season record; teams enjoying the home advantage are shown in italics.
| First round | First round | First round | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | | Final | Final | Final |
| E1 | New York* | 3 | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Indiana | 1 | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Indiana | 1 | E1 | New York* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | E5 | Charlotte | 1 | | | | | | | |
| E4 | Boston | 1 | E5 | Charlotte | 1 | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Charlotte | 3 | | | | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Charlotte | 3 | | | | E1 | New York* | 2 | | | | |
| | | | | | | E2 | Chicago* | 4 | | | | |
| E3 | Cleveland | 3 | | | | | | | E2 | Chicago* | 4 | | | | |
| E6 | New Jersey | 2 | | | | | | | | | | |
| E6 | New Jersey | 2 | E3 | Cleveland | 0 | | | | | | | |
| | | | E2 | Chicago* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E2 | Chicago* | 3 | E2 | Chicago* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E7 | Atlanta | 0 | | | | | | | | | | |
| E7 | Atlanta | 0 | | | | | | | | E2 | Chicago* | 4 |
| | | | | | | | | | | W1 | Phoenix* | 2 |
| W1 | Phoenix* | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | W1 | Phoenix* | 2 |
| W8 | LA Lakers | 2 | | | | | | | | | | |
| W8 | LA Lakers | 2 | W1 | Phoenix* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | W5 | San Antonio | 2 | | | | | | | |
| W4 | Portland | 1 | W5 | San Antonio | 2 | | | | | | | |
| W5 | San Antonio | 3 | | | | | | | | | | |
| W5 | San Antonio | 3 | | | | W1 | Phoenix* | 4 | | | | |
| | | | | | | W3 | Seattle | 3 | | | | |
| W3 | Seattle | 3 | | | | | | | W3 | Seattle | 3 | | | | |
| W6 | Utah | 2 | | | | | | | | | | |
| W6 | Utah | 2 | W3 | Seattle | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | W2 | Houston* | 3 | | | | | | | |
| W2 | Houston* | 3 | W2 | Houston* | 3 | | | | | | | |
| W7 | LA Clippers | 2 | | | | | | | | | | |
* * Division winner
* Bold Series winner
* Italic Team with home-court advantage

## Statistics leaders

| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
| Points per game | Michael Jordan | Chicago Bulls | 32.6 |
| Rebounds per game | Dennis Rodman | Detroit Pistons | 18.3 |
| Assists per game | John Stockton | Utah Jazz | 12.0 |
| Steals per game | Michael Jordan | Chicago Bulls | 2.83 |
| Blocks per game | Hakeem Olajuwon | Houston Rockets | 4.17 |
| FG% | Cedric Ceballos | Phoenix Suns | .576 |
| FT% | Mark Price | Cleveland Cavaliers | .948 |
| 3FG% | B. J. Armstrong | Chicago Bulls | .453 |

## NBA awards
### Yearly awards

* Most Valuable Player: Charles Barkley, Phoenix Suns
* Rookie of the Year: Shaquille O'Neal, Orlando Magic
* Defensive Player of the Year: Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets
* Sixth Man of the Year: Clifford Robinson, Portland Trail Blazers
* Most Improved Player: Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, Denver Nuggets
* Coach of the Year: Pat Riley, New York Knicks

### Player of the week

The following players were named NBA Player of the Week.
| Week | Player |
| Nov. 6 – Nov. 15 | Shaquille O'Neal (Orlando Magic) |
| Nov. 16 – Nov. 22 | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) |
| Nov. 23 – Nov. 29 | David Robinson (San Antonio Spurs) |
| Nov. 30 – Dec. 6 | Dražen Petrović (New Jersey Nets) |
| Dec. 7 – Dec. 13 | Charles Barkley (Phoenix Suns) |
| Dec. 14 – Dec. 20 | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks) |
| Dec. 21 – Dec. 27 | Sean Elliott (San Antonio Spurs) |
| Dec. 28 – Jan. 3 | David Robinson (San Antonio Spurs) |
| Jan. 4 – Jan. 10 | Shawn Kemp (Seattle SuperSonics) |
| Jan. 10 – Jan. 17 | Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) |
| Jan. 18 – Jan. 24 | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks) |
| Jan. 25 – Jan. 31 | Karl Malone (Utah Jazz) |
| Feb. 1 – Feb. 7 | Nick Anderson (Orlando Magic) |
| Feb. 8 – Feb. 14 | Larry Johnson (Charlotte Hornets) |
| Feb. 23 – Feb. 28 | Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) |
| Mar. 1 – Mar. 7 | Rony Seikaly (Miami Heat) |
| Mar. 8 – Mar. 14 | Rumeal Robinson (New Jersey Nets) |
| Mar. 15 – Mar. 21 | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks) |
| Mar. 22 – Mar. 28 | Dikembe Mutombo (Denver Nuggets) |
| Mar. 29 – Apr. 4 | Charles Barkley (Phoenix Suns) |
| Apr. 5 – Apr. 11 | Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) |
| Apr. 12 – Apr. 18 | Alonzo Mourning (Charlotte Hornets) |
| Apr. 19 – Apr. 25 | Larry Johnson (Charlotte Hornets) |

### Player of the month

The following players were named NBA Player of the Month.
| Month | Player |
| November | Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) |
| December | Charles Barkley (Phoenix Suns) |
| January | Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) |
| February | Dominique Wilkins (Atlanta Hawks) |
| March | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks) |
| April | Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) |

### Rookie of the month

The following players were named NBA Rookie of the Month.
| Month | Rookie |
| November | Shaquille O'Neal (Orlando Magic) |
| December | Shaquille O'Neal (Orlando Magic) |
| January | Shaquille O'Neal (Orlando Magic) |
| February | Shaquille O'Neal (Orlando Magic) |
| March | Alonzo Mourning (Charlotte Hornets) |
| April | Alonzo Mourning (Charlotte Hornets) |

### Coach of the month

The following coaches were named NBA Coach of the Month.
| Month | Coach |
| November | Mike Dunleavy (Milwaukee Bucks) |
| December | Paul Westphal (Phoenix Suns) |
| January | John Lucas (San Antonio Spurs) |
| February | Lenny Wilkens (Cleveland Cavaliers) |
| March | Bob Weiss (Atlanta Hawks) |
| April | Rudy Tomjanovich (Houston Rockets) |