# 1998 NBA All-Star Game

The 1998 NBA All-Star Game was the 48th edition of the National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game. The event was held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The East won the game 135–114. Besides the NBA All-Star game, there were two other events that occurred in the All-Star Weekend including the Rookies Game and the Three-Point Shootout.

## Summary
### Coaches

The Western Conference was coached by George Karl from the Seattle SuperSonics and the Eastern Conference was coached by Larry Bird of the Indiana Pacers.

### Players

This would be the All-Star debut of Kobe Bryant, who became the youngest All-Star in NBA history at 19 years of age. It would also be the debut for rookie Tim Duncan. Bryant had a team-high 18 points. Michael Jordan earned MVP honors, scoring 23 points, grabbing six rebounds, and dishing out eight assists. This was Jordan's third MVP award. The game featured four all-stars from the Los Angeles Lakers.
This was the first All-Star game to feature both Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan. Jordan would come out of retirement once more in 2001 and play two more seasons (earning All-Star selections both years) for the Washington Wizards. In 1998, Michael Jordan led all the players in All-Star Game votes with 1,028,235 votes from the fans. This was also the first year that Shaquille O'Neal was able to play in the All-Star Game as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers as he was sidelined in 1997 due to a knee injury.
This would be the last All-Star Game until 2000, as a labor dispute caused the following season to be shortened. A total of 9 players from this game would not play in another All-Star Game: Nick Van Exel, Steve Smith, Penny Hardaway, Tim Hardaway, Shawn Kemp, Mitch Richmond, Vin Baker, Rik Smits and Jayson Williams.

### Roster

Western Conference All-Stars :
| Pos | Player | Team | No. of selections | Votes |
| Starters |||||
| G | Gary Payton | Seattle SuperSonics | 5th | 555,715 |
| G | Kobe Bryant | Los Angeles Lakers | 1st | 395,686 |
| F | Kevin Garnett | Minnesota Timberwolves | 2nd | 513,325 |
| F | Karl Malone | Utah Jazz | 11th | 616,251 |
| C | Shaquille O'Neal | Los Angeles Lakers | 6th | 565,184 |
| Reserves |||||
| G | Jason Kidd | Phoenix Suns | 2nd | 305,834 |
| G | Eddie Jones | Los Angeles Lakers | 2nd | 300,658 |
| G | Nick Van Exel | Los Angeles Lakers | 1st | 232,274 |
| G | Mitch Richmond | Sacramento Kings | 6th | 197,695 |
| F | Tim Duncan | San Antonio Spurs | 1st | 423,970 |
| F | Vin Baker | Seattle SuperSonics | 4th | 360,079 |
| C | David Robinson | San Antonio Spurs | 8th | 548,633 |
| Head coach: George Karl (Seattle SuperSonics) |||||
Eastern Conference All-Stars :
| Pos | Player | Team | No. of selections | Votes |
| Starters |||||
| G | Penny Hardaway | Orlando Magic | 4th | 509,626 |
| G | Michael Jordan | Chicago Bulls | 12th | 1,028,235 |
| F | Grant Hill | Detroit Pistons | 4th | 838,692 |
| F | Shawn Kemp | Cleveland Cavaliers | 6th | 518,361 |
| C | Dikembe Mutombo | Atlanta Hawks | 5th | 476,432 |
| Reserves |||||
| G | Tim Hardaway | Miami Heat | 5th | 349,621 |
| G | Reggie Miller | Indiana Pacers | 4th | 221,814 |
| G | Steve Smith | Atlanta Hawks | 1st | 114,982 |
| F | Glen Rice | Charlotte Hornets | 3rd | 270,277 |
| F | Antoine Walker | Boston Celtics | 1st | 137,994 |
| F | Jayson Williams | New Jersey Nets | 1st | — |
| C | Rik Smits | Indiana Pacers | 1st | 117,744 |
| Head coach: Larry Bird (Indiana Pacers) |||||

### Game

* NBC
* February 8, 1998
Western Conference 114, Eastern Conference 135 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–33, 33–34, 33–34, 23–34 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 18 Rebs: Eddie Jones, Tim Duncan 11 each Asts: Gary Payton 13 | Pts: Michael Jordan 23 Rebs: Shawn Kemp 11 Asts: Michael Jordan 8 |
* Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York Attendance: 18,323 Referees:
* Hue Hollins
* Bernie Fryer
* Bob Delaney
Grant Hill and Michael Jordan shot the best field goal percentages this game when comparing players who shot ten or more shots. Grant Hill was 7/11 from the field and he knocked down a three (.636%). Michael Jordan was 10/18 from the field and he also knocked down one three (.556%).
The halftime show featured the Broadway All-Stars.

### Boxscore

Eastern Conference
| Team | Player | Min | Fg | 3pt | Ft | Off | Def | Reb | Ast | Pf | St | To | Bs | Pts |
| CLE | Shawn Kemp | 25 | 5–10 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 12 |
| DET | Grant Hill | 28 | 7–11 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| ATL | Dikembe Mutombo | 19 | 4–5 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| CHI | Michael Jordan | 32 | 10–18 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 23 |
| ORL | Penny Hardaway | 12 | 3–5 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| MIA | Tim Hardaway | 17 | 3–8 | 2–5 | 0–0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 8 |
| NJN | Jayson Williams | 19 | 2–3 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| IND | Rik Smits | 21 | 3–7 | 0–0 | 4–4 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| IND | Reggie Miller | 20 | 6–8 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| CHA | Glen Rice | 16 | 6–14 | 4–6 | 0–0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16 |
| ATL | Steve Smith | 16 | 6–12 | 2–5 | 0–0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| BOS | Antoine Walker | 15 | 2–8 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| | TOTAL | 240 | 57–109 | 11–25 | 10–13 | 13 | 39 | 52 | 32 | 13 | 10 | 15 | 3 | 135 |
Western Conference
| Team | Player | Min | Fg | 3pt | Ft | Off | Def | Reb | Ast | Pf | St | To | Bs | Pts |
| UTA | Karl Malone | 17 | 2–4 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| MIN | Kevin Garnett | 21 | 6–11 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 12 |
| LAL | Shaquille O'Neal | 18 | 5–10 | 0–0 | 2–4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12 |
| LAL | Kobe Bryant | 22 | 7–16 | 2–3 | 2–2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 18 |
| SEA | Gary Payton | 24 | 3–7 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 7 |
| SEA | Vin Baker | 21 | 3–12 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| LAL | Eddie Jones | 25 | 7–19 | 0–7 | 1–2 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| SAS | David Robinson | 22 | 3–4 | 0–0 | 9–10 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 15 |
| SAC | Mitch Richmond | 17 | 4–11 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| PHO | Jason Kidd | 19 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| SAS | Tim Duncan | 14 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| LAL | Nick Van Exel | 20 | 5–14 | 1–6 | 2–2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 13 |
| | TOTAL | 240 | 46–113 | 4–23 | 18–22 | 24 | 37 | 61 | 34 | 9 | 13 | 18 | 3 | 114 |

## Rookies Game

The NBA Rookies game took place on the Friday before the All-Star Game. The coaches of the teams were Willis Reed for the East and Dave DeBusschere for the West. The East would win their consecutive rookies game as Zydrunas Ilgauskas, the Cleveland Cavalier's center became the first international player to be recognized as the game's MVP. The final box score of the 1998 NBA Rookies was 85-80 for the East.
Eastern Conference
| Team | Player | Min | Fg | 3pt | Ft | Off | Def | Reb | Ast | Pf | St | To | Bs | Pts |
| PHLA | Tim Thomas | 19 | 3–6 | 0-3 | 3-3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
| NJ | Keith Van Horn | 25 | 6–12 | 0-1 | 5-6 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 17 |
| CLE | Zydrunas Ilgauskas | 24 | 8–10 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 18 |
| CLE | Brevin Knight | 17 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| BOS | Ron Mercer | 22 | 4-10 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 |
| BOS | Chauncey Billups | 16 | 3-7 | 2-4 | 1-5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 9 |
| CLE | Cedric Henderson | 17 | 7-13 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 14 |
| TOR | Tracy McGrady | 10 | 4-7 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| | TOTAL | 150 | 35-66 | 3-10 | 12-18 | 15 | 23 | 38 | 22 | 9 | 3 | 14 | 3 | 85 |
Western Conference
| Team | Player | Min | Fg | 3pt | Ft | Off | Def | Reb | Ast | Pf | St | To | Bs | Pts |
| HOU | Rodrick Rhodes | 25 | 2–8 | 0-1 | 0–0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| LAC | Maurice Taylor | 24 | 6–14 | 0-0 | 0–0 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 12 |
| SAC | Michael Stewart | 19 | 6–9 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| DEN | Bobby Jackson | 24 | 7–14 | 0-3 | 1-1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 15 |
| VAN | Antonio Daniels | 25 | 7–11 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 14 |
| POR | Kelvin Cato | 11 | 3–7 | 0-1 | 1-3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| DEN | Danny Fortson | 11 | 4–7 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| POR | Alvin Williams | 11 | 1–3 | 1-1 | 1-4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| | TOTAL | 150 | 36–73 | 1-6 | 7-12 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 19 | 11 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 80 |
| Score by Periods: | 1 | 2 | Final |
| Western Conference | 38 | 47 | 80 |
| Eastern Conference | 42 | 38 | 85 |

## Three - Point Shootout

The 3 Point shootout was held during the NBA All-Star Saturday. Eight players were selected to compete, all from different teams. There were three rounds in which the four top players will advance to the semifinal round and the top two in the semifinals will advance to the final round. Jeff Hornacek, Hubert Davis, Dale Ellis, and Charlie Ward advanced to the semifinals with Jeff Hornacek and Hubert Davis competing in the finals. In the end, it was Jeff Hornacek who won the 3 Point Shootout.
| Players | 1st Round | Semifinal | Final |
| Jeff Hornacek | 17 | 15* | 16 |
| Hubert Davis | 15 | 24 | 10 |
| Dale Ellis | 18 | 15* | |
| Charlie Ward | 15 | 11 | |
| Sam Mack | 14 | | |
| Glen Rice | 13 | | |
| Tracy Murray | 12 | | |
| Reggie Miller | 12 | | |
* Hornacek and Ellis tied during the semifinals and were given an extra 30-second round to break the tie.