# 2000–01 NBA season

The 2000–01 NBA season was the 55th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Los Angeles Lakers winning their second straight championship, beating the Philadelphia 76ers 4 games to 1 in the 2001 NBA Finals.

## Notable occurrences

Coaching changes :
| Offseason |||
| Team | 1999–2000 coach | 2000–01 coach |
| Atlanta Hawks | Lenny Wilkens | Lon Kruger |
| Golden State Warriors | Garry St. Jean | Dave Cowens |
| Indiana Pacers | Larry Bird | Isiah Thomas |
| Los Angeles Clippers | Jim Todd | Alvin Gentry |
| New Jersey Nets | Don Casey | Byron Scott |
| Toronto Raptors | Butch Carter | Lenny Wilkens |
| Vancouver Grizzlies | Lionel Hollins | Sidney Lowe |
| Washington Wizards | Darrell Walker | Leonard Hamilton |
| In-season |||
| Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach |
| Boston Celtics | Rick Pitino | Jim O'Brien |
| Seattle SuperSonics | Paul Westphal | Nate McMillan |
* The NBA All-Star Game was held at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C.. The East won 111–110, with Philadelphia's Allen Iverson being named the game's Most Valuable Player. The game is noted for the Eastern Conference's 21-point comeback in the fourth quarter.
* The Grizzlies play their final season in Vancouver, British Columbia before relocating to Memphis, Tennessee for the following season leaving the Toronto Raptors as the only Canadian team left in the NBA.
* Rick Pitino resigned as head coach and president of the Boston Celtics, ending a three-plus-year tenure filled with turmoil, disappointment and three consecutive below .500, non-playoff seasons.
* The Dallas Mavericks played their final season at Reunion Arena. They also made the playoffs for the first time since the 1989–90 season. They also made it past the first round for the first time since the 1987–88 season.
* The Los Angeles Lakers win their second straight title by going 15–1 in the playoffs, then the best playoff winning percentage in NBA history (later surpassed by the 2017 Golden State Warriors).
* The Toronto Raptors advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in franchise history, defeating the New York Knicks three games to two. The Raptors would eventually lose in the second round to the Philadelphia 76ers four games to three.
* Prior to the season, Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning announced that he suffered a kidney disorder and missed the first five months of the season. Mourning would receive a kidney transplant two years later.
* This was the last time a team with the best regular season record did not win 60 or more games in a full 82-game season until 2023. The San Antonio Spurs finished with the league's best record at 58–24. Though the 2011–12 Chicago Bulls and the 2011–12 San Antonio Spurs each won 50 games and the top conference seeds, they did so during a 66-game lockout-shortened regular season.
* Effective of this season, the league now permitted players to wear knee-length shorts by default, although players like John Stockton opted to continue wearing short shorts during the season. This would be the case for other players in the future as players like Chris Douglas-Roberts in the 2014–15 season and LeBron James for some of the 2015–16 season would opt to wear short shorts.
* Three teams in the Western Conference who missed the playoffs won 40 or more games. The ninth-placed Houston Rockets finished the season with a 45–37 record, the tenth-placed Seattle SuperSonics finished with a 44–38 record, and the eleventh-placed Denver Nuggets ended the season with a 40–42 record.

## 2000–01 NBA changes

* The Los Angeles Clippers changed their uniforms, added side panels to their jerseys and shorts.
* The New Jersey Nets slightly changed their alternate uniforms.
* The Orlando Magic changed their logo.
* The Philadelphia 76ers slightly changed their uniforms.
* The Phoenix Suns changed their logo and uniforms, added side panels to their jerseys and shorts, adding grey to their color scheme.
* The Vancouver Grizzlies changed their home uniforms, while the alternate uniforms became their primary road jersey.

## Teams

2000-01 National Basketball Association :
| Eastern Conference |||||
| Division | Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
| Atlantic | Boston Celtics | Boston, Massachusetts | FleetCenter | 19,156 |
| Atlantic | Miami Heat | Miami, Florida | American Airlines Arena | 19,500 |
| Atlantic | New Jersey Nets | East Rutherford, New Jersey | Continental Airlines Arena | 20,049 |
| Atlantic | New York Knicks | New York, New York | Madison Square Garden | 19,812 |
| Atlantic | Orlando Magic | Orlando, Florida | TD Waterhouse Centre | 17,283 |
| Atlantic | Philadelphia 76ers | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | First Union Center | 20,338 |
| Atlantic | Washington Wizards | Washington, District of Columbia | MCI Center | 20,356 |
| Central | Atlanta Hawks | Atlanta, Georgia | Philips Arena | 20,233 |
| Central | Charlotte Hornets | Charlotte, North Carolina | Charlotte Coliseum | 24,042 |
| Central | Chicago Bulls | Chicago, Illinois | United Center | 21,711 |
| Central | Cleveland Cavaliers | Cleveland, Ohio | Gund Arena | 19,432 |
| Central | Detroit Pistons | Auburn Hills, Michigan | The Palace of Auburn Hills | 22,076 |
| Central | Indiana Pacers | Indianapolis, Indiana | Conseco Fieldhouse | 18,345 |
| Central | Milwaukee Bucks | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Bradley Center | 18,717 |
| Central | Toronto Raptors | Toronto, Ontario | Air Canada Centre | 19,800 |
| Western Conference |||||
| Midwest | Dallas Mavericks | Dallas, Texas | Reunion Arena | 18,293 |
| Midwest | Denver Nuggets | Denver, Colorado | Pepsi Center | 19,099 |
| Midwest | Houston Rockets | Houston, Texas | Compaq Center | 16,285 |
| Midwest | Minnesota Timberwolves | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Target Center | 18,798 |
| Midwest | San Antonio Spurs | San Antonio, Texas | Alamodome | 20,557 |
| Midwest | Utah Jazz | Salt Lake City, Utah | Delta Center | 18,306 |
| Midwest | Vancouver Grizzlies | Vancouver, British Columbia | General Motors Place | 19,193 |
| Pacific | Golden State Warriors | Oakland, California | The Arena in Oakland | 19,596 |
| Pacific | Los Angeles Clippers | Los Angeles, California | Staples Center | 19,079 |
| Pacific | Los Angeles Lakers | Los Angeles, California | Staples Center | 19,079 |
| Pacific | Phoenix Suns | Phoenix, Arizona | America West Arena | 19,023 |
| Pacific | Portland Trail Blazers | Portland, Oregon | Rose Garden | 21,401 |
| Pacific | Sacramento Kings | Sacramento, California | ARCO Arena | 17,317 |
| Pacific | Seattle SuperSonics | Seattle, Washington | KeyArena | 17,072 |

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

| Atlantic Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Philadelphia 76ers | 56 | 26 | .683 | – | 29–12 | 27–14 | 18–6 |
| x-Miami Heat | 50 | 32 | .610 | 6 | 29–12 | 21–20 | 15–10 |
| x-New York Knicks | 48 | 34 | .585 | 8 | 30–11 | 18–23 | 16–9 |
| x-Orlando Magic | 43 | 39 | .524 | 13 | 26–15 | 17–24 | 14–10 |
| Boston Celtics | 36 | 46 | .439 | 20 | 20–21 | 16–25 | 11–13 |
| New Jersey Nets | 26 | 56 | .317 | 30 | 18–23 | 8–33 | 8–16 |
| Washington Wizards | 19 | 63 | .232 | 37 | 12–29 | 7–34 | 3–21 |
| Central Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Milwaukee Bucks | 52 | 30 | .634 | – | 31–10 | 21–20 | 19–9 |
| x-Toronto Raptors | 47 | 35 | .573 | 5 | 27–14 | 20–21 | 18–10 |
| x-Charlotte Hornets | 46 | 36 | .561 | 6 | 28–13 | 18–23 | 20–8 |
| x-Indiana Pacers | 41 | 41 | .500 | 11 | 26–15 | 15–26 | 15–13 |
| Detroit Pistons | 32 | 50 | .390 | 20 | 18-23 | 14–27 | 16–12 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 30 | 52 | .366 | 22 | 20–21 | 10–31 | 11–17 |
| Atlanta Hawks | 25 | 57 | .305 | 27 | 18–23 | 7–34 | 9–19 |
| Chicago Bulls | 15 | 67 | .183 | 37 | 10–31 | 5–36 | 4–24 |

#### Western Conference

| Midwest Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| z-San Antonio Spurs | 58 | 24 | .707 | – | 33–8 | 25–16 | 19–5 |
| x-Utah Jazz | 53 | 29 | .646 | 5 | 28–13 | 25–16 | 14–10 |
| x-Dallas Mavericks | 53 | 29 | .646 | 5 | 28–13 | 25–16 | 14–10 |
| x-Minnesota Timberwolves | 47 | 35 | .573 | 11 | 30–11 | 17–24 | 11–13 |
| Houston Rockets | 45 | 37 | .549 | 13 | 24–17 | 21–20 | 11–13 |
| Denver Nuggets | 40 | 42 | .488 | 18 | 29–12 | 11–30 | 13–11 |
| Vancouver Grizzlies | 23 | 59 | .280 | 35 | 15–26 | 8–33 | 2–22 |
| Pacific Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Los Angeles Lakers | 56 | 26 | .683 | – | 31–10 | 25–16 | 14–10 |
| x-Sacramento Kings | 55 | 27 | .671 | 1 | 33–8 | 22–19 | 16–8 |
| x-Phoenix Suns | 51 | 31 | .622 | 5 | 31–10 | 20–21 | 12–12 |
| x-Portland Trail Blazers | 50 | 32 | .610 | 6 | 28–13 | 22–19 | 12–12 |
| Seattle SuperSonics | 44 | 38 | .537 | 12 | 26–15 | 18–23 | 17–7 |
| Los Angeles Clippers | 31 | 51 | 378 | 25 | 22–19 | 9–32 | 9–15 |
| Golden State Warriors | 17 | 65 | .207 | 39 | 11–30 | 6–35 | 4–20 |

### By conference

Eastern Conferencevte :
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
| 1 | c-Philadelphia 76ers | 56 | 26 | .683 | – |
| 2 | y-Milwaukee Bucks | 52 | 30 | .634 | 4 |
| 3 | x-Miami Heat | 50 | 32 | .610 | 6 |
| 4 | x-New York Knicks | 48 | 34 | .585 | 8 |
| 5 | x-Toronto Raptors | 47 | 35 | .573 | 9 |
| 6 | x-Charlotte Hornets | 46 | 36 | .561 | 10 |
| 7 | x-Orlando Magic | 43 | 39 | .524 | 13 |
| 8 | x-Indiana Pacers | 41 | 41 | .500 | 15 |
| 9 | Boston Celtics | 36 | 46 | .439 | 20 |
| 10 | Detroit Pistons | 32 | 50 | .390 | 24 |
| 11 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 30 | 52 | .366 | 26 |
| 12 | New Jersey Nets | 26 | 56 | .317 | 30 |
| 13 | Atlanta Hawks | 25 | 57 | .305 | 31 |
| 14 | Washington Wizards | 19 | 63 | .232 | 37 |
| 15 | Chicago Bulls | 15 | 67 | .183 | 42 |
Western Conferencevte :
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
| 1 | z-San Antonio Spurs | 58 | 24 | .707 | – |
| 2 | y-Los Angeles Lakers | 56 | 26 | .683 | 2 |
| 3 | x-Sacramento Kings | 55 | 27 | .671 | 3 |
| 4 | x-Utah Jazz | 53 | 29 | .646 | 5 |
| 5 | x-Dallas Mavericks | 53 | 29 | .646 | 5 |
| 6 | x-Phoenix Suns | 51 | 31 | .622 | 7 |
| 7 | x-Portland Trail Blazers | 50 | 32 | .610 | 8 |
| 8 | x-Minnesota Timberwolves | 47 | 35 | .573 | 11 |
| 9 | Houston Rockets | 45 | 37 | .549 | 13 |
| 10 | Seattle SuperSonics | 44 | 38 | .537 | 14 |
| 11 | Denver Nuggets | 40 | 42 | .488 | 18 |
| 12 | Los Angeles Clippers | 31 | 51 | .378 | 27 |
| 13 | Vancouver Grizzlies | 23 | 59 | .280 | 35 |
| 14 | Golden State Warriors | 17 | 65 | .207 | 41 |
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 | | | Conference Semifinals | Conference Semifinals | Conference Semifinals | Conference Finals | Conference Finals | Conference Finals | | NBA Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals |
| E1 | Philadelphia* | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Indiana | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Indiana | 1 | | | E1 | Philadelphia* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | E5 | Toronto | 3 | | | | | | | |
| E4 | New York | 2 | | | E5 | Toronto | 3 | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Toronto | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Toronto | 3 | | | | | | E1 | Philadelphia* | 4 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E1 | Philadelphia* | 4 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E2 | Milwaukee* | 3 | | | | |
| E3 | Miami | 0 | | | | | | | | | E2 | Milwaukee* | 3 | | | | |
| E6 | Charlotte | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E6 | Charlotte | 3 | | | E6 | Charlotte | 3 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | E2 | Milwaukee* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E2 | Milwaukee* | 3 | | | E2 | Milwaukee* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E7 | Orlando | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E7 | Orlando | 1 | | | | | | | | | | E1 | Philadelphia* | 1 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | W2 | LA Lakers* | 4 |
| W1 | San Antonio* | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | | W2 | LA Lakers* | 4 |
| W8 | Minnesota | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W8 | Minnesota | 1 | | | W1 | San Antonio* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | W5 | Dallas | 1 | | | | | | | |
| W4 | Utah | 2 | | | W5 | Dallas | 1 | | | | | | | |
| W5 | Dallas | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W5 | Dallas | 3 | | | | | | W1 | San Antonio | 0 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W1 | San Antonio | 0 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W2 | LA Lakers* | 4 | | | | |
| W3 | Sacramento | 3 | | | | | | | | | W2 | LA Lakers* | 4 | | | | |
| W6 | Phoenix | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W6 | Phoenix | 1 | | | W3 | Sacramento | 0 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | W2 | LA Lakers* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| W2 | LA Lakers* | 3 | | | W2 | LA Lakers* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| W7 | Portland | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
* * Division winner
* Bold Series winner
* Italic Team with home-court advantage

## Statistics leaders

| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
| Points per game | Allen Iverson | Philadelphia 76ers | 31.1 |
| Rebounds per game | Dikembe Mutombo | Atlanta Hawks Philadelphia 76ers | 13.5 |
| Assists per game | Jason Kidd | Phoenix Suns | 9.8 |
| Steals per game | Allen Iverson | Philadelphia 76ers | 2.51 |
| Blocks per game | Theo Ratliff | Philadelphia 76ers | 3.74 |
| FG% | Shaquille O'Neal | Los Angeles Lakers | .572 |
| FT% | Reggie Miller | Indiana Pacers | .928 |
| 3FG% | Brent Barry | Seattle SuperSonics | .472 |

## Awards
### Yearly awards

Source:
* Most Valuable Player: Allen Iverson, Philadelphia 76ers
* Rookie of the Year: Mike Miller, Orlando Magic
* Defensive Player of the Year: Dikembe Mutombo, Philadelphia 76ers/Atlanta Hawks
* Sixth Man of the Year: Aaron McKie, Philadelphia 76ers
* Most Improved Player: Tracy McGrady, Orlando Magic
* Coach of the Year: Larry Brown, Philadelphia 76ers
* Executive of the Year: Geoff Petrie, Sacramento Kings
* Sportsmanship Award: David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs

### Players of the month

The following players were named the Players of the Month.
| Month | Player |
| October – November | Karl Malone (Utah Jazz) |
| December | Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) |
| January | Allen Iverson (Philadelphia 76ers) |
| February | Tracy McGrady (Orlando Magic) |
| March | Paul Pierce (Boston Celtics) |
| April | Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers) |

### Rookies of the month

The following players were named the Rookies of the Month.
| Month | Player |
| October – November | Kenyon Martin (New Jersey Nets) |
| December | Marc Jackson (Golden State Warriors) |
| January | Marc Jackson (Golden State Warriors) |
| February | Mike Miller (Orlando Magic) |
| March | Kenyon Martin (New Jersey Nets) Mike Miller (Orlando Magic) |
| April | Courtney Alexander (Dallas Mavericks) |

### Coaches of the month

The following coaches were named Coaches of the Month.
| Month | Coach |
| October – November | Larry Brown (Philadelphia 76ers) |
| December | Pat Riley (Miami Heat) |
| January | Flip Saunders (Minnesota Timberwolves) |
| February | Jerry Sloan (Utah Jazz) |
| March | Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs) |
| April | Isiah Thomas (Indiana Pacers) |