# 1987–88 Dallas Mavericks season

The 1987–88 Dallas Mavericks season was the eighth season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Mavericks finished second in the Midwest Division with a 53–29 record. They defeated the Houston Rockets four games in the first round of the 1988 NBA Playoffs, then defeated the 2nd-seeded Denver Nuggets six games in the semifinals. The Mavs made their first appearance in the Western Conference finals, where they pushed the eventual-champion Los Angeles Lakers to seven games. The Mavs were coached by John MacLeod and played their home games at Reunion Arena.
Mark Aguirre and James Donaldson were both selected to play in the 1988 NBA All-Star Game in Chicago. This was Donaldson's only All-Star Game appearance in his career.

## NBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
| 1 | 20 | Jim Farmer | Guard | United States | Alabama |
| 2 | 26 | Steve Alford | Guard | United States | Indiana |
| 3 | 66 | Mike Richmond | Forward | United States | UTEP |
| 4 | 89 | David Johnson | Forward | United States | Oklahoma |
| 5 | 112 | Sam Hill | Center | United States | Iowa State |
| 6 | 135 | Quintan Gates | Forward | United States | UTEP |
| 7 | 158 | Gerald White | Guard | United States | Auburn |

## Regular season
### Standings

| Midwest Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Denver Nuggets | 54 | 28 | .659 | – | 35–6 | 19–22 | 18–12 |
| x-Dallas Mavericks | 53 | 29 | .646 | 1 | 33–8 | 20–21 | 20–10 |
| x-Utah Jazz | 47 | 35 | .573 | 7 | 33–8 | 14–27 | 18–12 |
| x-Houston Rockets | 46 | 36 | .561 | 8 | 31–10 | 15–26 | 13–17 |
| x-San Antonio Spurs | 31 | 51 | .378 | 23 | 23–18 | 8–33 | 12–18 |
| Sacramento Kings | 24 | 58 | .293 | 30 | 19–22 | 5–36 | 9–21 |
| # | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte | Western Conferencevte |
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
| 1 | z-Los Angeles Lakers | 62 | 20 | .756 | – |
| 2 | y-Denver Nuggets | 54 | 28 | .659 | 8 |
| 3 | x-Dallas Mavericks | 53 | 29 | .646 | 9 |
| 4 | x-Portland Trail Blazers | 53 | 29 | .646 | 9 |
| 5 | x-Utah Jazz | 47 | 35 | .573 | 15 |
| 6 | x-Houston Rockets | 46 | 36 | .561 | 16 |
| 7 | x-Seattle SuperSonics | 44 | 38 | .537 | 18 |
| 8 | x-San Antonio Spurs | 31 | 51 | .378 | 31 |
| 9 | Phoenix Suns | 28 | 54 | .341 | 34 |
| 10 | Sacramento Kings | 24 | 58 | .293 | 38 |
| 11 | Golden State Warriors | 20 | 62 | .244 | 42 |
| 12 | Los Angeles Clippers | 17 | 65 | .207 | 45 |

### Record vs. opponents

1987-88 NBA Records :
| Team | ATL | BOS | CHI | CLE | DAL | DEN | DET | GSW | HOU | IND | LAC | LAL | MIL | NJN | NYK | PHI | PHO | POR | SAC | SAS | SEA | UTA | WAS |
| Atlanta | — | 2–4 | 2–3 | 5–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 5–0 | 3–3 | 6–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 |
| Boston | 4–2 | — | 3–3 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 5–1 | 5–1 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 5–1 |
| Chicago | 3–2 | 3–3 | — | 3–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 5–1 | 3–2 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–3 |
| Cleveland | 1–5 | 3–2 | 3–3 | — | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 5–1 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 6–0 |
| Dallas | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | — | 3–3 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 5–0 | 1–4 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 3–2 | 5–1 | 5–1 | 3–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 |
| Denver | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | — | 1–1 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 5–1 | 4–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 |
| Detroit | 4–2 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | — | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 5–1 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–2 |
| Golden State | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 0–2 | — | 0–5 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 0–6 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 1–5 | 2–3 | 3–2 | 1–5 | 1–4 | 0–2 |
| Houston | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 5–0 | — | 2–0 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 3–3 | 2–0 |
| Indiana | 2–4 | 0–5 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | — | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 6–0 | 2–3 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–4 |
| L.A. Clippers | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–5 | 0–5 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–3 | 1–1 | — | 1–5 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 0–6 | 3–2 | 0–5 | 1–5 | 1–4 | 0–2 |
| L.A. Lakers | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 4–1 | 1–1 | 5–1 | — | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 5–1 | 3–3 | 4–1 | 5–0 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 1–1 |
| Milwaukee | 3–3 | 3–3 | 1–5 | 4–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 2–0 | — | 3–2 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 |
| New Jersey | 0–5 | 1–5 | 1–5 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–6 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–3 | — | 3–3 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–6 |
| New York | 3–3 | 1–5 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 3–3 | — | 3–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–3 |
| Philadelphia | 0–6 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 3–3 | — | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–3 |
| Phoenix | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–5 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | — | 0–6 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 2–4 | 2–3 | 0–2 |
| Portland | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 1–4 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 6–0 | — | 4–1 | 5–0 | 3–3 | 1–4 | 2–0 |
| Sacramento | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–5 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 1–4 | — | 3–3 | 1–4 | 1–5 | 0–2 |
| San Antonio | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–5 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 0–2 | 5–0 | 0–5 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 0–5 | 3–3 | — | 3–2 | 3–3 | 0–2 |
| Seattle | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 4–1 | 2–3 | — | 1–4 | 2–0 |
| Utah | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 0–2 | 4–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 4–1 | 5–1 | 3–3 | 4–1 | — | 2–0 |
| Washington | 3–3 | 1–5 | 3–3 | 0–6 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 6–0 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 0–2 | — |

### Game log

1987–88 game log Total: 53–29 (home: 33–8; road: 20–21) :
November: 7–5 (home: 5–1; road: 2–4)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
November 6, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Utah
W 95–93
Aguirre (31)
Donaldson (13)
Alford Blackman (5)
Reunion Arena 17,007
1–0
2
November 7, 1987
@ San Antonio
L 106–130
HemisFair Arena
1–1
3
November 10, 1987 9:30 p.m. CST
@ Seattle
W 117–101
Aguirre (25)
Aguirre (8)
Harper (16)
Seattle Center Coliseum 10,447
2–1
4
November 11, 1987 8:30 p.m. CST
@ Utah
L 92–121
Aguirre (21)
Tarpley (14)
Schrempf (4)
Salt Palace 12,212
2–2
5
November 13, 1987 7:00 p.m. CST
Seattle
L 95–103
Blackman, Perkins (19)
Donaldson (9)
Harper (7)
Reunion Arena 17,007
2–3
6
November 14, 1987
Portland
W 127–116
Reunion Arena
3–3
7
November 18, 1987
L.A. Clippers
W 97–87
Reunion Arena
4–3
8
November 20, 1987 9:30 p.m. CST
@ L.A. Lakers
L 116–119
Aguirre (35)
Blackman (7)
Davis (8)
The Forum 17,505
4–4
9
November 21, 1987
@ Sacramento
W 103–96
ARCO Arena
5–4
10
November 25, 1987 7:30 p.m. CST
Detroit
W 113–107
Blackman (30)
Perkins (12)
Harper (10)
Reunion Arena 17,007
6–4
11
November 27, 1987 7:00 p.m. CST
Chicago
W 94–93
Aguirre (26)
Tarpley (10)
Harper (11)
Reunion Arena 17,007
7–4
12
November 28, 1987 8:30 p.m. CST
@ Denver
L 98–106
Blackman (28)
Tarpley (18)
Harper (7)
McNichols Sports Arena 13,400
7–5 :
December: 10–3 (home: 6–0; road: 4–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
13
December 4, 1987
Golden State
W 116–95
Reunion Arena
8–5
14
December 5, 1987 7:30 p.m. CST
Denver
W 109–96
Aguirre (35)
Aguirre (11)
Blackman (9)
Reunion Arena 17,007
9–5
15
December 9, 1987
Sacramento
W 125–98
Reunion Arena
10–5
16
December 11, 1987
Phoenix
W 108–104
Reunion Arena
11–5
17
December 13, 1987 7:30 p.m. CST
@ Milwaukee
W 113–99
Perkins (21)
Donaldson (9)
Harper (11)
MECCA Arena 11,052
12–5
18
December 15, 1987 6:30 p.m. CST
@ Cleveland
L 93–106
Harper (21)
Donaldson (12)
Aguirre, Blackman, Harper (4)
Richfield Coliseum 6,852
12–6
19
December 16, 1987
@ New Jersey
W 109–105 (OT)
Brendan Byrne Arena
13–6
20
December 18, 1987 6:30 p.m. CST
@ Detroit
L 112–117
Aguirre (35)
Donaldson (12)
Harper (7)
Pontiac Silverdome 19,426
13–7
21
December 19, 1987
@ Philadelphia
L 90–95
The Spectrum
13–8
22
December 22, 1987 7:00 p.m. CST
@ Chicago
W 111–100
Aguirre (32)
Donaldson (18)
Blackman, Harper (9)
Chicago Stadium 18,103
14–8
23
December 23, 1987
@ Indiana
W 110–109
Market Square Arena
15–8
24
December 26, 1987
Houston
W 105–100
Reunion Arena
16–8
25
December 29, 1987
Sacramento
W 126–117
Reunion Arena
17–8 :
January: 11–4 (home: 5–2; road: 6–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
26
January 2, 1988
@ San Antonio
W 116–109
HemisFair Arena
18–8
27
January 4, 1988
@ Houston
L 107–117
The Summit
18–9
28
January 6, 1988 9:30 p.m. CST
@ L.A. Lakers
L 89–103
Aguirre (29)
Donaldson (12)
Harper (11)
The Forum 17,505
18–10
29
January 7, 1988
@ Phoenix
W 105–91
Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
19–10
30
January 9, 1988
@ Golden State
W 115–99
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena
20–10
31
January 13, 1988
Indiana
W 110–108
Reunion Arena
21–10
32
January 16, 1988 12:30 p.m. CST
Atlanta
L 98–101
Aguirre (32)
Tarpley (8)
Harper (11)
Reunion Arena 17,007
21–11
33
January 18, 1988 9:30 p.m. CST
@ L.A. Clippers
W 99–87
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
22–11
34
January 19, 1988
@ Portland
W 120–116
Memorial Coliseum
23–11
35
January 22, 1988
L.A. Clippers
W 110–87
Reunion Arena
24–11
36
January 23, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Milwaukee
W 113–97
Aguirre (35)
Donaldson, Tarpley (14)
Harper (12)
Reunion Arena 17,007
25–11
37
January 26, 1988
San Antonio
W 128–111
Reunion Arena
26–11
38
January 27, 1988
@ Phoenix
W 121–102
Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
27–11
39
January 29, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Seattle
W 117–109
Aguirre (29)
Donaldson (10)
Harper (5)
Reunion Arena 17,007
28–11
40
January 30, 1988
Houston
L 92–108
Reunion Arena
28–12 :
February: 10–5 (home: 7–2; road: 3–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
41
February 1, 1988
New Jersey
L 103–108
Reunion Arena
28–13
42
February 3, 1988 8:30 p.m. CST
@ Denver
L 105–115
Aguirre (27)
Donaldson (15)
Harper (7)
McNichols Sports Arena 10,667
28–14
43
February 4, 1988
@ Sacramento
L 101–118
ARCO Arena
28–15
All-Star Break
44
February 9, 1988 7:00 p.m. CST
Utah
W 124–93
Harper (21)
Tarpley (13)
Aguirre (8)
Reunion Arena 17,007
29–15
45
February 10, 1988 8:30 p.m. CST
@ Utah
L 80–93
Blackman (18)
Tarpley (17)
Harper (6)
Salt Palace 12,444
29–16
46
February 12, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Boston
L 104–105
Aguirre (38)
Tarpley (14)
Harper (10)
Reunion Arena 17,007
29–17
47
February 14, 1988
@ L.A. Clippers
W 110–100
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
30–17
48
February 15, 1988 8:00 p.m. CST
@ Seattle
W 128–122 (2OT)
Blackman (28)
Donaldson (13)
Blackman (7)
Seattle Center Coliseum 13,492
31–17
49
February 17, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Washington
W 123–108
Aguirre (35)
Tarpley (19)
Harper (11)
Reunion Arena 17,007
32–17
50
February 19, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Golden State
W 113–100
Reunion Arena
33–17
51
February 22, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Phoenix
W 114–107
Reunion Arena
34–17
52
February 24, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Cleveland
W 93–89
Blackman (26)
Tarpley (9)
Davis, Harper (5)
Reunion Arena 17,007
35–17
53
February 25, 1988
@ Houston
W 108–106
The Summit
36–17
54
February 27, 1988
Philadelphia
W 100–91
Reunion Arena
37–17
55
February 29, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
Denver
W 123–96
Aguirre, Perkins (22)
Tarpley (21)
Aguirre (9)
Reunion Arena 17,007
38–17 :
March: 8–6 (home: 6–2; road: 2–4)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
56
March 2, 1988
Sacramento
W 115–90
Reunion Arena
39–17
57
March 4, 1988 7:00 p.m. CST
Houston
W 118–110
Reunion Arena
40–17
58
March 6, 1988 1:00 p.m. CST
L.A. Lakers
L 97–108
Aguirre (27)
Donaldson (12)
Davis, Harper (6)
Reunion Arena 17,007
40–18
59
March 8, 1988
Portland
L 110–112
Reunion Arena
41–19
60
March 12, 1988 10:00 p.m. CST
@ L.A. Lakers
W 110–101
Aguirre (21)
Tarpley (21)
Aguirre, Davis (5)
The Forum 17,505
41–19
61
March 14, 1988
Golden State
W 121–101
Reunion Arena
42–19
62
March 16, 1988 8:30 p.m. CST
@ Utah
L 105–120
Aguirre (29)
Perkins (10)
Harper (7)
Salt Palace 12,444
42–20
63
March 18, 1988
@ L.A. Clippers
W 106–98
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
43–20
64
March 20, 1988
@ Portland
L 99–105
Memorial Coliseum
43–21
65
March 22, 1988 7:30 p.m. CST
New York
W 124–105
Reunion Arena
44–21
66
March 25, 1988
Portland
W 106–101
Reunion Arena
45–21
67
March 26, 1988
San Antonio
W 131–112
Reunion Arena
46–21
68
March 28, 1988 6:30 p.m. CST
@ New York
L 106–114
Madison Square Garden
46–22
69
March 29, 1988 7:00 p.m. CST
@ Atlanta
L 106–120
Harper (25)
Tarpley (19)
Harper (9)
The Omni 14,583
46–23 :
April: 7–5 (home: 4–1; road: 3–4)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
70
April 1, 1988 7:00 p.m. CST
@ Washington
L 113–128
Aguirre (38)
Donaldson (11)
Aguirre (6)
Capital Centre 13,783
46–24
71
April 3, 1988 12 Noon CDT
@ Boston
L 101–110
Tarpley (22)
Tarpley (16)
Blackman (6)
Boston Garden 14,890
46–25
72
April 6, 1988
Phoenix
W 119–93
Reunion Arena
47–25
73
April 8, 1988 7:30 p.m. CDT
Utah
W 118–95
Blackman (21)
Tarpley (15)
Harper (6)
Reunion Arena 17,007
48–25
74
April 9, 1988 7:30 p.m. CDT
Denver
W 135–109
Harper (35)
Donaldson (13)
Harper (11)
Reunion Arena 17,007
49–25
75
April 12, 1988
@ Sacramento
W 104–96
ARCO Arena
50–25
76
April 13, 1988
@ Golden State
L 110–112
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena
50–26
77
April 15, 1988 9:30 p.m. CDT
@ Seattle
L 88–115
Aguirre (24)
Donaldson (13)
Harper (5)
Seattle Center Coliseum 12,576
50–27
78
April 17, 1988 3:00 p.m. CDT
@ Denver
L 122–133
Blackman (31)
Donaldson Tarpley (11)
Davis (6)
McNichols Sports Arena 17,022
50–28
79
April 19, 1988 7:30 p.m. CDT
@ Houston
W 104–96
The Summit
51–28
80
April 20, 1988 7:30 p.m. CDT
L.A. Lakers
L 107–114
Tarpley (24)
Tarpley (13)
Blackman (7)
Reunion Arena 17,007
51–29
81
April 22, 1988
San Antonio
W 127–96
Reunion Arena
52–29
82
April 24, 1988
@ San Antonio
W 119–109
HemisFair Arena
53–29 :
1987–88 schedule :

## Playoffs
### Game log

1988 playoff game log :
Western Conference First Round: 3–1 (home: 1–1; road: 2–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
April 28, 1988 7:30 p.m. CDT
Houston
W 120–110
Roy Tarpley (24)
Roy Tarpley (9)
Derek Harper (8)
Reunion Arena 17,007
1–0
2
April 30, 1988 2:30 p.m. CDT
Houston
L 108–119
Roy Tarpley (23)
Roy Tarpley (13)
Derek Harper (8)
Reunion Arena 17,007
1–1
3
May 3, 1988 7:30 p.m. CDT
@ Houston
W 93–92
Roy Tarpley (17)
Roy Tarpley (13)
Rolando Blackman (7)
The Summit 16,611
2–1
4
May 5, 1988 7:00 p.m. CDT
@ Houston
W 107–97
Mark Aguirre (38)
James Donaldson (10)
Rolando Blackman (10)
The Summit 16,611
3–1 :
Western Conference Semifinals: 4–2 (home: 2–1; road: 2–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
May 10, 1988 8:30 p.m. CDT
@ Denver
L 115–126
Aguirre (26)
Donaldson (13)
Harper (5)
McNichols Sports Arena 17,022
0–1
2
May 12, 1988 9:00 p.m. CDT
@ Denver
W 112–108
Blackman (31)
Donaldson (13)
Harper (8)
McNichols Sports Arena 17,022
1–1
3
May 14, 1988 2:30 p.m. CDT
Denver
L 105–107
Perkins (17)
Tarpley (15)
Aguirre (6)
Reunion Arena 17,007
1–2
4
May 15, 1988 7:00 p.m. CDT
Denver
W 124–103
Aguirre (34)
Tarpley (13)
Harper (10)
Reunion Arena 17,007
2–2
5
May 17, 1988 9:00 p.m. CDT
@ Denver
W 110–106
Aguirre (25)
Tarpley (16)
Harper (6)
McNichols Sports Arena 17,022
3–2
6
May 19, 1988 7:00 p.m. CDT
Denver
W 108–95
Blackman, Perkins (23)
Tarpley (19)
Harper (9)
Reunion Arena 17,007
4–2 :
Western Conference Finals: 3–4 (home: 3–0; road: 0–4)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
May 23, 1988 9:30 p.m. CDT
@ L.A. Lakers
L 98–113
Aguirre, Blackman, Tarpley (18)
Tarpley (20)
Harper (7)
The Forum 17,505
0–1
2
May 25, 1988 9:30 p.m. CDT
@ L.A. Lakers
L 101–123
Aguirre (28)
Tarpley (13)
Harper (8)
The Forum 17,505
0–2
3
May 27, 1988 7:00 p.m. CDT
L.A. Lakers
W 106–94
Aguirre (23)
Tarpley (20)
Davis (6)
Reunion Arena 17,007
1–2
4
May 29, 1988 2:30 p.m. CDT
L.A. Lakers
W 118–104
Harper (35)
Tarpley (13)
Blackman (11)
Reunion Arena 17,007
2–2
5
May 31, 1988 10:30 p.m. CDT
@ L.A. Lakers
L 102–119
Aguirre (31)
Tarpley (11)
Harper (6)
The Forum 17,505
2–3
6
June 2, 1988 8:00 p.m. CDT
L.A. Lakers
W 105–103
Aguirre (23)
Aguirre (13)
Harper (10)
Reunion Arena 17,007
3–3
7
June 4, 1988 2:30 p.m. CDT
@ L.A. Lakers
L 102–117
Aguirre (24)
Donaldson (14)
Harper (11)
The Forum 17,505
3–4 :
1988 schedule :

## Awards and honors
### Week/Month

* Roy Tarpley was named Player of the Week for games played February 22 through February 28.

### All-Star

* Mark Aguirre was selected as a reserve for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. It was his third All-Star selection. Aguirre finished seventh in voting among Western Conference forwards with 347,357 votes.
* James Donaldson was selected as a reserve for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. It was his first and only All-Star selection. Donaldson finished fourth in voting among Western Conference centers with 310,100 votes.
* Detlef Schrempf was selected to compete in the Three-Point Shootout. Schrempf was eliminated in the second round.

### Season

* Roy Tarpley received the Sixth Man of the Year Award.
* Mark Aguirre finished 14th in MVP voting.

## Player statistics
### Ragular season

| Player | POS | GP | GS | MP | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | MPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| Derek Harper | PG | 82 | 82 | 3,032 | 246 | 634 | 168 | 35 | 1,393 | 37.0 | 3.0 | 7.7 | 2.0 | .4 | 17.0 |
| Detlef Schrempf | SF | 82 | 4 | 1,587 | 279 | 159 | 42 | 32 | 698 | 19.4 | 3.4 | 1.9 | .5 | .4 | 8.5 |
| James Donaldson | C | 81 | 81 | 2,523 | 755 | 66 | 40 | 104 | 571 | 31.1 | 9.3 | .8 | .5 | 1.3 | 7.0 |
| Roy Tarpley | PF | 81 | 9 | 2,307 | 959 | 86 | 103 | 86 | 1,093 | 28.5 | 11.8 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 1.1 | 13.5 |
| Mark Aguirre | SF | 77 | 77 | 2,610 | 434 | 278 | 70 | 57 | 1,932 | 33.9 | 5.6 | 3.6 | .9 | .7 | 25.1 |
| Sam Perkins | PF | 75 | 75 | 2,499 | 601 | 118 | 74 | 54 | 1,066 | 33.3 | 8.0 | 1.6 | 1.0 | .7 | 14.2 |
| Brad Davis | PG | 75 | 12 | 1,480 | 102 | 303 | 51 | 18 | 537 | 19.7 | 1.4 | 4.0 | .7 | .2 | 7.2 |
| Uwe Blab | C | 73 | 1 | 658 | 134 | 35 | 8 | 29 | 162 | 9.0 | 1.8 | .5 | .1 | .4 | 2.2 |
| Rolando Blackman | SG | 71 | 69 | 2,580 | 246 | 262 | 64 | 18 | 1,325 | 36.3 | 3.5 | 3.7 | .9 | .3 | 18.7 |
| Jim Farmer | SG | 30 | 0 | 157 | 18 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 61 | 5.2 | .6 | .5 | .1 | .0 | 2.0 |
| Bill Wennington | C | 30 | 0 | 125 | 39 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 63 | 4.2 | 1.3 | .1 | .2 | .3 | 2.1 |
| Steve Alford | PG | 28 | 0 | 197 | 23 | 23 | 17 | 3 | 59 | 7.0 | .8 | .8 | .6 | .1 | 2.1 |

### Playoffs

| Player | POS | GP | GS | MP | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | MPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| Rolando Blackman | SG | 17 | 17 | 672 | 55 | 77 | 15 | 3 | 307 | 39.5 | 3.2 | 4.5 | .9 | .2 | 18.1 |
| Derek Harper | PG | 17 | 17 | 602 | 43 | 121 | 32 | 5 | 230 | 35.4 | 2.5 | 7.1 | 1.9 | .3 | 13.5 |
| Sam Perkins | PF | 17 | 17 | 572 | 112 | 31 | 25 | 17 | 230 | 33.6 | 6.6 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 13.5 |
| Mark Aguirre | SF | 17 | 17 | 558 | 100 | 56 | 14 | 9 | 367 | 32.8 | 5.9 | 3.3 | .8 | .5 | 21.6 |
| James Donaldson | C | 17 | 17 | 499 | 146 | 12 | 7 | 15 | 158 | 29.4 | 8.6 | .7 | .4 | .9 | 9.3 |
| Roy Tarpley | PF | 17 | 0 | 563 | 219 | 30 | 21 | 26 | 304 | 33.1 | 12.9 | 1.8 | 1.2 | 1.5 | 17.9 |
| Brad Davis | PG | 17 | 0 | 295 | 20 | 55 | 3 | 5 | 109 | 17.4 | 1.2 | 3.2 | .2 | .3 | 6.4 |
| Detlef Schrempf | SF | 15 | 0 | 274 | 55 | 24 | 8 | 7 | 117 | 18.3 | 3.7 | 1.6 | .5 | .5 | 7.8 |
| Bill Wennington | C | 6 | 0 | 14 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 | .7 | .2 | .2 | .0 | .0 |
| Steve Alford | PG | 4 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3.0 | .5 | .5 | .0 | .0 | 1.5 |
| Jim Farmer | SG | 3 | 0 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3.7 | 1.3 | .3 | .0 | .0 | 1.3 |
| Uwe Blab | C | 3 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2.7 | .3 | .3 | .0 | .0 | .7 |

## Transactions
### Free agents
#### Subtractions

| Date | Player | Reason Left | New Team |
| October 30, 1987 | Dennis Nutt | Waived | Real Madrid (Spain) |
| November 17, 1987 | Al Wood | Waived | Basket Mestre (Italy) |