1998 NBA playoffs explained

NBA playoffs
Year:	1998
Season:	1997–98
Dates:	April 23–June 14, 1998
Num Teams:	16
Winners:	Chicago Bulls
Count:	6
Second:	Utah Jazz
Semifinal1:	Indiana Pacers
Semifinal2:	Los Angeles Lakers
Prev Season:	1997
Next Season:	1999

The 1998 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1997–98 season. The tournament concluded with the two-time defending NBA champion and Eastern Conference champion Chicago Bulls defeating the Western Conference champion Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals. The Bulls achieved a second three peat, a goal unrivaled since the Boston Celtics in 1966. Michael Jordan was named NBA Finals MVP for the sixth and final time.

Overview

The Indiana Pacers entered the postseason with a franchise record 58 wins. Although they would lose to the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals, this team was later named by Pacers.com as the greatest in franchise history, even better than the 2000 team that won the Eastern Conference Title, primarily due to their record.

The New Jersey Nets made the playoffs for the first time since 1994, but did not appear again until 2002. Their presence was a mere asterisk compared to what they accomplished in 2002, getting swept by the eventual champion Bulls.

The Minnesota Timberwolves won their first playoff game in franchise history by winning Game 2 of their series against the Seattle SuperSonics. However, the SuperSonics prevailed in five games despite the Timberwolves taking a 2–1 series lead.

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost to Indiana in the first round 3–1 and did not appear again until 2006.

The Heat–Knicks series was extremely notable for two reasons

Game 4: A fight broke out between Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning at the end of the game (in which the Knicks won 90–85). A lasting image of the fight was Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy clinging to Mourning's leg. Both players were suspended for two games. Johnson and Mourning had bad blood dating back to their stint as Charlotte Hornets teammates.
Game 5: The New York Knicks became the fourth seventh seed to knock off a second seeded team in the first round of the playoffs. This would not occur again until 2010.

Game 5 of the Jazz-Rockets series would be the final game of Clyde Drexler's career.

The Los Angeles Lakers advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 1991. They were ultimately swept by the Jazz.

The Eastern Conference Finals series between the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers was extremely notable for several reasons

Game 4: Reggie Miller's game winning 3 pointer with 0.7 seconds, which has been marked one of the greatest postseason moments in NBA History. Michael Jordan attempted a game winning 3 pointer of his own, but it rimmed out, effectively tying the series at 2–2.
Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals: With a win, the Pacers took the Bulls to the limit by becoming 1 of only 2 teams to force a Game 7 in the Bulls' title years (the Knicks achieved this in 1992).
Game 7: This was the first (and as of 2023, only) Game 7 to take place at the United Center.
Game 7: This was the last Game 7 the Bulls would play until 2009.

For the first time since 1989 NBA Finals, there was a rematch of the same two teams: the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz. This would not happen again until 2014.

Game 6 of the NBA Finals was extremely notable for several reasons

In the waning moments of the game Michael Jordan made the title winning shot over Bryon Russell. This moment was marked as one of the greatest moments in NBA playoff history.
It was the highest rated and most watched game in NBA History, with 72 million viewers watching at least part of the game and an average of 35.9 million views.
It was the last Chicago Bulls postseason game until 2005 and the last involving the Michael Jordan-led Bulls.
Michael Jordan's final NBA playoff game.
Phil Jackson's final game as coach of the Chicago Bulls (he would go on to coach the Los Angeles Lakers two seasons later).
As of 2023, this remains the most recent NBA Finals game for the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz.

Bracket

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. Teams with home court advantage are shown in Italics.