1998 was the Worst Year of the NBA

[Bernie Nips]

Then tons of guys have as good or better rookie seasons in 96-98 than their career.
1. Jerry Stackhouse rookie numbers: 19.2ppg,3.9apg, 3.7rpg. His career: 17.9ppg, 3.5apg, 3.3 rpg
2. Damon Stoudemire rookie numbers: 19ppg, 9.3apg, 4rpg. His career: 13.4ppg, 6.4apg, 3.5rpg
3. Shareef Abdur-Rahim rookie numbers: 18.7, 6.9, 2.2. His career: 18.1ppg, 7.5, 2.5
4. Antoine Walker rookie numbers: 17.5ppg, 9rpg, 3.2apg. His career: 17.5ppg, 7.5rpg, 3.5apg

Not gonna go into the rest of your post... but this section is goddamn retarded.

Tim Duncan rookie numbers: 21.1ppg, 2.7 apg, 11.9rpg. His career: 20.5ppg, 3.1apg, 11.4rpg.

Shaq rookie numbers: 23.4ppg, 13.9rpg, 3.5bpg. His career: 23.7ppg, 10.9rpg, 2.3bpg.

Kareem Abdul Jabbar rookie numbers: 28.8ppg, 14.5rpg, 4.1apg. His career: 24.6ppg, 11.2rpg, 3.6apg.

...and there's plenty of others. If their rookie season turned out to be their PEAK season, then maybe you'd have a point. But... in none of those cases is that true.

****in' agendas.

[9erEmpire]

Lone stars? WTF? Hakeem and Drexler together with solid players behind them like Horry and Sam Cassell? Those '94 and '95 Rockets teams would destroy anyone from the '00s. Hakeem had his way with Shaq in the '95 finals.

The Jazz with Stockton and Malone.

Knicks with Ewing and Starks.

Suns with Barkley, Ainge, Ceballos, Kevin Johnson

Drexler - ring chasing by the time he got to Houston. I won't even try to explain the rest of the roster.

Stockton/Malone - solid but they were old. It was pretty sad seeing Stockton get burned every night. Howard Eisley was getting good playing time.

Starks - considered the next best SG? Laughable.

Barkley - great years with the Suns and I won't explain his teammates.

[ConanRulesNBC]

There's nothing to explain. Those Rockets teams were just as good as any of the Spurs teams that won championships in the '00s. Same with the Jazz and the Suns. Those teams were way better than the Pistons, Heat, Celtics and '09/'10 Lakers teams.

The only team that could hang with the '90s teams were the '00-'02 Lakers and the Kings from back then too. But both teams would be destroyed by any of the '90s championship Bulls teams.

[Quickening]

There's nothing to explain. Those Rockets teams were just as good as any of the Spurs teams that won championships in the '00s. Same with the Jazz and the Suns. Those teams were way better than the Pistons, Heat, Celtics and '09/'10 Lakers teams.

The only team that could hang with the '90s teams were the '00-'02 Lakers and the Kings from back then too. But both teams would be destroyed by any of the '90s championship Bulls teams.

00-02 Lakers get destroyed?

GTFO!

[Duncan21formvp]

I disagree.

Shaq and Kobe and some of the Spurs teams would have destoryed the Utah Jazz and anyone they played.

Shaq and Kobe got swept by the Jazz and this when they won 61 games. Lakers were better in 1998 they had 4 allstars as well.

[OldSchoolBBall]

I believe this was the tail end of the worst era in basketball.

It was actually the START of what most people consider to be the worst era in history ('99-'07).

[ConanRulesNBC]

00-02 Lakers get destroyed?

GTFO!

By the Bulls? Absolutely. They could go ahead and let Shaq go off. But the rest of the Lakers would get destroyed.

[juju151111]

00-02 Lakers get destroyed?

GTFO!

They don't get destroyed, they lose through.

[SlayerEnraged]

Not gonna go into the rest of your post... but this section is goddamn retarded.

Tim Duncan rookie numbers: 21.1ppg, 2.7 apg, 11.9rpg. His career: 20.5ppg, 3.1apg, 11.4rpg.

Shaq rookie numbers: 23.4ppg, 13.9rpg, 3.5bpg. His career: 23.7ppg, 10.9rpg, 2.3bpg.

Kareem Abdul Jabbar rookie numbers: 28.8ppg, 14.5rpg, 4.1apg. His career: 24.6ppg, 11.2rpg, 3.6apg.

...and there's plenty of others. If their rookie season turned out to be their PEAK season, then maybe you'd have a point. But... in none of those cases is that true.

****in' agendas.

Kiddo name me a listfull of players with better rookie seasons than careers.. Stoudemire, AbdurRahim, Walker and Stackhouse were crappy players having career years their rookie years LOL! The guys u listed played in a high paced game and or played significantly lower minutes due to declining super fast.

[Bernie Nips]

Kiddo name me a listfull of players with better rookie seasons than careers.. Stoudemire, AbdurRahim, Walker and Stackhouse were crappy players having career years their rookie years LOL! The guys u listed played in a high paced game and or played significantly lower minutes due to declining super fast.

Stackhouse had a career year in his rookie year?

Rookie:
19.2ppg
3.7rpg
3.9apg

2000-01
29.8ppg
3.9rpg
5.1apg

...you're an idiot.

[nightprowler10]

Stockton/Malone - solid but they were old. It was pretty sad seeing Stockton get burned every night.

I thought you were too young to watch these guys.

[Legends66NBA7]

Couldn't agree more especially about the late 90's... I got more data besides those poor records:

1996-98 Was one of if not THE weakest era of basketball.. How do we know?

Well first there’s what some people say:
1. "We would not have won 70 games playing against 1980's Teams"
-Dennis Rodman, Starting forward for the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls
2. “The present day Bulls could have beaten any of these teams”
-Dr. J
When asked about who would have won, the 96-98 bulls OR his team in the mid 80’s Magic said
3. “I think it would be a great series but in the end I think Kareem would have won it for us in a game 6 or maybe 7.”
-Magic Johnson
Then there’s what happened:
In 88 there was 23 teams, then the next year there was 25 teams. The next year there was 27. It stayed 27 until 96, when there was 29 teams. That’s 6 new teams in 8 years. What happened by the Nba adding teams so rapidly is that it spaced out the good players. It made it so good players were distributed rather than combined( the Bulls kept Pippen and Jordan as well as key addition players. Most teams didn’t and this is why the Bulls won 3 titles from 96-98.) With new teams being added this suddenly, it added international players which weren’t very good and number.

Then there’s simply the age factor:
look at this list of some of the previous best players and their ages from 96-98.
1. Hakeem Olajuwan 33-35 years old
2. Karl Malone 32-34 years old
3. Charles Barkley 32-34
4. Mitch Richmond 30-32
5. Patrick Ewing 33-35
6. John Stockton 33-35
7. David Robinson 30-32
Then tons of guys have as good or better rookie seasons in 96-98 than their career.
1. Jerry Stackhouse rookie numbers: 19.2ppg,3.9apg, 3.7rpg. His career: 17.9ppg, 3.5apg, 3.3 rpg
2. Damon Stoudemire rookie numbers: 19ppg, 9.3apg, 4rpg. His career: 13.4ppg, 6.4apg, 3.5rpg
3. Shareef Abdur-Rahim rookie numbers: 18.7, 6.9, 2.2. His career: 18.1ppg, 7.5, 2.5
4. Antoine Walker rookie numbers: 17.5ppg, 9rpg, 3.2apg. His career: 17.5ppg, 7.5rpg, 3.5apg

Confidence, why don't you show every era's numbers and showcase their whole careers.

Detail it. And 1997 a weak year ? That year had 10/29 teams win over 54+ games. That's 34.5%, highest in league history to win that many games.

Why don't you talk about how the 70's was the weakest era. It's called the "dark ages" for a reason.

[bwink23]

This year had to be the worst year in NBA history. This was the year when the Utah Jazz lost in the Finals to the Bulls.

I believe this was the tail end of the worst era in basketball.

Toronto Raptors 16-66
Denver Nuggets 11-71
Vancouver Grizzlies 19-63
Golden State Warriors 19-63
LA Clippers 17-65

Dallas Mavericks 20-62


Has there been a year when so many teams finished under 20 wins?

The same Utah Jazz team that knocked off the Spurs ( Duncan,Robinson) and the Lakers ( Shaq and Kobe, SWEEP) in the same playoff run in 1998.

Shaq and Kobe (young but still an ALL-STAR that year) were the league's #1 rated offense...

Bulls beat the Jazz that year in 6 games.

[Quickening]

They don't get destroyed, they lose through.

Lakers in 6.... Shaq dominating.

[ThePointGuard11]

2000s Pacers, 76ers & Nets weren't very good teams and they made it to the finals, the Nets made it twice lol there are bad teams in every era of basketball the Nets won 12 games in 2009-2010 does that make the Lakers title mean less? In my opinion 90s era basketball > basketball in the 2000s to today. All of these rule changes to benefit the offense, the 7 game format throughout the playoffs etc., the competitive nature was greater back then as well. Opposing teams are far too friendly, it's actually sickening to see...