1998–99 Detroit Pistons season

1998–99 Detroit Pistons season
Joe Dumars' final season
Head coach	Alvin Gentry
General manager	Rick Sund
Owner(s)	William Davidson
Arena	The Palace of Auburn Hills
Results
Record	29–21 (.580)
Place	Division: 3rd (Central) Conference: 5th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	East First Round (eliminated 2-3)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com

The 1998-99 NBA season was the Pistons' 51st season in the NBA and 42nd season in the city of Detroit. In a season cut in half by a four month lockout, the Pistons would bounce back from their disappointing season to finish third in the Central Division with a 29-21 record. In the playoffs, they would lose in five games to the Atlanta Hawks in the first round. This season also marked an end of an era as Joe Dumars retired after a solid fourteen year career. This was also Bison Dele's final season of his career as he retired before the following season.

Draft picks

Main article: 1998 NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	11	Bonzi Wells	SG	United States	Ball State
2	40	Korleone Young	SF	United States

Roster

Detroit Pistons roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From SF 30 Buechler, Jud 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Arizona C 8 Dele, Bison 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Arizona SG 4 Dumars, Joe 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) McNeese State SF 33 Hill, Grant 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Duke PG 1 Hunter, Lindsey 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jackson State PF 32 Laettner, Christian 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Duke C 00 Montross, Eric 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 270 lb (122 kg) North Carolina SG 5 O'Bannon, Charles 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 209 lb (95 kg) UCLA PG 20 Reeves, Khalid 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 199 lb (90 kg) Arizona PF 52 Reid, Don 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Georgetown SG 42 Stackhouse, Jerry 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 218 lb (99 kg) North Carolina PF 35 Vaught, Loy 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Michigan PF 13 Williams, Jerome 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 206 lb (93 kg) Georgetown SF 45 Young, Korleone 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 213 lb (97 kg) Hargrave Military Academy HS (VA)	Head coach Alvin Gentry Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster • Transactions

Regular season

Season standings

Central Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Indiana Pacers	33	17	.660	–	18–7	15–10	15–7
x-Atlanta Hawks	31	19	.620	2	16–9	15–10	15–8
x-Detroit Pistons	29	21	.580	4	17–8	12–13	13–8
x-Milwaukee Bucks	28	22	.560	5	17–8	11–14	13–11
Charlotte Hornets	26	24	.520	7	16–9	10–15	12–10
Toronto Raptors	23	27	.460	10	14–11	9–16	9–14
Cleveland Cavaliers	22	28	.440	11	15–10	7–18	9–13
Chicago Bulls	13	37	.260	20	8–17	5–20	4–19

#	Eastern Conference
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-Miami Heat	33	17	.660	–
2	y-Indiana Pacers	33	17	.660	–
3	x-Orlando Magic	33	17	.660	–
4	x-Atlanta Hawks	31	19	.620	2
5	x-Detroit Pistons	29	21	.580	4
6	x-Philadelphia 76ers	28	22	.560	5
7	x-Milwaukee Bucks	28	22	.560	5
8	x-New York Knicks	27	23	.540	6
9	Charlotte Hornets	26	24	.520	7
10	Toronto Raptors	23	27	.460	10
11	Cleveland Cavaliers	22	28	.440	11
12	Boston Celtics	19	31	.380	14
13	Washington Wizards	18	32	.360	15
14	New Jersey Nets	16	34	.320	17
15	Chicago Bulls	13	37	.260	20

c - clinched homecourt advantage

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

East First Round

(4) Atlanta Hawks vs. (5) Detroit Pistons: Hawks win series 3-2

• Game 1 @ Georgia Dome, Atlanta (May 8): Atlanta 90, Detroit 70
• Game 2 @ Georgia Dome, Atlanta (May 10): Atlanta 89, Detroit 69
• Game 3 @ The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills (May 12): Detroit 79, Atlanta 63
• Game 4 @ The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills (May 14): Detroit 103, Atlanta 82
• Game 5 @ Alexander Memorial Coliseum, Atlanta (May 16): Atlanta 87, Detroit 75

Last Playoff Meeting: 1997 Eastern Conference First Round (Atlanta won 3-2)

Player statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Corey Beck
Jud Buechler
Bison Dele
Joe Dumars
Steve Henson
Grant Hill
Lindsey Hunter
Christian Laettner
Mark Macon
Eric Montross
Mikki Moore
Charles O'Bannon
Khalid Reeves
Don Reid
Jerry Stackhouse
Loy Vaught
Jerome Williams
Korleone Young

Playoffs

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Jud Buechler
Bison Dele
Joe Dumars
Grant Hill
Lindsey Hunter
Christian Laettner
Eric Montross
Charles O'Bannon
Don Reid
Jerry Stackhouse
Loy Vaught
Jerome Williams

Awards and records

• Grant Hill, All-NBA Second Team

See also

• 1998-99 NBA season