The

1998–99 NBA season The 1998–99 NBA season was the 53rd season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Due to the lockout, the regular season was reduced to 50 games for each team, and began on February 5, 1999. The 1999 NBA All-Star Game, which was to be ...

was the 52nd season for the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

. Due to a lockout, the regular season began on February 5, 1999, and was cut from 82 games to 50. Head coach Jeff Van Gundy entered in his third full season coaching the Knocks. To give All-Star center

Patrick Ewing Patrick Aloysius Ewing Sr. (born August 5, 1962) is a Jamaican-American basketball coach and former professional player who is a basketball ambassador for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he played most o ...

more help offensively and defensively, the Knicks acquired controversial All-Star guard

Latrell Sprewell Latrell Fontaine Sprewell (born September 8, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Golden State Warriors, the New York Knicks, and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Du ...

from the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

, acquired

Marcus Camby Marcus Dion Camby (born March 22, 1974) is an American former professional basketball player who played 17 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was named Defensive Player of the Year during the 2006–07 NBA season, leading ...

from the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

, and signed free agents Kurt Thomas, and three-point specialist Dennis Scott during the off-season. However, Scott was released by the team to free agency after 15 games, and later on signed with the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

. Because of the lockout shortened season, and injuries to Sprewell, who missed 13 games due to a stress fracture in his right heel, and Ewing, who missed 12 games due to a knee injury, the Knicks played mediocre basketball around .500 in winning percentage. The team won six of their final eight games of the regular season to finish in fourth place in the Atlantic Division with a 27–23 record, earning the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference. Ewing led the team with 17.3 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, while Sprewell played a sixth man role, averaging 16.4 points per game off the bench, and Allan Houston provided the team with 16.3 points per game. In addition, Larry Johnson contributed 12.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while Thomas provided with 8.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, and Charlie Ward contributed 7.6 points, 5.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Off the bench, Camby averaged 7.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game, and Chris Childs contributed 6.8 points and 4.0 assists per game. In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 1999 NBA playoffs, the Knicks faced off against the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

for the third consecutive year; the Knicks became the second 8th-seeded team in NBA history to defeat the #1 seed, eliminating the top-seeded Heat in five games (one of the five games on one of the biggest shots in Knicks' history by Houston). The Knicks then took down the 4th-seeded

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

in a second round four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals; Camby, who had struggled through most of the regular season, emerged as one of the key players off a deep Knicks bench. Camby's 11 points and 13 rebounds in Game 2 of the Knicks-Hawks series proved to be his coming-out party, and the Knicks became the first #8 seed to sweep a playoff series as the team advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals to meet a familiar foe,

Reggie Miller Reginald Wayne Miller (born August 24, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, played his entire 18-year career in the National Basketball Assoc ...

and the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. However, the Knicks would lose Ewing after Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, which the Knicks lost to the Pacers at the

Market Square Arena Market Square Arena (MSA) was an indoor arena in Indianapolis. Completed in 1974, at a cost of $23 million, it seated 16,530 for basketball and 15,993 for ice hockey. Seating capacity for concerts and other events was adjusted by the use of larg ...

, 88–86; Ewing had been battling through an Achilles injury, but it was learned that the tendon (which he had played on in Game 2) was partially torn, and he would be forced to miss the remainder of the playoffs. The Knicks were rescued by Johnson in Game 3 at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...

; standing outside the three-point line with 11.9 seconds left, Johnson held the ball, and then began to dribble. He leaned into Pacers defender

Antonio Davis Antonio Lee Davis (born October 31, 1968) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, and New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He also played f ...

before jumping up. The referee called the foul about a half-second before Johnson released the ball, but it was counted as a continuation shooting foul; the three-point basket and the ensuing free throw gave the Knicks a 92–91 victory. The Knicks would then stamp their ticket to the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

with a 90–82 home win in Game 6, despite losing Johnson to a knee injury in the first half. Led by Houston's 32-point performance and defense against Miller (3–18 shooting), the Knicks closed out the 2nd-seeded Pacers. The Knicks' 27–23 record was the worst for a team to reach the Finals since the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

did it with a 40–42 record in 1981. They also became the first 8th seed to reach the NBA Finals, a feat that has since only been repeated once by the

in the 2023 season. In the

1999 NBA Finals The 1999 NBA Finals was the championship round of the shortened 1998–99 NBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs took on the Eastern Conference champion New York Knicks f ...

, the Knicks were defeated in five games against the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

. Completely overmatched by the Spurs' height with

Tim Duncan Timothy Theodore Duncan (born April 25, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, spent his entire 19-year career with the San Antonio Sp ...

and David Robinson, the Knicks lost at home with a 78–77 loss in Game 5 despite Sprewell's 35 points. For the series, Sprewell averaged 26.0 points per game, and Houston provided with 21.6 points per game. The Knicks defense did not allow any opponent to score more than 96 points against them in their 20 playoff games. The Knicks finished third in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 494,075 at Madison Square Garden during the regular season. Following the season, veteran center Herb Williams retired at age 41. The team's season roster has been featured in the basketball game series ''

NBA 2K ''NBA 2K'' is a series of basketball sports simulation video games developed by Visual Concepts and released annually since 1999. The premise of the series is to emulate the sport of basketball and the National Basketball Association. The ser ...

'' since the 19th installment '' NBA 2K18''.

Offseason

NBA draft

Transactions

*On 6/25/98: Knicks traded Charles Oakley and Sean Marks to the

for

. *On 1/18/99: Knicks traded John Starks, Chris Mills and Terry Cummings to the

for

Roster

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Schedule

Feb. Feb. 5 Orlando 93, New York 85 (0–1) Feb. 7 Miami 83, New York 79 (0–2) Feb. 10 New York 101, Washington 88 (1–2) Feb. 11 New York 73, Chicago 68 (2-2) Feb. 15 New York 78, Detroit 69 (3–2) Feb. 16 New York 95, Toronto 85 (4–2) Feb. 18 Cleveland 98, New York 74 (4–3) Feb. 19 New York 78, Philadelphia 67 (5–3) Feb. 21 New York 79, Chicago 63 (6–3) Feb. 23 New York 82, New Jersey 74 (7–3) Feb. 25 New York 115, Minnesota 113 (8–3) Feb. 26 Boston 94, New York 80 (8–4) Feb. 28 Detroit 89, New York 68 (8–5) Mar. Mar. 1 New York 85, Cleveland 78 (9–5) Mar. 2 Miami 85, New York 84 (9–6) Mar. 5 Milwaukee 88, New York 87 (9–7) Mar. 7 New York 97, New Jersey 86 (10–7) Mar. 9 Milwaukee 87, New York 86 (10–8) Mar. 11 New York 98, Washington 86 (11–8) Mar. 12 Chicago 76, New York 63 (11–9) Mar. 14 New York 94, Charlotte 86 (12–9) Mar. 15 New York 108, Milwaukee 102 (13–9) Mar. 16 New York 113, Los Angeles Clippers 89 (14–9) Mar. 18 Orlando 86, New York 78 (14–10) Mar. 20 New York 96, Boston 78 (15–10) Mar. 21 Toronto 85, New York 81 (15–11) Mar. 22 Atlanta 80, New York 71 (15–12) Mar. 24 Sacramento 92, New York 91 (15–13) Mar. 26 New York 94, Phoenix 87 (16–13) Mar. 28 Los Angeles Lakers 99, New York 91 (16–14) Mar. 30 New York 94, Indiana 93 (17–14) Apr. Apr. 1 New York 78, Cleveland 74 (18–14) Apr. 4 Indiana 108, New York 95 (18–15) Apr. 6 Orlando 81, New York 72 (18–16) Apr. 7 Charlotte 106, New York 82 (18–17) Apr. 9 New York 86, Atlanta 78 (19–17) Apr. 11 New York 93, New Jersey 78 (20–17) Apr. 13 New York 91, Philadelphia 72 (21–17) Apr. 14 Washington 95, New York 89 (21–18) Apr. 16 Detroit 80, New York 71 (21–19) Apr. 17 Toronto 93, New York 90 (21–20) Apr. 19 Philadelphia 72, New York 67 (21-21) Apr. 23 New York 110, Charlotte 105 (22–21) Apr. 25 New York 82, Miami 80 (23–21) Apr. 26 New York 91, Charlotte 84 (24–21) Apr. 28 Atlanta 76, New York 73 (24–22) Apr. 29 New York 85, Philadelphia 70 (25–22) May May 2 Indiana 94, New York 71 (25–23) May 3 New York 95, Boston 88 (26–23) May 5 New York 101, Miami 88 (27–23)

Playoffs

, - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , May 8 , @

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

W 95–75
,

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, Sprewell (22) ,

(15) , Charlie Ward (6) ,

Miami Arena Miami Arena was an indoor arena located in Miami, Florida. The venue served as the home of the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). From 1988 until 1999, it also ...

15,036 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , May 10 , @

L 73–83
,

(16) ,

(15) , Charlie Ward (5) ,

15,200 , 1–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 3 , May 12 ,

W 97–73
,

(20) ,

(9) , Charlie Ward (4) ,

19,763 , 2–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , May 14 ,

L 72–87
,

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

(12) , Larry Johnson (12) , Charlie Ward (4) ,

19,763 , 2–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 5 , May 16 , @

W 78–77
,

(22) ,

(11) , three players tied (3) ,

14,985 , 3–2 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , May 18 , @

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

W 100–92
, Allan Houston (34) , Chris Dudley (9) , Charlie Ward (7) ,

Georgia Dome The Georgia Dome was a Stadium#Types, domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown Atlanta, downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of th ...

18,513 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 2 , May 20 , @

W 77–70
,

(31) ,

(13) , Chris Childs (5) ,

22,558 , 2–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 3 , May 23 ,

W 90–78
,

, Sprewell (17) , Chris Dudley (12) , Chris Childs (6) ,

19,763 , 3–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 4 , May 24 ,

W 79–66
, Allan Houston (19) ,

(9) , Charlie Ward (6) ,

19,763 , 4–0 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , May 30 , @

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

W 93–90
, Allan Houston (19) ,

(10) , Childs,

(5) ,

16,575 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , June 1 , @

L 86–88
, Larry Johnson (22) ,

(13) , three players tied (3) ,

16,586 , 1–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 3 , June 5 ,

W 92–91
, Larry Johnson (26) ,

(11) , Chris Childs (10) ,

19,763 , 2–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , June 7 ,

L 78–90
,

(18) ,

(14) , Chris Childs (8) ,

19,763 , 2–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 5 , June 9 , @

W 101–94
,

(29) ,

(13) , Chris Childs (7) ,

16,541 , 3–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 6 , June 11 ,

W 90–82
, Allan Houston (32) ,

(9) , Chris Childs (4) ,

19,763 , 4–2 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , June 16 , @

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

L 77–89
,

, Sprewell (19) , Kurt Thomas (16) , three players tied (3) ,

Alamodome The Alamodome is a 64,000-seat domed indoor multi-purpose stadium in San Antonio, Texas. It is located on the southeastern fringe of downtown San Antonio. The facility opened on May 15, 1993, having been constructed at a cost of $186 milli ...

39,514 , 0–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , June 18 , @

L 67–80
,

(26) ,

(11) , Charlie Ward (3) ,

39,554 , 0–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 3 , June 21 ,

W 89–81
, Allan Houston (34) , Kurt Thomas (10) ,

(5) ,

19,763 , 1–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , June 23 ,

L 89–96
,

(26) ,

(13) , Charlie Ward (8) ,

19,763 , 1–3 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 5 , June 25 ,