1998–99 Boston Celtics season

1998–99 Boston Celtics season
Head coachRick Pitino
General managerRick Pitino
OwnerPaul Gaston
ArenaFleet Center
Results
Record19–31 (.380)
PlaceDivision: 5th (Atlantic)
Conference: 12th (Eastern)
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
TelevisionWABU
(Tom Heinsohn, Bob Cousy)
Fox Sports New England
(Mike Gorman, Tom Heinsohn)
RadioWEEI
(Howard David, Cedric Maxwell)

The 1998–99 Boston Celtics season was the 53rd season for the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association.[1] Due to a lockout, the regular season began on February 5, 1999, and was cut from 82 games to 50.[2] This season was memorable as the Celtics received the tenth overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, and selected small forward Paul Pierce from the University of Kansas.[3][4][5] During the off-season, the team acquired second-year center Tony Battie from the Los Angeles Lakers, who had acquired him from the Denver Nuggets.[6][7]

With the addition of Pierce and Battie, the Celtics got off to a 6–5 start to the regular season. However, the team struggled and fell below .500 in winning percentage losing 12 of their next 14 games. At mid-season, the team traded Andrew DeClercq to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Vitaly Potapenko.[8][9][10] Celtics fans began to get restless with head coach Rick Pitino's slow growth,[11] as the team finished in fifth place in the Atlantic Division with a 19–31 record.[12]

Antoine Walker averaged 18.7 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, and also contributed 65 three-point field goals, while second-year star Ron Mercer averaged 17.0 points and 1.6 steals per game, and Pierce provided the team with 16.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game, led them with 84 three-point field goals, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, and also finished in third place in Rookie of the Year voting.[13][14] In addition, Kenny Anderson contributed 12.1 points and 5.7 assists per game, while Potapenko provided with 10.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game in 33 games after the trade. Off the bench, sixth man Dana Barros contributed 9.3 points and 4.2 assists per game, while Battie averaged 6.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, Walter McCarty provided with 5.7 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, and Greg Minor contributed 4.9 points per game.[15]

The Celtics finished ninth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 440,602 at the FleetCenter during the regular season.[15][16] Following the season, Mercer was traded along with Popeye Jones to the Denver Nuggets,[17][18][19] and Bruce Bowen signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia 76ers.[20][21]

Draft picks

Main article: 1998 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 10 Paul Pierce SF/SG  United States Kansas

Roster

1998–99 Boston Celtics roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From
G 7 Kenny Anderson 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 168 lb (76 kg) 1970–10–09 Georgia Tech
G 11 Dana Barros 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 163 lb (74 kg) 1967–04–13 Boston College
F/C 40 Tony Battie 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1976–02–11 Texas Tech
G/F 12 Bruce Bowen 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1971–06–14 Cal State Fullerton
F 29 Pervis Ellison (IN) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1967–04–03 Louisville
G 13 Damon Jones 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1976–08–25 Houston
F 4 Popeye Jones 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1970–06–17 Murray State
F 0 Walter McCarty 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1974–02–01 Kentucky
G 5 Ron Mercer 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1976–05–18 Kentucky
G 9 Greg Minor 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1971–09–18 Louisville
F 34 Paul Pierce 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1977–10–13 Kansas
C 52 Vitaly Potapenko 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 280 lb (127 kg) 1975–03–21 Wright State
C 44 Eric Riley 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1970–06–02 Michigan
C 55 Dwayne Schintzius 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 260 lb (118 kg) 1968–10–14 Florida
F 8 Antoine Walker 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 224 lb (102 kg) 1976–08–12 Kentucky
Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • (IN) Inactive
  • Injured

Roster
Updated: May 4, 1999

Roster Notes

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic DivisionWLPCTGBHomeRoadDivGP
c-Miami Heat3317.660–18‍–‍715‍–‍1012–850
x-Orlando Magic3317.660–21‍–‍412‍–‍1312–650
x-Philadelphia 76ers2822.5605.017‍–‍811‍–‍149–1050
x-New York Knicks2723.5406.019‍–‍68‍–‍1712–850
Boston Celtics1931.38014.010‍–‍159‍–‍1610–950
Washington Wizards1832.36015.013‍–‍125‍–‍206–1350
New Jersey Nets1634.32017.012‍–‍134‍–‍216–1350
Eastern Conference
#TeamWLPCTGBGP
1c-Miami Heat *3317.660–50
2y-Indiana Pacers *3317.660–50
3x-Orlando Magic3317.660–50
4x-Atlanta Hawks3119.6202.050
5x-Detroit Pistons2921.5804.050
6x-Philadelphia 76ers2822.5605.050
7x-Milwaukee Bucks2822.5605.050
8x-New York Knicks2723.5406.050
9Charlotte Hornets2624.5207.050
10Toronto Raptors2327.46010.050
11Cleveland Cavaliers2228.44011.050
12Boston Celtics1931.38014.050
13Washington Wizards1832.36015.050
14New Jersey Nets1634.32017.050
15Chicago Bulls1337.26020.050
z - clinched division title
y - clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot

Game log

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

Regular season

Boston Celtics statistics
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Kenny Anderson 34 33 29.7 .451 .250 .832 3.0 5.7 1.0 .1 12.1
Dana Barros 50 16 23.1 .453 .400 .877 2.1 4.2 1.0 .1 9.3
Tony Battie 50 15 22.4 .519 .000 .672 6.0 1.1 .6 1.4 6.7
Bruce Bowen 30 1 16.5 .280 .269 .458 1.7 .9 .7 .3 2.3
Andrew DeClercq† 14 1 18.4 .491 .655 4.5 .7 .9 .6 5.4
Marlon Garnett 24 0 8.5 .294 .261 .750 .9 .8 .2 .0 2.1
Damon Jones† 13 0 16.4 .387 .455 .750 2.4 2.2 .5 .0 5.8
Popeye Jones 18 2 11.4 .392 .000 .824 2.9 .8 .3 .0 3.0
Walter McCarty 32 4 20.6 .362 .260 .702 3.6 1.3 .8 .4 5.7
Ron Mercer 41 40 37.8 .431 .167 .790 3.8 2.5 1.6 .3 17.0
Greg Minor 44 7 17.4 .417 .286 .750 2.7 1.1 .5 .1 4.9
Paul Pierce 48 47 34.0 .439 .412 .713 6.4 2.4 1.7 1.0 16.5
Vitaly Potapenko† 33 32 28.1 .521 .547 7.2 1.8 .7 .6 10.8
Eric Riley 35 11 9.6 .519 .710 2.8 .4 .3 .7 2.2
Dwayne Schintzius 16 0 4.2 .250 .750 1.2 .5 .0 .2 .7
Antoine Walker 42 41 36.9 .412 .369 .559 8.5 3.1 1.5 .7 18.7
  • † Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Celtics only.

Player statistics citation:[15]

Awards and records

References

  1. ^ 1998-99 Boston Celtics
  2. ^ "NBA: Let The Games Begin!". CBS News. CBS News.com Staff. January 6, 1999. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  3. ^ Wise, Mike (June 25, 1998). "PRO BASKETBALL; 7 Feet 1 Inch of Potential at No. 1". The New York Times. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
  4. ^ "Olowokandi Is the Center of Attention". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. June 25, 1998. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  5. ^ "1998 NBA Draft". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  6. ^ "Knight's Out". Hartford Courant. January 20, 1999. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  7. ^ Wise, Mike (February 4, 1999). "PRO BASKETBALL; A Scrum for the Title". The New York Times. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  8. ^ "Cavs Trade Potapenko to Celtics". CBS News. Associated Press. March 11, 1999. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
  9. ^ "Marbury Heads Home". Deseret News. March 12, 1999. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  10. ^ Greenberg, Alan (March 17, 1999). "His Strength Is His Power". Hartford Courant. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
  11. ^ Greenberg, Alan (March 28, 1999). "Pitino Losing Grip on His Team". Hartford Courant. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  12. ^ "1998–99 Boston Celtics Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
  13. ^ "Carter Is Runaway Rookie of the Year". Los Angeles Times. May 27, 1999. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
  14. ^ "1998–99 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  15. ^ a b c "1998–99 Boston Celtics Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
  16. ^ "1998–99 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 23, 2026.
  17. ^ "Celtics Trade Mercer in Six-Player Deal". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. August 4, 1999. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
  18. ^ Greenberg, Alan (August 4, 1999). "Celts Cash Out on Mercer". Hartford Courant. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  19. ^ "NBA Teams Get Busy Trading and Signing". Deseret News. Associated Press. August 4, 1999. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  20. ^ "Sixers Sign Rookie MacCulloch". CBS News. Associated Press. September 16, 1999. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  21. ^ Wise, Mike (October 31, 1999). "1999–2000 N.B.A. PREVIEW; The West Is Still the Best". The New York Times. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  22. ^ Greenberg, Alan (January 22, 1999). "NBA: Nothing But Activity". Hartford Courant. Retrieved October 18, 2022.

See also

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