2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers season

2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers season
Head coachMaurice Cheeks
General managerBob Whitsitt
OwnerPaul Allen
ArenaRose Garden Arena
Results
Record50–32 (.610)
PlaceDivision: 3rd (Pacific)
Conference: 6th (Western)
Playoff finishFirst round
(lost to Mavericks 3–4)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television
RadioKXL

The 2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers season was the 33rd season for the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association.[1] During the off-season, the Trail Blazers acquired Antonio Daniels from the San Antonio Spurs,[2][3] and signed free agent Jeff McInnis.[4] Former Trail Blazers center Arvydas Sabonis came out of his retirement, and returned to play for the team after a one-year absence.[5][6]

The Trail Blazers got off to a slow start by losing six of their first nine games of the regular season. However, after a 10–11 start to the season, the team posted an 8-game winning streak in December, and later on held a 32–16 record at the All-Star break.[7] The Trail Blazers played around .500 in winning percentage by posting an 18–16 record for the remainder of the season, finishing in third place in the Pacific Division with a solid 50–32 record, and earning the sixth seed in the Western Conference;[8] the team also qualified for the NBA playoffs for the 21st consecutive year, and the 26th year of the last 27 seasons.[9]

Rasheed Wallace averaged 18.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, and contributed 110 three-point field goals, while Bonzi Wells averaged 15.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game, and Derek Anderson provided the team with 13.9 points and 4.3 assists per game, and also led them with 116 three-point field goals. In addition, Scottie Pippen contributed 10.8 points, 4.5 assists and 1.6 steals per game, while second-year forward Zach Randolph provided with 8.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, and Ruben Patterson contributed 8.3 points per game. Meanwhile, Dale Davis averaged 7.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, Damon Stoudamire played half of the season off the bench, averaging 6.9 points and 3.5 assists per game, Sabonis provided with 6.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, and McInnis contributed 5.8 points per game.[10] Head coach Maurice Cheeks finished in tenth place in Coach of the Year voting.[11]

In the Western Conference First Round of the 2003 NBA playoffs, the Trail Blazers faced off against the 3rd–seeded Dallas Mavericks, who were led by the trio of All-Star forward Dirk Nowitzki, All-Star guard Steve Nash, and Michael Finley. The Trail Blazers faced elimination after losing the first three games to the Mavericks; the team lost the first two games on the road at the American Airlines Center, before losing Game 3 at home at the Rose Garden Arena, 115–103 as the Mavericks took a 3–0 series lead. Despite the threat of elimination, the Trail Blazers managed to win the next three games, which included a Game 6 win over the Mavericks at the Rose Garden Arena, 125–103 to even the series.[12][13][14] However, the Trail Blazers lost Game 7 to the Mavericks at the American Airlines Center, 107–95, thus losing in a hard-fought seven-game series.[15][16][17]

As of 2026, the Trail Blazers remained the last team to force a Game 7 after trailing 3–0 in a best-of-seven series, until the 2022–23 Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat, and after the 1950–51 New York Knicks in the NBA Finals, and the 1993–94 Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Semi-finals; although no team has ever come back to win an NBA playoff series after trailing 3–0. This season would also be the last time that the Trail Blazers qualified for the NBA playoffs until the 2008–09 season, as the team's historic postseason streak would end in the following season with a mediocre 41–41 record.

The Trail Blazers finished sixth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 796,258 at the Rose Garden Arena during the regular season.[10][18] Following the season, Pippen re-signed as a free agent with his former team, the Chicago Bulls, after four seasons with the Trail Blazers,[19][20][21] while Daniels signed with the Seattle SuperSonics,[22][23] and Sabonis retired for the second time.

For the season, the Trail Blazers changed their primary logo,[24] and slightly changed their uniforms.[25][26] The team's new primary logo only lasted for just one season, while the home jerseys would remain in use until 2017, and the road jerseys would last until 2005, where they replaced the team name "Blazers" with the city name "Portland".

Draft picks

Main article: 2002 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality School/Club team
1 21 Qyntel Woods F  United States NE Mississippi CC
2 43 Jason Jennings C  United States Arkansas State
2 51 Federico Kammerichs F  Argentina Ourense (Spain)

Roster

2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From
G/F 1 Derek Anderson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1974–07–18 Kentucky
C 44 Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje  7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 257 lb (117 kg) 1978–05–20 Georgetown
G 10 Antonio Daniels 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1975–03–19 Bowling Green
F/C 34 Dale Davis 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1969–03–25 Clemson
C 14 Chris Dudley 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1965–02–22 Yale
G 5 Jeff McInnis 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1974–10–22 North Carolina
G/F 21 Ruben Patterson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 224 lb (102 kg) 1975–07–31 Cincinnati
F 33 Scottie Pippen 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1965–09–25 Central Arkansas
F/C 50 Zach Randolph 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 260 lb (118 kg) 1981–07–16 Michigan State
C 11 Arvydas Sabonis 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) 279 lb (127 kg) 1964–12–19 Lithuania
G 7 Charles Smith  6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1975–08–22 New Mexico
G 3 Damon Stoudamire 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 171 lb (78 kg) 1973–09–03 Arizona
F/C 30 Rasheed Wallace 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1974–09–17 North Carolina
G/F 6 Bonzi Wells 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1976–09–28 Ball State
F 24 Qyntel Woods 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 221 lb (100 kg) 1981–02–16 Northeast Mississippi CC
Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Roster

Regular season

Season standings

Pacific Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Sacramento Kings 59 23 .720 – 35–6 24–17 17–7
x-Los Angeles Lakers 50 32 .610 9 31–10 19–22 15–9
x-Portland Trail Blazers 50 32 .610 9 27–14 23–18 15–9
x-Phoenix Suns 44 38 .537 15 30–11 14–27 12–12
e-Seattle SuperSonics 40 42 .488 19 25–16 15–26 11–13
e-Golden State Warriors 38 44 .463 21 24–17 14–27 8–16
e-Los Angeles Clippers 27 55 .329 32 16–25 11–30 6–18
#
Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-San Antonio Spurs 60 22 .732 –
2 y-Sacramento Kings 59 23 .720 1
3 x-Dallas Mavericks 60 22 .732 –
4 x-Minnesota Timberwolves 51 31 .622 9
5 x-Los Angeles Lakers 50 32 .610 10
6 x-Portland Trail Blazers 50 32 .610 10
7 x-Utah Jazz 47 35 .573 13
8 x-Phoenix Suns 44 38 .537 16
9 e-Houston Rockets 43 39 .524 17
10 e-Seattle SuperSonics 40 42 .488 20
11 e-Golden State Warriors 38 44 .463 22
12 e-Memphis Grizzlies 28 54 .341 32
13 e-Los Angeles Clippers 27 55 .329 33
14 e-Denver Nuggets 17 65 .207 43
z - clinched division title
y - clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot

Game log

Playoffs

2003 playoff game log
First round: 3–4 (home: 2–1; road: 1–3)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 April 19 @ Dallas L 86–96 Rasheed Wallace (26) Davis, Wells (10) Scottie Pippen (5) American Airlines Center
20,336 		0–1
2 April 23 @ Dallas L 99–103 Bonzi Wells (45) Dale Davis (15) Damon Stoudamire (5) American Airlines Center
20,356 		0–2
3 April 25 Dallas L 103–115 Ruben Patterson (19) Zach Randolph (10) Bonzi Wells (6) Rose Garden
19,980 		0–3
4 April 27 Dallas W 98–79 Zach Randolph (25) Zach Randolph (15) Damon Stoudamire (11) Rose Garden
19,980 		1–3
5 April 30 @ Dallas W 103–99 Zach Randolph (22) Zach Randolph (9) Bonzi Wells (7) American Airlines Center
20,438 		2–3
6 May 2 Dallas W 125–103 Zach Randolph (21) Zach Randolph (10) McInnis, Wallace (6) Rose Garden
20,602 		3–3
7 May 4 @ Dallas L 95–107 Stoudamire, Wallace (17) Zach Randolph (10) Damon Stoudamire (9) American Airlines Center
20,281 		3–4
2003 schedule

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

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Dale Davis 78 78 29.3 .541 .633 7.2 1.2 .7 .9 7.4
Ruben Patterson 78 17 21.2 .492 .150 .627 3.4 1.3 .9 .4 8.3
Arvydas Sabonis 78 1 15.5 .476 .500 .787 4.3 1.8 .8 .6 6.1
Zach Randolph 77 11 16.9 .513 .000 .758 4.5 .5 .5 .2 8.4
Derek Anderson 76 76 33.6 .427 .350 .859 3.5 4.3 1.2 .2 13.9
Bonzi Wells 75 65 31.9 .441 .292 .722 5.3 3.3 1.6 .2 15.2
Jeff McInnis 75 1 17.5 .444 .171 .746 1.3 2.3 .3 .0 5.8
Rasheed Wallace 74 74 36.3 .471 .358 .735 7.4 2.1 .9 1.0 18.1
Antonio Daniels 67 2 13.0 .452 .305 .855 1.1 1.3 .5 .1 3.7
Scottie Pippen 64 58 29.9 .444 .286 .818 4.3 4.5 1.6 .4 10.8
Damon Stoudamire 59 27 22.3 .376 .386 .791 2.6 3.5 .7 .1 6.9
Qyntel Woods 53 0 6.3 .500 .333 .350 1.0 .2 .3 .0 2.4
Charles Smith 3 0 4.3 .250 .000 .750 .0 .3 .3 .0 1.7
Chris Dudley 3 0 3.7 .000 .7 .0 .0 .0 .0
Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje 2 0 2.5 .000 .5 .5 .5 .0 .0

Playoffs

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Bonzi Wells 7 7 38.3 .395 .300 .667 6.9 3.7 2.1 .4 19.0
Rasheed Wallace 7 7 37.1 .454 .400 .714 5.1 2.6 .6 .7 17.4
Damon Stoudamire 7 6 33.1 .456 .484 .952 5.1 5.6 .9 .3 15.3
Zach Randolph 7 4 29.3 .525 .892 8.7 1.6 .4 .3 13.9
Ruben Patterson 7 0 22.1 .481 .000 .690 3.7 1.6 .6 .1 10.0
Jeff McInnis 7 0 14.1 .346 .000 .750 1.7 2.7 .3 .1 3.0
Dale Davis 6 6 27.0 .583 .654 8.0 1.5 .8 .3 7.5
Antonio Daniels 6 1 16.3 .474 .600 .500 1.3 2.0 .2 .2 3.7
Arvydas Sabonis 6 1 14.3 .667 .800 4.0 .8 .7 .7 10.0
Scottie Pippen 4 1 18.8 .409 .333 1.000 2.8 3.3 .0 .0 5.8
Qyntel Woods 4 0 4.5 .333 .000 .500 .5 .0 .0 .0 1.8
Derek Anderson 2 2 11.0 .250 .000 .000 .5 .0 .0 .0 1.0
  • † Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Trail Blazers only.

Player statistics citation:[10]

Transactions

Overview

Players Added

Via draft

Via trade

Via free agency

Players Lost

Via trade

Via free agency

Player Transactions Citation:[27]

References

  1. ^ 2002-03 Portland Trail Blazers
  2. ^ "Blazers Acquire Daniels from Spurs". United Press International. August 5, 2002. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  3. ^ "Spurs Trade Daniels to Portland". CBC. August 6, 2002. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  4. ^ "Blazers Sign G Jeff McInnis". United Press International. August 13, 2002. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  5. ^ "Arvydas Sabonis Returns to Portland". United Press International. September 20, 2002. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  6. ^ "WESTERN CONFERENCE: Team-by-Team Preview". The New York Times. October 28, 2002. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  7. ^ "NBA Games Played on February 6, 2003". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  8. ^ "2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  9. ^ "Portland Trail Blazers". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  10. ^ a b c "2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  11. ^ "2002–03 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 1, 2026.
  12. ^ "Trail Blazers Continue Comeback, Force Game 7". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 3, 2003. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  13. ^ "Portland 125, Dallas 103". United Press International. May 3, 2003. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  14. ^ "Portland Tries to Complete Unprecedented Comeback". Sun Journal. May 4, 2003. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  15. ^ Crowe, Jerry (May 5, 2003). "Mavericks Find Touch at the End -- Finally". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  16. ^ Smith, Sam (May 5, 2003). "Mavericks Wake Up, Win Series". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  17. ^ "2003 NBA Western Conference First Round: Trail Blazers vs. Mavericks". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 1, 2026.
  18. ^ "2002–03 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
  19. ^ "PLUS: PRO BASKETBALL; Pippen and Bulls Back Together Again". The New York Times. Associated Press. July 21, 2003. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  20. ^ "Pippen Back with the Bulls". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. July 20, 2003. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  21. ^ Smith, Sam (July 20, 2003). "Pippen Not Perfect, But Fit Is". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  22. ^ "Seattle Inks Guard to Multiyear Pact". ESPN. Associated Press. July 19, 2003. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  23. ^ "Sonics Ink Daniels". United Press International. July 20, 2003. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  24. ^ "Portland Trail Blazers Logo". Chris Creamer's Sports Logos.Net. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
  25. ^ "Portland Trail Blazers Uniform". Chris Creamer's Sports Logos.Net. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
  26. ^ "Portland Trail Blazers Uniform". Chris Creamer's Sports Logos.Net. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
  27. ^ "2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers Transactions". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.