1997–98 Utah Jazz season

1997–98 Utah Jazz season
Conference Champions
Division Champions
Head coach	Jerry Sloan
Arena	Delta Center
Results
Record	62–20 (.756)
Place	Division: 1st (Midwest) Conference: 1st (Western)
Playoff finish	NBA Finals (eliminated 2–4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	Fox Sports Rocky Mountain, KJZZ
Radio	KSOP-AM and FM

The 1997–98 Utah Jazz season was the 24th for the National Basketball Association's Utah Jazz.^[1] The Jazz struggled early in the season without John Stockton, who was out injured. However, Stockton returned and the Jazz finished first in the Midwest Division with a 62–20 record. The Jazz's top scorer, Karl Malone, who averaged 27.0 points per game, was part of a Jazz offense that had two other players, Stockton and Jeff Hornacek, averaging double-digits in points. Malone was the only member of the team to play in the 1998 NBA All-Star Game.

In the first round of the playoffs, the Jazz trailed 2–1 to the 8th-seeded Houston Rockets. However, they won the series in five games. In the semifinals, they defeated the San Antonio Spurs in five games. After that, the Jazz swept the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals in four straight games to advance to the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year. In the Finals, they lost in six games to the Chicago Bulls.

Offseason

NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	27	Jacque Vaughn [2]	PG	United States	Kansas
2	56	Nate Erdmann		United States	Oklahoma

The Jazz used two picks; a first round pick on point guard Jacque Vaughn and a second round pick on Nate Erdmann. Vaughn would play with the team for four seasons before going to the Atlanta Hawks and Erdmann was cut from the team right before regular season, therefore signing with Idaho Stampede in the CBA.

Roster

Utah Jazz roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From SG 40 Anderson, Shandon 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 208 lb (94 kg) Georgia PF 55 Carr, Antoine 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Wichita State University PG 10 Eisley, Howard 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 177 lb (80 kg) Boston College C 44 Foster, Greg 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Texas–El Paso SG 14 Hornacek, Jeff 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Iowa State PG 25 Hudson, Troy 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Southern Illinois SF 31 Keefe, Adam 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Stanford PF 32 Malone, Karl 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Louisiana Tech SF 34 Morris, Chris 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Auburn C 00 Ostertag, Greg 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 280 lb (127 kg) Kansas SF 3 Russell, Bryon 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Long Beach State PG 12 Stockton, John 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Gonzaga PG 11 Vaughn, Jacque 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Kansas	Head coach Jerry Sloan (Evansville) Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster • Transactions

Salaries

Player	Salary
Karl Malone	$5,118,578
John Stockton	$5,000,000
Jeff Hornacek	$4,195,000
Chris Morris (basketball)	$3,000,000
Bryon Russell	$2,857,144
Adam Keefe (basketball)	$2,300,000
Antoine Carr	$1,600,000
Howard Eisley	$1,240,000
Shandon Anderson	$1,200,000
Greg Ostertag	$647,400
Jacque Vaughn	$601,320
Greg Foster (basketball)	$504,000
Troy Hudson	$242,000
Total	$27,305,442

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
z-Utah Jazz	62	20	.756	–	36–5	26–15	22–2
x-San Antonio Spurs	56	26	.683	6	31–10	25–16	18–6
x-Minnesota Timberwolves	45	37	.549	17	26–15	19–22	14–10
x-Houston Rockets	41	41	.500	21	24–17	17–24	14–10
Dallas Mavericks	20	62	.244	42	13–28	7–34	9–15
Vancouver Grizzlies	19	63	.232	43	14–27	5–36	4–20
Denver Nuggets	11	71	.134	51	9–32	2–39	3–21

#	Western Conference
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Utah Jazz	62	20	.756	–
2	y-Seattle SuperSonics	61	21	.744	1
3	x-Los Angeles Lakers	61	21	.744	1
4	x-Phoenix Suns	56	26	.683	6
5	x-San Antonio Spurs	56	26	.683	6
6	x-Portland Trail Blazers	46	36	.561	16
7	x-Minnesota Timberwolves	45	37	.549	17
8	x-Houston Rockets	41	41	.500	21
9	Sacramento Kings	27	55	.329	35
10	Dallas Mavericks	20	62	.244	42
11	Vancouver Grizzlies	19	63	.232	43
11	Golden State Warriors	19	63	.232	43
13	Los Angeles Clippers	17	65	.207	45
14	Denver Nuggets	11	71	.134	51

^[3]

Game log

1997-98 Game Log Total: 62-20 (Home: 36-5; Road: 26-15)
October: 0-1 (Home: 0-0; Road: 0-1) Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 1 October 31 @ Los Angeles Lakers L 87-104 Shandon Anderson (21) Karl Malone (14) Howard Eisley (6) Great Western Forum 16,234 0-1
November: 9-5 (Home: 6-2; Road: 3-3) Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 2 November 1 vs Denver Nuggets W 102-84 Karl Malone (24) Greg Ostertag (11) Howard Eisley, Jeff Hornacek (6) Delta Center 19,911 1-1 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 3 November 3 vs Washington Wizards L 86-90 Karl Malone (21) Karl Malone (16) Jeff Hornacek, Jacque Vaughn (6) Delta Center 19,911 1-2 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 4 November 4 @ Phoenix Suns L 84-106 Karl Malone (22) Karl Malone, Greg Ostertag (11) Jeff Hornacek (4) America West Arena 19,023 1-3 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 5 November 7 @ Denver Nuggets W 91-89 Karl Malone (20) Karl Malone (11) Howard Eisley (6) McNichols Sports Arena 10,317 2-3 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 6 November 8 @ San Antonio Spurs L 80-87 Karl Malone (26) Jeff Hornacek, Karl Malone (7) Howard Eisley (6) Alamodome 19,100 2-4 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 7 November 12 vs Vancouver Grizzlies W 98-90 Karl Malone (26) Adam Keefe, Greg Ostertag (9) Howard Eisley (10) Delta Center 19,851 3-4 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 8 November 14 vs Seattle SuperSonics W 110-104 Jeff Hornacek, Karl Malone (23) Karl Malone (12) Howard Eisley (6) Delta Center 19,830 4-4 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 9 November 15 @ Dallas Mavericks W 85-77 Karl Malone (26) Karl Malone (10) Jeff Hornacek (10) Reunion Arena 14,323 5-4 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 10 November 18 vs Los Angeles Lakers L 92-97 Karl Malone (26) Karl Malone (9) Howard Eisley (7) Delta Center 19,911 5-5 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 11 November 20 @ Sacramento Kings L 95-97 Karl Malone (32) Karl Malone (9) Howard Eisley (8) ARCO Arena 14,648 5-6 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 12 November 22 vs San Antonio Spurs W 103-74 Karl Malone (20) Karl Malone (11) Jeff Hornacek, Karl Malone (7) Delta Center 19,911 6-6 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 13 November 24 vs Minnesota Timberwolves W 133-124 (OT) Karl Malone (33) Greg Foster, Karl Malone (9) Howard Eisley (10) Delta Center 19,911 7-6 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 14 November 28 vs Golden State Warriors W 111-82 Karl Malone (21) Greg Ostertag (10) Jacque Vaughn (8) Delta Center 19,911 8-6 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 15 November 29 @ Los Angeles Clippers W 94-91 Karl Malone (42) Karl Malone (18) Jeff Hornacek (7) Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena 14,956 9-6
December: 10-5 (Home: 5-1; Road: 5-4) Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 16 December 1 vs New Jersey Nets W 100-95 Karl Malone (19) Karl Malone (14) Howard Eisley (7) Delta Center 19,911 10-6 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 17 December 3 vs Toronto Raptors W 115-98 Karl Malone (23) Karl Malone (15) Howard Eisley, Jeff Hornacek (8) Delta Center 19,590 11-6 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 18 December 5 @ Portland Trail Blazers L 77-94 Karl Malone (24) Karl Malone (12) Jeff Hornacek (8) Rose Garden Arena 19,545 11-7 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 19 December 8 vs Indiana Pacers W 106-97 Karl Malone (31) Greg Ostertag (9) John Stockton (7) Delta Center 19,911 12-7 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 20 December 9 @ Sacramento Kings L 101-113 Karl Malone (34) Karl Malone (10) John Stockton (5) ARCO Arena 13,624 12-8 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 21 December 12 vs Dallas Mavericks W 68-66 Karl Malone (23) Adam Keefe (11) Karl Malone, John Stockton (4) Delta Center 19,911 13-8 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 22 December 15 @ Washington Wizards L 86-88 Karl Malone (26) Karl Malone (13) Howard Eisley, Karl Malone (6) MCI Center 18,756 13-9 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 23 December 16 @ Miami Heat W 103-95 Karl Malone (29) Antoine Carr (7) Howard Eisley (6) Miami Arena 15,200 14-9 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 24 December 18 @ Orlando Magic W 85-73 Karl Malone (30) Greg Ostertag (10) Karl Malone, John Stockton (5) Orlando Arena 17,258 15-9 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 25 December 21 @ Cleveland Cavaliers L 101-106 Karl Malone (24) Karl Malone (13) Jeff Hornacek, John Stockton (6) Gund Arena 19,178 15-10 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 26 December 22 @ Atlanta Hawks W 101-99 Karl Malone (27) Adam Keefe (10) John Stockton (8) Georgia Dome 28,371 16-10 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 27 December 25 vs Houston Rockets W 107-103 John Stockton (24) Karl Malone (10) Jeff Hornacek (9) Delta Center 19,911 17-10 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 28 December 27 vs Portland Trail Blazers L 91-102 Karl Malone (24) Karl Malone (11) John Stockton (9) Delta Center 19,911 17-11 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 29 December 28 @ Vancouver Grizzlies W 89-88 Karl Malone (26) Karl Malone (13) John Stockton (7) General Motors Place 16,488 18-11 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 30 December 30 @ Denver Nuggets W 132-99 Greg Ostertag (21) Karl Malone (10) John Stockton (9) McNichols Sports Arena 14,230 19-11
January: 10-3 (Home: 8-1; Road: 2-2) Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 31 January 3 vs Atlanta Hawks W 97-82 Karl Malone (20) Greg Ostertag (10) John Stockton (12) Delta Center 19,911 20-11 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 32 January 6 vs Philadelphia 76ers W 98-95 (OT) Jeff Hornacek, Karl Malone (21) Greg Ostertag (9) John Stockton (14) Delta Center 19,911 21-11 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 33 January 8 vs Milwaukee Bucks W 116-109 Karl Malone (39) Greg Ostertag (10) John Stockton (13) Delta Center 19,911 22-11 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 34 January 10 @ Houston Rockets W 111-84 Karl Malone (24) Karl Malone (9) Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley (7) The Summit 16,285 23-11 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 35 January 12 vs Cleveland Cavaliers W 106-99 Jeff Hornacek (23) Karl Malone (11) John Stockton (12) Delta Center 19,911 24-11 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 36 January 16 @ Portland Trail Blazers L 86-96 Karl Malone (23) Karl Malone (15) John Stockton (6) Rose Garden Arena 21,538 24-12 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 37 January 17 vs Orlando Magic W 107-93 Karl Malone (32) Adam Keefe, Karl Malone (9) John Stockton (10) Delta Center 19,911 25-12 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 38 January 19 vs Detroit Pistons W 98-89 Karl Malone (30) Karl Malone (15) John Stockton (13) Delta Center 19,911 26-12 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 39 January 21 vs Golden State Warriors W 98-85 Karl Malone (27) Adam Keefe (8) John Stockton (13) Delta Center 19,911 27-12 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 40 January 23 @ Indiana Pacers L 102-106 Karl Malone (26) Greg Ostertag (11) John Stockton (11) Market Square Arena 16,670 27-13 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 41 January 25 @ Chicago Bulls W 101-94 Karl Malone (35) Karl Malone (11) John Stockton (10) United Center 24,361 28-13 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 42 January 28 vs Seattle SuperSonics L 93-101 Karl Malone (27) Karl Malone (15) John Stockton (14) Delta Center 19,911 28-14 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 43 January 30 vs Dallas Mavericks W 104-94 Karl Malone (29) Greg Ostertag (12) Howard Eisley, John Stockton (10) Delta Center 19,911 29-14
February: 9-2 (Home: 6-1; Road: 3-1) Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 44 February 1 vs Golden State Warriors W 115-88 Karl Malone (20) Karl Malone (8) Karl Malone (9) The Arena In Oakland 11,269 30-14 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 45 February 3 @ Los Angeles Clippers L 102-111 Karl Malone (23) Karl Malone (7) John Stockton (10) Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena 13,553 30-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 46 February 4 vs Chicago Bulls W 101-93 Karl Malone (30) Karl Malone (8) John Stockton (18) Delta Center 19,911 31-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 47 February 10 vs Los Angeles Clippers W 106-98 Karl Malone (29) Karl Malone (14) John Stockton (10) Delta Center 19,911 32-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 48 February 12 vs Boston Celtics W 118-100 Karl Malone (31) Karl Malone (12) Howard Eisley (10) Delta Center 19,911 33-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 49 February 14 @ Seattle SuperSonics W 111-91 Karl Malone (34) Karl Malone (8) John Stockton (12) KeyArena at Seattle Center 17,072 34-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 50 February 16 vs Charlotte Hornets W 96-90 Karl Malone (23) Adam Keefe (12) John Stockton (9) Delta Center 19,911 35-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 51 February 18 vs New York Knicks W 94-78 Karl Malone (25) Adam Keefe (12) Jeff Hornacek (6) Delta Center 19,911 36-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 52 February 21 @ San Antonio Spurs W 79-77 Karl Malone (24) Karl Malone (13) John Stockton (6) Alamodome 26,572 37-15 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 53 February 24 vs Miami Heat L 102-104 Karl Malone (26) Karl Malone (11) John Stockton (10) Delta Center 19,911 37-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 54 February 26 vs Phoenix Suns W 108-97 Karl Malone (28) Karl Malone (17) Howard Eisley (10) Delta Center 19,911 38-16
March: 15-2 (Home: 5-0; Road: 10-2) Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 55 March 1 @ Houston Rockets W 106-100 Karl Malone (21) Karl Malone (9) John Stockton (14) The Summit 16,285 39-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 56 March 3 @ Toronto Raptors W 108-93 Shandon Anderson (26) Karl Malone (10) John Stockton (11) SkyDome 16,448 40-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 57 March 4 @ Boston Celtics W 110-94 Karl Malone (32) Karl Malone (15) John Stockton (9) FleetCenter 18,624 41-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 58 March 6 @ New Jersey Nets W 122-115 Karl Malone (32) Karl Malone (12) John Stockton (9) Continental Airlines Arena 20,049 42-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 59 March 7 @ Milwaukee Bucks W 110-92 Karl Malone (40) Karl Malone (8) John Stockton (7) Bradley Center 18,717 43-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 60 March 9 vs Houston Rockets W 100-93 Karl Malone (29) Karl Malone (21) Karl Malone (6) Delta Center 19,911 44-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 61 March 11 vs Sacramento Kings W 110-95 Karl Malone (25) Karl Malone (9) Karl Malone (9) Delta Center 19,911 45-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 62 March 13 vs Vancouver Grizzlies W 110-101 Karl Malone (30) Adam Keefe (11) John Stockton (11) Delta Center 19,911 46-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 63 March 15 @ Detroit Pistons W 109-98 Karl Malone (28) Karl Malone (9) Howard Eisley, John Stockton (7) The Palace of Auburn Hills 22,076 47-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 64 March 16 @ Minnesota Timberwolves W 102-96 Karl Malone (29) Greg Foster (10) Jeff Hornacek, Karl Malone, John Stockton (8) Target Center 17,333 48-16 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 65 March 18 @ Charlotte Hornets L 85-111 Karl Malone (17) Karl Malone, Bryon Russell (9) John Stockton (7) Charlotte Coliseum 23,305 48-17 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 66 March 20 @ Philadelphia 76ers W 91-79 Karl Malone (23) Karl Malone (16) Howard Eisley (7) CoreStates Center 20,832 49-17 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 67 March 22 @ New York Knicks W 124-119 (2OT) Karl Malone (30) Karl Malone (14) John Stockton (14) Madison Square Garden 19,763 50-17 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 68 March 24 vs Phoenix Suns W 92-73 Karl Malone (19) Greg Foster (15) John Stockton (11) Delta Center 19,911 51-17 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 69 March 27 @ Dallas Mavericks W 99-90 Karl Malone (33) Karl Malone (14) Jeff Hornacek (8) Reunion Arena 13,763 52-17 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 70 March 28 vs Los Angeles Lakers W 106-91 Karl Malone (31) Adam Keefe, Karl Malone (8) John Stockton (9) Delta Center 19,911 53-17 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 71 March 31 @ Seattle SuperSonics L 86-88 Karl Malone (20) Karl Malone (10) Jeff Hornacek (7) KeyArena at Seattle Center 17,072 53-18
April: 9-2 (Home: 6-0; Away: 3-2) Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 72 April 1 vs Portland Trail Blazers W 98-89 Jeff Hornacek (31) Greg Ostertag (9) John Stockton (9) Delta Center 19,911 54-18 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 73 April 3 vs Denver Nuggets W 97-75 Karl Malone (22) Greg Ostertag (8) Howard Eisley (9) Delta Center 19,911 55-18 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 74 April 5 @ Vancouver Grizzlies W 99-93 Karl Malone (25) Greg Ostertag (9) John Stockton (8) General Motors Place 18,068 56-18 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 75 April 7 @ Golden State Warriors W 101-99 Karl Malone (56) Greg Foster, Karl Malone (9) John Stockton (14) The Arena In Oakland 14,430 57-18 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 76 April 8 vs San Antonio Spurs W 98-88 Karl Malone (32) Karl Malone (10) John Stockton (9) Delta Center 19,911 58-18 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 77 April 10 vs Los Angeles Clippers W 126-109 Jeff Hornacek (23) Greg Foster (10) Jeff Hornacek (6) Delta Center 19,911 59-18 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 78 April 11 @ Minnesota Timberwolves L 103-110 Karl Malone (37) Karl Malone (12) Jeff Hornacek (8) Target Center 20,051 59-19 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 79 April 14 vs Minnesota Timberwolves W 126-109 Karl Malone (44) Karl Malone (14) Karl Malone, John Stockton (6) Delta Center 19,911 60-19 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 80 April 16 vs Sacramento Kings W 99-86 Karl Malone (21) Karl Malone (8) Jeff Hornacek (11) Delta Center 19,911 61-19 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 81 April 17 @ Phoenix Suns W 102-99 Karl Malone (29) Karl Malone (9) Howard Eisley (10) America West Arena 19,023 62-19 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 82 April 19 @ Los Angeles Lakers L 98-102 Karl Malone (27) Karl Malone (9) Howard Eisley (4) Great Western Forum 17,505 62-20
1997-98 Schedule

Playoffs

West First Round

(1) Utah Jazz vs. (8) Houston Rockets Last Playoff Meeting: 1997 Western Conference Finals (Utah won 4-2)

Game	Date	Home	Score	Visitor	Score	Record (UTA-HOU)	Venue	Box score	Television
1	April 23	Utah	90	Houston	103	0-1	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	1	TBS 9:30et
2	April 25	Utah	105	Houston	90	1-1	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	2	TNT 10:30et
3	April 29	Houston	89	Utah	85	1-2	Compaq Center, Houston, Texas	3	TBS 9:30et
4	May 1	Houston	71	Utah	93	2-2	Compaq Center, Houston, Texas	4	TNT 9:30et
5	May 3	Utah	84	Houston	70	3-2	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	5	NBC 3:00et
Utah wins series 3–2

West Conference Semifinals

(1) Utah Jazz vs. (5) San Antonio Spurs Last Playoff Meeting: 1996 Western Conference Semifinals (Utah won 4-2)

Game	Date	Home	Score	Visitor	Score	Record (UTA-SAS)	Venue	Box score	Television
1	May 5	Utah	83	San Antonio	82	1-0	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	1	TNT 10:30et
2	May 7	Utah	109	San Antonio	106	2-0	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	2	TNT 10:30et
3	May 9	San Antonio	86	Utah	64	2-1	Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas	3	NBC 3:30et
4	May 10	San Antonio	73	Utah	82	3-1	Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas	4	TNT 9:00et
5	May 12	Utah	87	San Antonio	77	4-1	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	5	TNT 8:00et
Utah wins series 4–1

West Conference Finals

(1) Utah Jazz vs. (3) Los Angeles Lakers Last Playoff Meeting: 1997 Western Conference Semifinals (Utah won 4-1)

Game	Date	Home	Score	Visitor	Score	Record (UTA-LAL)	Venue	Box score	Television
1	May 16	Utah	112	Los Angeles	77	1-0	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	1	NBC 3:00et
2	May 18	Utah	99	Los Angeles	95	2-0	Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah	2	TNT 8:30et
3	May 22	Los Angeles	98	Utah	109	3-0	Great Western Forum, Los Angeles, California	3	TNT 10:30et
4	May 24	Los Angeles	92	Utah	96	4-0	Great Western Forum, Los Angeles, California	4	NBC 3:30et
Utah wins series 4–0

NBA Finals

With home-court advantage, the Jazz were favored by many to end the Bulls' dynasty, as they took Game 1 at the Delta Center. However, the Bulls rallied to take Game 2 and jumped out to a 3–1 lead by taking the first two games in Chicago. Facing elimination, the Jazz edged the Bulls by two points to send the series back to Utah. In Game 6, the Jazz had a late lead, but Michael Jordan, playing in his final game with the Bulls, led the Bulls to an 87–86 win, hitting the game-winning shot with two seconds left.^[3]

^[4] Legend: OT denotes a game decided in overtime

Game	Date	Home team	Result	Road team
Game 1	June 3	Utah	88–85 (OT)	Chicago
Game 2	June 5	Utah	88–93	Chicago
Game 3	June 7	Chicago	96–54	Utah
Game 4	June 10	Chicago	86–82	Utah
Game 5	June 12	Chicago	81–83	Utah
Game 6	June 14	Utah	86–87	Chicago

Bulls win series 4–2

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
Shandon Anderson	82	2	19.5	.538	.219	.735	2.8	1.1	.8	.2	8.3
Antoine Carr	66	8	16.5	.465	.	.776	2.0	.7	.2	.8	5.7
William Cunningham	6	2	6.3	.444	.	.	1.3	.2	.3	.0	1.3
Howard Eisley	82	18	21.0	.441	.407	.852	2.0	4.2	.7	.2	7.7
Greg Foster	78	49	18.5	.445	.222	.770	3.5	.7	.2	.4	5.7
Jeff Hornacek	80	80	30.8	.482	.441	.885	3.4	4.4	1.4	.2	14.2
Troy Hudson	8	0	2.9	.429	.000	.	.3	.5	.3	.0	1.5
Adam Keefe	80	75	25.6	.540	.	.810	5.5	1.1	.7	.3	7.8
Karl Malone	81	81	37.4	.530	.333	.761	10.3	3.9	1.2	.9	27.0
Chris Morris	54	1	10.0	.411	.306	.721	2.1	.4	.5	.3	4.3
Greg Ostertag	63	23	20.4	.481	.	.479	5.9	.4	.4	2.1	4.7
Bryon Russell	82	7	27.1	.430	.341	.766	4.0	1.2	1.1	.4	9.0
John Stockton	64	64	29.0	.528	.429	.827	2.6	8.5	1.4	.2	12.0
Jacque Vaughn	45	0	9.3	.361	.375	.706	.8	1.9	.2	.0	3.1

^[5]

Playoffs

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Shandon Anderson	20	0	18.9	.515	.273	.676	3.2	1.0	.3	.1	6.7
Antoine Carr	20	0	14.6	.456	.	.750	2.1	.6	.1	.6	4.4
Howard Eisley	20	0	18.3	.368	.296	.923	2.0	4.1	.6	.3	5.6
Greg Foster	20	16	16.8	.453	.500	.600	3.4	.3	.1	.3	4.1
Jeff Hornacek	20	20	31.8	.416	.467	.846	2.5	3.2	1.0	.2	10.9
Adam Keefe	15	10	10.3	.345	.	.647	2.3	.1	.3	.1	2.1
Karl Malone	20	20	39.8	.471	.000	.788	10.9	3.4	1.1	1.0	26.3
Chris Morris	17	0	14.1	.406	.304	.700	2.8	.6	.3	.2	4.5
Greg Ostertag	19	1	17.7	.565	.	.480	4.3	.3	.4	1.9	3.4
Bryon Russell	20	13	34.9	.469	.365	.716	4.7	1.1	1.1	.3	11.0
John Stockton	20	20	29.8	.494	.346	.718	3.0	7.8	1.6	.2	11.1
Jacque Vaughn	7	0	3.4	.200	.500	1.000	.4	.6	.	.	1.0

Awards and records

• Karl Malone, All-NBA First Team
• Karl Malone, NBA All-Defensive First Team
• Karl Malone, NBA Leader, Free Throw Attempts (825) ^[3]

Transactions

Free Agents

Additions Player Signed Former team

Subtractions Player Left New team

See also

• 1997-98 NBA season

References

1. 1997-98 Utah Jazz
2. NBA Draft 1997
3. 1997-98 NBA Season Summary - Basketball-Reference.com
4. http://www.sportsecyclopedia.com/nba/utah/jazz.html
5. 1997-98 Utah Jazz Statistics - Basketball- Reference.com