1999–2000 Indiana Pacers season
| 1999–2000 Indiana Pacers season | |
|---|---|
|
Conference Champions | |
|
Division Champions | |
| Head coach | Larry Bird |
| General manager | Donnie Walsh |
| Arena | Conseco Fieldhouse |
| Results | |
| Record | 56–26 (.683) |
| Place |
Division: 1st Conference: 1st |
| Playoff finish |
NBA Finals (eliminated 2-4) |
|
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Fox Sports Net Midwest, WTTV |
| Radio | WIBC |
The 1999-2000 Indiana Pacers season was Indiana's 24th season in the NBA.[1] It was their first season playing at the Conseco Fieldhouse. The Pacers finished first in the Central Division with a 56-26 record. In the playoffs, the Pacers defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in five games in the first round, and Philadelphia 76ers in six games in the semifinals before preceding to defeat their archrivals the New York Knicks in a tough, hard fought six game series in the Eastern Conference Finals en route to advancing to the NBA Finals for the first time, only to lose to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games. Jalen Rose led the Pacers with 18.2 points per game, and was named Most Improved Player of the Year. Reggie Miller and Dale Davis were selected for the 2000 NBA All-Star Game. Following the season, Davis was traded to the Porland Trail Blazers and Rik Smits retired after playing 12 years in the NBA with the Pacers.
Offseason
NBA Draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 | Vonteego Cummings | PG |  United States | Pittsburgh |
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Roster
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Depth chart
| Pos. | Starter | Bench | Reserve | Inactive |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Rik Smits | Sam Perkins | Žan Tabak | Jeff Foster |
| PF | Dale Davis | Austin Croshere | Jonathan Bender | Al Harrington |
| SF | Jalen Rose | Derrick McKey | ||
| SG | Reggie Miller | Chris Mullin \ | ||
| PG | Mark Jackson | Travis Best |
Regular season
The Pacers began a new era by moving into Conseco Fieldhouse after 25 years at Market Square Arena. They would start the season with a 7-7 record but finished with a 56-26 record, good enough to win their 2nd straight division title. The Pacers even won 25 straight games at their new arena.[3]
Standings
| Central Division | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Indiana Pacers | 56 | 26 | .683 | – | 36–5 | 20–21 | 20–8 |
| x-Charlotte Hornets | 49 | 33 | .598 | 7 | 30–11 | 19–22 | 20–8 |
| x-Toronto Raptors | 45 | 37 | .549 | 11 | 26–15 | 19–22 | 16–12 |
| x-Detroit Pistons | 42 | 40 | .512 | 14 | 27–14 | 15–26 | 16–12 |
| x-Milwaukee Bucks | 42 | 40 | .512 | 14 | 23–18 | 19–22 | 16–12 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 32 | 50 | .390 | 24 | 22–19 | 10–31 | 8–20 |
| Atlanta Hawks | 28 | 54 | .341 | 28 | 21–20 | 7–34 | 11–17 |
| Chicago Bulls | 17 | 65 | .207 | 39 | 12–29 | 5–36 | 5–23 |
| # | Eastern Conference | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | |
| 1 | c-Indiana Pacers | 56 | 26 | .683 | – |
| 2 | y-Miami Heat | 52 | 30 | .634 | 4 |
| 3 | x-New York Knicks | 50 | 32 | .610 | 6 |
| 4 | x-Charlotte Hornets | 49 | 33 | .598 | 7 |
| 5 | x-Philadelphia 76ers | 49 | 33 | .598 | 7 |
| 6 | x-Toronto Raptors | 45 | 37 | .549 | 11 |
| 7 | x-Detroit Pistons | 42 | 40 | .512 | 14 |
| 8 | x-Milwaukee Bucks | 42 | 40 | .512 | 14 |
| 9 | Orlando Magic | 41 | 41 | .500 | 15 |
| 10 | Boston Celtics | 35 | 47 | .427 | 21 |
| 11 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 32 | 50 | .390 | 24 |
| 12 | New Jersey Nets | 31 | 51 | .378 | 25 |
| 13 | Washington Wizards | 29 | 53 | .354 | 27 |
| 14 | Atlanta Hawks | 28 | 54 | .341 | 28 |
| 15 | Chicago Bulls | 17 | 65 | .207 | 39 |
- z - clinched division title
- y - clinched division title
- x - clinched playoff spot
Playoffs
In the first round of the playoffs, the top-seeded Pacers went to five games against the Milwaukee Bucks. In the second round, the Pacers would beat the Philadelphia 76ers in 6 games. This would lead to a rematch with the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pacers took Game 5 at home to take a 3-2 series lead. The Pacers would clinch the series in 6 games as Reggie Miller scored 34 points. The Pacers reached the NBA Finals but found themselves outmatched by a Los Angeles Lakers team that had Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. The Lakers won the NBA Finals in 6 games. Following the season, Head Coach Larry Bird would step down, citing the daily grind of coaching.[3]
East First Round
(1) Indiana Pacers vs. (8) Milwaukee Bucks Last Playoff Meeting: 1999 Eastern Conference First Round (Indiana won 3-0)
East Semifinals
(1) Indiana Pacers vs. (5) Philadelphia 76ers Last Playoff Meeting: 1999 Eastern Conference Semifinals (Indiana won 4-0)
Eastern Conference Finals
(1) Indiana Pacers vs. (3) New York Knicks Last Playoff Meeting: 1999 Eastern Conference Finals (New York won 4-2)
Awards, records, and honors
- Jalen Rose, NBA Most Improved Player Award
- Reggie Miller, NBA All-Star Game
- Dale Davis, NBA All-Star Game
2000 NBA Finals
- Lakers' backup center John Salley became the first player in NBA history to play on three different championship-winning franchises, as he won titles in 1989 and '90 with the Detroit Pistons and 1996 with the Chicago Bulls.
- This was the Lakers first NBA Finals in the new Staples Center.
- After closing out game 6, fans rioted outside Staples Center by making bonfires, tipping cars, breaking windows of cars and buildings, and vandalizing businesses around the area. Overall, they caused $1 million in damages. In Lakers' championship run the following year, the LAPD came out in bigger force after the Lakers won and prevented the same thing from happening again.
- Staples Center, which was a first-year building in 2000, had a very tricky shooting background and opposing teams often had difficulty shooting there. Pacers coach Larry Bird wanted to have a shoot-around in the arena the day before Game 6 to help his team shoot more consistently because they shot very poorly in Games 1 and 2. However, the Pacers couldn't practice in the building because of an Arena Football game. Bird was very upset about this, and his team had to go down to the Lakers practice facility in El Segundo.
- The two arenas in this series, Conseco Fieldhouse and Staples Center, were both first-year arenas.
Summary
| Team | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4* | Game 5 | Game 6 | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles (West) | 104 | 111 | 91 | 120 | 87 | 116 | 4 |
| Indiana (East) | 87 | 104 | 100 | 118 | 120 | 111 | 2 |
References
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