The 1998–99 NBA season was the San Antonio Spurs' 32nd season as a franchise, the team's 26th season in San Antonio, and the team's 23rd season in the National Basketball Association.^[1] On March 23, 1998, the owners of all 29 NBA teams voted 27–2 to reopen the league's collective bargaining agreement, seeking changes to the league's salary cap system, and a ceiling on individual player salaries. The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) opposed to the owners' plan, and wanted raises for players who earned the league's minimum salary. After both sides failed to reach an agreement, the owners called for a lockout, which began on July 1, 1998, putting a hold on all team trades, free agent signings and training camp workouts, and cancelling many NBA regular season and preseason games.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} Due to the lockout, the NBA All-Star Game, which was scheduled to be played in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 14, 1999, was also cancelled.^{[7][8][9][10][11]} However, on January 6, 1999, NBA commissioner David Stern, and NBPA director Billy Hunter finally reached an agreement to end the lockout. The deal was approved by both the players and owners, and was signed on January 20, ending the lockout after 204 days. The regular season began on February 5, and was cut short to just 50 games instead of the regular 82-game schedule.^{[12][13][14][15][16]}

During the off-season, the Spurs acquired second-year guard Antonio Daniels from the Vancouver Grizzlies,^[17][18][19] acquired three-point specialist Steve Kerr from the Chicago Bulls,^{[20][21][22][23]} and signed free agents Mario Elie,^[22][24][25] and Jerome Kersey.^[22][26][25] After a promising rookie season from second-year star Tim Duncan, the Spurs got off to a slow start posting a 6–8 record in February.^[27] However, in March and April, they won 31 of their final 36 games on their way to a league-best 37–13 season record, roughly equivalent to 61–21 in a full season.^[28]

Duncan averaged 21.7 points, 11.4 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game, and was named to the All-NBA First Team, and to the NBA All-Defensive First Team, while David Robinson averaged 15.8 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game. In addition, Sean Elliott provided the team with 11.2 points per game, and Elie and Avery Johnson both contributed 9.7 points per game each, while Johnson led the team with 7.4 assists per game.^[29] Duncan also finished in third place in Most Valuable Player voting behind Karl Malone and Alonzo Mourning,^[30][31][32] and Robinson finished in fourth place in Defensive Player of the Year voting, while Duncan finished tied in fifth place.^[33]

In the Western Conference First Round of the playoffs, the Spurs defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves three games to one.^{[34][35][36][37]} In the Western Conference Semi-finals, the Spurs' "Twin Towers" of Duncan and Robinson outplayed Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant as they swept the Los Angeles Lakers in four straight games.^{[38][39][40][41]} In the Western Conference Finals, the Spurs faced the Portland Trail Blazers. After taking Game 1 with an 80–76 win,^[42][43][44] the Spurs trailed by 17 points in Game 2. However, the Spurs made a fourth-quarter run that culminated with a game-winning three-pointer from Elliott, as they won 86–85.^{[45][46][47][48][49]} The Spurs went on to sweep the Trail Blazers in four straight games, becoming the first former American Basketball Association (ABA) team to play in the NBA Finals.^{[50][51][52][53]}

In the Finals, the Spurs defeated the eighth-seeded New York Knicks in five games. Johnson hit the title-winning shot with 47 seconds left to seal the Spurs' first title in franchise history. Duncan was named Finals MVP.^{[54][55][56][57][58]} Kerr, who previously won three straight championships with the Chicago Bulls, won his fourth consecutive title. Following the season, Will Perdue re-signed as a free agent with his former team, the Chicago Bulls.^[59][60]

On June 24, 1998, the Spurs traded Carl Herrera and first-round draft pick Felipe Lopez to the Vancouver Grizzlies for guard Antonio Daniels.^[61][62][19] The team also signed free agents Mario Elie, Steve Kerr and Jerome Kersey during the offseason.^[25][63]

NBA draft

Main article: 1998 NBA draft

More information Round, Pick ...

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	24	Felipe López	Guard	Dominican Republic	St. John's
2	52	Derrick Dial	Guard	United States	Eastern Michigan

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The 1999 NBA Finals saw some firsts for both the Spurs and the opposing New York Knicks.

The Spurs:

• Became the first former ABA team to play and win in an NBA Finals. (This feat would be duplicated by the Denver Nuggets in 2023.)
• Attracted record crowds for the two games at the Alamodome. Attendance was 39,514 for Game 1 and 39,554 for Game 2 (the largest crowd to see an NBA Finals game).
• Steve Kerr became the first non-Celtic to win four straight championships, as he won titles with the Bulls from 1996 to 1998.

The Knicks became the first 8th seed to ever play in an NBA Finals. (This feat would be duplicated by the Miami Heat in 2023.)

• Tim Duncan, Forward, All-NBA First Team
• Tim Duncan, Forward, All-NBA Defensive First Team
• Tim Duncan, Forward, NBA Finals MVP