1998–99 Portland Trail Blazers season

The 1998–99 Portland Trail Blazers season was the 29th season for the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association. Due to a lockout, the regular season began on February 5, 1999, and was cut from 82 games to 50.

During the off-season, the Trail Blazers signed free agents Jim Jackson and Greg Anthony, who would reunite with his former University of Nevada, Las Vegas teammate Stacey Augmon, and acquired shooting guard, and top draft pick Bonzi Wells out of Ball State University from the Detroit Pistons, who selected him with the eleventh overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft.

The Trail Blazers got off to a fast start by winning eight straight games between February and March, on their way to a 27–6 start to the regular season. Despite losing four of their final five games of the season, the team finished in first place in the Pacific Division with a 35–15 record, and earned the second seed in the Western Conference. The Trail Blazers won their fourth Division title in franchise history, and their first since the 1991–92 season; the team also qualified for their 17th consecutive trip to the NBA playoffs, and 22nd in 23 years. Head coach Mike Dunleavy was named the NBA Coach of the Year.

Isaiah Rider led the Trail Blazers in scoring with 13.9 points per game, which is usually a low average in points for a team's scoring leader, while Rasheed Wallace played half the season off the bench, averaging 12.8 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, and Damon Stoudamire provided the team with 12.6 points and 6.2 assists per game. In addition, Brian Grant contributed 11.5 points and 9.8 rebounds per game, while Arvydas Sabonis provided with 12.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. Meanwhile, Walt Williams contributed 9.3 points per game, Jackson averaged 8.4 points per game, Anthony contributed 6.4 points per game, and Augmon provided with 4.3 points and 1.2 steals per game.

Sabonis finished tied in 13th place in Most Valuable Player voting, while Wallace finished tied in 16th place; Wallace also finished in second place in Sixth Man of the Year voting, behind Darrell Armstrong of the Orlando Magic, and Grant finished tied in eighth place in Most Improved Player voting.

In the Western Conference First Round of the 1999 NBA playoffs, the Trail Blazers faced off against the 7th–seeded Phoenix Suns, a team that featured Tom Gugliotta, former Trail Blazers forward Clifford Robinson, and All-Star guard Jason Kidd. The Trail Blazers won the first two games over the Suns at home at the Rose Garden Arena, before winning Game 3 on the road, 103–93 at the America West Arena to win the series in a three-game sweep, and advanced to the Western Conference Semi-finals for the first time since the 1991–92 season.

In the Semi-finals, the team faced off against the 3rd–seeded Utah Jazz, who were led by the trio of All-Star forward, and Most Valuable Player of the Year, Karl Malone, All-Star guard John Stockton, and Jeff Hornacek. Despite the Trail Blazers winning the Pacific Division title, the Jazz, who finished with a better regular-season record, had home-court advantage in the series. Despite this, the Trail Blazers took a 3–1 series lead over the Jazz, before losing Game 5 on the road, 88–71 at the Delta Center. The Trail Blazers won Game 6 over the Jazz at home, 92–80 at the Rose Garden Arena to win the series in six games.

In the Western Conference Finals, the Trail Blazers then faced off against the top–seeded, and Midwest Division champion San Antonio Spurs, who were led by All-Star forward Tim Duncan, All-Star center David Robinson, and Sean Elliott. The Trail Blazers lost the first two games to the Spurs on the road at the Alamodome, and then lost the next two games at home, which included a Game 4 loss to the Spurs at the Rose Garden Arena, 94–80, thus losing the series in a four-game sweep. The Spurs would advance to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history, and defeat the 8th–seeded New York Knicks in five games in the 1999 NBA Finals, winning their first ever NBA championship.

The Trail Blazers finished fifth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 486,556 at the Rose Garden Arena during the regular season. Following the season, Rider and Jackson were both traded to the Atlanta Hawks, and Williams, Augmon, and second-year center Kelvin Cato were all traded to the Houston Rockets, who soon released Augmon to free agency as he would re-sign with the Trail Blazers soon after.