1997–98 Minnesota Timberwolves season

The 1997–98 NBA season was the ninth season for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the National Basketball Association.^[1] During the off-season, the Timberwolves acquired Stanley Roberts from the Los Angeles Clippers,^[2][3][4] and later on signed free agent Tom Hammonds in November.^[5][6] In October, All-Star forward Kevin Garnett signed a six-year contract extension with the Timberwolves, which was worth $126 million.^[7][8][9]

1997–98 Minnesota Timberwolves season
Head coach	Flip Saunders
General manager	Kevin McHale
Owner(s)	Glen Taylor
Arena	Target Center
Results
Record	45–37 (.549)
Place	Division: 3rd (Midwest) Conference: 7th (Western)
Playoff finish	First round (lost to SuperSonics 2–3)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	KARE KLGT-TV Midwest Sports Channel
Radio	KFAN
< 1996–97 1998–99 >

After a 4–1 start to the regular season, the Timberwolves played around .500 basketball before posting a seven-game winning streak in January. However, they would lose Tom Gugliotta for the remainder of the season to an ankle injury after 41 games.^[10][11][12] Chris Carr, who became the team's starting shooting guard this season, also went down with an ankle injury, only playing 51 games.^[13] At mid-season, the team traded long-time guard Doug West to the Vancouver Grizzlies in exchange for Anthony Peeler.^[14][15][16] The Timberwolves held a 26–20 record at the All-Star break,^[17] and won seven of their final eight games of the season, posting their first ever winning record by finishing in third place in the Midwest Division with a 45–37 record, earning the seventh seed in the Western Conference, and qualifying for their second NBA playoff appearance.^[18]

Garnett and second-year star Stephon Marbury both continued to establish themselves as two of the brightest stars in the NBA; Garnett averaged 18.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.8 blocks per game, and was selected for the 1998 NBA All-Star Game in New York City, New York,^[19][20][21] and also finished tied in eleventh place in Defensive Player of the Year voting,^[22] while Marbury averaged 17.7 points, 8.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game. In addition, Gugliotta provided the team with 20.1 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, while Sam Mitchell provided with 12.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, Carr contributed 9.9 points per game, and Terry Porter contributed 9.5 points and 3.3 assists per game off the bench. On the defensive side, Cherokee Parks averaged 7.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, while Roberts contributed 6.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, and Hammonds provided with 6.1 points and 4.8 rebounds per game off the bench.^[23]

In the Western Conference First Round of the 1998 NBA playoffs, the Timberwolves faced off against the 2nd-seeded Seattle SuperSonics. After losing Game 1 on the road, 108–83, the Timberwolves won their first ever playoff game with a 98–93 road win in Game 2.^[24][25] Despite taking a 2–1 series lead,^[26][27][28] the Timberwolves would lose the next two games to the SuperSonics, thus losing the series in five games.^[29][30][31]

Following the season, Gugliotta signed as a free agent with the Phoenix Suns,^[32][33][34] while Porter signed with the Miami Heat,^[33][35][36] Roberts signed with the Houston Rockets,^[37] Parks signed with the Vancouver Grizzlies,^[38] and the oft-injured Michael Williams, who returned to play for the Timberwolves for the first time in two years due to a left heel injury,^[39][40] was released to free agency.^[41]

Draft picks

Main article: 1997 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	20	Paul Grant	C	United States	Wisconsin
2	43	Gordon Malone	PF	United States	West Virginia

Roster

1997–98 Minnesota Timberwolves roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From G 43 Chris Carr 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 207 lb (94 kg) 1974–03–12 Southern Illinois F 17 Bill Curley 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1972–05–29 Boston College F/C 21 Kevin Garnett 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1976–05–19 Farragut Academy (IL) F 24 Tom Gugliotta 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1969–12–19 NC State F 20 Tom Hammonds 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1967–03–27 Georgia Tech G 31 Reggie Jordan 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1968–01–26 New Mexico State G 3 Stephon Marbury 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1977–02–20 Georgia Tech F 42 Sam Mitchell 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1963–09–02 Mercer C 44 Cherokee Parks 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1972–10–11 Duke G 1 Anthony Peeler 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 208 lb (94 kg) 1969–11–25 Missouri G 30 Terry Porter 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1963–04–08 UW–Stevens Point C 53 Stanley Roberts 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 285 lb (129 kg) 1970–02–07 LSU G 6 DeJuan Wheat 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1973–10–14 Louisville G 4 Micheal Williams 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1966–07–23 Baylor

Head coach Flip Saunders Assistant(s) Greg Ballard Jerry Sichting Randy Wittman Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended (IN) Inactive Injured Roster Updated: February 18, 1998

Roster Notes

• Rookie center Paul Grant was on the injured reserve list due to foot and ankle injuries, and missed the entire regular season.^[42][43]

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division v t e	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 v t e
	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

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1997-98 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	TOR	UTA	VAN	WAS
Atlanta	–	2–1	4–0	1–3	4–0	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	1–3	3–1	0–2	1–2	2–2	2–2	3–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	4–0
Boston	1–2	–	1–2	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–2	1–1	2–2	2–2	2–2	3–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–0	0–2	2–0	3–2
Charlotte	0–4	2–1	–	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–2	1–3	3–1	2–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–2
Chicago	3–1	3–1	3–1	–	2–2	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	2–1	4–0	1–1	4–0	4–0	3–1	2–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	3–1
Cleveland	0–4	3–1	2–2	2–2	–	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–2	2–0	3–1	1–2	2–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	3–1	1–1	2–0	1–2
Dallas	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	–	3–1	0–2	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–3	0–4	0–2	0–2	2–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–4	0–4	0–4	2–2	1–1	0–4	4–0	1–1
Denver	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–3	–	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	2–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	2–2	1–3	0–4	0–4	0–2	0–4	1–3	1–1
Detroit	2–2	2–2	1–3	1–3	1–3	2–0	2–0	–	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	1–2	2–2	0–2	2–2	2–2	1–2	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	4–0	0–2	0–2	2–2
Golden State	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	3–1	3–1	0–2	–	1–3	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–4	1–3	2–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–2
Houston	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	4–0	4–0	1–1	3–1	–	1–1	4–0	1–3	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–3	4–0	2–2	1–3	2–0	0–4	3–1	1–1
Indiana	3–1	4–0	1–3	2–2	2–2	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	–	2–0	0–2	3–1	4–0	2–0	2–1	2–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	4–0	1–1	2–0	4–0
L.A. Clippers	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	3–1	2–2	0–2	3–1	0–4	0–2	–	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–4	3–1	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–3	1–3	0–2
L.A. Lakers	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–0	2–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	4–0	–	1–1	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–2	2–2	4–0	4–0	1–3	2–0	3–1	4–0	1–1
Miami	3–1	4–0	1–3	1–2	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–1	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	–	3–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	3–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	0–2	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–2
Milwaukee	1–3	2–2	1–3	0–4	2–2	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–0	0–2	1–3	–	1–1	0–4	3–1	2–1	2–2	0–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	1–2
Minnesota	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–2	3–1	2–0	4–0	3–1	0–2	4–0	0–4	1–1	1–1	–	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	3–1	1–3	3–1	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–3	4–0	0–2
New Jersey	2–1	2–2	2–2	0–4	1–3	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	4–0	0–2	–	2–2	3–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	3–1	0–2	2–0	1–3
New York	2–2	2–2	3–1	0–4	2–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–2	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–3	1–1	2–2	–	4–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	2–0	1–3
Orlando	2–2	2–2	1–3	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–0	2–1	1–1	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	1–3	1–2	2–0	1–3	0–4	–	4–0	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	2–0	3–1
Philadelphia	1–3	1–3	1–2	1–2	1–3	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	0–4	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–2	0–2	1–3	2–2	0–4	–	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	0–2	2–0	3–1
Phoenix	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	4–0	4–0	1–1	4–0	3–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	2–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	–	2–2	3–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	1–3	4–0	1–1
Portland	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	3–1	3–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	0–2	0–2	3–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–2	–	3–1	2–2	0–4	2–0	3–1	2–2	1–1
Sacramento	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	4–0	3–1	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	1–3	–	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1
San Antonio	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	4–0	4–0	1–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	3–1	0–4	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–2	4–0	–	2–2	2–0	1–3	4–0	1–1
Seattle	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	4–0	2–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	4–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	4–0	3–1	2–2	–	2–0	2–2	4–0	1–1
Toronto	0–4	0–3	0–4	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–0	0–2	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–4	1–3	1–1	1–3	1–3	1–3	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	–	0–2	1–1	0–3
Utah	2–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	4–0	2–0	4–0	4–0	1–1	3–1	1–3	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	2–2	2–0	–	4–0	0–2
Vancouver	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	3–1	2–0	3–1	1–3	0–2	3–1	0–4	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	2–2	2–2	0–4	0–4	1–1	0–4	–	1–1
Washington	0–4	2–3	2–2	1–3	2–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–1	2–0	3–1	3–1	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–0	2–0	1–1	—

Game log

Playoffs

1998 playoff game log
First round: 2–3 (home: 1–1; road: 1–2) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 April 24 @ Seattle L 83–108 Kevin Garnett (18) Kevin Garnett (18) Stephon Marbury (5) KeyArena 17,072 0–1 2 April 26 @ Seattle W 98–93 Stephon Marbury (25) Anthony Peeler (14) Stephon Marbury (7) KeyArena 17,072 1–1 3 April 28 Seattle W 98–90 Anthony Peeler (20) Kevin Garnett (8) Stephon Marbury (11) Target Center 19,006 2–1 4 April 30 Seattle L 88–92 Kevin Garnett (20) Kevin Garnett (10) Stephon Marbury (7) Target Center 19,006 2–2 5 May 2 @ Seattle L 84–97 Anthony Peeler (28) Reggie Jordan (8) Stephon Marbury (8) KeyArena 17,072 2–3
1998 schedule

Player statistics

Ragular season

Player	POS	GP	GS	MP	REB	AST	STL	BLK	PTS	MPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Kevin Garnett	PF	82	82	3,222	786	348	139	150	1,518	39.3	9.6	4.2	1.7	1.8	18.5
Stephon Marbury	PG	82	81	3,112	230	704	104	7	1,450	38.0	2.8	8.6	1.3	.1	17.7
Terry Porter	PG	82	8	1,786	168	271	63	16	777	21.8	2.0	3.3	.8	.2	9.5
Sam Mitchell	SF	81	33	2,239	385	107	64	22	1,000	27.6	4.8	1.3	.8	.3	12.3
Cherokee Parks	C	79	43	1,703	437	53	36	86	558	21.6	5.5	.7	.5	1.1	7.1
Stanley Roberts	C	74	44	1,328	363	27	24	72	457	17.9	4.9	.4	.3	1.0	6.2
Tom Hammonds	PF	57	2	1,140	271	36	15	17	346	20.0	4.8	.6	.3	.3	6.1
Reggie Jordan	SG	57	1	487	97	50	35	9	149	8.5	1.7	.9	.6	.2	2.6
Chris Carr	SG	51	40	1,165	155	85	17	11	504	22.8	3.0	1.7	.3	.2	9.9
Tom Gugliotta	SF	41	41	1,582	356	167	61	22	823	38.6	8.7	4.1	1.5	.5	20.1
Doug West	SG	38	10	688	82	45	11	5	157	18.1	2.2	1.2	.3	.1	4.1
DeJuan Wheat	PG	34	0	150	11	25	6	1	57	4.4	.3	.7	.2	.0	1.7
Anthony Peeler†	SG	30	24	991	103	114	52	6	390	33.0	3.4	3.8	1.7	.2	13.0
Micheal Williams	PG	25	0	161	14	32	9	2	64	6.4	.6	1.3	.4	.1	2.6
Bill Curley	PF	11	1	146	28	4	3	1	34	13.3	2.5	.4	.3	.1	3.1
Clifford Rozier	C	6	0	30	6	0	0	0	6	5.0	1.0	.0	.0	.0	1.0

• ^† Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Timberwolves only.

Playoffs

Player	POS	GP	GS	MP	REB	AST	STL	BLK	PTS	MPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Anthony Peeler	SG	5	5	213	38	18	10	3	81	42.6	7.6	3.6	2.0	.6	16.2
Stephon Marbury	PG	5	5	209	16	38	12	0	69	41.8	3.2	7.6	2.4	.0	13.8
Kevin Garnett	PF	5	5	194	48	20	4	12	79	38.8	9.6	4.0	.8	2.4	15.8
Sam Mitchell	SF	5	5	177	27	8	1	1	72	35.4	5.4	1.6	.2	.2	14.4
Terry Porter	PG	5	4	188	25	16	5	0	79	37.6	5.0	3.2	1.0	.0	15.8
Tom Hammonds	PF	5	1	113	22	2	0	1	36	22.6	4.4	.4	.0	.2	7.2
Micheal Williams	PG	4	0	58	9	11	3	1	20	14.5	2.3	2.8	.8	.3	5.0
Reggie Jordan	SG	2	0	29	9	3	1	0	12	14.5	4.5	1.5	.5	.0	6.0
Bill Curley	PF	2	0	7	0	0	0	0	0	3.5	.0	.0	.0	.0	.0
Stanley Roberts	C	1	0	8	2	0	0	0	1	8.0	2.0	.0	.0	.0	1.0
DeJuan Wheat	PG	1	0	3	1	0	1	0	2	3.0	1.0	.0	1.0	.0	2.0
Cherokee Parks	C	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1.0	.0	.0	.0	.0	.0

Awards and records

Transactions