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2003–04 NBA season

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2003–04 NBA season
LeagueNational Basketball Association
SportBasketball
DurationOctober 28, 2003 – April 14, 2004
April 17 – June 1, 2004 (Playoffs)
June 6 – 15, 2004 (Finals)
Number of teams29
TV partner(s)ABC, TNT, ESPN, NBA TV
Draft
Top draft pickLeBron James
Picked byCleveland Cavaliers
Regular season
Top seedIndiana Pacers
Season MVPKevin Garnett (Minnesota)
Top scorerTracy McGrady (Orlando)
Playoffs
Eastern championsDetroit Pistons
  Eastern runners-upIndiana Pacers
Western championsLos Angeles Lakers
  Western runners-upMinnesota Timberwolves
Finals
ChampionsDetroit Pistons
  Runners-upLos Angeles Lakers
Finals MVPChauncey Billups (Detroit)
NBA seasons
The San Antonio Spurs hosting the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the 2004 Western Conference Semifinals at the SBC Center.

The 2003–04 NBA season was the 58th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The season ended with the Detroit Pistons defeating the Los Angeles Lakers 4–1 in the 2004 NBA Finals.[1]

Events

This was the last season for the original two-division format in both the Eastern and Western Conferences, before each of the conferences added a third division the following season. As a result, this would also be the final season for the NBA Midwest Division, as the Minnesota Timberwolves were that division's last champion, the only division title the franchise has won in their twenty-nine seasons in the NBA.

The All-Star Game was held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The West won 136–132; Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal was named Most Valuable Player.

For the first time in 21 years the Portland Trail Blazers did not make the playoffs, ending the second longest streak in NBA history. For the first time in 20 years the Utah Jazz did not make the playoffs, ending the third longest streak in NBA history.

The Houston Rockets played their first game at the Toyota Center. They reached the playoffs for the first time since 1999 and lost to the eventual Conference champion Lakers in five games. This marked the only playoff appearance of Steve Francis NBA career.

Prior to the start of the season, Karl Malone and Gary Payton took major paycuts to leave their teams and join Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal on the Lakers for a chance at a possible NBA title. However, that title chase came to an end in the NBA Finals, as the Detroit Pistons won 4–1. The Minnesota Timberwolves, behind their "Big Three" of Kevin Garnett, Latrell Sprewell, and Sam Cassell, amassed the best record in the Western Conference, and were expected to finally win a first round playoff series. They won two and advanced to the Western Conference Finals, which they lost to the Lakers. It would be their last playoff appearance until the 2017–18 season.

LeBron James (1st overall to Cleveland), Carmelo Anthony (3rd overall to Denver), Chris Bosh (4th overall to Toronto), and Dwyane Wade (5th overall to Miami), among others, formed one of the strongest drafts in NBA history. Among the highly touted rookies, Anthony and Wade led their teams to the playoffs, and Wade's play pushed the Heat into the second round. James went on to win NBA Rookie of the Year. Anthony became the first NBA rookie to lead a playoff team in scoring since David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs during the 1989–90 season.

The Memphis Grizzlies qualified for the postseason for the first time in the franchise's then 9 year history, dating back to their days in Vancouver. With a record of 50–32, it was also the first time they posted a winning season. It was also their last season played at Pyramid Arena.

Tracy McGrady was the first scoring leader since Bernard King in 1984–85 whose team did not make the playoffs.

General Motors ended its sponsorship deal with the NBA after this season (having rotated among all eight of its U.S. divisions, including Saturn and Hummer), after which Toyota would become the new official partner.

Coaching

Coaching changes
Offseason
Team 2002–03 coach 2003–04 coach
Cleveland Cavaliers Keith Smart Paul Silas
Detroit Pistons Rick Carlisle Larry Brown[2]
Houston Rockets Rudy Tomjanovich Jeff Van Gundy
Indiana Pacers Isiah Thomas Rick Carlisle
Los Angeles Clippers Dennis Johnson Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
Miami Heat Pat Riley Stan Van Gundy
Milwaukee Bucks George Karl Terry Porter
New Orleans Hornets Paul Silas Tim Floyd
Philadelphia 76ers Larry Brown Randy Ayers
Toronto Raptors Lenny Wilkens Kevin O'Neill
Washington Wizards Doug Collins Eddie Jordan
In-season
Team Outgoing coach Incoming coach
Boston Celtics Jim O'Brien John Carroll
Chicago Bulls Bill Cartwright Pete Myers
Pete Myers Scott Skiles
New Jersey Nets Byron Scott Lawrence Frank
New York Knicks Don Chaney Herb Williams
Herb Williams Lenny Wilkens
Orlando Magic Doc Rivers Johnny Davis
Philadelphia 76ers Randy Ayers Chris Ford
Phoenix Suns Frank Johnson Mike D'Antoni

2003–04 NBA changes

  • Cleveland Cavaliers – added new logo and new uniforms, brought back the original wine and gold to their color scheme, added dark navy blue trim to their color scheme replacing black, light blue and orange, also added side panels to their jerseys and shorts.
  • Denver Nuggets – added new logo and new uniforms, replacing dark navy blue, red and gold with light blue and gold, added side panels to their jerseys and shorts.
  • Dallas Mavericks – added new grey road alternate uniforms.
  • Houston Rockets – added new logo and new uniforms, replacing dark navy blue, red and grey colors with remained red and grey, and moved into their new arena the Toyota Center.
  • Orlando Magic – changed their uniforms and wordmarks on their jerseys.
  • Phoenix Suns – added new orange road alternate uniforms with grey side panels to their jerseys and shorts.
  • Portland Trail Blazers – slightly once again changed their primary logo.
  • Toronto Raptors – added new red road alternate uniforms with black and grey side panels to their jerseys and shorts.

Standings

By division

Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-New Jersey Nets 47 35 .573 – 28–13 19–22 18–7
x-Miami Heat 42 40 .512 5 29–12 13–28 15–10
x-New York Knicks 39 43 .476 8 23–18 16–25 15–7
x-Boston Celtics 36 46 .439 11 19–22 17–24 14–10
Philadelphia 76ers 33 49 .402 14 21–20 12–29 10–14
Washington Wizards 25 57 .305 22 17–24 8–33 3–21
Orlando Magic 21 61 .256 26 11–30 10–31 8–16
Central Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Indiana Pacers 61 21 .744 – 34–7 27–14 20–8
x-Detroit Pistons 54 28 .659 7 31–10 23–18 17–11
x-New Orleans Hornets 41 41 .500 20 25–16 16–25 14–14
x-Milwaukee Bucks 41 41 .500 20 27–14 14–27 15–13
Cleveland Cavaliers 35 47 .427 26 23–18 12–29 14–14
Toronto Raptors 33 49 .402 28 18–23 15–26 11–17
Atlanta Hawks 28 54 .341 33 18–23 10–31 10–18
Chicago Bulls 23 59 .280 38 14–27 9–32 11–17
Western Conference
Midwest Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Minnesota Timberwolves 58 24 .707 – 31–10 27–14 14–10
x-San Antonio Spurs 57 25 .695 1 33–8 24–17 15–9
x-Dallas Mavericks 52 30 .634 6 36–5 16–25 14–10
x-Memphis Grizzlies 50 32 .610 8 31–10 19–22 12–12
x-Houston Rockets 45 37 .549 13 27–14 18–23 8–16
x-Denver Nuggets 43 39 .524 15 29–12 14–27 11–13
Utah Jazz 42 40 .512 16 28–13 14–27 10–14
Pacific Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Los Angeles Lakers 56 26 .683 – 34–7 22–19 15–9
x-Sacramento Kings 55 27 .671 1 34–7 21–20 16–8
Portland Trail Blazers 41 41 .500 15 25–16 16–25 13–11
Seattle SuperSonics 37 45 .451 19 21–20 16–25 11–13
Golden State Warriors 37 45 .451 19 27–14 10–31 12–12
Phoenix Suns 29 53 .354 27 18–23 11–30 9–15
Los Angeles Clippers 28 54 .341 28 18–23 10–31 8–16

By conference

Notes

  • z – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffs
  • c – Clinched home court advantage for the conference playoffs
  • y – Clinched division title
  • x – Clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

Main article: 2004 NBA playoffs

Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Home court advantage does not necessarily belong to the higher-seeded team, but instead the team with the better regular season record; teams enjoying the home advantage are shown in italics.

Conference Quarterfinals Conference Semifinals Conference Finals NBA Finals
            
E1 Indiana* 4
E8 Boston 0
E1 Indiana* 4
E4 Miami 2
E4 Miami 4
E5 New Orleans 3
E1 Indiana* 2
Eastern Conference
E3 Detroit 4
E3 Detroit 4
E6 Milwaukee 1
E3 Detroit 4
E2 New Jersey* 3
E2 New Jersey* 4
E7 New York 0
E3 Detroit 4
W2 LA Lakers* 1
W1 Minnesota* 4
W8 Denver 1
W1 Minnesota* 4
W4 Sacramento 3
W4 Sacramento 4
W5 Dallas 1
W1 Minnesota* 2
Western Conference
W2 LA Lakers* 4
W3 San Antonio 4
W6 Memphis 0
W3 San Antonio 2
W2 LA Lakers* 4
W2 LA Lakers* 4
W7 Houston 1
  • * Division winner
  • Bold Series winner
  • Italic Team with home-court advantage

Statistics leaders

Category Player Team Stat
Points per game Tracy McGrady Orlando Magic 28.0
Rebounds per game Kevin Garnett Minnesota Timberwolves 13.9
Assists per game Jason Kidd New Jersey Nets 9.2
Steals per game Baron Davis New Orleans Hornets 2.36
Blocks per game Theo Ratliff Portland Trail Blazers 3.61
FG% Shaquille O'Neal Los Angeles Lakers .584
FT% Peja Stojaković Sacramento Kings .927
3FG% Anthony Peeler Sacramento Kings .482

Awards

Yearly awards

Players of the month

The following players were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month.

Month Eastern Conference Western Conference
October – November Baron Davis (New Orleans Hornets) (1/1) Peja Stojaković (Sacramento Kings) (1/1)
December Jermaine O'Neal (Indiana Pacers) (1/1) Kevin Garnett (Minnesota Timberwolves) (1/4)
January Michael Redd (Milwaukee Bucks) (1/1) Kevin Garnett (Minnesota Timberwolves) (2/4)
February Kenyon Martin (New Jersey Nets) (1/1) Kevin Garnett (Minnesota Timberwolves) (3/4)
March Lamar Odom (Miami Heat) (1/1) Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) (1/1)
April Jamaal Magloire (New Orleans Hornets) (1/1) Kevin Garnett (Minnesota Timberwolves) (4/4)

Rookies of the month

The following players were named the Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month.

Month Eastern Conference Western Conference
October – November LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) (1/6) Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) (1/6)
December LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) (2/6) Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) (2/6)
January LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) (3/6) Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) (3/6)
February LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) (4/6) Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) (4/6)
March LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) (5/6) Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) (5/6)
April LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) (6/6) Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) (6/6)

Coaches of the month

The following coaches were named the Eastern and Western Conference Coaches of the Month.

Month Eastern Conference Western Conference
October – November Rick Carlisle (Indiana Pacers) (1/1) Phil Jackson (Los Angeles Lakers) (1/1)
December Byron Scott (New Jersey Nets) (1/1) Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs) (1/1)
January Larry Brown (Detroit Pistons) (1/2) Rick Adelman (Sacramento Kings) (1/1)
February Lawrence Frank (New Jersey Nets) (1/1) Hubie Brown (Memphis Grizzlies) (1/2)
March Stan Van Gundy (Miami Heat) (1/1) Hubie Brown (Memphis Grizzlies) (2/2)
April Larry Brown (Detroit Pistons) (2/2) Flip Saunders (Minnesota Timberwolves) (1/1)

See also

References

  1. ^ "Season Review: 2003-04". NBA.com. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  2. ^ "The Revival of the Bad Boys: The '04 Pistons – HistoryLocker". historylocker.com. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
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