The
Philadelphia 76ers and
Milwaukee Bucks returned to the playoffs for the first time since
1991 (coincidentally they faced each other in the opening round that year), and it was also the 76ers’ first appearance since drafting
Allen Iverson with the #1 overall pick in
1996. Iverson later led the Sixers to the
2001 NBA Finals. After spending their first thirteen seasons in Sacramento in mediocrity, with no winning record and two playoff appearances in
1986 and
1996,
the Kings franchise made the first of eight consecutive playoff appearances, which included a trip to the Western Conference Finals in
2002. This was their first winning record since
1982–83, which they were based in Kansas City. The Bulls, despite being defending champions, missed the playoffs for the first time since
1984 (mostly due to the second retirement of
Michael Jordan and the departures of
Scottie Pippen and
Dennis Rodman). They also became the first defending champion since
the 1969–70 Boston Celtics to miss the playoffs. With their first round sweep of the Phoenix Suns, the Portland Trail Blazers won a playoff series for the first time since
1992, when they last made the NBA Finals. Game 4 of the Lakers–Rockets series was the final postseason appearance of
Charles Barkley’s Hall of Fame career. It was also the final playoff game ever held at the
Compaq Center. Game 5 of the Hawks–Pistons series is the last NBA playoff game played in a college basketball-specific arena (
Georgia Tech's then-named
Alexander Memorial Coliseum), and among the final NBA games played in a college basketball-specific arena. Many teams formerly played playoff games on college campuses, especially in the NBA's early days, but the increasing professionalization and ownership of arena times made the practice obsolete. Game 5 of the Heat–Knicks series was extremely notable for two reasons •
Allan Houston's series winning shot to win the game and the series. By doing so, the Knicks became only the second eighth seeded team (after the
1994 Denver Nuggets) to knock off a top seed in the playoffs. The Knicks were eventually joined by the
2007 Golden State Warriors, the
2011 Memphis Grizzlies, the
2012 Philadelphia 76ers, and the
2023 Miami Heat as one of only six eighth seeded teams to eliminate a top seeded team in the playoffs. • In addition, Game 5 was the last playoff game ever played at
Miami Arena. The Heat continued to host regular season games there for part of the
1999–2000 season before moving to the
American Airlines Arena in January 2000. Game 4 of the Spurs–Lakers series was the last regulation NBA game ever played in the
Great Western Forum. The Lakers played a handful of preseason games leading up to the
1999–2000 season before
Staples Center became the new home of the team for that season. With their conference semifinals sweep of the Atlanta Hawks, the New York Knicks made the conference finals for the first time since
1994. The 1999 Knicks and the 2023 Miami Heat are the only eighth seeded teams (as of 2023) to advance past the conference semifinals. After losing to the Knicks, the Hawks did not return to the playoffs until
2008. This was the last NBA postseason to feature back–to–backs in the conference semifinals until
2012. Game 2 of the Spurs–Trail Blazers series was notable for the San Antonio Spurs overcoming an eighteen-point deficit to win the game. The final shot, taken by
Sean Elliott, completed what is called the “
Memorial Day Miracle.” With their Western Conference Finals sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers, the San Antonio Spurs made the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history. Game 5 of the Knicks–Pacers series was the last meaningful NBA game ever played at
Market Square Arena. With their Game 6 win over the
Indiana Pacers, the New York Knicks became the first eighth seeded team to make it to the NBA Finals. With their Game 2 win over the New York Knicks, the San Antonio Spurs won their 12th straight playoff game. The streak included back to back sweeps of the Lakers and Trail Blazers (who would meet in
next year's Western Conference Finals). This playoff winning streak has since been beaten by the
Cleveland Cavaliers and the
Golden State Warriors in
2017, although the Cavs started their streak by winning the final three games of the
2016 NBA playoffs. With their Game 5 win against the New York Knicks at
Madison Square Garden, the San Antonio Spurs became the first former ABA team to win an NBA Championship. The Spurs finished with a 15–2 postseason record, which tied that of
the 1991 Chicago Bulls, for the best postseason record at the time. Subsequently, it has been bettered by the 15–1 playoff record of
the 2001 Los Angeles Lakers, and the 16–1 playoff record by
the 2017 Golden State Warriors. Interestingly, both of the Spurs losses came against #8 seeded teams. Also, although the Spurs had home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, they played more road games (nine) than home games (eight), as all their series were won on the road. For the first time since 1991, no series went to seven games. As of 2025, this remains the most recent NBA postseason not to feature a Game 7. This is the last time an 8 seed went to the
Eastern Conference finals and was the only time one made it to the
NBA Finals until
2023, when the
Miami Heat made the NBA Finals after beating the
Boston Celtics in 7 games in the Eastern Conference finals, the
New York Knicks in 6 games in the Eastern Conference semifinals, and the
Milwaukee Bucks in 5 games in the first round. ==Bracket==