•
Kwame Brown became the first
high school player to be drafted first overall when the
Washington Wizards drafted him in the
2001 NBA draft. • The
Grizzlies relocated from
Vancouver, British Columbia to
Memphis, Tennessee. They played their first three seasons at
The Pyramid in Memphis. • The
2002 NBA All-Star Game was held at
First Union Center in
Philadelphia.
Kobe Bryant of the
Lakers took MVP honors amidst boos from the Philadelphia fans following a 135–120 victory by the West. Philadelphia was originally slated to host the 1999 All-Star Game but was awarded the 2002 game instead due to the
1999 lockout. • Prior to the start of the season, NBA and
Chicago Bulls guard
Michael Jordan, then part-owner of the
Washington Wizards, announced his second comeback to the NBA, this time with the Wizards. The announcement was delayed due to the
September 11 attacks. • The
Dallas Mavericks played their first game at the
American Airlines Center, not to be confused with the American Airlines Arena (now
Kaseya Center) in
Miami, Florida. • This was the last season for
NBC, but the network would regain for NBA coverage starting in the
2025–26 season. This was also the last season
TBS broadcast NBA games on a regular basis. • NBA teams wore patches on their jerseys with the
American flag and a red-white-and-blue ribbon, in honor of the victims of the
September 11 attacks. The Raptors wore the American and Canadian flags on their jerseys. • The only Canadian team left in the NBA, the
Toronto Raptors, after losing seventeen of eighteen to drop to 30–38, won twelve of their last fourteen to finish at 42–40 and go to the NBA playoffs as the seventh seed in the East. •
The New Jersey Nets, who had never won fifty games in a season and had only been to the second round of the playoffs once, won 52 games to reach the Finals. • 2001–02 is one of the most memorable seasons in the history of
the Milwaukee Bucks. The team got off to a division-leading 26–13 start and were 10 games over .500 as late as March 6. However, the Bucks lost 16 of their last 22 games and missed the playoffs, one of the biggest late season collapses for a team that was contending for a division title in March. • For the first time since 1985–86, no team won fewer than twenty games.
The Chicago Bulls and
Golden State Warriors shared the league's worst record of 21–61. This had however previously occurred during every season between 1973–74 and 1978–79 and again from 1983–84 to 1985–86. • Former All-Star
Jayson Williams was charged with the murder of his limousine driver on February 14. He was immediately fired from his spot on NBC's
Verizon Wireless at the Half shortly after appearing on TV during the All-Star Game the previous week. •
Marv Albert and
Mike Fratello were involved in a limousine crash prior to the start of the 2002 Playoffs and were unable to announce for NBC. Albert returned to announce the 2002 Western Conference Finals and NBA Finals. • The
San Antonio Spurs played their last season at the
Alamodome. (Notably, this was the last time an NBA team's primary home venue was a non-NBA/non-basketball-specific arena, in this case an
American football-specific stadium.) • The
zone defense was legalized. • The
defensive three-second violation was introduced. • This season marked the last time the
NBA playoffs used a best–of–five series in the first round. Started from
next season onwards, the playoffs first-round series switched to the best–of–seven format. • Several notable missed calls occurred during the playoffs regarding buzzer beaters. During the Magic–Hornets series,
Baron Davis's game-winner was incorrectly waved off at the buzzer by referee
Bernie Fryer; in the Nets–Pacers series,
Reggie Miller hit a turnaround 40-foot three–pointer slightly after the buzzer at the end of regulation that referee
Bob Delaney granted anyways; and lastly in Game 4 of the Kings–Lakers series,
Samaki Walker hit a three–pointer slightly after the buzzer at the end of the first half that was granted anyways. Following the season, the NBA instituted new rules regarding the end-of-period indicators. An
LED light strip on the backboard and the scorer's table replaced the traditional electric red light behind the backboard, and a shot clock visible to all three viewable sides was mandated. • Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals series between the Kings and the Lakers is considered to be one of the most controversial games in NBA history, as numerous questionable calls went against the Kings in the fourth quarter. The Lakers, led by O'Neal's 41 points and 17 rebounds, won, 106–102, setting the stage for Game 7 in Sacramento. There are allegations that the game was affected by the referees in relationship to the
Tim Donaghy scandal. • This season marked the first time the league's scoring leader (in this case
Allen Iverson) failed to make the All-NBA First Team. ==2001–02 NBA changes==