1998 NBA Finals
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| Dates | June 3–14 | ||||||||||||
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| MVP |
Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) |
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| Television | NBC (U.S.) | ||||||||||||
| Announcers | Bob Costas, Doug Collins and Isiah Thomas | ||||||||||||
| Radio network | ESPN | ||||||||||||
| Announcers | Brent Musburger, Jim Durham (Game 6), and Jack Ramsay | ||||||||||||
| Referees | |||||||||||||
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| Hall of Famers |
Bulls: Michael Jordan (2009) Scottie Pippen (2010) Dennis Rodman (2011) Jazz: (2009) Karl Malone (2010) Coaches: Phil Jackson (2007) Jerry Sloan (2009) Tex Winter (2011) Officials: Dick Bavetta (2015) |
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| Eastern Finals | Bulls defeat Pacers, 4–3 | ||||||||||||
| Western Finals | Jazz defeat Lakers, 4–0 | ||||||||||||
| Game 1: | Steve Javie, Ron Garretson, Bennett Salvatore |
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| Game 2: | Joey Crawford, Dan Crawford, Bill Oakes |
| Game 3: | Dick Bavetta, Ronnie Nunn, Hue Hollins |
| Game 4: | Hugh Evans, Steve Javie, Jack Nies |
| Game 5: | Bennett Salvatore, Joey Crawford, Bill Oakes |
| Game 6: | Dick Bavetta, Hue Hollins, Dan Crawford |
The 1998 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1998 playoffs of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the conclusion of the 1997–98 NBA season. The Eastern Conference champion Chicago Bulls played against the Western Conference champion Utah Jazz, with the Jazz holding home-court advantage with the first 2 games in Salt Lake City. In a repeat of the previous year's Finals, the Bulls won the series 4 games to 2 for their third consecutive NBA title and their sixth in eight seasons. Michael Jordan was voted the NBA Finals MVP of the series (he also had won the award the last five times the Bulls won the Finals: 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, and 1997). This would be his sixth NBA championship and sixth Finals MVP award in six full basketball seasons. Until 2014, it was the last consecutive Finals rematch between two teams.
The 1998 Finals garnered the highest Nielsen TV ratings in NBA history at 18.7, and even surpassed the Nielsen ratings for the 1998 World Series, marking the first time the NBA had a higher rating in its championship round than of Major League Baseball's championship round.
The 1998 NBA season documentary "Unforgettabulls" was the first of five narrated by Will Lyman through NBA Entertainment, which recaps the entire Bulls' season. Rick Telander narrates on the opening credits. Marv Albert narrates the timeline of Michael Jordan's career with the Bulls.
The series marked the first time since 1989 that the same two teams met in the Finals in consecutive years. The Jazz earned the league's best record by virtue of sweeping the two-game regular season series with the Bulls despite both teams finishing at 62 wins. In the playoffs, the Jazz were pushed to the brink by the Houston Rockets before winning Game 5 in Utah, and then overcame Rookie of the Year Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs 4–1. They then swept the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. The Bulls swept the New Jersey Nets and then took out the Charlotte Hornets in five, but it took seven games to overcome the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals.
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