1992–93 Chicago Bulls season
The 1992–93 NBA season was the Bulls' 27th season in the National Basketball Association. The Bulls entered the season as the back-to-back defending NBA champions, having defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1992 NBA Finals in six games, winning their second NBA championship. After two straight championships, the Bulls would yet again have another successful season finishing in first place in the Central Division, and second overall in the Eastern Conference with a 57–25 record. They also advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the fifth consecutive season, becoming the first team since the 1987–88 Boston Celtics to do so. Michael Jordan once again led the league in scoring with 32.6 points per game, and was selected for the 1993 NBA All-Star Game along with Scottie Pippen.
In the first round of the playoffs, the Bulls swept the Atlanta Hawks in three straight games. In the semifinals, they swept the Cleveland Cavaliers in four straight games. Then after losing the first two games of the Eastern Conference Finals to the top-seeded New York Knicks, the Bulls would win the next four games of the series. Then they would then go on to win their third consecutive NBA championship, defeating regular season MVP Charles Barkley and the Phoenix Suns in six games in the 1993 NBA Finals. This was the last title the Bulls won while playing at Chicago Stadium. Chicago's offseason was also marked by Jordan's sudden retirement.
Offseason
NBA Draft
Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | School/Club Team |
1 | 27 | Byron Houston | Forward | United States | Oklahoma State |
2 | 33 | Corey Williams | Guard | United States | Oklahoma State |
2 | 39 | Litterial Green | Guard | United States | Georgia |
Roster
Regular season
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Game log
Regular season
Playoffs
Player stats
Regular season
Playoffs
Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
19 | 33.8 | .524 | .512 | .909 | 1.5 | 3.3 | 1.00 | .11 | 11.4 | ||
19 | 23.4 | .465 | .000 | .778 | 4.5 | 1.5 | .58 | .16 | 6.3 | ||
19 | 34.3 | .546 | .000 | .685 | 8.2 | 2.3 | 1.21 | 1.21 | 10.7 | ||
19 | 41.2 | .475 | .389 | .805 | 6.7 | 6.0 | 2.05 | .89 | 35.1 | ||
19 | 12.1 | .394 | .000 | .806 | 2.1 | .7 | .47 | .21 | 4.1 | ||
7 | 5.6 | .167 | .000 | .000 | 1.9 | .7 | .00 | .14 | .3 | ||
19 | 17.4 | .583 | .625 | .727 | 1.0 | 1.7 | .32 | .05 | 4.9 | ||
13 | 7.8 | .500 | .000 | .500 | 2.3 | .4 | .08 | .15 | 1.9 | ||
19 | 41.5 | .465 | .176 | .638 | 6.9 | 5.6 | 2.16 | .68 | 20.1 | ||
19 | 10.9 | .413 | .462 | .500 | .9 | 1.0 | .37 | .00 | 2.8 | ||
9 | 2.4 | .250 | .000 | .667 | .1 | .6 | .00 | .00 | .4 | ||
19 | 20.8 | .506 | .000 | .552 | 5.8 | 1.4 | .37 | .89 | 5.5 |
Playoffs
East First Round
Chicago Bulls vs. Atlanta Hawks: Bulls win series 3-0- Game 1 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 114, Atlanta 90
- Game 2 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 117, Atlanta 102
- Game 3 @ The Omni, Atlanta : Chicago 98, Atlanta 88
East Conference Semifinals
Chicago Bulls vs. Cleveland Cavaliers: Bulls win series 4-0- Game 1 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 91, Cleveland 84
- Game 2 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 104, Cleveland 85
- Game 3 @ The Coliseum, Richfield : Chicago 96, Cleveland 90
- Game 4 @ The Coliseum, Richfield : Chicago 103, Cleveland 101
East Conference Finals
New York Knicks vs. Chicago Bulls: Bulls win series 4-2- Game 1 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City : New York 98, Chicago 90
- Game 2 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City : New York 96, Chicago 91
- Game 3 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 103, New York 83
- Game 4 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 105, New York 95
- Game 5 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City : Chicago 97, New York 94
- Game 6 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 96, New York 88
NBA Finals
The 1993 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1992–93 NBA season, featuring the Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, and the Phoenix Suns, winners of 62 games and led by regular season MVP Charles Barkley. The Bulls became the first team since the legendary Boston Celtics of the 1960s to win three consecutive championship titles, clinching the "three-peat" with John Paxson's game-winning 3-pointer that gave them a 99–98 victory in Game 6. The road team won five of the six games, with Chicago winning at home in game 4.- The Phoenix Suns won game 3 in 3OT, 129–121. Suns Head Coach Paul Westphal was the only person to appear in both triple-overtime NBA finals games. The first was the classic 1976 contest against Boston, in Game 5 as a player. His Suns also played in that year's finals, thus becoming the only team to appear in two triple-overtime finals games. Back in 1976, the Suns lost 126–128 against Boston.
- The Bulls got off to a good start in Game 6 but struggled in the fourth quarter, wasting a double-digit lead to trail 98–94. Michael Jordan made a layup to cut the margin to 2 points, and the Suns missed a shot on their next possession. Trailing 98–96 and facing a Game 7 on the road if they lost that day, John Paxson took a pass from Horace Grant and buried a three-point shot with 3.9 seconds left, giving the Bulls a 99–98 lead. The victory was secured by a last-second block from Horace Grant.
- Michael Jordan, who averaged a Finals-record 41.0 points per game during the six-game series, became the first player in NBA history to win three straight Finals MVP Awards. He joined Magic Johnson as the only other player to win the award three times. The NBA started awarding the Finals MVP in 1969.
- Game 1 @ America West Arena, Phoenix : Chicago 100, Phoenix 92
- Game 2 @ America West Arena, Phoenix : Chicago 111, Phoenix 108
- Game 3 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Phoenix 129, Chicago 121
- Game 4 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Chicago 111, Phoenix 105
- Game 5 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago : Phoenix 108, Chicago 98
- Game 6 @ America West Arena, Phoenix : Chicago 99, Phoenix 98
1993 NBA Finals roster
1993 Chicago Bulls
Head Coach:Phil JacksonMichael Jordan |
Scottie Pippen |
Horace Grant |
B.J. Armstrong |
Scott Williams |
Bill Cartwright |
Stacey King |
Trent Tucker |
John Paxson |
Will Perdue |
Rodney McCray |
Ricky Blanton |
Darrell Walker |
Corey Williams |
Jo Jo English |
1993 Phoenix Suns
Head Coach:Paul WestphalCharles Barkley |
Dan Majerle |
Kevin Johnson |
Tom Chambers |
Danny Ainge |
Richard Dumas |
Negele Knight |
Oliver Miller |
Mark West |
Jerrod Mustaf |
Frank Johnson |
Tim Kempton |
Series summary
Bulls win series 4-2Award winners
- Michael Jordan, Associated Press Athlete of the Year
- Michael Jordan, All-NBA First Team
- Scottie Pippen, All-NBA Third Team
- Michael Jordan, NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award
- Michael Jordan, NBA All-Defensive First Team
- Scottie Pippen, NBA All-Defensive First Team
- Horace Grant, NBA All-Defensive Second Team
NBA All-Star Game
- Michael Jordan, Guard
- Scottie Pippen, Forward