1988–89 Portland Trail Blazers season
The 1988–89 season was the 19th season of the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was racked with dissension, and posted a 25–22 record before head coach Mike Schuler was fired in mid-February; assistant coach Rick Adelman was promoted to replace him on an interim basis. After the Blazers reached the 1989 NBA Playoffs, Adelman was made the head coach on a full-time basis. At midseason, the team traded Kiki Vandeweghe to the New York Knicks in exchange for a future first-round draft pick. After holding a 25–21 record at the All-Star break, the Blazers played below .500 for the remainder of the season, and finished fifth in the Pacific Division with a 39–43 record, eighth in the Western Conference, qualifying for the playoffs for the seventh consecutive year.
| 1988–89 Portland Trail Blazers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach |
|
| General manager | Jon Spoelstra |
| Owner(s) | Paul Allen |
| Arena | Memorial Coliseum |
| Results | |
| Record | 39–43 (.476) |
| Place | Division: 5th (Pacific) Conference: 8th (Western) |
| Playoff finish | First round (lost to Lakers 0–3) |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | KOIN |
| Radio | KEX (Bill Schonely, Steve Jones) |
Clyde Drexler averaged 27.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.7 steals per game, while last season's Most Improved Player Kevin Duckworth averaged 18.1 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, and Terry Porter provided the team with 17.7 points, 9.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game. In addition, Jerome Kersey contributed 17.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game, while Steve Johnson provided with 10.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game off the bench, and Sam Bowie averaged 8.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game also off the bench, in only just 20 games due to injury. Drexler and Duckworth were both selected for the 1989 NBA All-Star Game.
In the 1989 NBA Playoffs, the Blazers were eliminated in the Western Conference First Round of the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year, losing three straight games to the eventual Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers would reach the NBA Finals for the third consecutive year, but would lose to the Detroit Pistons in four straight games.
Following the season, the oft-injured Bowie was traded to the New Jersey Nets, and Johnson was left unprotected in the 1989 NBA Expansion Draft, where he was selected by the newly expansion Minnesota Timberwolves.