The 1989âÂÂ90 Portland Trail Blazers season was the 20th season for the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association. During the off-season, the Trail Blazers acquired All-Star forward Buck Williams from the New Jersey Nets, and signed free agent Wayne Cooper. The team also selected power forward Clifford Robinson from the University of Connecticut with the 36th overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft. Croatian rookie shooting guard Draà ¾en PetroviÃÂ, who was drafted by the Trail Blazers as the 60th overall pick in the 1986 NBA draft, and previous played overseas in Europe, made his debut in the NBA this season.
With the addition of Williams, Robinson and PetroviÃÂ, the Trail Blazers got off to a 5âÂÂ3 start to the regular season, and then posted a seven-game winning streak afterwards. The team posted another seven-game winning streak in January, and later on held a 33âÂÂ13 record at the All-Star break. The Trail Blazers posted a 10-game winning streak in March, and won eight of their final nine games of the season, finishing in second place in the Pacific Division with a 59âÂÂ23 record, earning the third seed in the Western Conference, and qualifying for their eighth consecutive trip to the NBA playoffs.
Clyde Drexler averaged 23.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 2.0 steals per game, and was named to the All-NBA Third Team. In addition, Terry Porter averaged 17.6 points, 9.1 assists and 1.9 steals per game, while Kevin Duckworth provided the team with 16.2 points and 6.2 rebounds, Jerome Kersey contributed 16.0 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, and Williams provided with 13.6 points and 9.8 rebounds per game, and was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team. Off the bench, Robinson averaged 9.1 points and 3.8 rebounds per game, while PetroviÃÂ contributed 7.6 points per game, Danny Young provided with 4.7 points and 2.8 assists per game, and Cooper averaged 3.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game.
During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Miami Arena in Miami, Florida, Drexler was selected for the 1990 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Western Conference All-Star team. Williams finished tied in tenth place in Most Valuable Player voting, while Drexler finished in twelfth place, and head coach Rick Adelman finished in third place in Coach of the Year voting.
In the Western Conference First Round of the 1990 NBA playoffs, the Trail Blazers faced off against the 6thâÂÂseeded Dallas Mavericks, a team that featured All-Star guard Rolando Blackman, Derek Harper, Roy Tarpley and Sam Perkins. The Trail Blazers won the first two games over the Mavericks at home at the Memorial Coliseum, and took a 2âÂÂ0 series lead. In Game 3, on the road at the Reunion Arena, and despite losing Williams to an eye injury, and then losing Duckworth to a right hand injury, the Trail Blazers defeated the Mavericks, 106âÂÂ92 to win the series in a three-game sweep; it was the first time that the Trail Blazers won an NBA playoff series since the 1984âÂÂ85 season.
In the Western Conference Semi-finals, the team faced off against the 2ndâÂÂseeded, and Midwest Division champion San Antonio Spurs, who were led by All-Star center, and Rookie of the Year, David Robinson, All-Star forward Terry Cummings, and second-year star Willie Anderson. Despite starting the series without Duckworth due to his hand injury, the Trail Blazers managed to win the first two games over the Spurs at the Memorial Coliseum, before losing the next two games on the road at the HemisFair Arena. The Trail Blazers won Game 5 over the Spurs at the Memorial Coliseum in double-overtime, 138âÂÂ132, but then lost Game 6 at the HemisFair Arena, 112âÂÂ97 as the Spurs evened the series. With the return of Duckworth, the Trail Blazers won Game 7 over the Spurs at the Memorial Coliseum in overtime, 108âÂÂ105 to win in a hard-fought seven-game series.
In the Western Conference Finals, the Trail Blazers then faced off against the 5thâÂÂseeded Phoenix Suns, who were led by the quartet of All-Star forward Tom Chambers, All-Star guard Kevin Johnson, Jeff Hornacek, and sixth man Eddie Johnson. The Trail Blazers took a 2âÂÂ0 series lead over the Suns, but then lost the next two games on the road, including a Game 4 loss to the Suns at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, 119âÂÂ107. With the series tied at 2âÂÂ2, the Trail Blazers won Game 5 over the Suns at home, 120âÂÂ114 at the Memorial Coliseum, and then won Game 6 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, 112âÂÂ109 to win the series in six games, and advance to the NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history, and for the first time since their championship season of 1976âÂÂ77.
In the 1990 NBA Finals, the Trail Blazers faced off against the topâÂÂseeded, and defending NBA champion Detroit Pistons, who were led by the All-Star trio of Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, and Defensive Player of the Year, Dennis Rodman. After losing Game 1 to the Pistons on the road, 105âÂÂ99 at The Palace of Auburn Hills, the Trail Blazers won Game 2 on the road in overtime, 106âÂÂ105 to even the series. However, the Trail Blazers lost their next three home games, including a Game 5 loss to the Pistons at the Memorial Coliseum, 92âÂÂ90, thus losing the series in five games, as the Pistons won their second consecutive NBA championship.
The Trail Blazers finished 20th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 528,132 at the Memorial Coliseum during the regular season.
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | April 26 | Dallas | W 109âÂÂ102 | Terry Porter (28) | Buck Williams (16) | Porter, Drexler (5) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 1âÂÂ0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | April 28 | Dallas | W 114âÂÂ107 | Kevin Duckworth (18) | Buck Williams (13) | Clyde Drexler (7) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 2âÂÂ0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 3 | May 1 | @ Dallas | W 106âÂÂ92 | Jerome Kersey (29) | Buck Williams (10) | Clyde Drexler (10) | Reunion Arena<br>17,007 | 3âÂÂ0 |-
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | May 5 | San Antonio | W 107âÂÂ94 | Jerome Kersey (25) | Jerome Kersey (16) | Clyde Drexler (11) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 1âÂÂ0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | May 8 | San Antonio | W 122âÂÂ112 | Terry Porter (27) | Buck Williams (8) | Clyde Drexler (8) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 2âÂÂ0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 3 | May 10 | @ San Antonio | L 98âÂÂ121 | Porter, Williams (18) | Clifford Robinson (8) | Clyde Drexler (9) | HemisFair Arena<br>15,910 | 2âÂÂ1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 4 | May 12 | @ San Antonio | L 105âÂÂ115 | Clyde Drexler (27) | Buck Williams (10) | Clyde Drexler (7) | HemisFair Arena<br>15,910 | 2âÂÂ2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 5 | May 15 | San Antonio | W 138âÂÂ132 (2OT) | Terry Porter (38) | Kersey, Williams (10) | Clyde Drexler (9) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 3âÂÂ2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 6 | May 17 | @ San Antonio | L 97âÂÂ112 | Jerome Kersey (22) | Buck Williams (10) | Clyde Drexler (7) | HemisFair Arena<br>15,910 | 3âÂÂ3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 7 | May 19 | San Antonio | W 108âÂÂ105 (OT) | Terry Porter (36) | Williams, Kersey (15) | Terry Porter (9) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 4âÂÂ3 |-
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | May 21 | Phoenix | W 100âÂÂ98 | Clyde Drexler (20) | Jerome Kersey (11) | Terry Porter (9) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 1âÂÂ0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | May 23 | Phoenix | W 108âÂÂ107 | Jerome Kersey (29) | Jerome Kersey (11) | Clyde Drexler (6) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 2âÂÂ0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 3 | May 25 | @ Phoenix | L 89âÂÂ123 | Jerome Kersey (16) | Mark Bryant (7) | Clyde Drexler (6) | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum<br>14,487 | 2âÂÂ1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 4 | May 27 | @ Phoenix | L 107âÂÂ119 | Jerome Kersey (29) | Buck Williams (8) | Terry Porter (12) | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum<br>14,487 | 2âÂÂ2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 5 | May 29 | Phoenix | W 120âÂÂ114 | Clyde Drexler (32) | Jerome Kersey (11) | Terry Porter (12) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 3âÂÂ2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 6 | May 31 | @ Phoenix | W 112âÂÂ109 | Drexler, Porter (23) | Buck Williams (11) | Drexler, Porter (7) | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum<br>14,487 | 4âÂÂ2 |-
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 1 | June 5 | @ Detroit | L 99âÂÂ105 | Clyde Drexler (21) | Buck Williams (12) | Terry Porter (8) | The Palace at Auburn Hills<br>21,454 | 0âÂÂ1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | June 7 | @ Detroit | W 106âÂÂ105 (OT) | Clyde Drexler (33) | Buck Williams (12) | Terry Porter (10) | The Palace at Auburn Hills<br>21,454 | 1âÂÂ1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 3 | June 10 | Detroit | L 106âÂÂ121 | Jerome Kersey (27) | Clyde Drexler (13) | Terry Porter (9) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,884 | 1âÂÂ2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 4 | June 12 | Detroit | L 109âÂÂ112 | Clyde Drexler (34) | Drexler, Kersey (8) | Clyde Drexler (10) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,642 | 1âÂÂ3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 5 | June 14 | Detroit | L 90âÂÂ92 | Duckworth, Porter (21) | Jerome Kersey (9) | Terry Porter (9) | Memorial Coliseum<br>12,642 | 1âÂÂ4 |-
Player statistics citation:
During the season, Draà ¾en Petroviàwon the Euroscar, presented by the Italian basketball magazine Superbasket to the top player in Europe. Unlike major NBA awards, the Euroscar is awarded for a player's performance during a calendar year, and also takes into account a player's performances for his national team. In PetroviÃÂ's case, the award considered his performances in 1989 for Real Madrid and the Yugoslavia national team, as well as the Blazers. This was the second of what would eventually be four Euroscars for PetroviÃÂ.