1998–99 Toronto Raptors season

The 1998–99 Toronto Raptors season was the fourth season for the Toronto Raptors in the National Basketball Association. Due to a lockout, the regular season began on February 5, 1999, and was cut from 82 games to 50. The Raptors received the fourth overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, and selected small forward Antawn Jamison from the University of North Carolina, but soon traded him to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for his "UNC" college teammate, shooting guard and fifth pick Vince Carter along with cash considerations, who is also second-year star Tracy McGrady's cousin. During the off-season, the team acquired Charles Oakley from the New York Knicks, acquired Kevin Willis from the Houston Rockets, and signed free agent and second-year center Michael Stewart.

During the regular season, the Raptors moved into their new arena, the Air Canada Centre. With the addition of Carter, Willis and Oakley, the Raptors struggled losing five of their first six games of the season. After a 6–12 start to the season, the team soon recovered and won 12 of their next 14 games, posting a five-game winning streak in March, and posting a six-game winning streak between March and April; the team also posted an 11–6 record in March, which was their first monthly winning record in franchise history. The Raptors held an 18–14 record as of April 4, 1999, and were on the verge of making their first ever NBA playoff appearance in franchise history. However, the team struggled losing 13 of their final 18 games of the season, which included two six-game losing streaks between April and May. The Raptors finished in sixth place in the Central Division with a 23–27 record, and failed to qualify for the playoffs.

Carter averaged 18.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game, and was named the NBA Rookie of the Year, and also named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. In addition, Doug Christie averaged 15.2 points and 2.3 steals per game, while Willis provided the team with 12.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, and sixth man Dee Brown contributed 11.2 points per game off the bench, and led the league with 135 three-point field goals. Meanwhile, McGrady averaged 9.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game also off the bench, while Oakley averaged 7.0 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, John Wallace contributed 8.6 points per game off the bench, and second-year guard Alvin Williams contributed 5.0 points and 2.6 assists per game.

Carter also finished tied in 16th place in Most Valuable Player voting, while Brown finished tied in fifth place in Sixth Man of the Year voting, McGrady finished tied in eighth place in Most Improved Player voting, while Brown finished tied in tenth place, and head coach Butch Carter finished tied in eighth place in Coach of the Year voting.

The Raptors finished tenth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 439,190 at the SkyDome and Air Canada Centre during the regular season. Following the season, Wallace re-signed as a free agent with his former team, the New York Knicks, and Reggie Slater was released to free agency.

Offseason

• June 25, 1998 – The Raptors trade Marcus Camby to the New York Knicks in exchange for Charles Oakley.
• January 21, 1999 – The Raptors trade Chauncey Billups to the Denver Nuggets for the Nuggets first-round pick in the 1999 NBA draft.

NBA draft

Carter was drafted by the NBA's Golden State Warriors 5th overall and then traded to the Toronto Raptors for Antawn Jamison, his UNC college teammate and best friend.

Roster

Regular season

Highs

• The Raptors played their final game at Skydome on February 19, 1999.
• The first Raptors game at Air Canada Centre took place on February 21, 1999, versus the Vancouver Grizzlies.

Season standings

Game log

|- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 1 | February 5 | @ Boston | | Kevin Willis (28) | Kevin Willis (16) | Alvin Williams (6) | FleetCenter<br>17,892 | 1–0 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 2 | February 6 | @ Washington | | Charles Oakley (18) | Charles Oakley (8) | Alvin Williams (9) | MCI Center<br>19,335 | 1-1 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 3 | February 9 | Milwaukee | | Vince Carter (22) | Charles Oakley, Kevin Willis (11) | Dee Brown (6) | Maple Leaf Gardens<br>14,577 | 1–2 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 4 | February 11 | @ Miami | | Doug Christie (20) | Michael Stewart (7) | Doug Christie, Alvin Williams (3) | Miami Arena<br>14,832 | 1–3 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 5 | February 16 | @ New York | | Vince Carter (17) | Charles Oakley (7) | Doug Christie (4) | Madison Square Garden<br>19,763 | 1–4 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 6 | February 18 | Washington | | Kevin Willis (25) | Kevin Willis (14) | Doug Christie (6) | SkyDome<br>14,292 | 1–5 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 7 | February 19 | Milwaukee | | Doug Christie (20) | Kevin Willis (11) | Tracy McGrady (7) | SkyDome<br>14,888 | 2–5 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 8 | February 21 | Vancouver | | Vince Carter (27) | Kevin Willis (15) | Charles Oakley (6) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,800 | 3–5 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 9 | February 23 | @ Detroit | | John Wallace (14) | Doug Christie, John Wallace (5) | Doug Christie, Tracy McGrady (4) | The Palace of Auburn Hills<br>14,187 | 3–6 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 10 | February 24 | @ Indiana | | Vince Carter (28) | Kevin Willis (13) | Tracy McGrady (3) | Market Square Arena<br>14,700 | 3–7 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 11 | February 26 | Minnesota | | Vince Carter (21) | Kevin Willis (16) | Doug Christie (9) | Air Canada Centre<br>15,122 | 4–7 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 12 | February 28 | Chicago | | Kevin Willis (19) | Charles Oakley (12) | Dee Brown (7) | Air Canada Centre<br>14,173 | 4–8

|- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 13 | March 1 | @ Charlotte | | Dee Brown, Vince Carter, Doug Christie (15) | John Wallace (10) | Alvin Williams (6) | Charlotte Coliseum<br>18,039 | 4–9 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 14 | March 4 | @ Atlanta | | Dee Brown (16) | Tracy McGrady, Charles Oakley (8) | Doug Christie, Kevin Willis (4) | Alexander Memorial Coliseum<br>7,877 | 5–9 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 15 | March 5 | Orlando | | Kevin Willis (21) | Kevin Willis (14) | Tracy McGrady, Alvin Williams (6) | Air Canada Centre<br>15,601 | 5–10 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 16 | March 7 | Boston | | Vince Carter (26) | Charles Oakley (13) | Doug Christie (7) | Air Canada Centre<br>16,635 | 6–10 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 17 | March 11 | @ Miami | | John Wallace (20) | John Wallace (7) | Charles Oakley (3) | Miami Arena<br>14,911 | 6–11 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 18 | March 13 | @ Atlanta | | Doug Christie (21) | Vince Carter (9) | Doug Christie (4) | Alexander Memorial Coliseum<br>8,456 | 6–12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 19 | March 15 | Charlotte | | Doug Christie (18) | Charles Oakley (10) | Doug Christie (5) | Air Canada Centre<br>15,329 | 7–12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 20 | March 16 | New Jersey | | Vince Carter (20) | Vince Carter (15) | Dee Brown (5) | Air Canada Centre<br>15,731 | 8–12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 21 | March 17 | @ Detroit | | Vince Carter (28) | Tracy McGrady (7) | Tracy McGrady (5) | The Palace of Auburn Hills<br>14,981 | 9–12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 22 | March 19 | L.A. Clippers | | Vince Carter (26) | Tracy McGrady (12) | Dee Brown, Alvin Williams (5) | Air Canada Centre<br>18,839 | 10–12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 23 | March 21 | New York | | Vince Carter (23) | Vince Carter, Charles Oakley (12) | Charles Oakley (4) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,266 | 11–12 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 24 | March 22 | @ New Jersey | | John Wallace (19) | John Wallace (7) | Vince Carter, Charles Oakley (3) | Continental Airlines Arena<br>14,697 | 11–13 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 25 | March 23 | @ Chicago | | Dee Brown (25) | Vince Carter (11) | Doug Christie (8) | United Center<br>22,236 | 12–13 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 26 | March 25 | @ Houston | | Vince Carter (32) | Charles Oakley (8) | Vince Carter (6) | Compaq Center<br>16,285 | 12–14 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 27 | March 26 | @ San Antonio | | Dee Brown (23) | Charles Oakley, Kevin Willis (7) | Doug Christie, Charles Oakley (5) | Alamodome<br>16,290 | 13–14 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 28 | March 28 | Chicago | | Vince Carter (22) | Charles Oakley (13) | Doug Christie (6) | Air Canada Centre<br>18,461 | 14-14 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 29 | March 30 | @ Cleveland | | Dee Brown (28) | Charles Oakley (11) | Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady (6) | Gund Arena<br>14,209 | 15–14

|- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 30 | April 1 | Indiana | | Vince Carter (31) | Vince Carter (11) | Alvin Williams (8) | Air Canada Centre<br>18,666 | 16–14 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 31 | April 3 | Washington | | Kevin Willis (22) | Kevin Willis (11) | Vince Carter, Doug Christie, Charles Oakley (4) | Air Canada Centre<br>18,929 | 17–14 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 32 | April 4 | Philadelphia | | Doug Christie (22) | Kevin Willis (11) | Doug Christie, Charles Oakley, Kevin Willis (4) | Air Canada Centre<br>18,462 | 18–14 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 33 | April 6 | Miami | | Tracy McGrady, John Wallace (12) | Tracy McGrady (10) | Dee Brown (4) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,209 | 18–15 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 34 | April 8 | Boston | | Vince Carter (31) | Kevin Willis (10) | Tracy McGrady, Charles Oakley (5) | Air Canada Centre<br>16,949 | 18–16 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 35 | April 9 | @ New Jersey | | Vince Carter (26) | Kevin Willis (15) | Dee Brown (6) | Continental Airlines Arena<br>15,764 | 18–17 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 36 | April 12 | Indiana | | Vince Carter (29) | Kevin Willis (19) | Doug Christie (8) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,427 | 18-18 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 37 | April 14 | @ Philadelphia | | Doug Christie (19) | Kevin Willis (10) | Dee Brown, Charles Oakley (4) | First Union Center<br>17,474 | 18–19 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 38 | April 16 | Cleveland | | Doug Christie (22) | Vince Carter (12) | Vince Carter (8) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,280 | 18–20 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 39 | April 17 | @ New York | | Vince Carter (21) | Kevin Willis (10) | Charles Oakley (6) | Madison Square Garden<br>19,763 | 19–20 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 40 | April 19 | Orlando | | Tracy McGrady, Kevin Willis (16) | Tracy McGrady (11) | Alvin Williams (5) | Air Canada Centre<br>17,715 | 20-20 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 41 | April 20 | Atlanta | | Vince Carter (16) | Kevin Willis (8) | Dee Brown (5) | Air Canada Centre<br>18,439 | 20–21 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 42 | April 21 | @ Washington | | Doug Christie (28) | Charles Oakley (9) | Doug Christie (7) | MCI Center<br>12,214 | 21-21 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 43 | April 23 | @ Orlando | | Vince Carter (24) | Tracy McGrady (8) | Dee Brown (4) | Orlando Arena<br>17,248 | 22–21 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 44 | April 25 | Detroit | | Vince Carter (18) | Kevin Willis (7) | Vince Carter (8) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,800 | 22-22 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 45 | April 27 | Charlotte | | Tracy McGrady (27) | Charles Oakley (10) | Charles Oakley (5) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,800 | 22–23 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 46 | April 28 | @ Milwaukee | | Dee Brown (29) | Vince Carter (7) | Doug Christie (5) | Bradley Center<br>15,463 | 22–24 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 47 | April 30 | @ Cleveland | | Vince Carter (25) | Tracy McGrady (13) | Vince Carter (5) | Gund Arena<br>13,958 | 22–25

|- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 48 | May 1 | @ Philadelphia | | Doug Christie (27) | John Wallace (8) | Charles Oakley (6) | First Union Center<br>20,550 | 22–26 |- bgcolor="ffcccc" | 49 | May 4 | @ Milwaukee | | Vince Carter (26) | Tracy McGrady, Reggie Slater (6) | Charles Oakley (5) | Bradley Center<br>13,859 | 22–27 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 50 | May 5 | Cleveland | | Doug Christie (26) | John Thomas (11) | Tracy McGrady, Charles Oakley (7) | Air Canada Centre<br>19,800 | 23–27

Player statistics

Regular season

Award winners

• Vince Carter, NBA Rookie of the Year
• Vince Carter, NBA All-Rookie First Team

References

External links

• 1998–99 Toronto Raptors season at Basketball Reference