2001–02 NBA season

The 2001-02 NBA season is the 56th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Los Angeles Lakers winning their third straight championship, beating the New Jersey Nets 4 games to 0 in the 2002 NBA Finals.

Notable occurrences

The Grizzlies relocate from Vancouver, British Columbia to Memphis, Tennessee. They play their first seasons at the Pyramid in Memphis.
The All-Star Game was held at First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Kobe Bryant of the Lakers took MVP honors following a 135-120 victory by the West.
Prior to the start of the season, NBA legend Michael Jordan, then part-owner of the Washington Wizards, announces his second comeback to the NBA, this time with the Wizards.
The Dallas Mavericks play their first game at the American Airlines Center, not to be confused with the AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami, Florida.
The NBA parted with broadcast partner NBC after twelve years.
NBA teams wore patches on their jerseys with the American flag and ribbon, in honor of the victims of the September 11 attacks. The Raptors wore the American and Canadian flags on theirs.
The Toronto Raptors, after losing 17 of 18 to drop to 30-38, win 12 of their last 14 to finish at 42-40 and go to the NBA playoffs with the seventh seed in the East.
The New Jersey Nets, who had never won 50 games in a season and had only been to the second round of the playoffs once, win 52 games and go to their first NBA Finals.

Final standings

Eastern Conference

**Atlantic Division**
Team	W	L	PCT	GB
New Jersey Nets	52	30	.634	-
Boston Celtics	49	33	.598	3
Orlando Magic	44	38	.537	8
Philadelphia 76ers	43	39	.524	9
Washington Wizards	37	45	.451	15
Miami Heat	36	46	.439	16
New York Knicks	30	52	.366	22

**Central Division**
Team	W	L	PCT	GB
Detroit Pistons	50	32	.610	-
Charlotte Hornets	44	38	.537	6
Toronto Raptors	42	40	.512	8
Indiana Pacers	42	40	.512	8
Milwaukee Bucks	41	41	.500	9
Atlanta Hawks	33	49	.402	17
Cleveland Cavaliers	29	53	.354	21
Chicago Bulls	21	61	.256	29

Western Conference

**Midwest Division**
Team	W	L	PCT	GB
San Antonio Spurs	58	24	.707	-
Dallas Mavericks	57	25	.695	1
Minnesota Timberwolves	50	32	.610	8
Utah Jazz	44	38	.537	14
Houston Rockets	28	54	.341	30
Denver Nuggets	27	55	.329	31
Memphis Grizzlies	23	59	.280	35

**Pacific Division**
Team	W	L	PCT	GB
Sacramento Kings	61	21	.744	-
Los Angeles Lakers C	58	24	.707	3
Portland Trail Blazers	49	33	.598	12
Seattle Supersonics	45	37	.549	16
Los Angeles Clippers	39	43	.476	22
Phoenix Suns	36	46	.439	25
Golden State Warriors	21	61	.256	40

C - NBA Champions

2001-02 NBA Stats Leaders


Category	Player	Team	Stat
Points per game	Allen Iverson	Philadelphia 76ers	31.4
Rebounds per game	Ben Wallace	Detroit Pistons	13.0
Assists per game	Andre Miller	Cleveland Cavaliers	10.9
Steals per game	Allen Iverson	Philadelphia 76ers	2.8
Blocks per game	Ben Wallace	Detroit Pistons	3.5
FG%	Shaquille O'Neal	Los Angeles Lakers	57.9
FT%	Reggie Miller	Indiana Pacers	91.1
3FG%	Steve Smith	San Antonio Spurs	47.2

NBA awards

Most Valuable Player: Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
Rookie of the Year: Pau Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies
Defensive Player of the Year: Ben Wallace, Detroit Pistons
Sixth Man of the Year: Corliss Williamson, Detroit Pistons
Most Improved Player: Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana Pacers
Coach of the Year: Rick Carlisle, Detroit Pistons
All-NBA First Team:
- F - Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
- F - Tracy McGrady, Orlando Magic
- C - Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles Lakers
- G - Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
- G - Jason Kidd, New Jersey Nets
All-NBA Second Team:
- F - Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves
- F - Chris Webber, Sacramento Kings
- C - Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks
- G - Gary Payton, Seattle Supersonics
- G - Allen Iverson, Philadelphia 76ers
All-NBA Third Team:
- F - Ben Wallace, Detroit Pistons
- F - Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana Pacers
- C - Dikembe Mutombo, Philadelphia 76ers
- G - Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics
- G - Steve Nash, Dallas Mavericks
All-Defensive First Team:
- Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
- Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves
- Ben Wallace, Detroit Pistons
- Gary Payton, Seattle Supersonics
- Jason Kidd, New Jersey Nets
All-Defensive Second Team:
- Bruce Bowen, San Antonio Spurs
- Clifford Robinson, Detroit Pistons
- Dikembe Mutombo, Philadelphia 76ers
- Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
- Doug Christie, Sacramento Kings
All-Rookie First Team:
- Pau Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies
- Shane Battier, Memphis Grizzlies
- Jason Richardson, Golden State Warriors
- Tony Parker, San Antonio Spurs
- Andrei Kirilenko, Utah Jazz
All-Rookie Second Team:
- Jamaal Tinsley, Indiana Pacers
- Richard Jefferson, New Jersey Nets
- Eddie Griffin, Houston Rockets
- Zeljko Rebraca, Detroit Pistons
- Vladimir Radmanovic, Seattle Supersonics
- Joe Johnson, Boston Celtics/Phoenix Suns

Note: All information on this page were obtained on the History section on NBA.com