1997–98 Golden State Warriors season

The 1997–98 Golden State Warriors season was the 52nd season for the Golden State Warriors in the National Basketball Association, and their 36th season in the San Francisco Bay Area.^[1] The Warriors received the eighth overall pick in the 1997 NBA draft, and selected center Adonal Foyle out of Colgate University.^[2][3][4] The team also moved into their new arena, known as The Arena in Oakland.^[5]

During the off-season, the Warriors acquired second-year center Erick Dampier and Duane Ferrell from the Indiana Pacers,^[6][7][8] acquired Brian Shaw and David Vaughn from the Orlando Magic,^[9][10] and hired P.J. Carlesimo as their new head coach.^[11][12] Early into the regular season, the team traded B. J. Armstrong to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Muggsy Bogues, and second-year guard Tony Delk.^[13][14][15] Under Carlesimo and with the addition of Dampier, Bogues, Shaw and Foyle, the Warriors struggled losing their first nine games, and got off to an awful 1–14 start to the season.

This season was also known for an infamous and controversial incident. On December 1, 1997, All-Star guard Latrell Sprewell choked, and assaulted Carlesimo during practice before being restrained by teammates and assistant coaches, and allegedly returning to attack Carlesimo a second time;^[16][17][18] Sprewell was first suspended for ten games, but was later on suspended for the remainder of the season, which was 68 games left in the Warriors' schedule at the time.^[19][20][21] Sprewell averaged 21.4 points, 4.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game in only just 14 games.^[22]

Without their star guard, the Warriors showed slight improvement before suffering a 14-game losing streak between December and January, and held a miserable 8–37 record at the All-Star break.^[23] At mid-season, the team traded Shaw, and Joe Smith to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Jim Jackson and Clarence Weatherspoon,^[24][25][26] and traded Vaughn to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for Jason Caffey.^[27][28][29] Before the trade, Smith averaged 17.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game in 49 games, while Shaw provided with 6.4 points and 4.4 assists per game in 39 games.^[22] The Warriors won their final three games of the season, and finished in sixth place in the Pacific Division with an awful 19–63 record.^[30]

Jackson averaged 18.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game in 31 games after the trade, while Donyell Marshall showed improvement becoming the team's starting small forward, averaging 15.4 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game, and Dampier provided the team with 11.8 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game. In addition, Caffey contributed 10.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game in 29 games, while Weatherspoon averaged 10.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game in 31 games, Delk contributed 10.4 points per game, Bimbo Coles provided with 8.0 points and 4.7 assists per game, but only played 53 games due to hamstring and foot injuries,^[31][32] and Bogues contributed 5.8 points and 5.5 assists per game.^[22] Marshall also finished in third place in Most Improved Player voting.^[33][34]

The Warriors finished 27th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 444,922 at The Arena in Oakland during the regular season, which was the third-lowest in the league.^[22][35] Following the season, Sprewell was traded to the New York Knicks after six seasons with the Warriors,^[36][37][38] while Jackson signed as a free agent with the Portland Trail Blazers, and Weatherspoon signed with the Miami Heat.^[39]

For the season, the Warriors changed their primary logo, which showed a warrior holding a lightning bolt in front of a basketball,^[40] and added new uniforms, replacing the color blue with dark navy, and orange to their color scheme of golden yellow;^[41][42] the team's new primary logo would remain in use until 2010, while the new uniforms would last until 2002, where they added side panels to their jerseys and shorts.