1989–90 Philadelphia 76ers season

1989–90 Philadelphia 76ers season
Division Champions
Head coach	Jim Lynam
Arena	The Spectrum
Results
Record	53–29 (.646)
Place	Division: 1st (Atlantic) Conference: 3rd (Eastern)
Playoff finish	East Conference Semifinals (eliminated 1–4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com

The 1989–90 NBA season was the 76ers 41st season in the NBA and 27th season in Philadelphia. The Sixers would win the Atlantic Division title compiling a 53–29 record, defeating the Boston Celtics by just one game.

In the post season, they would win a hard fought five game series with the Cleveland Cavaliers, then would lose in the semi-finals to the Chicago Bulls four games to one. Rick Mahorn joined Charles Barkley and Mike Gminski to form a formidable front court, while longtime Sixer Maurice Cheeks was dealt to the Spurs for Johnny Dawkins, who teamed with Hersey Hawkins in the backcourt.

Barkley finished second in the league's MVP voting behind Magic Johnson in a controversial outcome. Barkley received more first-place votes (38 of the 92 cast) than Johnson (27), but totaled only 614 points compared to Johnson's 636.

Draft picks

Main article: 1989 NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	19	Kenny Payne		United States	Louisville
2	44	Reggie Cross		United States	Hawaii
2	54	Toney Mack		United States	Georgia

Roster

1989–90 Philadelphia 76ers roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From G/F 20 Anderson, Ron 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1958–10–15 Fresno State PF 34 Barkley, Charles 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 252 lb (114 kg) 1963–02–20 Auburn PG 1 Brooks, Scott 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1965–07–31 UC Irvine G/F 7 Copeland, Lanard 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1965–07–26 Georgia State PG 12 Dawkins, Johnny 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1963–09–28 Duke G 8 Gaines, Corey 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1965–06–01 Loyola Marymount C 42 Gminski, Mike 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1959–08–03 Duke SG 33 Hawkins, Hersey 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1966–09–29 Bradley 44 Mahorn, Rick 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1958–09–21 Hampton 40 Nimphius, Kurt 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 218 lb (99 kg) 1958–03–13 Arizona State SF 18 Payne, Kenny 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1966–11–25 Louisville G/F 21 Smith, Derek 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1961–11–01 Louisville PF/C 45 Thornton, Bob 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1962–07–10 UC Irvine	Head coach Jim Lynam Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Philadelphia 76ers	53	29	.646	–	34–7	19–22	19–7
x-Boston Celtics	52	30	.634	1	30–11	22–19	19–7
x-New York Knicks	45	37	.549	8	29–12	16–25	17–9
Washington Bullets	31	51	.378	22	20–21	11–30	10–16
Miami Heat	18	64	.220	35	11–30	7–34	4–22
New Jersey Nets	17	65	.207	36	13–28	4–37	9–17

#	Eastern Conference
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-Detroit Pistons	59	23	.720	–
2	y-Philadelphia 76ers	53	29	.646	6
3	x-Chicago Bulls	55	27	.671	4
4	x-Boston Celtics	52	30	.634	7
5	x-New York Knicks	45	37	.549	14
6	x-Milwaukee Bucks	44	38	.537	15
7	x-Cleveland Cavaliers	42	40	.512	17
8	x-Indiana Pacers	42	40	.512	17
9	Atlanta Hawks	41	41	.500	18
10	Washington Bullets	31	51	.378	28
11	Miami Heat	18	64	.220	41
11	Orlando Magic	18	64	.220	41
13	New Jersey Nets	17	65	.207	42

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Game log

Reference

Playoffs

East First Round

(2) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (7) Cleveland Cavaliers: 76ers win series 3-2

• Game 1 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia (April 26): Philadelphia 111, Cleveland 106
• Game 2 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia (April 29): Philadelphia 107, Cleveland 101
• Game 3 @ The Coliseum, Richfield (May 1): Cleveland 122, Philadelphia 95
• Game 4 @ The Coliseum, Richfield (May 3): Cleveland 108, Philadelphia 96
• Game 5 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia (May 5): Philadelphia 113, Cleveland 97

Last Playoff Meeting: Not available (first playoff meeting)

East Conference Semifinals

(2) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (3) Chicago Bulls: Bulls win series 4-1

• Game 1 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago (May 7): Chicago 96, Philadelphia 85
• Game 2 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago (May 9): Chicago 101, Philadelphia 96
• Game 3 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia (May 11): Philadelphia 118, Chicago 112
• Game 4 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia (May 13): Chicago 111, Philadelphia 101
• Game 5 @ Chicago Stadium, Chicago (May 16): Chicago 117, Philadelphia 99

Last Playoff Meeting: Not available (first playoff meeting)

Player statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Awards and records

• Charles Barkley, All-NBA First Team
• Rick Mahorn, NBA All-Defensive Second Team

See also

• 1989–90 NBA season