2003-04 NBA SEASON

'The 2003-04 NBA season' was the 58th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Detroit Pistons upsetting the heavily favored Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 1 in the 2004 NBA Finals.

Contents

Notable occurrences

Final standings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

2003-04 NBA statistics leaders

NBA awards

See also

Notable occurrences

★ The Houston Rockets play their first game at the Toyota Center.

★ The All-Star Game was held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The West won 136-132; Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal is named Most Valuable Player.

★ The Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets, and Cleveland Cavaliers introduced new team uniforms.

★ Prior to the start of the season, Karl Malone and Gary Payton took major paycuts to leave their teams and join Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal on the Lakers for a chance at a possible NBA title; that title chase came to an end in the NBA Finals, as the Detroit Pistons won 4-1. Due to the star power on the Lakers' team (four potential Hall of Famers), this series is sometimes referred to as the "first five game sweep".

★ Behind their "Big Three" of Kevin Garnett, Latrell Sprewell, and Sam Cassell, the Minnesota Timberwolves amassed the best record in the Western Conference, and were expected to finally win a first round playoff series. They won two and advanced to the Western Conference Finals, which they lost to the Lakers.

★ Scoring in the league reached an all-time low. Many teams recorded their franchise lows in several scoring categories.

★ LeBron James (1st overall to Cleveland), Carmelo Anthony (3rd overall to Denver), Chris Bosh (4th overall to Toronto), and Dwyane Wade (5th overall to Miami), among others, form one of the strongest drafts in NBA history. Among the highly touted rookies, Anthony and Wade led their teams to the playoffs, and Wade's play pushed the Heat into the second round. James went on to win NBA Rookie of the Year.

Final standings

Eastern Conference

'Atlantic Division' Team W L PCT GB New Jersey Nets 47 35 .573 - Miami Heat 42 40 .512 5 New York Knicks 39 43 .476 8 Boston Celtics 36 46 .439 11 Philadelphia 76ers 33 49 .402 14 Washington Wizards 25 57 .305 22 Orlando Magic 21 61 .256 26

'Central Division' Team W L PCT GB Indiana Pacers 61 21 .744 - Detroit Pistons 'C' 54 28 .659 7 New Orleans Hornets 41 41 .500 20 Milwaukee Bucks 41 41 .500 20 Cleveland Cavaliers 35 47 .427 26 Toronto Raptors 33 49 .402 28 Atlanta Hawks 28 54 .341 33 Chicago Bulls 23 59 .280 38

Western Conference

'Midwest Division' Team W L PCT GB Minnesota Timberwolves 58 24 .707 - San Antonio Spurs 57 25 .695 1 Dallas Mavericks 52 30 .634 6 Memphis Grizzlies 50 32 .610 8 Houston Rockets 45 37 .549 13 Denver Nuggets 43 39 .524 15 Utah Jazz 42 40 .512 16

'Pacific Division' Team W L PCT GB Los Angeles Lakers 56 26 .683 - Sacramento Kings 55 27 .671 1 Portland Trail Blazers 41 41 .500 15 Golden State Warriors 37 45 .451 19 Seattle SuperSonics 37 45 .451 19 Phoenix Suns 29 53 .354 27 Los Angeles Clippers 28 54 .341 28

'C' NBA Champions

2003-04 NBA statistics leaders

Category	Player	Team	Stat
Points per game	Tracy McGrady	Orlando Magic	28.0
Rebounds per game	Kevin Garnett	Minnesota Timberwolves	13.9
Assists per game	Jason Kidd	New Jersey Nets	9.2
Steals per game	Baron Davis	New Orleans Hornets	2.4
Blocks per game	Theo Ratliff	Portland Trail Blazers	3.6
FG%	Shaquille O'Neal	Los Angeles Lakers	58.4
FT%	Peja Stojakovic	Sacramento Kings	92.7
3FG%	Anthony Peeler	Sacramento Kings	48.2

NBA awards

★ 'Most Valuable Player:' Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves

★ 'Rookie of the Year:' LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers

★ 'Defensive Player of the Year:' Ron Artest, Indiana Pacers

★ 'Sixth Man of the Year:' Antawn Jamison, Dallas Mavericks

★ 'Most Improved Player:' Zach Randolph, Portland Trail Blazers

★ 'Coach of the Year:' Hubie Brown, Memphis Grizzlies

★ 'All-NBA First Team:'

★
★ F - Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves

★
★ F - Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs

★
★ C - Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles Lakers

★
★ G - Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers

★
★ G - Jason Kidd, New Jersey Nets

★ 'All-NBA Second Team:'

★
★ F - Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana Pacers

★
★ F - Peja Stojakovic, Sacramento Kings

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★ C - Ben Wallace, Detroit Pistons

★
★ G - Sam Cassell, Minnesota Timberwolves

★
★ G - Tracy McGrady, Orlando Magic

★ 'All-NBA Third Team'

★
★ F - Ron Artest, Indiana Pacers

★
★ F - Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks

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★ C - Yao Ming, Houston Rockets

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★ G - Baron Davis, New Orleans Hornets

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★ G - Michael Redd, Milwaukee Bucks

★ 'NBA All-Defensive First Team'

★
★ F - Ron Artest, Indiana Pacers

★
★ F - Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves

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★ C - Ben Wallace, Detroit Pistons

★
★ G - Bruce Bowen, San Antonio Spurs

★
★ G - Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers

★ 'NBA All-Defensive Second Team

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★ F - Andrei Kirilenko, Utah Jazz

★
★ F - Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs

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★ C - Theo Ratliff, Portland Trail Blazers

★
★ G - Doug Christie, Sacramento Kings

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★ G - Jason Kidd, New Jersey Nets

★ 'All-Rookie First Team:'

★
★ LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers

★
★ Carmelo Anthony, Denver Nuggets

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★ Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat

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★ Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors

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★ Kirk Hinrich, Chicago Bulls

★ 'All-Rookie Second Team:'

★
★ Udonis Haslem, Miami Heat

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★ Marquis Daniels, Dallas Mavericks

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★ Jarvis Hayes, Washington Wizards

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★ Josh Howard, Dallas Mavericks

★
★ T.J. Ford, Milwaukee Bucks

See also

★ 2004 NBA Playoffs

★ 2004 NBA Finals

★ 2004 NBA Draft

★ NBA Season