1989–90 Philadelphia 76ers season

The 1989–90 NBA season was the 76ers 41st season in the National Basketball Association, and 27th season in Philadelphia.^[1] During the off-season, the Sixers acquired Rick Mahorn from the expansion Minnesota Timberwolves, who selected him in the 1989 NBA expansion draft.^[2][3][4] Mahorn, who won a championship with the Detroit Pistons last year, joined Charles Barkley and Mike Gminski to form a formidable front court. The team also acquired Johnny Dawkins from the San Antonio Spurs,^[5][6][7][8] who teamed with second-year star Hersey Hawkins in the backcourt. After a mediocre 18–16 start to the season, the Sixers would win twelve consecutive games, then hold a 30–18 record at the All-Star break,^[9] and post an 8-game winning streak near the end of the season. They won the Atlantic Division title compiling a 53–29 record, defeating the Boston Celtics by just one game.^[10]

1989–90 Philadelphia 76ers season
Division champions
Head coach	Jim Lynam
General manager	John Nash
Owner(s)	Harold Katz
Arena	The Spectrum
Results
Record	53–29 (.646)
Place	Division: 1st (Atlantic) Conference: 2nd (Eastern)
Playoff finish	Conference semifinals (lost to Bulls 1–4)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	WPHL-TV SportsChannel Philadelphia PRISM
Radio	WIP
< 1988–89 1990–91 >

Barkley averaged 25.2 points, 11.5 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game, and was named to the All-NBA First Team, and selected for the 1990 NBA All-Star Game,^{[11][12][13][14][15]} while Hawkins averaged 18.5 points and 1.6 steals per game, and Dawkins provided the team with 14.3 points, 7.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game. In addition, sixth man Ron Anderson contributed 11.9 points per game off the bench, while Gminski provided with 13.7 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game, and Mahorn averaged 10.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.^[16]

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the playoffs, the Sixers would win a hard-fought five game series over the Cleveland Cavaliers,^{[17][18][19][20]} then would lose in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals to the Chicago Bulls four games to one.^{[21][22][23][24]}

Barkley also finished second in the league's MVP voting behind Magic Johnson. Barkley received more first-place votes (38 of the 92 cast) than Johnson (27), but totaled only 614 points compared to Johnson's 636.^{[25][26][27][28][29]} This was the only time in NBA history where the player with the most first-place votes for MVP did not get the award.^[30][31]

Draft picks

Main article: 1989 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
1	19	Kenny Payne	SF	United States	Louisville
2	44	Reggie Cross	PF	United States	Hawaii
2	54	Toney Mack	SG	United States	Georgia

Roster

1989–90 Philadelphia 76ers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From F 20 Anderson, Ron 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1958–10–15 Fresno State F 34 Barkley, Charles 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 252 lb (114 kg) 1963–02–20 Auburn G 1 Brooks, Scott 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1965–07–31 UC Irvine G 7 Copeland, Lanard 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1965–07–16 Georgia State G 12 Dawkins, Johnny 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1963–09–28 Duke C 42 Gminski, Mike 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1959–08–03 Duke G 33 Hawkins, Hersey 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1966–09–29 Bradley F 44 Mahorn, Rick 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1958–09–21 Hampton C 40 Nimphius, Kurt 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 218 lb (99 kg) 1958–03–13 Arizona State F 18 Payne, Kenny 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1966–11–25 Louisville F 21 Smith, Derek 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1961–11–01 Louisville F 45 Thornton, Bob 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1962–07–10 UC Irvine

Head coach Jim Lynam Assistant coach(es) Buzz Braman Fred Carter Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster Last transaction: January 15, 1990

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic Division v t e	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 v t e
	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
12	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

Record vs. opponents

1989-90 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	1–3	2–0	0–5	2–3	0–2	1–1	3–2	2–0	2–0	2–3	1–1	0–2	4–0	3–2	1–1	2–2	1–3	5–0	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–2
Boston	3–1	—	2–0	2–2	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	5–0	2–2	1–1	5–1	4–1	4–0	3–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–3
Charlotte	0–2	0–2	—	0–2	1–1	1–3	3–2	0–2	2–2	1–4	1–1	2–2	0–4	1–1	0–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–4	1–3	0–5	0–4	0–5	0–2
Chicago	5–0	2–2	2–0	—	5–0	2–0	1–1	1–4	2–0	1–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–1	2–0	3–1	3–1	3–2	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	3–1
Cleveland	3–2	1–3	1–1	0–5	—	0–2	0–2	1–4	1–1	0–2	3–2	1–1	1–1	4–0	3–2	1–1	4–0	2–2	4–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
Dallas	2–0	1–1	3–1	0–2	2–0	—	2–3	1–1	3–1	4–1	2–0	3–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	4–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–4	3–1	3–2	2–2	1–3	1–1
Denver	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–1	2–0	3–2	—	0–2	2–2	4–1	0–2	2–2	0–4	2–0	1–1	5–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–2	4–0	1–3	2–2	0–4	1–1
Detroit	2–3	2–2	2–0	4–1	4–1	1–1	2–0	—	1–1	1–1	4–1	1–1	1–1	3–1	3–2	2–0	4–0	4–0	5–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0
Golden State	0–2	1–1	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	—	2–2	1–1	3–1	1–4	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	1–1	0–5	2–2	3–2	1–3	2–3	2–2	1–1
Houston	0–2	0–2	4–1	1–1	2–0	1–4	1–4	1–1	2–2	—	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–3	4–0	2–2	2–2	3–2	1–1
Indiana	3–2	3–1	1–1	3–2	2–3	0–2	2–0	1–4	1–1	1–1	—	0–2	0–2	3–1	3–2	1–1	4–0	1–3	4–1	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
L.A. Clippers	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–3	2–2	2–0	—	1–4	0–2	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–4	0–5	2–3	0–4	3–2	0–4	1–1
L.A. Lakers	2–0	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–0	1–1	4–1	2–2	2–0	4–1	—	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–3	5–0	2–2	4–0	2–2	1–1
Miami	0–4	0–5	1–1	0–4	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	—	2–2	1–1	1–4	1–5	3–1	0–5	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–3
Milwaukee	2–3	2–2	2–0	1–4	2–3	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	—	2–0	4–0	2–2	5–0	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	3–1
Minnesota	1–1	1–1	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–4	0–5	0–2	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–3	0–4	1–1	0–2	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–3	2–2	1–4	1–3	0–5	1–1
New Jersey	2–2	1–5	1–1	1–3	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	4–1	0–4	1–1	—	1–4	1–3	1–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–3
New York	3–1	1–4	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	5–1	2–2	1–1	4–1	—	2–2	2–3	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–0
Orlando	0–5	0–4	1–1	2–3	1–4	0–2	0–2	0–5	0–2	0–2	1–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	0–5	1–1	3–1	2–2	—	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–4
Philadelphia	2–2	2–3	2–0	2–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	5–0	3–1	1–1	4–1	3–2	2–2	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–1
Phoenix	2–0	1–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	3–1	0–2	5–0	2–2	1–1	4–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	—	2–3	5–0	0–4	3–2	3–1	2–0
Portland	1–1	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–2	3–1	1–1	5–0	3–2	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	3–2	—	4–0	3–1	3–2	2–2	1–1
Sacramento	1–1	0–2	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	2–3	0–4	1–1	3–2	0–5	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–5	0–4	—	0–4	2–2	1–3	1–1
San Antonio	1–1	1–1	5–0	1–1	1–1	2–3	3–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	4–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	1–3	4–0	—	3–1	3–2	2–0
Seattle	1–1	0–2	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	3–2	2–2	1–1	2–3	0–4	2–0	0–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–3	2–3	2–2	1–3	—	1–3	2–0
Utah	1–1	1–1	5–0	2–0	1–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	2–2	2–3	1–1	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	5–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	2–3	3–1	—	2–0
Washington	2–2	3–2	2–0	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	3–2	1–3	1–1	3–2	0–5	4–0	1–5	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	—

Game log

Reference

Playoffs

1990 playoff game log
First Round: 3–2 (home: 3–0; road: 0–2) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 April 26 Cleveland W 111–106 Charles Barkley (38) Charles Barkley (21) Johnny Dawkins (9) Spectrum 15,319 1–0 2 April 29 Cleveland W 107–101 Charles Barkley (32) Rick Mahorn (9) Johnny Dawkins (11) Spectrum 18,168 2–0 3 May 1 @ Cleveland L 95–122 Hersey Hawkins (19) Charles Barkley (11) Johnny Dawkins (7) Richfield Coliseum 16,317 2–1 4 May 3 @ Cleveland L 96–108 Charles Barkley (23) Barkley, Mahorn (11) Johnny Dawkins (10) Richfield Coliseum 17,106 2–2 5 May 5 Cleveland W 113–97 Hersey Hawkins (39) Charles Barkley (19) Johnny Dawkins (14) Spectrum 18,168 3–2
Conference semifinals: 1–4 (home: 1–1; road: 0–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 May 7 @ Chicago L 85–96 Charles Barkley (30) Charles Barkley (20) three players tied (4) Chicago Stadium 18,676 0–1 2 May 9 @ Chicago L 96–101 Hersey Hawkins (23) Charles Barkley (19) Johnny Dawkins (13) Chicago Stadium 18,676 0–2 3 May 11 Chicago W 118–112 Charles Barkley (34) Charles Barkley (20) Charles Barkley (8) Spectrum 18,168 1–2 4 May 13 Chicago L 101–111 Hersey Hawkins (26) Charles Barkley (13) Hersey Hawkins (6) Spectrum 18,168 1–3 5 May 16 @ Chicago 99–117 Ron Anderson (20) Charles Barkley (13) Johnny Dawkins (15) Chicago Stadium 18,676 1–4
1990 schedule

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

Regular season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Ron Anderson	78	3	26.8	.451	.143	.838	3.8	1.8	.9	.2	11.9
Charles Barkley	79	79	39.1	.600	.217	.749	11.5	3.9	1.9	.6	25.2
Scott Brooks	72	1	13.5	.431	.392	.877	.9	2.9	.7	.0	4.4
Lanard Copeland	23	0	4.8	.456	.200	.786	.4	.4	.0	.0	3.2
Johnny Dawkins	81	81	35.4	.489	.333	.861	3.0	7.4	1.5	.1	14.3
Corey Gaines	9	0	9.0	.333	.500	.250	.6	2.9	.4	.0	1.1
Mike Gminski	81	81	32.8	.457	.176	.821	8.5	1.6	.5	1.3	13.7
Hersey Hawkins	82	82	34.8	.460	.420	.888	3.7	3.2	1.6	.3	18.5
Lewis Lloyd†	2	0	5.0	.500			.0	.0	.0	.0	1.0
Rick Mahorn	75	66	30.3	.497	.222	.715	7.6	1.3	.6	1.4	10.8
Kurt Nimphius	38	1	8.3	.418	.000	.467	1.6	.2	.1	.5	2.4
Kenny Payne	35	4	6.2	.435	.400	.889	.7	.3	.2	.2	3.3
Dexter Shouse	3	0	6.0	.000	.000		.0	.7	.3	.3	.0
Derek Smith	75	7	18.7	.508	.444	.699	2.3	1.5	.5	.3	8.9
Bob Thornton	56	0	10.6	.429	.333	.510	2.4	.3	.4	.2	2.2
Jay Vincent†	17	5	15.2	.429	1.000	.892	2.1	.5	.6	.1	7.3

Playoffs

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Ron Anderson	10	0	25.6	.430	.600	.967	3.7	1.4	.4	.0	11.2
Charles Barkley	10	10	41.9	.543	.333	.602	15.5	4.3	.8	.7	24.7
Scott Brooks	9	0	11.0	.316	.429	.667	.9	1.8	.3	.0	2.3
Lanard Copeland	4	0	2.3	.333			.3	.0	.0	.0	1.0
Johnny Dawkins	10	10	38.6	.461	.000	.837	2.2	9.3	1.7	.2	14.2
Mike Gminski	10	10	34.2	.487	.000	.933	5.4	1.1	.8	2.3	12.8
Hersey Hawkins	10	10	41.5	.497	.389	.937	3.1	3.6	1.2	.7	23.5
Rick Mahorn	10	10	34.2	.430	.000	.769	7.0	1.0	.7	.8	9.4
Kurt Nimphius	4	0	4.5	.143			1.0	.0	.3	.3	.5
Kenny Payne	3	0	3.3	.400	.000	1.000	.7	.0	.0	.0	2.0
Derek Smith	1	0	15.0	.625	.000	.500	.0	1.0	1.0	.0	11.0
Bob Thornton	9	0	9.9	.389		.500	1.7	.4	.2	.1	2.1

• ^† Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the 7ers only.

Awards and records

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

See also

• 1989–90 NBA season

References

1. 1989-90 Philadelphia 76ers
2. "Mahorn Traded to 76ers". The New York Times. October 28, 1989. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
3. "Mahorn Is Traded to 76ers". Los Angeles Times. October 28, 1989. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
4. "1989 NBA Expansion Draft". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
5. Cialini, Joe (August 28, 1989). "76ers Trade Cheeks to Spurs". United Press International. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
6. "SPORTS PEOPLE: BASKETBALL; 76ers Trade Cheeks". The New York Times. August 29, 1989. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
7. "76ers Send Cheeks to Spurs in 5-Man Deal". Los Angeles Times. August 29, 1989. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
8. "Sixers Send Cheeks to Spurs". Deseret News. August 29, 1989. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
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11. Howard-Cooper, Scott (February 11, 1990). "NBA ALL-STAR GAME: Entire Family Is Back Together--Almost". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
12. Brown, Clifton (February 12, 1990). "For Johnson, Honor and Awe". The New York Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
13. Howard-Cooper, Scott (February 12, 1990). "East Stars Put It Together, But Magic Has Hardware: Pro Basketball: Laker Guard Earns MVP in Losing Effort as Rest of His West Teammates Are Shut Down, 130-113". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
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17. Cialini, Joe (May 5, 1990). "Philadelphia 113, Cleveland 97". United Press International. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
18. Brown, Clifton (May 6, 1990). "PRO BASKETBALL; 76ers Go to Round 2 by Beating Cavs". The New York Times. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
19. "Hawkins, 76ers Oust Cavaliers: NBA Playoffs: Guard, Team Make Up for Poor Showing in Postseason Play Last Year, 113-97". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 6, 1990. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
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21. Brown, Clifton (May 17, 1990). "Jordan and Bulls Have a Date with Pistons". The New York Times. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
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26. Florence, Mal (May 23, 1990). "MVP Voting Is the Closest in 10 Years: Pro Basketball: Magic Johnson Wins It Again, Although Barkley Gets More First-Place Votes. Jordan Finishes Third". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
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31. David Schoenfield. "The List: Most controversial MVPs". ESPN. Retrieved October 4, 2021.