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The 1995–96 Portland Trail Blazers season was the 26th season for the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association.[1] After spending their first 25 years at the Memorial Coliseum, the Trail Blazers began playing at the new Rose Garden Arena this season.[2][3] The team acquired the eighth overall pick in the 1995 NBA draft from the Detroit Pistons, and selected Shawn Respert out of Michigan State University, but soon traded him to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for top draft pick Gary Trent out of Ohio University.[4][5][6][7][8] Rookie center Arvydas Sabonis from Lithuania, who was drafted 24th overall by the Trail Blazers in the 1986 NBA draft, would finally make his debut in the NBA this season.[9][10][11][12]

Quick Facts Portland Trail Blazers season, Head coach ...
1995–96 Portland Trail Blazers season
Head coachP. J. Carlesimo
ArenaRose Garden Arena
Results
Record44–38 (.537)
PlaceDivision: 4th (Pacific)
Conference: 6th (Western)
Playoff finishFirst round
(lost to Jazz 2–3)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionKGW
Prime Sports Northwest
RadioKEX
< 1994–95 1996–97 >
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The Trail Blazers held a 24–24 record at the All-Star break,[13] and struggled playing below .500 afterwards, posting a 26–34 record as of March 5, 1996. However, they would win 18 of their final 22 games to finish the season with a 44–38 record, which was the same record as the previous season.[14] The team finished in fourth place in the Pacific Division, and in sixth place in the Western Conference, making their 14th straight trip to the postseason, and 19th in 20 years.[15]

Clifford Robinson averaged 21.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, while Rod Strickland averaged 18.7 points, 9.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game, and Sabonis provided the team with 14.5 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. In addition, second-year guard Aaron McKie contributed 10.7 points per game, while Harvey Grant provided with 9.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Off the bench, James Robinson contributed 8.5 points per game, and Trent provided with 7.5 points and 3.4 rebounds per game. On the defensive side, Buck Williams averaged 7.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game off the bench, and Chris Dudley contributed 5.1 points, and led the team with 9.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.[16] Sabonis also finished in second place in both Rookie of the Year,[17][18][19][20][21] and Sixth Man of the Year voting.[22][23][20][21]

In the playoffs, the Blazers were knocked out in the Western Conference First Round again, losing to the Utah Jazz in five games, suffering a 38-point margin in a 102–64 road loss in Game 5.[24][25][26][27]

Following the season, Strickland, who feuded with head coach P.J. Carlesimo during the season,[28][29][30][31] was traded along with Grant to the Washington Bullets, whom Grant used to play for,[32][33][34][35] while Williams signed as a free agent with the New York Knicks,[36][37][38] and Robinson was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves.[39][40]

In addition, this season saw the Trail Blazers fail to sell out a home game, ending their 814-game sellout streak, for the first time since 1977;[41] this streak would be the longest in NBA history until the Dallas Mavericks broke it during the 2019-20 season.[42]

Draft picks

Main article: 1995 NBA draft
More information Round, Pick ...
Round Pick Player Position Nationality School/Club Team
1 8 Shawn Respert SG/PG  United States Michigan State
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Roster

Summarize
Perspective
More information Players, Coaches ...
1995–96 Portland Trail Blazers roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From
G 12 Childress, Randolph Injured 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 1972–09–21 Wake Forest
F 38 Cook, Anthony 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1967–03–19 Arizona
F – Curley, Bill Injured (IN) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1972–05–29 Boston College
C 24 Dudley, Chris 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1965–02–22 Yale
F 44 Grant, Harvey 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1965–07–04 Oklahoma
G 23 McKie, Aaron 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 209 lb (95 kg) 1972–10–02 Temple
F 3 Robinson, Clifford 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1966–12–16 Connecticut
G 26 Robinson, James 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1970–08–31 Alabama
G 21 Robinson, Rumeal 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1966–11–13 Michigan
C 11 Sabonis, Arvydas 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) 279 lb (127 kg) 1964–12–19 Lithuania
C 27 Spencer, Elmore 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 270 lb (122 kg) 1969–12–06 UNLV
G 1 Strickland, Rod 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1966–07–11 DePaul
F 33 Trent, Gary 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1974–09–22 Ohio
F 52 Williams, Buck 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1960–03–08 Maryland
F 10 Wingfield, Dontonio 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 256 lb (116 kg) 1974–06–23 Cincinnati
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • (IN) Inactive
  • Injured Injured

Roster

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Roster Notes

  • Power forward Bill Curley missed the entire season due to an ankle injury, and never played for the Trail Blazers.[40][43]

Regular season

Season standings

More information W, L ...
Pacific Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
c-Seattle SuperSonics6418.780–38–326–1521–3
x-Los Angeles Lakers5329.6461130–1123–1817–7
x-Portland Trail Blazers4438.5372026–1518–2311–13
x-Phoenix Suns4141.5002325–1616–259–15
x-Sacramento Kings3943.4762526–1513–2811–13
Golden State Warriors3646.4392823–1813–287–17
Los Angeles Clippers2953.3543519–2210–317–17
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More information #, Team ...
Western Conference
# Team W L PCT GB GP
1 c-Seattle SuperSonics *6418.780–82
2 y-San Antonio Spurs *5923.720582
3 x-Utah Jazz5527.671982
4 x-Los Angeles Lakers5329.6461182
5 x-Houston Rockets4834.5851682
6 x-Portland Trail Blazers4438.5372082
7 x-Phoenix Suns4141.5002382
8 x-Sacramento Kings3943.4762582
9 Golden State Warriors3646.4392882
10 Denver Nuggets3547.4272982
11 Los Angeles Clippers2953.3543582
12 Minnesota Timberwolves2656.3173882
13 Dallas Mavericks2656.3173882
14 Vancouver Grizzlies1567.1834982
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z – clinched division title
y – clinched division title
x – clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

More information Team, ATL ...
1995-96 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 TOR UTA VAN WAS
Atlanta –4–03–10–43–11–11–12–21–11–11–32–00–22–22–21–14–02–12–22–10–22–02–00–20–24–01–12–01–3
Boston 0–4–2–20–31–30–21–12–10–21–10–42–00–23–13–12–02–20–41–34–01–10–22–00–20–23–10–21–12–2
Charlotte 1–32–2–1–33–12–02–01–30–20–21–31–12–02–23–11–10–33–00–43–12–01–11–10–20–23–11–12–03–1
Chicago 4–03–03–1–4–02–01–14–02–02–02–22–02–03–14–02–03–03–13–14–01–12–02–02–01–13–12–02–04–0
Cleveland 1–33–11–30–4–2–01–12–22–01–12–22–02–01–34–02–01–23–11–24–02–01–11–10–20–23–10–22–03–1
Dallas 1–12–00–20–20–2–2–20–22–21–30–22–20–40–21–10–41–10–21–10–21–30–42–22–22–21–11–34–00–2
Denver 1–11–10–21–11–12–2–1–12–21–30–21–32–20–21–14–00–21–11–12–03–10–40–40–41–32–03–13–11–1
Detroit 2–21–23–10–42–22–01–1–2–01–12–22–00–21–32–21–14–00–41–34–02–02–01–12–01–14–00–22–01–2
Golden State 1–12–02–00–20–22–22–20–2–2–21–13–11–31–11–13–12–00–20–22–01–31–31–31–30–41–11–34–01–1
Houston 1–11–12–00–21–13–13–11–12–2–2–04–03–10–22–02–22–00–20–22–03–12–22–21–30–42–02–24–01–1
Indiana 3–14–03–12–22–22–02–02–21–10–2–2–01–13–03–11–11–31–32–23–11–11–10–21–12–04–00–22–03–0
L.A. Clippers 0–20–21–10–20–22–23–10–21–30–40–2–0–41–11–13–11–11–10–22–03–12–22–21–30–40–21–33–11–1
L.A. Lakers 2–02–00–20–20–24–02–22–03–11–31–14–0–2–02–03–12–01–11–11–13–12–23–11–32–22–02–24–01–1
Miami 2–21–32–21–33–12–02–03–11–12–00–31–10–2–3–01–15–01–31–33–11–10–21–11–10–22–10–21–12–2
Milwaukee 2–21–31–30–40–41–11–12–21–10–21–31–10–20–3–1–11–32–21–32–10–22–00–21–10–22–20–21–11–3
Minnesota 1–10–21–10–20–24–00–41–11–32–21–11–31–31–11–1–1–10–20–21–11–30–43–11–30–41–11–32–20–2
New Jersey 0–42–23–00–32–11–12–00–40–20–23–11–10–20–53–11–1–2–20–42–20–21–11–10–20–22–20–22–02–2
New York 1–24–00–31–31–32–01–14–02–02–03–11–11–13–12–22–02–2–1–33–10–20–20–21–11–14–01–11–13–1
Orlando 2–23–14–01–32–11–11–13–12–02–02–22–01–13–13–12–04–03–1–4–02–01–11–11–11–12–11–12–04–0
Philadelphia 1–20–41–30–40–42–00–20–40–20–21–30–21–11–31–21–12–21–30–4–0–20–20–20–20–23–11–11–11–3
Phoenix 2–01–10–21–10–23–11–30–23–11–31–11–31–31–12–03–12–02–00–22–0–2–22–21–30–42–01–34–02–0
Portland 0–22–01–10–21–14–04–00–23–12–21–12–22–22–00–24–01–12–01–12–02–2–1–31–31–32–01–32–20–2
Sacramento 0–20–21–10–21–12–24–01–13–12–22–02–21–31–12–01–31–12–01–12–02–23–1–1–30–42–00–42–20–2
San Antonio 2–02–02–00–22–02–24–00–23–13–11–13–13–11–11–13–12–01–11–12–03–13–13–1–2–22–03–14–01–1
Seattle 2–02–02–01–12–02–23–11–14–04–00–24–02–22–02–04–02–01–11–12–04–03–14–02–2–1–13–13–11–1
Toronto 0–41–31–31–31–31–10–20–41–10–20–42–00–21–22–21–12–20–41–21–30–20–20–20–21–1–0–21–13–1
Utah 1–12–01–10–22–03–11–32–03–12–22–03–12–22–02–03–12–01–11–11–13–13–14–01–31–32–0–4–01–1
Vancouver 0–21–10–20–20–20–41–30–20–40–40–21–30–41–11–12–20–21–10–21–10–42–22–20–41–31–10–4–0–2
Washington 3–12–21–30–41–32–01–12–11–11–10–31–11–12–23–12–02–21–30–43–10–22–02–01–11–11–31–12–0—
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Game log

Playoffs

More information 1996 playoff game log, Game ...
1996 playoff game log
First round: 2–3 (home: 2–0; road: 0–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1 April 25 @ Utah L 102–110 Rod Strickland (27) Chris Dudley (10) Rod Strickland (12) Delta Center
19,614		 0–1
2 April 27 @ Utah L 90–105 Arvydas Sabonis (26) Arvydas Sabonis (12) Rod Strickland (7) Delta Center
19,911		 0–2
3 April 29 Utah W 94–91 (OT) Arvydas Sabonis (27) Arvydas Sabonis (12) Rod Strickland (8) Rose Garden
21,401		 1–2
4 May 1 Utah W 98–90 Rod Strickland (27) Arvydas Sabonis (13) Rod Strickland (7) Rose Garden
21,401		 2–2
5 May 5 @ Utah L 64–102 Arvydas Sabonis (14) Arvydas Sabonis (8) Rod Strickland (8) Delta Center
19,682		 2–3
1996 schedule
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Player statistics

Summarize
Perspective
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

More information Player, GP ...
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Aaron McKie 817327.9.467.325.7643.82.51.1.310.7
Chris Dudley 806124.1.453.000.5109.0.5.51.35.1
Clifford Robinson 787638.2.423.378.6645.72.41.1.921.1
Harvey Grant 767531.5.462.313.5454.81.5.8.69.3
James Robinson 76521.4.399.359.6592.12.0.4.28.5
Arvydas Sabonis 732123.8.545.375.7578.11.8.91.114.5
Buck Williams 701023.9.500.667.6685.8.6.6.77.3
Gary Trent 691017.7.513.000.5533.4.7.4.27.5
Rod Strickland 676337.7.460.342.6524.49.61.4.218.7
Dontonio Wingfield 44211.1.382.302.7652.4.6.5.13.8
Rumeal Robinson 431416.6.416.380.6471.83.3.6.15.7
Randolph Childress 2808.9.316.277.815.71.1.3.03.0
Anthony Cook 1105.5.438.000.2501.1.2.0.11.4
Elmore Spencer† 1103.4.417.667.8.1.0.21.3
Reggie Slater† 405.0.600.8.0.3.51.5
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Playoffs

More information Player, GP ...
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Rod Strickland 5540.4.440.500.6396.28.41.0.020.6
Clifford Robinson 5536.2.344.261.7573.61.61.41.015.2
Arvydas Sabonis 5535.4.432.556.71710.21.8.8.623.6
Harvey Grant 5532.8.342.143.0004.0.8.0.45.4
Aaron McKie 5426.8.367.250.7783.61.81.2.46.2
Buck Williams 5126.6.391.500.7145.0.2.2.84.8
Chris Dudley 5018.4.385.6675.4.2.4.42.8
Dontonio Wingfield 5012.4.381.600.3332.8.8.0.04.8
Rumeal Robinson 508.6.421.444.250.4.6.6.04.2
James Robinson 2013.0.300.333.51.5.5.54.0
Gary Trent 205.0.250.5.0.5.01.0
Elmore Spencer 101.0.000.0.0.0.0.0
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  • † Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Trail Blazers only.

Player Statistics Citation:[16]

Awards and honors

Transactions

References

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