| 1998 WNBA season | |
|---|---|
| League | Women's National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | May – September, 1998 |
| Number of games | 30 |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Total attendance | 1,630,315 |
| Average attendance | 10,869 |
| TV partner(s) | ESPN, NBC, Lifetime |
| 1998 WNBA Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Margo Dydek |
| Picked by | Utah Starzz |
| Regular season | |
| Season MVP | Cynthia Cooper (Houston Comets) |
| Playoffs | |
| Eastern champions | none due to setup |
| Eastern runners-up | Cleveland Rockers |
| Western champions | Houston Comets, Phoenix Mercury |
| Western runners-up | none due to setup |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Houston Comets |
| Runners-up | Phoenix Mercury |
| Finals MVP | Cynthia Cooper ( Houston) |
The 1998 WNBA season was the Women's National Basketball Association's second season. The 1998 season saw two expansion teams join the league, the Detroit Shock and Washington Mystics. The expansion teams allowed the defending champions Houston Comets to move to the Western Conference. The regular season was extended from 28 games to 30 games. The season ended with the Comets winning their second WNBA championship. During the season, Kelly Boucher became the first Canadian to play in the league, suiting up for the Charlotte Sting. [1]
Regular season standings
Eastern Conference
| Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Rockers x | 20 | 10 | .667 | 12–4 | – |
| Charlotte Sting x | 18 | 12 | .600 | 11–5 | 2.0 |
| New York Liberty o | 18 | 12 | .600 | 8–8 | 2.0 |
| Detroit Shock o | 17 | 13 | .567 | 8–8 | 3.0 |
| Washington Mystics o | 3 | 27 | .100 | 1–15 | 17.0 |
Western Conference
| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston Comets x | 27 | 3 | .900 | 15–1 | – |
| Phoenix Mercury x | 19 | 11 | .633 | 10–6 | 8.0 |
| Los Angeles Sparks o | 12 | 18 | .400 | 6–10 | 15.0 |
| Sacramento Monarchs o | 8 | 22 | .267 | 5–11 | 19.0 |
| Utah Starzz o | 8 | 22 | .267 | 4–12 | 19.0 |
Season award winners
Playoffs
There were 10 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in the league were seeded one to four. Houston was switched to the Western Conference in 1998 so two Western Conference teams matched up in the WNBA Finals. Each round of the playoffs was played as a best-of-three series.
| WNBA Semi-Finals Best of 3 | WNBA Finals Best of 3 | ||||||||
| W1 | Houston | 2 | |||||||
| E2 | Charlotte | 0 | |||||||
| W1 | Houston | 2 | |||||||
| W2 | Phoenix | 1 | |||||||
| W2 | Phoenix | 2 | |||||||
| E1 | Cleveland | 1 | |||||||
Coaches
Eastern Conference
- Charlotte Sting: Marynell Meadors
- Cleveland Rockers: Linda Hill-MacDonald
- Detroit Shock: Nancy Lieberman
- New York Liberty: Nancy Darsch and Richie Adubato
- Washington Mystics: Jim Lewis and Cathy Parson
Western Conference
- Houston Comets: Van Chancellor
- Los Angeles Sparks: Julie Rousseau and Orlando Woolridge
- Phoenix Mercury: Cheryl Miller
- Sacramento Monarchs: Heidi VanDerveer
- Utah Starzz: Frank Layden
References
- ^ LINDSAY DUNN (May 14, 2021). "Meet Kelly Boucher, the Canadian who broke the WNBA barrier". toronto.citynews.ca. Retrieved June 18, 2021.