The 1990–91 NBA season was the 45th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls winning their first NBA Championship, eliminating the Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals.

This season would prove to be Magic Johnson's last full season as a player, as he announced he was HIV positive and retired early the following season (Johnson would play part of the 1995-96 NBA season with the Lakers before permanently retiring).

Notable occurrences

• The Trent Tucker Rule was adopted. When Trent Tucker hit a walk-off three-point field goal at the buzzer in the previous season, the clock had started with 0.1 left. It prevents any shot to be taken with up to 0.2 seconds left in the period; the lone exception was a tip-in.
• The Los Angeles Lakers failed to win their division for the first time in ten years.
• The Orlando Magic moved to the Midwest Division of the Western Conference, but like the Miami Heat two seasons ago, experienced long road trips back and forth out west. They would move to the Atlantic Division the next season.
• The 1991 NBA All-Star Game was played at the Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, with the East defeating the West 116–114. Charles Barkley of the Philadelphia 76ers won the game's MVP award. In the Three-Point Shootout, Chicago Bulls guard Craig Hodges set a record by making 19 consecutive shots, en route to winning his second straight shootout title, and Boston Celtics guard Dee Brown won the Slam Dunk Contest.
• The Minnesota Timberwolves played their first season at the Target Center. They had played their first season at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome while Target Center was being built.
• The NBA on NBC began (replacing The NBA on CBS) when the National Broadcasting Company signed a 4-year, US$600 million deal with the NBA. The relationship lasted 12 years (concluding at the end of the 2001–02 NBA season), until The NBA on ABC returned in 2002–03.
• On December 30, the last game of 1990, Scott Skiles of Orlando recorded 30 assists in a game against the Denver Nuggets to set a new NBA record.^[1]
• The Utah Jazz played their final season at the Salt Palace.
• The flagrant foul was instituted.
• For the first time since 1981, the Los Angeles Lakers were not the Number 1 seed in the Western Conference. However they still reached the NBA Finals by upsetting the heavily favored Portland Trail Blazers in six games. They would go on to lose to the Chicago Bulls in five games, their last NBA Finals appearance until 2000.
• During the season, all NBA teams sport patches featuring the American flag on their warmups as an honor to the American soldiers fighting during the Persian Gulf War. Champion became the league's official outfitter.
• The Golden State Warriors became the only seventh seeded team to beat the second seed twice since the 16-team playoff field was introduced seven years earlier. The Warriors defeated the San Antonio Spurs in four games.
• The NBA becomes the first major professional sports league to play outside North America, as the Phoenix Suns and Utah Jazz open the season against each other in Tokyo, Japan.
• On March 9, 1991, the Houston Rockets' Akeem Olajuwon officially changed the spelling of his first name to Hakeem.

1990–91 NBA changes

• The Indiana Pacers changed their logo and uniforms, adding navy to their color scheme.
• The Minnesota Timberwolves moved into Target Center.
• The New Jersey Nets changed their logo and uniforms.
• The New York Knicks slightly changed their uniforms replacing their alternate "NY" logo on the left leg of their shorts with their current primary logo.
• The Sacramento Kings changed their uniforms, adding a darker blue color from their primary logo.

Final Standings

By division Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div y-Boston Celtics 56 26 .683 — 35–6 21–20 20-6 x-Philadelphia 76ers 44 38 .537 12 29-12 15-26 14-12 x-New York Knicks 39 43 .476 17 21-20 18-23 17–9 Washington Bullets 30 52 .366 26 21-20 9-32 10-16 New Jersey Nets 26 56 .317 30 20-21 6–35 8-18 Miami Heat 24 58 .293 32 18-23 6-35 9-17 Central Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div y-Chicago Bulls 61 21 .744 — 35–6 26–15 25–5 x-Detroit Pistons 50 32 .610 11 32–9 18–23 19-11 x-Milwaukee Bucks 48 34 .585 13 33–8 15–26 16–14 x-Atlanta Hawks 43 39 .524 18 29–12 14–27 11–19 x-Indiana Pacers 41 41 .500 20 29-12 12–29 15-15 Cleveland Cavaliers 33 49 .402 28 23–18 10–31 11-19 Charlotte Hornets 26 56 .317 35 17–24 9–32 8–22 Western Conference Midwest Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div y-San Antonio Spurs 55 27 .671 — 33–8 22–19 20–8 x-Utah Jazz 54 28 .659 1 36–5 18–23 21-7 x-Houston Rockets 52 30 .634 3 31-10 21–20 20-8 Orlando Magic 31 51 .378 24 24-17 7–34 13–15 Minnesota Timberwolves 29 53 .354 26 21-20 8-33 9-19 Dallas Mavericks 28 54 .341 27 20-21 8–33 7-21 Denver Nuggets 20 62 .244 35 17-24 3-38 8–20 Pacific Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div y-Portland Trail Blazers 63 19 .768 — 36–5 27–14 18-10 x-Los Angeles Lakers 58 24 .707 5 33–8 25-16 19-9 x-Phoenix Suns 55 27 .671 8 32–9 23-18 17–11 x-Golden State Warriors 44 38 .537 19 30–11 14–27 13–15 x-Seattle SuperSonics 41 41 .500 22 28-13 13–28 12-16 Los Angeles Clippers 31 51 .378 32 23–18 8-33 10-18 Sacramento Kings 25 57 .305 38 24-17 1–40 9–19 By conference # Eastern Conference Team W L PCT GB 1 c-Chicago Bulls 61 21 .744 – 2 y-Boston Celtics 56 26 .683 5 3 x-Detroit Pistons 50 32 .610 11 4 x-Milwaukee Bucks 48 34 .585 13 5 x-Philadelphia 76ers 44 38 .537 17 6 x-Atlanta Hawks 43 39 .524 18 7 x-Indiana Pacers 41 41 .500 20 8 x-New York Knicks 39 43 .476 22 9 Cleveland Cavaliers 33 49 .402 28 10 Orlando Magic 31 51 .378 32 11 Washington Bullets 30 52 .366 31 12 New Jersey Nets 26 56 .317 35 13 Charlotte Hornets 26 56 .317 35 14 Miami Heat 24 58 .293 37 # Western Conference Team W L PCT GB 1 z-Portland Trail Blazers 63 19 .768 – 2 y-San Antonio Spurs 55 27 .671 8 3 x-Los Angeles Lakers 58 24 .707 5 4 x-Phoenix Suns 55 27 .671 8 5 x-Utah Jazz 54 28 .659 9 6 x-Houston Rockets 52 30 .634 11 7 x-Golden State Warriors 44 38 .537 19 8 x-Seattle SuperSonics 41 41 .500 22 9 Los Angeles Clippers 31 51 .378 32 10 Minnesota Timberwolves 29 53 .354 34 11 Dallas Mavericks 28 54 .341 35 12 Sacramento Kings 25 57 .305 38 13 Denver Nuggets 20 62 .244 43 Notes z – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffs c – Clinched home court advantage for the conference playoffs y – Clinched division title x – Clinched playoff spot Playoffs Main article: 1991 NBA playoffs A ticket for Game 4 of the 1991 NBA Finals at the Great Western Forum. Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Home court advantage does not necessarily belong to the higher-seeded team, but instead the team with the better regular season record; teams enjoying the home advantage are shown in italics. First round Conference semifinals Conference finals Finals                         E1 Chicago* 3 E8 New York 0 E1 Chicago* 4 E5 Philadelphia 1 E4 Milwaukee 0 E5 Philadelphia 3 E1 Chicago* 4 Eastern Conference E3 Detroit 0 E3 Detroit 3 E6 Atlanta 2 E3 Detroit 4 E2 Boston* 2 E2 Boston* 3 E7 Indiana 2 E1 Chicago* 4 W3 LA Lakers 1 W1 Portland* 3 W8 Seattle 2 W1 Portland* 4 W5 Utah 1 W4 Phoenix 1 W5 Utah 3 W1 Portland* 2 Western Conference W3 LA Lakers 4 W3 LA Lakers 3 W6 Houston 0 W3 LA Lakers 4 W7 Golden State 1 W2 San Antonio* 1 W7 Golden State 3 * Division winner Bold Series winner Italic Team with home-court advantage Statistics leaders Category Player Team Stat Points per game Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls 31.5 Rebounds per game David Robinson San Antonio Spurs 13.0 Assists per game John Stockton Utah Jazz 14.2 Steals per game Alvin Robertson Milwaukee Bucks 3.04 Blocks per game Hakeem Olajuwon Houston Rockets 3.95 FG% Buck Williams Portland Trail Blazers .602 FT% Reggie Miller Indiana Pacers .918 3FG% Jim Les Sacramento Kings .461 NBA awards Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls Rookie of the Year: Derrick Coleman, New Jersey Nets Defensive Player of the Year: Dennis Rodman, Detroit Pistons Sixth Man of the Year: Detlef Schrempf, Indiana Pacers Most Improved Player: Scott Skiles, Orlando Magic Coach of the Year: Don Chaney, Houston Rockets All-NBA First Team: F – Karl Malone, Utah Jazz F – Charles Barkley, Philadelphia 76ers C – David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs G – Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls G – Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers All-NBA Second Team: F – Dominique Wilkins, Atlanta Hawks F – Chris Mullin, Golden State Warriors C – Patrick Ewing, New York Knicks G – Kevin Johnson, Phoenix Suns G – Clyde Drexler, Portland Trail Blazers All-NBA Third Team: F – James Worthy, Los Angeles Lakers F – Bernard King, Washington Bullets C – Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets G – John Stockton, Utah Jazz G – Joe Dumars, Detroit Pistons NBA All-Rookie First Team: Dee Brown, Boston Celtics Kendall Gill, Charlotte Hornets Derrick Coleman, New Jersey Nets Dennis Scott, Orlando Magic Lionel Simmons, Sacramento Kings Second Team: Chris Jackson,[lower-alpha 1] Denver Nuggets Willie Burton, Miami Heat Travis Mays, Sacramento Kings Gary Payton, Seattle SuperSonics Felton Spencer, Minnesota Timberwolves NBA All-Defensive First Team: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls Alvin Robertson, Milwaukee Bucks David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs Dennis Rodman, Detroit Pistons Buck Williams, Portland Trail Blazers Second Team: Joe Dumars, Detroit Pistons John Stockton, Utah Jazz Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets Scottie Pippen, Chicago Bulls Dan Majerle, Phoenix Suns Player of the week The following players were named NBA Player of the Week. Week Player Nov. 2 – Nov. 11 Chris Mullin (Golden State Warriors) Nov. 12 – Nov. 18 Clyde Drexler (Portland Trail Blazers) Nov. 19 – Nov. 25 Charles Barkley (Philadelphia 76ers) Nov. 26 – Dec. 2 Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) Dec. 3 – Dec. 9 John Stockton (Utah Jazz) Dec. 10 – Dec. 16 Kevin Johnson (Phoenix Suns) Dec. 17 – Dec. 23 Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) Dec. 25 – Dec. 29 Ricky Pierce (Milwaukee Bucks) Dec. 30 – Jan. 6 Dominique Wilkins (Atlanta Hawks) Jan. 7 – Jan. 13 Bernard King (Washington Bullets) Jan. 14 – Jan. 20 Tim Hardaway (Golden State Warriors) Jan. 21 – Jan. 27 Michael Adams (Denver Nuggets) Jan. 28 – Feb. 3 Otis Thorpe (Houston Rockets) Feb. 4 – Feb. 17 Lionel Simmons (Sacramento Kings) Feb. 18 – Feb. 24 Reggie Miller (Indiana Pacers) Feb. 25 – Mar. 3 Gerald Wilkins (New York Knicks) Mar. 4 – Mar. 10 Dennis Scott (Orlando Magic) Mar. 11 – Mar. 17 Kenny Smith (Houston Rockets) Mar. 18 – Mar. 24 Mitch Richmond (Golden State Warriors) Mar. 25 – Mar. 31 Clyde Drexler (Portland Trail Blazers) Apr. 1 – Apr. 7 Magic Johnson (Los Angeles Lakers) Apr. 8 – Apr. 14 Clyde Drexler (Portland Trail Blazers) Apr. 15 – Apr. 21 Scott Skiles (Orlando Magic) Player of the month The following players were named NBA Player of the Month. Month Player November Chris Mullin (Golden State Warriors) December Karl Malone (Utah Jazz) January David Robinson (San Antonio Spurs) February Dominique Wilkins (Atlanta Hawks) March Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) April Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) Rookie of the month The following players were named NBA Rookie of the Month. Month Rookie November Derrick Coleman (New Jersey Nets) December Lionel Simmons (Sacramento Kings) January Derrick Coleman (New Jersey Nets) February Lionel Simmons (Sacramento Kings) March Dennis Scott (Orlando Magic) April Derrick Coleman (New Jersey Nets) Coach of the month The following coaches were named NBA Coach of the Month. Month Coach November Rick Adelman (Portland Trail Blazers) December Bob Weiss (Atlanta Hawks) January Mike Dunleavy (Los Angeles Lakers) February Don Chaney (Houston Rockets) March Don Chaney (Houston Rockets) April Rick Adelman (Portland Trail Blazers) Notes ↑ Entered the NBA as Chris Jackson before changing his name in 1993. See also List of NBA regular season records References ↑ Denton, John. "Remembering Scott Skiles' 30-Assists Game 25 Years Later". www.nba.com. Retrieved June 29, 2020.