New York Knicks » 1999/00 (Sports Team Season)

The 1999–2000 NBA season was the 53rd season of the National Basketball Association in New York City. The Knicks entered the season as runner-ups of the 1999 NBA Finals, where despite losing to the San Antonio Spurs in five games, they became the first eighth seeded team to reach the NBA Finals. During the offseason, the Knicks re-signed free agent John Wallace. In his second year with the Knicks, Latrell Sprewell became a starter after playing off the bench last season and averaged 18.6 points per game. After advancing to the NBA Finals as the #8 seed last year, the Knicks finished second in the Atlantic Division with a 50–32 record, good enough for their first 50-win season since 1997. Allan Houston and head coach Jeff Van Gundy represented the Eastern Conference during the 2000 NBA All-Star Game. In the first round of the playoffs, the Knicks swept the Toronto Raptors in three straight games. In the semifinals, they faced the Miami Heat for the fourth consecutive year. They would defeat the 2nd-seeded Heat in a tough, hard-fought seven-game series, but would lose in six games to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals, ending their hopes of making the Finals for a second straight year.