1998 WNBA season
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.
| 1998 WNBA season | |
|---|---|
| League | Women's National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | May – September |
| 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) |
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
| Award | Winner | Team |
|---|---|---|
| WNBA Finals MVP Award | Cynthia Cooper | Houston Comets |
| WNBA Most Valuable Player Award | Cynthia Cooper | Houston Comets |
| WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award | Teresa Weatherspoon | New York Liberty |
| WNBA Newcomer of the Year Award | Suzie McConnell Serio | Cleveland Rockers |
| WNBA Peak Performer | Isabelle Fijalkowski | Cleveland Rockers |
| WNBA Peak Performer | Sandy Brondello | Detroit Shock |
| WNBA Rookie of the Year Award | Tracy Reid | Charlotte Sting |
| WNBA Sportsmanship Award | Suzie McConnell Serio | Cleveland Rockers |
| WNBA Coach of the Year Award | Van Chancellor | Houston Comets |
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 1997 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 | |||||||