1988–89 Utah Jazz season

The 1988–89 NBA season was the 15th season for the Utah Jazz in the National Basketball Association, and their tenth season in Salt Lake City, Utah. During the off-season, the Jazz acquired Mike Brown from the expansion Charlotte Hornets. This season marked the arrival of assistant coach Jerry Sloan, who became a full-time head coach replacing Frank Layden, who retired from coaching after an 11–6 start to the regular season. Sloan would go on to coach the Jazz for 23 seasons, including two trips to the Finals in 1997 and 1998, and 19 playoff appearances out of 22 seasons, including 15 consecutive appearances from 1989 to 2003, and 4 more from 2007 to 2010 before he resigned midway through the 2010–11 season.

The Jazz won eight of their first ten games of the regular season, held a 28–20 record at the All-Star break, posted a 7-game winning streak in March, and finished in first place in the Midwest Division with a 51–31 record, earning the #2 seed in the Western Conference.

Karl Malone averaged 29.1 points, 10.7 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game, and was named to the All-NBA First Team, while sixth man Thurl Bailey averaged 19.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game off the bench, and John Stockton provided the team with 17.1 points, 13.2 assists and 3.2 steals per game, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, and to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team. In addition, Darrell Griffith provided with 13.8 points per game, while Bob Hansen contributed 7.4 points per game in only just 46 games, and Mark Eaton averaged 6.2 points, 10.3 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game, and was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was also selected to the NBA All-Defensive First Team.

Malone, Stockton and Eaton were all selected for the 1989 NBA All-Star Game in Houston, Texas, which was Stockton's first ever All-Star appearance, and where Malone won the NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player award. Malone also finished in third place in Most Valuable Player voting, while Stockton finished in seventh place and Eaton finished tied in thirteenth place, and Bailey finished in second place in Sixth Man of the Year voting.

However, in the Western Conference First Round of the 1989 NBA playoffs, the Jazz were swept by the 7th-seeded Golden State Warriors in three straight games. The Jazz sold 10,153 season tickets, which was an increase of 550 from the previous season.