1998–99 New York Knicks season

The 1998–99 NBA season was the 52nd season for the New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association. Due to a lockout, the regular season began on February 5, 1999, and was cut from 82 games to 50.

Head coach Jeff Van Gundy entered in his third full season coaching the Knocks. To give All-Star center Patrick Ewing more help offensively and defensively, the Knicks acquired controversial All-Star guard Latrell Sprewell from the Golden State Warriors, acquired Marcus Camby from the Toronto Raptors, and signed free agents Kurt Thomas, and three-point specialist Dennis Scott during the off-season. However, Scott was released by the team to free agency after 15 games, and later on signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Because of the lockout shortened season, and injuries to Sprewell, who missed 13 games due to a stress fracture in his right heel, and Ewing, who missed 12 games due to a knee injury, the Knicks played mediocre basketball around .500 in winning percentage. The team won six of their final eight games of the regular season to finish in fourth place in the Atlantic Division with a 27–23 record, earning the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Ewing led the team with 17.3 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, while Sprewell played a sixth man role, averaging 16.4 points per game off the bench, and Allan Houston provided the team with 16.3 points per game. In addition, Larry Johnson contributed 12.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while Thomas provided with 8.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, and Charlie Ward contributed 7.6 points, 5.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Off the bench, Camby averaged 7.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game, and Chris Childs contributed 6.8 points and 4.0 assists per game.

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 1999 NBA playoffs, the Knicks faced off against the Miami Heat for the third consecutive year; the Knicks became the second 8th-seeded team in NBA history to defeat the #1 seed, eliminating the top-seeded Heat in five games (one of the five games on one of the biggest shots in Knicks' history by Houston). The Knicks then took down the 4th-seeded Atlanta Hawks in a second round four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals; Camby, who had struggled through most of the regular season, emerged as one of the key players off a deep Knicks bench. Camby's 11 points and 13 rebounds in Game 2 of the Knicks-Hawks series proved to be his coming-out party, and the Knicks became the first #8 seed to sweep a playoff series as the team advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals to meet a familiar foe, Reggie Miller and the Indiana Pacers.

However, the Knicks would lose Ewing after Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, which the Knicks lost to the Pacers at the Market Square Arena, 88–86; Ewing had been battling through an Achilles injury, but it was learned that the tendon (which he had played on in Game 2) was partially torn, and he would be forced to miss the remainder of the playoffs. The Knicks were rescued by Johnson in Game 3 at Madison Square Garden; standing outside the three-point line with 11.9 seconds left, Johnson held the ball, and then began to dribble. He leaned into Pacers defender Antonio Davis before jumping up. The referee called the foul about a half-second before Johnson released the ball, but it was counted as a continuation shooting foul; the three-point basket and the ensuing free throw gave the Knicks a 92–91 victory.

The Knicks would then stamp their ticket to the NBA Finals with a 90–82 home win in Game 6, despite losing Johnson to a knee injury in the first half. Led by Houston's 32-point performance and defense against Miller (3–18 shooting), the Knicks closed out the 2nd-seeded Pacers. The Knicks' 27–23 record was the worst for a team to reach the Finals since the Houston Rockets did it with a 40–42 record in 1981. They also became the first 8th seed to reach the NBA Finals, a feat that has since only been repeated once by the Miami Heat in the 2023 season.

In the 1999 NBA Finals, the Knicks were defeated in five games against the San Antonio Spurs. Completely overmatched by the Spurs' height with Tim Duncan and David Robinson, the Knicks lost at home with a 78–77 loss in Game 5 despite Sprewell's 35 points. For the series, Sprewell averaged 26.0 points per game, and Houston provided with 21.6 points per game. The Knicks defense did not allow any opponent to score more than 96 points against them in their 20 playoff games.

The Knicks finished third in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 494,075 at Madison Square Garden during the regular season. Following the season, veteran center Herb Williams retired at age 41. The team's season roster has been featured in the basketball game series NBA 2K since the 19th installment NBA 2K18.