1992–93 New Jersey Nets season

1992–93   New Jersey Nets season
Head coach	Chuck Daly
General manager	Willis Reed
Arena	Brendan Byrne Arena
Results
Record	43–39 (.524)
Place	Division: 3rd (Atlantic) Conference: 6th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	First round (lost to Cavaliers 2–3)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	WWOR-TV SportsChannel New York
Radio	WNEW
< 1991–92 1993–94 >

The 1992–93 New Jersey Nets season was the Nets' 26th season in the National Basketball Association, and 17th season in East Rutherford, New Jersey. ^[1] During the off-season, the Nets hired Chuck Daly as their new head coach; Daly led the Detroit Pistons to two consecutive NBA championships between 1989 and 1990. ^{[2] [3] [4]} The team also acquired Rumeal Robinson from the Atlanta Hawks, ^{[5] [6] [7]} acquired Jayson Williams from the Philadelphia 76ers, ^{[8] [9]} and signed free agents Chucky Brown and Rick Mahorn. ^{[10] [11]}

Under Daly, the Nets continued to improve holding a 30–21 record at the All-Star break. ^[12] However, the team lost second-year star Kenny Anderson for the remainder of the regular season to a wrist injury after 55 games. ^{[13] [14] [15]} At mid-season, the team signed free agents, former All-Star guard Maurice Cheeks, ^{[16] [17] [18]} and former All-Star forward Bernard King. ^{[19] [20] [21]} Despite losing ten of their final eleven games of the season, the Nets finished in third place in the Atlantic Division with a 43–39 record, their first winning season since 1983–84, and earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. ^[22]

Dražen Petrović averaged 22.3 points and 1.3 steals per game, while Derrick Coleman averaged 20.7 points, 11.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, and Anderson showed improvement becoming the Nets' starting point guard, as he provided the team with 16.9 points, 8.2 assists and 1.7 steals per game. In addition, Chris Morris contributed 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game, while Sam Bowie provided with 9.1 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game, and Robinson contributed 8.4 points, 4.0 assists and 1.2 steals per game. Off the bench, King avareged 7.0 points per game in 32 games, while Rafael Addison contributed 6.3 points per game, Brown provided with 5.1 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, Mahorn averaged 3.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game, Cheeks contributed 3.6 points and 3.1 assists per game in 35 games, and Chris Dudley provided with 3.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. ^[23]

Petrović and Coleman were both named to the All-NBA Third Team, while Anderson finished in third place in Most Improved Player voting, with Coleman and Petrović both finishing in eighth and tied in eleventh place respectively, ^{[24] [25]} and Daly finished in fifth place in Coach of the Year voting. ^{[26] [25]}

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 1993 NBA playoffs, and for the second consecutive year, the Nets faced off against the 3rd–seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, who were led by the All-Star trio of Brad Daugherty, Mark Price and Larry Nance. With Anderson out due to his season-ending wrist injury, the Nets used Robinson as their starting point guard in his absence. With the series tied at 2–2, the Nets lost Game 5 to the Cavaliers on the road, 99–89 at the Coliseum at Richfield, thus losing in a full five-game series. ^{[27] [28] [29]} Following the season, Bowie was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, ^{[30] [31] [32]} while Dudley signed as a free agent with the Portland Trail Blazers, ^{[33] [34] [35]} Brown signed with the Dallas Mavericks, Addison was released to free agency, and King and Cheeks both retired.

Tragedy struck the Nets in the following off-season, as Petrović was killed in a car accident in Germany at the age of 28 on June 7, 1993; Petrović was a passenger in a car driven by his girlfriend, which lost control and crashed head-on into a truck on a rain-drenched highway near Munich, Germany. Shortly before his death, Petrović last played for the Croatian national basketball team in the European Championships in Wroclaw, Poland. ^{[36] [37] [38]} The Nets retired Petrović's number 3 jersey later on that year, during a game against the Indiana Pacers at the Brenden Byrne Arena on November 11, during the next season; he would later on be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame posthumously in 2002. ^{[39] [40] [41]}

Petrović's girlfriend, Hungarian model and basketball player, Klara Szalantzy, 23, was not seriously hurt in the accident, while another passenger, Hilal Edebal, 23, was seriously injured with certain lifelong consequences. Edebal was also a basketball player, and played overseas in Turkey, but had to retire after the accident; reports of the accident misidentified her name as "Hilal Haene", and her age as 53. ^[41]

Draft picks

Main article: 1992 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
2	29	P. J. Brown	PF	United States	Louisiana Tech
2	40	Steve Rogers	SG	United States	Alabama State

Roster

1992–93 New Jersey Nets roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From F 21 Rafael Addison 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1964-07-22 Syracuse G 7 Kenny Anderson   6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 168 lb (76 kg) 1970-10-09 Georgia Tech C 31 Sam Bowie 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1961-03-17 Kentucky F 52 Chucky Brown 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 214 lb (97 kg) 1968-02-29 NC State G 10 Maurice Cheeks 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1956-09-08 West Texas A&M F 44 Derrick Coleman 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1967-06-21 Syracuse C 22 Chris Dudley   6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1965-02-22 Yale G 12 Tate George 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1968-05-29 Connecticut F 30 Bernard King 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1956-12-04 Tennessee F 4 Rick Mahorn 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1958-09-21 Hampton F 34 Chris Morris 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1966-01-20 Auburn G 3 Dražen Petrović 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1964-10-22 Croatia G 24 Rumeal Robinson 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1966-11-13 Michigan C 33 Dwayne Schintzius 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 260 lb (118 kg) 1968-10-14 Florida F 55 Jayson Williams   6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1968-02-22 St. John's

Head coach Chuck Daly Assistant(s) Rick Carlisle Paul Silas Brendan Suhr Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster

Roster notes

• Point guard Rumeal Robinson holds both American and Jamaican citizenships.

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y- New York Knicks	60	22	.732	—	37–4	23–18	23–5
x- Boston Celtics	48	34	.585	12	28–13	20–21	19–9
x- New Jersey Nets	43	39	.524	17	26–15	17–24	14–14
Orlando Magic	41	41	.500	19	27–14	14–27	15–13
Miami Heat	36	46	.439	24	26–15	10–31	9–19
Philadelphia 76ers	26	56	.317	34	15–26	11–30	11–17
Washington Bullets	22	60	.268	38	15–26	7–34	7–21

#	Eastern Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-New York Knicks	60	22	.732	–
2	y-Chicago Bulls	57	25	.695	3
3	x-Cleveland Cavaliers	54	28	.659	6
4	x-Boston Celtics	48	34	.585	12
5	x-Charlotte Hornets	44	38	.537	16
6	x-New Jersey Nets	43	39	.524	17
7	x-Atlanta Hawks	43	39	.524	17
8	x-Indiana Pacers	41	41	.500	19
9	Orlando Magic	41	41	.500	19
10	Detroit Pistons	40	42	.488	20
11	Miami Heat	36	46	.439	24
12	Milwaukee Bucks	28	54	.341	32
13	Philadelphia 76ers	26	56	.317	36
14	Washington Bullets	22	60	.268	38

z – clinched division title

y – clinched division title

x – clinched playoff spot

Game log

Regular season

1992–93 game log Total: 49–33 (Home: 26–15; Road: 23–18)
November: 7–7 (home: 2–4; road: 5–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 3 November 10, 1992 @ New York L 96–99 Madison Square Garden 1–2 7 November 17, 1992 Utah L 97–108 Brendan Byrne Arena 3–4 11 November 24, 1992 @ Seattle L 97–103 Seattle Center Coliseum 4–7 12 November 25, 1992 @ L.A. Lakers W 100–98 Great Western Forum 5–7 13 November 27, 1992 @ Utah W 112–110 Delta Center 6–7
December: 9–5 (home: 5–3; road: 4–2) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 16 December 4, 1992 San Antonio W 108–103 (OT) Brendan Byrne Arena 9–7 18 December 8, 1992 7:30 p.m. EST Phoenix L 100–105 Morris (25) Morris (12) Anderson (7) Brendan Byrne Arena 16,514 10–8 19 December 10, 1992 L.A. Clippers W 111–105 Brendan Byrne Arena 10–9 20 December 12, 1992 8:30 p.m. EST @ Chicago L 89–95 Petrović (25) Bowie (17) Anderson, Petrović (6) Chicago Stadium 18,232 11–9 21 December 15, 1992 New York L 94–108 Brendan Byrne Arena 11–10 26 December 26, 1992 @ Cleveland W 119–114 Richfield Coliseum 14–12 27 December 28, 1992 Charlotte W 104–103 Brendan Byrne Arena 15–12
January: 8–7 (home: 6–1; road: 2–6) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 29 January 2, 1993 @ Charlotte L 117–118 Charlotte Coliseum 16–13 34 January 13, 1993 Cleveland W 104–98 Brendan Byrne Arena 19–15 38 January 21, 1993 7:30 p.m. EST Chicago L 94–107 Anderson, Coleman (22) Coleman (12) Anderson (12) Brendan Byrne Arena 20,049 22–16 40 January 24, 1993 Houston W 100–83 Brendan Byrne Arena 23–17 41 January 26, 1993 L.A. Lakers W 106–91 Brendan Byrne Arena 24–17 43 January 30, 1993 @ Houston L 105–108 The Summit 24–19
February: 7–5 (home: 5–1; road: 2–4) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 45 February 2, 1993 @ San Antonio L 93–111 HemisFair Arena 25–20 46 February 4, 1993 Seattle W 113–103 (OT) Brendan Byrne Arena 26–20 All-Star Break 52 February 23, 1993 @ Charlotte L 95–104 Charlotte Coliseum 30–22 55 February 28, 1993 New York W 102–76 Brendan Byrne Arena 31–24
March: 10–5 (home: 7–1; road: 3–4) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 56 March 2, 1993 8:00 p.m. EST Chicago L 80–87 Coleman (22) Dudley (13) Coleman, George (4) Brendan Byrne Arena 20,049 31–25 59 March 10, 1993 @ L.A. Clippers W 109–98 Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena 34–25 61 March 13, 1993 9:30 p.m. EST @ Phoenix W 124–93 Petrović (29) Coleman (12) Robinson (10) America West Arena 19,023 36–25 67 March 24, 1993 Charlotte W 118–116 Brendan Byrne Arena 40–27
April: 2–10 (home: 1–5; road: 1–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 72 April 2, 1993 8:00 p.m. EST @ Chicago L 105–118 Coleman (30) Mahorn (11) Coleman (7) Chicago Stadium 18,676 42–30 73 April 4, 1993 @ Cleveland L 99–105 Richfield Coliseum 42–31 76 April 10, 1993 Cleveland L 99–100 Brendan Byrne Arena 42–34 80 April 21, 1993 @ New York L 74–105 Madison Square Garden 43–37
1992–93 schedule

Playoffs

1993 playoff game log
Eastern Conference First Round: 2–3 (home: 1–1; road: 1–2) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 April 29, 1993 @ Cleveland L 98–114 Coleman (31) Coleman (10) Cheeks, George (5) Richfield Coliseum 18,339 0–1 2 May 1, 1993 @ Cleveland W 101–99 Coleman (27) Coleman (14) Robinson (9) Richfield Coliseum 20,273 1–1 3 May 5, 1993 Cleveland L 84–93 Coleman (22) Coleman (13) Robinson (9) Brendan Byrne Arena 16,453 1–2 4 May 7, 1993 Cleveland W 96–79 Morris (22) Coleman (14) Coleman, Robinson (8) Brendan Byrne Arena 15,238 2–2 1 May 9, 1993 @ Cleveland L 89–99 Coleman (33) Coleman (16) Robinson (6) Richfield Coliseum 17,388 2–3
1993 schedule

Player statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Regular season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Dražen Petrović	70	67	38.0	.518	.449	.870	2.7	3.5	1.3	0.2	22.3
Derrick Coleman	76	73	36.3	.460	.232	.808	11.2	3.6	1.2	1.7	20.7
Kenny Anderson	55	55	36.5	.435	.280	.776	4.1	8.2	1.7	0.2	16.9
Chris Morris	77	57	29.9	.481	.224	.794	5.9	1.4	1.9	0.7	14.1
Sam Bowie	79	65	26.5	.450	.333	.779	7.0	1.6	0.4	1.6	9.1
Rumeal Robinson	80	28	19.8	.423	.357	.574	2.0	4.0	1.2	0.2	8.4
Bernard King	32	2	13.4	.514	.286	.684	2.4	0.6	0.3	0.1	7.0
Rafael Addison	68	15	17.1	.443	.206	.814	1.9	0.8	0.3	0.2	6.3
Chucky Brown	77	20	15.4	.483	.000	.724	3.0	0.7	0.3	0.3	5.1
Jayson Williams	12	2	11.6	.457		.389	3.4	0.0	0.3	0.3	4.1
Rick Mahorn	74	9	14.6	.472	.333	.800	3.8	0.4	0.3	0.4	3.9
Maurice Cheeks	35	0	14.6	.548	.000	.889	1.2	3.1	0.9	0.1	3.6
Chris Dudley	71	16	19.7	.353		.518	7.2	0.2	0.2	1.5	3.5
Tate George	48	1	7.9	.378	.000	.833	0.6	1.2	0.2	0.1	2.5
Dwayne Schintzius	5	0	7.0	.286		1.000	1.6	0.4	0.4	0.4	1.4
Dan O'Sullivan	3	0	3.3	.667			1.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.3
Doug Lee	5	0	6.6	.286	.333		0.4	1.0	0.0	0.2	1.0
Dave Hoppen	2	0	5.0	1.000		.000	2.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.0

Playoffs

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Derrick Coleman	5	5	45.0	.532	.417	.806	13.4	4.6	1.2	2.6	26.8
Chris Morris	5	4	32.6	.557	.375	.917	6.4	1.4	1.6	1.2	17.0
Dražen Petrović	5	5	38.6	.455	.333	.800	1.8	1.8	0.4	0.0	15.6
Rumeal Robinson	5	5	27.2	.429	.286	.714	2.4	7.0	1.0	0.0	9.8
Chucky Brown	4	0	15.5	.409		.857	2.3	0.3	0.8	0.8	6.0
Dwayne Schintzius	5	0	21.2	.448		.500	5.0	0.8	0.2	1.2	5.8
Maurice Cheeks	5	0	16.4	.478		.000	1.2	2.8	1.2	0.2	4.4
Rafael Addison	5	0	10.6	.333		1.000	1.2	1.0	0.6	0.0	3.4
Sam Bowie	3	3	23.7	.444		1.000	4.0	0.7	2.0	0.3	3.3
Bernard King	3	1	8.0	.571			0.3	0.0	0.3	0.0	2.7
Rick Mahorn	4	2	15.8	.400			3.3	0.8	0.0	0.5	2.0
Tate George	2	0	11.0	.286			1.5	3.0	0.5	0.0	2.0

Player statistics citation: ^[23]

Awards, Records and Honors

• Dražen Petrović, All-NBA Third Team
• Derrick Coleman, All-NBA Third Team

References

1. 1992–93 New Jersey Nets
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4. Hubbard, Jan (May 30, 1992). "By Hiring Daly, No One Can Laugh at Nets Now". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
5. Berger, Phil (November 4, 1992). "BASKETBALL; Nets Reduce Logjam by Trading Blaylock to Hawks". The New York Times. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
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9. Groller, Keith (October 9, 1992). "76ers Trade Williams to Find Spot for Weatherspoon". The Morning Call. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
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31. Freeman, Mike (June 22, 1993). "PRO BASKETBALL; Nets Get Benjamin in Swap for Bowie". The New York Times. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
32. Elliott, Helene (June 22, 1993). "Lakers Trade Benjamin to True Believer: Basketball: He Is Dealt to Nets for Bowie and Draft Choice and Will Be Reunited with College Coach, Willis Reed". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 26, 2022.
33. "Dudley Signs with Trail Blazers". Los Angeles Times. Staff and Wire Reports. August 4, 1993. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
34. "NBA Nixes Dudley Contract". United Press International. August 5, 1993. Retrieved June 6, 2025.
35. "BASKETBALL; Dudley's Blazer Contract Gets Final Approval". The New York Times. October 28, 1993. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
36. Freeman, Mike (June 8, 1993). "BASKETBALL; Nets' Petrovic Dies in Auto Accident in Germany". The New York Times. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
37. Lawrence, Mitch (June 8, 1993). "Nets' Petrovic Dies in Auto Accident". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
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41. "Crash That Killed Drazen Petrović 18 Years Ago Crushed the Dreams of One Broken Passenger". New York Daily News. August 27, 2011. Retrieved August 15, 2025.