Believe you mean 1997/98, but I know what you mean.  As far as timing rainfall into California, that's really beyond the state of the science.  The current oulooks for the rest of November and December are equal chances, which means there's no strong signal or tilt in the odds for wetter or drier than normal weather.  However, the lack of significant rainfall during the early part of the winter is not unusual with El Nino, as the best chance for above normal rainfall is typically during the January - March season.