| 2005–06 Cleveland Cavaliers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Mike Brown |
| Arena | Quicken Loans Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 50–32 (.610) |
| Place | Division: 2nd (Central) Conference: 4th (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | 7–6, Eastern Conference Semifinals |
| Local media | |
| Television | FSN Ohio, WUAB |
| Radio | WTAM |
| Cleveland Cavaliers seasons | |
| < 2004–05 | 2006–07 > |
The 2005-06 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 36th season of NBA basketball in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers finished the season with a 50–32 record, a second place finish in the Central Division, and reached the semifinals of the Eastern Conference. LeBron James was the team's leading scorer and was named to the All-NBA first team.
Key Dates:
|
Contents
|
|
|
| June 28, 2005 |
To Cleveland Cavaliers
2006 2nd round draft pick |
To Milwaukee Bucks
Jiri Welsch |
| June 29, 2005 |
To Cleveland Cavaliers
Rights to Martynas Andriuskevicius |
To Orlando Magic
2006 2nd round draft pick and cash |
Cleveland did not have a draft pick in the 2005 NBA Draft due to trades from previous seasons.
|
Cleveland Cavaliers roster
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rank | Player | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Larry Hughes | $10,344,900 |
| 2 | Zydrunas Ilgauskas | $8,740,000 |
| 3 | Eric Snow | $5,484,375 |
| 4 | Donyell Marshall | $4,799,108 |
| 5 | LeBron James | $4,621,800 |
| 6 | Drew Gooden | $4,065,811 |
| 7 | Damon Jones | $3,590,000 |
| 8 | Ira Newble | $2,950,200 |
| 9 | Luke Jackson | $1,955,160 |
| 10 | Sasha Pavlović | $1,274,160 |
| 11 | Alan Henderson | $1,138,500 |
| 12 | Flip Murray | $895,248 |
| 13 | Anderson Varejão | $866,800 |
| 14 | Martynas Andriuskevicius | $398,762 |
| 15 | Stephen Graham | $259,204 |
| Team | W | L | Home | Road | PCT. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Pistons* | 64 | 18 | 37–4 | 27–14 | .780 | - |
| Cleveland Cavaliers* | 50 | 32 | 31–10 | 19–22 | .610 | 14 |
| Indiana Pacers* | 41 | 41 | 27–14 | 14–27 | .500 | 23 |
| Chicago Bulls* | 41 | 41 | 21–20 | 20–21 | .500 | 23 |
| Milwaukee Bucks* | 40 | 42 | 25–16 | 15–26 | .488 | 24 |
| Team | W | L | Home | Road | PCT. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Pistons* | 64 | 18 | 37–4 | 27–14 | .780 | - |
| Miami Heat* | 52 | 30 | 31–10 | 21–20 | .634 | 12 |
| New Jersey Nets* | 49 | 33 | 29–12 | 20–21 | .598 | 15 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers* | 50 | 32 | 31–10 | 19–22 | .610 | 14 |
| Washington Wizards* | 42 | 40 | 27–14 | 15–26 | .512 | 22 |
| Indiana Pacers* | 41 | 41 | 27–14 | 14–27 | .500 | 23 |
| Chicago Bulls* | 41 | 41 | 21–20 | 20–21 | .500 | 23 |
| Milwaukee Bucks* | 40 | 42 | 25–16 | 15–26 | .488 | 24 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | 38 | 44 | 23–18 | 15–26 | .463 | 26 |
| Orlando Magic | 36 | 46 | 26–15 | 10–31 | .439 | 28 |
| Boston Celtics | 33 | 49 | 21–20 | 12–29 | .402 | 31 |
| Toronto Raptors | 27 | 55 | 15–26 | 12–29 | .329 | 37 |
| Charlotte Bobcats | 26 | 56 | 17–24 | 9–32 | .317 | 38 |
| Atlanta Hawks | 26 | 56 | 18–23 | 8–33 | .317 | 38 |
| New York Knicks | 23 | 59 | 15–26 | 8–33 | .280 | 41 |
*Qualified for playoffs
Record: 10–4; Home: 7–1; Road: 3–3
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Leading scorer | Attendance | Record |
| 1 | 2 November 2005 | Hornets | 87–109 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (31) | 20,562 | 1–0 |
| 2 | 4 November 2005 | Cavaliers | 76–102 | Spurs | NA | LeBron James (20) | 18,797 | 1–1 |
| 3 | 5 November 2005 | Cavaliers | 106–113 | Grizzlies | NA | LeBron James (36) | 17,368 | 1–2 |
| 4 | 7 November 2005 | Cavaliers | 105–93 | Raptors | NA | LeBron James (27) | 18,281 | 2–2 |
| 5 | 9 November 2005 | SuperSonics | 85–112 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (31) | 19,564 | 3–2 |
| 6 | 11 November 2005 | Grizzlies | 70–89 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (16) | 4–2 | |
| 7 | 13 November 2005 | Cavaliers | 108–100 | Magic | 1 | LeBron James (26) | 5–2 | |
| 8 | 15 November 2005 | Wizards | 99–114 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (37) | 6–2 | |
| 9 | 18 November 2005 | Magic | 84–102 | Cavaliers | NA | Zydrunas Ilgauskas (22) | 7–2 | |
| 10 | 19 November 2005 | Cavaliers | 123–120 | Sixers | NA | Larry Hughes (37) | 8–2 | |
| 11 | 22 November 2005 | Celtics | 93–115 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (36) | 9–2 | |
| 12 | 24 November 2005 | Cavaliers | 76–98 | Pacers | NA | LeBron James (19) | 9–3 | |
| 13 | 26 November 2005 | Timberwolves | 89–85 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (38) | 9–4 | |
| 14 | 30 November 2005 | Clippers | 105–112 | Cavaliers | 1 | Zydrunas Ilgauskas (29) | 10–4 |
Record: 8–6; Home: 6–2; Road: 2–4
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Leading scorer | Attendance | Record |
| 15 | 2 December 2005 | Cavaliers | 108–115 | SuperSonics | NA | LeBron James (34) | 10–5 | |
| 16 | 3 December 2005 | Cavaliers | 90–102 | Clippers | NA | LeBron James (30) | 10–6 | |
| 17 | 6 December 2005 | Cavaliers | 102–97 | Kings | NA | LeBron James (30) | 11–6 | |
| 18 | 9 December 2005 | Nets | 109–100 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (32) | 11–7 | |
| 19 | 10 December 2005 | Cavaliers | 106–111 | Bucks | NA | LeBron James (52) | 11–8 | |
| 20 | 13 December 2005 | Hawks | 100–94 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (39) | 11–9 | |
| 21 | 15 December 2005 | Nuggets | 85–94 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (26) | 12–9 | |
| 22 | 17 December 2005 | Heat | 107–115 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (41) | 13–9 | |
| 23 | 20 December 2005 | Jazz | 85–110 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (25) | 14–9 | |
| 24 | 22 December 2005 | Cavaliers | 108–100 | Bulls | NA | LeBron James (37) | 15–9 | |
| 25 | 23 December 2005 | Pacers | 89–94 | Cavaliers | NA | Drew Gooden (21) | 16–9 | |
| 26 | 26 December 2005 | Bulls | 91–102 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (32) | 17–9 | |
| 27 | 27 December 2005 | Cavaliers | 91–96 | Nets | NA | LeBron James (31) | 17–10 | |
| 28 | 31 December 2005 | Pistons | 84–97 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (30) | 18–10 |
Record: 8–7; Home: 3–2; Road: 5–5
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Leading scorer | Attendance | Record |
| 29 | 4 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 91–84 | Bucks | NA | LeBron James (32) | 19–10 | |
| 30 | 5 January 2006 | Rockets | 90–81 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (32) | 19–11 | |
| 31 | 7 January 2006 | Bucks | 88–96 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (35) | 20–11 | |
| 32 | 10 January 2006 | Knicks | 92–84 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (36) | 20–12 | |
| 33 | 12 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 98–99 | Lakers | NA | Zydrunas Ilgauskas (29) | 20–13 | |
| 34 | 14 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 106–115 | Suns | NA | LeBron James (46) | 20–14 | |
| 35 | 15 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 87–89 | Trail Blazers | NA | LeBron James (29) | 20–15 | |
| 36 | 18 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 89–90 | Nuggets | NA | LeBron James (24) | 20–16 | |
| 37 | 20 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 79–99 | Warriors | NA | Drew Gooden (16) | 20–17 | |
| 38 | 21 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 108–90 | Jazz | NA | LeBron James (51) | 21–17 | |
| 39 | 24 January 2006 | Pacers | 66–96 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (23) | 22–17 | |
| 40 | 25 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 106–97 | Hawks | NA | LeBron James (38) | 23–17 | |
| 41 | 27 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 93–89 | Pacers | NA | LeBron James (30) | 24–17 | |
| 42 | 29 January 2006 | Suns | 106–113 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (44) | 25–17 | |
| 43 | 30 January 2006 | Cavaliers | 103–91 | Bobcats | NA | LeBron James (30) | 26–17 |
Record: 6–8; Home: 4–4; Road: 2–4
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Leading scorer | Attendance | Record |
| 44 | 1 February 2006 | Nets | 85–91 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (26) | 27–17 | |
| 45 | 2 February 2006 | Cavaliers | 73–101 | Heat | NA | LeBron James (29) | 27–18 | |
| 46 | 4 February 2006 | Sixers | 100–95 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (31) | 27–19 | |
| 47 | 6 February 2006 | Bucks | 86–89 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (22) | 28–19 | |
| 48 | 8 February 2006 | Cavaliers | 97–91 | Timberwolves | NA | LeBron James (35) | 29–19 | |
| 49 | 10 February 2006 | Cavaliers | 89–101 | Wizards | NA | LeBron James (18) | 29–20 | |
| 50 | 11 February 2006 | Warriors | 99–91 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (33) | 29–21 | |
| 51 | 13 February 2006 | Spurs | 87–101 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (44) | 30–21 | |
| 52 | 15 February 2006 | Cavaliers | 113–109 | Celtics | 2 | LeBron James (43) | 31–21 | |
| 53 | 21 February 2006 | Magic | 92–105 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (26) | 32–21 | |
| 54 | 22 February 2006 | Cavaliers | 107–116 | Sixers | NA | LeBron James (33) | 32–22 | |
| 55 | 24 February 2006 | Wizards | 102–94 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (25) | 32–23 | |
| 56 | 26 February 2006 | Cavaliers | 78–90 | Pistons | NA | LeBron James (22) | 32–24 | |
| 57 | 27 February 2006 | Pistons | 84–72 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (26) | 32–25 |
Record: 10–4; Home: 7–1; Road: 3–3
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Leading scorer | Attendance | Record |
| 58 | 1 March 2006 | Kings | 97–90 | Cavaliers | NA | Three-way tie (19) | 32–26 | |
| 59 | 2 March 2006 | Cavaliers | 92–91 | Bulls | NA | LeBron James (33) | 33–26 | |
| 60 | 5 March 2006 | Bulls | 72–91 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (37) | 34–26 | |
| 61 | 7 March 2006 | Raptors | 99–106 | Cavaliers | NA | Ronald Murray (24) | 35–26 | |
| 62 | 8 March 2006 | Cavaliers | 98–97 | Raptors | NA | LeBron James (35) | 36–26 | |
| 63 | 10 March 2006 | Cavaliers | 73–102 | Magic | NA | LeBron James (25) | 36–27 | |
| 64 | 12 March 2006 | Cavaliers | 92–98 | Heat | NA | LeBron James (47) | 36–28 | |
| 65 | 14 March 2006 | Cavaliers | 87–91 | Mavericks | NA | LeBron James (36) | 36–29 | |
| 66 | 17 March 2006 | Trail Blazers | 84–99 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (27) | 37–29 | |
| 67 | 19 March 2006 | Lakers | 95–96 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (29) | 38–29 | |
| 68 | 22 March 2006 | Bobcats | 118–120 | Cavaliers | 1 | LeBron James (37) | 39–29 | |
| 69 | 24 March 2006 | Celtics | 82–94 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (36) | 40–29 | |
| 70 | 26 March 2006 | Cavaliers | 104–102 | Rockets | 1 | LeBron James (36) | 41–29 | |
| 71 | 29 March 2006 | Mavericks | 94–107 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (46) | 42–29 |
Record: 8–3; Home: 4–0; Road: 4–3
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Leading scorer | Attendance | Record |
| 72 | 1 April 2006 | Heat | 99–106 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (47) | 43–29 | |
| 73 | 2 April 2006 | Cavaliers | 101–97 | Bobcats | NA | LeBron James (35) | 44–29 | |
| 74 | 4 April 2006 | Sixers | 91–124 | Cavaliers | NA | LeBron James (37) | 45–29 | |
| 75 | 5 April 2006 | Cavaliers | 94–96 | Knicks | NA | LeBron James (36) | 45–30 | |
| 76 | 8 April 2006 | Cavaliers | 108–102 | Nets | NA | LeBron James (37) | 46–30 | |
| 77 | 10 April 2006 | Cavaliers | 103–101 | Hornets | NA | LeBron James (32) | 47–30 | |
| 78 | 12 April 2006 | Cavaliers | 73–96 | Pistons | NA | LeBron James (22) | 47–31 | |
| 79 | 13 April 2006 | Knicks | 87–91 | Cavaliers | NA | Larry Hughes (26) | 48–31 | |
| 80 | 16 April 2006 | Cavaliers | 92–104 | Wizards | NA | LeBron James (17) | 48–32 | |
| 81 | 17 April 2006 | Cavaliers | 93–88 | Celtics | NA | Larry Hughes (21) | 49–32 | |
| 82 | 19 April 2006 | Hawks | 99–100 | Cavaliers | NA | Ronald Murray (19) | 50–32 |
Note: GP= Games played; GS = Games started; MIN= Minutes; FG% = field goal %, FT% = free throw %, 3FG% = 3 point % STL= Steals; BLK = Blocks; AST = Assists; REB = Rebounds; PTS = Points
Regular Season
| Player | GP | GS | MIN | FG% | FT% | 3FG% | STL | BLK | AST | REB | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LeBron James | 79 | 79 | 42.5 | 48.0% | 73.8% | 33.5% | 1.56 | .84 | 6.6 | 7.0 | 31.4 |
| Zydrunas Ilgauskas | 78 | 78 | 29.3 | 50.6% | 83.4% | 0.0% | .49 | 1.74 | 1.2 | 7.6 | 15.6 |
| Larry Hughes | 36 | 31 | 35.6 | 40.9% | 75.6% | 36.8% | 1.47 | .58 | 3.6 | 4.5 | 15.5 |
| Flip Murray | 28 | 25 | 36.7 | 44.8% | 70.2% | 30.8% | 1.36 | .25 | 2.8 | 2.4 | 13.5 |
| Drew Gooden | 79 | 79 | 27.5 | 51.2% | 68.2% | 33.3% | .66 | .62 | .7 | 8.4 | 10.7 |
| Donyell Marshall | 81 | 0 | 25.6 | 39.5% | 74.8% | 32.4% | .73 | .51 | .7 | 6.1 | 9.3 |
| Damon Jones | 82 | 7 | 25.5 | 38.7% | 64.0% | 37.7% | .45 | .01 | 2.1 | 1.6 | 6.7 |
| Eric Snow | 82 | 0 | 28.8 | 40.9% | 68.8% | 10.0% | .93 | .23 | 4.2 | 2.4 | 4.8 |
| Anderson Varejão | 48 | 4 | 15.8 | 52.7% | 51.3% | 0.0% | .65 | .40 | .4 | 4.9 | 4.6 |
| Sasha Pavlović | 53 | 19 | 15.3 | 41.0% | 65.3% | 36.5% | .36 | .11 | .5 | 1.5 | 4.5 |
| Stephen Graham | 13 | 0 | 9.0 | 42.4% | 88.9% | 0.0% | .23 | .15 | .2 | 1.3 | 2.8 |
| Luke Jackson | 36 | 0 | 8.8 | 34.1% | 78.8% | 33.3% | .31 | .06 | .7 | 1.1 | 2.7 |
| Alan Henderson | 51 | 3 | 10.4 | 51.6% | 67.3% | 0.0% | .18 | .24 | .2 | 2.7 | 2.5 |
| Zendon Hamilton | 11 | 0 | 4.2 | 53.8% | 68.8% | 0.0% | .03 | .00 | .0 | 1.0 | 2.3 |
| Ira Newble | 36 | 3 | 9.8 | 29.3% | 68.8% | 23.1% | .14 | .28 | .3 | 1.6 | 1.3 |
| Mike Wilks | 37 | 0 | 6.6 | 28.8% | 50.0% | 14.3% | .02 | .00 | .5 | .7 | 1.1 |
| Martynas Andriuskevicius | 6 | 0 | 1.5 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | .33 | .00 | .0 | .7 | 0.0 |
Playoffs
| Player | GP | GS | MIN | FG% | FT% | 3FG% | STL | BLK | AST | REB | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LeBron James | 13 | 13 | 46.5 | 47.6% | 73.7% | 33.3% | 1.38 | .69 | 5.8 | 8.1 | 30.8 |
| Larry Hughes | 9 | 8 | 37.3 | 31.9% | 74.2% | 27.8% | 2.20 | .11 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 11.1 |
| Zydrunas Ilgauskas | 13 | 13 | 27.2 | 45.4% | 75.0% | 0.0% | .38 | 2.08 | .8 | 6.3 | 10.4 |
| Donyell Marshall | 13 | 0 | 26.5 | 43.3% | 88.2% | 39.1% | .54 | .69 | .6 | 5.6 | 9.5 |
| Drew Gooden | 13 | 13 | 21.7 | 52.9% | 94.4% | 0.0% | .23 | .15 | .6 | 7.5 | 8.2 |
| Flip Murray | 13 | 5 | 30.7 | 33.0% | 81.3% | 20.8% | .69 | .15 | 1.6 | 3.2 | 8.1 |
| Anderson Varejão | 13 | 0 | 18.3 | 62.0% | 70.3% | 0.0% | .69 | .15 | .2 | 4.5 | 6.8 |
| Eric Snow | 13 | 13 | 31.4 | 42.0% | 75.9% | 0.0% | .85 | .23 | 2.8 | 3.3 | 6.6 |
| Damon Jones | 13 | 0 | 13.9 | 30.8% | 75.0% | 27.8% | .15 | .00 | .9 | 1.2 | 1.8 |
| Ira Newble | 5 | 0 | 2.2 | 1.000% | 0.0% | 1.000% | .20 | .00 | .0 | .4 | 1.4 |
| Alan Henderson | 2 | 0 | 4.5 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | .00 | .00 | .0 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| Sasha Pavlović | 3 | 0 | 1.3 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | .00 | .00 | .0 | .3 | 0.0 |
| February 23, 2006 |
To Cleveland Cavaliers
Flip Murray |
To Seattle SuperSonics
Mike Wilks and cash considerations |
| February 23, 2006 |
To Cleveland Cavaliers
Lee Nailon and a 2nd round pick |
To Philadelphia 76ers
2nd round pick |
|
|
*Waived by team mid-season and later re-signed to two 10-day contracts.
**Signed to two successive 10-day contracts and then the remainder of the season.
***Traded for and then immediately waived before playing in a game.
(4) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (5) Washington Wizards
| Game | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | Score | Record
(CLE-WAS) |
Venue | TV Time | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April 22 | Washington | 86 | Cleveland | 97 | 1–0 | Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio | ABC 3:00et | 1 |
| 2 | April 25 | Washington | 89 | Cleveland | 84 | 1–1 | Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio | TNT 7:00et | 2 |
| 3 | April 28 | Cleveland | 97 | Washington | 96 | 2–1 | Verizon Center, Washington, D.C. | ESPN 8:00et | 3 |
| 4 | April 30 | Cleveland | 96 | Washington | 106 | 2–2 | Verizon Center, Washington, D.C. | TNT 8:00et | 4 |
| 5* | May 3 | Washington | 120 | Cleveland | 121 | 3–2 | Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio | TNT 8:30et | 5 |
| 6* | May 5 | Cleveland | 114 | Washington | 113 | 4–2 | Verizon Center, Washington, D.C. | ESPN 8:00et | 6 |
| Cleveland wins series 4–2 |
|||||||||
*Required overtime
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (4) Cleveland Cavaliers
| Game | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | Score | Record
(DET-CLE) |
Venue | TV Time | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 7 | Cleveland | 86 | Detroit | 113 | 1–0 | Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan | ABC 3:30et | 1 |
| 2 | May 9 | Cleveland | 91 | Detroit | 97 | 2–0 | Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan | TNT 7:00et | 2 |
| 3 | May 13 | Detroit | 77 | Cleveland | 86 | 2–1 | Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio | ESPN 5:00et | 3 |
| 4 | May 15 | Detroit | 72 | Cleveland | 74 | 2–2 | Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio | TNT 7:00et | 4 |
| 5 | May 17 | Cleveland | 86 | Detroit | 84 | 2–3 | Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan | TNT 7:00et | 5 |
| 6 | May 19 | Detroit | 84 | Cleveland | 82 | 3–3 | Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio | ESPN 7:00et | 6 |
| 7 | May 21 | Cleveland | 61 | Detroit | 79 | 4–3 | Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan | ABC 3:30et | 7 |
| Detroit wins series 4–3 |
|||||||||
2006 marked the first time LeBron James made the playoffs in his career, and the first time the Cavaliers had made the playoffs since 1998 with Shawn Kemp. They came off a playoff series win vs the Wizards, while the Pistons came in off a 4–1 win vs the 8th seeded Bucks. Detroit was expected to win the series, and took a commanding two games to none lead with two wins at the Palace of Auburn Hills. James and the Cavaliers would not be intimidated however, and won their two games at home to tie the series 2–2. Coming into game 5, both teams were confident, but the Pistons were expected to pull out the win easily. The game was low scoring throughout as usual in this series, with Cleveland holding a 68 to 66 lead throughout 3 quarters. With the game tied at 84 with 26 seconds left in regulation, Drew Gooden came through and hit a layup to give Cleveland the lead that they would never squander. James led the Cavs with 32 and this brought the series to Cleveland up 3–2, quite shockingly. Detroit held on to a 2 point win to win game 6, and won game 7 at home to seal the deal, but this was the coming out party for the Cavaliers in the playoffs, scaring the 2004 champs.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cleveland Cavaliers seasons | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franchise • History • Seasons | ||||||||||
| 1970s | 1970–71 | 1971–72 | 1972–73 | 1973–74 | 1974–75 | 1975–76 | 1976–77 | 1977–78 | 1978–79 | |
| 1980s | 1979–80 | 1980–81 | 1981–82 | 1982–83 | 1983–84 | 1984–85 | 1985–86 | 1986–87 | 1987–88 | 1988–89 |
| 1990s | 1989–90 | 1990–91 | 1991–92 | 1992–93 | 1993–94 | 1994–95 | 1995–96 | 1996–97 | 1997–98 | 1998–99 |
| 2000s | 1999–00 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | 2003–04 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 |
| 2010s | 2009–10 | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | |||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)