2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season

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2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season
NBA Champions
Conference Champions
Division Champions
Head coach
General manager David Griffin
Arena Quicken Loans Arena
Results
Record 57–25 (.695)
Place Division: 1st (Central)
Conference: 1st (Eastern)
Playoff finish NBA Champions
(Defeated Warriors 4–3)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television Fox Sports Ohio
Radio
< 2014–15 2016–17 >
File:Lebron dunking.jpg
Team captain forward LeBron James played his ninth season with Cleveland (and the second of his second stint). He was an All-Star for the twelfth time in his career, was named to the All-NBA First Team, and was named Finals MVP after leading the Cavaliers back from a 3-1 deficit against the Golden State Warriors for the franchise's first NBA title.

The 2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 46th season of the Cleveland Cavaliers franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Cavaliers won the 2016 NBA championship, the first NBA championship in franchise history. During the regular season, the Cavaliers had the third best team offensive rating and were tenth in team defensive rating in the NBA. During the playoffs, the Cavaliers had the best team offensive rating and were eighth in team defensive rating in the NBA.

In the playoffs, the Cavaliers swept the Detroit Pistons in four games in the First Round, then swept the Atlanta Hawks in four games in the Semi-finals, before finally defeating the Toronto Raptors in six games in the Conference Finals to reach the NBA Finals for a second consecutive year. There, the Cavaliers faced off against the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors, the team that defeated them in the previous year's NBA Finals in six games, and were coming off of a record-breaking regular season, where the team posted a league-best 73–9 record.

The Cavaliers would go on to defeat the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals in seven games, coming back from a 3–1 series deficit to avenge their loss from the prior year. The Cavaliers became the first team in NBA Finals history to recover from a 3–1 series deficit and win.[1] The Cavaliers' victory also marked the first championship win by a major professional sports team from Cleveland since 1964, ending a 52–year championship drought dating back to the 1964 NFL title won by the Cleveland Browns. The Cleveland Cavaliers would be the first NBA champion to represent the Central Division since the 2003-04 Detroit Pistons.

Regular season summary

The Cavaliers started the season strong and rose to the top of the Eastern Conference. However, despite having the best record in their conference, the team fired head coach David Blatt on January 22, 2016.[2] Assistant coach Tyronn Lue took over for the remainder of the season.[3] The Cavaliers finished the regular season with a 57–25 record and obtained the number one seed in the Eastern Conference for the first time since 2010.[4]

File:Kyrie Irving (30548520130).jpg
Team captain guard Kyrie Irving played his fifth season with Cleveland and hit the go-ahead shot in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

Postseason summary

In the 2016 NBA Playoffs' first round, the Cleveland Cavaliers matched up against the 8th seed Detroit Pistons. In the first game of their series, Cleveland’s point guard Kyrie Irving led the way scoring 31 points and sealing a win for the Cavaliers, 106-101.[5] The Cavs swept the rest of the series, winning 107-90 in Game 2, 101-91 in Game 3, and 100-98 in Game 4.[6] Kyrie Irving was the top scorer of the series averaging 27.5 points per game.[7]Lebron James led the Cleveland Cavaliers in this series in assist and steals, averaging 6.8 assists and 1.8 steals. [8] And the big man Kevin Love led Cleveland in rebounds averaging 12 total rebounds per game.[9] The Cavaliers were matched with the number four seed, Atlanta Hawks, for their second series in the 2015-2016 post-season. Similar to their last series, they swept their opponents 4-0.[10] Lebron James led the way in scoring, averaging 24.3 points per game. He also led his team in assists and steals, averaging 7.8 assists and 3 steals per game.[11] Kevin Love was the rebound leader for the series averaging 13 rebounds per game.[12] The Cavaliers were now facing the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals. The series between the Raptors and the Cavaliers took 6 games to finish with Cleveland winning 4 to 2. This was the first time in their 2015-2016 playoff run that they lost a game.[13] Lebron James led his team in all major stats against the Toronto Raptors. He averaged 26 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 6.7 assists in the 6 game series. [14] The Cavaliers were off to face the Golden State Warriors in the NBA finals. They were considered huge underdogs because the Warriors had accomplished an incredible feat in the regular season, seventy-three wins and nine losses, the best record ever in the NBA.[15]

The Cavaliers lost three of the first four games of the 2016 NBA Finals to the Golden State Warriors, who had defeated Cleveland in the Finals the year before.[16] In turn, the Cavaliers won Games 5 and 6 of the series to bring about a climactic Game 7 at Oracle Arena.[17]

With Game 7 tied at 89–89, LeBron James chased down and blocked Andre Iguodala's attempted lay-up in a play that became known as "The Block."[18][19] The Cavaliers ultimately won Game 7, 93–89, for the first NBA championship in franchise history.[17] Until then, no team had recovered from a 3–1 deficit in an NBA Finals series.[1] James was named the unanimous NBA Finals MVP, receiving the award for the third time in his career.[18]

This win ended a fifty-two year championship run in the city of Cleveland, with the last championship that any sports team had won there being 1964 when the Cleveland Browns won an NFL season.[20] When the game ended, it was visible the sense of relief that the players felt. Lebron James was the star of the show, and he could not hold his tears back. When he finally got the strength to stand up, the only thing that he was able to say was, "Cleveland, this is for you," as the Oracle Arena blasted with cheers from Cleveland fans.[21] Not only was this a monumental win for the Cleveland Cavaliers it also cemented Lebron James as one of the all-time greats the NBA has ever seen.[22] Prior to this ring, he had only won with the Miami Heat. Haters were quick to disregard his Miami wins because the team were filled with talented players like Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, but the win in Cleveland was undoubtedly one of the best basketball performances the NBA has ever seen. [23]

Draft picks

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Main article: 2015 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College/Club team
1 24 Tyus Jones PG  United States Duke
2 53 Sir'Dominic Pointer SG / SF  United States St. John's

Roster

2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From
PG 8 Dellavedova, Matthew 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 198 lb (90 kg) 1990-09-08 Saint Mary's
C 9 Frye, Channing 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 255 lb (116 kg) 1983-05-17 Arizona
PG 2 Irving, Kyrie (C) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1992-03-23 Duke
SF 23 James, LeBron (C) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1984-12-30 St. Vincent–St. Mary HS (OH)
SF 24 Jefferson, Richard 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 233 lb (106 kg) 1980-06-21 Arizona
SF 30 Jones, Dahntay 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1980-12-27 Duke
SF 1 Jones, James 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 218 lb (99 kg) 1980-10-04 Miami (FL)
C 14 Kaun, Sasha 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 260 lb (118 kg) 1985-05-08 Kansas
PF 0 Love, Kevin (C) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 251 lb (114 kg) 1988-09-07 UCLA
PG 12 McRae, Jordan 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 179 lb (81 kg) 1991-03-28 Tennessee
C 20 Mozgov, Timofey 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 275 lb (125 kg) 1986-07-16 Russia
SG 4 Shumpert, Iman 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1990-06-26 Georgia Tech
SG 5 Smith, J. R. 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1985-09-09 St. Benedict's Prep (NJ)
F/C 13 Thompson, Tristan 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 238 lb (108 kg) 1991-03-13 Texas
PG 52 Williams, Mo 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 198 lb (90 kg) 1982-12-19 Alabama
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster
Last transaction: April 13, 2016

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 MIN FG% FT% 3FG% STL BLK AST REB PTS
LeBron James 76 76 35.6 52.0% 73.1% 30.9% 1.4 .60 6.8 7.4 25.3
Kyrie Irving 53 53 31.5 44.8% 88.5% 32.1% 1.1 .30 4.7 3.0 19.6
Kevin Love 77 77 31.5 41.9% 82.2% 36.0% .80 .50 2.4 9.9 16.0
Dahntay Jones 1 0 42.0 42.9% 0% 50.0% 1.0 2.0 2.0 5.0 13.0
J.R. Smith 77 77 30.7 41.5% 63.4% 40.0% 1.1 .30 1.7 2.8 12.4
Tristan Thompson 82 34 27.7 58.8% 61.6% 0% .50 .60 .6 9.0 7.8
Matthew Dellavedova 76 14 24.6 40.5% 86.4% 41.0% .60 .10 4.4 2.1 7.5
Iman Shumpert 54 5 24.4 37.4% 78.4% 29.5% 1.0 .40 1.7 3.8 5.8
Mo Williams 41 14 18.2 43.7% 90.5% 35.3% .30 .10 2.4 1.9 8.2
Richard Jefferson 74 5 17.9 45.8% 66.7% 38.2% .40 .20 .8 1.7 5.5
Timofey Mozgov 76 48 17.4 56.5% 71.6% 14.3% .30 .80 .4 4.4 6.3
Channing Frye 26 3 17.2 44.1% 78.6% 37.7% .30 .30 1.0 3.6 7.5
Anderson Varejao 31 0 10.0 42.1% 76.2% 0% .40 .20 .6 2.9 2.6
James Jones 48 0 9.6 40.8% 80.8% 39.4% .20 .20 .3 1.0 3.7
Jared Cunningham 40 3 8.9 35.2% 62.5% 31.3% .30 .10 .5 0.7 2.6
Jordan McRae 15 1 7.5 44.2% 69.2% 63.6% .00 .10 1.0 0.8 4.1
Sasha Kaun 25 0 3.8 52.9% 45.5% 0% .20 .20 .10 1.0 0.9
Joe Harris 5 0 3.0 25.0% 0% 25.0% .00 .00 0.4 .6 0.6

[24]

Standings

Eastern Conference
# Team W L PCT GB GP
1 c – Cleveland Cavaliers * 57 25 .695 – 82
2 y – Toronto Raptors * 56 26 .683 1.0 82
3 y – Miami Heat * 48 34 .585 9.0 82
4 x – Atlanta Hawks 48 34 .585 9.0 82
5 x – Boston Celtics 48 34 .585 9.0 82
6 x – Charlotte Hornets 48 34 .585 9.0 82
7 x – Indiana Pacers 45 37 .549 12.0 82
8 x – Detroit Pistons 44 38 .537 13.0 82
9 Chicago Bulls 42 40 .512 15.0 82
10 Washington Wizards 41 41 .500 16.0 82
11 Orlando Magic 35 47 .427 22.0 82
12 Milwaukee Bucks 33 49 .402 24.0 82
13 New York Knicks 32 50 .390 25.0 82
14 Brooklyn Nets 21 61 .256 36.0 82
15 Philadelphia 76ers 10 72 .122 47.0 82


Central Division
W L PCT GB Home Road Div GP
c – Cleveland Cavaliers 57 25 .695 0.0 33–8 24–17 8–8 82
x – Indiana Pacers 45 37 .549 12.0 26–15 19–22 8–8 82
x – Detroit Pistons 44 38 .537 13.0 26–15 18–23 10–6 82
Chicago Bulls 42 40 .512 15.0 26–15 16–25 10–6 82
Milwaukee Bucks 33 49 .402 24.0 23–18 10–31 4–12 82


Preseason

2015 pre-season game log
2015–16 season schedule

Regular season game log

2015–16 game log
2015–16 season schedule

Playoffs

Game log

2016 playoff game log
2016 playoff schedule

Transactions

Trades

June 25, 2015 To Cleveland Cavaliers[25]
Rakeem Christmas
Cedi Osman
2019 Second Round Pick		 To Minnesota Timberwolves
Tyus Jones
July 23, 2015 To Cleveland Cavaliers[26]
2019 Second Round Pick		 To Indiana Pacers
Rakeem Christmas
July 27, 2015 To Cleveland Cavaliers[27]
Two Trade Exceptions		 To Portland Trail Blazers
Mike Miller
Brendan Haywood
2019 & 2020 Second Round Pick
January 12, 2016 To Cleveland Cavaliers[28]
2020 Second Round Pick		 To Orlando Magic
Joe Harris
2017 Second Round Pick
February 18, 2016 To Cleveland Cavaliers[29]
Second Round Pick		 To Portland Trail Blazers
Anderson Varejão[1]
First Round Pick
February 18, 2016 To Cleveland Cavaliers[29]
Channing Frye		 To Orlando Magic
Jared Cunningham
Second Round Pick

Free agents

Re-signed

Player Signed Former Team
Iman Shumpert[30] Signed 4-year contract worth $40 million Cleveland Cavaliers
Kevin Love[31] Signed 5-year contract worth $110 million Cleveland Cavaliers
LeBron James[32] Signed 2-year contract worth $47.9 million Cleveland Cavaliers
James Jones[33] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.5 million Cleveland Cavaliers
Matthew Dellavedova[34] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.2 million Cleveland Cavaliers
J. R. Smith[35] Signed 2-year contract worth $10 million Cleveland Cavaliers
Tristan Thompson[36] Signed 5-year contract worth $82 million Cleveland Cavaliers

Additions

Player Signed Former Team
Mo Williams[37] Signed 2-year contract worth $4 million Charlotte Hornets
Richard Jefferson[38] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.5 million Dallas Mavericks
Sasha Kaun[39] Signed 2-year contract CSKA Moscow
Jordan McRae Signed 2-year contract Delaware 87ers / Phoenix Suns

Subtractions

Player Reason Left New Team
Shawn Marion[40] Retired N/A (Retired)
Kendrick Perkins[41] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.5 million New Orleans Pelicans
David Blatt (Head Coach)[42] Fired Darüşşafaka Doğuş

Awards, records and milestones

Awards

Recipient Award Date awarded Ref.
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week November 23, 2015 [43]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week January 11, 2016 [44]
LeBron James NBA All-Star starter (12th appearance) January 21, 2016 [45]
Tyronn Lue NBA All-Star Game head coach January 27, 2016 [46]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Month (February) March 3, 2016 [47]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week March 7, 2016 [48]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week March 28, 2016 [49]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week April 4, 2016 [50]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Month (March) April 5, 2016 [51]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Month (April) April 15, 2016 [52]
LeBron James All-NBA First Team May 26, 2016 [53]
LeBron James NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award June 16, 2016 [54]
LeBron James Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year December 1, 2016 [55]
LeBron James Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year December 27, 2016 [56]

Records

  • JR Smith set franchise records in:
    • Three-point field goals in a season: (204)
    • Three-point field goal attempts in a season: (510)
    • Turnover percentage in a season: (6.3%)
    • Three-point field goals in a postseason: (65)
  • Tristan Thompson set a franchise record in:
    • Offensive rating in a season: (129.8)

Milestones

  • On March 29, Tristan Thompson broke the franchise record of consecutive games with the Cavs, appearing in his 362nd consecutive game.
  • The Cavs finished the season first in the Eastern Conference for the first time since 2010.
  • The Cavs finished first in the Central Division for the second straight season.
  • The Cavs became the first team in NBA history to come back from a 3–1 deficit and win the NBA Finals.
  • The Cavs won the 2016 NBA Finals, ending the city's 52-year championship drought.
  • LeBron James famously blocked Andre Igoudala in Game 7. This has been called one of the best plays of his career.
  • LeBron James became the third player in NBA history to record a triple-double in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
  • James also became the first player in NBA history to lead both NBA Finals teams in all five statistical categories for the round.

References

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Notes

1. ^ Varejão never played a single game for Portland.

External links

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