The 2006–07 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 37th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Led by 22-year old forward LeBron James, the Cavaliers finished the season with a 50–32 record, finishing second-place in the Central Division, winning their first Eastern Conference championship, and earning the franchise's first trip to the NBA Finals. During the season, the Cavaliers were recorded as having the fourth best team defensive rating in the NBA.[1]
| 2006–07 Cleveland Cavaliers season | |
|---|---|
Conference champions | |
| Head coach | Mike Brown |
| General manager | Danny Ferry |
| Owner | Dan Gilbert |
| Arena | Quicken Loans Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 50–32 (.610) |
| Place | Division: 2nd (Central) Conference: 2nd (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | NBA Finals (lost to Spurs 0–4) |
Stats at Basketball Reference | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Fox Sports Ohio WUAB |
| Radio | WTAM |
The Cavaliers clinched their playoff berth for the second consecutive season since the 2005–06 season and their second time since the 1997–98 season. In the playoffs, the Cavaliers swept the Washington Wizards in four games in the First Round, then defeated the New Jersey Nets in six games in the Semi-finals, before finally defeating the top-seeded Detroit Pistons in six games in the conference finals, advancing to their first ever NBA Finals.
However, in the NBA Finals, the Cavaliers were defeated by the more experienced San Antonio Spurs in four games. James was the team's leading scorer and finished in 5th place in league MVP voting.
The Cavaliers would not return to the Finals until 2015, when James returned to the team after a four year tenure with the Miami Heat.
Key Dates
edit- On June 28, the 2006 NBA draft took place in New York City.
- In July, the free agency period began.
- On October 10, the Cavaliers' preseason began with a 93–109 loss to the Boston Celtics.
- On November 1, the Cavaliers' regular season began with a 97–94 win over the Washington Wizards.
- On March 27, the Cavaliers clinched a playoff berth.
- On June 2, the Cavaliers won their first ever Eastern Conference championship.
- On June 14, the Cavaliers' season ended in an NBA Finals sweep to the San Antonio Spurs.
Offseason
editFree agents
edit
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Trades
edit| August 18, 2006 | To Cleveland Cavaliers Eddie Basden |
To Chicago Bulls Martynas Andriuskevicius |
| October 13, 2006 | To Cleveland Cavaliers Dwayne Jones |
To Boston Celtics Luke Jackson and cash considerations |
Draft picks
edit| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | School/Club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | Shannon Brown | Guard |  United States |
Michigan State |
| 2 | 42* | Daniel Gibson | Guard | United States |
Texas |
| 2 | 55 | Ejike Ugboaja | Forward |  Nigeria |
Union Bank Lagos (Nigeria) |
*2nd round pick acquired from Philadelphia in Lee Nailon deal.[2]
Roster
edit| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
Roster |
Player salaries
edit| Rank | Player | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Larry Hughes | $13,363,012 |
| 2 | Zydrunas Ilgauskas | $9,422,697 |
| 3 | Drew Gooden | $6,645,402 |
| 4 | LeBron James | $6,128,090 |
| 5 | Eric Snow | $6,093,750 |
| 6 | Donyell Marshall | $5,633,037 |
| 7 | Damon Jones | $3,884,678 |
| 8 | Ira Newble | $3,196,050 |
| 9 | Scot Pollard | $2,200,000 |
| 10 | Sasha Pavlović | $1,962,206 |
| 11 | David Wesley | $1,750,000 |
| 12 | Shannon Brown | $971,280 |
| 13 | Anderson Varejão | $945,600 |
| 14 | Dwayne Jones | $664,209 |
| 15 | Daniel Gibson | $412,718 |
Regular season
editSeason standings
edit| W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Detroit Pistons | 53 | 29 | .646 | - | 26–15 | 27–14 | 9–7 |
| x-Cleveland Cavaliers | 50 | 32 | .610 | 3 | 30–11 | 20–21 | 10–6 |
| x-Chicago Bulls | 49 | 33 | .598 | 4 | 31–10 | 18–23 | 12–4 |
| Indiana Pacers | 35 | 47 | .427 | 18 | 22–19 | 13–28 | 8–8 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | 28 | 54 | .341 | 25 | 18–23 | 10–31 | 1–15 |
| # | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | |
| 1 | c-Detroit Pistons | 53 | 29 | .646 | – |
| 2 | x-Cleveland Cavaliers | 50 | 32 | .610 | 3 |
| 3 | y-Toronto Raptors | 47 | 35 | .573 | 6 |
| 4 | y-Miami Heat | 44 | 38 | .537 | 9 |
| 5 | x-Chicago Bulls | 49 | 33 | .598 | 4 |
| 6 | x-New Jersey Nets | 41 | 41 | .500 | 12 |
| 7 | x-Washington Wizards | 41 | 41 | .500 | 12 |
| 8 | x-Orlando Magic | 40 | 42 | .488 | 13 |
| 9 | Philadelphia 76ers | 35 | 47 | .427 | 18 |
| 10 | Indiana Pacers | 35 | 47 | .427 | 18 |
| 11 | New York Knicks | 33 | 49 | .402 | 20 |
| 12 | Charlotte Bobcats | 33 | 49 | .402 | 20 |
| 13 | Atlanta Hawks | 30 | 52 | .366 | 23 |
| 14 | Milwaukee Bucks | 28 | 54 | .341 | 25 |
| 15 | Boston Celtics | 24 | 58 | .293 | 29 |
Playoffs
editGame log
editFirst round
editA rematch of the previous year's first round series was spoiled when Wizards star Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler were both forced out of the playoffs due to injuries received in the later parts of the regular season. Without Arenas and Butler, the Wizards found themselves unable to stop LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers from sweeping them out of the playoffs. It was Cleveland's first playoff sweep in franchise history.
Eastern Semifinals
editThe Cavaliers advanced to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 1992, while the Nets have lost in the conference semifinals in three out of the last four years.
New Jersey Nets point guard Jason Kidd averaged a triple double the entire playoffs, scoring 14.6 points, grabbing 10.9 rebounds and dishing out 10.9 assists per game.
The Cavaliers also got revenge of sorts, by eliminating the Nets two years after the Nets eliminated them on the final day of the regular season.[3][4]
Eastern Finals
editIn a rematch of last year's second-round series, the Pistons and the Cavaliers matched up in perhaps one of the closest contested series in NBA history, with the first five games being decided by 6 points or less. The spotlight of the series fell on Cleveland's LeBron James. Despite gaining some momentum in the opening games of the series against the experienced Pistons, key last-second decisions by James led to Cleveland losses in Games 1 and 2 in Detroit, by identical scores where Cleveland led for most of the two games. They faced a 0–2 deficit for the second straight year but would easily remember from the year before they could win three straight games to get back into the series.
With media circles on his back for his complacency in these games (James had a playoff career low 10 points in Game 1), LeBron came back to will the Cavs to close victories in Games 3 and 4 in Cleveland, evening the series at 2. The series shifted back to Detroit for a Game 5 that proved to be one of the most memorable postseason games in recent NBA history. In a match that went into double overtime, the Cavaliers stunned the Pistons on their home court, thanks to LeBron James' playoff career-high 48 point performance. James scored the Cavaliers' final 25 points of the game, including all 18 points in overtime making it two straight two-point wins at the Palace in Game 5.
This time around the heavily favored Cavaliers took advantage of their home court in 2007 and exploded in Game 6 to close out the Pistons once and for all, and to clinch the franchise's first trip to the NBA Finals. Rookie Daniel Gibson scored his career high 31 points including five three-pointers to lift the Cavs in the second half behind a roaring home crowd.
NBA Finals
editGame 1
editLeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers entered the 2007 Finals as newcomers. Game 1 was the first NBA Finals appearance in franchise history, and the first for each of its players (other than reserve point guard Eric Snow). However, the San Antonio Spurs had been to the Finals in three of the past eight seasons, winning a championship each time. With solid performances by Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginóbili, the Spurs won the series opener in convincing fashion, limiting LeBron James to 14 points on 4–16 shooting.
June 7 9:00 p.m. ET |
| Cleveland Cavaliers 76, San Antonio Spurs 85 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 15–20, 20–20, 14–24, 27–21 | ||
| Pts: Gibson 16 Rebs: James 7 Asts: James, Gibson 4 each TOs: LeBron James 6 |
Pts: Parker 27 Rebs: Duncan 13 Asts: Tony Parker 7 Blocks: Tim Duncan 5 | |
Game 2
editThe Spurs took a stranglehold on momentum in Game 2. The Spurs big three overwhelmed the Cavs and the Spurs led by as many as 29 points in the third quarter. They absolutely dominated game during first 3 quarters and played show-time basketball. A furious 25–6 rally by Cleveland in the final quarter wasn't enough as the Spurs took a 2–0 lead in the series.
June 10 9:00 p.m. ET |
| Cleveland Cavaliers 92, San Antonio Spurs 103 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 17–28, 16–30, 29–31, 30–14 | ||
| Pts: LeBron James 25 Rebs: Anderson Varejão 10 Asts: LeBron James 6 TOs: LeBron James 6 |
Pts: Tony Parker 30 Rebs: Duncan, Horry 9 each Asts: Tim Duncan 8 Blocks: Robert Horry 5 | |
Game 3
editRookie Daniel Gibson started Game 3 in place of the injured Larry Hughes but scored a series-low 2 points on 1–10 shooting. As a team the Cavs shot only .367 but out-rebounded the Spurs 48–41. Zydrunas Ilgauskas had a 2006–07 season high 18 rebounds. On the game's final play, LeBron James missed a potential game-tying 29 foot 3-pointer (which he contested as a foul on Bruce Bowen).
Game 3 was the lowest-scoring Finals game since 1955, with Tim Duncan of the Spurs having his lowest scoring game in his NBA Finals career, with 14 points.
June 12 9:00 p.m. ET |
| San Antonio Spurs 75, Cleveland Cavaliers 72 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 16–18, 24–20, 15–12, 20–22 | ||
| Pts: Tony Parker 17 Rebs: Duncan, Bowen 9 each Asts: Manu Ginóbili 5 Stls: Michael Finley 4 |
Pts: LeBron James 25 Rebs: Ilgauskas 18 Asts: LeBron James 7 TOs: LeBron James 5 | |
| San Antonio leads series 3-0 | ||
Game 4
editSan Antonio started out strong through the first three quarters, leading by as many as 11. Cleveland would stage a rally near the end of the third quarter and the first five minutes of the fourth, scoring 14 consecutive points to take its first second-half lead of the series. However, the Spurs would stage a 12–3 rally of their own to retake the lead and win the series in a 4–0 sweep.
June 14 9:00 p.m. ET |
| San Antonio Spurs 83, Cleveland Cavaliers 82 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 19–20, 20–14, 21–18, 22–27 | ||
| Pts: Manu Ginóbili 27 Rebs: Tim Duncan 15 Asts: Manu Ginóbili 5 TOs: Tim Duncan 6 |
Pts: LeBron James 24 Rebs: Ilgauskas 13 Asts: LeBron James 10 TOs: LeBron James 6 | |
| San Antonio wins series 4–0 | ||
Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland Attendance: 20,562 Referees: Bennett Salvatore, Joe Forte, Eddie F. Rush |
Player statistics
edit| 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
edit| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | FT% | 3P% | SPG | BPG | APG | RPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LeBron James | 78 | 78 | 40.9 | 47.6% | 69.8% | 31.9% | 1.60 | .71 | 6.0 | 6.7 | 27.3 |
| Larry Hughes | 70 | 68 | 37.1 | 40.0% | 67.6% | 33.3% | 1.27 | .37 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 14.9 |
| Zydrunas Ilgauskas | 78 | 78 | 27.3 | 45.5% | 80.7% | 0.0% | .62 | 1.26 | 1.6 | 7.7 | 11.9 |
| Drew Gooden | 80 | 80 | 28.0 | 47.3% | 71.4% | 16.7% | .88 | .35 | 1.1 | 8.5 | 11.1 |
| Sasha Pavlović | 67 | 28 | 22.9 | 45.3% | 79.4% | 40.5% | .82 | .25 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 9.0 |
| Donyell Marshall | 81 | 0 | 16.8 | 42.4% | 66.3% | 35.1% | .48 | .53 | .6 | 4.0 | 7.0 |
| Anderson Varejão | 81 | 6 | 21.9 | 47.6% | 61.6% | 0.0% | .94 | .64 | .9 | 6.7 | 6.8 |
| Damon Jones | 60 | 0 | 19.6 | 38.6% | 68.2% | 38.5% | .27 | .03 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 6.6 |
| Daniel Gibson | 60 | 16 | 16.5 | 42.4% | 71.8% | 41.9% | .38 | .13 | 1.2 | 1.5 | 4.6 |
| Eric Snow | 82 | 45 | 23.5 | 41.7% | 63.7% | 0.0% | .67 | .20 | 4.0 | 2.3 | 4.2 |
| Shannon Brown | 23 | 5 | 8.8 | 37.8% | 71.4% | 28.0% | .30 | .13 | .4 | .9 | 3.2 |
| Ira Newble | 15 | 1 | 8.6 | 43.2% | 60.6% | 53.3% | .40 | .00 | .1 | 2.0 | 3.1 |
| David Wesley | 35 | 5 | 10.1 | 29.3% | 79.4% | 23.7% | .34 | .11 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 2.1 |
| Scot Pollard | 24 | 0 | 4.5 | 42.3% | 50.0% | 0.0% | .17 | .04 | .1 | 1.3 | 1.0 |
| Dwayne Jones | 4 | 0 | 4.5 | 0.0% | 50.0% | 0.0% | .00 | .00 | .0 | 1.5 | .8 |
Playoffs
edit| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | FT% | 3P% | SPG | BPG | APG | RPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LeBron James | 20 | 20 | 44.7 | 41.6% | 75.5% | 28.0% | 1.70 | .50 | 8.0 | 8.1 | 25.1 |
| Zydrunas Ilgauskas | 20 | 20 | 32.5 | 49.2% | 83.8% | 0.0% | .45 | .80 | .9 | 9.7 | 12.6 |
| Drew Gooden | 20 | 20 | 30.3 | 49.3% | 76.9% | 0.0% | .50 | .45 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 11.4 |
| Larry Hughes | 18 | 18 | 35.5 | 34.7% | 74.6% | 35.2% | 1.39 | .44 | 2.4 | 3.9 | 11.3 |
| Sasha Pavlović | 20 | 20 | 30.8 | 38.1% | 52.8% | 34.5% | .95 | .25 | 1.6 | 2.6 | 9.2 |
| Daniel Gibson | 20 | 2 | 20.1 | 43.1% | 88.4% | 40.9% | .60 | .20 | 1.1 | 1.6 | 8.3 |
| Anderson Varejão | 20 | 0 | 22.4 | 51.1% | 56.3% | 0.0% | 1.05 | .55 | .6 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| Donyell Marshall | 19 | 0 | 10.7 | 33.3% | 63.6% | 31.1% | .16 | .21 | .3 | 2.2 | 3.5 |
| Damon Jones | 11 | 0 | 12.6 | 30.8% | 1.000% | 31.8% | .00 | .00 | 1.0 | .8 | 2.4 |
| Eric Snow | 19 | 0 | 12.8 | 31.6% | 57.1% | 0.0% | .58 | .11 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.7 |
| Ira Newble | 6 | 0 | 1.7 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | .00 | .00 | .2 | .2 | 0.0 |
| Scot Pollard | 3 | 0 | 1.0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | .00 | .00 | .0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Shannon Brown | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | .00 | .00 | .0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Awards and records
editAwards
edit- LeBron James was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played from November 13 through November 19.
- LeBron James was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played from March 5 through March 11.
- LeBron James was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Month for the month of March, the fifth time he has won the award.
- After the season, LeBron James was named to the All-NBA second team as a forward.
Records
edit- On November 25, Zydrunas Ilgauskas tied a franchise record for offensive rebounds in a half (10) and in a game (12) in the Cavs' 108–95 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.
- On December 6, Zydrunas Ilgauskas became the all-time offensive rebound leader in Cavs history in a 95–91 win over the Toronto Raptors.
- In Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals, LeBron James set or tied franchise playoff records for: points in a game (48), points in overtime (9), field goals made and attempted in a game (18, 33) and field goals made in overtime (4).
- In Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals, Daniel Gibson set or tied franchise playoff records for: points in a quarter (19), points in a half (25), rookie points in a game (31) and three-pointers in a half (5).
- With his 19th playoff win, coach Mike Brown set the franchise record for playoff victories.
Milestones
edit- On December 23, LeBron James became the youngest player in NBA history to score 7,000 career points (21 years, 359 days).
- In the 2006–07 season, the Cavaliers swept all four California teams for the first time in team history (Golden State, Sacramento, LA Lakers, LA Clippers)
- On March 14, LeBron James became the youngest player in NBA history to score 8,000 career points (22 years, 74 days).
- On April 6, LeBron James became the 2nd fastest player to record 8,000 points, 2,000 rebounds and 2,000 assists in a career. LeBron did it in 311 games while it took Oscar Robertson 269 games and Michael Jordan 339.
- On April 14, the Cavaliers played the 3,000th game in franchise history
All-Star
edit- LeBron James led all players in votes received and was voted in as a starter for the 2007 NBA All-Star Game. His 2,516,049 votes were the second most in NBA history. He became the first player in team history to lead the league in votes.
- LeBron James led the Eastern Conference All-Stars with 28 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists in the 132–153 loss.
- Damon Jones participated in the Three Point Contest and finished in 5th place.
- LeBron James participated in the Skills Challenge and finished in 3rd place.
Transactions
editTrades
editThe Cavaliers did not make a trade during the 2006–07 NBA season.
Free agents
editThe Cavaliers did not sign any free agents during the 2006–07 NBA season.
Development League
edit- On March 2, Shannon Brown was assigned to the NBDL's Albuquerque Thunderbirds.
- On March 3, Shannon Brown was recalled from the Thunderbirds.
- On March 23, Dwayne Jones was assigned to the Thunderbirds.
- On March 27, Dwayne Jones was recalled from the Thunderbirds.
References
edit- ↑ "Teams Defense". NBA.com. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
- ↑ Conditional 2nd round pick traded to Philadelphia for Lee Nailon and a 2006 2nd round pick https://www.cbc.ca/sports/basketball/76ers-deal-nailon-to-cavaliers-1.580984
- ↑ ESPN.com Recap: Nets VS. Celtics, April 20, 2005
- ↑ ESPN.com Recap: Cavaliers VS. Raptors, April 20, 2005
External links
edit
Media related to 2006–07 Cleveland Cavaliers season at Wikimedia Commons- 2006–07 Cavaliers Tribute on YouTube
