2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season

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, which was the first NBA championship in franchise history.

2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season
NBA champions
Conference champions
Division champions
Head coachDavid Blatt (fired) Tyronn Lue
General managerDavid Griffin
OwnersDan Gilbert
ArenaQuicken Loans Arena
Results
Record57–25 (.695)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Central)
Conference: 1st (Eastern)
Playoff finishNBA Champions
(Defeated Warriors 4–3)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionFox Sports Ohio
Radio

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 Semifinals, 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]

Postseason summary

In the first two rounds of the 2016 NBA playoffs, the Cavaliers swept the Detroit Pistons and the Atlanta Hawks, respectively. [5][6] In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors in six games.[7]

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.[8] In turn, the Cavaliers won Games 5 and 6 of the series to bring about a climactic Game 7 at Oracle Arena.[9]

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."[10][11] The Cavaliers ultimately won Game 7, 93–89, for the first NBA championship in franchise history.[9] Up until then, no team 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.[10]

Draft picks
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
Roster listing
2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers roster
Players Coaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOB (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
F/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
G/F 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)
PF 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
  • (DL) On assignment to D-League affiliate
  • Injured

Roster
Last transaction: 2016–04–13

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 James767635.652.0%73.1%30.9%1.4.606.87.425.3
Dahntay Jones1042.042.9%0%50.0%1.02.02.05.013.0
Kevin Love777731.541.9%82.2%36.0%.80.502.49.916.0
Kyrie Irving535331.544.8%88.5%32.1%1.1.304.73.019.6
J.R. Smith777730.741.5%63.4%40.0%1.1.301.72.812.4
Tristan Thompson823427.758.8%61.6%0%.50.60.69.07.8
Matthew Dellavedova761424.640.5%86.4%41.0%.60.104.42.17.5
Iman Shumpert54524.437.4%78.4%29.5%1.0.401.73.85.8
Mo Williams411418.243.7%90.5%35.3%.30.102.41.98.2
Richard Jefferson74517.945.8%66.7%38.2%.40.20.81.75.5
Timofey Mozgov764817.456.5%71.6%14.3%.30.80.44.46.3
Channing Frye26317.244.1%78.6%37.7%.30.301.03.67.5
Anderson Varejao31010.042.1%76.2%0%.40.20.62.92.6
James Jones4809.640.8%80.8%39.4%.20.20.31.03.7
Jared Cunningham4038.935.2%62.5%31.3%.30.10.50.72.6
Jordan McRae1517.544.2%69.2%63.6%.00.101.00.84.1
Sasha Kaun2503.852.9%45.5%0%.20.20.101.00.9
Joe Harris503.025.0%0%25.0%.00.000.4.60.6

[12]

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
Total: 1–6 (Home: 1–4; Road: 0–2)
Pre-season: 1–6 (Home: 1–4; Road: 0–2)
2015–16 season schedule

Regular season game log
2015–16 game log
Total: 57–25 (Home: 33–8; Road: 24–17)
October: 2–1 (Home: 1–0; Road: 1–1)
November : 11–3 (Home: 8–0; Road: 3–3)
December : 8–5 (Home: 4–1; Road: 4–4)
January : 13–3 (Home: 6–2; Road: 7–1)
February : 8–5 (Home: 6–2; Road: 2–3)
March : 11–5 (Home: 6–2; Road: 5–3)
April : 4–3 (Home: 2–1; Road: 2–2)
2015–16 season schedule

Playoffs

Game log
2016 playoff game log
Total: 16–5 (Home: 9–1; Road: 7–4)
First Round: 4–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 2–0)
Conference Semifinals: 4–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 2–0)
Conference Finals: 4–2 (Home: 3–0; Road: 1–2)
NBA Finals: 4–3 (Home: 2–1; Road: 2–2)
2016 playoff schedule

Transactions

Trades
June 25, 2015
 To Cleveland Cavaliers[13]
Rakeem Christmas
Cedi Osman
2019 Second Round Pick		 To Minnesota Timberwolves
Tyus Jones
July 23, 2015
 To Cleveland Cavaliers[14]
2019 Second Round Pick		 To Indiana Pacers
Rakeem Christmas
July 27, 2015
 To Cleveland Cavaliers[15]
Two Trade Exceptions		 To Portland Trail Blazers
Mike Miller
Brendan Haywood
2019 & 2020 Second Round Pick
January 12, 2016
 To Cleveland Cavaliers[16]
2020 Second Round Pick		 To Orlando Magic
Joe Harris
2017 Second Round Pick
February 18, 2016
 To Cleveland Cavaliers[17]
Second Round Pick		 To Portland Trail Blazers
Anderson Varejão
First Round Pick
February 18, 2016
 To Cleveland Cavaliers[17]
Channing Frye		 To Orlando Magic
Jared Cunningham
Second Round Pick

Re-signed
Player Signed Former Team
Iman Shumpert[18] Signed 4-year contract worth $40 million Cleveland Cavaliers
Kevin Love[19] Signed 5-year contract worth $110 million Cleveland Cavaliers
LeBron James[20] Signed 2-year contract worth $47.9 million Cleveland Cavaliers
James Jones[21] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.5 million Cleveland Cavaliers
Matthew Dellavedova[22] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.2 million Cleveland Cavaliers
J. R. Smith[23] Signed 2-year contract worth $10 million Cleveland Cavaliers
Tristan Thompson[24] Signed 5-year contract worth $82 million Cleveland Cavaliers

Additions
Player Signed Former Team
Mo Williams[25] Signed 2-year contract worth $4 million Charlotte Hornets
Richard Jefferson[26] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.5 million Dallas Mavericks
Sasha Kaun[27] Signed 2-year contract CSKA Moscow
Jordan McRae Signed 2-year contract Delaware 87ers / Phoenix Suns

Subtractions
Player Reason Left New Team
Shawn Marion[28] Retired N/A (Retired)
Kendrick Perkins[29] Signed 1-year contract worth $1.5 million New Orleans Pelicans
David Blatt (Head Coach)[30] Fired Darüşşafaka Doğuş

Awards, records and milestones

Awards
Recipient Award Date awarded Ref.
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week November 23, 2015 [31]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week January 11, 2016 [32]
LeBron James NBA All-Star starter (12th appearance) January 21, 2016 [33]
Tyronn Lue NBA All-Star Game head coach January 27, 2016 [34]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Month (February) March 3, 2016 [35]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week March 7, 2016 [36]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week March 28, 2016 [37]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Week April 4, 2016 [38]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Month (March) April 5, 2016 [39]
LeBron James Eastern Conference Player of the Month (April) April 15, 2016 [40]
LeBron James All-NBA First Team May 26, 2016 [41]
LeBron James NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award June 16, 2016 [42]
LeBron James Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year December 1, 2016 [43]
LeBron James Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year December 27, 2016 [44]

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 made a key play called The Block during Game 7 of the NBA Finals, which was blocking a shot on Andre Iguodala. This was one of his best plays in his whole 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
  1. "Cavaliers become first team to rally from 3–1 series deficit in NBA Finals". ESPN. June 27, 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-06-27.
  2. Brian Windhorst; McMenamin, Dave (2016-01-23). "David Blatt and the unwinding of his Cleveland tenure". ESPN. Archived from the original on 2018-05-02.
  3. Golliver, Ben (2016-01-22). "LeBron James-David Blatt disconnect forced Cavs to make coaching change". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2018-05-02.
  4. Vardon, Joe (2016-04-11). "LeBron James clearly coveted the No. 1 seed for the Cleveland Cavaliers". cleveland.com. Archived from the original on 2018-05-02.
  5. Pandian, Ananth (2016-04-25). "Cavs put away fighting Pistons by way of sweep, await their next challenger". CBS Sports. Archived from the original on 2018-05-02.
  6. Haynes, Chris (2016-05-08). "Cleveland Cavaliers complete the sweep of Atlanta Hawks, 100-99, to move into Eastern Conference finals". cleveland.com. Archived from the original on 2018-05-02.
  7. Haynes, Chris (2016-05-27). "Cleveland Cavaliers advance to NBA Finals with 113-87 Game 6 win over Toronto". cleveland.com. Archived from the original on 2018-05-02.
  8. Cacciola, Scott (2015-06-17). "Golden State Warriors End N.B.A. Title Drought With Victory Over Cavaliers". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-05-12.
  9. Cacciola, Scott (2016-06-19). "Cavaliers Defeat Warriors to Win Their First N.B.A. Title". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-05-12.
  10. Arnovitz, Kevin (2016-06-20). "LeBron James named unanimous Finals MVP after Cavs' Game 7 win". ESPN. Archived from the original on 2018-05-12.
  11. Sharp, Andrew; Golliver, Ben (2017-09-19). "Reliving LeBron James's Block in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2018-05-12.
  12. https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/CLE/2016.html
  13. "Cavaliers Acquire Draft Rights to Cedi Osman and Rakeem Christmas from Minnesota". nba.com/cavaliers. June 25, 2015. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  14. "Cavs Acquire Second Round Pick from Pacers". nba.com/cavaliers. July 23, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2015.
  15. "Cavaliers Complete Trade with Portland". nba.com/cavaliers. July 27, 2015. Retrieved June 27, 2015.
  16. "Cavaliers Acquire Protected Second Round Pick From Orlando". nba.com/cavaliers. January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  17. "Cavaliers Acquire Channing Frye". nba.com/cavaliers. February 18, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  18. "Cavaliers Re-sign Guard Iman Shumpert". nba.com/cavs. July 9, 2015. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  19. "Cavaliers Re-sign Forward Kevin Love". nba.com/cavaliers. July 9, 2015. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  20. "Cavaliers Re-sign Forward LeBron James". nba.com/cavaliers. July 10, 2015. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
  21. "Cavaliers Re-sign James Jones". nba.com/cavaliers. July 25, 2015. Archived from the original on June 27, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
  22. "Cavs Re-sign Guard Matthew Dellavedova". nba.com/cavaliers. July 27, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  23. "Cavs Re-sign Guard J.R. Smith". nba.com/cavaliers. September 2, 2015. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  24. "Cavs Re-Sign Forward Tristan Thompson". nba.com/cavaliers. October 22, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  25. "Cavs Sign guard Mo Williams". nba.com/cavs. July 10, 2015. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  26. "Cavs Sign Forward Richard Jefferson". nba.com/cavs. August 5, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  27. "Cavs Sign Center Sasha Kaun". nba.com/cavs. September 9, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  28. "Marion to retire at end of season". espn.com. January 21, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  29. "Pelicans Sign Kendrick Perkins". nba.com/pelicans. July 28, 2015. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  30. "Warriors Sign Free Agent Center Anderson Varejao". NBA.com. February 22, 2016. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  31. "LeBron James Named Eastern Conference Player of the Week - November 23, 2015". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  32. "LeBron James Named Eastern Conference Player of the Week - January 11, 2016". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  33. "LeBron James Named 2016 NBA All-Star Starter". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  34. "Tyronn Lue will coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  35. "LeBron James Named Kia NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month: February 2016". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  36. "LeBron James Named Eastern Conference Player of the Week - March 7, 2016". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  37. "James, Thompson named Players of the Week". NBA.com. March 28, 2016. Archived from the original on May 5, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  38. "For the 53rd time, yes, LeBron player of week". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  39. "LeBron James Named Kia NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month: March 2016". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  40. "LeBron James wins East player of the month for April, making it three in a row". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  41. "Curry, James lead 2015-16 All-NBA First Team". NBA.com. May 26, 2016. Archived from the original on May 28, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  42. "LeBron James named 2016 NBA Finals MVP". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  43. "Crowning The King: LeBron James is Sports Illustrated's 2016 Sportsperson of the Year". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  44. "Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James named AP Male Athlete of Year". Retrieved July 23, 2020.

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