2006–07 Cleveland Cavaliers season

2006–07 Cleveland Cavaliers season
Conference champions
Head coach Mike Brown
Arena Quicken Loans Arena
Results
Record 5032 (.610)
Place Division: 2nd (Central)
Conference: 2nd (Eastern)
Playoff finish NBA Finals
(Lost to Spurs 0–4)
Local media
Television MEGA TV
Radio WTAM
LeBron James led the Cavaliers to their first Eastern Conference championship.

The 2006–07 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 37th 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, became the champions of the Eastern Conference, and made their first ever NBA Finals appearance.

Prior to making their first NBA Finals appearance, in the playoffs, the Cavaliers swept the Washington Wizards in four games in the First Round, defeated the New Jersey Nets in six games in the Semifinals, and defeated the Detroit Pistons in six games in the Conference Finals.

However, in the NBA Finals, the Cavaliers were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in four games. LeBron James was the team's leading scorer and finished in 2nd place in league MVP voting.

Key Dates

  • 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

Free agents

Additions
PlayerDateFormer team
Scot PollardAugust 18Indiana Pacers
David WesleySeptember 5Houston Rockets
Subtractions
PlayerDateNew team
Flip MurrayJuly 18Detroit Pistons
Stephen GrahamAugust 9Portland Trail Blazers
Alan HendersonSeptember 8Philadelphia 76ers
Eddie BasdenNovemberFenerbahçe

Trades

August 18, 2008
To Cleveland Cavaliers
Eddie Basden
To Chicago Bulls
Martynas Andriuskevicius
October 13, 2008
To Cleveland Cavaliers
Dwayne Jones
To Boston Celtics
Luke Jackson and cash considerations

Draft picks

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.[1]

Roster

Cleveland Cavaliers roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOB (YYYY-MM-DD)From
SG 6 United States Brown, Shannon 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Michigan State
PG 1 United States Gibson, Daniel 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Texas
PF 90 United States Gooden, Drew 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Kansas
SG 32 United States Hughes, Larry 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 184 lb (83 kg) Saint Louis
C 11 Lithuania Ilgauskas, Zydrunas 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Lithuania
SF 23 United States James, LeBron (C) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) St. Vincent-St. Mary's
PG 19 United States Jones, Damon 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Houston
C 27 United States Jones, Dwayne 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 251 lb (114 kg) Saint Joseph's
PF 24 United States Marshall, Donyell 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Connecticut
SF 14 United States Newble, Ira 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Miami (OH)
SG 3 Serbia Pavlović, Aleksandar 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Serbia
C 31 United States Pollard, Scot 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 265 lb (120 kg) Kansas
PG 20 United States Snow, Eric (C) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Michigan State
PF 17 Brazil Varejão, Anderson 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Brazil
SG 4 United States Wesley, David 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 203 lb (92 kg) Baylor
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Player salaries

RankPlayerSalary
1Larry Hughes $13,363,012
2Zydrunas Ilgauskas$9,422,697
3Drew Gooden$6,645,402
4Eric Snow$6,093,750
5LeBron James$6,128,090
6Donyell Marshall$5,633,037
7Damon Jones$3,884,678
8Ira Newble$3,196,050
9Scot Pollard$2,200,000
10Sasha Pavlović$1,962,206
11David Wesley$1,750,000
12Shannon Brown$971,280
13Anderson Varejão$945,600
14Dwayne Jones$664,209
15Daniel Gibson$412,718

Regular season

Standings

Central Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Detroit Pistons 5329.646-26–1527–149–7
x-Cleveland Cavaliers 5032.610330–1120–2110–6
x-Chicago Bulls 4933.598431–1018–2312–4
Indiana Pacers 3547.4271822–1913–288–8
Milwaukee Bucks 2854.3412518–2310–311–15
# Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Detroit Pistons5329.646
2 x-Cleveland Cavaliers5032.6103
3 y-Toronto Raptors4735.5736
4 y-Miami Heat4438.5379
5 x-Chicago Bulls4933.5984
6 x-New Jersey Nets4141.50012
7 x-Washington Wizards4141.50012
8 x-Orlando Magic4042.48813
9 Philadelphia 76ers3547.42718
10 Indiana Pacers3547.42718
11 New York Knicks3349.40220
12 Charlotte Bobcats3349.40220
13 Atlanta Hawks3052.36623
14 Milwaukee Bucks2854.34125
15 Boston Celtics2458.29329

Record vs. opponents

2006-07 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MEM MIA MIL MIN NJN NOK NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA TOR UTA WAS
Atlanta 3–11–30–41–30–21–11–22–01–11–32–00–22–00–41–22–01–20–21–23–11–31–11–11–10–20–22–20–21–3
Boston 1–32–20–31–20–21–10–40–21–11–30–20–21–11–22–21–12–20–23–11–31–30–22–00–21–11–11–30–20–3
Charlotte 3–12–21–22–20–21–12–21–10–21–20–22–00–22–22–21–11–21–12–22–22–20–20–21–11–10–20–31–12–2
Chicago 4–03–02–12–21–11–13–11–10–23–10–21–11–13–14–00–21–32–03–11–22–11–12–00–21–12–02–20–23–1
Cleveland 3–12–12–22–20–20–21–32–01–13–12–02–02–01–34–02–02–11–12–21–23–10–21–12–02–01–13–11–12–1
Dallas 2–02–02–01–12–03–11–10–33–12–02–13–14–02–02–04–02–04–02–02–02–02–23–04–03–14–02–01–21–1
Denver 1–11–11–11–12–01–30–23–11–22–02–13–12–22–02–02–21–12–21–11–11–11–23–12–21–23–11–11–31–1
Detroit 2–14–02–21–33–11–12–00–21–12–22–02–02–02–13–11–14–01–12–14–03–11–11–11–10–22–02–10–22–2
Golden State 0–22–01–11–10–23–01–32–02–11–12–20–43–10–20–22–11–13–11–11–12–01–32–13–11–33–11–12–21–1
Houston 1–11–12–02–01–11–32–11–11–21–13–12–24–02–02–02–22–01–32–02–02–01–32–23–02–23–01–11–32–0
Indiana 3–13–12–11–31–30–20–22–21–11–11–11–12–02–24–00–20–41–12–12–22–20–22–00–21–10–21–20–20–3
L.A. Clippers 0–22–02–02–00–21–21–20–22–21–31–12–23–02–02–01–21–12–21–11–12–02–23–12–20–42–20–21–31–1
L.A. Lakers 2–02–00–21–10–21–31–30–24–02–21–12–22–21–10–23–12–01–20–22–01–11–31–23–12–13–11–12–11–1
Memphis 0–21–12–01–10–20–42–20–21–30–40–20–32–20–20–22–10–21–30–21–11–10–42–21–21–31–21–11–31–1
Miami 4–02–12–21–33–10–20–21–22–00–22–20–21–12–02–12–03–11–11–30–41–30–22–02–01–12–02–12–03–1
Milwaukee 2–12–22–20–40–40–20–21–32–00–20–40–22–02–01–22–01–20–21–31–32–10–21–11–12–01–11–30–21–3
Minnesota 0–21–11–12–00–20–42–21–11–22–22–02–11–31–20–20–21–11–32–01–12–01–32–22–21–21–30–21–31–1
New Jersey 2–12–22–13–11–20–21–10–41–10–24–01–10–22–01–32–11–11–14–02–22–20–20–21–10–20–22–22–04–0
New Orleans/Oklahoma City 2–02–01–10–21–10–42–21–11–33–11–12–22–13–11–12–03–11–12–01–10–20–31–23–10–42–20–21–21–1
New York 2–11–32–21–32–20–21–11–21–10–21–21–12–02–03–13–10–20–40–22–11–30–21–11–10–21–11–31–12–2
Orlando 1–33–12–22–12–10–21–10–41–10–22–21–10–21–14–03–11–12–21–11–22–10–22–01–11–12–00–42–02–2
Philadelphia 3–13–12–21–21–30–21–11–30–20–22–20–21–11–13–11–20–22–22–03–11–21–11–11–10–22–01–31–10–3
Phoenix 1–12–02–01–12–02–22–11–13–13–12–02–23–14–02–02–03–12–03–02–02–01–14–03–11–22–12–01–31–1
Portland 1–10–22–00–21–10–31–31–11–22–20–21–32–12–20–21–12–22–02–11–10–21–10–42–20–42–21–12–22–0
Sacramento 1–12–01–12–00–20–42–21–11–30–32–02–21–32–10–21–12–21–11–31–11–11–11–32–20–42–11–12–10–2
San Antonio 2–01–11–11–10–21–32–12–03–12–21–14–01–23–11–10–22–12–04–02–01–12–02–14–04–04–02–02–22–0
Seattle 2–01–12–00–21–10–41–30–21–30–32–02–21–32–10–21–13–12–02–21–10–20–21–22–21–20–41–12–20–2
Toronto 2–23–13–02–21–30–21–11–21–11–12–12–01–11–11–23–12–02–22–03–14–03–10–21–11–10–21–10–23–1
Utah 2–02–01–12–01–12–13–12–02–23–12–03–11–23–10–22–03–10–22–11–10–21–13–12–21–22–22–22–01–1
Washington 3–13–02–21–31–21–11–12–21–10–23–01–11–11–11–33–11–10–41–12–22–23–01–10–22–00–22–01–31–1
2006–07 game log
Total: 50–32 (Home: 30–11; Road: 20–21)
2006–07 schedule

Playoffs

First Round

(2) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (7) Washington Wizards

NBA TV
April 30
Cleveland Cavaliers 97, Washington Wizards 90
Cleveland wins series, 4–0

A 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

(2) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (6) New Jersey Nets

ESPN
May 18
Cleveland Cavaliers 88, New Jersey Nets 72
Cleveland wins series, 4–2

The 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.[2][3]

Eastern Finals

Conference Finals: (1) Detroit Pistons vs. (2) Cleveland Cavaliers

TNT
June 2
Detroit Pistons 82, Cleveland Cavaliers 98
Cleveland wins series, 4–2

In a rematch of last year's thrilling 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

Game 1

LeBron 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, James 14
Rebs: James 7, Ilgauskas 6
Asts: James, Gibson 4 each
TOs: LeBron James 6
Pts: Parker 27, Duncan 24
Rebs: Duncan 13, Ginóbili 8
Asts: Tony Parker 7
Blks: Tim Duncan 5
AT&T Center, San Antonio
Attendance: 18,797
Referees: Ken Mauer, Mike Callahan, Steve Javie

Game 2

The 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
Blks: Robert Horry 5
AT&T Center, San Antonio
Attendance: 18,797
Referees: Dick Bavetta, Jim Clark, Joe Derosa

Game 3

Rookie 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, Gooden 12
Asts: LeBron James 7
TOs: LeBron James 5

Game 4

San 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, Gooden 11
Asts: LeBron James 10
TOs: LeBron James 6
San Antonio wins series 4–0
2007 playoff game log
2006–07 schedule

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 James787840.947.6%69.8%31.9%1.60.716.06.727.3
Larry Hughes706837.140.0%67.6%33.3%1.27.373.73.814.9
Zydrunas Ilgauskas787827.345.5%80.7%0.0%.621.261.67.711.9
Drew Gooden808028.047.3%71.4%16.7%.88.351.18.511.1
Sasha Pavlović672822.945.3%79.4%40.5%.82.251.62.49.0
Donyell Marshall81016.842.4%66.3%35.1%.48.53.64.07.0
Anderson Varejão81621.947.6%61.6%0.0%.94.64.96.76.8
Damon Jones60019.638.6%68.2%38.5%.27.031.61.16.6
Daniel Gibson601616.542.4%71.8%41.9%.38.131.21.54.6
Eric Snow824523.541.7%63.7%0.0%.67.204.02.34.2
Shannon Brown2358.837.8%71.4%28.0%.30.13.4.93.2
Ira Newble1518.643.2%60.6%53.3%.40.00.12.03.1
David Wesley35510.129.3%79.4%23.7%.34.111.11.02.1
Scot Pollard2404.542.3%50.0%0.0%.17.04.11.31.0
Dwayne Jones404.50.0%50.0%0.0%.00.00.01.5.8

Playoffs

Player GP GS MIN FG% FT% 3FG% STL BLK AST REB PTS
LeBron James202044.741.6%75.5%28.0%1.70.508.08.125.1
Zydrunas Ilgauskas202032.549.2%83.8%0.0%.45.80.99.712.6
Drew Gooden202030.349.3%76.9%0.0%.50.451.08.011.4
Larry Hughes181835.534.7%74.6%35.2%1.39.442.43.911.3
Sasha Pavlović202030.838.1%52.8%34.5%.95.251.62.69.2
Daniel Gibson20220.143.1%88.4%40.9%.60.201.11.68.3
Anderson Varejão20022.451.1%56.3%0.0%1.05.55.66.06.0
Donyell Marshall19010.733.3%63.6%31.1%.16.21.32.23.5
Damon Jones11012.630.8%1.000%31.8%.00.001.0.82.4
Eric Snow19012.831.6%57.1%0.0%.58.111.51.51.7
Ira Newble601.70.0%0.0%0.0%.00.00.2.20.0
Scot Pollard301.00.0%0.0%0.0%.00.00.00.00.0
Shannon Brown101.00.0%0.0%0.0%.00.00.00.00.0

Awards and records

Awards

Records

  • 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

  • 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

  • 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

Trades

The Cavaliers did not make a trade during the 2006–07 NBA season.

Free agents

The Cavaliers did not sign any free agents during the 2006–07 NBA season.

Development League

  • 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

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