2006 Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron’s 1st Playoff Rodeo

A new era in NBA history began in the summer of 2003 when LeBron James was drafted first overall out of high school by the Cleveland Cavaliers. In LeBron’s rookie year, the Cavs jumped from 17 wins to 35. In 2005, they went 42-40 and barely missed the playoffs. The franchise hired a new coach in Mike Brown, and the 2006 Cleveland Cavaliers took the next step—they made LeBron’s first postseason and advanced when they got there.

LeBron averaged 31 points/7 rebounds/7 assists and ended up second in the final MVP voting. A good frontcourt included Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who delivered 16 points/8 rebounds per night, and Drew Gooden who chipped in 11/8. Ronald Murray and Larry Hughes were double-digit scorers in the backcourt, while veteran point guard Eric Snow ran the floor show.

Cleveland’s early season was a roller-coaster. They won eight in a row, including victories over playoff teams in the Memphis Grizzlies and Washington Wizards. Against a seemingly soft part of the schedule, they lost seven of nine. The Cavs responded to that adversity by winning six straight. The month of January saw Cleveland lose six straight against teams from the stronger Western Conference. And that same month saw them answer with a seven-game winning streak. They were 27-17 when February began.

The Cavs went to Miami and the team that would ultimately win the championship handed them a 101-73 beatdown in early February. That was followed by a loss at Washington. But Cleveland came home to face the defending champion San Antonio Spurs and got a needed 101-87 win.

After a double-overtime escape against the lowly Boston Celtics, the Cavs lost five in a row. That included a home-and-home with the Detroit Pistons over consecutive days. The Pistons were headed for the 1-seed in the Eastern Conference. The Cavs were reeling, but at 32-26, they still had the third-best record in the East.

Cleveland was becoming a good defensive team. They ended up 10^th in the league for defensive efficiency, and that effort showed up as the season hit its crunch point. The Cavs surged down the stretch and won 18 of their final 24 games. They beat a good New Jersey squad. Even road losses at Miami and eventual Western champ Dallas weren’t bad. When all was said and done, the Cavs were 50-32.

The NBA playoff format of the time gave the top three seeds to the division winners. Thus, even though Cleveland’s record was third-best in the East, they were seeded behind Atlantic Division winner New Jersey. On the 4-line, the Cavs would take on the Wizards in the first round. Washington was led by 20-plus point scorers in Gilbert Arenas and Antwan Jamison. And this series would be an all-time classic.

It didn’t start that way. Cleveland was in command of LeBron’s playoff debut. The future King James racked up a 32/11/11 line, the Cavs played good defense, and they controlled the glass. The result was a 97-86 win.

But LeBron struggled to a 7-for-25 night in Game 2. While Cleveland continued to rebound, winning that battle 47-40, and getting a big 24/16 night from Gooden, it wasn’t enough. A game that was tight going into the fourth quarter went Washington’s way, 89-84.

Needing to reclaim homecourt advantage, the Cavs fell behind by eight at halftime of Game 3 and only shot 41 percent. But they were forcing turnovers defensively and LeBron was going off. He finished with 41 points. The last two were a jumper with six seconds left that pulled out a 97-96 win.

Game 4 followed a similar script to Game 2. It was close for three quarters, but Cleveland did not play well down the stretch. While LeBron scored 38, there was no help, and Washington pulled away to a 106-96 win that tied the series. But Cleveland had done what they needed to on the road in the nation’s capital.

Both teams were sharp in the crucial fifth game, shooting over 50 percent. The Wizards were shooting well from behind the arc, while the Cavs were getting to the line. LeBron and Arenas staged an epic duel, each going for 40-plus. Tonight, LeBron had help. Hughes scored 24, Snow hit for 18, and Gooden pulled down 11 boards. But Arenas’ supporting cast was answering. We went to overtime. And in the final seconds of OT, Cleveland trailed 120-119.

The ball, as expected, went to LeBron. A player who would one day be repeatedly criticized by pundit Skip Bayless for not driving the ball to the hole with the game on the line, did exactly that. James drove to the hoop. He got a layup. And Cleveland had a 121-120 win.

Game 6 back in D.C. was another barnburner. This time, LeBron delivered a 32/7/7 line. Veteran forward Donyell Marshall came off the bench and racked up 28 points and eight rebounds. Murray hit for 21. Again, Washington had their own answers—36 from Arenas and strong performances from the supporting cast. Again, we went to overtime. Again, the Wizards had a one-point lead as the game reached its decisive moment.

Damon Jones was in off the Cleveland bench. He had not yet scored when he got the ball with 0:14 left. Jones hit a jumper to give the Cavs the lead. They held defensively. Again, Cleveland had a one-point win, 114-113. In a series where Cleveland came oh-so-close to losing five times (if such were possible), they instead had a six-game series win.

Detroit was the opponent in the conference semifinals. The Pistons had won the NBA title in 2004, reached Game 7 of the Finals in 2005, and racked up 64 wins in 2006. They had Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton in the backcourt, Ben Wallace up front and Rasheed Wallace scoring and rebounding. Cleveland was a decided underdog in this series.

And that’s how it began—the Cavs were blown out by 27 in Game 1 and lost 97-91 in Game 2, shooting in the low 40s percentage-wise both games. But when the series went to Ohio, Cleveland turned up the defensive heat.

The Cavs forced the Pistons into 39 percent shooting in Game 3. LeBron delivered a steady 21/10/10 line, while Anderson Varejao came off the bench for 16 rebounds. An 86-77 win put them back in the series. Game 4 was a defensive struggle both ways, as the two teams combined to turn the ball over 35 times. Neither shot well. But it was all good for Cleveland, who pulled out a 74-72 win and tied the series.

Now, this matchup had everyone’s attention and Game 5 back in Detroit was close throughout. LeBron scored 32 points. But the team as a whole shot 38 percent and the Cavs dropped a tough 86-84 decision. One more defensive battle in Game 6 came down to the wire, with LeBron again getting 32. But it wasn’t quite enough. An 84-82 loss ended the season.

It had still been a basketball season to remember in the city of Cleveland. They were back on the map and played some thrilling playoff games to boot. It set the stage for an even bigger breakthrough in 2007—when the Cavs made the NBA Finals.