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Cleveland Cavaliers
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The Cleveland Cavaliers (also known as the Cavs) are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1970 as an expansion team and won their first Eastern Conference Championship in 2007.
Cavaliers first began play in the NBA in 1970 as an expansion team under the ownership of Nick Mileti. Playing their home games at Cleveland Arena under the direction of head coach Bill Fitch, they compiled a league-worst 1567 record.
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Encyclopedia
The Cleveland Cavaliers (also known as the Cavs) are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1970 as an expansion team and won their first Eastern Conference Championship in 2007.
Franchise history
19701980: Expansion and early hope
The Cavaliers first began play in the NBA in 1970 as an expansion team under the ownership of Nick Mileti. Playing their home games at Cleveland Arena under the direction of head coach Bill Fitch, they compiled a league-worst 1567 record. The team hoped to build around the number one 1971 draft pick Austin Carr who had set numerous scoring records at Notre Dame, but Carr severely injured his leg shortly into his pro career and did not recover sufficiently to become a great pro player.
The following seasons saw the Cavaliers gradually improve their on-court performance, thanks to season-by-season additions of talented players such as Bingo Smith, Jim Chones, Jim Cleamons and Dick Snyder. Cleveland improved to 23-59 in their sophomore season, followed by a 3250 record in 197273, and a small step backwards to 2953 in 197374. In 1974, the Cavaliers moved into the brand-new Richfield Coliseum, located in the cornfields thirty miles south of downtown Cleveland in Summit County. That season, the Cavaliers finished with a 4042 record, falling just short of a playoff berth.
In the 1975-76 season with Carr, Smith, Chones, Snyder, and newly acquired Nate Thurmond; Fitch led the Cavaliers to a 4933 record and a division title. Fitch received the league's Coach of the Year award as the Cavs made their first-ever playoff appearance.
The Cavs won the series against the Washington Bullets, 43. Because of the many heroics and last-second shots, the series became known locally as the "Miracle of Richfield." However, hampered by injuries, particularly to Jim Chones, the Cavs proceeded to lose to the Boston Celtics in Eastern Conference Finals of the NBA playoffs.
Cleveland won 43 games the next two seasons (197677 and 197778), but both those seasons resulted in early playoff exits. After a 3052 season in 1978-79, Fitch resigned as head coach. The following season, after going 3745 under Fitch's successor Stan Albeck, original owner Mileti sold his shares to minority owner Joe Zingale.
19801983: The Stepien years
In 1980, after just a few months, Zingale sold the team to Nationwide Advertising magnate Ted Stepien. The new owner oversaw the hiring and firing of a succession of coaches and was involved in making a number of poor trade and free agent signing decisions. The result of Stepien's questionable trading acumen was the loss of several of the team's first-round draft picks, which led to a rule change in the NBA prohibiting teams from trading away first-round draft picks in consecutive years. This rule is known as the "Ted Stepien Rule."
Early on in his tenure, Stepien proposed to rename the team the "Ohio Cavaliers", part of a plan that included playing their home games not just in the Cleveland area but also in non-Ohio markets such as Buffalo, New York and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He also introduced a polka-flavored fight song, which was widely-ridiculed by fans and the media.
The ensuing chaos was reflected by the Cavs' on-court performance and attendance woes, going 2854 in 198081 (Stepien's first year as owner), followed by an abysmal 1567 mark in 198182. The 198182 team lost its last 19 games of the season which, when coupled with the five losses at the start of the 198283 season, constitute the NBA's all-time longest losing streak at 24 games. Although the team improved its record to 2359 the following year, local support for the Cavs eroded which eventually bottomed out that year by averaging only 3,900 fans a game at the cavernous Coliseum which seated more than 20,000. Stepien threatened to move the franchise to Toronto and rename it the Toronto Towers, but brothers George and Gordon Gund purchased the franchise in the mid 1980s and decided to keep the team in Cleveland. (In 1993, Toronto would, in fact, get an expansion franchise, the Toronto Raptors.) Two years later, the Gunds changed the team colors from wine and gold to burnt orange, red and navy blue. Also, the team officially adopted "Cavs" as a shorter nickname for marketing purposes; it had been used unofficially by fans and headline writers since the team's inception.
19831993: A new look
In 1986, under the Gund brothers as owners, the team acquired, either through trades or the draft, Brad Daugherty, Mark Price, Ron Harper and Larry Nance. These four players (until Harper was later traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in 1989 for the rights to Danny Ferry) formed the core of the team, under the direction of head coach Lenny Wilkens, that led the Cavs to eight playoff seasons in the next nine years, including three 50+ win seasons.
However, in 1989, the Cavs were paired against the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the playoffs. In the fourth game of the best-of-five-series, Cleveland managed to beat the Bulls in overtime 108105 to level the series at 22. Home court advantage went to Cleveland. The game was evenly matched, until Cleveland managed to score on a drive and raise the lead by one, with three seconds left. Chicago called for a time-out. The ball was inbounded to Michael Jordan, who went for a jump shot. Cleveland's Craig Ehlo jumped in front to block it, but Jordan seemed to stay in the air until Ehlo landed. "The Shot" went in as time ran out, with Chicago winning the series 32. Although replay would show that Jordan cleared Ehlo with his arm in order to get an open look, the buzzer-beater is considered one of Jordan's greatest clutch moments, and the game itself one of the greatest. But the pinnacle of the Cavs' success came in the 1991-92 season, when they compiled a 5725 record and advanced to the Eastern Conference finals, losing again to the Chicago Bulls 42.
19932003: A long struggle
Soon after, the Cavaliers entered into a period of decline. With the retirements and departures of Nance, Daugherty and Price, the team lost much of its dominance and were no longer able to contest strongly during the playoffs. After the 1992-93 season, in which the Cavs boasted a 5428 regular-season record but suffered an early exit from the playoffs in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals to the Chicago Bulls, Wilkens left to coach the Atlanta Hawks.
Following the hiring of Mike Fratello as head coach starting with the 199394 season, the Cavs became one of the NBA's best defensive teams under the leadership of point guard Terrell Brandon. But the offense, which was a half-court, "slow-down" tempo installed by Fratello, met with mixed success. Although the Cavaliers made regular playoff appearances, they were unable to advance beyond the first round.
In 1994, the Cavs moved back to downtown Cleveland with the opening of the 20,562-seat, state-of-the-art, Gund Arena. Known by locals as "the Gund", the venue also served as the site of the 1997 NBA All-Star Game.
Later on, players like Shawn Kemp and ydrunas Ilgauskas added quality to the team, but without further success. Fratello was fired following the shortened 1998-99 season.
An all time low for the Cavs was set by Ricky Davis on March 16, 2003. With Cleveland ahead in the game 120-95, Davis was one rebound short of a triple-double with only a few seconds left on the clock. After receiving an inbound pass at the Cavs' end of the floor, Davis banged the ball off the rim and caught it in attempt to receive credit for a rebound. Utah's DeShawn Stevenson took offense to this breach of sportman's etiquette and immediately fouled Davis hard. The play did not count as a rebound since firing at your own team's basket does not count as a shot attempt, and in fact is a technical foul under NBA rules. However, since the referees had never seen anyone shoot at their own basket before, they were unfamiliar with the rule and play was allowed to continue. This and countless other selfish acts contributed to the Cavs trading of Davis later that year, and ushering in a new type of team.
2003present: The LeBron James Era
Several losing seasons followed which saw the Cavaliers drop to the bottom of the league and become a perennial lottery draft team. After another disappointing season in 2002-03, the Cavaliers landed the number one draft pick in the NBA Lottery. The Cavaliers selected local high school phenomenon LeBron James. Also in 2003, the team colors were changed from burnt orange, red and navy blue back to wine and gold along with a new primary logo.
James' status as both an area star (having played his high school basketball at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in nearby Akron) and as one of the most highly touted prospects in NBA history led many to view his selection as a turning point in the franchise's history. Embraced by Clevelanders as "King James," the 2003-04 season offered great hope for the future, as James rose to become a dominating player, winning the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. Hope was even greater for the 2004-05 season. James increased his production in terms of points, rebounds, and assists per game. Despite the loss of Carlos Boozer in the offseason, James teamed with ydrunas Ilgauskas and Drew Gooden to form the core of the team. After a promising start, the Cavs began a downward spiral that eventually led to the firing of coach Paul Silas and general manager Jim Paxson. The team failed to make the playoffs that year, tied with New Jersey Nets for the final playoff spot, however the Nets owned the tiebreaker.
The Cavaliers made many changes in the 2005 offseason. Under new owner Dan Gilbert, the team hired a new coach, Mike Brown, and a new general manager, former Cavaliers forward Danny Ferry. The team experienced success on the court in the following season, clinching their first playoff appearance since 1998. After a first round win over the Washington Wizards, the Cavaliers rebounded from a 20 deficit in the second round against the Detroit Pistons, winning three consecutive games to come one game away from the conference finals. However, they lost a close Game 6 at home, and followed it with a 7961 loss in Game 7. in game seven, the Cavs set two records for futility deciding playoff games: least points scored in a game (61) and in a half (23). The playoff rounds were a showcase for the emergence of LeBron James, who achieved many "youngest ever to..." records during the run.
The Cavs continued their success in the 2006-07 season. The team earned the second seed with a 5032 record, generating a series of favorable matchups which included home court advantage in the first two rounds. The Cavaliers' first-round was a rematch with the 7th-seeded Wizards, who finished 4141 and struggled with injuries down the stretch. The Cavaliers swept this series 40the first sweep of a playoff series in franchise historyand faced the New Jersey Nets in the second round. The Cavs won the series 42 with James scoring 23 points and adding 8 rebounds and 8 assists in an 8872 win in Game 6.
The Cavaliers faced the Pistons for the second straight playoff year, this time in the Eastern Conference Finals. After again losing the first two games at Detroit, the Cavaliers won the next three to take a 32 series lead. This year the Cavaliers eliminated Detroit in Game 6. The wins included a 109107 double-overtime thriller at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Game 5, in which LeBron James scored the last 25 points for the Cavs, and his performance in this game is recognized as one of the best in NBA history. They continued to a dominant 9882 win at home in Game 6. Rookie Daniel "Boobie" Gibson scored a career-high 31 points in the series clincher, and the franchise won its first ever Eastern Conference championship. The team's first trip to the NBA finals was a short one, as they were outmatched and outplayed by the very strong San Antonio Spurs, who swept the Cavs 40.
After struggling through an inconsistent 2007-08 regular season which saw the Cavaliers finish with a record of 4537, the team met the Wizards in the first round of the playoffs for the third straight year. The Cavaliers jumped out to a three games to one lead, but failed to close out the series at home as James missed a potential game-winning layup at the end of the game. In game 6, James had a triple double and led the team to a 10588 win and a 42 series win. They moved on to face the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the 2nd round in a series that featured the home team winning all of its games. Because of this, and with Boston having more home games, the Cavaliers lost the series 43. James scored 45 points in game 7, but it was not enough as Boston's Paul Pierce scored 41 points to lead the Celtics to victory.
Uniforms
The Cavaliers' uniforms switched from the orange, purple and red jerseys to wine and gold jerseys in 2003. The team's original colors were wine and gold, were changed to orange and blue during the mid-1980s, and to blue, black and orange in the mid-1990s.
Their home jerseys are white with wine lettering of the name and navy blue lettering on the numbers. Their away jerseys are wine with a gold trim and white lettering on the name and number. Their alternate jerseys are navy blue, with white lettering on the name and number, and a checkerboard trim of wine and gold. They wear white socks and shoes when wearing the white or blue jerseys, while they wear black shoes and socks when wearing the wine jerseys.
In 2008-2009, The Cavaliers will wear retro uniforms during six selected "Hardwood Classic" home games styled after their uniforms from their inaugural season of 1970-71. Those uniforms are gold (with wine colored trim) featuring wine lettering on the name and number with white socks and shoes. There is also an alternate version of the retro uniform, which is royal blue with wine and gold trim, gold lettering on the name and number, with white socks and shoes.
Season-by-season records
Home arenas
- Cleveland Arena (19701974)
- Coliseum at Richfield (19741994)
- Quicken Loans Arena (formerly called Gund Arena) (1994present)
The created some notoriety when it added the DIFF to the scoreboardthe difference between the two teams' scores. This scoreboard addition made such an impact that Tom Batiuk, author of the comic strip, , created a Sunday morning entry "honoring" (or lamenting?) it. Quicken Loans, also owned by Dan Gilbert, began the , themed, "What's the DIFF," pointing out "the DIFF" between "average and excellent." The blog, of course honored Crankshaft's lament of .
Cleveland Clinic Courts
In 2007 the Cavaliers opened their new state-of-the-art practice facility, Cleveland Clinic Courts, in Independence, Ohio, a Cleveland suburb. It features many extravagant luxuries, 2 courts, a team meeting room, front office offices, as well as a kitchen among other features. Cleveland Clinic Courts replaces the former 1-court center the team used within Quicken Loans Arena.
Players of note
- Nate Thurmond Player 1985 (Former player 19751977)
- Walt Frazier Player 1987 (Former player 19771980)
- Lenny Wilkens Player 1989 and Coach 1998 (Former player (19721974) and coach (19861993))
- Chuck Daly Coach 1994 (Former coach 19811982)
- Wayne Embry Contributor 1999 (Former team president and G.M. (19861999) and first African American to serve in that role in the NBA)
Retired numbers
- 7 Bingo Smith, F, 197079
- 22 Larry Nance, F, 198894
- 25 Mark Price, G, 198695
- 34 Austin Carr, G, 197180
- 42 Nate Thurmond, C, 197577
- 43 Brad Daugherty, C, 198694
Current roster
Depth chart
International Rights
Coaches and others
Coaches
High points
Franchise leaders
Career
- Games Danny Ferry (723)
- Minutes Played Hot Rod Williams (20,802)
- Field Goals Made LeBron James* (4,391)
- Field Goal Attempts Austin Carr (9,480)
- 3-Point Field Goals Made Mark Price (802)
- 3-Point Field Goal Attempts Mark Price(1,960)
- Free Throws Made LeBron James* (2,849)
- Free Throw Attempts LeBron James* (3,882)
- Offensive Rebounds ydrunas Ilgauskas* (2,150)
- Defensive Rebounds Brad Daugherty (4,020)
- Total Rebounds ydrunas Ilgauskas* (5,337)
- Assists Mark Price (4,206)
- Steals LeBron James* (788)
- Blocked Shots Hot Rod Williams (1,200)
- Turnovers Brad Daugherty (1,511)
- Personal Fouls ydrunas Ilgauskas* (2,329)
- Points LeBron James* (12,219)
* Active (as of February 21, 2009)
Per game
Per 48 minutes
Individual awards
NBA Rookie of the Year
NBA Coach of the Year
NBA Coach of the Month
NBA Executive of the Year
NBA All-Rookie First Team
NBA All-Rookie Second Team
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All-NBA First Team
All-NBA Second Team
All-NBA Third Team
NBA All-Defensive First Team
NBA All-Defensive Second Team
NBA Player of the Month
- LeBron James November 2004,
January 2005, November 2005,
March 2006, March 2007,
January 2008, February 2008,
November 2008, January 2009
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NBA All-Star Game |
- John Johnson 1971, 1972
- Butch Beard 1972
- Lenny Wilkens 1973, 1989 (Head Coach)
- Austin Carr 1974
- Campy Russell 1979
- Mike Mitchell 1981
- Brad Daugherty 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993
- Larry Nance 1989, 1993
- Mark Price 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994
- Tyrone Hill 1995
- Terrell Brandon 1996, 1997
- Shawn Kemp 1998*
- ydrunas Ilgauskas 2003, 2005
- LeBron James 2005*, 2006* (MVP), 2007*, 2008* (MVP), 2009*
- Mo Williams 2009
* Starter
Media
Radio
WTAM (AM 1100) in Cleveland is the flagship station of a 16 station Cavaliers radio network. Select games can be heard on backup station WMMS (FM 100.7) when there is a conflict with the Cleveland Indians. All playoff games air on WTAM, and any conflicted Indians games go to WMMS.
Veteran broadcaster Joe Tait has served as the team's radio play-by-play announcer since its inception in 1970, with a brief break away from the team in the period when it was owned by Ted Stepien. Tait is considered one of the prominent announcers in professional sports. On March 26, 2008, Tait was honored by the organization for calling his 3,000th Cleveland Cavaliers game.
WTAM morning co-host/sports director Mike Snyder hosts the pregame, halftime, and postgame shows, and fills in for Tait when he is out. Producer/reporter Scott Zurella is also featured during pre and postgame coverage. Former Cavaliers center and color analyst Jim Chones joins Snyder for the postgame show.
Television
The vast majority of Cavaliers' TV games air on cable and satellite on FSN Ohio, with select games (both regular season and playoffs) simulcast on WUAB (Channel 43) in Cleveland, the longtime free TV home of the Cavs. Channel 43 has aired games from 1973 to 1987, from 1994 to present.
Play-by-play announcer Fred McLeod and analyst Austin Carr, a former Cavaliers star, handle local TV commentary. Veteran Cleveland sportscaster Jeff Phelps and former Cavaliers star Campy Russell host the pre-game, halftime, and post-game shows.
Mascots
Moondog
Moondog is the official mascot of the Cavaliers. Like a growing number of NBA Mascots, the character has a unique connection not just to the team, but to city or area. Cleveland is known worldwide as the rock and roll city, due to famed Cleveland radio disc jockey Alan Freed, who popularized the phrase "rock and roll", breaking new ground and sparking a music explosion.
Freed called himself the "Moondog", and his listeners were "Moondoggers". When the Cavaliers looked to create a new mascot which represents the city, Moondog was a natural selection. Like Alan Freed, the mascot aims to be innovative, fun-loving, passionate and controversial.
Moondog was an NBA All-Star selection in 2003 and 2004. He is best known for his behind the back half-court shot and fierce loyalty to his Cavaliers. His first appearance was on November 5, 2003.
Whammer
Whammer is the former mascot of the Cavs. He is a polar bear who is said to have grown up in the tundra. He still makes various appearances throughout the year at Cavalier games. At halftime he would dunk the ball into the basket. He made his debut in a November 9, 1995 game against the Chicago Bulls. Recently when Moondog, the current Cavaliers mascot was asked what Whammer was up to these days he responded "He e-mails the braintrust of the Cavs about twice a week trying to get his old job back. I throw him a bone occasionally and invite him back, mostly to mock him. Finally he's good for a laugh."
Traditions
The Committee
The Committee is an invitation-only consortium of Cleveland Cavalier thought-leadership. The group is named after the Cleveland Cavaliers' leadership contingent, which includes Lebron James, Ben Wallace, Mo Williams and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Committee membership is limited to select, hand-picked individuals displaying an astute understanding of core Cavalier issues and the implication that material events may have on the organization. The Committee is rumored to have connections to the local press and certain Cavalier players.
External links
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