50 Fun Facts About Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavaliers entered the NBA in 1970 alongside which two other expansion teams?

The Braves later became the Clippers; Cleveland lost its first 15 games and never finished better than sixth in the East in its first five seasons.

How was the 'Cavaliers' name chosen in 1970?

Jerry Tomko, father of future pitcher Brett Tomko, won The Plain Dealer's competition; 'Jays', 'Foresters' and 'Presidents' were the losing finalists.

In the 1976 'Miracle of Richfield', the Cavaliers beat which team in a seven-game series?

Dick Snyder's shot with four seconds left won Game 7 87–85; Jim Chones then broke his toe and the Cavs lost to Boston in the conference finals.

Which owner (1980–83) went through six coaches and prompted an NBA rule against trading successive first-round picks?

The rule bars teams from trading first-round picks in consecutive years; his three years cost $15 million and six coaches.

What stunt did the Cavs' owner stage from Cleveland's Terminal Tower in 1980?

The outfielders were from his Cleveland Competitors softball team; several bystanders were reportedly hurt by wayward balls.

How many straight games did the Cavaliers lose across 1981–82 and 1982–83, then an NBA record?

The team went 15–67 in 1981–82 with four coaches; the Gund brothers bought the club from him in 1983.

Which Bulls star sank 'The Shot' over Craig Ehlo to eliminate the Cavaliers in the 1989 playoffs?

Cleveland had led by one with three seconds left in the deciding Game 5 of a 57-win season; Jordan seemed to hang in the air until Ehlo landed.

Which Hall of Fame coach led the 57-win 1988–89 Cavaliers, the franchise's best team to that point?

He was inducted into the Hall of Fame three times — as player, coach and member of the 1992 Dream Team.

Which Georgia Tech point guard was the sharpshooting star of the late-1980s and early-1990s Cavaliers?

One of the great free-throw shooters in history, he led the team to the 1992 Eastern Conference Finals.

Which Notre Dame guard, the first overall pick in 1971, is known to Cleveland fans as 'Mr. Cavalier'?

He starred on the Miracle of Richfield team and now hosts the team's broadcasts.

Where did the Cavaliers play from 1974 to 1994?

The suburban arena sat among cornfields between Cleveland and Akron; the team moved downtown to Gund Arena in 1994.

How much did Dan Gilbert pay for the Cavaliers in a deal finalised in March 2005?

The Quicken Loans founder hired Mike Brown and Danny Ferry that year and built around James and a Lithuanian centre.

Which team swept the Cavaliers in the franchise's first NBA Finals in 2007?

LeBron had carried them past Detroit with a 48-point Game 5; Tim Duncan's Spurs won their fourth title.

The 2008–09 Cavaliers set franchise records with how many wins and what home record?

They still lost the Eastern Conference Finals to Dwight Howard's Orlando Magic.

Which four-time champion centre joined the Cavaliers for the 2009–10 season?

'Win a ring for the King' failed when Boston beat them in the second round, setting up LeBron's free agency.

What was the title of the July 2010 TV special in which LeBron James announced he was leaving for Miami?

'I'm going to take my talents to South Beach' became a punchline; the show was broadcast from a Boys and Girls Club in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Dan Gilbert's furious open letter on LeBron's departure was published in which typeface?

He called the move a 'cowardly betrayal' and guaranteed a title before Miami's — a promise that aged badly.

How long was the Cavaliers' losing streak in 2010–11, the third-longest in NBA history?

The 19-win team then won the 2011 lottery and drafted a point guard from Duke.

How many times did the Cavaliers win the number-one pick in the draft lottery between 2011 and 2014?

The 2014 pick, Andrew Wiggins, was traded straight away for a veteran All-Star forward.

The Cavs' 2011 first overall pick was born in which country?

He was born in Melbourne to American parents and played one season at Duke.

Which UNLV forward was the Cavaliers' surprise first overall pick in 2013?

He is widely considered one of the biggest busts in draft history and was out of the NBA within four years.

Which power forward did the Cavaliers get from Minnesota in 2014 to join James and Irving?

Number-one pick Andrew Wiggins went the other way; Love stayed in Cleveland until 2023.

The 2016 title was Cleveland's first major sports championship since which team's 1964 triumph?

The drought was known as the 'Cleveland sports curse'; the parade drew well over a million people.

The Cavaliers' 2016 Finals win over Golden State was the first time a team had done what?

The Warriors had gone a record 73–9; LeBron's Block and a three-pointer over Curry with 53 seconds left decided Game 7.

'The Block' in Game 7 of the 2016 Finals saw LeBron James chase down and reject a layup by whom?

The score was tied at 89 with 1:50 left; Kyrie Irving's three over Curry followed for a 92–89 lead.

Who hit the go-ahead three-pointer over Stephen Curry with 53 seconds left in Game 7 of the 2016 Finals?

It made the score 92–89; the Warriors never scored again and Cleveland won 93–89.

How many straight NBA Finals did the Cavaliers reach after LeBron's 2014 return, all vs Golden State?

They won only in 2016; James left for the Lakers after the 2018 sweep.

The Cavs' All-Star point guard was traded to which team in 2017 for Isaiah Thomas and other assets?

Thomas lasted months before a deadline overhaul brought Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr., son of the Cavs legend.

Which team did LeBron James join when he left Cleveland for the second time in 2018?

He declined his player option; the Cavaliers won just 19 games in each of the next two seasons.

Which guard, nicknamed 'Spida', set the Cavaliers' single-game record with 71 points?

He arrived from Utah in 2022 and did it against Chicago that January.

Which Cavaliers big man, the 2021 third pick from USC, was 2024–25 Defensive Player of the Year?

He made his first All-Star team the same season as the Cavs raced to a 15–0 start.

The 2024–25 Cavaliers opened the season with how many straight wins, a franchise record?

Only the 2015–16 Warriors, 1993–94 Rockets and 1948–49 Capitols had matched it; Boston ended it 120–117 on November 19.

Which star of Cleveland's NFL team bought a minority stake in the Cavaliers in October 2023?

The defensive end also serves as a team ambassador.

The Cavaliers' mascot Moondog is named in tribute to which Cleveland figure?

Freed popularised the phrase 'rock and roll' and called himself 'Moondog'; the team's other mascot is the swashbuckling Sir C.C.

What were the Cavaliers' original 1970 team colours?

The 1980s teams wore orange and blue; wine and gold returned and remains the palette today.

The Cavaliers' downtown home, opened in 1994 as Gund Arena, was renamed what in 2025?

It has also been Quicken Loans Arena and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, all names tied to Dan Gilbert's businesses.

Which Lithuanian centre was LeBron's longtime frontcourt partner in his first Cavaliers stint?

'Big Z' overcame repeated foot surgeries to become a two-time All-Star and had his number 11 retired.

How many wins did the Cavaliers manage in the three seasons after LeBron's second departure combined?

They churned through Tyronn Lue, Larry Drew, John Beilein and J. B. Bickerstaff before the play-in appearance of 2022.

Who was the Cavaliers' first head coach, in charge of the 1976 Miracle of Richfield team?

He later won a title with the Celtics; Nate Thurmond and Bingo Smith were among his stars in 1976.

What was the early-1980s owner's most notorious trade?

That 1982 pick became James Worthy, the first overall selection; the Lakers had sent back the 22nd pick of 1980.

The Cavaliers' 2021–22 season marked what first for the franchise?

They lost to Brooklyn and then Atlanta; it was the first postseason basketball without LeBron since 1998.

Whose shot with four seconds left won Game 7 of the 1976 'Miracle at Richfield' series 87-85?

Cleveland then lost the conference finals to Boston without Chones, who broke his toe before the series opener.

Which company's 'Wingfoot' logo became the Cavaliers' first jersey patch sponsor in 2017?

The Akron tyre giant's patch debuted on the wine-and-gold uniforms for the 2017-18 season.

What kind of animal was Whammer, the Cavaliers' mascot introduced in November 1995?

Whammer still makes occasional appearances; today's official mascots are Moondog and the swashbuckling Sir C.C.

In which suburb is Cleveland Clinic Courts, the Cavaliers' practice facility opened in 2007?

After the 2016 title, the town renamed the stretch of Brecksville Road leading to the building 'Cavaliers Way'.

Where did the Cavaliers play their home games in their first four seasons, 1970 to 1974?

They moved to the Coliseum at Richfield in 1974 and to the downtown arena now called Rocket Arena in 1994.

What was the Cavaliers' overall record during Ted Stepien's three years as owner?

The team also fell to the bottom of the league in attendance and lost $15 million before the Gund brothers bought it in 1983.

In 1983-84 the Cavaliers switched their colours from wine and gold to what scheme?

That era's logo turned the 'V' of Cavaliers into a hoop with a basketball above it; the look returned for anniversary games in 2006-07 and 2016-17.

Which team ended the Cavaliers' record 15-0 start to the 2024-25 season?

Cleveland became only the fourth team to open 15-0, after the 1948-49 Capitols, 1993-94 Rockets and 2015-16 Warriors.

Which team beat the Cavaliers 4-1 in the 2023 playoffs, Cleveland's first without LeBron since 1998?

A year later Cleveland beat Orlando in seven games before falling to Boston in the conference semifinals.