Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team that plays in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Cavaliers compete in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays in Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.
Cleveland entered the NBA for the 1970-1971 season. The team did not compile a winning season until 1975-1976, when it won its first division title behind such stars as center Jim Chones and guard Bobby Smith.
Cleveland struggled for the next 10 seasons before becoming one of the NBA’s best teams in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, led by coach Lenny Wilkens. The stars of those teams included guard Mark Price, forward Larry Nance, and center Brad Daugherty. Cleveland made the playoffs every season but one from 1987-1988 to 1995-1996. In 2003, the Cavaliers drafted high school star LeBron James. He immediately became one of the most exciting players in the NBA and was named Rookie of the Year for the 2003-2004 season. In the 2006-2007 playoffs, Cleveland reached the NBA finals for the first time in the franchise’s history, losing the NBA championship to the San Antonio Spurs. 
Cleveland won its division for the 2008-2009 season and led the NBA with 66 victories. James was named the league’s Most Valuable Player. The Cavaliers lost in the conference finals to the Orlando Magic. The Cavaliers won the division title in 2009-2010 and led the NBA in victories with 61, but were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. James signed with the Miami Heat following the 2009-2010 season. During the 2010-2011 season, Cleveland lost 26 consecutive games, an NBA regular season record. Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving was named the NBA Rookie of the Year for the 2011-2012 season.
Following the 2013-2014 season, James rejoined Cleveland. He led the Cavaliers to the NBA finals in 2015 and to the NBA championship in 2016. Cleveland won the championship—the first in team history—by defeating Golden State, 4-3. The Cavaliers won the final three games of the series, becoming the first team in NBA history to win the championship after being behind 3-1. Golden State defeated Cleveland in the next two NBA finals—4-1 in 2017 and 4-0 in 2018. Guards Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland led the Cavaliers to the playoffs in the 2022-2023 season.
