The 2004–05

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

season was the 35th season of the franchise in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA) in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. During the offseason, the Cavaliers acquired Drew Gooden from the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

, and

Eric Snow Eric Snow (born April 5, 1973) is an American basketball coach and former professional player. He played the point guard position in the National Basketball Association from 1995 to 2008 and appeared in three NBA Finals. Known for his defense, ...

from the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

. In his second season, expectations were high for

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest pl ...

as the Cavaliers hoped for a playoff berth. Through the first half of the season, the Cavs held a 30–21 record at the All-Star Break as James was selected to his first All-Star selection in the 2005 NBA All-Star Game along with

Zydrunas Ilgauskas Zydrunas Ilgauskas ( lt, link=no, Žydrūnas Ilgauskas; ; born June 5, 1975) is a Lithuanian-born American former professional basketball player who played the center position. The 7'3" Ilgauskas played for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the Nationa ...

. However, as March began, the Cavaliers were unable to upgrade at the trading deadline as the team went on a six-game losing streak. Head coach

Paul Silas Paul Theron Silas (July 12, 1943 – December 10, 2022) was an American professional basketball player and head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a player, he was a two-time NBA All-Star and earned five selections to the NB ...

was fired and replaced by interim

Brendan Malone Brendan Thomas Malone (born April 21, 1942) is an American basketball coach. Early life Malone grew up in Astoria, Queens in New York City and graduated from Rice High School. Malone's father, also named Brendan, unloaded freight cars for the R ...

. LeBron was named to the All-NBA Second Team, and finished in sixth place in MVP voting. The Cavaliers finished the season with a 42–40 record, a fourth-place finish in the Central Division, and barely missed out of the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

, losing a tiebreaker for the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference to the

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

. This was the seventh straight year that the Cavs missed the playoffs. Despite their collapse, James had an outstanding sophomore season averaging 27.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game. This was the last time that LeBron missed the playoffs until his first season with the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

. Key dates: * On June 24, the

2004 NBA Draft The 2004 NBA draft was held on June 24, 2004, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and was broadcast live on ESPN at 7:00 pm ( EDT). In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur colle ...

, took place in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, New York. * In July, the free agency period began. * On September 15, the Cavaliers named

assistant coach. * On October 14, the Cavaliers' preseason began with a 94–102 loss to

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

. * On November 3, the Cavaliers' regular season began with a 104–109 2OT loss to

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. * On March 21, head coach

was fired and Brendan Malone was named interim head coach.

Mike Bratz Michael Louis Bratz (born October 17, 1955) is a retired American basketball player and former the assistant general manager for the Sacramento Kings. He played professionally in the NBA for the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, San Antonio Spur ...

and Wes Wilcox were added to Malone's staff as assistants. * On April 20, the Cavaliers' season ended in a 104–95 win over the Toronto Raptors. * On April 21,

Jim Paxson James Joseph Paxson (born July 9, 1957) is an American former professional basketball player. A first round selection (12th overall) of the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1979 NBA draft, Paxson played for Portland and the Boston Celtics of the N ...

was fired as President of Basketball Operations and general manager.

Offseason

Free Agents

^*Selected in expansion draft

Trades

Draft picks

* 2nd round pick (#39) traded to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

in Michael Stewart deal.Lamond Murray and a future 2nd round pick traded to Toronto for Michael Stewart and a future 1st round pick http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/CAVS_OBTAIN_FIRSTROUND_PICK_A-53834-44.html Used to draft

Albert Miralles Albert Miralles (born 14 May 1982) is a Spanish retired professional basketball player. Professional career NBA Draft Miralles was drafted by the Toronto Raptors in the 2004 NBA Draft. The Miami Heat acquired his rights from the Toronto Raptors ...

who was then traded to

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

Roster

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

Player stats

Regular season

* Statistics include only games with the Cavaliers

Awards and records

Awards

Records

Milestones

All-Star

voted as a starter for the 2005 NBA All-Star Game. He was appeared for the first time in the

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or div ...

- 2005 NBA All-Star Game

Transactions

Trades

Free Agents

Development League

References

Cleveland Cavaliers on Database Basketball2004-05 Season Media Guide
{{DEFAULTSORT:2004-05 Cleveland Cavaliers season Cleveland Cavaliers seasons Cleve Cleve