The 1995–96 NBA season was the 26th season for the

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 Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

in the

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

. During the off-season, the Cavaliers acquired All-Star guard, and three-point specialist Dan Majerle from the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

, and acquired 2-time Slam Dunk champion Harold Miner from the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

. After the first two games of the regular season,

Tyrone Hill Tyrone Hill (born March 19, 1968) is an American former professional basketball player and former assistant coach for the National Basketball Association's Atlanta Hawks. Hill spent four years playing collegiately at Xavier University, in his l ...

was seriously injured in a car accident and missed 38 games, as the Cavaliers struggled losing their first seven games of the season; however, Hill returned in the second half of the season playing off the bench, being replaced by

Michael Cage Michael Jerome Cage Sr. (born January 28, 1962) is an American former professional basketball player and current broadcast analyst for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Basketball career A 6'9" power forward/ center from San Diego State, he is the Az ...

as the team's starting center. The Cavaliers played above .500 basketball for the remainder of the season, holding a 26–20 record at the All-Star break, and posting a 10–2 record in February. The team finished in third place in the Central Division with a 47–35 record, earned the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference, and qualified for the

NBA playoffs The NBA playoffs is the annual Playoffs, postseason Tournament#Knockout tournaments, tournament of the National Basketball Association (NBA) held to determine the league champion. Since 1949, the four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held afte ...

for the fifth consecutive year. Terrell Brandon continued to show improvement, leading the team with 19.3 points, 6.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game, and was selected for the 1996 NBA All-Star Game in

San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...

, while Chris Mills averaged 15.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, and Bobby Phills provided the team with 14.6 points and 1.4 steals per game, and was named to the

NBA All-Defensive Second Team The NBA All-Defensive Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1968–69 NBA season to the best defensive players during the regular season. The All-Defensive Team is generally composed of ten players in two ...

. In addition,

Danny Ferry Daniel John Willard Ferry (born October 17, 1966) is an American executive and former professional basketball player who played the forward position. Considered one of the most celebrated basketball players in the United States from the high sc ...

became the team's starting power forward, and contributed 13.3 points per game and 143 three-point field goals, while Majerle played a sixth man role off the bench, averaging 10.6 points per game, and leading the Cavaliers with 146 three-point field goals, Cage contributed 6.0 points and led the team with 8.9 rebounds per game, and Hill provided with 7.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game off the bench. Brandon finished tied in sixteenth place in

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

voting, and also tied in third place along with Ferry in Most Improved Player voting, while Phills finished tied in eighth place, and head coach

Mike Fratello Michael Robert Fratello (born February 24, 1947), nicknamed "the Czar", is an American sports broadcasting, sports broadcaster and former professional basketball coach. He is currently a part-time Color commentator, analyst for FanDuel Sports Net ...

finished in second place in Coach of the Year voting. However, in the Eastern Conference First Round of the

1996 NBA playoffs The 1996 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1995–96 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Chicago Bulls defeating the Western Conference champion Seattle Supe ...

, the Cavs were swept by the 5th-seeded

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

in three straight games. Following the season, Majerle signed as a free agent with the

after only one season with the Cavaliers, while Cage signed with the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially 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 Atlan ...

, and Miner retired after four seasons in the NBA due to injuries, only playing just 19 games with the Cavaliers this season due to a knee injury. After missing the previous two seasons due to a back injury, former All-Star center Brad Daugherty also retired, ending his eight-year career in the NBA with the Cavaliers. Key Dates:

Offseason

Free agents

Trades

Draft picks

Roster

Roster Notes

* Center Brad Daugherty was on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in t ...

due to a back injury, and missed the entire regular season.

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

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Playoffs

, - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , April 25 ,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

L 83–106
, Terrell Brandon (18) ,

(8) , Brandon, Majerle (5) , Gund Arena
16,419 , 0–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , April 27 ,

L 80–84
, Terrell Brandon (21) ,

(8) , Terrell Brandon (12) , Gund Arena
17,232 , 0–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 3 , May 1 , @

L 76–81
, Terrell Brandon (19) ,

(12) , Terrell Brandon (7) ,

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...

19,763 , 0–3 , -

Player stats

Regular season

Playoffs

Player Statistics Citation:

Awards and records

Awards

Records

Milestones

All-Star

Transactions

Trades

Free agents

Development League

References

*
Cleveland Cavaliers on Basketball Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:1995-96 Cleveland Cavaliers Season Cleveland Cavaliers seasons Cleve Cleve