1996–97 Cleveland Cavaliers season

The 1996–97 NBA season was the 27th season for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the National Basketball Association.^[1] In the 1996 NBA draft, the Cavaliers selected Ukrainian center Vitaly Potapenko out of Wright State University with the twelfth overall pick, and Lithuanian center Zydrunas Ilgauskas with the 20th overall pick;^[2][3][4] however, Ilgauskas would miss the entire regular season due to a broken bone in his right foot.^[5][6][7] During the off-season, the team signed free agent Mark West.^[8][9]

1996–97 Cleveland Cavaliers season
Head coach	Mike Fratello
General manager	Wayne Embry
Owners	Gordon Gund George Gund III
Arena	Gund Arena
Results
Record	42–40 (.512)
Place	Division: 5th (Central) Conference: 9th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	SportsChannel Ohio WUAB
Radio	WTAM
< 1995–96 1997–98 >

The Cavaliers started the regular season by winning nine of their first twelve games, but after a 21–10 start, they lost six straight games in January while losing 11 of their next 14 games. The team played above .500 basketball for the entire season, holding a 25–22 record at the All-Star break,^[10] but started to struggle down the stretch, losing 10 of their 16 games in March.^[11]

On the final day of the regular season on April 20, 1997, the Cavaliers faced off against the Washington Bullets at the Gund Arena, as both teams were fighting for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference; the Bullets won the game, 85–81, as the Cavaliers missed the NBA playoffs for the first time since the 1990–91 season, finishing in fifth place in the Central Division with a 42–40 record.^[12][13][14] The Cavaliers had the fifth best team defensive rating in the NBA.^[15]

Terrell Brandon led the team with 19.5 points, 6.3 assists and 1.8 steals per game, contributed 101 three-point field goals, and was selected for the 1997 NBA All-Star Game, which was hosted at the Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.^[16][17][18] In addition, Chris Mills averaged 13.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, while Tyrone Hill provided the team with 12.9 points, 9.9 rebounds per game and shot .600 in field-goal percentage, and Bobby Phills contributed 12.6 points and 1.6 steals per game. Meanwhile, Danny Ferry provided with 10.6 points per game, and led the Cavaliers with 114 three-point field goals, while off the bench, second-year guard Bob Sura contributed 9.2 points and 4.8 assists per game, and Potapenko averaged 5.8 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.^[19]

Following the season, Brandon and Hill were both traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in an off-season three-team trade,^[20][21][22] while Mills signed as a free agent with the Boston Celtics,^[23][24][25] who then traded him to the New York Knicks two months later,^[26][27][28] Phills signed with the Charlotte Hornets,^[29][30][31] and West signed with the Indiana Pacers.^[32][33]

Offseason

Free agents

Trades

Draft picks

Main article: 1996 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
1	12*	Vitaly Potapenko	Center	Ukraine	Wright State
1	20	Zydrunas Ilgauskas	Center	Lithuania	Atletas
2	56**	Reggie Geary	Guard	United States	Arizona

^*1st round pick acquired from Washington in Mark Price deal.^[34]
**2nd round pick acquired from Orlando in Steve Kerr deal.^[35]

• 2nd round pick (#50) traded to Houston in Keith Hughes deal. Used to draft Terrell Bell.

Roster

1996–97 Cleveland Cavaliers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From G 1 Terrell Brandon 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1970–05–20 Oregon F 35 Danny Ferry 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1966–10–17 Duke G 2 Reggie Geary 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1973–08–31 Arizona C 32 Tyrone Hill 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1968–03–19 Xavier C 11 Zydrunas Ilgauskas (IN) 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) 238 lb (108 kg) 1975–06–05 Lithuania F 21 Antonio Lang 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1972–05–15 Duke F 33 Donny Marshall 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1972–07–17 Connecticut F 24 Chris Mills 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1970–01–25 Arizona G 14 Bobby Phills 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1969–12–20 Southern C 52 Vitaly Potapenko 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 280 lb (127 kg) 1975–03–21 Wright State C 44 Shawnelle Scott 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1972–06–16 St. John's G 3 Bob Sura 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1973–03–25 Florida State G 23 Carl Thomas 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1969–10–03 Eastern Michigan C 41 Mark West 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1960–11–05 Old Dominion

Head coach Mike Fratello Assistant(s) Jim Boylan Sidney Lowe Ron Rothstein Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended (IN) Inactive Injured Roster Updated: September 23, 1996

Roster Notes

• Rookie center Zydrunas Ilgauskas was on the injured reserve list due to a broken bone in his right foot, and missed the entire regular season.

Regular season

Season standings

Central Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Chicago Bulls	69	13	.841	–	39–2	30–11	24–4
x-Atlanta Hawks	56	26	.683	13	36–5	20–21	17–11
x-Detroit Pistons	54	28	.659	15	30–11	24–17	17–11
x-Charlotte Hornets	54	28	.659	15	30–11	24–17	14–14
Cleveland Cavaliers	42	40	.512	27	25–16	17–24	13–15
Indiana Pacers	39	43	.476	30	21–20	18–23	11–17
Milwaukee Bucks	33	49	.402	36	20–21	13–28	10–18
Toronto Raptors	30	52	.366	39	18–23	12–29	6–22

1996–97 NBA East standings

#	Eastern Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Chicago Bulls	69	13	.841	–
2	y-Miami Heat	61	21	.744	8
3	x-New York Knicks	57	25	.695	12
4	x-Atlanta Hawks	56	26	.683	13
5	x-Detroit Pistons	54	28	.659	15
6	x-Charlotte Hornets	54	28	.659	15
7	x-Orlando Magic	45	37	.549	24
8	x-Washington Bullets	44	38	.537	25
9	Cleveland Cavaliers	42	40	.512	27
10	Indiana Pacers	39	43	.476	30
11	Milwaukee Bucks	33	49	.402	36
12	Toronto Raptors	30	52	.366	39
13	New Jersey Nets	26	56	.317	43
14	Philadelphia 76ers	22	60	.268	47
15	Boston Celtics	15	67	.183	54

Record vs. opponents

1996-97 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	TOR	UTA	VAN	WAS
Atlanta	–	3–1	1–3	1–3	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–2	4–0	2–0	3–1	1–3	3–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–1
Boston	1–3	–	0–4	0–4	1–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–1	0–2	1–2	0–2	1–1	0–4	1–3	0–2	0–4	0–4	0–4	1–3	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	3–1	0–2	0–2	0–4
Charlotte	3–1	4–0	–	0–4	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	2–0	2–0	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–2	2–2	2–0	4–0	3–1	1–2	4–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–2	0–2	2–0	3–1
Chicago	3–1	4–0	4–0	–	3–1	2–0	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	2–2	4–0	2–0	3–1	2–2	3–0	4–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–1
Cleveland	1–3	2–1	1–3	1–3	–	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–2	2–0	4–0	1–3	2–2	3–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	3–1	1–1	2–0	1–3
Dallas	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	–	3–1	0–2	0–4	0–4	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–3	2–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	1–3	3–1	0–2
Denver	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–3	–	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	1–1	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–2	0–4	2–2	2–2	0–4	1–1	0–4	3–1	1–1
Detroit	3–1	4–0	2–2	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–0	–	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–4	3–1	2–0	4–0	1–2	2–2	2–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	4–0
Golden State	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	4–0	3–1	0–2	–	0–4	1–1	1–3	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–2	1–3	4–0	0–4	2–0	0–4	3–1	0–2
Houston	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–0	4–0	3–1	1–1	4–0	–	1–1	3–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–2	2–2	4–0	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–2	3–1	2–0
Indiana	1–3	2–1	2–2	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–1	1–1	–	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–2	1–3	1–3	3–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	1–3
L.A. Clippers	0–2	2–0	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	3–1	0–2	3–1	1–3	0–2	–	2–2	0–2	2–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–2	0–4	2–2	4–0	1–3	2–0	1–3	4–0	0–2
L.A. Lakers	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–0	1–1	4–0	1–3	1–1	2–2	–	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	4–0	1–3	4–0	2–2	3–1	1–1	1–3	4–0	2–0
Miami	2–1	4–0	2–1	2–2	4–0	2–0	2–0	4–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	–	4–0	1–1	3–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	3–1	0–2	2–0	3–1
Milwaukee	0–4	3–1	2–2	0–4	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	–	0–2	2–1	1–2	2–2	3–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	1–3
Minnesota	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–2	3–1	4–0	0–2	3–1	0–4	0–2	3–1	1–3	1–1	2–0	–	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	0–4	4–0	0–4	1–1	1–3	4–0	1–1
New Jersey	1–3	4–0	0–4	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–2	0–2	–	2–2	1–3	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–3	0–2	2–0	1–3
New York	3–1	4–0	1–3	2–2	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–1	1–1	2–2	–	3–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	3–0	1–1	2–0	4–0
Orlando	1–3	4–0	2–1	0–3	2–2	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	3–1	1–3	–	2–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	0–2	1–1	1–3
Philadelphia	0–4	3–1	0–4	0–4	0–3	0–2	1–1	1–2	0–2	0–2	0–3	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–3	1–1	2–2	2–3	2–2	–	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–2	2–0	1–3
Phoenix	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	–	1–3	4–0	3–1	2–2	0–2	1–3	2–2	1–1
Portland	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	4–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	–	2–2	4–0	1–3	0–2	2–2	4–0	0–2
Sacramento	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–2	1–1	3–1	0–4	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	2–0	4–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–2	–	3–1	1–3	1–1	0–4	4–0	0–2
San Antonio	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–0	3–1	2–2	0–2	0–4	1–3	1–1	0–4	2–2	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	0–4	1–3	–	0–4	1–1	1–3	1–3	0–2
Seattle	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	2–0	3–1	4–0	1–1	4–0	1–3	1–1	3–1	1–3	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–2	3–1	3–1	4–0	–	2–0	1–3	4–0	2–0
Toronto	0–4	1–3	2–2	1–3	1–3	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–3	1–1	3–0	0–3	0–4	3–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	–	1–1	1–1	2–2
Utah	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	3–1	2–2	4–0	3–1	3–1	1–1	–	4–0	2–0
Vancouver	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	0–4	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–2	0–4	0–4	3–1	0–4	1–1	0–4	–	1–1
Washington	1–2	4–0	1–3	1–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–0	0–2	3–1	2–0	0–2	1–3	3–1	1–1	3–1	0–4	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	0–2	2–2	0–2	1–1	—

Game log

1996–97 game log Total: 42–40 (home: 25–16; road: 17–24)
November: 9–5 (home: 5–3; road: 4–2) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record
December : 10–5 (home: 8–1; road: 2–4) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record
January : 5–9 (home: 3–5; road: 2–4) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record
February : 7–5 (home: 3–2; road: 4–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record
March : 6–10 (home: 4–2; road: 2–8) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record
April : 5–6 (home: 2–3; road: 3–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record
1996–97 schedule

Player stats

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Regular season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Terrell Brandon	78	78	36.8	43.8	37.3	90.2	3.9	6.3	1.8	0.4	19.5
Chris Mills	80	79	39.6	45.3	39.1	84.2	6.2	2.5	1.1	0.5	13.4
Tyrone Hill	74	70	34.9	60.0	0.0	63.3	9.9	1.2	0.9	0.4	12.9
Bobby Phills	69	65	34.4	42.8	39.4	71.8	3.6	3.4	1.6	0.3	12.6
Danny Ferry	82	48	32.1	42.9	40.1	85.1	4.1	1.8	0.7	0.4	10.6
Bob Sura	82	23	27.7	43.1	32.3	61.4	3.8	4.8	1.1	0.4	9.2
Vitaly Potapenko	80	3	15.5	44.0	50.0	73.6	2.7	0.5	0.3	0.4	5.8
Mark West	70	43	13.7	55.6	0.0	48.2	2.7	0.3	0.2	0.8	3.2
Donny Marshall	56	0	9.8	32.5	37.9	70.4	1.3	0.4	0.4	0.1	3.1
Antonio Lang	64	1	13.2	42.0	0.0	72.9	2.0	0.5	0.5	0.5	2.7
Reggie Geary	39	0	6.3	37.9	38.1	45.5	0.4	0.9	0.3	0.1	1.5
Shawnelle Scott	16	0	3.1	50.0	0.0	36.4	1.0	0.0	0.0	0.2	1.3
Carl Thomas	19	0	4.1	37.5	16.7	100.0	0.7	0.4	0.1	0.1	1.1

Player Statistics Citation:^[19]

Awards and records

Awards

Records

Milestones

All-Star

Terrell Brandon - 1997 NBA All-Star Game

Transactions

Trades

Free agents

Development League