By the end of Game 4 of the 2016 NBA Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers were down 3–1 to the Golden State Warriors. One more loss would end their season. Golden State had won 73 regular-season games, and no team had ever come back from a 3–1 deficit to win the Finals. Cleveland then won three straight games and made the impossible-looking result a piece of NBA history.
How deep was the hole?
The Warriors had taken Games 1 and 2 at home. Cleveland answered in Game 3, but Golden State won Game 4 in Cleveland, 108–97. According to the NBA’s retrospective, that left the Cavaliers facing a 3–1 series deficit against the team with the best regular-season record in league history. It was not simply a matter of finding one great performance: Cleveland needed three consecutive wins, including two on the Warriors’ floor.
In Game 5, LeBron James and Kyrie Irving each scored 41 points as Cleveland won 112–97. The NBA notes that they became the first teammates to score at least 40 apiece in the same Finals game. James then led another win in Game 6, 115–101, sending the series back to Oakland. The comeback had reached Game 7, but history still required one more result.
A Game 7 decided by details
On 19 June 2016, the final game stayed tight. Golden State led by seven at halftime; Cleveland closed the margin to one after three quarters. The ESPN game record shows a low-scoring fourth quarter: Cleveland scored 18 points and Golden State 13. Neither team could create much separation.
With the score tied 89–89 late, James chased down Andre Iguodala and blocked his layup attempt. Irving then hit a three-pointer over Stephen Curry with 53 seconds remaining. The NBA’s account of Irving’s shot explains that both teams had gone through a long stretch without a basket. That one make finally broke the tie. Cleveland held on to win 93–89 and take the series 4–3.
Why this comeback stands apart
The Cavaliers claimed the franchise’s first NBA title and ended Cleveland’s 52-year wait for a major professional sports championship. James finished Game 7 with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, a triple-double confirmed by the NBA’s Game 7 recap. An ESPN report from that night also recorded the historic first: a Finals champion rising from 3–1 down.
The dramatic block and shot are the images people remember. The fuller fact is harder to repeat: three straight wins over a 73-win opponent, with the final one secured on the road. Cleveland had to survive elimination in every remaining game, and each win only earned the right to face another. That sequence, not a single highlight, made the 2016 title extraordinary.
Sources and further reading
- NBA: Cavaliers erase a 3–1 deficit
- NBA: Irving’s Game 7 three-pointer
- ESPN: Game 7 score and game record
- ESPN: Finals MVP and comeback report
