Cleveland Cavaliers Make Their First Conference Finals Appearance

While the Cleveland Cavaliers of today can boast a string of playoff runs and a historic NBA Championship win, the team’s first Eastern Conference Finals appearance came in a series against the Boston Celtics that began May 6, 1976, during the team’s fifth season in existence. 

“Cavaliers fans have suffered through humiliation, frustration and defeat, waiting for this moment — a shot at the class of professional basketball,” Robert Daniels wrote in The Plain Dealer’s May 7, 1976, edition.

The team fell to defeat during the first two games hosted in Boston. Once the Cavs returned to Ohio to play its next two games at the Richfield Coliseum, the squad began to shine. Austin Carr, Jimmy Cleamons and Campy Russell each scored pivotal points, while Nate Thurmond — nicknamed the “Tower of Power” — anchored the team with seasoned skills in both offense and defense.

“It was the old man, Nate Thurmond, who inspired his younger teammates to one of the finest victories ever achieved by the six-year-old Cleveland franchise,” Bill Nichols reported in The Plain Dealer’s May 15, 1976, edition, following the team’s second victory.

The series was tied heading into game five, but after injuries in previous games, the Cavaliers’ run seemed near its end. Two more losses sealed it. Still, the series foreshadowed a promising future for the team.

“The party is over, but northern Ohio discovered pro basketball in a big way this season,” Nichols wrote, “and were rewarded by one of the guttiest seasons a team of any kind could have.” 

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