# 2011–12 Cleveland Cavaliers season

The 2011–12 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 42nd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

## Key dates

* May 17 – The 2011 NBA Draft Lottery took place, and the Cavaliers got the first pick.
* June 23 – The 2011 NBA draft took place in Newark, New Jersey, at the Prudential Center. The Cavaliers picked Kyrie Irving (#1), Tristan Thompson (#4), Milan Mačvan (#54). They also drafted Justin Harper (#32), but immediately traded him to the Orlando Magic for two future second-round picks (2013 and 2014).
* June 29 – The Cavs exercise the third-year option on Christian Eyenga, keeping him under contract until the 2012–13 season.
* June 30 – J.J. Hickson is sent to the Sacramento Kings, for Omri Casspi and a protected future first round pick.
* July 7 – The Cavaliers set an NBA D-League team in Canton, Ohio. The Cavs announced that they will own and control all the operations of the former Albuquerque/New Mexico Thunderbirds. On October 13, the new name, logo, colors and court design are unveiled, the Canton Charge.
* December 9 – Training Camp begins. The Cavs also signed with rookies Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson. They also waived Joey Graham.
* December 12 – Anthony Parker re-signed with the Cavaliers.
* December 14 – The Cavs decided to waive Baron Davis.
* December 16 – The Cavaliers opened their pre-season with a victory over the Detroit Pistons in The Palace of Auburn Hills.
* December 20 – The Cavs closed their pre-season with a loss against the Pistons in Quicken Loans Arena, with a 1–1 record.
* December 22 – Manny Harris is waived by the Cavs.
* December 26 – The Cavaliers opened their season with a loss against the Toronto Raptors in the Quicken Loans Arena.
* January 4 – Christian Eyenga is assigned to the Canton Charge.
* January 23 – The Cavs recall Christian Eyenga.
* February 10 – The Cavaliers sign a 10-day contract with Ben Uzoh, of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
* February 21 – Manny Harris sign a 10-day contract with the Cavs.

## Draft picks

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Club Team |
| 1 | 1 | Kyrie Irving | G | United States | Duke |
| 1 | 4 | Tristan Thompson | F | Canada | Texas |
| 2 | 32 | Justin Harper | F | United States | Richmond |
| 2 | 54 | Milan Mačvan | PF | Serbia | Maccabi Tel Aviv |

## Pre-season

2011 pre-season game log :
Pre-season: 1–1 (home: 0–1; road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
December 16
@ Detroit Pistons
W 91–87
Kyrie Irving (20)
Alonzo Gee (8)
Ramon Sessions (6)
The Palace of Auburn Hills 7,927
1–0
2
December 20
Detroit Pistons
L 89–90
Omri Casspi (18)
Anderson Varejão (10)
Ramon Sessions (8)
Quicken Loans Arena 9,853
1-1 :
2011–12 season schedule :
The original 2011 NBA Pre-season was canceled due to the 2011 NBA Lockout. After the lockout, the NBA created a new two game Pre-Season.

## Regular season
### Standings

| Central Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
| z-Chicago Bulls | 50 | 16 | .758 | – | 26–7 | 24–9 | 13–1 | 66 |
| x-Indiana Pacers | 42 | 24 | .636 | 8 | 23–10 | 19–14 | 9–4 | 66 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | 31 | 35 | .470 | 19 | 17–16 | 14–19 | 7–8 | 66 |
| Detroit Pistons | 25 | 41 | .379 | 25 | 18–15 | 7–26 | 4–11 | 66 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 21 | 45 | .318 | 29 | 11–22 | 10–23 | 3–12 | 66 |
Eastern Conference :
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | z-Chicago Bulls | 50 | 16 | .758 | – | 66 |
| 2 | y-Miami Heat * | 46 | 20 | .697 | 4.0 | 66 |
| 3 | x-Indiana Pacers * | 42 | 24 | .636 | 8.0 | 66 |
| 4 | y-Boston Celtics | 39 | 27 | .591 | 11.0 | 66 |
| 5 | x-Atlanta Hawks | 40 | 26 | .606 | 10.0 | 66 |
| 6 | x-Orlando Magic | 37 | 29 | .561 | 13.0 | 66 |
| 7 | x-New York Knicks | 36 | 30 | .545 | 14.0 | 66 |
| 8 | x-Philadelphia 76ers | 35 | 31 | .530 | 15.0 | 66 |
| 9 | Milwaukee Bucks | 31 | 35 | .470 | 19.0 | 66 |
| 10 | Detroit Pistons | 25 | 41 | .379 | 25.0 | 66 |
| 11 | Toronto Raptors | 23 | 43 | .348 | 27.0 | 66 |
| 12 | New Jersey Nets | 22 | 44 | .333 | 28.0 | 66 |
| 13 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 21 | 45 | .318 | 29.0 | 66 |
| 14 | Washington Wizards | 20 | 46 | .303 | 30.0 | 66 |
| 15 | Charlotte Bobcats | 7 | 59 | .106 | 43.0 | 66 |

### Game log

2011–12 game log Total: 21–45 (Home: 11–22; Road: 10–23) :
December: 1–2 (home: 0–1; road: 1–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
December 26
Toronto
L 96–104
Ramon Sessions (18)
Anderson Varejão (10)
Kyrie Irving (7)
Quicken Loans Arena 20,562
0–1
2
December 28
@ Detroit
W 105–89
Samardo Samuels (17)
Anderson Varejão, Ramon Sessions (7)
Kyrie Irving (7)
The Palace of Auburn Hills 22,076
1–1
3
December 30
@ Indiana
L 91–98 (OT)
Kyrie Irving (20)
Anderson Varejão (13)
Kyrie Irving, Alonzo Gee (4)
Bankers Life Fieldhouse 13,004
1–2 :
January: 7–10 (home: 3–4; road: 4–6)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
4
January 1
New Jersey
W 98–82
Antawn Jamison (23)
Anderson Varejão (11)
Ramon Sessions (8)
Quicken Loans Arena 15,084
2–2
5
January 3
Charlotte
W 115–101
Kyrie Irving (20)
Tristan Thompson (9)
Ramon Sessions (9)
Quicken Loans Arena 14,173
3–2
6
January 4
@ Toronto
L 77–92
Antawn Jamison (19)
Anderson Varejão (13)
Kyrie Irving (4)
Air Canada Centre 14,468
3–3
7
January 6
@ Minnesota
W 98–87
Antawn Jamison (22)
Anderson Varejão (12)
Ramon Sessions (6)
Target Center 16,943
4–3
8
January 8
@ Portland
L 78–98
Kyrie Irving (21)
Antawn Jamison (11)
Kyrie Irving (4)
Rose Garden 20,292
4–4
9
January 10
@ Utah
L 105–113
Antawn Jamison (22)
Anderson Varejão (11)
Kyrie Irving (5)
EnergySolutions Arena 17,879
4–5
10
January 12
@ Phoenix
W 101–90
Kyrie Irving (26)
Anderson Varejão (17)
Kyrie Irving (6)
US Airways Center 14,636
5–5
11
January 13
@ L. A. Lakers
L 92–97
Kyrie Irving (21)
Anderson Varejão (14)
Anthony Parker (5)
Staples Center 18,997
5–6
12
January 16
@ Charlotte
W 102–94
Kyrie Irving (25)
Anderson Varejão (12)
Ramon Sessions (9)
Time Warner Cable Arena 14,988
6–6
13
January 17
Golden State
L 95–105
Antawn Jamison (19)
Anderson Varejão (13)
Kyrie Irving (5)
Quicken Loans Arena 13,056
6–7
14
January 20
Chicago
L 75–114
Anderson Varejão (14)
Antawn Jamison (8)
Anthony Parker, Kyrie Irving, Ramon Sessions (3)
Quicken Loans Arena 17,871
6–8
15
January 21, 2012
@ Atlanta
L 94–121
Kyrie Irving (18)
Anderson Varejão (8)
Ramon Sessions (4)
Philips Arena 15,922
6–9
16
January 24
@ Miami
L 85–92
Kyrie Irving (17)
Anderson Varejão (11)
Kyrie Irving, Antawn Jamison (4)
American Airlines Arena 19,600
6–10
17
January 25
New York
W 91–81
Antawn Jamison (15)
Anderson Varejão (16)
Kyrie Irving (7)
Quicken Loans Arena 16,760
7–10
18
January 27
New Jersey
L 96–99
Kyrie Irving (32)
Anderson Varejão (9)
Daniel Gibson (4)
Quicken Loans Arena 13,121
7–11
19
January 29
@ Boston
W 88–87
Kyrie Irving (23)
Anderson Varejão (9)
Kyrie Irving (6)
TD Garden 18,624
8–11
20
January 31
Boston
L 90–93
Kyrie Irving (21)
Anderson Varejão (20)
Ramon Sessions (10)
Quicken Loans Arena 14,798
8–12 :
February: 5–8 (home: 5–5; road: 0–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
21
February 3
@ Orlando
L 94–102
Alonzo Gee (20)
Anderson Varejão (15)
Ramon Sessions (8)
Amway Center 18,933
8–13
22
February 4
Dallas
W 91–88
Kyrie Irving (20)
Anderson Varejão (17)
Ramon Sessions (8)
Quicken Loans Arena 17,433
9–13
23
February 7
@ Miami
L 91–107
Antawn Jamison (25)
Anderson Varejão (11)
Kyrie Irving (6)
American Airlines Arena20,078
9–14
24
February 8
L. A. Clippers
W 99–92
Antawn Jamison (27)
Anderson Varejão (11)
Ramon Sessions (13)
Quicken Loans Arena 17,100
10–14
25
February 10
Milwaukee
L 112–113 (OT)
Antawn Jamison (34)
Tristan Thompson (13)
Ramon Sessions (16)
Quicken Loans Arena 15,195
10–15
26
February 11
Philadelphia
L 84–99
Antawn Jamison (20)
Antawn Jamison (8)
Ramon Sessions (8)
Quicken Loans Arena
10–16
27
February 15
Indiana
W 98–87
Kyrie Irving (22)
David West (10)
Kyrie Irving (5)
Quicken Loans Arena
11–16
28
February 17
Miami
L 87–111
LeBron James (28)
Chris Bosh (12)
LeBron James (5)
Quicken Loans Arena
11–17
29
February 19
Sacramento
W 93–92
Kyrie Irving (23)
Omri Casspi (12)
Isaiah Thomas (11)
Quicken Loans Arena
12–17
30
February 21
Detroit
W 101–100
Antawn Jamison (32)
Alonzo Gee (11)
Kyrie Irving (8)
Quicken Loans Arena
13–17
31
February 22
New Orleans
L 84–89
Antawn Jamison (22)
Gustavo Ayon (17)
Kyrie Irving (11)
Quicken Loans Arena
13–18
All-Star Break
32
February 28
Boston
L 83–86
Kyrie Irving (24)
Chris Wilcox (11)
Rajon Rondo (11
Quicken Loans Arena
13–19
33
February 29
@ New York
L 103–120
Antawn Jamison (23)
Tyson Chandler (15)
Jeremy Lin (13)
Madison Square Garden
13–20 :
March: 4–13 (home: 1–7; road: 3–6)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
34
March 2
Chicago
L 91–112
Luol Deng (24)
Carlos Boozer (11)
Derrick Rose (9)
Quicken Loans Arena
13–21
35
March 3
@ Washington
L 98–101
Jordan Crawford (31)
JaVale McGee (12)
Kyrie Irving (6)
Verizon Center
13–22
36
March 5
Utah
L 100–109
Antawn Jamison, Kyrie Irving (22)
Five players (4)
Antawn Jamison (6)
Quicken Loans Arena 13,190
13–23
37
March 7
@ Denver
W 100–99
Antawn Jamison (33)
Antawn Jamison (9)
Kyrie Irving (8)
Power Balance Pavilion 15,816
14–23
38
March 9
@ Oklahoma City
W 96–90
Antawn Jamison (21)
Three players (8)
Kyrie Irving (12)
Chesapeake Energy Arena 18,203
15–23
39
March 11
Houston
W 118–107
Antawn Jamison (28)
Kyrie Irving (6)
Ramon Sessions (7)
Quicken Loans Arena 17,662
16–23
40
March 13
Toronto
L 88–96
Antawn Jamison (20)
Kyrie Irving (7)
Kyrie Irving (7)
Quicken Loans Arena 14,203
16–24
41
March 14
@ Milwaukee
L 105–115
Kyrie Irving (28)
Alonzo Gee Antawn Jamison (5)
Ramon Sessions (6)
Bradley Center 15,319
16–25
42
March 18
Atlanta
L 87–103
Alonzo Gee (20)
Alonzo Gee (9)
Kyrie Irving (10)
Quicken Loans Arena 15,645
16–26
43
March 19
@ New Jersey
W 105–100
Tristan Thompson (27)
Antawn Jamison (13)
Kyrie Irving (7)
Prudential Center 11,254
17–26
44
March 21
@ Atlanta
L 102–103 (OT)
Kyrie Irving (29)
Alonzo Gee (13)
Kyrie Irving (9)
Philips Arena 12,331
17–27
45
March 23
@ Orlando
L 80–93
Antawn Jamison (16)
Tristan Thompson (11)
Kyrie Irving (6)
Amway Center 18,846
17–28
46
March 25
Phoenix
L 83–108
Kyrie Irving (16)
Manny Harris (9)
Kyrie Irving Donald Sloan (4)
Quicken Loans Arena 17,307
17–29
47
March 27
@ Philadelphia
L 85–103
Anthony Parker (14)
Alonzo Gee (9)
Kyrie Irving (7)
Wells Fargo Center 17,832
17–30
48
March 28
Detroit
L 75–87
Kyrie Irving (22)
Tristan Thompson (11)
Kyrie Irving (6)
Quicken Loans Arena 14,486
17–31
49
March 30
Milwaukee
L 84–121
Kyrie Irving (29)
Tristan Thompson (11)
Kyrie Irving (5)
Quicken Loans Arena 16,099
17–32
50
March 31
@ New York
L 75–91
Antawn Jamison (13)
Antawn Jamison Donald Sloan (7)
Donald Sloan (4)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
17–33 :
April: 4–12 (home: 2–5; road: 2–7)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
51
April 3
San Antonio
L 90–125
Antawn Jamison (15)
Alonzo Gee (5)
Kyrie Irving Luke Walton (5)
Quicken Loans Arena 14,759
17–34
52
April 4
@ Milwaukee
L 98–107
Anthony Parker (27)
Tristan Thompson (9)
Donald Sloan (8)
Bradley Center 11,849
17–35
53
April 6
@ Toronto
W 84–80
Antawn Jamison (25)
Antawn Jamison (8)
Lester Hudson (7)
Air Canada Centre 16,565
18–35
54
April 8
@ New Jersey
L 117–122 (OT)
Antawn Jamison (34)
Tristan Thompson (15)
Donald Sloan (14)
Prudential Center 11,341
18–36
55
April 10
Charlotte
W 103–90
Lester Hudson (25)
Lester Hudson (8)
Lester Hudson (6)
Quicken Loans Arena 13,576
19–36
56
April 11
Indiana
L 98–104 (OT)
Antawn Jamison (21)
Antawn Jamison Tristan Thompson (8)
Donald Sloan (6)
Quicken Loans Arena 14,307
19–37
57
April 13
@ Indiana
L 83–102
Omri Casspi (14)
Samardo Samuels (10)
Donald Sloan (5)
Bankers Life Fieldhouse 13,356
19–38
58
April 14
@ Washington
W 98–89
Luke Harangody (16)
Luke Harangody (10)
Anthony Parker (5)
Verizon Center 17,200
20–38
59
April 15
Orlando
L 84–100
Antawn Jamison (21)
Alonzo Gee Tristan Thompson (8)
Antawn Jamison (6)
Quicken Loans Arena 16,305
20–39
60
April 17
@ Detroit
L 77–116
Manny Harris (18)
Tristan Thompson (13)
Donald Sloan (4)
The Palace of Auburn Hills 11,595
20–40
61
April 18
Philadelphia
L 87–103
Samardo Samuels Lester Hudson (15)
Samardo Samuels Tristan Thompson (5)
Donald Sloan (7)
Quicken Loans Arena 14,678
20–41
62
April 20
New York
W 98–90
Kyrie Irving (21)
Manny Harris (12)
Antawn Jamison (5)
Quicken Loans Arena 19,349
21–41
63
April 22
@ San Antonio
L 98–114
Antawn Jamison (21)
Tristan Thompson (9)
Anthony Parker (4)
AT&T Center 18,581
21–42
64
April 23
@ Memphis
L 101–109
Kyrie Irving (25)
Antawn Jamison Tristan Thompson (9)
Kyrie Irving (4)
FedExForum 15,504
21–43
65
April 25
Washington
L 85–96
D.J. Kennedy (12)
Samardo Samuels (9)
Donald Sloan (7)
Quicken Loans Arena 18,086
21–44
66
April 26
@ Chicago
L 75–107
Tristan Thompson (13)
Tristan Thompson (12)
Donald Sloan Luke Walton (2)
United Center 22,563
21–45 :
2011–12 season schedule :
All the games through December 24 were canceled due to the 2011 NBA Lockout. A new schedule was created starting in December 25.

## Player statistics
### Regular season

| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| Kyrie Irving | 51 | 51 | 30.5 | .469 | .399 | .872 | 3.7 | 5.4 | 1.1 | .4 | 18.5 |
| Antawn Jamison | 65 | 65 | 33.1 | .403 | .341 | .683 | 6.3 | 2.0 | .8 | .7 | 17.2 |
| Lester Hudson | 13 | 0 | 24.2 | .391 | .246 | .842 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 1.1 | .2 | 12.7 |
| Anderson Varejão | 25 | 25 | 31.4 | .514 | .000 | .672 | 11.5 | 1.7 | 1.4 | .7 | 10.8 |
| Alonzo Gee | 63 | 31 | 29.0 | .412 | .321 | .788 | 5.1 | 1.8 | 1.3 | .3 | 10.6 |
| Ramon Sessions | 41 | 4 | 24.5 | .398 | .419 | .830 | 3.1 | 5.2 | .7 | .0 | 10.5 |
| Tristan Thompson | 60 | 25 | 23.7 | .439 | .000 | .552 | 6.5 | .5 | .5 | 1.0 | 8.2 |
| Daniel Gibson | 35 | 7 | 26.2 | .351 | .396 | .791 | 2.9 | 2.2 | .7 | .5 | 7.5 |
| Anthony Parker | 51 | 51 | 25.1 | .433 | .362 | .625 | 2.7 | 2.4 | .7 | .1 | 7.2 |
| Omri Casspi | 65 | 35 | 20.6 | .403 | .315 | .685 | 3.5 | 1.0 | .6 | .3 | 7.1 |
| Manny Harris | 26 | 5 | 17.5 | .400 | .333 | .695 | 2.7 | 1.2 | .5 | .2 | 6.7 |
| Donald Sloan | 25 | 11 | 24.3 | .403 | .091 | .808 | 2.4 | 3.7 | .4 | .1 | 6.6 |
| D. J. Kennedy | 2 | 0 | 29.5 | .417 | .500 | .000 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 1.0 | .0 | 6.0 |
| Samardo Samuels | 54 | 0 | 15.3 | .455 | | .701 | 3.3 | .4 | .4 | .4 | 5.4 |
| Ryan Hollins | 24 | 7 | 15.1 | .500 | | .600 | 2.3 | .3 | .2 | .5 | 3.7 |
| Mychel Thompson | 5 | 3 | 19.0 | .292 | .364 | | 1.0 | 1.4 | .4 | .2 | 3.6 |
| Semih Erden | 28 | 9 | 11.9 | .527 | | .512 | 2.6 | .3 | .4 | .2 | 3.5 |
| Luke Harangody | 21 | 1 | 11.0 | .354 | .238 | .750 | 2.5 | .3 | .3 | .1 | 2.9 |
| Ben Uzoh | 2 | 0 | 6.5 | .400 | | | 2.0 | 1.0 | .5 | .0 | 2.0 |
| Luke Walton | 21 | 0 | 14.2 | .353 | .438 | | 1.7 | 1.4 | .1 | .0 | 2.0 |
| Christian Eyenga | 6 | 0 | 13.8 | .158 | .500 | .333 | 2.0 | .7 | .5 | .7 | 1.5 |

## Awards, records and milestones
### Awards

* Kyrie Irving was named Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month three times (December – January, February and March) and won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award.
* Rookies Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson were selected to participate in the 2012 Rising Stars challenge.

### Milestones

* On March 31 Antawn Jamison scored his 19,000th career point in a 75–91 loss to the New York Knicks.
* On January 31 Kyrie Irving made his first game-winning basket against the Boston Celtics.

## Injuries, surgeries and absences

* Semih Erden had a fracture in his right thumb and missed the first seven games of the regular season. In April, he sprained his right ankle and missed the remainder of the season.
* Kyrie Irving suffered a concussion during a game against the Miami Heat on February 7 and missed the following 3 games.
* Anderson Varejão broke his wrist on February 10 during a game against the Milwaukee Bucks and missed the remainder of the season.

## Transactions
### Free agents
#### Additions

| Date | Player | Signed | Former team |
| February 10, 2012 | Ben Uzoh | NBA D-League | Rio Grande Valley Vipers |
| February 21, 2012 | Manny Harris | NBA D-League | Canton Charge |

#### Subtractions

| Date | Player | Reason left | New team |
| December 9, 2011 | Joey Graham | Waived | Free Agent |
| December 14, 2011 | Baron Davis | Waived | New York Knicks |
| December 22, 2011 | Manny Harris | Waived | Canton Charge |

### Trades

| June 23, 2011 | To Cleveland Cavaliers 2013 second-round pick 2014 second-round pick | To Orlando Magic Justin Harper |
| June 30, 2011 | To Cleveland Cavaliers Omri Casspi Future first-round pick | To Sacramento Kings J.J. Hickson |