Who Won the 2016 NBA Finals? Complete Recap and Key Highlights

2025-11-15 14:01

I remember exactly where I was when the final buzzer sounded in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals - crammed into my friend's living room with twelve other basketball fanatics, the air thick with anticipation and the distinct smell of cold pizza. We'd been watching this historic series unfold over two weeks, but nothing could have prepared us for that final moment when LeBron James collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down his face as the reality set in. Who won the 2016 NBA Finals? That question had dominated sports conversations for weeks, and now we had our answer in the most dramatic fashion imaginable.

The Cleveland Cavaliers had just done the impossible - coming back from a 3-1 deficit against the Golden State Warriors, a team that had posted the best regular season record in NBA history at 73-9. I still get chills thinking about that final sequence - Kyrie Irving's three-pointer over Steph Curry with 53 seconds left, followed by LeBron's legendary block on Andre Iguodala that we now simply call "The Block." My friend Mark, a lifelong Warriors fan, had been confidently predicting victory since Game 4, but even he had to admit what we were witnessing was something special. The energy in that room shifted from casual viewing to historical awareness - we knew we were watching something that would be replayed for generations.

What made this victory so remarkable wasn't just the comeback itself, but how the Cavs managed to pull it off. I'll never forget Coach Tyronn Lue's post-game press conference where he reflected on their journey. "We felt we had a little letdown towards the end of the first half but we picked it up, and many other guys pitched in," he said, and you could see the genuine emotion in his eyes. That statement perfectly captured what made this team special - when their backs were against the wall, they found ways to elevate each other. Kevin Love, much maligned throughout the playoffs, came up with that crucial stop on Curry in the final minute. JR Smith hit big shots when they needed them most. Tristan Thompson dominated the glass with 16 rebounds.

The series had more twists than a Hollywood thriller. Golden State's Draymond Green suspension in Game 5, Steph Curry fouling out in Game 6, and then that incredible back-and-forth final game where the lead changed hands twenty times. I remember arguing with my cousin about whether the Cavs could actually pull this off after Game 4 - I was skeptical, convinced the Warriors were just too good. But basketball has this beautiful unpredictability that keeps us coming back season after season. Lue captured this perfectly when he noted, "This series was so close, could have easily gone either way." That's what made it so compelling - every possession felt like it carried the weight of the entire season.

What ultimately separated these two teams came down to mental toughness in those final moments. The Cavs won 93-89 in Game 7, but the score doesn't tell the whole story of how they clawed their way to victory. LeBron finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists - a triple-double that earned him unanimous Finals MVP honors, but it was his leadership that truly made the difference. When Lue mentioned "our ability to make stops when it mattered most, I think, was the difference in the series," he was talking about those final three minutes where both teams were clearly exhausted, playing on pure will and determination.

I've been watching basketball for thirty years, and I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen a player carry a team the way LeBron did throughout those playoffs. His performance in Game 5 and Game 6 to force a Game 7 was superhuman - 41 points in both games while playing nearly every minute. But what impressed me most was how he elevated his teammates, how he trusted them in big moments. That iconic three-pointer by Kyrie - I can still see the confidence in his eyes as he sized up Curry, the smooth release, the swish that sent Cleveland into delirium.

The aftermath felt like something out of a movie. Cleveland's fifty-two-year championship drought ended in the most dramatic way possible, against their arch-rivals who had beaten them the previous year. The parade drew an estimated 1.3 million people - I've never seen anything like it in professional sports. People cried in the streets, grown men hugging strangers, all united by this incredible achievement. As a basketball fan, it reminded me why I fell in love with this game - the raw emotion, the unpredictability, the way a single series can capture the imagination of an entire city.

Looking back, that 2016 Finals wasn't just about basketball - it was about resilience, about refusing to quit when everyone counts you out. Lue's words about the players' "refusal to go down without a fight" resonate because that's exactly what we witnessed. Even when they were down 3-1 against what many considered the greatest team ever assembled, they found a way. That's the beauty of sports - the numbers and statistics matter, but sometimes heart and determination trump everything else. I feel privileged to have witnessed that series, to have experienced those tense moments with friends, and to have the answer to "Who won the 2016 NBA Finals?" be one of the greatest sports stories ever told.