The Cleveland Cavaliers are in a position to have the longest postseason win streak in NBA history after their win over the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Cleveland Cavaliers dominated the Boston Celtics from start to finish and, in the end, the Celtics collective spirit isn’t the only thing the Cavs started to break. With their win last night, the Cavs won their 12th straight postseason game. The record for the longest win streak in the postseason is 13 games.
The @Cavs can extend their postseason win streak to 12 games, tying three teams for the 2nd longest streak all-time. pic.twitter.com/lfHdpiVf0z
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 17, 2017
Now, the Cavs are in a four-way tie for the second-longest postseason win streak in NBA history.
(Editor’s note: the two rounds of the playoffs were a best-of-five series until 2003.)
The 1988-1989 Detroit Pistons got to 12 straight wins after winning three straight games against the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals and then sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. The next season, they swept the Indiana Pacers out of the first round before going up 2-0 on the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The 1989-1999 San Antonio Spurs got to 12 straight wins after winning two consecutive games to close out their first round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. They then swept the Lakers and the Portland Trail Blazers in the next two rounds before going up 2-0 on the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals.
The 1999-2000 Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of the NBA Finals to win the title before sweeping their way through the first three rounds of the playoffs the next season.
With the Lakers franchise being a part of all of these win streaks, in one way or another, perhaps it’s not surprising that they’d hold the record for the longest postseason win streak in NBA history.
After narrowly defeating the Detroit Pistons in Game 7 of the 1988 NBA Finals, the Lakers swept their way through the first three rounds of the postseason in 1989. (They then got swept by the Detroit Pistons, bringing this rigmarole full circle).
The Cleveland Cavaliers, as it’s well-known, won three straight games against the Golden State Warriors to win the 2016 NBA Finals after going down 3-1. This season, the Cavs swept their way through the first two rounds of the playoffs and took the Boston Celtics to school in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, giving the Cavs their 12th straight win.
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What do you think of the Cleveland Cavaliers tying the second-longest win streak in postseason history? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.