100 events that led the Cavaliers to opening night

With the flurry of major events in recent Cleveland basketball history, it can be nearly impossible to keep up. Players, big games, and highlights all forgotten in just a short period of time because of the never-ending chaos. This list will take you back to when the current team began to take root, bringing you through the years to where we stand now.

1. July 8, 2010. The most infamous day in Cavaliers’ history is also the day that sealed the fate of the team we know now. Every roster move and draft position can be traced back to this day, one that saw LeBron James announce to the world that he was taking his talents to South Beach.
2. July 10, 2010. The Cavaliers manage to negotiate a sign-and-trade with the Miami Heat for LeBron James, receiving a collection of draft picks as a consolation prize.
3. February 9, 2011. After starting their first season post-LeBron with a 5-5 record, the Cavaliers lose their 26th consecutive game on this date.
4. February 24, 2011. Cleveland trades Jamario Moon and Mo Williams to the Los Angeles Clippers for Baron Davis and a 2011 first round draft pick.
5. March 29, 2011. LeBron James plays in Quicken Loans Arena as a visitor for the second time and leaves with a loss.
6. April 13, 2011. The Cavaliers beat a rival in the Washington Wizards at home in the final game of the year.
7. May 17, 2011. The NBA holds the annual Draft Lottery. Nick Gilbert, the ill young son of owner Dan Gilbert, walked up on stage to represent the Cavaliers. Nick walked away a Cleveland icon with the first overall draft pick thanks to the Clippers’ draft pick, which had just a 2.8% chance of being the first overall pick. The Cavaliers’ own lottery entry gave them the fourth overall pick.
8. June 23, 2011. The Cleveland Cavaliers select Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson with the first and fourth picks of the draft, respectively.
9. December 26, 2011. The NBA lockout ends and the new-era Cavaliers lose the season opener at home. Kyrie Irving shoots just 2 for 12 on field goal attempts.
10. January 27, 2012. Kyrie Irving scores 30 points in a game for the first time in a loss to the New Jersey Nets.
11. February 19, 2012. Tristan Thompson records his first career double-double in a win over Sacramento.
12. March 15, 2012. Cleveland acquires the right to swap first round draft picks with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2013 NBA Draft.
13. March 18, 2012. Kyrie Irving records his first career double-double in a loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
14. March 19, 2012. Tristan Thompson scores 27 points and grabs 12 rebounds in a win over New Jersey, the second most points in a game for TT to this date.
15. June 28, 2012. The Cavaliers draft Dion Waiters and Jae Crowder.
16. June 29, 2012. Cleveland trades Jae Crowder and filler for Tyler Zeller and Kelenna Azubuike.
17. December 12, 2012. Kyrie Irving scores 41 points in a one-point loss at Madison Square Garden in just his fourth game back from his first major NBA injury.
18. January 9, 2013. Shaun Livingston shakes Kyle Korver and dunks against the Atlanta Hawks.
19. February 15, 2013. Kyrie Irving displays his skills to the national media in the Rising Stars Challenge at the expense of Brandon Knight.
20. March 20, 2013. James Blair runs onto the court at the Q during a game against Miami wearing a shirt that begs LeBron James to come home in 2014.
21. April 5, 2013. Tristan Thompson sets his career-best for points in a game with 29 against the Boston Celtics.
22. April 18, 2013. The Cavaliers fire Head Coach Byron Scott after finishing the season 24-58 with just two wins in the final 18 games.
23. April 24, 2013. The Cavaliers hire Mike Brown to be head coach, which some see as an attempt to lure LeBron back to Cleveland.
24. May 21, 2013. Nick Gilbert emerges from the NBA Draft Lottery again with the first overall pick in the draft.
25. June 27, 2013. Anthony Bennett is chosen first overall in a draft that included: Victor Oladipo, Otto Porter, C.J. McCollum (who grew up and went to high school an hour South of Cleveland), Dennis Schroeder, and, most notably, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
26. July 12, 2013. Cleveland signs Jarrett Jack and Earl Clark.
27. July 19, 2013. Cleveland signs Andrew Bynum.
28. August, 2013. Tristan Thompson switches shooting hands, which, to this day, is a talking point for television broadcasters during games.
29. September 12, 2013. The Cavaliers sign Matthew Dellavedova after he went un-drafted.
30. January 6, 2014. Cleveland Trades Andrew Bynum and a handful of picks to the Chicago Bulls for Luol Deng.
31. January 7, 2014. C.J. Miles makes 10 of 14 from behind the arc in a win over Philadelphia, setting what was then a franchise record for made three-pointers in a game.
32. February 6, 2014. General Manager Chris Grant is let go and David Griffin is installed in his place, initially as an interim.
33. February 16, 2014. Kyrie Irving becomes the second-youngest player to be named MVP of the All-Star Game.
34. February 28, 2014. Kyrie Irving records his first career triple-double.
35. April 5, 2014. Kyrie Irving scores 44 points in a losing effort against Charlotte.
36. May 12, 2014. The Cavaliers fire Head Coach Mike Brown.
37. May 20, 2014. For the third time in four years, the Cleveland Cavaliers win the NBA Draft Lottery. They only had a 1.7% chance.
38. June 20, 2014. The Cavaliers hire David Blatt to be the new head coach of a young, promising roster.
39. June 26, 2014. Cleveland selects Andrew Wiggins and Joe Harris in the NBA Draft.
40. July 6, 2014. Cleveland radio host Joe Lull starts an internet frenzy of Cleveland fans tracking the plane of Cavaliers’ owner Dan Gilbert in the midst of the LeBron James sweepstakes.
41. July 10, 2014. Kyrie Irving signs a midnight deal just as free agency begins which extends his contract to five seasons.
42. July 10, 2014. The Cavaliers trade away Jarrett Jack, Sergey Karasev, Tyler Zeller, and their 2016 first round draft pick. It is only speculated that the move was to clear cap space for LeBron.
43. July 11, 2014. LeBron James publishes I’m Coming Home on Sports Illustrated’s website, telling the world of his intention to sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
44. July 12, 2014. LeBron officially signs with Cleveland.
45. August 5, 2014. The Cavaliers sign James Jones and Mike Miller.
46. August 24, 2014. Cleveland trades Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and a 2016 first round pick to Minnesota for Kevin Love.
47. December 15, 2014. Kevin Love scores 22 and grabs 19 rebounds while also throwing 5 assists and getting 4 steals in a win over Charlotte.
48. January 5, 2015. David Griffin trades Dion Waiters and filler for Iman Shumpert, J.R. Smith, and a first round pick.
49. January 7, 2015. David Griffin completes his maneuver and trades that first round pick and a 2017 first round pick for Timofey Mozgov.
50. January 13, 2015. In just his fourth game with the Cavaliers, J.R. Smith takes 14 three-pointers and makes 8 to begin winning the hearts of Cleveland fans.
51. January 23, 2015. J.R. Smith throws a half-court lob to LeBron James.
52. January 28, 2015. Kyrie Irving makes 11 of 19 three-pointers en route to 55 points in a win over the Portland Trailblazers, the franchise record for made 3-pointers in a game. He shot just 6 of 17 from inside the arc.
53. February 24, 2015. Cleveland signs Kendrick Perkins.
54. March 3, 2015. LeBron James goes behind-the-back on Avery Bradley in a win over the Celtics.
55. March 12, 2015. Kyrie Irving scores 57 points in an overtime win against the San Antonio Spurs. Kyrie was perfect on both free throws and 3-pointers.
56. April 21, 2015. LeBron James throws a half-court lob to Kevin Love, who throws down a reverse jam.
57. April 26, 2015. Kevin Love has his arm ripped out of socket by Kelly Olynyk and misses the remainder of the 2015 NBA Playoffs.
58. June 4, 2015. Kyrie Irving fractures his kneecap in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
59. June 9, 2015. Matthew Dellavedova is taken to the hospital following a heroic performance in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.
60. June 16, 2015. The Golden State Warriors defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals 4-2.
61. June 25, 2015. The Cleveland Cavaliers draft-and-stash Cedi Osman.
62. July 9, 2015. Kevin Love signs a five-year deal with the Cavaliers in the face of the entire NBA world.
63. July 10, 2015. Cleveland signs Mo Williams, reuniting LeBron James with one of his favorite teammates.
64. August 5, 2015. Cleveland signs Richard Jefferson.
65. October 22, 2015. Tristan Thompson ends a contract hold out and signs a much-criticized deal before the season starts.
66. December 20, 2015. Kyrie Irving returns from the knee injury he sustained during the NBA Finals.
67. January 22, 2016. The Cleveland Cavaliers fire Head Coach David Blatt and immediately make Assistant Coach Tyronn Lue the head coach. The Cavaliers were 30-11 at the time.
68. February 18, 2016. David Griffin trades fan favorite Anderson Varejao for Channing Frye.
69. March 10, 2016. J.R. Smith throws an off-target alley-oop to LeBron James, who dunks it anyways.
70. March 14, 2016. J.R. Smith throws an off-target alley-oop to LeBron James, who dunks it anyways.
71. May 4, 2016. The Cavaliers set the postseason single-game record for made three-pointers in a win against Atlanta. J.R. Smith makes 7 of the team’s 25, while Kyrie and LeBron each add 4.
72. June 13, 2016. LeBron James and Kyrie Irving both score 41 points in a pivotal Game 5 with the Cavaliers down 3-1 in the NBA Finals, sending the series back to Cleveland.
73. June 16, 2016. LeBron James scores 41 for the second straight game to force a decisive Game 7 in the NBA Finals.
74. June 19, 2016. Father's Day. The greatest game in NBA history occurs. The Cavaliers become the first team to come back from a 3-1 series deficit in the NBA Finals and are crowned champions. LeBron James is crowned NBA Finals MVP after leading both teams in all five major statistical categories, the first player to ever do so in an NBA Playoffs series.
75. July 7, 2016. Matthew Dellavedova chooses to sign with the Milwaukee Bucks. David Griffin negotiates a sign-and-trade to create a $4.8 million trade exception.
76. October 15, 2016. After holding out to test the free agency market, J.R. Smith signs with the Cavaliers.
77. November 23, 2016. Kevin Love sets an NBA record by scoring 34 points in the first quarter against the Portland Trailblazers.
78. December 25, 2016. Kyrie Irving hits another game winner against the Golden State Warriors.
79. January 6, 2017. David Griffin trades a 2017 first round pick to Portland to receive the Cavaliers’ own 2018 first in return.
80. January 7, 2017. Thanks to owning their own 2018 first round pick, the Cavaliers are able to trade their 2019 first round pick, Mike Dunleavy, and Mo Williams for Kyle Korver.
81. February 6, 2017. Kevin Love throws a beautiful three-quarter-court pass to LeBron James, who hits a clutch three against the Washington Wizards.
82. February 27, 2017. Cleveland signs Deron Williams.
83. March 3, 2017. The Cavaliers set the NBA regular season single-game record for made three-pointers in a win against Atlanta. LeBron James makes 6 and Kyrie makes 5 to lead the team to 25 total made threes.
84. April 2, 2017. LeBron scores 41, drops 11 assists, and grabs 14 rebounds in an important late-season win over the Indiana Pacers.
85. May 1, 2017. Kyrie Irving throws an alley-oop off the backboard to LeBron James in the opening minutes of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
86. May 17, 2017. Kevin Love dominates Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals with 32 points and 12 rebounds in a win over the Boston Celtics.
87. May 21, 2017. Cleveland loses to the Boston Celtics in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, their first loss in the 2017 NBA Playoffs.
88. May 31, 2017. The Cavaliers announce a rebrand that brings the color black into the primary color palette. Navy is retained as a complimentary color, but is used sparingly.
89. June 12, 2017. The Cavaliers cannot hold off the Golden State Warriors any longer and lose the NBA Finals 4-1. LeBron James scores 41 with 13 rebounds and 11 assists and J.R. Smith scores 25 on 7-8 from beyond the arc in an attempt to keep the Cavaliers in the series.
90. June 19, 2017. Dan Gilbert and the Cavaliers franchise move on from General Manager David Griffin and place nobody in his position.
91. July 10, 2017. Jose Calderon signs with the Cavaliers.
92. July 11, 2017. Jeff Green signs in Cleveland.
93. July 18, 2017. The Cavaliers finally sign Cedi Osman, officially beginning his NBA career.
94. July 24, 2017. Brian Windhorst reports that Kyrie Irving has requested a trade from the Cavaliers.
95. July 24, 2017. Koby Altman is finally announced as the General Manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The team had been without a GM or an interim for 5 important weeks of free agency.
96. July 25, 2017. Signed Derrick Rose.
97. August 22, 2017. The Cavaliers and Celtics announce a trade in which Cleveland sends Kyrie Irving to Boston in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first round draft pick.
98. August 30, 2017. The Kyrie Irving trade is completed, with Boston adding an additional second round pick.
99. September 27, 2017. Dwyane Wade signs with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
100. October 13, 2017. Cleveland trades fan favorite Richard Jefferson and Kay Felder to Atlanta in order to reduce the roster to 15 players.

All of these events in recent history bring us to the current major event that will start the newest era of Cleveland basketball and our next 100 memorable moments:

1. October 17, 2017. Kyrie Irving and the Boston Celtics come to Cleveland to open the 2017-2018 NBA regular season.