Every 2005-06 NBA playoff series, three ways: the season race carried on into the postseason, who beat their seeding, and the bracket.
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The same race these clubs ran all season, carried on through the postseason on one scale and on real dates.
Where each club finished the season against how far it went, ranked on record rather than seed.
Who played whom, round by round, which no line chart can say.
Miami Heat won the 2005-06 title from a regular season record of 52-30. 16 teams reached the playoffs and the bracket ran 4 rounds. Every series below is taken from NBA.com; nothing on this page is estimated.
| Round | Won by | Result | Opponent | Played |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round | Detroit Pistons | 4-1 in games | Milwaukee Bucks | April 23 to May 3, 2006 |
| First round | San Antonio Spurs | 4-2 in games | Sacramento Kings | April 22 to May 5, 2006 |
| First round | Dallas Mavericks | 4-0 in games | Memphis Grizzlies | April 23 to May 1, 2006 |
| First round | Phoenix Suns | 4-3 in games | Los Angeles Lakers | April 23 to May 6, 2006 |
| First round | Miami Heat | 4-2 in games | Chicago Bulls | April 22 to May 4, 2006 |
| First round | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4-2 in games | Washington Wizards | April 22 to May 5, 2006 |
| First round | New Jersey Nets | 4-2 in games | Indiana Pacers | April 23 to May 4, 2006 |
| First round | Los Angeles Clippers | 4-1 in games | Denver Nuggets | April 22 to May 1, 2006 |
| Conf. semifinals | Detroit Pistons | 4-3 in games | Cleveland Cavaliers | May 7 to May 21, 2006 |
| Conf. semifinals | Dallas Mavericks | 4-3 in games | San Antonio Spurs | May 7 to May 22, 2006 |
| Conf. semifinals | Phoenix Suns | 4-3 in games | Los Angeles Clippers | May 8 to May 22, 2006 |
| Conf. semifinals | Miami Heat | 4-1 in games | New Jersey Nets | May 8 to May 16, 2006 |
| Conf. finals | Miami Heat | 4-2 in games | Detroit Pistons | May 23 to June 2, 2006 |
| Conf. finals | Dallas Mavericks | 4-2 in games | Phoenix Suns | May 24 to June 3, 2006 |
| The Finals | Miami Heat | 4-2 in games | Dallas Mavericks | June 8 to June 20, 2006 |
The left column ranks this field by regular season record, not by seed number: seeding rules differ by era, so this site uses records everywhere instead. The right column groups clubs by the round they went out in, which is not the same as the number of rounds they won, because a bye carries a club further without it winning anything. The figure beside a name is places moved between the two columns, and part of it is only where a club sat inside its band. Nothing here is a prediction. The data notes carry the whole method.