Every 2015-16 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.
Cleveland Cavaliers won the 2015-16 title from a regular season record of 57-25. 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 | Golden State Warriors | 4-1 in games | Houston Rockets | April 16 to April 27, 2016 |
| First round | San Antonio Spurs | 4-0 in games | Memphis Grizzlies | April 17 to April 24, 2016 |
| First round | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4-0 in games | Detroit Pistons | April 17 to April 24, 2016 |
| First round | Toronto Raptors | 4-3 in games | Indiana Pacers | April 16 to May 1, 2016 |
| First round | Oklahoma City Thunder | 4-1 in games | Dallas Mavericks | April 16 to April 25, 2016 |
| First round | Portland Trail Blazers | 4-2 in games | LA Clippers | April 17 to April 29, 2016 |
| First round | Atlanta Hawks | 4-2 in games | Boston Celtics | April 16 to April 28, 2016 |
| First round | Miami Heat | 4-3 in games | Charlotte Hornets | April 17 to May 1, 2016 |
| Conf. semifinals | Golden State Warriors | 4-1 in games | Portland Trail Blazers | May 1 to May 11, 2016 |
| Conf. semifinals | Oklahoma City Thunder | 4-2 in games | San Antonio Spurs | April 30 to May 12, 2016 |
| Conf. semifinals | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4-0 in games | Atlanta Hawks | May 2 to May 8, 2016 |
| Conf. semifinals | Toronto Raptors | 4-3 in games | Miami Heat | May 3 to May 15, 2016 |
| Conf. finals | Golden State Warriors | 4-3 in games | Oklahoma City Thunder | May 16 to May 30, 2016 |
| Conf. finals | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4-2 in games | Toronto Raptors | May 17 to May 27, 2016 |
| The Finals | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4-3 in games | Golden State Warriors | June 2 to June 19, 2016 |
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.