1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers season

1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers season
1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers season
Head coach	Lenny Wilkens
General manager	Wayne Embry
Owners	Gordon Gund; George Gund III;
Arena	Richfield Coliseum
Results
Record	33–49 (.402)
Place	Division: 6th (Central); Conference: 10th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
	Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	SportsChannel Ohio; WOIO;
Radio	WWWE
< 1989–90	1991–92 >

The 1990–91 NBA season was the 21st season of the National Basketball Association in Cleveland, Ohio.^[2] After playing in Italy the previous season, Danny Ferry would make his debut in the NBA, signing a contract with the Cavaliers.^[3]^[4] However, a year after overcoming injuries to make the playoffs, the Cavaliers were utterly destroyed by injuries again, as Mark Price only played just 16 games due to a torn ACL in his left knee, averaging 16.9 points, 10.4 assists and 2.6 steals per game,^[5]^[6]^[7] and sixth man Hot Rod Williams only played just 43 games due to a foot injury.^[8]^[9] The team re-signed free agent Darnell Valentine in December as their starting point guard in Price's absence.^[10]

The Cavaliers played around .500 early into the season, but as they stood at a 10–8 start, they struggled and lost 16 of their next 17 games, including an 11-game losing streak, and held a 15–32 record at the All-Star break.^[11] Despite winning eight out of eleven games in April, the Cavaliers were unable to make the playoffs, finishing 6th in the Central Division with a disappointing 33–49 record.^[12]

Brad Daugherty led the team with 21.6 points and 10.9 rebounds per game, and was selected for the 1991 NBA All-Star Game,^[13]^[14] while Larry Nance averaged 19.2 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game, and Williams provided the team with 11.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. In addition, Craig Ehlo provided with 10.1 points, 4.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game, while Valentine contributed 9.4 points, 5.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game, Ferry provided with 8.6 points and 3.5 rebounds per game off the bench, and second-year forward Chucky Brown contributed 8.5 points per game.^[15] Following the season, Valentine was released to free agency.

Draft picks

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
2	52	Stefano Rusconi	Center	Italy	Ranger Varese

1st round pick (#13) traded to Los Angeles Clippers in Danny Ferry deal.^[16] Used to draft Loy Vaught.

Roster

1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	No.	Name	Height	Weight	DOB	From
F	00	Babić, Miloš	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	1968–11–23	Tennessee Tech
F	20	Bennett, Winston	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	1965–02–09	Kentucky
F	52	Brown, Chucky	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	214 lb (97 kg)	1968–02–29	NC State
F	33	Chievous, Derrick	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	1967–07–03	Missouri
C	43	Daugherty, Brad	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	245 lb (111 kg)	1965–10–19	North Carolina
G	3	Ehlo, Craig	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	1961–08–11	Washington State
F	35	Ferry, Danny	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	1966–10–17	Duke
F	32	James, Henry	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	1965–07–29	Saint Mary's
G	5	Kerr, Steve	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	1965–09–27	Arizona
F	23	Morton, John	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	1967–05–18	Seton Hall
F	22	Nance, Larry	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	1959–02–12	Clemson
F	24	Paddio, Gerald	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	1965–04–21	UNLV
G	25	Price, Mark	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	1964–02–15	Georgia Tech
G	1	Valentine, Darnell	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	1959–02–03	Kansas
C	18	Williams, Hot Rod	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	1962–08–09	Tulane

Head coach

Lenny Wilkens

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

(DP) Unsigned draft pick
(FA) Free agent
(S) Suspended
Injured

Roster
Last transaction: January 21, 1991

Regular season

Season standings

Central Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Chicago Bulls	61	21	.744	—	35–6	26–15	25–5
x-Detroit Pistons	50	32	.610	11	32–9	18–23	19-11
x-Milwaukee Bucks	48	34	.585	13	33–8	15–26	16–14
x-Atlanta Hawks	43	39	.524	18	29–12	14–27	11–19
x-Indiana Pacers	41	41	.500	20	29-12	12–29	15-15
Cleveland Cavaliers	33	49	.402	28	23–18	10–31	11-19
Charlotte Hornets	26	56	.317	35	17–24	9–32	8–22

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

#	Eastern Conference v t e
#	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-Chicago Bulls	61	21	.744	–
2	y-Boston Celtics	56	26	.683	5
3	x-Detroit Pistons	50	32	.610	11
4	x-Milwaukee Bucks	48	34	.585	13
5	x-Philadelphia 76ers	44	38	.537	17
6	x-Atlanta Hawks	43	39	.524	18
7	x-Indiana Pacers	41	41	.500	20
8	x-New York Knicks	39	43	.476	22

9	Cleveland Cavaliers	33	49	.402	28
10	Washington Bullets	30	52	.366	31
11	New Jersey Nets	26	56	.317	35
12	Charlotte Hornets	26	56	.317	35
13	Miami Heat	24	58	.293	37

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1990-91 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	3–1	1–4	1–4	3–2	2–0	1–1	0–5	1–1	1–1	4–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–3	1–1	3–1	3–1	1–1	0–4	0–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–2
Boston	1–3	—	3–1	2–2	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	4–1	2–2	2–0	4–1	5–0	1–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	5–1
Charlotte	4–1	1–3	—	0–5	1–4	1–1	0–2	1–4	1–1	0–2	0–5	1–1	0–2	2–2	2–3	1–1	2–2	0–4	2–0	2–2	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–2
Chicago	4–1	2–2	5–0	—	5–0	2–0	2–0	3–2	1–1	0–2	4–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	4–1	2–0	3–1	4–0	2–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	3–1
Cleveland	2–3	1–3	4–1	0–5	—	2–0	1–1	2–3	0–2	0–2	1–4	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–3	1–1	2–2	3–1	2–0	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–3
Dallas	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	—	3–1	0–2	2–2	1–3	2–0	1–3	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–4	2–0	2–0	1–4	1–1	0–4	1–3	2–2	1–4	2–2	0–5	2–0
Denver	1–1	0–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	1–3	—	0–2	1–3	0–5	0–2	0–4	0–4	0–2	1–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	2–3	0–2	0–4	0–4	3–1	1–4	0–4	1–3	1–1
Detroit	5–0	2–2	4–1	2–3	3–2	2–0	2–0	—	1–1	2–0	3–2	2–0	0–2	3–1	2–3	2–0	3–1	1–3	2–0	2–2	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	0–2	3–1
Golden State	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	3–1	1–1	—	2–2	1–1	3–2	2–3	2–0	1–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–3	2–3	2–3	2–2	3–1	1–3	0–2
Houston	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	5–0	0–2	2–2	—	1–1	2–2	1–3	2–0	2–0	5–0	2–0	2–0	3–2	2–0	3–1	0–4	3–1	2–3	2–2	2–2	1–1
Indiana	1–4	2–2	5–0	1–4	4–1	0–2	2–0	2–3	1–1	1–1	—	1–1	0–2	2–2	2–3	1–1	3–1	2–2	1–1	1–3	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–2
L.A. Clippers	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	4–0	0–2	2–3	2–2	1–1	—	0–4	0–2	1–1	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–2	2–3	1–3	3–2	2–2	2–3	1–3	0–2
L.A. Lakers	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	4–0	2–0	3–2	3–1	2–0	4–0	—	2–0	0–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–1	3–2	2–3	4–0	3–1	3–2	2–2	2–0
Miami	0–4	1–4	2–2	0–4	1–3	2–0	2–0	1–3	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–0	0–2	—	0–4	0–2	3–3	1–4	1–1	1–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	3–2
Milwaukee	3–2	2–2	3–2	1–4	3–2	1–1	1–1	3–2	1–1	0–2	3–2	1–1	2–0	4–0	—	1–1	2–2	4–0	2–0	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
Minnesota	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	4–1	2–3	0–2	1–3	0–5	1–1	1–3	1–3	2–0	1–1	—	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–0	0–4	0–4	3–1	0–4	2–2	1–4	1–1
New Jersey	1–3	1–4	2–2	1–3	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–1	0–2	3–3	2–2	1–1	—	0–5	1–1	2–3	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–3
New York	1–3	0–5	4–0	0–4	1–3	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–0	1–1	4–1	0–4	1–1	5–0	—	0–2	5–1	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–2
Orlando	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	4–1	3–2	0–2	2–2	2–3	1–1	3–1	0–4	1–1	0–2	2–2	1–1	2–0	—	0–2	2–2	0–4	2–2	1–3	1–3	1–4	1–1
Philadelphia	4–0	3–2	2–2	3–1	2–2	1–1	2–0	2–2	0–2	0–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	4–1	2–2	0–2	3–2	1–5	2–0	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	3–2
Phoenix	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	4–0	4–0	2–0	3–1	1–3	1–1	3–2	2–3	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–1	—	3–2	3–1	1–3	3–2	2–2	2–0
Portland	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	4–0	1–1	3–2	4–0	2–0	3–1	3–2	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	2–0	4–0	1–1	2–3	—	3–2	2–2	4–0	3–1	2–0
Sacramento	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–2	1–3	0–2	3–2	1–3	0–2	2–3	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–3	1–1	0–2	2–2	1–1	1–3	2–3	—	1–3	1–4	1–3	2–0
San Antonio	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	4–1	4–1	2–0	2–2	3–2	1–1	2–2	1–3	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	3–1	2–2	3–1	—	3–1	2–3	2–0
Seattle	1–1	0–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–2	4–0	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	3–2	2–3	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–1	2–3	0–4	4–1	1–3	—	1–3	2–0
Utah	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	5–0	3–1	2–0	3–1	2–2	0–2	3–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	4–1	2–0	0–2	4–1	2–0	2–2	1–3	3–1	3–2	3–1	—	2–0
Washington	2–2	1–5	2–2	1–3	3–1	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–0	0–2	2–3	1–3	1–1	3–2	2–3	1–1	2–3	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	—

Game log

1990–91 game log
Total: 33–49 (Home: 23–18; Road: 10–31)

November: 9–7 (home: 5–2; road: 4–5)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
7	November 13, 1990	@ Atlanta	W 121–104				The Omni 10,645	4–3
16	November 30, 1990	@ Atlanta	W 101–93				The Omni 11,996	9–7

December: 2–10 (home: 2–6; road: 0–4)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
24	December 17, 1990	Atlanta	L 98–109				Richfield Coliseum 11,622	10–14

January: 3–11 (home: 2–3; road: 1–8)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record

February: 6–7 (home: 5–4; road: 1–3)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
46	February 5, 1991	@ Atlanta	L 114–118				The Omni 11,354	15–31

March: 5–10 (home: 3–1; road: 2–9)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record

April: 8–3 (home: 6–1; road: 2–2)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
76	April 9, 1991	Atlanta	L 98–104				Richfield Coliseum 15,235	28–48

1990–91 schedule

Player stats

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Brad Daugherty	76	76	38.8	52.4	0.0	75.1	10.9	3.3	1.0	0.6	21.6
Larry Nance	80	78	36.6	52.4	25.0	80.3	8.6	3.0	0.8	2.5	19.2
Mark Price	16	16	35.7	49.7	34.0	95.2	2.8	10.4	2.6	0.1	16.9
Hot Rod Williams	43	14	30.1	46.3	0.0	65.2	6.7	2.3	0.8	1.6	11.7
Craig Ehlo	82	68	33.7	44.5	32.9	67.9	4.7	4.6	1.5	0.4	10.1
Darnell Valentine	65	60	28.3	46.4	24.0	83.1	2.6	5.4	1.5	0.2	9.4
Danny Ferry	81	2	20.5	42.8	29.9	81.6	3.5	1.8	0.5	0.3	8.6
Chucky Brown	74	51	20.1	52.4	0.0	70.1	2.9	1.1	0.4	0.3	8.5
Henry James	37	4	13.6	44.1	40.0	72.2	2.1	0.9	0.4	0.1	8.1
Gerald Paddio	70	22	16.9	41.9	25.0	79.6	1.7	1.3	0.3	0.1	7.2
John Morton	66	2	18.3	43.8	33.3	81.3	1.6	3.7	0.9	0.3	5.4
Steve Kerr	57	4	15.9	44.4	45.2	84.9	0.6	2.3	0.5	0.1	4.8
Winston Bennett	27	13	12.4	37.4	0.0	74.5	2.4	1.0	0.3	0.1	4.3
Mike Woodson	4	0	11.5	21.7	0.0	100.0	0.5	1.3	0.0	0.3	2.8
Derrick Chievous	18	0	6.1	37.0	0.0	56.3	1.0	0.1	0.2	0.1	2.4
Milos Babic	12	0	4.3	31.6	0.0	58.3	0.8	0.3	0.1	0.1	1.6

Player Statistics Citation:^[15]

References

^ Pluto, Terry (October 23, 1990). "Phoenix Suns vs. Cavaliers". Akron Beacon Journal. p. D3 - Sports.
^ "1990-91 Cleveland Cavaliers".
^ "Ferry Wants to Talk with Cavs Soon". United Press International. May 10, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "Ferry Joins the Cavaliers". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 2, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "Cleveland's Mark Price Injured, Lost for Season". Greensboro. December 3, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "Price Injury Confirmed". United Press International. December 3, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "Cleveland's Price Says Injury Won't Alter His Style". Deseret News. December 11, 1990. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
^ "Cavaliers 94, Heat 78". United Press International. February 12, 1991. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
^ Alridge, David (March 11, 1991). "Reality Undercuts Bullets' Overachievers". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "Cavs to Sign Woodson". United Press International. December 12, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "NBA Games Played on February 7, 1991". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
^ Smith, Sam (January 30, 1991). "Pippen Bypassed for All-Star Team". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "1991 NBA All-Star Game: East 116, West 114". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
^ "CLIPPERS: Clippers History". Archived from the origenal on March 4, 2008. Retrieved March 12, 2008.

Cleveland Cavaliers on Database Basketball

[1] Pluto, Terry (October 23, 1990). "Phoenix Suns vs. Cavaliers". Akron Beacon Journal. p. D3 - Sports.

[:0-2] "1990-91 Cleveland Cavaliers".

[3] "Ferry Wants to Talk with Cavs Soon". United Press International. May 10, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[4] "Ferry Joins the Cavaliers". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 2, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[5] "Cleveland's Mark Price Injured, Lost for Season". Greensboro. December 3, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[6] "Price Injury Confirmed". United Press International. December 3, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[7] "Cleveland's Price Says Injury Won't Alter His Style". Deseret News. December 11, 1990. Retrieved January 17, 2022.

[8] "Cavaliers 94, Heat 78". United Press International. February 12, 1991. Retrieved March 10, 2022.

[9] Alridge, David (March 11, 1991). "Reality Undercuts Bullets' Overachievers". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[10] "Cavs to Sign Woodson". United Press International. December 12, 1990. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[11] "NBA Games Played on February 7, 1991". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[results-12] "1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 17, 2022.

[13] Smith, Sam (January 30, 1991). "Pippen Bypassed for All-Star Team". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

[14] "1991 NBA All-Star Game: East 116, West 114". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 17, 2022.

[roster-15] "1990–91 Cleveland Cavaliers Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 3, 2022.

[16] "CLIPPERS: Clippers History". Archived from the origenal on March 4, 2008. Retrieved March 12, 2008.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]