February 3- The
San Miguel Beermen won their 22nd championship in the
2015-16 PBA Philippine Cup Finals. They were the first professional basketball team in the world to win a title coming down from a 0-3 deficit in a best-of-7 finals series.
April 13–
Los Angeles Lakers legend
Kobe Bryant played his final NBA game against the
Utah Jazz as he finished his career with a 60-point performance. The 13th pick in the legendary
1996 draft, Bryant won 5 championships with the Lakers, and is believed as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
April 13– The
Golden State Warriors set the NBA single-season victory mark by notching their 73rd win in the season's final game. The Warriors finished the regular-season with a 73–9 record.
April–All three NCAA division women's basketball champions finished with undefeated seasons - Connecticut (38–0), Lubbock Christian (35–0), Thomas More (33–0)
June 19- The
Cleveland Cavaliers won their 1st championship in the
2016 NBA Finals. The Cavs were the first in the NBA history to make a historic comeback in pursuit of title coming down from a 1-3 series deficit.
June 28- Legendary Tennessee basketball coach Pat Summitt dies at the age of 64; in her 38-year coaching career her 1,098 wins were the most of any men's or women's basketball coach.
October 14-
June Mar Fajardo settled a history after getting his third straight MVP award in the PBA Leo Awards, tying also with
Bogs Adornado.
October 19- The
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel clinched their first ever championship in 8 years after defeating the
Meralco Bolts with a 3-point buzzer beater made by Justin Brownlee, via a 91-88 victory in Game 6 of the
2016 PBA Governors' Cup Finals. This also count that its head coach,
Tim Cone, won its 19th championship in his coaching career.
2016 in basketball results
National Basketball Association:
February 14- The Western Conference defeated the Eastern Conference in the
2016 NBA All-Star Game, 196-173.
NBA Playoffs:
Western Conference Finals: The
Golden State Warriors defeated the
Oklahoma City Thunder, 4 games to 3. This marked that the Warriors are the only 10th team in the league history to win a conference finals coming from a 1-3 series deficit.
Eastern Conference Finals: The
Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the
Toronto Raptors, 4 games to 2. This series also marked that the Raptors are the first ever non-USA based basketball team to reach a conference finals.
NBA Finals: The Eastern Conference Champions Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Western Conference Champions, Golden State Warriors, 4 games to 3, to clinch their 1st ever championship in their franchise history.
Philippine Basketball Association:
February 3- The
San Miguel Beermen defeated the
Alaska Aces, 96-89, in Game 7 to win the 22nd PBA Crown and their back-to-back PBA Philippine Cup titles. This also marked a historic comeback from a 0-3 deficit in a best-of-7 finals series.
May 18- The
Rain or Shine Elasto Painters defeated the Alaska Aces in the
2016 PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals, 4 games to 2. This also marked where in the Painters clinched the title for only the 2nd time in their franchise. Also, this championship series marked that there was no team owned by the MVP Group of Companies and the San Miguel Corporation to ever reach the finals.