The 2005 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2004–05 season.

The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeating the Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals.

The Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards ended long playoff droughts in 2005, meeting each other in the first round.

They consistently placed at or near the bottom of the Central Division in between, and their 47–35 season in 2005 was a 24–game improvement from 2004.

The Phoenix Suns returned to the NBA playoffs after a one season absence.

The Houston Rockets and the Memphis Grizzlies entered their second consecutive postseason.

With their first round sweep of the Memphis Grizzlies, the Phoenix Suns won their first playoff series since 2000.

No team (until 2016) has made the finals after going 8–0 in the first two rounds, let alone win 12 straight games going to the NBA Finals (until the 2017 Warriors), though the Spurs came close in 2012 when they won their first 10 playoff games, then lost their next four to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

With their Game 7 win over the Miami Heat, the Detroit Pistons advanced to their second consecutive NBA Finals.

With their Game 7 win over the Detroit Pistons, the San Antonio Spurs won the NBA Championship.

However, the division champion was not guaranteed home court advantage; a division-leading team with a poor record could be ranked number three but face a sixth seed with a better record, which would then have home court advantage.

Dwyane Wade also missed Game 6 of the series due to a rib injury.