The Phoenix Suns became the eighth team to win a playoff series despite trailing 3–1 with their first round victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Denver Nuggets also appeared in the playoffs as the 3rd seed in the Western Conference despite a 44–38 record (due to winning their division).
However, they lost to the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round, and the NBA changed how division winners are seeded starting the following season.
2006 was the playoff debut of LeBron James, who helped the Cleveland Cavaliers eke out 1–point OT victories over the Washington Wizards in Games 5 and 6 of their first-round series to advance.
The Cavaliers played against the two-time defending Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons in the next round.
This season also marked the first time that two 60–win teams met before the conference finals, due to the seeding format.
The San Antonio Spurs and the Dallas Mavericks played against each other in the Western Conference semifinals.
This was illustrated in the first round here when the 44-win Denver Nuggets won the Northwest Division and had the third seed, yet did not have home-court advantage against the sixth-seeded, 47-win Los Angeles Clippers.
The Clippers had played the Memphis Grizzlies a week before the playoffs to determine the fifth and sixth seed.
The Detroit Pistons clinched the best record in the NBA, earning home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.
Coming into Game 5, both teams were confident, but the Pistons were expected to pull out the win easily.
With the game tied at 84 with 26 seconds left in regulation, Drew Gooden came through and hit a layup to give Cleveland the lead that they never squandered.
In the final minute of Game 6, Richard Hamilton grabbed two offensive rebounds and passed the ball to Rasheed Wallace, who was fouled.
This was also the second time in NBA history that the road team won a Game 7 in overtime; the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Sacramento Kings in the same manner in the 2002 Western Conference finals.