Main article: List of 2011–12 NBA season transactions Free agency įree agency started on December 9, 2011. This season marked the final time that Kobe Bryant appeared in the playoffs. The NBA regular season would not begin again in December until the 2020–21 NBA season. LeBron James was named both the season MVP and the NBA Finals MVP. The playoffs started on April 28 and ended on June 21 when the Miami Heat defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 of their series, 121–106, winning the Finals, 4–1 and to capture the franchise's second NBA title. The season began on Christmas Day 2011, and ended on April 26, 2012. A 4-time champion, O'Neal played 19 years for the Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Boston Celtics. This was the league's first season since 1991–92 without Shaquille O'Neal, who announced his retirement on Jvia social media. With the new deal in place, the regular season was shortened from the normal 82 games per team to 66, because of nearly two months of inactivity.
The previous CBA, which was ratified in 2005, expired at 12:01 AM EDT on July 1, 2011, resulting in a lockout. The 2011–12 NBA season was the 66th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA), which began with the signing of a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the owners of the 30 NBA teams and the NBA's players.
