This season, the Toronto Raptors have won all three regular-season meetings against the Cleveland Cavaliers by an average of 11.7 points. Those who watched those games already knew the blueprint: a relentless, do-it-all Scottie Barnes, a Raptors squad that can get to the line, and a team that, despite being back in the playoffs for the first time in four years, demonstrated it could compete with the Cavaliers when it mattered. The 126-113 final score in Cleveland on Saturday might suggest that Game 1 was simple. Kenny Atkinson would like to talk.
Donovan Mitchell scored 32 points, Max Strus had 24 off the bench, and the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Toronto Raptors 126-113 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series. But in his post-game press conference, Atkinson was in no mood to celebrate the margin, because the story of the night, as far as he was concerned, was one that Cleveland cannot afford to repeat. “We’ve got to be more disciplined, not fouling them,” Atkinson said. “They’re master foul drawers. We knew that coming in. We can’t put this team on the line 35 times. That’s a recipe, not a good recipe for us. We lucked out a little.”
Kenny Atkinson on the Raptors getting 35 FTA:
“They’re master foul drawers, we knew that coming in. Not a good recipe for us. We lucked out a little” pic.twitter.com/woaElBVrkw
— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) April 18, 2026
The Cavaliers sent the Raptors to the line 35 times in Game 1, a trend that coursed through the entire game. Foul trouble was a persistent theme for Cleveland, as second-year wing Jaylon Tyson was called for his third foul just three minutes and 44 seconds into his appearance off the bench, while Evan Mobley also picked up his second foul early, which forced him to play cautiously throughout the first half.
Atkinson placed the blame squarely on his coaching staff as much as his players. “We had a couple of wraps, which is a no-no in the NBA. So we, as a coaching staff, have to do a better job of coaching that,” he said. “That’s part of the playoffs, understanding who the referees are, understanding how the game’s being called, and coaching these guys better in terms of not fouling.”
A Warning for Atkinson and Cleveland Wrapped in a Win
The bluntness of the message was deliberate. Cleveland’s third quarter, a dominant 36-22 run that pushed the lead beyond 20 points and broke the game open, carried the night and papered over what was a game that looked far closer through three quarters. Atkinson knew that if the Raptors avoided those early foul trouble-induced lulls and if they kept handing them trips to the line, a team that swept the regular-season series is more than capable of competing in a seven-game format.
Scottie Barnes averaged 19.3 points, eight rebounds, and five assists in the regular season while shooting nearly 50 percent from the field. And a Barnes who gets to operate in the bonus early is a far more dangerous proposition than the one Cleveland saw in the second half on Saturday. The Raptors are back in the playoffs for the first time in four years, and the inexperience showed against a more seasoned Cleveland squad, but experience only covers so much ground when the other team is being handed free points at the stripe. Atkinson took the win. He’s not taking the lesson for granted.
