On a night when questions hovered and pressure threatened to spoil a celebration months in the making, the Cleveland Cavaliers delivered their most convincing answer yet.
No Donovan Mitchell? No problem.
With their All-Star leader sidelined by a left ankle sprain, the Cavaliers leaned into their collective identity and dominated the Chicago Bulls, 135–113, to lock up the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. The victory didn’t just cap off a regular season defined by growth and grit — it planted a flag.
The East officially runs through Cleveland.
“I think you celebrate these moments,” Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson said after the clinching win. “We’ll talk about going forward, what that looks like. But today, tonight, we celebrate, and I think the guys are super happy in that locker room.
“I think we got out of the gate so quickly. We got ahead of it early and then we had some ups and downs the last month. But really proud of the guys, proud of the organization.
“It’s hard to win 63 games in this league. It’s hard to be the first seed. We all know that. So great an accomplishment. Obviously, we are hungry for more.”
This marked only the fourth time in franchise history that the Cavaliers have finished a season atop the East standings, joining the elite company of the 2008–09, 2009–10, and 2015–16 squads.
The 2016 team, of course, went on to capture Cleveland’s only NBA championship. Whether this team can replicate that magic remains to be seen, but on Tuesday night, they looked every bit the part.
The night didn’t begin with fireworks. The Cavaliers looked uncharacteristically out of sync in the opening quarter. Shots rimmed out. The pace felt uncertain. With Mitchell in street clothes on the sideline, there was reason to wonder: could they pull this off?
And then, they remembered who they were.
The Cavaliers are hungry for more
Atkinson’s squad came out flat in the first quarter, mustering only 25 points while a desperate Bulls team, clawing for play-in positioning, punched early. For a moment, the weight of expectations and the absence of Mitchell felt visible.
But somewhere in the huddle, belief took over. Then came the “Cavalanche.”
Ten threes rained down in the second quarter alone. The ball zipped, the pace quickened, and the scoreboard couldn’t keep up. A symphonic, 43-point eruption flipped the game on its head, turning a slow start into a 20-point halftime lead. The message was clear: this team doesn’t need to be whole to be dangerous — they just need each other.
“We kind of got back to the way we played all year,” Atkinson said. “That was a really good sign. But the 3-ball is going to be huge [in the playoffs], and we’ve got to get our attempts up. There was a point in the first quarter I said, ‘We’re hesitating on our 3s.’ We gotta let them go.”
Darius Garland — mired in post-All-Star break struggles — picked the perfect moment for a breakout. He dropped 28 points, including six triples, and ran the offense with the control and confidence of a floor general who has seen the pressure and now embraces it.
“I felt like he was downhill in the paint, sharing it, and when he gets the 3-ball going, he’s unstoppable,” Atkinson praised.
But this wasn’t just Garland’s night.
Evan Mobley and Ty Jerome stood out once again
Evan Mobley delivered a masterpiece: 21 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, two steals, a block, and three more threes, bringing his season total of games with 3+ triples to 13. Before this season? He had one.
“I said when he made one of them tonight, I’m like, he’s our best shooter,” Atkinson said. “I turned to one of our assistants because no one was making ‘em at that point. I’m like, this guy’s like our shooter. It’s crazy.
“I just love his confidence right now. I mean, we’ve really pushed him and joked with him and really, really tried to empower him to shoot the ball.”
Ty Jerome, newly returned from injury, poured in 18 points off the bench like he’d been storing up energy all year just for this moment.
Still, the Bulls didn’t go quietly. They trimmed a 26-point deficit to just nine with under seven minutes remaining. The air got tight. Rocket Arena held its breath.
But the Cavaliers didn’t flinch.
A Garland flurry. A Mobley putback slam. Multiple forced turnovers — part of 20 on the night. Game over. Curtain dropped.
That, in essence, is who the Cavaliers have been all season: a team that responds.
The Cavaliers left their greatest response for last
They opened the year with a new coach after a 51-win season. Max Strus went down before the opener. There were questions about fit, about spacing, about whether this group could really grow together, or just plateau.
Sixty-three wins later, those questions have vanished.
No Mitchell? No excuses and no problems.
Because this season has never been about one star — it’s been about collective belief.
Belief in Garland’s resurgence, in Mobley’s transformation, that Atkinson’s fresh voice could unlock an identity rooted not just in star power. It was a belief in grit, spacing, and defensive suffocation.
This win wasn’t just about beating Chicago. It was about planting a flag.
And now, with just a few days until the first-round opponent is determined — whether it’s Orlando, Atlanta, Miami, or a familiar foe like Chicago again — one truth remains:
Nobody in the East can run from Cleveland.
“We’re just getting started,” Garland said postgame.
They believed. And against the Bulls, without their brightest star, the Cavaliers reminded the league why that belief matters.
Cavaliers Conquer the East Without Donovan Mitchell, Send Strongest Message Yet