After record-setting Round 1 win, Cavaliers hope they're just getting started in NBA playoffs

MIAMI (AP) — Kenny Atkinson didn't need a few months, or a few weeks, or even a few games before figuring out the potential of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

He needed two practices.

Go back to training camp in Bradenton, Florida. The Cavaliers were in Day 2 there, and one of Atkinson's assistant coaches offered some early observations that have stuck with Atkinson for the seven months that have followed.

"He said, 'We're skilled, we're smart and we play really hard.' That was the immediate feedback,” Atkinson, in his first year coaching the Cavaliers, recalled this week. “Those three things stood out. Your first impressions count, I guess."

Those impressions were spot on, too.

Skilled, smart and hard-playing sums up the Cavaliers quite nicely, it turns out. They're headed to the Eastern Conference semifinals against Indiana. The top-seeded Cavs simply dismantled the Miami Heat in a four-game sweep in Round 1; Indiana ousted Milwaukee in five games, clinching the series with a 119-118 overtime win on Tuesday night.

Game 1 of Pacers-Cavs is Sunday in Cleveland.

Indiana went 3-1 against Cleveland this season, though two of those wins came in the final week of the season — and to be fair, the Cavs, who had long clinched the East's No. 1 seed, weren't exactly playing their postseason lineup.

“We have a challenge coming up,” Indiana's Myles Turner said in the televised post-game interview after ousting the Bucks. “But we're going to celebrate this one tonight.”

Margin of victory in the Cavs-Heat series: 122 points, the most one-sided matchup in NBA playoff history. Victory margins in Games 3 and 4, both on the road: 37 and 55 points.

“They’re going to be on probably a long run right now," Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said Monday night when Game 4 ended, tipping his cap to the Cavs. "They're well-coached. They have a group that fits and plays the right way. So, we were humbled — but they had so much to do with a lot of how we looked.”

And Cleveland has done this to teams all season. OK, maybe not to this extent; the 55-point win in Game 4 was Cleveland's largest this season, and the 37-point Game 3 win is now tied for its fourth-largest victory of the year.

But this Cavs team is doing something that not even the LeBron James teams in Cleveland did. Cleveland's average margin of victory this season is now 10.5 points per game, on pace to be the best in franchise history. Only nine teams have made it through a regular season and the playoffs with such a margin.

Cleveland star Donovan Mitchell was sitting with Cavs rookie Jaylon Tyson during the Game 4 runaway. His message was simple: “This is your first playoff series ... and this (stuff) isn't normal,” he said.

“We have a bigger goal in mind,” Mitchell said. “For us, it's understanding that this is special. We've been doing special things all year. But we didn't come here just to sweep in the first round and get to the second.”

They're 68-18 so far this season, including playoffs. There are two teams in Cavaliers history that won more games in a full season: The 2008-09 team went 76-20, and the 2015-16 team — the NBA champions that season — went 73-30.

They'll be favored in Round 2. They're riding high right now, too. A team that had winning streaks of 16, 15 and 12 games this season — the second team in NBA history to do that, joining the 2006-07 Dallas Mavericks — is rolling, just like it has been since pretty much the start of that Bradenton training camp.

“There's a fit and a feel. They know how to play," Atkinson said. "I don’t think we’re like super-athletic. But we've got a lot of guys who know how to play.”

And how to win, too.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley (4) scores against the Miami Heat during the second half in Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Michael Laughlin)

Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra shouts instructions to his team during the first half in Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Michael Laughlin)

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Max Strus, left, shoots around Miami Heat forward Haywood Highsmith, second from left, during the first half in Game 4 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Monday, April 28, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rhona Wise)

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson reacts during the second half in Game 4 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Miami Heat, Monday, April 28, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rhona Wise)

RICHMOND, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 16, 2025--

TemperPack ®, the leader in sustainable thermal packaging, announced the relocation of its Green Cell Foam ® manufacturing facility from Holt, Michigan to a larger and upgraded facility in Lansing. The 135,000-square-foot site represents a significant expansion in space, with upgrades in equipment and operational flow that will increase production capacity and streamline distribution operations.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251216219851/en/

The new Lansing location provides 60% more manufacturing space compared to the previous site, enabling TemperPack to meet growing demand for its innovative Green Cell Foam insulation products. The facility also features new production equipment, enhanced IT, and a significant increase in shipping and receiving docks, improving logistics efficiency and reducing load times.

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“As we continue to grow and uphold our commitment to sustainability, expanding our Michigan operations allows us to better meet rising customer demand for Green Cell Foam,” said Troy Hagenbuch, Chief Operating Officer. “This new facility significantly enhances our manufacturing and service capabilities, enabling us to deliver greater efficiency, speed, and reliability to our customers.”

The expanded production capacity will support TemperPack's mission to provide environmentally friendly alternatives to traditional packaging materials. Green Cell Foam is a plant-based, certified compostable insulation material that offers comparable performance to polystyrene foam while significantly reducing environmental impact.

Peter Wells, Chief Executive Officer, noted, “As Direct-to-Consumer e-commerce continues to expand in Food and Beverage, and Life Sciences, due to significant trends in ‘Food is Health’ and ‘Preventive Medicine’, TemperPack must keep pace with the demand for sustainable packaging solutions that provide exceptional unboxing experiences for our customers’ consumers -— built on a digital thread for innovative end-to-end solutions that build brand and community with a personalized and sustainable experience.”

About the New Facility:

About TemperPack

TemperPack solves the toughest packaging problems with science and sustainability. Since 2015, we’ve worked to displace legacy plastics with innovative, sustainable alternatives. With expertise in materials science, packaging design, and process engineering, we develop and scale solutions that match the performance of traditional materials, without unnecessary plastic waste. Our products have protected over 200 million shipments worldwide for industry leaders. Learn more here.

Interior Green Cell Foam manufacturing.

Exterior render.