Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson pointed to physicality and spacing issues after his team’s 126-104 loss to the Toronto Raptors in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference first-round series on Thursday night at Scotiabank Arena.
Atkinson credited Toronto’s defensive approach early, explaining the way it impacted Cleveland’s drives. “I think it was more crowding the paint on their drives, right? On our major players’ drives,” he said.
He described a tactical decision-making battle that tilted toward the Raptors. “You make a choice in the league: you’re going to come off some guys, you’re going to stay at home. They decided they really wanted to pack it,” Atkinson said.
Cleveland’s offensive rhythm broke down as the game progressed, with the coach highlighting spacing limitations. “We just got to keep trusting the pass, keep making the right reads,” he said. “But I definitely think we had some spacing issues. Even half a foot in this league matters, especially with the length they have.”
The Cavaliers briefly stayed competitive through three quarters, trailing 83-81 before Toronto surged away in the fourth. Atkinson pointed to that shift as the decisive stretch of the game.
“At halftime, we took a punch, we came back, it was tight. And then at the beginning of the third, they took a rebound out of our hands,” he said. “They drove it right down our throats.”
He continued by describing Toronto’s physical advantage during key stretches. “The force was just way on their side. Their ability to be the more aggressive team, kind of that simple.”
The fourth quarter proved decisive, with Toronto outscoring Cleveland 43-23 behind efficient perimeter shooting. Atkinson acknowledged breakdowns on the defensive end. “We’ll clean up the tactical things, but in terms of doing the dirty work stuff we talked about, the defense has got to be better,” he said.
He also addressed late-game execution issues that widened the gap. “Fourth quarter, we started missing coverages, got backdoored, lost our focus.”
Despite the result, Atkinson rejected the idea that fatigue alone explained the collapse. “Yeah, that’s to their credit. I think their force wore us down,” he said. “We’ve been phenomenal physically. The first two games were, tonight I felt like a step behind.”
He added that the Raptors dictated the tempo through effort and aggression. “Two forces meet each other and one does that, and you got to resist and we were kind of on our heels. Sometimes it’s that simple.”
Atkinson also highlighted Jaylon Tyson’s performance off the bench as a positive takeaway. “Really good. I knew it was going to happen. It was just a matter of time and we needed it,” he said.
He explained Tyson’s role in adjusting to defensive pressure on Cleveland’s primary scorers. “You need someone else to step up when they’re trying to take your two main options away. And he can do that.”
Looking ahead to Game 4, Atkinson emphasized adjustments and mindset as Cleveland aims to even the series in Toronto on Sunday.
