Overview

• The Cleveland Cavaliers, Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed, begin their playoff campaign against the No. 8 seed Miami Heat at Rocket Arena on April 20 at 7 p.m. ET.
• Cleveland enters the series heavily favored after a dominant 64–18 regular season, their best since the 2015–16 championship year.
• Miami made history by becoming the first No. 10 seed to qualify for the playoffs, securing their spot with Play-In Tournament road wins over Chicago and Atlanta.
• Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland's leading scorer, has been declared fully recovered from a sprained ankle and is expected to play in Game 1.
• The series highlights a clash of styles, with Cleveland's top-ranked offense facing Miami's playoff-tested resilience under Coach Erik Spoelstra.