Gonna start off by saying, the second most important piece of gear in this equation is the actual make and model of your '2018 50" TV'.
To this point, nothing fully supports HDMI 2.1 and all the features of HDMI 2.1 that I'm aware of. They support very limited HDMI 2.1 features.
Generally though...
Just plug your AV receiver into the TV using the only output the receiver has (eARC). You can plug into the ARC connection on the TV.
Plug all your sources into the receiver using quality HDMI cables.
If you want best in class streaming, look for something like a Roku device ($100), rather than any 'smart' functions built into your TV. This will make your life easier overall.
Not sure what 'professional HDMI' cables are. As, you shouldn't spend more than about 5-10 bucks on any HDMI cable 6' or less in length.
You shouldn't be using optical audio cables at all unless you need to get audio out of your TV for some reason.