From winning 64 games in the regular season and ending up as the No. 1 seed in the East to bowing out in the second round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs at the hands of the Indiana Pacers, the Cleveland Cavaliers had an eventful 2024-25 campaign.
And, it’s possible that the play of Jaylon Tyson in his maiden season after the Cavaliers selected him with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft got lost in all of the noise.
While he wasn’t a mainstay in head coach Kenny Atkinson’s rotation as a neophyte, Tyson still appeared in 47 games in the 2024-25 season and even logged three starts. In that time, he had moments where he showed off tantalizing potential on the offensive end.
He racked up multiple double-digit scoring games over the course of his first NBA season and even went off for 31 points in the team’s regular-season finale against the Pacers on April 13.
It seems that Tyson could be in store for an even larger role in his sophomore season as well.
Recently, Atkinson had some major praise for the former first-round pick.
“There’s guys that want to make the league, they’re trying hard to practice hard,” Atkinson said. “Then, there’s guys that are desperate to make it. I’ll put Jaylon Tyson in that unique group. He just lives and breathes it. He gets after it every day. He’s like a 10-year vet. I’ve never seen a guy – he gets all the things he’s gotta do to get better. He’s desperate.
“We need him. Losing Isaac [Okoro], we lose a wing. So, there’s gonna be a spot.”
Here are three reasons why Tyson should crack Cleveland’s rotation in the coming 2025-26 season.
1. Strong Summer League
Tyson has put the ball through the bottom of the net at an impressive rate through three games played (not counting Wednesday’s game against the Sacramento Kings) for the Cavaliers at Las Vegas Summer League.
He’s averaging 19.7 points while shooting 34.8 percent from 3-point range on 7.7 attempts per contest.
He dropped 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field against the Miami Heat on July 13 and ended up with 20 points in a game against the Pacers a few days earlier.
There’s more to like about Tyson’s play in Vegas than simply his scoring output, however, as he’s passing the ball as well as almost any player in Summer League. The 6-foot-6 guard is averaging 6.7 assists per game and is really showing off his playmaking chops.
He hasn’t been afraid to get his hands dirty on the glass, either, considering he’s pulling down 6.0 rebounds per game.
2. Minutes are for the taking following departures of Isaac Okoro and Ty Jerome
Okoro and Ty Jerome were both linchpins to Cleveland’s second unit in the 2024-25 campaign, but both are no longer with the team.
Okoro was dealt to the Chicago Bulls in a trade that netted Cleveland floor general Lonzo Ball. As for Jerome, he left in free agency and agreed to a three-year deal with the Memphis Grizzlies.
While the departures of Okoro and Jerome have led to the team’s bench depth taking a hit, it’s also opened up an opportunity for Tyson to crack the rotation.
Tyson no longer has to worry about Jerome and Okoro monopolizing much of the available minutes to go around at the backup guard spots.
He should be operating with the mindset that a spot in Atkinson’s rotation as a backup guard is his for the taking.
3. Cheaper player that could help Cavs duck 2nd apron
The Boston Celtics gave folks a glimpse of the potential ramifications of being over the second apron with some moves they made earlier this summer to save money.
Boston dumped big man Kristaps Porzingis’ salary to the Atlanta Hawks and traded guard Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers, and now it seems as if the Celtics are no longer serious contenders in the Eastern Conference for the time being.
If the Cavaliers want to be proactive and try to limit the possibility that they need to have an offseason like the Celtics just did and break up their core, they should rely more heavily on players under cheap contracts moving forward.
Tyson won’t be getting paid very much at all in the coming season, as he is set to earn under $4 million. He also has team options on his deal for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons, and the Cavaliers won’t have to worry about him being out of their price range anytime soon.
Providing Tyson with rotational minutes this coming season will only aid in his development. It could also prove to be a step in the right direction towards him becoming a valuable and affordable player who could help the Cavaliers duck the second apron while they chase an NBA title.
