The Cavaliers have a hole to fill after losing Dean Wade, and the shape of that loss is pretty clear. Wade wasn’t a star, but he mattered because he gave Cleveland a jumbo floor-stretcher who could defend both forward spots. For a team that has long had trouble matching up with long wings, that kind of piece is not easy to replace.
Cleveland hasn’t signed anyone specifically to take Wade’s place, but the answer might already be on the roster. Jaylon Tyson has flashed two-way ability, and the case for giving him a much larger role is getting stronger.
Tyson came into the league with a reputation as a more NBA-ready rookie than most. He was not a one-and-done player, and he arrived with an NBA-ready body plus a strong feel for the game and his role.
Even so, his first season barely got off the ground. He nearly posted a triple-double in his first start, but the minutes never really followed.
That changed more in year two under Kenny Atkinson, and Tyson started to show why the Cavaliers should trust him more. He averaged 13.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.2 stocks per game while shooting 49 percent from the field and 44 percent from three.
The appeal is easy to see. Tyson has the length, wingspan, and lateral quickness to stick with smaller players on the perimeter. He can fight through screens without getting caught in switches, and he’s also strong enough to hold his own against bigger forwards.
He’s not a finished product, though. Tyson can get too amped up and drift into shaky decision-making and questionable shot selection. But those are the kinds of issues that can be cleaned up with more reps, and Wade’s exit has opened the door for exactly that.
Tyson may not have Wade’s strength, but he brings more agility, more speed, more athleticism, and a more varied offensive game. He can create his own shot, and he’s also a willing passer with the kind of basketball IQ that lets him set up teammates.
In that sense, this feels overdue. Keeping Wade would have been the better outcome for Cleveland, but Tyson was already trending toward a bigger opportunity. And with LeBron James also potentially arriving in Cleveland, Tyson’s ability to defend and space the floor could become even more important for Atkinson’s team.
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A recent podcast pushed Cleveland into the center of the DeRozan chatter, with the fit tied not just to basketball but to the wider sweep of the leagues summer movement. The Cavaliers have their own priorities to manage, yet any serious run at DeRozan would have to be weighed against bigger-picture plans and the possibility that other marquee names could shape the market in ways that affect what Cleveland can realistically do next. [Read more 🡒]