The Cavaliers came into the preseason with a clean, simple idea: let the stars drive the chase, let the veterans steady the floor, and let the younger guys fight for whatever scraps were left. Three exhibition games later, that script looks a lot messier.
Jaylon Tyson has played too well to be tucked away as a fringe piece. Craig Porter Jr. has put himself in the mix for the backup point guard job.
Meleek Thomas has shown enough scoring pop to force a real conversation. And Peyton Watson may already be too important to Cleveland’s new supporting cast to leave out of the core group.
That doesn’t mean the Cavaliers are drifting anywhere. They’re still built to win now. But the preseason has handed Kenny Atkinson a good problem: there may be more young talent pushing for rotation minutes than the team can comfortably fit.
Tyson made his case loudest.
Across Cleveland’s three preseason games, the third-year wing averaged 13.0 points while shooting 60 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point range. Those numbers don’t define a season, but they do back up what the Cavaliers already learned last year: Tyson can really shoot it.
The bigger question now is role. Tyson isn’t just competing to stay in the mix; he’s pushing to become one of the most important reserves on the roster.
Watson complicates that picture. Cleveland’s new starting small forward brings defensive versatility Tyson doesn’t fully replace, along with the kind of wing resistance the Cavaliers need next to an offense-first backcourt.
That makes Watson the natural starter and Tyson the natural sixth man.
Even then, Tyson shouldn’t be limited to simply checking in when Watson sits. The two could play together, and that pairing might give Cleveland a more athletic and versatile perimeter group without losing too much offense.
The real issue isn’t whether Tyson belongs. It’s how many minutes Cleveland can realistically keep from him.
Porter has made a strong push of his own.
He came into the preseason needing to prove something, and he answered with 5.6 assists per game over three outings. The best example came against Boston, where he handed out 10 assists. For a Cavaliers team that needs the offense to stay organized when the stars are off the floor, that matters.
Porter doesn’t have to be a high-volume scorer to help. He can run the offense, make the right pass and hold up defensively. That fits the backup point guard role neatly.
Thomas, though, has added some noise to that race. The second-round pick scored 16 points in just under 13 minutes in Cleveland’s preseason finale against Orlando, going 6-of-9 from the floor and 2-of-3 from deep. That came on top of earlier moments where he flashed scoring touch and defensive activity.
Where Porter brings control, Thomas brings aggression. He looks like the guy who can give an offense a jolt when it needs one. Tyrese Proctor is still in the mix as well.
The challenge for Atkinson is that there may not be enough backcourt minutes to satisfy everyone, which turns this into more than a simple talent evaluation. It becomes a question of what the second unit actually needs.
The starting group appears set with James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Watson, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Tyson and Sam Merrill look positioned for real wing minutes, while Mario Hezonja and Thomas Bryant fill out frontcourt depth. That leaves the backup point guard spot as the clearest opening in what could become a 10-man rotation, and Porter seems to have earned the first shot.
His playmaking fits cleanly with Tyson and Merrill as finishers. Thomas could then work as a scoring option in the right spots, with Proctor offering another layer of depth.
Still, Thomas doesn’t need to fade into the background. Atkinson could pair him with Porter in smaller lineups or use him when Cleveland needs a burst of offense. The key is not locking the rotation into something so stiff that it blocks young players from growing into larger roles.
Preseason basketball is not the playoffs, of course. Thomas still has to show he can handle NBA defensive assignments on a regular basis, and Porter needs to prove his passing carries over against real regular-season rotations. But both have done enough to turn this into a genuine competition.
For a contender, that’s a useful headache. Cleveland already knows who its top five are. Figuring out the next five suddenly looks a lot more complicated.
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The link between the two only deepened in October, when Mitchell took part in the postseason spotlight around the Guardians and stepped onto the field for the ceremonial first pitch. For Cleveland fans, it was another reminder that the citys pro teams are overlapping in ways that feel personal, not staged. Even better, the Mitchell-Adell connection has given both fan bases something to smile about while the baseball stakes keep climbing. [Read more 🡒]
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What makes this next chapter more interesting is how much the Cavs are clearly invested in what comes next for him. Mobley is already established as a defensive standout, but the teams willingness to keep him in place after a summer of outside interest says plenty about how it views his ceiling. Cleveland also appears ready to ask for more on the offensive end, with the coaching staff looking at ways to put him in a different role and squeeze out a bigger jump. [Read more 🡒]