The buzz around Thursday night’s preseason matchup between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics had already gone off the rails before tipoff, and the reason was easy to understand. A handful of new faces were getting their first real run in wine and gold, and that included Peyton Watson, Mario Hezonja, Ernest Udeh Jr., and Meleek Thomas.
Watson drew plenty of attention, but Thomas was the rookie I wanted to watch most closely. After hearing about his poise, his eagerness to learn, and the way he attacked summer league, the obvious next question was how that game would translate against NBA-level competition. The answer wasn’t a fireworks show, but it also wasn’t a dud.
Thomas opened by getting on the board with a sharp assist in a pick-and-roll with Jarrett Allen, setting up Sam Merrill for a mostly open corner three. He only played 7 minutes and 13 seconds in the first half, and the stat line was quiet at that point: two missed shots, one rebound, one assist. But once the starters were out and the second half got rolling, he started to show more of what made people excited in the first place.
Most of his production came inside the arc. Thomas went 5/11 from the field in the second half, and all but one of those makes came either at the rim or from within 10 feet.
His first basket was a transition finish, as he blew past multiple defenders and laid it in over Jordan Walsh’s outstretched arms. By the end of the night, he had scored 7 of his 11 points in transition, the most fast-break points of anyone on either team.
The rookie’s value wasn’t limited to offense, either. He looked sharp defending on the ball, jumped passing lanes, forced turnovers with active hands, and handled screens with real control. He fought over them instead of getting lost in them, and that stood out just as much as the scoring.
Thomas finished with 11 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals while shooting 5/13 from the field. It wasn’t a headline-grabbing debut, but it was the kind of first step that gives Cleveland reason to be encouraged.
The confidence was there, the edge was there, and the trust from the team was there too. Next up for Thomas is another chance to build on it Sunday, when Cleveland faces the Orlando Magic back at Rocket Arena.
In Other News...
Cavaliers May Have Found The Wing Help This Roster Needed
Mario Hezonja is back on an NBA roster, and the Cavaliers are taking a low-risk look at a player whose journey has taken him through several seasons in Europe. Cleveland brought him in on a one-year minimum deal as part of its effort to shore up wing depth, and early exhibition games have suggested there may be something worth exploring here beyond simple camp competition.
Hezonja has looked more physical and athletic in those tune-up minutes, which is exactly the sort of trait that can matter for a team trying to build a sturdier bench behind its core. If that carries into the season, he could give the Cavaliers a useful option on the wing and potentially bring more to the table than Dean Wade did in that reserve role, even as the larger question remains how much of this early promise translates once the games count. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Exposed A Cavaliers Problem Kenny Atkinson Has To Solve
The Cavaliers preseason opener offered Kenny Atkinson an early look at both the promise and the problems still waiting to be sorted out. Cleveland fell to Boston 124-113, and while the score mattered less than the process, Atkinson had plenty to like from the way Peyton Watson attacked with creativity and athleticism, along with the work of second-round pick Meleek Thomas and Craig Porter Jr.
What stood out most, though, was how often the Celtics kept creating extra chances, a reminder that the Cavs front line has some clean-up to do before the games count for real. The rebounding issues were hard to miss, and with James Harden out as a precaution because of ankle soreness, the opener became less about the final result and more about how quickly Cleveland can tighten the details that tend to decide better teams. [Read more 🡒]
Tyrese Proctor Just Made Clevelands Guard Battle A Lot More Real
Tyrese Proctor has already done the part young guards usually hear about and then have to prove later. After getting feedback from Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson, he put real work into strength training and showed notable physical improvement, a sign that Clevelands development message is landing with him. For a team trying to sort out its backcourt depth, that matters, especially with Proctor working to carve out a role in a group that also includes Craig Porter Jr. and Meleek Thomas.
Proctors case gets stronger because he is not just adding muscle, he is absorbing lessons from established scorers around him, including Donovan Mitchell and James Harden. That kind of daily education can speed up the learning curve, but the Cavaliers still appear to be looking for a very specific defensive profile before they settle the backup guard rotation. So while Proctor has made this competition more interesting, the final shape of the bench remains very much up in the air. [Read more 🡒]