Jaylon Tyson showing strong signs of development for Cleveland Cavaliers

Jaylon Tyson is surging for the Cleveland Cavaliers to start the 2025-26 NBA season.

After sitting behind a load of stars and bench depth in the previous campaign, the Cavaliers' coaching staff has put tremendous trust in their second-year guard. The former first-round selection in the 2024 NBA Draft has been hooping to start the year.

Through Cleveland's first six games of the season, Tyson's averaging 9.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists a night on 53.4% from the field and 43.5% from deep. Those are incredibly efficient numbers for a player getting their first real look at time on the court.

With injuries dwindling down the roster, the Cavaliers have started him four times, giving Tyson an average of 24.2 minutes a night.

For reference, he played in just 47 games his second season with an average of 9.6 minutes per game. His numbers came in at low marks of 3.6 points, 2.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists and splits of 43% from the field and 34.5% from three-point range.

"If he's the ninth man and playing 8-10 minutes, or 2-5 minute stints, it's tough to play that way," Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson said after the Cavaliers' game on Friday. "Now, he knows he's out there. He knows he can make mistakes. He knows I'm not going to take him out."

To see his numbers across the board take major leaps is exciting, especially for a player with such a high ceiling.

"...I think it's building confidence with the vets," Atkinson said. "They're already whispering, 'This guy can really help us.' So, you know, it's a real positive. We hate losing, not thrilled we didn't come out with a win [on Friday], but thrilled we're discovering things about our roster."

After adjusting a bit more to the faced-pace style of being an NBA starter, Tyson's looked more and more comfortable being in the starting lineup.

In Friday's loss to the Toronto Raptors in the opening game of the NBA Cup, Tyson was one of the best players for the Cavaliers. He led the team with 18 points, four assists, three rebounds and three blocks. He also made 50% of his shots from the field and deep.

One of the best aspects of his game came in his three-point shooting, knocking down four of eight attempts. For a team that was missing a sharpshooter like Sam Merrill, it was important to see someone try and fill his void.

Atkinson mentioned that those moments are his favorite part of being in the NBA. With injuries happening, he gets to see guys like Tyson show up and shine.

"I love it. I mean, this is how you build trust, right?" Atkinson said. "This is how you discover things, through injuries. It's the history of the NBA."   

His jump from being a deep rotational piece as a rookie, to starting in his second season in the league is a sign of growth. It's a testament to the work that Tyson has put in to be able to get to this point in his game with not much game time to show for it.

If Cleveland can keep Tyson healthy and involved in the game, even when injured starters return, they may be able to take hold of the countless new positives the 22-year-old brings to the court.

From defense to offense, Tyson's thriving for the Cavaliers. The only thing now is the team needs to see wins start to appear in their record.

The Cavaliers will look to continue turning their season around as they prepare for a game against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday, Nov. 2, with tip-off slated for 6:00 p.m.

Tyson will remain in the starting lineup for the team as they are still without a good chunk of regular contributors for the foreseeable future.