Kenny Atkinson Gives High Praise To Bench Spark Nae’Qwan Tomlin

There aren't any other players on the Cleveland Cavaliers who light up the court when they stop on it as Nae'Qwan Tomlin does.

The 25-year-old forward has found his footing with the Cavaliers in the 2025-26 NBA season, his second stint of professional ball. He's played in 34 games this season, starting in two, en route to putting up averages of 6.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists a night. Defensively, his numbers don't show how effective he really is, with clips of 0.7 steals and 0.7 blocks.

It's clear that he's the Cavaliers' spark off the bench, providing the team with a much-needed change in energy. The hope would be that moving forward, the difference in tempo will start impacting the players around him.

After the team's win over the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday, Jan. 21, head coach Kenny Atkinson emphasized the way that his involvement off the bench changes the flow of games.

"His motor is elite. ... He gets these loose balls that other guys can't get because he's so darn long," Atkinson said. "I'm just so excited about him. He fits the prototype of the modern NBA wing. ... I love that he's firing up those open threes."

Kenny on Tomlin's development:

"His motor is elite. ... He gets these loose balls that other guys can't get because he's so darn long. I'm just so excited about him. He fits the prototype of the modern NBA wing. ... I love that he's firing up those open three's." pic.twitter.com/4qMEKJkSne
— RealCavsFans.com (@realcavsfans) January 22, 2026

His jump to a real NBA contributor

This season, the Cavaliers' "core four" haven't lived up to the hype. They've struggled, been injured and haven't given the team the level of production you'd like to see with the large contracts they're on.

But instead, it's a player that's not even on a standard contract who's been pulling eyeballs and playing consistently with energy.

Tomlin went from playing five games last season with an average of 12.6 minutes a contest to that huge jump of 34 games and an average of 16.1 minutes a contest. It's not only his offseason production that allowed for this jump in minutes, but the injuries the team suffered as well, early in the season. He's a perfect example of a player taking advantage of the limited time they get on the court.

But for some reason, while he's been the team's primary spark off the bench, the front office hasn't awarded him with a standard contract.

In a recent article on Cleveland.com by Chris Fedor, he questioned the reasoning behind Tomlin not getting the contract he deserves. He only has 16 games left before he would have to be demoted to the Cleveland Charge due to being a two-way deal.

The front office may be working to make a trade at the deadline, which is why they are playing Tomlin's contract situation slow, but with how good he's been, it almost feels like a bit of disrespect is being thrown his way. He's by far one of the bright points for the Cavaliers this season, and he deserves to be recognized with such a sentiment.

Giving him a standard contract would do that.

As the season slowly ticks closer towards the All-Star Break, Cleveland's going to be forced to either add Tomlin to the main roster, or risk losing the one player who's been consistent off the bench.

The Cavaliers will next take the floor on Friday, Jan. 23, against the Sacramento Kings with tip-off set for 7:30 p.m. EST. It'll be the first regular-season meetings between the two sides, with the final matchup coming in just a few weeks on Feb. 7, in Sacramento.