On Friday, the Cleveland Cavaliers formally announced that they have signed Emoni Bates, Isaiah Mobley, and Craig Porter Jr. all to two-way contracts. This is the first NBA season to allow teams to sign three two-way contracts, as last year, two was the maximum amount of two-way players allowed.
Mobley and Porter were both announced to have signed two-way contracts back in late June. However, Bates was not a reported two-way signing yet, and some people were seemingly speculating on whether Bates could get a standard NBA contract, or if he would also receive a two-way contract like Mobley and Porter did.
All of these players are really solid, and each could get time to play with both the Cleveland Charge, and also get a bit of playing time for the Cavaliers, as well. The three players are also playing for the Cavaliers Summer League squad, which are still meaningful reps for them.
Cleveland has been known to offer two-way players standard contracts that were original two-way guys. Look at Dean Wade and Lamar Stevens, both of whom were undrafted. Also, Sam Merrill got a 10-day contract from Cleveland, and is now a member of the regular roster.
If any of these three players (in Mobley, Porter and Bates) play really well, it wouldn’t be surprising to see one of them get a standard deal.
All three signings were sensible additions via two-way deals for Cleveland, and they can all be successful players.
With that in mind, let’s look at each of these three players individually and rank them.
We’ll start things off next with a contributor who can make things happen on both ends.
Third: Craig Porter Jr.
First off we have Craig Porter Jr., the 6-foot-2 guard out of Wichita State. He averaged 13.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 4.9 assists last year in his third year at Wichita State. He also played two seasons prior to Wichita State at Vincennes University in Indiana.
He went undrafted in the 2023 NBA Draft, and practically as soon as the draft was finished, the Cavaliers offered Porter a two-way contract. He’s a nice scorer that can put the ball on the floor and make plays, he’s an impactful defender, and a good playmaker. All of those attributes led to his two-way deal from the Cavs.
Porter is an older prospect at already 23 years old, but in this situation, he should have more time to develop his skills. If he can demonstrate continued progression, it wouldn’t necessarily be shocking if Cleveland offered him a standard contract, depending on how he plays in the G League and in the NBA, as well.
If he can get his three-point shot to be really deadly, then Cleveland could ultimately try and give him a standard contract sooner or later. He was a career 35.8 percent three-point shooter in college, but his 69.0 percent free throw percentage as a guard wasn’t promising.
Crazier things can happen, though.
Second: Emoni Bates
Emoni Bates has a ton of potential, but as of now, he isn’t the best player on a two-way contract for the Cavs. He’s still really talented, he just still has a long way to go to become a great NBA player.
He has some clear flaws in his game.
He’s not a great passer. He’s sometimes a ball-stopper on offense, and doesn’t like to make the extra pass, and isolates too much. He takes bad quality shots, and his defense leaves much to be desired.
However, let’s look at his qualities.
He shot a solid 78.2 percent from the free throw line last year at Eastern Michigan, and he’s a natural born scorer. His jump shot is really nice, and the form is great. He excels at making difficult shots, and his mid-range is solid.
Most importantly, the potential is all there. He was one of the most-hyped high school players ever, as he was compared to Kevin Durant for a while. He still become a high-level NBA player, and he has the ability to be an All-Star someday. But he has to put in the work.
Ultimately, though, a two-way contract was a good choice for Bates. He should benefit from developmental time with the Charge to round out his skill set, improve defensively, and hopefully, he can gradually get stronger over his rookie campaign.
First: Isaiah Mobley
Mobley has the best chance to get a standard contract out of anyone in this group of two-way players. He’s a capable floor spacer as a power forward, and even though he isn’t as good of a defender as his brother, Evan, he’s still a solid defensive big man.
The 6-foot-8 Isaiah Mobley is still really talented.
He attempted 3.9 free throws per game, and shot 73.0 percent from the line, in the G League last season. His 3.8 assists per game was also promising, showing that he’s capable of being a quality passing big man.
The 35.3 percent from beyond the arc isn’t awful, but it’s more than respectable for a big man of his ilk. His three-point shot should be even better this season, and that could be a reason why he could get more minutes for the Cavaliers.
His 1.1 blocks was solid, too, and with Mobley’s 7-foot-3 wingspan and timing, it wouldn’t seem unreasonable for him to potentially get some backup 5 minutes with the Cavaliers, or at least splitting some time at the 4 and 5.
All in all, these two-way players were top-notch signings, given the context of what Cleveland is getting from those guys, or could be. All of them should get some run in the NBA, as well as playing a lot in the G League.
It wouldn’t be suprising if any three of these guys will get a standard contract, depending if they play really well. As of now, we just get to watch the Las Vegas Summer League and enjoy the games to see if the Cavs can keep their winning ways going, after their 101-97 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Friday.