As we inch closer and closer to the start of the 2026-27 NBA season, the Cleveland Cavaliers have a myriad of decisions to make.
For most of the past few months since their embarrassing Eastern Conference Finals defeat at the hands of the New York Knicks, the Cavaliers have been retooling their roster to make another push, including extending Donovan Mitchell, re-signing James Harden, signing Mario Hezonja, trading away Max Strus and Dennis Schroder and trading for Peyton Watson, amongst others.
Now, with the roster likely set, the biggest decision for Kenny Atkinson and the rest of the coaching staff will be how to structure the rotation. The starting lineup feels secure, as Harden, Mitchell, Watson, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen will in all likelihood be the featured group, but the bench unit will be hotly contested.
Outside of the starting five, Sam Merrill and Jaylon Tyson seem the most likely to enjoy consistent time off the bench. Mario Hezonja will almost certainly see time on the wing (or else he wouldn’t have signed with Cleveland), and Craig Porter Jr. will probably start the season as the backup point guard. Either Nae’qwan Tomlin or Thomas Bryant (or maybe Khalifa Dior) will begin as the backup big in a weak point of the depth chart.
So, assuming Porter Jr., Merrill, Tyson, Hezonja and a big play consistently, there leaves about one more space for another player to crack the rotation given the need for a deeper bench throughout a long NBA regular season. For that one space remains the youngsters Tyrese Proctor and Meleek Thomas to play as a combo guard. Both seem to have made recent strides, but there appears only room for one to begin the year.
The case for Proctor
Proctor’s biggest advantage will be his experience. Firstly, this will be his second NBA season rather than his first and while he only appeared sparingly, those extra 50 games at the highest level gives him a major boost.
Secondly, not only has Proctor played in the NBA longer than Thomas, but he‘s also significantly older. He played three seasons at Duke and will turn 23 at the end of this season, while Thomas just recently turned 20. Including college, that means that Proctor has played three more seasons of high level basketball than his counterpart.
Next, Proctor has some experience as a lead guard. Coming out of high school, it was one of his calling cards and while he’ll likely never be a true point guard, he handled the ball a ton at Duke and is no stranger to the workload. It’s hard to believe that Porter Jr. is a part of Cleveland’s long term plans, so if Proctor can somehow show the competence to be the long term backup lead guard, then his road to playing time gets a lot less complicated.
Lastly, Proctor has a significantly better track record of being a positive defender. While he didn’t show a ton on that end during his rookie season, he became one of Duke’s best wing defenders with his size and ability to guard 1-3.
The case for Thomas
Thomas’ best claim to cracking the rotation stems from his performance in the Summer League in July. He led the entire league in scoring at 27.3 points per game on 50 percent from the field and a blistering 43.8 percent from three.
To be clear, those are absolutely ridiculous numbers. Proctor didn’t play in the Summer League this season but when he played in it in 2025, he averaged 17.3 points on 29.4 percent from three. That’s a serious gap.
Thomas may have fallen into the second round due to a variety of reasons, including his defense, decision-making and shot selection, but there is not doubt about how gifted of a scorer he is. He’s certainly proven to be a better shooter than Proctor, and Thomas’ 41.9 percent on 197 attempts from three last year at Arkansas proves that he has the track record to show that the jumper is no fluke.
Thomas also graded out around average in the midrange and at the rim, meaning that no area of the floor is a true weakness for the young guard. His ability to create his own shot will make life easier for the likes of Merrill, Tyson and Watson as well, who would be able to be largely just 3-and-D wings when Thomas is on the floor with them.
Additionally, while experience is on Proctor’s side, youth is with Thomas. NBA teams value youth perhaps higher than any sports league in the country, and Thomas will be with the Cavaliers through almost his entire theoretical greatest age range of growth (19-22). Because of that, Cleveland will value the ability to mold him into the player they want him to be.
Because of said youth, it might behoove Thomas for the Cavaliers to have him start the season in the G-League, gaining valuable experience in whatever role they seek for him. On the flip side, because of that developmental age range, it wouldn’t make a ton of sense for Proctor to spend a bunch of time in the G-League. For lack of a better words, it may be now or never for Proctor with the Cavaliers.
That leads into the verdict, which all centers around Cleveland’s long term belief in Proctor. Barring Thomas lighting the world on fire in practice, if the Cavaliers have any faith in Proctor being a part of their rotation for years to come, they should prioritize him getting meaningful playing time for the time being.
Again, it isn’t a terrible thing in any way for Thomas to play some G-League minutes. In fact, it’ll probably be a good thing. 35-plus minutes a night in the ‘minor’ leagues makes for a better 10 minutes in the ‘major’ leagues in the long term future.
However, if Cleveland’s one season with Proctor has given them serious doubts, it wouldn’t harm them to prioritize Thomas. After all, Proctor was drafted just 49th in 2025 and the Cavaliers only owe him just over $4.5 million until his club option in 2028, so it wouldn’t kill them to cut bait at any point and play the younger player.
So, whichever route Cleveland takes will have a number of implications, including the future of this Cavaliers roster down the road as well as the direction of the 2026-27 season.
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