The Cleveland Cavaliers finally opened up the preseason schedule on Tuesday with a close 118-117 loss to the Chicago Bulls that left them with a major question to ask after the night was over. How does Kenny Atkinson find minutes for Tyrese Proctor once the regular season starts?
Proctor arrived in Cleveland with the modest fanfare one could expect from the 49th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. However, there were some who were surprised to see the former Duke Blue Devils guard to slip so far into the second round.
Concerns about Proctor's physical limitations forced the productive Duke guard to slip as far as he did. The Cavaliers look poised to reap the benefits of that fallout during the 2025-26 campaign.
Most would have pegged the upcoming season as a developmental year for Proctor. Not many would picked him for a prominent role off the bench. No one will sit here and tell you the new Cavaliers guard should be a sixth man straight out of the gates, or anything of the sort. Despite that, the unique backcourt situation in Cleveland should give Atkinson plenty of reason to feature his rookie.
Tyrese Proctor could shake up Cavaliers' backcourt plans early
Craig Porter Jr. provided a loud statement regarding his fellow bench guard in an interview with Spencer Davies leading up to Cavaliers Media Day. Perhaps everyone in Cleveland should have paid more attention to that.
Porter told Davies, "He's surprised me a lot. I knew he was good, but I feel like he's an NBA-ready player. I feel like he could get some minutes this season coming up for sure.”
Proctor looked every bit of the NBA-ready guard that his teammate projected him to be during his preseason debut. The Cavaliers rookie provided instant offense off the bench once his number was finally called.
Tyrese Proctor showing off early pic.twitter.com/EjSxyaZx57
— Mack Perry (@DevaronPerry) October 8, 2025
Proctor scored 14 points, shooting 5-of-6 from the field and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. The 21-year-old added two assists and one steal to go with that, leading the team in plus/minus with a +11.
It is important to contextualize this performance. Shot-making in the preseason is not the be-all and end-all that sets the barometer for how good someone is going to be. Likewise, it was just one game.
Still, Proctor had to inspire memories of Ty Jerome in the best way possible with his spark off the bench. For a Cavaliers team expecting Darius Garland to miss some time with injury and Lonzo Ball being carefully monitored, a window of opportunity should be there for the taking.
Atkinson made it clear with utilization of the bench that Porter currently resides higher on the backcourt depth chart. That was rewarded with a strong 17-point showing against the Bulls as well.
Still, if there was no original plan to carve out some playing time for Proctor, there will surely be more consideration towards that idea now. Atkinson loves going deep off the bench to help preserve his stars. Proctor undoubtedly gives him more flexibility to do so.