Australian rookie Tyrese Proctor is giving the Cleveland Cavaliers something to think about, despite their deep guard rotation.
Drafted with the No. 49 pick, high expectations often don't follow at that slot, but the Cavs showed huge faith in Proctor, handing him a partially guaranteed four-year, $8.69 million contract.
Throughout their pre-season, Proctor has shown flashes of the impact he can bring off the bench, with his ability to create offense off the dribble, create scoring opportunities for his teammates, and serve as an off-ball threat.
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In four pre-season outings, Proctor has averaged 10 points, 3.3 assists, and 1.3 rebounds on 43.8 percent shooting from the field, per NBA Stats. In his pre-season debut against the Chicago Bulls, he recorded 14 points on 3-of-4 from the 3-point line in just 12 minutes, and in his lone start against the Boston Celtics, he dropped 12 points and four assists.
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All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell has taken the former Duke Blue Devil under his wing and has been impressed with the work ethic and dedication to learning the Cavs' schemes as quickly as possible.
"When you talk to somebody, you could tell, like, they’re mental and where they’re at, and it didn’t take long for me to kind of see that in him," Mitchell said per Cleveland.com.
"He’s pretty much been everywhere with me. We’ve just created that bond and that vibe.
"When you have guys like that who are able to create and initiate the offense, find guys, especially for a rookie like that’s big time. And, he’s got ‘it,’ and you’re starting to see it every night. He’s cold. I like him."
Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson echoed those sentiments, praising Proctor's ability to make the right reads, run the offense, and get to his spots.
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"When Tyrese came in the game, the kid’s got something," Atkinson said following the Cavs' 118-100 win over the Pistons earlier this week. "[He has a ] real good feel for the game. He obviously can shoot it. Yeah. He kind of changed the game when he went in there."
Cleveland boasts plenty of talent in the backcourt, making minutes hard to come by for Proctor once the season starts, behind Mitchell, Craig Porter Jr, Lonzo Ball, and Jaylon Tyson, however, with Darius Garland, sidelined as he recovers from toe surgery, don't be surprised if Proctor gets an early taste of the rotation.
"When you have a guy like that, you can kind of just say, hey, go and initiate and create," Mitchell added. "Once he figures things out, he’s gonna be really good for us."