Former Cal Star Jaylon Tyson Signs With Cleveland Cavaliers

Based on the NBA's rookie salary scale, Tyson is expected to earn about $3.3 million next season

Jaylon Tyson / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Former Cal star Jaylon Tyson is officially a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The NBA team signed its first-round draft pick to a contract on Wednesday after making him the No. 20 selection in the first round.

Media reports say Tyson will receive the rookie-scale salary of about $3.3 million for his first season. The Cavaliers did not announce terms of the deal.

Tyson is expected to make his Cavaliers’ debut on Friday, July 12 in a summer-league game at Las Vegas against the Orlando Magic.

Tyson, who came to Cal last season as a transfer from Texas Tech, opted for the NBA after just one season with the Bears. The 6-foot-6 wing, who played essentially as a point guard for Cal, averaged 19.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.2 steals in 34.3 minutes.

“Honestly, I knew I had a breakout year coming,” Tyson said last week. “I always thought in the back of my mind that I was an NBA player. I had a lot of confidence in myself. I just knew I had to show it.”

Cal coach Mark Madsen, in an appearance on 92.3 The Fan’s Ken Carman Show, said he expects Tyson to have early impact with the Cavaliers.

"You're getting a great player," said Madsen, according to Cavs Insider on the Sports Illustrated network. "You're getting somebody who's gonna be able to step in and contribute right away, directly. Jaylon Tyson can shoot, he can shoot the three, he can do it off the dribble and he can do it off the catch. 

“At Cal, because of injuries and also because Jaylon Tyson, from the minute he stepped onto campus was such a phenomenal passer, we put him at the point guard position, a lot of the season. And he was fantastic, but he is a really, really good catch and shoot shooter when he plays off the ball."

Tyson was the third-leading scorer in the Pac-12 and his 607 points were the most by a Cal player since 2012-13. He earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors and was a top-10 finalist for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award.

Tyson is the first Cal player drafted by the Cavaliers since Kevin Johnson was chosen as the No. 7 pick in 1987.