Jaylon Tyson Could Contribute Immediately for Cavaliers

The former Cal wing has high-level translatable skills.

Mar 13, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; California Golden Bears guard Jaylon Tyson (20) dribbles the ball against the Stanford Cardinal at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Former California guard/wing Jaylon Tyson could be one of the most productive players in this draft class his rookie season due to his multitude of skills on the offensive end of the floor.

After transferring from Texas his freshman year to Texas Tech his sophomore year before finally landing at Cal, Tyson has a tumultuous career that eventually resulted in a fantastic season with the Bears, where he averaged 19.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game on top of 1.2 steals with a true shooting rate of 55.7%.

Though Cal struggled on the season, Tyson was the engine driving the offense, playing the wing role as well as anyone in the country. A true self-creator, he has the ability to shoot off of the bounce and has a legitimate functional handle at 6-foot-7 that allows him to get to the rim with relative ease.

The size and skill he possesses allows him to slot into multiple different positions as well, leaning towards the shooting guard and small forward spots but with the ability to play some power forward in smaller lineups. Looking at his Synergy Sports page from Cal, he ranked in the 58th percentile in points per shot, considered "Good" by the statistics service.

Considering the volume on which he scored, the efficiency means even more. He connected on 35.5% of his three-point attempts for the season, and 33.7% on shots from beyond the arc that he took off of the bounce. He was also +0.10 in points per shot above expectation, meaning he is able to hit at a higher clip even on tougher shots.

In looking at this Cavaliers lineup, he may be able to steal some minutes from players like Max Strus, Caris LeVert, or Sam Merrill due to his confluence of skills. With his Rookie of the Year odds as high as +15000 on certain sites, Tyson may just come out of nowhere and win the award due to his fit on the Cavaliers roster.

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