Jaylon Tyson hasn't made a big impact for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoffs... yet.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have their stars, and they’ve certainly been playing like superstars so far during the playoffs.
However, it's going to take more than Cleveland’s core of Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen to win a championship; they’ll need more contributions from the supporting cast.
Max Strus went off for 24 points in Game 1 against the Toronto Raptors, and Dean Wade continues to lock up Brandon Ingarm on defense. That said, Kenny Atkinson believes the next player to separate themselves and have a big game is sophomore forward Jaylon Tyson.
“He's up next. Max had that big game. Core 4 had their big games. It's going to be Jalen Tyson. I can almost guarantee that,” said Cleveland’s head coach.
“He's going to have one of those games where he’s converting that offensive rebound. He's getting in a half roll because they're playing, you know, they're playing smaller, and we need him in a half roll. Like, he'll have the big game. It's just a matter of time.”
A potential breakout game for Tyson might look different from that of someone like Strus or Sam Merrill, who connect on 60 percent of their shots from behind the arc. Maybe Tyson does that, but Atkinson pointed out that the sophomore has been excelling in his role already, and they need him to continue to do that
“He's got all this stuff he could do and now you have to reduce your package,” continued Atkinson. ”Then you have to be aware now who I'm on the court with. There's another level of, again, sacrifice, and he's getting that.”
Tyson has averaged just over 12 minutes a game in Cleveland’s first two playoff games against the Raptors. He hasn’t been able to make too big an impact yet, but that could certainly change. In those minutes, the forward has only taken four shots and hit one of them, a three-pointer in Game 2 to cool off a Raptors run.
If Toronto opts for a smaller lineup in Games 3 and 4, as it did in the second half of Game 2, Cleveland could call on Tyson for more minutes, and Atkinson believes that could lead to major contributions.
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