Kenny Atkinson Says Cavaliers' Backup Guard Competition Is 'On'

The Cleveland Cavaliers open training camp next week with three young guards competing for the backup point guard minutes that Dennis Schröder and Keon Ellis left behind.

Cleveland agreed Aug. 14 to send Schröder and cash to the Charlotte Hornets for Tre Mann. Mann never played for the Cavaliers. Cleveland flipped him to the Washington Wizards for Cam Whitmore as part of the five-team trade for Peyton Watson, then waived Whitmore. Ellis left in free agency.

Stretching Whitmore's $5,458,310 salary over three years dropped his annual cap hit to $1,819,437. He never played a game for Cleveland either.

The wing rotation has its own version of that fight, head coach Kenny Atkinson said as the team held its start-of-season press conference Friday, with Nae'Qwan Tomlin and Mario Hezonja pushing for time.

"Man, I cannot wait until training camp starts because it's on," Atkinson said. "Those guys are competitors. They're going to be hungry for minutes. And same thing at the wing position. I don't think Nae'Qwan's giving anybody a quarter here. He's not surrendering. He's fighting to be in the mix. Mario Hezonja has had a legendary career. The last five years, arguably the best player in Europe. So he's going to be in the mix."

Craig Porter Jr. is the most experienced of the three guards. He went undrafted out of Wichita State in 2023, signed a two-way contract that July, and had it converted to a standard deal on Feb. 14, 2024.

Last season, Porter appeared in a career-high 64 games. He averaged 4.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 17.9 minutes.

Intangibles are Porter's case.

"But yeah, it's going to be great with those three young guys," Atkinson explained. "CP will end up winning you four or five games a year just with his intangibles."

Tyrese Proctor was the 49th pick in the 2025 draft out of Duke. The Sydney native appeared in 50 games as a rookie, averaging 5.4 points in 10.9 minutes, and scored 29 points in his first G League game with the Cleveland Charge on March 3.

In June, Australia named Proctor to its Boomers squad for a FIBA World Cup qualifying window in Perth.

"Tyrese has made huge physical gains, probably put on 15 or 20 pounds," Atkinson said. "He had a great window with the Australian national team, and the head coach said he made a real impact. In the gym so far he's been great."

Meleek Thomas is the newest of the group. The Sacramento Kings selected him 34th overall out of Arkansas in June and traded him to Cleveland, which gave up the No. 29 pick and received a 2032 second-rounder in the deal.

Thomas averaged 15.6 points as a freshman with the Razorbacks. He signed a four-year, $9.3 million contract with the first three years and $6.4 million guaranteed, The Field of 68's Jeff Goodman reported.

In Las Vegas, Thomas earned All-Summer League First Team honors after leading the event in scoring. He averaged 27.3 points, 3.8 assists, and 3.5 rebounds over four games while shooting 43.8% from 3-point range. His average ranks third in Summer League history behind Marcus Banks and Donovan Mitchell.

Thomas was the only player on the first team selected outside the lottery.

"Meleek, we saw what he did in summer league, and I don't think any of us are taking that lightly," Atkinson said. "I'm excited to see how it all plays out."

Thomas turned 20 on Aug. 6.

Porter has a path to becoming an everyday player, Cavaliers president of basketball operations Koby Altman said, but the team cannot promise him anything.

"Well, I think there's certainly a runway and a path here for him," Altman said. "He started undrafted, working his way into the league, being that third utility guard, to where he could become an everyday guy. That's the challenge, within the league but also in-house as we continue to add more talent around our group."

"He had a huge offseason in terms of his body," Altman continued. "He looks great, being in the weight room. He understands the opportunity in front of him. Wonderful young man. Also got married this offseason. All these guys are growing up within Cleveland, which I love. We think the world of him, his work ethic, and who he is as a person. He has a great opportunity in front of him, but we can't promise anything. This is the NBA and it's such a competitive league, and it's really competitive in that gym."

Porter, Proctor, and Thomas are all on the 21-player training camp roster. Camp opens Sept. 30 in Fuengirola, Spain.

Cleveland opens the preseason Oct. 8 against the Boston Celtics at Rocket Arena. Tip-off is 7 p.m. ET.