Tyrese Proctor Ahead of Year Two: "I Feel Great, I Feel Confident"

“I feel great with a year under my belt; I feel confident, I know my role,” said the 22-year-old. “I know what I’ve got to do to get on the court – try to make it easier for all the starters and just try and impact winning as much as I can. Knock down shots and play defense.” 

The Cavs battled the injury bug early last season, and Proctor benefitted, earning minutes and rewarding Kenny Atkinson with solid play on both ends. He notched double-figures on 11 occasions, leading the team in steals four times.

This offseason, Cleveland retooled the roster, and along with Dennis Schröder, the Cavs said goodbye to Keon Ellis, who inked a free agent deal with Brooklyn. This year, up-and-comers like Proctor are looking to fill the void. And his teammates – notably the squad’s leader Donovan Mitchell – have noticed the difference. 

As the Cavaliers started their preseason slate this week, one of the hottest topics in Training Camp will continue to heat up as we prepare for the opener on October 22 - who will be the squad’s backup point guard heading into the season? 

At this time last year, that role was filled by Lonzo Ball and following the Trade Deadline, by Dennis Schröder. 

Neither veteran is in back the fold, and that’s left some young, hungry dudes – namely Meleek Thomas, Craig Porter Jr. and Tyrese Proctor – vying for precious guard minutes behind James Harden this season. 

Thomas was Cleveland’s top pick in last June’s Draft – taken 34^th overall out of Arkansas – and the versatile Porter is going into his fourth season after signing as an undrafted free agent out of Wichita State.  

And then there’s Proctor, last year’s draft pick, who showed solid flashes as a freshman and seems even more prepared for battle as a sophomore, adding some muscle to his frame over the summer. And he knows he’ll be scrapping for minutes against guys who know how to scrap. 

“I think (the competition) is great – we got a lot of dogs,” said Proctor. “My thing going into this season is just being a vocal leader and being that leader within the guard group. Obviously, you've got James and Don on the court. But just being that secondary vocal leader is big. When I’m with those guys, me and James, me and Don, we watch a lot of film. I just talk with them and tell them what I see, ways that I think we can improve as a whole. And then vice versa – ways that they see I can improve as an individual to help the team. 

“I'm an open book. Whatever I can do, however I can mold my game to best suit the team – whether it's not dribbling at all and just catch-and-shoot, whether it's picking up 94 feet, I'm willing to do it, no matter what it is in order for us to win.”

After being selected out of Duke with the 49^th overall pick in 2025, Proctor proved that he could contribute straight out of Training Camp and appearing in 50 games as a rookie.

“There's a level of desperation there,” said Mitchell following Wednesday’s practice. “And I don't mean that in, like, a ‘panicky’ way, you know? I mean, there's a tenacity, and something harder about him that I wouldn't say it wasn't there last year. Because he had a really good year last year when he was called upon. But I feel like he's coming in like last year never happened.

“He's gotten stronger. He's picking myself and James up full-court. He's kind of taking that ‘Jaylon Tyson role’ from last year, which is really great to see. He's working out with me, he's working out with James. He'll text me. He’ll probably text me in about 20 minutes about some film from practice. It’s easy for a young guy to be like: Oh, okay, like I started off well, I'm cool, right? No. For him to be like, No, there’s so much more to me. He’s back there lifting right now and has been since practice has been done for an hour. That just kind of speaks to where he’s at, mentally.” 

Proctor came in as a relatively seasoned prospect, having played three seasons with 97 starts at Duke – finishing his junior season ranked fourth in the ACC in three-point percentage (.405) and threes made per game (2.34). He was one of five Blue Devils drafted, the final pick of a group including Cooper Flagg [No 1 overall], Kon Knueppel [4], Khaman Maluach [10], and Sion James [33].

The Australian guard showed off his shooting skills on several occasions last year with Cleveland, finishing with 14 games with multiple three-pointers, shooting 36 from long-range overall. 

Proctor can still improve on his three-point shooting, but he spent much of this past offseason polishing up another vital skillset. 

“Obviously, I need to touch up a lot of my game,” said the 6-4, 185-pounder. “A big, big emphasis this summer was ball-handling, just getting sharper with my ball-handling. And then shooting, obviously. I was fortunate and blessed enough to go to Hawaii and work with Patty Mills for three weeks. We did a lot of base work, fundamental shooting stuff, everything: off-the-catch, off-the-dribble. We just repped out a lot of shots that I think I'm gonna get in the game and the areas that on the court that I know I'm gonna be situated.

“And I think another big thing is my body. I poured a lot into nutrition. Lifting, lifting all the time. Recovery, all that. I want to be a stronger, physical guard, Obviously, those backup minutes that are up for grabs and I want to do everything in my power to get my body right and get myself feeling confident and ready for the season.”

Proctor needs a strong body for the summer he put himself through following a long 82-game grind as a rookie. 

“Playing with the Boomers was great because I got a head start on my summer. I didn't really have a whole lot of time off. I took a week off after the season and then I was full-go from there. My big emphasis with the Boomers was my defense, just being a dog on that end. I think I elevated my defensive intensity to another level, too.”

The Boomers are, of course, the nickname for the Australian men’s basketball team, to which Proctor was named to this past summer as they try to reach the 2027 FIBA World Cup in Qatar.

(“Boomers” are male kangaroos, just FYI. The Aussie women’s team, however, is not nicknamed the “Flyers,” which is a female kangaroo, but instead, the “Opals.” There are other nicknames for Australian squads.  U19s are “Gems” and “Emus,” U17s are “Sapphires” and “Crocs,” and wheelchair teams are the “Gliders” and “Rollers.” Proctor never competed internationally as a Croc or Emu – once due to COVID, once due to the perils of traveling to play in Iran.) 

“I sort of first heard about it, I think, during the playoffs or just before,” said Proctor. “I hadn't played for my country since before Duke. I wanted to go for the medal at the Asian Cup, but in my time at Duke, I was fully committed into the program and wanting to get better and trying to get to the NBA. And now that I'm here, I want to pour everything back into my country. I love playing for Australia. I love the brand of basketball. I love playing FIBA. I love my teammates. So just doing whatever I can to go back home and show the support that they've always shown me throughout my career. I feel like it's, you know, it's my duty to go back and pay respect to my country.” 

Proctor and the Cavs made their preseason debut on Thursday night against Boston, with the Celtics taking the 124-113 decision. In 20 minutes off the bench, the sophomore guard finished with five points, a pair of boards, assists and a steal.

Thursday also marked Peyton Watson’s debut in a Cavs uniform – turning in a solid 16 minutes with seven points, four boards, four assists and a pair of blocks. Cleveland’s new forward spoke glowingly of Proctor at morning shootaround in Independence. 

“(Proctor) takes the game super-seriously, the fine details of the game,” said Watson. “And one thing that I'll say about Tyrese is that he's such a refined decisionmaker at this point in his career. He's got a real knack and a skill for being in the right place at the right time. But also creating for himself and his teammates. His jumper is sweet and he's got a nice handle, as well. 

“So, I think that he's got all the tools: the size, positionally. I think he's got everything to really excel at this level. And most of all, he's got the attitude for it. I think that’s what matters most. You don't need to encourage Tyrese. You don't need to tell him to be here early. You don't need to tell him to work on his body. He knows that’s the stuff that he has to do to get better, and he does it.”

Proctor and his teammates return from Spain at one of the best times in Cleveland – the confluence of all three sports teams at uniquely different stages of their seasons. This weekend, the Guardians welcome the White Sox for Game 5 of their Divisional series, and the first-place Browns travel to New York for a battle with the Jets. And in less than two weeks, the Wine & Gold tip off the 2026-27 campaign in Philadelphia. 

At last year’s Training Camp at IMG Academy in Sarasota, taking batting practice just for fun after a morning workout, only Donovan Mitchell hit the ball better than Tyrese Proctor, who laced line drives with confidence. So, as a kid who obviously grew up playing the game Down Under – and is a fellow 24-year-old who grew up just outside Sydney – does he know the Guardians Australian rookie, Travis Bazzana? 

“So, we’ve connected, but we haven’t connected and seen each other in person yet," said Proctor. “I’ve spoken to him over the phone and stuff like that. When he got called up to the Guardians, we were actually playing in the Toronto and Detroit series. So, we were traveling back and forth, locked in on playoffs. I then went home. He stayed, played the season. I came back, went to Spain for Training Camp, came back. And so, I said to him, if you bring it back, I’m going on Saturday and we'll connect and everything. 

“It's really cool just seeing (the Guardians) and the Browns both doing well. You know, I've been to a couple Browns games. Obviously, I didn’t grow up watching football. My dad always had it on in the living room. But I think it's just really cool, because this city pours everything into its sports. And we obviously want to get as many wins as we can for the city because we know they show out every night for us.”