Report: Koby Altman, Kenny Atkinson had ‘heart-to-heart’ conversation with Jaylon Tyson

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jaylon Tyson said recently that he’s looking to be the team’s missing piece in the coming 2025-26 season after he was largely confined to the bench in his maiden NBA season.

He might just prove to be exactly what the Cavaliers need to take that next step, as he’s on the heels of a very productive three-game stint in Las Vegas Summer League during which he showed off a well-rounded game.

According to Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor, two influential figures within the Cavaliers’ organization — head coach Kenny Atkinson and president of basketball operations Koby Altman — have had a “heart-to-heart conversation” with Tyson about how he can crack Atkinson’s rotation.

“Cavs president of basketball operations Koby Altman and new head coach Kenny Atkinson sat Tyson down for what Cleveland.com ’s Chris Fedor described as a ‘heart-to-heart conversation about the things that he had to do this off season to earn a spot in the rotation,”‘ Cleveland.com reported.

Tyson’s case for being in the rotation in his sophomore season might largely boil down to two reasons.

For one, Cleveland’s depth at the guard spot has taken a hit this summer now that guards Ty Jerome and Isaac Okoro are no longer with the team. Not only that, but Tyson turned heads with his play at Summer League.

While he did only play three games, Tyson averaged 19.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 6.7 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.3 blocks per game in that span.

Tyson’s growth as a playmaker was maybe the biggest takeaway from his play in Vegas. After all, he never averaged more than 3.5 assists in any season of college basketball and dished out 0.9 per game in his maiden NBA season.

The youngster did a great job running the offense for the Cavaliers in spurts in Vegas, and he even finished with 12 assists against the Indiana Pacers on July 10.

In fact, he was one of the best facilitators in all of Las Vegas Summer League from a statistical standpoint. Only five players who suited up averaged more dimes per contest.

Hopefully, Tyson ends up heeding whatever Altman and Atkinson told him he needs to do to be a fixture in the rotation this coming season.

It should be interesting to find out how Tyson fares in his second season in the best basketball league on the planet. Ideally for Cleveland, Tyson will be able to be an impact player in the 2025-26 season.