Why Cavaliers rookie Tyrese Proctor was thrust into larger role after injuries

The joy of a win was sucked away from the Cleveland Cavaliers faithful on Monday night.

And it came from the announcement of yet another injury.

The Cavaliers dominated the Detroit Pistons, 116-95, in blowout fashion, but the team was dealt a major blow in an injury when guard Sam Merrill went down. In the third quarter, his night was cut short due to a right hip contusion, immediately ruled out for the remainder of the win.

“ He is hurting," coach Kenny Atkinson said after the game. "I think Evan [Mobley] actually hit him in the hip. Somehow they [collided]…looks like a hip pointer. Those are painful, so we’ll see."

Before exiting, he knocked down three-of-six three-pointers for 11 total points, one rebound and one assist in 18 minutes of playing time. On the season, he's averaging 17.3 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists on the season on clips of 52.5% from the field and 51.4% from three.

His impact on the Cavaliers this season has been undeniable, with Atkinson considering him to be "the best player" on the team so far. Currently, there has been no update on whether or not he will be able to play in the team's game against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night.

But for now, without Merrill, Cleveland's coaching staff is going to have to dive deeper into the bench and prepare as if he won't be ready to go.

With guards Darius Garland and Max Strus already out for at least a few more weeks, the team will turn to youngsters Tyrese Proctor and Craig Porter Jr. to fill the void.

Fortunately, Porter Jr. was given his flowers after already making his impact known on Monday. Atkinson praised the third-year's efforts on the court when coming off the bench.

“The first six minutes, we couldn't stop them and then we sub and we bring in Jaylon [Tyson] and [Craig Porter Jr.] and I thought they changed the game,” he said.

“Hopefully, I'm not overstating it, but their pressure started it. Jaylon started picking up full court, we started getting more activity, got a couple of steals, but I thought those two switched the game, and that's the role we're really shifting them to. You know, you have to be that high-intensity defensive pest, and they're buying into the role.”

Tyson has jumped into a larger role this year, being a pest on both ends of the court. His combination of excitement off the bench and defensive presence has been very impactful for the Cavaliers.

And Proctor has based some of his game off it as well.

On the season, the rookie Proctor has averaged 12.7 minutes a night along with 2.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.0 assists. His intensity is great, but his shooting numbers need to take a step forward as he currently has splits of 21.4% from the field and 22.2% from deep.

In his NBA debut, he played a whopping 16 minutes, a large chunk of time for a secon-round draft pick who is still trying to adapt to the game. However, with Merrill now down and questionable, that number could easily rise over 20 on Wednesday.

He will have to be ready to go as the Cavaliers will need him to work well alongside Porter Jr. to help man the offense.

Porter Jr. is averaging 6.3 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists on 58.8% from the field and 37.5% from three-point range. Just like Proctor, the third-year pro is going to have to take a step forward for Cleveland with hopes of starting off the 2025-26 season on a continued high note.

The Cavaliers and Celtics will clash from TD Garden at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday.