Journeyman three-year college player and California Golden Bears star Jaylon Tyson has been picked in the NBA Draft. He was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the No. 20 overall pick.
Tyson initially began his career at Texas, where he averaged less than two points per game in eight total contests played as a freshman in 2022. In 2023, he transferred over to Texas Tech before again jumping to Cal for his junior year.
With the Red Raiders in 2023, Tyson started all 31 games, averaging 10.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.4 steals. He was also highly efficient as he shot 48.3% from the field and 40.2% from three. So, when a completely rebuilding Cal team needed a new team, they built around a tremendous transfer addition (by their standards) in Tyson.
He took another big leap between years two and three, finishing as the Pac-12’s third-leading scorer in its final year of existence with 19.6 per game. He also grabbed 6.8 rebounds and dished out 3.5 assists while starting on the wing.
Coming out of high school, Tyson was ranked the No. 33 overall player on the On3 Industry Rankings and the No. 8 small forward in the country. He is originally from Plano, TX, and held offers from the likes of Creighton, Houston, Oklahoma, TCU, and Texas A&M before ultimately landing in Austin as his first collegiate stop.
With basically two full years of play under his belt and skyward development in an era where college hoops players have never been older, the 21-year-old multi-faceted wing had the eye of NBA scouts and will now go pro.
Ahead of the draft, though, On3’s James Fletcher provided an analysis of Tyson as a prospect and how he projects to fit at the next level. Take a look at this blurb:
“Jaylon Tyson raised his stock by transferring to California from Texas Tech this season. He has nearly doubled his production in every college season, showcasing constant growth. In a league which is always looking for more production on the wing, the 6-foot-7 player will have a chance to become more consistent in a role.
“Tyson has seen wide swings from various rankings throughout the pre-draft process but seems destined to be an early second round pick.”
Tyson is one of few Cal players with NBA dreams in recent memory, although another former Golden Bear recently won an NBA title and Finals MVP in Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics, who played for the 2016 Cal team.
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