2023-24 Cleveland Cavaliers season preview: Ty Jerome

If there was one word to summarize the offseason for the Cleveland Cavaliers, it would be “shooting”. While Max Strus and Georges Niang were the headline offseason acquisitions and shooters in their own right, the signing of Ty Jerome went relatively under the radar. Jerome fills a key need for the Cavaliers, a roster that was largely devoid of bench shooting and is coming off one of arguably his most well-rounded offensive seasons.

Name: Ty Jerome

Position: Guard

Age: 26

Height: 6’5”

Weight: 195

2022-23 stats: 45 games played, 18.1 minutes per game, 6.9 points per game, 1.7 rebounds per game, 3.0 assists per game, 48.4 FG%

If there was one word to summarize the offseason for the Cleveland Cavaliers, it would be “shooting”. While Max Strus and Georges Niang were the headline offseason acquisitions and shooters in their own right, the signing of Ty Jerome went relatively under the radar. Jerome fills a key need for the Cavaliers, a roster that was largely devoid of bench shooting and is coming off one of arguably his most well-rounded offensive seasons.

Jerome spent last season on the Golden State Warriors on a two-way deal, appearing in 45 games for the then-defending NBA Champions. He knocked down 38.9% of his three-pointers and dished out a career-best three assists per game. An injury to Stephen Curry forced Jerome into the lineup as a ball handler, an 11-game stretch where Golden State went 6-5. In that brief window, Jerome averaged 9.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game while shooting 47% from the floor and 36.4% from three-point territory. Those are respectable numbers, especially considering he was filling in for one of the most dynamic players in the league.

That experience as a ball handler may prove to be useful for the Cavaliers this upcoming season. With Ricky Rubio stepping away from the team to take care of his mental health, and no clear backup point guard on the roster, there’s a role for Jerome.

While it is unclear how long Rubio will be away, Jerome has demonstrated the ability to fill in as needed. Jerome spent 42% of his time last season at point guard, stabilizing the offense to 117.2 points per 100 possessions per Cleaning the Glass. That is passable for what should be a part-time role, giving way to the probable backup ball-handler Caris LeVert. There is some of Rubio’s game in Jerome, too: a taller guard who makes up for the lack of athleticism by utilizing his size:

In the first clip, Jerome is moving constantly. He gets into the paint, springs back out to the perimeter, gets Evan Mobley to bite on a fake, and then finishes over Jarrett Allen with a floater. Those are pretty good defenders he maneuvered through! In the second play, he drops Neto off the dribble and again uses the size to get another floater. The third clip is another good example of Jerome making up for his lack of athleticism with craftiness and using his body. He gets into the paint, gets Hamidou Diallo to jump on a pump fake, and finishes for the and-one. A good indicator of Jerome’s ability to handle the ball is in the last clip, where he runs a pick-and-roll with Draymond Green, recognizes he does not have the lob with Duren lurking, pins Saddiq Bey to his back, and then uses the small window of space to again get a floater up and over.

Jerome shot 73% at the rim (96th percentile for combo guards, right in the Kyrie Irving and Bradley Beal range per Cleaning the Glass) despite only 20% of shots coming from that spot. The real bread and butter for Jerome is in the short mid-range, where 39% of shots came from (98th percentile) with 48% accuracy. That is where those floaters come in.

Having LeVert as the quasi backup point guard makes sense from a lineup building perspective because he is simply a better player than Jerome. But there is enough evidence that Jerome can help in a pinch — especially given the uncertainty with Rubio and the departure of Neto. He is safe with the ball, seems comfortable getting to his spaces on the floor, and is a threat from outside. While significant minutes, indicates a big injury occurred, the Cavs should be comfortable utilizing Jerome in small spurts as a backup ball-handler.