How young, ‘fearless’ Cavs stole show from Lakers’ LeBron James, Luka Doncic in blowout

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How young, ‘fearless’ Cavs stole show from Lakers’ LeBron James, Luka Doncic in blowout

Spencer Davies, ClutchPoints · ClutchPoints

Thu, Jan 29, 2026 ·

7 min read

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LeBron James , Luka Doncic , and Donovan Mitchell might've been the names on the marquee , but Jaylon Tyson and Nae'Qwan Tomlin stole the show, as the Cleveland Cavaliers ran away Wednesday with a 129-99 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at Rocket Arena. And while the young Cavs have been the story of Cleveland 's season thus far, they made a statement to a nationally televised, worldwide audience again that they're here to stay.

"Everybody knows who that is, right? The greatest ever," Tyson said postgame of LeBron. "But I look at it as another opportunity. Obviously, when I was given that matchup, it's like, 'Alright.' I don't fear nobody. I just go out there and just be who I am, and try to make his job as difficult as possible."

Though LeBron scored six points on 3-of-4 shooting, he turned it over three times in the 3:25 that Tyson guarded him. In nearly two minutes against Nae'Qwan Tomlin, he missed two threes and went scoreless.

That wasn't the only star that Cleveland's two-way forward stifled.

Capping a third quarter where the Cavs outscored the Lakers 42-22, Tomlin met Doncic at half-court with his physicality. Initially deflecting the ball with tremendous ball pressure, he poked it away again to give himself a free runway for a two-hand slam. The adrenaline was pumping as he flexed and celebrated deep into the lower-bowl crowd.

"I didn't realize how far I ran out, but the ball was like in front of me," Tomlin said postgame with a grin. "Low key, I tried to, like, keep it going because I was tired. I ain't want them to take it out and run back. So I had to push it a little bit."

That play ignited the crowd and essentially put the game to bed. Doncic made one field goal and turned it over in the 1:30 that Tomlin defended him.

"I was kind of hesitant because he's so young and he's green and you put him on those guys and they're so smart," Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson said. "But now I think we all feel confident that he can guard without fouling. Remember Summer League? He had like nine fouls in three minutes (laughs). That's hard; sometimes that takes a long time [to grow from]. So, the fact that he's learned to be so active and so disruptive without fouling, it makes me more comfortable putting him on those big-time players. And it wasn't that way. Even 10 games ago, I was like, 'Nah, we're not doing that. Put him on a role player.'"

"I feel like it's just all the work that I put in, and especially showing him that I can guard the best players, make them struggle in certain aspects," Tomlin added of his defensive development. "Just trying to be a star in my role. I feel like my role is an energy guy, somebody that's gonna come out there, play defense, play hard, make winning plays. So I just feel like I've tried to be a star in that."

Bright lights bring about the best in young Cavs

Prompted by Cleveland.com's Ethan Sands, Mitchell felt the term "fearlessness" is apropos for each player's approach.

"Every time the moment's been big, every single time you can count on them," Mitchell said. "That's not something that normally happens with young guys in this league, and that's why they're such a joy to be around and to play alongside. In big games, no matter what happens — great offensive night, bad — the energy and effort and the intensity is gonna be there, and that takes you a long way.

"I'm not shocked anymore. This has become an expectation. And now, they're kinda screwed 'cause if it's anything less, I'm on them. It's one of those things where you love to see that, you love to play with guys like that. You want to go to war with guys like that, and I think that's something that really is a testament to their character, but also the way they work."

Tomlin shouted out Tyson, Craig Porter Jr. , Tyrese Proctor , and himself for the job they've collectively done all season of playing defense and getting the team going with their energy. He is grateful for the "blessing" of playing every day.

"I can't take it for granted, and I'm just gonna continue doing what got me on the court, got me those minutes," Tomlin said. "We're blessed to have a coach like Kenny. He lets us go out there whether we make mistakes or not. It's not like one of those coaches who just pulls us like that. We learn from our mistakes, and he just has a lot of confidence in us to go out there and make the right plays.

"It gives you confidence. You're not scared. You're not scared to make a mistake because you think you're about to get pulled out. You're able to play a little free."

Tomlin matched a team-high 29 minutes with Mitchell and Tyson. In Cleveland's last game against Orlando , he played the most of any bench player with 24 minutes. Atkinson stated earlier this season that the Cavs may have found a real gem in Tomlin , and his rotational patterns suggest more is in store for the fiery dynamo he's called a "racehorse."

"This guy's 6-10, I don't know what his wingspan is. He's everywhere," Atkinson said. "[If] he starts making threes, we're gonna have a hell of a player on our hands."

A fellow NBA sophomore, Tyson stuffed the stat sheet, notching 20 points, six rebounds, six assists, and a steal in a de facto point guard role against a sizable Lakers squad. He only turned the ball over once and was only second to Mitchell in the game with a plus-29.

"I'm blown away," Atkinson said. "It really comes down to the front office to identify the player, and now, he's been put in a situation where he's got to create some, and you don't really know until you have it in your hands and you see it. But at Cal, he was that player.

"[Cavs president] Koby [Altman] and [general manager] Mike [Gansey] and those guys were telling me this guy can create, but he was down in the pecking order. But now, he's moved up. It's great. It bodes really well for our future if we can get a 6-7, 6-8 wing, kind of secondary playmaker."

Why Jaylon Tyson is so driven

Describing how he was brought up, Tyson explained his mentality and why he plays with his heart on his sleeve.

"My brothers all played football. If you watch anybody in my family play, they're fearless," Tyson said. "I've never been a player that's scared of the moment. I think that's what makes me different than a lot of people… I know what it feels like to be at the bottom and want to be up there with the big dogs and be able to compete with them.

"I was cut my ninth-grade year, and I was told that I wasn't athletic enough to make the team. My whole goal is I'll never let nobody ever say that about me ever again. That's how I approach every day. My love for this game, I can't explain it. I don't know where I would be without it. So I feel like just that moment, being cut and having to tell my mom that I didn't make the team, I think of that moment. I'll never go back to it, ever."

Mitchell followed up with Tyson after he told his heartfelt story in the press room: "You know Michael Jordan got cut, too."

"I'm not Michael Jordan," Tyson responded.

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