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Six years ago, NBA agent Torrell Harris met with a teenage street ball phenom of Rucker Park fame to offer words of wisdom at Sylvia’s Restaurant in Harlem. The father of Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris has had so many of these meetings with young basketball hopefuls that it has become tough to remember everyone. It wasn’t until Monday that Torrell Harris learned that the kid he met with while eating soul food was Nae’Qwan Tomlin, who is now playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers after taking an “unheard of and not normal” path to the NBA. “I had to call [Rucker Park’s co-founder and commissioner] Steve Barnett up and ask, ‘Is Nae’Qwan in the NBA now?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ It’s a blessing,” Harris told Andscape in a phone interview on Monday. “Steve said [Tomlin] was going to be an NBA guy back then and he did it. I was just looking out. I was just trying to put the kid on the right track. “He was just a great kid. He listened. Just a humble kid. He just needed help and direction.”
Tomlin, 25, is certainly on the right track now as a two-way forward for the Cavaliers, 6 1/2 years removed from never playing high school basketball and going undrafted by the NBA in 2024. “What a story,” Cavaliers president Koby Altman said to Andscape. “He didn’t play [structured] basketball until college.” Tomlin is averaging 6.2 points and 3.1 assists in 36 games for the Cavaliers this season. Two-way players can play up to 50 NBA games before their team is forced to decide whether to offer a standard contract or waive them. Cleveland is expected to sign him to a standard contract, a source told Andscape.
Tonight, Tomlin and the Cavaliers host LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers (7 p.m. ET, ESPN). “Sometimes, I can’t lie. I know it’s a blessing,” Tomlin told Andscape. “It’s a dream come true. Everything I’ve worked hard for has come to light. I’m just happy, happy to be in the moment. Can’t take it for granted.”
Ian Begley: Harlem native and Cavs forward Nae’Qwan Tomlin spent time with kids in Harlem before the Cavs played the Knicks on Christmas Day. It’s important for Tomlin to be involved with & mentor kids in his hometown of Harlem. Tomlin has made it to NBA despite never playing HS or AAU ball
Donovan Mitchell has never averaged 30 points a game in his career, but he’s one of four players doing it this season. His usage rate is the highest since he arrived in Cleveland. He is shooting a career best from 3 (nearly 40 percent in December), and he’s suturing this team together every night while the injuries make guys like Nae’Qwan Tomlin surprisingly productive rotation options. There are three max contract players on this roster, and a fourth, Jarrett Allen, is earning $20 million this year with $90 million more coming over the next three years. Yet Mitchell acknowledges he’s carrying a heavy burden right now.
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Ethan Sands: #Cavs Craig Porter Jr. (illness) is now OUT, along with Donovan Mitchell and Nae'Qwan Tomlin against Chicago tonight.
Michael Scotto: The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to a two-way deal with Nae'Qwan Tomlin, league sources told @hoopshype. Tomlin recently earned a 10-day contract with Cleveland. Update: Nae’Qwan Tomlin will sign a two-year, two-way deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers, league sources told @hoopshype.
Michael Scotto: The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to a two-way deal with Nae'Qwan Tomlin, league sources told @hoopshype . Tomlin recently earned a 10-day contract with Cleveland.
Nae’Qwan Tomlin’s path to a 10-day contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers hasn’t been straightforward. He didn’t grow up on the AAU circuit like most pros but instead learned to play on the streets of New York City. Tomlin started playing organized basketball after high school, began his collegiate career at Monroe Community College, and played for four colleges in five years. It was an unconventional journey, to say the least, but one that Tomlin is glad he took. “Most definitely,” said Tomlin to Fear the Sword when asked whether that road has been beneficial for him. “Just from a maturity level. I was very immature early on. It just helped build character. Even when I was at Kansas State transitioning to Memphis, everything was just life lessons. It’s made me who I am today.”
This has all led to him being an NBA player. That’s something no one can take away from him. “I imagined playing, but that feeling when I get out there is surreal,” Tomlin said. “All that hard work that I put in and now I get to really step onto an NBA court. It’s amazing.” That hard work has been seen during his time with the Cleveland Charge, the G League affiliate of the Cavs. He’s averaged 15.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per game on .548/.361/.619 shooting splits. This has added up to an impressive 61.5 effective field goal percentage. Tomlin’s game is unorthodox for a 24-year-old 6’10” forward. His skills as an off-the-dribble scorer are impressive and not something you often see in a player of his size. How that translates to the professional game was unknown coming into this season. As a result, Tomlin began the year in a limited role. He played just spot minutes at the start but began to take on more responsibility once injuries forced him into the lineup a month in. His playing time doubled from November to December, as did his production.
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Michael Scotto: The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to a 10-day contract with Nae'Qwan Tomlin, league sources told @hoopshype . Tomlin has averaged 24.6 points on 55.4% shooting and 38.7% from 3-point range, 8.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.2 blocks in his last five games for the Cleveland Charge
Michael Scotto: Cavaliers agreed to Exhibit 10 deals with Pete Nance, Jules Bernard, Nae'Qwan Tomlin and Gabe Osabuohien, sources told @hoopshype. Nance was a two-way player and played in 8 games for the Cavs last season. Bernard was a Wizards two-way player and appeared in 19 games last season.
