IT WAS an excellent first season for Aussie talent Luke Travers with the Cleveland Charge in the G League throughout the 2024/25 season, with the forward looking extremely impressive.

Having spent a couple of years in the NBL after being drafted to the Cavaliers, Travers was called up to the G League to try and ply his trade against other athletes in the same situation. Australian basketball fans are familiar with Travers’ talents, but it was time for him to show it against some of the best in the world.

Although he only played 16 games this season, splitting his time with the Cavaliers and the Charge, he made every post a winner in his G League campaign, proving one of the best performers for Cleveland and fuelling suggestions he has a future in the NBA.

On the season, Travers posted four triple-doubles, with his ability to impact the game in several ways one of his biggest strengths. Although not the fastest or athletic player by any means, his great feel for the game and high basketball IQ make him extremely dangerous with ball in hand.

Although his three-point shooting still needs some work, Travers can still score the ball inside, showing a nice change of pace and a solid ability to take the defence off the dribble and drive inside. He uses all of his six-foot-seven frame to get as close to the cup as possible, and he is not afraid of getting physical on his drives to the basket.

Defensively, he took major strides, becoming a consistently impactful performer on that side of the ball. He can hold his own on the perimeter, and also uses his strength to slow down the opposition when driving inside.

Still 23 years old, there is still plenty of development ahead for Travers, and the Cavaliers will be thrilled with his overall development in the G League. Although unlikely to feature in the playoffs for the NBA side given how stacked their rotation currently is, there is certainly room for him to break into the team in the future.

On the season, Travers averaged 15.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.3 blocks on 47.3 per cent shooting from the field in a remarkable debut season. He was consistently stuffing the stat sheet and got others involved with elite vision and passing. Although uncontracted for the next season, he has certainly done enough to justify a spot on an NBA list somewhere around the league.