INDEPENDENCE — As Chris Livingston grew up in Akron, he cheered for LeBron James and the Cavaliers, attended games in downtown Cleveland and cherished his hometown NBA franchise winning the title in 2016.
“Now that I’m here, it almost doesn’t feel real,” Livingston told the Beacon Journal on Nov. 13 at Cleveland Clinic Courts.
After spending the past two seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks organization, Livingston signed a two-way contract with the Cavs last week. He said his family and friends have long dreamed about him playing for Cleveland. His mother, grandparents and cousins still live in Northeast Ohio, so he anticipates substantial support at home games.
A former Buchtel High School star, Livingston has appeared in two games this season — both with the Cavs’ NBA G League affiliate, the Cleveland Charge. On Nov. 14 and Nov. 15, the Charge will play their first two home games of the season, facing one of Livingston’s former teams, the Wisconsin Herd, at Public Hall.
The 22-year-old Livingston explained he relishes a chance to compete against the Herd, the G League affiliate of the Bucks. In 2023, the Bucks drafted Livingston in the second round (No. 58 overall) out of the University of Kentucky.
In the regular season, Livingston played 39 games with the Herd, averaging 15.7 points on 48.3% shooting from the field, 7.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists, and 42 games with the Bucks, averaging 1.3 points on 40.8% shooting from the field and 1.3 rebounds.
“I grew up a lot there [with the Bucks franchise],” Livingston said. “I got drafted when I was 19, so I’ve got a lot of relationships that I built over the years [with] coaches, assistant coaches, head coaches, old teammates. So, I think it’s going to be fun. I love to compete. It’s like [when] you play against your brother. That’s when you go the hardest. That’s when you’re having the most fun.”
Cleveland Cavaliers were interested in Akron native Chris Livingston and researched him before 2023 NBA Draft
Livingston will have even more fun if he can take the next step in his career. One door closed when the Bucks waived him last month, but another opened when the Cavs acquired him.
Livingston knows people from the local basketball community are rooting for him. Before his lone college season, he played for Buchtel as a freshman, Western Reserve Academy in Hudson as a sophomore, Buchtel as a junior and Oak Hill Academy in Virginia as a senior. On the heels of his final season with Buchtel, he won Gatorade’s Ohio boys basketball player of the year award. With Kentucky, he started 26 of 34 games and averaged 6.3 points and 4.2 rebounds for the Wildcats.
Chris Livingston discusses his opportunity with Cavs and Charge. Video
Former Akron Buchtel High School basketball star Chris Livingston signed a 2-way contract with the Cavs and reflected on his next chapter. Video here.
Listed as a 6-foot-6, 228-pound forward, Livingston had phone conversations with Cavs brass, primarily assistant general manager Brandon Weems, two years ago during the pre-draft process. The relationship laid the groundwork for the Cavs to grant Livingston his latest opportunity.
“You see a guy with incredible physical tools, positional size, positional athleticism, a really, really just sturdy competitive heart and the tools to be a player at the NBA level,” Charge coach Eli Kell-Abrams said. “I think he’s got all these tools. Now, it’s about fine-tuning.”
Chris Livingston stats with Cleveland Charge of NBA G League
Livingston compiled 15 points, six rebounds, three steals, one assist and a blocked shot in 26 minutes off the bench during his second Charge game. In his debut with the team, he tallied 20 points, nine assists, five rebounds and a steal in 30 minutes off the bench.
Livingston said he has improved “the mental part of everything, the mental aspect, maturing as a person, first and foremost” since he entered the NBA.
“That carries onto the court as well — being a good leader, being a great teammate, not taking any plays off, playing the right way and just continuing to grow and learn,” Livingston added.
“I’ve always been a scorer [with a] score-first mentality. But when I keep saying play the right way, I mean making the extra pass, hitting the guy on the cut and just knowing the ball’s going to come back to you and you don’t have to force anything. Letting the game come to me and allowing the game to just slow down and just playing each possession by each possession is what I mean by my game maturing.”
Producing nine assists is evidence of Livingston’s evolution as a player. Livingston could have logged more NBA minutes by now with a rebuilding franchise, but he explained the lessons he received from the Bucks were in abundance, given they won a championship two years before he joined them. He expects a similar experience with the Cavs because they’re a perennial playoff team.
“If you’re able to find a way to crack the rotation in these types of organizations, you could play anywhere in the NBA,” he said. “You’re more battle tested. You learn more. You create better habits. I think I learned a lot from being part of the Bucks organization, being that they did win a championship in recent history and they just run a strict program.
“It allowed me to grow as a pro, which is going to allow me to grow here with the Cavs, being that I’ve been able to take those habits that I’ve learned there and just bring it into my everyday attitude when I come into the gym.”
Cleveland Charge have blueprint in mind for how former Akron Buchtel star Chris Livingston can establish a role with the Cavs
Kell-Abrams said his goal is to help Livingston develop his game to better serve the Cavs.
“It’s not about scoring 30 points a night,” Kell-Abrams said. “The Cavs got those guys [who can score 30]. It’s like how quickly can you become this next-action connector? In his first game with us, he had nine assists and one turnover, right? That’s fantastic. So, it’s getting him to understand that that’s going to be the separator at the next level.
“We’re very focused on rim attempts and catch-and-shoot 3s, and those are the attempts that he’s essentially going to have to take and make at the highest level. So, it’s about him connecting the dots between different players, understanding where his shots are going to come from and just being a menace defensively.”
Livingston has a clear vision of which boxes he must check to eventually earn a consistent role with the Cavs.
“Stay persistent in doing the little things I need to do,” he said. “Being on time. Being early. Getting in extra work. When I get my opportunity, playing defense, playing hard as possible, playing the right way, learning the plays, learning the system and just stay persistent in that — the little details of everything.
“I know I can play. I know I can hoop. I know I’m talented. But if I’m persistent in the details, I think everything’s going to take care of it itself.”
It would make Livingston’s homecoming story even sweeter.
Nate Ulrich is the sports columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal and a sports features writer. Nate can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.