KEON Ellis

In 2025-26, Ellis played all 72 games for Cleveland, averaging 20.5 minutes a night. He put up 6.7 points, 1.9 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.2 steals and 0.6 blocks a game, with only 0.6 turnovers. His shooting was efficient: 44.0 percent from the field, 36.3 percent from three, and 72.9 percent at the line, good for a 57.9 true shooting mark. His usage rate sat at 12.9 percent, a role player's number, and his plus-minus came in at -2.0. Those numbers are from last season with Cleveland, not his current team, but they're the clearest picture of what he brings to Brooklyn now.

Ellis has logged four games this month. He opened October 6 against Charlotte with 5 points in 12.4 minutes in a win, then scored 12 against Philadelphia on October 8 in another win. His best outing came October 12 against Washington: 15 points in 21.2 minutes, also a win. Against Miami on October 14, he was scoreless in 24.4 minutes in a loss, though he did add 2 rebounds and an assist. The sample is small, but the minutes have been trending up, and the scoring punch against Washington showed what he can do when his shot is falling.

Ellis also has recent playoff reps on his resume from last season. He appeared in a series against New York, playing 16.0 minutes on May 25 with 5 points, 2 rebounds and an assist in a loss, and smaller roles in losses on May 21 and May 19. Before that, he played against Detroit, including a 3-point game in a May 17 win and a scoreless stretch in a May 11 win. Those appearances came in limited minutes, often under six minutes a night, but they show a player who has playoff floor time on his record heading into this new chapter in Brooklyn.

Ellis is not on the injury report, and there's no injury history to flag. He's a four-year veteran out of Alabama, now in his fourth professional season. At 6-4 and 180 pounds, he fits the mold of a guard built for defense first, with a jumper that can be a weapon on catch-and-shoot looks. There's nothing on the medical side slowing him down right now, which matters for a player whose value depends on being available for rotation minutes night after night.

A Central Division notes column from Chris Fedor on October 6 grouped Ellis in with other names making the rounds, including Porter, Herro, Swain and chatter tied to the Bucks. There was no concrete report of a deal or a specific direction involving Ellis, just the kind of roundup that mixes several storylines together. Nothing here suggests movement is imminent, and until something more specific surfaces, it's worth treating as background noise rather than a real signal.