Cavs need to give the keys to Evan Mobley to initiate in transition

I was relieved when the Cleveland Cavaliers selected Evan Mobley at #3 in the 2021 NBA Draft. Did the Cavs and general manager Koby Altman deserve a blue ribbon for doing so?

No, but it was the right call, with Mobley having all the potential in the world to eventually be a superstar at both ends of the floor, and with him being the type of big that could fit with Jarrett Allen long term.

Mobley didn’t showcase three-point shooting abilities much at USC in his lone collegiate season with them, no, although he did show plenty of flashes in AAU play/high school, and his shooting stroke, while it needs some work, shows promise there.

His touch in other areas, free throw respectability for a big and face-up acumen lead me to think that him and Allen, looking onward, can be very effective in stretches together, too. Not to mention how those two could very well be defensive anchors for Cleveland as well.

One aspect of Mobley’s game that is particularly intriguing though is how he could give the Cavaliers a boost in the transition/open floor game.

His skill level/ball handling acumen for a 7-footer is not something that we see, to this level, let alone for 20-year-olds regularly. That can, and should be a weapon for Cleveland for the foreseeable future.

And as we noted, Mobley could enhance the Cavaliers transition game; they just need to lean into it when it’s feasible.

The Cavs need to give the keys to Mobley to initiate in transition.

Mobley didn’t have eye-popping assist splits with the Trojans with 2.4 assists per outing and 2.8 per-40 minutes, but for a big, he has good vision and again has an impressive handle. With that in mind, after defensive rebounds, Cleveland should let him push throughout games, where he can help get guys such as Collin Sexton and Isaac Okoro transition lead looks in the open floor.

Mobley has rare vision for a 7-footer, and with his ability to push in grab-and-go situations, even for such a young player, the Cavaliers need to give him the keys to go in secondary transition. That could very well be a tough wrinkle for opponents to account for.

USC head coach Andy Enfield, quite frankly, didn’t enable him to do that nearly enough. However, in the NBA game, with his skill set, which even includes the capability to throw precise lobs to cutters, such as perhaps Isaac Okoro and at times Jarrett Allen going rim-to-rim, the Cavs should encourage Evan to fully tap into his open floor passing array.

I know that it was in the second game of Las Vegas Summer League on Wednesday, and the Cavs don’t realistically have a true point guard on their Summer League roster, but Mobley did have six assists in that contest.

Now, those did come mostly in set sequences; even so, the playmaking abilities and timing he has for anticipating openings in defenses can throw cutters open, and he has the vision to hit precise skip passes to the corners.

Taking that into account, the Cavs would be wise to allow him to initiate offense in early clock in secondary transition, where, with his vision and passing efficacy, it could generate plenty of opportunities for other Cavs against unset defenses in early clock. That could include getting the likes of Darius Garland, Collin Sexton, Kevin Love and Dean Wade threes on the break with quick passes after shot contests/runouts, for example.

And as a counter, with Mobley’s fluidity, handle/use of hesitations in the open floor to take advantage against slower bigs, combined with his long strides to get past smaller defenders, he could manfacture his share of open floor looks for himself as well.

To drive it home, with Mobley’s guard-like skill set and with his rare agility for a 7-foot player, Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff and company need to give him the keys to initiate offense in the open floor.

Bigs like Mobley are rare, even by today’s standards, and the Cavs need to unleash him in the transition game as a de facto jumbo playmaker at times to help fully maximize him from the outset. That could unlock easy offense game-to-game for Mobley himself, and his teammates to boot.