I am currently typing this article well after the Ohio State Buckeyes were all but eliminated from playoff contention with a loss to Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines. On top of that in Stillwater, Oklahoma, the Oklahoma State Cowboys and rival Oklahoma Sooners just capped off rivalry week in college football with a great showdown, in which the Cowboys prevailed. In a few hours, the Cleveland Browns will be playing in primetime versus AFC North rival, the Baltimore Ravens. It might be a rough weekend for Ohio football fans, but we did get some good news, as number three overall pick Evan Mobley returned to the floor for the Cleveland Cavaliers after missing four games with a sprained elbow.
The Cavs lost all four of those games, and with the help of Mobley on Saturday night, they topped the Orlando Magic, 105-92. Darius Garland led all scorers with 26 points, and was the standout from that one, but Mobley did chip in 13 points, nine rebounds, and an astounding four blocks. With his return to the court, Mobley is once again putting a lot of pressure on Scottie Barnes at the top of the Kia NBA Rookie Ladder. Let’s check out how the latest rankings shook out.
Mobley sits at two, with eyes on the top spot
Before the sprained elbow, Evan Mobley was ranked number one in the Kia NBA Rookie Ladder. However, while missing four games, he did drop one spot, but it’s still very evident Mobley is the best rookie in this class so far. Some of the impact that Mobley has had on the Cavs can be seen by his performance on Saturday night. He’s already an elite level shot blocker and contributes well in all facets of the game, and last night showed he has the capability to be a clutch player down the stretch.
In the fourth quarter he not only scored some key points, but he had a couple of great passes, including one to Lauri Markkanen, who drilled a long range three with about seven minutes left in the game to give the Cavs a 13-point lead. Nearly 30 seconds later after the ensuing Magic possession, Mobley himself dropped off behind the three-point arc and hit a huge three-pointer with six minutes remaining. He was very impressive on Saturday coming back from injury, to say the least, and his defense was crucial.
However, with Collin Sexton out the rest of the year, if Mobley can take some of the pressure off of Darius Garland, it will only bode well for the Cavaliers down the line.
Will there be an inevitable return to rung one next week?
Before his sprained elbow, it was very clear, at least to me and a lot of Cavs fans, that sooner or later, Evan Mobley would prove his worth and get to the top of the rookie ladder. Unfortunately for him he did take the throne for a brief time, but was sidelined with the injury, causing him to fall back to number two in the rankings. Even with all that being said, and yes, Scottie Barnes has been playing very well for the Toronto Raptors, Mobley’s return to the top of the ladder seems inevitable.
When Collin Sexton shut down for the year with knee surgery, there was a blessing in disguise. With Garland being the only real notable offensive threat on offense regarding on-ball shot creators, other than Cedi Osman at times from behind the three-point arc, at least regarding regular rotation guys, Mobley was forced to take more shots and explore opportunities on the offensive end.
And with Sexton out, this Cavaliers season will be a wild one, but it will force the young big to grow on the fly. He’s now averaging 11.8 shots per game, and even increased his deep ball shooting to nearly one per game.
With the injuries and illnesses piling up on the Cavs, it seems like Mobley’s return to the top of the ladder is imminent. However, this time, let’s hope it’s for more than one week.