How did Evan Mobley fall to Cavs in NBA Draft, not get taken at #1?

He needs to improve his post-up play

Let me preface this by saying, Ricky O’Donnell from SB Nation, was very high on Mobley in the pre-NBA Draft media circuits, but he did say he needed to improve his post-up play. While he’s not really wrong there, Mobley has been improving, what seems like, every game this season down on the block. He has steadily gotten better there.

Well now, after the big win on Wednesday night, he’s in the 66th percentile in post-up scoring, per Synergy Sports. While he’s not Nikola Jokic on the block, he has proved that his post-up game is already good enough in the NBA, and will only continue to get better.

However, another good thing that happens when Mobley is posting up, is that he’s getting to the foul line, where he is shooting over 77 percent this year. On post-up plays, Mobley is getting to the line 17 percent of the time. While that’s not a huge number, it is still rather impressive.

It takes rookies a little bit of time to adjust to the NBA’s strength and physicality, but Mobley has shown to almost be immune from it. Now, I will be the first to admit that he’s not often strictly on the block. He moves off screens, sets picks, and does a lot of other things to keep the Cavalier offense rolling. So, with that in mind, I think it’s fair to say at this point that he’s shown his post moves don’t necessarily need work, but he will improve upon the already impressive arsenal he has.

Also, while his post-up play is very important, it is also important that he test his range once in a while, which he has done very well as the season has gone on. Right now he is averaging nearly two three-point attempts per game, which is way up from the beginning of the season. Although O’Donnell didn’t criticize his all-around shooting, he and many others made points to say his shooting needs to get better, and extend further. Because he is such a versatile player, his scoring will not always come from the post, so it is vital that he continues to test and improve his range.

In Mobley’s past nine appearances, he’s averaged nearly three triple attempts per outing, and has hit 40 percent of those. In the month of November, Mobley took a total of seven three-pointers. However, flash forward to today, and he’s averaging nearly two.

It’s incredibly crucial that he keeps shooting, especially without Collin Sexton in the lineup. Not only do the Cavaliers need his scoring right now, but because he is more open to shooting from deep, it makes his offensive game that much more hard to guard.