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3 areas where Cavs’ Evan Mobley needs to improve in season’s 2nd half

By Justin Brownlow

Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports)
Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports) /
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Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images /

It’s been all about the luck here in Northeast Ohio, at least for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The rumors started flying after the Cavs landed the number one pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. Was the lottery fixed? Was this another cold envelope situation? Well we may never know the answer to that, but nearly 20 years later the Cavs can consider themselves lucky. The ping pong balls once again gave the Cavs a pick in the top three, when they were supposed to be picking outside the top five.

However, the best bit of luck came when the Houston Rockets took Jalen Green with the second pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. Personally, I was very upset. I loved Green, and thought he would make the Cavaliers a lot more fun to watch. But, they ended up with Evan Mobley, who I didn’t love at the time. Well, now I think it’s safe to assume the Cavs got at least one of the two best players in the 2021 NBA Draft in Mobley.

I will also point out that I’m sure the Cavs front office did some great scouting work in the build-up to draft night. With that being said, it’s safe to say the Cavaliers were extra lucky in this particular offseason; although, in fairness, Cleveland did have tough luck in recent prior draft lotteries. So, we’ll take it. Evan Mobley has been a revelation for the Cavaliers.

But before we get into Mobley, we also need to point out that the Cavs made a great signing of Jarrett Allen over the summer. That deal is looking more and more of a steal every day. They also brought in Lauri Markkanen and Ricky Rubio to help with some scoring, and even with some ups and downs, Markkanen has proven to be a valuable offensive piece; Rubio unfortunately was playing really well, and then tore his ACL.

Even in the loss to the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, though, Markkanen had a season-high 28 points on a very efficient 9-of-14 shooting, and has been playing really well of late. Along with him, Isaac Okoro has also made a nice leap in his second year, too. He’s looking for his shot more often, and he’s been excellent in fastbreak opportunities. With all that aside, Mobley has been a huge factor in the Cavaliers success this season.

He’s averaging 15 points per game, while grabbing nearly eight rebounds, and even dishing out 2.6 assists per game. He’s been superb on defense as well. It’s not only his work in the paint defensively that is great, but his closeouts are terrific for a player his age.

Swept up in the excitement around Mobley, the Cavs are actually one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference this season. Before the loss to the Bulls on Wednesday night, they were only a game-and-a-half back of the top seed, who is still unfortunately the Bulls. The Cavaliers can’t just rest on the success they’ve already had, they need to keep contending. And to keep contending, Mobley must improve in three areas, in particular, for Cleveland in the second half of the season.

Don’t get me wrong, the rookie has been fantastic. Even having said that, there’s no harm in working on his rebounding, strength, and of course his shooting arsenal. So let’s take a look at what the young man can improve upon, and hopefully it will play into Cleveland having a lot more wins in the second half of the season.