Cavs’ Evan Mobley should get off to fast start in 2022-23

Evan Mobley was everything that Cleveland Cavaliers fans thought he could be coming into last season, and then some.

Mobley did not ultimately win Rookie of the Year honors, as those went to Scottie Barnes of the Toronto Raptors, but Mobley was still terrific for the Cavaliers. He had 15.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.7 blocks per contest, and he was able to affect games in so many ways.

Despite Mobley only being a rookie last year, it was apparent that he was beyond his years when it came to basketball intellect, and his athleticism, fluidity and versatility, particularly on defense, was all so impressive.

Looking onward, his potential seems to be sky high, given that he’s a legit 6-foot-11 big that looks to be generational defensively, and is uber-switchable, even at his size. He does need to stronger long-term, but over the offseason, one can assume he’s been addressing that, and from plenty of footage seemingly from open runs, he seems primed to take a noticeable step forward as a shot creator.

Mobley has been working on advancing in that area it seems extensively over the summer, and his trainers having him model his offensive game, at least in some aspects it appears, after Kevin Durant is the right approach, regarding his self creation in set play. That was h/t NBA and WNBA Development guru Olin Simplis.

There were encouraging signs from Mobley as a shot creator last season, albeit with some inconsistencies. For a rookie big, though, there was plenty to be optimistic about in that area for coming years, and in his second season.

In that regard, from my perspective, with the offseason work and him set to be more comfortable in Year 2, and alongside other guys, he should be poised to have a huge year ahead, and I think he’ll be on-point from the jump.

Mobley should get off to a fast start in 2022-23 for the Cavs, and he should be in good shape from there.

Mobley’s finishing on the interior, timing as a cutter, and touch on push shots all led to quality looks for him off-ball last year, and while he wasn’t a deep threat last season on catch-and-shoots often, there were positive shot creation signs.

Obviously, one would assume a point of emphasis for Mobley throughout the offseason has had to have been catch-and-shoot play, as he connected on only 25.0 percent of his three-point attempts in Year 1. That was 1.3 per outing.

On the plus side, he has been working on quickening up his release and fine-tuning the mechanics on deep looks. Also, the stroke is workable with Mobley, and at his size, if he can establish a rhythm, shot contests shouldn’t deter those looks too much, if he can gradually improve there.

We’ll have to see regarding the deep shooting viability and how long into this coming season before his confidence is there on those looks more regularly. But with Mobley’s finishing inside, his mid-post game and with mixing in fadeaways/pull-ups, the latter of which he’s been working on, he should be off to a fast start in 2022-23.

There were some inconsistencies on-ball last season for Mobley, and he did hit some of a rookie wall here and there near the All-Star break, however, there were plenty of self creation flashes, and I’d expect his passing instincts to help the Cavs and his own offense as well.

With that in mind, too, after a full offseason to work on his game and get stronger, fans should anticipate the USC product to look more well-rounded and sharper offensively at the outset of next season. He should be noticeably better as a free throw shooter than the 66.3 percent he shot there last season, based on offseason work, and with what he demonstrated he can do in set offense with mid-range creation flashes with defenders on him.

This is not taking anything away from his defense, though, as an aside; he’ll only keep improving on that end, as he gets more experience himself and playing with his Cavs teammates.

I just expect the 21-year-old to look much more comfortable from the outset of this coming season offensively, and Mobley’s chemistry with Jarrett Allen, Lauri Markkanen and others will pay dividends in a fast start.