Evan Mobley, similarly to other Cleveland Cavaliers, did not have the greatest playoffs. Cleveland lost to the New York Knicks in only five games, and the Cavaliers formidable quartet of Mobley, Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell and Jarrett Allen didn’t collectively play up to their standards.
As it pertained to Garland and Mobley, in particular, one had to have given them some slack, in fairness. That first round series in April versus New York was the first playoff series for those two youngsters, so there were going to be some head-scratching moments.
Both did still have their moments, on the plus side, and Mobley was still great on defense. Cleveland was still effective for the most part on that end of the floor, too; one of the biggest problems unfortunately was New York’s offensive rebounding. There were several games in that series where New York outmuscled and outhustled the Cavs on the glass and in retrieving contested loose balls.
Even with that being the case, all things considered, it’s clear that going into next season, the Cavaliers have to have more perimeter shooting legitimacy to help maximize Garland and Mitchell, and for Mobley to flourish.
Fittingly, Cleveland has been linked to a bunch of wing shooting targets, seemingly both via the trade and free agent variety. One would have to assume the Cavaliers do end up bringing in shooting this offseason, to further complement their core guys.
That being said, this next season and overall, it’s becoming increasingly clear for Cleveland to reach its max capacity, the aforementioned Mobley is the key. Furthermore, the signs have to be there that he can be the top dog for this Wine and Gold squad sooner than later.
Next season, Mobley has to show how he’ll eventually be “the guy” for the Cavs.
The best player currently on the Cavaliers is the aforementioned Mitchell, and the second is debatable, whether one has Garland or Mobley there. From my perspective, it’s probably Mobley for his two-way impact.
The offense has to come more from Mobley next season, still, and that’s becoming increasingly apparent.
Mobley taking a noticeable step forward offensively would raise the Cavs’ ceiling
It’s only been through two seasons, but Mobley has made his mark as an already-elite defender in this league. He’s been one of the biggest reasons for Cleveland’s defensive turnaround, and in this now-past 2022-23 season, he was named to the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team, which is such a rare feat for a player who was not yet 22.
In his third season, though, Mobley sharpening up some things offensively would go a long way for the Cavaliers to establish themselves as title contenders. This is not discounting what adding perimeter shooting around Cleveland’s core could do in that regard, too, as an aside, but Mobley has to demonstrate more growth offensively outside the paint and ideally, as an on-ball driver.
Mobley is a terrific finisher at the rim, an adept post player, and as he fills out some more and gets stronger, that will only help his game. Him showing an uptick in offensive aggression was a big part of why he had better offensive splits in the second half of the regular season, too; in his last 43 regular season appearances last season, he had 17.5 points per contest on 55.3 percent shooting. He’s realistically a player the Cavaliers should run more offense through, also, when considering his playmaking abilities and basketball intellect.
The shooting from a bit further out and rounding out his on-ball tool box has to be the next step for him, still, and next season, hopefully there is more of a tangible impact in those areas, let alone some catch-and-shoot play.
There’s been flashes from Mobley as a mid-range shooter over his time with Cleveland, and he’s shown some viability as a pull-up threat there, and can splash fadeaways in the mid-post. His length will always come in handy in that aspect, and the flashes there could lead to optimism about his deep shooting potential or at least for him to sharpen up his free throw hit rate.
Overall, with the two-way ceiling in mind with Mobley as a 6-foot-11 big who can already affect games in so many ways, even while he has to demonstrate more growth offensively, it’s not unrealistic to believe Mobley can be “the guy” for Cleveland. And if there’s further signs of that next season, the Cavs should be in better shape. Mobley had 16.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.5 blocks per contest in the regular season in Year 2; he just has to refine his offensive skill set some.
Additionally, if Mobley can take a leap offensively in Year 3 to help maximize his and the teams’ capacity, that could go a long way in helping to keep Donovan Mitchell around for the foreseeable future.
How a Mobley leap could make a difference for Mitchell
Mitchell has made Cleveland his new home since being traded to the Cavaliers from the Utah Jazz last summer, and he’s made it well-known how much he’s loved being with the Cavs and his teammates like Garland, Mobley and others. He’s endeared himself to the Cleveland fanbase, too.
However, while some of the fan criticism about his New York loyalty with him from that area and raving about Madison Square Garden might be a bit exaggerated, Jason Lloyd of The Athletic (subscription required) recently reported how people around the league do believe Mitchell will sign with the Knicks when he becomes a free agent.
Mitchell was nearly acquired by the Knicks last offseason via trade, and perhaps he could end up going to them in two years, when he can be a free agent. He has two years left on his deal with a player option following that for 2025-26.
The going home thing is the obvious seller there, but Mitchell has shown his love for Cleveland and his Cavs teammates. And despite him touching on the home selling element with Mitchell as well, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com has been consistent with his reporting about how winning is the most important thing for Mitchell.
To that point, if Mobley takes the third-year leap many seem to believe he can make, that’d not only go a long way for Cleveland’s outlook and contention status, but maybe it could lead to Mitchell being sold on possibly re-signing long-term down the line.
Conversely, by the time of Mitchell potentially becoming a free agent or if Cleveland were to trade him at some point, if Mobley is clearly “the guy” for the Cavaliers, they could find ways to build around him and Garland by then. So it might not matter as much playoff-wise, if things were to play out that way.
Either way, the 2023-24 campaign is going to have a ton of bearing for the long-term outlook of the Wine and Gold, who have to respond to their early playoff exit.