After his first All-Star season, the Cleveland Cavaliers are expecting to see another leap out of star big man Evan Mobley.
The third-overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, Mobley is the most important rising star on the Cavaliers since LeBron James or Kyrie Irving. He has already accomplished defensive feats no other Cleveland baller has, including recognition on the All-Defensive First Team in his second season and winning Defensive Player of the Year last season.
In short, Mobley finally broke out to become the second star next to Donovan Mitchell. The Cavs traded for Mitchell in 2022 to accelerate an already fast-moving rebuild. As Mobley faced challenges in his development and aggression as a star, Cleveland patiently waited and built a competent supporting cast around the core four.
Now, as the Cavs enter a season with questionable challenges in their way, another step forward in Mobley's development could make Cleveland the undeniable favorite to make it out of the Eastern Conference Finals. Last year, Mobley averaged a career-high 18.5 points and joined Mitchell on the All-NBA team. To win the Finals, though, the Cavs need Mobley to be capable of taking over the offense when needed.
In a recent episode of The Zach Lowe Show, Zach Lowe and Rob Mahoney dissect the question of how certain aspiring contenders can "get over the hump" to win it all. On the topic of the Cavaliers, Mahoney's perspective is telling of the position the franchise is entering.
"I think the important thing for [the Cleveland Cavaliers'] 82 games this year is taking the foot off the gas a little bit, getting into problem-solving mode a little bit. Getting into like, this is sub-optimal offense tonight, but we need Evan Mobley to figure out how to be a more formidable one-on-one scorer just for these moments where he's going to need to be that."Rob Mahoney
Mahoney clarified that his belief is not that Mobley must become the go-to scorer every night for the Cavaliers, but they must be able to rely on him to score in isolation when needed. Looking for a comparison, Mahoney gives an odd but fitting pairing to the 2022 Golden State Warriors' Andrew Wiggins. A former Cavalier himself, Wiggins was never the primary option for an entire game, but he could break down a defense and score at will in short bursts.
Seeding doesn't matter if you keep losing in the playoffs
Playing Mobley in isolation more next season would likely lead to extra losses early on. Mobley has never found his point through one-on-one play often, but it could be the route necessary to adding the assertive nature to his game that he has lacked thus far.
While the Cavs may feel a sense of urgency to dominate the conference immediately, last season proved that seeding means nothing for Cleveland. Even with more than 60 wins and the top rank in the east, the Cavaliers quickly fell apart once the offense was challenged and the Indiana Pacers exploited the weaknesses.
The Pacers were not a perfect team with the greatest players in NBA history leading the charge. What they had, though, was a calculating coach in Rick Carlisle who built a strategy that allowed every player to be trustworthy of leading the offene. Tyrese Haliburton often set the tone, but Pascal Siakam, Benedict Mathurn, TJ McConnell and Myles Turner were all capable of changing the course of the game by taking over in crucial minutes.
Even when fully healthy, the Cavs have lacked that whole-team offensive ability in the postseason. Unlocking Mobley as a certified isolation threat could be the final piece to the Cavaliers' puzzle. Regular season losses will be just as forgettable if it leads to an NBA Finals victory just as much as regular season wins are forgettable when an early playoff exit follows.
What Rob Mahoney suggests for the Cleveland Cavaliers is an awkward but poignant suggestion. Mitchell is a prolific scoring guard, and Darius Garland is a terrific scorer in his own right. Finding the path to making Mobley just as fearsome as his co-stars at the right moment could lead the Cavs to another championship parade in the city that deserves it most.