Last season, Evan Mobley officially arrived for the Cleveland Cavaliers. After years of talk about his potential, he finally realized it with the best season of his career. He won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award, he was named an All-Star for the first time, and was on the All-NBA Second Team.
Mobley followed it up with a solid postseason showing, averaging 17 points per game, eight rebounds, and a block per game while shooting 59 percent from the field and 46 percent from 3-point range.
This season has been a mixed bag for Mobley. He was expected to take another jump offensively, but he has largely remained the same. He has shown flashes of progress, but he has been unable to put it together.
It has led to questions about whether or not he can become a star big man. Even with his inconsistency, Mobley has a huge opportunity during the second half of the season.
Evan Mobley can quiet the critics with a strong postseason showing this spring
The NBA is all about the following phrase: what have you done lately? Fair or unfair, that is the reality of the league.
Mobley’s slight offensive decline has been what people have been focusing on. His 3-point percentage and points per game are down, but his playmaking has improved tremendously. He is averaging a career-high in assists and looks much more comfortable as a playmaking hub.
He is also arguably playing better defense than he was last season, as he is averaging a career-high in blocks, and he is second in the league in contested shots per game.
People are just hyper-focused on Mobley not taking that superstar jump. Going from star to superstar is one of the hardest things to do in the league and takes time.
However, a strong playoff run from Mobley would quiet the noise surrounding him. Given how crucial it is for Cleveland to go deep into the postseason this year, they are going to need the best version of Mobley to make that happen.
It’s not like Mobley is a playoff dropper. Outside of his debut in 2023, he has been a two-way force for the Cavs. He was on track to have a great series against the Indiana Pacers, but an ankle sprain largely slowed him in that series. Even with that, he still notched three double-doubles in four games.
Mobley is set to return from a nagging calf injury tomorrow against the Brooklyn Nets. It could be the start of a strong second half that could help him and his development immensely.