Being the best and being the most important can often be two different things. That is the case with Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley heading into 2025-26. However, if the Cleveland Cavaliers want to reach the heights they are dreaming of, Mobley needs to take over both distinctions.
For the most part, there is already a pretty good idea of what a team led by Mitchell as their best player can accomplish. For as talented as the Cavaliers star has been throughout his career, and even in the postseason, the results are pretty lackluster.
Mitchell's teams have never broken through to the Conference Finals. For the Cavaliers, that would spell trouble. Anything short of an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2025-26 season would be deemed as a massive failure. It could even stir up major offseason changes.
The allure of Mobley comes with the great unknown. There is no sample size for what the ceiling on a team led by the Cavaliers big man is, because that is not a status Mobley has ever properly held for Cleveland during his time in the NBA.
With the Defensive Player of the Year offering plenty of reason to be excited about his upside, it will Mobley's development in 2025-26 that dictates how great the Cavaliers will be. That is why the All-Star big man is the most important player, and that is also why the ascent to status of best player must come sooner than later.
Cavs need Mobley to take leap from star to franchise cornerstone
Danny Cunningham of Locked on Cavs tackled the matter of Mobley's needed rise on a recent episode of the podcast. The message was clear.
Cunningham said, [Mobley] is somebody that is still on a pretty significant upward trajectory. ... Will Evan Mobley be the best player on the Cavs when the postseason arrives? ... At some point, I do think Evan Mobley will overtake Donovan as the best player on the Cavs."
The Cavaliers reporter argued Mobley's ceiling is way too high to not surpass Mitchell. Cunningham clarified that the Cavaliers guard would not even need a drop-off in this scenario. It should be a natural process that eventually happens due to the immense upside for the 24-year-old.
This all ultimately comes down to the offensive side of the basketball. Mobley has firmly established himself as one of the best defensive players in basketball. Having the gap between his defense and offense close should catapult the former top-five pick into the 10 best players in the NBA.
If that version of Mobley arrives in 2025-26, Cleveland will be foaming at the mouth. The Cavaliers will not just be a contender, they will be a favorite.