After fighting hand to hand with Scottie Barnes for the award for Rookie of the Year in 2021-2022it was reasonable to expect a season of remarkable progress from Evan Mobley in the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, the first 40 games of the current campaign brought some disappointment for the former USC standout: he only averaged 14.2 points in 34 minutes per presentation during this stretch.
More minutes and fewer points than as a rookie.
Of course, his arrival Donovan Mitchell to the Cavs reduced the offensive role of several pieces of Cleveland, including Mobley, who dropped his usage rate from a team-high 17.8 shots per 100 possessions to 16.7 attempts. Not seeing the inner youth transform into a 20-10 automatically it was totally expected… But even so, there was a hint of disappointment for all the good he had shown as a rookie.
Good, that taste has gone away in the past few weeksin which Mobley has begun to reflect on the field all the potential she has as a potential superstar. Since last January 12, on average 18.7 points in 14 games, plus 9.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.6 blocks, excellent 56% shooting from the field and a difference of +7.5 per matchupwhich clearly reflects everything he does on both sides of the court.
Ugly post by Evan Mobley pic.twitter.com/LakNDvcUkz
—Kevin O’Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) January 27, 2023
This Monday he had another solid performance, in a match that the The Cavaliers beat Washington 114-91: 16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks in just 28 minutes of action for Mobley. Of the last seven games for Bickerstaff’s men, five have been wins by 15 points or more.
Evan Mobley with the two handed slam! 😤#LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/m8eiMblt2c
— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) February 7, 2023
In an Eastern Conference that might be opened a place in his Top 4 With Kyrie Irving gone from the Nets, Cleveland needed that kind of jump from Mobley to complete its consolidation as a team. able to compete with Boston, Milwaukee and Philadelphia of the championship.
Especially when it comes to imagining Playoff series against these aforementioned teams, all from tremendous physical strength. Heading into the postseason with just the talent two small as Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell it can be a daunting task. But if Mobley turns into it interior able to be solved with the ball (something teammate Jarrett Allen doesn’t excel at), this Clevelander’s ceiling will go up significantly.
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