Evan Mobley: 2023 All Defensive 1st Team

[Wham with the Right Hand]

He has a long way to go in the skills department - dribbling, shooting, ball security, and footwork. But Giannis said after last night's game that Mobley "can be better than me...If he takes this seriously, he is going to be great.”

JBB said that Mobley does a lot of things that impact the game but don't show up in the box score.

Evan has the opportunity to be the most impactful player on the floor every night, no matter what his numbers are or what they say. There’s the intangibles and there’s just the overall impact of his presence of making the right plays at the right time. His two-way ability to protect the paint. Most of the time when guys see him in there, they don’t even go in there. There’s not a stat for that. When he catches the ball and he makes the hockey assist, they don’t track that in our box scores. His presence in the paint when he’s rolling, people have to go to him, it creates an open opportunity for somebody else. They don’t track that. They don’t put that in the stat sheet.

But for now he's learning the hard way. According to cleaningtheglass.com the Cavaliers are 19.0 points per 100 possessions WORSE when Mobley is on the floor. That's the worst on the team, just behind Lamar Stevens at -18.3.

Evan is in the 30th percentile among bigs in points per shot attempt. He's also below average in turnovers, ranking in the 36th percentile. He's in the 28th percentile in effective field goal percentage and in the 34th percentile in free throw percentage. I'd hate to see his shooting numbers if you take out the dunks off lobs.

He's not bad at the rim (66th percentile), but he's a little below average in the mid-range game and has no 3-point shot.

His offensive and defensive rebounding percentages are both slightly above average. He's in the 64th and 68th percentile in blocks and steals.

One thing that's really coming along is his rebounding. In October he averaged 6.0 rebounds per game; in November that number has ballooned to 9.7. In the last eight games he's up to 11.2 rebounds per game. His offensive rebounds have increased from 1.3 per game in October to 3.2 in November - more than double.

Supposedly he worked all summer with a personal coach who worked with Durant and who specializes in developing ball handling and shooting skills in big men. I'm not seeing that work translate to game situations yet. But it will. The question is how long it will take. I think there has been so much hype about Mobley that fans are impatient. He's only 21 and his dribbling and shooting skills have a long way to go, not to mention his physical development.

 

[RubioFanLifer]

So far Mobley doesn't make his team better while on the court. Which is common for most young players.

The Cavs are +128 on the season as a team while Mobley who played in all games is -2.

The team with Mobley is 114.3 Ortg and 114.6 Drtg. so pretty neutral and correlates with his -2 on the season,

The team with Mobley on the bench is 119.9 Ortg and 99.7 Drtg.

Plus ON/OFF eFG% for the team and the opponents don't paint a good picture for Mobley. The defensive side looks the most head scratching but correlates with many complains about his defense in game threads.
Last year things didn't look as bad mainly due to better defensive numbers.

 

[foucault87]

I expect we won't see the results of Mobley's offseason summer work for a few more years. It's one thing to do those moves at half speed in an empty gym or against guys chilling in summer runs. Its a total other thing to do it at full game speed against NBA players in games that matter.

Patience is the key here. Mobley is still one of a handful of game changers on defense. The offense will come in time. He is 21, playing his second season, and coming off a preseason injury.

I'd recommend everyone read @Rich 's post in the game thread as to why we need a long term perspective for the season. Tilting from one end to the other on a game to game basis is not good for your heart. Leave the split second reactions in the game thread

 

[CroopZ23]

I expect we won't see the results of Mobley's offseason summer work for a few more years. It's one thing to do those moves at half speed in an empty gym or against guys chilling in summer runs. Its a total other thing to do it at full game speed against NBA players in games that matter.

Patience is the key here. Mobley is still one of a handful of game changers on defense. The offense will come in time. He is 21, playing his second season, and coming off a preseason injury.

I'd recommend everyone read @Rich 's post in the game thread as to why we need a long term perspective for the season. Tilting from one end to the other on a game to game basis is not good for your heart. Leave the split second reactions in the game thread

I don't expect him to put it all together this year- or even next. However, I do expect to see flashes of brilliance- perhaps even some huge 30-40 point games this year (maybe 2-3 of these). Players do not just transform over an offseason. It all begins with masterful performances, small glimpses into superstardom. Superstars blossom when they begin consistently having these games. If Mobley is going to evolve into a franchise player- we will surely see signs of it this year.

 

[buzzdog]

I think Evan going head to head with Giannis and Brook Lopez, and getting his ass handed to him, was a good thing. Mobley should keep that game film and use it to figure out how to attack against that level of defense. If he figures that out, he'll be able to score against anybody, because big on big defense doesn't get any better than what they did on Mobley last night.

Those guys weren't just bothering Mobley, they stifled all our offensive guns and changed our whole ability to attack.

 

[Pierre Pan]

While past performance can aid predicting present and future performance, no one knows precisely what twists and turns the future holds. Sure, Evan could use a better handle , but the impact of that could be lessened by better decision making. His shot blocking is elite, his rebounding has improved / is improving, we’ve seen plenty of glimpses of offensive bursts over extended periods.

I do know that he’s a soft-spoken, well-spoken young man which is a breath of fresh air in this world of loud mouthed, self-entitled athletes who seems like a good teammate….and seems willing to work on his game and body and knows that he needs to do both.

The one thing that I do know for sure is that I’d rather have Evan Mobley on my team than not.

 

[The Oi]

Concerned about the handles and lack of desire to dominate.

I do think he will be an excellent player, but I’d rather those not be an issue than be an issue. They’re big time impediments.

 

[Lee]

He has a long way to go in the skills department - dribbling, shooting, ball security, and footwork. But Giannis said after last night's game that Mobley "can be better than me...If he takes this seriously, he is going to be great.”

JBB said that Mobley does a lot of things that impact the game but don't show up in the box score.

Evan has the opportunity to be the most impactful player on the floor every night, no matter what his numbers are or what they say. There’s the intangibles and there’s just the overall impact of his presence of making the right plays at the right time. His two-way ability to protect the paint. Most of the time when guys see him in there, they don’t even go in there. There’s not a stat for that. When he catches the ball and he makes the hockey assist, they don’t track that in our box scores. His presence in the paint when he’s rolling, people have to go to him, it creates an open opportunity for somebody else. They don’t track that. They don’t put that in the stat sheet.

But for now he's learning the hard way. According to cleaningtheglass.com the Cavaliers are 19.0 points per 100 possessions WORSE when Mobley is on the floor. That's the worst on the team, just behind Lamar Stevens at -18.3.

Evan is in the 30th percentile among bigs in points per shot attempt. He's also below average in turnovers, ranking in the 36th percentile. He's in the 28th percentile in effective field goal percentage and in the 34th percentile in free throw percentage. I'd hate to see his shooting numbers if you take out the dunks off lobs.

He's not bad at the rim (66th percentile), but he's a little below average in the mid-range game and has no 3-point shot.

His offensive and defensive rebounding percentages are both slightly above average. He's in the 64th and 68th percentile in blocks and steals.

One thing that's really coming along is his rebounding. In October he averaged 6.0 rebounds per game; in November that number has ballooned to 9.7. In the last eight games he's up to 11.2 rebounds per game. His offensive rebounds have increased from 1.3 per game in October to 3.2 in November - more than double.

Supposedly he worked all summer with a personal coach who worked with Durant and who specializes in developing ball handling and shooting skills in big men. I'm not seeing that work translate to game situations yet. But it will. The question is how long it will take. I think there has been so much hype about Mobley that fans are impatient. He's only 21 and his dribbling and shooting skills have a long way to go, not to mention his physical development.

Giannis is being a bit ridiculous, he has a chance to go down as a top 10 player all time. But as one of the biggest Mobley advocates, he is about where belongs development wise. Giannis is a good example of development for Mobley though.

They both came in at simular ages, although Giannis was a year younger, he played pro ball in Europe. He average 7 then 13 then 17 then 23 per a game. His team wasnt as good so it was easier to develop, and i dont see Mobely's handles ever being as good. Strength helped Giannis, will Mobley ever be as strong i dont know, but Mobley will get stronger.

Darius big leap came in his 3rd year, but for a big man, its going to be his 4th or 5th year. What is hard for some impatient fans to see is if Mobley is this good now, just wait till he adds strength. Will Mobley add a 3-point shot? Obviously that is the hope, but that takes time. He is shooting less this year, one reason is we just added a 30 point scorer to the team, but you can see the skills there. Heck Giannis didnt average over 8 rebounds a game till his 4th year and played over 30 minutes a game in his 2nd and 3rd year.

Those doubting Mobley's skills just need patience, almost every basketball expert and GM are not wrong, we tend to under value the knowledge of even the bad GM's and over value our own opinions, even myself, but Evan will be a beast.

 

[Jordan]

He just isn't very talented with the ball in his hands. He is a nice lob target & an effective rim protector. But time, diet, weightlifting, practice cannot just infuse talent into your DNA as a ballplayer.

" Guys relax, he is 21" responses when he sucks after every game is also irritating as shit. He drops the god damn ball at least 3-4 times a game. But I will remain patient, as I have been instructed to by the forefathers of this board...

I don't expect him to put it all together this year- or even next. However, I do expect to see flashes of brilliance- perhaps even some huge 30-40 point games this year (maybe 2-3 of these). Players do not just transform over an offseason. It all begins with masterful performances, small glimpses into superstardom. Superstars blossom when they begin consistently having these games. If Mobley is going to evolve into a franchise player- we will surely see signs of it this year.

You want a big who plays next to another big to score 30-40 points in a game? Good luck. If that’s the bar for Mobley to show that he’s improved then you’re never going to see it.

Tim Duncan had ONE thirty point game during his first two seasons and was in a league where bigs scored more and was also the team’s second option.

 

[foucault87]

Re: flashes, I'm not even looking for him to drop some massive scoring runs. I think its what we see on some plays with great passing, some strong offensive moves etc. I think we have been seeing these since last year

 

[CroopZ23]

You want a big who plays next to another big to score 30-40 points in a game? Good luck. If that’s the bar for Mobley to show that he’s improved then you’re never going to see it.

Tim Duncan had ONE thirty point game during his first two seasons and was in a league where bigs scored more and was also the team’s second option.

Yes. I would like to see it once or twice. I don't care about what Duncan did. That was a different era altogether. I said 2 or 3 games out of 82. You're telling me dropping 30-40 in a game is not realistic?

 

[Jordan]

Yes. I would like to see it once or twice. I don't care about what Duncan did. That was a different era altogether. I said 2 or 3 games out of 82. You're telling me dropping 30-40 in a game is not realistic?

Given that Tim Duncan is arguably the best offensive second bit of all time, did it in an error where low-post scoring was more frequent, and was the second option, then yeah, it is a good comparison.

The only way any big primarily playing as a second big in our starting five would ever score 30-40 in today’s era is if Allen and one of Garland or Mitchell were both not playing. It’s an absolutely absurd standard that will never make you happy.

 

[The Oi]

I think we can all agree if he’s not averaging at least 27ppg by year four, he is a failure.

 

[shoes22]

I fully admit my disappointment with Mobley has to do with the high expectations that everyone seems to put on him.

But here’s the thing. It is very clear that even though coaching worked with him this off-season to make him an “all-around player”, his dribbling and shooting is nowhere near where it should be for him to be a net positive in those areas. Given that’s the case, we shouldn’t be seeing it in games until he actually is ready for it.

I would actually be more than happy with Mobley if he limited his offense to a Tristan Thompson garbage-man like game right now.

It’s everything else, the trying to do too much that drives me completely crazy.

 

[CroopZ23]

Given that Tim Duncan is arguably the best offensive second bit of all time, did it in an error where low-post scoring was more frequent, and was the second option, then yeah, it is a good comparison.

The only way any big primarily playing as a second big in our starting five would ever score 30-40 in today’s era is if Allen and one of Garland or Mitchell were both not playing. It’s an absolutely absurd standard that will never make you happy.

I hear you man. I just think Duncan is a pretty unique situation. If i recall correctly, he only surpassed 25 ppg one time in his career. He was also drafted into a dynasty in the making. He is the rare superstar that can win without being a world class scorer. These are rare players. Off the top of my head-there haven't been many championship teams who were led by a franchise player who wasn't a prolific scorer. Pistons and Spurs come to mind.