25-under-25: Evan Mobley is a defensive cheat code

Evan Mobley ranked No. 10 on The Step Back's 2023-24 25-under-25, ranking the best young players in the NBA. Check out the rest of the list here.

The Cleveland Cavaliers lucked into Evan Mobley with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. With all due respect to Jalen Green, a tremendous NBA prospect with a bright future in his own right, Mobley was always that dude behind Cade Cunningham. If the teams re-drafted now, there's a chance Mobley would be that dude ahead of Cade Cunningham.

Mobley is already well ahead of the curve after two NBA seasons. He made first-team All-Defense as a sophomore, finishing near the top of the NBA in blocks (1.5 per game) despite sharing the court with another elite rim protector in Jarrett Allen. The Cavs put together one of the best regular-season defenses in the NBA with Mobley as their centerpiece.

There isn't a soul who would pick Cleveland to win the East, especially not after that first-round loss to New York. That is justified, but the collective 'we' are severely underrating how good the Cavs are. At 51-31, Cleveland held the fifth-best record in the entire NBA last season with the second-best per-game point differential (5.38).

It can be difficult for young teams to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but the Cavs are not as far removed from consequence as the national media seems to believe. There's a lot to figure out, from lineup configuration in close games to J.B. Bickerstaff's crunch-time tendencies as a head coach, but Cleveland has the personnel to play shut-down defense and the offensive weaponry to keep pace with any group. If a few key factors change for the better, there's not much keeping the Cavs from making a serious push in the very winnable East.

Mobley will not be at the 'center' of a Cavs run, per se. Such honors belong to Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, two offensive wizards who comprise arguably the most potent backcourt in the conference. Mobley isn't even the nominal center on the Cavs' roster with Allen still in the mix. But, Mobley unlocks much of Cleveland's upside, and there's a chance NBA prognosticators are underrating the potential for a pronounced third-year leap.

Mobley is virtually unassailable on defense (with a few minor quibbles), but the offense has been a work in progress. He's already a solid offensive weapon — 16.2 points and 2.2 assists on .554/.216/.674 splits last season — but what if the 3-point shot clicks? What if Mobley cleans up his handles in tight spaces? What if he adds strength to score more in the post? Or becomes more comfortable locating teammates on the move?

There's so much upward mobility for Mobley on offense. He has the chance to become the best player on Cleveland's roster, the genuine foundation of a contender. He has that level of upside, and next season will provide a strong indication of how high Mobley might rise, and how quickly his ascent will be.

It's time to respect the immense two-way potential of Evan Mobley

For some odd reason, Mobley tends to get left out of the conversations around ultra-modern 7-footers when it comes to offensive upside. We hear pundits wax poetic about Chet Holmgren (and deservedly so), but never is Mobley mentioned as a player with go-to upside, with the ability to crack defenses like an egg due to his unique blend of size, mobility, and skill.

There are still moments where Mobley looks like a deer on ice. He is long and gangly, sometimes appearing to be at war with his own physical gifts. In other moments, however, Mobley will elegantly face up from the elbow and slice down the lane, deploying his underrated strength and balletic footwork to carve out a scoring opportunity inside. If Mobley can reinforce his handles, get more comfortable in traffic, and continue to refine his scoring arsenal inside, All-Star and All-NBA berths will follow.

Mobley is a good, maybe one day great passer for his position. If he can learn to generate more opportunities for teammates by leveraging his speed attacking downhill, watch out. The Cavs' offensive setup is slightly complicated — defenses still don't respect Mobley behind the 3-point line and he's slotted next to another non-shooter in Allen, who lives in the paint — but there's a chance Mobley can change the calculus of that pairing with improvement as a shooter. He has displayed a willingness to do so.

Or (perhaps more likely), the Cavs will eventually trade Allen to pave the way for Mobley as the full-time center. There are positives and negatives to such an arrangement, as we cannot understate the combined defensive impact of Cleveland's 7-footers, but such a move could unlock Mobley's full offensive bag. He might spend less time pushing the boundaries of his singular defensive skill set by guarding the perimeter or manning the top of Bickerstaff's zone defense, but Mobley is more than capable of protecting the rim and sealing off the paint in a more traditional 5 role. That, combined with more favorable matchups on the other end, could pay huge dividends for the Cavs.

Cleveland has a lot of talent on the roster, but Mobley has the chance to stand above the rest one day. He's that good, and we should expect great things in his third NBA season.