Season review: Evan Mobley

Mobley ended his third season with a bang.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have tied their ceiling to the development of Evan Mobley. The 22-year-old defensive star has not grown as quickly on offense as many had hoped — but his potential is still bursting at the seams.

His development, or lack thereof, was a point of contention throughout a somewhat underwhelming regular season. However, a flash of the total package in the playoffs seems to suggest that development has been bubbling under the surface all along.

Mobley held a playoff career-high of 17 points before facing the Boston Celtics. He then scored 17 or more in each second-round game, posting 33 points in the Cavaliers' final effort of the season. It was a dynamic offensive performance that reminded the world of why the Cavs continue to place faith in Mobley.

Pinpointing the reason for Mobley’s breakout is challenging. The absence of Jarrett Allen supports the idea that making Mobley a full-time center is the future. Yet Mobley was playing without Allen in the final three games against Orlando and continued to struggle offensively. He has roughly split his career minutes 50/50 with Allen and rarely shined the way he did versus Boston — so there must be more to this.

It’s worth noting the Celtics were without Kristaps Porzingis for the entire series, allowing Mobley to face little resistance at the rim. Pair this with Donovan Mitchell’s injury and a heavy emphasis was placed on Mobley to consistently score against his matchup for the first time in his career. This might be the biggest takeaway of the season.

Mobley has never been treated like a priority despite being a franchise cornerstone and the team’s highest draft pick since 2014. His offensive development has seemed a relative afterthought in the wake of acquiring Mitchell and competing for 50+ win seasons. Make no mistake — a delicate balance is required to develop a prospect while winning regular season games. But an argument can be made that the Cavs need to tweak their approach.

In his rookie season, Mobley attempted 20+ field goals in four separate games. In two full seasons since, he has taken that many shots in a game just three times. This is a staggering lack of involvement from a prospect whose offensive growth is so closely intertwined with the team’s ultimate ceiling. For reference, Mobley attempted the same number of field goals as Mo Wagner despite playing over 100 more minutes than the Orlando backup big last season.

Expanding Mobley’s role is long overdue. His mobility as a seven-footer is wasted in the dunker’s spot or blindly forcing him into the post. A mismatch for Mobley is not having his back to the basket against a smaller guard. His true advantage lies in his ability to face up and attack slower defenders. Increasing his usage on the elbow or above the break is paramount.

This was the difference maker in his success versus Boston. Mobley was granted the freedom to take Luke Kornet and Al Horford off the dribble. He moves in ways that few players of his size can match — and Mobley’s processing speed as a passer was shown through his 3.2 assists per game in this series.

There is a future where Mobley can serve as a proto-offensive hub for Cleveland. He has the maneuverability and basketball intelligence to operate dribble-hand-offs and serve as something more complex than the oversimplified role he currently dwells in.

Whatever the summer holds for Cleveland’s roster construction, one thing is for sure: Mobley must become a priority given the reports suggesting the Cavs are prepared to hand him a max contract extension. That means it’s time to treat him like a max player. Mobley must be included in the offense and permitted the chance to blossom into whatever kind of player he so clearly has the potential to become.