Evan Mobley believes he has a ‘pretty high’ chance of winning DPOTY

Mobley is confident ahead of his matchup with other Defensive Player of the Year hopeful Jaren Jackson Jr.

Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley hasn’t been shy about expectations for himself recently. He said last week that he believes he has the talent to be the best player in the league in five years. Then ahead of Sunday’s showdown with the Memphis Grizzlies and Jaren Jackson Jr., he was confident in his chance to win Defensive Player of the Year.

“Pretty high,” was all that Mobley said when asked what his chances were of winning that award.

Mobley laid out two personal goals for the year at media day. The first was to be an All-Star. The second was to be in the Defensive Player of the Year. “Those are two things I’m really looking forward to locking in on and taking to heart,” Mobley said this past September.

He’s already crossed one of those things off his list. There’s a good chance he accomplishes the other as well.

Victor Wembanyama’s season-ending injury opens up the Defensive Player of the Year race. Jackson and Mobley are the two names that have a good chance. Both will share the court on Sunday in front of a national TV audience to state their cases.

“Yeah it’s a big game,” Mobley said Sunday morning. “Big matchup. I’m going to come out there, play my game, and try to come out with a win.”

Mobley has a good argument for being the Defensive Player of the Year. The Cavs' defense is heading in the right direction after having an inconsistent first half of the year. They’ve posted the best defensive rating since the beginning of February. Mobley is a big part of that.

One constant throughout the season has been that the Cavs' defense has been great with Mobley on the court. Cleveland has registered a 108.9 defensive rating with him on the floor. That’s 7.7 points better than it is when he’s off the court (95th percentile).

Protecting the rim is a big part of why there’s such a big discrepancy. Opponents are shooting just 59.3% in the restricted area when he’s on the court (96th percentile). Mobley plays with other good defenders and rim protectors, who are partially responsible for that being the case. At the same time, that percentage jumps 5.9% up when he’s off compared to when he’s on (92nd percentile). That’s a substantial difference.

Mobley is playing with increasingly more confidence and vocalizing it in a way he hasn’t always done before. According to head coach Kenny Atkinson, that’s the next step on the journey to getting to where he wants to go.

“I’ve said this to Evan, your next step is believing you have all of the tools,” said Atkinson before Friday’s win over the New York Knicks. “There’s a belief with these guys ... they just have this almost irrational confidence. And Evan is not a not confident person, but we need to get him to be a little more irrational. A little more, ‘Man I’m going to be this guy.’ I think that’s his next step. All the tools are there.”

Mobley seems to be acting on Atkinson’s advice, at least when it comes to believing in his ability to be the Defensive Player of the Year.

“I’m definitely looking forward and looking towards winning that,” Mobley said when asked how important being named Defensive Player of the Year would be. “I mean, the main thing is winning games, right? Hopefully, get to the championship before all that, but that’s definitely been on my mind.”