Commentary: Cavaliers' Evan Mobley is a coach's dream

Evan Mobley is a coach's dream. The Cavs' big man is becoming a big deal. Better yet, he is doing it quietly, which in today's noisy, ego-driven NBA makes him even more unique, and welcome. Mobley makes his living playing basketball in gymnasiums from coast-to-coast which have been transformed into 20,000-seat sound machines whose relentless thump-thump-thump is the aural inverse of Mobley's smooth, jazz-inflected playing style. After a dunk, you won't see Mobley, as he jogs to the other end of the floor, throw back his head and emit a primal scream in the direction of the Humongotron. He's more of an old-school, meat and potatoes hooper, for whom dunks and blocked shots are just another day at the office. Mobley's lack of theatrics is refreshing. The league certainly has no shortage of cymbals-crashing AAU-generated me-first performers. That makes Mobley unique, and worth watching. So does this: Mobley's stat line from the Cavs' 128-105 win over Atlanta on Tuesday: 17 points, seven blocked shots, and, oh, by the way, 19 rebounds. Those are Bill Russell in his prime numbers. Seven blocked shots? Only three Cavs players have more than that for the entire season. Mobley got his in 34 minutes. Mobley's 19 rebounds were only two fewer than all of Atlanta's starters combined. Mobley was the third player selected in the 2021 draft, after Cade Cunningham and Jalen Green, and Mobley is clearly the best player taken in the draft. The start of his career has gone exactly as you would want from a third-pick-in-the-draft player. He has gotten better every year in most of the pertinent statistical categories. Points per game: 15.0, 16.2, 16.3. Rebounds per game: 8.3, 9.0, 10.9. Free throw percentage: 66, 67, 76. Assists: 2.5, 2.8, 3.1. Field goal percentage: .508, .554, .567. All of this makes Mobley a coach's dream. He produces on the court and stays out of trouble off it. In today's NBA, staying out of trouble counts for a lot. One of the greatest fears for most general managers is that dreaded middle-of-the-night phone call regarding one of their players. Based on Mobley's first two-plus years in the league, Cavs general manager Koby Altman doesn't have to worry about getting any late-night, unwanted calls about his big man who is becoming a big deal. There is a lot to like about Mobley, including the belief that he doesn't seem like the type of player who would get into any big trouble off the court. However, he is becoming trouble for opponents. In last season's wildly-physical playoff series against the Knicks, the 6-11, 215-pound Mobley was able to hold his own against New York's bruising front line maulers better than the 6-11, 243-pound Jarrett Allen. Mobley averaged 10 rebounds and almost 10 points against the Knicks while Allen averaged seven points and nine rebounds. Though still only 22, Mobley is already approaching franchise cornerstone status. Normally that would be Donovan Mitchell, but the uncertainty over how long Mitchell will remain in Cleveland is clouding that crystal ball. Mitchell is signed with the Cavs through the 2024-25 season, and he has a player option for 2025-26. That's about the time Mobley should be moving into the prime of his career. The Cavs have a team option on Mobley for the 2024-25 season, which they almost certainly will exercise. For now, Mobley is still scratching the surface of his ability, and how far it might take him and the Cavs. Adding to the intrigue is Darius Garland, who is signed through the 2027-28 season. Mitchell, Garland, and Mobley are the Cavs' core moving forward, but if Mitchell declines his player option after next season, that changes everything. By then, this could be Mobley's team, and by then Mobley will presumably be an even bigger force than he is now. Who knows where that could lead? Could he conceivably become the Cavs' Jose Ramirez? Probably not, based on the endless player movement by star NBA players that is going on now. Only the elite of the elite stay with one team for most of their careers, and it takes a very high pile of money to get them to do so. On the other hand, we're talking not about the Guardians' frugal ownership, but rather the Cavs' ownership, which has a track record of paying whatever is necessary for the right player. The proof of that is the Cavs trading for Mitchell and the remainder of his five-year $163 million contract. The future is filled with intrigue, but for the Cavs it's also filled with the excitement of the unfolding of Evan Mobley's career. He's already this good now, and not even close to his peak. That puts the Cavs in a good spot that could become even better, depending on whether certain things break their way. The good news: they've already got the big man who can sometimes put up Bill Russell numbers. Contact Jim Ingraham at (440) 329-7135 or jingraham4@gmail.com.