If he does not achieve monstrous performances and has not exploded statistically, there is still something new in Evan Mobley lately. We can even date it precisely since the player did it himself: since January 1st.
The interior of the Cavs has indeed made two good resolutions for the new year. For starters, spend more time in the weight room. “I have the feeling that going there can help me progress”, does he slip at The Athletic.
Donovan Mitchell can confirm it: his teammate goes there much more often than in the past.
“I don’t think I saw him take a day off. To the point that we have to get him out of the room. No one asked or advised him to do that, it came from him. And we see the difference in 2023. Not that he was bad before, but he has turned a corner. »
A future All-Star for Darius Garland
His second good resolution was to be more aggressive offensively. So, do the statistics confirm this feeling of having progressed? Yes, because at the start of the season, between October and December, Evan Mobley averaged 14.5 points with 3.6 free throws attempted. In 2023, he is at 17.8 points with 4.4 crossings over the line per game. All without losing its precision, with always 55% success in shooting.
“When you have this mentality of wanting to lift iron, to go to the gym, you feel stronger, and you want to go for contact more, because you know that you can finish despite the blows”, notes JB Bickerstaff. “I think he’s gaining confidence, he wants more. That’s why he goes more on the free throw line. »
It’s not just because he feels like he has more physical power that the Cleveland interior is getting more free throws per game. He is also smarter against his defender.
“As a grown-up, if I do a good fake shot, my opponents are probably going to bite it. If not, then I’m already in the basket. I do more feints and when the defender is in the air, I look for contact and I have the fault. Maybe with the basket and more. I’ve really been doing this lately. »
A very mature and effective rookie last season, Evan Mobley has gone up a notch for three months now, even if it’s still in a muted way. For Darius Garland, no doubt, his teammate “is going to get really, really good”. “He will be All-Star, that’s for sure”even concludes the playmaker of the Cavaliers.
| Evan Mobley | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2021-22 | KEY | 69 | 34 | 50.8 | 25.0 | 66.3 | 2.1 | 6.2 | 8.3 | 2.5 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 15.0 |
| 2022-23 | KEY | 71 | 34 | 54.9 | 21.1 | 68.2 | 2.3 | 6.6 | 8.9 | 2.7 | 2.9 | 0.8 | 2.0 | 1.4 | 16.2 |
| Total | 140 | 34 | 52.9 | 23.0 | 67.3 | 2.2 | 6.4 | 8.6 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 1.5 | 15.6 | |
