The Cavaliers experimented with Evan Mobley on offense this season before realizing his bread and butter would be more useful. Can he be consistent?
CLEVELAND — It would not be a bad idea for Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley to scribble "Jan. 10, 2026" on a piece of paper and tape it to the inside of his locker at Rocket Arena.
The version of Mobley the Cavs saw on offense in their 146-134 win over the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves needs to emerge far more often.
If it were to become the norm, dreams about Mobley evolving into a face of the NBA would cease to cause skepticism.
It's why one of Cleveland’s best victories of the 2025-26 season could serve as a valuable reminder for Mobley. He scored 24 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the field (0 of 3 on 3-pointers) and collected four rebounds, three assists and two steals in 32 minutes. Mobley’s assertiveness helped the Cavs (22-18) avenge the nine-point loss they suffered when he didn’t play with adequate force on Jan. 8 at the Timberwolves (25-14).
Cleveland Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson doesn't regret Evan Mobley experiment on offense
It’s no secret the 7-foot Mobley is great on defense. He is the reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year for a reason.
But roughly midway through Mobley’s fifth Cavs season, his offense has yet to consistently reach greatness. It ascended last season to a really good level. Earlier this season, though, it regressed as the Cavs experimented with Mobley basically playing point forward and being counted on to create for himself from the wing.
“I don't regret it,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. “That's what you do to try to get to the next level. If you stay status quo, if you try to repeat what you did last year, I don't necessarily think you make a jump. So, the key is taking risks, trying new things. When you get to a point where you're like, ‘Hey, this isn't working,’ you’ve got to kind of adjust back a little bit.”
An audible was called.
Mobley has been operating on offense within his comfort zone, and it’s the wise approach, at least for now.
There is only one Kevin Durant. Mobley should be granted the freedom to polish the art of being himself in all facets of the game instead of trying to force becoming somebody he’s not. Relying more on his bread and butter now doesn’t mean his shot clock for development is danger of expiring soon. He’s 24 years old.
“He was in the paint a lot tonight,” Atkinson said of Mobley after the Cavs beat the Wolves. “We’ve got to get him there more. He's got to get himself there more. But, yeah, this version, that's what we all want to see more often.”
Like the Cleveland Cavs as a collective, forward Evan Mobley has dealt with injury and unmet expectations
The midpoint of this Cavs season will occur when Cleveland hosts the Utah Jazz on Jan. 12.
Injuries have been the No. 1 culprit while the Cavs struggled in the first half of this season. However, what has been even more frustrating is the underperformance of several players when they have been healthy.
Mobley has been among those saddled with unmet expectations because he didn’t take the leap the Cavs had hoped on offense. To further complicate Mobley’s season, he suffered a grade 1 left calf strain on Dec. 12 at the Washington Wizards and missed the next five games.
Nevertheless, Mobley appeared to be back to full strength as he repeatedly attacked the basket despite the presence of big bad Wolves Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle.
“He's getting back to what he was doing last year, I think,” Cavs point guard Darius Garland said. “When everybody's out there, he doesn't have to play in so many isolations or a lot of inverted pick-and-rolls as much.
“He's just getting to his spot, shooting over his defender and playing defense. So, I think he's a little bit more comfortable with this role that he's playing now than earlier in the season, and we're loving it.”
In Cavaliers' win over Timberwolves, Evan Mobley had one of his best highlights on offense this season
With the Wolves in Cleveland, Mobley made all eight of his rim attempts.
“It's a big part of my game, so I’ve always got to keep that up, and I think it makes the team better with me being aggressive,” Mobley said.
Mobley produced one of his most brilliant plays this season when he caught a pass on the perimeter, drove to the basket, faked a layup with his left hand as four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Gobert soared past him, pivoted around and dunked for a 77-73 Cavs lead with 7:25 left in the third quarter.
Evan Mobley with the mean fake and impeccable footwork for the THROWDOWN ‼️
— NBA (@NBA) January 10, 2026
Tap to watch: https://t.co/N1Jk2Kmtfkpic.twitter.com/qWeipJ1FZ0
It was by no means a perfect outing for Mobley, though. He didn’t grab any rebounds in the first half and finished with only four.
Yet, in terms of style and output on offense, the performance hit a sweet spot in which the Cavs ought to live.
Mobley took a significant step on offense last season when he averaged 18.5 points on 55.7% shooting from the field (37% on 3s), 9.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.6 blocked shots and 30.5 minutes in 71 games. He was rewarded with All-Star and second-team All-NBA selections. Both honors were the first of his career.
Entering the rematch with the Wolves, Mobley had been averaging 17.8 points on 50.6% shooting from the field (33.9% on 3s), 8.7 rebounds, four assists, 1.8 blocks and 33.2 minutes in 33 games this season.
The way Mobley is deployed on offense is one issue. His tendency to lapse into passivity is another. He and the Cavs share culpability in his occasional disappearing acts. The guards must feed him the ball. He must break the habit of sneaking into a shell.
Cleveland is merely a few games removed from Mobley scoring eight points against the center-less Denver Nuggets on Jan. 2 and four points at the Houston Rockets on Dec. 27.
Mobley needs to be heavily involved on both ends of the floor. And for the Cavs to turn their season around in the second half of an 82-game schedule, Mobley’s role on offense should resemble the one from which the Cavs benefitted on Jan. 10, 2026.
Write it down.
Nate Ulrich is the sports columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal and a sports features writer. Nate can be reached at [email protected]. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavaliers need version of Evan Mobley they experienced vs Timberwolves
Category: General Sports
