Tag Archives: Evan Mobley

Cavaliers edge Hawks 99-96

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The Cleveland Cavaliers managed to come away with a three-point victory on the road against the Atlanta Hawks.

After a blowout loss the night before, the Cleveland Cavaliers needed to bounce back (even if it is only preseason). The Cavs took on the Atlanta Hawks B-Team and managed to come away with a slight three-point victory. Notable inactive for the Hawks include Trae Young, Lou Williams, Clint Capela, Danilo Galinari, and Bogdan Bogdanovic while the Cavaliers had their full compliment of players available to them.

The preseason is less about the final result and more about individual performances, especially since the Cavs did not face the best players in Atlanta. Looking at how everything sorted out at the end of the game it was a typical performance for most of Cleveland’s players.

Cleveland made 34 of 77 field goal attempts in the contest, including another lackluster shooting night from deep as they went 9-30. For the second straight game the Cavs turned the ball over 22 times, an alarming trend even if it is preseason. Last year the Cavaliers were a turnover prone team and it appears that trait has carried over into 2021-22.

Game notes

Collin Sexton led the scoring effort with 19, needing 17 shots to make seven. Sexton was dreadful from deep, making just two of eight three-point attempts while also missing half of his six free throw attempts. Something to keep an eye on is that through two preseason games Sexton has 12 turnovers to just three assists.

Speaking of assists, Darius Garland finished with a game-high seven while scoring 15 points of his own. Garland was 3-6 from the beyond the arc and made both free throw attempts in the contest. While Garland did turn the ball over four times, it was not more than his assist total.

Dynamic rookie Evan Mobley finished with 12 rebounds, a game-high. Scoring did not come easy, making just four of 11 field goal attempts. Luckily this is still preseason and Mobley needs to feel himself out against other NBA players at this time. Mobley did finish with the highest plus/minus of all Cavaliers starters with +11.

Ricky Rubio led the bench with six assists in 23 minutes while also scoring eight. Rubio appears to have slipped in nicely as the backup point guard on this roster to help the bench unit at least appear to be more of a cohesive unit.

The Cavaliers have a night off Thursday before taking on the Indiana Pacers at home Friday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse with tip-off scheduled for 7:00 P.M.

Cavaliers throttled 131-95 in preseason loss to Bulls

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The Cleveland Cavaliers did not get off on the right foot as they were completely dominated by the Chicago Bulls in a 131-95 preseason loss.

Good thing it is only preseason, because it would be an ugly start to the season if this game counted. The Cleveland Cavaliers were simply no match for the Chicago Bulls Tuesday, ending up on the wrong side of a 36-point loss.

As what has become the usual outcome the last few seasons, Cleveland struggled from the field, making just 35.7% (30-84) of their field goal attempts including 30.3% (10-33) from deep. In comparison, Chicago made 46.8% (51-109) and 43.2%(16-37) from three-point range. Even though it is just the first preseason game it does not appear much as changed for the Cavs when shooting the ball.

In addition to the disparity in shooting numbers, turnovers and assists also favored the Bulls. The Cavaliers turned the ball over 22 times to Chicago’s nine and finished with just 21 assists compared to the Bulls 36. Chicago actually had more assists than Cleveland had made field goals, far from an optimal outcome.

Last season the Cavaliers were not a strong offensive unit. Cleveland did not have anyone who could reliably knock down shots consistently and with the way their roster is currently constructed not much has changed.

Game notes

Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers in scoring with 14 as he usually does, but it was on an expected shooting performance. Sexton was 3-9 from the field (2-3 3PT) and made six of eight from the free throw line. This was a typical night from Sexton.

Lauri Markkanen was the second-highest scorer as he has 13 points off the bench, making four of 10 field goals and all four shots from the line.

Ricky Rubio added 10 points of his own as he managed to make just one of his six three-point attempts while assisting on six other baskets.

Evan Mobley was the only other Cavaliers starter to break double-digits, scoring 10 points on a 3-7 shooting night and a perfect 4-4 free throw performance.

The Cavaliers will take on the Atlanta Hawks Wednesday night at 7:30 P.M. for their second preseason game.

Cavaliers still on the path to irrelevancy

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The most recent trade from the Cleveland Cavaliers that landed Lauri Markkannen shows that the team is still on the path to nowhere.

If there is one thing that the Cleveland Cavaliers were expected to do this offseason it was making roster moves. The thing is that the moves the team is making are not necessarily those expected, most notable being the recent deal that sees the Cavs part ways with Larry Nance Jr. to acquire Lauri Markkanen from Chicago.

The move for Cleveland is confusing for multiple reasons. First off Chicago has been exploring trades with Markkanen for quite some time. Add in the fact the Bulls made some moves this offseason to improve their team that would have rightfully relegated Markkanen to a bench role. Apparently Cleveland could not wait to jump at the chance to make a deal with the Bulls, ultimately paying $67 million over four years for a player that the Bulls did not want.

Examining the Cavaliers current roster the move only gets more confusing. The Cavs already signed Jarrett Allen to an extension and drafted Evan Mobley third overall. Now with Markkanen in the mix the team now features three players at or about seven feet tall. The problem that presents itself with this combo is that two players are being paid like starters (Allen, Markkanen), and the other (Mobley) needs enough playing time to properly develop.

Utilizing one of these three players as a bench option seems to be an overall improper use of the players available to the team. If these players were guards or wing players it would be a different story, the fact is that they are not and that is a huge problem. Utilizing multiple players at positions which feature smaller players is fine and in fact they can be deployed at the same time, this does not apply for Allen, Markkanen, and Mobley.

The issue for the Cavs is less about the deal for Markkanen itself, but rather the moves before it. If Cleveland did not extend Allen or draft Mobley this would less of a problem. Was Nance the player that takes the Cavs from the basement to contention? No, but he played a very specific role on this team that is important while Markkanen is signed to a deal that reflects a more prominent role. The fact of the matter is that Markkanen should not be playing a large role on a team that is supposed to be improving or at least flirting with a play-in spot.

When evaluating the current state of the Cleveland Cavaliers one thing is abundantly clear. They continue to make moves that keep them irrelevant, the latest sign and trade acquisition proves that further. The day that the Cavs stop existing in the world of non-competitiveness appears to still be far off in the future.

 

Cavs select Evan Mobley third overall

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The Cleveland Cavaliers stayed put and selected the USC big man with the third overall pick.

Leading up to the draft there was some speculation that the Cleveland Cavaliers may not stay put at three, but that was not the case as they selected Evan Mobley third overall.

Evan Mobley is a highly regarded player who most project as the top pick in other drafts. Cavs GM Koby Altman heaped praise upon their 2021 NBA Draft pick following the selection.

The Cavs have some decisions to make in regards to other players on the roster (Collin Sexton, Jarrett Allen), but for now they can count on Evan Mobley being a big part of their immediate future.

Evan Mobley to Cavs in mock draft

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A mock draft from John Hollinger of The Athletic has the Cleveland Cavaliers selecting the USC forward with the third overall pick.

While there are questions about what exactly the Cleveland Cavaliers are going to do with players currently on their roster, there are less questions about who they will pick with the third overall pick. Most project the Cavs to select USC forward Evan Mobley when it is their turn in the upcoming NBA Draft. John Hollinger of The Athletic (subscription required) mocked Mobley to Cleveland in his latest mock draft. There is one key thing that Hollinger noted in regards to who they should take in the draft and their current roster.

“Positional fit is the type of thing you generally worry about after you have talent, not beforehand. If Mobley and Allen end up both being good and aren’t able to co-exist, you trade out of that. If they draft a player who stinks, that’s harder to fix.”

That is exactly the position the Cleveland Cavaliers find themselves. The Cavs are so far away from being relevant and they lack high end talent that positional fit is nothing to concern themselves with at this time. Cleveland just needs to add the best talent they possibly can and sort out the rest later. If the Cavs front office determines that player to be Evan Mobley, they better end up drafting the highly regarded prospect instead of trying to force something with a different selection.