Ahead of his fourth pro season, young Cleveland Cavaliers power forward/center Evan Mobley has agreed to a five-year, $224 million rookie-scale maximum contract to stay with the club, his Wasserman Basketball reps Joe Smith and Thad Foucher informed Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
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The 23-year-old has already made quite the impression on the league since being selected with the third overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. He finished second in the 2022 Rookie of the Year voting, making that season’s All-Rookie First Team. Following his efforts on a 51-31 Cavaliers team in 2022-23, his second season, Mobley was honored as an All-Defensive First-Teamer, while finishing third in voting for the league’s Defensive Player of the Year honor.
In 2023-24, for the 48-34 Cavaliers, Mobley struggled with health issues, appearing in just 50 of 82 possible regular-season contests. The 6-foot-11 big man averaged 15.7 points while notching .580/.373/.719 shooting splits. He also pulled down 9.4 rebounds, dished out 3.2 assists, blocked 1.4 shots, and nabbed 0.9 steals a night. The rebounds, assists, and steals all represent career highs to this point.
In the spring of 2024, the Cavaliers enjoyed their best playoff run since 20-time All-Star forward LeBron James departed for the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent, six years prior. The team survived against the young and hungry Orlando Magic in a seven-game first-round slog, despite missing starting center Jarrett Allen. In the second round, the Cavaliers fell in five games to the eventual league-champion Boston Celtics. All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell missed the final two contests of the series with an injury of his own.
That result was evidently not satisfactory enough for team owner Dan Gilbert to retain head coach J.B. Bickerstaff in the offseason. He was let go and has since been replaced with ex-Golden State Warriors head coach Kenny Atkinson.
Beyond the coaching change, however, the team wasted little time in retaining its core this offseason. Cavaliers team president Koby Altman re-signed Mitchell to a three-year, $150.3 million contract extension. With Mobley’s reported return, the club now has its core of Mitchell, Mobley, Allen, and Darius Garland under long-term control.
Read More: With Donovan Mitchell Re-Signing, What’s Next in Cleveland?
According to Wojnarowski, Mobley numbers among just four active players to have recorded 300 blocks and 150 steals across the past three seasons (his only three pro seasons). The other three are nine-time Los Angeles Lakers All-Star center Anthony Davis, Memphis Grizzlies Defensive Player of the Year power forward/center Jaren Jackson Jr., and four-time Defensive Player of the Year Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert.
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