Cavaliers’ Kevin Love names one surprise about Evan Mobley
Cleveland Cavaliers veteran Kevin Love entered the season as a huge fan of rookie Evan Mobley after watching him at USC. Love has been thoroughly impressed with him but recently admitted there was one facet of his game that even caught him off guard.
Mobley, through the first half of the season, has emerged as a front-runner to win Rookie of the Year. He is averaging 15 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.7 blocked shots. He is third in scoring average, second in rebounding and first in blocks among all first-year players.
The third pick has emerged as a menace on defense given his size, athleticism and ability to guard every position on the court. He has the potential to be the best player from the draft class that can eventually develop into a future Defensive Player of the Year.
Love, speaking on the “Old Man & the Three” podcast with JJ Redick and Tommy Alter, said Mobley passes the eye test and is the Rookie of the Year in his mind. However, there is also another area of his game that he has excelled in, which was a surprise to Love.
He can face up, put it on the floor. He is going to be capable of shooting 3s. … Defensively, he is so long. He can do everything: Move his feet, guard 1-5 but when he faces up, he wants to bang. He really wants to put a guy in the basket and that was something that really surprised me about Ev is he is not afraid of physicality. He is not afraid to take it to you.
While Mobley has proven he can step out and shoot, the 20-year-old hasn’t shied away from contact down low. He can do things with the ball that are rare for a player his size, but can also take and enforce contact with the biggest centers in the league.
Mobley, who became the fifth player in history with at least 50 assists and 30 blocks over their first 20 games, has the chance to reach some rare air throughout his career given his unique ability as a player who can defend at a high level, dominate in the paint and get others involved.
He is off to a tremendous and a huge reason the Cavaliers are fifth in the Eastern Conference. Cleveland is night and day better with Mobley on the court and his teammates, including Love, have taken notice.
This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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