CLEVELAND, Ohio — With Jordan Ott’s departure to Phoenix, the Cavs faced a critical question: Who would guide Evan Mobley’s continued development after his breakthrough All-NBA season?
The latest Wine and Gold Talk podcast suggests new assistant coach Jawad Williams might be the perfect candidate, bringing Sacramento Kings offensive concepts that could revolutionize Mobley’s game.
“Everybody knows Jordan Ott was huge when it came to player development,” cleveland.com Cavs beat reporter Chris Fedor explained on the podcast. “The Phoenix Suns pointed that out in their press release when they hired Jordan, and the work that he did with Evan Mobley.”
Filling those shoes represents a massive responsibility, but Fedor didn’t hesitate to speculate on Williams’ potential role: “I would not be surprised if Jawad becomes the person that oversees the development of Evan Mobley.”
What makes this potential pairing particularly intriguing is Williams’ recent experience in Sacramento, where he witnessed an offense centered around a playmaking big man in Domantas Sabonis. Jimmy Watkins highlighted this connection on the podcast:
“Think about what they’re trying to turn Evan Mobley into here and the environment that Jawad’s coming from. The Sacramento Kings, they were one of very few teams in the NBA that use their center to initiate so many different \[actions\],” Watkins explained. “Domantas Sabonis, he is the sun around which all of the pieces of the Sacramento Kings offense were involved.”
This perspective could prove invaluable for Mobley’s development.
While the Cavaliers began experimenting with Mobley as an offensive hub last season, having a coach who witnessed firsthand how to build a successful offense around a skilled big man could accelerate that evolution.
The podcast discussion revealed that Cleveland’s coaching assignments aren’t random but meticulously matched based on experience and communication styles.
Omar Cook works with Darius Garland because of his point guard background. Johnnie Bryant continues developing Donovan Mitchell due to their established relationship. Trevor Hendry oversees Jarrett Allen’s growth.
For Mobley — the potential future face of the franchise — finding the right development guide is crucial. Williams’ background as a 6-foot-9 forward, who has worked in an offense that maximizes big men, makes him an ideal candidate.
“Whether Jawad Williams worked with Domantas every day or not, just being in that ecosystem, you catch on to what that team is doing,” Watkins noted. “And you can take some of the concepts that the Kings have used with Sabonis and apply those to Evan Mobley.”
While Williams never became the finished product that Mobley aspires to become, his experience brings something equally valuable — proximity to greatness and understanding of elite development processes.
“Being able to drop LeBron’s name that carries so much weight,” Watkins explained. “Maybe they don’t speak the exact same language, but it’s the same dialect. They’ve been in the same circles. Jawad Williams was not himself the player that Evan Mobley aspires to be, but he knows what it looks like up close every day.”
For a Cavaliers team with championship aspirations, maximizing Mobley’s development represents perhaps their highest ceiling for improvement.
If Williams can successfully implement concepts that turn Mobley into a Sabonis-like offensive hub while maintaining his defensive dominance, Cleveland’s ceiling rises dramatically.
The Wine and Gold Talk podcast’s deep dive into this coaching hire reveals the thoughtful, strategic approach the Cavaliers are taking toward player development. To hear more insights about how Williams might transform Mobley’s game and impact the team’s championship aspirations, check out the full episode now.
Here’s the podcast for this week:
_Note: Artificial intelligence was used to help generate this story from the Cleveland Wine and Gold Talk Podcast by cleveland.com. Visitors to cleveland.com have asked for more text stories based on website podcast discussions._