CLEVELAND, Ohio — It’s the latest edition of Hey, Chris!
The submissions for this post came from Subtext subscribers, who received a message to send one question each. The best got chosen. Want to receive Cavs Insider texts and communicate directly with me? Sign up for a 14-day free trial with your phone number and perhaps one of your questions will be used in the next edition of Hey, Chris! You can also sign up by texting me at 216-208-4499.
Subtexter: "We heard a lot coming into the season about a ‘work in progress.’ Is this what you were expecting or is this something else entirely that requires adding something via trade?"
What the Cavs expected — and what they didn’t
Chris Fedor: In many ways, this is what the Cavs expected. Kenny Atkinson tried to brace people for early-season turbulence — new roles, new spacing principles, different offensive rhythms, tweaks to the defensive scheme. That kind of transition comes with searching, experimenting and some uneven performances along the way.
But there’s one part Cleveland did not expect: how hard the offense has had to work to generate quality shots.
The organization believed Evan Mobley would take a leap. Not just a subtle bump in usage — a real leap as a reliable offensive centerpiece. Executives, coaches, teammates, scouts around the league all saw it coming. Instead, through the first 18 games, Mobley hasn’t looked comfortable in that role. The evolution they hoped for hasn’t materialized. And that absence has magnified everything else.
It’s not simply that they were without Max Strus. It’s not just that Darius Garland missed most of the opening stretch. Those absences were anticipated. The Cavs accounted for them. But the reason those losses feel heavier than expected is because Mobley didn’t provide the offsetting bump they needed.
This was a historically great offense last year. A preseason GM survey even had Kenny Atkinson earning votes for best offensive system. So for Cleveland to sit outside the top 10 for most of this opening run — that’s where expectation and reality diverged.
The missing jolt from Mobley is what has exacerbated everything.
Why Mobley’s role shift has become the pressure point
Ethan Sands: The thing we keep coming back to is this: Mobley is the baseline for what the Cavaliers can ultimately become.
Inside the organization, there’s a real understanding of the dual dependency between their two bigs. Jarrett Allen brings the energy, the vertical pressure, the rim protection. But Mobley is the piece the Cavs need to unlock another tier. And the ask of him this year is completely different.
He has been placed in every imaginable configuration — next to Donovan Mitchell, next to Allen, without Allen, with hybrid spacing, with heavier creation responsibilities. It’s a constant push-and-pull, and at 24 years old, in his fifth NBA season, he’s dealing with the reality check of what it takes to become a star.
The Cavs are still figuring out what level they’re getting from him offensively in this new structure. And he’s still figuring out how to thrive in it.
This year’s growing pains revolve around whether Mobley can make the internal leap the team’s roster construction relies on.
Mobley hasn’t been bad — but fine isn’t the goal
Chris Fedor: It’s important to be clear: Mobley hasn’t been bad.
His floor is high — one of the most impactful defenders in the league, the ability to disrupt actions on his own, reliable scoring in the mid-teens, steady rebounding, consistent rim protection. He can roll out of bed and give you winning-impact basics.
But the Cavs don’t need fine. Not if they want to reach their ceiling. Not if Garland’s availability will be uncertain as he works to fully recover from offseason surgery and reaggravating the injury.
The step Mobley didn’t take affects how every lineup functions. It affects possessions, spacing, ball movement, where help comes from, how defenses react. The Cavs hoped he would be Robin to Donovan Mitchell’s Batman. Instead, with Garland returning, Mobley looks likely to slide back into the third option — the more comfortable and familiar version of his role.
Maybe that shift frees him up. Maybe defenses stop loading onto him in the same way. Maybe the game simplifies for him again.
But through these first 18 games, Cleveland needed more. They expected more. And that unmet expectation is at the center of the early season drag.
Do the Cavs need to explore a trade?
No — not yet.
This is largely the work-in-progress the organization anticipated. System tweaks, role definition, lineup experimentation — those were built into the timeline. The unexpected element isn’t the structure around Mobley, but his comfort level within it.
If Mobley stabilizes and Garland returns to full form, the offense should look like what Cleveland envisioned. If he doesn’t, then yes — the conversation about external help becomes louder, more urgent, and more grounded in basketball reality rather than impatience.
But for now, the Cavs are still learning what their ceiling looks like with Mobley at the center of their evolution. And until that question is answered, trade talk is premature.
Here’s the podcast for this week:
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.