TORONTO — Donovan Mitchell downplayed it. So did Kenny Atkinson.
But tucked away, inside Evan Mobley’s otherwise fine box score Monday night against the Raptors, was an alarming number.
Seven.
His shot attempts.
One more than rarely used two-way forward Luke Travers despite logging 20 more minutes. One less than Nae’Qwan Tomlin, another two-way player who is starting to get more run because of his relentlessness on the boards and infectious energy. Nearly half as many hoists as Lonzo Ball.
Seven.
Mobley’s lowest in a game this season — on a night when he was supposed to be the secondary scoring option, on a night when the Cavaliers were missing seven rotational players, including four of their six best bucket-getters.
Seven.
“I don’t think Evan had the juice tonight,” Atkinson admitted. “Just some nights are like that. We’ve been milking these guys. I knew coming into this game it was gonna be a tough one. Don, you could argue the same thing. He didn’t have his normal energy, normal juice, normal legs. It happens.”
Context is always required.
The Cavs were without Darius Garland (injury management), Sam Merrill (sprained right hand), Jarrett Allen (strained right finger), De’Andre Hunter (rest), Craig Porter Jr. (left hamstring strain), Dean Wade (hyperextended knee) and Max Strus (foot surgery recovery).
That left them with 10 guys in uniform against the surging Raptors who have now won eight straight and vaulted to the second spot in the Eastern Conference.
Cleveland’s depleted roster also allowed long, rangy and active Toronto to deploy a specific defensive game plan — clog the paint, show help and make everything difficult for Mitchell and Mobley while forcing the others to hit shots.
“I mean, it’s tough on a night like tonight,” Mitchell explained when asked specifically about Mobley’s low number of attempts. “I don’t want to dive deep into that because when he’s driving, there’s three or four guys there, so it’s not like there wasn’t a concerted effort by him to get there. Our games are different. I’m coming off shooting off a pick and roll, so my opportunity to shoot more shots is there. Same thing with Zo.
“For Ev, he’s trying to get to his spots. He’s making the right play. It’s one of those things where tonight obviously, yeah, could he be more aggressive? For sure. But they did a good job of trying to make sure he didn’t get shots up.
“That’s the growth of trying to figure out, ‘OK, they’re taking this away, how do I still find ways?’ We’ll get better. We’re fine and he’s fine. But give Toronto credit. They had a game plan of understanding who was there, who was out, and making sure he didn’t try to affect the game.”
A few days ago, an anonymous Western Conference scout provided a pointed take on the current state of the Cavs.
Following Monday’s 110-99 loss, they are 12-7, fourth place in the East. And that’s in spite of a plethora of injuries that has forced Atkinson to use 11 different starting lineups, with Garland being limited to just five games following offseason toe surgery and rotational mainstay Strus still waiting to make his debut.
That scout said, “They’ve always needed Evan to get even better, and he’s not there yet.”
Mobley isn’t. And nights like Monday do nothing but raise the question of whether he ever will.
This time, it wasn’t a case of Mobley’s teammates ignoring him — although his touch numbers were down from his season average (he got 54 compared to 71.3). He didn’t get ball because he wasn’t playing with force. He couldn’t consistently beat defenders off the bounce. Was often planless in the congested paint. Repeatedly forced away from the rim, out of his comfort zone. Unable to create space to even get shots off. Constantly deferred.
Mobley finished with 14 points, five rebounds and four assists against the same number of turnovers in 31 lethargic minutes. Nearly half of his scoring output came from a pair of jumpers, catch-and-shoot triples, one from the corner and another above the break — an area that shows his continued evolution.
Nonetheless, the many other ways in which he was supposed to transform have yet to materialize.
Does he still have the same massive ceiling that so many within the organization have proclaimed? Can he be the unicorn — a player on the periphery of the MVP conversation, someone who is consistently discussed among the league’s best? What about those grandiose comparisons — Victor Wembanyama, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Anthony Davis, Kevin Garnett, Chris Bosh? Can Mobley eventually be Cleveland’s proverbial Batman or is he just snugger, destined even, to be Robin or perhaps Alfred?
Every superhero has a power.
Maybe Mobley’s is a massive floor — able to impact winning at a high level while posting a respectable stat line that includes game-changing defense even if not dominating on offense — instead of a majestic ceiling.
After being named a first-time All-Star, Defensive Player of the Year and second-team All-NBA in 2024-25, the plan was for Mobley to take another leap.
This season was about him.
It was about unleashing Mobley in a multitude of ways, tapping into some of his unique offensive gifts. As a ball-handler — bringing it up in transition, operating out of the pick and roll, taking defenders off the dribble, exploiting positional mismatches. As an inside-outside threat. Out of the pocket and half roll. In the post. At the elbow. Further away from the dunker spot. As a finisher and initiator.
More touches. More shots. More freedom. More usage. More diversity.
But through the season’s first month, the 24-year-old Mobley — who has bounced between power forward and center, as the lone big or alongside another — doesn’t look ready to be a consistent, reliable offensive focal point. The expanded role doesn’t suit him. Not his game. Not his play style. Not his temperament. Not his personality.
Not everyone can be Batman.
There’s pressure. There are expectations. A different level of attention. Everything is magnified. Scrutinized, too. That’s the star’s burden. It can take time to fully grasp it.
“When you’re young — because this is what happened to me — your mind goes to like, ‘I’ve got to be a scorer,’” Mitchell told cleveland.com. “And it’s OK to not be there just yet. He will get there. No doubt. And he’s expanding. But you have to learn that. You have to go through the struggle to understand it. It’s like, ‘I always have my foundation, but I’ve improved here and here so now they have to defend me a different way.’ Sometimes being the star is drawing that attention and kicking, which I think he is doing a phenomenal job.
“When you begin the year with different expectations and it’s your first year having those expectations, there’s a lot. It’s a lot of (expletive). He’s 24. When I was 24, I was still learning that (expletive) too. I’m not the same person or player I was at 24. I think that’s what you’re seeing. It’s a lot of pressure and a lot of voices. It’s a learning process and it’s not going to happen right away. There’s going to be bumps along the road. Just be yourself and continue to grow. It’s hard to be a championship-level team and balance all that other stuff involved that comes with him still growing into this. He has the right intentions. He puts in the work and time. But when you’re a star, it’s all on you. All eyes are on you. Not just Cleveland eyes. National eyes.
“It’s tough. It is. I won’t say it’s not. But with great power comes great responsibility.”
On the season, Mobley’s numbers are relatively similar to a year ago. He’s been good, averaging 18.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.1 steals in 34.2 minutes. But his efficiency has dipped, shooting career-worsts in field goal percentage (49.6%) and free-throw percentage (59.3%).
Hardly the leap the Cavs expected. Wanted. Needed.
“He wants to be great so bad and sometimes he’s a little bit forcing the issue in that sense, which is not the worst,” Atkinson said. “We want him to be aggressive, but he’s eventually going to find what it looks like, what that flow looks like, and we just haven’t hit it yet. A tiny bit on him. But mostly on circumstances. We’ve put him in so many different situations this year. We’ve got to help him. We’ve got to put him in better positions.”
This season has been an experiment. It will continue. Sometimes success leads to discovery. Other times, failure does.
Early in the season, Atkinson wanted Mobley to “spread his wings,” so a decision was made to split up Mobley and Mitchell, one of Cleveland’s most effective pairings. Garland’s early-season inactivity played part in that decision as well. That led to Mobley anchoring some of Cleveland’s bench units, surrounded by unproven, back-end rotation players.
But in recent weeks, Atkinson re-valuated lineups. Mitchell and Mobley are playing together more, with the Cavs outscoring opponents by seven points per 100 possessions in those minutes. Atkinson has also purposely shortened Mobley’s stints, trying to keep him from playing 12 consecutive minutes.
“There is an adaptation to those longer stretches, to the fatigue that comes with that,” Atkinson said recently. “We’ve got him doing a lot of stuff. He’s handling it more. He’s playing both ends. Both ends in the paint, too. I do think fatigue is playing a part.”
Atkinson also admitted the coaching staff must do a better job of balancing Mobley’s inside-outside attacks.
The plan moving forward is to put Mobley at the elbow more. Get him in the mid-post and near the rim instead of beyond the arc. Those adjustments could create a better, Mobley-like shot profile than what he currently has. It could lead to more around-the-basket touches and fewer jumpers, perhaps less individual creation as well.
It’s November. This is not the time for sweeping declarations or definitive conclusions. Final judgment shouldn’t be made in a month when the Cavs have been mostly undermanned.
This is a drastically new role. Growing pains were always expected. Development isn’t linear. Mobley can’t morph into a superstar just because the Cavs need that.
But, suddenly, there are questions. Some uncomfortable ones.
Is he ready to be a trusted sidekick? If not yet, can he eventually become one? How soon? Will it happen this season? Are the Cavs trying to make him into something he isn’t? Has his progress stalled — even plateaued?
If that seems like a lot of questions, it’s because it is. More of those than answers at this point.
The Cavs were the No.1 seed in the East last year in large part because of an elite offense that was the best in the NBA in efficiency. This year, Cleveland ranks outside the top 10 offenses, still solid, but far from the prolific offense that carried the team last season.
The Cavs are still launching 3s but making them at a much lower clip (35.1%) from their league-leading pace last year. They haven’t been able to generate as many shots at the rim or get in the paint as often, which has led to an offense with much less ball movement.
Donovan Mitchell has had to take on a greater share of the offense, averaging 20.3 field goal attempts per game, numbers more in line with his days in Utah than averages in Cleveland. The Cavs have had Darius Garland, their starting point guard, for only three games this season because of a toe injury. His addition to the rotation will certainly help, but the offense still has a few issues it can iron out without him to start flowing the way it was at its peak last season.
This time,