Whether they embrace it or not, whether it be big or small, the ultimate key for any team to live up to its championship aspirations will always be change.
Completing the puzzle of building a championship-contending squad has often been an enigma that most franchises have taken years to solve. As much as they try, some can never create the long-term foundation they need to push their way to the top. Through luck or savvy management, some can finally cash in on a long-awaited championship after years on the drawing board.
It took selecting a superstar in the second round, adding plenty of complementary players, and sticking by their veteran head coach for the Denver Nuggets to win their first championship in franchise history. It took the Chicago Cubs a full 108 years of ups and downs, manager changes, and an untold number of games in Wrigley Field to win their first World Series of the century. Even the Boston Celtics, who won last year’s NBA championship, underwent a handful of head coaching changes and rebuilt their roster with the help of a notorious trade with the Brooklyn Nets before they finally climbed to the top of the NBA mountain.
For the Cleveland Cavaliers, all it took was one switch for everything to fit into place.
Even after they continued to push their way upward since the start of the J.B. Bickerstaff era, the hiring of head coach Kenny Atkinson propelled the Cavs to heights they hadn’t seen since before LeBron James took his talents to Venice Beach. Cleveland sprang to the top of the Eastern Conference and logged their first 60-win season since 2010 behind a lethal and creative offense, one that took the top spot in the league in points per game and offensive rating. It ran through its regular season schedule, sweeping 17 teams in its 82-game slate, including several Central Division rivals, such as the Milwaukee Bucks, and a team that showed brief signs of hope, the Chicago Bulls.
Now, to continue their ascent in the NBA landscape, it may be time for their biggest piece of the puzzle to snap into place fully.
It’s time for Evan Mobley to take his next giant leap
Evan Mobley’s confidence was noticeable even before Cleveland’s stellar season began.
“From training camp, he came in with a mindset like ‘this is his team,'” Cavs forward Isaac Okoro said in a Friday conference. “He came in very confident, asking for the ball and being attack-minded.”
As he continued to do in previous seasons, the youthful big backed up his confidence with his on-court play.
Evan Mobley, a former top-three selection for the Cavs, is seeing career-highs in points per game in a role that’s having him further expand his role outside of the paint. The 6-foot-11 forward has taken and made more 3-pointers than he ever has in his young career. He finished the regular season with a 37% clip from the 3-point line, as he has excelled from the right corner and made his mark from across the arc. Still, the 23-year-old big has ultimately earned his living from the restricted area. His scorching-hot 72.9% from five feet or less put him in fourth place in the league and three spots behind a Cavs teammate in center Jarrett Allen.
Even the smallest steps for the youthful big have contributed to a giant leap for this Cavaliers team.
The Cavs can make their living off strengthening their stars with depth and interchangeable lineups in the postseason. Cleveland has logged the 4th-most bench minutes in the NBA this season, a monumental step forward from every one of their years with Bickerstaff. Adding players like Atlanta Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter only added to Cleveland’s ability to surround its guard duo of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland with sizable options in the frontcourt.
Still, everyone could use a step up somewhere.
Atkinson highlighted the need for Evan Mobley to have a more aggressive mentality when it came to scoring, rebounding, handling the ball, and making plays. A matchup against the Miami Heat in the first round will take all of the confidence Mobley has to take down a squad that earned a spot in the playoffs through Play-In games for the third season in a row.
“In the purest sense of more force and aggression is rebounding,” Atkinson said, via Sports Illustrated. “He should be a better rebounder. He just should. With all the talent he has, all the IQ he has, his ability he has to read the ball off the rim.”
The Cavs will tip off against the Heat at 7 p.m. EDT on Sunday in Rocket Arena. The game will be broadcast on FanDuel Sports Network and TNT.
Featured Articles
Featured Writers
