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Cavs’ Evan Mobley makes bold prediction after winning DPOY

Originally posted on NBA on ClutchPoints
By Evan Dammarell | Last updated Apr 25, 2025 7:49 PM ET

Throughout his NBA career, Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley has been considered one of the league’s greatest defenders. Well, after winning Defensive Player of the Year for the 2024-25 season, the first in Cavs franchise history, and earning All-Defensive honors in 2023, the first in Mobley’s career, there’s no more doubt about it. Mobley isn’t just one of the best defenders in the NBA. He’s the cream of the crop, and at just 23 years old, Mobley’s only getting started.

“It was just like another surreal moment in my career,” Mobley said, that smile still stretching across his face minutes later. “Just hearing my name called like that and knowing that I won the award finally.

“It’s like a dream come true. I mean, you dream of this your whole life.”

As made evident from the quote above, Mobley has always been a man of few words. However, despite being soft-spoken, Mobley has always been precise. Whether it’s in what he says or how he plays, Mobley’s inner confidence, his greatest intangible, has been what’s fueled him and the Cavs to where they are now.

“This is only the first of many,” Mobley said to Cleveland-based media over Zoom. “My goal is to keep getting this award as many times as possible. To go out there and show the league my defensive prowess and what I can do out there.”

Now that Mobley has reached the defensive mountaintop, things will only continue to trend upward for Cleveland. But for the Cavs’ superstar big man, he never wants to become complacent. Greatness doesn’t allow that. So, with the Cavs up 2-0 against the Miami Heat in the NBA Playoffs, when asked what’s next for him, Mobley, like always, was precise.

He expects to win the Cavs a championship.

Could Evan Mobley’s Cavs Championship claim come true during this playoff run?

Miami Heat forward Haywood Highsmith (24) defends Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley (4) in the first quarter at Rocket Arena. David Richard-Imagn Images

Although Mobley and the Cavs are up 2-0 on the Heat, there’s a long way to go until Cleveland can reach the Eastern Conference Finals, let alone the NBA Finals. However, with how well the Cavs have played throughout the regular season and the start of the playoffs, Mobley’s vision of reaching the NBA Finals doesn’t seem impossible. But to get there, Cleveland has to clear several hurdles.

First, it’ll take the Cavs getting out of the first round of this series against the Heat. Which, despite a recent off-court dust-up between Cleveland superstar Darius Garland and Miami sharpshooter Tyler Herro, feels like a matter of when, not if, for the Cavs. Cleveland’s average margin of victory in this series is 15.0 points. So, although the Heat can make things close, the Cavs should be able to put this series to bed soon.

From there, Cleveland will be entering uncharted waters. The Cavs could face the Indiana Pacers or Milwaukee Bucks, two divisional rivals, in the second round, depending on how that first-round series ends. Once Mobley and his Cleveland teammates clear through the second round, the remaining portion of the Eastern Conference race could be the barrier on whether or not Mobley makes good on his ambitions.

Whether that’s the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons, or Orlando Magic, no one will know who Cleveland will face in a hypothetical Eastern Conference Finals tilt. The possibilities are endless and, like Mobley, it’s better for the Cavs to remain in the moment, taking things day-by-day.

“I just try to stay in the moment,” Mobley philosophized. “Everyone’s got their own journey, and this is the journey I’m on right now.”

This article first appeared on NBA on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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