CLEVELAND — One is a 35-year-old veteran with four championship rings, a knack for collecting technical fouls, one of the most recognizable faces in the NBA over the last decade and perhaps a league-leading trash talking record.
The other is a 23-year-old budding star who only recently made his first All-Star appearance and basically has to be yelled at or peer-pressured into raising his voice, especially when it’s to support himself and his own accomplishments.
The two are in entirely different periods of their careers, and they couldn’t be any more separated in their respective on-court demeanor. But one of them is going to be NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
That battle to be named the league’s top defensive player is down to Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green and Cavs forward Evan Mobley. With only a handful of games left in the regular season, it has become an unofficial two-horse race.
As soon as San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama went down for the season, it opened the door for a wide open fight. Green and Mobley (who won the award in 2016-17), since that time, have moved ahead of the pack.
The Cavs have been making Mobley’s case for him, pointing out not only how vital he is to their defensive efforts, but that his flexibility is unmatched.
“When you have a guy that can protect the rim, can help a side defender, can guard isolation, can guard pick-and-roll, that’s what makes him the Defensive Player of the Year,” said Donovan Mitchell.
Evan Mobley, Draymond Green cases for Defensive Player of the Year
It’s close.
Entering Wednesday’s games, Green was viewed as the betting favorite by MGM Sportsbook. Mobley is second by a narrow margin, and nobody else is within striking distance.
The numbers are close, too.
Entering Wednesday’s games, for example, Mobley and Green ranked 12th and 13th, respectively, in Defensive Rating, and they’re separated by only one-tenth of a point (108.5 to 108.6, with the lower number being better).
Mobley, in 66 games, is averaging 1.6 blocks and 0.8 steals. Green, in 61 games, has similar averages just in reverse (1.0 blocks, 1.5 steals).
Cavs center Jarrett Allen — who had perhaps the block of the year in Wednesday’s win over the New York Knicks — sees Mobley’s value as something that eclipses the numbers alone.
“I think when people are scared to go against you, that gives you a lot of credit,” Allen said, referencing how teams won’t often challenge Mobley if they have any other choice. “It doesn’t show up in the stats, but people are literally driving to the rim and turning around because they see Evan.”
This season has been a monumental step in Mobley’s progression, a major reason why the Cavs are on the verge of securing the No. 1 seed in the East. Their hope is that Mobley receives a little extra recognition for it along the way.
