Kenny Atkinson says Cavs need Evan Mobley to be more ‘irrational’: ‘I think that’s his next step’

Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley recently said he thinks he could be the best player in the NBA in five years.

While the comment from the soft-spoken big man got the attention of some folks and maybe came as a bit of a surprise, it was probably music to the ears of Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson.

“I’ve said this to Evan, ‘Your next step is believing that,'” Atkinson said of Mobley’s comment. “‘Do you believe? You have all the tools, you’re making progress with your consistency.'”

Atkinson wants Mobley to go all the way over the top with his confidence and take it to the extreme. He explained that Cavs stars Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland “have this almost irrational confidence,” and he wants Mobley to be a “little more irrational” himself.

“There is a belief with these guys, they get to a certain point — Donovan’s got it, Darius I think has it — they have this almost irrational confidence,” Atkinson said. “And Evan’s not a not-confident person, but we need to get him to be little more irrational, a little more, ‘Man, I am going to be this guy.’ I think that’s his next step, because all the tools are there — physical, technical, shooting, the whole thing.”

Mobley mentioned himself and San Antonio Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama — or “one of those guys” — as candidates to be the best player in the league five years from now.

While Wembanyama is already considered a phenom, Mobley himself is evolving into an elite force on both ends of the floor. He’s been a special defender since the moment he entered the NBA, but this season, he has taken his offensive game to new heights.

Mobley is averaging 18.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game in his fourth NBA season while shooting 57.2 percent from the field and 37.9 percent from deep. He just made the first All-Star appearance of his career.

His contributions are a major reason why the Cavs have the best record in the NBA at 46-10. When Cleveland hired Atkinson, the franchise was hoping that the new skipper would help Mobley grow, and the 23-year-old has indeed looked like a force under Atkinson.

Now, Mobley will look to help the Cavs finish the regular season with a bang and carry their momentum into the playoffs. For as dominant as the team has been this season, Cleveland is still trying to make a deep playoff run for the first time since the LeBron James era. The team won’t be satisfied with just a strong regular season.

The next question for Mobley is whether his individual leap this season will remain on full display when the postseason arrives.