Kenny Atkinson wants Evan Mobley creating offense within the Cleveland Cavaliers’ team actions, with isolation available as a secondary option rather than the centerpiece of his assignment.
Atkinson described an approach that includes inverted pick-and-rolls and opportunities that develop through the offense. The distinction concerns how Mobley gets his chances, not a stated reduction in his playing time.
“We’ve dialed back to [Mobley] getting it in the flow [of the offense],” said Atkinson. “Lean into the creativity a little bit more, especially the inverted pick-and-rolls; he’s going to get iso moments…but that’s not the main menu right now.”
The coach’s explanation gives Cleveland a specific point of emphasis as it prepares its offense for the season: Create situations in which Mobley can make a decision with an advantage, rather than asking him to manufacture every opening against a set defender.
That approach can still leave room for individual growth. Handling the ball after a screen, recognizing a switch and finding a teammate when help arrives all demand offensive judgment.
The question is which situations allow that judgment to produce the most useful possession for Cleveland.
How inverted pick-and-rolls could help Mobley
An inverted pick-and-roll reverses the familiar arrangement of a guard handling the ball while a big man screens. With Mobley as the ballhandler and a smaller teammate setting the screen, Cleveland can ask defenders to solve a different matchup problem.
If the defense switches, Mobley could find himself facing a smaller opponent. If it stays with the original assignments, the screen could give him a path toward the basket before his defender recovers.
A teammate slipping out of the screen can also become a passing option. Those are potential outcomes, not automatic advantages.
The screening angle, the location of the other three offensive players and the defense’s response determine whether the action creates anything useful. A crowded lane can erase an opening even when the initial screen works.
There is also a difference between getting a favorable matchup and using it efficiently. If Mobley receives a switch, taking too long to attack could allow help to arrive.
A quick drive, a pass to a cutter or a return pass to the screener might preserve the advantage better than stopping to survey an organized defense.
Atkinson’s stated preference therefore does not remove decision-making from Mobley’s role. It places those decisions inside an action designed to move defenders first.
Isolation remains available when the matchup or the clock calls for it, without needing to be the possession’s starting point.
Two seasons provide a useful baseline
Mobley’s 2024-25 and 2025-26 regular-season production were as follows:
| Season | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 18.5 | 9.3 | 3.2 |
| 2025-26 | 18.2 | 9.0 | 3.6 |
The comparison shows relatively little movement in scoring and rebounding, with an increase of 0.4 assists per game. It does not establish whether Mobley became better or worse in isolation, nor does it identify which combinations of teammates helped him most.
That limitation matters when evaluating a change in offensive responsibility. A scoring average combines many different situations: transition, putbacks, assisted finishes, free throws and possessions a player creates himself.
Similar point totals can conceal a different mix of opportunities. The earlier season also shows that Mobley has already contributed across several offensive categories.
Cleveland’s notes credit him with 37 double-doubles and 37.0 percent shooting from 3-point range in 2024-25. Those are historical results, not a forecast of his shooting or a guarantee that every lineup can space the floor effectively.
For this season’s evaluation, the useful next step is to track how the chances develop. Does an inverted screen get Mobley into the paint?
Does the resulting help create a clean look for someone else? Does the action continue when the first option is unavailable?
Those questions would reveal more about the plan than a small change in points per game alone.
Harden gives the Cavs another way to create advantages
Mobley’s assignment also has to fit an offense that includes James Harden and Donovan Mitchell. Jaylon Tyson explained how Harden’s passing and scoring pressure help teammates cutting or preparing to shoot.
“He’s one of those players for me; it’s kind of easy to play off him,” said Tyson. “Just because [Harden] can make every pass in the book and, obviously, his scoring ability. Everyone is so worried about him offensively that a player like me, catch-and-shoot, just playing off the cut, it makes it so much easier when he’s on the court.”
Tyson’s description concerns his own experience, but it helps explain the choices available to Cleveland. A possession can begin with a guard drawing attention and continue with Mobley attacking the space that opens.
On another trip, Mobley can handle the ball and use a teammate’s screen to initiate the advantage himself. The balance depends on who shares the floor.
A lineup with more shooting can give a ballhandler room to drive, while a group with another interior finisher requires careful positioning around the basket. The same play name can produce different results when those surrounding pieces change.
That is why role definition and lineup selection belong in the same discussion. Atkinson entered camp with the starting lineup still open for evaluation.
That September assessment should not be mistaken for a current declaration about the final rotation, but it illustrates the broader set of decisions surrounding each player’s assignment. The next evidence should come from repeated possessions against different coverages.
Cleveland can evaluate whether Mobley reaches useful spots earlier, whether his passes preserve an advantage and whether unsuccessful actions flow into another option without stalling.
That would establish whether Atkinson’s approach is expanding Mobley’s contribution in ways the basic scoring column cannot fully capture.
