CLEVELAND – Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley has been selected to the 2024-25 Kia NBA All-Defensive First Team, marking his second time earning the honor after first being named in 2022-23. He becomes just the second Cavalier ever to receive First Team recognition more than once, joining LeBron James, and one of only four players in league history to make the First Team twice before turning 24—joining Tim Duncan, Serge Ibaka, and Jaren Jackson Jr.
Mobley also made history this season by becoming the first player in Cavaliers franchise history to win the Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year award. He’s one of only five players to ever win the honor before age 24, joining Dwight Howard, Alvin Robertson, Kawhi Leonard, and Jaren Jackson Jr.
In 2024-25, Mobley played a pivotal role in leading Cleveland to a 64-18 record and the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference for just the fourth time in franchise history. A 2025 NBA All-Star and two-time Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month (December and February), Mobley appeared in 71 games (all starts), posting career-high averages of 18.5 points on 55.7% shooting (including 37% from three), 9.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 0.86 steals, and 1.59 blocks over 30.5 minutes per game.
Notably, Mobley was the only player in the NBA this season to record at least 1,000 points, 600 rebounds, 60 steals, and 100 blocks. He ranked fifth in the league in blocks per game and plus/minus (+546, best in the East), fifth in contested shots per game (10.4), 12th in field goal percentage, and 16th in rebounds per game. He also posted 34 games with multiple blocks—fifth-most in the league—and was the only player to average more than 1.5 blocks while committing fewer than 2.0 fouls per game.
Since being drafted third overall in 2021 out of USC, Mobley has appeared in 269 games, helping the Cavaliers to a 175-94 (.651) record during that span—the 22nd-best individual win percentage in the NBA over that time. He holds career averages of 16.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.83 steals, and 1.56 blocks per game and ranks eighth in franchise history in total blocks (419).
