Honouring the most outstanding NBA players who excel in blocking opposition shots, lower the momentum of the team rivals and steal passes, Evan Mobley was awarded the 2024-25 season’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year. The Cleveland Cavaliers are put on the map as their much deserving star player receives this accolade. The award has been passed down from many legend NBA players and this season, it is relayed to Mobley who shows great stats and a deserving energy.
Evan Mobley’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year title
Creating memorable moments with this accolade, Evan Mobley, after Dwight Howard, is the second youngest player to win the award at the age of 23. He is also putting the Cleveland Cavaliers on the map, as the first player of the team to gain this victory. Tallied up by an accounting firm, Ernst & Young LLP, Mobley won the award with 35 first-place votes, chosen by a global media panel of 100 voters, which are 10 more than the runner up, Atlanta Hawks’ Dyson Daniels.
Coming in third place was the Warrior’s star player Draymond Green. The player’s blocked shots per game ranked sixth in the NBA season with 1.59 and 7.0 defensive rebounds per game, ranking 13th. Mobley defending during the games, opposition player only shot 44.5% from the field which is 3.2% lower than what they expect to shoot.
The Cleveland Cavaliers’ defensive rate sits 8th in the NBA, with their court defence rating being 108.6, with great contribution from Mobley. Warriors’ fans felt the loss of Draymond Green was unwarranted, due to the Warriors having the best defence, and that the Dubs player should have collected the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy. Another wanted winner for the trophy is San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama.
Stats of Evan Mobley: why he won
Defence is definitely his in line as Mobley won the Kia NBA Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month Award twice in December and February. Averaging 18.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 30.5 minutes played in 71 NBA games, Mobley was recently named an NBA All-Star in 2025. The playoffs are graced with the Clevland Cavaliers’ second-best record in NBA history of the 64-18 finish, helped by Evan Mobley.
Drafted 3rd overall in 2021, the star attained the Pac-12 Player of the Year in his first year, from being a McDonald’s All American (2020) in his college year at USC. The NBA All-Rookie First Team in 2023 was added to the player’s achievements. Mobley moulded himself into a great shot blocker, highlighting his great defence as one for the NBA to acknowledge. Before his recent achievement, the star received the NBA All-Defensive First Team in 2023.
The NBA’s defensive players in history
Giving acknowledgement to the NBA’s best defensive player, the award has given honour to players who have great steals and blocks since 1983. Being the fifth 23-year-old to receive the award, stars such as Alvin Robertson, Dwight Howard, Kawhi Leonard and Jaren Jackson Jr, join the list and no one under the age of 23 has received the award.
The 2022 NBA season had the Boston Celtics’ Marcus Smart take the cup, followed by Memphis Grizzlies’ Jaren Jackson Jr, then Minnesota Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert and finally Evan Mobley. Winning the most defensive player awards in history is four-time winners, Dikembe Mutombo, Ben Wallace, and Rudy Gobert.
Victor Wembanyama titled the Rookie of the Year, took the San Antonio Spurs to great heights, only playing 46 games faced an injury, a deep vein thrombosis, which ended his season. Many say that the injury of the player made him fall short in his potential win or was Evan Mobley going to wipe them all out regardless. Standing on amazing defense stats, taking the Cavaliers far in the league and a performance making the opposing team struggle to get shots in, Evan Mobley is well deserving of the award.
