How Evan Mobley Led Cavaliers To Game 1 Victory Over Magic

Evan Mobley's 16 points helped the Cleveland Cavaliers take a 1-0 series lead over the Orlando Magic.

Game 1 is in the books as the Cleveland Cavaliers take an early series lead against the Orlando Magic. The usual suspects came into play on offense as Donovan Mitchell finished with 30 points, Darius Garland scored 14, and Jarrett Allen had 16. 

But the key to this victory came down to the effort Evan Mobley gave Cleveland on defense and specifically on offense. 

J.B. Bickerstaff gave an extensive brake down on Mobley's impact after the game.

“He’s the guy because teams try to do different things with him,” said Bickerstaff. “They like to switch more things when he’s involved and in the first half I thought he did a great job and his teammates did a great job of finding him in position which made them change their coverage. So, if you have to make an adjustment that early in the game, it takes you out of your gameplan and he was the trigger for that.”

This is what happened early on in the game when Mobley continuously found himself matched up with Cole Anthony down low. Cleveland exposed this mismatch and it helped them build an early lead.

Apr 20, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley (4) shoots beside Orlando Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. (34) in the second quarter during game one of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Mobley also knocked down a couple of threes in the first quarter which opened up the paint for his teammates. It’s the little things such as this that ruined Orlando’s strategy leaving them two steps behind whole night. 

“If he’s making those shots, you can’t shift in and protect the paint as much as you want to because you’re just giving him wide-open looks. It was a combination of it. It was the ability to make the three, they make an adjustment in coverage, they go to switches, now he goes to the post and takes advantage of smalls in the post.”

Will the Magic be able to make adjustments for Game 2 or will it be another dominating game from Mobley and the Cavs?