Mobley earns praise from Barnes after 21 points and 6 assists in a win on Thursday.
Evan Mobley and Scottie Barnes will always be linked. They were taken one pick apart by the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors in the 2021 NBA Draft then Barnes narrowly edged Mobley to win Rookie of the Year later that season.
That was four years ago. Any remnant of the rivalry they might’ve had has turned to mutual respect.
“It’s always fun to go against another competitor,” said Mobley about going against Barnes in November. “He’s a great player.”
That feeling was reciprocated the other way when Barnes was asked about Mobley after Thursday’s game.
“He’s great,” said Barnes. “He’s really talented offensively. He has handles for his size, can dribble, can shoot the ball. He does so many things really well for his size. That just makes him super special.”
Mobley’s continual improvement in the areas Barnes mentioned over the last four years has been impressive to see.
One of the knocks on Mobley during the Rookie of the Year race was his lack of offensive versatility compared to Barnes. Barnes’s ability to easily slot onto any team no matter the context allowed him to be an immediate impact player on both ends of the floor for the 48-win 2021-22 Raptors. The more rounded offensive game combined with the team success gave voters the excuse to give him the award over Mobley.
You can’t knock Mobley for not being versatile offensively anymore. Nearly every aspect of his game has leveled up from previous seasons including his playmaking. That has been on display during the last two games as he posted seven assists in the win over the Oklahoma City Thunder and six the following day against Toronto. This is on top of an increased willingness to shoot the three ball as he’s connecting on 41.4% from distance on 2.8 attempts per game.
The improvements Mobley has shown offensively put him in line with making his first All-Star game which is something Barnes was able to accomplish last season.
It’s difficult to overstate Mobley’s defensive impact. That has been the case since his rookie year and is more so now. Now, the offense is catching up.
“All the things that he does defensively, he has great talent on the offensive end as well,” Barnes said. “It just makes him a force. Makes him dominant.”