CLEVELAND — For the second straight year, the Cleveland Cavaliers are leaving the NBA Draft with a member of the Mobley family.
With their second selection in the second round (No. 49 overall), the Cavs selected USC forward Isaiah Mobley. Despite being a native of Southern California who spent his college career in Los Angeles, the 22-year-old is no stranger to Cleveland, as he is the older brother of Cavs forward/center Evan Mobley, who earned unanimous first-team All-Rookie honors in his debut campaign.
While Isaiah isn't as highly coveted of a prospect as Evan -- who Cleveland selected with the third overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft -- was, he enjoyed a successful three-year college career at USC. Appearing in 32 games during his junior season, the 6-foot-10 forward averaged 14.2 points on 44.5 percent shooting, 8.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists.
While his three-point shooting percentage dipped to 35.2 percent last season, he shot an impressive 43.6 percent from beyond the arc in his sophomore campaign while playing alongside his younger brother. Considering his age and skill set, it wouldn't be a surprise to see the older Mobley become a part of Cleveland's rotation as a big man off the bench as early as his rookie season.
Mobley was one of four players selected by the Cavs on Thursday night, with Cleveland using its lone first-round pick (No. 14 overall) on Kansas swingman Ochai Agbaji. In addition to Mobley, the Cavs used second-round picks to select center Khalifa Diop out of Senegal (No. 39 overall) and forward Luke Travers out of Australia (No. 56 overall).