Cavs' Evan Mobley could miss up to two weeks with right ankle sprain

Cavaliers 7-foot center/forward Evan Mobley, the runner-up for 2022 NBA Rookie of the Year, will miss one to two weeks with a sprained right ankle, the team announced Monday night.

The Cavs start their four-game preseason schedule Wednesday at Philadelphia, with the regular season opener set for Oct. 19 at Toronto.

Mobley, the third overall pick out of USC in 2021, was a unanimous selection to the NBA's All-Rookie first team but was second to the Raptors' Scottie Barnes in the Rookie of the Year voting. Mobley finished fourth on the Cavs in scoring (15.0), second in rebounding (8.3) and first in blocked shots (1.7).

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Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff challenged Mobley with areas to improve in the offseason and Bickerstaff raved about Mobley during their media day Sept. 26.

“Our expectation is he has the ability to be a superstar without being the leading scorer on your team,” Bickerstaff said. "He has an opportunity to be the best player on the floor without having to take the most shots. I think that's hard to find. But he does.

“He can stuff the stat sheet in every category, that's our expectation for him. We want him eventually – and hopefully it's this year – to be in the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year. We believe he has that type of ability and can have that type of impact on the floor.

"Very few superstars, which he's going to work his way to be, can be that type of player without dominating the ball on the offensive end of the floor. We believe he has the ability, and we'll get there.”

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During early practices, teammates marveled at how Mobley has become more vocal as he anchors the Cavs' defense with 6-foot-11 center Jarrett Allen. All-Star point guard Darius Garland talked about Mobley's motivation this season.

"Evan, he's on a mission right now," Garland said on Sept. 26. "I think that he's on the mission of the Rookie of the Year campaign. He really wants to show the world what he really can do and what they missed out on last year.

"So he's coming in a lot more hungry. He's a lot stronger. He knows more about the game than he did last year. So we’re super excited to see his jump from last year to this year."

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavs Evan Mobley could miss two weeks with ankle sprain