Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley have already done enough in Cleveland to earn serious respect. Both bigs have made All-Star teams, both have delivered huge nights for the Cavaliers, and even with injuries cutting into their time last season, they still stack up as one of the league’s top 4/5 pairings.
If the goal is to be viewed as the NBA’s best frontcourt duo by 2026-27, the path is pretty clear: the Cavaliers have to keep putting the offense in their hands more often.
That starts with Allen. The Fro has built a reputation as one of the league’s most reliable finishers, a lob threat who can punish defenses at the rim and protect the paint on the other end. He’s the kind of big who can turn a guard’s high pass into an easy bucket, and on the other side, make sure a dunk attempt ends somewhere other than the rim.
Mobley brings a different kind of problem for opponents. In 2025, he was named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year, and his value comes from the way he can cover so much ground.
He can defend on the perimeter and in the paint, which makes him one of the most versatile bigs in the game. Add in the improved 3PT shooting he showed in the playoffs, and the upside gets even louder.
He still has room to grow, but the ceiling is enormous.
The issue is usage. Both players have spent their time together alongside ball-dominant guards, and too often the offense has drifted away from them. When Mobley and Allen aren’t fully involved in the game plan, Cleveland has tended to look less sharp.
That was evident in the 2026 playoffs against the Raptors, Pistons, and Knicks, when the Cavaliers played worse whenever their bigs were not part of the action. Allen’s 22 points, 19 rebounds and three blocks in Game 7 against Toronto showed exactly what happens when he’s a featured piece instead of an afterthought.
Mobley has had those nights too, the ones where he looks unstoppable near the basket, taking one dribble from the top of the key and sliding right into the paint. But there have also been stretches where he catches the ball at the 3PT line and can’t turn it into anything.
The most recent version of Mobley gave Cleveland a glimpse of what this partnership can become. He was knocking down threes at a rate he had never shown before, and that confident, efficient stroke took five years to fully arrive. Now the challenge is making sure he gets treated like a second option, not the third, fourth, or fifth.
Allen has to stay central in that equation too. If Cleveland wants to stay ahead of the curve, he can’t fade into the background.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo will have a strong argument for the league’s most formidable frontcourt duo, so Mobley and Allen need to stay locked in if they want to hold that spot. The Cavs’ best version will come when the two of them are shining together.
In Other News...
Cavs Are Closing In On A Move That Changes Daily Life
The Cavaliers are getting ready for a change that goes well beyond a new address. During the NBA All-Star break in February, the team plans to move into the Cleveland Clinic Global Peak Performance Center downtown, a facility that should give players and staff a far different day-to-day experience than the one theyve had in Independence.
The new building is expected to be significantly larger than the current practice site and come with multiple amenities designed around the needs of a modern NBA operation. Once the Cavs relocate, the Independence facility will take on a new role of its own, serving as the training home for the Cleveland Sirens, the WNBA expansion team set to begin play in 2028. [Read more 🡒]
Cavs Latest Roster Upgrade Came From A Twist Fans Didnt Expect
The Cavaliers latest roster shake-up took shape through a chain of events that had less to do with Cleveland than with the wider league market, and it gave the front office a little more room to operate than expected. In the process, the team moved on from Dennis Schroder and brought in Peyton Watson in a sign-and-trade with Denver, while Max Strus was sent to the Clippers as part of the same broader shuffle.
What made the opening possible was James Harden declining his player option and then signing a new deal later than anticipated, which created the kind of cap flexibility that can change a summer plan in a hurry. Harden has also reportedly been involved in recruiting Watson and has been active in team workouts, a detail that adds an unusual layer to a move Cleveland fans probably did not see coming when the offseason started. [Read more 🡒]
Cavaliers Suddenly Have A Real Path To The Easts Top Seed
The Cavaliers finished their offseason by adding two more pieces in James Harden and Peyton Watson, with Watson agreeing to a four-year deal, and it gives the roster a noticeably different look heading into the new season. Cleveland has been leaning into depth and athleticism around the core, with names like Mario Hezonja also part of the mix, and the front office seems to have built a group that can withstand the grind of the East better than it could a year ago.
What makes the conversation more interesting is how much of this comes down to fit as much as talent. The Cavaliers are not just collecting names, they are trying to stitch together a group that can settle in quickly, build chemistry and avoid the kind of uneven stretches that can cost a team in the standings. If the pieces come together the way Cleveland believes they can, the path to finishing atop the Eastern Conference suddenly looks more real than it did when the summer began. [Read more 🡒]