Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley was named to the 2023 Rising Stars team for the second straight year, according to the Athletic senior lead NBA insider Shams Charania.
The second-year Cavs forward is averaging 15.2 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game for the Cavaliers, starting in every one of the 50 games he has played in. Mobley recently earned the 1,000th rebound of his career in Friday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, becoming the first Cavs player to record 1,000 rebounds before his 21st birthday since LeBron James.
Evan Mobley will join a pool of 27 other NBA players that includes nine other NBA sophomores, 11 NBA rookies and seven G-League players, according to the NBA. The 21 NBA players, who were selected by NBA assistant coaches, will be drafted into three seven-player teams, while the seven G-League players will make up a fourth team of their own. The teams will face one another in a three-game mini-tournament.
The three teams will be drafted by honorary head coaches Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah and Deron Williams. All teams will play to a final target score. The two semi-final games will be up to 40, while the championship game will be capped at 25.
Both Evan Mobley and Cavs forward Isaac Okoro made the Rising Stars team last season. Mobley and Okoro were both selected to Team Barry, the tournament-winning team with Phoenix Suns assistant Bryan Gates as the team’s head coach and former Golden State Warriors Hall-of-Fame forward Rick Barry as an honorary coach. Mobley scored five points, grabbed three rebounds and blocked one shot in the championship game, while Okoro dished two assists. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham was named the tournament’s MVP after he totaled 18 points, seven rebounds, nine assists and two steals in both games of the tournament.
All three games of the mini tournament will be played at 9 p.m. EST on Feb. 17 in Vivint Arena.