Clevelands Mobley Takes Center Stage as 2024-25 NBA Defensive Player of the Year

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Evan Mobley, the versatile forward-center for the Cleveland Cavaliers, has been honored with the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy as the 2024-25 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year.

This marks Mobley’s inaugural achievement as the Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year in his fourth season in the league. Standing at 7 feet tall, he becomes the first player in Cavaliers history to receive this prestigious award.

At just 23 years old, Mobley is the fifth individual to earn the title of Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year at this age, following in the footsteps of Alvin Robertson (1985-86), Dwight Howard (2008-09), Kawhi Leonard (2014-15), and Jaren Jackson Jr. (2022-23). Notably, no player younger than 23 has ever won this accolade, which has been awarded annually since the 1982-83 season.

Cleveland Cavaliers forward-center Evan Mobley has been awarded the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy as the 2024-25 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year. pic.twitter.com/kCr4glI9Hg

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 24, 2025

During the 2024-25 regular season, Mobley ranked sixth in the league for blocked shots per game, averaging 1.59, and secured the 13th spot for defensive rebounds, pulling down 7.0 per game. He contested an average of 10.4 shots per game, placing him third among players who appeared in at least 70% of their team’s games (58 out of 82).

When closely guarded by Mobley, opponents managed a field goal percentage of 44.5%, which is 3.2% below their anticipated shooting percentage of 47.7% on those attempts. This differential ranked fourth among 30 players who defended over 1,000 shots throughout the season.

Thanks to Mobley’s efforts, the Cavaliers finished eighth in the NBA in defensive rating (111.8) and third in opponents’ shooting percentage (45.4). With him on the floor, Cleveland achieved a remarkable defensive rating of 108.6, which would rank second in the league.

Mobley also garnered the Kia NBA Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month honors twice, in December and February, and made his first appearance as an NBA All-Star.

Throughout the season, he averaged 18.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists over 30.5 minutes across 71 games. His contributions were pivotal in leading the Cavaliers (64-18) to the second-best record in the franchise’s history and securing the top playoff seed in the Eastern Conference.

The 2024-25 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year was determined by a global panel of 100 voters, with the final votes compiled by the independent auditing firm Ernst & Young LLP. Complete voting results are available below.