All-Star Break Awards: Is Darius Garland or Donovan Mitchell the squad MVP?

Most Improved: Evan Mobley

Runner Up: Isaac Okoro

It’s hard to argue who deserves the Most Improved winner, as both Evan Mobley and Isaac Okoro have staked their claim to the award. Okoro, notorious for being a poor shooter, is averaging nearly 50% from the floor, 48.9 to be exact, and nearly 35% from three-point (34.6%). This is on par with what he did last season, but he’s doing it in more important moments, at least that’s how it seems.

There should also be a point of reference that he was terrible to start the year and dragged his season averages down to pathetically low numbers. So these numbers are significantly more impressive, as he’s rebounded wonderfully from his poor start. If only his last 30 games counted for his seasonal average, he’d be posting career highs.

As for Mobley, his stats aren’t what’s impressive, it’s his impact and his aggression. Mobley is a lot like Tim Duncan in the fact that he won’t be a guy who gets overly dramatic on the court. He’s very even keel, so when we talk aggression, we don’t mean emotionally. Instead, Mobley has taken it upon himself to be more forceful on the court, and attack the basket not just from the paint, but from the elbow, the free throw line, and even the three-point line. He’s become the team’s third-most-used shooter, and could easily supplant Darius Garland as second if he were given more touches. But he isn’t the kind of guy who demands such things, making him an amazing teammate.

That’s why Mobley gets the nod, due to his improved demeanor towards attacking the basket.