“Fight on, Dribble on” is a weekly column by Joseph Domingot about how Trojans are performing in the NBA.
With only two full weeks until the conclusion of this turbulent NBA season, some former Trojans have picked up their form:
- Nikola Vucevic recorded his 41st double-double of the season against the Indiana Pacers on March 27, collecting 12 rebounds to go along with 22 points in a 26-point victory.
- Chimezie Metu logged his first two starts of the season, both in the past week. Against the New Orleans Pelicans, the current Detroit Piston scored 17 points and grabbed eight boards, but Detroit lost by 13.
- Jordan McLaughlin was hyper-efficient against the Cleveland Cavaliers, going 100% from the field to help the Minnesota Timberwolves to a crucial win for the team’s Western Conference seeding.
This week, two former Trojans we will examine and their recent stellar play in the last week of March.
Evan Mobley
The 2021 No. 3 overall pick returned to action this week after missing nine games with a sprained ankle. In his 41 starts this season, Mobley is averaging 15.5 points and 10 rebounds per game while winning 61% of the contests he appears in.
With the absence of All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, Mobley has been tasked with more of an offensive load when he steps on the hardwood. In contests when Mitchell missed action this season, Mobley has averaged 16 points per game despite his own hampering injuries throughout the season.
The Southern California native returned on March 24 against the Miami Heat. In his 21 minutes of action, the 22-year-old forward led his team with 15 points on only six shot attempts, including 2-2 from three-point range. However, he seemed to be the only bright spot for the Cavs, as the Heat blew out their conference rival by 37 points.
Mobley would prove his importance for Cleveland in his second game back against the Charlotte Hornets. The 2021 Pac-12 Player of the Year led the Cavaliers again in scoring with 17. He added eight assists and seven rebounds to steer the Cavaliers to a 115-92 victory.
In a back-to-back series against the Hornets, the Cavaliers traveled to Charlotte to finish off the week. Mobley, who was a candidate for Defensive Player of the Year last season, contributed in a well-rounded fashion yet again. He started the game off hot, scoring nine points in the first quarter. However, he would not make another field goal for the rest of the game, as the Hornets avenged their previous loss with 118-111 victory.
Mobley would finish with 10 points, six boards and six assists.
The Cavaliers and the Hornets will meet on the final day of the regular season, as Mobley and the Cavs hope to earn the No. 2 seed for the playoffs.
DeMar DeRozan
In his 15th NBA season, DeRozan is averaging 23.3 points and 5.3 dimes per contest. He has also been scarily clutch with the basketball in his hands. DeRozan is second in clutch time points per game in 2023-24 — only behind the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry.
With running mate Zach Lavine ruled out for the rest of the season, DeRozan has seen an increased scoring role in the past month, averaging about 27 points in March.
He and the Chicago Bulls began their week off against the No. 1 seed Boston Celtics on March 23. The former McDonald’s All-American was one assist shy of a double-double in his 42 minutes of action. However, the Bulls were not able to capitalize on DeRozan’s 28 points, as the Celtics found a hot streak late in the fourth quarter to win by 13.
From one side of the standings to the other, the Bulls faced off against the lowly Washington Wizards two nights later. DeRozan proved that he has the clutch gene yet again, scoring 14 of his 27 in the fourth quarter. The three-time All-NBA forward also recorded a season-high five steals. However, his efforts were in vain, resulting in another Chicago loss.
In the Bulls’ final game of the week — against their Central Division rival Indianapolis Pacers — DeRozan logged 27 points for the second consecutive game, including 11 in the fourth quarter. Along with six rebounds, the Bulls were able to halt their three-game losing streak in dominating fashion and beat the Pacers by 27.
The six-time All-Star — at 34 years old — currently leads the entire NBA in total minutes played at 2,669. DeRozan is second in minutes per game at 37.6 minutes, just behind the Hornets’ Miles Bridges.
The Compton native has the opportunity to surpass personal records for both total minutes played and minutes per game in a season.
In 2013-14, DeRozan averaged 38.6 minutes a night with the Toronto Raptors in 79 games. If he keeps his averages for the final stretch of the season, he will overtake both marks 10 years after setting those extraordinary averages. And, it looks like the Bulls will need him to stay on the court as the team makes a final push toward playoff contention.
“Fight on, Dribble on” runs every Friday.