Offense in the early hours of the morning. Continuous movement. Diverse sets. A high volume of 3s. Multiple uses.

The most noticeable change came with young forward Evan Mobley, who earlier in the day was ranked by NBA GMs in the annual 50-question survey as the player most likely to have a breakout season.

On the Cavs' first possession of the Atkinson era, Mobley was involved in several screening moves before finally receiving the ball from point guard Darius Garland in the low post. The 7-foot-tall Mobley decisively fended off his defender off the dribble and finished with a soft-touch floater in the paint.

It was just the beginning of Mobley's productive evening, which ended with a team-high 19 points on an extremely efficient 9 of 14 shooting, including 0 of 2 from 3-point range and 1 of 1 from the free throw line, six rebounds, three blocks and one assist in 19 powerful minutes. Mobley also led the Cavs in shot attempts.

“It was unbelievable,” Darius Garland said of Mobley. “That's what I expect from him. Really confident out there. He shot the treyball, went into the paint with a sense of urgency and was really aggressive. That’s what we need from him.”

About three months ago, shortly after Atkinson's arrival as JB Bickerstaff's successor, he promised to increase Mobley's effort and touches. The plan is to make Mobley the focal point of this restructured offense.

While this development may take time and there may be early growing pains as Mobley is used in a variety of ways that were not always part of his offensive package, there is a clear organizational commitment to fulfilling Mobley's infinite potential – the greatest of all time Factor that determines the ceiling of this franchise.

Tuesday night featured courtside dribbles, mid-range jumpers, two-handed floaters, dunks, layups and strong finishes through contact. Mobley seemed comfortable. He had the freedom to attack the defense aggressively early and initiate an offense from time to time – and took advantage of this larger role.

Led by Mobley, the Cavs got off to a great start. After the first five-minute stint with the scheduled opening lineup of Garland, Mobley, Max Strus, Jarrett Allen and Donovan Mitchell, the Cavs held a 19-12 lead. At the end of the first quarter, the faster Cavs had 31 points. They scored 67 points in the first half – a period in which both teams competed against their regular players.

Cleveland and Chicago opened the second half with mostly the same quintet that started the game (the Cavs were without small forward Max Strus, who suffered a bruised right hip and was out for the rest of the night).

About five minutes into the third quarter, with the offense stalling and shots continually bouncing off the rim, the Bulls cut Cleveland's lead to just one. A few minutes later, at 6:01 of the third quarter, Chicago took its first lead of the night. At that point, Atkinson gave his starters the rest of the game off and left things to the rest of the squad.

With Jaylon Tyson and two-way players JT Thor and Luke Travers leading a late-game push, the Cavs rallied from an eight-point deficit and had a chance for a game-winning 3-pointer. But Craig Porter Jr.'s attempt was partially blocked, the Bulls knocked down the rebound, made two free throws and the buzzer sounded.

Before the game, Atkinson spoke about experimenting and tinkering with lineups in the preseason. This time of year it's not about the bottom line. It's all about timing, rhythm and adjustments.

The most important development Tuesday night was Mobley's dominance – a remnant of what players, coaches and executives have been talking about all summer and in training camp.

“That’s the step,” Mitchell said when asked about Mobley’s performance. “I think he led us in scoring or whatever, but just in aggressiveness. Some nights he might come in and they might try to stop him from scoring, he'll hit it out there, but today he managed to get in the court, he's running the floor, controlling the basketball, and that's what we want to see from him. Continue to be aggressive and make the right play. We're looking forward to that and it will help us get to the next level.

“Tonight was the perfect example of what we expect from Ev.”

The game's first glimpse of the bigger, stronger, bearded and unleashed Mobley was exciting. But can it continue throughout the regular season?

Next

The Cavs will continue their four-game exhibition season on Thursday night, welcoming the Indiana Pacers to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. The meeting point is scheduled for 7 p.m