Ever since he got here into the league, the evolution Darius Garland has all the time flown below the radar. Regardless of solely enjoying 5 video games in faculty, Garland was nonetheless chosen within the high 5 by the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was one of many worst gamers within the league his rookie 12 months, which led to folks writing him off.
That was till he burst onto the scene in 2022, incomes his first All-Star look and main the Cavs again to relevancy within the Jap Convention panorama. It prompted Cleveland to commerce for Donovan Mitchell to pair him with Garland, a partnership that had its highs, but additionally had its lows.
Given the essential nature of this season for the Cavs, they traded Garland away to the Clippers for James Harden. Whereas LA was capable of acquire a younger participant to guide their reset, there’s one caveat to the younger level guard.
As nice as Darius Garland is, his damage points are a priority
Garland was an All-Star once more final season, however the finish of his Cavs tenure was outlined by damage. From a damaged jaw in 2024 to getting toe surgical procedure final offseason, Garland’s damage points popped up on the worst occasions.
Cleveland seemed properly on their strategy to dominating the East playoffs, till Garland injured his toe in recreation two towards Miami. It left the Cavs weak within the backcourt towards the Pacers, resulting in Mitchell breaking down and Indiana took full benefit.
Probably the most regarding half is that Garland obtained toe surgical procedure within the offseason and that very same toe has bothered him this season. He re-aggravated it upon his return early within the season after which final month, sprained his different toe.
When the Clippers formally acquired him, they mentioned that he’s nonetheless recovering from the offseason surgical procedure and need to make sure that he’s one hundred pc when he returns once more.
Nonetheless, regardless of his damage issues, Garland remains to be one of many extra underrated level guards within the league. He’s environment friendly across the rim due to his floater, his shifty deal with permits him to dissect defenses at a excessive degree, and his passing IQ opens up the ground for everybody offensively. He’s additionally nonetheless 26 years previous, so he has a variety of high-level play forward of him.
Garland has two extra years left on his contract. Even when his damage issues linger, LA didn’t lose rather a lot within the course of. Harden is 36-years previous and remains to be enjoying at a high-level, however the Clippers didn’t have a protracted runway with him. This was a worthy swing to take for LA. Younger all-star level guards are usually not accessible on a regular basis.
