After the Cleveland Cavaliers win over the Washington Wizards on Sunday, Donovan Mitchell took the opportunity to back his teammate Darius Garland against some criticism on social media.
Mitchell was being a good teammate, no question about that, although most of the criticism that comes on social media should probably be ignored by NBA players. Ours included.
There is a difference though in criticizing Garland’s play and thinking the Cavaliers might just be better exchanging him for another player.
Garland is a very good player. He’s made an all-star team and has been a starter since his rookie season, and the last three of those five years, the Cavs have been a pretty good team.
In 2021-22, he scored 21.7 points and dished out 8.6 assists, shooting 46.2% from the floor, 38.3% from three. Last season, playing his first season with Mitchell as a backcourt mate, he scored 21.6 points and had 7.8 assists. He also raised his percentage from behind the arc to 41%.
He’s always been a bit turnover prone, averaging 3.6 in his all-star year, but did improve to 2.9 a year ago. Remember, he does have the ball in his hand a lot. Our biggest issue is when he penetrates, he loses the ball too easily as it is knocked out of his hands.
However, in spite of the statistical success Garland and Mitchell had a year ago, the Cavs were handled quite easily in their playoff series against the Knicks losing in five games.
We thought it would be a very difficult matchup for Cleveland because of the physicality the Knicks bring every night, and also because we have our doubts about trying to win with two starting guards that are under 6’3″.
This season, it’s been a bit of a struggle for Garland. His scoring has dropped to 18.2 points and his three-point shooting has dipped to 34% thus far.
Early in the year, when Garland missed four games, the Cavs struggled, going 1-3. When he broke his jaw in December, he missed 19 more contests, but this time the wine and gold went 15-4.
The ball was put in Mitchell’s hands and the team and offense flourished. To be fair, when Garland returned, the Cavs kept rolling, winning the first seven games he appeared in and nine of twelve overall.
Again, we want to remind you that there is no question here that Garland is a very good NBA player. But in basketball, it’s not just talent that succeeds, it is how the players fit and play off each other.
And there is also the nasty part…the defensive end.
One of the issues with the smallish backcourt is defense. There is no question it is tougher to guard someone two or three inches taller than you, especially if you have a slight build, which Garland has.
Last year, coach J.B. Bickerstaff tried to have Garland check Knicks’ guard Jalen Brunson in the playoffs. It was a mismatch. Brunson just overpowered him, and he’s listed as just one inch taller.
Put all those things in the mix and it may be Garland isn’t a good fit in Cleveland if Donovan Mitchell decides to sign a contract extension.
The big word in that last sentence? “If”.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 