The Cleveland Cavaliers are off to one of the best starts to a season in NBA history, and a healthy and confident Darius Garland is a big reason why.
The Cavs have begun their 2024-25 season with 15 consecutive victories, just the fourth team in NBA history to achieve such a mark. With a win over Boston on Tuesday, they could move into second on the all-time list, behind only the single season record holders for wins, the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors, who started 24-0 on the way to a 73-9 finish.
Behind the outstanding play of the Cavs has been their backcourt duo of Garland and fellow All-Star Donovan Mitchell. Both are averaging better than 20 points per game. Garland, a Bradley Beal Elite alum, is on pace to match or exceed career-highs setting during his 2021-22 All-Star campaign.
Through 15 games, Garland is averaging 21.4 points, 7.0 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. He’s also shooting at a remarkable clip, knocking down 52.5 percent of his shots from the field and 45.5 percent from three, both marks exceeding his career averages by about 7 percent. Darius credits new Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson with giving him the confidence to fire at will that has allowed the shooting prowess he always knew was there to flourish.
“He wants me to shoot as many 3s as I can,” Garland said before the season. “He wants me to get up to eight to 10 3s a game. He wants me to shoot all the open ones, shoot ’em with confidence. He told me, be free, play my game, play with the joy I always had.”
Joy was hard to come by for Darius last season as injuries — including a fractured jaw that completely undid his equilibrium — limited him to just 57 games played and he averaged under 20 points per game for the first time since his sophomore season.
“Last year, we know he went through something crazy that none of us have experienced, and you can see that his game took a dip,” Cavs center Jarrett Allen said recently. “It’s hard for anybody to go through that.”
But with a fresh start and a head coach game planning to his strengths, Darius has excelled as the Cavs have raced to the top of the East.
“It doesn’t surprise me because of the talent and the smarts and what a great passer he is and good decision-maker,” Atkinson said. “He’s got the shot. He’s got everything. He’s a complete, complete point guard.”
Teammates have long said Darius is underrated.
Asked recently if he agrees with that assessment, Garland admitted that the lack of acclaim he’s received over his first five NBA seasons doesn’t go unnoticed. In fact, it motivates him.
“Yeah, I feel underrated,” Garland told Yahoo Sports. “I don’t really get the credit that I deserve … but we’ll keep making strides in the right direction, keep growing and that’s how you move on.”
To read the full article from Yahoo! Sports, click here.
