Review of the Cleveland Cavaliers season: Darius Garland
After a season marred by injuries and a disappointing postseason showing, Garland and the Cavs find themselves in a difficult situation.
It was a difficult season for Darius Garland. The former All-Star suffered through injuries and personal challenges that affected his output on the court throughout the year, so much so that the shine has seemingly come off and his future with the Cleveland Cavaliers is now in question. While there were some moments of “wow”, there were many more that left fans scratching their heads.
Garland suffered a broken jaw in a December 15th game against the Boston Celtics, an injury that would require his mouth to be wired shut. That means, for a sizable portion of the season, he was restricted to a liquid diet. Garland also has an uncanny ability to get hacked at seemingly more so than usual, resulting in blows to the face and his hands. But before the jaw injury, Garland was getting hot with at least 22 points in four of five games. Then it ended with an errant Kristaps Porzingis flail.
It is certain that the injuries, especially to his jaw, had some affect on his playing, even though it is unclear just how much. Garland was reaching the line about five times every game before to the injury. He made just over two free throw attempts on average after coming back. It would make sense that he would be reluctant to drive to the rim with bigs trying to stop him, especially since he was on a liquid diet that probably caused him to lose weight and muscle. After the injury, he had a lower shooting % overall and scored less points per game on average. While it was depressing to observe from the outside, Garland was also undoubtedly frustrated.
