The Cleveland Cavaliers fans held their breath for a moment during their latest matchup against the Washington Wizards as Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell suffered injuries. At the beginning of the third quarter, Mitchell injured his right shoulder and left the game for a minute, but came into the game. Afterward, Mitchell shared an update on the injury.
“There’s a reason why I don’t play football,” Mitchell said via Cavs reporter Chris Fedor. “At the end of the day, it was one of those moments where in the moment it’s scary. But we’re all good.”
Later in that third quarter, Garland got hit in the back of the head and laid on the floor for two possessions. Garland ended up walking to the locker room and didn’t return to the game. Head coach Kenny Atkinson provided an update on Garland after the game.
“He looked fine in the locker room,” Atkinson said. “Doesn’t look like anything that’ll hold him out. He gave me the thumbs up, and I don’t think he’ll miss any time at all. I think he’s fine.”
Both updates seem to be positive, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Mitchell and Garland were available in the Cavs’ next game against the Denver Nuggets.
Cavs continue to stay atop Eastern Conference
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After back-to-back losses to the Atlanta Hawks, the Cavs were looking to get back on track, and that’s what they did. They handled business against the Boston Celtics at home, as they’ve been slowly creeping up on them in the standings.
The Celtics tried to do their best to get Darius Garland switched on them so they could take advantage of him since he’s smaller in size, but the Cavs guard wasn’t bothered and held his own. Kenny Atkinson also let it be known that Garland had to take the challenge.
“I’m going to take that challenge whenever it is,” Garland said after the game. “I’m no punk. So if y’all want to switch and to x me out and try to just hunt me out, that’s cool. I ain’t no punk, though. I’m gonna take a challenge.”
“This goes back to me watching the playoffs last year, and, you know, I think they did different things to hide him,” Atkinson said. “My point to Darius [was], ‘We’re not hiding you. You’re good enough. Accept the challenge. You’re smart enough.’ Because I think when you start doing the tricky stuff, these teams are too good. You gotta be able to switch. And if he’s gonna play at the end of games, he’s gotta be able to switch.”
The Cavs then handled business against the Wizards despite the injuries they had throughout the game. With them being at the top of the conference, teams will be looking to give them their best shot every night, but they look to be prepared for whatever comes their way.
