The Cleveland Cavaliers have picked up some steam of late, having won three of their last four games and their last two assignments, both against the Philadelphia 76ers in the City of Brotherly Love.
However, the Cavs are returning home for this coming Monday’s matchup against the reigning NBA champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, with some discouraging news on the injury front — particularly concerning star guard Darius Garland.
The former Vanderbilt Commodores star suffered a toe injury in the first game of the Cavs’ back-to-back set against Philly last Wednesday and did not see action the following day.
On Sunday, Cleveland announced that Garland, who will be turning 26 years old next week, is dealing with a Grade 1 right great toe sprain and will be re-evaluated in seven to 10 days.
Here’s the official announcement from the Cavs, via their official account on X, formerly Twitter:
“Cavaliers guard Darius Garland injured his right great toe on January 14 at Philadelphia. Further evaluation and imaging at Cleveland Clinic Sports Medicine on Saturday, revealed a Grade 1 right great toe sprain. Garland will be re-evaluated in seven to 10 days. During that evaluation period, Garland will undergo a series of treatment and rehabilitation and his status will be updated as appropriate.”
Garland’s absence makes winning harder for Cleveland, which enters the Oklahoma City game with a 24-19 record. With Sam Merrill also ruled out for the Thunder game with an injury, Donovan Mitchell will be counted upon even more by the Cavs in the backcourt and in scoring.
Garland is averaging 18.0 points, 6.9 assists and 2.4 rebounds per game, while shooting 45.1 percent from the field, so far in the 2025-26 NBA regular season