After finishing the regular season with the best record in the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers were eliminated from the NBA Playoffs in five games by the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. During the Cavs’ loss, one of the big storylines was the injury to Darius Garland.
While taking part in a celebrity softball game over the weekend with some of his Cavs teammates, Darius Garland provided a mini-update on how his injury rehab is going, as per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
“I feel great. The recovery process is going well. But I’m here for my foundation,” Garland said. “I’m here to spread some positivity around the city of Cleveland and trying to have a good time. I’ve always love baseball, so I tried to make it a little bit competitive and kind of friendly as well. It’s my first one so I’m kind of nervous, but I hope it’s going to be really cool and everybody really enjoys themselves.”
Cavs fans will certainly like the update that Garland provided. Garland initially suffered the toe injury during the regular season, and he played through it during the playoffs. He was sidelined for the final two games of the Miami Heat series and the first two games of the Pacers series.
Following the Cavs’ elimination, he underwent successful surgery and could miss the start of the 2025-26 season as he continues his rehab.
Garland has emerged as one of the top young point guards in the NBA. He was named to his second All-Star appearance and appeared in a career-high 75 games. He averaged 20.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 1.2 steals with splits of 47.2 percent shooting from the field, 40.1 percent shooting from the three-point line and 87.8 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
During the playoffs, Garland averaged 18.0 points, 2.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists with splits of 42 percent shooting from the field, 28.6 percent shooting from the three-point line and 91.7 percent shooting from the free-throw line. It was clear during the postseason that Garland’s injury affected his play.
But with Garland expected to make a full recovery, and a good core in place, the Cavs are poised to be one of the top teams again what’s shaping up to be a wide-open Eastern Conference.
