After the Cleveland Cavs defeated the Atlanta Hawks 137-115, their social media page trolled the Hawks on X, formerly Twitter. On the night Cavs guard Darius Garland received his second All-Star selection, his 26 points led Cleveland to victory. Then, Atlanta took a jab at Cleveland.
The Cavs took a shot at the Hawks logo via their X, formerly Twitter page.
“We prefer cardinals over hawks here in Ohio,” the account posted accompanied by a picture of a W inside a bird’s nest.
Cavs All-Star Donovan Mitchell finished with 24 points and six assists, and Cavs All-Star Evan Mobley added 16 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, one block, and one steal in the win. Mobley and Garland were announced as All-Star reserves for next month’s star-studded event in San Francisco. It’s the fourth time in franchise history that the Cavs have three All-Star selections.
The last time it happened was in 2017 when LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love were all selected.
Darius Garland’s immediate reaction to second All-Star selection
David Richard-Imagn Images
Cavs guard Darius Garland received the second All-Star selection of his career. After former Warriors assistant turned Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson made a Stephen Curry comparison to Garland, Darius was announced alongside forward Evan Mobley as the third All-Star that will represent The Land.
After beating the Hawks, Garland, who missed many games in 2023-24 due to a fractured jaw, discussed what the selection means to him.
“I wasn’t expecting it, but I’m glad it happened. It means a lot to me. This time last year, I wasn’t even talking. I wasn’t eating,” Garland said. “Just to be here, I’m super blessed. It means a lot to me and the team. I mean, this is a team award. Had a great start. A 15-0 start. Now, we’re here. Now, we’re All-Stars.”
Atkinson shared his thoughts on how he sees similarities between Garland and Curry, per Cleveland.com’s Ethan Stands.
“To me, that’s probably, as a star status, a superstar status is being able to do it both ends. And that was the Steph physical improvement we saw,” Atkinson said. “[We] saw the pictures of Steph when he was young. I know when I was with him in ’22, you couldn’t pick on him. He could guard [Jayson] Tatum. He could guard Jaylen Brown. You could switch with him. He could hold his own and then do it on the other end.
“That’s gonna be Darius. And that’s what he’s doing right now with his habits and how he’s getting stronger.”
The Cavs will host the Mavericks on Saturday.
