1 realistic and 1 lofty expectation for Cavs’ Darius Garland in 2022-23

Throughout the first two years of his career, you could say that Darius Garland was a bit of a mystery. The fifth overall pick from the 2019 draft only played four full games for Vanderbilt before suffering a knee injury that would keep him out his entire freshman season. However, the injury didn’t slow him down, and he declared for the draft after a small amount of time in college basketball. The Cleveland Cavaliers made him the fifth pick of what many viewed as a 2-3 player draft.

During his rookie season with the Cavaliers, he struggled out of the gates. He only averaged just over 12 points per game, and dished out less than four assists per game. On top of that, he only shot 40% from the field, and 35% from three-point range. According to some advanced statistics experts, Garland was actually the worst player in the entire league during his freshman campaign in the NBA. Cleveland.com reporter Chris Fedor had this to say about Garland’s rookie season:

"Garland was last in Win Shares, Value Over Replacement Player and ESPN’s Real Plus-Minus — a player’s estimated on-court impact on team performance, measured in net point differential per 100 offensive and defensive possessions that also takes into account teammates, opponents and other additional factors.”"

The former Vanderbilt guard had a more solid role and played better during his sophomore campaign with the Cavaliers. He upped his scoring average by 5.1 points to 17.4, and handed out over six assists per game. By the time the 2021-2022 season came around, Cavalier fans were expecting a much improved Garland. Well, to make a long story short, he came through.

Garland finished this past season scoring 21.7 points per game, and dishing out nearly nine assists per game. He was doing this with teammate Collin Sexton sidelined for most of the season with a knee injury. Garland thrived this past year on being the offensive leader, and player that the Cavs look to when they need a bucket. Hell, he even was selected to his first All-Star Game this past season, and it was played in Cleveland.

With all that being said, I think it’s time we start expecting a little bit more from Garland. Sure, he made a huge third-year leap to become a star, and led the Cavs to the play-in tournament, but he still has the ability to kick it into another gear. Last year he introduced himself as one of the best young point guards in the NBA, but he can accomplish even more.

So with pretty much everything on the table, let’s set one reasonable expectation for Garland, and a lofty one for next season.