When Collin Sexton went down with a knee injury in early November of last year, it seemed like any hope for the Cleveland Cavaliers‘ 2021-2022 season quickly vanished. However, while Sexton’s injury is nothing to be happy about in any way whatsoever, it did help the Cavaliers discover just how good Darius Garland is, with him as the obvious catalyst for the team.
The former Vanderbilt Commodore averaged over 20 points per game last season, while also dishing out over 8.5 assists per game. On top of that Garland was selected to his first All-Star game, and could definitely be primed for another All-Star campaign to come in 2022-23. With all that being said, we can look back fondly on Garland’s 2021-2022 season, but it’s time to take a look at what we should be expecting from the third-year guard this coming season.
When Garland took over for Sexton as the team’s primary ball-handler, instantly he looked like a great fit. With his good attitude, and never-ending motor, he’s a great player to build a team around. He also connected on nearly 39% of his three-point attempts this past season. But, the biggest area of improvement for the young guard was in the playmaking department. After averaging only five assists per game in his first two seasons for the Cavaliers, this past year he upped that total to 8.6.
Cleveland made huge strides this past season. Evan Mobley was a revelation on both ends of the court, the move for Lauri Markkanen proved to be a good one, and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff got his team to buy into his philosophy.
Now, though, more should be expected of Garland this season, so let’s take a look at two goals he should be looking to achieve in 2022-23.