Entering play today, the Cleveland Cavaliers sit at 30-21, which is good for fifth place in the Eastern Conference.
However, since the start of 2023, the Cavaliers have traded wins and losses, going 7-7 so far this month while navigating several injuries.
But when the Cavaliers are 100 percent, they have proven just how dangerous of a team they can be several times.
While ultimately, the Wine and Gold will win and lose as a team, there have been some instances of game-changing performances by several members of the Cavaliers so far this season.
We’ll start first with Cleveland’s fourth-year point guard Darius Garland.
Garland’s eruption
As crazy as this is to say, Garland is flying largely under the radar this season. The obvious answer to why that is happening is because Donovan Mitchell was added in the offseason.
Garland is averaging a career-best 22 points per game and is averaging 8.1 assists per game, which currently ranks fifth in the entire league.
While Garland has taken his play to another level this month, averaging nearly 24 points and nine assists per game, his best performance came earlier in the season.
On a Sunday evening at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the Cavaliers faced off against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Cleveland came into the matchup unbeaten at home but was coming off a West Coast road trip and was also without Donovan Mitchell.
Garland had to shoulder a lot of the offensive load that night, but going into the fourth quarter, Cleveland found themselves down 20 points.
Entering the final 12 minutes, Garland did everything he could to bring Cleveland back. He played all 12 minutes, shot 8-of-16 from the floor, including 6-of-10 from beyond the arc for 27 points.
Despite the Cavaliers coming up short in their comeback effort, seeing Garland’s will to lead his team back was encouraging. It was almost a reminder of what he could do on the offensive end of the floor.