4 Cleveland Cavaliers who need to bounce back next season

No. 3: Darius Garland

Darius Garland‘s breakout 2021-2022 season served as a catalyst for the Cavaliers to make the blockbuster Donovan Mitchell trade. Though Garland had been terrific, the Cavaliers still missed the NBA Playoffs at the hands of Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks in the Play-In Tournament. Cleveland recognized the talent Garland displayed and did not hesitate to bolster the team by getting a star next to DG.

Against the Knicks, Darius Garland seemed to have forgotten what made him an All-Star the year prior. He showed no aggression in scoring and never took command of the series outside of his 32-point Game 2 performance. At his best, you cannot help but be enamored with the stupendous innate talent Garland has. His signature hop forward after a dagger three-pointer never gets old.

Against the Hawks in the 2022 Play-In loss, Garland shot 33.3% from the field on 27 attempts. With nine assists, Garland also turned over the ball five times.

Not to harp on the young star, but Garland’s regular season talent has not followed into the postseason yet in his career. If the Cavs were still a Play-In team with no expectations of a deep run, his struggles would be more excusable. The Cavaliers would be playing against the best teams in the East if they made it past the Play-In.

That’s not the reality the Cavs have, though. They held home court advantage with a 51-31 regular season record. Darius Garland earned the full five-year, $231 million contract extension available to him. With so much money linked to the Cavs core and their success, Garland will need to prove himself beyond the 82-game season. He’s clearly capable of this, too. He has a killer mentality and has shown that at times. He will just need to find a way to harness that each and every series.