You know the feeling of that first warm day after a long winter? How, even if you don't mind the cold, you realize how much seeing the sun again is enough for your entire mood to shift? Darius Garland experienced something like that when the Cleveland Cavaliers traded him and a second-round pick to the Clippers for James Harden.
As he told Andscape's Marc J. Spears, he called his mother the first morning that he woke up in Los Angeles as a Clipper and told her, "This is the first time I've seen sun in February." Garland said that seeing that shining ball of light in the sky again "instantly" changed his mood. He awoke earlier than usual and enjoyed some sunlight before going to practice.
Winters are just a little different in LA than they are in Cleveland. Garland is enjoying the warm weather with highs in the upper 70s, while those in Ohio are still bracing the below-freezing temps and snow.
He didn't request a trade, and as he told Spears, he was "kind of skeptical" at first when he learned he was going to the Clippers, but it didn't take him long to realize the pros of moving to the West Coast (outside of just being there for the summer) for reasons that didn't have to do with the on-the-court stuff.
Darius Garland is already enjoying living in LA after Cavaliers trade
The 26-year-old hasn't made his Clippers debut yet (he said he will play again "really, really soon), as he is still recovering from his toe issues, but he's excited about more than being in the sunshine in Los Angeles. He told Spears that "he's good with the change," referring to the trade, and is looking forward to playing alongside Kawhi Leonard and having the ball in his hands "damn near 99 percent of the time."
Meanwhile, Harden is growing accustomed to being back on the East Coast for the first time in a couple of years, but the winter doesn't seem to be bothering him much. The 36-year-old star is off to a good start with the Cavaliers and is looking a lot like the missing piece they needed. Fans will have to wait and see how things play out come postseason time, but so far, so good.
This could turn out to be a win-win trade for both sides, though Garland may change his tune on LA a bit if the Clippers are hit with the kind of punishment that could be headed their way over the Aspiration and Kawhi scandal. The sun might choose to hide behind the clouds in Los Angeles when that day comes.
For now, though, Garland likes his new home, and Cavaliers fans should be able to understand that after these last couple of months of cold weather.