The Cleveland Cavaliers became a Eastern Conference powerhouse because of Darius Garland's rise to stardom, but the next phase of Cavs contention has to be without him.
Cleveland faced another harsh, embarrassing defeat in the second round of the NBA Playoffs, falling to a gentleman's sweep against the underdog Indiana Pacers. Though the Pacers have made a fool of every eastern rival this postseason, their dismantling of the Cavs stands out as a painful reminder that this Cleveland club is still far too easily exposed in the playoffs.
Even after 64 wins and two players named to the All-NBA roster, the Cavs made no recognizable improvements in the playoffs and ended with the same result as a year prior. Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley were the only Cavs who showed reliable playoff execution, but the second half of Cleveland's core four was forgettable at best.
Garland's injury bug returned at the end of the regular season, and a serious toe injury sidelined him when the Cavs needed him most. Though injuries cannot be blamed on the player, the Cavaliers are at an impasse with the All-Star guard who ignited the current era. Despite his offensive brilliance and genius court vision, the Cavaliers cannot ignore his constant negative defensive impact any longer.
Garland's defense is a problem the Cavs cannot hide
During Garland's playoff absence, the Cavs' offense halted and proved the value he brings on that end of the court. Cleveland became reliant on isolation plays by Mitchell, rarely swinging the ball around any longer. It became a predictable mess, and though Garland's return helped raise the Cavaliers' passing, their offense was still forced away from the team-oriented, fluid structure coach Kenny Atkinson installed this season.
Defensively, however, Garland's returned proved he still is a severe negative impact, and that fact is making his trade inevitable. Whether the Cavs make the painful decision this summer or in the future, Cleveland cannot ignore the undeniable truth of Garland's bad defense.
In a vacuum, an offensive maestro point guard with little defensive upside is not a death blow to a team. For the Cavs, though, the backcourt rotation lacks any real defensive solutions, and Garland is by far the worst defender. Alongside Mitchell, Cleveland's perimeter defense is an abhorrent downside.
With Garland on the floor, the Cavaliers defense takes a significant fall off. This regular season, opponents scored 5.2 more points per 100 possessions with Garland was present than when he was on the bench, per Cleaning the Glass (subscription required). Over his three playoff berths with the Cavs, his defensive box plus/minus sits at -0.3 with this year being his worst at -2.4 in five games. This poor defensive impact made him exactly 0.0 on his value over replacement score in the playoffs, 0.2 worse than his first NBA playoffs.
As the Cavaliers lean into Evan Mobley's development and offensive leadership, Garland's presence has shifted into an obstacle rather than a boost. This postseason, Garland was Mobley's second-worst teammate in net rating with a shocking a -11.3 net rating over 105 minutes played together. Last year, Mobley and Garland had a -5.5 net rating through 356 playoff minutes logged with each other. In the 2023 playoffs, it was only 0.7, hardly making it past a flat 0.0 net rating.
This year's playoff struggles can be attributed to injury, and last year's regular season injuries seriously prevented Garland from being an X-Factor in the playoffs. Still, the continuous negative defense proves the Cavaliers backcourt is not built for playoff success. Until the Cavs invest in complementary players around Mitchell and Mobley, Cleveland is bound to face playoff embarrassments every year.
Darius Garland is one of the NBA's most talented offensive point guards. His three-point shooting, quickness, ball handling and crafty passing can make anyone better on the right team. Unfortunately, the Cavaliers have constructed a roster that cannot survive with both Garland and Mitchell any longer. As Cleveland eyes an NBA Finals run, trading Garland for a depth and a two-way playmaking guard is becoming a glaring necessity.