A critical update has been offered on Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland’s return.
“Sources tell cleveland.com that Garland, whose initial injury timeline had him set for reevaluation about a month after suffering the injury, is hopeful to return before the end of January,” wrote Cavs insider Chris Fedor.
“However, his eventual availability will be predicated on a number of unpredictable factors. Sources say Garland is scheduled to have the wiring removed from his mouth on Monday — ahead of Cleveland’s home game against the Chicago Bulls and exactly one month since the potentially season-altering announcement. If all goes well with his check-up, he will then return to basketball-related activities.
“Over the last month, sources say Garland hasn’t been able to workout at all, with team doctors not allowing him to get his heart rate up as a result of the injury. Because of that — and an all-liquid diet that he started to get used to thanks to blended smoothies out of a straw — sources say Garland will need at least a week to ramp up and get back into playing shape.”
Garland has been sidelined for the Cavaliers since suffering a fractured jaw back on Dec. 14, when he finished with 19 points and three assists in 36 minutes of playing time against the Boston Celtics. The guard suffered the injury after colliding with Celtics star Kristaps Porzingis.
In 20 appearances with the Cavaliers so far in the 2023-24 regular season, Garland is averaging 20.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game while shooting 47.0 percent from the field and 34.6 percent from outside the 3-point arc.
The 23-year-old’s absence hasn’t stopped the Cavaliers from playing great basketball of late. Over its past 10 games, Cleveland owns an impressive 7-3 record.
To sweeten the deal, the Cavaliers have won four straight games. During their winning streak, they have beaten the Washington Wizards twice as well as the San Antonio Spurs and Brooklyn Nets.
Donovan Mitchell came up big for the Cavaliers in their most recent win against the Nets on Thursday. Across 41 minutes of action, he dropped 45 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and four steals while shooting 15-of-30 from the floor and 4-of-12 from behind the 3-point line.
Caris LeVert had a notable performance against the Nets as well, considering he scored 21 points in 35 minutes off the Cleveland bench. He also contributed three rebounds, one assist, one steal and two blocks.
As for the opposition, Cam Thomas scored 26 points off the bench for Brooklyn.
The Cavaliers will have a few days off before their next game. They will take on the Bulls at home on Monday with the objective of extending their winning streak to five games.
At 18-21, the Bulls have been a competitive but beatable team in the Eastern Conference so far this season. They picked up an overtime victory in their most recent game against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.
Considering the Cavaliers have been playing arguably their best basketball of the season over the past few weeks combined with the injury update on Garland, fans of the Cavaliers have a lot to be excited about at this point in time.
