The Cleveland Cavaliers wouldn't have beaten the Minnesota Timberwolves without Darius Garland's vintage performance.
There’s been plenty of reasons for the Cleveland Cavaliers’ underwhelming season thus far, but one of them has been Darius Garland’s inconsistency on the floor. It’s not necessarily his fault, considering the guard is still working and playing through the toe injury, which required offseason surgery.
The good news is that DG is increasingly looking like the two-time All-Star he is, as shown in Cleveland's latest victory.
In the Wine and Gold’s 146-134 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday, Garland finished with 22 points, while shooting 76 percent (10-for-13) from the floor. It just wasn’t the shooting that stood out; Garland also logged six assists on the night, and did so without recording one turnover.
Jan 10, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) drives to the basket against Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27) during the first half at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn ImagesEven Kenny Atkinson admitted that, without that version of Garland, the Cavaliers likely don't beat Minnesota.
DG did a tremendous job attacking the basket and the T-Wolves’ big men, especially Rudy Gobert, to step up, creating more opportunities for Garland’s teammates.
When Garland has the defenders off balance and is able to penetrate the paint, Atkinson stressed, “That’s huge for us.”
In Cleveland’s win over Minnesota, Garland routinely had Gobert off balance and was knocking down his signature floater, which helped him regain the elite status he had before the injury. The more Garland does this, the more the rest of the offense will open up for the Cavaliers.
“I just have great empathy for him coming back from this injury, and we’re seeing flashes,” said Cleveland’s head coach. “We’re seeing more flashes. Tonight [against the Timberwolves] might have been his best flash that I’ve seen because of the change of direction and getting the mismatch, and just obliterating the mismatch.
From the playmaking to driving to the basket and the scoring, this was an all-around vintage performance from Darius Garland. Cleveland’s head coach knows this is the player they’ll need on a nightly basis if the Cavaliers are going to reach their ceiling as a team.
Atkinson stressed, “We need him to be elite. We need him to be that All-Star level for us; make that jump this year.”