Should the Cleveland Cavaliers do this?
An NBA executive has urged the Cleveland Cavaliers to make a blockbuster trade.
The anonymous executive believes the Cavaliers should trade Darius Garland.
"I think they need to trade Darius," the executive told Roundtable. "That backcourt is too small with him and Donovan (Mitchell). I love the Lonzo (Ball) trade. If I were Kenny (Atkinson), I would start Lonzo, Donovan, De'Andre (Hunter), Evan (Mobley) and Jarrett (Allen) and trade Darius.
"Sacramento was interested in him before getting Dennis (Schroder) from Detroit. Maybe call them up and see if they want Darius for like Malik (Monk) and salary filler."
Garland (6'1") and Mitchell (6'3") are two small guards. It's hard to win in today's NBA with two players that small in the backcourt because offenses can put them in pick-and-roll actions and target them in the fourth quarter.
Ball is a really talented defender and tall (6'6"). He can be the Cavaliers' point-of-attack defender, which would allow Mitchell to save his energy for offense and wreak havoc on defenses.
Garland had surgery in the offseason to repair the left big toe injury that troubled him during the 2025 playoffs. He will miss the start of the 2025-26 regular season.
A two-time All-Star, Garland appeared in 75 games for Cleveland last season. He averaged 20.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 6.7 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.1 blocks while shooting 47.2% from the field, 40.1% from beyond the arc and 87.8% from the free-throw line.
The Cavaliers were the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference last season. They swept the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs but lost to the Indiana Pacers in the second round in five games.
Garland played in five games in the 2025 playoffs. He averaged 18.0 points, 2.2 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 0.4 steals while shooting 42.0% from the floor, 28.6% from 3 and 91.7% from the foul line.
The Cavaliers drafted Garland with the fifth overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. The 25-year-old has career averages of 18.9 points, 2.7 rebounds, 6.7 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.1 blocks in the NBA.
Garland doesn't have a no-trade clause in his contract, so he can't stop the Cavaliers from trading him if the franchise decides to take that route.