By james art Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell heaped praise on teammate Darius Garland for his play this season and in the team’s win over the New York Knicks on Monday night.
“I just want everybody who’s been on this side to stay on this side when it comes to him,” Mitchell said of Garland. “I don’t want it to be a shift. you know what I mean I think he said the same thing in an interview or something.
“That’s who he is. There are times in your career where you have years like that. And obviously he was going through things personally and different things that you have to understand.
Garland finished Monday’s game with 34 points on 12-of-19 shooting (5-for-8 from 3), three rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks in a 110-104 win over New York.
After two season-opening lows (seven points against Toronto and 13 points against Detroit), Garland scored 57 points in his last two games.
Garland’s strong performance against New York is the bright side for the Cavs after he had a bit of a down year in the 2023-24 campaign.
Mitchell said it was difficult for Garland to come in and out of the lineup last season (Garland played in just 57 games) and that the team preached to the guard to have confidence in himself.
“Just be confident,” Mitchell said. “We’ve been preaching that to him since I got here. And that’s who he is. That was him when he was called upon.
Mitchell didn’t stop there, praising Garland for the way he plays on the defensive side of the ball.
“The biggest thing for me is — his defensive effort is the biggest thing. 34 points, yes he does. I don’t really trip over it. But being able to slide your feet, get into the spots, be there. These are the things we all feed on.
“He was phenomenal. He will continue to be that person. But I definitely want to continue and I know there’s only four games left in the season but he’s going to keep playing like that and I’d like everyone who said he can’t hang in there.”
Garland now has five steals and two blocks in four games, and the Cavs are off to a quick 4-0 start in the 2024-25 season.
Last season, Garland averaged 18.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game while shooting 44.6 percent from the field and 37.1 percent from beyond the arc. He’s already scoring the ball more efficiently this season, averaging 19.3 points per game while shooting 54.7 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from beyond the arc.
Mitchell and the Cavs clearly want to see the former lottery pick continue to thrive as the 2024-25 season continues. Cleveland will face the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday as they look to get to 5-0.