By james art The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the New York Knicks 110-104 on Monday night to improve their record to a perfect 4-0 on the season.
Darius Garland led the Cavaliers with an explosive 34 points in the contest, and then Donovan Mitchell saw an opportunity to fire back at Garland’s critics.
“I just want everyone who’s been on this side to stay on this side when it comes to him. I don’t want there to be a change. I know who a lot of you are,” Mitchell said, via Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. “There are times in your career when you have years like that. Obviously, he was experiencing things personally. You have to grow up. You have to understand it. A lot of people said it can’t.
Garland was the subject of rampant trade speculation over the summer after a rather disappointing 2023-24 campaign and a disastrous playoff showing.
Many wondered if Garland was compatible with Mitchell in Cleveland’s backcourt, and if it would be better for the Cavs to simply move on from Garland to further open up the offense for his fellow guard.
But the Cavaliers decided to keep Garland, who went 12 for 19 with five 3-pointers in Cleveland’s win at Madison Square Garden.
Garland actually got off to a slow start this season, scoring a combined 20 points in his first two games. He then registered 23 points in a win over the Washington Wizards before finally breaking through against the Knicks.
The 24-year-old is now in his sixth season with the Cavs and has averaged 18.4 points per game throughout his NBA career.