njured Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland is heading in the right direction in his recovery from offseason toe surgery. The Cavaliers have sent Garland to the NBA G League on Monday amid the team’s short two-game road trip this week.
According to CBS Sports, the Cavaliers have assigned Garland to the Cleveland Charge to get some practice reps in preparation for his eventual season debut. He wasn’t with the team for their win against the Detroit Pistons on Monday and won’t be on the sidelines for the matchup versus the Boston Celtics on October 29.
Garland underwent surgery on his left big toe this past summer at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, as reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania and Brian Windhorst. The procedure was performed by Dr. Nicholas Strasser, who gave a recovery timeline of four to five months.
It’s the same injury that bothered him late in the regular season and in the playoffs. He initially suffered the injury in late March before re-aggravating it in the first round of the postseason against the Miami Heat. The Cavs then suffered an upset at the hands of the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, wasting their 64-win campaign.
Garland’s Potential Return Date
Before the Cleveland Cavaliers assigned Darius Garland to the Cleveland Charge, ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel reported that the All-Star guard already has a target date for his return. Garland is planning to make his season debut in the first week of November.
The Cavaliers have three games on the schedule from November 1 to 7. Two out of those three games are at the Rocket Arena, so his return date could be on November 2 against the Atlanta Hawks or on November 5 against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Garland has also looked good in practice and has been part of the team’s scrimmages. If he returns in the first week of November, it’s in between the four-to-five-month recovery timeline given by his doctors.
In 75 games last season, Garland averaged 20.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 1.2 steals. He was named to his second All-Star Game, helping the Cavaliers finish the regular season with the second-best record in the league.
Garland’s Injury Cost Cavs A Championship
Speaking on SiriusXM NBA Radio a few days before opening night, Darius Garland discussed the impact of his toe injury on the Cleveland Cavaliers. Garland confidently said that the Cavs could have won the title if he was perfectly healthy in the postseason.
“I think we would’ve won it, I say that pretty confidently. It’s just the talent with this group is just out the roof. The will that we have on both sides of the ball… With Evan (Mobley) and (Jarrett Allen) down there blocking shots and protecting the paint, I think that really helps us on that side of the ball. Evan growing, Donovan (Mitchell) being Donovan of course, (De’Andre Hunter) was coming along, Max Strus was coming along, I felt I was pretty good in the first round. So yeah, I say that confidently that we would’ve won,” Garland said, via Fear The Sword.
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After the four games of the season, the Cavs are 3-1 without Garland. They also didn’t have De’Andre Hunter in the first three games because of a minor knee injury.
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