Darius Garland Flashes All-Star Form in Loss, and the Cavs Finally Catch a Glimpse of Hope
CLEVELAND - For a moment on Friday night, the weight of a frustrating season lifted inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. The crowd, restless and weary from recent struggles, erupted as Darius Garland pulled up from beyond the arc and buried a high-arching three. It was vintage Garland - smooth, confident, and electric - a reminder of the player who once made Cleveland dream big.
The shot came in transition, after Garland scooped up a loose ball and raced past two Bulls defenders. He stopped on a dime at the three-point line, rose up, and let it fly.
Splash. Timeout, Chicago.
And then came the celebration - Garland’s trademark three-finger kiss to the sky, only this time it lingered. He kept blowing kisses, then unleashed a primal roar as he headed to the bench, where teammates - most of them in street clothes - greeted him like a hero returning from battle.
If only the scoreboard had matched the moment.
The Cavaliers dropped their third straight game, falling 136-125 to the Bulls in what’s been a brutal December stretch. But Garland’s performance?
That was something else. That was a spark.
That was the kind of night Cleveland’s been waiting for.
“That was the D.G. we know,” head coach Kenny Atkinson said postgame.
Garland finished with a season-high 35 points on 13-of-27 shooting, including 6-of-12 from deep. He added eight assists and, more importantly, brought life to a team that desperately needed it. With just 10 players in uniform and six rotation guys sidelined, Garland took it upon himself to carry the load - and for long stretches, he made the Bulls’ defense look helpless.
“He finally got into a rhythm,” said Jarrett Allen, Garland’s longtime pick-and-roll partner. “That’s the old Darius.
You could see it - he was getting others involved, his shot was falling, and it gave everyone a boost. It drives the team forward.”
This wasn’t just a good game. It was a breakthrough.
Garland has spent the past seven months battling back from a nagging turf toe injury that derailed his postseason and required offseason surgery. It cost him four playoff games last spring and has lingered far into the new campaign. The injury, often underestimated by those outside the locker room, is no joke - a sprain of the ligaments around the big toe that can wreak havoc on athletes who rely on quick cuts, bursts of speed, and change of direction.
For Garland, who thrives on shiftiness and footwork, it’s been a nightmare.
He’s described the sensation as playing on “nine toes,” and the Cavs have had to manage the situation carefully. After debuting on Nov. 5 against the Sixers, Garland re-aggravated the toe just five days later, forcing him to miss nearly two more weeks.
Since then, Cleveland’s training staff has worked closely with him, even absorbing a league fine for sitting him out of a back-to-back in Toronto. The organization’s stance was clear: protect the player, regardless of the optics.
Behind the scenes, Garland has pushed himself to get right. Long postgame chats with trainers.
Extra on-court work during rest days. A quiet determination to rediscover the form that made him a two-time All-Star.
And on Friday night, it looked like he found it.
“I’m getting healthy,” Garland said. “Trying to find my groove.”
But health is only part of it. Trusting the toe - trusting his own body - has been the bigger hurdle.
“It’s switching the mindset,” he explained. “Letting myself do the things I’m used to doing. It felt good a couple games ago, and tonight you saw the result.”
Unfortunately, the feel-good moment came in the middle of another rough night for the Cavs. The Bulls - who’ve struggled mightily this season - lit up Cleveland’s defense for 136 points, the most the Cavs have allowed in regulation this year. Chicago shot 52% from the field and posted an offensive rating of 127.1, their second-best mark in 27 games.
Cleveland, meanwhile, has now lost three straight and eight of its last 11. The team’s defense has cratered without Evan Mobley, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, and the offense remains inconsistent. Friday’s loss was marked by familiar issues: lazy transition defense, poor communication, and a general lack of cohesion.
Atkinson has even sought advice from the Guardians’ coaching staff on how to keep morale intact during turbulent stretches. The front office, currently in Orlando for the G League Showcase, is facing tough questions with the trade deadline approaching. And according to sources, team chairman Dan Gilbert is far from pleased with the current trajectory.
Put simply, it’s been a mess.
But amid the chaos, Garland’s performance stood out like a beacon. After weeks of uncertainty, he looked like himself again - the catalyst, the floor general, the scoring threat who can bend defenses and inspire teammates.
Was this a turning point? Or just a flash?
Time will tell. But for one night, Darius Garland reminded Cleveland what it feels like to believe.