Cleveland could be getting their All-Star point guard back after a one game absence.
The Cleveland Cavaliers could be without All-Star point guard Darius Garland as he’s listed as questionable with a hip injury for Tuesday’s game against the Orlando Magic. He sustained the injury in Friday’s win over the New York Knicks. The injury kept him out of Sunday’s win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
After Sunday’s game, Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson stated that he wasn’t concerned about this being a concern moving forward.
“My amateur opinion is this is probably [a] one [game absense],” said Atkinson after Sunday’s win. “I don’t it’s not going to be long-term. I’d anticipate him being ready very soon. I’m not going to guarantee next game, but I’d say, you know, [it’s] trending that way.”
Garland has missed just three games this season for the Cavs. All three resulted in victories for Cleveland. That trend isn’t guaranteed to continue against Orlando if Garland is unable to go.
Although the Magic are struggling, they do have a formidable defense that can cause problems for ball handlers. Ty Jerome stepped up in Garland’s absence against another good defense in Memphis on Sunday. He will likely need to do something similar if the Cavs offense is going to keep humming without Garland.
Atkinson chose to start Isaac Okoro in place of Garland on Sunday. There’s no guarantee that would happen again if Garland is unavailable on Tuesday.
Atkinson said after the win over Memphis that the decision to go with Okoro was because of the matchup with Ja Morant. He mentioned that thought was given to starting either De’Andre Hunter or Dean Wade as well. With Orlando’s length on the wing, it seems more likely that either Hunter or Wade would start if Garland can’t play.
Garland is having his best season as a pro. He’s averaging 21.3 points and 6.7 assists per game on career-high efficiency (58.9 effective field goal percentage).
No other Cavaliers are on the injury report with injuries. Cleveland’s three two-way players have been ruled out for Tuesday’s game with Orlando. The Magic will be without Jalen Suggs (quad) and Mo Wagner (knee).