True Origins of Cavaliers' Star Darius Garland's Toe Injury Revealed

Darius Garland was dealing with toe injury prior to Cleveland Cavaliers playoff run according to new report

Apr 11, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) and the Cavalier bench react after his three point shot against the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Darius Garland missed four playoff games with a toe injury, then gutted out three others trying to help salvage the Cleveland Cavaliers season during the playoffs. His efforts were all for naught as the wine and gold fell woefully short of advancing out of the second round of the playoffs, getting disposed of by the Indiana Pacers in five games.

At the time, there was a belief that Garland had suffered the injury during a first-round sweep of the Miami Heat. New information revealed that isn't entirely true.

According to ESPN's Sham Charania, Garland actually suffered the injury to his great toe during a March 23, regular-season game against the Utah Jazz. The 25-year-old guard went on to play nine of the last 11 games despite the injury, but then re-aggravated the ailment in Game 2 of that series with the Heat.

Initially, the reporting of a mere "toe injury" by the team was viewed as minor by many outside the organization. Internally, though, the franchise understood it was much more severe than it seemed. to the point where it determined surgery was the best path forward.

Garland is likely to miss time to start the 2025-26 season, sources said. He was first diagnosed with the injury on March 23 in Utah and managed it to end the regular season before reaggravating and playing through the toe in the playoffs. https://t.co/KBMHubrXjR

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 9, 2025

As Charania reported, Garland is expected to miss four to five months recovering from the procedure. That means he'll also be expected to miss at least some time at the start of the 2025-26 campaign this fall.

Interestingly, this is the second straight postseason that the vague information shared about an injured player wound up being to their detriment in terms of public perception. Last year, the exact same thing happened to Jarrett Allen, who missed a number of games due to, what the team called, a rib contusion.

As was later revealed, Allen actually had a cracked rib, making it extremely painful for him to even sleep, let alone play a basketball game. One year later, a similar situation played out with Garland and his mysterious injured toe.

The revelation that the ailment needed surgery certainly changes the context around his extended absence during the playoffs. His focus now turns to rehabbing in order to be back healthy as early as possible when next season tips off.

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