Cavs Insider

Cavaliers' Star Gets Candid on Critical Talk With Donovan Mitchell

This Cleveland Cavaliers star has revealed how a critical discussion with Donovan Mitchell changed things.
Matthew Schmidt|
Apr 12, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) and guard Darius Garland (10) talk in the fourth quarter against the Indiana Pacers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images
Apr 12, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) and guard Darius Garland (10) talk in the fourth quarter against the Indiana Pacers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | David Richard-Imagn Images

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Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been absolutely dominant for most of the season, and much of that is due to the terrific efforts of Darius Garland.

After a rough 2023-24 campaign, Garland has rebounded in a major way and is averaging 21.2 points and 6.8 assists over 30.2 minutes per game on 49.9/42.4/90.7 shooting splits.

The 24-year-old recently participated in a podcast with Draymond Green and Baron Davis, during which he revealed the secret to his success: a discussion he had with Donovan Mitchell last summer.

“He knew that I was pretty upset about last year and not having the performance that I wanted and what he wanted and as a team perspective," Garland said. "We just sat down and talked. And we just really explained to each other, this is what we're going to have to do to win."

Remember: Garland was the subject of rampant trade speculation during the offseason, as many wondered if he and Mitchell could co-exist in the same backcourt.

Now, they are tighter than ever.

“This is what we're going to have to do to get to the Eastern Conference Finals and to the Finals. It was like a grown-man conversation," Garland continued. "We just really sat down and unfolded everything. That was probably like the first grown-man conversation I had in the league so far.”

Garland is in his sixth NBA season, with all of them coming in Cleveland.

This is definitely the best year of Garland's career to date, as he owns a scorching true-shooting percentage of 63.6 percent.

We'll see if the former first-round pick can continue his efficient scoring into the second half of the season and, most importantly, the playoffs.

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Matthew Schmidt
MATTHEW SCHMIDT

Matthew Schmidt is a sportswriter who covers NFL, MLB, NBA and college football and basketball. He has been writing professionally since 2011 and has also worked for Bleacher Report, FanRag Sports, ClutchPoints, NFLAnalysis.net and NBAAnalysis.net. He was born and raised in New Jersey and has a rather eclectic group of favorite teams: the Boston Celtics, New York Giants and Miami Marlins.

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