Darius Garland Has Honest Admission About Injury Last Season

The NBA is a physical league.

And just like what happens with every professional sport, athletes are always at risk of getting hurt.

That was the case with Darius Garland last season.

The talented point guard struggled to stay on the floor in the 2023-24 campaign.

First, he missed time with a back, ankle, and neck injury.

Then, as he was finally ramping things up, he suffered a fractured jaw in a collision with Boston Celtics star Kristaps Porzingis.

Garland missed 19 more games with that ailment, but he could’ve lost way more than just time.

In an exclusive interview with Cleveland.com, the former lottery pick admitted that he had also lost his joy for the game of basketball (via Legion Hoops).

“I sort of lost my joy for basketball.”

— Darius Garland on dealing with injury last season

(via @ChrisFedor) pic.twitter.com/BFUCBcDUBu

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) October 17, 2024

Garland was erratic in the playoffs, and he left plenty to be desired when the team needed someone to step up in Donovan Mitchell’s absence.

Now, he claims that he’s gained that joy back.

The Cavaliers will start a new regime, this time with Kenny Atkinson leading the way.

There are some doubts about whether Darius Garland and Mitchell can coexist in the backcourt or if they would be better off without each other.

The team didn’t want to break up their core and would run it back for another couple of months, at the very least.

Then again, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise to see Garland’s name pop up in trade rumors if they don’t hit the ground running and dominate right out of the gate this upcoming season.

NEXT: 
Cavaliers Players Show Support For Guardians In Game 5