Cavs’ Darius Garland in key moment that changed Donovan Mitchell’s chemistry

It was a real season for Cleveland Cavaliersand their two guards, Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell. The duo has led the Cavs to a 35-6 record so far, and is 6.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics. After losing to them in five games last season in the conference semifinals, something had to change.

Doc Garland accomplished an impressive feat in the Cavs’ win against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the previous season was more of a challenge. On The Draymond Green Show, he elaborated on what helped the Cavs get there where they currently stand.

“To be completely honest with you, I would say this summer we were really locked in and knew what we wanted to do and what we wanted to accomplish,” Garland said. “He knew I was pretty upset about last year and not having the performance I wanted, and what he wanted, from a team perspective.

“We just sat down and talked, and we just explained to each other that this is what we have to do to win.” That’s what we have to do to get to the Eastern Conference Finals, to the Finals. It was a grown man’s conversation. We just really sat down and laid everything out. That was the first conversation with a grown man I’ve had in the league so far.”

Last summer Mitchell agreed to a three-year, $150 million maximum extension to remain with the Cavs. However, there were reports that he was unhappy with the franchise. Fast forward to the 2024-25 season and they were on a tear by the end of January.

Darius Garland knew Donovan Mitchell could have worked for the Cavs

“I knew the tandem could work perfectly,” Garland said. “He is a goalkeeper and I like to play.” Going into this year, he’s used to mid-30s and high-20s. This year his minutes are less and he is not averaging 25, he is averaging 23, 24, and we are the number 1 team in the league.

“He’s just realized the talent he has around him and he’s just let me help, and he’s also playing me a lot more.”

As Garland said, Mitchell’s numbers could be a little lower. 23.1 points and 4.5 assists compared to last season with 26.6 points and 6.1 assists. The team’s success is bigger than that. Garland’s stats have gone up a bit, 21.2 points vs. 18 points last season, and 6.8 assists versus 6.5 assists last season.

After all, their expectations and winning standard revolutionized the team. Everyone is on the same page, and it looks like it will stay that way until the end of the season.