Darius Garland receives ultimatum from Stephen A. Smith

The Cleveland Cavaliers seem destined to lose early in the playoffs this year due to injuries to Darius Garland and Evan Mobley.

Darius Garland receives ultimatum from Stephen A. Smith

Darius Garland

The Cleveland Cavaliers find themselves in a real spot of bother. Two of their All-Stars are currently sidelined due to injuries. Of the two, Darius Garland was in the best form of his life till his unfortunate injury in this year’s playoffs. The point guard had matured into one of the league’s best floor generals, and his output as a playmaker and scorer had started to knock on the doors of the league’s elite.

The Cavaliers are also missing Evan Mobley and Deandre Hunter and have already borne the brunt of their absences. They lost game 2 by a single point due to a Tyrese Haliburton game-winner at Rocket Arena. Missing players with per-game contributions of 43 points have undoubtedly have negated a scintillating outing by Donovan Mitchell. Mitchell’s 48 points went in vain because of this last-gasp shot.

The team will now head to Indianapolis with the status of all three players still up in the air. Mobley and Hunter are day-to-day, while Darius Garland is likely out of game 3 as well due to a toe injury. ESPN host Stephen A. Smith has implored the sixth-year player to put his body beyond its limits and play game 3.

He needs some help in that backcourt. You’ve missed four straight games Darius Garland. I mean damn. You’ve got all offseason to heal. Somehow, someway. I mean you’re on the brink of elimination. I mean, you gotta get out there. You gotta find a way. Limp yo’ a– out there no matter which way you’ve got to do it. I don’t give a damn. Alright? Find a way. Pad the toe, wear an extra size shoe. Do somethin’, but you’ve got to get out there! You gotta get out there.

Stephen A. Smith said

Whether or not Stephen A. Smith’s words reach Garland, one thing is clear – the Cavaliers need more scoring. Taking games on the road usually requires every star to bring more to the plate. Not having Garland on the floor would impact their pick-and-roll play with Jarrett Allen, as it did in game 2. While Ty Jerome and Max Strus are fine players in their own right, they cannot be table-setters like Garland is.

Tyrese Haliburton is outshining Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland

Tyrese Haliburton has undoubtedly been the MVP for the Indiana Pacers in this year’s playoffs. His error-free table-setting has enabled the likes of Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner and Andrew Nembhard to get open shots. He has also dictated the tempo of games, constantly pushing the pace and keeping the Cavs on the defensive.

His clutch performances have also been instrumental in getting the Indiana Pacers to this stage. Haliburton sealed his place in NBA playoffs history with his iso bucket against Giannis Antetokounmpo to close out the first-round series. He added yet another moment to the collection with his heroics in downtown Cleveland in game 2. Haliburton’s fourth-quarter performances have served to shut critics up.

This series has been played at a fast pace in both games, and the Pacers have shown that they are willing to keep pushing the tempo all game long. The Cavaliers would undoubtedly benefit from having Garland to slow down the game and get them into their sets. To Mitchell’s credit, he did an exemplary job of this in game 5, but the combo guard has historically been turnover-prone as a playmaker.

The 28-year-old Cavs franchise star has to keep going ballistic for the Cavaliers to have a chance, unless their role players step up.

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