Darius Garland is Fitting Well Into the Clippers Offense

Darius Garland looked like he was going to be the point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers for the foreseeable future. Then, injuries set him back, and the team proved that they could compete at the top of the Eastern Conference without him. At this year’s trade deadline, the Cavaliers traded Garland to the Los Angeles Clippers for James Harden. 

While Garland looked great at times in Cleveland, his numbers had fallen off this season. That has all changed on the Clippers. Garland looks at home already in LA, and is averaging 21.3 points and seven assists on 51% shooting from the field and three. 

Jared Weiss described Garland’s fit in LA perfectly. 

“Now that Garland is running pick-and-pops with Lopez, he can create more room to roam in the midrange. Coming from a Cavs team that specialized in crowded spacing to play over the top, Garland is enjoying the free range he has to roam. Playing alongside a player with Leonard’s résumé and championship experience has been exciting, running inverted pick-and-rolls and just feasting off the double teams Leonard draws all the time…It’s a lot easier to just play with [Kawhi Leonard], play off of him,” Garland said. “Everybody is just playing freely. You don’t have somebody behind your back and somebody that’s over your back all the time. Just going out there, just playing the game.”

Garland looks like a great fit on the Clippers. If he continues to play like he is, and more importantly, stays healthy, he could find himself sticking around in LA for a while.