Well, this sucks. Out of pretty much nowhere, Shams Charania of ESPN reported that Darius Garland will undergo great toe surgery and miss four-to-five months, which could cause him to miss the beginning of the 2025-26 season. Five months from today would be November 9th, and that would mean Garland misses about two weeks to start the season.
Garland is also one of the biggest names rumored to be available in a trade this summer, as the Cavs' disappointing exit from the NBA Playoffs could be enough to spur the front office into action and break up the "core four" of Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. But with Garland now missing time with a pretty serious injury, opposing teams could shy away from a Garland trade, removing one of the biggest pieces from the trade market.
With Kevin Durant likely to be dealt and rumors swirling about Giannis Antetokounmpo too, there is likely going to be plenty of player movement in the coming months. But Garland might remain a Cav, just because it's tough to predict how a player will look when they come back from extended injuries.
This isn't the first time Garland has been sidelined with a serious injury — he broke his jaw in the 2023-24 season and wasn't the same player when he came back. He looked much more like himself in 2024-25, but now will miss multiple months with this injury.
Cavaliers projected lineup if Darius Garland misses start of season
Hopefully, Garland can make it back on the court before next season starts. If he can't, the Cavs will obviously need to find a fill-in starting point guard until he's healthy and ready to go.
Player | Position |
|---|---|
Donovan Mitchell | Point guard |
Ty Jerome | Shooting guard |
Max Strus | Small forward |
Evan Mobley | Power forward |
Jarrett Allen | Center |
Cleveland has another reason to keep Ty Jerome
Sixth man extraordinaire Ty Jerome is an unrestricted free agent this offseason. Cleveland was already likely to retain Jerome's services; they can offer him more than any other team, and there aren't tons of teams with cap space around the league anyway.
Now, with Garland potentially sidelined to start the year, the Cavs front office has another reason to ink Jerome to a long-term deal.
Cavs starting lineup could look very different after potential trades
This projected lineup could change drastically before next season. So much hinges on whether Cleveland decides to break up its "core four," and it sounds like they're at least willing to hear other teams' pitches for Allen and Darius Garland. But if Garland stays put