Advertisement - scroll for more content
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement - scroll for more content
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Draymond Green Show: Draymond reacts to Clippers Punishment for Kawhi Leonard Cap Circumvention "Here's where the NBA dropped the hammer, FIVE FIRST ROUND PICKS... it's crippling to a franchise... it may stick the Clippers in purgatory for a long time to come and it makes you think what certain players like Darius Garland, how are they gonna look at being in this place now? Ty Lue, how does he look at being in this place now?"
NBA Courtside: Thaddeus Young says even though the Clippers lost 5 draft picks they’re still not in a bad position: “Because they made three trades before this actually happened. Which makes me believe also they knew something was coming. The first trade was Harden for Garland, right? Second trade was Zubac, right? The third trade was Kawhi. You get Toronto picks you got picks for Zubac, right? You got Garland which is pretty good fu*king point guard, right? 10 years younger than Harden. So essentially you saying, “Hey, I got to go ahead and set my team up for these next couple years just to be just decent.”
NBA Trade Machine: Domantas Sabonis appeared in 4.0% of trades built on HoopsMatic over the past 24 hours. Of his trades, his most common destinations were Minnesota (15.4%), LA Clippers (11.5%), and Indiana (11.5%). The players traded for him most often were Anthony Edwards (13.5%), Darius Garland (9.6%), and Luka Doncic (7.7%).
Ethan Sands: ’Darius Garland is owed 87 million dollars over the next two years while James Harden just signed a contract for three years and 97 million dollars. So it is still a flexibility move by the front office. As of January 20th, 2026, the Cavs had 392 million dollars on their books, a salary of 228 million and a tax of 164 million. They were the most expensive team in the NBA. They were over the second apron. As of August 20th, they're at 218, salary at 209 and the luxury tax of nine million dollars.’
What was it like getting traded midseason? Was the transition hard? Darius Garland: The trade was actually pretty easy for me, bro, to be honest with you. Which was crazy; we were already in LA, we had a road trip to LA already, so the transition wasn't too hard, to be honest with you. Mentally, it wasn't a shock, but it was still like a shock. I've been here for seven, seven and a half years, and now just to up and pack my bags like that, it was just like, dang. But it's part of the business. I understand the business side of it. So once I got to LA, I was pretty happy. Got to be in a new city, like a real new revamp. So it was cool. Easy transition, though. Super excited to be there. I was pretty happy. I was coming to a new opportunity just to take on a new challenge. So I was excited about that.
Advertisement
What's it like playing for Ty Lue, and how does his vision fit your game? Darius Garland: It's super cool, because I've actually watched him in 2016. I told him I wanted to play a little bit like Kai [Kyrie Irving] and how he played in 2016 in that Finals run. So actually seeing his vision actually work, so trying to implement it into my game, I think it would be pretty cool. It's going to be pretty interesting how he tries to fit it in. But I'm super excited. We've been talking a lot about the offense this year. I'm super excited to get back over there in LA and just be with the team and be with the guys.
Do you think people have forgotten what you're capable of? Darius Garland: Yeah, for sure. It usually happens like that, especially when you have a couple of injuries. They tend to forget about you. But that's what another 82-game season is for: to go ahead and revamp yourself, show everybody what you're capable of. And show the confidence and the work that I put in this summer, to go out there and just lay it on the line. What do you have to prove? What do you think is that next level? Darius Garland: To be honest with you, I don't think I have to prove anything, brother. Just want to be the best player I can be out there. Try to go win basketball games as much as I can.
This season, Cleveland will have 16 sets of back-to-backs, a trio of four-game homestands, a lengthy six-game road trip (March 9-18), four holiday games (Halloween, Veterans Day, New Year’s Eve and MLK Day) and five matinees. James comes to Cleveland with the Sixers twice (Nov. 6 and March 1) this season. The Cavs pursued him in free agency this summer, hoping for a third stint with the franchise that drafted him No. 1 overall in 2003. Former Cavalier Darius Garland will return to Cleveland for the first time since being traded for James Harden last February, with that visit scheduled for Dec. 31. The Western Conference Champion San Antonio Spurs visit for the only time on Dec. 15.
Maxey was an unquestionable key factor in the 76ers' landing James. Maxey had a strong relationship with James, as both are represented by Klutch Sports. With James joining a new team that has lots of egos and needs, having a connection with the point guard was an edge for Philly. Some will say Harden's role as Cleveland's point guard affected James' decision, but there is more nuance than that. It's not that the Cavs having Harden was a factor, sources said, but rather who the Cavs did not have. To get Harden from the LA Clippers in February, the Cavs traded Darius Garland, a Klutch-repped point guard with whom James has had a yearslong relationship. In the end, there were three strikes against Cleveland: Family not being an issue in LeBron's choice, the front office not making a deal for Brown and the Cavs' roster not featuring Garland. To say it was one of these factors more than the other might be missing the big picture.
"[Donovan] Mitchell, [James] Harden, [Evan] Mobley, [Jarrett] Allen. Dan and Grant -- which is the Gilberts. Plus Koby [Altman], he was there when LeBron won there," Paul said. "Big, big, big X factor, let me talk to you about Brandon Weems," who is the Cavs' assistant GM under the president of basketball operations, Altman, and was a childhood friend and James' high school teammate. "Brandon Weems is basically LeBron's brother," Paul said. "Now, he worked his own way [up], nobody gave him anything. He's earned to be in the front office of the Cavs. "But that is a big feather in the cap [for Cleveland], because of Brandon Weems." Paul added that the Cavs would have been even more appealing had the roster still featured fellow Klutch client Darius Garland, who was traded to the LA Clippers for Harden last season. "This is no offense to Harden," Paul said. "Because he loves Garland like he loves Maxey."
Advertisement
Sources say that Leonard's willingness to sign an extension with the Raptors were he to be traded back to Toronto, as The Stein Line also reported Thursday, has opened the door for a trade to progress to completion. If the Clippers, that is, can ultimately bear to move on from The Kawhi Era. It's believed that the Clippers, furthermore, would have interest in Toronto's offer because adding Ingram — who earned All-Star status last season — should be able to help keep LA sufficiently competitive in the West as it gradually shifts into a youth movement that features the likes of recently acquired Darius Garland and No. 5 overall pick Keaton Wagler.
Mikel Brown conducted a workout for the Clippers in LA on Thursday and also has traction as a candidate here. Sources say the Clippers have interest in Darius Acuff Jr., but his fit with a similar-sized guard in Garland is an obstacle.
