A few NBA point guards are exhausting just to watch from afar, be it on your living room couch or inside a crowded sports bar, gazing up at an enormous screen. Darius Garland, the Cavaliers’ 22-year-old blooming All-Star and strong Most Improved Player candidate, spent his third season climbing on to that short list.
Those who’ve actually had to cover Garland this year might use a word like “disorienting” to describe the experience. The task requires energy, discipline and a willingness to hunt in ways that separate him from almost everyone at his position.
To explain, here’s a primer coat: Garland is a pick-and-roll virtuoso who probes and pounces, zipping over ball screens with eyes that immediately discern how best to attack secondary layers of a shifting defense. He does heavy lifting so teammates can shine (only Luka Dončić and Dejounte Murray assisted more baskets driving to the basket this season, which saw an expansion of responsibility after Ricky Rubio tore his ACL). And with a teardrop floater and preternatural confidence pulling up anywhere between the logo and free throw line, he doesn’t need much time or space to get his own shots off. Blink and either half of Garland’s body is already past yours or the ball is in flight. His 34 points in Tuesday’s play-in loss against the Nets were mostly manufactured off a live dribble.
