The No. 5 pick is averaging 12.7 points, three rebounds and five assists in his last three games. Garland finished with 20 points and five assists in Monday’s loss to the Raptors.
“I’m starting to get a lot more comfortable,” Garland said on Wednesday. “Coaches and my teammates are adapting to me, getting more confident in me. It’s getting me more hyped up because they’ve started believing in me now.”
Garland has made at least two 3-pointers in four straight games
“It’s just a confidence booster, especially when you see the ball go through the hole, it gets you going,” Garland said. “Confidence is there now.”
The most encouraging part of Garland’s recent surge is what he’s done with the Cavs’ second unit. He’s getting the ball to his teammates in advantageous positions and showing everyone that he can be a playmaker.
Former Cavaliers head coach David Blatt is returning to the NBA as a basketball operations consultant with the New York Knicks.
Not only did he accept a position in the Knicks’ front office, but he announced his retirement from coaching.
Blatt, 60, coached the Cavs for nearly two seasons in 2014-2015. He helped lead them to the NBA Finals in 2015. The Cavs were 30-11 when they fired him and promoted Tyronn Lue.
Blatt finished with an 83-40 record with the Cavaliers.