CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – It’s safe to say that Darius Garland’s back is better and newcomer Caris LeVert fits in.
The Cavs All-Star guard needed no time to knock off any rust from a sore back that sidelined him for four games while LeVert made a seamless transition coming off the bench Wednesday night.
Garland exploded for 27 points and was a sensational 12 of 15 from the floor while LeVert scored 11 and handed out a pair of assists to push the Cavs 13 games above .500 with a 105-92 win over the San Antonio Spurs.
“It felt really good being back on the floor with the guys and actually feeling like an All-Star,” Garland said.
Layups, floaters, runners, jumpers – you name it – Garland dusted off the entire arsenal and deployed it with precision against San Antonio. Garland added four assists, five rebounds and a steal in 30 minutes but enjoyed talking about his new teammate more than his return from injury.
“He’s really good on the ball and off the ball,” Garland said. “When he gets comfortable, I think it’s going to be really scary.
“He was our missing piece, so glad to have him.”
The addition of LeVert, who checked in at the 6:37 mark of the first quarter, feels like another shot of energy for a team that exudes energy every time they take the floor.
“They have belief in us that we can go do something special,” Garland said, referring to Cleveland giving up a first-round pick to get LeVert. “As long as they have that belief in us and we have that same energy and belief in the locker room, we can go as far as we want.”
Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff plans to use the next few weeks to feel out where LeVert fits and how best he can use him but there’s little question that Monday’s trade was the ultimate vote of confidence.
“It speaks on the commitment to this group,” Bickerstaff said. “When you give your team and the players the feeling that you believe they have a real shot, that again [speaks] to the commitment just from the team but from an organizational standpoint – ownership on down – that spurs you to want to do more and it’s always good to go to work or battle when you know you’ve got support behind you and people that believe in you.”
For as fun as Garland and LeVert were to watch, Cleveland’s supporting cast did what they normally do – dominate.
Evan Mobley played with passion finishing with 18 points and 12 rebounds – his 12th double-double of the season, the most by a Cavs rookie since LeBron James recorded 12 during his rookie season in 2003-2004.
Jarrett Allen, still feeling the All-Star snub even after an invitation to participate in the Skills competition All-Star Saturday night, lit San Antonio up for 15 points and 14 rebounds. That’s his 29th double-double and the Cavs have won 24 of those games this season.
Isaac Okoro also scored in double figures with 14.
The return of Garland clearly restored an offensive flow that had been hard to find in his absence.
“It definitely adds more flow to our game when [Garland] is out there,” Mobley said. Just him being a threat causes the defense to shift more towards him and less eyes are on other people. It just makes the game easier on everyone else.”
The defense was just as good. Wednesday night marked the 23rd time the Cavs held an opponent under 100 points, and it was also their 20th win by at least 10 points this season.
After a bit of sloppy back and forth in the second quarter, the Cavs took control with a 20-4 run to turn a 1-point deficit into a 15-point advantage. A 12-2 run in the third quarter pushed their lead to 23.
The Spurs rallied and closed within 7 twice in the fourth quarter, but Cleveland responded and pulled away late allowing both head coaches to empty their benches with the game decided and 1:33 on the clock.
