An early season injury has the Cavaliers down an All-Star.
In Cleveland's season-opening loss to Toronto, Darius Garland suffered an eye injury that he has yet to return from. He's already missed three straight games, and he's set to miss his fourth when the Cavaliers face the Celtics on Friday.
The No. 5 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, Garland proved to be one of the best young players in the NBA last season. Not only did he average career highs of 21.7 points and 8.6 assists per game, but he earned the first All-Star selection of his career.
What's next for Garland? Here's everything we know about his injury and the latest news on when he may return to the court.
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What is Darius Garland's injury?
Garland is listed as out on the injury report with a left eye laceration.
Garland suffered the injury in the second quarter of Cleveland's loss to Toronto on Oct. 19, 2022. Raptors guard Gary Trent Jr. inadvertently hit him in the face while trying to steal an inbounds pass. Garland stayed on the court for a bit before being helped up and slowly making his way to the locker room. He did not return to the game.
"He's got a laceration on the inside of his eyelid," said Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. "Obviously it's an uncomfortable spot with all the things he has to do.
"His head was clear, and all those things, but he was cut and bleeding pretty bad from the inside of his eyelid."
Here's a video of the play:
How long is Darius Garland out?
According to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, Garland suffered no structural damage and doesn't need surgery. He was said to be targeting a Friday return against the Celtics, but Garland has since been ruled out.
Garland's eye still looked very swollen as of Wednesday.
Darius Garland's eye is still significantly swollen, but he continued practicing today which is only good news for the #Cavs. pic.twitter.com/6q1LvQl9Z0
— Camryn Justice (@camijustice) October 26, 2022
After they face the Celtics in Boston, the Cavaliers will return to Cleveland to play the Knicks (Oct. 30) and Celtics (Nov. 2). They will then embark on a five-game road trip that'll see them face the Pistons (Nov. 4), Lakers (Nov. 6), Clippers (Nov. 7), Kings (Nov. 9) and Warriors (Nov. 11).
Garland appeared in 68 of a possible 82 games in the 2021-22 season. The Cavaliers went 7-7 without him.
Darius Garland career stats, highlights
- 17.3 points per game
- 6.3 assists per game
- 2.6 rebounds per game
- 1.1 steals per game
- 3.1 turnovers per game
- 33.3 minutes per game
- 44.2 percent field goal shooting
- 37.8 percent 3-point shooting
- 87.6 percent free throw shooting
