The LA Clippers are set to take on the Golden State Warriors on Monday night, the second night of a back-to-back set. It will also mark the Clippers debut of guard Darius Garland.
Garland was acquired from the Cleveland Cavaliers during NBA trade deadline week, bringing him to Los Angeles and sending James Harden to the Cavs. But Garland has missed last month since the trade as he worked to recover from toe issues on both feet.
After weeks of ramping up and rehabbing, Darius Garland will make his Clippers debut against Draymond Green and the Golden State Warriors. But in a bit of a surprise, Garland will not be starting in his first game.
“The thought of just bringing him off the bench so he doesn't have to play with Kawhi [Leonard] so he can kind of find his own rhythm, his own timing, and just trying to run everything through him,” head coach Tyronn Lue said in his pregame media availability Monday. “Just being aggressive, picking up our pace, so that's kind of the thought process behind bringing him off the bench. It's to try to get him up to speed faster than later. So that's what he'll be doing until we get his minutes up and then of course he'll be our starter.”
Between offseason foot surgery and a right toe sprain, Garland has played a total of 25 games this season, which is why the Clippers have been so cautious about bringing their prized guard back slowly.
In addition to coming off the bench, Garland will be facing a minutes restriction for the foreseeable future until Garland gets in game shape and the Clippers are comfortable with where he's at in his return to competition.
“I'm just happy he's going to be on the floor,” Lue added. “Just excited for him and then just to let him play. Be aggressive, try to get his wind, try to get his timing down, and just play free. Just want to get him out of the floor, see what we can do, how we can tweak certain things, but just excited to get him on the floor.”
In his introductory press conference, Garland told members of the media that Tyronn Lue plans to use him like he did Kyrie Irving, and Lue confirmed those plans.
“That’s what I told him,” Tyronn Lue explained in early February, shortly after the trade. “He went back and watched a whole bunch of film from those days. We’re gonna put the ball in his hands, he’s got to be able to make plays for himself and his teammates. He has the ability to do that.
“If you look at all the charts, he's second in the league in making quick decisions off of pick-and-rolls and plays, so he knows how to play the game. We're going to need every bit of it, his ability to score the basketball, make guys better, create pace, generate pace. he can do all of that.”
In his 408 game career across seven NBA seasons, Darius Garland is averaging 18.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 6.7 assists, and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 45.3 percent from the field and 38.6 percent from three.
