Risky Darius Garland blockbuster mock trade would ship Cavs star to rival

With the Cleveland Cavaliers coming up short after a 64-win season, nothing can be considered off the table this offseason. While the Cavs’ cornerstones in Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley are safe, anyone on the roster can be moved this summer. That includes All-Star guard Darius Garland and big man Jarrett Allen.

Garland is coming off a rough end to the season. After averaging 24 points per game and seven assists through the team’s first two playoff games, Garland went down with a serious toe injury and missed Cleveland’s next four games. He came back against Indiana and looked like a shell of himself, limping around the court on both ends. 

Despite this, Garland is one of the best young guards in the league, and if the Cavs were to make him available, he would garner interest from around the league. This caused Cavs insider Chris Fedor to pitch the framework of a deal that was interesting.

Fedor proposed this during an episode of the Wine and Gold Talk podcast, which can be listened to here. He wasn't saying that the Cavs and Magic are talking about this swap; this was something he came up with. With that said...

The Cavs would be making a huge mistake trading Garland to the Magic.

Jalen Suggs is a great player and would fit the Cavs due to his defensive toughness. Suggs was an All-Defensive guard last season and was well on his way to another selection before injuries cut his year short at 35 games.

Suggs and injuries have been a consistent theme to start his career thus far, as he has only played more than 53 games one time and has played under 55 games three times. From his knee to his quad to his ankle, Suggs is not durable. 

For the Cavs fans that want to point out Garland’s lack of availability, he is actually coming off a career high in games played (75) and has only played under 70% of eligible games one time in his career.

In addition to the injury concerns, Garland presents an upgrade for Orlando offensively. They are in sore need of playmaking and shooting, two things Garland does at an elite level. He is coming off a year where he averaged 21 PPG and seven assists on 47/40 shooting splits. In a wide-open Eastern Conference, do the Cavs really want to help the Magic rise to contender status?

Trading Garland for Suggs isn't the right move for the Cleveland Cavaliers

Suggs is the obvious defensive upgrade over Garland and while having him and Mobley anchor the defense would be fun to watch, Suggs’ offense is light-years behind Garland’s. Suggs is inefficient from the field (41 percent) and three-point range (31 percent). He is a career 32 percent three-point shooter. 

He is also not the offensive initiator that Garland is, and Orlando’s offense was clunky due to Suggs’ lack of true point guard skills. Trading Garland away for Suggs puts so much more on the plate of Donovan Mitchell as an offensive player, and that is not wise for the Cavs to do if they want to keep their superstar fresh.

I am not saying the Cavs should not trade Garland. If they get an offer that they feel makes their team fit better, then they should pull the trigger. They have to consider where they are sending him to and if they’re getting back enough to replace him.

He is an All-Star and shouldn’t be traded for two cents on the dollar. This hypothetical with Orlando does not make any sense and would be one of Cleveland’s biggest mistakes in recent memory.