Darius Garland isn’t that guy. You can make all the excuses in the world for him, but as he proved in the Cleveland Cavaliers elimination game, he just can’t carry a team offensively without significant help. Everyone knows how bad he did against the Boston Celtics in a close-out game, going 4-17 from the floor and 0-4 from three. He’s one of the most injury-prone players in the league, and as seen in three playoff series, he’s unable to raise his game to match the talent on the other side of the court.
You can make any excuse you want for him, but at the end of the day if you can’t raise your game, injury or not, against the better players in the league, then you’re never going to truly be a winner. To further highlight the issues with him, just look at his defense, or the lack of defense he plays.
He’s long been one of the softest guards in the league and it’d be fair to say that he’s one of the phonier All-Stars in some time. A great number-three option for a team, as he is a solid three-point shooter, Garland is not the kind of guy you want leading your team.
While he’s an upgrade over someone like Keyonte George, the price that it would cost to acquire him is far more than Garland is worth. He wouldn’t upgrade the team much, as the team’s issues aren’t scoring, but shot selection (something he still struggles with) and defense (something he’s always struggled with). Garland isn’t the kind of guy the Utah Jazz should be looking to acquire, as he’ll only cost too much to land and bring the team a whole new set of issues to have to overcome.
He has a place in the league, but that place isn’t as a featured option, nor is it as a number two, and it isn’t on a team that struggles defensively. Fair or not, Garland showed the NBA what he can (or can’t) do in the playoffs and it should turn everyone off of overpaying for him until he can prove the narrative was unfair.
