Darius Garland made headlines during the Cleveland Cavaliers’ first-round sweep of the Miami Heat when he candidly revealed their strategy of targeting Tyler Herro as a defensive liability.
While the Cavaliers’ success seemingly validated this approach, former NBA player Austin Rivers believes Garland should have kept quiet.
Rivers argues that Darius Garland, who has his own defensive shortcomings, was not the right person to call out another player’s defense.
‘Your not a good defender‘ – Rivers calls out Garland’s hypocrisy
“The comment Darius Garland made at the beginning was weird. Right message, wrong messenger man,” Rivers said on the Ryen Russilo podcast.
“Like, they do pick on Tyler. Tyler also has 35, 32, he’s been doing his thing, let’s not act like he’s not been kicking y’all’s ass, his team’s just not that good.”
Rivers didn’t hold back in highlighting what he sees as Garland’s defensive limitations: “And Darius, your not a good defender. Let’s not act like last year we didn’t see Boston play you guys and they weren’t killing you in the switch.”
As Rivers said, Tyler Herro also had good performances during the series. In Game 2, he scored 33 points and made four three-pointers even though the Heat did not win the game.
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty ImagesA warning for the Cavaliers in the next round
The former NBA guard warned that Garland’s comments could come back to haunt him, especially if the Cavaliers advance to face the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals – no guarantee after their opening loss to the Pacers.
“I love Darius Garland, I’m a fan of his game… he has one of the best handles in the league, but your not a great defender, you’ve made steps this year to make yourself not as a liability on that end… but it shouldn’t have came from you,” Rivers explained.
In the semifinals, Garland, who missed Game 1 due to injury, will also face a tricky and smart guard in Tyrese Haliburton, if he gets back on the court.
What goes around comes around in playoff basketball
Rivers delivered a pointed reminder about the danger of calling out opponents’ weaknesses when you have similar vulnerabilities.
“You shouldn’t be calling out Tyler Herro for being picked on, on defense. When literally when you play Boston in a series or two, they are going to do that to you. That’s why you don’t say these things.”
As the Cavaliers continue their playoff journey, Garland’s defensive capabilities will certainly be tested—and opponents might be even more motivated to target him after his comments about Herro.