The Cleveland Cavaliers exited the 2025 NBA Playoffs at the hands of the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Considering the defending champion Boston Celtics suffered an early exit, the Cavs missed an excellent opportunity to reach the Finals.
At least they remain a leading contender in the East heading into next season, with one player holding the keys to their potential success.
While Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley are the Cavs’ two best players, Darius Garland will be the difference-maker in the postseason.
Former NBA All-Star Jeff Teague’s expectations of Garland are even higher than most, suggesting that the future of the NBA Draft depends on his performance.
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty ImagesJeff Teague thinks Darius Garland can impact the NBA Draft
In a recent episode of the Mind the Game podcast, LeBron James and Kevin Durant discussed the diminishing impact of smaller guards in the NBA.
Durant even namedropped Garland as an example of an undersized player that teams regularly attack on defense.
So Teague wants the point guard to improve on that side of the floor and convince general managers around the league that 6’2″ and under players are still valuable.
“I think Darius Garland has a responsibility to hold it down for the little guards,” Teague said. “It’s kind of like that because he’s been targeted. Kevin Durant said, ‘Darius Garland.’
“So he’s got to show that little guards can still compete. He’s 6’1″ or 6’2”. If he doesn’t show that he can be present on defense or whatever, it’s going to start affecting how people draft.
“Even though he’s great offensively and he brings a lot to the table, if he has to hide on defense, people are going to start going away from that. You see so many 6’7″ or 6’5″ guards getting drafted.”
Jeff Teague shares another Darius Garland concern
Teague has another major concern about Garland besides his lackluster defense, which is his injury record.
Garland missed several weeks with a broken jaw two seasons ago and struggled in the most recent playoffs with a toe injury.
“I also think Darius Garland is just injury-prone. He has always been injured,” Teague shared his apprehension about the Cavs star’s ability to stay healthy.
“He came into the league injured. So I think they needed that safety (Lonzo Ball), like man, he misses a lot of games.”
If Garland can stay on the court and improve his defense, the Cavaliers will be difficult to beat in the weakened Eastern Conference next season.