CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Cavaliers found ways to win despite losing two of their starters with weeks-long injuries. Now, after getting big man Evan Mobley back from a knee injury and looking to incorporate him back into their winning ways, they'll look to do the same with point guard Darius Garland, who is set to make his return from a jaw injury Wednesday night.
Garland has missed 19 games after suffering a fractured jaw back on Dec. 14. The injury required Garland's jaw to be wired shut for four weeks, and that wiring was removed just over two weeks ago.
The guard has been working out and rehabbing to get back to being able to participate in game activity—a milestone he reached ahead of Wednesday night's matchup with the Detroit Pistons inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
The return of Garland comes just one game after Mobley made his return from an arthroscopic procedure he had on his knee. Mobley, on a minutes restriction as he works himself back into the mix, played for 21 minutes, scoring 10 points with nine rebounds.
"In 22 minutes to have the impact that he did is just tremendous and speaks volumes to who he is as a player. So I'm happy that we got to get him in there seamlessly and excited for him to continue to get more minutes," said Mobley's teammate Georges Niang.
Mobley said he talked to Garland after his first game back about the process, and his biggest takeaway from the first game was the
"I was just talking to him about cardio really because we both, with our injuries, we couldn't really do too much on the court. Sometimes playing a full game and a lot of minutes it's different than working out and stuff like that," Mobley said. "So, just cardio getting that up as best you can and being ready for that."
Garland has been working out at the practice courts for several weeks, ramping up for his return. He'll get to put that work to the test upon his return on Wednesday, barring any setbacks heading into the game.
Meanwhile, an item of note ahead of Wednesday night's game against the Pistons—center Jarrett Allen is listed as questionable for the game, added to the report with an illness.
