CLEVELAND — Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland left Tuesday night's game against the Washington Wizards with an apparent head injury that occurred in the third quarter.
Garland took an elbow to the back of the head from Wizards center Jonas Valančiūnas, remaining down on the court under the rim. Garland walked off under his own power, heading back to the locker room with trainers.
A short time later, the Cavs ruled Garland out for the remainder of the game as he underwent an evaluation for a head injury.
Before sustaining the injury, Garland had put up 12 points and three assists in 17 minutes of play.
However, there was good news after the game.
Head coach Kenny Atkinson said Garland looked fine when he checked on him in the locker room. Atkinson said he's not worried about Garland missing time.
Garland wasn't the only Cavs player to get banged up on Tuesday. Donovan Mitchell also left the court for a short time after a collision in the third quarter—also with Valančiūnas—that saw him appear to injure his arm or shoulder. Mitchell went into the locker room with trainers but was able to return to the game that quarter.
Atkinson said Mitchell sustained a stinger.
Despite the extra physicality from the Wizards, the Cavs contained the team that entered the matchup with a 2-16 record. The Cavs beat the Wizards 118-87, advancing to an impressive 19-3 on the season.
