'I was super scared': Cavaliers' Darius Garland expected surgery, to be out two months

CLEVELAND — Darius Garland didn’t expect to be commenting on the glare of the studio lights in the interview room Wednesday and wishing he’d worn his designer shades.

After he suffered a laceration under his left eyelid in the Oct. 19 season opener in Toronto, the Cavaliers' All-Star point guard thought he would undergo surgery and be sidelined until mid-December.

He believed the poke in the eye he took as the Raptors’ Gary Trent Jr. was going for a steal would be a long-term injury.

“I was super scared. When it first happened, I rolled over, I felt blood coming out of my eye,” Garland said. “That's when I got really nervous.

“I was ready for surgery in Toronto. I was expecting that. I was expecting stitches and being out a couple months. But by the grace of God, I'm here with two eyes now and I'm back and I'm healthy.”

On Wednesday night, the Boston Celtics rued Garland’s quick recovery.

Garland led the way with team-highs in points (29) and assists (12) as the Cavs (6-1) won their sixth consecutive game with a 114-113 overtime victory at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse,

On Friday at TD Garden in Boston, the Cavs defeated the defending Eastern Conference champion Celtics 132-123 in overtime.

In his fourth career game with at least 25 points, 10 assists and three steals, Garland also contributed five rebounds and three steals and committed only one turnover. He had the best first quarter of his career with 14 points.

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“It wasn't really a man on a mission, my teammates just told me, ‘Be aggressive, go do what you do. They give you any wide open, shoot them,'" Garland said.

Garland came out on fire at the the urging of his new backcourt teammate, three-time All-Star Donovan Mitchell, acquired in a Sept. 1 trade from the Utah Jazz.

“Donovan told me, 'You've gotta go take the first six shots,’” Garland said. “So I was like, ‘Alright, I got you, bro.'”

Mitchell, who finished with 25 points, six assists, four rebounds, a steal and no turnovers, confirmed that conversation.

“I said it like eight times,” Mitchell said. “I said, ‘Come out and just go,’ and he said, ‘No, I’m going to pass.’ I ain’t going to say what I said, but [I was] like, ‘No. No.’”

Garland’s left eye is still not as open as the right, but the remaining swelling didn’t affect his shooting as he made 9 of 20 field goals, 5 of 11 3s and 6 of 7 free throws. He was not required to wear goggles and said the lights on the court were hardly an issue.

“I saw the first one go in, so it stopped bothering me, to be honest with you,” Garland said of the brightness. “The doctor said I didn't have to wear any goggles or anything. My eye was healing pretty good, so I went out there and just took a chance.”

Garland, 22, was the recipient of the Junkyard Dog chain, given by coach J.B. Bickerstaff to the most impactful and grittiest player in victories.

“He just said, 'Welcome back,' and he gave me the chain,” Garland said of Bickerstaff. “It meant a lot to me. First game back, getting the chain.

“It's not even about the chain. It's not about me. It's just... I'm super happy the way that we fought throughout the entire game. I mean... I don't have a lot to say for real, but I'm super excited about this group.”

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Garland was just as excited at shootaround and Mitchell noted, “He’s not a morning person.”

“He looked like a kid in a candy store, just happy as hell,” Mitchell said. “Running around the gym … a little bit of a different step to him. When you’re out for that long, and I’ve been there, it can kind of take a toll on you.

“A night like tonight comes, it’s really his first game of the season all over again. You saw the energy. I told him he’s probably not going to be able to sleep for the next seven, eight hours. He probably won’t sleep at all. That’s what you get, man. It’s great to see him.”

Bickerstaff shared that sentiment.

“He was Darius. Not doing anything live until tonight just speaks to his talent and his abilities,” Bickerstaff said. “He was ready to go. You could feel it. He was excited this morning at shootaround. He was ready to contribute in a big way.

“There was not any shyness to him. It was, ‘I'm going out here and I'm gonna assert myself on this game,’ and his teammates followed him.”

Asked if he missed Garland, Mitchell said, “Boy, did I. He really set the tone tonight.

“I didn’t know what his rhythm was going to be like … I think that’s the biggest thing. When you have your legs, when you have your energy, you’re excited, he came out like he’s been playing with us down this whole stretch. He’s going to score the ball, and his passing, man, he’s creating, finding guys, making the game look easy. Always under control. It’s great to have him out there.”

Bickerstaff did have an anxious moment when Garland dove into the crowd trying to save a loose ball with 6:04 remaining in the fourth quarter and came up limping. Bickerstaff also said Mitchell stepped on a player’s foot in the first half, but did not leave the game.

“Every time he falls to the floor, I hold my breath,” Bickerstaff said of Garland. “We’ll see tomorrow, take care of him and Donovan.”

Garland watched from the bench for the past four games and was an exuberant cheerleader. But he called the two weeks he was out “super tough.”

“Everybody keeps asking like, 'How you doing? How's your body?' I'm like, ‘I'm perfectly fine, it's my eye,’” Garland said. “And sitting over there and just have to wait and just seeing everybody get loose warming up and going through full practice and stuff, it was just kinda aggravating.

“I just tried to stay high. My teammates, they were winning. They were doing well, so I was happy about that. But I just wanted to be on the floor with them. I wanted to feel that energy. But I'm happy to be back now.”

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Garland said he heard from Trent, who texted him right after the game in Toronto. Both are represented by Klutch Sports.

“Just saying he's sorry. We're in the same agency, so, we talk a lot,” Garland said. “It was a basketball play, it happens with the game. It just comes with it.”

Garland had been lobbying Bickerstaff to play, but Garland admitted in the days leading up to his return he couldn’t really see when he was dribbling right.

“That was definitely the hardest part about it. I was just working out and most of it was on the left-hand side because I couldn't see going right,” he said. “Seeing my teammates out there having fun, getting big wins, seeing the excitement and the joy that they have playing the game, I just want to be a part of it.”

But Garland was paying attention on the bench, not just high-fiving teammates and former Browns cornerback Joe Haden, who sat close by during Sunday’s come-from-behind victory over the New York Knicks.

“I had a great time on the bench, I learned a lot, I saw a lot from our team and what other teams do to us,” Garland said. “I have a lot of notes and stuff that I was writing down, so, I'm ready for the next time we play those other teams.”

Garland learned plenty about his own team as well.

“We fight really hard. We're really starting to try to put 48 minutes together just of playing Cavaliers basketball,” he said. “We just don't back down from no one.

“This group is just really hard-nosed. And any number is called, everybody's ready.”

Cavaliers at Pistons

Time: 7 p.m. Friday

TV: Bally Sports Ohio

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavs guard Darius Garland feared surgery, long layoff