Cleveland Cavaliers' Exec Sets The Record Straight On Darius Garland

Cleveland Cavaliers president Koby Altman has made his feelings toward Darius Garland very clear.

May 15, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) drives the ball against Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday (4) in the first quarter during game five of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images / David Butler II-Imagn Images

Going into the NBA offseason, many expected the Cleveland Cavaliers to seriously entertain trade offers for Darius Garland.

The Cavaliers definitely received some interested in their star guard, but they didn't budge.

Cleveland has opted to go into the 2024-25 campaign with Garland in tow, and president Koby Altman made it clear that he sees the youngster as a part of the team's future.

During a press conference on Friday, Altman said that the Cavs need to bring Garland "back to that All-Star level" and that the Cavaliers would need the "ultra-dynamic backcourt" of Garland and Donovan Mitchell in the playoffs, via Nate Ulrich of The Akron Beacon Journal.

"The easy thing is to break the thing up, right? But like I said, there's way more evidence that speaks to success than not," Altman said.

So, basically, Garland isn't going anywhere. At least right now, anyway.

You have to wonder if Altman will change his tune if Cleveland struggles during the first half of the season. If it starts becoming clear that the "core four" isn't working, there is certainly a chance that Garland becomes trade bait before the February deadline.

At the moment, though, it seems that the Cavs are very content with Garland on their roster.

The 24-year-old is coming off of a disappointing season in which he averaged 18 points per game on modest 44.6/37.1/83.4 shooting splits. However, it's important to note that Garland played in just 57 games and suffered a broken jaw injury that caused him to drop a considerable amount of weight.

Two years ago, Garland registered 21.6 points per game and enjoyed the most efficient campaign of his career, so the idea of Garland and Mitchell not being able to co-exist is not rooted in total fact.

That being said, it's something to keep an eye on early in the season.