Darius Garland's Toe Injury Reportedly Causing 'Significant Concern' for Cavaliers

The left toe sprain that has kept Cleveland’s Darius Garland out of the past two games is a “significant concern” for the team heading into their second-round Game 1 matchup against the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.

"What the team has said to me is that this is a significant concern, this injury," NBA Tv's Jared Greenberg said prior to the game.

"If this was the regular season... Darius Garland would have been shut down for at least a week to two weeks. This is a major burden for a small and shifty point guard," Greenberg continued. "The amount of pain that Garland is dealing with in that toe makes it difficult for him to push off, for him to gain any leverage like he typically does on the court."

Greenberg later reported that Garland was confident that he'd be able to play in Game 2:

Initially listed as a game-time decision, Darius Garland has officially been ruled out for the Cavaliers' Eastern Conference Semifinals Game 1 matchup against the surging Indiana Pacers.

Garland last suited up in Cleveland’s Game 2 win over the Miami Heat, where he posted 21 points on 6-of-14 shooting and dished out nine assists. The Cavaliers went on to close out the series in four games.

The point guard has elevated his play in the postseason, averaging 24.0 points after posting 20.6 per game during the regular season. Head coach Kenny Atkinson addressed recent comments from Miami’s Kyle Anderson, who suggested the Cavs looked better without Garland, defending his guard’s value to the team.

“You want my honest answer? I don’t mean to throw shots at anybody or even entertain what was going on between them but, I think, they looked like a better team without Garland on the floor," Anderson said after the Heat were swept. "Now I don't know the numbers or anything, but I think it played more into their favor once Garland wasn't on the floor, for them." 

In response, Atkinson said: "I don't know. I don't listen to that," Atkinson said. "I think we're better with our All-Star point guard personally."

The Cavaliers will be hopeful to have their All-Star guard back in the lineup for Game 2 of the series as they continue their playoff push.