Our exit interview series for the 2026 Clippers nears its conclusion with a look at newly acquired star point guard Darius Garland.
Basic Information
Height: 6’1
Weight: 192 pounds
Position: Point Guard
Age: 26
Years in NBA: 7
Key Regular Season Stats (for Clippers): 19.9 points, 2.3 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1,2 steals, and 3.0 turnovers in 29.1 minutes per game across 19 games played (17 starts) on 47.1/43.8/86 (7.6 3PA, 2.3 FTA) shooting splits (60.2 True Shooting)
Expectations
Garland’s acquisition for James Harden before the trade deadline was a shocking move that came completely out of the blue. Once the dust had settled, expectations for Garland this season were relatively limited – he’d been out for a while with a toe injury, was expected to miss a lot more time due to said injury, and would have to adjust to a new team after having spent his whole career in Cleveland. Once he was activated, fans expected Garland to seize the role as the Clippers’ lead ballhandler, playmaker, and three-point shooter while serving as the second banana to Kawhi Leonard.
Reality
I think Garland met expectations, and maybe even played a bit above them. He sat out his first 10 games on the Clippers due to the aforementioned injury, returning on March 2 against the Warriors. Garland came off the bench his first two games and logged less than 25 minutes, looking very rusty against the Warriors but then quite effective against the Pacers. After that, Garland sat on the first night of a back-to-back (he didn’t play in any full B2Bs as a Clipper) before being moved to the starting unit on March 7 against the Grizzlies. Garland started the next three games, all of them wins, and played quite well in each of them to help push the Clippers’ momentum forward.
Garland’s first true rough outing as a Clipper came in his seventh game on the team, in a tough loss to the Spurs. Garland scored 25 points on 9-20 shooting (not bad) but coughed up the ball an incredible 8 times (to 10 assists) and was roasted on defense by the Spurs’ guards. Garland made up for the Spurs game two games later against the Mavs, when he went off for 41 points on 15-24 shooting with 11 assists, carrying the Clippers to an overtime win. It was an incredible shotmaking and playmaking performance from Garland, who looked unstoppable all night.
Unfortunately, the season did not end on such a high note. Garland had other good games down the stretch, but was dismal again against the Spurs on April 2 (11 points on 5-17 shooting), and more importantly was not impressive in the Clippers’ two biggest games of the year, both against the Portland Trailblazers and both losses. In the first (March 31), Garland scored 20 points on 7-17 shooting and had 5 turnovers to 4 assists, while in the second (April 10), he scored 16 points on 5-16 shooting with 7 assists to 3 turnovers. In both games, he was also targeted repeatedly on defense. In the Clippers’ play-in loss to the Warriors, Garland was fine (21 points on 8-15 shooting, 8 assists to 2 turnovers), but was resoundingly outplayed by Steph Curry and was bad on defense.
Ultimately, I’m willing to look past Garland’s bad or middling performances in the most important games or those against elite competition. It was a small sample size, the team was dealing with other injuries, and Garland was still getting his feet wet after missing a long period of time while adjusting to a new team. In his best games, you could see why the Cavaliers viewed Garland as a franchise cornerstone for so long – his combination of shooting, creation, and passing is truly advanced and deadly. On the other hand, his defense, turnovers, and rebounding all leave a lot to be desired. Hopefully with a full, healthy offseason and training camp under his belt, we see more of the All-Star level Garland next season.
Future with Clippers
Garland is under contract for two more seasons at $42.1 and $44.9M, making him the only player on the team with a sizable contract that lasts past next summer. The Clippers have made every indication publicly and in private comments to reporters that they view Garland as a long-term building block. At 26 years old, Garland is firmly in his prime, and while small, speedy guards don’t usually age great, Garland’s combination of handle, shooting, and passing should keep him as a very good player for a long time. If I had to guess, he will be a Clipper for a while.
However, that’s not a certainty. As soon as next summer there will be pressure on the Clippers to extend Garland, as he will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2028. If the Clippers and Garland can’t agree to an extension, it’s possible both sides will move on via trade. There is also the possibility that the Clippers continue to slide down in the standings next year and Garland decides he’d rather play for a contender than a mediocrity, even with the wealth of Steve Ballmer and the allure of Los Angeles.
Garland has a lot to prove this upcoming season after a relatively disappointing 2026. If he plays really well and helps keep the Clippers in the postseason picture, he could be in line for a max or near-max extension that locks him up for the rest of his prime and into his early 30s. If Garland does not regain the form he showed in Cleveland for several years, the Clippers might be ready to move on and cast him aside as a franchise player. But regardless, I’d be quite surprised if he wasn’t on the team at least next year.