CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Cavaliers will be without two of their top players for an extended period as Darius Garland has a broken jaw and Evan Mobley will undergo knee surgery.
The team said Friday that Garland will miss at least one month, and Mobley will have an arthroscopic procedure on Monday and could be sidelined two months.
It's a devastating blow to a Cleveland team that has hovered around .500 for much of the season while dealing with injuries. The Cavs have dropped three straight games and are currently 13-12 in the No. 9 spot in the Eastern Conference.
Without Garland and Mobley, the Cavs are missing 36 points per game, their starting point guard and in Mobley, their best defensive player.
Garland broke his jaw when he collided with Boston's Kristaps Porzingis in Cleveland's loss to the Celtics on Thursday. Mobley has missed the past four games due to his knee.
Garland ran into the 7-foot-2 Porzingis in the third quarter of Cleveland’s 116-107 loss. Garland crumpled to the floor and left for the locker room in obvious pain while holding his face. He later returned and finished with 19 points in 36 minutes.
The 23-year-old Garland is in his fifth season with the Cavs and has developed into one of the NBA’s best young guards.
The 6-foot-11 Mobley is averaging 16 points and 10.5 rebounds in his third season as a pro. The 22-year-old was the third overall pick in the 2021 draft.
