Just a few days ago, Darius Garland declared that the Cavaliers had returned.

At the time, the Cavs had just snapped a five-game losing streak with a win against the Magic to go back to .500 on the season.

Fast forward to Friday, and the team is now on a four-game winning streak following their 116-101 loss to the Wizards. Cleveland has beaten Orlando by 13, Dallas by 18 and Miami by 26 during this four-game streak.

The Cavs swept a road trip of three or more games with all opponents having a winning record for the second time in franchise history. The last time he had? 1975.

Most impressive, however, was Garland’s performance.

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The third-year player had arguably his best game for the Cavs, finishing with 32 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds. In the process, he joined a rarefied club, becoming the first Cavalier at 32-10-8 in a game since LeBron James in 2018, and only the third Cavalier in franchise history with that stat line before meeting. 22 years.

The other two were James and Kyrie Irving.

“I think the growth that we are seeing is that now Darius is playing the game within the game,” the head coach said. JB Bickerstaff said after the game. “I think what you’re seeing is the maturing of a point guard with elite skills and talent.”

Garland is averaging 19.1 points and 7.3 assists so far this season.