Darius Garland debut a success with Los Angeles…
SAN FRANCISCO — Tyronn Lue didn’t need Darius Garland’s first minutes with the Clippers to come in the shadow of Kawhi Leonard. That meant the uniform wasn’t the only factor new for the 26-year-old guard Monday night time in his Los Angeles debut.
Garland scored 12 factors in 23 minutes in a 114-101 win against the Warriors — off the bench.
Darius Garland of the LA Clippers dribbles the ball during the sport against the Golden State Warriors on March 2, 2026 at Chase Center in San Francisco, California. NBAE via Getty Images
It was Garland’s first time taking the court since the Cavaliers despatched him to LA for James Harden, his first recreation at all since Jan. 14, and the first time since his sophomore season — 2020-21 — that the two-time All-Star’s title wasn’t announced among the beginning lineups.
“It’s whatever. I wanted to fit in so I didn’t want to disrupt anything or anything that we had going on because we had been on a good little run,” Garland said of his response when Lue informed him he wouldn’t start initially. “It was kind of weird at first, I told him it felt weird at first. But after I got going a little bit, it was cool.”
Garland checked in for the first time with 4:48 left in the first quarter and didn’t get his first bucket until shortly before halftime. The Warriors blitzed him and pressured three early turnovers.
“Steve Kerr always got something up under his sleeve,” Garland said. “So probably after the first trey ball I made I was like OK, all right, I think I knocked the cobwebs off a little bit.”
Garland’s health is one motive why the Cavaliers have been snug trading him away for another guard 10 years his elder in Harden. He hadn’t performed since spraining his proper big toe against the 76ers six weeks in the past and had surgical procedure on his other big toe over the summer time.
Before tipoff, Lue said he wished to see Garland “find his own rhythm, his own timing and just try to run everything through him” without Leonard. The Clippers have been at their best in the moments both have been on the ground.
Golden State Warriors guard Moses Moody, left, reaches for the ball while falling over Los Angeles Clippers guard Darius Garland during the first half of an NBA basketball recreation in San Francisco, Monday, March 2, 2026. AP
In their first possession together, Garland drove to the rim, drew contact, and received to the foul line. Not long after, Golden State crashed the paint, and Garland kicked it out to Leonard for an open 3.
“From penetration, they pulled in, and then he was able to make the right play,” Lue said. “It’s gonna take some time to get our rotations, who plays well with who, but tonight was a good start.”
Leonard, who led LA with 23 factors, said the Clippers newcomer “looks very promising out there.”
“He is very active defensively when guarding some of their centers in the post. I enjoyed his whole performance tonight.”
As Garland received going, so did the Clippers. They erased a 17-point deficit before halftime to declare a convincing win over the staff immediately forward of them in the Western Conference standings. The win closed the hole between LA and Golden State to 1.5 video games.
While the Warriors continue to battle attrition, Lue has a new toy to play with in LA.
“A guy can push the pace, can run pick-and-roll, can get to where he wants to get to on the floor, can run a lot of different options where he can come off pin-downs, he can come off pick-the-picker actions,” Lue said. “We can just use him a lot of different ways.”
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