Darius

Garland

Garland made his long-awaited Clippers debut on Monday, and he did so coming off the bench. That was done for injury management reasons, with the point guard playing 23 minutes. There’s some work to be done establishing on-court chemistry with his teammates, as evidenced by Garland committing five turnovers. However, the most important takeaway for Monday was that he looked comfortable playing on the right great toe that sidelined him for six weeks. The Clippers’ final three games of Week 19 include a back-to-back, so Garland may only be available for two.

The Clippers won’t have John Collins (neck) for Monday’s game, so Sanders moves into the starting lineup. While this gives the rookie’s fantasy value a slight boost, he may not play starters’ minutes, as Darius Garland will make his Clippers debut in a reserve role.

It was reported over the weekend that Garland planned to make his Clippers debut on Monday, and now it’s official. Given the amount of time he’s missed, fantasy managers should expect Garland’s playing time to be limited for his first few games. Kris Dunn has been running the point, but he’ll likely shift off the ball whenever Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue decides to start Garland.

It was reported last week that Garland, who injured his right great toe while with the Cavaliers, was targeting Monday for his Clippers’ debut. Haynes’ report is further confirmation of this, with Garland having already been ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Pelicans. Given the time that he’s missed, the point guard will likely be under a minutes restriction for his first few games back.

Garland is still not ready to make his Clippers’ debut, as he will sit out Sunday’s game. However, it was reported recently that the point guard could be available for Monday’s game against the Warriors. Kris Dunn will continue to run the point as long as Garland is out.

Garland was able to participate in 5-on-5 practice on Tuesday and will do so again on Thursday, though he won’t play against Minnesota. However, he’s clearly getting closer to making his debut for the Clippers. Until he does, Kris Dunn should continue to start at point guard.

While Garland, who has yet to make his Clippers’ debut, practiced on Wednesday, he did not get in any “live” work. “Everything except for live,” Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said Wednesday when asked about Garland. “He didn’t do 3-on-2, 2-on-1. But yesterday, he did the defensive stations live and all the full-court stuff, all the pre-practice stuff, and all the plays and stations, as well. He felt good.” Until Garland is healthy enough to play in games, the Clippers will stick with Kris Dunn as the starting point guard.

Without Ivica Zubac and James Harden, who were both traded ahead of Wednesday’s trade deadline, Leonard led the new-look Clippers to a win on Friday, ending a two-game skid. The two-time Finals MVP reached the 30-point mark for the first time since mid-January and set a new season-high in assists in the process. Leonard also fell one rebound short of a double-double, posting one of his more balanced performances of the season. Until the Clippers get their newly acquired players into the lineup, particularly Darius Garland and Bennedict Mathurin, expect Leonard to shoulder most of the load on a nightly basis.

Leonard once again led the way offensively for the Clippers, but he didn’t have much help in the first game since James Harden was traded to the Cavaliers. And with new addition Darius Garland recovering from a toe injury, Leonard will be required to do even more of the heavy lifting. The Clippers don’t own their 2026 first-round pick, as it goes to Oklahoma City as part of the Paul George trade. One would think this would dissuade the Clippers from tanking, but Garland’s injury timeline may factor into the path the team takes.

Cleveland’s “Core Four” is no more, as the team has reportedly moved Garland to the Clippers. While he does have an All-Star Game appearance to his credit, foot injuries have been an issue for Garland the last two seasons. A left big toe injury limited him late last season, and he’s currently out with a right big toe injury. During his final practice as a Cavalier on Tuesday, Garland was limited to individual work, so fantasy managers will likely have to wait for the point guard to make his Clippers’ debut. In the meantime, Kris Dunn and Kobe Sanders have higher fantasy ceilings.