As Darius Garland made his debut for the Los Angeles Clippers in a 114-101 win over the Golden State Warriors on Monday night, the star spoke after an outing that was highly anticipated. With Garland coming off the bench for the Clippers in his debut, there is no denying the work he needs to do to refine himself after missing significant time.
In the win, Garland recorded 12 points on four of nine shooting from the field, two of seven from three-point range, to go with two assists and two rebounds, while committing five turnovers. Garland would say that his debut was focused on "adjusting" to his new surroundings.
"Just getting adjusted," Garland said, according to The Athletic's Law Murray. "Getting adjusted to L.A., getting to know the people. Getting to know the staff, everyone around the organization, and just trying to get back to me... Yeah, man, it's definitely good to be out there with the people. Especially getting a win, my first win with the Clips. It's a blessing."
Darius Garland came off the bench in a month-long Clippers debut. The Clippers were down by 17 and Garland's first minutes were very bad
And then Garland started playing with Kawhi Leonard and Kris Dunn. Beginning of PG in GS inside DG 👉🏾 pic.twitter.com/0ncau2yjYu
- Law Murray 🕯️ (@LawMurrayTheNU) 3 March 2026
Darius Garland's Clippers debut gets off to a great start
While a toe injury kept Garland from making his Clippers debut since he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a deal involving James Harden, he was rough to start, even drawing major attention from the Warriors on defense.
"Yeah, I wasn't expecting to get blitzed after a month off," Garland said, via Murray. "But Steve Kerr always had something up his sleeve."
After playing more minutes, it was noticeable that the 26-year-old was becoming more comfortable, with Garland even saying he believed the "cobwebs" had been removed.
"That second half, that's when it really started," Garland said. “KD [Kris Dunn] Came inside, some big thefts took place. Jordan [Miller] ...Yanic [Konan Niederhauser] Played your butt. and 'whi [Kawhi Leonard] There's definitely going to be a 'whi'.
Garland will look to further improve as the remainder of Los Angeles' season progresses, with the next game coming on Wednesday night against the Indiana Pacers, as the team currently holds a 29-31 record.
