The Cleveland Cavaliers had their best regular season run since LeBron James’ first stint with the team as they finished 64-18 in 2024-25. It marked their second-most wins in Cavaliers history, falling short of their franchise-best 66-16 mark in 2008-09.
They were unable to advance past the second round of the postseason, however, as they fell to the Indiana Pacers in five games. Kevin Durant recently appeared on the “Mind the Game” podcast with James and Hall of Famer Steve Nash. The Houston Rockets star discussed where the game is headed, noting that smaller guards are no longer at a premium.
“I don’t know if the 6’2 and under guard is at a premium no more as a starter,” Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant stated. “Maybe as a backup.”
“It’s that either Donovan Mitchell, Jrue Holiday 6’3, Lou Dort,” Nash added. “Or it’s, nah, you got to be (bigger).”
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“You can’t get picked on on defense,” Durant noted. “That’s the thing. Because we’re playing such a pick on game that they will literally — if you can’t guard — they will bring you up every play. If you’re 6’0, 6’1 and you’re not a bulldog like Davion Mitchell, Jrue Holiday on the defensive side or you’re not an offensive flat out savant like Kyrie (Irving) where you can score on dudes that’s 7’0 easily in ISO, then I just can’t see it.”
“For me, I’m interested in Darius Garland,” Nash responded. “He’s an amazing basketball player. We don’t talk about him as this amazing (player) because of the era. If he played in any other era, I think his value would be through the roof. He’s that skilled. He’s water bug. He’s got every shot. He can playmake, but it’s an era where you also have to help that dude out defensively all the time.”
“He is, but the defensive side of the ball is where people were attacking,” Durant added. “If you want a chance to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, you are going at Darius Garland most the time on the defensive side. That’s not saying he’s going to get scored on every time. He’s just small.”
Durant noted that the two-time Cavaliers All-Star is 6’1, while most teams best offensive players are 6’9 or 6’10. He used Orlando Magic star Paolo Banchero as an example of the type of player who could take advantage of Garland in switches. The 2013-14 MVP did, however, acknowledge that Cleveland did a good job of building to help their point guard out defensively.
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