“Ricky Rubio taught me about leadership, Rajon Rondo teaches me constantly!”: Cavaliers’ Darius Garland opens up to Draymond Green about the role the two veteran PGs have in his development

Cavaliers’ Darius Garland talks to Draymond Green about Ricky Rubio and Rajon Rondo, shares what they’ve taught him

In the NBA, knowledge drips at every corner. Any young player joining the league can learn things all the time, by just observing what’s going on around them. While coaches and training staff do their best to guide the young minds, veteran players are equally as important.

On the latest episode of the Draymond Green show, DG hosted another DG. The newly anointed all-star, Darius Garland made his way to Green’s podcast this week. The duo talked about a lot of things, including the comparisons to Stephen Curry, the upward trend of the Cavaliers, and more.

Also Read: “Caris LeVert is the missing piece we need”: Darius Garland sends an ominous warning to the rest of the league as the Cavaliers establish a championship mindset in the post LeBron James era

Since LeBron James left Cleveland for LA, the Cavs were #14, #15, and #13 in three seasons. However, this season, they’re sitting on the 4th seed with a  34-21 record. A major reason behind the same has been the dominance exhibited by Darius Garland.

“Rajon Rondo was the first person ever to call me and discuss a whole game clip”: Darius Garland

On the Draymond Green show, DG talked about the importance of veterans. Even though coaches are there to teach and guide young players, knowledge imparted by a veteran just gets through faster and better.

The Cavaliers have done an excellent job of surrounding their young guards Collin Sexton and Darius Garland with veterans like Rajon Rondo and Ricky Rubio. In Sexton’s absence, Rubio played a huge role in winning. Green asked Garland what he learned from Rubio, and the 21-year-old guard said,

“Ricky was the first person to get to me about leadership this year, and that really turned a page. Ricky was on me all the time about being aggressive, keeping everybody engaged and having that killer mindset. This is your team, this is all you.”

Talking about Rajon Rondo, Darius said,

“He was the first person ever to call me to the back of the bus and watch a full game with me. That meant a lot to me, that was the second day I met him. He’s teaching me a lot, I come pick his brain during timeouts, to see what he’s thinking. He’s a master at the pick and roll, and I’m learning it from him.”

Also Read: “It’s like the first day of school, you’re the new kid”: Caris LeVert details his emotions of suiting up as a Cavalier for the first time

With Rubio and Rondo shaping the young guards, and the Cavs improving their roster by adding Caris LeVert, they seem serious and in a good position to win. They have talents such as Jarrett Allen, and veterans like Kevin Love. This Cavs team, if they can manage to stick together, would be a huge problem in the East in a year or two.