ORLANDO -- Darius Garland was the Cleveland Cavaliers’ reward for one of the worst seasons in franchise history.

He is widely viewed as the most important piece in what head coach John Beilein has termed a “renaissance,” not a rebuild. On the surface, that seems to be a tremendous amount of pressure for a 19-year-old, baby-faced kid who played just four full games in college, right?

“There’s no pressure,” Garland said recently. “Just come out and play my game."

OK, fine. Let’s not say pressure. Still, there’s admittedly plenty of anticipation.

“I mean, I haven’t played in like a year, so my first game is going to be tonight and I’m really excited to play,” Garland said following the Cavaliers’ shootaround Wednesday morning. “I’ve been dreaming about this all my life, so it’s cool to just be here. Very excited.”

So amped for his NBA debut, Garland “couldn’t sleep at all” Tuesday night. After watching the Opening Night double-header, which started with Toronto vs. New Orleans and finished with the battle of Los Angeles between the Lakers and Clippers, Garland tried to get some rest. Emphasis on tried.

“I didn’t go to sleep until like 3. I was super anxious,” Garland said.

Who can blame him? Garland’s last real, competitive action was Nov. 23, 2018. Just two minutes into his fifth game as a freshman at Vanderbilt, Garland tore his meniscus, opting for surgery that sidelined him the remainder of the season.

Because of a limited sample size, Garland became the draft’s mystery man. He didn’t get his turn in the spotlight like Ja Morant, RJ Barrett or Zion Williamson, whose hype reached new, warranted heights based on what he accomplished as a freshman at Duke. Garland could only watch and wait patiently. When he wasn’t able to play in summer league -- the organization’s decision of caution -- that patience was tested. According to sources, Garland texted members of the front office daily, telling them how healthy he was feeling, pushing to get an opportunity.

But the Cavs never wavered. Garland didn’t get his shot, leaving the Cavs -- and others -- to wait even longer to see the 6-foot-1 point guard who was the fifth pick in a star-studded 2019 draft.

While three exhibition games helped answer some questions while also highlighting a few of Garland’s best characteristics -- off-the-dribble shooting, footwork, shot creation, vision, pace -- making any kind of judgments based on the preseason is hazardous. That’s partly why Garland doesn’t even count those matchups when discussing the last time he actually played.

Wednesday night in Orlando is Garland’s official reintroduction.

“I have a big chip on my shoulder because I only played five games, but I’m not really worried about publicity and status and all that stuff,” Garland said. “I just come to play.”

Beilein wouldn’t reveal his starting lineup. But Garland was wearing the wine-colored starter’s jersey following shootaround Wednesday. He’s been running the first team the last few days in practice, shaking off some rust, surging forward and trying to develop synergy with the other four starters. All signs point to get him getting the nod. They have for about a week now.

“I think whenever we can mix him in with guys with experience I think it really helps us,” Beilein said, dropping a small hint about his plan.

The bulk of the experience resides with the starters -- Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love. Beilein also pointed to Matthew Dellavedova’s recent teaching as an asset, seeing the impact it has had on young guys like rookie Kevin Porter Jr., who will get a bulk of his minutes off the bench, if he even sees the court right away because of Beilein’s plan for a tight nine- or 10-man rotation.

Putting that starting responsibility on Garland is, no doubt, a lot. But everyone in the organization believes not only that he’s up for it, but is the kind of player who will embrace the challenge.

So what does Beilein want to see from the youngster in his debut?

“It’s a lot to ask of him, but to take charge of the team as a leader,” Beilein said. “In football, you have a quarterback and if he goes into the huddle and he’s not strong with his presence then everyone is affected by that. He can do that. He did it four or five games in college and now we’re expecting him to do it in the NBA.”

As for Garland, his focus is singular. There’s only one outcome he wants.

“A win,” he said.

Maybe then he will finally be able to sleep.

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