Darius Garland says showing a more "aggressive" side to his game was the key to his inspirational display in the Cleveland Cavaliers' Game 2 victory against the New York Knicks.
After making a limited impact in Saturday's Game 1 loss, Garland was far more involved in Tuesday's contest at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
The 2022 NBA All-Star posted a game-high 32 points on eight-of-17 shooting, draining six-of-10 from long range, and he also chipped in seven assists in a masterful offensive showing.
Asked about the key to his improved performance in his side's 107-90 triumph to level the series, Garland said: "Everybody in the building told me to go be aggressive.
"They said to shoot the ball. So I watched the film from the first game and seeing some opportunities where I can and be aggressive, and that's what I just tried to do today.
"They showed a couple clips where I had open shots and I didn't shoot them. So it's really the entire organisation telling me to shoot the ball; it's not just one person."
Garland averaged 21.6 points during the regular season, with that tally bettered only by Donovan Mitchell (28.3) among Cavs players.
Mitchell, who added 17 and a career playoff-high 13 assists, praised the showing of young point guard Garland.
"That's the All-Star we all know, and it was great to see," Mitchell said. "I told him at the end of the day, that's what we're going to need, continue to be aggressive."
Garland became the third player in the Cavs' franchise history, after LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, to score 26 points or more in a half.
While the 23-year-old was widely praised for his performance, Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff was equally as impressed by what he saw from Mitchell.
"What he did tonight is make sure that everybody had belief, that everybody played to their strength," Bickerstaff said.
"When they had it going, he could've very easily decided it was time for him to take shots, but he didn't; he made sure those guys kept going so they could keep that confidence.
"We have to continue to hammer this home. We got our a** kicked on the boards the other night, and tonight those guys took it personal and made a huge change."
Cleveland now travel to Madison Square Garden for Games 3 and 4, which take place on Friday and Sunday respectively.