We compiled a group of individuals (programming note: 30 entries, not 30 people total) who mean something special to SLAM and to our audience. Read the full list here and order your copy of SLAM 248, where this list was originally published, here.

In 1980, Stephen King published a novel called Firestarter. The title character was Charlie McGee, a little girl who could harness a vast power to—among other things—start fires. One important lesson she learned early on was to always push the power out, because to absorb it would destroy herself. Hold that thought.

Kevin Garnett never talked before games. And it’s not just that he didn’t do interviews; he didn’t talk, period. If he knew you, he might give you a nod, maybe a tap on the chest. But he didn’t say anything. Afterward he’d talk, but always last. The equipment guys had long since gathered the sneakers and the uniforms and bagged it all up for the next destination; reporters were getting antsy about deadlines and airtimes. But you waited for the same reasons producers ask Andre 3000 for features—because while you might have to wait forever, it was always worth the wait. KG had bars. He’d tell you things about the game you’d never have noticed in a way you’d never have thought of. 

In between, KG did things on a basketball court you’d never seen before. He’d start plays and finish them, guard every position, somehow be everywhere all at once. Dude was like this from the start, from Mauldin, SC, to Chicago—he came into his first pre-NBA workout and by the end had converted even the most staunch nonbelievers in guys making the high school jump. He went fifth and should have gone first (sorry Joe Smith). He soaked up the NBA like a sponge, put his imprint on ’Sota right away, got the Wolves to grab Stephon Marbury in the following year’s Draft. We documented it with a classic cover: “Showbiz & KG.” Nike slid him their coolest shit—he wore Jordans against MJ—before lacing him with a signature sneaker and making him head of the Fun Police. When we did that first Nike-sponsored KICKS issue, there was no question who’d be on the cover. 

For the December 1999 “100 Percent Real Juice” cover—we shot KG on a gold background but switched it out to orange—Jonathan Mannion and I flew out to Minnesota to shoot him at his crib. Garnett shot hoops in his driveway in his full road Wolves uni, the new Mobb Deep bumping from outdoor speakers. He had “It’s Mine” on repeat, trying to memorize Nas’ verse. By the end of the day, I was like, Man, I need to pick this up—only to find out at the closest record store that it wasn’t due out for another couple of weeks. We did that adidas KICKS cover with him and TD and T-Mac and the roundtable interview that anchored it was one of the most fun interviews ever. KG—never listed at 7 feet despite clear evidence to the contrary—busted on Mac for actually being 6-10 or 6-11 and then acted all surprised when it got turned back around on him.

On the court, his intensity spilled out of him like sweat. He burned so hot he had to constantly push it out lest it burn him up. He talked, yes; he cursed up a storm, but he was always talking to himself, pushing and pushing and pushing. KG picked up an MVP in Minny—but couldn’t make it all the way. By the time he decamped for Boston, it was almost a relief. 

“ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!” He messed up the adidas tagline, but that happens when you add that final (or Finals) touch. That chip. It took him a minute to say anything at all, he said it quiet first before primal screaming it into the TD Banknorth Garden rafters. Achievement unlocked, weight lifted, program complete. Not that he was finished quite yet; there’d be another Finals trip, a Brooklyn stop, a final return to Minnesota as elder and sage—21 seasons for 21.

And now. Kevin Garnett at 48. He’s a Hall of Famer, a media mogul, doing production and a podcast with Paul Pierce. We did a whole special issue on him in 2021. He’s out in Cali, a Midwest guy retired to the beach. He doesn’t hoop anymore because hoop goes just one way for him—the demon comes out, as he puts it, and the demon needs to stay away. At long last, after two decades of relentless intensity, peace. 

Portrait by Benoit Peverelli. Photo via Getty Images.

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At this point in the list, we’re getting into dynasty territory. Clutch moments and high-pressure situations were the norm for these squads, many of whom won multiple championships over a three to five year period. Different.

From iconic three-peats to historic dubs, here’s our picks for No. 32-22:

32. 2004-05 San Antonio Spurs

Coach: Gregg Popovich

Record: 59-23

Roster: Brent Barry, Bruce Bowen, Devin Brown, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Dion Glover, Robert Horry, Linton Johnson, Sean Marks, Tony Massenburg, Nazr Mohammed, Rasho Nesterovic, Tony Parker, Glenn Robinson, Malik Rose, Beno Udrih, Mike Wilks

The Spurs and Pistons came into the season having split the previous two NBA championships, and both upset higher-seeded opponents (the Suns and Heat, respectively) in the Conference Finals that spring. That set up a title bout that made up for a relative lack of star power with heavyweight intensity and dominant D. Five of seven Finals games ended with the losing team not breaking 80 points. The series ended with Tim Duncan securing his third ring.

31. 1963-64 Boston Celtics

Coach: Red Auerbach

Record: 59-21

Roster: John Havlicek, Tom Heinsohn, KC Jones, Sam Jones, Jim Loscutoff, Clyde Lovellette, Johnny McCarthy, Willie Naulls, Frank Ramsey, Bill Russell, Tom Sanders, Larry Siegfried

Yawn, another title run, but at least Boston got a new Finals opponent to break up the monotony. The San Francisco Warriors tried to play immovable object to the Celtics’ unstoppable force, and in Wilt Chamberlain, the Dubs at least had the firepower. But Boston had the balance, experience and pedigree: John Havlicek and Sam Jones led the offense, and Bill Russell did his usual work, dominating defensively and on the glass to lead Boston to its seventh championship in eight tries.

30. 1969-70 New York Knicks

Coach: Red Holzman

Record: 60-22

Roster: Dick Barnett, Nate Bowman, Bill Bradley, Dave DeBusschere, Walt Frazier, Bill Hosket, Don May, Willis Reed, Mike Riordan, Cazzie Russell, Dave Stallworth, John Warren

When a new decade brought an end to the Celtics’ dominance, the Knicks asserted themselves as the class of the League. Behind MVP Willis Reed’s 21.7 ppg and 13.9 rpg and Walt Frazier’s stylish 20.9 points and 8.2 dimes per, New York rolled to the League’s best record and a Finals meeting with the Lakers. What followed was a seven-game classic against West, Wilt and Baylor, best remembered for Reed’s Game 7 effort on a bum leg that inspired his teammates to victory.

29. 1981-82 Los Angeles Lakers

Coach: Paul Westhead, Pat Riley

Record: 57-25

Roster: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jim Brewer, Michael Cooper, Clay Johnson, Magic Johnson,Eddie Jordan, Mitch Kupchak, Mark Landsberger, Bob McAdoo, Mike McGee, Kevin  McKenna, Norm Nixon, Kurt Rambis, Jamaal Wilkes

Pat Riley was second choice. When Paul Westhead was fired (at Magic Johnson’s urging) 11 games into the ’81-82 season, Lakers owner Jerry Buss named Jerry West head coach. Only West didn’t want it, so Riley—the former player turned broadcaster turned inexperienced assistant—got the gig. Duly motivated, Magic, Kareem and Jamaal Wilkes led L.A. back to the Finals, where they bounced the Sixers in six. Showtime was in effect, and one of the greatest coaching careers was born.

28. 2001-02 Los Angeles Lakers

Coach: Phil Jackson

Record: 58-24

Roster: Kobe Bryant, Joe Crispin, Derek Fisher, Rick Fox, Devean George, Robert Horry, Lindsey Hunter, Mark Madsen, Jelani McCoy, Stanislav Medvedenko, Shaquille O’Neal, Mike Penberthy, Mitch Richmond, Brian Shaw, Samaki Walker

The third title of the Shaq-Kobe axis didn’t come easily. That Western Finals series with Sacramento was brutal, and there were those who thought the Lakers shouldn’t have won it. But they did, and then L.A. dusted Jersey in the Finals, behind another overpowering performance from O’Neal. The dynamic duo was again tremendous, while Derek Fisher provided stability at the point, and supporting players like Rick Fox and Robert Horry stepped up when needed.

27. 2006-07 San Antonio Spurs

Coach: Gregg Popovich

Record: 58-24

Roster: Brent Barry, Matt Bonner, Bruce Bowen, Jackie Butler, Tim Duncan, Francisco Elson, Melvin Ely, Michael Finley, Manu Ginobili, Robert Horry, Fabricio Oberto, Tony Parker, Beno Udrih, Jacque Vaughn, James White, Eric Williams

These Spurs scored when they needed to, and they moved the ball like no one else. But the real strength of the team was on defense, where San Antonio could stifle rivals, just like it did Cleveland in the Finals sweep. Tim Duncan was a no-frills frontcourt star, with point guard Tony Parker’s creativity and Manu Ginobili’s flair and passion the keys to the team’s success. Role players like Bruce Bowen and Michael Finley helped complete a pure team.

26. 1980-81 Boston Celtics

Coach: Bill Fitch

Record: 62-20

Roster: Tiny Archibald, Larry Bird, ML Carr, Terry Duerod, Eric Fernsten, Chris Ford, Gerald Henderson, Wayne Kreklow, Cedric Maxwell, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Rick Robey

After Magic Johnson got his title in 1980, it was Larry Bird’s turn. He and the Celtics waged a year-long battle with the Sixers that culminated with a seven-game Eastern Finals series that featured three big Boston comebacks. Kevin McHale and Robert Parish were interior forces, while Tiny Archibald, Chris Ford and Cedric Maxwell patrolled the perimeter. The Rockets were tough in the Finals, but they weren’t tough enough to stop the Celtics machine.

25. 1989-90 Detroit Pistons

Coach: Chuck Daly

Record: 59-23

Roster: Mark Aguirre, William Bedford, Joe Dumars, James Edwards, Dave Greenwood, Scott Hastings, Gerald Henderson, Vinnie Johnson, Stan Kimbrough, Bill Laimbeer, Ralph Lewis, Dennis Rodman, John Salley, Isiah Thomas

The Bad Boys went back-to-back with the same formula that won their first title: ferocious defense, timely offense and a Mean Streets attitude. Isiah Thomas smiled a lot, but he was a killer. Joe Dumars quietly piled up the points. Bill Laimbeer made no friends inside. Dennis Rodman rebounded and defended like a dervish. Mark Aguirre scored in many ways. James Edwards was a force in the post. And nobody wanted to mess with John Salley.

24. 2008-09 Los Angeles Lakers

Coach: Phil Jackson

Record: 65-17

Roster: Trevor Ariza, Shannon Brown, Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, Jordan Farmar, Derek Fisher, Pau Gasol, DJ Mbenga, Chris Mihm, Adam Morrison, Lamar Odom, Josh Powell, Vladimir Radmanovic, Sasha Vujacic, Luke Walton, Sun Yue

The first of back-to-back titles was Kobe Bryant’s initial one as undisputed leader of the Lakers and redemption for the Mamba. A year after losing in the Finals to ancestral rival Boston, the Lakers piled up 65 wins—third most in franchise history—with Bryant leading the way but receiving plenty of help from Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum inside. The anticipated Finals matchup with Cleveland and LeBron James didn’t happen, so L.A. whipped Orlando instead.

23. 2007-08 Boston Celtics

Coach: Doc Rivers

Record: 66-16

Roster: Ray Allen, Tony Allen, PJ Brown, Sam Cassell, Glen Davis, Kevin Garnett, Eddie House, Kendrick Perkins, Paul Pierce, Scot Pollard, James Posey, Leon Powe, Gabe Pruitt, Rajon Rondo, Brian Scalabrine

Depending on how you define it, the Super Team era started in Boston in the summer of ’07, when future Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen joined Paul Pierce to give the Celtics their best team in (at least) 20 years. Behind Pierce’s scoring, Allen’s shooting and KG’s two-way play, the Cs posted an NBA-high 66 wins and bounced LeBron and the Cavs en route to the Finals, where they renewed their rivalry with the Lakers. Not long after, they hung banner No. 17.

22. 1992-93 Chicago Bulls

Coach: Phil Jackson

Record: 57-25

Roster: BJ Armstrong, Ricky Blanton, Bill Cartwright, Joe Courtney, Jo Jo English, Horace Grant, Michael Jordan, Stacey King, Rodney McCray, Ed Nealy, John Paxson, Will Perdue, Scottie Pippen, Trent Tucker, Darrell Walker, Corey Williams, Scott Williams

The Lakers and Pistons had taken some of the magic out of title repeats by the time the Bulls
won their second straight, but no team since the Celtics’ ’60s dynasty had won three in a row. The Bulls felt like making history. The formula by now was familiar: Jordan averaged League-
highs in points (32.6) and steals (2.8), Scottie Pippen was a terror at both ends and Chicago made the big plays when it mattered, edging Barkley and the Suns in the Finals to seal the threepeat.

Read here to find out who made it on the rest of the list, including No. 75-66, 65-55, 54-44 and 43-33.

Get your copy of SLAM Presents TOP 75 NBA Teams Of All Time

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Jaylen Brown with a poster dunk to welcome the Big Three back to TD Garden.

(via @SportsCenter) pic.twitter.com/FMrt9kYoAO

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) March 13, 2022

Garnett is just the 23rd Celtic in franchise history to have his jersey retired. There were video tributes from his peers offering congratulations to Hall of Fame play-by-play announcer Mike Gorman saying he wanted to hug then-President Danny Ainge after seeing Garnett play for only one half of basketball, to Paul Pierce who had played with KG as far back as their AAU days.

Then after one of the numerous standing ovations, Garnett talked about his championship era in Boston.

“I looked up at the rafters and I just manifested, not only a championship but seeing myself immortal”

Kevin Garnett shares his thoughts from his first moments as a member of the @celtics. pic.twitter.com/VIKePmWbwE

— NBA (@NBA) March 13, 2022

One of the best moments of the ceremony was the public reconciliation between Garnett and Ray Allen, who was considered “questionable” to attend throughout the week. The crowd erupted as the two hugged to close a 10-year rift that began when Allen signed with the Miami Heat as a free agent, effectively ending the five-year “Big 3” era.

Ray Allen’s appreciation was evident when he spoke after the ceremony.

“Just because I moved away doesn’t mean that relationship, that friendship, ends.” Allen said via ESPN, “So it did center around Kevin and myself because I did get the sense that the people here felt how Kevin felt. Once he accepted me, then the people accepted me. That was the sense. I was glad we could do that and people could see, ‘We won with this guy in 2008, and that’s what matters most.'”

This moment between Ray Allen, @paulpierce34 and @KevinGarnett5KG pic.twitter.com/J5sL1fIWG2

— NBA TV (@NBATV) March 13, 2022

Kevin Garnett has a six-season resume that showed that his No. 5 deserved to be in the rafters. KG collected five All-Star teams selections was named to four NBA All-Defensive Teams with a first-team All-NBA selection in 2008. He rode that momentum along with the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award to the NBA title that year.

With Phil Collins’ famous tune “In The Air Tonight” blasting throughout the arena, a tearful Garnett raised his banner along with his two daughters. His number ended up next to Paul Pierce’s.

Kevin Garnett sheds a tear as he raises his jersey in to the rafters.

Congrats KG! pic.twitter.com/QLVz1e66ca

— NBA (@NBA) March 13, 2022

Kevin Garnett’s legacy may be forever attached to this quote, cementing him as a Celtic forever.

“You know, I was listening to the videos, and everything in here, and I kept hearing that it was saying that I came here to make players better,” Garnett said, “And in all actuality, those players made me better, and I like to think that we made each other better.”

You’re gonna want to turn your sound on. KG is amazing. (via @celtics) pic.twitter.com/IwMIJFzXdD

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) March 13, 2022

The post Kevin Garnett Cemented As Boston Celtics Legend With Jersey Retirement appeared first on SLAM.

As long as Tatum scores the ball at a high rate, the Celtics can’t lose. In a special night honoring former Celtics legends leading up to the jersey retirement this weekend, Boston turned in one of the best defensive performances of the year, completely shutting down the Detroit Pistons 114-103 for their fifth straight win.

Tatum dropped 30+ points in his fifth straight game, matching the longest streak of his career with the 2019-20 campaign from Feb 23-March 4.

.@jaytatum0 refuses to cool down

Check out tonight’s @gatorade Player of the Game pic.twitter.com/PiBwlmRzBY

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 12, 2022

Tatum finished with 31 points on 13-27 shooting after scoring 33, 37, 54, and 44 points in his previous four games.

The Celtics took some time at the intermission to honor some former players who traveled for the jersey retirement ceremony of Kevin Garnett on Sunday. A few members of the 2008 NBA championship team attended the game, including Paul Pierce, James Posey, Leon Powe, Brian Scalabrine, Dana Barros, Antoine Walker, and even current Pistons forward Kelly Olynyk, who played four years with the franchise.

Bill Russell was a part of the celebration but did so from home.

While we missed him in Boston tonight, @RealBillRussell joined in on the celebrations from home pic.twitter.com/Io51eHYIZU

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 12, 2022

The Celtics take on the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday when Kevin Garnett becomes the 24th Celtic to have his jersey retired.

The post Jayson Tatum Scores 31 On Boston Celtics Legends Celebration Night appeared first on SLAM.

According to The Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn, the Celtics are looking to reunite the 2008 championship-winning team at Kevin Garnett’s jersey retirement ceremony on Sunday night.

Notably, Ray Allen, part of the Celtics’ infamous “Big Three,” is also on the invite list for the Sunday night game. Allen and Garnett have publicly spoken about their rift over the past few years, stemming from Allen’s decision to leave the Celtics in 2012.

However, when Garnett appeared on the Showtime Basketball show, the Big Ticket said that he and Allen settled their issues at the NBA-75 ceremony during the All-Star Game in February.

Garnett, Allen, and Paul Pierce made up the dominant Celtics’ “Big Three.” in the Eastern Conference, appearing in three Eastern Conference finals, two NBA Finals, and winning one NBA Championship between 2008 and 2012.

The trio would eventually be broken up when Allen elected to join the Heat in free agency in 2012, and Pierce and Garnett were traded to the Brooklyn Nets in 2013.

The Garnett jersey retirement will be before the Celtics game against the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday afternoon.

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Those who were there from the beginning will tell you that Kevin Garnett didn’t want to make a documentary solely about himself. They’ll tell you that as a storyteller, he simply wanted to be a character who was part of a larger story, and everything he’s ever done, every basket he’s scored (or blocked, or rebounded) are domino pieces stacked within a long trail of other dominos. One decision led others to fall, and the story of Kevin Garnett, the story that will be told in Kevin Garnett: Anything is Possible, is a visual representation of that domino effect. 

Co-directed and produced by Eric Newman and Dan Levin, along with producers Mike Marangu, Marc Levin and Brian Bennett—KG’s partner at his production company, Content Cartel—the documentary is a look at KG’s past, diving deep into the impact he’s had on the League and the legacy he’s currently leaving as a Hall of Famer.

Garnett had expressed his interest in filmmaking way before the documentary even came to fruition. Stephen Espinoza, president of SHOWTIME Sports, recalls the first time he met KG, back in 2014 while on a flight from New York to China. SHOWTIME, one of the Barclays Center sponsors, was invited to join the Nets on the trip, and Espinoza recalls chatting with KG on the plane about boxing as well as Kevin’s post-career plans and goals. 

“We ended up talking so long that eventually, they had to separate us because we’re keeping everyone else in the cabin awake talking and laughing,” he says. “When we finished that conversation, I remember thinking that if there was ever an opportunity to do a project with him, I would jump at it because he is such a great dynamic, peripatetic personality and has really been an icon and a trailblazer in the League and in the culture for a long, long time.” 

Marc Levin, who first met KG during a Super Bowl LIII party, remembers having earlier conversations with him about his interests in exploring filmmaking and production. Garnett, who had seen Levin’s earlier film, Gang War: Banging in Little Rock, was intrigued by notorious gang leader Larry Hoover and interested in telling his story. 

Garnett also shared his interest in documentaries with Mike Marangu, who had previously worked with Levin on a number of sports documentaries, including Freeway: Crack in the System, along with being a producer on Iverson. The two had been introduced in 2018, just two years after KG retired, by Brian Bennett. 

No shade to other sports docs, but having grown up in the era of hip-hop and the heavy influence of Nas, Tupac and Biggie, KG told Marangu that he wanted his own documentary to be, in his own words, some “gangster shit.”

“When you’re talking to him and he’s literally acting it out, he can’t just tell you a story,” Marangu says on a Zoom call. “He’s full sweat, acting out and imitating everyone’s voices. He’s just an amazing storyteller and he always says that came from hip-hop…from day one he was like, I don’t do anything soft. I see what other players are doing, and I love those guys and all that, but I just want to do all gangster shit.” 

After that conversation, Marangu reached out to Levin, who reeled in Newman—who at the time was building his work as a filmmaker and producer covering sports. Newman had served as a producer on both The Legend of Swee’ Pea and created the vision and executive produced the DeMarcus Cousins film, The Resurgence, with SHOWTIME. Together, Newman, with Dan and Marc Levin created the concept of what Kevin’s documentary would be and put together the dense story deck that was presented in the pitch meeting with SHOWTIME.

“I tend to go mad scientist mode with story decks, and I took this to a different level,” Newman recalls. That includes “The Butterfly Effect,” a diagram he created, which was inspired by an earlier conversation he had with KG, that shows just how much KG impacted the League, the culture and how he paved the way for future generations.

The first meeting with SHOWTIME took place in June 2019, during the NBA Finals. KG, Marangu, Bennett, Newman and Brian Dailey, SVP of SHOWTIME Sports, all sat in one of SHOWTIME’s West Hollywood offices, while the Levins called in. 

The initial pitch meeting went well and led to another one getting scheduled in July at SHOWTIME’s office in New York. Newman and Garnett spent nearly the entire day together, getting breakfast and bouncing around the city. Newman shared his own story about how basketball has played a huge role in his life, a moment of vulnerability that he feels helped create a level of trust and respect between the two early on. 

During that meeting, everyone was ready to execute the pitch to the SHOWTIME Sports team. But, as soon as the meeting began, the plan went out the window and the 15-time All-Star immediately took the reins. Garnett had something to say and went into full KG mode. He knew what he wanted this film to be, and just as with anything involving Kevin Garnett, everyone simply watched with amazement. 

“He was so animated and couldn’t sit still. He’s going from sitting straight across from me staring at me to leaning back in his chair to his feet up, to getting up pacing the room, to getting in a defensive stance,” says Newman. “He was like, I want to make this about the domino effect of going from high school to the pros. I don’t want this to just be about me. I want this to be about all of the other elements and lanes. We kind of had to bring him back and be like, Hey, we’re going to cover all of that!”

When Garnett and everyone who was in the room that day (physically and virtually) shook hands and officially greenlit the film, they knew that not only were they about to produce the first documentary about him, but they were going to create an important body of work with cultural significance. Kevin had never gone into tons of detail about his past, simply telling bits and pieces to the media: growing up in South Carolina, moving to Chicago, playing in a pickup game that included Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, witnessed by Isiah Thomas, having a heart-to-heart with Thomas about his future. This film would dive deeper into all of it and then some. 

“Garnett was always the ultimate story to tell from my generation,” says Newman, who grew up rooting for the Boston Celtics and, as a former high school coach and basketball clinic director, was deeply impacted by that ’08 championship team. “Our senior year of high school was his rookie year in the NBA, so watching that leap while also having a very meaningful basketball experience of my own was very impactful. Just thinking back on that time, part of our story is looking at this magical 25-year framework—which was launched by his decision and everything else that came with it.”

The film, produced by Blowback Productions, Content Cartel and SHOWTIME, is centered around Garnett’s impact and journey during this 25-year period. Garnett wanted to keep it real for the film, and for the first time, he opens up about his accomplishments in one-on-one interviews and is honest about the moments that have made him who he is. 

“Kevin was drawn by a range of SHOWTIME documentaries,” Dailey says. “Kobe, Iverson, most recently Ron Artest, DeMarcus Cousins, the Shut Up and Dribble project with LeBron [James]—there is a connection between all of those subjects. This resonated with KG, and he wanted to be part of our brand of storytelling: bold, unfiltered unapologetic.”

“The bar was set high,” adds Espinoza, about SHOWTIME’s array of films on legendary players around the game. “And Kevin was a trailblazer. I think part of what also makes this film special is to celebrate his career, the competitor that he was, what he brought to the League. Part of it is to sort of show respect and recognize the contributions he’s made on a cultural basis, on a sports basis and even on an individual basis with a range of young players today.”

Life is oftentimes unexpected, and so was the filming of the documentary, right from the very start. Two days into production, which began in January 2020, the Levins, Newman, Marangu and the rest of the crew joined KG on a beautiful beach in Malibu where he often enjoys working out, meditating and clearing his thoughts. None of them could have known then that nearly 10 miles away, a devastating tragedy would take place 24 hours later on January 26. The news was unimaginable: Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and her teammates Alyssa Altobelli and Payton Chester, tragically passed away in a helicopter crash.

Kevin’s demeanor changed from that moment on. He had lost his little brother and friend.

“[Kevin and Kobe] came in around the same year,” Marangu reiterates. “Kevin ’95, Kobe in ’96. Kobe and [Allen] Iverson were the youngsters that looked to Kevin like, Hey, you made it. What’s the NBA like? [Kevin] was really downloading all those guys that came in that ’96 year about making the jump, so [Bryant’s passing] hit him pretty hard.”

“Everything felt different after that, the world was different, he was different after that,” Newman adds.

Stream KEVIN GARNETT: Anything Is Possible on SHOWTIME. 

During All-Star Weekend in Chicago last year, the crew joined KG on a trip to visit his former high school, Farragut Academy. They saw the banners, the trophies, the glass windows Garnett often refers to, and, most notably, the star reuniting with his old coaches and laughing and joking as though no time had passed. The producing team saw firsthand just how much that time he spent in Chicago shaped who Garnett is, and the documentary will show a side to him that not many have ever seen before.

“You felt from the moment he had that reunion with his coach and the assistant coach that, that experience [and] that one year at Farragut really is what made him Kevin Garnett. You felt it. You saw his picture in the gym and all the trophies and the retired jerseys,” says Marc Levin. “This country kid, who obviously was incredibly talented, was just a [boy] from South Carolina thrown into [an environment like] west Chicago. The gangs, Farragut [had] students fighting every day, and [Kevin] was just thrown into that. Then, [he has] this incredible moment where he made this decision that he was going to take a chance at going pro—it was all palpable, emotional and I had never realized that his high school year was such a crucible in terms of forming who he was.”

While the trip to Chicago had its celebratory moments, including the announcement of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame finalists, a dark cloud also lingered. The world was still mourning the loss of Kobe Bryant.

“The Hall of Fame press event was at All-Star Weekend in Chicago and that became a whole Kobe tribute, so that affected him, and [it seems like] he still hasn’t been able to really talk about it,” Marangu says. “That’s the most impactful thing during production that happened.”

“Chicago was supposed to be a celebration of 25 years, but instead it was this somber, reflective [moment] on Kobe. [Kevin] did two hours on ALL THE SMOKE and it was almost like therapy…which made the Farragut visit that much more meaningful. He was really reflective after that. We finished and did that exit shot of him leaving the building and to me, it was so much more than filming a guy leaving the building. The whole day was really impactful.”

One tragedy practically led straight into another. The COVID-19 pandemic hit, and production was halted for three months. Once it started back up in June, everyone felt like they were making a different type of film with a handful of uncontrollable factors: loss, tragedy and a global pandemic. Everything felt different, and even Kevin—with all of his bubbly energy and excitement—wasn’t the same person from the beginning of the year.

“Kevin needed, and I’m comfortable saying this, Kevin just needed time,” says Newman, looking back. “Everything that’s happened in our world weighs on us all differently and these things were weighing on him, and a lot of the times I have to remind myself, OK, this film is obviously very, very important to the people making it, it’s very important to the subject, but it’s not the only thing that he’s conscious of every day when he wakes up. He’s a father, he’s launching different things, he’s involved in different ventures and projects, so when the timing is right to pick it up, it’ll be right and thankfully that happened in June.

The crew eventually had to conduct some of the interviews virtually and had to administer COVID tests when filming in-person at Dream Magic Studio in L.A. Still, they were able to interview Kevin’s former teammates, friends and peers, including Paul Pierce, Sam Cassell, Ronnie Fields, Doc Rivers, Rajon Rondo, Isiah Thomas, Danny Ainge, and even Snoop Dogg—all of whom shared stories and insight into who the big man is and the impact he’s had on so many people.

Garnett also opened up more and more as production continued and showed moments of vulnerability. 

Last October, they all traveled back to KG’s old stomping grounds in Minnesota. While there, they took time to pay respect to and mourn the loss of George Floyd. It was then that both of them saw just how impactful these moments they spent with Garnett were. Making a documentary about him was one thing, but in many ways, it felt like 2020 was another character in the film. 

“It would be A, foolish and B, completely irresponsible, to ignore what is going on in the world,” Dan Levin says. “Whether it’s Kobe, whether it’s social injustice, police brutality, all of these things and how they affect us—how we were going to do that remained to be seen but we knew we weren’t going to shy away from it when the cameras were rolling.”

Subjects, in all their glory and accomplishments, are simply humans who have done extraordinary things, but they’re also multi-faceted rather than one-dimensional. Many know Kevin Garnett as the dominating, all-imposing and destructive force that he was on the court, with an intensity that oftentimes followed him off of it. That’s the KG we’ve all seen, cheered for and marveled at. He’s honest, energetic, personable and entertaining all at the same time, someone who will tell you like it is. Newman, Marangu, Bennett and Marc and Dan Levin have described him as a one-man show, someone whose magnetic personality commands a room. Yet they’ve also seen him get somewhat uncomfortable with having the spotlight be entirely on him. From the start, Garnett was intensely passionate and hungry for storytelling, ready for the next chapter in his career. 

In his own words, Garnett wants this film, and his production company, to keep it just as real as he does. “He was like, Everything I’m watching is soft! Man, it’s all treble. I want this to be about the BASS,” Marangu recalls Kevin saying. 

“It has to be about bass.” 

Photos courtesy of KEVIN GARNETT: Anything Is Possible.

The post Behind the Scenes of the Making of Kevin Garnett’s Documentary ‘Anything Is Possible’ appeared first on SLAM.

“What’s up with the rubber band?” 

People ask me all the time. Explaining that I’ve worn one on my left wrist every day since middle school is always more awkward than I expect. 

But that’s when I saw KG on the debut cover of KICKS. 

“What’s up, dog?” it read. 

I was 13—and that magazine changed my life. 

The youthfulness of the League’s first prep-to-pros player in 20 years was understood. A 22-year-old KG was also fresh off his very first signature shoe with Nike, had just inked the lockout-inducing $126 million contract and was re-defining the concept of positionless basketball for a new generation. 

He represented the future of the League as it evolved into a post-MJ era—and seeing him grace the first-ever cover of SLAM’s offshoot KICKS magazine was a perfect fit. 

“Kevin said he wanted to be remembered as the one player that had fun every single time he went out there,” former Nike exec David Bond recalled on page 11, of KG’s very first Swoosh meeting.

I’ve always loved that quote. Hoops is fun. Sneakers are fun. I’ve tried to carry that same youthfulness with me ever since.

It’s been a long ass time, but the rubber band—from an endless supply of 3 1/2” x 1/4” bands that I switch out weekly—has been a daily reminder ever since of why I do what I do. And I’ve got KG and SLAM to thank for that. 

When the issue dropped in the fall of 1998, there had never been anything like it. 

“You can write about sneakers?” I remember thinking, while reading about sneakers. 

It was all new territory, and seeing and holding a tangible extension of that meant everything to me. The SLAM team might not have even realized it, but that single issue opened the doors to what kids around the country even thought was possible. 

Our understanding of “working in sneakers” at the time was that working at Foot Locker would be cool, off the strength of just getting a discount. No one even knew an entire world surrounding the game that we all loved existed as a career path. Whether that meant working in the sneaker industry at a brand in design or marketing, or writing about the players and pairs that moved the needle, that first KICKS issue was eye-opening. 

Multiple sneaker magazines, dozens of footwear-centric blogs, and seemingly millions of Instagram pages—focused just on kicks—all followed.

The issue was also insanely informative, providing every reader with a foundation of footwear knowledge that would basically supercharge the generation of kids hopping onto the Niketalk and Sole Collector forums at the start of the 2000s. 

It was one thing to think “the patent leather Jordans” were a sick shoe or to have heard the legend of the Air Jordan XIII being inspired by MJ’s “Black Cat” nickname, but when KICKS dropped, there was a full lineage of every Air Jordan model, all together on a two-page spread. 

The 10-page stretch that followed it was a literal encyclopedia of “every Nike Basketball sneaker ever,” as the cover promised. Listed out in order were product shots of all 378 of the Nike models that had hit retail by that point. (No. 278 is the greatest hoop design of all time, by the way. The very next one, the Air Thrill Flight at No. 279, was the first pair of Nikes I owned, thanks to my $40 budget growing up.)

Later in the mag, there were actual features and interviews with sneakers designers—another first. The only industry name that anyone knew was Tinker Hatfield, and here was a three-page spread, each on Eric Avar and Aaron Cooper—both with hair! The duo designed Nike Basketball’s most iconic silhouettes of the ’90s for the likes of Penny Hardaway, Scottie Pippen, Jason Kidd and Gary Payton. 

On page 87, I found myself staring at not only Avar for the very first time, but also the shoes I had just finished my seventh grade basketball season in—a black and green variation of Dennis Rodman’s Air Shake NDestrukt that I snagged for $19.99 at Ross. (Our team colors were also green—so it’s quite possibly my all-time favorite find.) 

The exaggerated grooves of Avar’s sketch, along with a reversed Swoosh and “NIKE” text over the heel Air window were all different details than the shoe sitting in my bedroom, sparking my curiosity and imagination for what else I could uncover from Nike’s archives of what-if designs and concepts. 

Cooper’s first-person penned piece on Pip’s second shoe connected how an athlete’s insight and involvement could drastically shift where a design is headed, after Coop admitted he worked up the first, more bulky, Air Pippen model without much input from Scottie. 

Both of Russ Bengtson’s features and framing laid the foundation of how I envisioned a designer profile reading. So I started to develop a roadmap of how I could get there. I became the sports editor of my high school’s paper a few years later. Russ pointed out that Nike was located in Oregon—so I went to the University of Oregon, studied Magazine in the School of Journalism, and would make the drive north often to try and make connections in Beaverton. 

From my very first “Focus: Artist” article in a 2006 issue of Sole Collector that highlighted an undiscovered talent named Justin Taylor, to the countless designer interviews I’ve conducted ever since with the likes of Jason Petrie, Leo Chang and the rest of the team that carried on the torch at Nike Basketball, KICKS was the blueprint all along. 

Each of the first times I interviewed that celebrated trio of Hatfield, Avar and Cooper during the late 2000s, I remember thinking back to the pages of the first KICKS issue a decade earlier. Talking to Coop about his Garnett 3 design, a vibrant, fading black and blue sneaker that I wore in high school, was an all-time moment. 

A handful of years after that first issue had dropped, in 2003, I have a pretty distinct memory from around 4 am on a spring Friday night. I was at my high school’s “Grad Night,” and they had a standard exercise for all of the students to participate in.

A massive white paper roll waved out in front of us over the auditorium floor, and I remember one of our teacher chaperones yelling out “Grab a Sharpie, and write down what you’ll be doing in 10 years!” 

I didn’t hesitate for a second. 

“I’m gonna write about sneakers, for SLAM,” I told myself.    

And it all started with a picture of Kevin Garnett and a rubber band. 

KEVIN GARNETT: Anything Is Possible is a feature-length chronicle of Kevin Garnett’s remarkable career and the pivotal moments that defined it. Stream the documentary on SHOWTIME. 

Photos via Getty Images.

The post How Kevin Garnett’s SLAM Presents KICKS Vol. 1 Cover Changed One Sneaker Insider’s Life appeared first on SLAM.

It’s mid-morning on the West Coast, where Kevin Garnett lives now, and the sun is shining through the window behind him, gleaming off his Larry O’Brien trophy (“Just always know when you see me, you see her, and when you see her, you see me”) as well as his luxuriously moisturized bald dome (“It’s all coconut oil and sunshine, it ain’t built for everybody, you know what I’m sayin’?”). KG is 44 now, five years removed from his last NBA game, but he still looks like he could get out there right now and give somebody buckets.

This is not going to happen, of course. KG spent his 20-plus-year NBA career squeezing it all out down to the pulp, retired—if I can mix metaphors here—with the tank on E. But that intensity, that drive, that demon that drove him, that didn’t just go away. The fire still burns. So what’s supposed to be a half-hour Zoom call goes on for an hour, then an hour and a half, despite the fact that he’s got a whole gang of other interviews to get to. KG might be retired from the NBA, but he sure ain’t retired-retired.

Back in his playing days, Garnett was always the last to speak after games. He’d get his half-hour or so of treatment in the back, then get dressed, and only then—when everything was perfect—would he come out and answer questions. The entire media contingent was always still out there waiting, because we all knew he always had something to say. 

That, at least, hasn’t changed.

SLAM: I want to start going back to—I think this was the very first time I ever met you—and it would have been the Wheelchair Classic at Madison Square Garden.

KG: Wheelchair Classic, Wheelchair Cla—oh wow. Wow, wow, wow. That’s a throwback.

SLAM: Do you remember what it was like getting out on the court with those guys?

KG: Anytime when I was in high school I stepped on the court with any pro player, I was always in awe, I was always in awe of the difference and I always wanted to see the difference in what makes this mug a motherfuckin’ pro. And then when you play, you actually saw, you actually experienced a pro. You saw the difference in the style of play, the style of pace, the patience. And that’s what separates, to me, the professional from just a regular basketball player. You learn how to attack, you learn how to defend on all genres, on all categories—fast, big, strong, long, lean, you learn how to guard it all. So whenever I would step on a court, I would always be in awe of pros just because of that reason. But man, the Wheelchair Classic, you took me back. That’s deep.

SLAM: With young guys coming up back then, it flowed the other way, too, because you guys were so different from people who were already in the NBA. There was definitely a shift coming.

KG: Mm-hmm, definitely an energy coming, definitely a different—I think after you saw UNLV start making their run, you start seeing, like, the Fab Five come into it, the energy started to change a little bit, at least for me. Growing up during the crack era, kids getting killed for they shoes was, like, a new thing. Remember the first time you heard a kid got killed in Chicago for a pair of Jordans? That changed everything for me, man. Like, kids at school and all of us growing up and the way we competed. MJ made it cool to dress up and be professional, and then it’s like, Onyx came out and it was like “Duh duh duh, duh, duh, duh. Let the boys be boys!” It was a different energy vs the Anita Baker and the Luther Vandross. Our generation was coming off a bunch of, like, Yo, my dad ain’t in here, we single mom kids, we coming up like this. You learn to slap box, you learnin’ the street. It was just all of it, all of it at the same time, kind of rush the door and hit it all at once. And it was crazy that SLAM was, like, the birth of all of that, was at the same time.

SLAM: Did you feel that extra weight on you coming into the League? From that?

KG: Not weight, but I felt like I was representing. When I came out, no bullshit, this is a true story, I actually thought Felipe Lopez had the tools and the confidence and the skills to actually do what I did. When I actually sat back and thought about why more people didn’t actually take this route, it was really because of the education. I don’t think too many kids, any city kids, country kids, kids from the suburbs, didn’t matter. Overseas. All that. I didn’t think people was educated enough on the possibilities and the options of actually going from high school to the pros. And with that, I felt like I was representing Steph [Marbury]. I felt like I was representing AI [Allen Iverson], Shareef [Abdur-Rahim], Big [Robert] Traylor, Paul—Paul Pierce, Vince Carter, because I had played with all these guys. And I felt like I was representing that. I was representing the next wave of players that wanted to come in and make their mark and be impactful in the League.

SLAM: Your first game you were 4-4, you were pretty comfortable right from the start. Was there a moment when you thought, Wait a minute, I belong with all these guys.

KG: Comfortable, but I went through a couple preseason games against Big Dog [Glenn Robinson], which was like a grand opening for the League. He was the first superstar I played that didn’t take it easy. Big Dog was talking shit, it was bucket for bucket, and it grew a fire in me. And you know, the first couple games I was—I won’t say gullible, but I knew all these guys and I looked up to ’em, even Joe Smith and Rasheed [Wallace] and Stack [Jerry Stackhouse] and all those guys, even though we was all in the same [draft] class. I was a true fan. I was a kid who had posters on his wall. So Webb [Chris Webber] was my favorite player. And when I played Webb, he shot a jump hook on me, and I was looking so googly-eyed, and Sam Mitchell—to his credit—slapped the shit out of me like, Look, hey, you can’t come out here and appreciate these guys like this. I know you got these guys on your wall, fuck all that, we out here now. And it wasn’t until then, I can honestly say that moment there for me, was actually like, OK, OK, you can appreciate these guys and respect them, but not out here.

SLAM: Do you think about how coming out straight from Farragut shaped you? How maybe you would have been different had you gone to college? I know you were talking about Michigan, Carolina… 

KG: If I’m being honest, I’m glad I came out of high school, man. I see how college muzzles these kids and how these kids don’t really have a voice, how they get told and controlled so much. You know my biggest thing coming out of high school was [deep breath] just the control of me, man. I felt like so many times, you didn’t really get to make a decision, someone was making the decision for you. You know part of what took me so long in picking a school was me actually liking it vs a crew of people around me or people that want the best for me telling me. I wasn’t feeling that. I was like, Look, when I make a decision, I’ll make a decision. When I got to Chicago, I was a lot more mature than I was in South Carolina. I grew up a lot faster and the city helped me deal with a lot of intangibles and little things that kids really go through. I ain’t had no Mom and Pop to bounce things off of, I had to grit and grind and make decisions on my own, and those decisions, I had to stand on ’em. And they had to be decisions that carried a workload, and I was committed. I was committed to basketball day one, and I wasn’t gonna let anything stop me. And although I did have some, you know, bumps in the road, I kept it moving and I kept it going.

SLAM: Was there an exact moment when you’re like, OK, NBA, we’re doing this?

KG: I played Scottie Pippen in the summer one time. And we got to, like, a little shit, like, a little, I don’t even know. A little pushing match? Elbow? Some shit, I don’t know what Scottie was doing. But you know, he’s Scottie Pippen, and he’s a beast. Super GOAT. And I just stood my ground. But it wasn’t until then that I had confidence in myself and my skills, that the stuff that I was having confidence in was working, which built my confidence even more after playing him. 

Then I sat and I had a conversation, probably like a three-, four-hour conversation with Isiah Thomas about the West Side of Chicago and 16th Street and what I have to deal with every day, and he knew all of it. And the ABCs that goes with Chicago. Again, I’m gonna use the word “intangibles,” that come along with Chicago and going to school and playing in the Red West [Conference]. Like, he understood all that. We got to talk about street shit and just everyday stuff, right? Soon as I talked to Isiah Thomas, I knew it. I was committed. I came in, I knocked on Wolf’s [William “Wolf” Nelson, Farragut’s coach—Ed.] door. I was like, Yo, sit down, I need to tell you something. He thought something was wrong, he thought I got a girl pregnant or some shit, he was looking at me like, What? I was like, I’m going to the League. I need you to write this down. Tomorrow I need you to look up these agents…and da, da, da. He was looking at me and laughed. He’s like, What? He saw my face. And he saw how I was looking. And he saw how I looked at him. And I wasn’t smiling. I was deadass and I was looking at him like, I ain’t fuckin’ around, after you get through laughin’ I need you to get a piece of paper and write this down. This is what I need you to do. And I was talking to him with so much conviction that it wasn’t no laughing in the room. It felt like a Sunday but it was really a Saturday, and Monday got here and it started. And I can honestly say that that moment, after speaking to Isiah, and feelin’ that synergy, feeling like, I’m about to do something that everybody else ain’t did, I ain’t going to junior college, I’m not going to college. I’m about to bet on myself. I’m one of the hardest-working people I know. Don’t nobody work harder than me. Don’t nobody want this more than me. I’m fittin’ to go all in with this, and I jumped out and I jumped right in the rabbit hole. I didn’t care what it was. And in my mind, it couldn’tve been no harder than getting up, surviving every day in Chicago from the time I walked out of my house to the time I walked back in it. I looked at the League like it couldn’t have been harder than the West Side. I was like, No, it can’t be harder than this shit.

SLAM: I feel like from the moment you stepped on the floor, first game, your rookie year, you were influencing people, people who maybe never thought you could make the jump from high school to the pros. But you stepping on that floor made that real. Were you aware of that from the get-go?

KG: I wasn’t aware of it, but you know, you know how something is there, like a consistency of something being there? I felt that. And then people who know me, know I have, like, a little presence about myself. As a rookie, I would talk, but then I was listening so much and I was trying to soak up so much. And again, you’re trying to prove yourself so much that you find yourself just in this state of just always, always soaking up something, always gravitating toward something. Always. I don’t care what it is, it was always a learning moment for me. So I felt like I didn’t have the privilege of going to school like these other guys. I didn’t have the privilege of coming in here learning and all this other stuff. But Kevin McHale put me in a position that I can learn under him. And he put me in position to where I can be transparent with him and all the older guys that were there. And then I had a great group of older guys. Sam Mitchell was probably the best fit for me, very aggressive guy, from the South, he’s from Georgia. So he kind of understood, but he understood my motor, too, and that I wanted things. And then you know, when we got on the same page as far as where we come from and start peeling back layers about who we are, that’s when our relationship grew. And he knew I was a competitor, and I wasn’t backing down from nobody. And he loved that. I was a fucking pit bull. And I didn’t care about who—after that Webber incident, I didn’t care about any of that shit no more. I took more of a West Side kind of Chicago attitude with some South Carolina skill and discipline. And I worked my ass off. 

SLAM: When were you able to take the time to start looking back? Was it after you retired?

KG: I still haven’t looked back on shit. Fans send me videos or stuff all the time—fans make fan pages, tag you in shit, fans make YouTube joints and all this, and I like to thank all the fans, too, because half the shit that I’ve done I forgot about. You don’t really think about how much time you’ve actually put into this until you look up and your kid is 12 or 13. The only reason I think I actually look back at it now is because my kids actually want to converse and talk about it, and then I get younger fans coming up to me and their friends. That’s the only time I really talk about it. I don’t really like going back in time, unless I’m talking to [young players], I used to train some of these young guys, so giving them examples of things that I’ve been through and stuff I recall. But I never wanted to be the guy to be like, Hey, man, when I played…

SLAM: It’s funny to me that people talk about you acting in Uncut Gems, but my introduction to Kevin Garnett the actor was the Fun Police commercial with Cherokee Parks—you, Cherokee and Tom Gugliotta.

KG: The Fun Police was fun. I remember Cherokee and Googs being in it. I remember my best friend Bug being in it with me. Fun Police was fun—Trump was in one of my Fun Police joints, too. You remember that? Fun Police was probably one of my favorite commercials that I’ve ever done. And Uncut Gems was just a gem within itself, if I’m being 100. It fell in my lap. Adam [Sandler] was unbelievable. I got to see the true essence of his greatness. Julia Fox was great, she was unbelievable in this. The Safdie brothers was…they was just so easy to work with. They was so simple, so down to earth, so encouraging. I was like, You motherfuckers should be some goddamn coaches the way y’all do this shit.

SLAM: Do you want to do more acting? 

KG: I have a production company called Content Cartel, and we are co-producing my documentary along with Blowback Productions. Shout out to Marc Levin. Shout out to SHOWTIME. Got a bunch of projects coming up. This is my second calling. I love storytelling. Believe it or not, I have a ton of stories that I don’t tell on purpose. Production is something that I think I get, and it’s a lot of stories that need to be told. 

SLAM: What about from an NBA perspective? I don’t want to bring up sore subjects, but I know the Timberwolves thing didn’t necessarily go the way you wanted it to go. Is there still interest in being involved at an ownership level? 

KG: I noticed that in this boys club of owners, you have to play the game and know the game. And, you know, I think at this point, I’m considered a worker from that standpoint, I don’t think that the [owners] overall see the value in players coming back in ownership, which is sad, because, you know, Michael Jordan was once a player. Needless to say, I felt like the new wave of things to be done is coming. And this old wave is on its way out. So I’m just gonna wait for this old way to just kind of die out and new ways of business start to take over. And I think that’s the way that kind of fits me and suits me. If not, if I’m not able to be in an ownership group, then it’s all good. But it’s not gonna stop my greatness and other things that I want to accomplish. 

I love Minneapolis dearly. I do have an opinion on the reactivation or at least the reoccurrence of the city in which I think some real development in capital dollars in education, police reform—like all that needs to be addressed. We need education, we need our communities to feel like they’re safe. Real shit. And I think Minneapolis has a bunch of underlying issues that need to be addressed. And I think the ownership can play a huge part in not just educating, but bringing two parts together and bringing people together. Sports, believe it or not, and, you know, you can agree or disagree, but I think that sports brings the world together like music, you know? And my only real take in all of this was to be able to bring the city back together for what I know the city to be. 

And that was my real influence with trying to go in so hard and trying to make this work. But you know, in all things, if you’re gonna dance, if you’re gonna dance with somebody or if you’re going to partner with somebody, it’s got to be a two-way street. And it’s got to be something that both of you see the vision of, and I just, I think that in this situation, the vision wasn’t valued, nor looked at, and I think that it was ignored. I’m looking forward to being part of a different group, if it’s in Minnesota with the Timberwolves, cool. It doesn’t look like that. But if anything else comes up, I know Vegas is on the rise for getting a franchise soon. I know Seattle has roots, so we’ll see, I’m not going anywhere. And that situation too, it helped me and it educated me. So, you know, the second time that I come, I think I’m gonna come a whole ’nother way than I actually went this first time. But it was a great education for myself, all parties involved. I appreciate the experience. But yeah, I’ma fall back, I’ma regroup and then I’m gonna come back at this again. So you ain’t seen the last of me. So we’ll see. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

SLAM: You’re sounding like somebody who could be governor of Minnesota instead of just the owner of the Timberwolves.

KG: [Laughs] Hell no, hell no. There’s too much responsibility, man. I’ve been really, you know, chill, playing the shadows, I’m watching everything. I’m paying attention. I’m staying in tune. I’m staying in tune with the street. I’m listening to the community, I’m listening to all the kids that’s going through it. A lot of those kids that’s going through it and are really standing on the front line in Minneapolis are kids that I actually know, been through programs that I actually set through with the city. 

I went back to see the George Floyd memorial and the monument and just walk through there to get like a real feel for myself and, you know, get down on ground zero and feel the people, man, and it was one of the better things I did because I haven’t done it in a long time. I haven’t been back to Minneapolis in a minute. I still have a home there, I still have family there, still live there. Yeah, so things like that are just in my heart to do, but you know, I’m not a politician, I’m more the people’s champ. I fuck with the people. I don’t want to get mixed up with lobbyists and a bunch of other shit that I don’t really truly understand at the end of day. Nor will I give something to be something, you know. I stand on my square, you know what I’m saying, I’m five all day. And people know that. That means more to me than anything. But if the governor wants to reach out to me and help to bring some type of reform or some type of balance back to the city, I’m all ears, but it’s gonna be something of my own imagination and vision that I would like to see for the city and my people.

SLAM: I know the actual ceremony got pushed back because of COVID, but have you thought a lot about getting into the Hall of Fame and what that milestone means?

KG: When it first happened, I was all gassed. It’s just, it’s hard to actually feel good about the Hall of Fame with so much real-life issues and stuff that’s going on. I’m super gassed. And I’m just overwhelmed with the concept of being one of the best ever to do this. It hasn’t really settled in for me. COVID got everything effed up, you know what I’m saying? COVID got everything kind of, you know, sideways. But yeah, it wasn’t expected, to be honest. I got so much other shit going on in my life that I forgot about the Hall of Fame, if I’m being honest.

SLAM: It hurts with Kobe not being there for it.

KG: Yes, Kob’ fucks with me to this day, man. I still haven’t gotten over that. I feel some type of way when I look up and they just got him on TV every day. Like still here and…yeah. For all of us who had a relationship with Kob’, that’s gotta be hard. Because we’re all trying to get past it, we’re all trying to move on. And his energy and his legacy is still here. Somebody was asking me something the other day and before you answer you got to always take a breath, you know what I’m saying? Shout to Kob’, rest in peace to Mamba, man. Always. Till we meet again.

SLAM: What would it be like if you had a chance to do it all over? What would it be like if 19-year-old Kevin Garnett was joining the NBA in 2021?

KG: If I was joining the League in 2021? Well, my energy and my vision to be the best wouldn’t change, none of that. None of the intangibles would change for me. You gotta know, I competed differently, I competed angrily, I competed very aggressively. But that was the time. That’s not really the energy now, the energy now is more skilled, it’s more—it’s probably more skilled than ever. Like, do you see some of the shots that these kids are making? Jayson Tatum, every time I watch him, every shot that he takes looks difficult. He’ll shoot a turnaround going over his right shoulder, and I’ll be like, man, you really—for anybody who knows that move, you really got to get your right leg around and square up and—I’m just amazed at the skill level, man. 

If I was playing today, I definitely would have a three ball. I probably would have displayed a lot more one-on-one. I was really an unselfish player to a fault and my mentality was more of, If I can get everybody else involved and they get going, then I can have chances to take advantage of one-on-one opportunities because of double teams. I had a lot more one-on-one game than I actually displayed in the League, because during the time that I played, you had to, it was more systematic, it was more plays being called, you didn’t really break the play. You know, I actually like to blame Kob’ and T-Mac for that shit, they broke more plays than anything, you know what I’m sayin’? And the Mamba Mentality wasn’t always accepted either. 

I saw Joker [Nikola Jokic] do a step back off the so-called wrong foot and it was so unorthodox, but I had to sit back and as a student of the game I said, Hmm, there goes the Dirk part of his influence in our League and what Dirk brought to our League with that whole one-legged fadeaway off the glass with the 6-11, 7-foot guy shooting threes, being mobile. You know, as I go through and I watch the League and what we’ve actually given the League, I started looking at it like, Wow, I see Dirk’s influence, I see Timmy’s influence, I see Rondo’s influence, I see P’s [Pierce’s] influence, I see LeBron’s—I started to see my own influence. And then where they’ve taken our influence and doing one-legged step backs off the glass and facing up one dribble? The moves, man, the moves. The skills! Like, I heard Shaq say this, and just shout out to Shaq, man, and I love you Big Fella, but I don’t know if everybody from the older generation could have played in this generation. Just because it’s a faster pace, no one’s been at that Golden State pace as a League when you scorin’ 136-133. 

SLAM: Did you ever think 25 years ago that you would be in this position? Did you think your career would last as long as it did? That you would reach the heights that you did?

KG: I want you to go and ask Kevin McHale a lot of the stuff you been asking me, and I’ll tell you, he’ll tell you, Day one, he wanted to be the best player in the League, he wanted to outlive everybody in the draft, he wanted to outplay everybody, he wanted to be the best hands-down in the All-Star Game, he wanted Olympics, all that. I wanted to cross everything off the list that you got to actually cross to be a master. You know? And I went in there like that, and more importantly, I worked my ass off. Part of why I definitely can’t run as fast or I can’t run after my kids is because I did go so hard, but there’s no regrets. And you asked me earlier what I would change, and I wouldn’t change anything. Maybe some tweaks here and there but nah, nah, working with Kevin McHale was a gift. I could never thank him more. Or, I couldn’t thank him enough for the knowledge in the stuff that I was able to get, I couldn’t have gotten that anywhere else but him. I’m very fortunate. I took that and I ran with it, and I grew it, and I put my own little vision on it. And it was only right to give it back and be able to give it to players so they can use it. Anything that you go into as a young kid, you hope that you come out on the other end as someone that is accomplished. I felt like I reached a lot of those things.

SLAM: Does that intensity go away? If you stepped out on a court right now and somebody rolled a ball out—

KG: I wouldn’t. I wouldn’t. No, I wouldn’t. The demon never goes away. And if you do put the demon up, it’s banging on the door at times to come out so I have to be under control. I do a bunch of yoga, I do a bunch of meditating, manifesting, just to keep things at bay. But yeah, I’m pretty sure that if we started racing and I got to losing, or anything competitive and I start losing, then you start to hear the banging at the door, Uh oh, the demon’s trying to come out. So these days I keep shit real chill and calm. I haven’t played ball in a very long time, believe it or not. But I’m shooting stuff in the basket, I have a little son so we mess around and stuff. Basketball is something that I put in the closet for a reason. Whenever I have a long day or I’m having difficulty or something, I take a ball and I’ll just go dribble at the beach or just kinda get lost in it. That’s kinda always been my therapy. It probably always will be. 

KEVIN GARNETT: Anything Is Possible is a feature-length chronicle of Kevin Garnett’s remarkable career and the pivotal moments that defined it. Stream the documentary on SHOWTIME. 

Photos courtesy of KEVIN GARNETT: Anything is Possible and via Getty Images.

The post Kevin Garnett Opens Up About the Early Years and How He’d Have a ‘Three Ball’ If He Was Playing Today appeared first on SLAM.

Let’s get something out of the way right up front—Kevin Garnett’s No. 21 not being retired by the Timberwolves yet is some straight-up bullshit. Garnett retired in 2016 after 21 seasons, was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility, finished his career back in Minnesota out of respect for Flip Saunders when he could have just let the clock run out in Brooklyn. But that’s not who Kevin Garnett was. That’s not who Kevin Garnett is. Did he want something from it? Yes. He wanted a chance to finally get equity in the franchise that he elevated, to own part of what he built. That didn’t happen. It still hasn’t happened. Maybe it never happens. Maybe certain bridges that burned never get rebuilt. Because of all that, Garnett has flatly stated he doesn’t even want the Wolves to retire his number. But dog, you do it anyway. You give him his day at the arena he poured so much blood, sweat and tears into. He may not have delivered the Wolves a championship, but he gave them so much more than that.

Look too closely for Kevin Garnett’s legacy and you just might miss it. There’s more obvious ones out there. Watch a game on any given night and you have guys pulling up from midrange like Kobe or pulling their version of Iverson’s crossover. You have guys shooting one-legged stepbacks like Dirk or going glass like Timmy. More blatantly there’s a lot of people wearing Michael Jordan’s number or Kobe’s shoes. Garnett wore 21, 5 and 2, numbers that were already common enough. Jimmy Butler wore 21 for his draft position and an old college teammate. Joel Embiid wears 21 for a guy who is entering the Hall of Fame next to Garnett—longtime foe Tim Duncan. And sneakers. KG wore a lot of sneakers, bouncing from Nike to AND1 to adidas to Anta. He doesn’t have an ongoing line with any of those brands, doesn’t have a retro signature model at the moment. Maybe PJ Tucker will eventually break out a pair of KG’s old Nikes, assuming they can still hold up to NBA action. There’s nothing super specific you can point to and say, Oh yeah, that right there, that’s for KG.

But don’t look even closer trying to figure it out. Do the opposite. Pull back. Take a wider view. Not to get too Obi Wan Kenobi with it, Garnett’s legacy in the NBA is everywhere. So much of the NBA now is made in his image. It’s younger, less position-centric, filled with players in full control of their own destiny. A lot of that gets credited to LeBron James and The Decision in the summer of 2010, when he told a national audience he was taking his talents to South Beach. And yes, that was a moment that made a difference. But the groundwork for that was laid 15 years earlier, by a mature-beyond-his-years kid from South Carolina by way of Chicago. A pickup game against some Bulls superstars, a deep conversation with a Pistons legend, and he was ready to do something no one else had done in 20 years.

In the two decades after Darryl Dawkins and Bill Willoughby went pro straight out of high school in 1975, no one else even tried it. Which is surprising, seeing that both Dawkins and Willoughby did OK. Dawkins played 14 seasons primarily with the 76ers and the Nets, shattered a couple backboards, built up a whole mythology around himself. And while Willoughby might be remembered as a bust by some, he was still in the League for nearly a decade. Blocked one of Kareem’s skyhooks, too. A confluence of events drove Garnett to follow their path. He moved to Chicago for his senior season, hooping for Farragut Academy alongside Ronnie Fields and looking after his younger sister. He got pulled into a pickup game with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen and held his own. He had a long conversation with Chicago native Isiah Thomas about life in The Chi and his NBA readiness. And his test scores weren’t up to par. By the time they were, it was too late. He had already plotted his course. Garnett was selected fifth overall and pushed open a door that had long been shut. The following year, two high schoolers went in the first round. Six years after his selection, Kwame Brown was the first overall pick. From 1995 to 2006, when the NBA imposed an age limit, 39 high schoolers were drafted by NBA teams. Ten became All-Stars. When Garnett is finally inducted into the Hall of Fame this summer, the pandemic having scuttled last summer’s ceremony, he and fellow 2020 inductee Kobe Bryant will become the second and third straight-outta-high-school Hall of Famers. They won’t be the last.

Long before LeBron made his Decision, Garnett made his. The flood of high schoolers and college freshmen who followed after made it seem like a matter of course. But Garnett was the pioneer. When Garnett declared for the Draft in ’95, he was doing something that hadn’t been done since before he was born. He wasn’t going to play at junior college, wasn’t going to wait for his latest set of test scores to come back. He was ready and he was going to go. He took control of his own destiny and molded others to it.

Convinced he was ready, he convinced others. He convinced agent Eric Fleisher to take him on, used a single 90-minute solo workout to convince NBA GMs that they absolutely had to use the fifth overall pick on a high school kid. Timberwolves VP Kevin McHale and GM Flip Saunders went into that workout plotting to overstate their enthusiasm over Garnett in order to get a team picking ahead of them to bite, that way one of the four college can’t-miss guys would slip to them. They came out of it with the realization that Garnett was the guy. And Garnett’s faith in himself never wavered. He signed a three-year rookie deal, then two years into it turned down an extension that was worth more than Wolves owner Glen Taylor had paid for the team two years earlier. Garnett knew his worth. And when the Wolves came back with a higher offer and he signed that historic deal, he ignored all the doomsayers about what it would mean and just worked harder.

Garnett’s NBA legacy is complicated, because he did things that rule changes ensured no one could do again. That huge contract he signed prompted a lockout and restructuring that imposed limits on extensions—and structured rookie deals so they couldn’t sign them so quickly. In 2006, the NBA put in an age limit requiring a would-be draftee be 19 years old plus one year removed from high school. Only three active players—LeBron, Dwight Howard and Lou Williams—remain who entered the League straight out of high school. And then the way the game itself is played has changed. Garnett took 632 three-pointers over his 21 seasons. Embiid took less than four seasons to top that. Ask KG who in the League reminds him of himself these days, and he cites Embiid, along with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. But then he gets to talking about someone else and woo, does it sound like he’s talking about himself. “Giannis is what, Giannis is 7-foot, yo,” Garnett says excitedly. “He keep talkin’ about this 6-10 shit, that motherf***er’s 7-1, he won’t get measured, he’s 7-1 and he plays like he’s 8-11. You know what I’m sayin’? It’s a different league, bro.”

Maybe so. But a league where a 7-1 guy (not saying names here) who insists on never being measured can guard every position on the floor, both start the break and finish it, and fill stat sheets while winning an MVP in the process sounds awfully familiar, whether you’re talking 2004 or 2020. Sure, Westbrook displays Garnett’s ferocious intensity and Durant combines spidery length with height-defying moves on either end, and Embiid is a self-taught, self-assured terror. But if anyone singlehandedly carries forth the blueprint Garnett laid down, it’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, 6-11 (lol) unicorn.

At this point it’s almost a throwback, a guy who’s clearly seven feet tall not being listed as a seven-footer, seeing that the NBA is a league where the openly 7-3 Kristaps Porzingis can spend a majority of his time floating around the perimeter and firing up threes like a funhouse mirror Stephen Curry. Garnett famously insisted on being listed at 6-11 since seven-footers inevitably found themselves lodged in the paint—and while he never really took to shooting threes, coming up as he did in the Jordan era, he was able to feast on face-ups and operate out of the high post while being the ultimate disrupter on defense. Get by him somehow and well, you still weren’t out of his long-armed range. Garnett’s true height was always the NBA’s worst-kept secret, and something he could have copped to long ago—no one was going to force him to be a back-to-the-basket center—but he kept insisting he was 6-11. Still does.

Garnett’s career was bracketed by team excellence in a way no one else’s was. He entered the NBA the season the Chicago Bulls went 72-10 and retired from it the season the Golden State Warriors went 73-9. Two historic teams that set records playing distinct styles. Garnett can be seen as a throughline between them, alchemizing Pippen and Jordan (and Rodman, too) into Durant and Draymond Green. Garnett was the ultimate complementary superstar, a defensive juggernaut and matchup nightmare who made everyone else’s job easier. “I was really an unselfish player to a fault,” he says, “and my mentality was more of, Man, if I can get everybody else involved and they get going, then I can take advantage of one-on-one opportunities.” 

The game changes, but the mentality stays the same. Remember to thank KG for that. 

KEVIN GARNETT: Anything Is Possible is a feature-length chronicle of Kevin Garnett’s remarkable career and the pivotal moments that defined it. Stream the documentary on SHOWTIME. 

Photos via Getty Images.

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Now, the Celtics will retire Kevin Garnett’s No. 5 jersey on March 13th vs. the Mavericks. This will take place at TD Garden at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

This has been a work in progress, as the Celtics originally made a surprise announcement at halftime of a game in February of 2020 that Garnett’s number would be retired at a later date.

Due to the league shutdown the following month and ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, this type of ceremony hasn’t been feasible to this point. With arenas opening up across the country to fans this season, it can finally happen. 

During his time with the Celtics, Garnett averaged 15.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.0 block per contest. 

The post Celtics To Retire Kevin Garnett’s No. 5 Jersey This Season appeared first on SLAM.

Rumors are now beginning to form that Rodriguez wishes to move the Minnesota-based franchise to Seattle, where Rodriguez began his MLB career.

“There’s buzz now that Kevin Garnett, who is said to be worth more than $200 million, will be heavily involved in the Timberwolves basketball department if he joins franchise investors Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore if/when they gain full control in 2023,” wrote Charley Walters of the Twin Cities Pioneer Press. “The word is Garnett, the ex-Timberwolf, wants the franchise to remain in Minnesota but Rodriguez wants to move it to Seattle, where he played for seven seasons.”

Former Timberwolves legend Kevin Garnett has also long been rumored to get involved in the purchasing of the franchise, but his group lost out on the opportunity to purchase the team.

The NBA has long been rumored to want to expand to Seattle, with reports of expansion to there and Las Vegas becoming a real possibility.

The Timberwolves had yet another disappointing season in 2020-21, missing the playoffs and ending the season with a record of 23-49.

The post Alex Rodriguez Rumored to Want to Move Timberwolves to Seattle appeared first on SLAM.

Ticket’s 2021 Hall of Fame induction was the inspiration for this special edition magazine that features an exclusive interview with the man himself. Other goodies include a look at his new documentary, the chronicling of his wide-ranging sneaker history, and much more.

Grab your copy of SLAM Presents: GARNETT now!

SLAM Presents: GARNETT is also available now in an exclusive gold metal edition.  Shop here.

And to commemorate this moment, these Kevin Garnett’s SLAM 38 and SLAM 134 Cover Tees and Long Sleeves just dropped on SLAMgoods.com.

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A galled Garnett, who directed his ire towards Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, would say that “some of these special players that helped build these [freaking] franchises like a home can never own them, only rent.”

Garnett initially announced his interest in purchasing the franchise last year in July via Twitter.

It’s unclear why Garnett and his group are no longer contenders to buy the franchise. However, the contentious relationship between the 15-time All-Star and Taylor is seen as a major factor.

Sportico reported in July that Timberwolves’ owner Glen Taylor was exploring a potential sale of the franchise, but there has been no sale of the team thus far. Taylor himself told The Athletic that he had never actually spoken to Garnett about his interest in buying the organization.

Consequently, Garnett’s critical comments towards Taylor, saying, “thanks Glen for being yourself and what I know you to be” leads to just as many questions as possible answers.

While The Big Ticket may no longer be in the running to buy the Timberwolves, he did hint at continuing to look for ownership opportunities in the league, writing, “guess it’s time to focus on other places, #Seattle #Vegas.”

Garnett played 14 total seasons in Minnesota, playing in 970 games, appearing in 10 All-Star Games and winning the 2003-04 MVP award during his tenure there. One of the most dynamic players of his era, is still the Timberwolves’ franchise leader in games, points (19,201), rebounds (10,718) assists (4,216), steals (1,315) and blocks (1,590).

The Timberwolves, currently last in the NBA with a record of 7-29, have appeared in the playoffs only once since KG was traded to the Boston Celtics in 2007.

The post Kevin Garnett Announces He Won’t Be Timberwolves Owner, Blames Glen Taylor appeared first on SLAM.

However, for every Charles Barkley, there’s a Kevin Garnett.

Garnett, in an interview with David Marchese of the New York Times, offered what was one of the most refreshing takes on the way the game is played today that you’ll find from a former player.

“The game is at another level,” Garnett says.

“Defensive players have to take angles away and stuff like that. But if you have any creativity and ambition, you can be a great offensive player in this league. The fadeaways, one-leg runners, the one-leg balance shots — that’s stuff that Dirk Nowitzki brought to our game. And now when I watch Joker play, it feels like he has taken that Dirkness and mixed it with his own talent. And Steph Curry revolutionized things with being able to shoot it from distance with such consistency. Klay Thompson. Dame Lillard. These guards changed the game.”

Garnett, the fifth overall pick in the 1995 NBA Draft and a 15-time All-Star, is exactly the type of player that would have thrived in today’s game. A three-position player who was long, athletic and fiery enough to guard anybody, what allowed Garnett to stand out from the pack was his multi-faceted skillset.

At 6-foot-11, Garnett could score from all three levels and he didn’t need to be set up for a basket to do it. He was also an excellent passer who routinely played point-forward in his mid-20s. In this day and age, Garnett would be a like a souped-up version of Pascal Siakam; a Dodge Hellcat compared to a Dodge Charger.

The league has become so filled with multi-dimensional talents that, without defenses being allowed to be physical with offensive players, Garnett says he isn’t sure if players from 20 or 30 years ago could keep up. While there are some that may take KG’s comments as an opprobrium of past players’ skill levels, it’s clear that Garnett is simply noting just how dynamic the game has become.

“It’s creative. It’s competitive. It’s saucy. You’ll get dropped! A [expletive] will cross you over and break your A.C.L. these days,” quips Garnett.

“The game is in a great place.”

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Garnett recently joined Complex’s “Load Management” podcast, saying that the bubble would have never worked back then.  

“To be honest y’all, we could never play in the bubble. You know how much I’ve been screaming during your shot ‘Get that s**t out of here’? You could’ve heard me in here. Man they’d of had a bunch of censors. Couldn’t have all these cameras, you know…That’s a different league. We were men, yo.”

There’s no question that the league has changed over the past decade. The three-point shot is king and the physicality of play has been lessened with changes in rules and officiating. According to Garnett, the amount of trash talk and on-court chatter was at a different level in his era as well. 

Known for being vocal on the court, Garnett backed his talk up with his play. The Hall of Famer was a 15-time NBA All-Star who averaged 17.8 points and 10.0 rebounds per game over the course of his career. 

The post Kevin Garnett Says the Bubble Would Have Never Worked In His Era appeared first on SLAM.

Taylor, a long-time business and political figure in the state, has told The Athletic that he’s only interested in potential ownership groups that would commit to keeping the team in Minnesota. The Timberwolves arrived on the scene as an NBA expansion team in 1989.

According to Ben Golliver of the Washington Post, Taylor bought the franchise for around $90 million back in the mid-1990s.

Since then, like all NBA franchises, the value of the Wolves organization has increased dramatically, especially since the monumental new television broadcasting contract the league signed with ESPN and TNT back in 2014.

The three most recent franchises that have changed hands all sold for at least $2 billion. Those teams, the Los Angeles Clippers ($2B, 2014), Houston Rockets ($2.2B, 2017) and Brooklyn Nets ($2.4B, 2019), were sold under different circumstances, however.

Sure, all three teams have considerably larger markets, but perhaps more significant is the changing economic landscape that the NBA faces in 2020.

A geopolitical strain on the league’s relationship with China last summer, coupled with the global uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic has completely voided the notion of a comparable precedent.

That uncertainty could contribute to the franchise price tag dipping below the $1.3 billion valuation put on the famously small market Memphis Grizzlies back in 2018 when majority owner Robert Pera bought an additional 30% of his own team from minority owners.

Among the parties interested in bidding on the franchise is an ownership group that includes iconic Timberwolves star and future Hall of Famer, Kevin Garnett.

Garnett announced his interest in buying into the franchise on his social media accounts this week. Garnett’s relationship with Taylor has been rocky in the past – he’s refused to let the team retire his jersey, among other things – but that could have little bearing on a potential sale otherwise beneficial to both parties.

As recently as April, Garnett told Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press about his interest in buying a franchise for the Seattle region and reactivating basketball in the pacific northwest. Naturally, that conversation came to mind when the Timberwolves news broke.

There’s little reason to believe that Garnett would buy the organization he became a household name with only to turn around and relocate the franchise out of state, or even if it was possible, but the conversation of returning a basketball team to the area has nonetheless gained momentum given headlines about the city’s forthcoming Seattle Kraken hockey team.

As things stand, despite the fascinating narrative, there’s no certainty that Garnett ever does end up as part of the ownership group that eventually lands the franchise but Taylor’s interest in selling the team is significant for hoops fans regardless.

Basketball fans should eagerly await the result of this sale if for no other reason than to get a tangible look at how the league’s business model has withstood recent adversity.

If the sale leads to a bidding war that drives the price significantly higher than the floated $1 billion ballpark, that’s one thing, but if falls flat, we could see the tone of the league’s economic landscape shift for the first time since the honeymoon phase that’s encompassed the last few franchise sales.

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“You’re talking about nine years now and I’ve gotten so much hate,” added Allen, who reveals that he bolted due to “so many unresolved” locker room issues.

The Hall of Fame guard felt “removed” from Beantown’s “Big Three” by former teammates Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.

Per NBC Sports Boston:

“I left as a free agent,” Allen told [Cedric] Maxwell, via CLNS Media’s Josue Pavon. “I left because there were so many unresolved issues that the team wasn’t considering or willing to change.”

Allen turned down a two-year deal from the Celtics in 2012 to join LeBron James and the Heat, who had just defeated Boston in the Eastern Conference Finals.

“These guys kind of removed me from the ‘Big Three,’ said so many negative things about me and I haven’t had one negative thing to say about any of them,” Allen said. “We had tough times, we’re brothers. We went through a lot. But that doesn’t change anything that we’ve done. It hurt me over the course of this time just to hear some of the things that have been said.”

Former Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said recently he hopes Allen will return to Boston for Garnett’s jersey retirement ceremony next season, noting that C’s fans would give the Hall of Fame guard a standing ovation.

“You’re talking about nine years now and I’ve gotten so much hate, death threats, vitriol from Boston fans,” Allen said. “As far as me being there, I think that is a subject that is really undecided yet. It would take Kevin and I to have a conversation moving forward.”

Related Ray Allen Says Rajon Rondo Stopped Passing Him the Ball

The post Ray Allen: Celtics Fans Made Death Threats After Leaving for Miami appeared first on SLAM.

Garnett has a lot of unresolved animosity towards team owner Glen Taylor, who he considers a “snake” for backing away from a business arrangement.

KG will be among the headliners for the 2020 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class.

Per The Athletic:

The Celtics announced in February that they will retire your No. 5 jersey during the 2020-21 season — but your jersey still isn’t hanging in the rafters in Minnesota. How soon will we see that take place and where do you stand on it?

(When Garnett returned to Minnesota in 2015, a move brokered by [Flip] Saunders, he had discussed his desire to one day join the ownership group succeeding Taylor and/or being a key decision-maker in the franchise. When Saunders passed away, Taylor charted a course forward and hired Tom Thibodeau to take over the franchise, which Garnett felt was going back on the plans he and Saunders had discussed. League rules prevented Taylor from having ownership discussions with Garnett while he was a player.)

KG: “Glen knows where I’m at, I’m not entertaining it. First of all, it’s not genuine. Two, he’s getting pressure from a lot of fans and, I guess, the community there. Glen and I had an understanding before Flip died, and when Flip died, that understanding went with Flip. For that, I won’t forgive Glen. I won’t forgive him for that. I thought he was a straight up person, straight up business man, and when Flip died, everything went with him.

“There’s no reason to complain. Just continue to move on. My years in Minnesota and in that community, I cherish. At this point, I don’t want any dealings with Glen Taylor or Taylor Corp. or anything that has to do with him. I love my Timberwolves, I’ll always love my guys, I’ll always love the people who fuck with me there. I’ll always have a special place for the city of Minneapolis and the state of Minnesota in my heart. But I don’t do business with snakes. I don’t do business with snake mu’fuckas. I try not to do business with openly snakes or people who are snake-like.”

Related Kevin Garnett: ‘To Be Called Hall of Famer is Everything’

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Garnett, 43, is a headliner of the 2020 HOF class, joining Tim Duncan and the late Kobe Bryant.

Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, despite their up-and-down history, showered KG with praise.

Per The AP and The Star Tribune:

“This is the culmination,” Garnett said. “All those hours … this is what you do it for, right here. To be able to be called ‘Hall of Famer’ is everything.”

Garnett is the only player in NBA history with at least 25,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, 5,000 assists, 1,500 blocks and 1,500 steals. He also was part of Boston’s 2008 NBA title.

“This is an honor so well deserved,” said Taylor. “We congratulate Kevin on being selected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. From the day we drafted him in 1995, we knew there was something special about him that Minnesota had never experienced before. I’ve watched Kevin grow on and off the court and will forever be grateful for his contributions to the Timberwolves organization.”

Garnett led the team to its only trip to the Western Conference finals in 2004 and led it to eight straight playoff appearances.

“He was beloved by our fans in a way that only few players experience and will always have a place at Target Center,” Taylor said. “To be elected in his first year of eligibility validates the impact he had on basketball in Minnesota, the NBA, and around the globe. We are so happy for him to receive this recognition.”

Related Doc Rivers: Kevin Garnett the ‘Greatest Superstar Role Player Ever’

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James, who scored 45 points in a historic Game 6 performance against the Celtics that pushed the Heat into the championship round, said it might’ve been the “quickest breakup in basketball history” had things gone south during a forty-five minute Instagram Live chat with fans Thursday night.

LeBron added that his legacy would “take a huge, huge hit” had Pat Riley broken up the squad.

Per The Miami Herald and ESPN:

“My mentality was if we lose, [Miami Heat president] Pat Riley may break us all up,” James said. “And I don’t want that. It might be the quickest breakup in basketball history. Not only might they break it all up, but my legacy is going to take a huge, huge hit if I don’t go out here and perform at an all-time high.”

The Heat won the series in seven games and defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games to win the franchise’s second NBA title. James was named the NBA Finals MVP.

The Heat won the 2013 NBA championship in seven games over the San Antonio Spurs, marked by Ray Allen’s 3-pointer in Game 6 that flipped momentum to the Heat as they faced elimination.

“Win, lose or draw, I had to be focused. I had to lock in and lead us to victory,” James said Thursday. “Didn’t know if it was going to happen that way, but that was my mindset.”

Related Kevin Garnett: 2010 Celtics ‘Broke’ LeBron James

The post LeBron James: 2012 Loss to Celtics Would’ve Ended Heat Big 3 appeared first on SLAM.

Twenty-three years later, Minnesota is hoping that the trio of a Saunders on the sidelines, a multi-faceted big man and a scoring guard can lead them back to NBA relevance.

When the Timberwolves drafted Kevin Garnett straight out of high school in 1995, there were questions if then-general manager Kevin McHale had lost his mind. Garnett detractors saw him as too skinny and immature to have an impact in the NBA. The story back then was, this kid might take years to develop.

It took about half a season for Garnett to start changing minds.

Garnett would go on to play over 900 regular season games over 12 seasons in his initial stint in Minnesota. (Garnett would retire as a Timberwolf in 2015-16). He established himself as the best player in franchise history.

Eventually, Garnett’s No. 21 jersey will hang in the rafters in Minnesota alongside those of Malik Sealy, who tragically died following the 1999-2000 season in a traffic accident, and Flip Saunders, who passed away in 2015 after battling Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

Saunders took over as the Wolves’ head coach partway through Garnett’s rookie season. It was Saunders who put Garnett in the starting lineup, a position Garnett would never relinquish for his next 11 years in Minnesota.

That first year, the Wolves won 26 games. They were hardly setting the NBA world on fire, but things were starting to heat up. That summer, the accelerant was added to cause things to burst into flames.

At the 1996 NBA Draft, McHale swung a trade with the Bucks to send the draft rights to Ray Allen and a 1998 first-round pick to Milwaukee in exchange for the draft rights to Stephon Marbury. (Oddly enough, Minnesota would later reacquire that same first-round pick and use it to draft big man Rasho Nesterovic.)

Marbury came to the Wolves with the reputation of having a big game and an even bigger personality. After just one year at Georgia Tech, the New York City product declared himself ready for the NBA. The brash point guard was seen as the perfect complement to Garnett. After missing out on the playoffs in the first seven seasons of their existence, Minnesota was all-in behind their two young studs.

The results were immediately felt on the court. Marbury didn’t actually score in his first game, but Garnett had 17 points, nine rebounds, six assists, four blocks and three steals. The Wolves upset perennial playoff team San Antonio that opening night on their way to a 40-42 record and the franchise’s first playoff appearance.

For a team that hadn’t sniffed a .500 record at any point since entering the NBA as an expansion team in 1989, it was a major step forward. Getting swept by the Houston Rockets in the first round didn’t even matter. The next season, things were even better.

In 1997-98, the Timberwolves went 45-37, posting the club’s first winning season. Tom Gugliotta actually led that Minnesota in scoring before suffering a season-ending ankle injury, but it was the team’s two 21-year-olds who led the team on the floor. In his third season, Garnett had become a full-blown menace. He averaged 18.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals and made his second All-Star appearance.

Marbury was the ideal running mate for Garnett. He ran the offense with 8.6 assists per game, while scoring 17.7 point per night. Behind the blossoming duo, Minnesota eventually pushed the Seattle SuperSonics to a decisive Game 5 in the playoffs’ first round before bowing out. The future was never brighter for the Timberwolves.

The following summer, the NBA owners would lock the players out. The previous year, Garnett and the Wolves had agreed to a six-year, $126M contract extension. That was the largest such deal in NBA history at the time. Many speculated that massive contract directly led to the lockout. For Minnesota, it would have further-reaching impacts.

By the time the abbreviated 1999 season started in early-February, Marbury was unhappy in Minnesota and requested a trade. Pending who you believe, Marbury wanted to be closer to his family in New York or wanted to play in a bigger market. Regardless, Marbury was dealt to the New Jersey Nets in mid-March, ending he and Garnett’s partnership after just two-plus seasons.

While Minnesota would retain their status as a playoff team for six more seasons, and Garnett and Marbury would both find individual success, the Wolves never became the title contender it looked like they would with the duo in place. Years later, Garnett was dealt to the Boston Celtics. As things in the NBA have a way of coming back around, Garnett and Marbury would team up in Boston for Marbury’s final NBA season in 2008-09.

Garnett would go on to play for eight more seasons, eventually reuniting with Saunders in Minnesota for the 2014-15 season. When Saunders fell ill and eventually passed, Garnett was devastated at the passing of his long-time friend and mentor.

Fast forward over 20 years, and the Wolves are again making a run at pairing a star duo of a big man and a guard with Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell. Once again, it’s a Saunders leading the team on the sidelines, as Flip’s son Ryan has taken over as Minnesota’s head coach.

Like it was with Garnett, the big man has a head start on the guard as the team’s franchise player. Towns is in year-one of a five-year, $158 million contract extension. So, much for Garnett’s mega-deal crippling the NBA financially for all-time!

Russell joined the Wolves after a four-year journey that saw him go from the Lakers to the Nets to the Warriors. He was signed and traded to Golden State on a four-year, $117 million deal this summer as a free agent.

That contract was always seen as a bridge deal for the Warriors, who flipped Russell to Minnesota for Andrew Wiggins and a first-round pick at the trade deadline. And it helped Russell eventually get to the place he always wanted to be.

Unlike their predecessors, Towns and Russell have long-wanted to play together. The two have been close friends since before entering the league as the first and second picks of the 2015 NBA Draft. Towns and Russell even talked about teaming up this summer, when Russell was a free agent, but no deal could be struck at the time.

Towns and Russell have only played together for one game so far, as Towns suffered a fractured left wrist. That one game was encouraging as Towns and Russell combined for 45 points against the Toronto Raptors. The hope is the pair will give Minnesota a versatile offensive attack that can score both inside and outside.

There won’t be any sort of immediate playoff appearance for Minnesota’s new star duo, as the Wolves are already way behind in the playoff race for this season.

Going forward, the Wolves have faith that Ryan Saunders, Towns and Russell can form a trio to lead them back to the postseason just like Flip Saunders, Garnett and Marbury did once upon a time.

This time around, the Timberwolves hope the duo’s stay in Minnesota lasts for more than two-plus seasons.

The post KAT, D-Lo Pairing Conjures Memories Of Classic Wolves Duo appeared first on SLAM.

Garnett says he and Bryant had a special relationship, and the blockbuster deal nearly came together for the Lakers.

Ultimately, the Timberwolves sent KG to Boston where he won his lone NBA title with the Celtics in 2008.

Per NESN:

“I’m just being honest with everybody, I wanted to link with Kob (Kobe Bryant),” Garnett told Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson on the “All The Smoke” podcast. “Kob’ and I had a different connect. When Kob’ and (Shaquille O’Neal) went on their little thing, a lot of people went with Shaq. A lot of people didn’t even (expletive) with Kob’. I’m one of the very few that just stayed with him.

“I was a neutral guy anyway. I show everybody love. But Kob’ respect dogs,” Garnett continued. “Well, I tried to link with him, and I couldn’t get him on the line.”

The fact Garnett couldn’t get in touch with Bryant caused things to change.

“So, I had to make a decision coming down,” Garnett said. “Danny Ainge flew in and he just got right to it, showed the vision. You ever have somebody talk to you and as they’re talking to you, you can see what they’re seeing? That’s how he (Ainge) was painting it. He was a Picasso,” Garnett said. “And this is Danny Ainge’s greatness, him being able to lure you in. His charming (expletive).

“So, I just sat on it and like, ‘No, I’m going to Beantown,’” Garnett said.

Related Doc Rivers: Kevin Garnett the ‘Greatest Superstar Role Player Ever’

The post Kevin Garnett Wanted to Team Up With Kobe Bryant in 2007 appeared first on SLAM.

Boston announced Thursday that they intend to retire Garnett’s No. 5 jersey next season.

“I will always have immense respect and appreciation for ownership, Danny Ainge, Doc Rivers, my past teammates and Celtic Nation!” said KG in a statement.

The future Hall of Famer was drafted fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 1995 and won an NBA title with the C’s in 2008.

Per The Boston Globe and ESPN:

“I think [Garnett] was a great teammate,” said Clippers coach Doc Rivers, who coached Garnett in Boston. “I don’t think that gets enough play. He was a phenomenal teammate. He was all about winning. His IQ was incredible. It was off the charts.

“And I’ve often said about him, he’s the greatest superstar role player ever. Like, he was a superstar, but he played his role for the team anyway, somehow. I don’t know why he did that, but he did it. He changed the culture of this franchise. He really did. We needed a guy like that to come to the franchise. And he did that. And it’s still here. It hasn’t left since. So that was all Garnett.”

On Friday, Garnett, Tim Duncan and the late Kobe Bryant are locks to be named as finalists for the star-studded 2020 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class.

“Kawhi [Leonard] is nowhere near outward like Kevin but there’s a lot of Kevin in him as far as how serious he approaches the game and sees the game and prepares for the game,” Rivers said. “That is very similar. And then [Paul George], just watching him shoot and work reminds you of Ray [Allen] in some ways in that way.”

Related Doc Rivers: Kawhi Leonard is a ‘Quiet Version’ of Kevin Garnett

The post Doc Rivers: Kevin Garnett the ‘Greatest Superstar Role Player Ever’ appeared first on SLAM.

But then, after nearly six minutes, the conversation shifts to Garnett and he springs to life, just like when he was hooping. Animated, thoughtful, honest—KG’s demeanor is unchanged, whether on the court or off it. He commands the room, with the full attention of Sandler and the Safdie brothers. 

The flick centers around Sandler’s character, a jeweler in New York that can’t stop making bets on sports. Garnett, who plays himself in the movie, runs into Sandler’s store and develops a relationship with his character. It all goes to hell after that, when Sandler’s character places a bet on Garnett and the Celtics during the 2012 playoffs. 

Garnett speaks about how the movie, and the betting that takes place in everyday life, has given him perspective as a former professional athlete. 

“You’re not thinking about things that doesn’t confine what you’re doing and the objective out there,” KG says. “It’s just funny to hear. It’s funny to us. But theses are life-changing things that people are doing.”

Sandler says that the cast and crew spent a whole lot of time with former gamblers who lost everything, from money to houses to relationships with their families. He says that they ran the gauntlet of research, investigating the worlds of jewelry, gambling and sports. 

The movie reaches extremely high-highs and extremely low-lows. The Safdie brothers had a few different ballplayers in mind throughout the production process, including Joel Embiid and Amar’e Stoudamire. They got connected to Garnett one day during the nearly nine-year film development stage. A one-hour phone call was scheduled, but that one hour turned into three because their chemistry was immediate. Garnett was messing with them and Josh and Benny, who grew up as diehard Knicks fans in Queens, felt a connection right away. And when Garnett got to work with Sandler for the first time, it felt easy. 

“Even talking to Adam, it was like having a conversation with Adam,” Garnett says. “It didn’t feel like a script.”

“You were incredible,” Sandler says to Garnett. “He was so focused in on every moment,” he then says aloud. 

Garnett, as he’s shown he’s capable to, goes in-depth following that. 

“Acting is preparation, just like anything else,” the Hall of Famer says. “And coming into this I didn’t want to fail them. They took the risk on me being in here, playing this part. I figured you got a list of people you could pull for this. The least you could do is come in here and be professional, be prepared. Everyday I come in here and I sit in my room and it took me back to just Rasheed Wallace or Tim Duncan and watching film and I did those same things. I came in here, when I showed up to set, I was ready, I knew what I was doing. Someone once told me in television know where you’re going when you come out of the driveway, so I had direction on what I wanted, the energy, what the scene called for, all of that. I was totally ready.”

And he had to be ready because Uncut Gems is a nonstop, tension-filled rollercoaster ride. It’s not meant for the weak. It’s for the hitters, the dudes like Garnett and Sandler that have been winning for decades. 

The post Adam Sandler and Kevin Garnett on Making ‘Uncut Gems’ appeared first on SLAM.

“We didn’t fear LeBron,” says Garnett.

KG adds that the League didn’t want Boston to get past LeBron and the Miami Heat in their 2012 seven-game Eastern Conference Finals bloodbath.

Per The Ringer:

Celtics win in Miami [in 2012], and they’re talking all kinds of [expletive] to LeBron. All kinds of [expletive that whole game. Correct or incorrect? You’re trying to get into his head. You feel like you can break LeBron at this point.

Garnett: “We broke LeBron, so get your [expletive] out of here with that. You understand how he got to Cleveland, how he got to Miami, Bill? You remember that?”

Oh that’s true. You broke him in 2010. Fair enough.

Garnett: “OK, so remember that, alright? Stop bringing it up. So they was talking [expletive] to him, the media. And the league knew that they had an agenda in which we wasn’t a part of the agenda. And that’s how they ended up winning that series. Yeah, I said it…. Man listen, let me tell something to you. The C’s, we didn’t give a [expletive] about LeBron. We didn’t fear LeBron, and we didn’t think that he could beat all five of us. And that’s how it felt. He was trying to consolidate because he didn’t want the pressure on him. You understand?”

Related LeBron James: ‘If I’m Healthy, Then I’m Gonna Play’

The post Kevin Garnett: 2010 Celtics ‘Broke’ LeBron James appeared first on SLAM.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ all-world big man is once again a leading candidate for the award, spearheading on the NBA’s stingiest defenses this season for a 19-3 squad.

AD says he models his defense after Kevin Garnett and teammate Dwight Howard.

Per ESPN:

“A couple of years ago, I feel like I should have won it,” Davis told ESPN, looking back on his third-place finish in the 2017-18 season behind Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz, who has now earned the honors two seasons in a row.

It was the second top-five finish of his career — he also lost out to Kawhi Leonard a couple of years prior.

“I take pride in my defense,” Davis said. “Anytime late game when guys feel like they can score on me, I take it personally and try to play without fouling and get stops for my team. In those situations, two of their best players, you want to make sure you want to stay home and do what I do best and play defense and make them take tough shots.”

Davis is trying to apply everything he saw from his defensive idols growing up — Dwight Howard and Kevin Garnett — and incorporate it into his game.

“Dwight, just with this shot-blocking ability and the way he is able to control the paint on the defensive end and alter shots, and KG, how he just was tenacious on the defensive end,” Davis told ESPN. “So, put those two guys together, that’s who I try to be.”

Related ‘Defensive Player of the Year’: LeBron James Lauds Anthony Davis’ Performance

The post ‘I Should Have Won it’: Anthony Davis Gunning for Defensive Player of the Year appeared first on SLAM.

Garnett appeared to imply that Irving wilted under the passionate fanbase’s intense pressure.

KG adds that Kyrie and Brooklyn Nets teammate Kevin Durant would’ve earned more glory in New York by joining the Knicks instead last summer.

Per The NY Daily News:

Kevin Garnett was quick to answer whether he was surprised Kyrie Irving left Boston.

“No,” he said flatly before pausing for laughs.

“Boston’s a tough town, dawg. You have to have some major cojones to be there. You got to want that. The people want it for you. That’s why Paul (Pierce) is perfect for it. Paul wants the shot every time. Like, ‘You’re 0-for-14.’ And he’s like, ‘I know, but they WANT it.’”

As Garnett experienced n his 1 ½ seasons with the Brooklyn Nets, the Knicks, despite their 20-year run of largely disastrous seasons, drive the city and its attention.

“If they did the Nets, I thought they should have done the Knicks, if I’m being honest.” Garnett said. “I’m not a Knick fan by far. But if they come to the city and dominate, man. …The first superstar to hit New York and be vibing is going to be bigger than life. Remember I said that. Any piece of hope in this city is going to skyrocket. People are waiting.”

Related Kyrie Irving Responds to Angry Taunts from Celtics Fans

The post Kevin Garnett: Kyrie Irving Lacked the ‘Cojones’ to Play in Boston appeared first on SLAM.

Rivers argues that present-day teams aren’t nearly as deep as the C’s were back then.

Doc adds that the ’08 squad, which won a single championship but featured three Hall of Famers, will be ultimately vindicated by history.

Per Sports Illustrated:

“I think so, and it’s because of the mental toughness of that group,” said Rivers. “That was a very skilled, very deep team, and the depth made them so special.

“When you think of the Celtics, you think of ‘The Big Three’ [Paul Pierce, Garnett, and Allen], but that doesn’t include [Rajon] Rondo or Perk [Kendrick Perkins], who were both phenomenal players, or Eddie House, Tony Allen, James Posey, PJ Brown, Big Baby [Glen Davis], and Leon Powe. That was a deep basketball team. Teams aren’t as deep now. But I also believe that every team that’s won an NBA title can compete. Each team may be different, but there is a certain quality about championship teams that separate them from everyone else. Our 2008 group is another example of that.”

Rivers agreed that there is no 2020 basketball equivalent to Kevin Garnett.

“Kevin Garnett is the greatest superstar team-builder that I’ve seen in the history of the game,” said Rivers. “He always considered the team before any action that he took on or off the floor, and for that to also be your superstar player is unusual. Kevin Garnett, like Tom Brady, is a culture-builder. When you have a guy like that, you’re going to win. Kevin is one of the greatest of all-time, but he’d be the last one to tell you.

“He was in the right mental place to win in Boston, as were Paul and Ray. They’d already done so many other things in their careers, but the one thing that stood out was something they couldn’t buy, something they couldn’t do alone. In order to do this, they had to come together as a group. Kevin really understood that, and he was willing to sacrifice anything for that, including his numbers and his fame.”

Related Doc Rivers: Kawhi Leonard is a ‘Quiet Version’ of Kevin Garnett

The post Doc Rivers: 2008 Celtics Would Be NBA Title Favorites Today appeared first on SLAM.

Rivers says the Boston Celtics followed KG because of his actions, and believes Leonard can provide the Clips with similar leadership.

Doc adds that having a target on their backs will be good for the Clippers.

Per The Boston Globe:

“From afar, he reminds me a lot of Kevin [Garnett],” Rivers said. “He reminds me of a quiet version of Kevin. Imagine a Kevin Garnett that didn’t talk — his actions are why we followed Kevin. As verbal as Kevin was and as expressive as he was, if he didn’t follow through with his actions, none of that verbal stuff would have worked. So to me, from afar, he reminds me a lot of Kevin that way in that he tends to want to show you by example. That’s the best leadership.”

Rivers said he has no master plan for coaching Leonard. He will go by experience and go by feel.

“It’s great [to have a target on the back] for this team. It’s exhausting for a championship team because it usually happens to a team that’s won already,” he said. “In 2008, it was really Detroit who we [the Celtics] had targeted and then the Lakers we had targeted. Last year, it was Golden State clearly that everybody was trying to be, and this year it’s kind of open because the team that won it in Toronto, their best player left.

“So it’s open. It’s us. It’s the Lakers. It’s Golden State. It’s Boston. It’s a bunch of teams. We clearly are one that teams will target. It reminds me of that Miami team that hadn’t won it yet [in 2010] with LeBron [James] and [Dwyane] Wade and [Chris] Bosh but they still were the target.

“In my opinion, in 2009, we had won it already. We knew teams were going to attack us and we were ready for it, but it was exhausting because we had just come off a title. We haven’t played since the middle of May, but teams are going to try to come after us. I think that’s a good thing. I think we need that. It will teach us hopefully every night you have to be ready. In the long run, if we can get through it, it will prepare us for the march. If we can’t get through it, we won’t get there anyway.”

Related LA Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Signing a ‘Historic Momemt for Our Organization’

The post Doc Rivers: Kawhi Leonard is a ‘Quiet Version’ of Kevin Garnett appeared first on SLAM.

Antetokounmpo, citing famously anti-social legends such as Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and Michael Jordan, says he doesn’t want anything possibly holding him back on the floor.

The Greek Freak is hell-bent on maintaining his competitive edge, friendships be damned.

Per ESPN:

“I don’t know, was Kobe ever close with his [opponents],” Antetokounmpo said.

“Was Kevin Garnett ever close with the guys he played against? Was Jordan?

“I think it’s just being competitive. If I know I’m going to play against them and I’m going to see them in the playoffs or see them for many more years to come, I try to stay away and not build a lot of relationships, because I know that when I get on the court I’m going to go 100 percent. Maybe if I have a good relationship with somebody he might expect me to go 50 percent or take it easy on him. I don’t want anything holding me back out there and play.”

Related Kobe Bryant: Giannis Antetokounmpo ‘Just Scratching the Surface’

The post Giannis Antetokounmpo Avoids ‘a Lot of Relationships’ With NBA Rivals appeared first on SLAM.

No one ended up winning the bet: “None of us did,” Garnett said.

“We all tried to dunk on Yao, but he would block it or we would miss.”

here’s my Q&A with kevin garnett. why he thinks AD should talk to danny ainge, his advice for kevin durant and the time team USA put a million dollar bounty on yao ming: https://t.co/xgUhm8aEKk— alex (@steven_lebron) February 15, 2019

Alas, they would have to settle for the greatest dunk in basketball history instead.

Per Yahoo! Sports:

I have to ask you about Vince Carter’s dunk over Frederic Weis at the 2000 Olympics. You were the first one on the court to greet Vince after the dunk, give him a little chest bump. What do you remember about that exact moment?

KG: “Everything just paused. First of all, people didn’t know, we had a bounty out on Yao Ming. The whole USA team had a bet. We had a million dollar bet on who was going to be the first person to dunk on Yao Ming. None of us did. We all tried to dunk on Yao, but he would block it or we would miss. So, the first thing I thought of when I saw Vince dunk over Frederic was oh shit, you won the million dollars. But then I realized it obviously wasn’t Yao. I pushed Vince, and if you look at the clip, he almost punches me in the face by accident. But my first thought was, oh shit, you won, you got the million.”

The post Kevin Garnett: Team USA Had $1 Million Bounty on Yao Ming appeared first on SLAM.

KG says he told AD it’s time to move on from the Pelicans, and land on a championship contender.

Strong stuff from the great @KGArea21 on the Lakers/AD saga. "I told @AntDavis23 to his face. He has been in New Orleans long enough. It is time for a change now. This is it." Full interview at @usatodaysports. https://t.co/48Ns9o8kcD

— Martin Rogers (@RogersJourno) December 24, 2018

Garnett jokes that Davis-to-the-Lakers is already in the works.

The future Hall of Famer adds that the pairing of LeBron James and Davis could challenge Golden State’s reign.

Per USA Today:

“When Anthony Davis suits up for the Pelicans, that’s the best the Pelicans are going to be right there,” Garnett said. “They are capped out. They are playing at the top of the level they can play at. Davis with LeBron James — he goes to another level and that’s scary.

“That’s why he needs to go to a team where he has a chance to hoist the trophy or at least have a chance at going in that direction. He doesn’t have that. Great players need to be with other great players. He is still ‘the guy’ when LeBron is there. They are both ‘the guy.’ That’s why you bring your superpowers together.”

And, according to Garnett, the dominance of the Golden State Warriors would come under immediate threat.

“Absolutely they can challenge Golden State,” Garnett said. “You can’t leave Davis open. He is not just a one-way player — he can cover the basket, he can guard you, he can stay with you, he is long enough to make you take tough shots, he can block shots, he is going to dictate the game in so many ways it is going to be ridiculous.

“Then LeBron will be doing everything he does. How do you stop it? Everything is there for Anthony Davis. If he goes to L.A., he can have a six- or seven-year run that would be amazing. This is his time. It has to happen.”

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Kevin Garnett: not a fan of Glen Taylor pic.twitter.com/3mdnExc6A8

— /r/NBA (@NBA_Reddit) October 16, 2018

“He’s dealing with Glen, who doesn’t know s–t about basketball,” Garnett said during a TNT interview Tuesday night. “He know how to make money, but he don’t know anything about basketball. I wouldn’t say that he’s the best basketball mind.”

And Butler has only made things worse with his public criticism of teammates and the front-office in Minnesota, according to Garnett.

KG joins the TNT crew to share his thoughts on Jimmy Butler and the Timberwolves. pic.twitter.com/3hk68QuUSB

— KG's Area 21 (@KGArea21) October 16, 2018

KG gives his perspective on how he believes the Jimmy Butler situation will impact the T-Wolves this season pic.twitter.com/djrmuzEoOl

— KG's Area 21 (@KGArea21) October 16, 2018

Taylor and the All-Star guard have agreed that the franchise will continue to explore trade options.

Per the Star Tribune:

“The latest is he is going to be going to practice every day, which he has been, and plans to play in games,” said Taylor. “He will be a regular team player. What I said to him in the meantime is our GM, Scott Layden, will be talking to other teams to see if there is a trade that works.”

Is Taylor committed to trading Butler?

“Yes. I think [Butler has] made it very clear that he would not re-sign with us at the end of the year and therefore it is in our interest to get a trade so that we can get a player or two to replace him that helps our team,” Taylor said.

Related
Kevin Garnett: Jimmy Butler Saga a ‘Sh*t Storm’

The post Kevin Garnett: T-Wolves Owner ‘Doesn’t Know Sh*t About Basketball’ appeared first on SLAM.

KG believes both Jimmy Butler and the Timberwolves’ front-office are being “delusional.”

Exclusive: Kevin Garnett on the Jimmy Butler saga — 'It's a shit storm up there' https://t.co/MZ9Siezg6F

— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) October 12, 2018

The future Hall of Famer spent 12 seasons in Minny, and wonders aloud if Butler “has enough juice” to hold the franchise hostage with a trade demand.

Per The Athletic:

“I think both sides are a little delusional,” Garnett said. “I think Jimmy thinks his worth is a little more than what it is. He’s a very good player. I don’t see him on the (Kevin Durant) and LeBron (James) level. But if they are A-plus, he’s definitely A, A-minus.

“I don’t know if he had the power to come out and force a trade like this. He can be disruptive, but I don’t know if he actually had the clout to come out and do that. I don’t know if Jimmy has enough juice to be that.”

[…]

“I’ve always wanted better for not only the city and the franchise, but [Andrew Wiggins], [Karl-Anthony Towns], those are my guys,” Garnett said. “I root for those guys. Gorgui Dieng. Those are my guys. I’m just hoping they can get through this rough patch and everybody can get on the same patch and figure it out. It’s a s— storm up there.

“I never requested a trade because I viewed ‘Sota as mine. I built this house. I’m not leaving this g– d— house. You can get the f— up out of here. You don’t like it, then leave … If you don’t want to be here, get the f— up out of here, man. Guys know this. Guys know what you sign up for. I never asked for a trade because I never wanted to be traded.”

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Jimmy Butler Held Players-Only Meeting With T-Wolves Teammates

The post Kevin Garnett: Jimmy Butler Saga a ‘Sh*t Storm’ appeared first on SLAM.

KG says Rose, though older, is now craftier than ever before.

The Cooler: Kevin Garnett says he would make Derrick Rose the #twolves starting point guard … Wiggins and Towns tumble in top 100 rankings … Adrian Peterson is dreaming big again. https://t.co/qogmch6oBX pic.twitter.com/K1EOKtCyNy

— RandBall (@RandBall) September 14, 2018

The former MVP came off the bench for the T-Wolves last season, backing up Jeff Teague.

Per the Star Tribune:

“You know, you get older, but the knowledge don’t go anywhere,” said Garnett, the Timberwolves legend who now appears regularly on TNT.

“He’s more crafty now than ever in the pick-and-roll. He’s able to get shots for guys and he’s able to knock shots down, so yeah, I would.”

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According to the lawsuit, Louisville-based accountant Michael Wertheim “possessed actual knowledge that [Charles A. Banks IV] was helping himself to millions of dollars of Garnett’s money and did nothing about it.”

Over the course of several years, Banks allegedly defrauded Garnett through businesses in which KG and Banks shared an interest.

Ex-Timberwolves star Kevin Garnett alleges he was defrauded out of $77 million in business deals. https://t.co/LZzvyNYaFy pic.twitter.com/QDbIFRH3gS

— Star Tribune (@StarTribune) September 6, 2018

The post Kevin Garnett Suing Accountant for $77 Million appeared first on SLAM.

The decision to leave Boston created a rift between Allen and his former teammates, many of whom don’t speak to Allen to this day. Former Celtics coach Doc Rivers told The Athletic’s Jay King he wished there was more he could do to mend the relationship:

Doc Rivers said he “hates” seeing the fracturing of the 2008 Celtics championship team. “If I had one wish, I wish I could do a better job of getting that team back together.”

— Jay King (@ByJayKing) September 4, 2018

Allen, the current all-time leader in 3-pointers made, told The Athletic’s Shams Charania that he doesn’t expect to receive any congratulatory messages from his former Celtics teammates when he’s inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday.

RELATED: Ray Allen Disappointed That Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce Still Won’t Talk to Him

The post Doc Rivers: I Wish I Could Repair Relationships Between Ray Allen, Former Celtics 🍀 appeared first on SLAM.

While release dates for those products have yet to be announced, AND1 is gearing up for the drop of its Attack 2, Tai Chi and Tai Chi Mixtape editions in September.

We recently caught up with KG to discuss what drove him back to AND1, his new role within the company and their goals moving forward.

SLAM: What prompted the move to AND1 this year? What’s the backstory?

Kevin Garnett: Bill Sweedler [founder and chairman of Sequential Brands Group, which owns AND1], is a dear friend. I was talking to him about some general stories and the AND1 conversation came up. And I didn’t even know at the time that Bill owned AND1. We just started going into some hypotheticals on some ideas. I think he was looking for some different ideas to revamp the brand. I think the brand had a lower tier business that they were very successful with. He let it be known that he was into it. And then he was like, That’d be a dope idea to put [you] with AND1! And I was like, I don’t know, whatever. He came back a couple of weeks or a couple months later and we joined up. It sounds inspirational. It sounds groundbreaking and things that stimulate me. That’s when I started to look at the opportunity of coming in here and [being] the creative director. Just being able to bring a different place to the brand that I didn’t see with the brand before I came here.

SLAM: How would you describe your position and role with the brand?

KG: My position here is just the overall picture of this brand and where we at with things. [From] the players we sign to the campaigns we’re coming out with—different content that we’re doing as far as in-house content. I’m very excited about the product that we’re putting out. I like to think that the things that were done in the past—I think people know AND1 to be some of that. I like to think that the things that are coming out for the future are new stuff—innovative stuff that people wouldn’t necessarily associate with the brand. I think it’s going to be different and eye-popping stuff that is needed.

SLAM: Are there any particular materials or style preferences that you had as a player that you’re now looking to incorporate into AND1’s future designs?

KG: Absolutely. Cushioning and comfort. You know, this is a professional’s feet. So we have to be very careful with that. A lot of the ideas are coming from me playing a lot of years—[so] extra cushioning, different systems that you can input to make the shoe lighter and efficient for your foot for when you’re out there. I’m not an engineer—I’m a visual person. So a lot of the ideas start from there.

SLAM: The first time you were with AND1, you did that classic commercial with Styles P. What do you recall about that time?

KG: My favorite memories of AND1, I go straight to Styles P. Styles P was and still is one of my favorite MCs of all time. The whole LOX—Jada, Styles, all that. I was super excited about meeting Styles. I thought it flowed perfectly. They understood my story—Styles and I coming from the same background. So we had a dope introduction and it just flowed. I like to think that Chris Robinson brought us all together for a dope visual. We did a couple of AND1 spots that were just to the attitude and to the rebel of the inside of what I was. I thought the stuff we shot was different. I think it spoke to the persona of what I was. Dope shoe. One of the dopest I’ve done.

SLAM: You shocked the game when you left Nike for AND1 in 2001. Now 17 years later, what drew you to the AND1 brand then?

KG: I left Nike wanting more of a creative outlet, wanting more say on my own product. I had a vision for how I wanted stuff to look. I had a feel for a lot of fashion input, where I thought I was connected enough to know where I wanted to go with certain looks and certain styles. And with Nike, it was kind of cut and dry as to what you were going to do. With AND1 it was more of a collaboration and partnership. The money was right and the opportunity was even more right. And [so] I went for it.

SLAM: Lately heritage brands like PUMA and New Balance have been trying to get back in the game. AND1, a heritage brand itself, has been linked to numerous players. Do you foresee this being a trend?

KG: I will say this, with all these heritage brands coming back, it gave it a little more of acceptance for everything to come back and say that those brands you named are equivalent to AND1 as far as culturally. But I’m also culturally biased in knowing that AND1 has a mixtape outlet, has different outlets of graffiti and art, has a music outlet. I can’t sit here and say that those other brands have those things. I can’t say that they have a street culture or that they have a cultural influence that they can reach to. It’s gotta be real for me. It has to be somewhere where it hits home to me. And the dynamic of the two work for me. Perfect time to come out as a retro brand, though. If you think about all the stuff that’s going on in our world, it all just flows with the story. Being innovative. Being original. Being different. It flows.

SLAM: Looking ahead, if you had to predict where you see AND1 being in two years, what goals do you have written down and hope to accomplish?

KG: I want a respect level [on par] with all the other brands. To be appreciated. I want to be able to be innovative and have new product and utilities out. I think everybody doesn’t make great utilities. I want to be able to be known as a quality utility brand. Get away from the lower tier business a little bit and start really talking about the mid-tier boutique business. I’m looking to have at least four to seven guys in the League wearing our shoe. Major players and major pieces that are in our League. Maybe one or two All-Stars in the brand. That’s the next two to three years.

—

Franklyn Calle is an Associate Editor at SLAM. Follow him on Twitter @FrankieC7. 

Photos by Ricky Rhodes. 

The post Kevin Garnett Talks New Role with AND1, Future Designs and Growing the Brand appeared first on SLAM.

“That’s what the first practice was,” Kevin Garnett tells SLAM.

He was 19 years old, only a few months removed from his high school graduation. As the first player to make the leap from the preps to the pros in two decades, he made for an easy target. Even teammates wanted to send a message.

This is the NBA. Let’s see if you truly belong here.

They hit the rook with hard, illegal screens. They were extra physical on the low post. They blew him up on box outs.

Garnett wasn’t going to let that “dumb sh*t” fly. He was involved in four different fist fights on that first day alone.

“I don’t know what [my teammates] thought,” he says. “I wasn’t going to back down. I wanted everybody to know that I was there and I wasn’t going anywhere. If I had to fight everybody in the room, coaches included, I wanted everybody to make a line right here, and one at a time, step up. That’s what I was on”

When it came time for sprints, Garnett outran everyone, even the guards. It was his way of setting the tone.

“That was the only option,” he maintains.

The practice ended with KG sprawled out on the court, gasping for air. Minnesota would be back at the facility in a few hours for another practice.

“He was laying on the ground. He had given everything,” Kevin McHale, the general manager for the Wolves back then, remembers. “He’s laying down, he’s just breathing heavy. I go, you know we go again at five. He says, I know, I know, I know. I’m thinking, OK, there’s no way this kid is going to be able to put that much energy into tonight’s practice.”

But McHale didn’t know Garnett. Not yet.

“He did the same exact thing that night – Laying on the ground after that practice. He did the same thing the next morning, and the next night while we had two-a-days,” McHale recalls. “I’ve seen guys work really hard, I’ve never seen anybody work harder.”

I ask Garnett today: What kept you going? How did you do it?

There’s a brief pause.

And then his voice excitedly rises.

“F*cking pride.”

—

23 years later, Garnett is focused on helping the next generation prepare for their first taste of the NBA. He has been training top prospects Mo Bamba and Jaren Jackson Jr as part of a new Players Only Film series called NEXT UP, modeled after Area 21, developed by NBA Digital and produced exclusively for Facebook Watch by Turner and the NBA. Two episodes – one on Mo and one on Jaren – are airing this week.

Garnett knows firsthand how difficult the transition to the League can be. When he traveled to Toronto for the 1995 Draft, it was a whole different world.

“Can you imagine coming from the West side of Chicago straight to Toronto, Canada?” he laughs.  “It felt like I was in France or something, I didn’t know what the hell was going on.”

Soon the teen phenom was walking across the stage to shake the commissioner’s hand and off to begin a completely new life in Minnesota. At 19, he had to learn about managing time and money, maintaining structure amid a grueling travel schedule, and fulfilling all the duties — small and large — involved with being a rook. Not to mention meeting the challenge on the floor.

“This ain’t something where someone just comes up to you and gives you a speech or someone drops off a box or someone gives you a folder and papers and says, Hey, this is how you do it in the League. It’s not like that,” he explains.

KG attacked this unfamiliar experience the only way he knew how — by going harder than everyone else and committing himself to the game. He kept up the intensity in the gym and constantly soaked up tips from the veterans around him – guys like Sam Mitchell, Terry Porter, and Isaiah Rider.

It’s the same “OG” relationship, as he calls it, that Garnett is trying to establish with Bamba and Jackson Jr. He believes it to be a lost art in today’s NBA.

Designing and handling their workouts, Garnett’s approach has been to keep things positive.

“The workouts are to build you, not to demean you or destroy you,” he explains. “I’m hard on you, but I’m also pushing you to be the best you can be during the 45 minutes.”

Skill work is pointed and meticulous. Bamba, a seven-foot center out of Texas with an unreal 7-10 wingspan, has been concentrated on honing his offensive abilities. Jackson Jr., a 6-11 versatile forward from Michigan State, wants to strengthen his defense in preparation for a league that increasingly leans towards “small ball.”

“It’s been crazy [working with KG]. He’s The Ticket,” says Jackson, smiling. “At first you’re like, Oh my god, that’s KG, that’s the dude I looked up to.

“His intensity is unreal. He explains everything in full detail. He wants you to understand what he’s saying, and really grasp it.”

For Garnett, the process has been rewarding, seeing in both players the same ambition he had upon entering the NBA. KG takes care to also mentor the guys on what it’s like to be a rookie, how to interact with your teammates, how to adjust to the lifestyle and more.

Most of all, of course, Garnett has tried to pass on the attitude.

The one that left him collapsed on the floor every day after practice. The one that sparked four early fist fights. The one that had him working while others were out having fun. The one that brought him an MVP trophy and an NBA title.

You know, this one:

“My advice to those guys was be who you are. Don’t be afraid to learn something, don’t be afraid to mess up,” he says. “If you mess up, it’s okay. Mess up with passion, though. Mess up doing it as hard as you can do it. Let these motherfu**ers know your name. You got a chance to dunk, dunk on his ass! F*ck him! Step on this motherfu**er. F*ck that. F*ck him. That’s the attitude I’m giving them… When we hit this floor, and this ball is dribbling, f*ck you. That’s the way you got to play. If not, you’re the one being stepped on.”

And that doesn’t fly with Garnett. Never did.

Additional episodes of “Next Up” will be centered on Thursday’s Draft and the NBA Summer League. 

—

Alex Squadron is an Associate News Editor at SLAM. Follow him on Twitter @asquad510.

Photos via Getty Images.

The post Kevin Garnett is Guiding the Next Generation of the NBA appeared first on SLAM.

As a player, the dominant power forward spent his entire career (13 seasons) with the Boston Celtics, winning three titles and making seven All-Star teams.

Since retiring in 1993, McHale has worked in the Timberwolves’ front office and as a head coach for both Minnesota (2005, 2008-09) and the Rockets (2011-15). He’s currently an analyst for TNT and NBA TV, and has been on the call for the first round playoff series between the Bucks and the Celtics.

We caught up with the basketball legend earlier this week to discuss the postseason, James Harden‘s MVP campaign, Kevin Garnett stories, and more:

SLAM: What have been your biggest takeaways from Bucks-Celtics so far?

KM: The ability of the Celtics to throw different lineups, different people, and have a lot of guys contribute. Jaylen Brown has been tremendous both games. [Terry] Rozier has been tremendous both games. [Jayson] Tatum had a huge first game, didn’t play that well in Game 2. Marcus Morris coming off the bench. Al [Horford’s] been great. There’s an art to this, and I give Brad Stevens a ton of credit. There’s an art to having four or five of these guys all playing well at one time. With some teams: if one guy plays well, the other guys suck. Like your goodness adds to my badness. And those are bad teams. Just the strength in the numbers of what the Celtics are able to do, the pace of play that they play at, their actions. They’re getting the ball from side to side. I thought they forced a lot of shots in Game 1, not as many in Game 2. But normally their offense just kind of flows.

[Giannis] Antetokounmpo is the best player on the floor, and normally when you have the best player on the floor, you have a heck of a chance to win the series. That’s always been the case. From the Bucks side, who else is going to step up? Who’s going to play well for them? [Kris] Middleton found a way to score both games, especially in the first game. He was phenomenal. I thought [Malcolm] Brogdon played really well. I thought [Eric] Bledsoe didn’t play very well and probably should know Terry Rozier’s name. The Bucks have got to find someone else. [Tony] Snell’s got to make some shots. They got to find some other players to step up and play well. Jabari Parker has to bring something.

SLAM: You mentioned Giannis – he’s had two great games so far. Watching him up close in the postseason, what are your thoughts? 

KM: Any kind of open court, any kind of free flowing [situation] when the defense can’t get set, he’s almost un-guardable. The amount of ground with every stride that he covers is amazing. His ability to take it in and make a lot of and-ones going to the hole. He’s just impressive. He gets it up on the glass. He’s got a nice little touch. Jump shot is not where it needs to be, but he’ll improve some. I think other people running with him, getting out in front, would allow him to maybe play-make more in the open court. Because in the open court, it just doesn’t seem like he has guys up there running with him, where he can pass as an option. He’s kind of taking it 1-on-2, 1-on-3. His ability in the open court is really truly phenomenal. Harden, who I coached, was amazing. Any time he got in an open court situation you felt very comfortable that he would get fouled or score. LeBron James with his ability to bully you. Russell Westbrook with his explosiveness. Giannis is right there with those guys in the open court.

SLAM: Games 1 and 2 were at TD Garden. What is it like for you to be back there, especially during the playoffs?

KM: Honestly, for me, the most enjoyment I had is the day between the games I went over to the Celtics’ practice facility and sat down with [Director of Player Personnel] Austin Ainge – not Danny [Ainge], not his old man. But his kid is a hell of a lot more fun than Danny [laughs]. And just talked basketball while guys come in and out. Guys I know and guys I’ve known for a long time. It’s just kind of a revolving door in Danny’s office for the next four or five hours in the afternoon. Brad [Stevens] comes in for awhile, and we tell stories. I think Brad is mortified at how renegade-ish our teams were back in the 1980s [laughs].

It’s just a flood of people coming in. Austin’s in there and then Danny. It’s like a five-hour BS fest. That to me is by far my most enjoyable time of being out there. Just hanging out with friends…and just talking ball. Brad’s such a good coach and does such a great job for them. Getting Brad’s thoughts on the game and stuff – it’s all very interesting to me. Danny is a phenomenal talent evaluator, a phenomenal GM. I don’t think there’s anybody better in the game than Danny. It was fun just to sit there and reminisce about stuff.

SLAM: You spent time with the Wolves’ organization. I’m curious what advice you would give to big man Karl-Anthony Towns right now, given how much he has struggled through his first two playoff games.

KM: Attack. Just attack. Put your head down and attack. Drive, attack. Get the ball, attack. Attack the offensive glass. Sprint the floor. Nothing makes you feel better as a big guy than a couple tip-ins on the offensive glass, a run out ahead, a dunk or two just because you’re sprinting on the play and [Andrew] Wiggins drives left and they cut him off with [Clint] Capela and he drops it off for a slam dunk. Any of that stuff…

He’s got to be aggressive. You don’t want to go down shooting one-legged fade-aways. He’s going to have to be way, way, way, way more aggressive in everything he does. But not only him – everybody on the team. Everything they do has got to be faster and harder.

SLAM: Have you noticed any changes to Harden’s game from when you coached him that have sparked his incredible success this season?

KM: I think he’s gotten better at a lot of different things. His shooting has improved every year. He has a shooting routine where he takes a ton of shots every single day. And that little step back three is almost un-guardable. If he’s making that, you’re just in a world of hurt. And you know, [the Rockets] play a game [that helps]. James is one of those guys: the more he dribbles, the more comfortable he gets. In Game 1 – I was talking to one of my buddies who’s with the Timberwolves – [Harden] had 44 points and I think he had seven or eight possessions where he dribbled it over 25 times himself. Klay Thompson doesn’t dribble it 25 times in a month [laughs]. James gets into his thing and his one-on-one game. He draws fouls. He does stuff. Teams that have done the best against James have made him make quick decisions. They push up on him.

SLAM: Is Harden your pick for MVP?

KM: Yeah, I think Harden is definitely the MVP. I don’t think there’s any doubt about it. You could make a case for LeBron, there’s no question. But I think Harden is the MVP this year.

SLAM: Do you believe the Rockets are the favorite to win a title?

KM: Yeah I do. I’ve said it about Golden State doing their games – The pace at which they run their offense, and Steph [Curry’s] been out I know that, hasn’t been at the pace that it’s been at the last couple years. Their offense is a bit slower to me. The cuts aren’t as quick and decisive. The passing has not been boom, boom, boom – where you’re chasing them at all times. And their defense hasn’t been as good. [Andre] Iguodala is a year older. [Shaun] Livingston, all those guys. Livingston and Iguodala used to come in and change games left and right. They would put lineups out there where they would just switch and get up into you and get deflections…I haven’t seen their defense at that level.

And the one thing that you can’t do – you can’t will yourself to be healthy. If Steph’s healthy, he’ll be healthy. But you really can’t go out there and will yourself to it. If you haven’t been healthy all year, which they haven’t been as a team, what’s to say you’re going to get healthy now? Just because you need it? You can’t will that. So there’s a lot of question marks.

SLAM: You’re really close with Kevin Garnett from your time in Minnesota. Do you have a favorite KG story? 

KM: Oh god [laughs]. I remember this one time I’m 37, 38-years-old. Kevin’s a rookie. He comes in my office and says, I’m gonna come back tonight at midnight. Come on we’ll work out. I looked at him like, I am not working out at midnight [laughs]. I’m here from like 9 in the morning to like 4 in the afternoon, any time in there I’m good. But I am not coming at midnight. And I was just laughing because he was such a hard worker.

The first practice we had [when KG was a rookie]. He got done. He was laying on the ground. He had given everything. And he was laying there and I’m like, oh my gosh, we have practice tonight [also]. He’s laying down, he’s just breathing heavy. I go, you know we go again at five. He says, I know, I know, I know. I’m thinking, OK, there’s no way this kid is going to be able to put that much energy into tonight’s practice. I go to the trainer: you got to get fluids in him. We may have to hold him out tonight.

He did the same exact thing that night – Laying on the ground after that practice. He did the same thing the next morning, and the next night while we had two-a-days. He leaves it on the floor like that as a rookie in training camp – That impressed me. He literally had nothing left at the end of practice every single day. The energy that that guy had to put into basketball – I’ve seen guys work really hard, I’ve never seen anybody work harder [than KG].

SLAM: To pivot to your playing days, do you have a favorite postseason memory?

KM: I think, honestly, just the vibe of the playoffs, and the excitement of playing in it. The arduous part of the season is over, you’re not having back-to-backs, the travel schedule eases up, and every game really means something. And it’s really, really fun. I don’t know if I have one memory that stands out, but just the feel of going into the playoffs. The feel of going into every big game. The butterflies driving to the game when you just can’t wait to get there. You got all that nervous energy flowing through your body. And the funny thing is, you have all these [emotions]. You worry about all this stuff. You got the anxiety, the butterflies. And the ball goes up and it all goes away. You just focus and play. All that crap goes away, and you’re just at a heightened sense of awareness so you play so well. Because you’re there. All the anticipation was a sign to me that I was ready to go. I miss that.

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The post Kevin McHale Talks NBA Playoffs, James Harden, And Favorite KG Story appeared first on SLAM.

KG wishes the Boston Celtics had pushed their All-Star point guard to play through the pain.

Kevin Garnett talks to @GlobeChadFinn about the 2008 Celtics and the 2018 Celtics https://t.co/txyomBfoOc pic.twitter.com/2S7vLvOm4b

— Boston.com Celtics News (@BDCCeltics) April 10, 2018

Garnett says things might have turned out differently for Kyrie if he was hooping back in his day.

Per the Boston Globe:

“Are you shocked by the Kyrie decision for surgery?’’ [Garnett] asked, referencing Celtics guard Kyrie Irving’s recent season-ending surgery on his knee.

I told him I was not surprised, given that Irving was clearly playing through pain and there seemed to be some mystery about the whole situation.

“I was shocked. I was totally not ready for that one,’’ said Garnett, who battled knee injuries during his time with the Celtics.

“I wish they’d pushed the onus [on him] to play a little bit, but everyone is a lot more into wellness and their body these days. In a different era, maybe you were looked at a little differently [if you couldn’t play through an injury].’’

The post Kevin Garnett Shocked Kyrie Irving Opted for Surgery appeared first on SLAM.

Allen claimed that the “it was clear [to him] that the [Celtics] weren’t doing what they needed to do” to bring him back, so he set his sights on other possible destinations. He went on to express shock and confusion over why his old teammates were so “salty” about his move, saying that him and Rajon Rondo haven’t talked and that Kevin Garnett forgot “the genesis” of their relationship:

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The post Ray Allen Discusses Relationship With Former Boston Celtics Teammates appeared first on SLAM.

After questions were raised about whether MJ was more criticized than LeBron in his day, Garnett got very heated:

“ARE Y’ALL SERIOUS?!?!”

-KG got heated during a MJ/LeBron discussion last night in #KGArea21. () pic.twitter.com/2bZcb7ygYE

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) March 28, 2018

Y’all agree with KG?

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The post Kevin Garnett Gets Heated During Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James Debate appeared first on SLAM.

Draymond Green and Joel Embiid were two names that came up frequently.

“When I get on the court I want to win and have fun. Trash talk is a way for me to do that. It’s not really disrespectful. At the end of the day, I’m sure these guys know that it’s just for fun and you want to win…This is about brotherhood and I’m just looking to have fun.” – Embiid

“I don’t really tell trash talk stories. I don’t really remember them or carry them off the floor. It just happens in the heat of the moment and it stays there.” – Green

Peep the full video above, which features tales of Kevin Garnett, Michael Jordan, Jeremy Lin vs. Kobe Bryant, and more.

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The post NBA Players Reveal Best Trash Talkers appeared first on SLAM.

Pierce had his own his ceremony earlier this week, and says that KG’s No. 5 will hang alongside his own in the TD Garden rafters “without a doubt.”

Pierce: KG's number will be retired in Boston https://t.co/bDEosvJzyk #Celtics pic.twitter.com/SnUxK8ocv4

— ESPNBoston (@ESPNBoston) February 14, 2018

Celtics president of basketball ops Danny Ainge said the team has had informal talks about retiring Garnett’s number, but that no final decision has been made yet.

Per ESPN:

“Without a doubt, KG’s number will be [the next one] retired in Boston,” said Pierce. “It’s going to happen.”

Pierce’s was the 22nd number retired by the Celtics. Some argue that Garnett, who played six seasons in Boston after being acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves, didn’t have a long enough tenure to have his jersey retired.

“It was six years of potential championship-caliber teams and All-Star play from KG,” said Ainge. “I think that it was a pretty significant impact he had in those six years.”

“[Garnett would] rather have his jersey retired in Boston than in Minnesota,” said Pierce. “He’ll eventually have his number retired with the Timberwolves, too, but he’ll have to wait until management sells the team.”

The post Paul Pierce: Celtics to Retire Kevin Garnett’s Jersey appeared first on SLAM.

Allen says that he will “always be a Celtic.”

What we did in 2008 was special! Not only by Boston standards but by professional sports standards. The truth is, without any one of us on that team we would’ve never been able to do the unthinkable. Going from last place in one year to winning a championship is unfathomable. But, we did it! WE did it- Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo, Tony Allen, P.J. Brown, Sam Cassell, Glen Davis, Eddie House, Kendrick Perkins, Scott Pollard, James Posey, Leon Powe, Gabe Pruitt, Brian Scalabrine, Doc, Danny, everyone at the Celtics Organization, our wives, children, families, the Fans in The City of Boston and yes, me. Over the last few years I have been berated, lambasted and had my name smeared. You may not want to hear this, but I will always be a Celtic. (Fact). I will always cherish the bonds that I shared with all of my teammates and the people in the city of Boston. (Truth). We all gave everything we had. We all won and we all raised the 2008 NBA Championship banner together. (Ubuntu) Paul Pierce is the first guy that welcomed Kevin and me with open arms into his atmosphere from day one and we never looked back. Paul and I have spoken about our time together as teammates- going to battle night after night knowing we could count on one another and we have also talked about my decision to leave during free agency- a choice I made for my family. Despite what you may have heard or read or what is rumored- there is nothing but love. Paul and I are more interested in building bridges than putting up walls. To Paul, number 34, Congratulations on having your number raised up to the rafters. I salute you for your commitment to the city of Boston and to us the 2008 NBA Champions #thetruth

A post shared by Ray Allen (@trayfour) on Feb 13, 2018 at 2:45pm PST

Allen was notably absent from Pierce’s jersey retirement, but The Truth said it was no big deal.

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The post Ray Allen Pays Tribute to Paul Pierce, 2008 Celtics appeared first on SLAM.

“I’m thrilled to get back to my roots and partner with AND1, one of the best basketball brands in the industry,” KG said, via press release. “We have many initiatives underway that we’ll be launching, including my new capsule collection, which I’m particularly excited about.”

KG and AND1 have an upcoming collection of footwear and apparel that the one-time NBA MVP helped to create. Stay tuned for more info on the gear and kicks.

The post Kevin Garnett Returns to AND1 as Global Ambassador appeared first on SLAM.

In a story by ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan and Chris Forsberg, Pierce recalled Garnett’s advice: “KG was like, ‘Isaiah who?”

"Danny and I talked about it for 40 minutes. He told me, 'This is what we have planned,' and at the end of the conversation, he said, 'If you don't want us to do Isaiah, we won't.' So I told him, 'I really don't.' So that was it.”https://t.co/H2i4kIS74g

— Chris Forsberg (@ChrisForsberg_) January 17, 2018

Pierce conceded that he gave his position some additional thought after his objections to a joint tribute made headlines.

 

He says he consulted his agent, his wife, his mother and Garnett.

 

“Everyone understood where I was coming from,” Pierce said. “KG was like, ‘Isaiah who? Hell no, you’re damn right you’re not sharing your night with him.'”

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The post Kevin Garnett To Paul Pierce About His Jersey Retirement: ‘Isaiah Who?’ appeared first on SLAM.

Garnett has no interest whatsoever in partnering with his old Timberwolves boss.

Kevin Garnett talked to us about his new Turner show, @KGArea21, doing live TV and his new media career https://t.co/6PQM7Ivrnu pic.twitter.com/g5KXr9JZVj

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 9, 2017

KG has become a TV star after retiring from the NBA, and says he’d be interested in moving into team management or ownership at some point.

Per Awful Announcing:

“Live TV is crackin’ right now,” he said.

 

Garnett said he’s enjoying doing Area 21, but doesn’t know what his future holds. He’s pursuing various business ventures and said he’d love to go into ownership or management at some point, including with the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he spent the majority of his Hall Of Fame career, with one caveat: He wouldn’t want to do it with the current ownership group.

 

“I don’t want to be partners with Glen [Taylor], and I wouldn’t want to be partners with Glen in Minnesota,” he said. “I would love to be part of a group that buys him out and kind of removes him and go forward.”

The post Kevin Garnett Wants to Remove Glen Taylor and Own the T-Wolves appeared first on SLAM.

It was the winter, 2005, and John Thompson, the venerable former Georgetown coach, sat at the foul line, arms folded across his broad chest. In a chair opposite him was the city’s most revered sports star, Kevin Garnett.

These were two great basketball men, on hand to engage in a deep, introspective conversation about life and loss in pro sports, and so this intimate forum was not improbable on its own. What made the conversation unbelievable were the cameras rolling to capture it all.

This was, after all, Kevin Garnett, a recluse in plain sight. Not quite the most reserved mega-talent in NBA history but surely one of its most guarded. For a personality so outsized and passionate on the floor, there was no truly knowing him off of it. Away from the court, he was private, exhaustively cautious to reveal much of any real intimacy to those outside his closest friends and family.

Garnett, the reigning League MVP, could have been excused for not being in a mood to talk about much of anything. The previous year, his Timberwolves had finally broken through in the playoffs, reaching the Conference Finals after seven straight first-round defeats. But in ’04-05, a painful regression: Minnesota, which had fired coach and Garnett confidante Flip Saunders midway through the season, limped into the All-Star break with a .500 record, despite the fact that KG was again among the league leaders in just about every relevant statistical category.

There was little to suggest the famously brooding superstar would speak openly about his frustrations to Thompson, who led the discussion as part of his broadcasting work for TNT, or anyone else in a public setting. But on this day, as the NBA success he labored so long for was slipping away, something inside Garnett released himself to the coach, the burden of unmet expectations finally bubbling up and spilling right out of him. “I hate that I’m like this in front of you right now,” a shaken Garnett told Thompson, his voice catching and his eyes running.

“These,” he said, “are tears of pain.”

It was a watershed moment, a then-unseen peek into the soul of an NBA icon. When the interview aired during that year’s All-Star Saturday, Garnett’s vulnerability made him beloved.

He is no longer a player today, having left the game last fall following 20 seasons that took him through Minnesota, Boston and Brooklyn, and will soon bring him to the gates in Springfield, MA. But in retirement, what once seemed impossible is now true: Garnett has joined TNT as an on-air personality, the star of a signature segment called “Area 21” that debuted on the network last year.

If life moved ahead like the lines on a graph, onward and always upward, Garnett might point to that conversation with Thompson more than a decade ago as the moment he changed for good, when he realized the catharsis of sharing his innermost feelings and set his sights on a post-career try at television.

The reality was different. As soon as KG opened the door to his world, he immediately slammed it shut again. Secretly, after the interview aired, he was mortified that he had publicly displayed such openness. “I fucking hated it,” he says today. “I hated it, to be honest. I’m a very shy person. I like to be to myself. I’m very private.”

What followed was a near total shutdown, Garnett reverting back into himself, adopting an even stricter regimen to conceal his truest self from the brightest lights of the media. “I was different,” he says, “from that interview on.”

And so, as Garnett begins the second season of a TV gig in which he has proven to be an incredibly candid and outgoing on-air personality, the crowning question to one of the more improbable second acts of an NBA superstar remains: How did Kevin Garnett get here?

***

The Big Ticket is certain of one thing. Not in a million years did he picture a retirement quite like this.

Sometime last fall, not long after he called it quits from the NBA following a season-and-a-half farewell tour back with the Timberwolves, Garnett was relieved. He was no longer a player, which gave him some peace, but he was also no longer so actively a public figure, which gave him a tremendous sense of comfort. The spotlight was easy to give back. “I felt like I wanted to step away from all of that, be more of a family man, be there more for my kids,” he says. “I was missing a lot. I wanted to just chill and do nothing.”

It was a fine idea. It was also unrealistic. KG’s energy is legendary, never stopping, always talking. “I couldn’t see him going into retirement to be, like, a soccer dad or sitting around the house,” says Paul Pierce, who became his teammate in 2007 following Garnett’s trade to Boston. “He’s gotta be moving around. Interacting.”

With a motor that did not easily quit, KG found himself listening to opportunities he might not have given consideration to in an earlier life. When TNT approached him last year over a series of meetings in New York, network execs may not have thought they’d find such an intrigued participant. “I never was the one for network TV,” he says. “That shit comes off real scripted. I’m looking at people sounding like a puppet. Real shit, I was turned off. Like, Ew. Nah.”

Garnett’s distant relationship with the NBA media was a well-chronicled affair, though its roots were not so widely understood. Drafted straight out of high school in 1995, Minnesota eagerly rolled out its new franchise star, a beaming teenager with a megawatt smile. But the years in full view hardened him. In 1997, he signed a $126 million extension with the Timberwolves, then the largest contract in sports history, and the magnifying glass under which he lived intensified.

Suddenly, at home and in every city, questions about money were all that KG received. He began to close himself to reporters, if not withdraw from them completely. In Minnesota, Garnett would duck many of his media availability sessions, retreating to a training room instead of standing in front of a scrum. His absence often gave the Wolves’ front office fits. “You kind of had to make excuses for him for a while,” says Kevin McHale, a longtime Minnesota executive who drafted KG in ’95.

He became a brick wall, though in private he was a celebrated teammate, fiercely loyal and in fact quite a chatterbox. After almost every practice or game, Garnett held court in the locker room, regaling younger players for hours with tales of doing battle opposite Michael Jordan and other legends. “Hey, Mac!” he would exclaim when McHale walked by, imploring the Hall of Famer to spin a yarn or two about his own Celtics days.

In Boston, Pierce would survey the scene and marvel. “It was like sitting around a campfire,” he says.

Those who know him say this was the real KG. “That’s more Kevin than the guarded guy,” McHale says. “I promise you that.”

***

TNT had a need.

The network boasts the crown jewel of sports studio TV, Inside the NBA, where Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal hold court every Thursday night. Yet while those stars handle mainstream league discussion, TNT programmers realized there was an entirely separate conversation happening below the surface, a social media-driven dialogue that seemed to care less about which teams were winning and losing and more about what arena Jay-Z was sitting front row in or whatever fun chatter the League was inspiring on any given night.

Garnett agreed last fall to bring his voice to TNT, where “Area 21” would be his barbershop—an unpolished forum featuring a star, often clad in T-shirt and jeans, that carried real weight and authority inside the NBA community. “His credibility,” says Craig Barry, one of the execs who brought Garnett to TNT, “is off the chain.”

He learned the craft over many months, engaging on air with buddy Rasheed Wallace, or discussing with Isiah Thomas and Tayshaun Prince the responsibilities that athletes carry when it comes to issues of social justice. Garnett was growing as an on-screen personality, but “Area 21” would not truly become a landmark piece of TV until the spring, when he and his former Celtics teammates set the Internet on fire.

On May 8, an unofficial gathering of former Boston champs descended on Georgia. In the late morning light of a suite inside the Four Seasons Atlanta, Pierce surveyed the room and felt a warm familiarity wash over him.

There was Rajon Rondo. There was Kendrick Perkins. There was Sam Cassell and Glen Davis, too. By the hotel phone, ordering room service lunch for the group, was Garnett, the de facto host for the day.

Over the course of several hours, the six were brought right back to the locker room they once shared during the most beloved time in recent Celtics history, which brought Boston its first and only trophy since Larry Bird.

In an era of the NBA when you are nothing without a trio of top-flight All-Stars, the Celtics’ big three of Garnett, Pierce and Ray Allen set the standard for the modern superteam.

They had arrived in Atlanta one by one from all parts of the country to appear as Garnett’s guests on “Area 21,” though Cassell, an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers, sat out the televised portion of the panel. On the air that evening at TNT’s nearby studios, they were to ham it up, to revel in their basketball glory and discuss with candor the impossible highs and lows of such sustained basketball excellence.

Yet there was one matter that was not so simple to discuss. It was painful. It was raw. It was unresolved.

Notably absent from this reunion was Allen, who left Boston to join the rival Miami Heat in 2012. The act was seen as a betrayal to his former Celtics teammates. They had devoted themselves to brotherhood above all, and believed Allen’s departure to be an act of treachery.

Addressing thorny items like the Allen issue was precisely the reason “Area 21” had been greenlit in the first place. On the air, the Celtics explained the genesis of their beef, that it was not over Allen leaving but how he had done so, failing to tell any of his teammates he was planning to join another team in free agency. The talk lasted less than seven minutes, though clips of it quickly went viral, as Garnett presided over a revealing and intimate conversation the likes of which he never would have made public as a player.

To those on the panel, the segment was a cleansing experience, a vehicle to address a longstanding basketball curiosity once and for all. It’s where “Area 21” can become special, to be the conduit for Garnett to leverage his standing among NBA peers to get to the bottom of the feuds, controversies and matters fans want a final word on.

He is new to this trade still, but Garnett has fast endeared himself to his TNT colleagues. Johnson has observed the same authenticity with Garnett that Barkley, Smith and O’Neal brought to television. “They never felt a need to be someone other than who they are,” Johnson says. “I think that’s always the key in this business.”

Barkley, for his part, couldn’t resist layering a few digs throughout his praise of the network’s newest star. “He’s much better privately than he is on television,” Barkley quipped. “We’re hoping at some point he takes over for Shaq.”

Perhaps. But O’Neal, goofy and unscripted though he may be, wears a suit and sits at a desk. That is not Kevin Garnett. That has never been Kevin Garnett.

“This is really who Kevin is, who you’re seeing now,” Pierce says. “I just never thought he’d put it on TV.”

—

Jason Buckland is a writer living in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter @jasonbuckland.

Portraits via TNT, action photos via Getty Images

The post Mask Off appeared first on SLAM.

“Mark it down,” KG boldly predicts.

KG says Thon Maker is going to be MVP of the league one day: "Mark it down." https://t.co/5kI1NycSDe pic.twitter.com/IUyaGYlb4e

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 20, 2017

The future Hall of Famer says Maker, 20, reminds him of himself.

Per Bleacher Report:

You’ve done a lot of work with Thon Maker, right?

 

KG: “Thon Maker reminds me a lot of myself. He loves the game. He’s a young, exuberant athlete who has a lot of tools—he has touch; he has agility; he has really, good feet. He has a really good shot from three-point all the way up to 19 to 21 feet. He has very good bones, as we say.

 

“Thon is going to be the MVP of the league one day. Mark it down. He has the bones. He has the appetite to be able to chase something like that.”

The post Kevin Garnett: Thon Maker to Win MVP ‘One Day’ appeared first on SLAM.

KG mentoring Boogie? #KGArea21 pic.twitter.com/7pyeAbNCrb

— KG's Area 21 (@KGArea21) October 26, 2017

Garnett has said he hopes Cousins dominates the season and wins the MVP award.

Cousins was back in Sacramento last night for the first time since being traded to New Orleans, and lit up the Kings for 41 points and 23 boards in a 114-106 victory for the Pelicans.

Per the Sac Bee:

“It was a special night,” Cousins said. “The fans were beautiful, they were into the game, they let it be well known they hated every shot I made but now I see how other players feel when I used to be on this side, on the other side of the fence. I can remember games where the crowd was the reason we won it. It’s well known the Kings have incredible fans. They showed up tonight as well.”

 

It was Cousins’ first game in Sacramento since being traded in February, a move that caught him off-guard during the All-Star Game, a night when Kings executives opted to avoid an awkward trip back to Sacramento on the chartered flight with him.

 

Cousins scored 37 points in his first game against the Kings in New Orleans on March 31, but this was different.

 

Cousins said his “anticipation was through the roof” before tipoff. […] “I loved it,” Cousins said. “I’ve got nothing but love for this city.”

Related
Kevin Garnett Wants DeMarcus Cousins To Dominate, Win MVP

The post Kevin Garnett Wants to Mentor DeMarcus Cousins appeared first on SLAM.

"He can be Magic Johnson and KG." Inside the meteoric rise of @Giannis_An34 in Milwaukee. Open Court Insider: https://t.co/1vkEi0TfsU

— Chris Mannix (@ChrisMannixYS) October 24, 2017

Kidd says Giannis “lives in the gym,”and compared his work ethic to that of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.

Antetokounmpo, through the first four games of Milwaukee’s season, has played like an MVP candidate.

Per Yahoo:

Ask Bucks officials to pinpoint the reasons for Antetokounmpo’s rise, and the answers are similar. They begin with his work ethic. “It’s right up there with LeBron’s, with Kobe’s,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd told The Vertical. “He lives in the gym.”

 

The Bucks have mined Antetokounmpo’s talents masterfully. It began in 2013, when then-coach Larry Drew played Antetokounmpo 25 minutes per game, a trial by fire that team officials say accelerated his development. Kidd has guided him to the next level. He has shown tough love (benching him in 2015) and empowered him (making him a part-time point guard last season), pushing him to become an unstoppable, two-way player.

 

“He can be Magic Johnson and KG [Kevin Garnett],” Kidd told The Vertical. “When he puts his mind to it, he can do everything defensively.”

Related
Giannis Antetokounmpo: ‘This is Only the Beginning’

The post Jason Kidd: Giannis Antetokounmpo ‘Can Be Magic Johnson and KG’ appeared first on SLAM.

While taking part in a reddit AMA on Thursday, Garnett said that he would love to see Cousins “take the next step and dominate this League.”

“I want to see DeMarcus Cousins dominate the season, actually try to win MVP. Actually try to go out and just dominate for a whole year.

 

“I would love to see Cousins take the next step and dominate this League for at least one year.”

RELATED:
DeMarcus Cousins: ‘We’ve Got a Chance to Do Something Special’

The post Kevin Garnett Wants DeMarcus Cousins To Dominate, Win MVP appeared first on SLAM.

KG replied that Russell Westbrook‘s relentless drive and take-no-prisoners approach to the game is something he can identify with.

Hello @NBA_Reddit!

We'll be collecting your questions for KG to answer at 2:30pm ET. https://t.co/tKvT5UIkZG pic.twitter.com/hbb9pgLwKX

— KG's Area 21 (@KGArea21) September 21, 2017

Garnett says he is “in awe” of Westbrook.

Per reddit:

“Well when I watch Westbrook’s energy, it reminds me of the energy that I thought I played with ’til I saw him play [laughs].

 

“Westbrook’s energy is remarkable. When I watch it, I’m still in awe, but if I was to say that someone and how they approach the game, I approach the game very similar to how I see Russell approach the game.

 

“He doesn’t do a lot of handshakes, he’s very focused, he’s to himself, he does his own thing. I was pretty much a little bit like that.”

The post Russell Westbrook Reminds Kevin Garnett of Himself appeared first on SLAM.

Pierce says their bond as Boston Celtics teammates can never be broken.

“Time to get the band back together @trayfour #burythehatchet @tic_pix @rajonrondo no matter what happen we all formed a special bond that can never b broken #onceacelticalwaysaceltic”

Allen and Pierce recently hooped together in the Super Penguin Basketball Celebrity Game held in Shanghai.

Per ESPN:

Tencent reports that Allen and Pierce had a meeting and spoke about family, Hurricane Irma and other topics.

 

Tencent also had a sit-down interview with Allen, during which he talked about the rift, though he never mentioned Pierce or any of his other former teammates by name.

 

“There is so much that goes on behind the scenes with teams,” Allen said. “The players understand it, the organization understands it. But when I left, what you know is that everybody on one side is gonna say everything they need to say to make their side look like they did everything they could to make sure that they made it correct for me. But from my opinion, I see something totally different.”

 

Allen later added, “I haven’t said anything negative about these guys. It’s been five or six years since I’ve been gone. Seems like it was a year or two ago. When I left, I was a free agent. It’s disheartening when you hear negative things people say about you, because when you win, you love each other, the families are close all time. When you win together, you always share that bond. That, to me, it’s never changed.”

Related
Ray Allen to Celtics Fans: ‘Y’all Need to Get Over It!’

The post Paul Pierce Wants to ‘Bury the Hatchet’ With Ray Allen appeared first on SLAM.

Check out the gallery above to see Beck’s work, which gives Kobe, Vince Carter, KG and other Hall-of-Famers a new and very clean look. Beck has made a lot of cool NBA graphics over the years but this might be his most ambitious venture yet.

Beck released his Old Faces Fresh Cuts series on Instagram, where he shares his edits. What other hoop legends deserve a hair upgrade?

Courtesy of Tyson Beck

The post A Graphic Designer Photoshopped New Haircuts on NBA Legends and the Internet Is Loving It appeared first on SLAM.

—

Photos via Getty Images

Leo Sepkowitz is a Senior Writer at SLAM. Follow him on Twitter at @LeoSepkowitz.

The post The 20 Greatest Moments In NBA Draft History appeared first on SLAM.

Ray Allen’s publicist now tells me Ray’s verified Facebook page was hacked, that he didn’t post Celtics-clapback pic. FB unverified the page https://t.co/ELMW5fx4u0

— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) May 9, 2017

Update (May 9): Ray Allen responded with a cryptic Facebook post that features a picture of him and Rajon Rondo:

Last night the stars of the ’08 Celtics title team went on TNT but specifically left out Ray Allen. This morning, he responded (on Facebook) pic.twitter.com/zTi6G3wH5g

— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) May 9, 2017

***

Original Story: On Monday night, Kevin Garnett hosted a 2008 Celtics reunion on Area 21, featuring Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, Glen “Big Baby” Davis, and Kendrick Perkins. Their old coach, Doc Rivers, also made a surprise visit.

One notable player was missing from the equation: Ray Allen. The sharpshooter, who was a member of the original Boston “Big Three” along with KG and Pierce, left the Celtics to team up with LeBron James and the Miami Heat in July of 2012, effectively ending that era.

The group shared their thoughts on Allen and his departure during the segment.

“It was more than basketball for us… It felt like a sour breakup.”

Pierce, KG, Rondo, Big Baby & Perk share their thoughts on Ray Allen. pic.twitter.com/8JYRWmxm0i

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017

Related
WATCH: Kevin Garnett Hosts 2008 Celtics Reunion on Area 21
Rajon Rondo Won’t Invite Ray Allen To 2008 Celtics 10-Year Anniversary Party, Says Allen ‘Didn’t Bleed Green’

The post WATCH: KG, Pierce, Rondo, Big Baby, and Perk Share Their Thoughts on Ray Allen appeared first on SLAM.

Nine years later, four members of that championship squad joined Kevin Garnett on the set of Area 21 for a reunion: Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, Kendrick Perkins, and Glen “Big Baby” Davis.

The group discussed Game 4 of Warriors-Jazz, Pierce’s final season, retiring a Celtic, and more.

KG welcomes @KendrickPerkins, @iambigbaby11, @RajonRondo & @paulpierce34 to #KGArea21! pic.twitter.com/gz8eLX4JjB

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017

.@paulpierce34 discusses his final season in the @NBA with @KendrickPerkins, @iambigbaby11, @RajonRondo & KG. #KGArea21 pic.twitter.com/ldHWS9GLsQ

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017

They were later surprised by their old coach, Doc Rivers, who had a retirement gift for Paul. Doc also reminisced about when Garnett beat Big Baby in an arm wrestle.

Doc Rivers surprises Kevin Garnett, @KendrickPerkins, @iambigbaby11, @RajonRondo & @paulpierce34 in #KGArea21! pic.twitter.com/nOsdMHOqBH

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017

Doc Rivers, KG, Perk, Big Baby, Rondo & Paul Pierce share memories from their first training camp together in Rome. #KGArea21 pic.twitter.com/gVt9ne6aCJ

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017

“All of y’all were crazy… Everybody was tough. Everybody was competitive.” -Doc Rivers on craziest player he ever coached & 2008 @celtics. pic.twitter.com/1Fm9fU4sRi

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017

Doc Rivers got a retirement gift for @paulpierce34… #KGArea21 pic.twitter.com/SkRf2AmmjQ

— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) May 9, 2017

One notable player was missing from the reunion: Ray Allen. The sharpshooter, who was a member of the original “Big Three” along with KG and Pierce, left the Celtics to team up with LeBron James and the Miami Heat in July of 2012, effectively ending that era.

Related
Celtics to Retire Paul Pierce’s No. 34 Jersey
Rajon Rondo on Boston Fans: ‘They Have to Boo me’
WATCH: 2 Chainz Posts Up Kevin Garnett on Area 21

The post WATCH: Kevin Garnett Hosts 2008 Celtics Reunion on Area 21 appeared first on SLAM.

According to KG, though, the main difference between the two lies in their temperament and personality.

KG spit on the differences (and similarities) between Draymond and Sir Charles in a recent interview with Business Insider:

“I think he’s different from Charles. Charles was a player who spoke his mind, but was a little more individual. A lot more to himself.

 

“Charles was a little more combative than Draymond. But both are worthiness in the same breath.

 

“Charles is obviously a great, and Draymond, he’s still making his greatness and writing his whole thing, but I definitely see the parallels.

https://youtu.be/2F8gPuwRvTU

RELATED:
Draymond Green Rejects Comparisons to Charles Barkley

The post Charles Barkley Was ‘A Little More Combative’ Than Draymond Green According to Kevin Garnett appeared first on SLAM.

Speaking to ESPN, Tyronn Lue said that the team contacted KG about coming out of retirement after the Cavs lost Andrew Bogut to a season-ending leg injury.

Lue revealed a dope exchange that he had with Garnett as he tried to convince KG to return.

“I was like, ‘Man, you should come back and play for me.’ He was like, ‘Man, you all have a lot going on over there.’

 

“That was before we hit our stride like we’re playing well now. He was like, ‘If you and [James] Posey were still playing, I would come.’

 

But he said, ‘But y’all are coaching and y’all are going through what you’re going through.’ He said, ‘Ah, I’m going to sit this one out.’

 

I said, ‘OK. We’ll call you next year.'”

RELATED:
Kevin Garnett: ‘AAU Has Killed’ The NBA

The post The Cavs Reached Out To Kevin Garnett About Playing Backup Center appeared first on SLAM.

So when he stepped foot into Kevin Garnett‘s Area 21 on Monday, you knew he was going to get buckets.

The 6-5 2 Chainz showed that his jumper from 17 feet was still wet. Chainz then brought KG into the post, as Rasheed Wallace and Ben Wallace looked on in awe.

2 Chainz a national treasure pic.twitter.com/mYQ6szlliK

— Kung fu Kofie (@KofieYeboah) May 2, 2017

Afterward, Chainz joked, “I’ma put a tape out called, Putting It On KG’s Ass.”

Here’s Chainz hooping with North Clayton (GA) HS back in 1995:

RELATED:
Dominique Wilkins Beats 2 Chainz In a 3-Point Shooting Contest

The post WATCH: 2 Chainz Posts Up Kevin Garnett on Area 21 appeared first on SLAM.

In an interview with USA TODAY, Garnett said that Taylor “saw things differently” and that he doesn’t see himself getting involved in an ownership role with a team right now, “but that still is a goal”:

It seemed like it was perfect for how Flip organized and put it together and designed it. Obviously when he left us, Glen saw differently and wanted to go a different way. I’ve always said I wanted to be a part of an organization that is about winning more progressively, in that direction. Minnesota seemed like a perfect fit for that. That has changed. I don’t see myself doing that any time soon, but that still is a goal of mine. I would like to be part of an organization that is part of winning, that I can help the young guys progress. So that’s still a dream but not a priority at this point.

Garnett also said that the situation showed him “the true Glen Taylor” and that Taylor didn’t take into account how much KG helped increase the value of the franchise:

To say Debbie Downer is an understatement. It was a huge disappointment and one that showed me the true Glen Taylor. It showed me how he really feels. When this guy got the team, it was worth $90 million. When I left it, it was worth somewhere in the $400 (millions). That was never taken into account in my value or none of that. I guess I served my purpose, and I was on to the next. So it’s all good. So it’s all good. I’m moving on and taking my ball and playing somewhere else. (Laughs.)

Related
Kevin Garnett Trade To 2008 Warriors Was ‘Basically Done’

The post Kevin Garnett Says Split With Timberwolves Showed Him ‘The True Glen Taylor’ appeared first on SLAM.

Chris Mullin, Golden State’s VP of basketball operations at the time, says the trade was “basically done.”

https://t.co/azzrMmpf0t via @BleacherReport

— Ric Bucher (@RicBucher) March 20, 2017

This would’ve been a very fun squad to watch.

Per Bleacher Report:

“It was basically done,” Mullin says. “I was doing an extension with Andy Miller on Kevin Garnett’s deal. KG liked Baron (Davis) enough, and we had talked enough. He said, ‘Yo, I’ll do it.'”

 

A 2007 draft-night three-team deal with the Timberwolves and Charlotte (then the Bobcats) would’ve sent Garnett to the Warriors, (Jason) Richardson to the Bobcats and picks and talent to the Timberwolves. It fell apart, Mullin says, when then-Warriors owner Chris Cohan dragged his feet and ultimately said no.

 

“We were making moves to get KG, and then we traded J-Rich for Brandan Wright,” says (Matt) Barnes, one of the few players aware of Mullin’s plan at the time. “We won more games, but it just wasn’t the same anymore. It all shifted so quickly. The magic was gone.”

The post Kevin Garnett Trade to 2008 Warriors Was ‘Basically Done’ appeared first on SLAM.

Veteran Kevin Garnett is not a fan, however. In an interview with Kevin McHale on NBATV, KG went off on how AAU has ruined the state of the NBA. From his perspective, the high school league creates entitled kids. Here’s the full quote:

Kevin Garnett on how AAU has ruined the NBA because it's created entitled kids pic.twitter.com/M9kDuJCHsn

— Jimmy Knutson (@JimmyKnutson) February 21, 2017

Our league now is at a point where you have to teach more than anything. AAU has killed our league. Seriously, I hate to even say this, but it’s real. From the perspective that these kids are not being taught anything. They have intentions and they want things, but the way they see it is not how our league works. You earn everything in this league. You’re not entitled to anything.

Is Garnett’s point valid?

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Charles Barkley Calls Dwyane Wade and Draymond Green ‘AAU Babies’

The post Kevin Garnett: ‘AAU Has Killed’ The NBA appeared first on SLAM.

Big ups from KG. pic.twitter.com/1BgvHhI0W9

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 13, 2017

The All-Star point guard was a guest on KG’s show Thursday night, and Garnett marveled at everything he does for the Boston Celtics.

Straight off of his 38-point performance @Isaiah_Thomas drops by #KGArea21 for a surprise visit! pic.twitter.com/C42RXZGth6

— KG's Area 21 (@KGArea21) January 13, 2017

Thomas is averaging a career-best 28.2 points and handing out 6.1 assists per game for the 24-15 C’s.

Per the Boston Herald:

Al Horford’s eyes widened when asked about his mate.

 

“He’s been playing as impressive as I’ve seen someone play,” said the veteran big man who’s been around the NBA’s block a few times. “I mean, he’s been doing it consistently since he’s been back from that injury (strained groin early last month). It’s just been amazing to watch how he just manages to keep doing it over and over.”

 

And don’t you dare think Thomas is caught off-guard by his late night theatrics. […] “I mean, not to, like, sound cocky; I just … I feel it’s normal,” he said. “Honestly, I work on all those shots that I shoot, and when I’m out there I know the fourth quarter is the time for me to be more aggressive. My teammates look for me to be that, and I just go out there with not a care in the world.”

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Isaiah Thomas: ‘Kevin Garnett Called Me Little Midget’
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The post Kevin Garnett Says Isaiah Thomas in the ‘MVP Conversation’ appeared first on SLAM.

The future Hall of Famer worked out with DeAndre Jordan prior to Tuesday’s practice.

Garnett will not sit on the bench during games or travel with the Clippers.

Per ESPN:

“He’s stayed in touch,” Clippers assistant coach Mike Woodson said. “He’s had some communication, I’m sure, with some of the players throughout the course of the season since camp.

 

“He’s hired in here as a consultant. So I’m sure he’ll be in and out when it presents itself for him to work with our guys. And I think when he’s here, it’s important for our bigs to take advantage of him being out here on the floor. Because he brings so much to the table, has so much to offer for the game of basketball, it’s not even funny.”

 

“Amazing. Amazing. Amazing,” Jordan said about Garnett’s new role with the Clippers. “Besides him cussing me out, we played against each other. He’s a great spirit and a great basketball mind, a Hall of Fame guy. Someone I looked up to coming up and even playing against. So any pointers he can give me, or tips, it’s great. I just want to be a student when he’s here. […] He’s one of the main reasons why I talk so much, talk so loud when I’m out there. Because when I’m watching film of him or playing against him, the presence that he has — on both ends of the floor — is something that’s contagious. And you want take things from that from people like that, especially if that’s already in their personality.”

Related
WATCH: Kevin Garnett Teaches Blake Griffin Post Moves

The post Clippers Hire Kevin Garnett as Player Consultant appeared first on SLAM.

.@GaryPayton_20 & KG join the #InsidetheNBA crew from @KGArea21 to talk Harden, Westbrook, the MVP race & as always, Chuck vs KG pic.twitter.com/M7tRjxHfz4

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 6, 2017

During Friday’s Inside the NBA broadcast, Charles Barkley teased Kevin Garnett about being a “borderline Hall of Famer.” Big mistake.

KG immediately clapped back, calling Barkley an “almost-champion” and displaying his world-class trash talking ability that defined Garnett’s playing career.

Skip to 4:40 in the video above for the exchange.

RELATED:
Charles Barkley: Warriors Play ‘Girly Basketball’
Kevin Garnett Joins TNT

The post Kevin Garnett Ethers Charles Barkley on Live TV: ‘You Almost A Champion’ appeared first on SLAM.

After practice, Giannis shared that Garnett told him that with a “warrior mentality” he “can be great in this League.”

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

“I’ve talked to a lot of people, a lot of legends, but two of the guys that I really relate to, and I could see the fire in their eyes, were Kobe (Bryant) and KG,” Antetokounmpo said.

 

“He said the ‘warrior mentality’ at least 200 times. I went there again and I was talking with Khris, and KG again said it 100 more times. He said without it you can’t be great in this league.”

Jabari Parker also commented that KG is “not a human:”

“He can offer a different mentality. He’s just a different person. He’s not human, the way he approaches the game.

 

“If anybody can take a fraction of what he offers, it can change a whole career.”

Related
Kevin Garnett Says Joel Embiid Reminds Him of Hakeem Olajuwon
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The post Kevin Garnett Showed Up at Bucks Practice, Worked With Giannis Antetokounmpo appeared first on SLAM.

Like Olajuwon, Joel Embiid started playing basketball as a teenager, moving from Cameroon to Florida.

And if there’s anyone to be making big man comparisons, it’s Kevin Garnett. On his #Area21 show, the soon-to-be Hall of Famer says that The Process’ versatility reminds him of a young Olajuwon. Check out KG discuss his opinion with Nate Robinson in the video below.

Kevin Garnett says that @JoelEmbiid reminds him of a young Hakeem. #TrustTheProcess pic.twitter.com/Ul7Sm4ACbF

— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) November 18, 2016

Related
Billy Donovan Says Joel Embiid Has ‘Got a Lot of [Hakeem] Olajuwon in Him’

The post Kevin Garnett Says Joel Embiid Reminds Him of Hakeem Olajuwon appeared first on SLAM.

Thomas is averaging 26.2 points and 6.8 assists through six games, and shooting a career-best 49.5 percent from the floor.

Boston is off to a disappointing 3-3 start this season.

Per ESPN:

“Isaiah’s got so much heart and he plays so big. Very gritty, very tough,” Garnett said during a segment with Rasheed Wallace in which the former NBA stars debated whether they would rather have Thomas or Cleveland’s Kyrie Irving taking a final shot. “It’s a point guard league. The point guard matchup is very difficult. … I love Isaiah’s heart. Your point guard, a lot of times the identity of your team starts with your point guard. Isaiah, I love his heart and how he plays.”

 

Apprised of Garnett’s comments after Boston’s practice on Monday, Thomas was genuinely appreciative of the praise.

 

“I’m the 5-9 Kevin Garnett. That’s who I want to be,” said Thomas. “[Garnett’s praise] means a lot. For a guy I looked up to, who I knew I would be nothing like [in size], but just the way he prepared himself, the way he didn’t back down from anybody, and how he was so locked in. It was amazing to see that up close. For him to say that about me, that says a lot.”

Related
Isaiah Thomas: ‘Kevin Garnett Called Me Little Midget’

The post Isaiah Thomas: ‘I’m the 5-9 Kevin Garnett’ appeared first on SLAM.

Their similar gameplay styles and mindsets have kept them close enough throughout the years for KG to invite Sheed to be the first guest on his new TNT show. Check out the video up top to see KG introduce Area 21 with some help from one of the realest to ever do it.

The post WATCH: Rasheed Wallace Joins Kevin Garnett on TNT appeared first on SLAM.

D’Angelo Russell and the Lakers made a splash in their season opener, beating the Houston Rockets in an exciting, up-and-down matchup.

In other news, Kevin Garnett is joining TNT’s Inside the NBA, although KG’s exact job is still unclear.

The post SLAM Week in Review: Lakers Steal The Show appeared first on SLAM.

Talk about must-see TV.

"I'm KG, and I'm coming to TNT!" #BigTNT https://t.co/Svi3f3ZlV6

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) October 28, 2016

The #InsidetheNBA crew welcomes Kevin Garnett to the TNT family! https://t.co/XHf8rlg1yC

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) October 28, 2016

KG announced his retirement from the game last month.

From the press release:

Turner Sports announced during [Thursday night’s] Inside the NBA a multi-year agreement with 15-time NBA All-Star and 2008 NBA Champion Kevin Garnett to serve as a contributor on TNT’s award-winning NBA coverage. The former NBA MVP will appear weekly throughout the season providing raw insight and commentary from a custom standalone set.

 

Garnett will be joined by special guests from the worlds of entertainment and sports and give fans a colorful look at the game from his unique perspective.

 

“I’m excited to join the Turner family,” said Garnett. “I’ve been a fan for a long time, so I’m thrilled that it’s a reality now.”

The post Kevin Garnett Joins TNT appeared first on SLAM.

Check out an exclusive clip of Doc Rivers discussing how important Kevin Garnett was to the ’08 Celtics and the big differences between coaching a veteran team and an up-and-coming team.

More from NBA TV:

NBA TV’s critically acclaimed ‘Open Court’ series will begin its sixth season with a panel of NBA head coaches, Wednesday, Oct. 5, at 6 p.m. ET. NBA TV’s Matt Winer will steer the roundtable forum through an in-depth discussion with topics including earning players’ trust, building a winning culture and their most difficult coaching challenges.

 

Open Court: Coaches Edition will bring fans into the minds of five veteran NBA coaches – 2000 NBA Coach of the Year and 2008 NBA Champion Doc Rivers of the L.A. Clippers; 2011 NBA Coach of the Year Tom Thibodeau of the Minnesota Timberwolves; 2005 NBA Coach of the Year Mike D’Antoni of the Houston Rockets; Dwane Casey, who led the Toronto Raptors to their first-ever appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals; and Terry Stotts, who has coached the Portland Trail Blazers to the playoffs each of the past three seasons.

 

Open Court will be televised the first three weeks in October leading up to the 2016-17 NBA season, with additional feature episodes airing later in the season.

The post WATCH: Doc Rivers Says Kevin Garnett Is The Greatest Leader He’s Ever Been Around appeared first on SLAM.

Special guest at practice today! pic.twitter.com/tNOSdclgjZ

— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) September 29, 2016

Griffin, who’s looking to extend his range this season, picked up a few tricks of the trade from the future Hall of Famer.

Doc Rivers says KG put on a “teaching clinic.”

Per the OC Register:

“KG was phenomenal today,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “Even before practice, he had a teaching clinic that you would pay a lot to see. It’s great to have him around. He’s a great teacher. We know him as a great player. I know him as a great teacher. He’ll be really good for us. I don’t think he wants to coach. He’s not that crazy. … I think he has a teaching future.”

 

Garnett’s presence had young and old Clippers in awe. […] “I couldn’t stop watching him,” Clippers guard Jamal Crawford said. “… That’s one of the best players to ever play the game. Every second you’re around a player like that, you listen to every single thing he’s saying. You’re a sponge.”

 

Garnett, who has a home in Malibu, has an open invitation to work with Rivers and his players throughout the season. […] “This was as organic as it can be,” Rivers said. “I just told him to come around and figure it out. Do whatever you want and whatever he does, I’m good with it. I do think he can have a very positive impact with us.”

Related
Doc Rivers Wanted Kevin Garnett to Join the Clippers

The post WATCH: Kevin Garnett Teaches Blake Griffin Post Moves appeared first on SLAM.

While speaking to reporters after Cavaliers practice on Thursday, Lue said that he would love to see his friend coaching and he would “make a spot for him.”

More from ESPN‘s Dave McMenamin:

“I talked to him about it,” Lue said after Cavs practice Thursday. “I know his wife is pushing for it a lot. Brandi is pushing for it, trying to get him to come and coach. He says he’s not ready yet. He goes back — ‘I might do it’ — but he’s back and forth. We’ll see. But I’d definitely make a spot for him if he wanted to come back and coach.”

Lue, who was on the Celtics’ coaching staff during KG’s final two seasons in Boston, credited Garnett for being a trendsetter and compared him to LeBron James:

“Just seeing him go, just seeing what he brought to the game coming out of high school, all the guys that tried to mimic him, the things he did with the powder first and having his boys in the commercials first,” Lue continued. “Everything he’s done, he’s been a trendsetter. Just seeing him leave the game and the way he played every night on a night to night basis, every practice from me being with him in Boston, just how he approached the game every single day. He was just like LeBron [James].”

The Cavs coach also said that having Garnett, Kobe and Duncan retiring at the same time is “bad for the game:”

“One of the easiest guys to coach as far as being a superstar, as far as telling him what to do, they would do it. If they didn’t like what you were doing, they’d call you out to the side and tell you. They’d never call you out in front of everybody. Just having respect for everybody from the janitor to the owner. That’s our motto. Him, Kobe [Bryant] and [Tim] Duncan at the same time is bad for the game. But we all get old. It’s all part of the game.”

Related
Isaiah Thomas: ‘Kevin Garnett Called Me Little Midget’
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Doc Rivers Wanted Kevin Garnett To Join The Clippers

The post Tyronn Lue: ‘I’d Make A Spot For [Kevin Garnett] If He Wanted To Come Back And Coach’ appeared first on SLAM.

Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas wasn’t spared from The Big Ticket’s harsh words and told CSN New England what Garnett’s nickname was for him:

“He says a lot of curse words, so it’s hard to say,” said Thomas. “We were playing in Boston when I was with the Sacramento Kings, he set an illegal screen—you know his screens were always illegal—and I yelled, Stop settin’ them illegal screens! And he said, Shut your little midget ass up! Ever since then he’s been calling me ‘little midget.'”

IT also talked about looking up to Garnett when he was younger and said that he is thankful that he is able to say he played against the legendary big man:

“I’ve looked up to Kevin Garnett since I was even smaller,” Thomas said with a laugh. “It sucks to see those types of guys leave but I’m glad I was part of our legacy. I’m able to tell people I played against him because he’s one of the most competitive people I ever played against and that’s something I always wanted to be like.”

Related
WATCH: Kevin Garnett’s Top-50 Career Plays
LeBron James On Kobe, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett Retiring: ‘We’re On Deck’

The post Isaiah Thomas: ‘Kevin Garnett Called Me Little Midget’ appeared first on SLAM.

The 40-year-old legend’s mind, however, was made up about walking away from the game.

Rivers plans to offer KG “something” and somehow bring him into the Clippers’ fold.

Per ESPN:

“I would have absolutely been interested in bringing him here. You always find a place for a guy like that, whose voice in the locker room is so strong, so clear, so impactful. […] He’s such a great teacher in practice. He should start a course in leadership. The NBA should designate who the best player is on each team and then they could bring Kevin in and he could teach them how to be the best player and the best leader. Better yet, they could bring him and Tim [Duncan] in and they could teach it together and show people how it can be done in two completely opposite ways.”

 

Rivers said that Garnett feels “really great” and was working out as recently as a couple of weeks ago. His knee issues, Rivers believes, could be handled with the proper regimen of rest and treatment. […] “The sad thing is he could play another year if he wanted to,” Rivers said. “Maybe that’s why he’s retired but not retired. He loves the young guys on that Minnesota team. They’re great listeners and he loved working with them. It’s too bad it’s ending like this for him.”

 

Garnett will stay in the game in some capacity, Rivers confirmed, and said he’s already thinking up ways to bring him into the Clippers fold. Garnett has a home in Malibu, California. […] “I’m going to offer him something,” Rivers said. “I don’t want to say too much right now. I just know he’d be a great asset to any team.”

The post Doc Rivers Wanted Kevin Garnett to Join the Clippers appeared first on SLAM.

The NBA put together The Big Ticket’s 50 best plays from his time in Minnesota, Boston and Brooklyn. Check it above.

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The post WATCH: Kevin Garnett’s Top-50 Career Plays appeared first on SLAM.

With Garnett gone, the League has now said goodbye to KG, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan in the same offseason. See what The Big Ticket’s peers had to say about him above.

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The post Tweetcap: NBA Players React to Kevin Garnett’s Retirement appeared first on SLAM.

That video, along with the earlier report from the Star Tribune, has put a bow on one of the greatest individual careers we’ve ever seen.

After 21 seasons, Kevin Garnett announces retirement » https://t.co/54C9ds62BC pic.twitter.com/Q3ud6XNDsi

— Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) September 23, 2016

After a 21-year-career, 14 in Minnesota, Garnett averaged 17.8 points and 10 rebounds a game. The 40-year-old appeared in 38 games for Minnesota last season, averaging 3 points and 3 rebounds.

KG graced our covers eight times throughout his Hall of Fame career. We appreciate all the love, Ticket.

The post Kevin Garnett Retires appeared first on SLAM.

The Star Tribune reports that Garnett is expected to announce his retirement soon. Here’s more from their article:

Garnett and the Timberwolves came to an agreement Friday and a retirement announcement from Garnett is expected shortly, according to league source.

 

The news comes with the Timberwolves first training camp under Tom Thibodeau set to begin Tuesday.

 

Garnett, who waived his no-trade clause in order to reunite with the Timberwolves in February of 2015 in a move orchestrated by the late president of basketball operations and coach Flip Saunders, will not play out the second year of his two-year, $16.5 million contract.

After a 21-year-career, 14 in Minnesota, Garnett has averaged 17.8 points and 10 rebounds a game. The 40-year-old appeared in 38 games for Minnesota last season, averaging 3 points and 3 rebounds.

Keep it locked for official confirmation on KG’s retirement.

h/t Star Tribune

The post Report: Kevin Garnett Will Not Play for Wolves This Season, Retirement Announcement Expected Soon appeared first on SLAM.

Kevin Garnett is finally considering retirement after 21 seasons, and Vegas released the team win odds for the upcoming season.

More articles from SLAM Magazine:
Report: Kevin Garnett Negotiating Buyout With Minnesota
NBA and Players Union Partnering to Create Positive Community Change
Vegas Sets Golden State Warriors’ Over/Under For Wins At 66.5

All articles about Kevin Garnett

The post SLAM Week in Review: Kevin Garnett Retiring? appeared first on SLAM.

“I vividly remember him calling me after his first day of training camp and on the brink of tears,” recalls Eric Fleisher, Garnett’s former agent. “The guys on the team were being physical with him, pushing him, grabbing him. He was a kid joining a man’s world.”

Garnett was just 19 years old at the time, two years away from being allowed to legally buy a drink. He was also just months removed from being selected fifth overall by the Timberwolves, becoming the first player since 1975 to be drafted into the NBA straight out of high school. A South Carolina native, Garnett moved to Chicago prior to his senior year so he could enroll in the more prestigious Farragut Career Academy, and also so that he could get away from his native Mauldin following a racially charged fight at his school.

But this latest move to Minnesota would present an entirely new set of challenges. Suddenly KG had millions of dollars in the bank and millions of fans following his every move. The mall was no longer an option; 6-11 men with octopus-like arms don’t exactly blend in.

So Garnett found other ways to entertain himself. He and his friends would race go-karts up and down the street, Fleisher says. Garnett bought himself some puppies, too. Anything to ease his adjustment off the court, so that he could focus on thriving on it. And—when given the chance to play—thrive he did. Garnett averaged 10.4 points and 6.3 rebounds during his rookie season, despite playing just about 29 minutes per game for a team that would win just 26 games that year, a number that even as a kid KG found unacceptable.

“He’d call me after games, almost in tears following a loss,” Fleisher says. “Even then he couldn’t take losing—and when he was a rookie he’d get even more upset when teammates of his would be joking around in the locker room after a loss.”

Then again, Garnett’s rookie year wasn’t about wins and losses. It was about building a new foundation in Minnesota, and in the NBA, too. KG was there to show high schoolers—and the League—that skipping college and going straight to the NBA was a viable path. Not just for anyone, though. It took more than raw talent to pull off that jump.

Sure, Garnett was blessed with a combination of physical gifts we see once in a generation. He was as tall as a skyscraper but could run like a gazelle. He could bury jumpers from 20 feet out but also shoot over smaller defenders in the paint. He was the rare player who could swat a shot on one side of the floor, then sprint down the court and finish with a dunk, and he often did.

But there was always more to No. 21’s brilliance. KG showed a generation what it meant to play with passion and what it looked like to be addicted to winning.

“He paved the way for lots of high school guys and young players,” Fleisher says. “All you have to do is look at the Drafts after him.”

Kevin Garnett changed the NBA. And it all started his rookie year.

—

WATCH: Karl-Anthony Towns x Kevin Garnett Mixtape

Photos: Mitchell & Ness, Getty Images

The post 21 Savage appeared first on SLAM.

Garnett, 40, re-joined the T-Wolves in 2015 but was severely limited by knee troubles.

Minnesota and Kevin Garnett are in advanced discussions on a buyout expected to end KG's second stint with the Wolves, league sources say.

— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) September 22, 2016

If Kevin Garnett elects to retire, that of course means the NBA would be saying farewell to KG, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan in one offseason.

— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) September 22, 2016

KG is expected to retire after 21 seasons in the NBA, though team owner Glen Taylor says a final decision has yet to be made.

Per the Star Tribune:

Taylor said the report was an overreach, though it is possible that a buyout could be agreed to should Garnett decide he no longer wants to play. Garnett is under contract for $8 million this season.

 

But no agreement can be negotiated until Taylor — who has been handling contact with Garnett — is informed of Garnett’s intent. And Taylor said he hasn’t talked with Garnett for weeks.

 

“I have not talked with him at all,” said Taylor. “We have to decide, in the next couple weeks, if he’s going to play or not play. I’m waiting for him. I sent him a message, told him, ‘I need you to make a decision.’ I just haven’t heard from him.”

The post Report: Kevin Garnett Negotiating Buyout With Minnesota appeared first on SLAM.

Head coach and team president Tom Thibodeau says KG has earned the right to have these types of chats with ownership.

Garnett was limited to just 38 games last season due to knee pain.

Per the Star Tribune:

Timberwolves training camp is looming — the first practice is Tuesday — and the question of Kevin Garnett’s future with the team remains unanswered.

 

“Glen and Kevin and his representatives are in discussions,” Thibodeau said. “We’ll keep that private for now, and we’ll see how it unfolds. But, obviously, what Kevin has meant to our league, the organization, he’s earned the right to have those discussions with Glen.”

 

Garnett returned to the team in February of 2015 in a trade with Brooklyn. The late Flip Saunders, then the Wolves’ president of basketball operations and head coach. convinced Garnett to waive his no-trade clause and return to the team as a mentor to the team’s younger players.

The post Kevin Garnett ‘in Discussions’ With T-Wolves Owner About His Future appeared first on SLAM.

Garnett played the majority of his Hall of Fame career at power forward. In the video above, he lights the Suns up for 47 points, 17 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks, hitting jumpers and finishing down low.

It’s a slow, boring day in the offseason. Why not remind ourselves how terrifyingly versatile a prime KG was?

Video courtesy of Vintage Dawkins

The post WATCH: Kevin Garnett Hangs 47 on the Suns appeared first on SLAM.

A signs point to the latter. But what’s for certain is Towns is ready to takeover the League.

The reigning Rookie of the Year covers our latest issue, and blessed us with an alternate cover that nods to a certain KG classic.

One-hundred percent real juice, indeed.

Other SLAM Mixtapes:
LeBron James’ Top-10 Chasedown Blocks
Dwyane Wade Miami Heat Mixtape
Scottie Pippen Vs Kawhi Leonard Mixtape

Video by Meir21. Follow him on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

The post WATCH: Karl-Anthony Towns x Kevin Garnett Mixtape appeared first on SLAM.

Pierce, 38, has yet to decide if he’ll return for a 19th season in the NBA (though Rivers insists that the veteran forward has something left in the tank.)

Nearly a decade after he worried about their closing window, Doc Rivers thinks his old Big Three can still play: https://t.co/HkMvZYtErw

— Chris Forsberg (@ESPNForsberg) September 6, 2016

Rivers won a title in Boston in 2008, and still believes the C’s famed Big Three of Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen—all of whom have uncertain basketball futures—can still hoop.

Per ESPN:

“Depends on the day I talk to him. Paul has had the summer, he’s gone back and forth,” Rivers said while back in Boston to host the annual ABCD Hoops Dream fundraiser at TD Garden. “I think he has a right to do that. I really do. […] Paul didn’t have the best year last year. I don’t think he wants to go out that way. So I think that’s why he’s working to try to come back. But he still may change his mind next week. So we just have to wait. I told him if I see him at training camp, I’m assuming he’s playing.”

 

Rivers reaffirmed that, should Pierce choose to retire, he’ll encourage him to sign a one-day contract with the Boston Celtics in order to retire as a member of the Celtics organization. […] “I think it’s important. I think we have to do that. And I think we will,” Rivers said. “[Celtics president of basketball operations] Danny [Ainge] and [assistant general manager] Mike [Zarren], we’ve already talked. The day [Pierce] retires, he’s going to retire a Celtic. He has to. Paul’s a Celtic. So when he retires, he’s got to retire as a Celtic. I don’t think anyone disagrees with me.”

 

“I don’t know. I won’t talk about what we talked about. I think if Ray was in the right spot, he may play,” said Rivers. “I think Ray wants to golf a lot too, right now. But Ray is in amazing shape. I don’t know how he does that. I didn’t know how he does that as a player; I don’t know how he does it as a non-player. He’s probably in top-5 shape in the NBA. So could Ray play? Absolutely, I believe he could.”

 

“I think Kevin — and I know it, because I talk to him — loves the young guys on his team,” Rivers said. “He loves how they work. He thinks they have an old-school mentality. So I think he’s really gotten into Kevin, the teacher. And I honestly never saw that coming, either. Yet he was a phenomenal teacher with [Boston]; I just didn’t think he would have the patience to do it. And I think Kevin loves teaching these young guys.”

The post Doc Rivers: Paul Pierce ‘Has to’ Retire as a Boston Celtic appeared first on SLAM.

The KG-A.I. partnership never happened, of course, as The Answer was eventually shipped from Philly to Denver.

New @TheVertical Pod w/ @WojVerticalNBA: Former @Sixers GM Billy King on Allen Iverson. https://t.co/ymktfmfETo pic.twitter.com/a2ZJJjPeKi

— The Vertical (@TheVertical) August 24, 2016

King says that Iverson was also agreeable to joining the LA Clippers.

Per The Vertical (via Bleacher Report):

“He gave me some teams,” King said. “Denver was one of them. The Clippers were one, I think. There was another one—Minnesota, to go play with KG.”

 

The Kevin Garnett-Iverson pairing never came to be, as the Sixers eventually sent The Answer to the Nuggets for Andre Miller, Joe Smith and two 2007 first-round picks.

 

In 2006, Wolves owner Glen Taylor told the St. Paul Pioneer Press there was no deal for Iverson: “It isn’t that I don’t like him. Just money-wise, it wouldn’t work out.”

The post Allen Iverson Wanted to Team Up With Kevin Garnett in 2006 appeared first on SLAM.

KG played in 38 games last season, serving as more of a mentor to the Wolves young roster than as a true contributing piece. But with Tom Thibodeau in place and a young, exciting roster on the floor, Minnesota will be a sexy pick to make the playoffs next season–something that Garnett would likely want to be a part of.

Steve Aschburner, now of NBA.com and formerly of MinnPost and the Minneapolis Star Tribune, sat down with T’Wolves owner Glen Taylor and got the scoop on Garnett’s thought process:

As he has done for most of his career, Garnett, who turned 40 in May, has gone off the official grid and even has the Timberwolves’ honchos guessing. Tom Thibodeau, Minnesota’s new coach and president of basketball operations, has spoken to the 7-foot power forward since being hired after the season but has not gotten a definitive answer. The same goes for owner Glen Taylor, who said Wednesday in Las Vegas he had dinner with Garnett about a month ago.

 

“I just asked him, ‘Kevin, what are you going to do?’ His answer was, ‘I’d really like to play next year ‘cuz I’d like to go out knowing we got into the playoffs,’ ” Taylor said.

 

“Then he said, ‘I don’t know if I can.’

 

“I asked him, ‘What does that mean?’ And he said, ‘I don’t know.’

 

“So I asked the question but I didn’t get an answer that helped me. Yes, theoretically, he’d like to play. But he has some doubts of his knees holding up. I believe he told me exactly the truth.”

 

“I think he’s worried if he can play,” Taylor said. “I worry about that too. When I talked to him last year, I said, ‘Is it your knees or what?’ He said, ‘It’s my whole leg.’ “

The post Report: Kevin Garnett Mulling Retirement appeared first on SLAM.

Six years later, and Kevin Garnett still hasn’t gotten over the heartbreak of that championship loss—and likely never will.

KG won’t stop yapping about it according to Minnesota Timberwolves teammate Gorgui Dieng.

Per the Boston Globe:

“He always talks about the [2010] Finals they lost,” Dieng said. “I think he can’t swallow that pill. He always talks about it. You can see how angry he is when he talks about that Finals.”

 

In 2010, the Celtics took a 3-2 series lead over the Lakers before dropping the final two games in Los Angeles. Dieng said it is clear how that series still grates at Garnett.

 

“They were great and they were going to win it,” Dieng said, “and he still doesn’t understand why they lost.”

The post Kevin Garnett Still Mad About Losing in the 2010 NBA Finals appeared first on SLAM.

The team’s young core has reportedly grown increasingly unhappy with head coach Sam Mitchell and his old-school methods.

Second-year guard Zach LaVine has been a target of Mitchell’s tough love, and says that he (and other frustrated players on the roster) just have to keep gritting their teeth.

Per the AP:

“I tell Zach all the time, when he gets through this, he’s going to be a much better player because he’s going to have went through the fire,” Mitchell said earlier this month after LaVine broke out of a shooting slump. “He’s going to be tried and tested. He’s going to have felt low and dejected sometimes. But that’s how point guards are made.” […] “It’s not fun. Sometimes unfair,” LaVine said. “But he’s the coach, I’m the player and sometimes that’s what you have to deal with. You can’t really do anything about it but play good on the court.”

 

Mitchell believes his approach is starting to pay dividends for his youngest players — 20-year-olds Andrew Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns and LaVine, 23-year-old Shabazz Muhammad — who are tasked with rescuing a woebegone franchise. […] But nearly half the roster of 15 players privately expressed concerns about Mitchell that centered on three basic tenets: His outdated offensive system, his tendency to platoon his rotations and a lack of personal accountability for the struggles. The players spoke on condition of anonymity because they did not want to publicly criticize their head coach.

 

Owner Glen Taylor said he knows Mitchell has a difficult task taking over for Flip Saunders, who died from Hodgkin’s lymphoma in October. Taylor also said the team’s 14-32 record and struggles at home that have led to dwindling attendance have not been easy to watch. […] “If anything at the beginning of the year I said I needed to be patient. If anything I have learned this year I probably have to be even more patient,” Taylor said before the Timberwolves beat Memphis on Saturday.

The post Report: Young Timberwolves Unhappy With Sam Mitchell appeared first on SLAM.

The play was fairly ordinary for the Minnesota Timberwolves—a steal by Ricky Rubio sparking a break and a blind dropoff to a lane-filler. After all, the Wolves have plenty of those, from reigning Slam Dunk Champion Zach LaVine to reigning ROY Andrew Wiggins to leading ROY candidate Karl-Anthony Towns. Only this time it was none of them. This time it was 39-year-old Kevin Garnett, finishing with a right-handed hammer on Blake Griffin.

Garnett obviously isn’t anywhere near the player he used to be, and he lost long-time friend Flip Saunders to cancer right before the season began, but if there’s anything that’s remained constant about KG over his 21-year NBA career, it’s the effort. The intensity. He’s never let anyone outwork or outhustle him, and damned if he’s going to start now.

So he outruns rookies, gives players who weren’t born when he was drafted reason to celebrate, and sets an example that will live on long after he’s retired. He dunks on dunk champions, finishes finishers and heads back downcourt, ready for the next one.

The post Slamadamonth, SLAM #195: Kevin Garnett appeared first on SLAM.

KG sat out the loss, but was thrilled to make the trek to the city where he won his lone NBA championship in 2008.

KG talks to the media postgame and reflects on his experience in Boston. pic.twitter.com/2M7GQXGcnO

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 22, 2015

Garnett was also appreciative during his Sunday trip to Brooklyn.

Per the Star Tribune:

“Both places were memorable,” Garnett said. […] Garnett, who led the Wolves to eight consecutive playoff appearances and a spot in the 2004 Western Conference finals, was traded to Boston in the summer of 2007. There, along with fellow stars Paul Pierce and Ray Allen and coach Doc Rivers, the Celtics won the 2008 NBA championship by beating the Los Angeles Lakers in six games in the finals. The Celtics made another trip to the finals two seasons later, losing in seven games to the Lakers.

 

With this possibly being Garnett’s final season, and with the Wolves only playing one time in each Eastern Conference city, Garnett’s return to Brooklyn and Boston could be his last as a player. […] “New York was great,” Garnett said. “The living experience there, I will probably have that for the rest of my life. Playing there was different. Playing before the crowd in Brooklyn was dope.”

 

Garnett was asked one more question. Which city had the better fans, New York or Boston? […] “Bostonians all day,” Garnett said. “And they know that.”

The post WATCH: Celtics Fans Honor Kevin Garnett With Standing Ovation appeared first on SLAM.

Photos via Getty Images

Previously:
Week of November 27 – December 4
Week of November 13 – November 19

The post NBA Photos of the Week appeared first on SLAM.

The Hornets put the Pistons’ four-game winning streak to rest on Monday night as they blew out the visiting team by 20 points. Cody Zeller finished with 20 points, and Marvin Williams added a 14-point, 12-board double-double for Charlotte.

Spurs 119 (17-4), 76ers 68 (1-20)

The Spurs started off hot, scoring a season-high 33 points in the first quarter. And then they got hotter. Even Boban Marjanovic showed off some stuff. San Antonio ended up winning the contest by 51 points—a new franchise record. LaMarcus Aldridge was the high-scorer with 26 points to go along with his 9 boards in the W.

Wizards 114 (8-10), Heat 103 (12-6)

Quick really ain’t far…John Wall put his speed and skills on display down in South Beach, as the Wiz took care of the Heat on the road. Wall finished with 26 points and 7 assists to lead D.C., and Gary Neal contributed another 21 points. The Wiz won despite Miami’s nearly 60 percent shooting night.

Mavericks 104 (12-9), Knicks 97 (10-11)

Dirk Nowitzki finished with 25 points to secure the win over the hometown New York Knicks, despite rookie sensation Kristaps Prozingis’ game-high 28 points. After trailing by 23, the Knicks came within 4 points in the final minute, however, the Mavs held on for the win on the road.

Raptors 102 (12-9), Lakers 93 (3-17)

Kobe Bryant’s farewell tour continued in Toronto on Monday night. The Black Mamba was met with standing ovations and cheers, as he poured in 21 points. But Kyle Lowry (27 points), Terrence Ross (22 points) and the rest of the Raptors proved to be too much for the Lakers to handle.

Suns 103 (8-13), Bulls 101 (11-6)

The game went down to the wire in Chicago when the Phoenix Suns came to visit. With the game tied at 101, Jon Leuer’s shot was no good—that is, until Mirza Teletovic grabbed the rebound and nailed the put-back jumper to win the game. Teletovic finished with 20 points off the bench, with five more teammates scoring in double-figures for the close win over Derrick Rose (14 points), Pau Gasol (22 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists) and the Bulls.

Bucks 90 (8-13), Trail Blazers 88 (9-12)

‘Twas another close game on Monday night, this time in Milwaukee. Damian Lillard (23 points, 7 assists) and his Trail Blazers came to town and played up until the final second. With the Blazers down 2, Meyers Leonard attempted a shot only to have John Henson ruin everything:

Watch the full play as @JohnHenson31 saves the W tonight!! #OwnTheFuture https://t.co/CFyuKZs0UV

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) December 8, 2015

Clippers 110 (12-9), Timberwolves 106 (8-12)

OK, so the Clippers won the game and all—but, yo—this. This is everything. (Kevin Garnett, bruh!)

Celtics 111 (11-9), Pelicans 93 (5-15)

Isaiah Thomas’ 22 points and 5 assists paired with Jared Sullinger’s 11 points and 20 rebounds helped the Celtics achieve their win down in New Orleans Monday night. Boston dominated on the fast breaks, scoring 21 versus the Pelicans’ 11, and there wasn’t much the Pels could do to stop ’em.

The post Post Up: Anything Is Possible appeared first on SLAM.

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