Favorite Garnett Memory

[Scott M]

I'm not sure what my favorite KG memory is but I gotta say Game 7 of the Sacramento series in 2004 during the long playoff run. Before the game I remember telling a buddy of mine that we needed a 20-20 out of Garnett. It was the most important win in Wolves history. Kevin Garnett celebrated his 28th birthday with 32 points and 21 rebounds to clinch the series and propel the Wolves into the Western Conference Finals for the first time. This remains the signature game for Kevin Garnett. I don’t remember the state of Minnesota being more excited about the NBA then it was that day.

You have to think that the way he was playing that year we could have won the whole show if Cassell's back didn't go out. The wolves lost 4-2 to the Lakers starting Darrick Martin at the point and alternating with Fred Hoiberg. Or if the Lakers had decided to self-deconstruct one round earlier instead of in the finals, as described in Phil Jackson's book "The Last Season, a team in search of its soul." Personally I think they could have beaten the Pistons given the chance.

I'm gonna miss him. Here's a good tribute someone did on Youtube.

KG Tribute

[bassNspear]

Thats pretty Kool Video.

[ozzie]

talk about DEPRESSING.....we lose a future hall of famer - one of the greatest athletes to put on a jersey - for 5 guys from one of the worst teams in the league the last 3-5 years!!!! I WAS looking forward to this upcoming season now I am not sure if I will tune into a game even........gross

[riversmallmouth35]

My favorite KG moment would have to be when I went to the Portland game last year. We were down by one point and there was like 4 seconds left. We inbounded it to Garnett and he shot over three defenders for the win at the buzzer. The fans went crazy. It had to be the best home game from last year.

It going to be different watching the timberwolves without KG playing. I hope he can get something done in the next couple years in Boston

[Sandmannd]

Great video. He's a once in a lifetime player and even more a once in a lifetime human being. We will never see another athelete like him in MN. Just all around great. I wish him the best in Boston. I'm sure I'll watch more of their games than the wolves this year.

[bigbucks]

That's a very good video, as are some of the other Garnett clips on there. Very painful to watch knowing he's gone & what the bumbling (Contact Us Please) did to him with idiotic drafting & most specifically the lack of drafting, do to the Joe Smith ridiculousness.

Joe Smith, they really thought he was the answer & they should violate the league rules for him, that was the key?

Shouldn't have watched that clip, it made me so angry about the whole situation. I've never seen a player put it all out there every night, so consistently, at least that had that level of ability, as KG. It's a complete crime. I only hope with this trade they've at least done right by him a little bit. At least he's got a legitimate chance to win again. I agree with whoever said if Cassell doesn't get hurt in 2004 we win it all, but he wasn't young & he played so-o-o many minutes that year.

It's so-o-o painful to be a Timberwolves fan right now when you think about what might have been & so many different ways could have been.

[lookincalifornia]

my kg memory, is pretty vague. i don't remember the other team, or the year. there was a foul called and an opposing player went to shoot during the dead ball. kg sent it out then repeted the process like three times. you can't tell me he is just about the money and not winning

[ozzie]

Yeah that is one thing that was always fun to watch...even when the whistle blows KG would not stop until the ball was stopped!!!! Gonna miss #21!!!!!

[solbes]

I have lots of good basketball memories of KG. And the guy did give 100% and played with more heart than anyone. How can you not like that?

He had a great sense of humor though as well. Those Nike "Fun Police" commercials were some of my favorites of all time. Especially the Cherokee Parks one. Then he did the other Nike ad where he played Foosball with Brandi Chastain, loses a goal, and said "Was-sup with the shirt?!?" Classic.

I also remember KG getting really excited when they won one of the playoff games against Seattle at the Target Center. After the game he said to the floor announcer, "Was-sup Dog?" The announcer blinks and said,"So Kevin, dog is a good thing, right?!?"

[Scott M]

Oh man, keep the memories coming. I had almost forgot about the fun police. "We got a ref callin' ticky tack fouls!" "Pass the ball Jimmy!" "No look passes...yyyyeeeeaaaahhh" OMG, LOL. My buddy had a fun police poster in his bedroom. Gary Payton, Tim Hardaway, Kevin Garnett, Tom Gugliotta, Damon Stoudamire, and Moses Malone...What a cast. circa 1997-1998.

You know, KG did one where he was asking a teammate to show more facial expressions when he dunked, who was that, Googs? I can't remember anymore.

OH MAN! Remember when he did the one where he was a ticket usher and brought the blue collar fans courtside! LOL! "CEOs in the cheap seats, fans on the floor"

Ya gotta love the dead ball stuff. It was mental dump. Like he wouldn't let anyone score on him and on the other side of the court he would tip it in or flush it. He would really get under the skin of some guys.

One thing I forgot was how he was always like a big kid in post game interviews. He would always compliment people on how they dressed. "Marney, you look good girl." One time he asked Craig Sager how he could get a suit like the one he was wearing....He was always joking around...Just hilarious.

I'll never forget how many times he jumped up on the scorer's table and whipped up the fans. Opening night like 5 years ago, he was so excited to play and they won a tight game and he jumped up and just whooped it up. That's what basketball is all about, love of the game!!! I'm going to miss that, the contagious love of the game.

Keep those memories coming.

[RankOfEagle]

I would have to say that some of my favorite moments would be anytime Garnett walked out to the middle of the court in a close game while both teams were still just coming out of the timeout and he would raise his arms in the air and look up...the powder before games and walking to the corner of the court....Timberwolves beating the bulls a longggg time ago....Kevin Harlem's? sp? favorite sayings for KG like buckle up when a dunk was coming... so many good times i can't remember them all. I really will miss him. He has so much energy, dedication, and doesn't brings attention in a negative way unlike many players now. Thank you Kevin

[Scott M]

Here's something a little more current some of you might enjoy:

Bill Simmons, "The Boston Sports Guy" from ESPN.com, on his choice for league MVP:

Let's get the bad stuff out of the way so you don't think this is a homer vote: I don't think Garnett is the most talented player in the league; I don't trust him at the end of games because he gets too wound up; it drives me crazy that he relies on his fall-away so much (especially in fourth quarters). Of course, none of that stuff matters in an MVP discussion. He's the one guy everyone will remember from this regular season (sorry, Kobe); and he was worth a 30-win swing to the Celtics this season. In other words, he's the first choice for two of my three MVP questions.

But that's not why I'm picking him. On May 22, professional basketball was effectively murdered in Boston. Garnett transformed every single facet of the franchise upon his arrival, from playing for the Celtics to coaching them to following them to owning them to working for them. What he did can't be measured by statistics; it can't even be measured in a few paragraphs like the section you're reading right now. It would belittle what he did. He transformed the culture of the team. He taught everyone to care about defense, to care about practice, to care about being a professional, to care about leaving everything they had on the court, to stop caring about stats and start caring about wins. He single-handedly transformed the careers of three young players (Rajon Rondo, Leon Powe and Kendrick Perkins), one veteran (Pierce) and one coach (Doc Rivers), all five of whom could have gone the other way. He played every exhibition game like it was the seventh game of the Finals. During blowouts, he stood on the sidelines and cheered on his teammates like it was a tight game; because of that, the bench guys did the same thing for the starters and basically turned into a bunch of giddy scrubs on a 14-seed in a March Madness upset during every game.

The best word for him would either be "contagious" or "selfless." By Thanksgiving, the entire team was emulating him. Every time a young player got carried away with himself during a game -- like the time Perkins started going for his own stats, or the time Rondo snapped at his coach -- KG was there to set him straight and scare the living [PoorWordUsage] out him. Every time one of his teammates was intimidated, KG had his back. Every time one of his teammates got knocked down, KG rushed over to pick him up; eventually, four teammates were rushing over to help that fifth guy up, and that's just the way it goes with the team now. Every time an opponent kept going for a shot after a whistle, KG defiantly blocked the shot just out of principle, and eventually, everyone started doing it. No shots after the whistle against the Celtics. That was the rule. It was a series of little things, baby steps if you will, but they added up to something much bigger.

You can't measure Garnett's impact with individual statistics, but these numbers seem pretty relevant: 24 (number of '07 Celtics wins); 16 (number of '08 Celtics losses); four (number of useful free agents who signed with Boston after the KG trade); 0 (number of useful free agents who signed with Boston in the 15 years before that); 10.2 (Boston's point differential this season, and by the way, that's a historic number); three (number of Texas teams they beat on the road in a four-day span, as well as their total number of double-digit defeats this season); 4,753 (estimated number of Teammate Hugs during games this season, shattering the record of the '84 Lakers); 42 (field-goal percentage for Boston opponents this season); 41 (number of home sellouts this season); and 3-to-2 (their odds to win the 2008 title).

Look at the Celtics last year and look at them this year. Does any of the good stuff happen without Garnett? Any of it? Maybe his MVP campaign lost some stream when he missed 10 games earlier in the season, and I have to admit, even I shifted my attention toward Kobe, Paul and LeBron these past two months. During a conversation with my father last weekend, I mentioned the MVP "argument" and he quickly responded with a fired-up rant that was very unlike my Pops. I'll do my best to paraphrase it:

"Argument? There's no argument, it's Garnett. I went to almost every home game. He's standing on the bench screaming for his teammates when we're up 30 points. He's a maniac! A few weeks ago, I couldn't go to a Wednesday night game so I put my tickets online and they sold in four minutes. Four minutes! Last year, I would have been walking around my office asking if anyone wanted to go, and I would have probably ended up eating the tickets. This year? Four minutes. Who did more for a team in one year? We lost 18 straight games last season. We were nothing. Didn't you watch the games? How could anyone be more valuable than KG was this season?"

It's a great question, and since I couldn't answer it without sounding like a fool, Kevin Garnett gets my MVP vote for 2008. Just remember, the "V" stands for "valuable."

[Sandmannd]

I would agree. He did all that here, but team mates didn't always catch on. He's the reason I'm watching the playoffs this year. Would love to see him win.

[tisosy11]

Mine will be when he hosts the trophy for Boston!

That and talking movies with him at Best Buy