Kevin Garnett News

"After his two-point second half in Game 4, which included an 0-for-2, scoreless fourth quarter, no one had to tell Kevin Garnett what was wrong. His answer was clear last night in a 26-point, 16-rebound, three-block, two-steal performance at the Garden that helped stake the Celtics to a 96-89 win over Cleveland in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. “I wanted to be a lot more aggressive,” Garnett said. “I felt like the first two games I was aggressive, but obviously on the road I wasn’t as aggressive as I should have been. "

"Kevin Garnett spent some time after yesterday’s practice working with assistant coach Tom Thibodeau. While it’s a good bet the extra session was helpful, one can’t help but think Garnett would be better served with a slice of advice from Cam Neely. With the Celtics pushed essentially to the brink tonight by the fact they become highly perishable when removed from the Boston air, the best thing that could happen to their offense - particularly in crunch time - is for KG to hold his ground in the crease (OK, the paint) and score."

"It's hard to believe, but it's been eight years since the tragic death of NBA player Malik Sealy. Sealy was 30 on May 20, 2000 when he was on his way home from a birthday party for Timberwolves teammate Kevin Garnett and was killed by drunk driver heading the wrong way on the freeway. His life still is on the minds of former teammates Joe Smith and Garnett. Smith, now with the Cavaliers, and Garnett, with the Celtics, have tattoos on their arms honoring Sealy. Every time Smith and Garnett meet on the court, they do a pre-game hug, a small remembrance of Sealy. Amazingly, the drunk driver who killed Sealy has been arrested twice since for the same offense."

"The Celtics were well represented when the NBA announced its all-league teams yesterday, with Kevin Garnett on the first and Paul Pierce the third. With 118-of-127 first-team votes, Garnett had the third-highest overall point total. He was joined on the first team by unanimous choice Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul, LeBron James and Dwight Howard."

"Kevin Garnett finished a respectable third in voting for the NBA's Most Valuable Player. Lakers guard Kobe Bryant won his first MVP award, with 82 first-place votes (out of 126) and 1,100 points, while Hornets guard Chris Paul was second with 28 first-place votes and 894 points. Garnett finished with 670 points, getting 15 first-place votes. The 2004 NBA MVP averaged 18.8 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.25 blocks for the team with the best regular-season record."

"The Celtics did not have a player finish among the top 15 in the NBA in scoring, rebounding or assists. Do you really think they were broken up that the 2007-08 NBA Most Valuable Player Award ended up in another city? Formalizing news that had been expected for days, Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant was named MVP yesterday, finishing first on 82 of the ballots cast. New Orleans Hornets guard Chris Paul finished second in the balloting with third place going to Kevin Garnett, the forward around whom this Celtics renaissance was built last offseason."

"Whatever it is that Celtics coach Doc Rivers told Garnett after Game 6 of the Atlanta series, it’s working. In the last two games, Garnett has been a huge factor precisely where the Celtics need him to be: in the low post. All of this comes after a Game 6 vs. the Hawks in which Garnett seemed far too unselfish for his own good - and more importantly, for the good of the Celtics - particularly at a time of a year when the big shots inevitably end up in the hands of the best players."

"The Hawks were in the midst of game-changing run. Roughly five minutes remained in what would become an enormously frustrating loss, and the Celtics had the ball precisely where they wanted it. So what did Garnett do? He tried to force the ball under the basket instead of taking a shot he should have taken, and it was if all of Boston saw the only hole in the best thing to happen to the Celtics since Larry Bird. Sometimes, you cannot help but think that The Big Ticket simply is not selfish enough."

"The status of Celtics Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins and Atlanta forward Marvin Williams was in question for Game 5 tonight because of their roles in a skirmish during the Hawks' 97-92 victory in Game 4 Monday that evened the first-round playoff series. An NBA official said yesterday evening there will be no fines or suspensions."

"According to league spokesman Mark Broussard, the NBA will hand out no suspensions as a result of the altercation that took place between Celtics forward Kevin Garnett and Hawks center Zaza Pachulia during Game 4. Celtics center Kendrick Perkins and Hawks forward Marvin Williams faced possible league suspensions for leaving the bench during the matter, in which Garnett and Pachulia had to be separated."

"If the Hawks and Celtics weren't under each other's skin before Monday's Game 4 at Philips Arena, they are now. Hawks reserve center Zaza Pachulia and Celtics All-Star Kevin Garnett made sure of that when they got into a scuffle with 7:24 to play before halftime."

"Now that Kevin Garnett has broken the 3-point ice, we should expect the Celtics to begin inverting their offense and posting up Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo. Right?"

"Simply put, Sanders isn’t surprised that Kevin Garnett became the first Celtic to win the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award this week. Sanders believes that no other Celtic has been worthy of the honor since Milwaukee’s Sidney Moncrief won the inaugural award after the 1982-83 season. “I’m not too amazed by that,” Sanders said. “The closest who could have come to it would have been Dennis Johnson, but I think (Garnett) is really the first who truly fits that award.”"

"Kevin Garnett is no different than many elite professionals. There may be a little diva in his soul. If you've seen the Celtics star's pre-game routine or talked to his teammates, you realize it is all about methodology, a balance between ritual and spontaneity. He may be more well-balanced than ever, perhaps anticipating that something special is possible."

"The Hawks left town having lost two games by an average of 21 points, and the funny thing is they don’t know how easy they’ve had it. It’s not like they had any right to expect that Kevin Garnett was going to start shooting jump shots - and missing them. Atlanta would have probably been overjoyed had it been told on its flight here last Saturday that Garnett would go 14-for-37 in two games and not attempt a single free throw in this first-round Eastern Conference playoff series. But what did it get them?"

"Want to put a little crimp in KG's game? Give him an award beforehand. If nothing else, we've learned how selfless Kevin Garnett is this season, how he hates the individual attention (which is why he almost always insists on having a companion at postgame interviews) and how he is focused on one thing and one thing only - his first NBA championship."

"If the Celtics’ league-leading sense of team defense is what earned Kevin Garnett his NBA Defensive Player of the Year award yesterday, then he wanted to make sure that no one was left out."

"The only major award a Celtic had not claimed was Defensive Player of the Year - until Kevin Garnett made franchise history by winning it yesterday."

"According to sources, Garnett’s wife, Brandi, gave birth to their first child - a daughter - on Friday. Not a bad segue into what Garnett admits is the most anticipated playoff appearance of his 13-season career."

"With his focus on the Hawks, Celtics forward Kevin Garnett asked the media to focus on something besides his family. Garnett returned to practice yesterday after missing the previous two because of what he and the team are calling a family matter. An NBA source said that Garnett's wife, Brandi, has given birth to the couple's first child during that time. Garnett, however, is very private and declined to talk about the matter."

"Kevin Garnett missed a second straight practice yesterday, but the Celtics are not concerned. The team continued to say it’s a personal matter, but sources indicated again that it has to do with the birth of his and wife Brandi’s first child. Word is the process was lengthy."

"Although Kevin Garnett was excused from another practice for family reasons, he was expected to sneak in a workout last night. Celtics coach Doc Rivers said Garnett missed practice Thursday and yesterday to take care of family business but declined to go into detail."

"One month after the Allen deal, two months after the ping pong balls seemed to knock the life right out of the franchise, the Celtics pulled it off. They have accomplished some amazing things in the last eight months, but none as amazing as the thing that started it all: They lured the great Kevin Garnett to Boston and turned him loose. The result was the second-worst team in the NBA becoming the best, and the 66-16 record was only part of the story. They didn’t just win, they won the right way: They played defense, they played together, and they played hard every night."

"Outside of Minnesota, and those who had already played with Kevin Garnett, few knew exactly what to make of his emotional outbursts. Sure, he looked like he was playing with passion. But the one-time MVP could also look petulant, out of control, maybe even immature in light of those torrents of bad language he could famously spout. Was he one of those posers with an eye peeled for the nearest camera? “I didn’t realize it’s as pure as it is with Kevin until I coached him,” said Rivers."

"As much as Kevin Garnett loves practice, something important had to be occurring if he missed one just three days before the playoff opener. And in this instance, it was definitely important. Coach Doc Rivers said Garnett missed yesterday's practice because of family reasons, and an NBA source said Garnett's wife, Brandi, went into labor with the couple's first child. Garnett, who wasn't available for comment, is expected to attend today's practice."

"We'll start with the award di tutti awards. I have maintained all season that Kevin Garnett should win, and I have seen nothing to change my mind. There are, really, three serious candidates: Garnett, Kobe Bryant, and Chris Paul."

"We interrupt the Celtics' potential 66-win joyride through the league to share this startling announcement: Kevin Garnett, who is the reason they are 10 points better than everybody else in the NBA, is not going to win the MVP award."

"Kevin Garnett met Red Auerbach early in his career, with Kevin McHale facilitating the introduction. “I don’t think (Auerbach) was too thrilled to be meeting an opposing player,” Garnett said last night after becoming the third recipient of the award that bears the late Celtics patriarch’s name."

"Kevin Garnett knows about feeling tired - and the memory of being haggard isn’t limited to his seasons in the NBA."

"The deadline for media voting on NBA awards is April 17, and those banking on a second MVP honor for the Celtics’ Kevin Garnett will likely be disappointed. But as Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and maybe even Paul Pierce fragment the process, Garnett should have another calling."

"Chicago's Farragut Academy is always mentioned when the Celtics' Kevin Garnett is introduced in the starting lineups. You can hear a hint of a New York accent when he speaks, which isn't surprising since his mom is from that city. The forward also spends much of the offseason in Los Angeles. more stories like this But home for Garnett is actually about a 90-minute drive from Charlotte in a small South Carolina town called Mauldin."

"Boston Celtics star Kevin Garnett never mentioned the Orlando Magic by name when he talked recently about the championship contenders in the Eastern Conference, and that was the problem. When he said there were basically three teams capable of winning the East, it got the full attention of those in the Magic's locker room."

"The mind drifts back to that day at Farragut Academy in the spring of 1995 when 18-year-old Kevin Garnett talked to Bill ''Poodle'' Willoughby on the phone and shortly thereafter decided to enter the NBA draft."

"Flashing media savvy, not to mention civic pride, Maywood native Doc Rivers said he believed Michael Jordan should have won the most valuable player every year he played. Nevertheless, the Celtics' coach wouldn't campaign for Kevin Garnett to win this year's award, merely saying it's "neat" for the league there are so many deserving candidates."

"Bennie the Bull literally took a shot at Kevin Garnett and James Posey last night. During the fourth quarter of the Celtics' 106-92 win over the Bulls at the United Center, the Chicago mascot shot T-shirts out of a T-shirt gun that hit them in the back. "

"It took only one in-person viewing of Amaré Stoudemire vs. Kevin Garnett for Shaquille O'Neal to declare Stoudemire as "the best big man in the game right now" after the Suns' 85-77 victory in Phoenix last month. Garnett talked. Stoudemire talked back. Garnett got feisty. Stoudemire got ferocious."

"Kevin Garnett thinks the Celtics learned the hard way last night about just how big of a target they have become to the rest of the NBA in a humbling, 95-90 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers at the Garden."

"The first-round ballots are in and fans participating in the Boston Herald’s online poll to determine the Greatest Celtics Player of All Time cast their votes true to form. With top seeds Bill Russell, Larry Bird, John Havlicek and Bob Cousy cruising into the Sweet 16 with easy victories, the only upset came in the Grousbeck Bracket, where fifth-seeded Kevin Garnett defeated No. 4 Ed Macauley by 566 votes."

"Taylor said that was the team's intent last season, too, despite the appearance that the Wolves lost down the stretch to protect their draft pick from the Clippers. "I don't like that so much," Taylor said Tuesday of the suggestion the Wolves tanked at the end of last season, which ended on a seven-game losing streak. "It was more like, I'd say, KG tanked it.""

"Eleven months ago, when Kevin Garnett suddenly and mysteriously ended his season five games early because of a quadriceps injury, Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor insisted the team was not fabricating the whole thing to secure a better draft position."

"Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor rapped Kevin Garnett for the club’s apparent late-season dive to keep a protected draft pick away from the Los Angeles Clippers. Asked yesterday why the Wolves have begun to win of late when the strategy seemed otherwise last season, Taylor told reporters, “I don’t like that so much. I don’t like that. It was more like, I’d say, KG tanked it.”"

"Instead of getting into a war of words with the owner of his old team, Celtics forward Kevin Garnett took the high road last night."

"Maybe Larry Bird said it best. Asked earlier in the season who the MVP of the league was, Bird quipped, “Kevin McHale.” Bird knew. He knew that McHale’s trading of Garnett to the Celtics had changed the equation."

"There are nights when Chris Wilcox looks like a promising young forward with All-Star potential, and then there are games like the one he had Wednesday in which he seems to disappear when playing against someone equally athletic and just as quick. Kevin Garnett gave Wilcox all he could handle and more in the Celtics' 111-82 victory."

"But last night they decided to toss some other interesting digits into the mix. On the way to tying their season scoring high in a 119-89 goring of the Grizzlies, Kevin Garnett passed the 20,000-point mark and Ray Allen topped 18,000."

"We may never know exactly how close the Timberwolves came to trading Kevin Garnett to the Golden State Warriors on NBA draft night last summer. If you ask the Charlotte Bobcats' Jason Richardson, one of the key players involved in the trade that never happened, the proposed deal came very close to completion. "

"You can call him KG. Or Big Ticket. Or, as many of his teammates do, simply Ticket. We learned again yesterday, however, that Kevin Garnett answers to “Kev” when he’s talking to himself. "

"We've been hearing it now for a while. Somehow, Kevin Garnett no longer is a consensus choice for Most Valuable Player because he (a) had the temerity to suffer a serious injury for the first time in his career and (b) his team had the temerity to win seven of the nine games he missed."

"From the way he fought for rebounds and kept the ball alive in the fourth quarter to two huge crunch-time jumpers, Kevin Garnett appears to be getting both his mobility and timing back."

"After trying to get Kevin Garnett onto his own team last summer, Suns star Steve Nash is more than pleased to see him in Green."