Yardbarker: Kevin Garnett

Kevin Garnett Can Still Score

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:45:01 -0500

More photos » by Brian Babineau - NBAE/Getty Images Kevin Garnett scored a season-high 26 points last night. (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) Browse more photos » Kevin Garnett doesn't want to be asked any more questions about his surgically repaired right knee, but he did manage to provide some further answers last night for any remaining pundits. Garnett posted a season-high 26 points...

Greg Dickerson Doesn't Appreciate Your Cursing Mr. Garnett

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:16:00 -0500

I admit that being a sideline reporter is not always an easy job. You have to fight to get interviews with players and coaches, and when you finally get them they usually turn out to be repetitive and mundane. Greg Dickerson did just that with Kevin Garnett last night, but his interview was anything but mundane. Garnett decided to curse right when Dickerson brought the mic to him, and then shot the Celtics' superstar one of the dirtiest looks you will ever see....

You can't exactly tell what he says, but you can clearly hear the f-word. I'm thinking that he said "get the f**k out of here", but I could be wrong. Too funny though.

Your Morning Dump... where experience matters

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:56:45 -0500

Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here... highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as satisfying a good morning dump.

"I've been waiting for a game like this when a veteran player gets a call or no-call," Wolves rookie point guard Jonny Flynn said. "It definitely happened tonight."

TwinCities.com - Ghost of Kevin Garnett haunts Timberwolves with late favorable call

That's the reaction by the Timberwolves after the controversial call that ultimately cost the Wolves a chance to tie or win the game. Take a look at it yourself:

That's one of those calls that could go either way. When you're Corey Brewer going against Kevin Garnett, that's a jump ball. If you were say, LeBron James going against anyone else... it's a foul. Deal with it NBA fans. That's how it is.

So experience matters in that situation, and it matters when everyone is playing a crappy game.

“That definitely played a role tonight,” said coach Doc Rivers. “It showed when we didn’t get too excited. We just stayed kind of even. Nobody panicked. At times I wanted them to get excited, but this was definitely a game where experience played a role.”

Herald - Celtics survive a scare

The Celtics had no business winning that game yesterday. But this isn't the last time we're going to see this kind of performance. The C's will pop it into neutral a few times this season. But they were able to turn it on when it mattered and still win. But you won't see the opposite. You won't see a game where the Celtics play well and lose. That's how good this team is. They can play poorly and win. And if they play well... forget it.

After the jump, Page 2... where Big Baby wants to play in the NFL

Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images

I haven't seen this in print anywhere, so I'm just going to transcribe what Chris Broussard said on SportsCenter this morning:

"The Boston Celtics will tell you there's a lot running through the mind of Glen "Big Baby" Davis. One of those thoughts is playing in the NFL. The 6 foot 9, 290 pound Davis, who was a terrific defensive end and tailback... that's right tailback... in high school recently told me that he plans to eventually try out for an NFL team. Davis said he would probably make the move several years from now after he reaches his goals of becoming an All Star in the NBA."

Ummmm.... yeah. Good luck with all of that, Baby. I don't even know where to start with that.

I'm a little late in posting this, but the October 8th Seed show was done live a few weeks ago. Here's the audio to our big NBA preview.

The rest of the links:

Herald: Garnett passes on the past | TWolves Brewer working on his shot | Lieberman to become 1st female DLeague coach | Globe: C's able to keep TWolves away from the door | Jefferson proves difficult assignment | WEEI: Danny Ainge on the Big Show | Camerato: The Three Pointer - Celtics send another message | Celtics Blog: New Celtics embrace Ubuntu early on

Garnett, Celtics down Wolves, remain unbeaten

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:45:48 -0500

Kevin Garnett had 12 points and 11 rebounds in his third game back in Minnesota since he was traded in 2007, helping the Boston Celtics remain undefeated with a 92-90 victory over the Timberwolves on Wednesday night.

This Guy Nearly Beat the Celtics

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:38:18 -0500

Meet Oleksiy Percherov, power forward for the Timberwolves. This guy nearly single-handedly beat the Celtics tonight. More on him, later.

Let's get to the play of the game: Celtics up 92-90, Minnesota ball with 6 seconds left. Corey Brewer drives to the hoop and gets swallowed up by Kevin Garnett. Refs call a jump ball. KG is unable to win the tip clean (Brewer is 6-9) allowing the Wolves another possession. But Perk blocks Al Jefferson's prayer at the buzzer.

This one was ugly game...

More to come...

Box Score | Recap

Pictures from the game...after the jump.

Kevin McHale Confirms Kevin Garnett Trade Was Financially Motivated

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 23:24:01 -0500

One of the biggest trades in the NBA occurred a few offseasons ago and it helped bring the Celtics their first championship in 22 years. In the trade, Kevin Garnett was dealt from the Timberwolves to the Celtics after Boston had already acquired Ray Allen, completing one of the biggest offseasons for a team [...]

Stein/Mannix: We $%&!@# Told You So

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:00:00 -0500

ESPN's Marc Stein and SI's Chris Mannix have released their updated NBA power rankings. Guess which team sits atop both polls?

Here's what Mannix has to say about the Celtics:

Rasheed Wallace is a pretty good fit in Beantown, isn't he? Wallace, who is averaging 10.0 points and 4.0 rebounds, has ensured that the Celtics don't miss a beat when Kevin Garnett is out of the lineup. He may be needed to fill Garnett's shoes more often, too: Said one Bulls player, "KG's knee just doesn't look healthy."
Maybe that Bulls player should have been playing defense instead of watching KG's knee.

Here's what Stein has to say about the Celtics:

If the Rondo contract extension saga has been a distraction, imagine what kind of D we'll see from the C's when they're focused. They held the Hornets to 87 on Sunday and at times you were asking: "What's wrong?"

The Magic are ranked #2 in both polls.

That's Called Poise...

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:40:15 -0500

After squandering a 12-point second half lead, the Celtics lead 82-80 with 6 minutes left in the game. Lead by Chris Paul and Peja Stojakovic, the Hornets had all the momentum. Following a Celtics timeout the Cs went on a 15-6 run. Here's the breakdown:

Kevin Garnett makes 9-foot two point shot
Kevin Garnett makes 6-foot two point shot
Ray Allen makes jumper (Rajon Rondo assists)
Paul Pierce makes 7-foot two point shot
Rajon Rondo makes two point shot (Kevin Garnett assists)
Paul Pierce makes 24-foot three point jumper (Kevin Garnett assists)
Kendrick Perkins makes 7-foot jumper (Kevin Garnett assists)

Prior to that timeout, the Celtics were getting scorched on defense and playing sloppy on offense. I'm not sure what Doc said, or what the players said to one another, but they clearly flipped a switch, played clean basketball and finished off the Hornets.

Chris Paul does not like Rajon Rondo and vice versa. They were slapped with double technical fouls in the 2nd quarter for getting too touchy under the basket. And then Paul had some words for Rajon after the game.

Here's the head-to-head matchup:

Paul: 22 pts, 9-13 FG, 8 assists, 3 reb, 2 TO
Rondo: 6 pts, 3-7 FG, 10 assists, 3 reb, 4 TO

Paul gets the nod tonight, thanks to a big 3rd quarter. It wasn't Rondo's best effort, but it's tough to complain when the guy gets double digit assists.

Kevin Garnett Is Back (And Still Douchey)

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:46:39 -0500

There can be no doubt. Kevin Garnett is a lock for the Basketball Hall of Fame. But he’s also a lock for another hall– the one for the douchiest players to ever play NBA basketball. In Friday night’s game against the Bulls, Garnett showed off a lot of his different douche tools. He ran his mouth [...]

KG guest-voicing Family Guy

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:12:43 -0500

Thanks to Skeets for finding this

Celtics star Kevin Garnett will serve as a guest voice on the FOX sitcom Family Guy late next month. In the sweeps-month episode, Garnett "guest-voices when Peter and the guys interview potential friends to fill the vacancy left by Cleveland. However, things don't look so good for Garnett when it's discovered that Quagmire hates him."

Giggidy.

Hey... remember to tune into the Two Man Game tonight at 9. We're taking predictions. Maybe I'll get generous and offer up a prize to the person who gets the right prediction. Visit our show page to join in. Or you can just call 718-508-9841.

How One Trainer Got KG Back In Shape

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 10:43:04 -0500

Slam Online has a great read about Joe Abunassar and how he got Kevin Garnett in shape after the knee surgery:

According to Abunassar, his body had shown the effects of the time spent away from the court since the Boston Celtics shut him down in March. His spindly frame had put on some weight. His legs – known for its explosiveness and speed – were not firing properly. His right calf suffered significant atrophy. For a player whose game relied on unrelenting speed, Garnett had to approach the last two months of his summer slowly retracing his steps...

They knew how to rebuild Garnett’s legs. They spent considerable time on his legs, guiding him through a series of repetitive exercises with dumbells mini-bands and physio balls. He did calf raises, deadlifts with dumbbells, an assortment of crunches with a medicine ball. They attacked his core from all angles, knowing the stronger Garnett’s core was, the less weight there would be on his legs. “We were probably way more detailed in our approach to preparing him this year than we have ever been,” says Abunassar.

Nearly every day Rudy Gay and Memphis Grizzlies teammate Kyle Lowry sluggishly entered the Impact gym at 11 a.m., they saw Garnett sitting in the weight room, catching his breath and staring around the gym. “You don’t even see him work out,” says Gay during a practice session at Impact earlier in September. “But then you talk to Joe and he says, ‘yeah, I’ve been here since 7 a.m., working out KG’… that gives you something to learn from.”

Kevin Garnett Looks Damn Good

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 22:29:11 -0500

I hate to make assumptions after the first preseason game, but Kevin Garnett appears to be healthy and well, he looks like the old KG. The intensity and energy only KG can bring to a game was back. He finished with 6 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals in 13 minutes. And most importantly, I didn't see him limp or favor the leg in any way.

Rasheed Wallace (6 points, 3 blocks and 1 technical foul) performed exactly how I expected him to. He hit a three pointer, blocked some shots, talked a lot of smack and collected his first technical foul in a Celtics uniform.

Marquis Daniels (7 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds) looked comfortable with the ball in his hands. He didn't have the outside shot tonight (his only 3-point attempt was an airball), but he was effective going to the hoop.

Perk looks noticeably thinner. He finished with 3 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks and 5 fouls in 14 minutes. I was initially skeptical about the skinnier Perk, but the added quickness could prove beneficial. I am concerned about his ability to bang with the likes of Shaq and Dwight Howard.

Oh yeah, the Celtics lost 96-90. They missed 20 free throws (35-55). Mike Sweetney lead the team in scoring with 10 points. He was the only Celtic in double figures.

More to come....

Box Score | Recap

KG sets the record straight about his knee

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 09:00:47 -0500

I don't know how you can get any clearer.

"I don't have any knee problems. I don't have any knee problems. I'm not trying to get in depth with my injury and all that but the things are bothering me are secondary and not even primary. So I'm excited about that because it's nothing be strengthening the knee and playing again. You gotta remember, I have been out since what, March? I haven't done anything since then. I have just been rehabbing, strengthing. Nothing simulates basketball play. The pounding, the churning, the reactions, the stuff you have to react to in games you can't get that in trying to that with the rehab and the trainers and all that other stuff.

"I feel really good, I wouldn't (BS) you guys if I was hurting I would tell you. I'm pretty straight up with everything that's going on with me. I feel good. I'm excited about how we are and I'm just trying to get my part together to make sure I'm ready for when we need to be like we need to be."

He says a lot in that interview. And from what little basketball was actually shown in that Real Training Camp broadcast... I DID see KG out there and moving around pretty well during the scrimmage. That was encouraging.

There's talk about pain being in KG's shin... which might explain that funky wrap in that picture and where the trainer is pushing in the middle of his leg. Could just be a product of him being out for so long and trying to come back.

One thing that isn't gone: KG's attitude. Here's the last Q & A from the piece:

HOW DID IT FEEL TO MAKE THAT WRAP AROUND PASS TO RONDO DURING THE SCRIMMAGE?

"I'm a little injured or coming off injury, I'm not dead. I'm not brain dead. I can still make plays. I can still play defense and still know how to play. So I'm still me now, you know what I mean? I ain't in my grave yet dog. They ain't shot Old Yeller yet dog. They ain't took him in the back yet. I can still make a couple of plays here and there. I know you haven't seen me in a while but I ain't go that much dust on me."

KG: "I Didn't Know It Was That Bad"

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:28:27 -0500

Kevin Garnett is sharing details about his injured knee with the media.

"I think everything was pretty much straightforward with the procedures," said Garnett. "They took me through what was going to occur, post and prior to, and everything's been just like that. Everything's been right on schedule."

"No surprises, other than the severity of the injury," said Garnett. "I didn't know it was that bad."

"It was just what we thought it was, but it was more than that," said Garnett. "Put it like this, a bone spur the size of this tape recorder ended up being the size of this microphone...It's pretty severe, but the best thing about it is I got it out of the way. I'm almost 100 percent going forward. The best thing about it is I'm playing without any pain, which is something I haven't had in quite some time."

I guess this explains the mystery surrounding Garnett's knee. No one, not KG, Doc, Danny, or the Celtics doctors, knew the extent of this injury. Once they got inside, the bone spur turned out to be a bit bigger than expected. The good news is that KG was cleared to play 5-on-5 basketball last week.

Player Profiles: Kevin Garnett #5

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 06:19:00 -0500

And now, the starting Power Forward for your Boston Celtics...KEVIN GARNETT !!! by FreshInThe HouseKevin Garnett's first year in Boston was filled with a mixture of emotions. It started with the shock of his arrival. This was soon followed with the trepidation that came with the huge expectations that were mounted on a team that hadn't played one game together. And at the end the season, moments after Boston won their first championship in over twenty years, KG encapsulated the feeli...