Last summer when small forward LeBron James left the Miami Heat to re-join the Cleveland Cavaliers, it was dubbed as “the homecoming”. And we’re now witnessing another homecoming with power forward Kevin Garnett returning to the Minnesota TImberwolves last week. For 12 years Garnett was the face of Timberwolves basketball. Garnett was the fifth overall pick of the 1995 NBA Draft by the Timberwolves out of Farragut Academy in Chicago. At first Garnett was looked at by a ton of raised eyebrows from people who were wondering how a kid could make the jump from high school to the NBA. Upon joining the Timberwolves, Garnett had the weight of the entire State of Minnesota on his shoulders as he was joining an organization that had never made the postseason or even had a winning record.
Kevin Garnett
As a rookie, Garnett would average 10.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per contest while the Timberwolves went 26-56 that season. The following season would see the Timberwolves make the NBA Playoffs for the first time in franchise history. Garnett would average 17.0 points and 8.0 rebounds that year and he earned his first of 14 nods to play in the NBA All-Star Game.
With Garnett, the Timberwolves would become a perennial playoff team, but without a good supporting cast around their All-Star, Minnesota would be eliminated in the first round of the postseason in seven consecutive years. The Timberwolves would finally give Garnett the help that he needed during the 2003-2004 NBA season as the likes of guards Sam Cassell and Latrell Spreewell joined him in Minneapolis. The results were extremely positive for the Timberwolves as they were finally able to get out of the first round of the playoffs by making a run all the way to the Western Conference Finals for the first and only time in franchise history. Garnett would average 24.2 points, 13.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 2.2 blocks per game in being named the NBA’s MVP.
But not winning a NBA Championship was growing on Garnett who was traded to the Boston Celtics in 2007. In Boston, Garnett would team with small forward Paul Pierce and shooting guard Ray Allen to form a new “Big Three” and in 2008 they helped the Celtics win their first NBA Championship in 22 years. After a successful run with the Celtics, Garnett was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in 2013 when the rebuilding began in Boston. Last spring, Garnett was able to help the Nets advance to the second round of the NBA Playoffs for the first time since 2007, but with a sub-.500 record this time around, Brooklyn was looking to dump salary which made the future Hall of Famer expendable. And with Flip Saunders once again seated as the head coach of the Timberwolves, Garnett waived his no-trade clause and came home.
Rightfully so Garnett was greeted with a hero’s welcome upon his return to Minnesota as he is the franchise’s leader in every major statistical category. With a record of 13-46, the Timberwolves are not in the running to make the postseason this year, but Garnett’s return is about changing the culture there in the locker room. The Timberwolves have not been a playoff team since 2004 and they are in the midst of their tenth consecutive losing season. The Timberwolves have one of the younger teams in the NBA and these guys need someone like Garnett to show them what it takes to win in the NBA. Since Garnett returned to Minnesota, the Timberwolves are 2-3 and they have been in every ballgame which is a credit to his toughness and grit. And for a team that at one point this season had a stretch where they were 3-28, that speaks volumes. Garnett’s return to Minneapolis is like that of John Wayne as he commands respect without even saying a word. Saunders no longer has to worry about reprimanding his young team because he has a veteran in Garnett that will keep them in check. The days of Garnett being a 20-point, 10-rebound guy in the NBA are a thing of the past, but he can now work with small forward Andrew Wiggins and point guard Ricky Rubio to get them to take their games to another level in order for the Timberwolves to end their long playoff drought.
Upon re-joining the Timberwolves reports began to surface that Garnett was interested in purchasing the Timberwolves when his playing days are over and if it were true it would make sense on every front. Whether it be the Timberwolves, Celtics, or Nets, Garnett has always been lauded as a good teammate, leader, and one of the true good guys in the NBA. During his first run with the Timberwolves, Garnett was always loyal to the organization as he stayed there and tried his hardest to win a championship. Garnett let us know that anything was possible when he went to the Celtics and now his career is truly coming full circle as he’ll more than likely retire with the TImberwolves.
Leave A Comment