DITC: Kevin Garnett 2004
Three years ago, Kevin Garnett was the best player in the world. That’s a compliment.
by Russ Bengtson
There’s been a lot of talk about Kevin Garnett lately. That’s what happens when you’re the biggest name to change teams in the off-season, I suppose. When your shoulders are the ones that the mantle of the L’s most storied franchise (one that hasn’t won a championship since 1986 by the way) now rests upon. KG can take the weight.
He’s done it before. And while his failures are well-documented, his successes are downplayed. People try and be complimentary while calling him complementary. Say what?
Right, he hasn’t won a championship. Correct. Neither have Tracy McGrady, Allen Iverson, Jason Kidd, Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, Shawn Marion, Baron Davis, Jermaine O’Neal, Vince Carter, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen or Gilbert Arenas. Yet somehow with KG this becomes something of a personal failing. Blame him, not the coach who always failed in the clutch, not the string of teammates who abandoned him in search of greener contracts, not the GM that coughed up first-round picks like Ted Stepien for trying to cheat in order to re-sign Joe freaking Smith.
In January of 2004, however, the criticism was all yet to come. The Wolves had made seven straight playoff appearances (all of which ended in the first round, but still) and were nearing the midway point of what would be their most successful season. With veterans Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell providing a steadying influence and a solid two-three punch, Garnett would lead the Wolves to the Western Conference Finals and win his first NBA MVP award. Most of what was said on that cold day never made it into the magazine. Three and a half years later, here’s a few selections. No splicing.
SLAM: What’s your take on your new teammates so far? Spree, Sammy…
KG: Shit is—I don’t wanna cuss in this article, my mom got on me. My mom was ON me about cussin’. But since the Steph days, I haven’t had this much fun in a while, man. It’s good to have that inner love and that off-court love, not only for the game but for your teammates. It’s been a blast, man, I’m not even gonna front. It’s totally flip-flopped from these past two, three years. This year’s been totally beautiful for me, man. I’m havin’ a lot of fun.
SLAM: And those guys remind me of you a little, especially Spree, with the emotion.
KG: Spree’s like adrenaline within itself, man—I’ve never seen somebody more intense than I am except him. Man, I tell you man—night in and night out it’s a joy to be on the Minnesota Timberwolves because we have three people that can lead us in the same direction. We’re all on the same page, it’s not any ego involved, it’s not even any kind of hate or nothing like that. We get along so well—it’s beautiful, man, it’s beautiful.SLAM: You still—nine years in—you happy where you at right now?
KG: Mmm-hmm. You know, part of progress, man, part of maturity is assessing yourself. And I assess myself from a reality standpoint, man. I’m not one of these people who fantasize, or tell myself that somethin’ is one way when I know it’s not. I’m a true perspective, and I look at life like that. So whenever I’m preparing for something like an upcoming season, I assess myself, it’s a true assessment, man. I go at it, go at it hard, try and bring something new to the table every year. Try to work on things that I know I’m not good at every year. I hope and pray that—I keep a focus to try and get better.
SLAM: What else do you have that you can bring to the table?
KG: My biggest thing is always help a teammate be better. He has to be a player that wants to be better and wants to be good too, but if I can make teammates better, man, that’s always been my biggest asset—how I can make everybody around me better than what they are.
But for the most part, being consistent—consistency is such a hard thing in this League—getting stronger, understanding the game, being more of a student these days. Footwork has always been a big thing in my book, I’ve always tried to work on my footwork—that’s the only you can get half the post moves off is by repetition and footwork. The things I feel like I don’t do well, I continue to work on.
SLAM: What do you feel is the biggest change you’ve seen in the League since you’ve been in it?
KG: The biggest change in the League? When I first came into the League, man, the refs were really hard on rookies. You damn near had to get murdered or axed to get a call, and it’s changed a little bit. If you’re a high-profile rookie [pause] and they know that, and you make a decent move, and if somebody makes a tough foul, they call that. Little things like that. But for the most part, I think the League is so diversified now—there’s so many overseas cats in the League, there’s a lot of young cats in the League. It’s so diversified from China to New York to Minnesota to Spain. But the skill level is goin’ up, young guys comin’ from high school are just makin’ it—sort of snappin’ the bar in half, not just expectations, but in skill level. LeBron’s skill level is just incredible, Carmelo’s skill level is incredible, how they understand X’s and O’s so quick. But I think it’s transcendin’ into something beautiful. If it wasn’t. Because I think the biggest worry is that young people don’t care. You have situations like that, but for the most part over all we as young people do give a crap, and this is our League for the taking, and we’re the ones that are gonna make it or break it. And I feel like right now it’s diversified in a good way, the skill level is up, and I think that’s what a lot of people want to see.SLAM: Have you gotten more comfortable in the role—not only the role of the team leader, but as an NBA superstar? People recognizing you, people keying on you. You’re the name on the board.
KG: That’s fine, I don’t mind being the name on the board. When you’re speaking on the court man, all the things that I have achieved, I’ve worked for them. Nothing’s been given to me, and I take that and go with it. I work my butt off in the gyms, night in night out to get where I’m at. Skill level, understanding the game, student. All that, I’m happy about.
Superstar, that’s just a name to me. You get a guy who’s hungry, and you give him a gym and a ball, and he stays in that gym and he works and he has a vision for himself, then he can be it, you know? A lot of people get caught up in the glitz and glamour a little bit too much sometimes, and it ain’t about that. Superstar is kind of one of the words that I hate—because it’s like one of those words that has a lot of glitter on it. I’m not really into glitter. [Laughs] But my point in saying all that is—I am a leader though. You wanna put some glitter on that, that’s what it is. I’m a leader, I like to be the example, I like to set the tone. And that’s pretty much it, man—off the court people recognize you and respect you and give you dap, show you love for your art, man, that’s probably the biggest appreciation. You go into a city and they boo you, and over the boos you can hear claps. Or they start to boo you at the beginning of the game, and after the game they’re clapping, that’s appreciation for the game and it’s players, and that’s what it’s all about.
49 Responses to “DITC: Kevin Garnett 2004”
Oct.9 at 1:02 pm
Myles Brown says:
I’d like to think that the lofty expectations placed upon KG as opposed to the other players you mentioned is somewhat of a compliment. Because I’d take KG over all the other guys on that list. His versatility is absolutely unparalleled (including LeBron…) and he’s still got at least three good years left in him. People are hard on KG cause its so hard to fathom a player of that caliber being so, well, unsuccessful. I really want to see him in the Finals this year and I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes home another Podoloff. You know the voters are suckers for stories like that, a la Barkley in 93.
Oct.9 at 1:03 pm
Myles Brown says:
And what happened to your Kobe ‘experiment’?
Oct.9 at 1:08 pm
white hot eboy says:
Myles, I’m with you on the “KG over everybody on the list” comment. Except for Lebron.
Oct.9 at 1:14 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
I just think there’s just SO MUCH that has to go right for a team to win a championship, and it’s wrong to brand a single player with the “complementary” tag just because he hasn’t won one. Was Charles Barkley (since he was mentioned)a complementary player?
Oct.9 at 1:15 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
I’ll get to Kobe later this week.
Oct.9 at 1:21 pm
Myles Brown says:
Id NEVER call Da Kid a complementary player. For him to be complementary, he’d have to be playing alongside an even greater player, which aside from about two people, really isnt possible. This really goes back to Jordan and the manner in which he won his titles. People widely credit him with single handedly bringing those chips home because he made all of the big baskets. But his “complementary” player in SP did absolutely EVERYTHING else including runn the offense AND the defense and inhaling rebounds to start the break. But again, since its actually unquestioned that Michael made Scottie, all of SP’s exploits are still accredited to Money. KG does EVERYTHING like Pippen, but doesnt take the big shots like Michael, so he’s “complementary”. It’s f*cking stupid.
Oct.9 at 1:25 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Michael Jordan ruined things for a hell of a lot of players.
Oct.9 at 1:30 pm
Myles Brown says:
The bar that man set will NEVER be surpassed.
Oct.9 at 1:36 pm
jbn74sb says:
My take that KG is (or at least would be bette off as) a complementary player has nothing to do with his lack of a ring. It is well established that even the best player in the world needs a good team to win it all.
My opinion is based more on the fact that KG’s strenghts are his rebounding, defense, intensity, leadership, and desire. To me, the one characteristic that he is lacking is the abilility to consistently take over a game via scoring. I believe that KG has less than 10 40 point games in his career, which is pretty shocking when one considers how long ha been THE man on his team. Which in no way suggests that scoring is all there is to hoops - not by any means. The bottom line is that KG’s games is not suited to getting the ball when the game is on the line and delivering a victory. Thus, to me, he is great great great complementary player. In contrast, someone like JO (named above) is merely a good complementary player.
Oct.9 at 1:41 pm
Myles Brown says:
I just don’t see how the unquestioned leader of a team is complementary cause he doesnt take the big shot. Especially when he does everything else. So were Russell, Chamberlain, Shaq, Reed, Unseld, Dream, Robinson & Duncan complementary?
Oct.9 at 1:46 pm
Gilbert0 says:
There are 30 teams in the league. One superstar (loose definition) per team and a good career is about a decade. Throw in a dominant team like the Spurs/Lakers/Bulls over the last 15 years and the chances of one of these stars winning a title are pretty freakin slim. I love what KG brings to the court every game, and I hope he gets a ring, but if not, he can still look back on a stellar, hall of fame career.
Oct.9 at 1:51 pm
Cheryl says:
There is no player playing today that has more passion for the game than KG. I know folks will mention 24, but his passion is for superstardom and legacy. KG strikes me as truly loving the game in its entirety, if I’m making sense.
Oct.9 at 2:01 pm
Tarzan Cooper says:
kg is pretty good
Oct.9 at 2:03 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
KG and Kobe are both players who would go out and play the same way whether they were making $100 million or $100. There’s a drive that burns in both of them to be the best, and getting paid huge money is only an measure of that drive, not the reason for it. Kevin Garnett is an absolute leader and main force, and if a team he’s on ever wins a championship HE will be the main reason for it, even if he’s not the one to hit the biggest shots. His effort and will sets the tone every single night.
Oct.9 at 2:07 pm
Myles Brown says:
“Wolves newcomer Greg Buckner has worn No. 21 previously. But when the Wolves asked him if he’d like to wear No. 21 for them, he quickly turned the offer down and opted for No. 7. Celtics newcomer forward Kevin Garnett, a 10-time NBA All-Star, wore No. 21 in Minnesota. Buckner thought it would be insulting to wear Garnett’s old number in Minnesota” THEY ACTUALLY OFFERED HIM # 21?! SMFH.
Oct.9 at 2:12 pm
jbn74sb says:
Russ - I do not disagree with anything in your 2:03 comment. And I recognize that it is more difficult for a front court player to take the big shots, as they are largely dependent on others to pass them the ball.
Myles - Looking at your list, Russell to me was a complementary player. The other guys could consistently drop 40 if needed, although I am not a huge Robinson fan.
A more interesting argument would be to look at players like Kidd and Magic, neither of whom I do not think could be counted on to consistently carry the scoring load. However, both could be counted on to deliver in crunch time, especially via the pass, and I would not call either a complementary player. I guess it is much easier to have a huge impact at the offensive end when you start with the ball in your hand, particulary during crunch time.
A look at KG’s career achievements on Wikipedia definitely reveals him to be one of the best players ever, and I do not mean it as criticism to call him complementary. If anything, KG would be easier to build a team around than someone like Kobe.
Oct.9 at 2:17 pm
Captain America says:
KG is a great baller, but please, just because he is a Celtic doesn’t mean we need daily reminders. There are other great players in the L. The problem with KG is that he is very private person by nature. Outside of the shoe ads and posing for team commercials, you won’t find KG mixing it up with the fans. He’s the first one to jump on the team bus rather than be there for his adoring fans. This was apparent last year at a community team scrimmage where all the other players took their 15 minutes to sign autographs. Where was Kevin during the 15 minutes? On the team bus. He goes to great pains to travel in trench coat and hat surrounded by an entourage. Torii Hunter is one of his best buddies. The only swish from KG is when the air swirls when he ducked into his box. As with other greats (Bryant, etc.), it is hard to built a sustainable franchise when half your cap goes to one player. The C’s will realize this when the “3″ are on the decline but still guzzling $$$.
Oct.9 at 2:20 pm
Myles Brown says:
How was Russell a complementary player? Without him that whole team falls apart. Between him and KG there a re two perfect examples of a player capable of leading a team without the ball in their hands. Scoring is obviously an integral part of the game, but there wont even be an opportunity for a game winner if no one else is there to grab rebounds, play defense, and create opportunities for teammates. And Im surpised that youd consider Russ complementary but not Shaq under the same criteria. How many game winners does that guy have? Can you even give him the ball in the fourth quarter?
Oct.9 at 2:20 pm
Mo Daddy says:
quite honestly, i think KG is the greatest forward in the game today. yes, over Duncan. Duncans got 4 championships thanks to his immense talent but also one of the best front offices in all of sports, who consistently surround him with players who understand the whole point of being in the NBA is to win and money is a byproduct of that, not hte other way around. u replace duncan with KG in SA and how many rings u think theyd have?
Oct.9 at 2:26 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Bill Russell was a complementary player in the same sense that Chris Mihm is a top 10 center.
Oct.9 at 2:27 pm
jbn74sb says:
Myles - You never really could give Shaq the ball during crunch time because of his FT shooting. However, when properly motivated, he’d drop 40 and 20 on you and make crunchtime irrelevant. Russel to me was a better version of Ben Wallace, who was/is most definitely a complementary guy. And the fact that removing a Russell/ Pippen/ Wallace/ from a particular team would make the team fall apart is not dispositive for me.
Oct.9 at 2:28 pm
jbn74sb says:
Low blow, Russ. I’ve already retracted that statement.
Oct.9 at 2:34 pm
Myles Brown says:
There were more than a few times when Shaq put up 30-40+ and the game was still tight at the end. All of the free throws he missed in quarters 1-3 add up too. Russell was Ben Wallace? Seriously? The man was capable of scoring, he just didnt make it a priority. But of course that’s one of the luxuries of playing with 92 Hall of Famers. Anyway, if removing a particular player from their respective team causes the team to fall apart, then that player is more than complementary. Would you consider the engine a complementary component of your automobile?
Oct.9 at 2:47 pm
jbn74sb says:
Myles - So was Pippen better suited to be a complementary player, or the lead guy?
BTW - Nice question on the engine to car relationship. The engine of course is an/ the integral part of a car. However, it does not work without gas or some form of fuel. So is KG the engine, or the gas? He does so much that he probably the engine, but needs guys like Spree and Cassell (or Pierce and Ray Ray) to be the gas. Kobe, on the othr hand, is the whole damn car, except for maybe the battery, lug nuts, seat belts, and power windows. Maybe Odom can be the tires. And here is to hoping that damn car doesn’t break down this year.
Oct.9 at 2:53 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Kevin Garnett had his best statistical season the same year that Spree and Cassell were there, the same year they went 58-24. He averaged 24.2 points, 13.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists and was the runaway MVP (receiving 1219 points out of a possible 1230). Complementary? F*ck outta here.
Oct.9 at 2:57 pm
jbn74sb says:
And a trip home in May courtesy of the Lakers.
Oct.9 at 3:00 pm
Myles Brown says:
Ah, gas. Forgot about that. Nice. And as far as Pip goes, The Bulls lost ONE less game in 94 after Money abruptly left town. Pippen was more than capable of leading a team on his own and if it werent for Hue Hollins & Portland’s collapse in 2000, He’d have two more trips to the Finals than Mike. People, myself included, get too caught up in ranking things. Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan came as close to a shared responsibility as anyone in NBA history. Shaq & Kobe too. It’s not like either of them rings with #1 or #2 inscriptions
Oct.9 at 3:04 pm
jbn74sb says:
In no way I am suggesting that complementary = replaceable.
To have a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich, you need three things. The bread is the role player, as you could always go with an english muffin, etc.
The jelly, however, is complementary to the peanut butter. By no means could you replace it(and this is no knock on honey), but the peanut butter makes the sandwich. And get the f-ck outta here with almond butter or any of that nonsense
Oct.9 at 3:07 pm
Myles Brown says:
I do like PB & Honey.
Oct.9 at 3:27 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
The thing is, in Minnesota, most of those years KG was being counted on to be not only the peanut butter and the jelly, but also the bread, the knife, the plate and the kitchen counter.
Oct.9 at 4:15 pm
Captain America says:
One ball, 3 stars = go figure
Oct.9 at 4:22 pm
Bryan says:
wow I joined this one late…I don’t even need to read I think Russ said everything I would have said.Bodie you are quite a character.
Oct.9 at 4:32 pm
Tarzan Cooper says:
But when the Wolves asked him if he’d like to wear No. 21 for them, he quickly turned the offer down and opted for No. 7.—–bodie:-KG would be easier to build a team around than someone like Kobe.
Oct.9 at 4:34 pm
Tarzan Cooper says:
Bulls lost ONE less game in 94 after Money abruptly left town. Pippen was more than capable of leading a team on his own and if it werent for Hue Hollins & Portland’s collapse in 2000, He’d have two more trips to the Finals than Mike–thanks max
Oct.9 at 4:45 pm
white hot eboy says:
Kobe is a kit car Lambo. Michael was a genuine, out of the factory Lamborghini Murcielogo. Michael perfected the basketball automobile. Kobe just drives the completed model.
Oct.9 at 4:59 pm
Allenp says:
Nice analogy WHE. KG is amazing. He is complementary only in the sense that playing with him makes players better. I would say he’s complementary in the same way Kidd and Magic fit that bill. He is still that star, you can still build a team around him. How many 40+ point games has Tim Duncan had?
Oct.9 at 5:01 pm
Allenp says:
People forget that Tim Duncan got labeled as a choker and soft for years when the Lakers were killing. And Duncan always had better talent than KG except the year KG made the WCF, which he probably would have won if CAssell wasn’t hobbled by a bad hip, which ultimately led to him struggling the next year.
Oct.9 at 5:04 pm
Hoop Dreamz says:
I like peanut butter and banana a lot. And why are so many people saying KG doesn’t take or make big shots? I’ve seen him hit some game-winners. The only Non-KG Wolves game-winner I can think of was the crazy one Malik Sealy hit (RIP). If Kev wasn’t takin’ em in ‘Sota, who was?
Oct.9 at 5:05 pm
Allenp says:
Check out this link when it goes through.
http://www.hoopsstats.com/basketball/fantasy/nba/san-antonio-spurs/players/tim-duncan/comparison/07/26/373/243
Oct.9 at 5:06 pm
Allenp says:
Good point Hoop Dreamz. Bodie brought this up in another post, and I directed him to KG’s performance against the Kings to get to the WCF
Oct.9 at 5:11 pm
Hoop Dreamz says:
anyway I’ll holla, I’m going to play ball again… gotta get my game up so I can talk crap to eboy and bodie. PEACE
Oct.9 at 7:17 pm
white hot eboy says:
You better do ALOT of work then Hoop.
Oct.9 at 8:01 pm
Chris Forsberg says:
If Garnett played with the supporting cast Jordan had he would have been just as successful… Remember when Jordan took off to play baseball, the Bulls made the playoffs without him! Take the T-Wolves teams Garnett has been on, you think there is any chance they would have been anywhere other then last in the league without KG? I doubt it
Oct.10 at 9:10 am
Tariq says:
I think the disagreement between Bodie and pretty much everybody else stems from the ambiguity in the definition of the word “complementary”, if Bodie is saying that KG fits in with any team in th league. KG is “unselfish”. KG differs from Kobe or Iverson in that he is not the kind of player who would say “Give me the ball and get the f*ck outta the way”, then I agree with him. If, however, BBodie is saying that KG is merely an extremely luxurious second option, and not a potential first option on a championship team, then Bodie is trippin. KG can be the cornerstone of a dynasty, just like Shaq (in his prime), Kobe, Iverson, Duncan, Lor LeBron.
Oct.10 at 9:11 am
Tariq says:
Lor?
Oct.15 at 11:12 pm
mcnugget says:
Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett= Championship. Triplethreat core of a very special team for the next 4 years. Believe that.
Oct.15 at 11:21 pm
mcnugget says:
Honestly if you dont think the celtics team is gonna dominate you are either lying to yourself or know NOTHING about basketball. I hate Boston but they would be an elite team out west up there among phx and utah and them, theyre gonna be a POWER in the east. You severely underrate their depth and their defense. Not to mention Rondo and Perkins that are legit 1 and 5’s and are much better than you make them out to be and a perfect fit in their lineup around the core 3 superstars. They got the defensive coach as their assistant that guy thibodeau that organized the old knicks defense and more recently the rockets defense of the past 3 seasons. Not only that but on their depth the great teams in this league are 8-10 men deep in their rotation, the Celtics HAVE that. They have proven veteran roleplayers like James Posey, Eddie House, Scalabrine, Dante Jones and Pollard, and also have very good young guys like Tony Allen, Leon Powe, Rondo and Kendrick Perkins. You say injuries but look at any team even the spurs would be killed by an injured star player when it comes to title hopes. The suns have been a 7 man rotation for 3 years and theyve been a powerhouse. The heat in the first year with shaq had MUCH WORSE DEPTH and had the equivalent to eddie house as their STARTING pointguard in Damon Jones, they had holes in 3/5th’s of their lineup and no good bench guys(unless you consider michael doleac and rasual butler good bench guys) and they won 59 games and were 1 win from the finals (and a wade injury away from winning the title in my opinon). The celtics are SET for a rotation which seemed impossible after the late garnett trade, but its the truth, they are loaded with one of the best starting 5s in the nba (and best trio)and do have depth for a very good rotation overall. KG opens up everything, they got his role to dominate inside, and he needs to be doubled down in the post because he is unstoppable when they dont double, and when they do he can get it to Ray or Pierce or Rondo/House for an open shot or a slash to the rim or to perk for an open dunk…. KG opens up everything from the inside and him and the other kid lock down the paint when theyre on defense. Its PAUL PIERCE AND RAY ALLEN too. Think about that. The depth around them is very good for a 9 man rotation too. Their overall team on paper is better than our team was in 04 that won the division and got the topseed in the west on the way to the west conference finals, and their trio with garnett is much better. They should CRUSH teams. Their GM did a very good job of filling out the roster with proven veteran roleplayers and some good young talent around the core 3 A+ all-nba guys in limited time for a great run with a possible title if things go right. But more importantly he made all the right moves and didnt make any panic/stupid moves which set himself up perfect to fill out the roster in his first full summer next offseason to LOAD UP for a SERIOIUS title run. I hate boston, but I am happy for Ray Allen and especially KG and even Pierce. And this celtic team is the nearly sole reason that I have purchased league pass for the first time EVER in 35 years of diehard NBA fandom. Theyre gonna be a POWERHOUSE this year and a special team for the next 4 years and may win the whole thing not just the east.
Oct.15 at 11:21 pm
mcnugget says:
you meaning: people, critics
Jan.19 at 11:29 pm
luke says:
how many game winning shots does kevin garnett have?