
Kevin Garnett, a legendary power forward in the NBA league, has been selected as an NBA All-Star 15 times in his career and was the banner player who led the Boston Celtics to their 17th championship from 2007-2008.
Garnett, 45, will add another chapter to his NBA glory by becoming the 24th Celtic to have his NBA jersey number retired in a pre-game ceremony. His No. 5 jersey will be elevated to the open space next to the TD Garden rafters, where Garnett’s former teammate Paul Pierce already hung No. 34 high in TD Garden four years ago. Looking back on his six seasons with the Celtics, Kevin Garnett was one of the Celtics’ undeniable absolute centerpieces.
Garnett chose to retire in 2015-16 after returning to the Minnesota Timberwolves, where his dream began. His time with the Celtics changed his career. Garnett said, “I’m always aware of the people that have come before me and paved the way for me.”
When Garnett was drafted fifth overall by the Timberwolves at the age of 19, he ushered in a new era in a league that had never seen a player with his skills at 6-foot-11. Long and lean but agile, Garnett moved like a guard, creating the prototype of a power forward capable of using his outside shooting ability to stretch opposing defenses. It revolutionized the league, so much so that players with this ability are now essential in building modern NBA rosters.
Although he was never a true center, he still used his 240 pounds to impose his presence in the paint on both ends of the court, despite jumping straight from high school to the pros. But after leading the Timberwolves to the playoffs eight times in 12 seasons, Garnett didn’t get them over the hump. After being named an All-Star for the 10th time in 2007, he was traded to the Celtics as the final part of an offseason restructuring that saw him team up with future Hall of Famers Pierce and Ray Allen to form the Green Army Big Three.
It constitutes the latest incarnation of the Big Three blueprint that has followed NBA teams to championships over the years – from the Celtics’ dominance in the 1960s, to the Showtime Lakers in the 1980s, to the six championships of the Michael Jordan-led Bulls in the 1990s. In hindsight, Garnett admits he wasn’t sure their version would live up to the expectations placed on them in ’07.
“I have a lot of confidence in myself. I’m confident in my abilities. I guess my biggest concern is how am I going to get along with Paul? How am I going to mesh with Ray? How am I going to mesh with some of the young guys here?” Garrett recalled. “(Former GM Danny Angel) had a plan. I don’t know if it was the exact plan, but it worked out.” Garnett said his homework in Boston and the environment he stepped into helped prepare him mentally for his first season in green and white. Whether it was challenging his teammates in practice or pushing them in games, it fueled his intensity.
“I’ve never been less than 100 percent in a game,” Garrett said. “I heard Larry Bird say once in his early years in Boston …… that the reason he likes playing in front of Boston fans is because you can’t fake them. You can’t fool the fans. They know when you’re playing hard. They know when you’re giving it your all. They have a sense of basketball history and a high basketball IQ. They care. And I never forget that.”