Kevin Garnett is by no means the greatest ever player to dawn the Boston Celtics uniform. However, there's no denying that he has to at least be mentioned when talking about the franchise's all-time greats. After all, he did lead Boston to its first title in two decades when he and the likes of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Rajon Rondo lifted the trophy in 2008.
It is interesting to note, however, that Garnett actually almost never went to Boston, which would have been rather strange Celtics news. He arrived in Boston in 2007 after a highly successful 14-year stint with the team that drafted him fifth overall in 1995, the Minnesota Timberwolves. At that time, Garnett was one of the premier players in the league, and once the rest of the NBA learned that he was on the trading block, Minnesota had no shortage of suitors for Garnett's services.
As we all know, Garnett ultimately went to Boston. However, there were at least five other teams that almost traded for the prized big man prior to his move to Beantown, and below we take a look at each of them.
Chicago Bulls
According to reports, the Chicago Bulls were already hot on Kevin Garnett's heels even before the blockbuster trade of 2017. The Bulls were reportedly willing to part ways with Tyson Chandler, Luol Deng, and their second overall pick back in the summer of 2016. Having failed on their first coup attempt, Chicago went at it again the following year, offering more future first round picks for Garnett.
Ultimately, it was the Celtics that successfully pried Garnett away from the Wolves, sending over Ryan Gomes, Gerald Green, Al Jefferson, Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair, and two future first-round picks. Quite a haul, right?
Los Angeles Lakers
It's hard to imagine Garnett in the Los Angeles Lakers' Purple & Gold, but as a matter of fact, LA was actually another team that was reportedly in the running for KG's coveted signature.
As it turns out, the Lakers were extremely close to bringing Garnett to Hollywood. Years later, former Lakers coach Phil Jackson himself shed some light on how this deal almost came to fruition:
“[Lakers team owner Dr. Jerry Buss] came to me and said, ‘I have a handshake agreement with [Timberwolves team owner Glenn Taylor], that he’s going to come to L.A,” Jackson said in 2015, via NBC Sports. “‘But [Minnesota general manager Kevin McHale] hasn’t concurred yet.' So I said, ‘Well that’s a good excuse.' You always, as an owner, say, ‘I’ll do this, but …' So I kept that hope out there, that he was gonna be a part of the Laker organization.”
Interestingly, the Lakers and the Celtics faced off in a couple of Finals series during Garnett's time in Boston. How many titles would a Garnett-Kobe Bryant pairing have won?
Dallas Mavericks
Among our list here, it's the Dallas Mavericks that had the slimmest odds of actually landing Kevin Garnett. As a matter of fact, reports state that their interest never really progressed to actual trade talks with Minnesota. At that time, the Mavs had the likes of Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, and Jerry Stackhouse, among others, on their payroll, and the restrictions of the salary cap made it close to impossible for them to join in on the Garnett chase.
Nevertheless, it's still fun to imagine how Garnett would have played alongside Nowitzki.
Phoenix Suns
It was no secret that one of, if not Garnett's top preferred destination was the Phoenix Suns.
A deal was reportedly already in place, but then-Suns forward Shawn Marion — who was a huge part of the botched blockbuster deal that involved the Timberwolves, the Suns, the Celtics, and the Atlanta Hawks — allegedly wanted too much money. The Celtics were unwilling to meet Marion's demands, which ultimately worked in their favor. Maybe Boston actually rejected Marion's demands because they knew they were Garnett's second choice.
Whatever the case may be, these turn of events robbed us from seeing what would have been a tremendous pairing between Garnett and the great Steve Nash.
Golden State Warriors
Garnett could have been the centerpiece of the “We Believe” Warriors had it not been for the luxury tax. The Dubs were reportedly unwilling to dig deep into their pockets in order to meet Garnett's rather hefty salary demands, which in hindsight, was a huge mistake. Golden State were already well on their way up at that point, and the addition of Garnett would have likely taken them over the edge.
Then again, the Dubs would probably not have had a chance to to select Stephen Curry in the NBA Draft a couple of years later, and there would have been no Warriors dynasty of the 2010s. In the end, it seems that it all worked out for the Warriors.
Follow Us
Subscribe