In a recent revelation, NBA icon Kevin Garnett shared how close he was to going to Los Angeles Lakers and teaming up with Kobe Bryant. But things didn't pan out according to plan as Bryant “missed” Garnett's phone call.
In his new memoir, “From KG: A TO Z: An Uncensored Encyclopedia of Life, Basketball, and Everything in Between,” Garnett shared a funny yet frustrating story on his plans to head to the Lakers after his fallout with the Minnesota Timberwolves. People like Tyronn Lue and Antoine Walker prodded him to get that ring that he deserves.
News broke that the Boston Celtics had just sealed the deal with 3-point assassin Ray Allen. Walker felt that Garnett should follow suit. But in his heart, Garnett wanted to be teammates with Kobe in Los Angeles. So he texted and call the number that Lue gave him — only not to get a single reply or call back. When they finally saw each other, the following conversation ensued after Garnett had already spurned the Lakers, per Bleacher Report:
“Never got the message,”
“Bulls–t.”
“What number you call?”
“The right number. The one T-Lue gave me.”
“You know how it goes, KG,” said the Lakers star. “We change numbers like we change drawers.”
“I'm believing you got the message.”
“Messages get lost.”
“Not when a message is sent 20 f–kin' times.”
“Look, man, I had China. I had the new Nike line poppin' off. I had more s–t happening than ever before. I was moving in eight different directions.”
We kept beefin' for a minute or two. It got caught on camera, and folks made more of it than was really there. I had me some hurt feelings. Finally, Bean apologized, and that was good enough for me.
It's just among the many what-if stories about NBA players. What makes it special among the lot is that it's hilarious as hell and it involves the late and great Kobe Bryant. But at the same time, these conversations could have altered NBA history had Garnett ultimately joined the Lakers.
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