Kevin Garnett is leaving the Minnesota Timberwolves and the National Basketball Association relatively quietly, and that’s a little weird for a player whose career has been defined by high volume and confrontation. According to the Associated Press, the team will now waive Garnett, which allows him to still collect the $8 million in salary he was set to make during the 2016-17 season. He spent a forgettable season and a half with the Brooklyn Nets before the late Flip Saunders convinced Garnett to agree to a trade to return to Minnesota at the deadline in 2015.
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In 1995, Garnett became the first high school basketball player in 20 years to be drafted to the NBA.
Garnett further played 1462 games and averaged 17.8 points, 10 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game throughout his career.
In the end, we need to be careful about this discussion because we can’t very well fault Garnett for being less physically violent than he otherwise might have been. I’ve never met such a relentless competitor or such a great teammate.
Rivers, who coached Garnett to an National Basketball Association championship with the Celtics, said Garnett will remain a part of the game in some capacity – hopefully with the Clippers.
The big man worked closely with unanimous 2016 Rookie of the Year victor Karl-Anthony Towns last season, and it looks as though Garnett could continue working alongside the Timberwolves’ young, maturing roster. “His Minnesota fans will always cherish the memories he has provided.”.
The San Antonio Spurs made the same move with Tim Duncan when he retired this summer.
He won the MVP award in 2004 after leading the Timberwolves to the Western Conference finals and later teamed with Paul Pierce and Ray Allen to revive the Celtics as an Eastern Conference power. Garnett will be going down as one of the best defensive players around. “The Big Three” had been formed, and the Boston Celtics were back.
BOSH QUESTIONS: Heat forward Chris Bosh had a preseason physical, and the team said it couldn’t clear him, dealing a blow to his attempt to come back after two years of blood clot issues. Moss caught 574 passes for 9,142 yards and 90 touchdowns in seven seasons with the Vikings before being traded to Oakland. He talked about one day being part of a group that owned the Wolves, a prospect that now seems dim. It’s not a reach to say that the 6-foot-4 Moss helped to redefine the wide receiver position upon his arrival in Minnesota and Moss’ importance to the Vikings was so high that coach Mike Tice established what he called the “Randy Ratio” after taking over.
“You know how much I’m gonna miss playing with you and just simply having you around, ” Towns wrote on Instagram.
Perhaps to his credit, an older Garnett eventually began picking on guys his own size.
While the 2008 championship certainly brought a wide range of emotions to an entire city, it was evident that the title meant more to Garnett than words could describe. He was inactive for the final 37 games last season. “Things have changed so much and does he still want to do that?” After spending 21 years in basketball, he has made a decision to exit the game.
“Through the draft and free agency, Garnett”s status remained unresolved, with Thibodeau and Taylor remaining mum on the subject.
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Garnett inked a two-year, $16 million deal last offseason, but his primary attachment to the organization was Saunders, who tragically passed away last fall after a battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
