Kevin Maurice Garnett (born
May 19, 1976) is an American
professional
basketball player who currently plays at
the power forward for the
Boston Celtics of the National Basketball
Association (NBA). After having a successful high school
basketball career at
Farragut
Career Academy, he decided to forgo college and entered
NBA Draft. He was selected with the 5th
overall pick in the
1995 NBA Draft by
the
Minnesota Timberwolves
and became the first NBA player drafted
directly out of high school in
20 years.
Garnett made an immediate impact with the Minnesota Timberwolves
leading them to eight-consecutive
playoff appearances. In 2004, Garnett led the
Timberwolves to the
Western
Conference Finals and was voted
Most Valuable Player (MVP) in
the
2003-04 season. In the
2000 Summer Olympics, he won a
Gold medal as a member of the
USA men's national basketball
team. Since his second season in the league, Garnett has been
named to every
All-Star Game,
which includes winning the
All-Star MVP
award in
2003. He was
awarded the regular season's
NBA Defensive Player of
the Year in the
2007-08
season and has been a nine-time member of the
All-NBA Teams selection and a ten-time member
of the
All-Defensive Teams
selection.
After spending twelve seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves,
Garnett was traded to the
Boston
Celtics, where he won his first
NBA
championship and helped them win their seventeenth title.
Garnett currently holds several all-time Timberwolves
franchise records and is also the all-time
leader in NBA seasons played with averages of at least 20 points,
10 rebounds, and 5 assists per game.
Early life
Kevin
Garnett was born in Greenville, South Carolina
to Shirley Garnett and O'Lewis McCullough, and was
the second of his mother's three children. After divorcing
McCullough, Shirley Garnett raised Kevin and his two siblings.
She then
re-married and moved the family to Mauldin, South
Carolina
when Kevin Garnett was twelve.
Garnett fell in love with the sport of basketball while attending
Hillcrest Middle School, although he did not play organized ball
until high school. In his first three high school years, Garnett
played for
Mauldin High School.
However, during the summer prior to his senior year of high school,
Kevin was in the general vicinity of a fight between black and
white students. Although not directly involved, Garnett was
arrested. Due to the racially charged incident and fearful of being
a target, Garnett decided to leave Mauldin.
He transferred to
Farragut Career Academy in
Chicago
, Illinois
for his
senior year of high school. He led Farragut to a 28–2 record
and was named National High School Player of the Year by
USA Today. He was named
Mr. Basketball for the State of
Illinois after averaging 25.2 points, 17.9 rebounds, 6.7 assists
and 6.5 blocks while shooting 66.8% from the field. In four years
of high school, Garnett posted an impressive 2,553 points, 1,809
rebounds and 737 blocked shots. He was named the Most Outstanding
Player at the
McDonald's
All-American Game after registering 18 points, 11 rebounds, 4
assists and 3 blocked shots, and then declared himself eligible for
the
1995 NBA Draft. Garnett played
alongside
Ronnie Fields in high
school, who also followed a professional career. Garnett also
excelled in
soccer during his
high school days.
NBA career
Early years
Garnett was drafted with the fifth pick of the
1995 NBA Draft by the struggling
Minnesota Timberwolves, and became
the first player to be drafted directly out of high school since
1975. After joining the NBA for the
1989-90 season, the Timberwolves had not won more than 29 games in
any season. In Garnett's rookie season, the Timberwolves were in
the midst of a transition phase; they replaced
Bill Blair with
Flip
Saunders as head coach early in the season and made several
trades. Garnett initially came off the bench in his rookie year,
but moved into the
starting lineup
soon after Saunders became head coach. In his rookie year, Garnett
and fellow newcomer
Tom Gugliotta
carried the scoring load. Garnett did not immediately leap to
stardom as later
prep-to-pro prospects
such as
Amar'e Stoudemire,
LeBron James and
Dwight Howard would, but he did have a very
respectable rookie year. He averaged 10.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and
1.8 assists per game and was voted into the All-Rookie Second Team.
Despite having some promising players, the Timberwolves suffered
through their seventh consecutive sub-30 win season and failed to
make the playoffs. At the time Garnett was the youngest NBA player
in history at 19 years and 11 months of age.
Prior to
the 1996-97 season, the
Timberwolves made a draft-day trade for point guard Stephon
Marbury of the Georgia Tech
Yellow
Jackets. During the season Garnett posted improving
averages of 17.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.1 blocks and
1.7 steals. He also had two games where he registered eight blocks.
With a 40–42 record, the Timberwolves made their first playoff
appearance in franchise history, Garnett and Gugliotta made their
first All-Star appearances, and Marbury established himself as a
valuable young lead guard. However, the
Houston Rockets, led by
Hakeem Olajuwon,
Clyde Drexler, and
Charles Barkley proved to be too much as the
Timberwolves were swept 3–0 in the first round of the
1997 NBA Playoffs.
Franchise player
During the
1997-98 NBA season,
the Timberwolves and Garnett agreed on a six-year contract
extension that was worth an unparalleled $126 million. This was met
with shock around the NBA, and the Timberwolves were used as
scapegoats for the lockout that occurred the next season. The
contract was a risky move and many pundits speculated that the deal
would make it impossible for the Wolves to sign new players or even
keep their own. Despite the furor over his new contract, Garnett
continued to improve, averaging 18.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, 4.2
assists, 1.8 blocks, and 1.7 steals per game. Again, he was an
All-Star, and the Timberwolves finished with their first winning
record in franchise history (45–37 for the season). For the second
consecutive year the young Timberwolves bowed out of the playoffs
in the first round, this time losing 2–3 against the
Seattle SuperSonics and superstar point
guard
Gary Payton. The two wins against
the Sonics marked the Wolves' first-ever playoff game wins. The
off-season started poorly for the Timberwolves though as 20-point
per game scorer
Tom Gugliotta left for
the
Phoenix Suns.
In the lockout-shortened
season that
followed, Garnett broke through as a superstar. Putting up
stats of 20.8 points, 10.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.8 blocks per
game, he was named to the All-NBA Third Team. However, midway
through the season Stephon Marbury was traded to the
New Jersey Nets after a dispute over his
possible contract extension. Although the Wolves received two-time
All-Star
Terrell Brandon in return,
they were not able to overcome the discord and limped into the
playoffs as the 8th seed with a 25–25 record. The Wolves were
defeated in the first round again, this time losing 1–3 to the
eventual champion
San Antonio
Spurs who were led by young superstar and eventual
NBA Finals MVP Tim
Duncan. In the next season, Garnett continued his notable play,
averaging 22.9 points, 11.8 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.6 blocks and
1.5 steals per game and made the first of his four All-NBA First
Team appearances. Assisted by sharpshooting rookie forward
Wally Szczerbiak and steady veteran
Brandon, the Wolves posted a franchise-best 50-32 record, but
succumbed in the first round to the
Portland Trail Blazers 3–1.
In the
1999-00 NBA season,
Timberwolves' guard
Malik Sealy was
killed by a
drunk
driver and the NBA ruled that the free agent signing of
Joe Smith was illegal. The
NBA punished the team for the illegal signing by stripping the team
of three first-round draft picks, fining
Glen Taylor (the owner of the team)
$3.5 million, and banning
general manager Kevin McHale for one year. Garnett led the
Wolves to a 47–35 record and made the All-NBA Second Team, but
again, the Wolves did not survive the first round of the playoffs,
losing to the Spurs 3–1.
MVP and division champions
In the
2001-02 NBA season,
Garnett posted another notable season, his averages of 21.2 points,
12.1 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.2 steals per game
enough for another All-NBA Second Team nomination. However, the
Timberwolves bowed out in the first round for the sixth consecutive
time, this time getting swept 3–0 by the
Dallas Mavericks led by
Michael Finley,
Steve
Nash and
Dirk Nowitzki. Garnett's
next season was one of the best of his career, his 23.0 ppg / 13.0
rpg / 6.0 apg / 1.6 bpg / 1.4 spg season earning him his second
All-NBA First Team nomination and second place in the MVP voting.
The Timberwolves posted a good 51–31 record, but for the seventh
consecutive time, they did not make it out of the first round, this
time losing to the
Los Angeles
Lakers, 4 games to 2.
In the
2003-04 NBA season, things
finally seemed to come together for Garnett. In past years, the
Wolves had practically been a one-man show, but now, the
Timberwolves had made two valuable acquisitions: highly talented
but volatile swingman
Latrell
Sprewell and the seasoned two-time NBA champion
Sam Cassell, who supplanted
Troy Hudson at
point
guard. In addition, defensive center
Ervin Johnson complemented the inconsistent
Michael Olowokandi. Powered by
the best supporting cast in his career, Garnett averaged 24.2
points, 13.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.5 steals per
game for the season. Having recorded career highs in points,
rebounds, blocks and leading the league rebounds, Garnett was named
the league
Most Valuable
Player for the first time in his career. With a
franchise-record 58 wins, the Wolves stormed into the playoffs, and
finally vanquished their playoff bane by defeating the
Denver Nuggets 4–1 in the first round. After
disposing of the strong
Sacramento
Kings 4–3 in the Western Conference Semifinals, Garnett and the
Timberwolves met the Lakers. Against the Lakers, playmaker Cassell
went down with a back injury. With reserve point guard Hudson also
injured, the Timberwolves alternated between third playmaker
Darrick Martin and shooting guard
Fred Hoiberg at the "one", or even
running Garnett himself as
point
forward or a real point guard. The
Los Angeles Lakers pulled off a 4–2
series win.
Frustration
In the
2004-05 NBA season,
Garnett was named to the All-NBA Second Team, but with a mediocre
44–38 record, the Timberwolves failed to make the playoffs after
eight consecutive years. The
2005-06
NBA season brought more frustration for Garnett. With Sprewell
and Cassell refusing to stay and stuck with a mediocre squad, the
Timberwolves skidded to a 33–49 record. Despite Garnett's play, the
team logged the second worst record since Garnett joined the
franchise. On 10 May 2007 Garnett was named to the
All-NBA Third Team.
During the 2007 off-season, Taylor admitted that although he had
planned on retaining Garnett, he would finally listen to trade
offers. Garnett's name was mentioned in various trade rumors
involving the
Chicago Bulls,
Los Angeles Lakers,
Golden State Warriors,
Indiana Pacers,
Boston Celtics,
Phoenix Suns, and
Dallas Mavericks.
Success in Boston
On July 31, 2007,
Kevin Garnett was traded to the Boston Celtics
in exchange for
Al Jefferson,
Ryan Gomes,
Sebastian Telfair,
Gerald Green,
Theo
Ratliff, cash considerations, Boston's 2009 first-round draft
pick (top 3 protected) and the 2009 first-round pick Minnesota had
traded to Boston in the
Ricky
Davis-
Wally Szczerbiak trade of
2006. The 7-for-1 deal constitutes the largest number of players
traded for a single player in league history. At the time of the
trade, Garnett had the longest current tenure of any player in the
NBA with one team, having played for the Timberwolves for his first
12 seasons (a total of 927 games). Garnett said that he was proud
to be a part of the Celtics, and hoped to continue its proud
tradition and basketball success. On the day the trade was
announced, Garnett signed a three-year $60 million contract
extension that will start after his current deal runs out in 2009.
On August
1, 2007 the day after signing his Celtics contract, Garnett threw
out the ceremonial first pitch at Fenway Park
prior to a Red
Sox-Orioles game.
Garnett has claimed to be a long-time Red Sox fan.
Garnett wore jersey number 5 for the Celtics' since his number with
the Timberwolves, number 21, was retired by the Celtics',
previously worn by
Bill Sharman. He
made his Boston debut with a strong performance against the
Washington Wizards, with 22 points and 20 rebounds. He also led all
players in voting for the
2008
NBA All-Star Game. Garnett received 2,399,148 votes, the sixth
highest total in NBA All-Star balloting history. Among active
players, Garnett's 11 All-Star selections rank second to Cleveland
Cavaliers
center Shaquille O'Neal, who has appeared 14 times
in the All-Star Game. However, Garnett was unable to play due to an
abdominal strain, and
Detroit Pistons forward Rasheed Wallace was named by
NBA Commissioner David Stern to replace him.
East All-Star head coach
Doc Rivers replaced Garnett with
Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh in the starting lineup. Garnett passed
20,000 points for his career, becoming the 32nd player in
NBA history to reach the mark, with a
layup in the 2nd quarter against the
Memphis Grizzlies on March 8, 2008. The
only other active players who have passed that mark are
Shaquille O'Neal,
Allen Iverson and
Kobe
Bryant. On April 22, 2008, Garnett was named the
NBA Defensive Player of
the Year for the
2007-08
season. It was the only major award a Celtic player had not
claimed since the
franchise's foundation in
1946. However, Garnett claimed it was a team effort which helped
him win the award. Garnett helped the Celtics to their 17th
NBA Championship, with 26
points and 14
rebounds in
Game 6 of the
NBA Finals.
In the
2008–09 season
Garnett started all of the 57 games he was able to suit up for. He
averaged 15.8
points 8.5
rebounds and 2.5
assists. On October 31, 2008, Garnett
became the youngest player in
NBA history to reach 1,000 career games, at 32 years
and 165 days. Garnett earned his twelveth consecutive
All-Star Game start on February 15,
2009. Following the All-Star Game, during a game against the
Utah Jazz, Garnett strained his right knee
late in the second quarter. The injury occurred on February 19,
2009, while attempting to go up for an
alley-oop. He was forced to miss the
next 14 games. Upon his return from the injury, he averaged 9
points and 4.5 rebounds in four games before being shut down for
the season permanently, missing the final 25 games of the regular
season including the
2009 NBA
playoffs due to a right knee sprain. The Celtics would advance
to the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals that year, only to be
eliminated by the Orlando Magic.
Personal life
Garnett
married long time girlfriend Brandi Padilla during a private
ceremony in California
. The wedding was the reason he did not take
part in the
Athens 2004 Olympic games.
Garnett is a cousin to former
Los
Angeles Lakers player
Shammond
Williams, and is the half brother of
Louis McCullough, who played for the
ABA's
Syracuse Raging Bullz.
In the
New
England
area, Garnett is a resident of Concord
, Massachusetts
, owning a home worth roughly $4.6
million.
Although Garnett is officially listed as by the
NBA, many, including the
Celtics organization, believe he is over
seven feet tall. During the
2007
NBA All-Star Game, Garnett admitted in an interview with
Craig Sager to be tall.
His nicknames include "The Big Ticket", "KG", "Da Kid", and
formerly "The Franchise" (after being known as the
Minnesota Timberwolves' franchise
player).
Garnett is also a supporter of
Chelsea
F.C., an English
Premier League
football club.
Garnett has been seen in attendance at the
Los Angeles Galaxy v Chelsea
match at the Home Depot
Center
on July 22, 2007. He also received a Chelsea
shirt from the club with his name and number on the back in
2008.
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|
1995–96 |
Minnesota |
80 |
43 |
28.7 |
.491 |
.286 |
.705 |
6.3 |
1.8 |
1.1 |
1.6 |
10.4 |
|
1996–97 |
Minnesota |
77 |
77 |
38.9 |
.499 |
.286 |
.754 |
8.0 |
3.1 |
1.4 |
2.1 |
17.0 |
|
1997–98 |
Minnesota |
82 |
82 |
39.3 |
.491 |
.188 |
.738 |
9.6 |
4.2 |
1.7 |
1.8 |
18.5 |
|
1998–99 |
Minnesota |
47 |
47 |
37.9 |
.460 |
.286 |
.704 |
10.4 |
4.3 |
1.7 |
1.8 |
20.8 |
|
1999–00 |
Minnesota |
81 |
81 |
40.0 |
.497 |
.370 |
.765 |
11.8 |
5.0 |
1.5 |
1.6 |
22.9 |
|
2000–01 |
Minnesota |
81 |
81 |
39.5 |
.477 |
.288 |
.764 |
11.4 |
5.0 |
1.4 |
1.8 |
22.0 |
|
2001–02 |
Minnesota |
81 |
81 |
39.2 |
.470 |
.319 |
.801 |
12.1 |
5.2 |
1.2 |
1.6 |
21.2 |
|
2002–03 |
Minnesota |
82 |
82 |
40.5 |
.502 |
.282 |
.751 |
13.4 |
6.0 |
1.4 |
1.6 |
23.0 |
|
2003–04 |
Minnesota |
82 |
82 |
39.4 |
.499 |
.256 |
.791 |
13.9 |
5.0 |
1.5 |
2.2 |
24.2 |
|
2004–05 |
Minnesota |
82 |
82 |
38.1 |
.502 |
.240 |
.811 |
13.5 |
5.7 |
1.5 |
1.4 |
22.2 |
|
2005–06 |
Minnesota |
76 |
76 |
38.9 |
.526 |
.267 |
.810 |
12.7 |
4.1 |
1.4 |
1.4 |
21.8 |
|
2006–07 |
Minnesota |
76 |
76 |
39.4 |
.476 |
.214 |
.835 |
12.8 |
4.1 |
1.2 |
1.7 |
22.4 |
|
2007–08 |
Boston |
71 |
71 |
32.8 |
.539 |
.000 |
.801 |
9.2 |
3.4 |
1.4 |
1.2 |
18.8 |
|
2008–09 |
Boston |
57 |
57 |
31.1 |
.531 |
.250 |
.841 |
8.5 |
2.5 |
1.1 |
1.2 |
15.8 |
|
Career |
|
1055 |
1018 |
37.6 |
.496 |
.283 |
.782 |
11.1 |
4.3 |
1.4 |
1.6 |
20.2 |
|
All-Star |
|
11 |
9 |
23.6 |
.515 |
.000 |
.875 |
7.0 |
3.2 |
1.5 |
.8 |
13.6
Playoffs
|
|
1996–97 |
Minnesota |
3 |
3 |
41.7 |
.471 |
1.000 |
1.000 |
9.3 |
3.7 |
1.3 |
1.0 |
17.3 |
|
1997–98 |
Minnesota |
5 |
5 |
38.8 |
.480 |
.000 |
.778 |
9.6 |
4.0 |
.8 |
2.4 |
15.8 |
|
1998–99 |
Minnesota |
4 |
4 |
42.5 |
.443 |
.000 |
.739 |
12.0 |
3.8 |
1.8 |
2.0 |
21.8 |
|
1999–00 |
Minnesota |
4 |
4 |
42.8 |
.385 |
.667 |
.813 |
10.8 |
8.8 |
1.2 |
.8 |
18.8 |
|
2000–01 |
Minnesota |
4 |
4 |
41.3 |
.466 |
.000 |
.833 |
12.0 |
4.3 |
1.0 |
1.5 |
21.0 |
|
2001–02 |
Minnesota |
3 |
3 |
43.3 |
.429 |
.500 |
.719 |
18.7 |
5.0 |
1.7 |
1.7 |
24.0 |
|
2002–03 |
Minnesota |
6 |
6 |
44.2 |
.514 |
.333 |
.607 |
15.7 |
5.2 |
1.7 |
1.7 |
27.0 |
|
2003–04 |
Minnesota |
18 |
18 |
43.5 |
.452 |
.313 |
.776 |
14.6 |
5.1 |
1.3 |
2.3 |
24.3 |
|
2007–08 |
Boston |
26 |
26 |
38.0 |
.495 |
.250 |
.810 |
10.5 |
3.3 |
1.4 |
1.1 |
20.4 |
|
Career |
|
73 |
73 |
41.0 |
.470 |
.318 |
.776 |
12.4 |
4.4 |
1.3 |
1.6 |
21.6
Achievements
During his time in the league Garnett has established a long list
of achievements, including:
- NBA Champion: 2008
- NBA Most
Valuable Player: 2004
- NBA
Defensive Player of the Year: 2008
- USA Olympics: Gold Medal: 2000
- NBA All-Star Game
MVP: 2003
- 12-time NBA
All-Star: 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004,
2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
- 9-time All-NBA
selection:
- *First Team: 2000, 2003, 2004, 2008
- *Second Team: 2001, 2002, 2005
- *Third Team: 1999, 2007
- *First Team: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004,
2005, 2008, 2009
- *Second Team: 2006, 2007
- *Second team: 1996
- 4-time NBA regular-season leader, rebounds per
game: 2004 (13.9), 2005
(13.5), 2006 (12.7), 2007
(12.8)
- 2-time NBA regular-season leader, rebounds:
2004 (1,139), 2005 (1,108)
- 5-time NBA regular-season leader, defensive
rebounds: 2003 (858), 2004
(894), 2005 (861), 2006
(752), 2007 (792)
- NBA regular-season leader, points: 2004
(1,987)
- NBA regular-season leader, field goals made:
2004 (804)
- J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship
Award: 2006
- Career triple-doubles
(regular season): 17 (as of March 4,
2007)
- Career triple-doubles (post-season):
3 (as of 2006)
- Only player in NBA history to:
- *average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, and
5 assists per game for 6 consecutive seasons.
(1999–2005)
- *average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, and
4 assists per game for 9 consecutive seasons.
(1998–2007)
- *reach at least 20,000 points, 11,000
rebounds, 4,000 assists, 1,200
steals, and 1,500 blocks in his playing
career.
- One of four players in NBA history to leads their team in all
five major statistical categories (points, rebounds, assists,
blocks, and steals) in a season (2002-03).
- *along with Dave Cowens (1977-78),
Scottie Pippen (1994-95) and LeBron James (2008-09).
- Holds Minnesota
Timberwolves franchise record for most points in one
game with 47 vs. the Phoenix Suns on January 4, 2005.
- Holds Minnesota
Timberwolves franchise career records for points,
19,041; rebounds, 10,542;
assists, 4,146; blocked shots,
1,576; steals, 1,282; and games
played, 927.
- Ranked #30 in SLAM
Magazine's 2009 revision of the top 50 greatest players of
all time (published in the August 2009 issue)
- Achieved 10,000 total rebounds in his career on January 13, 2007.
- Career stats (regular season): 998 games, 20.4
ppg, 11.2 rpg, 4.4 apg, 1.6 bpg, 1.4 spg, .494 FG%, .284 3P%, .781
FT%
- Career stats (post-season): 73 games, 21.6
ppg, 12.4 rpg, 4.4 apg, 1.6 bpg, 1.3 spg, .470 FG%, .318 3P%, .776
FT%
References
External links
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