The Garnett Deal

Danny Ainge and I have something in common.

We both made blockbuster deals for Kevin Garnett.

I couldn’t have been much older than 15 at the time, and collecting replica basketball jerseys was a common fad, though we were yet unaware of that the hip-hop nation was coming and that jerseys would become a necessity. I had my favourites; a brand new Vince Carter jersey (back when he used to try for the Raptors, he was a god and we worshiped him), a Knicks Latrell Spreewell (dude was gaaangstaaaa), and a Sacramento Kings road jersey of white boy-turned-homey Jason Williams (my nick-name in high school was White Chocolate).

But, like under-sized teams in the East, there was one player I coveted; The Big Ticket. I was at the 1995 draft that saw Kevin Garnett go 5th overall to the Minnesota Timberwolves, but I didn’t realize what all the hype was about until I became deeply engrossed with the game of basketball during my high school years. KG was an animal, displaying an incredible skill-set (how many 7-footers break a man down with a crossover and then hit a step back three?), a good low-post game, unselfish leadership and a fiery intensity that too many young players lacked.

I needed Garnett in my arsenal, just like Danny Ainge needed Garnett in his. So like Ainge, I made a block buster move.

Mark Spence was my best friend, and still is to this day, and he owned the coveted KG away jersey, and when the smoke cleared from our negotiating session, waving goodbye to my AND1 jersey was all I had to do in order to welcome Garnett to the folds of my franchise. In hindsight I’m lucky I didn’t have to trade one good jersey, four below average jerseys and two future jerseys to get The Big Ticket (I got you there Danny).

With the return of skilled players to the desolate land we call the Eastern Conference the NBA may actually become entertaining to follow this year. The 2006-07 season was a boring one, and after an underwhelming summer league and a colossal scandal left the NBA with a wake of collateral damage, this trade is a welcome positive news item.

Garnett joins Ray Allen, Jason Richardson, Zach Randolph and Rashard Lewis as marquee names who chose this summer to begin the voyage East. And now the Leastern Conference suddenly becomes interesting (note: I did not say relevant, I said interesting) for the upcoming season. The Celtics and Raptors will be thisclose to being legitimate contenders this year if healthy. The Knicks and Nets will be decent (and for the Knicks that’s a miracle in and of itself), the Bulls are poised to do something special and the Cavs have a guy named Lebron which means anything is possible. Add to this that the Pistons won’t suck despite being old, the Magic have a dominant power forward and a very rich swingman (who could play some serious ball - if he ever feels like it), Miami has this guy named Wade and the Bucks, well the Bucks might have Yi!?

I’m not contending that any team in the East is of similar calibre as the Spurs, Suns or Mavericks. What I will say is that if any one team now has the tools to come close, it’s the Boston Celtics. Think about it, these three guys are the perfect storm of superstars. It’s not like when Pierce had Antoine ‘refuse-to-bend-over-at-the-waist’ Walker, and all they did was compete at chucking off balance threes. It’s not even like when Ray-Ray had Sam Cassell and the Big Dog Glenn Robinson, and no one could defend or keep their egos in check. It’s not even much like the year KG had Sam Cassell and Latrell Spreewell in Minny, though those were the best two players Garnett had played with to this point in his career. After Cassell and Spree, the talent around Kevin Garnett peaked with Troy Hudson, Ricky Davis and Wally Sczerbiak. (Gulp)

Garnett, Allen and Pierce should be able to complement each others strengths. Imagine an offense where you could kick the ball inside to Garnett on the block, wait for the opposing team to double (because they’d have to double Garnett or he scores) and then let Garnett (a very good decision maker) choose whether he wants to score, kick it out to Ray (the best spot-up shooter in basketball) or Pierce (who can shoot or penetrate and finish in traffic). Those three could play with Bryan Allain and Jordan Green and they’d still make the playoffs and probably win the East.

Like any big move, immediately following the deal is the voice of the skeptics. People who say things like, “Well, they’re one ankle sprain away from being back in the lottery.” And those people are absolutely correct. But every team in the NBA is in the exact same situation. The Mavericks without Dirk? Still a playoff team, but not a championship contender. Same goes for the Suns with Nash, the Spurs without Timmy D and the Cavs without Lebron. The Raptors would be lost without Bosh, the Nets are hapless without Jason Kidd and I’m pretty sure Utah would be ruined without Rafael Araujo (okay not the last one). But you see my point; no team in the NBA is a championship contender without their best players. You can’t let an ankle sprain stand in the way of taking a chance at a championship.

And yes, the Celtics are relevant again. The once proud franchise has endured a lot of, well, crap, which most recently featured the NBA Draft Lottery that saw them get screwed out of Kevin Durant. To me, and to David Stern, Garnett is going to the perfect team for the NBA. Yes, he probably would have had a better chance of winning in Phoenix, and sure his persona is probably even better suited for La-La land, but for the league its best that Garnett helps out an ailing legend (the Knicks could have also sufficed, though I wouldn’t wish that situation on anyone).

Garnett (20.5 ppg, 11.4 rpg, 4.5 apg career), Allen (21.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.9 apg career) and Pierce (23.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3.9 apg career) all bring a different look and they’re all starved veterans who should realize that this is likely their only shot at NBA glory. These three together will never come as close to a title again as they could while riding each other’s coattails. None have had publicized issues being bad teammates (KG beat the snot out of Sczerbiak a few years ago, but he probably deserved it) or showing selfishness or ego, and all three are lauded as competitors who will do anything to win.

For the Celtics to really make a run for a championship they’ll of course need to add some pieces. After all, Bryan Allain and Jordan Green can’t do it all themselves. A good, young defender (Tony Allen could be this guy for them) and a big body interior rebounder (like a Danny Fortson) who doesn’t mind mucking it up and doing the dirty work would go a long way to giving them the depth they’ll need to compete at a championship level. Some veteran help (a Michael Finley type) could also go a long way to put them in the top tier of league talent.

Will Garnett spend more than a season in Celtic green? I think it goes without saying that it depends entirely on the chemistry these three have and the success of this experiment. If they even get a whiff of title contention I think he’d be wise to stay, especially since competitive teams don’t have a lot of room under the cap to sign a marquee talent like KG. If he does skip town, Ainge will have egg on his face and a mess on his hands. Then it would be back to the drawing board, all for one flirtatious attempt at something special.

Danny Ainge had nothing to lose. His team floundering, years of his unsuccessful managerial tactics were smeared all over the court in the Fleet Center. Now at least he’s taken his chances, pushed all in when his chips were down, and drew trip Kings on the River. Now he’s off to the races to see if his Cowboys will hold up.