Ask and you shall receive. NSFW! <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1pW-QVJ6V8Y&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1pW-QVJ6V8Y&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
My point is that KG's presence would not necessarily have made this series an easy win for the Celtics. They struggled in the first two rounds last year with KG.
They missed the playoffs his last two seasons there and only ever made it out of the first round once and that was because of Cassell and Sprewell. So I guess T-Mac is a winner in your book as well? He's made it to the playoffs almost every year of his career.
And what did they do each year once they made it there? Lose of course! Which makes them losers! Except... When Sam Cassell took them to the WCF, which means Sam brought the winning tradition to Timberwolves and when Sam was gone, so was the tradition. I didnt make this up. It was your own logic. Unless you are saying we can use this reasoning for KG in Celtics but not when it works against him? Double standard at its best.
Or maybe Cassell and Sprewell made it out of the first round because of Kevin? Playoff stats---------------------------- Sammy- 17-4-3 Sprewell- 20-4-4 KG- 24-15-5+2 blocks KG led his team in EVERY category in those playoffs...Complete dominance. Tracy and KG are incomparable in every way. If Tracy had half the work ethic and heart that KG has, he would be one of the top 5 players of all time.
Great states I had no clue KG number were that great that year in the playoffs. I guess you really do learn something everyday.
Let's see. Cassell had two rings and several clutch moments in playoffs before joining Timberwolves. Sprewell had been to the NBA finals before joining the Timberwolves. KG had never sniffed the second round despite numerous attempts. Sorry, but history is not on your side. It was a well known fact that KG lacked the mindset to dominate the game offensively and carry his team during crunch time. Exactly why he needed Cassell and Sprewell on the Timberwolves and why he needed Paul Pierce on the Celtics. Here's another hint for ya: What happened in the WCF against the Lakers when Cassell went down?
Knote32, I hope you watched that Spree/Cassell/KG team in the playoffs to be throwing stats out. Make no mistake, Garnett puts up solid numbers night in and night out and will be a HoFer but that team was carried by Cassell and Sprewell. Cassell hit clutch shot after clutch shot for the Wolves and Spree put up his usual numbers. There's a reason why the Wolves lost to the Lakers and that was because Cassell went down with an injury (groin I think). You can go to years before the arrival of Cassell and Sprewell and see that KG will "get his" but when it comes time to put up or shut up, his tail is between his legs. I've beaten this like a dead horse but even Troy Hudson has bailed out this so-called "warrior". Garnett was and is always about barking the loudest but when he's confronted by someone that sees right through his toughman act, he walks away like a p***y. And it would be just like him to try and pick on a player smaller than him. I would have thought he had learned his lesson after barking at Peeler only to get an elbow in the face by Peeler Oh yea, and who could forget his attempt to "man up" last year against Zaza Pachulia.
I can practically guarantee that the T-Wolves would have lost by larger margins if KG would have went down instead of Cassell. Either scenario, they would have lost. But you must not watch much NBA basketball if you think that Cassell is a bigger impact player than KG. I love Cassell and he was special but even Tinman would agree with me on this one. Hmmm, come to think of it, probably not lol.
People let their hate for KG takeover in any debate about KG's play on the court. This thread has definitely made that obvious.
I can practically guarantee that the T-Wolves would have lost in the 1st Round (again) if Cassell would have not been traded to Minnesota.
Yup, It's a pointless argument. The 4th quarter numbers and across the board numbers in the playoffs reflect his greatness. As clutch as Sammy has always been, KG was the Franchise. (They even played KG at point guard at times in those playoffs because they did not like anyone else touching the ball...)
Please... He led his team in every single category. Of course he needs help. Hell Jordan needed help, Dream needed help. Shaq, Kareem etc... You take KG off the team and keep Sammy healthy and also give him a 100 inch vertical as a gift and that team does not come close to making the playoffs. Every Big needs perimeter help... Shaq(The most dominant big of our time) needs help in closing 4th quarter situations. It is very hard to devise an interior play in crunch time, plain and simple. It is much easier to put one guy in an iso or pick and roll, because you do not have to make the dreaded entry pass...
First of all, He put up GODLY numbers. Those things are just ridiculous. 25-15-5-2-2 is FREAKING NUTS!!!! When has he been a "p***y" on the basketball court? No matter who he barks at, no matter who knocks him down, KG is ALWAYS in the battle on the basketball court. Who cares if he stops short of fighting a guy, He goes ALL OUT, ALL THE TIME. That is not a p***y my friend... How many GINOURMOUS 4th quarter rebounds did the guy get for the Twolves? How many HUGE defensive rotations??? How many altered shots did he force down low??? Sure Sammy hit some clutch shots, but KG was putting up 25-15-5 while doing ALL of the dirty work. Yes I watched those series, and yes, KG was absolutely brilliant.
If KG had a personality like Tim Duncan I guarantee the perception of him on the court would be way different. I don't even get how this Sam Cassell argument came up. Of course he needed Cassell and Spreewell to get out the 1st round, but what is wrong with that? People act like he was holding back those Minnesota teams. The whole 1st round argument is funny as hell. Who cares who helped him get out of 1st round he did it and that is what counts. He was a big reason why that team got out of the 1st round. You take him off that team and they don't make the playoffs probably. So because Jordan never got out the 1st round without Pippen are people going to treat him like KG?
Correction, if he did that stuff while on the Rockets YOU would be riding his jock. Not every member appreciates antics as much as you do.
The whole getting out of the first round issue with him before Cassell & Sprewell joined the Wolves is a non-issue. Just like Tracy not getting out of the first round is a dead issue. Basketball is a teamsport and some can do more with less than others. Everybody knows KG has crazy talent, puts up good numbers and is a fine all-round player. That being said, he is a classless person, far worse than anybody I have ever seen. Guys like Artest & Maxwell cursed, throwed elbows, went into the stands but always had respect for their opponents. Garnett is trying to put on a show so that's why probably nobody has problems with his behaviour. I think honestly KG is trying to come off as some crazy person just to make the highlights, he loves the camera and all the attention. He is also the greatest punk act I have ever seen in basketball. Maxwell, Ainge, Elie, Barkley, MJ, Mutombo, Shaq, Rasheed, Wallace, the 90s pistons: all guys who backed up their talk like a REAL MAN. Garnett has backed down every single time when push came to shove which shows he's not a real man. Personally, I don't care about his barking, going on all fours, thrash talking and such antics because it's just laughable and should be ignored, but the fact he starts a fight and then walks away is what really bothers me. The media tries to portray him as a tough guy, a class act, a model citizen and sort of like the representative of the NBA.
