Didn't see this posted, pretty interesting. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=stein_marc&id=2825083 Updated: April 4, 2007 KG opens up about losing, AI and his futureBy Marc Stein ESPN.com Archive MINNEAPOLIS -- Kevin Garnett really wanted to wait. He knows that uncomfortable questions will be unavoidable once his Minnesota Timberwolves mathematically are doomed to a third straight season out of the playoffs. He knows that if you're giving the Wolves any thought these days, it's only to wonder whether years of disappointment and Wolves mismanagement finally have convinced the 30-year-old to push for a trade. He also knows, even as his 12th season drains away, that he'd rather withhold those thoughts from public consumption for as long as he can. Yet if anyone in the NBA can identify with persistence, it's KG. So when he repeatedly spotted ESPN.com in his beloved Minnesota last week, Garnett eventually relented. He consented to take a few minutes' worth of questions after Saturday's practice … after practice, lifting weights and a round of extra shooting that -- shocker -- made him the last Wolf off the floor. Q: Your future comes up more than ever because of the opt-out clause in your contract after next season. But forget what media types like me have been saying. I'm sure you've heard some of your former peers like Charles Barkley and Reggie Miller on TV urging you to ask for a trade. What's your reaction when they say it? A: I was telling some friends the other day, my analogy is a house. I've helped build a house or I've built a house [in Minneapolis]. It had old wood in it and I replaced it with special wood and it became a beautiful place. But now because things aren't working right, now you ask me to move out of something that I helped build. That's hard. People who have experienced moving, they can look at [my situation] and say it's probably an easier process [to request a trade]. But I haven't done that, so it's not as easy for me. I can't speak with the perspective of people who have [switched teams]. You hear the stories. I've got personal friends that moved from teams. But instead of replacing some of the appliances or replacing some of the pipes or replacing things in the house, you just ask me to move? That's a difficult call for me. But losing's also hard for me, too. Q: Another season like this must be killing you then? A: It is. It is. It is. It is. And not just how we're losing. The personnel. I was crushed when we let Sammy [Cassell] go [in 2005] and Spree [Latrell Sprewell]. I felt like we didn't handle that right. Q: So one of the problems … A: Not having enough veterans here. [And] no disrespect towards Case [ex-Wolves coach Dwane Casey], I enjoyed my two years with him, but when you're trying to build, when you're trying to win, you got to have … there's a lot of good coaches out there. There's a lot of great coaches out there. Q: I've heard that the Wolves were so convinced at one point in early December that Allen Iverson was Minnesota-bound that management was getting owner Glen Taylor's plane ready to pick AI up in Philly. Were you led to believe that an Iverson trade was that close? A: Freddy [assistant general manager Fred Hoiberg] was keeping me in tune with what was going on and when that happened … I don't know. I don't know. I'm not gonna front. I was very excited. And then at the 11th hour, things fell through. Q: Mark Madsen told me that the question he gets most from people on the street or in restaurants is whether you're going to stay in Minnesota or ask to be traded. But Madsen also told me that he and the rest of your teammates never ask you those kinds of questions. Doesn't that surprise you a little? A: I let it be known to everyone [in the organization] that we're going to finish this year out and everybody's going to assess and do what they have to do for themselves. And I'm no different from that. But I don't get into detail or the distraction of talking about something that I haven't really in depth researched or talked about myself. Q: But after spending a few days in town, I have to tell you, there's a feeling in the air that this is all coming to a head and that the end is near for the Kevin Garnett era in Minnesota. You really don't feel the same thing? A: My feeling is I got 10 games [left as of Saturday] and I'm going to finish the 10 like it's my last [of my career]. I'm going to finish them as if we're still in the playoff hunt, finish them off 110 percent, and then I'll assess what I'm going to do. Until then, man, I'm going to continue to try to enjoy this game like I always have. Q: If you end up staying with the Wolves and one trip to the Western Conference finals is as good as it gets in your career, won't that be hard to live with? A: Absolutely. To fulfill myself and my appetite, obviously. But like I said, I'm not going to even get into it. Maybe I'll speak to you later on in the future about some other things. Other than that, I'm going to finish these 10 off like it's my last. Q: It's been said that you dream of being basketball's answer to the late Kirby Puckett in Minneapolis, playing for only one team and delivering a championship to Minnesotans like Kirby did. Is that a valid comparison? A: When you adopt a city or a city has adopted you, I play my heart out not just for myself and my family but also for this city. That's not to be discounted in anything. I feel like, if you're going to be a face somewhere … lots of guys are faces of the [cities] they play in and I'm the face here. I take a lot of pride in that. Kirby, may he rest in peace, was a dear, dear friend. And he taught me that if management's right, you can win here just like you can win anywhere else. And I've sort of adopted that. Q: So if you or the Wolves choose not to pursue a trade this summer, do you think we'll still see some major changes with this franchise? A: There's got to be. F--- yeah. I think [head coach] Randy Wittman would echo that, so it's not just me.
I feel for KG. He really needs to get into the playoffs next season. I sense that deep inside he wants to move to a better winning situation.
Damn, I love this guy's loyalty to the team, but what he said is definetly right. F' yeah something better happen or he needs to get out! Guy pretty much deserves something from this city, whether it be better players around him or a new home elsewhere. sheeeesh!
That's an unfortunate situation he's in over there in Minny. I've always thought he was one of the classiest, most likeable players in the NBA, and it sucks that someone with his desire, and loyalty would have to go this long without really getting a taste of winning the big game. Management (Kevin McHale) has completely screwed that team over, first with the way they handled the team after they made it to the Western Conference Finals, then with the way they handled their coaching situation. I mean, they were sitting in 8th place when they fired their coach, and since then, they've dropped off drastically. I really think the problems in Minnesota are only going to get worse as long as they have McHale in the front office.
KG is a gamer and it's a shame the Timberwolves have never given him much support teammate-wise. He's always plays w/ heart and he's a great talent. I don't buy all the knocks on him that he can't carry his team. Almost every team that goes deep has at least one other decent star or a good group of role players. And KG brought up a good point about having some solid veterans. Having a rotation of young guys w/ 'potential' who think they know it all is a losing prospect. The fact that they have Ricky Davis AND Mike James is proof enough how lousy McHale is at picking players. I don't know anyone who would ask for two forms of cancer.
Some of the local MN sports columnist have said its a shame they can't trade McHale. Even if they could though his trade value is pretty low. If KG leaves MN I don't think anyone here in Minnesota will blame him. He's done so much for the Twin Cities that most people think if the T-Wolves don't make any improvements he deserves to be somewhere where he can win.
Dude, Kevin McHale #1 GM??? What did Sammy do after the trade? Took the Clippers out of the bottom dungeon. They could have resigned Cassell and added a wing player instead of Spree. But no. They got what they deserved!
What he didn't say is that if he opts out, is that it will be hard for any team in the NBA to come CLOSE to matching the money in his current contract. So not only would it be hard for him to leave Minnesota personally, but financially as well. If he does ask to be traded or to opt out, he will be taking a large financial hit. DD
....yawn.... Stern should force some trades so that KG, Kobe and AI all end up on the same team. Then maybe, just possibly, hopefully....we can stop hearing all the sob stories about how they don't have the talent around them to succeed.
This is exactly why KG is my favorite superstar/player in the whole league. When he asked if only going to the Western Conference finals bothered him, he replied " absolutely ". Most superstars usually reply " it wouldn't really bother me because I did my best, blah blah blah ". No, to KG, it actually matters and I believe him when he says that. This guy loves the game and he has so much heart. He is the anti-Lebron. He knows he makes a lot of money, but at the same time he earns every penny of it to give his fans and the game back the effort they deserve. He and Allen Iverson deserve to be together in their primes. This must happen.
The difference is Kobe had Shaq and Phil and drove them away. Only Phil was stupid enough to come back. Kobe made his own bed.
That's true but KG might not care that much about the money. KG's huge contract did put the Wolves in a hole for awhile but a lot of the personel moves had nothing to do with KG but with McHale's boneheaded management.
I'm well aware of all the Kobe drama. The difference is it's all been forgotten and now Kobe is getting the same free pass that AI and KG have gotten through the years.
