NBA gossip volume would plunge without speculation Kevin Garnett will play elsewhere next season. A rumored destination continues to be Los Angeles where the Lakers offer a trade package including 19-year-old center Andrew Bynum.
The problem with the move Garnett idea is that invariably the proposed transaction involves unproven players and draft choices. Why trade by far your best player, an NBA superstar, for the unknown? Not to mention Garnett has high performance production left in his 30-year-old body and is basketball ticket selling ATTRACTION No. 1 in Minneapolis.
NBA trade history shows the teams receiving the superstars benefit, not the ones giving them up. Two of the NBA’s most savvy deal makers, Jerry West and Red Auerbach, formed championship teams by exchanging good players for great ones.
With the NBA season ending tonight, Garnett is on the verge of leading the league in rebounding for a fourth consecutive year. He’s averaged almost 13 per game. He’s totaled 22.4 points per game. Both his rebound and season averages are similar to his best past numbers, an indication he still plays at a high level.
Head coach Randy Wittman admires Garnett’s durability. “Knock on wood, he’s been blessed with a pretty healthy career,” Wittman said. “He’s logged a lot of minutes but he hasn’t had anything where he’s missed half a year, or he’s missed 25 games. …I think he’s got a lot left in the tank. …He improves every year. He adds something to his game that makes him harder to play against.”
Does Wittman think Garnett can play at a high level for a long time? “Absolutely,” Wittman said. “He’s shown nothing where I’ve looked at him and said, ‘Boy, he’s lost a little bit here, he’s lost a little bit there.’ Nothing.”
Garnett’s career numbers in total points, rebounds and assists are keeping company now with former NBA greats. He is one of five players in league history to come up with 19,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, and 4,000 assists in his career. The others are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Wilt Chamberlain and Charles Barkley. Garnett’s totals are 19,041 points (20.5 per game), 10,542 rebounds (11.4 per game), and 4,146 assists (4.5 per game).
What does it say about Garnett? “It’s amazing to be honest with you,” Wittman said. “No. 1 the consistency of doing it is incredible. That’s why he’s the player he is. All those things show you different things in a guy and his unselfishness. His rebounding, leading the league again, that’s not an easy thing. He plays the game the right way and it shows when you mention numbers like that.”