Celtics Fans Honor Kevin Garnett During His Potentially-Final Appearance In Boston

At this point in his career, Kevin Garnett isn’t exactly lighting up the score sheet. But that didn’t matter, nor did the fact that he now plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves, when he returned to Boston’s T.D Garden on Monday.

While the Timberwolves planned to give Garnett some rest in the second leg of a back-to-back, the Boston crowd wouldn’t allow it. Almost as soon as the game began, they began chanting “We want KG.”

Minnesota coach Sam Mitchell would not comply. Late in the fourth quarter, with their hero still on the bench, the crowd began to chant “Thank you, KG!” Garnett, who spent six years with the Celtics, helped Boston win their 17th championship as as part of the ‘Big Three’ with Rajon Rondo and Paul Pierce.

But when Celtics coach Brad Stevens called a time out in the final minutes, the crowd still got a chance to acknowledge Garnett. During the stoppage, the Celtics played the “Gino Time” clip that once celebrated Boston victories. Garnett walked onto the court and thanked the crowd, who greeted him with a standing ovation.

“Boston’s always been a special place in my heart and probably always will,” Garnett said after the game. “Tonight, although the outcome wasn’t the way I wanted it to be, it was a great homecoming. It felt really good to be in the building.”

“[Gino] was like the cherry on top for me, you know?” he continued. “My teammates were looking at me like, ‘What is this?’ I was like, ‘I’ll explain later.’ So thank you for whoever put the Gino on. I know my guys here put it on for me, so I appreciate that.”

“I just want to say thank you all for all the appreciation tonight,” he concluded. “I’m out of here, man. On that note, I’m exiting. I’ll see you guys later. Let me out of here. I’ll see you guys later. Thank you all, man. I appreciate you, Boston. See how you just blew that whole thing, right? We outta here.”

 

Photo: Kevin Garnett by Michael E. Lee via Flickr Commons.