Kevin Garnett is overrated
Posted by arsenalist on April 10, 2007
If the Raptors had lost to Minny last night, it would’ve been totally cool. Fifth game in seven nights, cut them some slack. Down nine in the fourth quarter on the road on the second night of a back-to-back, you got all the reason to pack it in. But they didn’t, they rallied instead and got a mighty impressive win to cut the magic number for clinching third spot in the east to three games. The pressure’s on Miami now.
Anthony Parker and Jose Calderon did the damage in the fourth. Mitchell finally showed some smarts by NOT substituting Jose off in the fourth just because TJ had a good game:
“TJ’s stat line was unbelievable (17 points, 10 assists) but Jose was just playing so well in the fourth quarter, it was hard to take him out”
Why this logic didn’t kick in other times (most recently the Miami game) is a mystery.
Let’s talk about KG: He is overrated. Hear me out, he is a great, great, great second option. He cannot carry/lead a team on his own and all this talk of him not having a good supporting cast is pure trash. He’s been given every opportunity to succeed in Minnesota but hasn’t delivered, mostly because of his sheer inability to score in the clutch. He suffers from extremely poor shot selection and often passes the ball up without any hint of a double team. Last night he was shackled by Bosh/Nesterovic/Humphries to the tune of 7-23 FG and yes he was our primary focus on defense but if you’re considered a great player (and he is by many) you have to come up stronger than that. I always thought KG needed to bulk up and throw his weight around rather than rely on finesse and running up and down the floor trying to be a guard. Dwight Howard can be a better player in this league than KG.
KG’s a hard working player which I would love to have on my team, but to ask him to lead your squad is asking too much of him. He used to take a back seat to Terrell Brandon on the team in terms of leadership and you can’t have that from your franchise player. Sam Cassell was their goto guy when he was there, not KG, he was even behind Latrell Sprewell in the crunch time pecking order for Minny. Great big men live in the paint, they don’t flutter around it bailing out defenses by taking jumpers they want you to take. KG’s not a great jump shooter and for him to rely so much on outside shooting (I consider elbow jumpers outside shooting in this case) is either bad coaching advice or a lack of will to consistently go to the rim.
What else, James Posey was driving drunk and Bonzi Wells is feeling guilty about disrupting team chemistry and decides to do something about it by disrupting it even more. Raptors are making me feel good, check out the highlights from Chasin, here’s the NBA TV recap:
April 11, 2007 at 7:23 pm
kg can’t carry a team. he’s got a HUGE salary but w/c is not commensurate to the results for his team.kg always complain about his weak supporting cast . that’s because your salary eats a lot of the wolves’ cap, duh ! how ’bout giving some of this away.
April 11, 2007 at 8:34 pm
and that is why he wont have a better team then the one he had a couple years ago with sprewell and cassell. when KG is earning $20m it is hard to get another 14 players to share 45 or so, and expect a couple of those to be top tier players.
I think his only chance at a championship is to get teamed up with Kobe Bryant, Paul Pierce, a Chicago trade perhaps (although they would want much of Chicagos team for him). I personally think Minnesota dropped the ball in the A.I. trade, I would have traded anyone Philly wanted to put Iverson and Garnett together.
Calling Kevin Garnett a second option is a bit of a stretch, but I know where you are going with it. Truth be told, he could stand to gain a bit of weight/muscle, and work on crunch time shooting, but he took that team to the conference finals, and he won the MVP. A lot of other players have better situations, and achieve the same results.
April 11, 2007 at 9:20 pm
Paul Pierce??? Raps Fan, I think there’s a better chance of winning a championship if you’re paired with KG than Paul Pierce. IMHO, KG >> Paul Pierce.
The OP is right about KG needing to gain some muscle. The trend of having PFs that dribble the ball is fading out. I prefer the Karl Malone type PF over the KG/Bosh type. That’s just my preference.
April 11, 2007 at 11:19 pm
Sorry Endo, I guess I wasn’t clear. I was just trying to say that Garnett needs a Kobe or a Pierce type player to compliment him, if he wants to win a championship. Just look at all the nba champions of the last 20 years, and you will see that almost every single team, they all had at least two great players.
I prefer the Malone type too. When you have a player who can do a lot of things well, but nothing great, they don’t have that one weapon they can always count on (except maybe pippen, he did a lot of things great).
April 12, 2007 at 2:08 am
dont chris bosh and kg have the same type of game?
April 12, 2007 at 2:17 am
darren, they sort of do. KG has a better inside game than Bosh. But Bosh has a better shot. In my estimation anyways.
April 12, 2007 at 2:23 am
Yeah, but Bosh actually wants the ball in the clutch and doesn’t suck the teams salary cap dry and then complains why they don’t sign players.
They both have similar games but I think Bosh is developing faster than KG and understands how to play with his teammates much better. I can’t tell you the times I’ve seen KG just not produce in the fourth quarter and take brutal to bail out defenses. It took the man 7 years to get out of the first round! Every playoff series he was the same - predictable.
And besides hype around Bosh is a lot less than hype around KG
April 12, 2007 at 3:33 am
i agree!, and bosh shoots less threes, lol
April 15, 2007 at 3:47 pm
This KG blog is the best one I’ve ever read. You guys have hit the nail on the head on so many points…most articles fail to mention even half of KG’s flaws. He’s far better suited as a Pippen than a Jordan. And you’re right on with the Cassell reference…he certainly took most of Minny’s big shots that year. It’s refreshing to see people that pay attention.
April 15, 2007 at 4:50 pm
This is definitely a good string. Cassel has been one of the best clutch shooters in the league since he came on the scene. KG definitely needs guys like Cassel and Sprewel around him. They give him a lot of operating room.
April 18, 2007 at 2:58 am
Wow…coming from a a Raptor fan that has a “Franchise Player” of similar physical attributes that tells me and the rest of the people that have any basketball sense that you don’t do your homework very well. His shot selection may not be the best lately but think about it, who does he have to set him up? Ricky Davis, a streaky shooter who’s first instinct is to score his? Mike James, who if you remember came from your very own Raptors via free agency who also thrives off of his own shooting? Or how about rookie Randy Foye who is still trying to figure out his game not to mention is also all about getting to the rim and not passing? Or how about the oft injured Troy Hudson is probably the streakiest shooter on the team! If we had either of your guards (TJ Ford or Jose Calderon) which are both pass first guards our team would be in a different situation.
On to another point, when we had Cassell and Sprewell, Garnett was, is and will continue to be our go to guy. If you even payed attention to the facts and stats you would know that the year Kevin Garnett won the MVP he also led the league in “Crunch Time” stats. If you’re half the basketball enthusiast you claim to be, you will at least know what that stat is. Now that brings me to this…he IS an MVP. This isn’t a one man game…”it takes five”… and when you have five playing cohesive basketball the wins will obviously come.
Bottom line, take away TJ and Jose and you are in the same boat as the T-Wolves…lots of talent, a great frinchise player but no floor general. Start paying attention..
April 18, 2007 at 5:34 am
I didn’t say Kevin Garnett is a bad player, he’s a good player who is overrated. Bosh is not nearly as hyped as Garnett so the expectations are different. Garnett is considered a SUPERSTAR Big Ticket player, Bosh isn’t.
Whether you like it or not, KG’s shot-selection has always been questionable in the fourth quarter (not just this year) and whenever he’s been matched up against other comparable PFs (Duncan, Wallace, Stoudamire etc) he’s come up short in the playoffs and even regular season crunch time. He had a great MVP year, nobody’s taking anything away from that but remind me again what happened in the playoffs that year?
If you’re telling me KG can only be effective when he has two other all-stars on his team, then that’s not saying much about his individual ability. Remember, this really has nothing to do with Bosh. Bosh has his own flaws but it’s harder to criticize Bosh because he doesn’t suck his teams salary cap dry and then complain about the lack of a supporting cast.
April 20, 2007 at 6:27 pm
Is there anything wrong to be a second option? Or having two “second option” players playing together? Absolutely NOT. For anyone who thinks that KG has got enough help but primarily because of his flaws he has failed in his career, please look at the games without KG. No defense, no inside forces, and even no possiblity to win a game! And we look at the games with Chris Bosh in Raptors. They still win a lot. There’s no huge difference without Chris Bosh.
And can you say that Tim Duncan is definitely the first option? Why do I always see Manu Ginobili stands out when the team needs help? Then how about Dirk Nowizki? Why does the team still win without him but not always without Josh Howard?
Power forwards don’t necessarily score at clutch time. They will sometimes but not always. They leave chances to point guards to finish the job. But they do provide the necessities to win a game: good defense, strong rebounds and some points.
And KG has done them all. If you compare him to Tim Duncan and Dirk Nowizki now, you’ll find out he’s doing exactly what they have been doing, or maybe better many times. It’s really OK for us to see Tim Duncan scores less than 10 points because we will say he provides the necessicities even though he may not have played well. But it’s certainly not OK for KG to score only 10 points in a game because he’s EVERYTHING for wolves.
We have always had high expectations from KG. We expect him to play well in every single game and still deliver wins. But you gotta realise that game was the last one for him this season. There wasn’t any point to play hard; in fact, they played badly deliberately (in my opinion) to get a draft. In this case, this game is meaningless to judge KG’s game.
He might not be as good as what many people are saying, but if you look at his games in January. You’ll figure out he does have all the skills they are talking about. And he has flaws, like many other great players.
June 25, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Garnett would be carrying a team if he played in the East. He is just as talented as Lebron James. He isn’t the scorer James is but he can pass as well and rebound a lot better.
June 29, 2007 at 12:09 am
I know KG is the highest paid player in the league but why does everyone always fault him for that? It’s not like he’s the only player in the league with a huge contract. Hell, players like Jermaine O’Neal, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Tracy McGrady are all getting similar salaries. I don’t hear anyone complaining about those players sucking up cap space. Duncan won a championship but even he had a much better supporting cast; and he’s only getting $3 million less then Garnett. So if it’s possible to surround Duncan with good talent while sucking up cap space, why can’t the Wolves GM do the same for Garnett? So yeah, some of it is on KG’s shoulder but don’t be ignorant and say he’s a second option at best. And about the MVP comparison; just because the Wolves lost in the playoffs during KG’s MVP year doesn’t diminish his abilities. Dirk Nowitzki won the MVP this year and his team lost in the first round. Would you consider him less of a player because of that and call him a second option?
March 26, 2008 at 3:48 pm
Ha, ha
Bosh?
LMAO!!
March 27, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Take a look at the teammates KG has carried to the playoffs and you will be amazed they even got to the playoffs with those lineups. Bosh had it easy in the East. He probably would have never gotten to the playoffs yet in the West.
March 27, 2008 at 12:48 pm
KG is a very good player but he possesses neither the heart or the intelligence to be a truly great player.
March 27, 2008 at 1:00 pm
If you think that then you are truely clueless and there is nothing more to say to anyone who thinks that but wow.
March 27, 2008 at 1:01 pm
I guess all the analysts are wrong and those that gave him the MVP and the fact that everyone has him as a lock for a hall of famer. Give me a break.
March 27, 2008 at 2:08 pm
LOL. This has to be the most ignorant thread on KG I’ve ever seen.
KG is a LIFETIME 20-10-5 guy. The guy who said he plays with no intelligence and heart….you’ve got to be kidding me. Does anyone in the NBA play with more heart than KG??!?
KG has the celts on the verge of having the SINGLE GREATEST SINGLE SEASON TURNAROUND IN NBA HISTORY. Do you comprehend that? The other guys who have that distinction are some old players named Tim Duncan and Larry Bird. Mayve you’ve heard of them. They’ve won a few MVP’s and championships in their day. And KG will finally get his chance. :P
March 27, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Actually this post is very accurate.
Nora - stop reading articles that people get paid to write(if you think any of those people would write a bad word about KG and risk their paycheck..u r nuts) KG has never carried anyone anywhere - he needed Sam and Spree to get anything done.
Carey- im pretty sure Ray Allen and Paul Pierce have something to do with that success. Tim Duncan didn’t do it by himself either nor did Larry Bird.
You guys are just showing how little you know about bball. They gave him the MVP cuz they felt sorry for the guy! How do you not see that?
KG is going to retire as the guy who couldn’t do it on his own and
need to other HOFs. A supporting cast and HOFs are very different things.
BTW - they are not winning the chip this year.. they won’t even make the Finals.
Sure he had great numbers but he is still overrated by a mile
March 27, 2008 at 2:45 pm
You are saying Sam and Spree carried KG? I hope you are kidding. That is just plain ignorant. TThose writers know alot more then some of the posters here. Also of course it seems nobody realizes there is another end of the court besides offense you know a little thing called defense which most have you have yet to mention which pretty much means this argument can be taken with a grain of salt. I suggest you watch a game. So KG should be penalized because every once in a while he has good teammates around him? It didn’t happen very often. Kobe and Shaq should be penalized as well as Tim Duncan then.
March 27, 2008 at 2:55 pm
KG doesn’t need HOFs to win, but as a player would you turn down playing with a few so some ignorant people on some blog think that is the only reason they have a chance to win it all. Kobe and Shaq won championships guess they can’t get it done without a HOF teammate as well. Again, saying the Celtics have no chance to win the championship shows just how little you have actually watched them. A title is not gaurunteed but to say they will not get it based on how they have played so far is ridiculous.
March 27, 2008 at 3:20 pm
I did mention that Duncan and Larry should be penalized. So should Kobe and Shaq. Bottom line NO ONE does it on their own. Some do it with less talented players, others (like KG) need HOFs. THAT he has proven!
I have watched a lot of Boston - my girl loves KG, but even she is smart enough to know that he is not tough, he is not clutch and is not a playoff performer.
I never said they never had a chance - I said its not happening this year.
I never said they carried him I said he needed their help.
WOW you really need to learn how to read and comprehend what you are reading.
BTW those writer GET PAID to write nice stuff about the team they are covering; - don’t forget that.
March 27, 2008 at 3:30 pm
KG gets bounced out of the first round 7 YEARS IN A ROW.. gets Sam and Spree goes to the Conference Finals.. then he doesn’t even make the playoff for 2 YEARS..
yes those are stats of a real SUPERSTAR playoff performer and
yeah he didn’t need Spree and Sam - not at all.. u r right!
March 27, 2008 at 3:33 pm
KG get bounced out 7 years in a row look at thbe teammates around him–most not even close to decent teammates. Nothing like what most stars had around them like Duncan, Dirk Shaq and Kobe had around them. That is a fact.
March 27, 2008 at 3:37 pm
oh so now you are going to blame the talent around him - proving even more how not great he is.
You just proved my point - he only looked so good and got all those stat cuz everybody around him SUCKED! DUH! how is not gonna get all the stats. IF he looked good around HOFs you would have a case about him being great. Shit, I can look great playing with 7 year olds
also name one DEFENSIVE play that anyone remembers where pple were like..YO! did you see KG? DAAAM!
you know like… Tay on Reggie.. like Lue shutting down AI… anything like that - U CANT? u know why? cuz it neve happened
March 27, 2008 at 3:38 pm
KG finally got some decent teammates around him should not mean that Sam and Spree carried the team, he finally got help–which all superstars need. KG getting to the playoffs with most of those teammates for 7 years was impressive.
March 27, 2008 at 3:39 pm
What talent around him? And I guess that means Duncan, Kobe and Shaq all needed talent around them too doesn’t it? Give me a break!
March 27, 2008 at 3:39 pm
Did LeBron have crazy talent to go the conference finals? NO!
Did he take out DETROIT on his own? YES!
KG sucks face it!
March 27, 2008 at 3:41 pm
OMG I NEVER SAID SPREE AND SAM CARRIED HIM WHEN DID I SAY THAT
we will never know if those guys did or not … but we do know KG did
March 27, 2008 at 3:44 pm
actually KOBE proved he needed other dudes after Shaq left
Shaq need DWade
Tim need Robinson/Tony
Do you even know anything about basketball or do you just read the articles and then argue based on what you read?
March 27, 2008 at 3:47 pm
Flux go ahead in live in your ignorant world. Those players all needed help too if not they would just be surrounded by inexpensive role players unfortunately KG did not happen onto a team that put that much talent around him most of the time.
March 27, 2008 at 3:58 pm
All i hear is a bunch of excuses for KG when the simple fact is he is overrated.
You keep drinking that Boston newspaper “we gonna win it all” juice.
March 28, 2008 at 2:47 am
82games.com just put up the by-quarter stats of the top-200 or so
In terms of the Celtics, here’s a partial list:
Paul Pierce: 4.6 ppg, 35.8% shooting
Ray Allen: 4.0 ppg, 42.0% shooting
Kevin Garnett: 3.8 ppg, 50.3% shooting
Eddie House: 3.3 ppg, 42.1% shooting
James Posey: 3.3 ppg, 47.6% shooting
Tony Allen: 2.6 ppg, 47.4% shooting
Rajon Rondo: 2.0 ppg, 41.7% shooting
Oh he clearly is dragging everyone down in the 4th quarter with his chokingisn’t hew. Ylou are just drinking the clearly We hate KG based on overexaggeration of KG choking and that is the only reason that you can come up with that the C’s won’t win it all. Yes, the C’s have no chance they only have the best record by a good margin of just about any team–esp in the East. Not saying there is no chance they will fail to win it all but to say they have no chance is silly and anyone with a clue can figure that out. Goodbye to you and you clear delusions of reality.
March 28, 2008 at 7:13 am
You can throw all the stats around that you want. Remember me when you are lying in a heap of sorrow after the Cs get bounced.
Remember what happened to Dirk last year?
Ummm yeah thanxs!
March 28, 2008 at 7:15 am
You can throw all the stats around that you want. Remember me when you are lying in a heap of sorrow after the Cs get bounced.
Remember what happened to Dirk last year?
Remember what happened to Detroit when they won 60 games?
Ummm yeah thanxs!
March 28, 2008 at 9:02 am
Nora, You are wasting your time even engaging flux. Clearly he hates KG. He is basically a blog terrorist. His view or nothing.
March 28, 2008 at 10:02 am
HAHA Blue that is funny!
I don’t hate KG or not read other ppls comments.
I just look at the situation for what it is. Meaning, I don’t sit here and call KG something that he is not… his record speaks for itself.
Your friend:
a) doesn’t know how to read… cuz she’s accused me of saying things
I never said.
b) is wearing pink glasses re: KG. IMO!
C) didn’t even consider that i have a valid point
so… it’s more like her view or nothing… plus if you don’t know how to debate or argue.. u shouldn’t do it all.
Good luck with Boston.. be sure to come back to Arsenalist’s blog once they LOSE this year! ;-P