KG Goes Off
March 12th, 2006 by SBG
I wrote the previous post before I read the Strib account of the post game tirade by KG.
Bursting from the glass-enclosed training room immediately next to the dressing area in the visitors' locker room, Garnett blistered several Wolves teammates for taking the loss, in his view, too lightly. About a half-dozen players were packing up and at least two reporters were in the room when Garnett, peeved by what he saw as casualness and no doubt frustrated 62 games into the franchise's worst season since his rookie year, profanely and loudly scolded their attitude, then slammed the door as he went back into the training room.
[snip]
"I'm looking for the right word here. ... I don't like to speak from a frustrated mind," Garnett said. "But you're playing one of the best teams in the damn league and you're not hyped, you're not up. The atmosphere in here is like we won. [This stuff] hurts, y'know what I mean?
"I really hate ... I try to keep things in house, but there's a certain tone [we need] in there, man, and we're going to keep that. And if you can't [abide] by the tone, you won't be here. You won't play. I don't sign nobody's checks, but you've got to be prepared and ready to play, man. I don't know, as a team every night, whether we're ready to do that. The focus is, it's got to hurt when you lose. I don't know if it's like that."
The question, of course, is whether the team will respond to that. KG has earned the right to chew ass, no question.
This entry was posted by SBG on Sunday, March 12th, 2006 at 7:15 am and is filed under Uncategorized. It is one of 2465 entries by the author. We are no longer accepting Letters to the Editor on this post.
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TwinsJunkie replied on March 12, 2006 at 6:58:05 pm
Without a doubt. Unfortunately, I think everyone knows they won't respond. It's not in their nature.
Nick N. replied on March 13, 2006 at 1:23:52 pm
Pfft... KG is averaging 4.5 points in the 4th quarter this year. Why doesn't he step up in the clutch and then whine about the team losing.
ubelmann replied on March 13, 2006 at 6:34:26 pm
"Pfft… KG is averaging 4.5 points in the 4th quarter this year. Why doesn’t he step up in the clutch and then whine about the team losing."
Well, first off, in order to get to the fourth quarter, he has to carry 11 guys on his back. Then, once he's there, is 4.5 points really that low? That would be an average of 18 ppg, which is less surprising since KG probably gets more attention in the form of double-teams and such in the fourth quarter.
Garnett shouldn't always have to be the one who saves the team. It is a team after all.
SBG replied on March 13, 2006 at 8:21:49 pm
Don't forget that he usually rests about 4 or 5 minutes of the fourth quarter.
Nick N. replied on March 14, 2006 at 12:12:21 am
That's fine. KG's production is alright for a good player, but I'm tired of people saying he's an elite, dominant player who can carry a team. Kobe and LeBron get double-teamed and carry their teams all game, yet they aren't disappearing in the fourth quarter constantly. KG always has. Maybe he should step up and do something in the clutch like the great ones do, and then complain about his team's attitude.
ubelmann replied on March 14, 2006 at 7:34:55 pm
Kobe and Bron-Bron don't pull down 12 boards per game, either. I imagine it's tougher to work through double-teams after you've been exerting that much effort rebounding. There's more than one way to help carry your team.