What was already somewhat expected before the NBA season started became reality today as reports state Kevin Garnett and the Minnesota Timberwolves have reached a buyout for the final year of his contract which signals his retirement announcement will be coming at any moment. The contract settlement was first reported by The Star Tribune.
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The news comes just a few days before the Wolves open training camp with new coach, Tom Thibodeau. Garnett, 40, had one year worth $8 million remaining on his contract with the Timberwolves.
Garnett leaves Minnesota, for a second time, having played 970 of his career 1,462 games here, having scored 19,201 of his 26,071 points and grabbing 10,718 of his 14,662 rebounds in a Timberwolves uniform.
Garnett became the first player in 20 years to go directly from high school to the NBA when the Wolves drafted the 19-year-old out of Chicago’s Farragut Academy.
KG, or simply “The Kid” was the face of the franchise and is one of the most beloved athletes in the history of any pro team in the state of Minnesota. The 2003-04 season was the best in team history as KG guided them to the western conference finals and won the league MVP award. Besides winning the MVP that season, he won defensive player of the year in 2008 and was a 15 time all-star.
Sadly after that year things went downhill and the team slowly returned to the team they were before Garnett became the player he was. He was able to win a championship with the Celtics and then had moderate success with the Brooklyn Nets before waiving his no-trade clause to end it all back where it started. He had become more of a mentor for guys like Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, more than an actual contributor on the court.
He will definitely be missed and he will be a sure thing first ballot hall of famer. Expect the press conference within the next couple days.
