They were a franchise in desperate need of a jolt as the summer of 2007 began.
The Celtics had missed the NBA playoffs for the ninth time in 14 years, going 24-58 in the 2006-07 season. Paul Pierce was frustrated, and there were rumors about both him and coach Doc Rivers possibly exiting Boston.
Then came draft night when president of basketball operations Danny Ainge made a deal to acquire one of the best shooters in the game, Ray Allen. It was a nice addition, but [...]
They were a franchise in desperate need of a jolt as the summer of 2007 began.
The Celtics had missed the NBA playoffs for the ninth time in 14 years, going 24-58 in the 2006-07 season. Paul Pierce was frustrated, and there were rumors about both him and coach Doc Rivers possibly exiting Boston.
Then came draft night when president of basketball operations Danny Ainge made a deal to acquire one of the best shooters in the game, Ray Allen. It was a nice addition, but hardly the kind of transaction to fully transform such a bad team.
But in late July, the move that shook up the Celtics was finalized.
Kevin Garnett, looking to part ways with the Minnesota Timberwolves after 12 seasons, brought his enthusiasm and intensity to a franchise that had dropped near the bottom of the NBA.
Instantly, everything changed for the Celtics with Garnett, Pierce and Allen together.
The way things were done changed with Garnett setting the tone, and the Celtics won their first championships in 22 years in June 2008. They might have won a second straight had Garnett not injured his knee in February 2009, then they dropped Game 7 in Los Angeles to the Lakers in 2010.
Garnett was the leader by example and with his brash talk, and the Celtics were revived during his six seasons in Boston.
The ultimate teammate, Garnett is headed into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in late August after being part of an illustrious class that was revealed on Saturday. Garnett is going to be inducted with the late Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan plus six others.
“It's the culmination,'' said Garnett while appearing on ESPN with Pierce. “You put countless hours into this. You dedicate yourself to a craft. You take no days off. You play through injury. You play through demise. You play through obstacles. You give no excuses for anything. You learn, you build.
“All those hours of everything you've ever put in, this is what you do it for. To be able to be called Hall of Famer is everything.''
Garnett played less than one-third of his career in Boston, appearing in 396 games and averaging 15.7 points and seven rebounds. He was the defensive player of the year in 2007-08 and a most valuable player while in Minnesota.
The Celtics are going to retire Garnett's No. 5 next season, showing the kind of impact he had on the franchise in those six years.
“Playing with Paul, playing with Ray, coming to Boston was a huge, huge, huge, huge, huge, huge, huge challenge in my life,'' said Garnett. “It was probably one of the biggest decisions I made in my career and I'm glad I made it.
“We should have gotten together a couple of years earlier and we'd probably be sitting with two or three more rings.''
Rivers said during his stay with the Celtics that he considered himself fortunate to be able to coach Garnett and that every NBA coach should have the opportunity to do so.
That is the kind of teammate Garnett was, an unselfish superstar who always cared more about the team's success rather than any numbers.
“I think he was a great teammate,'' said Rivers earlier this year. “I don't think that gets enough play. He was a phenomenal teammate. He was all about winning. His IQ was incredible. It was off the charts.
“I've often said about him that he's the greatest superstar role player ever. He was a superstar, but he played his role for the team anyway. He changed the culture of this franchise, he really did.
“We needed a guy like that to come to the franchise, and he did that and it's still here. It hasn't left since. That was all Garnett.''
Allen went into the Hall of Fame in 2018 and Pierce is eligible to join him and Garnett a year from now.
The three gave new life to the Celtics starting in 2007 and added another banner to the rafters after more than two decades without one, and it was Garnett being the tone setter.
“Everybody knows his intensity. This did not start in the NBA,'' said Pierce on ESPN. “I had a chance to play with him (as juniors in high school). I've never seen someone just so passionate for the game.
“Every second he stepped on the court, it meant something. He went as hard as he could. He never cheated the game. He gave everything he could every single second.''
jfenton@enterprisenews.com
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