Kevin Garnett Plays It Close to the Vest—and Heart

 Boston  No Responses »
Jun 202012
 

If you want to know what Rajon Rondo is thinking, ask OKC Thunder center Kendrick Perkins what he is thinking.

If you want to know what Kevin Garnett is thinking, ask his former Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders, who worked the postseason as a special observer for the Boston Celtics.

Saunders joins the list of key people who have no worry or concern on where KG will be next year.

When Perkins stumbles to find the words “Fountain of Youth,” to describe Kevin Garnett, you can almost see him recalling his last phone call with Rondo.

The wheels of Perk’s mind don’t turn too far without a push from his favorite point guard—and we don’t mean Russell Westbrook.

Perkins informed any media that deigned to listen that KG would play for no other coach except Doc Rivers. And that tidbit is the end of the story, folks. Flip Saunders seconded that emotion.

Whether Rondo is now working the Celtics hotline is unclear, but we suspect he is talking to Garnett.  KG may be a perfect match for his beloved “Shorty” in the mercurial department.

Years ago in Minnesota, KG fairly gave up on listening to his heart in terms of teammates. When Stephan Marbury up and left the team without looking back, Garnett was stunned at how easily that emotional tie was cut. Garnett’s loyalty was not so quickly altered.

When teammate and best friend Malik Sealy died in a car crash, KG may have taken it harder than anyone realized. He kept his distance from player pals after that, and he became more of a Malibu recluse on the order of Kim Novak at the Big Sur.

Rondo may have sent the balance back to deeper feelings and more binding ties for Garnett.

Apart from a fleeting amusement with Shaq on the Celtics last season, the lanky Garnett has remained a bona fide mystery man. He is also closer to Rondo than any teammate in a decade.

Just ask Kendrick Perkins or Flip Saunders.

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Flip Saunders: Kevin Garnett Will Re-Sign with the Boston Celtics

 Boston  No Responses »
Jun 182012
 

Kevin Garnett will re-sign with the Boston Celtics this offseason according to Flip Saunders, who served as an adviser to Doc Rivers throughout the Celtics playoff run this season.

Saunders, who was previously Garnett’s head coach with the Minnesota Timberwolves, told Sid Hartman of the Minnesota Star Tribune he is “positive” Garnett will re-up with the Celtics. Hartman did not elaborate on whether Garnett told Saunders that directly of if he is simply basing it on Garnett’s behaviors he observed while serving in his role with the Celtics.

Saunders was around the team about as much as he could be, sitting in on just about every team meeting, coach’s meeting and player’s meeting; so Saunders’ opinion is more than that of your casual observer.  

Other teams, such as the San Antonio Spurs, have also been reportedly interested in Garnett’s services, as reported by Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News, but if Saunders is correct, it seems they are out of the running already.  

The re-signing of Garnett is likely the No. 1 priority for the Celtics this offseason, so if he is indeed on board, that would be be one less thing for the team to worry about and would allow them to move on to other possible acquisitions and re-signings.

The Celtics have many other decisions to make with players like Ray Allen, Jeff Green and Brandon Bass—all of whom will be free agents come July.

 

Kyle Cormier is a New England Patriots featured columnist for Bleacher Report. You can also find him by following him on Twitter @KyleJCormier or on BostonSportsRadio.net.

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Wittman to return as Wizards’ coach (Reuters)

 Minnesota  No Responses »
Jun 042012
 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Randy Wittman will return as head coach of the Washington Wizards next season to provide some stability for the once-proud franchise, the team said Monday. Wittman was named interim coach in January when Flip Saunders was fired after the team’s 2-15 start. Under Wittman the Wizards were 18-31, winning eight of their final 10 games. “We are excited to bring Randy back as head coach and give him the opportunity to build on the positive momentum that the team showed under his leadership last season,” Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld said in a statement. …

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Andray Blatche on his bad year: ‘It was all me.’ ()

 Washington  No Responses »
Mar 232012
 

Washington Wizards forward Andray Blatche entered the season with postseason hopes and the potential to take his game to an All-Star level in his seventh NBA season. Instead, his Wizards have fallen miserably, costing former coach Flip Saunders his job, and Blatche is making just 38 percent of his shots from the floor as the boos come crashing down. It’s unclear if poor conditioning was the cause of Blatche’s recent calf injury, but it’s been the cause of most of his frustrations since the season (unexpectedly, we presume) started in December, and Blatche will be on the shelf until he’s in NBA shape again .
Andray, to his credit, is pointing the finger squarely at himself. Which is impressive, because fingers are round. In a discussion with Carla Peay of the Washington Times, Blatche sounds off on his year gone wrong :
“I have nobody to blame for my bad year. It was all me,” Blatche said. He understands why the fans have been so rough on him this year, and why he gets booed almost from the moment he steps on the court.

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NBA Rumors: 5 Coaches That Will Be out of Work Before the Season Ends

 Rumors  No Responses »
Mar 222012
 

Between the disappointment of a losing season and the desire to start anew, it’s an annual tradition in the NBA to see head coaches go from the hot seat to the chopping block. In the summer of 2012, don’t expect anything different.

With Mike D’Antoni stepping down as the coach of the New York Knicks, as well as Flip Saunders and Paul Westphal being fired by their respective teams, the tone has been set. For those whose job requirements have yet to be fulfilled, it’s act fast or leave quickly.

In some cases, the chance of such a turnaround is so out of the question that their bags should already be packed.

Here’s who they are.

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NBA Trade Rumors: 6 Deals That Will Go Down Before Deadline

 Rumors  No Responses »
Jan 312012
 

Just because we have a condensed NBA season does not mean that we’ll have less goings-on in the basketball world.  There’s still just as much to do, only this year there’s less time to get it done. 

Not one team has been complacent to ride out the lockout-shortened season with malfunctioning parts, just ask Flip Saunders. 

As the trade deadline looms, teams are shining their search lights on players who could come cheap and be able to provide an immediate impact. While players like Andre Iguodala and Steve Nash have been mentioned in passing, there are far more likely candidates out there looking to make a move before we reach the trade deadline. 

While there will be plenty of mitigating and haggling over salary, contract length and expected minutes played, I’d like to shine my own light on five trades that will happen before the deadline.  

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Andray Blatche Stares Down His Coach After Making a Shot

 Rumors  No Responses »
Jan 312012
 

Unbelievable. Andray Blatche had already lost his credibility, the respect and trust of his teammates, and the support of the fans. Now, he’s lost his class.

Early in the second quarter of a Saturday game against the Charlotte Bobcats, the overweight, out-of-shape, and underachieving Andray Blatche made a lay-up and shot a look of distain at his new head coach, Randy Wittman.

It is unknown why Blatche stared down his coach, but he could be upset that he has seen a large decrease in his minutes. Blatche has been taken out of the starting lineup in favor of the rookie Jan Vesely, who has started the last three games.

After the stare-down, Blatche was immediately taken out of the game by Wittman, and was benched for the remainder of the game.

Andray Blatche is known for his temper tantrums, rebelliousness towards authority and a lack of respect for his coaches. Ultimately, his lack of improvement under Flip Saunders was one of the reasons why Saunders was let go so early in the season.

This is not the first time Blatche has clashed with his coaches. During the 2010 season, Blatche was taken out of a game in March and was questioned by Flip Saunders about his reluctance to get back on defense. Blatche became upset, and when Saunders asked him to re-enter the game, he refused, and sat for the remainder of the game.

Blatche was removed from the starting lineup after his lackluster performance at home against the Charlotte Bobcats, in which he was outplayed and thoroughly embarrassed by forward Tyrus Thomas, who blocked his shot so much that the Wizards bench began laughing at their own teammate.

Blatche is now out three-to-five weeks with a strained calf, and Washington fans’ patience with him is wearing awfully thin. If this stunt is any indication, Blatche is the center of this team’s poor effort, immaturity, selfishness and lack of accountability.

Andray Blatche has been the biggest disappointment on the Washington Wizards this season, after analysts predicted a breakout season for the seventh-year man out of South Kent Prep. He is down in every statistical category from last season and is shooting just 38% from the field, which is incredibly pathetic for a power forward.

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A Few Ways the Wizards Can Turn Around a Slow Start to the 2011-12 NBA Season

 Rumors  No Responses »
Jan 262012
 

With the unexpected firing of coach Flip Saunders earlier in the week, one of my main ideas for turning around the season had been completed.  

The Wizards blogosphere lit up with questions about the significance of the firing and how it would affect the progression of the rebuild that Ted and Ernie have been preaching since their union only two years ago. 

Ultimately, Saunders is a good coach with a proven track record, but his career was marred by unfortunate circumstances in D.C.  

He was first brought in to coach a veteran playoff team, but after the whirlwind that was GunGate, got stuck with the responsibilities of trying to manage one of the youngest teams in the league.  

Knowing now that assistant coach Randy Wittman will take the reins for the rest of the season, there were a few things I took away from his first game that would help jump start the team for the rest of the season.  

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Fantasy Basketball: Washington Wizards’ Jordan Crawford Heating Up

 Rumors  No Responses »
Jan 262012
 

Washington Wizards guard Jordan Crawford has eight double-digit scoring efforts in his past 10 games. The other two he went for nine points, giving him a 13.7 PPG scoring average during the stretch. He’s been particularly hot over his past six games averaging 15.2 PPG.

He’s been helping out in other categories as well, averaging 3.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 0.7 steals and 1.0 three-pointers per game during his past six games. While he hasn’t shot extremely well (44.4 percent) during the stretch, it is an improvement considering he’s shooting below 40.0 percent on the year.

While even his hot streak isn’t comparable to last April and May when he averaged 19.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.2 three-pointers in 18 starts, he can be a productive option. He was averaging nearly 40 minutes per game in those starts.

Barring injury, he won’t come close to that amount of playing time, but as long as he’s averaging 20-plus minutes, he can be a spot starter.

Obviously a lot will depend on how he’s used by Randy Wittman, who surprisingly landed the head coach position despite a horrible track record.

Wittman went with a very balanced line in the battle of the have-nots last night. Ten players played at least 19 minutes and one more (Trevor Booker) checking in at nine minutes.

Given the way Wittman’s good friend Flip Saunders was run out of town, Wittman could just be looking to see who shows a spark. Interesting times ahead in the nation’s capital.

Just remember, even bad teams often supply unlikely fantasy options.

 

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