Out of the four remaining teams in the postseason, two are heavy favorites to go all the way: the Boston Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves. Kevin Garnett has played with both but won a championship with one of them. The Boston Celtics have a strong chance of repeating what KG accomplished in 2008. You’d think Garnett is stuck between a rock and a hard place but he’s leaning towards the Celtics because of the squad they are. Stephen A. Smith may have thought he had a gotcha moment when he posed the question to Garnett. But he had some firm conviction in what the Celtics are made up of.
“I actually think the Boston Celtics are built for the future. They are built for the next three to four years,” KG told Smith. With Jayson Tatum on the roster, Boston has been looking robust and dominant. However, some critics claimed Boston has been fighting off shorthanded rosters and won’t stand against the teams in the West like Minnesota.
Garnett refuses to believe they’re soft. Not with that roster. “All the pieces they got, they can actually, Stephen A., they have the potential to where I feel like they can actually go one two three…” Rings, he believes.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
What makes him so confident? With the biggest stars of the 2010s, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Steph Curry not in the Conference Finals, the league is shifting to a new order. There is chatter about the vacuum open for a new dynasty, and maybe Boston could be back in that talk. The Celtics not only have a relatively younger roster, but they also have the experience to learn from mistakes and come back stronger. No other team, per the Boston legend, has a young team with a body of experience like this one.
At the same time, “It’s Boston’s to lose, it’s the Celtics to lose.” Because the Celtics have a lot going in their favor and it would be disastrous if they squander it.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Kevin Garnett’s Celtics have a lot to prove
A criticism dogging the Celts this season is that they’ve been dominant against teams that are shorthanded from multiple injuries like the Miami Heat. In the West, potential contenders like the Wolves and Mavs are just as strong. Some critics think Boston won’t stand a chance against them. But KG was insistent that Boston is, “by no means soft at all,” last week.
This time, KG admitted to Smith that Boston did have a compelling but relatively easy path to the playoffs. He sees the series against the Indiana Pacers as a test for the Celtics to prove their dominance.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
As for picking sides between the team that started it and the team he won a championship with, he’s still a little vague. But he has these reasons to favor the Boston Celtics.