Udonis Haslem Waited Years to Rip Kevin Garnett, Accusing Celtics Legend of Fueling Decades-Old Beef

Kevin Garnett’s brutal trash talk during his time in the NBA is something that his opponents will not forget easily. Even after retirement, a few veterans hold a grudge against the Big Ticket for crossing the line on the court. One of them is Miami Heat icon Udonis Haslem, who is not a fan of Garnett, even though it has been several years since they bid farewell to the game. Haslem has always wanted to hold KG accountable for his unfiltered trash talk. However, can you believe he waited nearly a decade for that? 

In his recent interview with ESPN’s Stephen. A. Smith, Haslem looked back into his rivalry with Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics. He revealed, “I’m from a place where the things that you say out of your mouth, you got to be held accountable. We all know KG say some crazy s*** out of his mouth sometimes. I was waiting for retirement to hold his a** accountable.” 

As mentioned above, Haslem has called out Garnett several times after his retirement, and at times even before. In 2022, during his final year for the Miami Heat, he shared about Garnett, “Much respect to the career that Kevin Garnett had…But the s*** that come out his mouth sometime ain’t got nothing to do with basketball and is the most disrespectful s*** I ever heard in my life.”

Though KG hadn’t remarked anything against Haslem, in particular, that fueled the beef, it was the Celtics’ star’s words against his teammates that usually fired him up. The former forward just stepped up for his teammates. Thus, he certainly isn’t the only one carrying a grudge against Garnett.

Several veterans have disliked Garnett for his trash talk. If you are still wondering how badly the Boston Celtics icon crossed the line, here is an encounter that Charlie Villanueva had with KG. 

Kevin Garnett’s “Cancer patient” claim on Charlie Villanueva 

There is a fine line between trash talk and disrespect. In most instances, Garnett has only disrespected his opponents. One such is the occasion with former Dallas Mavericks star Charlie Villanueva, who tweeted his experience of a wild encounter with Garnett 

Villanueva tweeted, “KG called me a cancer patient, I’m pissed because, u know how many people died from cancer, and he’s tossing it like it’s a joke.” Now you understand why most players hate the 20008 champion. Even Carmelo Anthony had a few words about Garnett earlier when he was in the NBA.

Anthony said, “There’s just certain things that you just don’t say to another man,” about Garnett after he shared some disrespectful remarks about his ex-wife La La Anthony. Haslem will not go easy on Garnett in the near future. But he did share that he is willing to mature in this rivalry, and leave the beef behind. He says he did not throw up during his visit to the Boston Garden recently where the Celtics had won a championship – a progress he highlights. 

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the Reese-Clark rivalry and more, watch this video: