
In a surprise announcement Thursday, we learned that NBA legend Kevin Garnett is going to have his number retired.
But no, it wasn't his number 21. And no, the announcement didn't come from the the Timberwolves — the franchise for which he played about two-thirds of his career games, including the first 12 of his career.
Instead, it was the Celtics, who are retiring KG's number 5 sometime during the 2020-21 season in a tribute to Garnett's six seasons in Boston — which included in 2008 the franchise's first championship since 1986.
Garnett tweeted shortly thereafter: "I'm honored and thankful to have my number retired with the Celtics. I will always have immense respect and appreciation for ownership, Danny Ainge, Doc Rivers, my past teammates and Celtic Nation!"
You can read that however you choose — as nothing more than a sincere appreciation of the Celtics or a combination of that and lingering bad feelings Garnett has with some key stakeholders in Minnesota.
I wrote a few months ago about how it was long overdue for Garnett's No. 21 to hang in the Target Center rafters. Garnett presided over the most successful (and the only successful) sustained stretch in franchise history, which included eight consecutive playoff berths, a trip to the Western Conference Finals and an MVP award.
My sense a few months back was that while there seemed to be some signs of the relationship between Garnett and the Wolves being repaired — helped when Tom Thibodeau, who helped nudge KG out the second time, was fired and replaced by Ryan Saunders, son of Flip (who was one of Garnett's biggest allies) — there was still a fissure.
And that the hesitation in retiring Garnett's No. 21 here was being driven more by the player than the organization.