http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/4474 Recent articles about Kevin Garnett en-us The championship game of DraftNation's Keep Your Picks tournament has arrived. Each team has shown their star power and strong benches on their road to the final game, but now they must slug it out so in the big one so we can crown a champion. Kevin Garnett earned his championship ring this year and LeBron earned a gold medal -- but now the title they both truly want (or maybe not so much): Keep Your Picks champion. This should be a close contest, and Zach Bowers and BJ Pickard are here to sort out the details and let you know who will have the advantage. Thu, 04 Sep 2008 07:41:32 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/318301 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/318301 Last season the Atlantic Division was home to the NBA Champion Boston Celtics. While they are the favorites, the gap is closing and the division is getting better. Boston may be the favorite, but the Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors are moving in the right direction and the New Jersey Nets and New York Knicks are getting better as well. While the division might not be the best, its still the northeast, so lets take a look at the 12 best players in the division. Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:43:57 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/317187 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/317187 There are still questions about how Monta Ellis really injured his ankle, and one of the biggest is whether the Warriors are investigating it or not. First there was the report that the Warriors had sent their athletic trainer to investigate his injury. Then it was reported that said athletic trainer was actually with Basketball Without Borders and not even in the country. The Contra Costa Times quoted team sources that they were skeptical about Ellis' explanation about his injury but the Warriors aren't commenting beyond the fact that the athletic trainer was not sent to Mississippi to investigate. I am sure there is more on this to come. In conjunction with the Monta Ellis discussion, Hoopsworld has a portion of the Collective Bargaining agreement that is pretty interesting. It tells what players can and can't do. Players can't gosky-diving, hang gliding, snow skiing, rock or mountain climbing, rappelling, and bungee jumping. They can't participate in any fighting, boxing, or wrestling, operating an aircraft, driving or riding on a motorcycle or moped or riding in or on any motorized vehicle in any kind of race. They also can't participate in any game or exhibition of basketball, football, baseball, hockey, lacrosse, or other team sport or competition without permission of their team. They can, however participate in golf, tennis, handball, swimming, hiking, softball, and volleyball as an amateur. I love the last paragraph, though: The Player agrees: (i) to give his best services, as well as his loyalty, to the Team, and to play basketball only for the Team and its assignees; (ii) to be neatly and fully attired in public; (iii) to conduct himself on and off the court according to the highest standards of honesty, citizenship, and sportsmanship; and (iv) not to do anything that is materially detrimental or materially prejudicial to the best interests of the Team or the League. Remember Yuta Tabuse? I didn't think so. Tabuse is the only Japanese player to play in the NBA. He played in 4 games for the Suns in the 2004-05 season. Tabuse started out playing for the Dallas Mavericks in the Los Angeles Summer League and but ended up in camp with the Denver Nuggets. He also spent time with several teams in the D-League and this summer he played with the New Jersey Nets in the Orlando Summer League. He hasn't gotten any offers from NBA teams and he announced on Sunday that he signed a 2 year contract with Japan Basketball League's expansion Link Tochigi Brex. His dream is still to one day play in the NBA, however. The "experts" at ESPN are at it again as they decide the season's awards. It seems that they have a 4 way race for MVP between LeBron, Chris Paul, Kobe and Dwyane Wade with LeBron coming out on top. Doesn't leading your team to a championship count for anything? Not even one vote for KG or Paul Pierce. The top 3 for Rookie of the Year are Michael Beasley, Greg Oden, OJ Mayo. If Dwyane Wade gets his way, Beasley will get plenty of playing time so he may have a chance. Best Newcomer is Elton Brand with Ron Artest coming in second. I agree with the Elton Brand choice. He is going to make the Sixers tough to beat this season. I can't helpobut feel that Ron will somehow self destruct and take his team with him as he has with every other team he has been with. The funny thing is that if you look at their choices for the worst newcomer, Artest comes in third on that list with Baron Davis coming out first and Jermaine O'Neal coming in second. Sources are reporting that the Sixers are close to signing Donyell Marshall to a veteran's minimun contract. Marshall, a 15 year NBA veteran, approached the Sixers as he wanted to go back to his home town to finish his career. He starred at Reading high before going on to the NBA. The Sixers have had interest in Marshall for weeks, but waited for Oklahoma City to waive him in order to sign him as a free agent. This brings the Sixers to 14 contracts with Jason Smith expected to miss the season due to injury. There is still no movement in Ben Gordon's situation. Reports are that the Bulls have offered Gordon a six-year deal worth around $59 million but Gordon is asking for more like $12 million a year. He feels that being the team's leading scorer for the past 3 seasons should entitle him to that much. If in fact the Bulls are offering close to $10 million a year, Gordon should grab that. There is no guaranteeing he will get more next season as a free agent. It is possible that teams will find out that Gordon was their leading scorer not because he is so good, but because the other players around him were worse. There has been no indication that any teams are interested in a sign and trade for Gordon and if he isn't careful, he will have bypassed his chance at a very good contract. 6 years offers him security and $10 million a year isn't something to sneeze at. We have seen several players turn down decent money thinking they were worth more and then have to settle for way less. I think Gordon may be headed in that direction. The Heat are expected to officially sign Jamaal Magloire today. They had considered Lorenzen Wright and DJ Mbenga before settling on Magloire. This gives the Heat 4 centers under contract with Alonzo Mourning not expected back until at least December. Of course with Mark Blount as your starting center, you need all the help you can get. Mbenga has an offer from the Lakers but he was looking for a more lucrative deal elsewhere and hoped the Heat would give him one. Instead, they settled on Magloire. The Cavaliers are now considering Wright to shore up their bench. Tue, 02 Sep 2008 10:37:05 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/317022 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/317022 In the "Keep Your Picks" Playoff, the Minnesota Timberwolves have defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 119-93. PF Kevin Garnett was named MVP of the game. The Wolves will play the Cavaliers game in the championship game of the 2008 Keep Your Picks Playoff next week. For complete game stats, check out the NBA DraftNation page. Fri, 29 Aug 2008 06:56:14 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/314976 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/314976 How many of these 10 questions can you get right? Prove you know the all dominating Kevin Garnett! Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:26:12 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/314479 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/314479 This is a matchup of two very evenly matched teams. Can the threesome of Bogut, Nowitzki and Redd successful take on Roy, Allen and Garnett? This semifinal game is sure to be one of the marquee matchups of the entire KYP playoff, with the winner taking on the red hot Cleveland Cavaliers in the championship game next week. Expert Picks Pickard: Milwaukee Bucks Estimated Game Time: Thursday August 28 (5 PM EST) Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:06:52 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/314470 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/314470 Ok… so he's not playing overseas… but he IS hawking Chinese shoes.  The Sporting News brings us word that Jason Kidd has dumped Nike to wear Peak shoes.  If you want to see more photos… including close ups of his shoes and a lot of things you can't read… go here. So Kidd joins Shane Battier [...] Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:27:31 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/313380 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/313380 1) No Posey Posey was great. No Posey no title; but that was last year. Last season the Celtics desperately needed veteran championship experience. James Posey (with some help from Eddie House and later PJ Brown) provided that crucial veteran poise. This year things are different. Take a look: Suddenly the Boston Celtics roster is crammed full with bearers of the the one true ring. They know how to do it now. Best of luck to James Posey and the New Orleans Hornets. The Boston Celtics will be fine without him. 2) The Most Important Thing As it was last year, the fate of the 2008-09 Boston Celtics lies not in the hands of Darius Miles, Patrick O'Bryant or JR Giddens. Instead the Celtics will fly as high as their stars carry them. It is Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo (yes he's included in this core group) that will lead the way, with substantial help from the other big minutes players like Kendrick Perkins. No one should expect any sort of drop-off from the all-stars. Garnett and Pierce had top seasons last... Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:37:40 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/313332 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/313332 Celtics.com Celtics recruiting for Green Team ( http://nba.com/celtics/entertainment/green-team-auditions2008-09.html ) CelticsBlog Runnin' fives: New Orleans Hornets ( http://www.celticsblog.com/index.php?option=com_content task=view id=3822 Itemid=189 ) Bench question marks ( http://www.celticsblog.com/index.php?option=com_content task=view id=3824 Itemid=189 ) ESPN Redeem Team proves worthy of Dream Team comparison ( http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/summer08/basketball/columns/story?columnist=sheridan_chris page=DreamRedeem-080825 ) Prosecutor seeks information on Donaghy investigation ( http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3552508 campaign=rss source=NBAHeadlines ) LOY's Place Rumors and free agent updates - Swapping guards edition ( http://celticsgreen.blogspot.com/2008/08/rumors-and-free-agent-updates-swapping.html ) NY Times World will be more like the NBA (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/26/sports/olympics/26hoops.html?_r=3 adxnnl=1 oref=slogin ref=basketball adxnnlx=1219748813-gSmeDjIO9r+44t3bOJ24ag oref=slogin oref=slogin) Legends Kevin Garnett ( http://www.legends.com/79/kevin-garnett/ ) Sythe How to play the game of basketball ( http://www.sythe.org/showthread.php?t=451090 ) Collegian Sports summer recap ( http://kstatecollegian.com/1.612756 ) USA Today... Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:28:20 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/312986 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/312986 With the free agent pool thinning out, teams are starting to look to trades to fill needs. The Rockets and Suns traded guards on Monday. The Rockets have acquired guard D.J. Strawberry from the Phoenix Suns in exchange for guard Sean Singletary. Strawberry averaged 2.2 points, 0.9 assists and 8.2 minutes in 33 games as a rookie with the Suns in 2007-08. Singletary averaged 19.8 points last season for Virginia. He is a very athletic point guard and should give Dragic a run for back up point guard. The move was a cost cutting move for the Suns as they will save about $540,000, including projected luxury-tax savings. Just a day after winning gold in the Beijing Olympics, Chris Paul is already thinking of joining the 2012 Olympic squad. Carmelo Anthony also expressed a desire to compete in the 2012 Olympics but wasn't sure if he could make another 3 year commitment. With the positive experience of this team all the way around, I am sure other young players will be ready to join the team as well. Jerry Colangelo, the architect of USA Basketball's gold-medal revival, is expected to stay on as the managing director and oversee the men's program through the 2012 London Olympics. It is just about a month till training camp starts and word is that Doc Rivers is already meeting with his assistants and making plans for training camp. Doc's assistants still don't have contracts for next season and Doc has just one more season on his contract. Danny said that he is working to re-sign them all and that should be the next news coming out of Boston. It is crucial that Tom Thibodeau comes back as his defenses were a big reason the Celtics are champions right now. Also with a project like Patrick O'Bryant, having Clifford Ray stay will be important as well. Thibodeau and Ray are two of the best assistant coaches in the league and I will be happy when they announce that they are signed. Last season, the Celtics were all together in Boston working out ahead of training camp. There have been reports of the Nets and Wolves both working out on a regular basis in preparation for the season. The Celtics don't have the same hunger that they had last summer. From the reports out of Vegas, Paul Pierce is still celebrating. Nothing has been heard from KG. Ray Allen is enjoying wedded bliss. The young players are there and working on their games together which bodes well for the future but with the improvements all the teams have made, the Celtics need to get that hunger back or they could face an uphill climb this season. Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas asked a year ago for access to information from the FBI's investigation of Donaghy. Thomas said he wanted to know whether Donaghy broke any Arizona laws while officiating two Phoenix Suns-Los Angeles Lakers playoff games in 2007. When Thomas had tried to get the files previously he was told that he had to wait until the investigation was finished. Now that it has concluded he is trying again to get the files. A couple of Lakers notes. They officially signed "The Chinese Magic Johnson" Sun Yue. Sun averaged 6.8 points, 2.5 assists, 1.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals in six games for China in the just-completed Olympics. the Lakers expect to learn in a few days when Kobe Bryant will undergo surgery on his damaged right pinkie. Bryant injured his finger in a Feb. 5 game against the New Jersey Nets, but put off surgery until after the Olympics. They are hoping that Kobe will be ready for training camp that begins for the Lakers on Sept. 30 in El Segundo. The Timberwolves and Hornets have already unveiled their new look uniforms and now the Magic is scheduled to unveil their new style uniforms on September 23. The new uniforms will celebrate the franchise's 20-year anniversary this season. And early clues indicate that the new uniforms will somewhat resemble the look from the past. The team wore pinstriped uniforms until 1999 and reports are that they will be going back to pinstripes with their new uniforms. Ron Artest received a rock star welcome as he arrived in Houston for the next chapter in his NBA story. Music blared and airhorns blasted. A throng of about 500 screaming fans welcomed Artest with enthusiastic cheers. With the addition of Artest, the Rockets have to be considered a threat to win it all. Artest will be playing alongside Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady forming their own Big 3 and they don't come any bigger than Yao. They also have a nice bench and are going to be very, very tough, assuming that Artest doesn't self-destruct as he has in times past. The FBI is investigating Piston Lindsey Hunter for a mortgage scam. Hunter was a a Celtic very briefly before being cut to go right back to the Pistons in one of those wink, wink type transactions. Now he is being investigated by the FBI for a scam that left a high school janitor on the hook for a million dollar home. Hunter maintains he is a victim as well. Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:05:56 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/312976 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/312976 This one wasn't easy, but the US got the job done… beating Spain 118-107 to win the gold medal.  DWade had 27, Kobe had 20.  Spain had the game to 4 with a few minutes left.  But the US held on… and now we're out of actual basketball to talk about.  For the next month or so… it's going to be a [...] Sun, 24 Aug 2008 18:28:04 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/311978 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/311978 In light of Rudy Fernandez' ridiculous flying slam on Dwight Howard in the 2008 Beijing Olympics basketball final, it is time to review The Top 5 Greatest Latin Guy Dunks Ever. Upon reviewing footage, I have concluded that Kevin Garnett is a masochist who likes getting posterized by tall Latin dudes. Sun, 24 Aug 2008 10:03:42 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/311825 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/311825 Danny Ainge is a busy guy.  He signed Bill Walker today… terms, of course, undisclosed. "Bill's hard work and skill development this summer has given us the belief that he can be in our short-term plans as well as our long-term plans." Celtics GM Danny Ainge said in a press release. A lot of people think this [...] Fri, 22 Aug 2008 22:37:37 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/311350 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/311350 After two months of games, we are finally down to the final four in the Keep Your Picks Playoff tournament. The Cleveland Cavaliers, led by LeBron James will take on Danny Granger and the rest of the draft picks of the Indiana Pacers in game one, while Dirk Nowitzki, Michael Redd and Andrew Bogut will take the floor for the Bucks as they challenge a tough Minnesota Timberwolves lineup that includes Brandon Roy, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. The Semi-Final round begins next week, right here on nba.draftnation.com -- your number one stop for draft news and analysis on the web. For more information on the Keep Your Picks playoff or to view the WhatIfSports results from the tournament, click the links available here, or on the DraftNation home page. Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:17:30 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/309615 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/309615 At the beginning of the off season, Sam Cassell was planning to return to the Celtics this season as a player/ assistant coach in training and then join Doc's staff next season. With the resigning of House and Allen and Danny's expectations that Pruitt will contribute more this season, it seems that Sam will need to find employment elsewhere. After signing Giddens, the team has 2 spots left. Hopefully one goes to Bill Walker and the other would go to either a veteran back up small forward or center and not to a back up point guard. Rumor is that Sam will sign with Denver and fullfil his plans to play one more year as a player at the veteran's minimum and get some coaching training under his former Milwaukee coach George Karl. In spite of being mentioned in rumors tied to several teams, Shaun Livingston still hasn't been picked up by a team. He is still working hard on rehab, but in spite of 18 months of hard work, he is still unable to play five-on-five despite extensive rehabilitation. Teams are going to wait until they know for sure that he will be able to play. Livingston has a ton of potential as a 6'7" point guard, but injuries have derailed his career and teams are going to wait to see if he can play again before offering a contract. Delonte West has proved that he can play in the league but he has also been plagued with assorted injuries in his career. I mean, how many players get sidelined with a toe infection? Much of what fuels his injuries is his way of playing all out all the time as he throws his body into bigger players. He is a tough player and deserves better than what teams have done with him. He was key to getting Ray Allen in Boston, but the Sonics didn't give Delonte a chance. Then he finally got a chance to play in Cleveland and did so admirably, but they have pretty much thrown him by the wayside, giving their back up point guard a bigger contract than they offered him. Delonte should take the qualifying offer and see what he can get next season on the open market. I would love to see the Celtics bring him back. Another former Celtic (although very briefly), Luke Jackson has been working out for the Blazers and reports are that he will sign with them and become the 15th player on their roster going into training camp. Jackson can score and is good from beyond the arc, but he is a defensive liability. Still he would be good for a team that needs instant offense off the bench. With Alonzo Mourning still rehabbing and his situation uncertain and Mark Blount as their main option at center (better them than us), the Heat are looking for some help at the center position. Jamaal Magloire is scheduled for a Wednesday visit in Miami. Magloire has averaged 8.6 points and 7.2 rebounds in his career but played in just 31 games last season, joining Dallas after New Jersey cut him in February. But if you're Miami, anyone has to look better than Skippy (I'll get the rebound if I don't have to work for it) Blount. The Knicks' first round draft pick, Danilo Gallinari, is still hurting. Gallinari played in just one summer-league game, injuring his back in his only outing. He has now withdrawn from the Italian National Team, which begins its Eurobasket Qualifier tournament vs. Serbia today. The Knicks are hopeful that Gallinari will be healthy and ready to play by their training camp, but questions still remain as to whether he will be sturdy enough to withstand the rigors of playing in the NBA. Yesterday, the Nets had 14 players in their practice facility working out and preparing for the upcoming season. They are getting an early start at building chemistry with so many new faces on the roster. As reported previously, the Wolves have 9 players working out on a regular basis. Last season it was the Celtics all in Boston early and working out together. But this season, Paul Pierce is still celebrating. KG hasn't been heard from but is probably workout out somewhere and Ray Allen is getting married. Only a few of the young players have been in Boston working on their game. Other teams are working hard to try to jump past Boston and if the Celtics think in the least that they can rest on their laurels, they are going to be very much surprised by these other teams who have the hunger that we saw in the Celtics last season. Team USA was back in action this morning in a rather chippy game against Australia that got pretty rough at times. Although the Australians stayed with the Americans early, Team USA pulled ahead for an easy 116-85 win to pull within 2 wins of their goal of winning the gold. Kobe lead 6 players in double figures with 25 points. They will face the winner of the game between Argentina and Greece in the semi-finals. Beating either team would give the American team some degree of satisfaction and revenge. Croatian guard Gordan Giricek, who has averaged nearly 10 points per game since joining the NBA in 2002, has become the latest player to leave the league for a bigger payday. Giricek finished last season as a member of the Phoenix Suns. On Tuesday, the 6-foot-6 shooting guard signed a two-year contract -- with an option to return to the NBA next summer -- with Turkey's premier club, Fenerbahce. He passed on an offer from the Spurs that was much less than he will earn with the Turkish club. Goran Dragic is another step closer to signing a contract with the Suns as he passed his physical Tuesday, but has to go back home without signing a contract because he still needs to work out the formal details of his buyout and obtains a work visa to return to the USA. The Suns offered Dragic a contract that is usually reserved for lottery picks instead of second-rounders but most of the money he'll make this year (about $1.4 million) is going toward securing his release from his Spanish club. His goal this season is not to become rich, but to prove that he can play in the NBA. The Suns certainly are keeping their fingers crossed that he can. Their last attempt at finding Steve Nash's back up and eventual successor didn't work out so well as Marcus Banks ended up a bust. But then again, the Celtics could have told them that and saved them the trouble. And they must still be kicking themselves for passing Rondo on to the Celtics. Dragic will get plenty of opportunity to prove he belongs as he will be Nash's main backup and will get plenty of minutes as they try to keep Nash fresh for the playoffs. With the sudden departure of Dragic, Tau Ceramica is looking at former Knicks guard Fred Jones as a replacement. Wed, 20 Aug 2008 09:50:22 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/309554 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/309554