When Kevin Garnett first sustained his knee injury back in February, it didn't look to be something that would keep him on the sidelines for very long. He initially missed 13 games, then came back for some limited playing time in four contests, before he was shut down by the team, but presumably only until the playoffs.Well, we all saw how that turned out.
A few weeks turned into the rest of the season, and here we are -- about two weeks before the start of training camp -- and KG still isn't back to playing full-court basketball.
The Boston Globe is taking a glass-half-full approach to Garnett's recovery, but honestly, this report comes across as being more worrisome than it is optimistic:
"Kevin looks good, he's in here working out every day,'' Ainge said yesterday from the team's practice facility in Waltham. "He's doing his training, but he's not playing full-court basketball yet.Garnett may be "on the program," but even the most die-hard of Celtics fans don't seem to be counting on KG returning at full strength anytime in the near future.
"We're taking it as slow and as cautious as we can with him. He's anxious and he has a ton of energy, but I think he gets it. We don't have bodyguards on him to keep him from working too hard. He's on the program with the staff.
"We don't have timetables on this. We are going week to week and we'll make a decision on where he is.''
Bill Simmons noted via Twitter that "If KG was OK, they wouldn't have spent $29 mill more on PF's," referring of course to the offseason signing of Rasheed Wallace, and the re-signing of Glen Davis.
Those signings definitely don't point to any optimism from the front office regarding Garnett's return, and certainly, there aren't enough quality minutes to spread between three players if and when KG does make it back.
If Celtics' fans are looking for something positive as their team heads into the 2009 season, it's the fact that even without KG, the squad managed to end the year with 62 wins, and managed to push the eventual Eastern Conference champs to seven games in the second round of the playoffs.
The Celtics are likely to be a top two or three team in the East, whether Garnett makes it back to 100 percent or not. But few would be able to sanely argue that the team can win a title without him. And with a roster full of aging superstars, that's really the only goal right now in Boston.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-18-2009 @ 5:58PM
Chip said...
Rudy Gay Tweeted that he was in Vegas gettting ready to hoop with KG and a few others. Maybe it was a different KG.... "I'm getting ready to hoop at Joe Abunassar's facility in Vegas with joe johnson, t lue, kg, c bllups, j tinsley and a bunch of other guys."
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9-19-2009 @ 1:38AM
FLOW said...
Extremely hard to recover from knee surgeries 100 percent, especially after 30. If anyone can do it, it would be Garnett because he's such a warrior. But sometimes the mental is harder than the physical. The Celtics got great insurance in Rasheed Wallace who is still a top player when motivated, and he should be plenty motivated in Boston. Eastern conference will be a war with the Cavs looking really dangerous, and the Celts really need Garnett's heart more than his ability. Oh well, whoever comes out, the Lakers will be waiting for them.
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9-19-2009 @ 1:38AM
Giles said...
Nah, same guy. If the Celts had bodyguards on him, as Ainge put it, he wouldn`t have played the pick up game. There is always the possibility of getting reinjured trying to come back too soon. It was an example, as Ainge putting it, of KG being anious and having a ton of energy. He missed what he had reason to hope could have been a back to back championship, after a career of being an all star, but only getting past the first round of the playoffs twice. The Celts can use Davis at back up center to provide more time at forward for Wallace, who was lousy last season, a third the player Iverson was, and for Garnett, and KG can play wing forward not just power forward. He played wing guard one all star victory. With KG, there is no danger he`ll be lazy, or too cautious, he wants to win. Now. And I agree with the writer, Boston figures to do well in the regular season with or without him. Post season, it`ll be tough to get past Cleveland and Orlando, even with, much less without, KG. But we`ll see what happens.
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9-28-2009 @ 8:32PM
welcome said...
I think KG and the Celtics will be alright. If everyone's healthy, and with the help of 'Sheed off the bench, the Celtics will be in the mix for the top spot in the East, as well as the NBA title.
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