Kevin Garnett in buyout talks with Minnesota Timberwolves
Kevin Garnett’s status for the coming season has been up in the air all summer, but a contract buyout seems to be coming.
His second stint with the Minnesota Timberwolves, due mostly to age and injury, has been markedly different than the first for Kevin Garnett. He has been valuable as a veteran mentor to the team’s group of young stars, in particular Karl-Anthony Towns, but Garnett does not offer enough on the court to justify an $8 million salary for this season.
New Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau reportedly talked to Garnett soon after being hired, and owner Glen Taylor has apparently had multiple meetings with the future Hall of Famer. Garnett’s plan has remained unclear in recent weeks though, until Kent Youngblood of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported Wednesday that talks about the future between Garnett and Taylor were taking place.
ESPN’s Marc Stein has added another layer to the story.
Minnesota and Kevin Garnett are in advanced discussions on a buyout expected to end KG's second stint with the Wolves, league sources say.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) September 22, 2016
Garnett’s age (40) and health, after playing just 43 games for the Timberwolves since being re-acquired in February of 2015 are surely at the center of discussions about his future.The offseason additions of Cole Aldrich and Jordan Hill show Minnesota’s new front office power structure, with Thibodeau as team president and Scott Layden as general manager, does not view Garnett as a key piece of the team for 2016-17.
In early August, former Timberwolves coach Sam Mitchell suggested his firing after last season would push Garnett into retirement. That’s at best a flimsy notion, since Garnett is surely not swayed by decisions to hire or fire coaches.
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Garnett has been a diminished player going back a few years now, as he has not even played 60 games in a season since 2012-13 with the Boston Celtics. A desire to play a 22nd NBA season is surely there for him, but the spirit is not willing, and “KG” has nothing left to prove.