“Tim Duncan!! Happy Mother’s Day”: When Kevin Garnett took an ugly shot at Spurs star’s deceased mother

Kevin Garnett was one of one, he is one of the craziest man to play the game whom no one would want on the opposing team.

There have been a lot of thrash-talkers in the NBA, from Larry Bird to Michael Jordan to Kobe Bryant we have had at least one in every generation to keep people in check.

But no one amongst them was the kind of person that would talk smack to anyone or everyone they played. They were wise enough to know who can and must they poke and whom they shouldn’t.

Also read: “Stephen Curry and Michael Jordan have same no of Finals appearances in their first 13 seasons”: The Chef re-ignites Warriors vs Bulls debate

To Kevin Maurice Garnett though, everyone was equal. He didn’t have a care in the world about who he was going against he would talk his talk and walk his walk.

A 19-year-old Garnett once even dared to run his mouth against MJ in his prime and surely regretted it instantly. There was another incident of him against a fellow Hall of Famer that might well be his worst trash talk story of all time.

Kevin Garnett once wished Tim Duncan “Happy Mother’s Day” just to get in the head of the Spurs big man

Little would Kevin know that Tim Duncan who came into the league 2 years after he did, had the same height, played the same position as him, would in the future go down as the greatest power forward of all time by his side, and also would get inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame alongside him in the same class (2021).

Or maybe exactly knew this and saw it coming right before Duncan’s first impression on the world of basketball.

In the 1999 Playoffs, the Minnesota Timberwolves faced a sophomore Tim Duncan and, his San Antonio Spurs. At some point during that game, Garnett told Duncan “Happy Mother’s Day, M****rf**k* r” as the Spurs legend lined up for a free throw.

— The Lead (@TheLeadSM) May 14, 2017

Duncan’s mother passed away of breast cancer, one day before Tim’s 14th birthday in 1990. While this incident is just a rumor and has never been confirmed, something that’s confirmed is that Duncan who probably might not even dislike any other soul on the planet, hates Garnett.

Also read: “No Kevin Durant? No problem. We have Andrew Wiggins”: NBA Twitter reacts as Warriors beat Luka Doncic and Mavs to return to NBA Finals

That very year after sweeping KG and his Wolves, Duncan and Spurs won the first of their 5 championships while Garnett won just one throughout his career. Tim averaged over 23 points, 11 points, 2 assists, and 2.5 blocks in 17 games to take home the Finals MVP.

While both of them are considered two of the GOAT power forwards of all time, and followed a similar career path, Tim was arguably much better than Kevin at everything other than trash talk.

About the author

Akash Murty

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

Read More