Kevin Garnett’s smack-talk on the court was so vicious, he is avidly credited as perhaps the greatest of all time in the category. The Boston Celtics legend had a unique way to mentally break any player on the court, even if it was LeBron James. In a recent episode of ‘Iman Against Men’ on Uninterrupted, LeBron’s former Cavs teammate, Iman Shumpert sat alongside Gilbert Arenas and talked about KG’s infamous trash-talking during games. Furthermore, Shumpert backed another incident about Garnett previously narrated by Kendrick Perkins on Pat Beverley’s podcast.
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Kevin Garnett was by far one of the best trash-talkers in the NBA during his playing career. The 2004 MVP had the unique ability to irk athletes both on and off the court. Garnett could mentally break his opponents, before pouncing on them and dropping points in the game. This earned him a unique status as a player in the league among both, his rivals and teammates alike.
Iman Shumpert backs Kendrick Perkin’s story of Kevin Garnett’s trash-talking
Kendrick Perkins was definitely not kidding when he spoke about Kevin Garnett’s trash-talking on the court. KG was (in)famous for this ability of his, which allowed him to display stunning performances against his opponents.
Like many in the NBA, Iman Shumpert had the (dis)pleasure of bearing witness to several of these sessions by KG., something Gilbert Arenas can relate to, as well. Reminiscing about it, Shumpert and Arenas recalled some of the iconic instances of the former Celtic humiliating his opponents. Here is what was said in the conversation between Shumpert and Arenas about Kevin Garnett.
Iman Shumpert: I was doing the (Kevin Garnett) sh*t at (Paul George) once I realized what the f**k he was doing. That’s what I became. Like I started doing that. I didn’t do the whole like, the extra sh*t he be doing. Like, we was on the free-throw line, n**** be like “I smell blood!” Like all that extra sh*t. I’m like, “Bro, I ain’t got time for some bald n**** sh*t.
Ahrii Shumpert: “Look at you crazy!” [imitating Kevin Garnett]
Iman: Yeah, the man used to go off the deep end.
Gilbert Arenas: Oh, you serious?
Iman Shumpert: And you realized cause you’d be like, “Bro, it’s quiet in here.” Like why, in the pin-drop, do you keep going? Like you getting louder, you on the road, like “We can hear you at this point, G.”
That’s not all. The trio of Ahrii Shumpert, Gilbert Arenas, and Iman Shumpert tried imitating several iconic trash talk moments of KG. At that stage, Ahrii became curious about whether the referees came to help in such situations.
At this, both Iman and Gil started laughing, comparing it to nonchalant police officers who don’t react to petty cases. On that note, the podcast panel arrived at the incident where KG pretended not to know a player. Recalling the story previously shared by Kendrick Perkins, Gil exclaimed the following,
“He never did this one huh? ‘Hey man what number? What’s your name? Aye who this coach? We got a game plan for him?'”
Kevin Garnett had his ways of cementing his personality within the NBA circles. Many players now fondly remember competing against the Celtic legend, who would not only demolish teams but also players’ egos at every chance he got.
Kevin Garnett made sure to never mess with Tim Duncan or Michael Jordan in trash-talking
Tim Duncan was always a calm presence on the court. The $115 million Spurs legend was ejected only once in his 19-season playing career in the NBA, leading to the perception that he is a very sweet person. However, Garnett remembers Duncan very differently. In an interview with Matt Barnes, KG revealed how Duncan would get to his adversaries in the subtlest ways imaginable.
“Believe it or not y’all, Tim Duncan… People would not see him verbally saying stuff because he wasn’t talking sentences. Timmy would hit you in phrases (like) ‘got you’, ‘ooh’, ‘almost’. (And) this the worst right here, ‘nice try’! Like subtle sh*t, no gangster sh*t, no real hardcore sh*t.”
‘Timmy D’ sure knew how to get in his opponent’s heads, something Kevin couldn’t help but respect. In their 52 matchups against each other, Duncan won 33 games against KG and his teams.
