Boston Celtics icons, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce have never been shy about showing their admiration and approval of the current generation of NBA players. And especially now, with the 2024 NBA Playoffs in full swing, the two have seemingly been working overtime to dish out positivity for everyone they believe deserves it. And lucky for him, Jamal Murray recently made the list.
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During a recent episode of KG Certified, Garnett earmarked Joel Embiid’s 50-point performance in Game 3 against the New York Knicks as one of the most impressive so far. After all, the Philadelphia 76ers star pulled it off despite practically playing on one leg.
But the show’s producer expressed his doubts about this pick, shedding light on Embiid’s shortcomings. This seemed to have irritated KG, leading him to declare, “I don’t give a f**k if he f***ing fell on his f***ing head. You hear me? 10 turnovers? So f***ing what? Comes with it. It ain’t gonna be perfect. It’s gonna be sugar and sh*t”.
The discussion then moved to the best point guard of the playoffs this year. Without a moment of hesitation, the former Boston man named Jamal Murray as his preferred candidate, remembering his Game 5 heroics against the LA Lakers. However, he later softened his stance slightly as Paul Pierce reminded him of the heroics of Jalen Brunson and Luka Doncic.
Following this, Anthony Edwards would become the center of their conversation. But, while Garnett applauded Ant’s impact on the first-round series, Pierce aimed to dissect it. Consequently, ‘The Truth’ mentioned the qualities which separated the 22-year-old from the herd, stating,
“The reason Ant’s play and his style and his intensity look so magnified is cause the players ain’t like that no more. I feel like everybody in the league was like that. Just playing with emotion. You got so many players that play with no emotion…like our stars today just play with no emotion”.
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Their comments provided a holistic overview of the playoffs, putting a spotlight on just about every major contributor. As for their takes on each of them, while Ganrett’s opinion on Joel Embiid’s big night may have been a bit controversial, his points are hard to argue against overall.
If there is one criticism anyone could have of them, it is that Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce’s answers seemed to wander a little, as they failed to give fans an ironclad answer to their own questions. Fortunately for him, however, Nick Wright didn’t seem to have the same problem.
Contrary to Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, Nick Wright came up with conclusive answers
Nick Wright recently published his player rankings on Fox Sports following the conclusion of the first-round series. The sports analyst touched upon the impact of each of the aforementioned stars while providing his viewpoint on them. Interestingly, he kept Edwards at the top of his list, with the likes of Doncic and Brunson being ranked just behind him.
While elaborating on his stance, Wright outlined, “He [Anthony Edwards] is at the top of the playoff hill for the first time. He got to the top of the regular-season hill a couple of times because of the highlight moments. Now, he’s doing it as the best player on what’s been the best team. He’s been the engine of that team” [per Fox Sports].
Putting Anthony Edwards on the very tippy top of this massive mountain is certainly a bold take. However, given just how unstoppable the 22-year-old has looked during the 2024 NBA Playoffs, it does seem like a valid one. Now, the analyst will only hope that the Minnesota Timberwolves star can keep proving him right.
Perhaps even go all the way and the 2024 NBA Championship, despite his tender age.
