Kevin Garnett had a 21-year NBA career that culminated with his induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2020. He was one of the best rebounders of all time, a revered teammate, and an NBA champion, but what people most remember about his playing days is his legendary intensity.
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Paul George was asked what he remembered about his first All-Star Game during a recent episode of Podcast P with Paul George, and because he shared a locker with Garnett, it was a KG story that most stood out to him all these years later. This one showed that Garnett’s intensity even persisted off the court, and the anecdote will come as no surprise to anyone who observed Garnett throughout his career. George reminisced,
“Before the game started, there was food left out for the players. All the staff went and ate first though, so word got back to KG: everybody’s eating the food before the players get to it. So he’s like, ‘Yo, listen up, y’all motherfuckers better not eat or touch another fuckin’ meal without us players touching it first.’ He said the shit loud as hell. Everybody in there was shook. Boy when I tell you, nobody touched another piece of food until the last player touched the food first. It was just hilarious, because it was just a respect thing. I learned a lot … He set a precedent.”
That incident took place in Houston in 2013, and though George has been to eight All-Star Games since that one, he said that Garnett’s words still hold up, because no staffer touches the food before the players anymore.
Kevin Garnett never minced his words
The 2013 All-Star Game food incident may seem a bit over the top, but there’s no denying that it worked. It was also right in line with the way Garnett conducted himself during his career.
This 2016 Complex article, entitled “The 8 Meanest Things Kevin Garnett Ever Said,” gives a representative sample of just how ruthless KG was in his playing days. Some of his meanest moments include making an opponent cry, making his own teammate cry, and causing Carmelo Anthony to try to fight him outside of Madison Square Garden after Garnett said something inappropriate about Melo’s wife.
Garnett used to intimidate the greatest athletes in the world, so imagining all of those staffers freezing in fear as he barked in the locker room is pretty hilarious, especially to hear George laugh about it all these years later. KG is one of those players that you loved if he was on your team, and you hated if you were against him. That’s probably just the way he’d like to be remembered.
