Kevin Garnett recently shared his thoughts on the potential playoff scenarios in the Eastern Conference. He confidently backed his former franchise, the Celtics, to hold onto their championship in the coming season. However, the NBA legend also highlighted a few other teams that he believes could pose a serious challenge to the reigning champions.
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On Ticket and The Truth with Paul Pierce, Garnett singled out a rejuvenated New York Knicks as the biggest threat to the Celtics. He also pointed to how a revamped 76ers roster could challenge his former team. Beyond these two, KG saw potential in a few other teams to surprise the 2024 champions.
“It goes to Cs [Boston Celtics], it goes to [New York] Knicks, and then I’m saying Philly [Philadelphia 76ers] and then you got Orlando [Magic], Cleveland [Cavaliers], and Miami [Heat] right there.”
This bold declaration took Pierce aback. Although ‘The Truth’ didn’t directly counter his co-panelist’s claims, he didn’t seem entirely on board. This prompted Garnett to soon substantiate his thoughts by delving further into the 76ers. He believed the franchise had the talents to go toe-to-toe with the Celtics.
For context, their roster already had an MVP-caliber Joel Embiid alongside a young Tyrese Maxey, who last season totaled 15th highest points in the NBA with 1816. The arrival of a catch-and-shoot scorer, Paul George, who shot 38.5% from beyond the arc in his career, brought much-needed dynamism.
This big three’s complementary skill sets gave the franchise an edge, as KG added,
“I think Philly’s effort and those three guys they got over there [can match up with the Celtics]. ‘Cause Maxey can get you 50. [Joel] Embiid, he is an MVP and then you got Paul George who is premier. That’s gonna get you something.”
Garnett then turned his attention to the Celtics’ biggest threat, the Knicks. The franchise found its stride under Jalen Brunson’s leadership. The 27-year-old led them to the playoffs two years in a row in their talismanic figure, Julius Randle’s absence.
Last postseason, Brunson’s former Villanova Wildcats teammates, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo, also stepped up to lead the charge when needed. This summer, they added another Villanova alum, Mikal Bridges, to this mix. KG thus discussed how this impressive squad depth could cause the defending champions headaches, claiming,
“The Knicks deep, dawg… I think the Knicks have the depth to be able to challenge the Cs.”
This paints an appropriate picture of the East’s competition. Fans are expectedly itching to see who comes out on top, paving the way for the beginning of an exciting season in less than two months.
