HOUSTON — You could see the emotion on Kevin McHale's face from the rafters Friday night.
Seconds after McHale's Houston Rockets beat the Boston Celtics 101-89 at Toyota Center, Kevin Garnett sought out McHale and offered words that had McHale, who recently lost his 23-year-old daughter, Sasha, sobbing as he left the floor.
"We go way back," McHale said. "He's always going to have a special place in my heart. We spent a ton of time together. It was great."
McHale, of course, made the decision to draft Garnett straight out of high school in 1995 when McHale was the general manager of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Though such a decision would become commonplace over the next 10 years, at the time it was almost unheard of. Garnett was the first player in 20 years to be drafted straight from high school.
McHale's eyes began to fill when he was asked about his embrace with Garnett. He kept the words between the two of them, but he did mention his daughter.
"It's been a long day for me," he said.
