Kevin Garnett will be back in a Timberwolves uniform Wednesday night for the first time in nearly eight years, and Minnesota will try to take advantage of a slumping Washington Wizards team to welcome him back with a victory.
Garnett never wanted to leave Minnesota when the Timberwolves (12-43) traded him to Boston, and never wanted to jump from a sinking Celtics ship before Paul Pierce convinced him to follow him to Brooklyn two years ago.
And he sure didn't feel great about uprooting his family in the middle of a season when the prospects first arose to return to his beloved `Sota last week.
Sitting at his Malibu home over the All-Star break, the only true superstar in Wolves history thought long and hard about what that move would mean. He thought about mentoring Ricky Rubio and Andrew Wiggins.
He thought about going back to the state where he was drafted and where he met his wife, setting down roots and one day following stars such as Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson into ownership. He thought about restoring a relationship with a franchise that was tattered when he was traded.
He was born in South Carolina, became a high school sensation in the Chicago area and a champion in Boston.
But for him, Minnesota will always be home. And in the end, that lure and the possibility of a much greater role down the road proved too great to resist.
"It's perfect," Garnett said on Tuesday at a re-introductory news conference that came five days after he was acquired from Brooklyn in a trade. "If you have a story, this is a fairy tale. This is a perfect ending to it. This is how you want to do it."
He spent 12 years in Minnesota, growing from a skinny, 19-year-old rookie into a two-way force and one of the best power forwards in league history.
He made 10 All-Star teams, was the MVP in 2004 and led the Wolves to the only eight playoff appearances in franchise history, including a stirring run to the Western Conference finals in his MVP season.
"He's our history. He's it. He is the face of the franchise," said Sam Mitchell, a former teammate and now an assistant coach on the team.
"So to bring him back and these guys get to experience and be around him and learn from him and say, 'I spent time with Kevin Garnett' it's going to enhance their growth by leaps and bounds."
Garnett practiced with the Timberwolves for the first time on Tuesday, and he wasted little time making his presence felt in front of his new teammates.
He surprised the 19-year-old Wiggins by getting to the gym at 9:30 a.m., then barked at big man Nikola Pekovic during practice to set an early tone of intensity.
"He yelled at Pek twice already when I think nobody in his career yell at him to run back on defense, so that's good," Rubio said. "Everybody listens and everybody respect him. He's doing everything it takes to get better."
The Wizards (33-24) have dropped 9 of 11, falling to fifth in the Eastern Conference. They committed a season-high 26 turnovers in a 114-107 home defeat to Golden State on Tuesday, their most since being charged with 27 in a 111-76 loss at Portland on March 22, 2011.
Coach Randy Wittman was encouraged after losses to Cleveland and Detroit by a combined 55 points, however.
"Our effort was great," Wittman said. "We play the way we play tonight, we take care of the ball better, we'll get back to winning games."
Pierce, who won a championship with Garnett in Boston in 2008, left late after banging knees with an opposing player but is expected to play. Bradley Beal missed his seventh straight game due to a stress reaction in his right leg.
John Wall had 21 points and a career high-matching 17 assists in a 109-95 home win on Dec. 16, though the Wizards have dropped four straight and 11 of 13 in Minnesota.
