Kevin Garnett is one of the greatest to ever play the sport of basketball.
He was a 15x NBA All-Star, league MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, NBA champion and a member of the NBA 75th Anniversary team.
Some might forget just how dominant and influential he was but fortunately for us and the current generation of NBA fans, Showtime’s “Anything is Possible” documentary reminds us of his greatness.
And right from the beginning, Kevin Garnett himself reminded us who he was.
“I wanted everything to be as original as it could be,” said KG.
KG, aka The Big Ticket, aka The Kid, is, according to him, part Magic Johnson and part DMX.
He could cross you up or talk trash to your face, all with a smile or a scowl.
But Garnett wasn’t just a great player because of his talent.
He was a great player because of all that he did for his team, teammates, other players, family, friends, and the game.
Because he went to Farragut High School in Chicago, most assume he was from Chicago. As the documentary reminds us, he was a tall, lanky kid from South Carolina who wasn’t even supposed to be playing basketball.
He grew up in a religious household in Greenville, South Carolina, moving to a small community outside of the city called Mauldin.
That’s where the basketball player in KG was birthed. While that was great for the sport, it wasn’t an easy activity for him to participate in.
You see, Garnett grew up as a Jehovah’s Witness and his mother refused to let him play. So after secretly making the varsity team, Garnett had to hide his blossoming basketball career from his mother.
But in a small town, that couldn’t last for long. After finding out and watching him play, his mother relented and he became a star.
Then an unfortunate situation occurred in school and his mother shipped him off to Chicago to get out of trouble’s path.
That’s when his stardom flourished
While most feel they know the story from that point on, “Anything Is Possible” shows us that they don’t.
Unless you were in Chicago at that time, as Scoop Jackson reminded us in the doc, you couldn’t understand what he did for the city and what the city did to him.
Chicago made him tougher. It made him more aware and street smart. It made him hustle and work harder. It allowed him to express himself.
Overall, the Windy City made him grow up, fast.
Ultimately, this made him the face of Chicago basketball.
You see, Michael Jordan had retired so the city needed a new star and basketball attraction.
Kevin Garnett and Farragut High School filled that void.
Becoming the face of an organization, setting a trend and capturing the hearts and respect of the cities he played in became a common theme for KG.
Raising the Bar
Everywhere he went, Kevin Garnett was the main attraction.
He was the fifth pick in the 1995 NBA Draft, becoming the first high school player selected to the league since Darryl Dawkins and Bill Willoughby in 1975. Shawn Kemp actually enrolled in college but didn’t play and was selected by the Seattle Supersonics in 1989, a year after his high school graduation.
Minnesota’s selection of Garnett, who originally planned to go to Syracuse but changed his mind after a chance meeting with Chicago native Isiah Thomas, opened the door for other high schoolers to pass through.
Garnett was a 10x All-Star during his 14 years with the Timberwolves, and he brought it every night.
His tenacity, desire, hustle and attitude were addictive. The team responded, forging the Timberwolves into a consistent playoff franchise.
In Minnesota, it was Prince and Kevin Garnett. Those were the biggest names in the city of Minneapolis and in the state.
Then came the infamous contract in 1997.
Garnett signed a then-unparalleled six-year, $126 million deal. This enraged owners and players, many feeling the 21-year-old was not worthy of that kind of money. Some accused his contract of triggering the 1998-99 lockout, unfairly targeting Garnett for rightfully earning his groundbreaking deal.
Owners raged over the deal and the new CBA in 1999 gave them what they wanted. A maximum-player salary cap and a rookie pay scale.
While it was unfair to him, it was another example of KG setting a new standard.
“Anything Is Possible” takes us through his Hall of Fame NBA career, from playoff losses to moving to Boston and finally winning a title over Kobe Bryant and the Lakers.
It also shows how Garnett was a powerful conduit between hip-hop and basketball. From his And1 commercial with Styles P to the classic sounds of Craig Mack and Mobb Deep, “Anything Is Possible” successfully maintained that intimate relationship.
Even more impressively, the documentary shows us the many sides of Kevin Garnett.
We witness the humble Garnett, who instantly became a fanboy when he got to speak to his favorite rapper.
We saw the respectful Garnett, who said that Chris Webber was his favorite player coming up.
Then we witnessed Kevin Garnett the ruthless, fearless, trash-talking competitor who feared no one and unapologetically crossed on Webber and dunked it home.
Many of the stories shared are ones we know, but there are many we don’t. That’s another way it reminds us just how successful, impactful and influential Kevin Garnett was both on and off the court.
Watching KG tell his life’s story makes you want to listen and learn.
His big smile, funny personality and genuine disposition endear Garnett to you.
His love of the game makes you wish you could watch him still play. As I watched it, I reminisced about what could have been had he and Stephon Marbury stayed together in Minnesota.
While Garnett’s playing days are over, his impact on the game continues.
Thankfully, “Anything Is Possible” successfully reminds us of that fact.
