Target Center, Timberwolves Fans Buzzing For Garnett's Return
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Minnesota Timberwolves fans are rejoicing Wednesday night. Kevin Garnett is back home, and he'll be in the starting lineup as they face the Washington Wizards at Target Center.
A capacity crowd is expected as Timberwolves officials made 1,000 extra seats available for Garnett's return. Wednesday, they made 500 standing room only seats available for $25 each. The box office doors opened at 10:30 a.m., and fans literally ran into get tickets.
It's been an interesting week since acquiring Garnett at the trade deadline, so now it's all about the game. Will it live up to the hype?
Garnett arrived to the Twin Cities earlier this week and was the first player in the facility Tuesday, lifting weights before the team's practice. He was at the team's shoot-around Wednesday morning, getting ready for his first action in a Minnesota uniform in eight years.
Learning the offense is relatively simple for Garnett. He was in Flip Saunders' system years ago, and not much has changed since. What will change is the atmosphere at Target Center, which should be electric.
"I haven't even thought about that. I've been thinking about the game and preparing for that," Garnett said. "It's probably going to be a great atmosphere, a playoff-type atmosphere and I'm looking forward to it. I'm just hoping to win the game."
It's a homecoming in more ways than one for Garnett. He's also facing one of his former coaches in Wizards head coach Randy Wittman.
"I was telling Flip if we can get Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, Prince and Kevin McHale to come through the doors, then it will be a family affair," Garnett said. "But it will be good to see Randy."
Garnett knows what he is capable of at this juncture of his career, and he probably has more realistic expectations than fans. We should expect him to play about 20 minutes per game the rest of the season, and he's been averaging about seven points and six rebounds per game with the Brooklyn Nets until being traded.
The reality is he had little value in Brooklyn left. It's a team struggling, and they are going through a sale. Not a good match.
He was a big hit at the Tuesday's press conference, polished and playful. But what matters now is does he make this team better? He'll be a key piece both by playing the power forward and counseling players.
"He just marked his presence. He came to practice and he was the first one there. He worked hard and was talking, just showed a lot of leadership," Andrew Wiggins said. "He shows a lot of stuff by example."
What they really want is him to change the intensity of practice.
"I haven't been here. I don't know what the shoot-arounds were like before. I just know that I'm trying to bring communication and some things that I've been successful with throughout my journey and hope they pick up on it," Garnett said.