Garnett firing up his new team, makes himself at home in Rome

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Garnett firing up his new team, makes himself at home in Rome
 
By Ian Whittell
Special to ESPN.com






 
 



 

Celtics Getting to Know Each Other

ROME -- The fierce intensity is still all too obvious in the three-squad, 
take-no-prisoners scrimmages that have ended every _Boston Celtics_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/clubhouse?team=bos)  practice here at the Palafonte practice 
facility on the outskirts of Rome all week.  
But make no mistake, it was not only the uniform that _Kevin Garnett_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=3007)  changed when he made 
his blockbuster move from the _Minnesota Timberwolves_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/clubhouse?team=min)  this summer. 
Meet the new KG: media-friendly, jovial, Euro-centric and ... committed 
soccer fan.  
Garnett, 31, has found himself at the center of much of the Celtics' 
promotional activity in this, the first part of their ten-day NBA Europe Live training 
camp and exhibition tour that features games against the _Toronto Raptors_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/clubhouse?team=tor)  in Rome Saturday and the 
Minnesota Timberwolves at London's O2 Arena next Wednesday. 
The players themselves may insist on focusing upon the "Big Three" of 
Garnett, _Paul Pierce_ (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=3253)  
and _Ray Allen_ (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=3080)  
but, for the majority of the 30-40 media members who have been flocking to the 
Palafonte daily this week, Garnett stands above his two new teammates, 
literally and figuratively. 
And Garnett, to the surprise of many veteran KG watchers, has taken such 
responsibility in stride. No question has gone unanswered, no photo request turned 
down. The Italian journalist who arrived resplendent in Celtics retro warm-up 
jacket was complimented on his dress-sense by the Celtics' new forward before 
Garnett declared Rome the fashion capital of the world.   
 
And then there is Garnett's newfound sporting love. If there is one thing 
guaranteed to instantly worm you into an Italian's affections, it is sharing his 
love of "Il Calcio" -- "football" to the Brits who host Boston next week, 
"soccer" to you North Americans. 
Monday, the Celtics welcomed Italian soccer legend Alessandro del Piero, an 
NBA fanatic who had made an 875-mile round trip from Turin where he plays for 
the storied Juventus team, just to spend a few minutes with Garnett and 
company. 
An inevitable, media-pleasing game of "keepy-uppy" ensued in which players 
stood in a circle juggling the ball between one another without allowing it to 
hit the floor. 
Garnett, for somebody standing nearly seven feet, showed a surprisingly 
subtle touch, star-struck Uruguayan _Esteban Batista_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=4003) , not surprisingly, showed great footwork, as 
did Allen, who spent several years playing soccer when he was growing up in 
Europe. 
But the keepie-uppies broke down spectacularly when Pierce, to the general 
amusement of everybody, tried to become involved and succeeded only in booting 
the ball hard into Garnett's body, inches from his face. 
Try explaining that one away to the Celtics Nation: Kevin Garnett will miss 
the start of the season after having his nose broken by Paul Pierce in a soccer 
keepy-uppy contest. 
In short, if a lack of depth, particularly at the point guard position, or 
the potential for chemistry issues surrounding the assimilation of three such 
high-profile players is a concern among this new-look Boston organization, then 
everybody is doing a good job of concealing it. 
"I just like the camaraderie that those guys are trying to bring," said guard 
_Tony Allen_ (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=3842) . 
"The togetherness they bring, I like that, how they're trying to get us all as 
one. Our stars are coming together so now we role players have to work to 
support them. 
"That's why it's just great being here in Europe, getting everyone together 
as a team. I look up to those three guys. I'm here for the team and I know they 
are, too. They're the face of the team and the rest of us just have to follow 
their example." 
If this sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Every training camp 
across the US will echo such comments this week but it is doubtful that anywhere 
else will match the sheer buzz and anticipation that hangs around Boston's.  
 
The Celtics may not be able to match Manchester United, Juventus, Real Madrid 
or any of the other soccer clubs that KG can now talk about so expertly in 
terms of their global reach and the "brand awareness" they carry with them 
across the planet. 
But bearing in mind that for many parts of Europe -- including Italy and 
Britain -- the first NBA games that were ever televised were the classic 
Celtics-Lakers finals of the mid-1980's, the Boston name still carries plenty of weight 
in the Old World. (Although Del Piero did confess in a whisper that watching 
those games as a kid has led to his life-long love for the Lakers). 
"It actually hit me for the first time in the hotel last night. I came into 
the lobby and there was a sign saying 'Boston Celtics team room,'" said Ray 
Allen. "I looked up and said, 'Wow! Boston Celtics!' That name carries a lot of 
weight, it's carried a lot of weight for a long time. 
"I played with the _Milwaukee Bucks_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/clubhouse?team=mil)  and people in America didn't know the Milwaukee Bucks or where 
Milwaukee is! People all over have a great awareness of the Boston Celtics and 
that gives you a little bit more swagger." 
That point is not lost on Garnett. The Big Three -- the "Three-Headed 
Monster" as KG christened them this week -- may have gobbled up column inches as 
readily as the superb Italian cuisine that has been consumed this week, but he is 
fully aware that the club is far more important than its constituent parts. 
"Because of the history, I anticipate that people know the Boston Celtics 
more than individual names and that's fine," said Garnett. "They have been around 
a long time, they are one of the backbones of the NBA since its foundation, 
how it has been able to grow, the championships, the total history. When you 
have a new jersey, you have to learn the history, right?" 
Not that the 2007 vintage Celtics are happy to rest on the laurels of former 
glories which ended, to all intents and purposes, with their last finals 
appearance two decades ago. 
The intensity which Garnett brought to the end-of-practice scrimmages was 
impressive, to say the least. "Let's go ... get your gas on!" he screamed at the 
top of his lungs during Sunday's games which came at the end of a 3 1/2 hour 
session which coach Doc Rivers put his team through, starting just six hours 
after they had completed their Trans Atlantic flight by touching down at Rome's 
Fiumicino airport. 
"Between me, Kevin, Paul, _James [Posey]_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=3341) , guys who have been in the league for a certain 
amount of time, we have an intensity about us," said Ray Allen. "He [Garnett] is 
very outward with his, he'll fire up guys. But we all move in a lot of 
different ways, that's how we complement each other." 
Garnett, himself, had a more colorful explanation for his in-your-face school 
of motivation. "I enjoy competing, I enjoy playing the game," he said. "As 
you guys go through your everyday lives, you guys probably go to the gym and hit 
the punch bag, the ladies probably do Tae Bo and get to scream about their 
boyfriends, or vice versa. I get to come and practice, that's where I release 
some of my stress, some of my energy. That's what you see out there." 
The head-to-heads between Garnett and _Kendrick Perkins_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=3730)  were particularly entertaining, 
especially given the "history" between the pair. The two exchanged heated words 
when they faced off during a Boston-Minnesota game in February. KG explained 
that one of his first acts upon joining the Celts had been to seek out his new 
teammate and clear the air. 
And for Rivers, the sight of players challenging each other, mentally as well 
as physically, in the opening week of practice was particularly welcome, not 
least because it may have indicated that the chronic lack of depth from which 
Boston are expected to suffer once you get past their starting ... well ... 
starting three, may not be as bad as feared. 
"The scrimmages between our first and second units have been very close, very 
competitive," he said. "There has been a lot of barking at each other. 
Before, if you said something, the young guys would back up. These guys are going 
nowhere. The five [second unit] guys looked the starters in the eye and told 
them to bring it on. That's nice." 
However, the fact remains that talk is all well and good but will count for 
nothing once the season rolls around. "Paper champions" is a phrase heard a lot 
around these Celtics, with a great degree of cynicism: As in, being paper 
champions doesn't mean anything. 
To underline that fact, any Celtic, young or old, need only glance across the 
locker room towards Posey, the only player on this squad to have appeared in 
an NBA Finals, winning the 2006 title with the _Miami Heat_ 
(http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/clubhouse?team=mia) . 
"Guys have asked a little bit about it," said Posey of his Finals experience. 
"How does it feel, this and that, and I've tried to give them a little inside 
scoop about my experience which was a good one. 
"I've been on both sides, having been a champion and, also, being on the 
opposite side, trying to repeat the next year [2007] and getting swept in the 
first round. That was tough. There is no such thing as 'paper champions.' You look 
at our team, look at our roster, we have great players on this team but we 
have to go out and play the games. If we take care of the regular season then we 
can put ourselves in a good situation for the playoffs. That's all we're 
trying to do." 
Ian Whittell covers the NBA for the London Times. 




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