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NBA FINALS: LAKERS v CELTICSJune 17, 2008Kevin GarnettBOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS: Game Six KEVIN GARNETT: I just want to say, other than my kid being born, this has got to be the happiest day of my life right now. I'm going to be hoarse, I don't plan on sleeping for a week and months (laughter). If you're looking for me, personal friends, my number is about to change (laughter). Man, man, man. Go ahead. Q. You came to this team, you stood at a press conference, you held up those jerseys with Ray and Paul. What did you guys talk about back then, about what this dream could be for you guys? KEVIN GARNETT: We said no more excuses. This is what it is. We've all talked about getting personnel on the team. We said from day one this is Paul's team. Ray and I had no problem with that. Doc let us know that the three of us were going to have to sacrifice. I know it sounds old fashioned and cliché, but it's just real talk. I thought the three of us did that. I thought we made plays for each other, the bench and the guys on the team. I thought the whole year we was examples, along with Posey, and then when we got Sam and PJ we added some examples to the team. I thought you could see our team maturing. I thought Rondo and Perk by maturing over the year, really stepping up to the pressure and the critics and people say, hey, you need a point guard, this point guard can't do that, I thought Rondo did a good job of focusing and letting that be the motivation for the year. It worked, not to say that it was pretty, not to say that it was perfect, but we found a way and we made it work. Q. These Finals, these playoffs, everything you went through these last six weeks, about a minute to go, you, Paul and Ray sitting there with your arms around each other -- KEVIN GARNETT: We said this is the reason we came here, this is the reason we got together, and Danny made it go down. This is it right now. That moment right there solidified the reason why we sat on that podium and talked, from the moment we were in the back talking to the moment we stepped foot in Rome, this is the reason right here. Q. Are we allowed to call you guys the Big Three yet? KEVIN GARNETT: No (laughter). Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Y'all got to give us a new nickname. I know you're all more creative than "the Big Three," so let us hear it. Man, man, man. Q. You, Ray and Paul had to give up something of yourselves during the season. How did Coach Rivers make you believe in that, and how did he grow as a coach over the season? KEVIN GARNETT: I don't think it was that difficult. I think he just spoke on it and then challenged us. In the beginning I thought Doc really thought that we had a lot more ego than we really do. I think personal issues and personal debates behind closed doors, not -- leaving basketball out of it, I think we're more competitive in that sense because we all do have our own views on life and the world and everything. But when it came to basketball, you know, it's pretty high and dry to what's right and what's wrong and what's best for the team and what's best for the time being. I thought we gravitated towards that, man. I thought we did a real good job of dialogueing and talking amongst the three of us, figuring it out. It wasn't egos, about who was going to get the last shot, it was always about match-ups and who had it going. I mean, so many little small things that make the team what it is and so many small things at the same time that destroy a team. I thought we did a good job of condensing those and being the examples. Man, I need some water. Q. I just want to know, how does it finally feel to finally let this out? Because you've been holding this in for a long time, and I don't know if anybody in the room knows how long you've been holding it in. Explain to them what it feels like to finally let this out of your soul. KEVIN GARNETT: You ever go to school and you had that bully mess with you every day? I know everybody, ain't no tough guy here. It's like that bully that you go to school every day and you know when you get out of your mom's or dad's car, you know you're going to see him as soon as you walk through the doors, he's sitting there waiting to pat your pockets and mess with you. Then one day you say, this is going to stop today. You walk in and as soon as he pats your pocket you lay his ass out and you see the expression on his face, and you're sort of kind of shook because you know, what, you just knocked the bully out and you don't know how he's going to come back. The next morning when you come in and he's not there, it's like a sigh of relief. It's like getting rid of the bully. It's like I knocked the bully's ass out. I knocked his ass clean out. That's what it feels like. For y'all who ain't been bullied, y'all ain't got no idea what I'm talking about. But for y'all who have, you understand the story. Q. There's a saying, something about defense wins something or other. Can you talk about the defense, first of all, and specifically Rondo tonight? He missed a bunch of shots early but he was active defensively, and that seemed to fuel his offense and eventually he had it all going. KEVIN GARNETT: The defense is our backbone. We've always said since day one we're a defensive team that can score the ball. As you can see we can score in bunches. I don't think that was a question mark for the most part. With this Laker team, high volume shooting team, knowing they've got guys coming off the bench that had a lot of confidence, trying to control Kobe. We knew if we were going to win this series we'd have to play defense, one, and control the boards, two. We'd have to definitely talk and the dialogue would have to be better than ever. I thought for the most part, Rondo missed shots, like anybody else would, but that ain't where our heart is. Our heart is with our defense. When you see us beat teams and beat teams bad it's because we play defense for 48 minutes and we put our offensive game together to go with it. Tonight was a statement game for us. We was really ticked that we lost the game in LA. We thought that slipped right through our fingers. Doc let it be known in the locker room, hey, let's not beat this team, let's beat them by 30 and solidify this win tonight and enjoy this night. Q. A lot of players have played for the Celtics, but can you talk about when for you when you felt like you were a Celtic? Was it the first day you got here? Was it some point during the season? Is it right now? Can you just talk about what that means. KEVIN GARNETT: You know you're a Celtic when the other players come up to you and they congratulate you to be here. They explain the tradition to be here. It's like coming into a frat. They let you know right away that it's about tradition here and it's about the team. That's right up my alley. I've never been a selfish guy or a selfish player. It's so much motivation coming in here every day with the banners on the wall and seeing the ex-players come in and watching you practice. There's so much responsibility putting this jersey on that I don't really think you guys understand how much responsibility it is to come in here to carry tradition, Celtic pride, Ubuntu. It's a lot of pressure, but when you lean on each other and you actually diversify throughout a group of 15 or 13 guys, it's no problem. Really, I know it sounds kind of old fashioned, but it's real talk. It's real talk. As soon as you come through the doors and you see those banners and see the jerseys and the pictures, you know that you're around something special, and it is different. Q. To say that this win was convincing would be a gross understatement. Can you talk about the lift that you get from the Boston fans and just how important it was to win it at home? KEVIN GARNETT: Since the day I came here, man, adidas put this posterboard out in the front to sort of invite me to the city or whatever. It has like over 100,000 signatures on it. People had signatures like this size on it, and you can read it. Since day one, man, Paul told me that this city is unlike any other city when it comes to sports, and you give them a reason, they will jump on and they will be behind you even when you're losing or even when you're going through tough times. I got to see that. I thought I played in front of some good crowds, and Boston has a special place. I'll be forever linked to this city, and I'm more than grateful for that. Q. And you've seen the "I remember" commercial? KEVIN GARNETT: Absolutely. It's one of my favorites, and I don't even watch that much TV, only Family Guy, and I think that's it. Thank you, guys. I appreciate it. Go Celtics. Sh-- Whoo. End of FastScripts |
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