The Boston Celtics' Kevin Garnett's name has been in the midst of trade rumors lately, and with the Denver Post reporting that the Nuggets have contacted the Celtics to inquire about Garnett's availability added a new twist to the ongoing saga.
Though the Post says one thing, Garnett is saying another.
In his contract is a no-trade clause that allows him to cancel a deal if it's not up to his standards. That's exactly what's happening in the rumored deal the Nuggets were trying to make with the Celtics.
Garnett doesn't want to play in Denver for several reasons. The First is that the small market city won't offer him much options to make any extra cash like the big market cities like New York, Los Angeles or Miami. And factor in that the Nuggets aren't even much of threat in the Western Conference just lowers their appeal to the future Hall of Famer.
If Garnett would even consider the Nuggets the team will first have to make a similar move to what Boston did when they added Ray Allen to Paul Pierce, which was the deciding factor to why Garnett joined the Celtics in the first place.
Though the Nuggets are pretty much out of the bidding war for Garnett, there's a slight chance another Western Conference team can sneak in and make a play for the center.
A couple weeks ago it was reported that the Los Angeles Clippers were trying to nab the 36-year-old. Though now much is known about how far talks have gone, the Clippers would be the logical landing spot for Garnett if the Celtics were really serious about trading him.
They are contenders, but are in need of another experienced big man to solidify their rotation. That said, the latest report makes it sound like they would have to start at square one if they want him.
But in the end the decision is ultimately up to Garnett, who said he would like to retire a Celtic after stating he "bleeds green." If he wants to stay with the Celtics, that's exactly what will happen. It will be interesting to see over the next few weeks if any contenders make a serious push to change his mind. For now, he remains in Boston with a team on a five-game winning streak.
