Kevin Garnett is one of the most notorious trash talkers and trouble makers in the history of the NBA, and he was apparently at it again on Friday night when the Chicago Bulls beat the Boston Celtics in overtime. Garnett battled with Bulls center Joakim Noah throughout the night, and Noah ripped him after the game for playing dirty.
“(I was) just playing defense,” Noah told reporters, via ESPNBoston.com. “Just playing sound defense, just contesting his shots. He’s a helluva competitor. He’s always on some bulls—. Always on some bulls—. … Just trying to throw elbows. Cheap shots, just trying to get you off your game. But he’s a vet. He’s been doing this a long time, but it’s all right.”
Noah held Garnett to 16 points on just 5-of-16 shooting, so he was effective in containing the 17-year veteran. During the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals, Noah called Garnett a “dirty player.” On Friday night, he admitted that he may have talked too much when he was younger. He also said that he didn’t feel Garnett crossed the line, but that he probably would have felt that way had the Bulls lost.
“Nah,” Noah said. “When we lose, I feel like he crosses the line. But since we’ve been beating their asses, I’m cool with it.”
At least he’s honest. As Carmelo Anthony — whose wife has earned a number of new nicknames over the past week or so because of K.G. — could tell you, Garnett has made a career of trying to fluster his opponents by saying or doing anything the officials will let him get away with. When you’ve been in the league as long as he has, you can get away with quite a bit.
