Pierce wants KG back, says "he's been everything for my career"
"Well, he's been everything for my career," said Pierce. "Just his locker room presence, his desire, his determination, his leadership. I've said it before, when Kevin first got here, he really changed the culture of everything we did around here -- from the practice habits to on the court, just the discipline. He made everybody accountable, from the ball boys to the chefs to the guy who flew the plane. Everybody was accountable. It was tremendous to just have him around. The culture he brought -- it would be great for me to end my career with Kevin. I have a couple years left, and who knows what his future's going to bring. Hopefully management can do something to bring him back, maybe add some pieces to this team, that we need, to get over the top. If not, it's been a tremendous run."
Who knows what KG's plans are for his future. There were rumors that he might be retiring. More likely he will take the rest of June off to contemplate his future and then be wooed by several teams in July. Expect at a minimum, some team to offer KG 3 years, $30 million +. Garnett has never been one to leave money on the table. In fact if it was up to him the Players Union wouldn't have agreed to the final league offer during the lockout. He felt players deserved to keep their share of league revenue and that he owed it to the younger players not to give in, even if it meant giving up his hefty yearly salary.
I do think KG would take a lesser offer to stay in Boston if it was at least close to what was on the table. If the Celtics let him go, this era is officially over. He's the heart of this team. I'd try and get KG to agree to a 2 year contract to finish his career with Pierce. Then surround the rest of the team with young athletes. Obviously you also keep Rondo and Bradley.
In regards to Pierce's comments, I never really bought into the term "Big 3" for this squad. In 2008, I thought Pierce and KG were in a higher class than Ray, and then by 2009 Rondo was more or less the team's best player. Leadership wise, Rondo wasn't ready, so it was Pierce and KG's team. One without the other will be strange and definitely less effective than the duo. Eventually players get old and retire. Hopefully we get two more years of the Pierce/KG duo.
