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Garnett Says Thanks, Clippers-Wolves Pregame Notes

Today is Monday, March 2nd 2015.

By ZacharyBD
Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Who says no?

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Yesterday, the Minnesota Timberwolves PR department sent out a press release explaining how one may get free tickets to tonight's game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Beginning at 9:00 AM, the first 500 fans to claim tickets at www.timberwolves.com/kg will receive a pair of tickets, courtesy of Kevin Garnett.

Garnett purchased- and is giving away -1,000 tickets to show his appreciation for the reception he received upon returning to Minnesota.

"The response and support I've received from Wolves fans since my return to Minnesota has been nothing short of amazing. It's been unbelievable," said Garnett. "As a gesture of thanks, I would like to treat some fans to Monday night's game against the Clippers. Love you all, and thanks for the love. Enjoy the game on me."

So, it's safe to assume Garnett will suit up and play tonight against the Clippers. Minnesota hopes to rebound after dropping Saturday's matchup to the Memphis Grizzlies. Garnett scored six points and tallied three steals in only 15 minutes of action against Memphis before being ejected with two technical fouls.

Tonight Garnett faces off against one of his former head coaches, Doc Rivers. Rivers and Clippers assistant Armond Hill coached Garnett for six seasons in Boston. And there's more...

  • Lawrence Frank coached Garnett for the 2010-11 season as an assistant in Boston.
  • Sam Cassell and Garnett were teammates for two seasons (2003-05) in Minnesota and part of the 2007-08 season in Boston.
    • Additionally, Cassell played two seasons in Minnesota under Flip Saunders and assistant Sidney Lowe and also served as an assistant on Saunders' staff for three seasons in Washington.
  • Glen Davis and Garnett were teammates for four seasons in Boston (2007-11)...Clippers assistant Sam Cassell played two seasons in Minnesota

Garnett did not play in the Wolves 96-89 road loss to the Chicago Bulls last Friday. The Clippers enter tonight's contest one day removed from a 96-86 victory over Chicago, spearheaded by all-star point guard Chris Paul and his 28 points, 12 assists and 5 rebounds.

The Wolves have faltered in the previous 10 consecutive matchups between these teams, including a 127-101 loss on Dec. 1 at Staples Center. The Clippers dominated behind Blake Griffin and J.J. Redick--who each scored 23 points. Shabazz Muhammad's 18 points on 6-of-11 field goal shooting was the lone bright spot for the Wolves.

DeAndre Jordan recorded 11 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocks against the Wolves back in December. Tonight, he will surely keep Garnett, Gorgui Dieng, Nikola Pekovic and Adreian Payne busy in and around the painted area. Jordan--after collecting 26 rebounds in yesterday's win over Chicago--has collected 15+ rebounds in eight consecutive games. This impressive production on the glass is the longest such streak of his career and the longest active streak in NBA.

In addition, Jordan has currently holds the longest active consecutive games played streak at 300. But he'll need to be productive if Clippers hope to defeat the Wolves, as they are still without the services of Blake Griffin.

Griffin underwent elbow surgery to remove a staph infection in his right elbow on Feb. 9 and is expected to miss a few more weeks. At the time of the operation it was speculated he would miss somewhere between 4-6 weeks. Prior to the procedure, Griffin, now a five time all-star, averaged 22.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.1 assists while shooting 50.1 percent from the field in 35.3 minutes this season.

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I'll leave you with some tweets. And some metal.