Kevin Garnett

birthday

May 19, 1976

Kevin Garnett was born May 19, 1976 in Mauldin, South Carolina

working hard

Period: Jan 2, 1986 to Jan 1, 1990

Worked endlessly on his game, playing at Springfield Park, an outdoor court near his home in Mauldin (Mauldin, a middle-class town with a population of about 12,000, is a suburb of Greenville, the largest city in western South Carolina)

first sports illustrated cover

Jun 26, 1995

Is the coverboy of Sports Illustrated, with the words "Ready or Not."

draft

Jun 28, 1995

Drafted fifth overall in the 1995 NBA draft (held at the SkyDome in Toronto, Canada) by the Minnesota Timberwolves, just days after finishing high school

first contract

Oct 2, 1995

Signed his first professional contract, a three-year, $4.636 million deal with the Timberwolves

first preaseason game

Oct 14, 1995

Played in his first ever NBA preseason game against Milwaukee. would finish the game with 13 points and 3 rebounds.

first NBA game

Nov 3, 1995

Played in his first ever NBA game in Sacramento, coming off the bench at the 5:55 mark in the first quarter during the Timberwolves season opener. finished the game with 8 points, 1 rebound, and 1 assist in 16 minutes

first NBA start

Jan 9, 1996

Makes the first start of his career, scoring nine points and grabbing eight rebounds in the Timberwolves' 106-104 loss to the Lakers in L.A.

contract extension

Oct 1, 1997

Signed a six-year, $126 million contract extension with the Timberwolves, which at the time was the largest multiyear deal in professional team sports.

all-star

Feb 8, 1998

Became the first all-star starter in Timberwolves franchise history, in his second career all-star appearance, at the 1998 NBA All-Star Game at Madison Square Garden in New York

second sports illustrated cover

May 3, 1999

Appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated, with the tag line "The Kid Who Changed The Game." The cover story is titled, "Howlin' Wolf."

all NBA first team

May 31, 2000

Named to the All-NBA first team for the first time in his career

all-star game MVP

Feb 9, 2003

Named MVP of the NBA All-Star Game at Philips Arena in Atlanta after scoring a game-high 37 points in 41 minutes to lead the Western Conference to a 155-145 victory in double overtime

13,000 points

Feb 1, 2004

Became the fifth youngest player in NBA history to reach 13,000 points

NBA MVP

May 3, 2004

Officially named MVP of the 2003-2004 season. Garnett wins MVP for the first time in his career. Since his first ever NBA game was on November 3, 1995, it took him exactly eight and a half years to take home the award.

traded to celtics

Jul 31, 2007

Traded by the Minnesota Timberwolves to the Boston Celtics for five players (Al Jefferson, Sebastian Telfair, Gerald Green, Ryan Gomes, and Theo Ratliff) and two first-round draft picks -- the largest trade for one player in league history.

NBA champions

Period: Oct 10, 2007 to Jul 1, 2008

championshipthe celtics have a very successful season and win the 07-08 NBA championship

1,000th game

Oct 31, 2008

documentPlayed in his 1,000th career (regular season) game, becoming the youngest player in NBA history to reach that mark, at 32 years 165 days. He broke Shawn Kemp's previous record of 33 years and 24 days. Garnett's stats after 1,000 are: 20.407 points, 11.213 rebounds (2.708 offensive, 8.505 defensive), 4.395 assists, 1.666 blocks, 1.386 steals, 2.530 turnovers, 2.521 fouls, and 37.926 minutes per game

moving up

Dec 28, 2008

Scored 21 points in a win over the Kings in Sacramento, giving him 20,894 for his career, moving him into 27th place on the NBA's all-time scoring list (passing Bob Pettitt)