Kevin Garnett raises his number, buries hatchet with Ray Allen, in historic night

“I knew y’all f----d with me, but I didn’t know y’all f-----d with me like this.” 

And with that, Kevin Garnett was off and running. 

Garnett is the only human who simultaneously violates FCC rules and the first law of thermodynamics. To look at Garnett, still his slender self, one might think he was stepping out of the showers after facing the Dallas Mavericks himself. To see the energy that still pours out of him, one might believe he could still give Boston 15 good minutes.

Aside from a monster dap after Jaylen Brown’s explosive dunk on Maxi Kleber, Garnett mostly spent the game, a disappointing opening act, comfortably in his baseline seat. After it was over, he retreated to the back, much like the old days, to prepare for his moment on the parquet. 

He walked down the same hallway, through the same tunnel, onto the same corner of the floor he did as a player. He strode onto the court, into the spotlight trained on the logo he kissed 14 years ago in a fit of euphoria. He breathed deeply, taking in the moment, tapping his heart and gesturing thanks to the crowd. 

“BEAAAAANTOWWWWWWN” he bellowed into the microphone, goading a crowd that couldn't stop giving back the energy Garnett was giving, and barking back at him throughout the presentation. 

He told stories in true, engaging KG fashion. His face conveys emotion better than many trained actors, going from wide-eyed incredulity that he had been dragged into an in-flight arm-wrestling contest, to a snarling yell imitating a shirtless Glen Davis that had been winning arm wrestling matches, to then a squinty, pursed-lip smirk that only the final victor could give. 

“I love you boy,” he said to Davis, sitting among fellow 2008 champions. “But there can only be one silverback around here, you know what I’m saying?” 

The moment of the night came when Garnett acknowledged another member of that ‘08 team. 

“It’s good to see Ray Allen here, man. Real s---,” he said to wild applause. “It's good to see you here, Ray. You next, boy!” 

When this night was first announced, a reunion like this seemed unfathomable. Not until All-Star weekend, when Allen and Garnett were photographed together, did this even become a possibility. Now, to have Garnett explicitly bless Ray with re-entry into Boston’s good graces with the declaration that Allen’s number 20 also be retired? It feels almost miraculous. 

Garnett’s voice carries great weight. 

“I did get the sense that the people here felt how Kevin felt,” Allen said after the game “Once he accepted me, then the people accepted me. That was the sense. I was glad we could do that and people could see, ‘We won with this guy in 2008, and that’s what matters most.’”

This isn’t a re-litigation of Allen’s departure. Whether you felt betrayed or didn’t care, the message sent by Garnett is simple. The past is the past, and bygones are bygones, which is very much welcomed by Allen. 

“I don’t like being on the outside,” he said. “There’s so many people here that I love, that I spent time with, that have been a part of the family … and to not be able to connect with them was always, it was always tough for me. Just because I moved away doesn’t mean that relationship, that friendship, ends.” 

Allen got up from his chair, walked over to Garnett, and with an embrace, the animosity ended. Paul Pierce joined the group hug, giving the night its signature moment. The new Big 3, assembled to return Boston to glory, reunited in front of the championship trophy they won. 

When the stories and video tribute ended, it was time for Garnett’s number to ascend to the rafters. Joined by his daughters, they pulled on the ropes to unveil a banner with no more empty spaces. 

Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight” played as they pulled. It’s a song Garnett admitted takes him “into another zone.” 

“My favorite part of when I played here was we would be in the back and they would play that song before we came out,” he said. “I was always locked in before I hit the floor, I was already in demon mode. I was ready to destroy this motherf----r.”

He paused, patted himself on the chest, and got back to the task at hand. A tear rolled down his cheek as he seemed to realize the moment he manifested. Every thump of his head into the stanchion, every saliva-riddled string of expletives, every primal scream he ever screamed — led to this moment. 

“I want to thank all y’all. It's been real, man,” he told the crowd. “I woulda never thought you would have loved me like this. I love you, Boston. I love you, northeast. I love y’all, man.”