How the Minnesota Timberwolves squandered Kevin Garnett's prime, then lost him
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- čas přidán 13. 06. 2020
- Believe it or not, the Minnesota Timberwolves were once really good. In 2004, the LA Lakers dynasty crumbled, and a vacuum opened for a new Western Conference power to emerge. With coach Flip Saunders, superstar power forward Kevin Garnett, and a new veteran core that had just challenged LA in the Western Conference Finals, the Wolves looked like a strong contender to take over the West.
They did not do that, and this episode of Collapse explains why. Building a contending team took time, and keeping it together required some politics and financial maneuvering on which Minnesota GM Kevin McHale didn't exactly stick the landing. The team's performance slipped following its Conference Final berth, and McHale reacted by gradually replacing parts, only to hurt the roster with each move. It took bad firings, bad trades, bad draft picks, and more to turn an excellent team led by Garnett into a terrible team with no Garnett and nothing to show for having lost him.
Edited by Ryan Simmons
Motion graphics by Mike Das
Written and produced by Seth Rosenthal
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Boston took Kevin Garnett, Randy Moss, and David Ortiz from Minnesota all in a span of 4 years
They took Moss from Oakland actually.
Oakland?
@@aroobism Vikings traded him to Oakland. 2 years later the Raiders traded him to the Pats.
KAT to the celtics confirmed
Chris9 😂😂👏🏽👏🏽
At least Kevin Garnett won’t have an “Untitled” episode about him
But he won a championship
@@yesd2024 well yeah...
He would've had one if not for the trade to Boston. He was headed for the Charles Barkley/Karl Malone route if not for that.
Ashvith D u might wanna read the comment again
It's a shame that the NBA is so Big 3/Laker/Celtic focused.
"Glen Taylor didn't really help. He's just really rich." That about sums it up
Dudes a bum
@North StarState He’s even the reason why KG refuses to return to the Target Center for a number retirement.
Said until Glen Taylor’s gone, he ain’t stepping foot in that building!
Isn't that every owner? What do they actually do except cut checks?
Steve Veasey Mark Cuban is way way way way way smarter than most of the owners. His basketball knowledge is very high.
So McHale literally signed those deals and his costars were babies having two years left on their deals. But Garnett has no malice towards him.
McHale did the deal that lost them first to round picks. And then got mCcants and Foye!!!! He traded him to BOS for Al Jefferson...
I am not going to say Taylor is a great owner but Garnett also wasn’t the closer in BOS.. proving he just wasnt Duncan. He was flashier and had super talent but one is the best PF of all time the other has defense that puts him slightly above Dirk who was able to win his title as the top dog.
If KG had those uncut gems, he would've won a finals in Minneapolis.
No he wouldn't have. He had an uncut gem in Marbury, before he blew up on the Nets, and young Wally, and he did nothing. Garnett needed a stacked team to win a ring. Basketball is a team game, but if you want the shine and you want people to say YOU won, then you have to carry your team like AD did against Portland a few years ago in the playoffs as massive underdogs with trash players around him.
Zenigundam So I guess you haven’t seen the movie Uncut Gems yet lmao
@@brandonalejandroblanco I saw the commercial for it, but it looks stupid.
Zenigundam What he’s referring to is a direct reference to something in the movie it’s not a reference to his teammates at all.
@@brandonalejandroblanco I get that now, but take a step back before I hit you.
I used to think Sam Cassell looked old on those Twolves teams. Now he's a coach and looks the same age.
He just ugly
Aliens don't age 😝
Would y’all fight mike Tyson 🥊💨 m.czcams.com/video/cqaoBIEcKqA/video.html
@@jasonfire3434 Mark Zuckerberh would like a word with you (don't worry, it's all telepathic).
Dat boii look like ET's first cousin
As a Wolves fan, I thought I couldn’t get anymore miserable
Jay Waz yep
Jay Waz Good teams that got ousted in the first round. Only great team lasted one year. Won 58 games with Olowakandi as the center lol
Your State is burning and about to become the Third World.
Being a Wolves fan is the least of your worries!
Miko Mido I’m not from Minnesota...
Try talking to the Knicks fans 🤣🤣
Being Minnesota sports fan is like getting punched in the groin every single year.
and then coming back willingly every year knowing the same thing will happen again
All of our sports teams are trash. At least we have the Lynx....right?
@@Vito_Caligiuri Twins used to be good but now they're owned by the Yankees. WNBA shouldn't count.
Matthew Shortle hey u said it, not me lol
I thought the Vikings were good? Idk I'm not really into football
As a T-wolves fan, so glad Garnett got his title. He wasn't going to get it in Minnesota.
Zoyx yeah because no all star player wanted to sacrifice millions to play with the highest paid player in the league
Shonen nah the wolves are just one of the worst organizations in the league
Alexandre A wcf vs LA was rigged...this coming from a kobe stan in those days
@@well.thy.one. You are not wrong, but all sports are fixed. The NBA, NFL, NHL, UFC, etc. Mainly in the playoffs. In the NHL I've noticed the team in the playoffs that sells the highest price ticket normally wins the Stanley Cup. Only one or 2 years out of the past 25 this wasn't the case.
Jim Bob interesting about the ticket prices. I definitely think they are all a bit suspect, at least at times.
Growing up a Twolves fan after the Bulls dismantled, 2004 made me very happy. That said I haven’t been as happy since 2004
Fan since 99' me neither.
Thanks for your young core but I think your new gm has done a great job I see you getting Milsap or Love
@@Connor_Duncan I like him as well. They need a defensive center/Forwars so they can move kat to PF/C. Hopefully our dark days will be behind us soon.
Growing up a Pistons fan we were thrilled the bulls finally dismantled and Detroit won it all in 2004.
Advice Giant Detroit was my tied second team along with the Pistons. Sadly that team could’ve won more. Great Pistons teams
Garnett was a different kind of beast in Minnesota. Its a shame it took going somewhere else to get a title.
He was my favorite player when I was a really little kid. He loved the game so much, he played with so much fire, and I was thrilled when he helped the Celts to the title in 2008.
This from a Sixers fan.
I was so happy to see him win in Boston after he left Minnesota. The only downside is that now ESPN refuses to admit he ever wore a T-Wolves uniform.
What is the issue with ESPN you’re talking about?
@@Olegusar777 East Coast bias and ESPN's proximity to Boston, coupled with Minnesota's irrelevancy in a small market. Watching their coverage when KG retired, you could have sworn he only played in Boston. Highlights, interviews, etc. I mean, I get it why ESPN does that, but here a player who spent 14 years of his career in the Twin Cities.
@@nabii5951 same! i am 29 now, and rememebered watching him in 04 while i was in my secondary school. how old are u?
I can't believe how badly the Timberwolves blew KG's prime years. He could've been the centerpiece of a title team in Minneapolis.
His contact was too big. 126 million in those days. The NBA had a hard cap then. They could resign anyone nor purchase good free agents
What chanp were they beating?😅
Who were the Wolves beating at that point?
Spurs? Mavericks? LA Lakers? Jail Blazers?
C’mon now
You guys could have a hay day with the Jail Blazers era
Andy hoop all ready did that.
The early 2010s Detroit Tigers would make a fine subject.
The rangers around that time as well.
Roy McCoy both teams ran into the even year train that was the giants
The Giants was crucial tho
Man I picked them to win it all since to 2010 up until 2015 when I just gave up.
Noooo I couldn’t take that 😂
Don’t forget that the Wolves had Chauncey Billups and didn’t resign him in I think 2002, if they kept him they wouldn’t have needed Cassell
What about drafting ray Allen but trading him for marbary
@@hassanmohamud3096 Allen had the better career but Marbury was an excellent player in his own right. I still think Marbury's biggest issue was being born in an era, with stupid coaching that shamed scoring PGs. He'd be considered one of the best in today's league
TheTwinkiefoot marbury only played for the wolves 3 seasons. His ego is what made the ray Allen trade bad. Ray Allen was a great player. Him and kg would’ve been a great duo.
that was much more consequential than anything they spent time on. to say the team was a great team during KG's MVP year is quite a stretch
And from a piston fan, I say thank you 🙏🏾🙏🏾
Its a beautiful day in Minnesota, I was happy and ready for a good day, then this video was dropped in front of me
Bro right?
You could do a whole series on Minnesota wasting talent.
I hope you're applying this to all leagues because that would be the most accurate
True. I,m a Vikings fan and I would love that
At least we got the Saints.
Just wait till two Minnesota sports teams waist the rookie talent they have this year
randy moss joe mauer kg...being a minnesota fan in 2006 with so much talent and no one around these guys was miserable
When you realize Minnesota could’ve drafted Curry and Derozan but instead took Rubio and Flynn
Rubio and Curry could’ve been a good duo. Derozan and Curry not so much.
Now Steph and Jrue Holiday that’s a good guard duo. Jrue can’t shoot as good as Klay but Jrue is probably a better a better defender
Steph didn't want Minnesota. He wanted a bigger market.
Imagine a big 3 of Love, Curry, and DeRozan. That GS dynasty would've never happened.
David Brian 83 How do you know? First of all Golden State wasn’t even a big market back then. And second, he wasn’t a superstar getting drafted 1st unanimously, he was a mid first round pick that would have gone wherever. It just happened to be Golden State
@@nrmproductions1150 He an his father said so in a documentary
I was way too young to know or remember KG in Minnesota, but this was excellent and interesting. I never knew about his supporting cast until now.
Same here
Taylor Evelyn they ruined it
kg was a few injuries away from 5-6 titles man..this dude is so underrated
Asmosis Jones possibly i suppose...he was pretty amazing
What supporting cast...
KG was so freaking phenomenal. Easily one of the most underrated superstars ever.
Do you think that Mchale kind of gifted the Celtics KG just cuz he played for them?
If kg was in San Antonio he would have 5 or more titles and be the best ever put Duncan in Minnesota he would not be the goat
he was great in boston but he got hurt sadly in 2009....who knows how many titles he could of had if healthy as a star player on the wolves if they built right and kept stars like billups next to him and still could of been a star on the stacked celtics later on for 4-5 titles if healthy....and people wonder why he left?...he deserved it...eventually you gotta get your ring man....he wasted so much time on just an ok team and then had 1 real year to contend and injuries ruined it ....
Not underrated at all. He is a top 3 PF all time
@@smilezthepoet778 i disagree. Duncan was a true 4. His skill set translates to any team. I think KG's issue is that he was ahead of his time. He was drafted into a 5 position leaugue. He would have atrophied even more with the spurs. If he wasn't forced to be a true big man we could have seen something phenomenal. Similar to what happened to carmelo. He was forced to play big amd it caused his slashing skills to atrophy. Completely changing the trajectory of his develpement as a dynamic big guard.
Sprewell “I got a family to feed” *retires one year later
“So remember kid, success is just failure that hasn’t happened yet.”
And that’s life advice from Latrell Sprewell.
To be fair to Sprewell, the Wolves lowballed him.
Imagine taking a paycut after the best season in franchise history.
Shonen Dude was in his mid-30s at that time, no team is going to offer him much money at that age and he wasn’t even the #1 guy on the team
TheHuskyK9 Again, they are coming off the best season in the history of the franchise in which Cassell/Sprewell/Garnett were the highest scoring trio in the league, the Wolves signed Garnett to a $100M extension, and then they lowballed his co-stars.
Sprewell was making over $14M a year, had one of the best seasons of his career in Minnesota and they offered him half of that ($7M a year) the next year. An insulting offer.
Sprewell’s reaction was purposely skewed by the media and the league brass similar to Allen Iverson’s “Practice” speech. Context matters.
Spre choked every bit of money he could out of the NBA orange. A wise man
The music really sells the "Collapse" portion of these videos
You should have mentioned that KG returned for his final season.
Fun fact: in 06 and 07, the wolves played at a 45 win pace with KG on the court. When he was off, they played at an 11 win pace. No star has ever had a worse supporting cast around him than KG
Lebron James?
@@RioluAuraSphere no
Kobe Bryant?
@@crimsonking8942when he was like 38? Lol
Do a Collapse on the Sonics after reaching the 1996 finals and how it lead to their move out of Seattle to become the OKC Thunder
Something about Starbucks and Hurricane Katrina.
Yeah sure, why not, the last two weeks haven’t sucked quite enough
But they were good as the Thunder, until they weren’t.
Fantastic idea, why have they still not done this?
@@kitkat6782 a two for one combo of collapse then
As a Jacksonville Jaguar fan, I’d hate to see a collapse from the 2017 season, but at the same time, I’d hate to see it
Duval Cricket huh? Lol
Jaguars fans exist?!
Pimp Daddy C we’re few and far in between!
I’d wait until you guys go 1-15, 2-14, or 3-13 next year.
Internet Standard Imagine being A Skins fan lol we going 1-15 and getting Trevor Lawrence
The facts that I just finished watching uncut gems also.
rip howard bro frfr
Dope movie bro
I still need to watch that
KG is a surprisingly good actor, even if he’s playing himself.
I love the wolves but damn it's been hard since KG. I'm glad he got a ring.
Conspiracy theory: McHale sabotaged the wolves to make KG unhappy so he could trade him to Boston to get them another title or two 🤔
That was one hell of a long term play, then.
NBA: Take away 4 first round picks for a contract dispute
MLB: Slap on the wrist for cheating
Because they don’t want people to remember it
Astros lost draft picks as well
The NFL: A guy cheats to win by messing up the balls. "You gonna pay for that! But not really."
Also the NFL: A guy kneels. "OMG! YOU MONSTER! YOU ARE OUT FOREVERRRRR!"
.
@@1who4me Yeah and in baseball that's a slap on the wrist with how the draft/minor league system works. They're barely going to feel that hit and it won't affect the team at all for a few years anyway so the cheating core that won a ring can keep competing.
Jaric was married to Adriana Lima. So random.
Dude once hit a full court game winning buzzer beater for me in NBA2K9 when he was with the Grizzlies.
He officially became my favorite player after that! 🐐
Damn. That is random. Good for him.
Was that Jose Lima's chick? #LIMATIME!!!!!
Why do hot chicks always go after the lame athletes?
@@YankeesFan0620 Because being a lame athlete doesn't necessarily translate to being a lame romantic partner?
'Stop feeding your family gold bars Sprewell' -Flip Saunders probably
I’ve been waiting on a 2004 T-wolves collapse for a while. I’ve lived through the timber-pups and the timber-bulls. I wish the wolves can be good again.
Could be a while in a tough western conference. I believe in Charles Rosas. He’s done great things thus far. The awful defense of D Lo and KAT might be a problem.
If the Timberwolves could divorce themselves from Glen Taylor I'm sure they'd be great. He doesn't know how to allocate his money for players.
Agreed. It was so much fun with KG. Hopefully we can return to something at least competitive!
Paul D. If a franchise is bad for numerous years you got to look at the one constant
Trey'L Johnson maybe not this year, maybe not next year, maybe not in my next reincarnation. One day tho.
I reccomend Collapse of the mid-2000s Kings
Webber tearing his ACL in 2003 and Stojakovic and Christie choking in game seven the previous year is hwy they are ringless. If the Kings make the WCF in 03, TD himself wouldn't have been able to beat them since they were deep af.
Mr. Pink true but they could have won a ring in ‘02 if it wasn’t for the refs
Harry Engel he was good. Up there with KG, Dirk and TD. After the ACL tear in ‘03 he was never the same player again.
Yes, and the collapse of the Sonics and the Phoenix Suns after Amare left.
Yes.
11 year collapse. From Game 7 of the 2002 Western Finals to the Maloofs selling the team, and Petrie being canned.
I was a DIEHARD KG fan from day one. He single handedly carried that franchise for over a decade. It was heartbreaking as a kid to watch them lose in the playoffs EVERY year.
Sounds like Garnett didn't have his black opal.
13:01 Sam Cassell also got his 3rd ring via mid-season trade, also as a Celtic.
Who could’ve known the injury gods would curse Johnny Flynn like that.
I mean they pick two guards before Curry... that just blow my mind. How can anybody be so wrong about anything
Steph and Kevin Love would’ve been a nice offensive duo, and if everything would’ve gone the way it did, they could’ve had Steph and KAT together.
It's bad cuz they coulda drafted Curry
@@juanjuan7349 curry aint good than the two drafted before him.
I just realized the wolves literally traded Kevin Garnett for nothing.None of the players or assets became anything productive to Minessota.Damm
Al Jefferson was a decent player for them. His play just didn’t translate to wins.
Mchale wanted kg to go to Boston. Other teams proposed better offers.
They were feeling charitable
i still wonder if Mchale did the C's a solid with that move
The T-Wolves, the place where Power Forwards go to be miserable (Garnett, Love, Jefferson, Towns)
Unarguably the best sports channel on CZcams… the quality of their videos is better than most if not all sports documentaries
The Minnesota Timberwolves our team that was literally handed every opportunity in the world and yet still managed to somehow throw that away and then shoot themselves in the foot and screwed themselves for years to come. That takes true talent.
With a name like Trenton Hassle you gotta be a lockdown defender.
Yes!!! A new season of Collapse!! Love u guys and your videos!!!
Loved the intensity KG brought every game played on both ends of the floor had great footwork in the post and the fact he would talk to himself at the free throw line
I love these videos so much, they're so well done. First thing popped in my head was: Troy Hudson was actually the most important player on that team
I love you for this. Minnesota sports in general is a topic that can be picked apart for how sad it all it
You gotta keep making more of these, it’s awesome
I love to watch Collapse, It's so fascinating to see teams and dynasties fall apart because of crucial mistakes and bad trades. It's kinda rare to see this here in Brazil with the top tier's soccer clubs, because when they fall they immediately rebound from that shitty season in the next season.
One suggestion I have would be to do a Collapse episode on the Red Sox after 2007. They had a crazy story going from winning the title, to playoff disappointments, to the 2011 collapse, to finishing in last in 2012, only to bounce back and win that title in 2013. That would be interesting.
Wow I feels like forever since there was an episode of collapse. Glad to see this. As an Oakland A's fan I do understand the feeling of seeing somebody who either had a lot of potential or already was great on my favorite team end up winning a championship with another team.
Yes, I'm so happy this series is back! Please do the 2008 Phillies at some point
Man the Wolves history is really sad
As a timberwolves fan, I enjoyed this even though I’m essentially just watching all their stupid mistakes that they made.
I love the room reference 😂
Glad I wasn’t the only one who caught that! Tommy Wiseau would be proud
Came to the comments for this
Oh hai Mark (Madsen) citing ‘The Room’ was brilliant!
YYYYAAAASSSS! Excellent job as always!
Video 20 of asking for a untitled Steven gerrard
Or at the very least Man U v Liverpool beef history
I know by untitled you mean Premier League, World Cup and Euro Cup, but the man won the damn UCL in 05. Football is not the best sport to pick for those vids, cause most great Players win a title in their career, because there are so many (f.e. World Cup, Euro Cup, UCL,UEFA CUP, FA Cup, Premier League).
Schurkenbub then why do Martha she’s won multiple tournaments domestically
@@aroobism I didn't say that was a good either. Maybe it is because when I think of somebody being 'untitled' I think they never won any kind of title. The format just makes more sense for sports played mainly in the US where there is usually 1 title to win, not 3 or more. Just my opinion
@@aroobism The difference is Marta's focussed on her with Brazil, Gerrard won everything but the league with Liverpool so it wouldn't work the same way. The only way you can do a football Untitled would be internationally 'cause as Schurkenbub said, most good players win something.
Schurkenbub if they did it with Martha they can do it with gerrard
"I did not hit her. It's not true, it's bs. I did not hit her. I did nnnaaaooottt .." 12:57
The perfect Gem for this video
"Oh hi"
12:58 that the room reference is cheeky. Loving the content!
Love these mini-docs
KG wasted so many good years there, would've liked to see him and Pierce hook up earlier in their careers
What if ego got in the way?
Garnet was so underrated it’s crazy if he had a team like the lakers or spurs this man would have 4 or 5 rings.
You're crazy if you think he would have been successful in pops system with the spurs. Garnet is way too selfish of a player
Miguel Abrego he wasn’t selfish with the Celtics
Miguel Abrego Are you kidding me? How on earth has KG ever been selfish? You don’t know basketball if you believe that.
@@miguelabrego1079 jesus are you on drugs your worst than covid. Been following kg his whole life. just look for his stat assist
@Lavoris Frazier yeah. I mean Carmelo anthony is the real definition of selfish
Great episode
we need more basketball videos and more often! this is my favorite channel but I wish we had more mainstream content in football and basketball
Spreewell: I have a family to feed.
A year later: Nah I'm retiring.
Welp that’s our Timberwolves
i mean technically you guys have 5 titles la claims...they were not the la lakers in the 50's....so...
But in the 50s they were just tall janitors lmao
Love these videos! Keep them coming!
Need more of these
I am a wolves fan and was very happy when my fave player got his MVP title. Also, I am a Supersonics fan and love Ray Allen. Getting them to play together in Boston with Pierce was just unreal at that time and I watched their journey on getting their first title. There shouldn't have been a debate of the best PF if only.
Would like to see a video on the Edmonton Oilers and their slow collapse to almost perennial bottom dwellers after appearing in 8 Cup Finals from 82-83 to 89-90 and winning 5 of them.
We Need More Collapse Videos 💪💯
Love these series.
This hurt my soul
You could do a similar episode on the post-lockout Buffalo Sabres. They were considered a "team of the future", built for the faster, more agile league that the rules changes were supposed to bring about. They went to two conference finals immediately following the lockout, and won their division twice in five years. And now they are on a 9-year playoff drought.
love this prequel to uncut gems
I've dreaded this moment for a long time. Let's do this!
Great to see the series back, hope to see more involving the 62 win Atlanta Hawks, Joe Gibbs’ Redskins, and potentially the Spurs dynasty should they miss the postseason
We may be seeing the new peak of the wolves... #1 seed currently (26-11), #1 defense in the NBA with anthony edwards arguably breaking through into a superstar, with KAT and rudy locking in... this team looking at it right now could have a limitless ceiling, Ant is him and the other two look way more comfortable being lower on the totem pole.
Again...I just wanted to say that I am loving this series
Man I remember watching this series. This was my prime of being into sports and I was rooting so hard for the timber wolves that I was blind to the amazing ability of those they played against.
I was born in Minnesota and lived there for all 27 years of my life. I grew up during the KG era, the problem was McHale was terrible with signings and money management. This is a major reason why Minnesota failed to retain there best players to help Garnett during the rough seasons when the team failed to pass the first round of the Playoffs until 2004.
The two draft classes which hurt us deeply were 1996 and 2009.
2009 was far obvious and Khan had no idea how to scout or do his job. This still hurts to this day.
1996 set everything for the organization's failures. Minnesota drafted Ray Allen and we could have a young core of Allen and KG. But instead they traded him to Milwaukee for Stephon Marbury. Even though they were exciting to watch, Marbury received a reputation of being selfish and it came ahead after McHale gave KG the $126 million deal in 1997.
My Timberwolves :(
12:57 - The very last place I expected to encounter a "The Room" reference. Well done, Seth.
Love this series
Are you telling me Noah and KG could have played together? BEEF!!!
Joakim Noah^
"The 05-06 wolves were a stinky doudou"
Now that's what I call euphemism 😁
they were like 6-35 lol
Wooooo! New Collapse!!
love you're videos man keep it up. hoping u can do one on my Orlando Magics the downfall, lol my team sadly
OH HAI MARK
Sam Cassell was on two good conference finals teams that missed the playoffs the year after. The bucks were a game away from making the finals in 2001 and should have made it but bad calling cost them the series, the year after they went 41-41
12:58 loved that The Room reference.
the dust overlay fit with the profiles of players so many times I kept thinking you were doing a weird effect where people were just casually getting Thanos dusted.
*well it's 2021 now and wolves still aren't doing better*
As a timber wolves fan I can say this hurts, but is true.
Thank you for making a video on a good sport
Yes collapse is finally back🙌🙌🙌
I’d say we need a Patriots collapse video but we all know they’re gonna start another dynasty with “drafted qb x”
Tom Brady is gone and the pats won’t find another identity for a long time.
Personally I feel it would have to be done a year or 2 after whenever Belichick leaves the Pats or retires to officially close the book on the Dynasty.
the patriots collapsed after 04
it took them 10 years to rise to glory again
salamipitza you mean 07?
@@therealjaystone2344 to championship glory
I can't imagine breaking rules that cost you multiple first round picks to sign Joe Smith. The guy was the definition of "mediocre".
More Collapse episodes please!
I think people forget that Garnett did plenty for his situation as well. Did you forget the Mike James signing, among many others that KG helped orchestrate.