Just like that, Kevin Garnett is no longer a candidate to buy the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Last summer, Garnett announced his intentions to make a bid to purchase the franchise that he put on the map two decades ago. There hadn’t been much chatter surrounding his candidacy as a buyer since then, and now, KG says he’s no longer in the running.
In a surprise to no one, Wolves owner Glen Taylor has a different perspective entirely.
Kevin Garnett: Process to try and acquire the Timberwolves is over
The Hall-of-Fame inductee and 2004 Most Valuable Player posted on Instagram on Thursday afternoon that he “just got the news that this process in trying to acquire the TWOLVES IS OVER (sic)”.
Among other things, Garnett also thanked Taylor for being himself and who he “knows him to be.” The obvious inference to make here, of course, is that Garnett is harkening back to when he called him a snake.
There was a moment when it looked like Garnett, who would not have enough capital to lead a group, had several investors that included as many as three billionaires. Unfortunately, it appears as though whatever legitimacy there may have been to the bid, it fell by the wayside.
To hear Taylor tell it, well … he wouldn’t exactly say that it went down in the same way.
Glen Taylor: Kevin Garnett never made an offer to buy the Timberwolves
Shortly after Garnett’s social media post, The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski spoke to Taylor. Sure enough, Glen is in stark disagreement with Garnett’s take on events.
The Wolves owner told Krawczynski (subscription required) that, not only did he not make an official offer, but Garnett apparently “never contacted” him to say he was interested. Going further, Taylor said that Garnett’s name was not listed on any of the buying groups that asked for financial information as part of a potential transaction.
Here we are again. The two seminal characters in the entirely dreary tale of 31-plus years of Timberwolves basketball are once again not simply failing to see eye-to-eye, but claiming that the other party is actively being dishonest.
It’s ugly, to be sure, and both sides need to realize that all this fanbase is asking for is to finally get a reconciliation between Kevin Garnett and the fanbase. It’s becoming inescapably clear that a jersey retirement simply isn’t in the cards until Taylor has sold the team, and it’s too bad.
At the very least, fans just want the franchise to have a cordial relationship with the best player in franchise history, the Wolves’ only Hall-of-Famer. Or, a winning record. And maybe not a bottom-five record.
Is any of that too much to ask?