Kevin Garnett to Boston ( Archived) (15)

Anybody have any thoughts or more info on the final details of the trade?

I think it is amazing.. like a gift from god. Maybe the celtics will finally be on the cover of sports illustrated since they havnt been since early 1990

I hope it works out for K.G. he's a great player. I also really like Ray Allen and Paul Peirce. That's a hell of a starting lineup and I think they actually copliment each others games fairly well. Did you here who Minnesota got in trade?

I'm not completly sure but i think its player to be later named.

BOSTON — Kevin Garnett gives Boston a new Big Three that seemingly brings the Celtics much closer to what their old Big Three delivered — a league title.

The Celtics, who have 16 championships but have gone without one since 1986, obtained the 2004 most valuable player and 10-time All-Star on Tuesday in a seven-for-one deal — the league's biggest trade for one player.

Boston sent the Minnesota Timberwolves forwards Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes and Gerald Green, guard Sebastian Telfair and center-forward Theo Ratliff, two first-round draft picks and cash considerations. Besides Ratliff, 34, the other four players Minnesota gets are 24 or younger.

With swingman Paul Pierce and former Sonics guard Ray Allen already on the roster, the Celtics have been transformed from a collection of youngsters who had the league's second-worst record (24-58) last season into an instant contender in the Eastern Conference.

"This is probably my best opportunity at winning a ring," the 31-year-old Garnett said. "It was a no-brainer."

The Celtics won their last three titles with the original Big Three of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. Two members of the 1986 championship team orchestrated the blockbuster trade — Danny Ainge, Celtics executive director of basketball operations, and McHale, vice president of basketball operations for Minnesota.

But Ainge cautioned that it is too early to equate the trios.

"These guys will never be the Big Three until they win" a championship, Ainge said.

Garnett signed a multiyear extension; he had one year plus a player-option year remaining on his contract.

The Timberwolves get the Celtics' first-round pick in 2009, unless it is among the top three, and a return of Minnesota's conditional first-round draft pick obtained in January 2006 when Boston sent Ricky Davis to the Timberwolves for Wally Szczerbiak. Szczerbiak was traded to the Sonics as part of the June 28 deal that brought Allen to Boston.

The previous biggest trade for one league player came in 1999, when Houston obtained Scottie Pippen from Portland for six players.

"I'm confident I made the right decision here, even though that it was a difficult one," said Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, who noted Garnett didn't request a trade.

The teams had discussed a trade for the 6-foot-11 Garnett, the league's leading rebounder each of the past four seasons, before the June draft. But he preferred other teams to Boston, which didn't want to give up Jefferson.

Boston's acquisition of Allen, 32, to go with Pierce, 29, was a major factor in changing Garnett's mind.

"I am excited to become a Celtic," said Garnett, who wore No. 21 in Minnesota and will wear No. 5 in Boston. "It's wonderful to have the opportunity to play with players the quality of Paul and Ray.

"The Celtics have had a proud tradition and now I hope that we can add to the legacy."

Garnett, who averaged 22.4 points last season, realized he didn't fit in with Minnesota's idea of rebuilding with youth and was amazed at the activity to finalize the trade.

"It's like being in a Lamborghini doing 200 with your head stuck out the window," he said. "It's been like a whirlwind the last 72 hours."

I'll do some checking. Being a sixers fan this sucks for them. It was always a rivalry game anyway. Now the Celtics are stacked and the Sixers are fairly young with poor perimiter defense. What ya gonna do?

Cool Lena. Jeferson was young and rough around the edges. Ratliff wwas injurypre but really good. I think the T-wolves can work with that and boston should be able to find free agents to fill those holes. Your Celtics should be good

ooops injurypre should be injury prone