How The Los Angeles Lakers Ruined Their Chance At A Three-Peat.

In the late 2000s, Kevin Garnett was one of the faces of the NBA but was cursed in playing with one of the worst organizations in basketball being, the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Timberwolves failed to build a team around Garnett while also disrespecting and resenting him in the process. Tensions rose, and the Timberwolves were left with no choice but to trade away Garnett to attain some future assets. In real life, Garnett was traded to the Boston Celtics in exchange for, Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Sebastian Telfair, Gerald Green, Theo Ratliff, cash considerations, Boston’s first-round draft pick (top-three protected), and another 2009 first-round draft pick that the Timberwolves received from a prior trade with the Celtics. The Timberwolves got swindled as none of those players came even close to producing the numbers or impact that Garnett had, which comes to no surprise. Even though Garnett loved the city of Minnesota and its fans, the relationship between him and the organization’s front-office was unsalvageable.

Furthermore, the Celtics end up winning a championship, and a dynasty was born but short-lived due to longevity and also many many injuries from the star players. Even though Ray Allen’s dispute between him and the organization was filled with flames and drama, that was towards the end of the Celtics dynasty, which in my opinion, could have gone much better. However, there was a point in time where the Los Angelas Lakers almost managed to attain Garnett in a trade where he would play alongside the great Kobe Bryant, which begs the question, what would the Lakers be if Garnett was a Laker? 

As most fans know, the great Kobe Bryant is one of the toughest, roughest, aggressive athletes the world has ever seen. Some people appreciated his tenacity while others frowned on it and even hated him to some degree. If someone loved or hated Kobe Bryant, he wouldn’t care as he had only one focus that drove him, which was to be a champion and an all-time great. His mentor and idol Micheal Jordan was the same as Kobe wanted to emulate that passion and drive Jordan had. Most people couldn’t have that level of tenacity! Yet, here comes a player named Kevin Garnett, who some might say had the same level of toughness and willingness to do anything to win a championship. 

Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett were nothing but elite competitors that had a lot of respect for each other. Even though they played different positions, both Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett would have missions to end each other on the court. They were both the heart and soul of their teams while also inhabiting some of the best, if not the best skills on the court. In comparison, picture Draymond Green being an inside scorer averaging 20+ points per game and 12+ rebounds while being the most intense player on the court! That was Kevin Garnett, while Kobe Bryant was on a whole other tier of tenacity that only a fair amount of players got to see or play alongside with. A team of Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant would have been a mere fantasy as the human mind wouldn’t be capable of imagining such a strong team. Although the NBA has had a fair share of tough personality ESC teams such as the Bad Boy Pistons, Micheal Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, and even the Kevin Garnett Minnesota Timberwolves in 2004 with Latrell Sprewell and Sam Cassell; those teams, for the most part, were very successful due to the skill that was present on the court and also the toughness and competitive nature that most of those players had on those teams. A team of Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett, in my opinion, would be on a whole other level as these two players were the most intense athletes in the NBA during their primes.

Even though Kevin Garnett ended up in Boston, the Lakers attempted to trade for Garnett. Although there was no confirmation on a concrete trade, Andre Bynum and Lamar Odom were among the top candidates in being shipped away. This would have been very significant for both the Timberwolves and the Lakers as the Timberwolves manage to receive two legit big-men with a lot of potential while the Lakers bring in the second-best power forward in the NBA behind Tim Duncan. 

Andrew Bynum had a rather insane NBA career with many injuries. He was an all-star and a champion with the Lakers, as he was a massive part of that team’s success. Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol are always the two names people think of when you talk about 2008-11 Lakers; however, Bynum was a star of his own. If this trade would have happened, Bynum would have been a star in Minnesota and would have maybe prevented some injuries that ended up ruining his career. With Lamar Odom, however, he was the sixth man that knew and understood his role with the Lakers. He would lead the second unit and was also a very close friend to Kobe Bryant. Their relationship was bigger than basketball, as Kobe Bryant saved Lamar Odom’s life when he needed it the most. If Lamar Odom was on the Timberwolves, I believe that he would regress as a player and would have entered a dark place in his life much sooner then he did. Odom’s story is heartbreaking, and Kobe Bryant was a massive contributor in helping Odom change his ways. Without that aspect, who knows what would have happened to Odom not just as a player, but also as a human being. On the Lakers side of this trade, Garnett would have changed more than just the team’s tenacity. 

When the Lakers failed to bring in Garnett, the next candidate that was on their radar was Pau Gasol. In the real world, Gasol and Kobe would go to three straight finals and win two of them against the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic. The Celtics and Lakers series was one of the greatest rivalries in recent history, while the Orlando and Laker series was close to forgettable. Gasol was the Pippen to Kobe as he would do everything else and respected his role on the team. Although Shaq and Kobe were more successful overall, I believe that the best teammate Kobe ever had in his entire career was Pau Gasol, as he just wanted to win and have a role on a team to express his skill while having an impact. Shaq and Kobe were the more skilled duo, whereas Gasol and Kobe had a relationship that was bigger than basketball. They were brothers from the very beginning, whereas Kobe and Shaq had issues off the court but later rekindled and became brothers of their own. However, in this fantasy, Gasol would have never been traded to the Lakers and instead would have either stayed in Memphis or went to another team. 

Prediction

Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant would have been impeccable to watch and would have the argument of being one of the greatest duos in NBA history. Both Garnett and Kobe are Hall of Famers with championship DNA. These two competitors would have annihilated any competition and would have most likely reached the finals countless of times. This duo would have been far more successful then the Gasol and Kobe duo due to multiple reasons. 

During the Kobe and Gasol duo, their biggest foe was the Boston Celtics and the San Antonio Spurs. By incorporating Garnett into the Lakers line-up, the Celtics become very weak, but a reliable team and the Spurs vs Laker series would most likely follow the same fate in the fantasy world with the Spurs losing. The Laker vs Celtic series was a clash and birth of a new era of superteams, however, without Garnett in Boston, chances are that the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Orlando Magic would have replaced those Celtics teams. Lebron James had an impact unlike no other while the Magic was an up incoming team with a decent cast behind Dwight Howard. 

Regardless of what team, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett would have decimated the NBA and would have most likely won three NBA championships from 2008-10 as no other team would have a chance or strength to play against the Lakers. Kobe Bryant would experience his second three-peat in his career and would have matched Michael Jordan in championships, which were one of the goals that Kobe Bryant had. The other significant factor is, Garnett would be a three-time champion instead of a one time champion and would potentially be named as the second greatest power forward of all-time behind Tim Duncan. Although Garnett would most likely have his nagging injuries that shortened his prime, the Lakers would still go for a three-peat as the Laker’s only competition during that time was the Boston Celtics. 

It would have been an interesting world if Kobe and Garnett were teammates. They were very similar in many ways and had a certain toughness and competitiveness that would scare the common Joe. This duo would have been very successful and fun to watch, yet all we can do is fantasize about what could have happened. Although most NBA fans have an idea of what could have happened with this duo, what would Pau Gasol’s fate be?