Nuggets head coach George Karl spent the last year battling throat and neck cancer. So what was his reaction to KG's alleged "cancer patient" trash talk to Charlie Villanueva?
Asked about Garnett, Karl told me: “My initial response is – it’s disappointing and crossing the line. I don’t know if cancer is an epidemic in our country, but we accept it as a problem and it’s a very dangerous part of life for everybody. Making fun of it, that’s part of (some people’s) sarcastic side of trash talk. … Sometimes, responsibility comes from knowing when to argue when not to – when to cross the line and when not to cross the line. So philosophically, if Kevin and I were close friends, I’d probably call him up and say, ‘I don’t think that’s right (what you said).’ But I also believe that competition makes us do things when we don’t have our total mental morality in line. We act like children at times, even coaches.”
As I tweeted out earlier, I think KG needs to apologize to Charlie and anyone who has been affected by cancer. Own up to it and all will be forgotten and forgiven.
Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski put KG in his crosshairs today:
This is about Garnett, as it should’ve been long ago with his bully act. Here’s the thing: There are few more complex characters in the NBA. K.G. is a fantastic teammate, a leader, the hardest-working man in the gymnasium. He cares about winning, cares deeply, and the success his time with the Celtics has brought him has become a precious part of his legacy. He’s so smart, so calculating, that it remains a conundrum why he has always gone to such lengths to be a needlessly vicious bully.
For years, he’s gone after smaller, younger players. He never goes after tough guys. Never. For some reason, he reveled in going out of his way to abuse European players. So many young Euros grew up idolizing him, loved the range of his versatility at 7 feet, only to have images of him shattered with cheap shots and trash talk on the floor. A few days ago, this happened to the Knicks’ Timofey Mozgov. It happens all the time. Pau Gasol. Jose Calderon. The list is long and the act is tired.
Tough to argue with Wojo.
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