Kevin Garnett has one priority before calling it a career, win a championship. Already in possession of a ring with the Boston Celtics, the veteran is targeting one more title before he decides to call it quits. So when a trade presented itself sending Garnett away from the rebuilding Celtics and towards the surging Brooklyn Nets, he knew he better take it.
"I'm here to get another ring," Garnett said, via USA Today Sports. "That's the only reason we came to Brooklyn."
By "we", Garnett is referring to Paul Pierce who also made the jump from Boston to the Nets in search of another championship. Brooklyn built a team of savvy veterans mixed with young talent in hopes of making a run to the NBA Finals happen sooner rather than later. The Nets are rebuilt and understand there are no excuses.
The Nets starting lineup is stalked with All-Star appearances as Garnett, Pierce, Brook Lopez, Joe Johnson and Deron Williams headline the bill. Jason Terry and Andrei Kirilenko take over the bench. Last year the Nets made it to the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, before losing to the Chicago Bulls. The 49 games won in the regular season is expected to improve.
Pierce recognizes the expectations being placed on Brooklyn. He is not thinking a division title and nothing less.
I came here to win a championship," Pierce said. "I don't even want to see an Atlantic banner put up if we win. I don't even know how many Atlantic Division championships we won in Boston. ... The expectations have grown. It's no longer the New Jersey Nets, hoping we can win the division. Now they're the Brooklyn Nets with championship aspirations. You see that with the people around, the owners, what they've done to turn this organization around."
Jason Kidd takes over as head coach, his first coaching job in the NBA. The new Nets coach understands that with growing age of the roster means restricting player's minutes in order to guarantee they last the entire season. Garnett is not down with that. He believes that in order for chemistry to build, he must be on the court the whole time.
Chemistry will be the biggest hurdle the Nets must overcome. The Miami Heat are a perfect example of how long that can take to build. Combined the team has a big resume between them, but Johnson promises that egos will be placed aside and the main priority is the championship.