NBA Trade Bombshell: Kevin Garnett returns to Timberwolves
The veteran returns to where he rose to fame in a trade flurry that shook up the entire NBA.
A deal that has 15-time All-Star forward Kevin Garnett headed back to his original team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, headlined a late flurry of moves ahead of the NBA's trade deadline on Thursday.
The deal, which will send Thaddeus Young to the Brooklyn Nets, was agreed to by both teams but had to wait for Garnett to drop his no-trade clause, according to multiple reports.
Garnett, who won an NBA title in 2008 with Boston, will lend a veteran presence to a young team in Minnesota, where the 20-year veteran broke into the league as the fifth overall pick of the 1995 draft.
A trio of three-team deals were also made as contenders fine-tuned rosters ahead of the playoffs, while other teams dealt with an eye to the long-term future, according to nba.com as many late deals had not yet been confirmed by the clubs.
°Õ³ó±ðÌýMiami HeatÌý²¹³¦±ç³Ü¾±°ù±ð»å prized Suns ²µ³Ü²¹°ù»åÌýGoran Dragic in a three-way trade with New Orleans and Phoenix, which pocketed a pair of first-round draft picks in the process.
Point guard Dragic, who was traded along with his brother Zoran, was averaging 16.2 points, 4.1 assists and 3.6 rebounds in 52 games this season in the last year of his contract.
In another three-way swap, PhoenixÌý²¹³¦±ç³Ü¾±°ù±ð»å ²µ³Ü²¹°ù»åÌýBrandon Knight from the Milwaukee Bucks, who received guard Michael-Carter Williams from the Philadelphia 76ers and center-forward Miles Plumlee and ²µ³Ü²¹°ù»åÌýTyler Ennis from the Suns.
The Sixers, meanwhile, received a protected 2015 first-round pick from the Suns via the Los Angeles Lakers.
Another deadline deal sent Thunder ²µ³Ü²¹°ù»åÌýReggie JacksonÌý³Ù´ÇÌýDetroit, four players to Oklahoma City including center Enes Kanter ´Ú°ù´Ç³¾ÌýUtah and ²µ³Ü²¹°ù»åÌýD.J. Augustin from the Pistons, and Kendrick Perkins and a first-round draft pick to Utah.
The Celtics obtained ²µ³Ü²¹°ù»åÌýIsaiah Thomas ´Ú°ù´Ç³¾ÌýPhoenix for Marcus Thornton and a draft pick, and Boston also dealt Tayshaun PrinceÌý³Ù´ÇÌýDetroit for Luigi Datome and Jonas Jerebko.
New York and Houston swapped international players as the Knicks traded veteran Italian guard Pablo Prigioni to the Rockets for young Russian ²µ³Ü²¹°ù»åÌýAlexey Shved and a pair of second-round picks.
In another swap of guards, the Washington WizardsÌý²¹³¦±ç³Ü¾±°ù±ð»å Ramon Sessions ´Ú°ù´Ç³¾ÌýSacramento in exchange for Andre Miller.
(Reporting by Larry Fine in New York; Editing by Frank Pingue)