Kevin Garnett Looking to Be More Aggressive in Game 2

Both KG and head coach Doc Rivers know that Garnett has to be a better offensive player tonight for the Celtics to have any hope of heading back home with a tied series. The Boston Globe and WEEI have the quotes: “And when it came to analyzing his own effort after viewing the 99-90 loss again, [Doc] Rivers pointed to one decision as perhaps his biggest error. ‘I’ve got to do a better job of getting Kevin [Garnett] involved,’ Rivers said. ‘Kevin is one of our featured scorers and I didn’t think we did a good job with him at all.’ Indeed Garnett was an absolute non-factor on offense in Game 1, scoring just six points on 3-of-9 shooting. The Celtics made a concerted effort to get Garnett going early, posting him up on Chris Bosh on their first two possessions, but then went away from a matchup that the team looked at as a advantage heading into the series. ‘We got Bosh on an early foul, and then we went seven straight plays before we decided to look back to that spot,’said Rivers. ‘That’s not like us to do that. That was a mistake.’ … ‘I was stressing ball movement and what they asked us to do as a team and Doc [Rivers] tells me I got to be a lot more aggressive so I will,’ Garnett said. ‘Our mind-set has to be a lot more defensive. Mine was probably a lot more offensive. [Tonight] I will be a lot more aggressive.’ … Garnett realized that he was fooled out of his usual role of enforcer and aggressor. And he seems intent on not allowing that to happen again. ‘You gotta respect [the physicality],’ he said. ‘Two good Eastern Conference teams, there’s going to be some banging. There’s going to be some bumping and bruising. That’s what it is. It’s all good. It’s part of the game. We respect that. [Tonight’s] a new game, new day. Get some work and get ready. We’re ready to play.'”