While it doesn’t sit well with Hall of Fame Boston Celtics big man Kevin Garnett that the players of today tend to play it safe with what doctors tell him, it’s probably a good thing he got regular checkups while playing in the NBA given a surprising revelation on his Showtime Basketball “KG Certified” podcast (h/t SI’s Joseph Salvador).
KG revealed he’d played his entire career with a heart murmur while decrying the perceived overcautiousness of today’s players. “Bro, they told me I had a hole in my heart. ‘You can’t play,'” recalled Garnett. “So, every year I had to get on the joint and pass this test.”
The Big Ticket went on to suggest that if he had listened to doctors, he might not have had the career he did. But KG ignores the fact that had he played without those tests, he could very well have not played his career out for a far more awful reason.
New @CelticsLab pod on YouTube via @CelticsCLNS !!
We link up w/ @YossiGozlan to take a closer look at what Boston can do to improve as a 2nd apron team, & dive into the Cs' hot start ☘️🧪
— Dr. Justin Quinn (@justinquinnn) October 30, 2023
And one the Celtics were hardly done recovering from when he arrived in Boston after the death of Reggie Lewis in 1993.
We’re glad you took those tests, KG — even if you didn’t heed the doctor’s concerns.
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