NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves set date to retire Kevin Garnett’s iconic No. 21 jersey
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The Hall of Famer will become just the second player in franchise history to have his number retired.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have set Feb. 28, 2027 as the date for Kevin Garnett’s long-awaited No. 21 jersey retirement, with the ceremony scheduled after a home game against the Boston Celtics at Target Center. Retiring Garnett’s jersey will add another honor to a career that already includes a Celtics jersey retirement and a celebrated return to Minnesota.
The Associated Press reports Garnett will become only the second player in Timberwolves history to have his number retired, joining the late Malik Sealy, his former teammate and close friend who died in a car crash in 2000.
The ceremony will come after Minnesota hosts Boston, the franchise where Garnett won his only NBA championship in 2008. The Celtics retired his No. 5 jersey in March 2022.
Garnett’s relationship with the Timberwolves had been strained for years following a falling out with former owner Glen Taylor. Under the franchise’s new ownership, however, the sides reconciled, and Garnett returned last year as a team ambassador.
He made his first appearance at Target Center since 2018 during Minnesota’s final regular-season game in April. The reunion marked another step in rebuilding his relationship with the organization where his NBA career began.
Minnesota selected Garnett with the fifth overall pick in the 1995 NBA Draft straight out of high school. He spent the first 12 seasons of his career with the Timberwolves and became the face of the franchise.
His peak in Minnesota came during the 2003-04 season, when he won the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award and led the Timberwolves to the Western Conference finals.
After being traded to Boston in 2007, Garnett helped the Celtics win the NBA championship in his first season with the team. He returned to Minnesota in 2015 and finished his 21-season career there before retiring in 2016.
Garnett remains the Timberwolves’ all-time leader in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. He was inducted into the NBA’s Hall of Fame in 2020.