Kevin Garnett details story of trash talking Michael Jordan in his rookie season

Michael Jordan was a straight killer on the NBA hardwood and he taught one superstar in his rookie season the harshest lesson of all.

Kevin Garnett learned the hard way you shouldn’t talk smack to Michael Jordan.

Kevin Garnett will long be remembered as one of the fiercest competitors and biggest trash-talkers to play in the NBA.

Throughout his 21-year career in the league, Garnett terrorised opponents on both ends of the floor with his relentless hustle.

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Garnett joined the NBA in 1995 and is one of few players to be taken directly from high school into the big time.

Taken by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the fifth pick, the towering but wirey Garnett made his presence felt in the league early on.

His defensive intensity separated him from the pack, but it was his constant trash talk that stood out. Now a story of his infamous chatter has come to light.

In his rookie year in the NBA, Garnett’s trash talking backfired for his team when they went up against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.

Kevin Garnett talks with Michael Jordan during the 2003 NBA All-Star Game. (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)

Isaiah Rider, a Garnett teammate, was enjoying a stellar game against Jordan. Garnett decided it was the right time to try and hype his teammate up as the game went into the fourth quarter.

Unfortunately Jordan overheard everything and despite Rider’s request, Garnett didn’t let up and continued to deliver line after line.

Garnett and Rider broke down the story of Jordan ripping their hearts out and the unfortunate lesson the rookie forward learned in what was Garnett’s first game seeing Rider go up against Jordan.

Rider: So KG had never seen me play against Michael.

KG: We’re in Chicago. It’s my rookie year.

Rider: And I got about 24 going into the fourth quarter. (Rider had 18).

KG: JR is having a good game.

Rider: So I’m quiet, I always stayed quiet when I’m playing, I didn’t talk too much.

KG: As we come out of the time-out I’m just on y’all, I can’t even explain it.

Rider: We come out in the fourth quarter and KG is like ‘Man, keeping going at his a**, serve him, he can’t guard you’.

KG: “Keep killing him, keep killing him, straight up, you’re having a good game.”

Rider: I was quiet, I’m looking at him like, just chill, because Mike was literally right there.

KG: He’s right here. Mike can hear me. So I double down.

Rider: (impersonating KG) ‘I don’t care. Keep going at him. You’re too strong for that dude’

KG: As I say that, I feel it.

Rider: So Mike looks at me, looks at KG.

You do not mess with Michael Jordan.

KG: Hands on hips, legs locked. And then he stares at me for about 15 seconds

Rider: I was like, “Mike, he don’t know the rules of the game, he’s just a young pup.”

KG: ‘Look Mike he don’t really know how we do’. I see him and Mike have a conversation. ‘He don’t really know, he’s excited.’ Now MJ’s on the back leg talking like ‘oh yeah, oh yeah huh’.

Rider: Mike looked at him like OK. Looked at me like OK. I said, ‘What you lookin’ at me like that for?’

KG: I can’t even describe the next six, seven minutes of play, yo.

Rider: We went to the fourth quarter, that man got about 17 quick.

KG: We’re down 25 now, it was just at two.

Rider: He’s mad, looking at KG, looking at me, looking at KG.

KG: It got bad quick.

KG: When you come (to the bench) and you’ve been on a run and you’re got back on the floor had to rebound and you feel like you on defence all the time you come to the bench like this (slumps down into chair). So I looked at JR and I’m like, ‘JR, my bad, dog. Sorry, man. I’m sorry.’ He said, ‘It’s good man, I told you shut you're a** up’.

KG: Mike came over like “Damn, young fella, damn, y’all done?” Never talked sh*t to Mike ever again in life.

JR Rider & Kevin Garnett talk about the time a young KG made the mistake of talking trash in front of MJ 😅 pic.twitter.com/VfL57upGhB

— Jumpman History (@HistoryJumpman) February 20, 2020

Garnett learned the hard way that trying to talk smack about Jordan is never the right path to take as the Bulls megastar led the Bulls to a blowout 120-99 victory after they only led by six points after three quarters.

Jordan finished the game with 35 points, seven assists and six rebounds as he piled on 11 points in the final quarter while keeping Rider to only two points.

Originally published as Kevin Garnett details story of trash talking Michael Jordan in his rookie season