Elton Brand "Disappointed" With KG for Shutting It Down

A few days ago we let you know that Kevin Garnett was shutting it down for the season. The reason that was given was that he needed to take care of a nagging quadriceps injury, but with the decision coming less than 48 hours after Minnesota was eliminated from the playoffs, people were questioning the legitimacy of the superstar taking an early vacation.

Elton Brand was asked about this, due to the fact that his Clippers are battling the Warriors for the final playoff spot in the West, and the Warriors just happen to play the Timberwolves today. (Not that anyone can watch it.) As you might imagine, EB was less than thrilled that Minnesota won't be at full strength to take on Golden State:

"I would definitely say you've got to take care of your own business, but it's disappointing if an organization doesn't want to win," said Clippers forward Elton Brand, not commenting specifically on the Wolves, of teams trying to improve their draft status by going less than all-out to win games, as quoted by the Los Angeles Times.

"We've got teams coming up that don't have a chance to be in the playoffs, but I don't expect them to roll over for a draft pick or whatever. An organization, coaches and players should always want to win regardless of what went on earlier in a season."

I can understand where Brand is coming from. His team is still in the playoff race, so he wants the teams that aren't in to keep playing so the competitive balance is maintained. But I don't blame KG for shutting it down with even a hint of an injury, if there's nothing left to play for. There's no reason to risk your future over a few exhibition games.

The Clippers are in the driver's seat here, because all they have to do is win out and they're in the playoffs. And if Brand looks at the rest of his team's schedule, he'll see that he may actually benefit from a team playing at less than full strength. The Clippers play the Suns the second to last day of the season, and Phoenix could very well have wrapped up the two seed by then. So the Clips may get to continue their fight for a playoff spot against the Suns' reserves, which would give them a much better shot than they would have playing against the starters.