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By Gary Dzen, Boston.com Staff MIAMI -- At what point in these playoffs did 20 points and 10rebounds from Kevin Garnett stop becoming news? At what pointduring this Boston playoff run, which now spans 18 games(auspicious, right?), did Garnett's dominance become anafterthought? With his team one win away from the NBA Finals, howdid a 36-year-old center's born-again brilliance become the norm? Garnett was far from his best for half of Game 5 Tuesday night. Hewas 4 for 10 from the field in the first half and scored eightpoints in 18 minutes, a culprit in Boston's 33-percent shooting. Hewasn't getting the ball where he wanted it. In 11 minutes, Heatcenter Chris Bosh -- who hadn't played in nine games -- outproducedhim with 9 points and 6 rebounds. "We had a rough first half," said Garnett. "Doc [Rivers] just keptsaying to stay with it and continue to fight. I thought for themost part we did that." That Garnett has any fight left is something he is immensely proudof. Garnett likes to remind reporters, fans, whoever will listen,that they counted him out. He revels in his resurgence, at onepoint this season chastising reporters for questioning his abilityto make 3-pointers, and at another questioning the wisdom of thosewho thought he'd be better off packing it in. The motivation may bepartly manufactured, but there's no question it fuels his game. "For people who don't think I can do what I do at 35, 36, I take alot of pride in my craft," Garnett told ESPN's cameras. "I work onmy craft every day. I'm a true professional." Looking past the bluster, a big chunk of Garnett's rebirth has beenorganic. The questions were there because his game wasn't.Garnett's decline began after his best season in Boston, which alsohappened to be his first. After averaging 18.8 points and 9.2rebounds during the season the Celtics won their 17th worldchampionship, Garnett's numbers dipped to 15.8 points and 8.5rebounds the following year. It was during that 2008-2009 season that Garnett suffered a rightknee injury that caused him to miss the playoffs. The mysteriousailment -- which the Celtics first announced as a right quad injury-- and it's recovery would linger into the next two seasons.Garnett averaged 14.3 points and 7.3 rebounds in 2009-2010, whichstarted the whispers of whether or not he was finished for good.Lakers center Pau Gasol's 19 points and 18 rebounds in Game 7 ofthe 2010 NBA Finals while being guarded by Garnett (Gasoloutrebounded KG, 18-3) was taken as a sign that Garnett's bestyears were behind him. The Celtics power forward didn't do enough to dispute that notionduring the majority of the next two regular seasons, but a move tocenter late this season coincided with a major uptick in Garnett'sperformance. After this year's All-Star break, Garnett's numberswent up across the board: points, rebounds, assists, steals, andfree throw percentage were up. Turnovers were down. Garnett lookedlike a different player. "You're finally seeing a healthy Kevin," said Paul Pierce. "Hehasn't been healthy the last couple of years. When you have asurgery of that magnitude, it's tough on a big man, It looks likehe has healthy legs. He's playing long minutes. He's givingeverything he can." Garnett's resurgence in the second half of Game 5 against Miamimirrored his resurgence in the second half of the season. He made 7of 10 shots and had 7 rebounds. He led the Celtics in scoring on anight when Pierce and Rajon Rondo combined to shoot 9 of 34 fromthe floor. "No one played well except for KG and [Mickael] Pietrus," saidRondo. Garnett has played well in almost every game of the playoffs.Consider Garnett's point totals this postseason: 20, 15, 20, 13,16, 28, 29, 15, 27, 9, 20, 20, 18, 23, 18, 24, 17, and 26. The onedud in 18 games was in a loss to the Sixers in Game 2. Even withthat, he's averaged 19.8 points and 10.8 rebounds in the playoffs.The only time his numbers have been better were during the 2008playoffs, when he averaged 20.4 points and 10.5 rebounds. "It's up there probably since the first year when he came, and hewas averaging 20 and 10 every night in the playoffs" said Pierce."He's dominating. We're taking advantage of him." Consider what a dominant Garnett now means for Boston. The Celticswere thought to be as cooked as their 36-year-old center, butthey've bumped and jostled their way to the cusp of the NBA Finals.It's all happened so fast. With three wins in a row, it's possibleeven Garnett doesn't realize the magnitude of what he's doing. "We have been taking this thing one game at a time," said Garnett."The next game will be no different from that. We'll prepare. We'llmake all of the adjustments. We'll watch film. We aren't lookingahead to anything." No one could have looked into a crystal ball and predicted this.Garnett acts like we should have all seen this coming, but eventhose who have watched every Celtics game since that charged pressconference when the New Big Three were introduced couldn't haveexpected this. The conventional wisdom is to enjoy this for as longas we can, to take solace in how far this team has come, no matterif they fall short. Garnett would scoff at that. He wants to win games, and he sees noreason why he can't be the best player on the court while doing it.Maybe it's time for us to start listening. @GlobeGaryDzen. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Breast Enlargement Machines Manufacturer , Pressotherapy Slimming Machine Manufacturer, and more. For more , please visit Pressotherapy Slimming Machine today!
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