Garnett on possible All-Star selection: ‘If it happens, I'm more than gracious'

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BOSTONIt's rare to find an NBA player in Kevin Garnett's age bracket who is a starter, let alone an All-Star starter.
But that is exactly what Garnett is looking at, with the league to announce the Eastern and Western Conference starters tomorrow night on TNT.
In his 18th season, the last round of All-Star votes had Garnett as one of the three frontcourt starters for the East, along with New York's Carmelo Anthony and Miami's LeBron James.
For Garnett, this would be his 14th All-Star appearance.
"If it happens, I'm more than gracious," Garnett said. "If it doesn't, I'll definitely take advantage of the break."
Garnett was not selected by the fans or coaches to participate in last year's All-Star game, something that Garnett had no problem with accepting.
When asked about the All-Star break last year, "It was great," said Garnett who repeated "it was great" six more times. "I played with my kid; I did what I wanted to do. I was surrounded by friends and family and it was great."
Garnett added, "you don't put yourself there. Everything is voted on and anytime you can say you been playing for countless years, the fans still appreciate you for what you do, that says a lot."
His play at both ends of the floor has been a key to Boston winning six straight. He is averaging 14.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists while playing 29.5 minutes per game.
Celtics head coach Doc Rivers will be the first to acknowledge that the 36-year-old big man playing at such a high level after all these years is unusual.
"He's the last to know his age until we get to a practice where we're running or something, he conveniently brings up his age," quipped Rivers. "But he just goes out and plays. The thing with Kevin, I don't think he ever plays to be an All-Star. His play makes him an All-Star. That sets him apart from a lot of players.
Rivers added, "If Kevin could go to Malibu over the All-Star break, he'd be good. If he's at the All-Star game, he'd be happy with that. That's probably why he's so good."

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