Was KG’s Post-Game Interview Fake?
When you were watching THIS, did you think there was a chance that it was fake, contrived or basically a commercial? At least a few people do, including the Detroit News‘ Chris McCoskey:
How many great moments in sports are going to be ruined by intrusive marketing campaigns?
Did you catch Kevin Garnett’s over-the-top emotional postgame interview with Michele Tafoya after the Celtics clinched the title last week?
Tafoya asked him to reveal his emotions and Garnett paused, put his hands on his head, looked up to the heavens and said, “Anything’s possible.” Then he practically bawled it out, “Anything’s possible.”
I about threw up, but I didn’t get fully disgusted until I read a comment by CNBC reporter Darren Rovell. He pointed out that Garnett had been involved with the adidas’ “Impossible is nothing” campaign for several years.
Instead of a spontaneous response, Garnett was filming a commercial. And, perhaps as some poetic justice, he flubbed his line.
Of course the thought crossed our mind as soon as we heard the word “possible,” but we’ve been on multiple “Impossible is Nothing” commercial sets with KG over the past few years and seen and heard him say the tag line perfectly probably a hundred times. If he was consciously trying to film a TV spot, there’s no way he mangles a familiar tag line like that, no matter how emotional the moment.
That’s our take. What do you think?
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:12 am
C-Hova says:
No fucking way that was fake, you think about how long and how much pain Garnett went through to get that ring and typical that a DETROIT reporter would be harping on this. McCoskey, Pistons had a good year, but let the kid have his moment to shine.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:16 am
mambo mamba says:
That slogan has been embeded into his system for so many years, that you couldnt really blame him if his subconscious made him say something like that.
Probably not a conscious marketing campaign.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:20 am
aj says:
It was over-the-top and for show, it was thought-out and a bit rehearsed. Set up for commercials though, I doubt it.
KG did earn his post-game championship interview though, so he’s got his moment to shine and that’s how we’ll remember his chip.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:22 am
weng santos says:
Not a marketing campaign.
But I can see it being one if adidas wanted; KG puts his hands on his head, looks up, reveals the 3-stripes under his cap’s visor, and shouts out “anything is possible.”
I don’t think KG would fake it, but I also think at that moment adidas execs everywhere were smiling. I can imagine the poster now- KG emotional, the 3 stripes prominently displayed, with the tagline at the bottom.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:30 am
djkianoosh says:
wow, somebody is a cynical s.o.b.
i agree w/mambo mamba in #2. it felt real, and that’s all that matters to the general populace that was watching.
now, if adidas turns around and markets that moment, the question they have to ask themselves is, does the market cheapen the moment or somehow make it less real? or can we get away with marketing this and somehow enhancing/truly portraying the real emotion? anyway, that’s for the marketing gurus to figure out…
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:30 am
djkianoosh says:
…does the *marketing* cheapen the moment…
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:31 am
Kermit the Washington says:
This was MAD over the top, but I guess KG HIMSELF is a walking over the top machine, so…maybe not FAKE, but definitely a little too much.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:39 am
Big Freeze says:
Wow, what a ridiculous article by the bitter Detroit media. Here is some breaking news: Detroit fuckin lost and now they are trying to break apart their failure of a team.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:40 am
Smitty313 says:
I thought it was planned also. When I was watching the game with my people (I was the only Laker fan there) as soon as he said that I was said is he making a addias commercial. They all told me to stop being a hater. But it seemed fake to me.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:43 am
Kermit the Washington says:
We’ll know for sure next season, when (even if Adidas doesn’t use it) it is the opening video for the player introductions at the Garden!
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:43 am
Logan Light says:
Who cares?
If KG stared straight into the camera and said, “See, I told you, Impossible is Nothing.” - It would have been an incredible moment. The entire campaign from Adidas was built around more than just selling shoes. It was built around TEAM… When KG signed on with them and lost a signature shoe (along with T Mac, Billups, Duncan, and Dwight) he did it to pursue something that he believed in - TEAM.
If he was just spouting off a line, I think his emotion ran clear enough for anyone with a pulse to understand. Anything is Possible…
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:48 am
yallallreadyknow says:
all the offseason going ons in detroit (billups out of team usa, prince in; rumors of tracy mcgrady and carmelo coming to detroit; etc..) and this is what a detroit reporter is writing about?
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:08 am
DaPro says:
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has them and some stink
This dude damn near cried and said on my Mama. That was real emotion. He probably thought about what he wanted to say(who wouldn’t)but emotions got the best of him.
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:08 am
Celts Fan says:
Ok, first, anyone that’s ever watched KG play knows he’s way too insane to think about and do that in THAT moment, the moment he’d been dreaming of his entire life. Second, wow, so the word “possible” now means “impossible” and we can just add words he didn’t say to it to make it the slogan to be cynical? Are you f*ckin serious? So I guess if anyone said, “We did it,” that’d be shilling for Nike because it’s kinda close to “Just do it.” Come on…
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:15 am
liukz says:
i dont know if it was fake at all
will adidas use it really soon? HELL YEAH
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:15 am
YOUNGFED says:
KG is straight “FUGAZI” in that interview.
I’m out like, “ANYTHING’S POSSSIBUUUUULLLLL!!!!!” lmao
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:16 am
Kermit the Washington says:
I thought about this as soon as dude said that “anything’s possible” line…
I get it. I understand that these cats have devoted their entire lives to their sport, and we all are entertained by their exploits, even though they’ve sacrificed what most of us would call a “normal life”, so I’m not really knocking THAT…but…KG screamed “ANYTHING’S POSSIBLLLLLE!!!” as if he just saved a bunch of children from a burning building. It was just….over the top.
Anyone catch that Tom Brady interview, where he was like, “Chapionships? THIS is what we’re living for? There’s GOT to be more to life than this…I mean…CHAMPIONSHIPS?” I thought of that in relation to this…if KG TRULY was just letting his emotions out and he TRULY felt that ANYTHING’S POSSIBLE, then I think he (and maybe all of us) are putting a little TOO much emotion into this sports thing. That’s my essay for the day lol
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:19 am
YOUNGFED says:
@Big Freeze
Pimpin, stop hatin’, we just see thru all that BS in the D. Holla!
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:39 am
Ashlov says:
The correct answer is, “Who gives a shit?” He could busted out a box of Calgon like Mike Myers in Wayne’s World, and I wouldn’t have cared…
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:47 am
krip says:
not staged, but kinda weird that’s for sure
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:52 am
Austin Burton says:
Did anyone consider that it was KG who said something years ago that gave adidas the idea for “Impossible is Nothing”? Maybe that’s a life philosophy he’s had for years. But I agree, this just shows how cynical today’s world is.
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:58 am
Ross says:
Wow, he’s being paid millions of dollars to say 3 words, and he botches it? What a moron.
June 23rd, 2008 at 12:21 pm
sefsammons says:
I bet he got about 20,000 ducketts for that adidas plug!!! i’m out like tha clout… holla boyeeeee?
June 23rd, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Austin Burton says:
I’m also realizing that the two cities from which I’ve read/heard accusations of KG shilling for adidas are … Detroit and L.A. Coincidence?
June 23rd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
chrisGO says:
wow, someone in the D got sour grapes
June 23rd, 2008 at 12:36 pm
D.H. says:
Ya’ll just bitter. KG is one of the most over-the-top guys in the league. In all honesty I would wager that he hadn’t the faintest idea what he was spewing from his mouth. He was caught in the moment and just started to ramble. At the time I wished the Michelle would just leave him be and give him some space. I guess we can chalk this up as another reason to hate on Detroit.
ps. nice line about ““We did it,” that’d be shilling for Nike because it’s kinda close to “Just do it.” Come on…”
June 23rd, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Meica says:
I think this f*cking @ss hole is douche-bag.
Yeah, KG was pretending to cry, and what Addidas commercial would be complete without KG telling Michelle how good she looks right after spitting all over her.
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:13 pm
Jim says:
“I’m going to Disneyland!” Oh yeah, I forgot, the gangsters in the NBA can’t get away with the same stuff the milk and cookies crowd in the NFL does.
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Kevin Garnett says:
Fuck Chris Mckoskey or whatever the fuck his name is. That Maxiell block was a foul anyway so FUCK YOU! It wasnt a marketing campaign you morons I am insane on the court, you should know this. I wonder if TNT showing me calling the cleveland fans “fucking faggots” is gonna be speculated on as an ad campaign. You guys are morons. I still havent taken off that hat either. suck it.
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:29 pm
Lady Luck says:
Damn. You can’t show any emotion during the game….now you can’t show any when what you’ve worked so hard to achieve over the years finally comes to fruition? I think the media types want NBA players to just be robots…no emotion, no feeling, just make the basket go to the other end and leave when it’s over. KG should have been calm, Kobe should have been more congratulating, etc. etc.. it never stops.
We need a show to analyze the analysts, reporters, and journalists. Someone to follow up with Michelle and ask her…why did you push so hard for an interview when he was obviously overcome with emotion? Do you think it would have been in better taste to just let the players, staff, and fans have their moment?
To Jim: I couldn’t agree more. No one questions the “I’m going to Disneyland” moment.
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:40 pm
ML says:
KG was not faking. Fuck that guy from Detriot. KG would give him the business if those 2 played 1 on 1. KG never had a chance to win A Ring. He got Close in 2004 with Sam E.T. Cassell and Spree.
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Mister Sun says:
hahah, detroit choked, they got beat on their homecourt.
and now youre trying to talk bad about this guy who derserves a chip more than anybody.
Deeeetroiiiit bitternessss
June 23rd, 2008 at 3:42 pm
fattyacids says:
# 28
dammit, i came here to say that exact same thing. I dont get it, you can drink from cups that say gatorade, have shoes, jerseys, even the floor lined with corporate sponsors but in a L heavily based on marketing but if you do it for yourself your a sell out. And this writers talking shit about this, i wonder if he blasted rip hamilton when he had his cornrows designed in a fashion similar to some tread on some tires(little less subtle but how is that any different?).
what about “shick” rookie of the year, “nestle” slam dunk champ, or just about any other arena in the league proceeded by a mega corporation title. sellouts!
June 23rd, 2008 at 3:52 pm
Ross says:
I just remember Sporting News saying something about this, too. Its not just this guy.
June 23rd, 2008 at 3:59 pm
weezy f says:
why make it a big deal…he won a ring and he was happy why must he be criticized for it. i didnt think anything of it till the media brought it up
June 23rd, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Sean says:
what about shouting out to “Chicago”? Sure it’s his home town and all, but has that ever happened in sports? Could you imagine Kobe screaming “this is for Philly”, Magic hollerin’ at Detroit or Bird shouting out to Indiana? C’mon Ticket. You’re 31 years old… save your shout outs for text messages or the outro to your next album and show some respect to the Celtic fans.
June 23rd, 2008 at 4:46 pm
qq says:
Why pay attention to anything written by morons?
June 23rd, 2008 at 6:04 pm
word says:
even though in-show commercials are gaining increase lately I really doubt that he was thinking about adidas during the greatest moment in his life, please. Yo if the C’s get Hibbert that would be ill I think that guy has potential. But honestly with vets like the ones on the C’s any rookie is in a good position.
June 23rd, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Myrie says:
BREAKING NEWS!!
SHAQ RAP DISS FOR KOBE BRYANT IN NEW YORK LAST NIGHT
http://www.tmz.com/tmz_main_video?titleid=1626146951
June 23rd, 2008 at 8:23 pm
Dagomar says:
This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever read. Also among the most malicious sport stories I’ve seen in a while. Yeah, the guy just won a championship, he’s sobbing and one of the most passionate athletes in any sport, he just kissed the goddamn logo of the Celtics, and he’s going to break out yelling some corporate slogan? Give me a break.
The hell is wrong with people these days. We live in a degenerate time.
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Go Get 'Em says:
Not only did he say the tag line, but he also changed his jersey number to 5 this year…
June 24th, 2008 at 7:07 am
doc says:
Who cares if he planned it.He planned to kick the Lakers ass and lock down Mr. Unlockable to LA fans and did that too so he can plan whatever the fuck he want.
June 24th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
MSkittle says:
He was overwhelmed with emotion. He wasn’t faking
June 24th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
TalenTed says:
Man f*** Detroit News. They still mad after gettin that a** waxed. KG is just an intense, passionate type dude and he real about it 24/7. After all he been through with Minnesota and everything else, for anyone to feel that way or talk sh*t about him they’re just hating to me.
Im out like brian scalabrinies game.
June 28th, 2008 at 10:06 pm
soydawg says:
maybe he is pitching for a new endorsment deal…
http://www.cheskin.com/blog/blog/archives/000704.html
anything is possible is used by one of adidas’ competitors…