Kevin Garnett Seen Wearing Walking Boot After Loss to Nets

Apr 10, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Celtics forward/center Kevin Garnett (5) reacts after getting called for a technical foul during the second quarter against the Brooklyn Nets at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

After last night’s loss to the Brooklyn Nets, Kevin Garnett was seen back in a walking boot, supposedly for “precautionary measure”. Right now, that’s the last thing Celtics fans want to hear with the playoffs just over a week away. Here is what Danny Ainge had to say during his weekly visit with WEEI.

"Well, you know, so first of all, there’s no such thing as 100 percent for anybody, right now,” Ainge said. “But KG, you can see how well he’s moving on the court. Last night, he didn’t have one of his better games on the court, but he was moving very well. You could see him defense laterally and he was rebounding and he was very active. The walking boot is just precautionary. It’s just … some guys keep ice on their legs after every game — sometimes, their legs are sore, sometimes, they’re not. They do it as a precautionary thing.The walking boot … he has some inflammation in his foot, so every time he stops playing, he has the walking boot on. He doesn’t wear it all the time, but he just wears it after games to make sure his foot isn’t moving any more than it needs to. So it’s just precautionary right now."

No matter how much the Celtics want to sugarcoat Garnett’s injury, the fact is their is an issue with his foot. Before getting to the inflammation that has returned to his foot, let’s look back to a week or so ago.

This is from the interview Jackie MacMullen had with Doc Rivers.

"“Honestly, he’s fine,” Rivers said. “It’s a bone something, a bone spur that just needs to relax and calm down. I think that’s what it is. It’s his ankle. If we were in the playoffs tonight, Kevin would absolutely be playing.”"

As I’ve stated previously, bone spurs do not go away on their own, they require surgery. Ray Allen had the same problem last season. There would be games where he could play, but after, the inflammation and swelling returned. Garnett doesn’t have a sprained ankle or a foot sprain, so it’s not like there is a timetable for when he’ll be back to 100%.

This is a serious injury. Yes, Garnett has looked fine on the court, but it’s unknown as to how much pain he’s playing with. He’s not a complainer and never uses injuries as an excuse for his poor play. For him to be back in a walking boot, he must be uncomfortable, otherwise he’d walk it off and tolerate the pain.

Since 2009, I’ve been skeptical about what the team reports as Garnett was supposed to be playing in the playoffs that season but he never returned. The Celtics made it sound as if he would be fine even though that wasn’t the case. Garnett will not play tomorrow against the Miami Heat as both he and Pierce have the night off. While it’s good to get him into a rhythm before the playoffs, it might be best if he sits out the remainder of the regular season and gets as much rest as possible for the first round.