Garnett: HOF ceremony will be 'super emotional' without Kobe
Kevin Garnett is bracing for an emotional weekend as the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame finally inducts its class of 2020.
In an interview with The Athletic's Shams Charania, Garnett described how difficult it will be without Kobe Bryant there alongside him and Tim Duncan for Saturday's ceremony.
"Not having Kobe is gonna affect everybody," Garnett said. "He had such a pivotal part in the game itself and just influenced the creation. I'd like to think Kob created inadvertently originality about himself. Timmy the same thing. They both are unprecedented - not only athletes, but people.
"Me myself, I feel more than honored to go in with these two, but Kobe not being there is gonna be super emotional for everybody. The fact that the three of us actually pushed the other two - into whether it was awards, All-Stars, battles, rings - we all three pushed a lot. To go in with these two guys, I couldn't ask for two other people to go in even better."
Michael Jordan will present Bryant for induction. Vanessa Bryant will also reportedly speak at the ceremony in honor of her late husband.
Joining Bryant, Garnett, and Duncan in the class of 2020 are Tamika Catchings, Rudy Tomjanovich, Kim Mulkey, Barbara Stevens, and Eddie Sutton.