Celtics Re-Sign Kevin Garnett To Three-Year Deal

JULY 14, 1:08pm: The move is now official, the Celtics have announced.

JUNE 30, 9:24am: The Celtics will re-sign Garnett to a three-year deal worth $34MM, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter).

9:12am: After contemplating retirement, Kevin Garnett has decided to re-sign with the Celtics, according to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. Bulpett reports that Garnett has informed the C's he'll be back, and that the two sides are still hammering out the specifics of a deal. The contract will be for at least two years and possibly for three, says Bulpett.

"The decision came down to whether KG wanted to keep playing," one source told the Herald. "And once he decided that he did, it was going to be Boston. He wasn’t going to leave Doc [Rivers] and those guys and play anywhere else."

Garnett's $21.25MM 2011/12 salary ensured he'd take up a massive cap hold on Boston's books heading into free agency. However, if KG and the Celtics quickly sign a deal on July 11th, when the July moratorium ends, it should allow the C's to regain some cap space and pursue other free agents. While Garnett may still sign for an eight-figure annual salary, it's not expected to approach the $21MM+ he earned this year.

Garnett, 36, was his usual productive self for Boston in 2011/12, averaging 15.8 PPG, 8.2 RPG, and 20.4 PER in 60 regular season games, before bumping those averages to 19.2, 10.3, and 20.5 in the playoffs.

With draftees Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo also on board, the Celtics are also expected to try to re-sign Brandon Bass and Jeff Green and perhaps pursue outside free agents, as they fill out their frontcourt.

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