Tracy McGrady explained why he never took Kevin Garnett's approach and complained about the quality of his teammates

Back in 2002, Tracy McGrady found himself in the same situation as Kevin Garnett: Carrying a team with enormous pressure on their shoulders but failing to get over the hump.

Garnett, who at that time played for the Minnesota Timberwolves, didn't hesitate to vocalize how much help he wished he had and took a lot of flak for it. While McGrady understood where Garnett was coming from — and to an extent, felt the same way — he took the opposite route and doubled down on his situation.

"Nah, I'm not the type of guy that's gonna put it on anybody else. I feel like I'm a franchise player, I feel like it's up to me to take this team how far we gonna go and it's up to me to make my players around me better. So everybody's really gonna feed off how I react to the game or what my impact is gonna be on a series. So I'm not the guy that's gonna put it on somebody. If anything, I'm gonna put it all on myself," McGrady, the best player of the Orlando Magic, told SLAM Magazine at the time.

McGrady sympathized with KG

T-Mac also mentioned that KG has every right to complain about his situation because at that time, he was playing for a team in the Western Conference, which was significantly more competitive than the Eastern Conference. The chances of making it past the first round were tough, especially with an inferior roster. Garnett felt that he wasn't doing his job as a franchise player, but also believed that he needed more support from the front office.

McGrady echoed the same sentiments, but instead of calling out his team's front office via the media, he did his best to encourage his teammates to play better, which was also how he grew into the leader of the team.

"Yeah, that's frustrating, definitely. But I'm not the type of guy that's gonna blame anybody else. You just gotta find some way to get over that hump, make your teammates better. You know, just pulling 'em to the side, talking to 'em, tell 'em, If you're not comfortable with doing this, or you haven't done this, you gotta do this,"said McGrady.

Ironically, T-Mac's method didn't work as he never got past the first round with the Magic. Meanwhile, KG applied enough pressure on the Wolves to upgrade the pieces around him, which, in return, he was able to carry them to their first-ever conference finals in franchise history back in 2004.

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T-Mac doesn't regret his approach

Although it didn't lead to success past the first round of the playoffs, McGrady wouldn't change his approach if given the chance. After all, encouraging his teammates to play better was what helped bring out his leadership skills, as he became a vocal voice in the locker room as early as his second year on the team. He knew he really needed that because it took him out of his comfort zone and it became more natural to speak up when he needed to.

"I've been trying to be more of a leader out on the basketball court. My first year, I was kinda not the guy that would pull somebody to the side and talk to them. I'm not the type of guy that speaks out and gives advice. But you know, my second year, I spoke up a lot more. It was just a tough job, being 21 years old and everybody else is older than you and you trying to speak up and lead. I kinda got the feeling, Are they listening to me? How are they taking this? My second year, I think I did a better job of that," said McGrady.

McGrady never won a championship, but he doesn't regret it one bit. He knew he gave everything to the game and grew through every chapter in his career — even if some of his decisions didn't work out for the best.

After all, if you end up in the Hall of Fame like him, you did something right in your career.

Related: Tracy McGrady recalls telling Doc Rivers to save him a spot on the Magic even before free agency: "I knew I was coming home"

This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Nov 30, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.