Kevin Garnett takes a rest after 2OT win over Miami
Kevin Garnett of the Nets takes a shot in the first half against Chris Andersen of the Miami Heat at Barclays Center. (Jan. 10, 2014) Credit: Jim McIsaac
Kevin Garnett made the trip across the border with the Nets, but Jason Kidd had him sit this one out Saturday night against the Raptors.
Garnett logged 36 minutes, 11 seconds in the Nets' double-overtime win over the Heat on Friday night. Kidd indicated that nothing was wrong with Garnett, who sat out for the fifth time this season.
"Nah, he's great," Kidd said. "He's fine."
Shaun Livingston played 30:39 Saturday night after a career-high 51 minutes Friday. Livingston's body can't handle a heavy workload and he's talked about the importance of pacing himself, which is why Kidd had to keep a close eye on his on-court time.
"We have a special situation coming up in our schedule after tonight," Kidd said. "We don't play until Thursday . . . He's one of the youngest on the team, but we [didn't] plan to have him play over 35 minutes tonight."
Drake night
The Raptors hired native Toronto rapper Drake to bring some juice back into the franchise. The Nets went through something similar during their move to Brooklyn, calling on Jay Z to help change up their look and image, but Drake said he hasn't chatted with Jay Z about any kind of strategy.
"The last time I saw him was on New Year's Eve, so there was a lot of champagne going around," Drake said. "The last thing we were thinking about was the Raptors' rebrand.
"No offense to Jay and what they did in Brooklyn. I think it's great. But I think they did what works for them. They also built a new facility in a completely new neighborhood. So it's kind of different from what we are doing."
