It was merely by happenstance that Kevin Garnett altered conventional wisdom in the NBA. In the spring of 1995, Garnett, then a senior at Farragut Academy on Chicago’s West Side, wanted to play big-time college basketball. The exposure the Windy City could provide was why the 7-footer had transferred there from small-town South Carolina a year earlier.
In the early 1990s, Jerry Tarkanian’s high-octane UNLV Runnin’ Rebels had helped usher in a new allure to the college game. Mike Krzyzewski —with everyone’s favorite villain, Christian Laettner — then won his first two national titles at Duke. Michigan’s Fab Five, with their black socks and baggy shorts, had become cultural icons.