Kevin Garnett Talks About Being NBA 2K9 Cover Guy, Using AOL

Thanks to the good people at 2K Sports, I recently got the chance to sit down with Celtics star Kevin Garnett. While we spent most of the time dishing about hoops (you can read the full KG interview here), I also talked to KG about what it means to him to be the new NBA 2K9 cover guy. Here's what he had to say, as well as an unprompted shout-out to his history with AOL (he just offered it up, I swear).

FanHouse: "What was a bigger honor, being on the NBA 2K9 cover or being on the NBA Live 2001 cover?"

Kevin Garnett: "2K9 because, you know, you got the number one NBA video game simulation since, what, the last seven years, so it's only fitting that you put a member of the NBA champions on there, so it's, for me, like the perfect year. It's perfect. It's a huge honor, especially where video games are today, man, it's like ... have you seen the game?"

FH: "I haven't ..."

KG: "They've got chest-beating, and obviously, 2K is known for the detailing and the sweat and the HD look and it just seems so real. But this one is even scarier. It's so, so, so detailed, and it's almost like it's real, almost like you can put your hands through the television type of real."

FH: "And you're a video game guy?"

KG: "I'm definitely a video game guy. Absolutely."

FH: "What other games do you play?"

KG: "I play FIFA, Call of Duty ... those are my favorites. I actually got the guys on the team to posse up, and we started our own little thing online, and that's cool. I'm huge in the online stuff, because you can be whoever you want to be, which is kind of good sometimes. I like to play that role."

FH: "Being anonymous?"

KG: "Yeah. Just like when I started with AOL! (Laughs)"

FH: "Oh yeah? Talk about that."

KG: "It was a while ago. My man T-West ... Tyrone West ... he was a close friend of mine, and he taught me how to chat, do all this stuff on AOL."

FH: "When was that?"

KG: "Gosh, it was '92, '93 or something like that? It was my first moment where I was really like, 'Wow, I like this!' You know, the whole 'You got mail' and interaction and everything."

FH: "So do you still use AOL?"

KG: "No, not as much. I'm being honest, not as much, but when I do pull up my computer, AOL is the first thing that pops up."

FH: "Wow, I'll hook you up with our marketing people, so maybe you can do some endorsements or something ..."

KG: "My manager is right outside. You should talk to him and tell him what's up."