Hey guys. I had a great time at the game, and I feel fortunate to live in a NBA city. And I would like to share the game with y'all. So you can live vicariously through me. I feel like I'm a little kid, giving the teacher a report on something that had just happened. Okay, here goes.

So, at around 5pm, I gathered my stuff and got ready to head for the subway. I brought a camera, binoculars, pen and paper (kinda hopin' you know...). Put everything in a plastic bag, and left for the Air Canada Centre. I've never been there before, actually, so I didn't really know the exact route. I was going all by myself, and I had to ask for direction at Union Station. I didn't tell any of my friends because this was personal for me. Timberwolves basketball is like my own world, so going to this game was just my gift to myself. A gift of solitude. I didn't want anyone around to distract me, especially my friends, who probably won't understand this personal thing. So I had to ask direction from this security lady at the station.

I finally found my way to the entrances. Entering Gate 1, I gave my ticket to the ticket person and headed upstairs, Section 322. On the way, I stopped and asked the person who was selling tonight's program. "How much?" I said. "$5 for the program, and $7 for the Yearbook." He answered. "What's the Yearbook?" I further inquired. "Just a Raptor's magazine for this year," he told me. "I'll take a program. Thanks." I decided.

The program had KG's face on it, looking intense. I figured I'd read it at home later. I put it in my plastic bag and entered the arena. If you've never been to an arena before, the first sight is intimidating. It's so large and bright, you just can't believe your eyes. I found my seat, Row 3, Seat 21. Yeah, Seat 21. Go figure.

I sat down, acknowledged the middle-aged man 2 seats next to me, and looked immediately down the court. Sam Mitchell and Reggie Slater were shooting jumpers at one end. Morris Peterson of the Raptors was working on his shot at the other end. I thought about snapping a few photos right there, but decided against it. I wanted to save the film for Garnett. There were also some camera crew setting up lights and equipment. Leo Rautins was doing his thing. Soon, Mitchell and Slater and Peterson all left the court, heading back to the lockerroom. I waited patiently to see KG. KG's my idol, so I get goosebumps that I'm in the same building as him.

The announcer screamed into the microphone as the Raptors trotted out. Then the Timberwolves jogged to the court. And oh man, there was KG. He ran smoothly and effortlessly, out to the floor. In his silver shooting shirt and tear-away pants, unbuttoned at the side, he ran exuberantly on the T-Wolves side of the court. I was like, "Yo, that's my boy right there. I'm seeing Kevin Garnett with my own eyes."

I wasn't paying attention to the Raptors much. I saw Vince and was like, "Oh look, Vince is playing tonight." [note: Vince was originally doubtful that night due to an injury] And I turned back to watch KG take warmup jumpers. And man, can he shoot. I saw him stroke jumper after jumper, swish after swish as he made his way around different spots on the floor. He had an excellent jumpshot, of course I already knew that after years of watching him. Run. Receive. Jump. Release. Swish. Run. Receive. Jump. Release. Swish.

I took out my binoculars, so I could see his expressions clearly. He shot intently at the basket, eyes on the rim. Focused. I quickly snapped a few photos and continued to watch KG shoot. He shot jumpers, made layups, and slammed a few down. It was fun watching. He also met Vince at midcourt, and the two of them shook hands.

Then they introduced the players. KG was the first player introduced, "at 6'11", from Farragut Academy, Kevin Garnett..." There were a few cheers, a few boos, and even a few "Oh-mans." The sight of KG scared the hell out of some opposing fans.

And when they sang the Anthems, a bizarre thing happened. One guy first sang the American Anthem. Then another guy sang the Canadian Anthem. The guy who tried to sing the Canadian Anthem just SCREWED up in the middle; he just messed up the lyrics. The crowd booed him angrily. He apologized and started all over. We all sang along with him, and cheered for him at the end of the Anthem. KG didn't seem to be bothered, he just stood there with his head dipped low and hands behind his back.

Tip-off approached. KG took off his warmups and revealed the black Timberwolves road uniform. The black uniforms look slick, real cool. He wore the black jersey and the black shorts, the black sweatband on his left elbow, and black AND1s. He wore white socks. He also wore 2 white Wordstretch rubberbands, 1 on each wrist.

And so the game began. Raptors started out hot. KG missed 2 shots. Then he hit a couple, including a nasty putback slam off a miss. He also stroke a couple of jumpshots, made a one-handed jumper, and faked out his defender for a one-handed dunk. The game was tied after the first quarter at 22. I still couldn't believe KG was running around below me down there. It hit me a couple of times, and I sorta told myself, "Hey dawg, that's KG ballin' down there. Yeah, you'd better believe it."

The fans around me were all Raptor fans. I was too, except for when they played the Timberwolves. So I was like the enemy in the ACC. Lonewolf up in the crowds. I cheered quietly for the Timberwolves, clenching a fist whenever we made a basket, and nodded approvingly.

During timeouts, they always have these little things for entertainment, like little kids dribbling and racing downcourt, or some guy on a bicycle doing tricks. Sometimes the Raptors dancers would come out and dance. I didn't even watch these useless things. I did not pay money to see dancers. Instead, I put on my binoculars and watched the Timberwolves' timeouts. KG would be sitting on the bench, listening to Flip or talking strategy with Terrell, pointing and gesturing.

The girl behind me asked me to use my binoculars and see if Michael Douglas was courtside. And this was during the game. I looked and said that's not Douglas. She asked to borrow my binoculars, just to make sure. I gave it to her and shifted my focus back to the game. I bet she wasn't even a real fan. People like that don't appreciate coming to games and enjoying the action. They wanna see who's courtside, or who's in the audience. There are true fans like [my friend] and [my friend] who can't see games live no matter how much they want to. [My friend] and [my friend] are the ones who deserved to be there. I thought about you guys when I was there. I was representin' THE PACK.

The Timberwolves had a 12 point lead at one point, but the Raptors pulled to within 3 late in the fourth quarter. With about 17 seconds left, we had a 3 point lead and the ball. But Terrell tripped over KG on the inbound pass. Raptors got the ball, Alvin Williams penetrated and kicked it back out to Tracy Murray for a 3. The ball went in neatly. But the buzzer sounded as well. The referees gathered to discuss the call. KG stood anxiously beside them, talking and waving his arms signaling that Murray did not beat the buzzer. The refs called it against the Raptors, saying the shot was too late.

KG raised his arms in triumph, his eyes lit up, and shouted emphatically. He immediately DASHED for the lockerroom. He's smart. He didn't want to stick around just in case the refs changed their minds. All the Timberwolves ran quickly to their locker room, leaving the Raptors on court protesting. The fans were FURIOUS. I mean FURIOUS. Everyone was standing, including me. I was just trying to figure out what had just happened. I was also trying to take a photo of KG before he disappeared into the lockerroom. I watched him run happily down the corridor. I sorta mumbled quietly, see you next year, dawg. KG had a monster game, with 30pts, 13reb, 5ast, 1stl in 45 minutes.

I stood for another 10 minutes or so. The crowd left in a bad mood I guess. I, on the other hand, was in a great mood, having just witnessed our 10th straight win [note: the T-Wolves entered the game with a 9-game winning streak]. I didn't really want to leave, so I just stood there, appreciating everything. After that, I made my way out of the ACC, and out into the cold night. This was around 10:00pm, so it was dark. I went down to the subway and rode it home.

I still can't believe I saw Kevin Garnett in person. I'm like a little kid, a wide-eyed boy in awe. Even though I know a lot about basketball, seeing Garnett play still overwhelms me. It's a joy for me to experience such a thing, and I value that. Some people take it for granted, I don't. And I think KG would be proud.