WALTHAM, Mass. — Thousands of young basketball players grew up idolizing Kevin Garnett. Very few ever had a chance to meet The Big Ticket in person.
UMass product Maxie Esho was one of those lucky few.
Esho, a 6-foot-8 forward prospect who hails from the Washington, D.C., area but attended prep school at Lee Academy in Maine, participated in a pre-draft workout Thursday with the Boston Celtics. As he sat after the session in a room full of Celtics memorabilia, he shared the story of the afternoon he spent with Garnett back in 2008.
“I did a commercial before I went to college with KG,” Esho said. “… When I was young. We (shot) a video in the locker room (at TD Garden), so I kind of already knew how it was here.”
The commercial Esho appeared in is one Celtics fans might remember: an adidas spot that featured Garnett — joined by Esho and a group of other youngsters — handing out “Boston is a Brotherhood” T-shirts to folks around the city.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DREP6cdyq8s
“He was a real good guy,” Esho said. “He was one of the coolest guys I had met from the NBA.”
An NBA career is a long shot for the 24-year-old, who likely would need to travel overseas to find a professional basketball contract. But if Esho ever did end up with the Celtics?
“I guess you could say it would be a New England dream,” he said. “I went to prep school here, college. It would be crazy.”
Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
