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RUMOR: Chris Cohan and Robert Rowell said no to Kevin Garnett because of additional salary and the luxury tax

This was only a small tidbit of the piece by Matt Steinmetz [FanHouse] on the non-renewal of Chris Mullin and promotion of Larry Riley to GM, but I think it's the most important.

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So many great questions.

Jump for the 411.

In fact, the seeds of discontent were sewn two years ago, when the Warriors were very much a player for Kevin Garnett, who was being shopped by the Minnesota Timberwolves at the time

According to multiple sources, the Warriors were close to a deal for Garnett, but it would have required them to take on additional salary that would have put them over the luxury tax.

Warriors management said "No" to the deal, and Garnett ended up in Boston.

Are you kidding me? For years Rowell has publicly peddled the company line that the organization was willing to pay the luxury tax for a player that was worth it and a shot at a championship. He's even duped some Warriors fanatics and the media into believing it.

As my esteemed colleague JAE has eloquently pointed out calling Golden State Warriors owner Chris Cohan is cheap is a misnomer. I agree that Cohan's main problem has not been being cheap (he's spent plenty of money over the years) although it has been a problem- witness the numerous expired trade exceptions, and THIS. Unless you're part of the evil green empire headquartered in Boston, THIS has to drive you nuts.

Let's rewind (also see Unbelievable, Unforgettable, and Unstoppable Baby! from The W Column vault). It's the summer of 2006 and Chris Mullin and Rod Higgins, both unqualified for their front office jobs and given them as publicity stunts, are stuck. The Golden State Warriors have missed the playoffs for 12 straight years, 2 under their watch as lead front office executives. They're locked into some terrible contracts that they inked and the head coach of the Warriors is among the league's worst. Out of nowhere Mullin convinces his old pal and coaching legend Don Nelson to leave the good life in Maui and come out of retirement.

Nellie throws some public tantrums about the Murphleavy components of the roster and has them shipped out. Baron Davis and Jason Richardson miss plenty of games, but all of the sudden they're ready to go at full strength as the end of the season is approaching. Nellie digs into his back of tricks and does the unthinkable with a small team- he goes even smaller with quite possibly the fastest, most athletic, and wildest starting 5 this league has ever seen with Baron Davis, Monta Ellis, Jason Richardson, Stephen Jackson, and Al Harrington. The Warriors go on an unBELIEVEable run to end the regular season.

Shoot to some degree we're all just happy they made the playoffs after that embarrassing 12 year drought. Then Nellie, Boom Dizzle, J-Rich, Jack, Barnes, MP2, Biedrins, and Al SHOCK THE WORLD. In the second round the lost in a very close 5 games, but it was abundantly clear that the missing piece was an athletic big man who could run.

Kevin Garnett fit the bill perfectly. Everyone knew that. With KG the greatest show on hardwood would be a legit contender and at the very least a thrilling box office smash and the talk of the league.

I don't care which players were on the table. If it took the Warriors shipping out their overrated young core of Monta Ellis, Andris Biedrins, and Brandan Wright to Bring KG to the Bay, it had to be done. Assuming Steinmetz' sources are on point, if Warriors (mis)management nullified a deal for KG because of extra salary and in an attempt to avoid the luxury tax, then they're straight up losers. That's a loser move.

The hardest part about rooting for the Dubs isn't their uncanny ability to perpetually miss the playoffs in a league where over half of the teams qualify for the postseason or the rival of WE SUCK this season. It's rooting for a team that's owned and managed by two men who have proven nothing short of incompetent and who aren't even playing the game to win. Have some pride in your product Cohan and Rowell.

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