Tim Duncan’s trash talk was different than everyone else’s

Everyone knows Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett had quite the rivalry going back in their heydays. They often battled for the title best big in the league (or even overall player) during their primes, and their clashing personalities made things all the more competitive.

It was once even revealed the Duncan really didn’t like Garnett, especially because of his trash talk. (Legend has it KG once mocked Duncan’s deceased mother on Mother’s Day, whether he realized it at the time or not.) Both are now retired and surefire locks for the this summer’s Basketball Hall of Fame class (which will now be a more solemn affair due to the passing of should-be classmate Kobe Bryant), so the rivalry has probably subsided a bit.

However, one thing that never gets old is listening to old rivals talk about Timmy’s “trash talk”. Sometimes he was nice, or “coached” awe-struck younger players into a false sense of security, but in a recent episode of their podcast All The Smoke with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Garnett may have told the funniest Timmy story yet, especially considering their history.

He explains how Timmy would subtly reply to trash talk in phrases instead of sentences, like “got you,” or “almost”. Or as KG describes as the worst: “nice try”. Overall, the lack of response to his own trash talk annoyed Garnett enough that it got into his own head, and he eventually just stopped trying with Tim.

Duncan may be long retired at this point, but these stories about how he interacted with opponents will never get old. What is your favorite “Timmy trash talk” story?