Kevin Garnett will return to the Minnesota Timberwolves for two (!) more seasons

When the Minnesota Timberwolves dealt for Kevin Garnett in February, bringing him back to Minnesota after trading him in 2007 and nearly 19 years after drafting him, it was assumed he would be a late-season novelty piece. A spindly bit of nostalgia to not only help tutor the team’s younger players (some of whom were born the very year he was drafted into the NBA), but also distract the fans from a season that would end with the league’s worst record.

Then, later on trade deadline day, it was reported that the Wolves wanted to keep Garnett as an active player beyond 2014-15, which was somewhat of a surprise. Now we’ve got official word: Kevin Garnett will sign a contract that will take him into his 40s, as Minnesota is inking the future Hall of Famer to a two-year deal:

Terms have not been disclosed. Longtime Timberwolves beat writer Jerry Zgoda says the contract will include a provision that will move him into management if he is not healthy enough to play in 2016-17. Garnett made an even $12 million last year in the final season of a three-year, $34 million contract extension he signed with the Boston Celtics in 2012. KG has cleared $327 million in total earnings in his career, a run that has seen him run the gamut from excitable preps-to-pros oddity to lockout-inducing contract earner to league MVP to basketball martyr to champion and to his current role as an elder statesman.

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Garnett played just five games with the Timberwolves following the deal, never working more than 21 minutes. His production has declined severely since Boston dealt him to Brooklyn in 2013, and his combined totals from both Brooklyn and Minnesota last season left him with marks of 6.9 points and 6.6 rebounds in 20 minutes a game.

The Wolves aren’t expecting KG to approximate the contributions he gave them in 2003-04, when he played nearly 40 minutes a game, averaged over 24 points per game and a league-leading 13.9 rebounds with five assists and a combined 3.7 blocks/steals alongside just 2.6 turnovers (as you’d expect, he won the league’s MVP that year), but he will be called upon to provide two decades’ worth of wisdom for the team’s young core.

Minnesota currently features the last three No. 1 overall NBA draft picks on its roster, a first for this league. Last year’s top pick, Andrew Wiggins, won the Rookie of the Year and this year’s top selection (Karl-Anthony Towns) seems right in line to follow in his path, hardware-wise. The team’s president and coach, Flip Saunders, took over as head coach partway through Garnett’s rookie year in 1995-96 and went on to coach him for nine full seasons after that, and he could use all the help he can get with a young roster that also includes 22-year old Shabazz Muhammad and 20-year old Zach LaVine.

That’s the obvious gig, alongside working his old man game in the high post and directing traffic defensively. His role beyond that, however, intrigues.

Garnett played fewer than 100 minutes with the Timberwolves following the deal (which cost them forward Thaddeus Young, who disappointed in Minnesota), despite being traded to the team with 29 games left in its season. It has been rumored that Saunders wants to attempt to build an ownership group around his well-heeled former superstar in order to eventually purchase the franchise from 74-year old owner Glen Taylor. Taylor helped keep the team from moving to New Orleans a quarter century ago with his own purchase of the squad, and he’s watched as the team has hit the NBA lottery 11 straight years (and, most assuredly, a 12th in 2015-16) after bowing out in the Western Conference finals in 2004.

KG would not be the lead buyer in that group, but as the public face of the franchise you could do a lot worse. Handing him a two-year contract at age 39 isn’t exactly a gift, Garnett is one of the rare superstars that was paid commensurate for his talents during his prime, but both Saunders and Taylor certainly feel it necessary to keep him in the fold.

At the very least, he’ll have a solid chunk of time to figure out his first move upon his retirement as a player. All in all, a career that spans from 1995 to 2017 is a pretty solid run.

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Kelly Dwyer

is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at KDonhoops@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KDonhoops