NBA trade rumors: Kevin Garnett won't accept deal unless Paul Pierce dealt

Even if the Boston Celtics agree to a deal with a contender, veteran big man Kevin Garnett won't waive his no-trade clause unless teammate Paul Pierce is traded, Shaun Powell of Sports on Earth reports. And even then, Garnett will only accept trades to Los Angeles.

Last week, a report emerged that the Los Angeles Clippers were interested in acquiring Garnett before the trade deadline. While it was long held in the industry that the Clippers might try to acquire Pierce, this was really the first time anyone had heard of Garnett possibly heading to L.A.

With that said, SB Nation's Paul Flannery cooled the jets Monday morning, writing, "It would take a lot more than that to get KG out of Boston and that's before anyone gets around to asking him if he wanted to waive his no-trade clause to make it happen."

At this point, with the Celtics' presumed demands and Garnett's desire to stick in Boston along with Pierce, a deal doesn't appear likely. Things have changed quickly in Boston throughout this season, as we've seen, but it appears that the Celtics will either have to stand pat, or blow things up entirely.