I am no fan of Kevin Garnett, other than the fact that he remains a supreme competitor with an incredible passion and fire for the game of pro basketball even after 18-plus years.

However, he showed a part of himself that the average fan doesn’t see every day.

Kevin McHale — I am no Celtics’ fan, by the way, as you can probably tell already! — returned to the bench for the Houston Rockets last week after a hiatus away from the team after the too-early death of his 22-year-old daughter, Sasha, from Lupus.

McHale drafted Garnett out of high school all those years ago as general manager of the Minnesota Timberwolves and eventually traded him to Boston about five years ago for a handful-plus of players.