"Biggest regret in my media career": Kendrick Perkins minces no words in shocking admission on voting Rudy Gobert for DPOY
NBA vet Kendrick Perkins isn't too happy with himself. The 2008 NBA champion, who has since become an analyst and TV personality for ESPN, recently indicated that he regrets voting for Rudy Gobert as the Defensive Player of the Year. On the heels of Luka Doncic hitting a big game-winner on the Timberwolves center in Game 3, Perkins expressed regret for voting Gobert as the DPOY.
It's no secret that Gobert thrives as an interior defender, and at over seven feet tall isn't able to provide lockdown defense on the perimeter, like Jrue Holiday for example. Despite that, late in Game 3, Gobert was left on a metaphorical island, guarding generational talent Luka Doncic on the perimeter.
As Doncic indicated postgame, forcing the switch to get Gobert defending him on the perimeter was something intentional. The way Kendrick Perkins sees things, the moment was the final straw.
While speaking on Tuesday's installment of First Take, Perkins indicated that the French star winning DPOY tarnishes the award given his postseason struggles this year.
"I have the biggest regret in my media career. And, Molly, I'm retiring, UD, Shannon, from voting for individual regular season awards, because I have done a disservice using my voting rights, me voting this season for Rudy Gobert is an embarrassment for me for Defensive Player of the Year."
"Every single time in the postseason that becomes a defensive liability." - Kendrick Perkins rips Rudy Gobert after Timberwolves go down 3-0 to Mavs.
As previously mentioned, it's no secret that Rudy Gobert is a generational defensive talent in the paint. Year after year Gobert has shown that he's an elite rim protector and interior defender.
Despite that, going back to his time with the Utah Jazz, opposing teams have found a way to exploit his inability to defend the perimeter. Whether that means forcing switches as we saw with Luka Doncic, or running plays to draw him out of the paint for an easy drive, Gobert has struggled to guard the perimeter.
The way Kendrick Perkins sees things, not only has this been a recurring theme for the French star, he's also underperformed this postseason. While Gobert averaged 2.1 blocks per game in the regular season, and has averaged 2.1bpg throughout his career, he's averaging just one block per game against the Mavs.
"He's the first player that we see every single time in the postseason that becomes a defensive liability. ... When I look at Rudy, he has tarnished the Defensive Player of the Year award. He has. He's not respected by his peers."
As Kendrick Perkins pointed out, in the Timberwolves' Western Conference semifinal series against the Denver Nuggets, it was Karl-Anthony Towns' defense that led the team. Towns' defensive play against the Nuggets earned him praise from fans and media members alike.
Throughout the series, Towns stepped up on defense, making big plays on both ends of the floor with Gobert unable to keep up with Nikola Jokic from the perimeter.
Of course, it's important to mention that the DPOY award, much like the MVP award, is a regular-season award. This means that Gobert's struggles on defense in the playoffs aren't taken into account, however, from the sounds of things, Kendrick Perkins doesn't care.