Jason Kidd trying to "Distract the Celtics" - Kendrick Perkins dissects Mavericks Coach's intent behind Jayson Tatum & Jaylen Brown comparison
Former Boston Celtics champion Kendrick Perkins believes that Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd is trying to employ some sneaky tactics that will help his team win in the NBA Finals. That's because Kidd made a bold claim that can be considered somewhat controversial.
According to Kidd, the best player on this stacked Celtics roster is Jaylen Brown and not Jayson Tatum. A take that would go against the perception of the majority of fans.
Perkins shared his response to Kidd's statement through a post on X. Here is what he said.
"J-Kidd might think that Jaylen Brown is the best player on the Celtics but he’s doing exactly what you’re supposed to do in the NBA Finals… ," Kendrick Perkins wrote. "And that’s try to pull out every trick in the book to try and distract the Celtics!!!! It’s Fair Game when trying to win a Championship."
Kendrick Perkins is not afraid to speak his mind and is one of the most controversial and divisive figures in sports. Since starting his job as an analyst at ESPN, he has provided several takes that have befuddled and sometimes even angered fans.
If Perkins is to be believed with his current take, then fans will simply have to wait and see if Jason Kidd's comments can cause some internal strife, or at the very least, distract Boston.
Also read: "I showed up in big moments": Kendrick Perkins says he was a better big than 4x DPOY Rudy Gobert
What did Jason Kidd say about the Boston Celtics star that caused Kendrick Perkins to make this statement?
To be fair to Kendrick Perkins, he is not the only person to be caught off guard by Dallas Mavericks' head coach Jason Kidd's statement. After all, Kidd did not simply just imply that Jaylen Brown is the best player on the Boston Celtics roster, he outright said it to the media.
After sharing his take regarding Brown, Kidd went on to explain what made him think this way.
He started by talking about the job that Brown has done on defence, especially the job he's done in making life difficult for Mavs star Luka Doncic. He also mentioned Brown's ability to get to the line and his solid all-around play before saying that those are the things that the best player on any team does.
Kidd also praised Brown's consistency throughout the Playoffs and pointed to the fact that he earned the Eastern Conference finals MVP over Jayson Tatum and that he is simply continuing to do what he's done all postseason long.
Finally, Kidd talked about how the Mavs can contain Brown. He said it begins with playing him physically while making sure that he doesn't get to the free-throw line as often. Another point of emphasis for the Mavs' defence is to try to keep him out of the paint.
Whether Jason Kidd truly believes that Jaylen Brown is better than Jayson Tatum or Kendrick Perkins is right about the Mavs head coach employing a bit of psychological warfare, there is no denying that Brown was a problem for the Mavs in Game 1.
He scored 22 points, grabbed six rebounds and had three steals and three blocks on the defensive end. He also got to the free-throw line 11 times despite only sinking six of them.