Kendrick Perkins Shuts Down Title Buzz About OKC Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder put the Boston Celtics away on Wednesday evening, beating them 118-112, powered by yet another stunning performance from MVP frontrunner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

But even with that big win over the Celtics, Kendrick Perkins doesn’t think they are going to be champions this year.

Speaking on “First Take,” Perkins pointed out that the Celtics were missing Kristaps Porzingis, who he considers “so crucial” to the team.

He admits that the Thunder sent a message with their statement win but he isn’t ready to call them frontrunners for the title.

"The Boston Celtics were missing a key piece: Kristaps Porzingis." @KendrickPerkins says the Thunder should "absolutely not" be favored over the Celtics to win the title despite OKC's 118-112 win in Boston pic.twitter.com/DRrhNmbqEn

— First Take (@FirstTake) March 13, 2025

Stephen A. Smith agreed with Perkins, but mostly because he feels the Thunder are still too young to beat Boston in the Finals.

The Celtics are defending champions and they have had a lot of postseason success over the last few years.

The Thunder, on the other hand, are still relatively unproven in the playoffs.

Perkins believes a Finals matchup would look very different, especially if Porzingis is healthy.

But that’s a big “if” because he has had a series of injury issues over the last several seasons, including during last year’s playoff run.

The Thunder’s victory was due to more than just the absence of Porzingis.

Multiple players did great things for OKC, including Chet Holmgren who looked like a great second option with his 23 points and 15 rebounds.

Plus, the Thunder were able to limit Jaylen Brown, who had a lacking performance with 10 points.

The Thunder did a lot to earn their win on Wednesday and their fans think this is a testament to their championship potential.

No matter what Perkins, Smith, or anyone else says, OKC followers believe this could be their year.

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