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“James Harden cooked Giannis Antetokounmpo on one leg”: Kendrick Perkins goes off on the Bucks DPOY’s questionable defense

Samir Mehdi
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“James Harden cooked Giannis Antetokounmpo on one leg”: Kendrick Perkins goes off on the Bucks DPOY’s questionable defense

Kendrick Perkins roasts Giannis Antetokounmpo and his defense by calling him out for being crossed up by and injured James Harden. 

This Milwaukee Bucks-Brooklyn Nets series has been an unconventional one to say the least. The Nets are dealing with a slew of injuries to their superstars while the Bucks have Giannis Antetokounmpo shooting pull-up 3s instead of set plays. In all fairness, it’s great to see that he’s stopped shooting 8 shots from beyond the arc in crucial ECSF games against the title favorites. 

Giannis Antetokounmpo has been playing exceptionally well in these Conference semis as he’s putting up averages of 30.5 points and 12.8 rebounds in the 6 games while hooting 57% from the field, despite his terrible 3P shooting.

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Khris Middleton has not been too shabby either as after having two duds in Games 1 and 2, ‘khash money’ has pulled through for the Bucks in Games 3-6. On the series as whole, Middleton is putting up 24.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 4 assists a night. His efficiency of 42% from the field gets bogged down by those two outlier games and also by the fact that he’s only elite 3-level shot maker on the team. 

Kendrick Perkins goes off on Giannis Antetokounmpo and suggests Khris Middleton is better than him. 

The major criticism Giannis has received throughout this series has been the fact that he does not take on KD on the defensive end of the floor when he starts to get hot, and that he’s a fairly one-dimensional player. Kendrick Perkins hits on both these points and anoints Middleton with title of ‘Batman’ and relegates Giannis to ‘Robin’.

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Perkins seems to really love his Batman analogies as he’s compared the Brooklyn big 3 to the DC Comics’ dynamic duo before, hilariously calling Kyrie Irving ‘Alfred the Butler’. 

Giannis has also not been playing like what a DPOY should be playing like. Perk is right when he says that he’s seen James Harden cross him up because the fact of the matter is that, he has. Harden, who’s struggling with a right hamstring strain, has put Giannis in the blender a couple times in this series unfortunately. 

Giannis Antetokounmpo has been playing like an All-NBA caliber player, let’s not get it twisted, but when it comes down to the clutch, it’s quite strange that Middleton always looks like he’s the man for the job instead of the 2x MVP. 

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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