Kendrick Perkins

[Celtic17]

I see this guy as our future starting 5.
I flat-out love his rebounding and his defense. Fouls, that's another story.

Once he gets a grasp of what his 'new' body can do, he will gain control. Just the fact that he came into camp last year in solid shape and even more so this season, gives me hope. He has heart and a work-ethic we need from all of our players.

I think his rebounding will set up his offense. His defense and blocked shots will set up our running game.

I'm not set on him being just a role player, like some believe. He will be a star down the road...

[freshnthehouse]

Yeah, Id say you are the only one that can equal my man-love for perkins. hes gonna be a double digit rebounder for most of his years in the league.

[ferbo]

I think he is going to be solid.

[Roadrunner]

Perks is going to be R Parrish, Part 2. I expect big things from him.

[BCHISTORIAN]

freshnthehouse said:

Yeah, Id say you are the only one that can equal my man-love for perkins. hes gonna be a double digit rebounder for most of his years in the league.

hey don't forget me, i've been one of his biggest supporters ever since he entered draft.

this season is definitely very important for him

[DERRENMATTS]

IMO, if he's a starting Center for us, he'll be a solid rebounder and defensive player. But if he's a backup Center, he'll be an exceptional rebounder and defensive player and his value will be higher.

When we acquired Perkins (after Memphis completed the draft day trade), I was not immediately excited. He wasn't high on my wishlist. But then I got to see him play, and the more iI got to see him play, the more excited I got.

But I stand by what I say. I see his game and his physical attributes, and I don't think he has enough mobility or explosiveness to be a standout player. A solid starter, but an even better backup.

[eja117]

I'm starting to agree with Dmatts. We'll see, but sometimes I watch him and I'm like "see that guy smaller than you? Quick! Dunk on him, No don't take a stupid shot away from the ball, no don't pass it out to Delonte, oh God don't foul him! The guy is running out of excuses as to why he isn't all that good yet.

[DERRENMATTS]

I've basically pushed any thought of Perkins being an offensive threat out of my mind. His footwork in the post is very slow and his movements are deliberate. He's more on the predictable side than Blount on offense.

Defense and rebounding is where his value lies. And he is a force to be reckoned with on the boards. But that's only when he is getting good positioning. I forget who mentioned this recently on this board, but in a game review (maybe Esco?), he said that Perkins was getting called for a lot of over the back calls as he was trying to rebound from behind. Perkins doesn't have the quickness, agility, athleticism, or explosiveness to be a factor when he doesn't have positioning.

You'll see--these very physical deficiencies I mentioned (lack of quickness, agility, athleticism, and explosiveness) will be what holds Perkins back from being a standout player (which in my definition, is the level right below a 'star' player, which is below a 'superstar' player). But I will be the first one to sheepishly raise my feeble hand and apologize to everyone with an embarrassed grin if Perkins does exceed my expectations and becomes a dominant rebounder and defensive presence.

[freshnthehouse]

Perk is still really young. Hes basically only had 1 year in the league, since his rookie year was mostly spent getting his body in NBA shape. It took J o'neal about 4 years to become a solid NBA player. It can sometime take big guys a while b4 they can contribute. Back in the olden days(10 years ago), youd draft a 4 year college big man in the late 1st round, and hed be considered a project. Perk deserves more time.

Derrenmatts, I remember watching that draft as well. I was about to superplex my TV after watching DA draft Troy Bell and Dahni Jones when they announced the trade. At the time, i thought both picks were great. Ive always been a fan of drafting bigs with your late rounds picks, because the risk of a bust is very high, but i think the chance of developing a solid big is worth it.

[Celtic17]

derrenmatts said:

I've basically pushed any thought of Perkins being an offensive threat out of my mind. His footwork in the post is very slow and his movements are deliberate. He's more on the predictable side than Blount on offense.

.....

You'll see--these very physical deficiencies I mentioned (lack of quickness, agility, athleticism, and explosiveness) will be what holds Perkins back from being a standout player (which in my definition, is the level right below a 'star' player, which is below a 'superstar' player).

Again, I believe...
Once he gets a grasp of what his 'new' body can do, he will gain control. Also, as Fresh said, he is still very new to the game - having only one true year of PT under his belt.

Maybe I need to take off my green-tinted glasses.

[esco33]

When the Celtics made the trade on draft night for Banks and Perkins, I was ecstatic. Those were the two exact players that I had wanted them to draft (from the position where they were drafting from).
This year is Perk's year. I think for high schoolers, their 3rd year is a good barometer to measure a player's success and development. That's not to say that a high school player cannot develop 4 or 5 years after, but I think the third year is crucial. The first year is usual bench warming time. The second year, they get some backup minutes, but not anything major, unless there is an injury to another player. By the third year they start to see some major minutes, either backing up or even starting.

I like Perk a lot. But he needs to show me more. I think this year, and maybe before our eyes throughout the year, probably toward the middle or end of this year, we may see the "REAL" Perk. I think he just needs consistent minutes. When he came out of high school, they said he had a dominant post game. That apparently has not translated into the pros. We all know his rebounding, hustle, and defensive effort is what will get him playing time. He needs to stay on the floor more (foul less) and I would still really love to see him improve some on his post moves to improve his offense. Other than Big Al, we really have no bigs with back to the basket post moves. Hopefully, Parish can come in and work with him on some of these.

That being said, Perk still has the potential to be a dominant big man, either in the rebounding or defense category. I hope he can reach that potential sooner rather than later. Early signs though in camp, and in some of the games where he has played well have showed that with consistency, he can reach his potential.

[ferbo]

There are so few big men who come into the league and based upon how they perform look to be stars or almost stars, that the vasat majority of teams have to pick "projects." Some of those guys turn into pl ayers. Some don't.

If a kid has the kind of work ethic which Perk does, and the ability t o rebound and block shots, he should be able to develop some kind of offensive game. The last great 5 (Parish) the Cs had wasn't a prolific scorer.

[cfoo]

Perk just needs to incorporate a rainbow turnaround shot into his offensive arsenal.

[esco33]

Good point ferbo. Maybe that is why I want Parish to work with him so much on his fundamentals, post play, positioning on rebounding, etc. Under the Chief's tutelage, he could possibly become the best center we have had since the Chief himself.

[eja117]

I think hi sbody isn't thaaaat new. he's been pretty tall for 3 years now. he's been one of the bigger guys out there since he was drafted. he doesn't seem to me to be the kind of guy who would hold bacck if he didn't need to or wpuld be timid about testing out his limits