Kendrick Perkins is out with his top 5 list. Early in the season though it is not possible to give a clear-cut of top 2-3 players to win the award. Most of the predictions with the MVP race are also made based on the player’s resume. Factors like the winning percentage of the team, accolades such as conference player of the week and month, player’s efficiency, etc.
Kendrick Perkins is a 14-year veteran in the league and an NBA champion himself. Perkins certainly knows the value of the best player on the winning team. Maybe, that is the reason for his exclusion of Luka Doncic and the inclusion of Tyrese Haliburton on his list. “Not only do you have to have great individual numbers, but your team has to be winning,” Perkins said on ESPN’s “NBA Today” on Wednesday. “Your team can’t be sitting at the number ninth or tenth spot at a .500 record and you expect for him to be in the MVP conversation. It’s just not how it works.”
For almost every NBA analyst, Luka Doncic is one of the top contenders for the MVP race this season. Not only has he been singlehandedly carrying Dallas Mavericks’ offense but also putting up never seen numbers in the league. For Perkins, his top candidates for the MVP race so far into the season are, Jayson Tatum, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Devin Booker, Ja Morant, and Tyrese Haliburton. After Jayson Tatum and Devin Booker’s performances last night on Wednesday, Big Perk has an even stronger case for his list of potential MVPs this season.
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Richard Jefferson and Malika Andrews have issues with Kendrick Perkins’ list
The biggest issue that Richard Jefferson and Malika Andrews had was the exclusion of Luka Doncic and the inclusion of Tyrese Haliburton. Not many NBA analysts have excluded Doncic from the conversation in the season so far. The Mavs had a better record in the beginning but they started to lose matches in the series. Kendrick Perkins has previously pointed out the failure of the Dallas Mavericks.
Kendrick Perkins was very vocal about his exclusion of Luka Doncic from the list. He vehemently added that one of the factors that are crucial for MVP conversation is winning percentage and Luka did not have many so far in this season. However, in Luka’s defense, Ja Morant is only 2 wins ahead of Doncic and the Mavs in the congested Western Conference. Moreover, Luka Doncic has been putting historical numbers, to which Richard Jefferson also alluded. Ignoring Doncic’s feat would perhaps be an injustice to his season so far.
Haliburton was the surprise inclusion in the list for many people. Making a case for him would have been easier had he been scoring at a higher percentage and even more importantly more points in the Pacers’ win. However, he is the only player in the league so far who has been averaging assists in double digits. Perkins made a valid point regarding Haliburton and his position in the Indiana Pacers. As per the former Celtics star, “take Haliburton off the Pacers and they would not be number 4 in the Eastern Conference…which is the better conference.”
Seems like a lot of people have a PROBLEM with “My List” including @malika_andrews and @Rjeff24 but I don’t give a damn! I will be doubling down on my damn list on NBA Today. I will not let people move the goal post when it’s convenient for them!!! Carry the hell on… https://t.co/aiavpWtIfl
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) November 30, 2022Richard Jefferson and others made sense while debating with Kendrick Perkins regarding his MVP list. But Perk stayed firm and was riding with his decision of excluding Luka Doncic from the list as he mentioned: “but I don’t give a damn!” and believes in the guys he has listed while giving out reasonings for them.
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