Getty Images In 2021, all eyes will be on Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn
ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins appeared on the Heavy Live With Scoop B Show this week and among topics discussed was his opinion on Kyrie Irving’s game.
“The thing I like about Kyrie as a person is that he’s the ultimate competitor,” Perkins tells me.
“One thing about it is no matter how bad of a game he’s having, he’s gonna compete. He could be 0 for 15 and STILL have the last shot and have the confidence to sink it, right? The thing about Kyrie’s game that is so unique is that we’ve never seen a guy that handles the pill and is able to maneuver through traffic the way he is at that size. And with that being said, his skillset — we haven’t seen that before. Not for a guy that’s 6’1”…he’s not that tall and below the basket he’s not that athletic but he’s one of the greatest finishers that we’ve seen in our time. So you look at Kyrie man, and arguably in my eyes he’s a future Hall of Famer, right? That’s without a doubt. What he brings to the game and what he’s brought to the game… you can’t ever replace that.”
Irving averaged 27.4 points, 6.4 assists, and 5.2 rebounds per game. Irving had season-ending surgery on a nagging shoulder impingement.
Irving’s goal is Championship for the Brooklyn Nets. “We’ve got a championship to win,” Irving said last night via Instagram Live.
Nets PG Kyrie Irving: “We’ve got a championship to win.”
“We’ve got a championship to win.”
“The focus is there stop playing with me.”
“The focus is there. Stop playing with me.”
Perkins and Irving were Cleveland Cavaliers teammates with LeBron James.
Perkins was also teammates with Kevin Durant during their Oklahoma City Thunder days.
Durant and Perkins have had online feuds ranging from debates about Russell Westbrook and Kyrie Irving.
Million Dollar Question: If Durant and Perkins were to sit down over a meal and settle their differences, what would they eat and what would they talk about? “If we were to sit down over any meal, it would be the Turkey Leg Hut, the world famous restaurant out here in the H-Town and it wouldn’t be no beef to squash,” Perkins told me on the Heavy Live With Scoop B Show.
“I don’t even think KD and I would have anything to say to each other on those terms. We would dive straight into conversation and usually probably it’ll dive into basketball talk, which dives into family talk and we just take off from there. You know, things that’s known don’t have to be said. ”
Durant has not stepped on an NBA court since the 2019 NBA Finals with a torn Achilles. He initially suffered the injury during Round 2 of the Warriors’ NBA Playoffs matchup against the Houston Rockets.
He and Irving will make their NBA preseason debut tomorrow against the Washington Wizards.
The Lakers are expected to repeat as NBA Champions this season. According to betting odds from Bovada, Brooklyn’s are favored second.
The 2020-21 NBA season begins on December 22.
The NBA and players will have strict protocols to follow as outlined in a 158-page memo which includes protocol for COVID-19 testing.