Kevin Durant Roasts Kendrick Perkins With 2014 MVP Speech Reference

Kevin Durant and Kendrick Perkins haven't seen eye to eye in a while. The former has put Perkins on roast after his latest comments.

Kevin Durant Roasts Kendrick Perkins With 2014 MVP Speech Reference

Kevin Durant (Image via Firstsportz)

The 2011-12 OKC Thunder are often considered among the most talented teams to end up losing the NBA title. This team had three budding MVPs playing at their athletic primes together. They would later represent Team USA at the London Olympics and win the gold medal on the same team. However, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden never played together in the NBA after losing in the Finals.

OKC Thunder Sam Presti was forced by the team’s owners to trade James Harden and clear luxury tax space. It proved to be one of the most lopsided and worst trades in league history. OKC hasn’t returned to the Finals in 13 seasons since Harden was sent to the Houston Rockets. Harden went on to string together several MVP-caliber seasons in Houston. Kevin Martin and Jeremy Lamb couldn’t put OKC over the top.

OKC is in now its best position to return to the NBA Finals after that fateful lockout season. The Thunder hold a 1-0 WCF lead over Anthony Edwards and his Timberwolves team. MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has had an irresistible, undeniable season while putting the OKC offense on his back. He became the third player in the franchise’s history to win the MVP trophy, and looks likely to take them back to the Finals.

Former OKC Thunder center Kendrick Perkins believes he had an outsized role in the 2012 Thunder’s Finals run. Speaking to Richard Jefferson and Channing Frye on the Road Trippin podcast, Perkins set forth his case:

The Oklahoma City Thunder never went to the NBA Finals until Kendrick Perkins arrived on that team. Because they couldn’t get past the Lakers who had the twin towers in Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol…Let’s talk about that Finals run. Kendrick Perkins in the first round had the assignment of guarding Dirk Nowitzki, which we swept them…Second round, Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum…Then you get to the Western Conference Finals. Guess who had to guard the greatest power forward of all time?

Kendrick Perkins said

Kevin Durant could not quite fathom the type of credit Perkins claimed in his podcast appearance. The OKC Thunder legend took to his Twitter fingers and sent a scathing, sarcastic tweet. It contained a callback to his 2013-14 MVP acceptance speech, in which he called his mother ‘the real MVP’.

The actual real mvp

Kevin Durant tweeted

Kevin Durant could well be on the path to a return to OKC

The 2024-25 OKC Thunder are already a historically good team, irrespective of how the rest of their playoff run goes. They won 68 games and had the second-highest net rating in NBA history while doing so. Their defense has held up well to the scrutiny and energy levels of the playoffs. However, their offense hasn’t really been free-flowing thus far, often hitting periods when they lack creativity or a scoring punch.

In the event that they don’t win the NBA title, the Thunder would undoubtedly look to upgrade at a forward spot. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant have both been rumored to be wanting a trade. While moving to the Western Conference could be an unwise move for the Greek Freak, Kevin Durant is a more attainable target. He does not have a path to contention with the Phoenix Suns, as things stand.

Adding Kevin Durant in 2025 wouldn’t quite hit the same way as it hit for the Warriors in 2016. But it would still have a similar impact on a similarly all-time great roster. Getting Durant would unlock the team’s ceiling and take them to potentially all-time great status. They would be prohibitive favorites for the period that they can keep Durant.

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