Just as with ESPN and its viewers, there seem to be very mixed feelings within the Boston Celtics about 2008 championship center Kendrick Perkins.
Rumors surfaced last summer that Perkins was not invited to the team’s championship parade like other former Celtics stars. Later, NBC Sports Boston announcer and former Celtic Brian Scalabrine elaborated that Perkins was also not as welcome at the team facility and team events as other former Celtics.
This week, outgoing owner Wyc Grousbeck appeared on the Club 520 podcast with Jeff Teague and confirmed some hard feelings toward “Big Perk” in the Celtics organization. Grousbeck, however, said he “loves” Perk.
“He wasn’t invited to our parade last year, that is true,” Grousbeck said. “Because he had been giving people a lot of sh*t, and so I had family members of players saying, ‘If that guy’s in the parade, I’m not in the parade.’ So I said, ‘OK, you win.'”
Even Kendrick Perkins would likely readily admit that he is not everyone’s cup of tea. That’s the job for many analysts at ESPN, especially those in close proximity to Stephen A. Smith. Give enough takes, and eventually you will offend someone.
However, Perkins did not take kindly to Scalabrine’s comments last year. The NBC analyst claimed Perkins had a “big scarlet letter” on his chest for past criticism of the team, including calling Jayson Tatum “scared as hell” during the 2022 postseason and referring to head coach Joe Mazzulla as a “birdbrain.”
The hard feelings toward Perkins came to light after Boston’s banner-raising ceremony last year, which Perkins missed. The NBA Countdown and NBA Today panelist denied any turmoil and claimed he was simply busy.
Having Grousbeck’s stamp of approval goes a long way, and we rarely hear a peep from the Celtics about Perkins’ opinions. However, as Grousbeck notes, once families and loved ones become involved, they are less likely to be patient with hot takes and name-calling.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.