Kendrick Perkins barked like a dog on ESPN’s NBA halftime show

There’s been a whole lot of “Got that dawg in him” discussion in sports media over the years. But it’s unusual to see that translate into on-air barking. That’s what Kendrick Perkins did Friday night on ESPN’s halftime show for the Boston Celtics-Philadelphia 76ers game, though, surprising host Malika Andrews and fellow analyst Chiney Ogwumike:

“That’s the problem, that’s the problem. Patrick Beverley, a dawg. De’Anthony Melton, dawg. Paul Reed, dawg. Marcus Morris, dawg. Tobias Harris, a dawg. [Robert] Covington, a dawg.”

That’s certainly some unusual halftime analysis. And it didn’t actually pay off in this case, with the Celtics winning this one 125-119 despite Jayson Tatum’s controversial third-quarter ejection (and remarkable comments afterwards). Although, it’s possible that their team is also composed of dawgs.

The real question here is if Perkins’ halftime analysis set off any dogs watching at home with their owners, though. There have been lots of cases of people getting upset over TV or movie scenes or commercials featuring barking dogs or ringing doorbells that set off their own dogs. And the list of things to beware of there now might have to extend to ESPN studio analysis. (Perkins should be aware of this issue, as he went viral in 2021 after holding up his wife’s Pomeranian, which had been barking, during his remote hit on NBC Sports Boston’s Celtics postgame show.)

Perkins played in the NBA from 2003-18 (he was out of the league from 2016-17) with the Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder, Cleveland Cavaliers, and New Orleans Pelicans. He joined ESPN and NBC Sports Boston soon after his retirement, and signed an extension with ESPN in 2021. Amongst his many current roles, he’s regularly featured on the Wednesday and Friday versions of NBA Countdown, as well as the associated halftime and postgame shows.

[Oh No He Didn’t on Twitter]