Kendrick Perkins broke from the consensus on Thursday morning's First Take and threw cold water on the Oklahoma City Thunder despite their 122-113 Game 2 win that tied the Western Conference Finals - and he did it by naming a teammate of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, not a Spur.
Asked which team he had more confidence in heading to San Antonio, Perkins backed the visitors. The reason was Chet Holmgren.
"I gotta go with the Spurs," Perkins said. "When I look at the Oklahoma City Thunder, I know Alex Caruso is playing well, AJ Mitchell, he's had his moments this postseason, but Chet Holmgren has been a big disappointment for me. He's been a big disappointment all across the board. One, defensively, I called them out time and time again for not taking it personal with the one-on-one matchup with Wemby and guarding them defensively. But on the offensive end, I can't trust him anymore to be a certified Robin. He's not giving me enough and giving the Oklahoma City Thunder enough offensively. To me, he's not even looking to score. He finished the game last night with 10 points. We're talking about a guy that was a first-time All-Star this year. We're talking about Chet Holmgren that, when we talk about the top 10 bigs in the league, we put him in that conversation."
The context behind Perkins' frustration was Mark Daigneault's mid-series decision to switch Isaiah Hartenstein onto Victor Wembanyama as the primary defender, an adjustment that immediately limited the Frenchman's paint touches. Perkins was glad it worked but irritated it was needed at all.
"My thing on Wemby - why did it take for you to go down game one and it makes me think and realize the power of Wemby. Daigneault adjusted before the series even started. You have three of the most elite bigs - from Isaiah Hartenstein to Chet Holmgren to even Jaylen Williams. But you started the series in game one already throwing out a different type of game plan instead of trusting that your bigs could get it done. You know what they did last night? They touched him up every single time. It wasn't no free runs. It was someone in his chest. It was an elbow in his chest. It was a hand touching. They was always arms length away from Wemby."
Stephen A. Smith partially agreed with Perkins but pushed back on the idea that Holmgren is the player to fix it. He argued Holmgren has a specific psychological problem with the Spurs star that goes back to their amateur careers.
"I think you put too much stock in Chet Holmgren for this particular series. We all know that his kryptonite is Wemby," Smith said. "And I'm not even talking about on the basketball floor. The minute you see this brother get off the bus, it seems like fright night for Chet Holmgren. He just ain't the same as he is with everybody else. When he has to go up against Wemby, because he knows everybody's looking for him to step up and be a little bit more than he normally is. And he's not. He just doesn't seem ready for that challenge."
Smith then turned to Holmgren's physical profile, in a moment that has already been clipped widely on social media.
"Chet Holmgren is not capable of being a harassment to Victor Wembanyama on the defensive side of the ball, because as skinny as Wembanyama is, at least he's got some damn definition. You look at Chet Holmgren and you literally - it's intriguing to wonder whether or not he's done a push-up. I'm not disrespecting him. I'm just talking about the look of his physique."
Perkins, who has watched Wembanyama and Holmgren feud since their high school days, said the rivalry is not analyst manufactured.
"This is personal. This beef between Wemby and Chet goes all the way back to their high school days," Perkins said. "Hey Chet Holmgren, if you watching, Wemby hates you. He hates you. He literally hates you. He can't stand the ground that you walk on. I need you to bring that same type of energy. I need you to bring that same type of tenacity. The world knows it. At some point you got to put your feet in the ground and say, 'I want some of this smoke.'"
For all the disagreement on Holmgren, Perkins and Smith agreed the bigger swing factor for Game 3 is the Spurs guard rotation. De'Aaron Fox remains out with a high ankle sprain, Dylan Harper is awaiting MRI results after limping off Game 2, and Stephon Castle has now committed 20 turnovers in two games trying to run an offence out of position.
"I have more confidence in the Spurs and their supporting cast outside of Wemby than I do in OKC, especially with the series being tied 1-1," Perkins said. But he also conceded a key detail: if Hartenstein tries the same physical Wembanyama treatment in San Antonio, the whistles will not travel.
"Hartenstein is not going to get away with that kind of physicality. He will have five fouls in the first quarter in San Antonio. We know how the officiating swings with that series traveling from OKC to San Antonio. So yes, Hartenstein did what he needed to do last night, but is that going to be as effective the next night? I don't think so."
