2 hours Ago By Vatsal Gupta, NBA Analysis Network
The “best” debates in the NBA are always bound to generate discussion and disagreements and when Kendrick Perkins, polarizing as ever, has a take, that is ramped up to maximum. The current NBA landscape is as competitive as it has ever been, with no outright favorites who look like they’ll run away with the championship. A big reason why is the even spread of talent across the league and emerging superstars trying their best to usurp the established guard.
Furthermore, some trades in the offseason have created new contenders or strengthened already established ones. As such, declaring one as the “best” over everyone else is a bold take and that’s exactly what Kendrick Perkins has done. Kendrick Perkins’ best duo of the NBA The NBA this season is blessed with some truly world-class pairing like Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson , Devin Booker and Kevin Durant (+ Bradley Beal!), and more.
That’s not even including the reigning champions and their superstars- Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, who have already proved it at the top level. Therefore, to pick a duo that has only been recently formed and hasn’t proven anything yet outside of winning regular season games is a bold choice. That is what Perkins did in the lead-up to the Mavs’ game against the Knicks when he picked Jalen Brunson and Towns as the best duo in the NBA.
He said: “Hell yeah! [this Knicks team is better than last year’s]. The New York Knicks have the best duo in basketball in Brunson and Towns. “They’re the most lethal duo in basketball.
They’re the best pick-and-roll duo in basketball. The beauty of that is it didn’t take them 25 games or 50 games to figure out how to play alongside each other. “What’s beautiful is watching another guy in their starting lineup, OG Anunoby having the best season of his career playing alongside these guys.
” The comments did not age particularly well immediately as the Mavs, without Luka Doncic, beat the Knicks 129-114 but to Perkins’ point, Brunson and Towns were the top scorers for the Knicks with 37 and 25 points respectively. Do the New York Knicks have the best duo in basketball? Perkins makes a strong claim about it being the case and the truth is that the Knicks have been scoring this season at a league-leading pace. They are right alongside the Cleveland Cavaliers in offensive rating and most of it is down to Towns and Brunson breaking the opposition down at will.
However, at the same time, they are 24th in defensive rating so there needs to be a qualifier that this duo is the best in basketball offensively. Even that can be rivaled by other teams like the Celtics, who are championship contenders again after getting Kristaps Porzingis back. Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, and Evan Mobley are dominating the opposition for the Cavs and they have a higher offensive rating and a better overall record than the Knicks.
Therefore, as it stands, this looks more like a case of Perkins getting carried away than any tangible proof that the Knicks have the best duo in basketball. This statement can age as true with time but at the moment, the field is far too crowded and competitive to declare an 18-game duo the best in the NBA. This article first appeared on NBA Analysis Network and was syndicated with permission.
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