There was significant, visible, pleasant joy in Oklahoma City last night, both while and after the Thunder dominated the Grizzlies to take a 3-2 series lead before Game 6 in Memphis on Friday. But did you expect all of the Thunder's players to enjoy that revelry? You must not know Kendrick Perkins.
Kendrick Perkins: ‘Disrespectful’ How Thunder Celebrated After Game 5 Win
Perkins, the Thunder’s perpetually glowering center, gave the verbal equivalent of an eye-roll to the raucous celebration, criticizing it as “disrespectful” for both being premature and gauche.
“We have to end the game with better class than that,” Perkins would later say after the Thunder’s locker room had nearly emptied. “That’s too disrespectful in my eyes. That’s not what the Thunder are about. … I think we were too flashy.”
Leave it to Perkins, whose game has about as much flash as those Casio watches with calculators in them, to rag on his team for a bit of jubilation. Perkins is right, of course, when he says "We haven't done nothin'"; the Thunder are still a win away from the Western Conference Finals, and have a game in Memphis and a resilient Grizzlies squad before them.
And, though he may not flash many smiles, Perkins is the only one in the Thunder locker room with the ultimate flash: an NBA championship ring. Bringing that out to remind Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the rest what to do might help Oklahoma City play well enough to stage more celebrations Perk can pooh-pooh in the future.
Be sure to check out our Thunder vs. Grizzlies hub for full series coverage. For more on the Thunder, visit Welcome To Loud City. For more on the Grizzlies, visit Straight Outta Vancouver.
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