Latest news with #Perkins
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Kendrick Perkins blames LeBron James, Dwyane Wade for breaking up Thunder Big 3
The post Kendrick Perkins blames LeBron James, Dwyane Wade for breaking up Thunder Big 3 appeared first on ClutchPoints. Former NBA center Kendrick Perkins pointed to LeBron James and Dwyane Wade as key influences behind the breakup of the Oklahoma City Thunder's young core, citing conversations from the 2012 Olympics that he believes swayed James Harden's decision to seek a larger role elsewhere. Advertisement Speaking on The Zach Lowe Show ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder's NBA Finals Game 1 matchup against the Indiana Pacers, Perkins shared his perspective on the breakup of the Thunder's Big 3 — Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden. 'We could blame LeBron, D-Wade, all those other guys that were on the 2012 Olympics on why the young Thunder Big 3 were broken up,' Perkins said. 'Because they put into James [Harden's] head that he needed to be the man. And they were right though—James did what was best for James.' Perkins added that despite the eventual split, he valued being part of a historically talented group. 'But I will say this: in those times I got to see growth and I got to experience growth, and be part of greatness. Especially when you look at Kevin Durant, when Russell Westbrook went out. His MVP season and what he was doing. How he was playing that point forward.' Kendrick Perkins blames LeBron and Wade for Thunder Big 3 breakup that followed 2012 Finals run The 2011–12 Thunder, led by Durant, Westbrook, and Harden, reached the NBA Finals before falling to the Miami Heat in five games. That Miami team featured James and Wade, who, according to Perkins, played a role in convincing Harden of his star potential during their time together on the Olympic team later that summer. Advertisement Following the 2012 Olympics, the Thunder traded Harden to the Houston Rockets after failing to reach a contract extension. The decision ended one of the league's most promising young trios, all of whom would go on to win MVP awards individually — Durant in 2014, Westbrook in 2017, and Harden in 2018. That Oklahoma City team also included Serge Ibaka and Perkins, forming a core that many believed could contend for multiple titles. The breakup remains one of the most debated what-if scenarios in recent NBA history. Since the breakup, each player has built a decorated career. Durant won two championships with the Golden State Warriors. Westbrook became the first player since Oscar Robertson to average a triple-double over a full season. Harden developed into one of the league's most prolific scorers during his time with the Houston Rockets. The Thunder, now led by MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, will return to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2012 on Thursday night at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC. They will host the Indiana Pacers at Paycom Center. Related: Why Pacers' Aaron Nesmith is ready for SGA after Jalen Brunson battle Related: How Mark Daigneault planted 'seeds' to Thunder's NBA Finals growth
Boston Globe
a day ago
- Lifestyle
- Boston Globe
Concord townhome gets ‘British touch' with eclectic design
2 An oil painting by Margaret Gerding from Powers Gallery in Acton brings the outside in. 'I love the juxtaposition of this New England landscape beside the Hugo Guinness botanical linocut print,' Perkins says. The antique demilune table is from Upstairs Downstairs Home on Charles Street. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 3 Drapery made with Pomona fabric from Lisa Fine Textiles creates a dynamic frame around the bank of large windows. Textural woven jute window shades tie to rug and shades on the blue Hwang Bishop lamps. 4 The walnut console in front of the windows can serve as a buffet or bar. 5 Throw pillows made from block printed fabrics by Jasper Textiles and Peter Dunham Textiles & Wallpaper infuse an Indian sensibility as does the bone inlay table. The sloped-arm sofa has an English style silhouette and nailhead detailing. The gold-lined black shade on the Bunny Williams Home ceramic lamp casts a warm glow. Advertisement 6 Perkins chose an ottoman instead of a coffee table for its multifunctionality and opportunity to add softness, color, and pattern. The upholstery is from British brand Fermoie. Marni Elyse Katz is a contributing editor to the Globe Magazine. Follow her on Instagram
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
What did Bill Simmons say about Kendrick Perkins to set off ESPN analyst?
A new sports media beef is brewing between former NBA player and ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins and The Ringer founder and veteran sports media personality Bill Simmons. Perkins has responded to Simmons' blistering criticisms of ESPN's NBA Draft coverage, promising to further address Simmons directly on Sunday via his Road Trippin' YouTube channel. Simmons described his decision between the different ESPN NBA Draft broadcasts — one of which featured Perkins — as a choice between "[taking a] samurai sword and [jamming] it into my temple" or "[taking a] chainsaw and [sawing] my leg off?. Simmons then went in on Perkins' suggestion that the Toronto Raptors could be one of the six-best teams in the Eastern Conference in the 2025-26 season. '[The Raptors] took Collin Murray-Boyles, and Perk said they have the pieces [to be] a top-six team in the East," Simmons said. "And at that point I started looking for a third ESPN channel, but there were only two covering the draft." Obviously, Perkins took great offense to that, questioning Simmons' place as "the head honcho of overseeing basketball." Ill address your ass @BillSimmons on Sunday my Guy Simmons recently feuded with former ESPN analyst Pablo Torre over the latter's Bill Belichick-Jordon Hudson reporting, and now Perkins is trying to spat with the former Grantland editor. The irony is that Simmons has been in Perkins' seat as a draft analyst in the past. So some of Perkins' comments don't really land. Two things can be true. First, ESPN's NBA coverage throughout the playoffs and the draft featured way, way too much Stephen A. Smith and way, way too much focus on the panelists over the game. Perkins is part of that uninspired coverage, and Simmons joined a lot of people disappointed in how ESPN covered these huge events. On the other hand, Perkins suggesting that the Raptors might be one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference next season might be one of the most milquetoast NBA takes uttered on ESPN this summer. If you're looking for specific examples for why Perkins and ESPN at large don't do a good job of covering the NBA, this is not one of them. As exhaustive as Perkins can be in his NBA analysis, this take could age perfectly fine. Who's to say the Raptors won't be a top-six team in the East next year with so many stars already out for the year in that conference? We have no idea either way. Sports media feuds always carry an air of silliness when you consider how trivial they are and how much else is going on in the world that deserves real outcry. These are two well-compensated people who have both had their fair share of atrocious takes over the years; we all have bad takes, most of them are meant to age poorly. Simmons being that snarky about ESPN discounts his own gaps in his NBA (AND FILM) coverage, and Perkins' response to this will probably be a headache-inducing overreaction. The world will keep spinning, of course, Stephen A. will keep yelling into the empty void and they'll all keep getting massively overpaid for their work. We're sure this will eventually taper out as most sports media feuds do, and we'll see who else Simmons and Perkins irritate in the months and years to come. Same as it ever was; same as it ever was.
New York Post
5 days ago
- Sport
- New York Post
Stephen A. Smith's nonstop screaming turned fans off before Game 7 even began
Kendrick Perkins was testing Stephen A. Smith's last nerve on Sunday night, and they both did the same for millions of viewers. During the NBA Finals Game 7 pregame show on ESPN, Smith and Perkins went back and forth in a broadcast that could be heard with the TV muted. It began with Smith accusing Perkins of 'really annoying me today' in a fiery rant. Advertisement 3 Stephen A. Smith wouldn't stop yelling on Sunday's NBA Finals Game 7 pregame show. X, @awfulannouncing 'This is a man, that is a champion. He's talking about a Game 7, like you know what, 'Hey cat's going to step up,'' Smith said said of his co-panelist while progressively raising his voice. 'No, somebody's palms are going to get sweaty. Backside going to get tight. Somebody. It always happens in a Game 7.' Advertisement With his voice reaching a shout, he added that Perkins 'knows this [about Game 7's being pressure-filled] because he is a champion.' 'Not only that, but when they lost in Game 7, you were injured and didn't play. Had you played, you may have beaten the Lakers,' Smith said, referencing Perkins missing Game 7 against the Lakers while he was a member of the Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals. Ex-Warriors president Bob Myers quickly came to the defense of Perkins and called Smith out for his comments, as well as his tone on the show. 'Can I defend your honor here?' Myers asked Perkins. 'Just because you yell something doesn't mean it's true.' Advertisement 3 Bob Myers had a tough time keeping his poker face during this Stephen A. Smith rant. X, @awfulannouncing As the show went to air on ABC for the national broadcast, Smith somehow kicked it up a notch — and multiple decibels. 'You know, [panel host Malika Andrews], so wonderful to see you tonight. Bob Myers, get the hell up. Big Perk, this is what it's all about, baby. This is Game 7, this is Game 7!,' he said to open a minute-and-a-half long diatribe in which his voice broke as the volume continued to go up. 'That's what tonight is about: the World is watching — not just America, the WORLD. Everybody across the world is watching. THIS is what you live for.' 'I can promise you, this man right here embodies the energy that all of us feel, but not all of us have outwardly,' Andrews said in response. Advertisement The Game 7 pregame show switches over from ESPN to ABC, and Stephen A. Smith opens it with much more yelling. 🏀📺🎙️ #NBA #NBAFinals — Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 22, 2025 Not everyone was feeling that energy, however. 'Bob Myers deserves better,' Bulls play-by-play man Chuck Swirsky wrote on X. 'This is utter nonsense. Who wants to put up with this? Seriously.' 'Fantastic pregame coverage,' Fox Sports' Geoff Schwartz posted. 'Who is this for?' 3 Stephen A. Smith's nonstop shouting turned several viewers off before Game 7 even tipped. ABC 'Unwatchable,' Field of 68's Jeff Goodman wrote, adding 'I also can't believe Bob Myers signed up for this.' Former Fox Sports president and co-founder of Big Ten Network Bob Thompson put his feelings — and seemingly those of countless viewers — about Smith's antics rather succinctly: 'Does he actually do anything but yell?' he posted to X. Advertisement Smith's performance came in the last game before the 'Inside the NBA' crew of Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O'Neal and Kenny Smith move over from TNT for a significant role pre- and postgame in ESPN's NBA coverage next season. The Thunder went on to win Game 7 by a 103-91 score for the franchise's first title on Sunday night, at least giving fans a chance to drown out Smith with some yelling of their own.
Mint
5 days ago
- Business
- Mint
The bond market's biggest risk isn't the deficit, economist says. Here's what is.
Bond investors might be worried about the wrong thing. President Donald Trump's massive tax and spending bill has been the latest big headache for bond investors, but TS Lombard economist Dario Perkins says there is a much bigger threat to the market: Chaotic U.S. policymaking. As Trump's spending bill continues to move forward, some economists warn that the proposal's tax cuts might force the government to borrow more money, widening the fiscal deficit and ballooning the country's $37 trillion pile of debt. A greater supply of government debt, in turn, would lower existing bond prices and push up yields. (Yields move in opposite direction of bond prices.) Analysts have even made comparisons to the cautionary tale of British Prime Minister Liz Truss—her mini-budget's proposed unfunded tax cuts in 2022 triggered a sell-off in bonds and shortened her tenure to mere 49 days. But such jitters about fiscal crises are 'unnecessarily alarmist," according to Perkins. To him, the biggest risk is roller-coaster policymaking. 'The big risk is not fiscal deficits but U.S. policy chaos against the backdrop of a world that is already more susceptible to negative supply shocks," he writes. The rapid fluctuations in federal policy have arguably been palpable since the Trump administration placed aggressive tariffs on global trade partners, only to walk back on them days later. The U.S. is now attempting to put together trade agreements with several dozens of countries in a matter of 90 days—they typically take years—all while conducting broad-based deportations. Against this backdrop, there's now a question of U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict. A broader war would threaten to push up inflation and lead to supply-chain disruptions if Iran potentially blocks the Strait of Hormuz—a critical global shipping channel. Higher inflation is the nemesis of the bond market because it chips away at the value of returns. Unpredictable U.S. policies raise a deeper fear: They could undermine the role of U.S. Treasuries as a global risk-free asset, Perkins writes. If bonds become less valuable as a portfolio hedge, they will be less attractive to investors—regardless of the size of the U.S. budget deficit or the balance-sheet policies of central banks, he added. Taken together, these concerns suggest Trump's budget proposal may be lower in the pecking order of threats to the bond world. For now, the bond market seems to be just waiting it out as a quiet spectator. Yields have basically gone nowhere for long-dated Treasuries lately. The 1o-year yield has ranged between 4.518% to 4.359% since May 23, while the 30-year yield has closed between 5.041% and 4.848% over the same period. Write to Karishma Vanjani at
