Kendrick Perkins says ‘no one in the NBA is scared’ of the Celtics this year

"They actually had an easy path as far as the competition and the teams they played."

Kendrick Perkins is at it again.

The former Celtics big man and 2008 NBA champion has become a vocal critic of Boston and its star players since becoming a basketball pundit on ESPN.

Whether it’s advocating for Boston to split up Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, criticizing Joe Mazzulla’s basketball IQ, or routinely dismissing Tatum’s ability to deliver in the clutch during Boston’s eventual title run, Perkins has largely become persona non grata to Celtics fans.

And sure enough, Perkins was quick to throw cold water on Boston’s hopes of winning back-to-back titles this upcoming season during his latest appearance on ESPN.

“No one in the NBA is scared right now of the Boston Celtics,” Perkins said on “NBA Today”. “I’m just letting you know this. This is why the New York Knicks went out and got Mikal Bridges and they upgraded their roster.

“This is why the Philadelphia 76ers went out and got Paul George and upgraded their roster. They’re coming into training camp feeling great. To be honest with you, a lot of people were looking at the path the Celtics went through to win the NBA championship and said they actually had an easy path as far as the competition and the teams that they played that were not healthy.”

Perkins’ criticism follows a familiar script, with NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal also discrediting Boston’s 18th championship because of the “easy path” they took en route to a title.

While it’s true that other potential contenders in the Eastern Conference like New York and Philadelphia have upgraded their rosters following Boston’s latest title, the Celtics are viewed by many as the team to beat entering the 2024-25 campaign.

The Celtics are set to return nearly the same roster that went 16-3 during the postseason this spring. A majority of those victories happened without Kristaps Porzingis in the lineup.

Even with Porzingis expected to be sidelined for the first few months of the year due to offseason surgery, the case can be made that Boston’s star players in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have not even reached their ceiling yet at this stage of their respective careers.

“At 26 years old, and as accomplished as I am, I just always feel like overall I can still get better,” Tatum told NBC Sports Boston on Tuesday. “You haven’t seen the best version of Jayson Tatum. And you shouldn’t have, right? I’m only 26, I should continue to get better.”

Perkins — who reportedly no longer has an “open-arms” policy with the Celtics — might continue to drag the defending champions once the 2024-25 season gets underway. But, those comments may only further motivate a Celtics team already embracing the adversity that comes with trying to win back-to-back titles.

“Joe’s message? … I think he just pointed out that people are going to say that we’re really good. And at times, people are gonna say that we suck,” Jrue Holiday said of Joe Mazzulla’s message entering training camp. “I think that was word for word.

“People think we’re going to be really good. People think that we’re going to suck. But none of that matters. All that matters is that we take care of each other, we go out there every day, do what we can for for the person next to us.”