And one former-player-turned-ESPN-analyst Kendrick Perkins, who spent 14 seasons in the NBA, was not shy about telling the world how he thinks he would have fared in a matchup against Denver Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic.

Kendrick Perkins may have just delivered the wildest take of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, and that’s saying something. During a recent episode of NBA Countdown, Perkins confidently declared that he could have locked down reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, saying:

Kendrick Perkins is defending himself after a joke he made about defending Nikola Jokic was taken too seriously. During ESPN’s pregame show prior to Friday’s Celtics-Knicks game, the network promoted Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver Nuggets.