Kendrick Perkins turned up the heat on his simmering beef with LeBron James, delivering another fiery tirade on ESPN’s First Take this Monday. Just when you thought the NBA Finals were going to steal the spotlight, Perkins ensured all eyes were on his beef with theLos Angeles Lakers star.
Perkins has been on a roll lately, calling out LeBron for trying to hog the limelight during the NBA Finals. Last week, Perkins slammed James for overshadowing the playoff action, labeling the four-time MVP “sensitive” over the way he reacted to criticism. And the drama didn’t stop there.
On Monday morning, ESPN dedicated a full ten-minute segment to the Perkins vs. LeBron saga, much to the delight of drama-loving fans. Perkins had plenty to say about LeBron’s recent praise of his former teammate Kyrie Irving, which came just before Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics.
“I’m so f-ing happy and proud to watch [Kyrie] continue his growth and at the same time, I’m so f-ing mad that I’m not his running mate anymore,” LeBron gushed on the Mind The Game podcast.
Perkins calls out LeBron: “This is not about you!”
While many saw LeBron’s comments as one star celebrating another’s success, Perkins was having none of it. He went on a tirade, accusing James of once again making everything about himself. “Here we go again, [LeBron James] weaseling his way into somebody else’s moment,” Perkins fumed. “This is not about you! Your team is at home.“
The plot thickened when LeBron unfollowed Perkins on social media following the backlash. ESPN wasted no time, giving Perkins a platform to vent his frustrations yet again. Perkins didn’t hold back, taunting James with his trademark bravado.
“Imagine unfollowing me on Twitter, but you still gotta watch me on TV every day,” Perkins quipped. “I ain’t going nowhere… I think LeBron James got sensitive over the last couple weeks because I’ve been calling him out on certain things that he might not agree with.”
Perkins further challenged James, saying, “You have my phone number. If you had a problem with anything I said, we could’ve picked up the phone and had a conversation.” Whether LeBron will respond to Perkins‘ latest jabs remains to be seen.