"Who is the leader of their locker room? -- Kendrick Perkins sheds doubt on Brooklyn Nets' title chances due to lack of leadership
Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, Kendrick Perkins
© USA Today
The Brooklyn Nets have had a turbulent summer, to say the least, but managed to retain Kevin Durant despite his efforts to leave. The trio they’ve pinned their hopes on -- Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Ben Simmons -- might be threatening, but they’re yet to share the court together.
Amidst the hype created after Durant decided to stay, Kendrick Perkins raised major concerns for the Nets.
"Who is going to be the leader, like who is the leader of their locker room? Right, that’s what I want to know,” said Perkins on ‘NBA Today.’
Candidates with leadership mantle
None of the current superstars on the Brooklyn Nets’ roster last season exhibited great leadership. Although Kevin Durant was the anchor of the team, based on performance, he couldn’t really get his team going when they met the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.
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The scenario for the upcoming season feels similar, given the happenings of the summer. While Durant and the management may have found common grounds to extend his stay, the egos in the locker room require someone strong enough to put out fires.
“Ben Simmons need guidance, Kyrie Irving need guidance, h*** Kevin Durant need guidance at this point of time. So, I’m trying to see, in order to go win a championship… you need some form or some type of leader. I don’t see that with the Brooklyn Nets, even from Steve Nash,” Perk added.
Steve Nash’s word in the locker room
Kevin Durant worked himself into a problem after he demanded that the team owner Joe Tsai should pick between him or the head coach and general manager. Although Tsai’s retainment of Durant may feel like a win, it is likely that Steve Nash will not have it easy.
“Can somebody explain to me, how is Steve Nash going to walk into training camp and put his foot down or have the attention of their locker room - when he knows that KD feel a certain type of way about him,” Perkins said.
The roster is pretty strong on paper, but in a situation of a setback - which is inevitable in an 82-game season, it will be interesting to see how Nash can impact change.
