UNACCEPTABLE! It starts with Giannis! 🗣️ Perk sounds off on the Bucks | NBA Today

UNACCEPTABLE! It starts with Giannis! 🗣️ Perk sounds off on the Bucks | NBA Today

So after the game Giannis didn’t hold back talking to Eric name saying in part there’s so many things that we have to do in order for us to be better and it starts with we have to want it like enough with the talking enough with the our stuff don’t stink mentality do we

Really want it are we putting in the work guys are tired that’s an excuse new coach excuse new system excuse new defense excuse all of it it’s an excuse we are not on the track of what we are trying to do and I feel like the team

Feels it the team feels it and I feel it all right so jannis is really not holding back and all that perk what do you make of his postgame comments well what’s giannis’s excuse because at the end of the day we know that he’s going

To be a guy that’s going to go out there and give you 30 we know that he’s going to be in the MVP conversation but Giannis is also a player that every single season for the last four seasons has not only one defensive player of the year but has been been in the

Conversation do you know since November he’s averaging less than a block a game Yannis tupo the most dominant player in the game today is averaging since November less than one block a game that’s unacceptable so it starts with him when I think of Giannis and I think

Of Anthony Davis I think of two of of the uh most you know dominant bigs defensively that could guard the perimeter and protect the basket he hasn’t done it so in before you start calling everybody else right you got to make sure that you hold yourself

Accountable and do what you need to do and lead by example I think historically the best leaders in sports start with themselves first like looking from within how can I be better obviously he’s playing at an incredibly high level he’s efficient he’s effective around the basket he’s shooting about 30% from three he’s

Getting to the free throw line but it’s like what can I do how can I win within the margins to help this team so I think that’s the mentality you have to take obviously the pairing of him and Dame has to be better they’re the way they

Play off of each other has to know this exactly right they have to they have to be able to play off each other better and I think for Doc it’s about figuring out the rotation figure out substitution patterns to figure out how to allow them to be their best selves in terms of

Usage in terms of pick and roles in terms of where they’re scoring out in the court I think all those things are going to be important for their success and then the last part is chemistry and cohesiveness they have Championship aspirations right they want to win a championship badly but the things you

Have to do in order to win a championship are done behind closed doors the dinners right walking through plays together walking through spacing together and then beating teams like the Memphis Grizzlies who are very injured are part of that process and I think right now this break

Is coming at the perfect time for them it it is hard to win in the NBA with instability and this is a team that went from Mike buen hoer to Adrien Griffin to Doc Rivers and almost a historically short window yeah and it is hard to just

Think that all of a sudden Doc Rivers was going to walk in uh with no practice time with no training camp uh with somebody else’s staff and running his own guys in who you know who weren’t in the league uh this year who had been with a previously and all of a

Sudden you’re just going to start getting back on another run in Milwaukee and uh that is so much of their situation and structurally we could talk about for everything that was put on Adrien Griffin about how bad they were defensively this team was going to be worse defensively they were built to be

Worse defensively and so I think you’ve seen it kind of go up and tick off defensively since Doc Rivers has come in but offensively they’ve dipped again and CJ said it so much of this is around the Giannis Dame dynamic because until those two are really connected the rest of it

Is not going to follow in Milwaukee yeah but they still have their core like they still have but their core I mean Brooke is older Chris is older and more injured Dame and Yan I I I spoke with Dame before and I I don’t mean to cut you off

Perk I’m very curious your thoughts on this I spoke to D before the the return game back to to Portland where you and and Damen Lillard shared the floor for eight seasons together um and I asked him about playing with Giannis and he said that if he could have picked

Anybody in the league that he felt like his skill set best complemented it would have been Giannis a TMO so even he was a little bit surprised that they haven’t jelled together as quickly as he imagined but but but look over the last week the last three games okay you

Cannot have an impressive win against the defending champ and then get stomped out the next night by the Miami Heat without Jimmy Butler and then all of a sudden going to Memphis and catch a spanking with a Louis bill that’s not how it goes and so

When I’m looking at it right now yes okay they missed Drew holiday we get that but Bobby poris was there when they won the championship Brook Lopez was there when they won the championship Giannis at tupo was there when they won a championship and Chris milon we’re not

Talking about young guys we’re talking about season vets that knows what it takes to get it done like Doc Rivers yes he has to come in with Dave yoga and Dave Jer and impos their will on the coaching right in their system but at the end of the day it shouldn’t be that

Damn hard when you’re talking about Damien Lillet and Yannis out Topo getting it done in the twom Man game and Giannis is going to have to sacrifice a little bit more and I’ve been saying this at some point Doc is going to have to take a page out of doin H book and

Put him at and put Giannis at the center position like he’s doing Anthony Davis and demand that he plays that role oh and you know we have seen many teams maybe have at least one eye on everything that’s happening in Milwaukee just wondering if there could be any

Dominoes that fall in the future there still is plenty of time for Milwaukee to figure this out but it’s another team and it’s like okay Allstar break it’s a good thing we’re here let’s check in on the best in the west who are heading into the All-Star break on a four-game winning streak

We’re talking about the Minnesota Timberwolves who had a 30o lead in the first quarter round up beating the Trailblazers 12891 that’s tied for their largest Road win in franchise history of course Anthony Edwards he scored 34 points to lead seven wolves who scored in double figures here so the Timberwolves they’ve

Been in the NBA for 35 Seasons this is the first time they enter the All-Star break leading the Western Conference that’s pretty remarkable they’re led by Anthony Edwards Carl Anthony towns the Wolves they have multiple players selected to the all-star game for the first time since 2018 so CJ you’ve matched up against

Every single team in the Western Conference has Minnesota been the best team that you have faced no I think um Minnesota’s a great team I think they play extremely well great homecourt Advantage a lot of young talent but in terms of matchups for us I don’t feel

Like they’ve been the toughest team to match up against I think uh we had more trouble with the Clippers we had more trouble with the Suns we had had more trouble with Denver in terms of matchups and um just our lack of ability to execute um throughout an entire game um

I think they’re a really good team I think a lot of teams respect them a lot of players respect them and what they’ve been able to do from a body of work standpoint but if I’m just answering your question it’s it’s it’s obvious you just so you you saying you won’t smoke

With them in the playoffs that’s what you’re saying I’m saying there’s not a lot of teams that want to play a healthy version of the New Orleans Pelicans including them oh okay okay that’s hey look hey look that’s what I like to hear but listen when it comes down to am I

Lying huh am I lying no you’re not lying I was telling you this I was on my little toy you lucky I’m toing between the two of saying whether or not you guys are my sleepers to come out of the west or the Minnesota timberwoods I know

How sleeper be the number one yeah but but because no one believes in them even Vegas right they’re not a fake they’re not no they’re not a favorite but I do believe this right I do believe from what they’re showing us that they arguably have one of the best starting

Fivs in the game when I think about they they’re the only team that has beaten every single Contender out there they beat the they beat the Milwaukee Bucks they beat the Denver Nuggets they beat the Boston Celtics they didn’t beat the Clippers matter of fact they own the

Clippers so I’m looking at this young team led by Anthony Edwards and you know the thing that sticks out to me the most is his leadership right and we we I said this before CJ Jimmy Butler couldn’t pull what Anthony Edwards is pulling out a call Anthony towns right now on both

Ends of the floor Donovan Mitchell couldn’t pull with Anthony Edward is pulling out of Rudy gobert right now they’re the number one defensive team in the league they’re playing with a dog and killer mentality and it’s led by this young and upcoming Superstar and Anthony Edwards that has an old soul we

Don’t see that a lot around the league yeah but I think Anthony Edward would be the first person to say that it feels like cat brings out the best in him he brings out the best in cat leadership though you you know what I’m saying sometimes you got to put the key in

Their bag it seems like everybody it’s everything I’m just thinking about the conversations that we’ve had today in terms of leadership and bringing out the best in your teammates CU really there are six teams when we take a look at the top here the Celtics they have a sizable

Lead for the top seed in the East but the West the top four teams they’re kind of bunch up the Suns your Pelicans they have the same records in the five and six spots the Suns right now hold the tiebreaker but you played them a couple

Bit of more times you guys won seven of your last eight games to get that tie with Phoenix for the fifth spot that’s despite Zion Williamson struggling a little bit of time averaging career lows in points and rebounds but how important is he the growth you’ve seen from him in

Other ways we were talking about this before it really impressed me yeah I think you got to throw the stats out the window uh for us in the beginning of the Season it was about health it’s about availability and US figuring out how to play together consistently as a group by

Group I mean myself Brandon Ingram Z we only played 10 games together last year as a team so practices chemistry execution spacing understanding where guys like to ball that down the stretch of games like all those things are important but you have to play in games to see that from a growth standpoint

What I like most about what I’m seeing from zbi and our team in general is the accountability we’re able to have with each other we’re able to be more vocal we’re able to have those dinners those hard conversations that uh to curse you out moments where you need to curse

Somebody out and the the moments we’re not calling you out we’re calling you up I think that’s a part of it and the second part as a father of two now you see growth you see maturity in Z how he approaches the game understanding the importance of life outside of basketball

Understand that this game is really important and you have mega star Mega Superstar talent but it’s about how you approach the game it’s about the little habits and we talked about stacking days he’s been stacking his days getting his extra conditioning in eating properly sleeping properly we talked about the

Importance of him being available later in the season he’s doing those things and I say throw the stats out at the beginning because we were figuring out how to utilize this roster how to utilize this team and his uses was low his usage is starting to pick up his

Conditioning is getting better we’re winning games and now he’s ticking up at the right time in terms of body fat in terms of conditioning in terms of how he’s being used in terms of minutes he’s playing back to backs now and I think the accountability is there the

Understanding of his greatness is there and what he can do for not only himself but for our team in the City of New Orleans is something he has no choice but because you’re true you’re you’re the true definition of a leader and and a true professional I’m watching The Kid

Murphy he’s in great shape Jose we know what he he brings to the table bi brings it every night so if Zion don’t follow the lead he’s going to poke out like a sord thumb here’s my thing I know how bad y’all want it for him but how bad do

Zion want it for Zion and my thing is like does he care about being great does he care that Zion Williamson is not here in Indianapolis right now as an Allstar like do Zion Williamson care about these I think in past years I wouldn’t have been sure how

To answer that on National Television but I think I can say with absolute certainty that his actions have demonstrated that he cares his actions the work the consistency I asked him what he was doing during the break we talked about five games in seven days

That we have coming out of this a back to back and we talked about how we have a gap of six games in about four 14 or 15 days shout out to the schedule Gods we excited about that but he said I got treatment in the morning I have a lift

With my stepfather I got some oil Court work and then I got my tea time schedule you’re talking about a guy that’s locked in and understanding that you get your work in first and then you figure out what’s your version of healthy happy play and for him it’s golf for him it’s

It’s his way to get away but I’m excited about seeing what everybody does bi this is a guy who’s been great throughout the year we’ve seen what he did in the playoff two years ago when we got in there Trey getting into Rhythm JV is always available herb herb is shooting

40 over 40 from three in his last 70 career games he’s shooting like 50 since December 1st um obviously I’m still here I’m still going to do what I do U but I think our team is built to succeed as long as we’re healthy and I’m excited to

See what happens going forward shout out to my guy n Marshall too man playing well and and Dyson I hope you get healthy man um and and get back out there soon that’s awesome thank you so much for sharing all of that with us that kind of rare insight into your team

We really appreciate that what [Applause] [Applause] IBA

CJ McCollum, Kendrick Perkins and Malika Andrews discuss…
0:00 Giannis & The Bucks
5:50 Are the Timberwolves the best in the West?
7:29 Should Minnesota be viewed as the favorites?
9:37 How important is Zion to the Pelicans?

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