Kendrick Perkins didn’t hold back when explaining how the intensity of youth basketball has changed the way he parents his sons. During a recent appearance on ESPN’s First Take, the former NBA champion revealed that the hostile atmosphere surrounding AAU competition has forced him to adopt a survival mentality—both for himself and for his kids.
Perkins, who runs his own AAU program called Young Perkins Global, was involved in a heated on-camera incident at one of his son Kenxton’s games a while back. According to Perkins, he was trying to calm things down between players when the opposing coach started yelling at him. That moment seemed to crystallize a growing frustration with the direction of youth basketball.
“I got people, grown people, that we’re playing against their kids, that come in and have real hate towards my sons,” Perkins said. “So you know the mentality that I got to teach in my household is I’m raising killers.”
He went on to describe the scene that’s become all too familiar for many parents in the AAU circuit: “When you walk in the gym, it’s a 150–200 people, and 50–75 of those 100 people are rooting against you, and a guy is coming into the game to try and play dirty against you.”
That reality, Perkins argued, leaves him no choice but to prepare his sons for a hostile environment. “From that point forward, when I walk into the gym, I’ma mind my business but all gloves are off. I’m going in to protect me and protect mine.”
The conversation on First Take was sparked by a broader discussion about San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama embracing the role of the villain—particularly after the NBA Finals and the Spurs’ refusal to shake hands with the New York Knicks. But Perkins quickly pivoted to the grassroots level, where he says the stakes feel personal.
Perkins, who was a first-round NBA draft pick and won a championship with the 2008 Boston Celtics, now coaches his son Kenxton—a rising guard in the class of 2030. The elder Perkins isn’t just a former player turned commentator; he’s a father navigating a youth sports culture that he says is increasingly toxic.
While some might see Perkins’ remarks as extreme, others in the youth basketball world have echoed similar concerns about overly aggressive parents and coaches turning games into battlegrounds. Whether or not you agree with his approach, Perkins is making it clear—he’s not here to make friends. He’s here to survive the jungle that AAU basketball has become.
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