Kendrick Perkins doesn’t mind that Kevin Durant spent some offseason time working out with Paolo Banchero. What bothers him is who Durant isn’t working out with.
The former NBA big man turned ESPN commentator saw the same video everyone else did — the one of Durant and Banchero putting in work together, posted by Swish Cultures last week. And while Perkins gave Durant credit for mentoring a young star, he had a clear message: your own team needs that energy.
“I’ve been seeing a video that’s been circulating of KD working out with Paolo Banchero and I appreciate the mentorship,” Perkins said on ESPN. “But that mentorship needs to be going at the guys he’s actually going to be on the floor with this upcoming season. I wanna see videos of KD in the lab with Jabari Smith, I wanna see videos of Sengun and Kevin Durant working out.”
So about that burner account thing
This whole conversation gets a little messier when you remember those alleged burner account screenshots that leaked a while back.
Someone using what was reportedly Durant’s account posted some pretty rough stuff about his Rockets teammates. The account called Alperen Sengun a guy who “can’t shoot or defend” and used a slur for Jabari Smith Jr. Durant has never confirmed the account was his, and there’s no hard proof connecting him to those messages. But the timing of Perkins’ comments lands differently because of it.
Durant and the Rockets went through a rough playoffs last season. Houston got bounced in the first round by the Lakers, who were missing Luka Doncic for most of that series. The Rockets were also without Durant for a big chunk of it, so it’s not like they were at full strength either. But the front office spent a lot to get Durant. They wanted a title push. A first-round exit wasn’t the plan.
The young guys need reps with KD
Sengun and Smith are the future of this team, or at least they’re supposed to be. Sengun has shown flashes of being a legit offensive hub, but his defense and shooting remain question marks. Smith has the size and the tools but hasn’t consistently put it together. If Durant is going to win in Houston, he’s going to need those two to be real contributors, not projects.
Perkins isn’t wrong to want to see that chemistry built now. Training camp starts eventually, and Durant will spend plenty of time with them then. But the offseason is where the real trust gets built. It’s where Kawhi Leonard and Paul George figured things out. It’s where LeBron and Anthony Davis found their rhythm before the bubble. Durant working with Banchero looks good on social media. Working with his own guys might look better in May.
Whatever Durant decides to do, the clock is ticking. The Rockets aren’t getting younger, and the West isn’t getting easier. If this thing doesn’t click soon, the questions about Durant’s commitment to Houston are only going to get louder.
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