Boston Celtics icon Kevin Garnett dubbed Anthony Davis as his pick for the MVP title this coming season. Kendrick Perkins, a former teammate of Garnett with the Celtics, has caught wind of KG’s bold claim. While he respects Garnett’s opinion, Big Perk believes that his ex-teammate is overlooking a dude named Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Kevin Garnett’s Bold Anthony Davis Prediction
Speaking on a recent episode of his podcast, Garnett explained why he believes Anthony Davis is going to be a dominant force in the NBA over the next couple of years:
“I’m expecting Anthony Davis to be MVP in these next two years … it’s time, it’s time, you can’t let Joker [Nikola Jokić] come in the league and surpass [you],” Garnett said (h/t Jeff Smith of SI). “Anthony Davis can do everything they can do. Anthony Davis can do everything Joker can do, he can do everything Embiid can do. … I’m expecting him to be MVP if not this year, definitely next year.
“And he’s going to have to take the reins of ‘Yeah, I’m the best player in the league.’”
He’s not exactly wrong. Injuries have been a major issue for Davis over the past few seasons, but when he’s healthy, there’s no denying that he’s one of, if not the most dominant players in the entire NBA. If the eight-time All-Star is able to stay on the court this season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if KG’s fearless forecast comes to fruition.
Kendrick Perkins Hypes Up Giannis Antetokounmpo MVP Bid
2019-07-14 Giannis
For his part, Kendrick Perkins does not exactly disagree with Garnett. However, Big Perk has clearly bought his ticket to the Giannis Antetokounmpo hype train:
“[Anthony Davis] is an exceptional top 5 talent in the league… But if you asking me about my MVP pick… I’m going with Giannis Antetokounmpo… That’s who I got coming into the season,” Perkins said.
"[Anthony Davis] is an exceptional top 5 talent in the league… But if you asking me about my MVP pick… I'm going with Giannis Antetokounmpo… That's who I got coming into the season."
Agree with @KendrickPerkins' MVP prediction? 🤔pic.twitter.com/T3SUANjMvb
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 17, 2023
You also can’t fault Perkins for his hot take here. After all, Antetokounmpo has won the MVP crown twice in the past, and he is clearly more than capable of doing this again.
Be that as it may, there are also a few guys out there who will be challenging Giannis and AD for the MVP title. Reigning MVP Joel Embiid will be one of them, and so will former back-to-back title-holder Nikola Jokic., among others. What you can say for sure is that it’s going to be another tight race in 2023-24.
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