Last week things between Kendrick Perkins and JJ Redick came to a head on First Take over Perkins’ recent comments on the NBA MVP race.
Redick called Perkins to task about saying Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic being voted MVP again this season was racially motivated. The back and forth between the two ESPN NBA analysts was passionate and heated and certainly made headlines.
On HBO’s Game Theory, host Bomani Jones joked he was glad he wasn’t in the studio the day Perkins and Redick went head to head. But he did offer a pro tip to Redick.
“If you try to make the argument that something doesn’t involve race, might not be the best look to talk over a Black man on live television, tell him his argument was flat-out wrong AND cut him off over and over again,” Jones said.
Bomani added that Redick’s argument and criticism of Perkins is a very fine line to tip-toe.
“This is America, Jack! And I get that Perk and JJ are just talking about the NBA MVP. But chastising us for saying something might be racist in the land where racism was perfected, that’s how you get pats on the back from folks I know JJ Redick does not want on his side,” Jones said.
Bomani also did mention there were some things about Perkins’ argument that he thought the former NBA center did get wrong. For instance, in terms of the MVP race this season, it’s not hard to see why Jokic is the clear-cut favorite to win the award.
“I see why somebody might wonder even though the solution to the confusion is pretty easy. Just watch that big ornery sumbitch play basketball!” Jones said. “I don’t understand how that guy does those things either. But he does! And that ends the discussion.”
