The immediate aftermath of Game 5 of the NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs left the court and headed back to the locker room without shaking hands with the New York Knicks. That also included the Spurs ignoring former teammate Jeremy Sochan. But count former NBA player turned analyst Kendrick Perkins who believes the Spurs, and star big man Victor Wembanyama, should continue to embrace the villain role.
During a recent episode of ESPN’s ‘First Take,’ Kendrick Perkins said that Victor Wembanyama disliking the Knicks after the NBA Finals is good for the league.
“We have to get back to rivalries. We have to get back to guys not liking one another. It is good and great for the game of basketball. People want to tune in to guys really competing and having real hate for one another. Wemby don’t like the Knicks and the Knicks don’t like Wemby,” Perkins stated.
“I’m glad Wemby is taking this somewhat villain approach because the league has been missing that … the league is trending in a great place right now where we need more rivalries, more hate and more dislike. It is great for the game of basketball.”
Emotions were certainly running high during the NBA Finals, with fans on both sides complaining over physical play and perceived no-calls. And as for Wembanyama, he ended up one flagrant foul away from an automatic suspension after accumulating three flagrant foul points throughout the playoffs.
But Wembanyama did establish that he is one of the new faces of the league, averaging 23.8 points, 10.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.0 steals and 3.5 blocked shots during the Spurs’ playoff run.
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