Kendrick Perkins Overlooks East Contender As Championship Favorites

The Miami Heat are coming off the NBA Finals, and even though they’ve reached that stage twice in the past four years, some still believe it was a fluke.

The Heat don’t get enough credit for what they’ve done with seemingly subpar supporting casts.

As a matter of fact, Kendrick Perkins believes that not even adding Damian Lillard would be enough for them to be the No. 1 candidate to come out of the East, as he thinks the Milwaukee Bucks are still better, via ClutchPoints.

“[The Heat] are not the favorites, nor would I have them the favorite even if they picked up Damian Lillard… I have everything invested into the Bucks… [if] they were to face this Milwaukee Bucks team again. I’m picking Milwaukee.”

—Kendrick Perkinspic.twitter.com/rXT59xqZkW

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 19, 2023

Perkins cites that Giannis Antetokounmpo wasn’t even 70% healthy when the Heat beat his Bucks this past postseason, and said that they would’ve beaten them if they had to square off again.

Of course, there’s a chance he’s right, as the Bucks had the best record in the league and had matched up well vs. the Heat in the playoffs lately.

Then again, to say that the Heat wouldn’t be a title favorite with Lillard, considering how close they’ve been to the championship over the past four years, could be a bit of a stretch.

Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra are still trying to add more firepower to their roster, but the Portland Trail Blazers seem reluctant to send Lillard to South Beach.

But with a trade looking imminent, it will be very difficult to put your money against one of the best coaches in the game and a team that has proven that they can beat almost any rival in a seven-game series.

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