Kendrick Perkins confronts Stephen A. Smith on First Take, dissecting Knicks fan volatility and Atlanta's playoff needs. The heated exchange sets the stage for a tense best-of-three remaining series.
In the Atlanta Hawks-New York Knicks first-round matchup of the NBA playoffs, the series is tied 2-2 after the Knicks routed the Hawks 114-98 in Game Four in State Farm Arena.
It's now a best-of-three series, and the Knicks have the benefit of potentially having two home games.
On ESPN's daily morning show, First Take with Stephen A. Smith, NBA analyst and former player Kendrick Perkins sent a strong message to the well-known ESPN personality about this Hawks-Knicks series:
"With the New York fan base, y'all are so up and down in a series when you're supposed to be even-keeled. So what you lost Game Three!. The thing is to get one and get home court advantage back, and all of a sudden you're [Stephen A. Smith] coming on here with these rants."
"And you know what the sad part is about this, y'all [Knicks fans] are somewhat spoiled, because y'all act entitled. Y'all are not the Lakers, Y'all are not the Celtics. I don't see championship banner hanging in Madison Square Garden."
Stephen A. Smith, of course, had a rebuttal for Perkins' strong take, but Perkins makes a few fair points.
However, now that it's a best-of-three, every play and possession will be maximized.
Also on First Take, Perkins and Smith discussed the topic of if Karl Anthony-Towns should be the Knicks' first option in the series now that Jalen Brunson has slowed down.
Really, it's been OG Anunoby who has been a thorn in the Hawks side in the last two games, and for whatever reason, Atlanta's wings have had trouble guarding him.
As for Atlanta, CJ McCollum continues to be the leading scorer, but if the Hawks want to take this series in either six or seven games, Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker need to have a little bit higher scoring outputs.
It starts with Jalen Johnson being more aggressive, and NAW taking more shots.
It should be an exciting Game Five, which is set for Tuesday night at MSG.
