Kendrick Perkins, a former center for the Oklahoma City Thunder, praised Phoenix Suns player Kevin Durant for his efforts this season. The Suns defeated the Dallas Mavericks 114-113 on Friday, continuing their impressive 8-1 start to the 2024–25 NBA season under Durant.
Phoenix has won seven straight games since losing to the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 25. They have won six close games, all within ten points, during their winning run. In those games, Durant stepped up and helped the team in clutch situations.
Because of the stretch of games where they won, Durant‘s former teammate, Perkins, spoke highly of the team’s success. In addition, the former NBA star called KD the “frontrunner” for the MVP award and commended him for his clutch heroics.
“The Phoenix Suns are the second-best team in my opinion, right behind the Oklahoma City Thunder, and it’s inches, just by inches,” Perkins said. “The main reason is the play of Kevin Durant, who I think right now, should be the MVP frontrunner.”
“When it comes down to KD, a happy KD, he’s a dangerous KD. 10-15 from the field in the fourth quarter, 29 points. 8 of 9 of those are jump shots, two-point jump shots. If you gonna get this version of Kevin Durant, he could be the best player at any series against any superstar in the league.”
"[Kevin Durant] right now should be the MVP frontrunner." 👀 @KendrickPerkins says the Phoenix Suns are the second best team in the West 🔥 pic.twitter.com/yilFiCVi6p
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) November 9, 2024
This season, Durant is fifth in the league in points per game in the fourth quarter with 8.1. Most of his attempts in the clutch have been inside the 3-point arc, making 57.1% of his shots from the field. The 14-time All-Star has scored 73 total points in the fourth period this year.
Suns star addressed their close game win against the Mavs
Durant and the Suns survived another close game against the Mavs. Fortunately for Durant, star player Luka Doncic failed to make the game-winning shot in the fourth period.
Following their win, Durant spoke about dealing with the tough Dallas crowd, citing that it was a good test for them.
“It’s good practice for us to understand how tough it is to play in this environment, tight games on the road,” Durant said. “Playing against a team that’s proven and have been to the Finals, they got big aspirations for their team as well.”
The former league MVP was why the team has dealt with close games in their last six matches.
“I think every game’s been different. I feel like offensively, today, we started the game off well. First half we played well, shooting the ball. But they’re at home, they got three Hall of Fame players, they can get back to the game fast. They’re great players.”
"I think we played the perfect game on the road to be honest."
Kevin Durant after Suns 114-113 win at Mavs. #Suns #MFFL pic.twitter.com/atsgsAGyZY
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 9, 2024
The 6-foot-11 forward led the team to a victory with his 26-point performance.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen with Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
