The Western Conference Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets was billed as a colossal matchup between two of the top big men in the history of the game. There's no denying that we saw flashes of this epic battle throughout the series, but for the most part, it was Nikola Jokic who utterly dominated Anthony Davis in four games. The fact that the Lakers got themselves embarrassingly swept in the series is a clear testament to this fact.
Kendrick Perkins is having none of it. The former NBA champ turned ESPN analyst has sounded off on Davis' lackluster performance in the West Finals. In his mind, Big Perk believes that Jokic is actually in better physical conditioning as compared to the Lakers superstar:
“It's about Anthony Davis … looking himself in the mirror and asking himself who he wants to be,” Perkins said. “… Or should we just accept this is who he's gonna be? … Jokic — and this is no disrespect, this is a lot of credit to Jokic — is in better shape than Anthony Davis. He looked tired last night.”
Jokic has always been criticized for his weight and his “non-NBA” physique. However, as Perkins pointed out in his statement above, the Nuggets superstar proved in the Lakers series that regardless of how his body may look on the outside, the fact of the matter is that he still dominated Anthony Davis on both ends of the court.
Big Perk also has an imposing challenge on AD ahead of the offseason. Perkins is also adamant that next season will be Davis' last chance for the Lakers:
“Where's his focus at in the offseason? Why haven't he gotten better?” Perkins asked. “… Next year, in my opinion, is his last shot at showing [the Lakers] that [they] can actually hand him the keys to this vehicle.”