With the NBA season winding down, now is the time when experts and casuals alike are putting in their predictions for what will unfold during the upcoming NBA playoffs. LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers have been red hot as of late, including picking up a dominant road win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday, while the Houston Rockets also put together a mightily impressive weekend.

Recently, former NBA big man and current ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins took to First Take to reveal his list of the top five contenders heading into the playoffs. His list included the Boston Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder, Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Los Angeles Clippers.

One person who wasn't on board with this list is former NFL star and noted Lakers (or LeBron) fan Shannon Sharpe, who wasted no time weighing in on Perkins' take.

“He's got the Clippers, he's got the Warriors in front of the Lakers, and the Lakers, we own them,” said Sharpe, via Awful Announcing on X. “How many times have we beaten the Clippers this year, Perk?”

Sharpe then alluded to some of Perkins' bosses at ESPN and Disney.

“I'm going to talk to Bob Iger, Jimmy Pitaro, Burke Magnus, and Dave Roberts. If you all give Perk another chance to run a list while I'm on here I'm out,” said Sharpe.

An interesting list 

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Shannon Sharpe
Feb 7, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Former NFL player Shannon Sharpe attends the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

While the Celtics and Thunder would appear to be most pundits' picks to make the NBA Finals heading into the playoffs, Perkins' other selections were eyebrow-raising to say the least.

The Warriors have been hot since acquiring Jimmy Butler, but there's cause for concern after a recent three-point outing from Stephen Curry against the Houston Rockets. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Clippers are always going to be a question mark around this time of year due to Kawhi Leonard's health.

The Cavaliers, while putting together a historic season this year, don't have a ton of playoff experience on their roster outside of Donovan Mitchell.

Overall, it's certainly understandable that a Lakers fan such as Sharpe would take issue with his team's omission.