If you were to ask Kendrick Perkins how he’d grade out Danny Ainge’s recent performance in building the Boston Celtics roster up to being able to contend with the east’s top teams, the result would likely be a favorable mark.
Why? Jabari Parker, that’s why.
Perkins believes the recent signee, who has scored 19 points in his first two games in Celtics green, was a “hell of a steal”.
He expressed as much on his verified Twitter page:
Jabari Parker was a hell of steal in the free agency market for the Celtics. Low Risk for High Reward!!! Carry on...
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) April 20, 2021
The risk was certainly low for Ainge in nabbing Parker, who signed on for less than $3 million for the remainder of this season and next. So far, he is proving to be a potential keeper.
Boston’s bench had been lacking in the point-production department, so a nightly dose of double-digit scoring from a guy who could create his own shot from multiple spots on the floor and keep defenses guessing is immediately impactful.
In shooting 10-17 through his first two matchups against the Golden State Warriors and Chicago Bulls–two teams very much in the thick of things in their respective conference postseason play-in tournament races–Parker has brought realism to that ideal.
While the Cs lost to Chicago last night, plenty of pieces were missing. As a minimum contract signing, Parker isn’t supposed to be able to carry the load on those kind of nights…even if many projected that role for his career coming out of Duke in 2014.
Injuries have robbed Parker of the chance to fulfill that promise, but players with those kinds of chips on their shoulder tend to thrive in supporting roles later on in their career. Rajon Rondo was a key second-unit stud on the title-winning Los Angeles Lakers in 2020 after tearing his ACL in 2013.
The Boston Celtics may have stolen Parker off the free agent scrap heap. Kendrick Perkins certainly thinks so.