Kendrick Perkins tapped into his own playoff experience with the OKC Thunder to explain their advantage.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are facing their toughest test as a young squad. With the Denver Nuggets winning Game 6, they must now play a tough Game 7 on Sunday afternoon.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander admitted that the stakes have never been higher for the Thunder. And what makes this even more stressful is that the Thunder have never been in this position before.
On the other hand, the Denver Nuggets played in a Game 7 just weeks ago and came out the victors. As much as the Thunder might have the better squad, the experience just isn’t on their side.
But Kendrick Perkins believes there is one element to Game 7 that few are taking into consideration, and it will be enough to will the Thunder to a win.
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During his appearance on SportsCenter, Kendrick Perkins spoke about what to expect heading into Game 7 between the Nuggets and the Thunder.
Harkening back to his own time with the Thunder, Perkins admitted that the home crowd at OKC will create an intimidating playoff environment, one that will give the players the confidence they need to get the win.
“I believe Oklahoma City wins this series in 7 games. I think all the young guys are going to feed off the energy of that arena. I played in that arena, I know how electrifying it can be…”
“Role players play better at home. I expect Cason Wallace, Lu Dort, those guys to elevate their game and bring a certain type of tenacity…
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Perkins added that the young Thunder squad will be stressed out about the prospect of playing their first Game 7, but the crowd will help alleviate some of that stress.
“Game 7s, if you give a d***, it’s stressful as hell. They don’t play again till Sunday. So I expect guys to lose sleep, be stressed the hell out.”
“Because that’s part of the playoffs. Especially when you’re trying to go and get it done, winning a championship, or even advancing to the next round and getting to the conference finals.”
“It’s supposed to be stressful. I think this OKC squad is going to rise to the occasion solely because they’re going to feed off the energy of that crowd in Oklahoma City…”
The Nuggets must overcome not just a talented Thunder team, but a raucous playoff environment. Even LeBron James has fallen victim to this environment. So the Nuggets must keep their heads.
