Why do so many Perk bashers continually get his contract wrong? It's easy laziness or intellectual dishonesty. Perk makes $7.1m this season, which isn't a ton of money for a starting center on a top team. Actually, he's the lowest paid non rookie contract center on a contender besides Joel Anthony.
One poster even alluded to Perk as a $10m player. His highest year on his new deal is $9.1m in 2015, according to hoopshype, which is an overpay, as are most lest years of deals.
Perk is a top low post defender, paint mucker, pick settler, attitude setter, and butt kicker at a very reasonable, a barely more than MLE paycheck of $7.1m.
Steamer has the potential to be a serviceable or better NBA center. He's an exceptional shot blocker, with great shotblocking instincts both in the paint and closing out on jumpshooters. He's a dead eye stationary shooter who is very reticent about shooting the basketball. He has almost no low post offense, and is to weak in the lower body to establish decent low box position. This lack of trunk strength hurts his low block one on one defense too. Once he gets established int he league, the refs will let him get away with more bump and grind, and that should help, but I don't see him becoming a great low block defender.
The think that intrigues me about Steamer is his standstill shooting. Many on here are too young to remember the reprehensible Bill Laimbeer, but he was a knock down shooter at the center position and was a tough cover for even the most athletic NBA centers, who hate straying out of the paint.
Will Steamer ever get the confidence to take 10 shots a game? He takes a shot every 6.5 minutes now (compared to 1shot/3min for Bass and 1shot/2.4min for KG). He hits half his outside shots, a great mark for a center, and even better than KG by percentage.
If Steamer can get a long term deal somewhere and build his confidence in his offense, he could be a very solid center. I don't see him putting on much beef (he's 26) but makes up for his lack of stoutness with long arms, good timing and tenaciousness.
His upside could Find him as a better player than Perk, but they're totally different players. the only thing they have in common is starting their careers in Boston and learning from KG.
You are probably referring to me here, because I have said Perk is being paid $10M. My mistake.
Perk being paid $7M is a ridiculous overpay. He will most likely be amnestied. You don't pay $7M for a "butt kicker" or a "pick setter" who is, statistically, one of the worst starters at his position in the NBA.
Celtics fans overrate Perkins, and understandably so. He was the starting center for a championship team, at a young age, after being drafted as a pudgy, unskilled teenager out of high school in the late first round. Perkins far exceeded his potential as an NBA player. I give him credit for that, and will never take away anything from him because he clearly worked hard to become the player he is (was) and made his payday. Good for him, he is beyond set for for life.
But facts are facts. He can't rebound. He can't shoot free throws. He sits the bench in crunch time. He has no lift. He fouls way too much. His great picks are often illegal. His offensive game is extremely limited. And he is already paid far too much for his output. In a couple years he will be one of the worst contracts in the NBA.
I stand by my assessment. If given a choice, given their current contracts or possible pay going into next season, almost every GM in the NBA would take Stiemer over Perk, and I include Sam Presti in that group.
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