Brian Scalabrine addresses Kendrick Perkins’s comments about reported ring night ban
"This is not about me and if anybody actually thinks this is about me, I feel bad for you."
NBC Sports Boston’s Brian Scalabrine has responded to Kendrick Perkins’s comments about his role in a reported ban during Celtics’ ring night.
During a recent episode of the “All the Smoke” podcast, Perkins was asked about a report from the U.S. Sun that said he was banned from attending the Celtics’ festivities on opening night.
Perkins said Scalabrine told him the door is not just open for him to return to the Celtic organization.
Scalabrine addressed Perkins’s comments during a radio appearance on WEEI.
“I really do feel sorry for anybody that actually believes that,” Scalabrine said. “In the midst of all the stuff that I do with my wife, three kids, my Big3, my Celtics broadcasts, flying around that I had a meeting with the Celtics brass and I decided who was allowed on the float and who was not allowed on the float.”
“Like, if you actually believe that, I feel really bad for anybody that actually believes that or Kendrick Perkins is trying to recruit and somehow say that I am in control of that.”
Scalabrine said he texted Perkins that he would love for the former Celtics center to be in attendance. But, he also suggested that Perkins apologize to Celtics coach Mazzulla first.
Perkins had previously insulted Mazzulla’s intelligence, saying that if one were to place Mazzulla’s brain inside of a bird, the bird would fly backwards.
Despite the fact that Perkins said he plans to accept a dinner invitation that Mazzulla extended, Scalabrine said his suggestion for Perkins to apologize to the coach didn’t go over well.
“And he took that, and he’s making it like this,” Scalabrine said. “I think it’s a massive distraction from him to say I called Joe Mazzulla a terrible name. I called him an idiot. You can criticize what a coach does. You can criticize what a player does. The general rule is: Don’t call people stupid. Don’t go down that road.”
“Because of that, and I don’t know if he feels bad about it or thinks people are going to believe him, that he’s now making this about me. This is not about me and if anybody actually thinks this is about me, I feel bad for you.”
Perkins questioned whether Scalabrine was the right person to deliver the message. He took a swipe at Scalabrine’s role on the 2008 championship team, mentioning how Scalabrine changed from his street clothes into his jersey before the team photos were taken.
“People spending time on this and trying to create beef, it’s beyond dumb,” Scalabrine said. “And you know what? Yeah. I didn’t want my suit to get splashed with champagne. I got it. Everybody knows I didn’t play.”
“I’m not on the broadcast telling everybody how good I was back in the day or my accolades or anything like that,” he added. “I’m just reporting what I see with my basketball knowledge. It’s so low-brow to go down that road. It’s fine, I don’t care. But, I think it’s nonsense.”
Scalabrine said he does not have an issue with Perkins despite the comments.
“He can do whatever he wants,” Scalabrine said. “I’m not going to hold that as a grudge against him. I think he’s really smart. I actually like him on TV.
“I give him a lot of credit for actually carving out a career in this space which a lot of people are trying to do,” he continued. “I don’t got a problem with him. I don’t know why he’s doing this … I’m not going to be like how I was before, trying to help him out or anything like that. But, he doesn’t need my help. I’ll keep it moving with him.”
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