How Kendrick Perkins Felt About Joe Mazzulla Throwing Shade At Him

Joe Mazzulla and Kendrick Perkins have been embroiled in a war of words, but apparently, the NBA analyst has been doing the Boston Celtics head coach a favor.

Perkins never has been one to hold back a critical take about the Celtics, and it's something that caught Mazzulla's attention when the second-year head coach threw in a "bird brain" comment that seemed to be directed at the retired NBA center.

Things escalated further between the pair this week when Perkins went on ESPN's "NBA Today" and bemoaned the lack of post-up chances from Boston. Mazzulla took time in his postgame news conference Tuesday to point out that the Celtics in fact have been very efficient from the post. He claimed he was just "joking" to the media at the time, but fans knew exactly what he was referencing.

Perkins on Thursday was on the "Pat McAfee Show," where he revealed his relationship with Mazzulla.

"I haven't spoken to Joe Mazzulla, but let me say this. I actually love Joe Mazzulla and him firing back," Perkins said. "It's a good thing. He's actually embracing that. And all I'm doing right now is prepping him for what's to come. You hit adversity in the city of champions: Boston. I played there eight and a half years. They're gonna hit adversity. The media is going to attack him, the fan base is gonna attack him throughout a seven-game series and he needs to be prepared for that. I actually love it."

It appears the 2008 NBA champion doesn't pay close attention to the fine Boston media folks. Mazzulla certainly received his fair share of criticism for his coaching decisions, especially in his rookie season as head coach and when the Celtics were eliminated in the Eastern Conference finals.

The dynamic between Mazzulla and Perkins also is strange given the head coach welcomed past Celtics players with open arms at practices. The ESPN analyst alleged on the "Pat McAfee Show" that the invite never arrived in his inbox. He admitted that put him "in his feelings."

McAfee kept to his typical positive nature and praised Perkins for still trying to motivate his former team, which he believes will win the Eastern Conference. But from the sounds of it, it doesn't seem like the tough love from Perkins will end anytime soon for Mazzulla and the Celtics.