US Trends

what happened to kendrick perkins

Kendrick Perkins is fine and still very active in basketball media; nothing major has “happened” to him in the sense of a health crisis or disappearance as of early 2026.

Quick Scoop: What happened to Kendrick Perkins?

If you’re seeing “what happened to Kendrick Perkins” all over search and forums, it’s mostly about his media drama, hot takes, and job shifts—not some tragic event.

1. Where he is now (2025–2026)

  • He’s still a TV analyst/personality , regularly commenting on NBA teams like the Warriors and Lakers.
  • He appears on basketball podcasts such as Road Trippin’ and posts about hoops and college basketball on social media (including Instagram Reels in 2026).
  • He continues to be known for strong, sometimes controversial opinions about stars, contenders, and “role players.”

Bottom line: He didn’t “vanish”; he’s just shifted more into the opinion- and-podcast lane and keeps going viral for takes.

2. Why people ask “what happened to him?”

A few storylines made fans feel like something must have gone down behind the scenes.

a) Celtics / Boston tension

  • There was public chatter about whether Perkins was really “welcome” around the Celtics after some harsh criticism of the team and coach Joe Mazzulla.
  • On a Boston radio show, he called out ex-teammate Brian Scalabrine as a “coward” for implying he wasn’t welcome at the championship parade, saying Scal wouldn’t address it directly with him.
  • Perkins said he considered going harder at Scal publicly but chose not to, while still standing by his earlier criticism.

This fueled Reddit and fan talk that the organization and some Boston media people were “done” with him, even though he’s still very much in the media mix.

b) Forum and social-media drama

  • On NBA and sports forums, fans complain that he leans into “idiotic hot takes” and “slander” for engagement, and some Celtics fans talk about “making him take accountability” now that the team has a title.
  • On Pat McAfee–related forums, people ask “what REALLY happened with Kendrick Perkins,” with posters speculating about behind-the-scenes conversations involving Stephen A. Smith and whether Perkins should or shouldn’t appear on certain shows.
  • Much of this is speculative fan gossip, not confirmed reporting.

So “what happened” often just means: his style annoyed segments of fanbases and other media personalities, and that turned into running forum jokes and threads.

3. His recent hot takes (that keep him trending)

In the last year or so, several of his opinions have stirred conversation:

  • On the Warriors (2025–26 season), he said they “play hard” but are “just not talented,” calling most of the roster “role players” and insisting they can’t realistically beat top West teams like OKC, the Spurs, or the Nuggets in a seven-game series.
  • He argued the Warriors might be “two pieces away” and even name-dropped Michael Porter Jr. and Daniel Gafford as the type of additions they’d need.
  • On the Lakers, he described them as “a bunch of individuals” and suggested they look disconnected despite early success.
  • He has also used LeBron-related examples to warn about “challenging” certain stars, like pointing to how Dillon Brooks’ reputation and situation changed after clashes with LeBron.

These kinds of quotes get clipped, go viral, and then feed back into the “What’s up with Kendrick Perkins?” conversation.

4. His background and career context

To understand the “what happened” angle, it helps to remember who he is:

  • Former NBA center, drafted out of high school, best known for his time with the Boston Celtics (including the 2008 title run) and later runs with teams like the Thunder and Cavaliers.
  • After his playing career, he transitioned into being an analyst for major sports networks and shows, becoming known for blunt, sometimes polarizing commentary.
  • A 2024 “obituary” piece about his Cavaliers stint was a tongue‑in‑cheek article marking the end of his Cavs chapter, explicitly saying he’s “alive” but his Cleveland time is over—another example of how headlines about him can sound more dramatic than they are.

So when you see “obituary”-style titles, they’re usually metaphorical—about a team role or era, not his life.

5. Is there anything serious to worry about?

Based on the public information up through January 2026:

  • No credible reports of a serious health crisis or disappearance.
  • The “situation” people talk about is mostly:
    • friction with parts of the Celtics ecosystem and some former teammates,
* fan annoyance with his TV persona and hot takes,

* and gossip/speculation about behind-the-scenes media politics.

In other words: Kendrick Perkins didn’t suddenly vanish—he just became one of those ex-players whose outspoken media style makes him a constant “trending topic” target. TL;DR: Kendrick Perkins is still working as a basketball analyst and podcast voice, regularly going viral for blunt takes on teams like the Warriors and Lakers, with some tension around Boston/Celtics media and plenty of forum gossip—but no confirmed major personal disaster.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.