Report: Perkins wanted to meet Celtics in Finals

By JessicaCamerato
CSNNE.com

Kendrick Perkins may be fighting for a title with the Oklahoma City Thunder this postseason, but the Boston Celtics were on his mind following their elimination at the hands of the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

After a Game 5 win of his own in which the Thunder took a 3-2 lead over the Memphis Grizzlies in the Western Conference Semifinals, Perkins reacted to the end of his former teams season.

I was wishing we could both end up in the Finals and meet up, Perkins told Yahoo.com, or something crazy like that . . . I hated to see them go down like this.

Perkins is averaging 4.6 points and 6.8 rebounds for the Thunder this postseason. His impact on the Celtics team chemistry has been a topic of discussion ever since he was traded in February.

Following the Celtics' elimination, Celtics President of Basketball Operation Danny Ainge was asked by ESPN Boston if he would do the deal that sent Perkins to Oklahoma City again. In return, Boston acquired Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic.

Yes," Ainge told ESPN. "No regrets.