Kendrick Perkins Not a Big Believer in Derrick Rose

The performance of Derrick Rose during the Bulls' Game 1 upset of the Celtics was the talk of the first weekend of the playoffs, and with good reason. It's not every year that someone ties Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for most points by a rookie in a playoff debut, but Rose's 36 did exactly that, against a Boston team that's built around defense.

Obviously with Kevin Garnett out, the team is not the same defensively. But Kendrick Perkins still doesn't believe in Rose, and even went as far as to say that the young star from Game 1 would "never" have another game like that against the Celtics.

While the Bulls were thinking positive during a Sunday practice in downtown Boston, a few miles away in suburban Waltham, Celtics center Kendrick Perkins offered some interesting smack talk about the Bulls and rookie sensation Derrick Rose.

"Everybody has their night," Perkins said, according to the Associated Press. "I know it won't happen again. He'll never have another game like that against us."

Now of course, a 36/11 performance isn't something Rose is going to do every night, but it was far from a fluke. What Perkins should have been focused on is the guys on his own team that are unlikely to repeat their Game 1 performances.

Paul Pierce is normally a pretty clutch player, and if he makes a free throw at the end of regulation, the Celtics win Game 1 despite Rose's heroics. Ray Allen has been perhaps Boston's most consistent player all season, but went AWOL with a 1-for-12 shooting effort.

All of that, and the Celtics still lost by just two points in overtime. Discounting Rose's performance isn't necessary, but it is clear that the Bulls are going to need Rose to continue to play at a high level -- and get some more uncharacteristically poor performances out of the Celtics -- if they're going to prevail in this series.

[via SLAM]