"AD go be on the mission" - Kendrick Perkins puts his bet on Lakers & Pacers for NBA In-Season Tournament semifinals

Former NBA center Kendrick Perkins has named his choices on which teams will be advancing and winning the NBA In-Season Tournament. The Indiana Pacers will take on the Milwaukee Bucks in the semifinals for the Eastern Conference. The LA Lakers will play against the New Orleans Pelicans for the Western Conference.

The Pacers had an upset win over the Boston Celtics to advance to the next round, thanks to Tyrese Haliburton's triple-double performance. Milwaukee didn't waste any time beating the New York Knicks last night.

The Lakers advanced to the semifinal last night in a controversial win against the Phoenix Suns. Meanwhile, the New Orleans Pelicans disposed of the Sacramento Kings in the quarterfinals. With this, Perkins named the teams that will advance to the succeeding rounds while speaking on 'NBA on ESPN.'

"Tyrese Haliburton, Aaron Nesmith, Obi Toppin, Myles Turner, big Perk rolling with you. I'm going with the Pacers," Perk said as he picked the winners of the East. "Rick Carlisle just got the extension, the new version of Rick, the new version of Perk, the new version of Pacers.

"The Lakers. No disrespect to the Pelicans, but I feel like AD gon' be on a mission he's gonna go at them. But right now, how locked in and tunnel vision LeBron James is, just that purpose alone, he's gonna be the smartest person on the floor. He's gonna be the best player on the floor," The former center said when asked which team will win the West.

ESPN's Malika Andrews asked Perkins which team he thinks will win the first-ever NBA Cup.

"I got the Lakers, I got the King."

Both games for each conference will be on Dec. 7, 2023, in Las Vegas, Nevada, including the final.

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Kendrick Perkins believes the Lakers are the best team left in the In-Season Tournament

The Lakers performed well in the NBA In-Season Tournament group stage by going 4-0. They haven't lifted their foot off the gas pedal and are looking to win against the Pelicans tomorrow. After displaying their brilliance on the court last night, Kendrick Perkins has fully bought in on what the team has done.

Perkins believes that Los Angeles is the best team that has remained in the tournament.

"The best team we saw last night against the Phoenix Suns, the Los Angeles Lakers," Perkins said on NBA on ESPN.

Last night, LeBron James led the team over their conference rivals with an outstanding performance. James had 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists.