Kendrick Perkins thinks Nick Nurse should lean harder into a small-ball look, and he believes LeBron James should spend more time at center after the Philadelphia 76ers' blowout loss to the Boston Celtics.
On Wednesday, November 11, Perkins said on that James looked old against Boston and that the game was a clear example of why he has been pushing for more minutes at the five. The idea is not a full-time position change, but rather a tactical wrinkle that could help Philadelphia create more favorable matchups.
The timing of the suggestion matters because the 76ers have started the season as one of the hottest teams in the NBA. They were 9-3 and sitting No. 2 in the Eastern Conference after the loss, so the conversation is less about panic and more about how a strong team can sharpen its offense.
Why Perkins wants the change
Perkins argued that LeBron James can still punish mismatches, especially when defenders are forced to choose between guarding him with a bigger player on the perimeter or a smaller player on the block. He said James remains a strong screen-and-roll option and that staggered minutes could help the offense function more smoothly.
In Perkins' view, the best approach would be to go small-ball and put James at five. He also said James is not getting by defenders the way he once did, which is why he sees center usage as a way to maximize what the veteran still does well.
What the numbers say
The suggestion is notable because James has only played an estimated 17% of his minutes as the Sixers' big man this season. That makes the idea more of a limited experiment than a permanent shift.
James is also averaging 15.1 points per game on 13.2 shots per game, while shooting 43.2% from the field and 23.7% from beyond the arc. Those numbers help explain why some observers are looking for different ways to unlock his impact.
There is also a clear tension with James' own past comments. In October, he said he was not there to have a sustainable role at the five, and he pointed to Joel Embiid as a reason it would not make sense for that to be a long-term setup. That makes Perkins' suggestion interesting, but also unlikely to become a full-time change.
For now, it looks like a debate about usage rather than identity. Philadelphia has enough talent to keep adjusting, and if Nick Nurse is looking for another lever to pull, Perkins made his preference clear: more LeBron James at center.
