Career Averages with the Celtics: 6.4 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.3 SPG, 1.2 BPG, 56.3 FG%

Win Shares: 22.1

Titles: 1

Kendrick Perkins has been the butt of plenty of jokes over the course of his career, especially during his time as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

But once upon a time, Perk was a quietly productive starting big man who helped carry the Celtics to a championship in 2007-08 as well as another NBA Finals appearance in 2009-10. Coincidentally, those two seasons were arguably the best of his career on both ends of the floor.

In 2007-08, Perkins posted a career-best defensive rating of 97—the fourth-best mark in the league that year—while also finishing in the top 10 in block percentage (8) and defensive box plus/minus (5).

Despite his defensive rating slipping from above average to just average two years later, Perkins made sure his presence was still felt on that end of the court.

He once again finished the regular season in the top 10 in block percentage, a feat that translated to a top-10 finish in blocks per game at 1.7 a night. Perkins was also uncharacteristically efficient as a scorer in 2009-10, converting his field-goal attempts at a 60.2 percent clip.

Boston’s prep-to-pro center remained effective in the postseason, averaging a solid 100.5 defensive rating between the 2008 and 2010 postseasons.

Perk played a key role in helping Kevin Garnett keep both Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol at bay during both of the Celtics’ finals appearances. And based on his stout defensive impact, you have to wonder if the franchise would have won its second title of the Garnett-Paul Pierce-Ray Allen era in 2009-10 had he not torn both his MCL and PCL in Game 6 of the NBA Finals.

All things considered, Perkins’ 22.1 win shares in a Celtics uniform are somewhat surprising at first glance, but if you consider what he did for the franchise, it becomes clear that he was a large part of Boston’s success.