Kendrick Perkins addresses intense Twitter beef with Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant and Kendrick Perkins got into a Twitter beef on Thursday night that turned quite personal, and Perkins seems surprised that his former teammate cares about the things he said enough to engage him in a social media feud.

The back and forth began when Perkins teased his appearance on “SportsCenter” and said he was going to talk about why Russell Westbrook — not Durant — is the best player in Oklahoma City Thunder history. A member of the media then called Perk out for the take, and Durant eventually chimed in by pointing out the small role Perkins played in the postseason with OKC.

During an appearance on RADIO.com Sports’ “Scal and Pals” show Friday morning, Perkins clarified that he was saying Westbrook is “Mr. Thunder” rather than a better player than Durant, as Durant bailed on OKC to sign with the Golden State Warriors. He also wondered why KD still feels the need to defend the move.

“That was my whole point – why do you even care? First of all, you left that organization for dead,” Perkins said. “You thought when you left that organization that it would go to nothing. And Russell Westbrook kept that organization afloat … he never missed the playoffs … he always kept them in the middle of the hunt … he did what he was supposed to do … he won the MVP … he did all types of things.

“So, like I said, my whole argument wasn’t to shoot a slug at KD, my whole argument was to rightfully praise Russell Westbrook for what he deserves.”

Not surprisingly, the comment that seemed to bother Durant the most on Thursday was when Perkins called him signing with the Warriors the “weakest move in NBA history.” Perkins stood behind that take on Friday.

“I don’t have a filter,” he said. “So what I do, is I strike back. Boy, stop playing with me. You did the weakest move in NBA history, up 3-1 in the Western Conference Finals and then you go join them the following season.”

That is the type of remark that still gets under Durant’s skin, even after he won two NBA titles with Golden State. You can read the rest of his exchange with Perkins here.

No matter how many people criticize him for it, Durant simply cannot resist firing back at those who question the way he left the Thunder. He cares deeply about the public’s perception of him, and that is not going to change.