Kendrick Perkins revealed his Celtics-Pacers prediction

Morning Sports Update

“Whether the world believes in them or not, they believe in themselves.”

Kendrick Perkins revealed his Celtics-Pacers prediction: The Celtics and Pacers begin Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Tuesday night, pitting the No. 1 seed against the No. 6 seed.

By that measure alone, Boston is the overwhelming favorite. Even taken in context, the Celtics are considered a -1300 betting favorite by experts, according to Vegas Insider.

However, not everyone is predicting an escape from Boston. In fact, one of the voices predicting a close series is none other than Kendrick Perkins, a member of the Celtics’ 2008 championship team (now an ESPN analyst).

Speaking on “The Pat McAfee Show” Monday, Perkins was asked if he thought Indiana had a chance to compete with Boston.

“Yes,” Perkins replied. “Look, it starts with depth, right? You look at TJ McConnell. It’s a damn dog, okay. We’re looking at Aaron Nesmith. He returns to Boston, a team that drafted him, a team that passed on him. He’s going to have a chip on his shoulder.

Perkins also pointed out that the addition of former Raptors forward Pascal Siakam, acquired in January, clearly gave Indiana’s roster a boost.

Together, the former Celtic sees his old team pushed to the brink.

“I have this series that lasts seven games, okay? Perkins predicted. “I give the nod to the Celtics, but this Indiana Pacers team showed me something these first two rounds. They’re not going anywhere.

“Whether the world believes in them or not, they believe in themselves. This is the most important thing and they show it. They show it and don’t back down from anyone. Do you want to play physical? We can do this. We’re going to score points because we have arguably the best pure point guard in the league, Tyrese Haliburton, who wants to get everyone involved.

Anecdote: Kendrick Perkins was a member of the famous 2003 NBA draft that included LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade (among others). James is now the only player from the class still active in the NBA. Anthony is second in longevity, having played 19 seasons. Can you name the player from the 2003 draft who ranks third overall?

(Answer at bottom).

Hint: He played 17 seasons. Originally selected in the second round by the Nets (for whom he never played), he went on to play for the 76ers, Hawks, Jazz, Bulls, Cavaliers and Bucks. He made an All-Star appearance with Atlanta in 2015.

Scores and schedules:

The Red Sox earned a 5-0 win over the Rays on Monday, with Tanner Houck pitching seven scoreless innings and Rafael Devers breaking the Red Sox team record for home runs in consecutive games (with six). The two teams play again this evening at 6:50 p.m.

Tonight, the Celtics and Pacers begin the Eastern Conference Finals at TD Garden at 8 p.m.

Also tonight, PWHL Boston and PWHL Minnesota will play Game 2 of the Walter Cup Finals at the Tsongas Center at 7 p.m. Boston leads the best-of-five series 1-0.

More from Boston.com:

Devers starts againn: The Red Sox third baseman hit his sixth home run in as many games, setting a new club record.

Drake Maye isn’t the Patriots’ only rookie quarterback: Joe Milton was one of the rookies to show natural abilities on the first day of OTAs.

That day: In 1987, the Celtics took a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Pistons with a 110-101 victory. Larry Bird led Boston with 31 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds.

Highlight of the day: Arturs Silovs made an extraordinary save to prevent a goal in Game 7 of the Canucks-Oilers on Monday. Unfortunately for Vancouver, it wasn’t enough as the Oilers won the game 3-2.

Trivial answer: Kyle Korver