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Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of Hardwood Knocks. This is Adam
from Will here with my co host Dan Favali, and we are going to
be doing a mail back today where we're answering a bunch of Twitter user questions
that we've received on the NBA Math account over the last few days, as
well as just kind of like briefly recapping some of the big takeaways from the
twenty twenty NBA Finals. It's hard to believe that we've actually reached the point
where we can refer to the twenty nineteen twenty season as this past season rather
than the current one because it lasted approximately three and a half years, but
that's where we are now. Also a shout out to bet Online, Dot
AG and indeed our sponsors for this podcast, without whom it would not be
possible. You'll be hearing from them a little bit later on and before we
move into the actual content, Dan going today, I am doing, well,
how are you doing? I'm I'm on adrenaline, I'm operating on no
sleep. So this is going to be my takes on this mailbag might get
like too spicy because like my inhibitions are clearly lowered. I think it's better
that way. I'm I'm shockingly refreshed for once. I don't know why because
I haven't gotten a lot of sleep, but I'm like I'm feeling alert,
which is a rarity these days with a almost two year old child and a
full time job and all that jazz. Yeah, we'll call this team exhausted,
except your team refreshed today, so you'll have to carry the podcast I
mean doing. I usually though, come on, fair enough, fair enough.
So look, let's start with the finals. Well, we kind of
already, like we talked about the series as if it was over on the
last podcast we did together, so we don't really have to go into the
nitty gritty of that. But like, I'm just curious because there's been a
lot of talk of it and this doesn't really get it, can't get into
the Jordan debate, I guess a little bit, but Where do you think
this ranks among like Lebron's finals three of the four. Yeah, I think
it's a good question. It's one that Lebron himself doesn't particularly care for because
he has said that he values all the rings. But I do think it's
a it's a good discussion point, but I would have it. You know,
granted, every every title is special, regardless of when it comes and
for which team it comes. But I think it's fourth of them just because
the first one with Miami is special because he finally proved that he could win
that title, especially coming off the twenty eleven let down against the Dallas Mavericks.
The second one he kind of cemented himself in that all time pantheon,
which you know, we all assumed he was going to get to, but
it was just that validation that hey, like, this guy deserves to be
in that goat conversation, or at least the top five conversation at that time.
The Cleveland title is probably the most special of all because of the three
one come back against the greatest regular season team of all time in those seventy
three win Golden State Warriors, as well as bringing that fort franchise title to
his hometown team. I think that was probably the most emotionally important one,
and this one. While it's fantastic that he was able to win with the
Los Angeles Lakers, that he proved that he could continue to win more titles
and potentially make a push for that Jordan tying sixth ring down the road,
it feels like it it doesn't quite have that same level of importance and cachet
as the previous three, though that is not in any way a denigration of
the most recent achievement. Yeah, I think I'm pretty much with you.
I don't know how you beat the Cleveland title, whether you're looking at it,
how does it help the goat debate? And then just like how much
it meant it feels like it covers both grounds there, I mean, coming
back from three to one, first time that's ever happened in the finals,
like you said against the Warriors and all that, This one, for me,
I think is the least significant as it pertains to the Michael Jordan debate,
which I've mentioned to you before, because I don't if you didn't have
lebron as your number one all time before, I don't know why this would
change that unless you're ascribing a ton of value to him winning this title amid
there was the Hong Kong stuff at the beginning of the season. And while
Lebron definitely came off hypocritical points, we are one all hypocritical, as I
record this from a MacBook pro that I'm on. But two, it was
just like they were I don't know if they were there yet or they were
on their way to China. It's just all that was unfolding, and so
you were thrown into that, just that gauntlet of like this political issue it
was. It was a humanity issue as well that you probably weren't expecting obviously,
and then Kobe Bryant's death, Like I do think that that's probably been
there's a point I think it needs to be mentioned because it matters, like
Lebron was close with him, what Kobe and Gianna meant to that franchise,
just the suddenness of it all, knowing that how many other people died in
that helicopter crash. That's something the entire league had to overcome, and so
it definitely matters. You just don't want to make it exploitive, which I
do feel like it. It got there for sure, yeah, Like when
we were talking about his MVP case, it was like, you know,
like we can't do that, Like that almost is insulting to like the I
don't want to say the memory of Kobe, right, but like that just
you know, don't dilute the meaning of it in any way it would be
I guess, but it was an obstacle, Like I think that's one hundred
percent fair as one of my puppy's wines. In the background of this,
they're not happy with the exploit of Kobe takes either, and then booked the
social justice stuff, the coronavirus pandemic, Like these were unprecedented circumstances, whether
you think they had an easier path to the title or not. Like being
sequestered away from your family for that long, it matters, Like it's I
know it was collectively bargain that he chose to do it, but that stuff
still matters. So you can argue that there's a certain difficulty levels of that,
But I don't know that it could have a case. It's not gonna
beat out Cleveland for me, But when you look at the goat debate,
it's like the only thing it really does for me is is say, well,
damn him and Anthony Davis wanted in their first year together, and Lebron
is still Lebron, like we talk about yeah, and look, he's almost
thirty six now, Like I don't know how much the break ends up help
again because he missed the playoffs last year, then had a break leading into
the bubble this year, but like he's basically gonna turn because the season ended
so late, he's gonna turn thirty six, Like soon he's closer to thirty
six, Like it's two months away, his birthday essentially less than two months
away. So he's still playing at this level and while the West isn't gonna
get any easier, like he has time to get a fifth one, I
think, more so than we ever thought he was gonna get, and especially
I thought he was gonna get because we had this discussion way back when he
first signed with the Lakers where I agreed he might be done making finals appearances.
How wrong I was about that. But now if it's all of a
sudden, like if you get to five, like that's the game changer for
me. It's not six, But at that point it's like the ring count
is disingenuous. Now I believe like once you get to five, it's just
like it's one away and like, like, what is the It just feels
like a negative five feels so much more than four to me for some reason,
I don't know why. And the last thing I'll say, since I'm
rambling here, is that I think you could make an argument that maybe this
title means more than number one or two if he wanted to, because you
could look at the first one people said he wasn't gonna win, but looking
at the team he was on, you could deem it inevitable and they beat
Okay, see in five games that year I think was it five? I
think it was so. And then the second one is like you know,
yes, they came back against the Spurs. You have that real and shot.
There's the what if actors of what if he never hits that you were
on the verge of a three p which would have put you in in the
dynastic talk, but like it was just you know, most spates would have
given him credit then, fucking most spaces. That was like, oh god,
I love that. There was the bronze sucks like tag like at in
there and it wasn't even a watermark. It was just bold outlined meme font
I gotta kick out of that. But he was sipping some bad opinion juice,
And so I think you could make the case that this is better or
more important if you want to say the numbers one or two. But I
would definitely have the Cleveland title and his first title ahead of this, and
I might even lean towards number two at least is it if you're looking at
the Michael Jordan debate, I think all three of his previous titles mean more
to it. But if you're looking at just overall meaning, I think they're
a case or this one to be number number two or number three. I
think with regard to the Michael Jordan debate, the reason that this doesn't really
hold much sway there or is going to change any opinions is because the parameters
of that debate feel so established at this point and they aren't changing. We
know that Jordan's individual peak was a little bit higher than Lebron's, and his
case rests on that perfection in the NBA Finals, the six for six,
which is never going to change, the ring count, the mythology, the
legend that is Michael Jordan Lebron's case is about longevity, like that's the primary
selling point, and him continuing to demonstrate that that longevity is ongoing. It's
not going to change any minds at this point. Like I don't think like
even if he wins the next two titles, I don't know that it's going
to change anybody's minds if he to six, I don't know how it doesn't.
I would say even five might get him the consensus. Maybe it's like
the barely of the consensus, but like, I don't know how you deny
it at that point. I just think it's too entrenched. And like if
we don't even consider currym Abdul Jabbar in the Goat conversation, which really we
should, but his case is also based more on longevity than anything else.
The fact that he entered the league in the early seventies and dominated with the
Milwaukee Bucks and continued to win titles with the Los Angeles Lakers in the eighties,
Like he was so good for so long, but that has like lost
a little bit of resonance as we've moved further from his playing days, And
I feel like that's what would happen with Lebron if he makes the biggest point
in his favor at the tail end of his career, because it's all about
that longevity. Yeah, and I think what sore for Jordan that level of
mythology, Even though you could say Lebron's game is maybe more myth than actual
human the level of mythology of Michael Jordan is just never gonna be matched by
Lebron because the way the league is covered, like everything is just collated and
calibrated, it's just it's exhaustive. At the same time, his might be
a case that age is better after he leaves the league because people are gonna
look back at his resume and be like, holy shit, look at what
this guy did for twenty years or twenty something years. And maybe it's not
something that he'll ever have in the moment, but like if we fast forward
five to seven years after he retires, I think there's a chance he would
have the consensus there. And I'm on record of saying I think Lebron would
be my greatest of all time. Like, there's definitely a debate for Jordan,
but like now I'm if he's not there yet, I'm sort of resigned
to just assuming that Lebron is going to get there. But I do think
to your point, it's gonna be tough for him to grab the consensus because
there's there's one aspect and it's not just rings, even if he doesn't get
six rings, but like that's at least like catchable. It's it's something tangible
he can catch the inevitability of Michael Jordan, the mythology of Michael Jordan.
It's something that he's never going to match. And I think that has more
to do with the timing and the difference in eras than it actually does of
the two players. Right, it's there the points that are made in Jordan's
favorite Like if we go back to the Marie Spates meme that he posted,
it's like, oh, it took him ten together fourth. Oh that's how
confident he felt about that. I heard he made his account private or something
too, But anyway, you know the fact that he was confident enough to
post that, oh it took ten dries for him to win his fourth ring,
Like, that's not going to go away. Those six losses in the
finals, even if they were against largely juggernaut teams, it's not going to
go away. And it's amazing, Like because We're so far removed from Jordan's
prime already. It's like when he when when Lebron passed the ball to Danny
Green who missed that game winning attempt, and the criticism was, oh,
like Jordan wouldn't have passed, And you see how many people are already forgetting
like wait, he did, and it's like her and John Paxson hit those
big shots like that that is so washed away already because of the mythology.
Like that's why I just I don't know that anything he's gonna do is is
going to change minds because there's so much entrenchment already on that side. That's
fair. I almost want him to get to six to see what But like
I don't really, I don't have money gets a seven if he's if he
was at seven and did, like, first of all, he gets a
set. I don't even know. Anybody has to win like three in the
next five years or something. That's just I mean, look, Kareem Won
is going to carry him in his final year in the league. And look,
Kareem won a title when he was forty, I believe, so there's
that to consider as well. But if he did get to six, I'm
not like rooting for him necessarily to get to six. I just I want
good basketball and then I'll enjoy whatever happens after the fact. But if he
gets to six, I would be interested to see where that debate ends up,
because I feel like that's the only one. Now you're on even ground
with the rings, what do you focus on for Jordan? Aside from what
you just said. There's gonna be that perception of oh, we wouldn't have
passed, and then there's the perfect finals record, and both those things are
just like so flimsy, and the ring count itself is so flimsy. But
like, if you tied the ring count, the argument to make for Jordan,
I feel like gets exponentially harder to me. Yeah, to be honest,
I'm just like kind of exhausted by the conversation in general. Like,
ultimately, they're both incredible basketball players and it's not really like that relevant the
fact that the fact of the matter is like they're in the top tier together,
and if you want to throw Kareem in there, if you want to
throw like Will Chamberlain in there, like, go ahead. But they're in
there, and that's the most important part. And I say that, and
I know full well this will not be the last podcast episode that we discussed
Lebron and Jordan in the same conversation. I want to go to scause I
love this debate, like I get the fatigue from it, but like I
do feel like we have a tendency to shy away from like topics that are
probably overcovered or exploited like by the you know, if it's if it's on
Turner or Bleacher Reporter, ESPN too much like people. And I totally get
the fatigue, but like you know what, I'm not gonna I love talking
about Jannie's free agency and future. I should I should clarify I am not
exhausted by like this conversation because it's it's approached the right way and as long
as Nuance is a allowed to enter into the conversation, then I'm good with
it. But just like the overall overriding focus and the fact that any post
about Lebron James on Twitter or Facebook is inundated with comments about Jordan, like
that just gets so tired. I can see that. But you also did
tell me that you were exhausted of me before we started recording, so I
don't know how I'm supposed to interpret this at that point however you want.
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slash Blue Wire terms and conditions apply, offer valid through December thirty. First,
before we get into the melbag, this is all gut feeling stuff.
But so the twenty nineteen twenty season is over. The twenty twenty twenty twenty
one season is probably not going to begin until twenty twenty one. At this
point, I think MLK Day is the one that everyone zeroed in on,
and that does feel like the right one. But there's been there is a
report from ESPN that like, people around the league don't want to give up
the Christmas Day extravaganza, and then there's also been talk of like, well
they might push it to March because they want fans. If you just had
to guess, and I'll want you, you don't have to get into any
of like the coronavirus stuff. Would be more likely that the NBA starts on
Christmas or starts in March. To you easily March. You know, we're
already we have It's it's impossible to have this conversation without getting into the coronavirus
stuff. And we're already seeing case rates elevate once again. It's probably only
going to get worse in the winter. The death rates though it's fine,
it's just to be honest, the death rate is the only thing that matters.
I'm sorry to exhausting conversations, but yeah, I mean, like,
I think the NBA is quickly going to realize the reality of the situation that
fans are not likely to be involved, at least in large volume or in
safe manners, and that's just going to push the timetable back. I still
think that we're gonna get to a point because I think you have to,
like maybe it'll be like in December sometime where they realize, like, well,
we're not waiting the two or three months is not going to get us
fans in the stands. And that's why I feel like it might actually be
more likely, Like maybe it's late November, early December. I would say
Christmas is more likely than March to me, just because I think they're there's
gonna come a point where I think they're gonna be more concerned about, well,
we have to get in as many games or all the games, and
because we're not going to have that gate revenue which accounts forty of their revenue.
So I would think Christmas is more likely. But I think MLKDA feels
like the right one to guess. I don't. We obviously don't know about
fans in the stands. I am curious to see though, how they would
handle the differing markets where like because in Florida where there's as of now we're
recording this just no restrictions on anything, So like could the Magic and the
heat like they're allowed to have fans in the stands, but let's say the
Lakers and Clippers wouldn't be Are they going to come up with a blanket rules?
We're seeing in the NFL where different stadiums are having different policies. There
are some teams that are continuing to not have fans in the stadiums. There
are others that are pushing for fuller capacities. So I do think that there
is precedent for allowing some periods there. Yeah, there's precedent. I just
wonder if that's like the is it the route to go? Because are you
putting I do having your general if the NFL does something, you should do
the opposite. I do hope what they at least do because I think you're
I don't feel like I was about to talk over that. That's I would
agree with you. I would think like if not every market can have it's
like cleared for some capacity. I know that I don't think the NBA will
view it this way, but I would prefer the blanket rule. But they're
gonna want the revenue, so I'm sure they'll go more the way of the
NFL. I'm not saying having fans contributes to how it would impact the players,
but like you're already putting them at more risk once you start traveling and
they're not in the bubble anymore. I don't think we could expect them to
go back in the bubble. I'm wondering if one way to mitigate it would
be like can they have longer like series with one team where the traveling team
is like more easily it's a questioned where it's like get in all three of
your matchups or four of your matchups with the Rockets at the same time if
you're the Lakers or whatever, And that'd be interesting because then it's like,
do we get a playoff feel and see like for the adjustments beforehand. Just
might be something to try. That's just I think MLK Day though, that
would be my you feel like that's the date that it feels like it's going
to happen. This is a totally hairbrained idea that I literally just thought of
while you were talking. But I wonder if it would be possible to have
like a number of different bubble locations and have you know, eight teams go
to them. They essentially play like round robin style, so they're getting in
their games against each of them all locally. Then you have like a week
or two off so players can go see their families and then you go enter
a different bubble, and like just if if they can come up with a
schedule that allows that, then that might be like the safest way to get
in a lot of games. Yeah, that's I don't think that's two hairbrains.
I just I'd be curious to see, like how like you're stopping and
starting bubbles, Like does there need to be like a quarantining process like after
the bubble? Think so, yeah, so that like that's where that gets
tough. But that's why I do think that earlier is going to end up
being the standard, just because in absence of having stadium's full or arena's full,
like not even talking about partical path see you get to the point where
it's like, well, then we need we need to play all eighty two
games. And that's why I would just lean and if if we've learned anything
from what's happening in the NFL right now with like the Tennessee Titans outbreak,
then in all likelihood you need to plan time in your schedule for makeup games,
right, And that's why the earlier start would be. That's what the
whole thing is, just uncomfortable with sports. Like I get it from a
like hardened like business perspective, like if life is going to go on,
but it's like if you're doing this outside the bubble, which I don't think
you can ask the players to do this all the time. I want to
make that clear. But like you're almost admitting like there's going to be more
positive cases in the league now, and like that's what's absolutely terrifying. But
on a lighter note, we have a mailbag to go through. I'm not
sure if you have a handied I'm putting on the spot here, but there
was we did. I did a solo mailbag that you actually prepped for and
you had a question. I believe that you did research for that you wanted
to answer. I don't know if you wrote down the question or if you
have the research in front of you, but now would be the time for
you to tackle that one since we are in a mailbag. Yeah, I
do. I can't remember which one was covered. Was it the assist to
turnover correlation or was it the clutch shooting? I covered neither. I did
shooting overall in the bubble versus the regular seasons. I thought that was just
like a larger sample, but I didn't cover either of them. Yeah,
I think the one that was really interesting to me was whether there is a
strong correlation between assist to turnover rate and winning percentage, just like whether the
teams that are better passing teams. And we saw this in particular with like
the Warriors at their peak, where they were just so good at generating assists
on every single bucket that they made, but they also had a lot of
turnovers. Okay, yeah, but you know what I found from looking at
this. I looked at every team since the start of the two thousand and
two thousand and one season, and they're like, real, isn't that strong
of a correlation? There is a positive one, but the R squared coefficient
is only zero point two O seven Overall, there just aren't like there is
not really demonstrable evidence that having an elite assisted turnover ratio pushes you into that
elite territory. So there are examples where like the twenty eleven twelve Oklahoma City
Thunder they went forty seven and nineteen with a one point one three as sister
turnover ratio, so that was the ninety third point one percentile for wins and
the zero point seven percentile for a sister turnover ratio, so like they managed
to win through a lot of isolation heavy basketball. Alternatively, like the twenty
seventeen eighteen Dallas Mavericks, they only won twenty four games, so they were
in the ninety fourth percentile for a sister turnover ratio. And even recently we've
actually seen that correlation continue to decline, which is likely because we're moving away
from old school hero ball, but we're moving towards like the off the bounce,
step back threes, a lot of riskier possession because you're you're trying to
go for those three pointers that are so prominent in today's game. So the
correlation coefficient over the last five years dropped to point one ninety seven, but
during this season it was actually point zero nine one, which is basically like
no correlation whatsoever? Did this? Did those findings surprise you at all?
They did. I would have expected there to be at least more of a
relationship between the two, and it's always tough to infer causation from correlation,
but it at least seems likely that teams that are better at passing and better
at avoiding turnovers would be better at winning games. But as we move increasingly
into this modern style, that's just like not really what we're seeing. I
feel like that surprises me as well too, but I guess that makes sense
when you're looking at how the game has been trending. Yeah, so did
you want to go? Do you want me to take us through the mail
bagger? You said you went like this if you could would be awesome,
just since I think you have the questions in front of you. Awesome.
All right, So let's start with a fun one first, since we covered
some be handed stuff to begin. This is from Jacob Borne, friend of
the Pod and friend in real life and former co worker. Best and Worst
tattoos in the NBA? Is this one? Of the questions that you did
research on, I prepared for all of them. So yes, I do
want to do my best or my worst first, which wherever you want to
start, Let's start with the worst. And I want to preface this by
saying that you know, tattoos are an individual decision, and I'm sure that
each one that an NBA player has has meaning and that they're ultimately a fan
of So it's hard to like talk down on them, because even if they're
not appealing to us, I'm sure that they're appealing to the players. Now
that's said, that important caveat out of the way. I hate Mike Scott's
emoji tattoos, but I don't I don't care for them. So those and
if I can go like a little bit into the retired player spectrum, Richard
Jefferson has like the cartoonish r J initials. I don't know where they are,
I can't remember that, but they look like they were drawn by a
middle schooler and I was just never a fan of those. So those are
my are my two at the bottom. But again, like you, you
just said that you like the emoji tattoos, and it's all when we talk
about arc which is what tattoos are, like it's a matter of personal preference.
Yeah, so, and look, I don't want to criticize that there's
actual meeting behind any of these, Like, I don't want to be criticizing
that. And the two of the worst, two of the worst ones that
stood out to me so is abdel Nader has a no Love tattoo with like
this weird like just like it's like an emoji heart but not really biting on
a rose, chewing through a like coming through a star. I don't know
what it means, but it just doesn't is not viscerally appealing to me.
The other one that stands out, I don't know, and it's probably because
of what it is, but Kai Bowman has like one of the least attractive
like tattoos I've ever seen. It's like a it looks like there's a Jason
mask on there with some dice. Maybe there's stars there. There's definitely hearts.
I'm trying to look at it now. There's some sort of creature.
It looks like maybe it's it's Freddie and Jason. That must be what it
was. It looked like groot, but like zombie groot is what I thought
it was at first, Like I couldn't tell it was Jason, and like
I'm just not, I don't know, I'm just not about it, and
like there's not I'm a big fan of shading. It looks like there's cards
in there as well. So if you're gonna get anything resembling like a it's
basically up his whole calf, Like, get some shading in there too to
connect to them. The other the other one, like it's not an active
player, but Darren Williams's old shoulder tattoo. The panther was awful because it
didn't look like a panther on broadcasts. It kind of looked like like this
melting puddle of something, and it was just it was not great. That's
another one that stands out to me historically. I can't one. I'm looking
up right now because I can't remember whether I loved or hated it, but
I knew it was considered iconic in one fashion or another. Is like Andre
Carolinko had that it was like a world of warcraft tattoo. Yep, yep,
I'm looking at it right now. I don't think if falls under the
worst or the best. For me, it was like his entire back though
you just can't really like tell like I guess if you're a Wow fan you
can. But the detail on it is like, I don't know, it
seems a little fuzy. Maybe that's just the picture. What were your best
tattoos? Though? They were both so My top two are actually both on
the New Orleans Pelicans. I love how JJ reddick sleeve looks with the angel
and the lion. I just it really works. I've always liked looking at
that one since he got it, what was it like two or three years
ago now? And I think the best one is Lonzo Ball's sleeve though,
the one that has Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Malcolm X, Harriet Tubb,
and Barack Obama and Martin Luther King Junior on it is it is so
like exquisitely detailed. There's obviously a lot of meaning to having those prominent black
figures throughout American history. It looks great, the meaning is there. It
checks all the boxes for me. Yeah, that was so his was on
His is my absolute favorite too. And look the detail on the portraits one
as someone who been so good, yeah, as someone who's a tattoo enthusiast,
Like the portraits are hit or miss, like they can come out terribly.
That was just fantastic artwork, and like it's so detailed and so huge
that you almost forget that they're on the same arm. So like that's just
incredible. So he was my pick for absolute favorite, and so you know,
regardless of I like JJ Reddicks too. Austin Rivers, though, has
a really nice sleeve where it's there's like some religion at the top of it.
Near his shoulder blade, there's like a huge rose I think with prayer
hands as he gets lowered to the arm. But it can be really hard
with just black and white tattoos, but there's not a lot of color for
the detail to shine through when there's a lot going on, Like even on
Lonzo balls, there's like there's not like a ton of shading and the actual
faces, so like it's easier to distinguish. But his Austin Rivers tattoo is
busy, but it's gorgeous, So I would recommend that people look at his.
So that's a tattoo that that I enjoyed. Probably my second favorite in
the league right now. I believe I've always really liked Damian Lillard's two on
his shoulder, Like I'm not always a huge fan of just like the written
word tattoos, but the way that he has it all lined up like it
looks out of a book. It just looks good. The two things I
didn't realize like how many NBA players have like Lion's tattooed on them to some
degree, which is something. And then I like, it's not like a
super like incredible tattoo, but I like that Damian Lillard has like the just
microphone tattooed on him, and he has like the heartbeat slash rhythm beat two
on the back of his neck. I love the heartbeat. The rhythm beat
is awesome. I love that concept. Next question comes from Tortuga. Should
Phoenix be looking for a point guard of the future or looking at Booker as
a possible solution by letting him run point as more of a combo guard.
We've talked about Phoenix as a potential like dark horse candidate to trade for Chris
Paul in the past, and if you can make that kind of upgrade,
sure, I'm all for it. But honestly, like I'm not too sold
on them needing to make any major changes to be a legitimate second round postseason
contender moving forward. Devin Booker is that he has experienced working at both on
ball and off ball guard positions and is able to blend those positions together.
Now, Ricky Rubio is still only twenty nine years old, at least for
a few more days as we're recording this. He's under contract through the twenty
twenty twenty two season, and he finished this past year at a really high
level. I don't know that point guard really needs to be a priority for
this Phoenix team. If you can make an upgrade without sacrificing your future,
sure go for it. But Rubio and Booker works. As we've learned more
and more in this past year. Yeah, look like Booker is just the
day facto point guard for so many possessions either he only learned logged fifty official
possessions as the point guard this year, would I would be all four seeing
more of those types of lineups. But I fall with you there. They
do need like another shot creator because I don't know if he can trust Campaign
to play at the level he did. And then obviously Rubio, while he's
a wizard like, he's just not a threat to score off the dribble like
someone else is. And so if that upgrade comes in the form of a
point guard, but if it comes in the form of a wing or four
and I'm probably not with you. I think they indeed, they're like one
piece away from being that maybe first round playoff team even for me, and
I think that they could focus on again that other shot create or like,
can you upgrade the four position measurably? I think Aaron Gordon just because of
the type of shots that Booker can create, might be an interesting fit.
But with Ruby on eight and maybe the space and gets kind of tight.
Jeremy Grant's been a popular mention among like for a free agent among all of
their fans, Paul millsapp would be super interesting there. So if they can
make an upgrade there, but they do feel one substantial piece away. I
don't think that you need to make that substantial piece a point guard though,
So let's let's say it's not Chris Paul. Would you do it for Fred
van Fleet? Like if they're going to clear some cap too, and they
don't have to do too much, but it would there would be an opportunity
cost. I think at least two of Comitsky, Sarich and Baines would have
to go for them to I don't think I would. I don't think I
would. I don't I don't know that that Van Vleet is a table upgrade
over Ricky Rubio right now, especially given what the Suns need. You have
Booker to shoot, van Fleet, as pesky as he is on defense and
as as comfortable as he is playing off the ball because of his time alongside
Kyle Lowry. I think Rubio does more of what you need on this Phoenix
team. So that's that's probably like on the Cusp, where I wouldn't hate
it if that's a play that they made. But I don't know that I
would prioritize that over and I agree with you here the front court acquisitions.
I like Fred van Fleet better for this team than Ricky Rubio. I would
not go after Fred van Fleet if Ricky Rubio is still on the team,
though, just like now, you're allocating so many resources to the backcourt when
you look at Rubio, Booker and then Fred van Fleet. And so that's
why I wouldn't do it. The more the bigger play for me would be
like can you dangle Kelly oubre Junior's deal and then they have the number ten
pick. Right, I don't have the draft order in front of me,
So can you dangle like that expiring contract plus a pick or something else and
what can you get in return? It is the number two pick. So
that's that's the route. If if I re them that that I would go.
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online. You're online sports book experts. Next question comes from Chloe. Chloe,
what former NBA player playing overseas now deserves a spot on a current NBA
roster. All right, I have three and a half names, had a
soapbox to stand on. Okay, how do you have three and a half
names? I'm very interested to hear this name because one of them has played
in NBA preseason games but has not actually played in the NBA. Okay,
so I'm like only partially counting him. So the first name is Jan Bezzily,
who flamed out with the Washington Wizards as a high draft pick, who
was supposed to be like the European Blake Griffin and was not. But he
has developed so much more touch on his in between game. He has improved
his free throw shooting and his three point shooting overseas, and he's really become
a EuroLeague superstar. If he wanted to come back and play, he one
hundred percent could and would be a contributor. Second name is Nick Koalathies,
who last played with the Memphis Grizzlies in twenty fifteen. He's become a much
better shooter and a absolute top of the line passer. I would love to
see him get another chance. Third name is Nikola Mirotich, who really doesn't
need much of an explanation because he left the NBA voluntarily to go make a
lot more money playing in Spain. And the fourth answer, which is the
half one, is Facundo Compazzo, who is just an absolutely magical passer from
Argentina, a really really good defender. He's twenty nine years old. If
he came to the NBA right now, I think he would be a top
half starting point guard. The soapbox is that. The soapbox is that I
think that the NBA as a whole needs to get a lot better at giving
these kind of players more opportunities. We see it a lot with coaches,
but we also see it with players, where there's such a tendency to advocate
for the retreads and the known veteran options, even if there isn't upside there.
And I would so much rather see teams give roster spots to these European
stars who weren't stars in the NBA in the past, because there's so much
more upside there. And we saw it this season with like brad Wanamaker,
who played all over Europe and then debuted in the NBA during his age twenty
nine rookie season last year and this year he was a legitimate rotation player for
the Boston Celtics during the playoffs. That isn't something you're just going to unearth
from a vet who's been around the block in the NBA, because the upside
isn't there, and I would love to see more teams take shots on someone
like Kallithe's who was nothing special with the Grizzlies half a decade ago, but
has developed his games so much and could offer a lot more than just that
thirty five year old who's just hanging on for one more contract. That's a
fair point. Those are all interesting names. Mirtiches, I feel like an
obvious one. The two for me would be former Memedy players. I still
feel like Jeremy Lynn could help out a team if he's healthy. And then
Shane Larkin I feel like kind of just belongs in the NBA. And he
shot over fifty percent from three in the Turkish League this year, so and
his teammates actually said that he was becoming like the Turkish Michael Jordan. At
some point I did not see that. So yeah, they were like they
were saying, like we're making him into the Michael Jordan over here just by
giving him all the shots and making him a star up Remember in the NBA,
it's time he could be Michael Jordan for a team here too. He
obviously cannot. This next question comes from Kyle Kay. Who is the best
player you think the Lakers could get for their ten million dollars mid level?
Except in what range do you expect Malachi Flynn to go to be drafted in?
This is much more The first part is much more Dan territory than Adam
territory. So my brief answer is that I wouldn't be surprised if, like
the market gets especially weird for them to try to go after someone some like
really good veteran like a Groan Droject or a Joe Harris or even a Danilo
Gallinari. But that's kind of unlikely, so I'm viewing like Sergebaka and Jordan
Clarkson as the more realistic targets. As for Alaki, Flynn fantastic pick and
roll player both as a scorer and a passer, but teams don't really like
undersized guards. He's six one, without elite athleticism and below average wingspans,
and his wingspan is only six three. I'd be surprised if he's off the
board before the second half of the second round. But I could see a
team falling in love with his shooting and taking him in like the late thirties
on the ladder. The bare minimum that I know about him, I would
agree with you on Flynn for the Lakers. I think you were kind of
spot on. Gallinari thanked them after they won the title, so maybe he
would be. And he's like, flat out just said that he wants to
win. Now, every player says that, but it's like he's kind of
the player where it's like, because he said it, I feel like he's
not a star, so like, does it actually mean more because he's not
a superstar saying this, And maybe if the markets so squeezed, he just
figures that if he signs a one year deal there and then decides that or
one and one whatever you want to call it, or even two and then
decides that, you know, he'll make up money with early bird rights wink
wink, in two years. That's something he could do. I am interesting
where the midlevel falls. It's gonna be between somewhere between nine and nine point
seven million would be my guess Draggas might get into their range now following his
injury, but I still think that the heat might maybe tilt towards paying overpaying
him for one year. I don't know that any of the teams with cap
space would really want him though. There's only four that are guaranteed to have
it, five if you include Miami among them. But if they carry holes
for Crowder and Druggets, you remove them from the equation. Another name I'll
just throw out there so to be a little bit different would be Evan Fournier
might be an interesting name for them. Maybe he's two back Corty and they
want someone who's going to be more can play more of the three. But
like when Lebron and a d are basically positionless, it really and how big
they play, Perhaps it doesn't matter. He has a seventeen million dollar player
option. Maybe he looks at it where it's if I can get a four
year mid level deal, and it's that's for almost forty million dollars or around
forty million dollars, whatever that next sum is, that's worth it because it
will take two seasons for him to recoup all of that money on a mid
level deal but if you're getting into the three year range, then it's kind
of like, well, like let's just like three years and like thirty three
or whatever, thirty like whatever it ends up being, Like is that worth
it to him? I honestly don't know, But if you're willing to go
for that fourth year, perhaps it really does make a difference. And the
last thing I'll mention with them, and this is maybe with specific regards to
Gallinari, sign and trade possibilities are going to be on the table for them
depending on who picks up their player options. When you look at they're not
getting rid of KCP, but Javal McGee, Rondo, they have Quinn Cook's
non guaranteed salary on the books, like they can get like build some it
would have to be like three for ones and four for ones. Avery Bradley
is the five million dollar player option. They can step ladder their way to
like a pretty more expensive player. And so if Okase's willing to maybe they
just want the number twenty seven pick and you can pay Gallanari market value.
That's something that they could look at. Maybe even Orlando with Fournier would look
at doing something like that. I don't know how much you pay him,
and I think Gallo helps your team a lot more than he would. But
I think those are scenarios that will be open to them because then I think
they would still have enough room below the hardcap where you're still going to be
able to use your mid level exception then too. And so if you're completing
assigning and trade and then still being able to use your mL that ends up
being a huge deal for them, which is what you know. I think
we spoke about this briefly when we were talking about the Lakers, not this
podcast, but another one. They just have an avenue for improvement that Lebron's
teams normally don't have. Maybe when he first comes like that off season,
because you have cap space to get him, they have more flexibility. But
as you move on, normally you're dealing with aging role players on these longer
contracts, and perhaps that's where they end up at, but they're not there
yet. You stole my thunder here because I was going to follow all that
up by saying, and this in a nutshell is why we've We've both said
that even as the Lakers are coming off a title, it feels like the
worst team they're going to have for a few years, which is just absolutely
my melting. And so they're a team that will spend too through we don't
know really anything about this market, but like they're not going to shy away
from spending. Next question from Karagan, how do the Jazz get a power
forward this offseason? Well, so they can either they can either sign one,
they can trade for one, or they can draft one. Do they've
have any picks in this year's draft though they do not? Yeah, I
mean the three obvious names here are Paul mill Stop, Derek Favors, and
Aaron Banes. Aaron Vaine's the power forward he can be, I suppose now,
I mean they've played big in the past. They could deviate more towards
that going forward. He can play the four a little bit now that he
can shoot. But I don't consider I mean, Dereck Favors of four anymore.
I would know I wouldn't. Of the names that you listed, only
Paul Millsap is the one that I would aggue in with him. So the
challenge for them to me is one if we assume that the cap is going
to stay lateral at this point, which it feels like the popular assumption they're
in this weird spot where like they come, they're not in the tax if
they gave Dan Clarkson the same money he was making right now thirteen point four
million dollars. But I have them with their first round pick and guaranteeing all
of their non guarantees, which I think unless they're out on Morgan or Tucker,
I think they're gonna end up doing. They're inside four million then of
the tax, and so yes, that's far enough below the apron that you
could use your non taxpayers mid level. However, are they going to be
willing to go into the tax at all? My guests would be no.
And so the obstacle to them getting a power forward is are they going to
keep Jordan Clarkson? And if they do, I think that ends up unless
it's via trade or you're cutting salary elsewhere, like maybe you could dump at
Davis's deal off of someone to give yourself more breathing room. What are you
going to be able to get without going into the tax. And that's like
the names, they're just not going to be like as an impressive for them.
And look, the I don't want to get like too far into positions,
but like the wing forward like Combo Bower market is not great and they're
not going to get the Marcus Morris. They're not going to get the Jay
Crowder I'd be I wonder if Paul millsapp would wouldn't consider them, Like that's
fairly interesting. Moe Harkless is someone they could afford. Would he want to
go there? And does he give you enough three point shooting? But he
gives you more defensive optionality than anyone else really that you have on those spots
right now, So like then you know he's going to defend bigger and smaller,
has more rains than angles, I would say, and certainly more than
Boyon Bodanovich. But like it's that type of name, and like even as
I'm just kind of looking at the list, like does Ronde Hollis Jefferson,
Yeah, like r h J the offensive limitations you can't play him with go
bear. Then if Tony Snell opts out and you can consider him a four,
like maybe that would be interesting, But I don't think he's going to
opt out. So you can sign one, but it might be more realistic
for them to trade for one, just because if you're willing to dangle number
twenty three after you, like, after you draft him alongside Ed Davis's salary,
which is five million. Like, what type of a player does that
get you? I don't necessarily know off the top of my head. Is
assuming the Knicks decline, Bobby Portis's team option, is that someone you would
consider? Are you comfortable enough with your defense to have him on the floor?
I don't know if you necessarily can be there. I would say the
most likely route for them is to sign one. I just don't know what
kind of equity they're going to be working with. It could end up being
less than the full mid level, and that's where it becomes a problem to
get anyone who's actually impactful. Nothing to add there. I think you covered
it all there. But ultimately the answer to that question is they can sign,
trade, or draft. Yeah, there you go. This one is
from Luno mass. We know this free agent class is not as hot,
but what could be the most interesting moves contending teams in the East can make.
I mean, I don't know if if people listening to a podcast can
see me shrugging here, but like that's a really hard question because we don't
know opt out decisions. We don't know what the cap is going to be
like, and there are such limited options that nothing like really feels that interesting
for the contending teams. Like we could see like Davis Bertans or Joe Harris
going to join a different contender. We could see the Heat give a one
year balloon deal to basically anyone. The Raptors are interesting just because with Sergeibaka,
who just scrubbed all mentions of the Raptors from his social media this morning,
Fred van Vliet and who am I forgetting? And I'm blanking on their
other free agents, But the Raptors have a number of notable free agents.
Did you name him? I did not, that's I was forgetting, just
kind of like they forgot about him in the playoffs. But anyway, you
know, the Raptors can go in so many different directions that I think whatever
they do is interesting. But again, like this is just a tricky question
because there are so many unknowns while we're already working with a very lackluster free
agent class. Yeah, and look for a lot of these teams, I
would say the most damage that they could do if they're looking to be aggresive,
would be via trade for the Bucks, specifically, knowing what it might
cost to retain Wesley Matthews, so I feel like his must keep for them.
Like the impact move that you could make is go after Chris Paul,
like just do it. I know you're gonna have to pay the tax.
Then I don't know how realistic that is for them. Toronto is weird.
I'd be reticent to say anything, but what they could do is run it
back and then look and then use their mid level exception. That's just where
I'm at because they have so many free agents, as you mentioned that if
they lose two of them, like are they still a contender or how aggressive
are they going to be? How much do they want to preserve cap space
for twenty twenty one? So I don't really know what they could do,
like looking at specifics, but I would need to see like keep two of
van Fleet, Kasol and Abakan for there's rumors that Kasol might already be gone,
and like you said, with Abaca, so I think if you keep
van Fleet, it positions you to still sort of run it back, so
then you use your mid level exception on like can we sign maybe a combo
big? I think Chris Bouche, particularly if you know, both Kasol and
Abaca are gone. He becomes really important to them. But there are there
are centers to spare in this market. I guess it would be the best
way to put it, bigs to spare, and so with your mid level
I wouldn't use I wouldn't want to use all of it on a center,
but like maybe you can get some interesting names there that's for them. But
again it's just they have so many different scenarios. I don't want to tie
them to specific names these other teams. So let's say Boston, Miami,
Philly and Brooklyn on loop into there for Brooklyn, like they need to address
the four spot and because Caris Lavert is so good, I don't know if
they want to do that via trade, but can you like what will Paul
millsapp play for them for the taxpayers mid level exception, which is what they'll
be working with, Like that would be a huge get for them such limited
options outside the trade market, that it's a it's a tough one, right
If Ja Michael Green opts out, he'd be a nam circle for them too.
And that's like that also kind of proves my point here that like we're
talking about ja Michael Green as a most interesting move that a contender in the
East can make right now. Yeah, for Philadelphia, I think it has
to happen via trade. I don't know what you're gonna get with your miniml
e because you need a shot, like a ball handling shooter, and like
that's just not something you're normally gonna get even in this market for the minimale.
And like resigning Alec Burks would be like a huge deal for them,
and then looking at outside players maybe a Lankson Galloway or a Bryn Forbes,
I feel I could really help them. Who might lead Oh Boston, so
Miami. Look, they could have a ton of cap space, Like they
can get to thirty plus million in room essentially if they if they were nounced
Crowder and drags I just don't know that the market warnants them doing that.
The priorities should be. I think signing both of them to one year deals.
Maybe you're a little bit more hesitant to do that with Dragas following his
injury. At the at the same time, I just don't like the who
else are you're getting, Like, unless you want to throw all your eggs
in the van fleet basket. I actually think he'd be an interesting fit there,
but then you have to worry about what has that done, dude,
or a twenty twenty one room. It'd be the same if you decide to
go after Gallo, but those are names that they could techinically look at or
they could trade as well. It's just like in any deal. Their most
appealing aspect, aside from maybe having cap space to complete a lopside a deal,
they have Tyler Hero and Duncan Robinson, who just feel like they shouldn't
be moved at this point unless you're getting honest, which you're not, and
maybe even Beal, which doesn't seem like he'll be moved. You're not giving
up one of those guys for a Victor Oladipo, I don't think, And
so with the heat, I would say it's probably run it back or again
you could go with the Gallinari Fred van Fleet route to look at it,
and then Boston's the team. I didn't mention they have the Mini MLI and
assuming they're willing to spend it like I think, I think you can talk
to yourself with a saying they don't need anything, but they could use a
little bit of everything, like do you need another backup playmaker? Is brad
Wanamaker gonna leave in restricted free agency? Do you think that they need another
big? Tys was good? Maybe you like Robert Williams. You have Grant
Williams, But you know, can you move Ennis Canner because someone who could
play more than like eight or nine minutes in a playoff game for you?
So would you use your mini Emily on a big and that It's like,
yeah, you have wings when you're looking at Jaylen Brown, Tatum and Heyward,
but the drop off there is just so steep afterwards. Even if you
want to consider Marcus Moore as a wing, what type of players available for
that number? I think you're going to get the most given how few point
guards there are at the center position is where it would kind of go the
longest way, Like could you get even a restricted free agent like Chris Bouche
with the mini Emilie who spaces the floor a little bit, is a shop
blocking fiend because Toronto just doesn't want to pay him since they're conserving cast Race
or twenty twenty one, which Boston is not doing. Other names on the
center market, Like I don't like I don't know how appealing they are to
Boston, which tends to like picking pop bigs, but like maybe a Kyle
O'Quinn there like, and that's sort of a lower to your name. The
final thing I'll mention, though, if someone wants to get weird here,
is that some of these teams could theoretically try to pursue a brand in Ingram
Side in trade. I've warmed up to this as a possibility the more and
more I've considered how wild free agency's going to be. I don't know that
New Orleans is going to want to commit a MAX to him, knowing that
you have Lonzo Ball being extension knowledgeable through holidays a free agent in twenty twenty
one. Look at how poorly they kind of fared in the bubble. The
center position is kind of influx. Long term, you still need to get
a better feel for what Zion Williamson is going to be, at least on
defense and even with offense, and so as talented as they are, they
might be further away than we're actually thinking, or they're at least not going
to want to make the financial commitment to a team that isn't a sure thing,
and that might open the door for some brandon Ingram sign and trade scenarios.
And so if you're you know, he'd be fantastic in Milwaukee, but
I don't know how you get him just because they don't have the assets.
Would you consider that if you're Toronto, I don't know. If you're in
Miami, I absolutely consider that. If even if you have to end up
punting on twenty twenty one cap space. Now you're getting to the point,
well, what are you giving up for him? You have cap space already,
so maybe it wouldn't have to be as much. You have Igodalla's contract
to use as a matching tool if you're going with actual money there. But
are you giving up Hero or Duncan Robinson for Ingram? I would probably say
yes, I'm not gonna lie Duncan Robinson. Definitely Hero looking at his higher
upside might be a breaking point for me, but I would consider it.
But those teams could look at doing something like that if they want to get
bold. You can look at trades, if Victor Ladipo will be out there,
or try and go to the sign and trade route like Gallinari. I
think that'll be an option for him. But brand Ingram is one that I
would just keep an eye on. I feel like that situation could materialize in
a different way than we initially expected. How was that for a long answer?
That was a fantastic answer. I think that we're going to see a
lot more big trades than big free agent signings this summer. But I think
that if Jannis unexpectedly signs a supermac's extension this summer, then all sorts of
possibilities become available because all of a sudden, Miami and other teams are no
longer going to be quite as inclined to be prioritizing that long term cap space.
And then you get some interesting scenarios like the Brandon Ingram one. And
look, if I'm honest, I'm waiting to sign. So after free agency
is like let the dust. It'll let the teams have to be in flux
who are planning for you, and then make that decision. But you're right,
if he does make an early decision to do that, all hell could
break loose, like in free agency, on the trade market, sign and
trades. All that we are coming to. We're wrapping up here. This
next question is definitely a question for you comes from our X mart Jamal Murray
is a Top X player going into next season. So we're in the middle
of unveiling all the Crystal Basketball rankings, which are sort of a snapshot of
this moment in time following the twenty nineteen twenty season, and Jamal Murray,
even though he was nearly a consensus grade, was one of the tougher players
to evaluate, just because what we saw in the regular season was so much
different from what we saw in the playoffs, and we're still not entirely sure
how sustainable that performance in the bubble and during the postseason actually was. We
know that he's not going to con tinue to hit roughly ninety percent of his
pull up threes. We know he's probably not going to have a fifty point
game every other outing, but it really did feel like this was a legitimate
superstar fringe superstar emergence. So right now I would be comfortable calling him a
top thirty lock going into next season. I don't know how much higher than
that I'm willing to go. I don't want to reveal his Crystal Basketball placement
quite yet, since we're still going team by team and haven't gotten to the
Nuggets. I will say he is in that range. I don't think that
you can feel confident saying that he's in the top twenty discussion right now until
we've seen this level of play over a larger sample. But it is important
that we saw the best basketball of his career in those high stakes moments in
a way that felt like more than just a hot streak. I'm with you,
I'm wondering if he's also just one of those players that is going to
be better and more important in the playoffs than the regular season. He could
be just because they can run the offense entirely through Yokich during the regular season
and then when you do need to have more from scratch creation in the half
court setting, like that's what he can do. So I could see him
like kind of seeming to regress a little bit during the regular season as he's
not full pedal to the metal on the offensive end and working on individual parts
of his game. And that was the biggest thing. It wasn't just that
he was a confident and accurate shooter. It was that his handle felt tighter,
he felt more in control running pick and roll sets. It was,
you know, we see really good teams sacrifice some wins during the regular season
so that they can experiment with things and improve their ceiling for the all important
playoff series. And it does feel like he could be one of those players
given the construction of this Nuggets roster. So you have like a ballpark range
for him, would you say, yeah, I think top thirty. Yeah,
top thirty would be where I'm comfortable putting him now, but I think
there's potential for that number to become smaller. I think top twenty five for
me might be his ceiling. I'd probably top thirty between. This is a
wide range for him, but I think he's that type of player like in
the Donovan Mitchell Vain where I think you would top thirty five to top twenty
five and if things if he plays like he did, if that's the version
of Jamal Murray, I'm not even saying the efficiency and the actual numbers,
but if bubble Jamal Murray playoff Jamal Murray just translates the regular season Jamal Murray,
like you can bump that up to top twenty maybe, like there'd be
a chance, like you could you could enter that Bradley Beal territory. I
mean, he was a top ten player in the playoffs. Just absolutely fantastic.
Two more questions left DCP. How many teams will be shooting forty to
fifty three pointers next season? They were two this year, Houston and Dallas,
right, So those are the obvious two to start with. Dallas I
think is a lock to continue to be there, just given the way that
they play in the personnel they have at their disposals. So there's one I
don't know about Houston, just because they don't really have an escape from this
roster without completely ripping it to shreds and making like a James Harden or Russell
westbrook trade. But I still and we don't know who their coach is going
to be either. You know, whoever it is isn't going to have those
three pointers propagate throughout the system quite like Mike D'Antoni did. But just because
James Harden is there and the roster should be similarly constructed, I feel comfortable
including those. I think there are three teams that could join them in that
category. The Timberwolves, I want to basically call a lock to do that
with Karl Anthony Towns and D'Angelo Russell leading the offense. The Brooklyn Nets I
was gonna say not even that they would be a paid for me too,
but like Gerson Rosas being there too, coming from Houston, like that,
I feel like that's an actual lock. They'll be there. The Brooklyn Nets,
I think, could be right on the cusp, just because you have
Kevin Durant, you have Kyrie Irving, you have Carslovert, Like there's gonna
be a ton of three point shooting on that roster, and the Golden State
Warriors could get there just knowing that they're gonna have Steph Curry and Clay Thompson
back, that they're still going to be running so much of the offense through
them that Andrew Wiggins, if he's still on the roster, is at least
somewhat improving as a three point shooter. They weren't at that forty to fifty
threshold at their peak, but the offense, the offense throughout the NBA has
continued to trend more and more towards higher three point volume. That I could
see them getting there. Like, for all we know, Steph Curry could
very well take fifteen threes a game because he has a perpetual green light.
So those are the ones that I'm comfortable at least putting in the conversation.
But forty to fifty three s per game, even in twenty twenty is a
ton. Yeah. I mean, look, there are only two teams.
It was still Dallas and Houston that averaged above forty per one hundred possessions,
and so I have Dallas and Houston being there again Minnesota as well. You
mentioned all the reasons why I wouldn't put the nets there, just because Kyrie
Irving and Kevin Durant and even Lavert liked to operate inside the arc so much
that they could be lower. A lot of this has to do with pace
of play. I could maybe see the Warriors getting there, but it also
kind of feels like they're a buddy heel trade away from getting there, like
they would need like someone else with that type of volume, because outside of
Clay and Curry, they don't have a volume three point shooter right now.
This is like not an actual pick, but if Kenny Atkinson gets a job
before next season, whatever team that he's on, I feel like will enter
that convoy. You could say the same for Mike D'Antoni, but I do
feel like he's his style is a little bit more adaptable. Now where if
he like wound up an indie like a lot of people think that he might
or he might be an assistant with Brooklyn. I don't know that his team
will necessarily do that, So I'm just gonna say four. I'm gonna say
Minnesota, Dallas, Houston, and then wherever Kenny Atkinson lands up if if
you mean the ends up up there, or they'll be like a dark horse
where it's like, yeah, you know what, Golden State will get there,
like maybe they make a trade or they lean into three point volume.
I could even see maybe being Toronto get there at some point, especially if
they have a talent deficit, if they lose like a van Fleet, or
if they lose Abaka and Gassol. I'm just gonna say four. That's the
number that I'll settle on. I think my answer is three, but there
are possibilities for more. I'm going to bank on there getting to a fourth,
but they'll definitely be three. I feel like, right, yeah,
it seems like there are those three locks. Well, we have a fifty
three point attempt per games team. No, it would have to be as
soon was the only possibility, and they're not going to do that, I
would say definitely that they won't, Like Daryl Morey is still there, but
I would I would say at least not this season. Like if if they're
going to go up incrementally, you'd think that that's like two seasons away if
they still have Westbrook on the roster, especially because they were at their best
when he was avoiding threes. And if you don't have both backcourt members shooting
a lot, like you're not going to get there. Last question comes from
a long time listener who has told me how to pronounce his name in the
past. I hope I do not butcher it now. But this comes from
Miroslav Shook, and I hope that I did not butcher that terribly. He
asked how many current players are on the NBA's top one hundred all time lists.
Yeah, so this is a tough one just because everyone has different definitions
of what we're ranking. Are we looking at peak level reached over one season,
over five seasons longer? Are we looking at the sum of your contributions
throughout a career, So just kind of taking everything into a count, Like
when we're talking about the top hundred, we're kind of in like Tim Hardaway,
Mitch Richmond, Walt Bellamy, Chris Webber, Territory, which is pretty
lofty already. Now that's said, I have thirteen names that I consider pretty
much locks for the top hundred, and I'm curious if you disagree with any
of these or if there are any that you should we should add to it.
I also have a list of ten that I think you can argue belong.
So are you arguing it as they're currently they're already or they're okay,
they're they're current. Like I don't want to talk about Luca don chich in
his conversation because he is in no way exactly exactly. We can't talk about
Monte Morris here, right, So the thirteen locks Lebron, James, Stephen
Curry, Kevin Durant, Kawhi, Leonard, Jannisanda Dacumbo, James Harden,
Chris Paul Russell, Westbrook, Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard, Carmelo, Anthony
Dwight Howard, and Powcasol. Yeah, I don't. I don't disagree with
any of those names. I'm trying to think of if he's left anyone off
and I can't so my ten like you, you didn't have this, Okay,
go ahead as the name. I'm curious if you're gonna say it's gonna
be on this so my ten, you can make the cases Klay Thompson,
Kyrie Irving, Paul George Blake, Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolai Yokich,
Kevin Love, Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry, and Al Horford. I feel
like you can make a case for either one of those, but Al Horford
might get the boot for me. I feel like his peak was it was
like sustained, but it just wasn't like flashy enough. I think he and
Klay Thompson are the weakest of those ten. Yeah, I'm like, I'm
I want to say we should remove Kyle Lowry because I'm so pro Kyle Lowry,
but like that just doesn't seem like a hot dache that he could make
it there for me. I don't have any major disagreements with you. I
was curiously whether you're gonna mention Yokic? Did you mention him bead in that
group? No, he has not done enough for me yet, like the
top I mean again, like we're talking about like Chris Webber is sh range.
Yeah, and you're right, you're saying currently, Yeah, if we
were gonna say currently, like I'm probably I don't even know if I could
put Clay on there. Definitely not Horford Yokich. Just so you can put
Kyrie in there, I'm not sure you can in there. I'm just saying
if you can't put Kyrie, Who's hit one of the most important shots in
NBA history, Like, I don't think you could put Yokics yet. So
I always Kevin Love and Aldridge I think are the two where I'm like,
yeah, they're probably in there. Definitely Kevin Love, Aldridge. Yeah,
adds peak was so good. That's a tough La Griffin. It's really interesting.
Yeah, I mean I haven't so the last time I did a top
one hundred rankings was I'm looking at the article date now, it was April
twenty fifteen, so like a lot has happened since then, and I it's
it's a really difficult one to answer without sitting down and like actually coming up
with the top hundred, which I don't think is a project that should be
taken lightly. It's one of those where like when I did my Top hundred
and twenty fifteen, I've put hundreds of hours into this thing. It's it's
tough just to answer it out of a mail bag, which is why I
wanted to say, like, here are the locks, Here are the guys
who I think? Are you know in that ninety two one hundred and fifty
range. Just do a bot net rating swinging call today. That is the
final question we have, though. I hope everyone enjoyed the mailbag. If
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with the shout out to the one the only the top one hundred player of
all time, guarantee he's going to get in there. Molik Beasley, Sugar
Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, Marvelous, Marvin Hagler, and Thomas Hearns.
Legends whose four way rivalry define one of the greatest errors in boxing history,
relive their decade of dominance in the new Showtime Sports documentary The Kings, a
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