1 00:00:14,119 --> 00:00:17,800 What is Kraka lacked? Part of the Knots listeners, I am Damn Valley 2 00:00:17,839 --> 00:00:21,199 coming out. You out my fantadis show host Adam from all this time. 3 00:00:21,239 --> 00:00:24,719 I am, however, super pleased and excited to be joined once again by 4 00:00:24,800 --> 00:00:29,559 good friend and colleague Epniture Report Grant Hughes. Follow him on Twitter at gt 5 00:00:29,839 --> 00:00:35,840 Underscore Hughes. This is the second installment of our most Underrated slash Underappreciated player 6 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:39,880 on every NBA team series. We already did the Eastern Conference, so if 7 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:42,960 you've not checked out that podcast, do so right now. What are you 8 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:45,240 waiting for it? And this is going to be the Western Conference podcast. 9 00:00:45,439 --> 00:00:48,560 Before we get started, just a quick reminder to rate, review, and 10 00:00:48,600 --> 00:00:51,640 subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts. That helps us out a ton. 11 00:00:51,920 --> 00:00:55,359 If this is your first time checking us out, consider becoming a permanent 12 00:00:55,359 --> 00:00:58,479 listener. We have a lot of fun around here. We are pleasantly thorough 13 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:03,640 and seriously on serious and modestly and only modestly insufferable. I'd call that a 14 00:01:03,840 --> 00:01:07,159 pretty big win for national UNBA coverage. Follow us on our all our socials 15 00:01:07,599 --> 00:01:11,799 those are in the podcast description. Join our discord channel, have a lot 16 00:01:11,799 --> 00:01:15,920 of fun and good conversations in there. That's also in the podcast description. 17 00:01:15,159 --> 00:01:19,159 We're on YouTube as well, so you can check us out there. And 18 00:01:19,280 --> 00:01:22,640 finally, if you do, if you have already excuse me, subscribed to 19 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:26,439 this podcast, consider helping us out by recommending us to a friend or twenty 20 00:01:26,760 --> 00:01:30,200 retweeting our promotions, anything to just spread the word that this podcast is, 21 00:01:30,239 --> 00:01:36,959 as we say around here, ta f thermoonuclear as fuck in the best possible 22 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:42,480 way. Let's get to the most underrated slash underappreciated player on every Western Conference 23 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:49,120 team with Bleacher Reports, Grant News Grant Welcome back to Hardwood Knops. Dual 24 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:53,840 appearances in the same week, which is not unprecedented for you, it's unprecedented 25 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:57,000 for any single guest who is not you. Adam doesn't even do like dual 26 00:01:57,000 --> 00:02:00,560 episodes a week normally. So just look at you, like, look at 27 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:04,079 this lift right here. Welcome back. I'm excited to get into more underrated 28 00:02:04,079 --> 00:02:07,280 players with you into alphabet so damn accurately, how are you doing? Though 29 00:02:07,319 --> 00:02:12,960 it's been while there have been a few days since the Eastern Conference Inness exercise 30 00:02:13,039 --> 00:02:16,240 was published, we have not spoken in like almost twelve hours, so I'm 31 00:02:16,240 --> 00:02:20,800 just wondering how many life changing things have happened to you since then? So 32 00:02:20,840 --> 00:02:25,599 long? It's been way too long. I you know it just I did 33 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:31,479 a you know, an epp some salt bath and uh did some real got 34 00:02:31,719 --> 00:02:36,800 got the norma tech boots on and really just had to recover because I wanted 35 00:02:36,840 --> 00:02:39,639 to just be in peak form for for the second one, because I care 36 00:02:39,719 --> 00:02:45,000 more about the Western Conference, so I'm really like the the East one that 37 00:02:45,120 --> 00:02:47,599 was you know, I brought like my B minus game, so so this 38 00:02:47,639 --> 00:02:52,960 one, I'm gonna get serious. So glad to be back in such a 39 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:58,199 short turnaround, and I'm ready this time. Look Kuai would be sitting out 40 00:02:58,199 --> 00:03:01,080 this this podcast. Oh yeah, I don't load manage, not at all. 41 00:03:01,520 --> 00:03:05,560 And what a bringing endorsement for the Eastern Conference podcast. By the way, 42 00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:07,879 B minus I was a solid like C plus, So go listen to 43 00:03:07,919 --> 00:03:12,479 that podcast. Let's get off and running, though we're doing every team's most 44 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:15,439 Underrated player. In case you didn't catch that gist, we're in the Western 45 00:03:15,520 --> 00:03:20,319 Conference. We'll go alphabetically grant the Dallas Mavericks are yours? Who did you 46 00:03:20,360 --> 00:03:23,759 pick? And just Stops is no longer on the team, I just want 47 00:03:23,759 --> 00:03:25,879 to tell, Okay, so I have to totally redo this section then, 48 00:03:25,879 --> 00:03:30,360 because you know, I like there are there are a couple of choices I 49 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:34,719 would just shout out. I hate to step on it if if this was 50 00:03:34,759 --> 00:03:36,919 going to be your guy, but I would shout out maxically. But I 51 00:03:36,960 --> 00:03:40,840 feel like he's always kind of underrated as a as a good defender. Like 52 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:44,960 I still go back to when like he was the guy that the MAVs put 53 00:03:44,960 --> 00:03:49,800 on Kawhi Leonard for long stretches of some playoff games when they had other options. 54 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:53,319 But for me, it's Dorian Finney Smith. I feel like that's probably 55 00:03:53,240 --> 00:03:59,039 not a surprise. He's another low usage guy, but for this team in 56 00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:02,159 particular, he just if you have Luca don Chich, who has all these 57 00:04:02,199 --> 00:04:08,199 obvious strengths, but defensively, that's kind of where Luca is lacking to have 58 00:04:08,280 --> 00:04:12,439 a guy that can guard one through four and specifically guard the types of players 59 00:04:12,439 --> 00:04:16,480 that Luca his position should guard to spare him those like those heavier, heavier 60 00:04:16,519 --> 00:04:20,759 lifts on D that really matters. And now I mean, and this isn't 61 00:04:20,759 --> 00:04:25,079 just like, oh we can sort of guard one through four, Finney Smith 62 00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:30,399 can is really good as an effective defender against four positions, and he shoots 63 00:04:30,439 --> 00:04:32,839 thirty nine percent from three basically every year, you know, for the last 64 00:04:32,879 --> 00:04:38,720 three. So that's huge because it's not an issue if you can't create your 65 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:40,959 own shot. If you have one of the best shot creators, that's like 66 00:04:41,079 --> 00:04:45,079 ever walked the Earth on your team. So the fit is great, super 67 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:50,319 versatile. The volume I did this for Fred VanVleet on the Eastern Conference side, 68 00:04:50,920 --> 00:04:55,920 Finney Smith is you know, around the top ten in minutes played this 69 00:04:56,000 --> 00:05:00,959 year. So I always think we underrate just availability because if Finney Smith is 70 00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:04,759 not there, then Dallas's whole thing kind of it gets a lot harder for 71 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:06,920 them to be the type of team they want to be and to be as 72 00:05:06,959 --> 00:05:10,560 good of a defense as they've become if he's not available. But he just 73 00:05:10,639 --> 00:05:15,519 sort of always is his matchup difficulty. Last thing. We've talked about this 74 00:05:15,560 --> 00:05:17,680 a lot for underrated guys because it's kind of something you don't consider that much. 75 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:23,040 It's ninety nine point nine, so the only guy's higher than him in 76 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:26,680 terms of the quality of player they have to guard are lou Dort and mattist 77 00:05:26,720 --> 00:05:30,720 Table. But he's played nine hundred more minutes than Tyble and six hundred more 78 00:05:30,759 --> 00:05:34,040 minutes than Dort, so the volume again comes in for him. So it's 79 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:38,199 just hard to find a better piece for this particular team. But Finney Smith 80 00:05:38,240 --> 00:05:43,079 is someone that I think would make literally any team significantly better. So the 81 00:05:43,439 --> 00:05:49,439 correct answer is Frank Nilikina, but I think that Smith is the best second 82 00:05:49,480 --> 00:05:55,360 answer, and you could drow Cleveland in there too. He looked like cooked. 83 00:05:55,639 --> 00:05:57,720 I don't know how times's gonna say cooked when we record his pocket, 84 00:05:57,759 --> 00:05:59,519 but he did not look great at the start of the season. He's looked 85 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:01,639 better, and I would say him getting healthier, Luca getting in shape, 86 00:06:02,040 --> 00:06:06,360 plus sort of the uptick in Reggie Bullock's performance, and then Dorian Phinney Smith, 87 00:06:06,639 --> 00:06:10,639 who's probably the single biggest reason why the MAVs have been good on defense, 88 00:06:10,720 --> 00:06:14,560 Like those are the four biggest factors when I watched the Mavericks, I 89 00:06:14,560 --> 00:06:18,000 feel like that you can assign to their defensive success this season and outperforming expectations 90 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:20,639 there. And I think the only thing I really have to add with Dorian 91 00:06:20,639 --> 00:06:26,319 Phinny Smith is his three point shot. It's only been thirteen postseason games for 92 00:06:26,399 --> 00:06:29,000 his career, but He's the type of player where you wonder what's going to 93 00:06:29,079 --> 00:06:34,759 happen to him against postseason defense is if he faces either more more like like 94 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:39,000 contests on his shots or they're just gonna leave him open because they don't actually 95 00:06:39,040 --> 00:06:43,079 trust that he's shooting forty point three percent from three in the postseason. Three 96 00:06:43,240 --> 00:06:46,240 was thirteen games, So like this isn't you know, a motist table situation 97 00:06:46,319 --> 00:06:50,560 with him. It's volume is higher than that so or or an outlier situation 98 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:55,279 with lu Dor where he goes off like one's every few games from the perimeter. 99 00:06:55,399 --> 00:07:00,600 So them getting him getting him on the extension. I I'm shocked that 100 00:07:00,639 --> 00:07:03,000 he didn't just go into free agency but four years of fifty two million dollars, 101 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:05,360 and I know that there's a cap on what extensions can be, YadA, 102 00:07:05,439 --> 00:07:10,600 YadA, YadA. I really believe that had he played out the season, 103 00:07:10,600 --> 00:07:13,920 he's probably looking at like a four year at least sixty million dollars deal 104 00:07:13,920 --> 00:07:16,199 on deal. But even in a I guess the cash strapped market this summer, 105 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:20,720 but everyone wants wings who are in their twenties, who can defend four 106 00:07:20,759 --> 00:07:28,199 positions capably. Yep, he's great, but Nuggets they were I don't want 107 00:07:28,199 --> 00:07:30,759 to say they were hard, but I vacillated between three guys. I don't 108 00:07:30,800 --> 00:07:35,879 know if we should be picking rookies in this Otherwise I would pick Bone Thailand. 109 00:07:36,160 --> 00:07:39,279 But I think people are starting to see, like, oh, this 110 00:07:39,360 --> 00:07:42,040 rookie class is so deep, and he's one of the huge reasons why Denver 111 00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:45,879 might have got another steal. He is a capslock shooter, and he is 112 00:07:45,920 --> 00:07:48,759 gonna annihilate defenses off the dribbles for off the dribble, for years to come. 113 00:07:49,240 --> 00:07:51,920 He already has like a nice catch and shoot touch. I've been very 114 00:07:51,959 --> 00:07:55,879 impressed with some of the pastes he's thrown. I think he's gonna be like 115 00:07:56,800 --> 00:08:01,160 in a minus finisher when he's at his peak, just based off like the 116 00:08:01,199 --> 00:08:05,800 way that he angles his body and how he's able to maneuver through traffic a 117 00:08:05,800 --> 00:08:07,639 lot of the time. But I didn't pick him, even though I just 118 00:08:07,639 --> 00:08:13,079 went on a Bones Island Tangent also busy Bones just one of the best nicknames. 119 00:08:13,879 --> 00:08:16,399 I was between Jeff Green and Zeke Nagy. I settled on Zeke Nagy, 120 00:08:16,480 --> 00:08:20,199 but shout out to Jeff Green, who's just settled into like this four 121 00:08:20,319 --> 00:08:24,399 or five role kind of stretches the floor on medium volume, but gives you 122 00:08:24,439 --> 00:08:28,199 a lot of switchability and some like reliable IQ on defense, even if he 123 00:08:28,240 --> 00:08:33,120 has to go up against certain bigs at points. He's from where he was, 124 00:08:33,000 --> 00:08:35,080 like when you go back and look at how it seems like he was 125 00:08:35,120 --> 00:08:39,320 overrated then his careers on the line because he had the heart issue. Then 126 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:41,080 he sort of just all around the NBA. You would trade a first round 127 00:08:41,080 --> 00:08:45,120 pick for him only for him do nothing, and there was normally Doc Rivers 128 00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:48,759 on the receiving ends of those first round pick trades. So and then to 129 00:08:48,759 --> 00:08:52,720 see what he's been now like transitioning into this really valuable front court role player, 130 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:56,039 shout out to him. I think it's Zeke Nagy though. Just his 131 00:08:56,080 --> 00:09:01,960 ability to stroke it from three, I think the biggest hole in his And 132 00:09:01,000 --> 00:09:03,440 he has some like I don't want to call it a floor game, but 133 00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:07,080 there's like some to him when you get him going inside the arc, and 134 00:09:07,120 --> 00:09:13,120 he can be sneaky on certain putbacks Defensively, I think what's tough is he 135 00:09:13,159 --> 00:09:16,679 probably could stand just be more physical, and he's like sort of center sized 136 00:09:16,720 --> 00:09:20,519 but sort of not and the Nuggets don't necessarily use him as they're big. 137 00:09:20,879 --> 00:09:24,159 If you put him on a different team, though, I have no doubt 138 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:26,000 that there are teams in the league I would start him at the five because 139 00:09:26,039 --> 00:09:30,039 he would be their best big men on the roster, or at least the 140 00:09:30,039 --> 00:09:33,080 best equipped to do that. And so to have somebody who's just that mobile 141 00:09:33,159 --> 00:09:37,759 on the offensive end while also being able to hit those threes and stretch the 142 00:09:37,759 --> 00:09:41,799 floor. I know Denver's bench was sort of a point of contention for a 143 00:09:41,799 --> 00:09:46,159 lot of this season, and I believe Naji has been banged up right now. 144 00:09:46,519 --> 00:09:48,600 They've had so many injuries on the roster this year, but yeah, 145 00:09:48,600 --> 00:09:50,120 he's did day to day with an ankle injury. He's just been really good 146 00:09:50,159 --> 00:09:54,519 for them, and I again, there's the shooting at that position, but 147 00:09:54,559 --> 00:09:56,840 it's also just the ability to be a four when you look like you might 148 00:09:56,879 --> 00:10:00,840 be a five, and then just his movement away from the ball on offense. 149 00:10:00,960 --> 00:10:05,600 I think is highly underrated outside of Denver, obviously, because speaking with 150 00:10:05,639 --> 00:10:09,159 people there, I think it's clear that that team values him. For sure. 151 00:10:09,240 --> 00:10:13,120 I think that's a great pick. The only the only other one I 152 00:10:13,279 --> 00:10:16,399 well, there are a couple I consider I think Aaron Gordon every time we're 153 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:18,919 looking up defensive versatility, he's always way up there, and I think that's 154 00:10:18,919 --> 00:10:24,159 a factor. But Monte Morris negative on offense for the past, however many 155 00:10:24,200 --> 00:10:28,399 weeks it's been, I probably wouldn't think a little bit. Perhaps, Yeah, 156 00:10:28,600 --> 00:10:31,799 I always uh. I was thinking about Aaron Gordon today as I was 157 00:10:31,960 --> 00:10:37,759 preparing for this, and he don't do you get like like weird like post 158 00:10:37,879 --> 00:10:41,799 athletic ability Blake Griffin vibes from him where he's kind of just like he's almost 159 00:10:41,840 --> 00:10:46,279 like predetermining his moves on the ball and it just feels like, I don't 160 00:10:46,320 --> 00:10:50,120 know, it feels very mechanical, which is weird because he's like a dunk 161 00:10:50,120 --> 00:10:52,960 contest winning caliber athlete. But I don't know that. I've always thought it 162 00:10:54,000 --> 00:10:58,600 was stupid. We just like remove that image from my brain. Next Ti'm 163 00:10:58,639 --> 00:11:01,399 gonna walt to Aaron Gordon. I'm gonna be thinking about this when he's on 164 00:11:01,440 --> 00:11:05,279 the ball. I hope that's not what he's become on offense. No, 165 00:11:05,039 --> 00:11:09,320 I really want to see that is one of the more recent like bigger what 166 00:11:09,399 --> 00:11:13,279 ifs if Jamal Murray just never gets injured last season, Denver has a case 167 00:11:13,440 --> 00:11:16,480 is like the foremost title favorite, and I just feel like not having Porter 168 00:11:18,039 --> 00:11:22,080 or Murray has shoehorn shoehorned him at points into this offensive role that he was 169 00:11:22,120 --> 00:11:26,399 never suited for. We knew it in Orlando and he wasn't supposed to play 170 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:30,440 it in Denver, but it's kind of been thrust upon him in smaller doses, 171 00:11:30,440 --> 00:11:33,720 but it's still an issue. Yeah, he's a perfect fourth option, 172 00:11:33,919 --> 00:11:35,799 right, Like that's where it's like, he can do stuff on offense if 173 00:11:35,799 --> 00:11:39,039 you absolutely need him to, and it's against the defense that has not loaded 174 00:11:39,039 --> 00:11:41,799 to him then that end, or you just he does stuff in transition that 175 00:11:41,840 --> 00:11:46,480 all works. But just before we go to the Warriors, Monte Morris, 176 00:11:46,519 --> 00:11:50,519 like, you know, he's starting this year just by necessity. His minutes 177 00:11:50,559 --> 00:11:54,360 are up, his shots are up, but his efficiency is also up, 178 00:11:54,399 --> 00:11:58,399 so and that's always such a tough thing to do. It's minor stuff. 179 00:11:58,399 --> 00:12:01,480 He's only origing thirteen a game, but he never turns it over. He's 180 00:12:01,480 --> 00:12:03,960 not asking well, partly because he's not asked to do a lot of point 181 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:07,120 guard things because they have Yokich. But just just a quick nod to him, 182 00:12:07,120 --> 00:12:09,759 we're doing more of those this year than he has in years past. 183 00:12:09,799 --> 00:12:13,799 He's also true or false. Monte Morris has never missed a long and rage 184 00:12:13,840 --> 00:12:18,000 shot. I'm gonna say true, I've never seen it. Yeah, me 185 00:12:18,080 --> 00:12:22,200 too. So I got the Warriors next, and they're a weird team to 186 00:12:22,240 --> 00:12:26,240 do this for because they've been so prominent for so long and they've been on 187 00:12:26,279 --> 00:12:31,360 so it's it's everybody sort of has a rough idea of who does what because 188 00:12:31,399 --> 00:12:35,600 they're on you know, the national stage more often than just about anybody. 189 00:12:35,559 --> 00:12:41,720 I went with Gary Payton the second for a couple a couple of well, 190 00:12:41,840 --> 00:12:46,279 one reason, defense, but a couple of aspects of that. I think 191 00:12:46,399 --> 00:12:50,080 just anecdotally. We'll get to the numbers in a second, but I think 192 00:12:50,120 --> 00:12:54,879 he's the most disruptive on ball defender in the league. And there are guys 193 00:12:54,919 --> 00:12:58,159 like Patrick Beverlely that come to mind in that regard, even though I think 194 00:12:58,159 --> 00:13:03,240 Patrick Beverley overrated because of all the fouling. You know, Marcus Smart is 195 00:13:03,279 --> 00:13:07,120 another guy. I'm sure I'm forgetting several, but I think Peyton on the 196 00:13:07,159 --> 00:13:09,159 ball, it's just like a matter of if he's if he comes in the 197 00:13:09,159 --> 00:13:13,200 game, the over under is like forty five seconds until he deflects a ball 198 00:13:13,399 --> 00:13:16,559 or like knocks it away from a dribbler. It just happens every Timee's like 199 00:13:16,559 --> 00:13:20,360 a joke. It's like a given. So so that's the anecdotal case. 200 00:13:20,639 --> 00:13:26,039 Obviously, he has the highest matchup difficulty on the team just because he You 201 00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:28,519 know, if you have Jordan Poole and you have Steph Curry, neither of 202 00:13:28,519 --> 00:13:31,960 them is going to guard the other team's best offensive guard. It's always going 203 00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:37,039 to be Peyton's some stats now, because it's like just saying he creates havoc 204 00:13:37,080 --> 00:13:39,320 and has a hard job is one thing, but so he's Peyton is tied 205 00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:43,799 with Matisse Tybel for the league lead and deflections for thirty six, which is 206 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:46,919 like Tybell is like an all timer ball deflector already, like he's one of 207 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:50,799 the best. He's just like everywhere all the time. His instincts are nuts, 208 00:13:50,039 --> 00:13:54,559 and Peyton is as good as him per minute in getting deflections. So 209 00:13:56,000 --> 00:14:00,559 that that's kind of wild. That's among guys that have played forty games offensively, 210 00:14:00,559 --> 00:14:03,559 It's it's tough with Peyton. Like that's where maybe if you're saying he's 211 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:07,039 underrated, you sort of have to look away. But he's a passable three 212 00:14:07,039 --> 00:14:09,480 point shooter. He's left open all the time for a reason, but he's 213 00:14:09,559 --> 00:14:13,440 around the league average. I think he's at like thirty six percent last I 214 00:14:13,440 --> 00:14:16,519 saw. Those are all open corner threes. Whatever. He's a super athlete. 215 00:14:16,679 --> 00:14:20,480 He's a really good cutter from the corner. He gets a lot of 216 00:14:20,559 --> 00:14:24,559 duck ins and dunks because his defender is always just like not looking at him. 217 00:14:24,600 --> 00:14:28,480 But still you gotta be opportunistic and advanced. Stats Wise, Raptor has 218 00:14:28,559 --> 00:14:33,120 him as the Warrior's third best player. Estimated plus minus has him as a 219 00:14:33,159 --> 00:14:39,240 second best player. Not saying that's I mean, you know that, but 220 00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:45,080 but like that's a good argument for him being underrated, because nobody would even 221 00:14:45,080 --> 00:14:48,919 consider him as like in the top five or six on the team. So 222 00:14:50,159 --> 00:14:52,879 I think I think he kind of And he's also a guy that was basically 223 00:14:52,879 --> 00:14:54,559 out of the league, you know, and wasn't danger of being out of 224 00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:58,120 league forever until landing in just the right spot that could, you know, 225 00:14:58,200 --> 00:15:01,720 make use of this up he's good at and hide the things that he's not. 226 00:15:01,679 --> 00:15:05,440 He is like Saran rap on defense because it's just like you can't get 227 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:09,879 that stuff unstuck to you. If it's like, that's so hard to manouver 228 00:15:09,000 --> 00:15:11,600 around. So he is. I think he is the right choice the only 229 00:15:11,600 --> 00:15:16,320 other name I would consider here. And also sometimes I'll watch Gary Payton the 230 00:15:16,360 --> 00:15:20,000 Second on offense and I'll think, what if Russell Westbrook played that role on 231 00:15:20,080 --> 00:15:22,720 offense for the Lakers. Maybe they don't have the spacing to make it happen, 232 00:15:24,279 --> 00:15:28,200 but just his willingness to cut. We've seen him used in like screens. 233 00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:31,840 I know people have said like what if Russell Westbrook played the Bruce Brown 234 00:15:31,120 --> 00:15:33,360 role, But it's almost like what if he just played the Gary Payton the 235 00:15:33,440 --> 00:15:37,320 Second role? But that would, I guess, require also hustling on defense, 236 00:15:37,360 --> 00:15:41,919 which is not something he does consistently. So I think the only other 237 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:43,720 name here you could Oh, actually, I'll make two cases. One is 238 00:15:43,720 --> 00:15:48,919 wants Toscano Anderson. It would be very nice if he could hit a free 239 00:15:48,919 --> 00:15:52,480 throw or a wide open shot this season. But he's just a smart player, 240 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:54,600 keeps the ball moving on offense, knows how to not get in anyone 241 00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:58,159 else's way when he doesn't have the ball, and he gives you versatility on 242 00:15:58,200 --> 00:16:02,840 the defensive end. I am a sucker for JTA and I would love to 243 00:16:02,879 --> 00:16:06,399 see him get more consistent minutes with the Dubs, like it feels like a 244 00:16:06,399 --> 00:16:08,519 lot of his playing time is sort of tethered to either how Steve kirstyling that 245 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:11,600 day or how many people are injured, but he has been it's been a 246 00:16:11,720 --> 00:16:15,120 rough pass for him offensively. I think you can make the case, and 247 00:16:15,159 --> 00:16:18,440 I'm not trying to galaxy brain this ship here, I promise I think you 248 00:16:18,480 --> 00:16:22,639 can make the case that Steph is still underrated because I and maybe this is 249 00:16:22,679 --> 00:16:27,000 recentcy biased, but I did an MVP Ladder Apleacher Report and people were mad 250 00:16:27,440 --> 00:16:33,399 that I had him fourth because he went through a slump or the Warriors were 251 00:16:33,399 --> 00:16:37,879 five hundred or whatever the record was without Draymond Green, or he only had 252 00:16:37,480 --> 00:16:41,759 was eight points against the Bucks, and I used this example. I don't 253 00:16:41,759 --> 00:16:44,559 know why I talked about on the Easter because we were talking about Drew Holiday, 254 00:16:44,600 --> 00:16:47,879 but I used this example. If you get a team like the Bucks 255 00:16:48,360 --> 00:16:52,120 to say that Drew Holiday's basically only job is going to be to face guard 256 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:57,440 you and pay attention to nothing else that is happening. No one else commands 257 00:16:57,480 --> 00:17:03,159 that type of attention in league, and he changes just the geometry of an 258 00:17:03,200 --> 00:17:06,880 offense by stepping on the floor, not by having a ball, not by 259 00:17:06,920 --> 00:17:10,799 moving, just his existence. He could be standing in the corner and that 260 00:17:10,960 --> 00:17:15,640 changes everything. So I'm not here to say that he's actually underrated. He's 261 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:18,559 an MVP, so I get it. I totally. He's the only unanimous 262 00:17:18,599 --> 00:17:22,400 MVP in NBA history. But I feel like there's still a lack of appreciation 263 00:17:23,039 --> 00:17:26,599 for what he does, or a lack of nuance for his value, because 264 00:17:26,599 --> 00:17:30,240 it's not forget about the Yeah, okay, they struggled without Draymond. Let's 265 00:17:30,240 --> 00:17:33,640 go see how the Warriors look now that they're not gonna have Steph Curry for 266 00:17:33,640 --> 00:17:37,359 at least a few weeks here, They're probably gonna be much worse. And 267 00:17:37,640 --> 00:17:42,279 that's just it still blows my mind after all these years, and some of 268 00:17:42,279 --> 00:17:47,319 the arguments I think are designed to make people angry, where they say, 269 00:17:47,680 --> 00:17:51,400 you know, he doesn't have a finals MVP like and he had Kevin Durant, 270 00:17:51,400 --> 00:17:53,680 and it's like, okay, but not so stuff like that I can 271 00:17:53,720 --> 00:17:57,839 throw out the window. But the fact that we can't look and or some 272 00:17:57,880 --> 00:18:00,720 people can't look at and just the MVP race, I'm not saying he should 273 00:18:00,720 --> 00:18:03,279 win and maybe there was a case for him earlier on in the season, 274 00:18:03,599 --> 00:18:07,319 but to think that putting him in the top five this season when his team 275 00:18:07,359 --> 00:18:11,720 is still really good overall and he remains the primary reason why, that still 276 00:18:11,759 --> 00:18:15,359 just blows my mind. So he's not my pick. I would go with 277 00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:18,400 Garrett Payton second or JTA. But he just like he sort of had a 278 00:18:18,400 --> 00:18:21,839 case for the most Improved Player when he was the unanimous m VP. It 279 00:18:21,839 --> 00:18:25,920 feels like that type of a situation here, I think. I think the 280 00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:30,160 way I'd put it is is he's the greatest scorer ever who impacts the game 281 00:18:30,559 --> 00:18:33,960 if in a in the most significant way of anyone on the floor. If 282 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:38,559 he's like over twenty, like it doesn't then they're just just just to use 283 00:18:38,599 --> 00:18:44,400 an example, like you know a great great scorers that are that are good 284 00:18:44,400 --> 00:18:48,599 another way, like Demargaro's and like best isolation scorer around right now, like 285 00:18:48,680 --> 00:18:52,960 that type of thing. If he's not scoring, it's not like it frees 286 00:18:52,039 --> 00:18:56,440 up stuff for other guys. Like just Curry's presence and the way that he 287 00:18:56,480 --> 00:19:00,599 moves and the way that he's willing to do stuff off the ball. It's 288 00:19:00,640 --> 00:19:04,160 just it makes it so yeah, to your point that the Bucks tried this 289 00:19:04,240 --> 00:19:08,519 Drew Holiday, you know, face guard thing, and Curry did basically nothing 290 00:19:08,640 --> 00:19:14,279 except run around and get off the ball and and and just accept it. 291 00:19:14,599 --> 00:19:17,839 And the Worriors beat the defending chances by like twenty they were they would they 292 00:19:17,880 --> 00:19:21,559 boat raced him early like it was just over And I don't know how It's 293 00:19:21,640 --> 00:19:23,920 like, I don't know who else one gets that kind of treatment, like 294 00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:29,240 you said in two, would have that be like kind of the predictable result, 295 00:19:29,519 --> 00:19:32,880 because yeah, you're face guarding him, but all four other guys still 296 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:36,480 are freaking out the second he has like a sliver of space, and there's 297 00:19:36,519 --> 00:19:41,960 just there's just there's just never been anyone who's best skill scoring can be bottled 298 00:19:42,039 --> 00:19:47,359 up and it still doesn't matter for how or actually sometimes it has a positive 299 00:19:47,359 --> 00:19:51,000 effect on how well his team scores when he does. It's it's a wild 300 00:19:51,000 --> 00:19:53,359 thing. Yeah, that I take your point. It's it's hard, it's 301 00:19:53,400 --> 00:20:00,160 hard to encapsulate how great he is, you know, without without sort of 302 00:20:00,400 --> 00:20:03,680 feeling like ridiculous because he has one two MVPs. But anyway, yeah, 303 00:20:03,720 --> 00:20:07,599 I like that is there like a similar case to be made for Draymond, 304 00:20:10,559 --> 00:20:14,680 So like well, sure, because I think there are people that look at 305 00:20:14,839 --> 00:20:17,519 like what is the average eight seven and seven, and it's like, well, 306 00:20:17,519 --> 00:20:19,480 how good is this guy? Right? That's just such a you know, 307 00:20:19,599 --> 00:20:22,839 we should I hope nobody is listening to this that thinks that. I 308 00:20:22,880 --> 00:20:27,680 hope. I hope we have like a little I don't know, higher basketball 309 00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:33,680 I Q audience in that. But defensively, like, yeah, he's kind 310 00:20:33,680 --> 00:20:37,599 of similar where you know, the things that he does are hard to perceive. 311 00:20:37,880 --> 00:20:41,000 But I don't think there's any question to me. I still think he's 312 00:20:41,039 --> 00:20:44,119 the best defensive player in the league. And like, call me a bias, 313 00:20:44,200 --> 00:20:47,079 but for DPO, I if he didn't miss time with the back stuff 314 00:20:47,519 --> 00:20:49,960 agree, because they were the Warriors were the best defense by a considerable margin. 315 00:20:51,240 --> 00:20:55,079 And and it's not like other than him, there's any Peyton, sure, 316 00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:57,920 but he's like a low minute guy to get to get that done with. 317 00:20:59,279 --> 00:21:02,640 You know, Curry playing a ton of minutes, he's passable. Pool 318 00:21:02,720 --> 00:21:06,880 is a bad defender still, and and you know Cominga doesn't know what to 319 00:21:06,920 --> 00:21:08,359 do half the time. Still, there's a lot of guys getting minutes that 320 00:21:08,440 --> 00:21:12,880 just aren't aren't aren't great defenders. So yeah, I Green could be underrated 321 00:21:12,920 --> 00:21:15,920 in that regard too. I think I think he just gets overlooked because he 322 00:21:15,960 --> 00:21:19,440 doesn't do things that uh you know, pop out in the in the box 323 00:21:19,519 --> 00:21:25,640 scort to use another super hack, uh take on him. To appreciate what 324 00:21:25,720 --> 00:21:27,000 he does in real time, you have to watch what's happening away from the 325 00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:30,640 ball, And for someone like me, and I try to fully admit this, 326 00:21:30,960 --> 00:21:33,839 just as someone who can't comprehend like the decision making and real time xs 327 00:21:33,880 --> 00:21:37,599 and os of MBA basketball, you have to go back and watch things or 328 00:21:37,680 --> 00:21:41,039 read things about him. I think it was the breakdown he did with was 329 00:21:41,039 --> 00:21:45,000 it Doris Burke on ESPN plus I can't remember who he did it with. 330 00:21:45,079 --> 00:21:48,559 I think it was Doris Burke. That was just exceptionally insightful. And I 331 00:21:48,559 --> 00:21:51,759 feel like that's probably where the discrepancy lies with this value. If you're only 332 00:21:51,759 --> 00:21:53,759 looking at the box sort were expecting him, where you're watching the plays where 333 00:21:53,799 --> 00:21:57,960 you understand, like why are you passing up open opportunities at the rim that 334 00:21:59,240 --> 00:22:02,440 like, those are the things that are going to resonate more in real time. 335 00:22:02,680 --> 00:22:06,160 So I think he does have a case there, But in terms of 336 00:22:06,200 --> 00:22:11,720 just like someone who can carry an entire team, and the rush to prove 337 00:22:11,759 --> 00:22:15,240 that he can't steph Curry still like sort of checks that box for me. 338 00:22:15,599 --> 00:22:18,599 But again, maybe I'm galaxy braining this ship, not the spirit of this 339 00:22:18,680 --> 00:22:22,240 exercise, So the rockets are weird. I said I wouldn't pick a rookie, 340 00:22:22,440 --> 00:22:26,160 but I'm basically gonna pick a rookie. I'm gonna hedge here, so 341 00:22:26,519 --> 00:22:30,000 Eric Gordon. I think it's fair and there, But there's also something I 342 00:22:30,039 --> 00:22:33,640 can't wrap my head around. Is he's either underrated because the fact that no 343 00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:36,680 one would give up a first round pick to get him at the deadline is 344 00:22:36,720 --> 00:22:41,240 blasphemist to me, or he's overrated because Houston wouldn't accept the first round pick 345 00:22:41,279 --> 00:22:45,359 together and it's like, Okay, what are you guys doing? He I 346 00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:48,160 know people don't like his contract. That final season is only gonna be guaranteed 347 00:22:48,400 --> 00:22:51,880 if you win a championship or he makes an All Star team and hits a 348 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:56,880 minute's threshold. And news flash, I don't care if your fucking owner is 349 00:22:56,960 --> 00:23:00,880 Robert Sarver. If you win a championship or Eric Gordon makes an All Star 350 00:23:00,920 --> 00:23:03,960 team, you will be happy to pay out or should be happy to pay 351 00:23:03,960 --> 00:23:07,519 out that third year salary. Also, this is not Russell Westbrook's expiring salary. 352 00:23:07,559 --> 00:23:11,400 If for some reason it was guaranteed, you can move. I think 353 00:23:11,400 --> 00:23:15,079 it's like twenty two million. That's less than half of what Westbrook Is gonna 354 00:23:15,119 --> 00:23:18,079 make next year. You can move off that expiring contract again if it becomes 355 00:23:18,079 --> 00:23:22,599 guaranteed, which if it does, means that you probably want a title. 356 00:23:22,880 --> 00:23:26,279 So I just want to make that clear. He has been so valuable as 357 00:23:26,319 --> 00:23:29,240 just someone who he's done more with the ball in his hands. We know 358 00:23:29,359 --> 00:23:32,920 not only about his value as a three point shooter, but the ultralong distance 359 00:23:32,960 --> 00:23:34,839 three is when he's not on the ball, Those help spread out an offense 360 00:23:34,880 --> 00:23:38,440 a ton, even when they're not necessarily going down. We've seen better iterations 361 00:23:38,559 --> 00:23:42,160 of the rockets where he is shot worse overall from the three. But the 362 00:23:42,200 --> 00:23:48,359 distance on his looks account for a lot of what the geographical aesthetics, let's 363 00:23:48,400 --> 00:23:52,839 say, of Houston's offense and its success. And then this season, like 364 00:23:52,960 --> 00:23:57,079 you want someone who can put real rim pressure without needing this huge head start 365 00:23:57,119 --> 00:24:00,200 in the half court, it is him, guys, will he can barrel 366 00:24:00,240 --> 00:24:04,519 through defenses. He's not a bad finisher. There are a hundred and here's 367 00:24:04,519 --> 00:24:08,000 a stack. There are one hundred and fifty eight players who have used or 368 00:24:08,039 --> 00:24:14,200 finished at least two hundred drives this season. Eric Gordon is sixth in field 369 00:24:14,200 --> 00:24:18,200 goal percentage on drives among that group, at fifty eight or excusing fifty seven 370 00:24:18,240 --> 00:24:22,440 point seven percent. That is, the only players in front of him are 371 00:24:22,519 --> 00:24:27,319 Joel embiid Janis, Kale Bridges, Sabonis and I bet this is the I 372 00:24:27,359 --> 00:24:33,880 bet you can't even guess who's in first place. I don't know. It's 373 00:24:36,720 --> 00:24:40,000 because he's not getting to the basket on these plays. He's taking those like 374 00:24:40,599 --> 00:24:44,599 short little mid rangers. He's shooting yokis. This is not yoking. Seventy 375 00:24:44,599 --> 00:24:48,759 point two percent on drives. That is that leaves the league among one hundred 376 00:24:48,759 --> 00:24:51,359 and fifty eight players who have used it least in hungry. I'm sorry, 377 00:24:51,400 --> 00:24:55,799 that's absurd. Those aren't drives though, Those are saunters. Those are casual, 378 00:24:56,079 --> 00:25:00,640 casual sachets. I'm so stealing that for something. Nicoleon the league in 379 00:25:00,640 --> 00:25:07,720 field goal percentage on downhill sachets. So Eric Gordon I think has become underrated. 380 00:25:07,759 --> 00:25:10,119 And he's also someone that I don't know that I would call him a 381 00:25:10,160 --> 00:25:12,799 good defender, but if you needed him to defend up to the three spot, 382 00:25:14,039 --> 00:25:15,799 he can still do it, and so I would have traded for him. 383 00:25:15,799 --> 00:25:18,319 I really wanted Phoenix to trade for him. I think they would have 384 00:25:18,359 --> 00:25:22,160 been They are title favorites, but I think they would have been a championship 385 00:25:22,200 --> 00:25:26,240 formality had they traded for Eric Gordon. That's how high on Eric Gordon. 386 00:25:26,279 --> 00:25:29,759 I am met on Phoenix obviously, but I have to pick Josh Christopher here. 387 00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:32,680 And I don't know how many people listen to podcasts, I've seen a 388 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:37,920 ton of him. He is peskies hell and there's like a like what if 389 00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:41,599 Mike Conley had an edge to his game. That's the vibe I get when 390 00:25:41,640 --> 00:25:45,039 I watch him. There's like a confidence when he's pulling up off the dribble. 391 00:25:45,319 --> 00:25:51,160 He makes these like very difficult passes look easy, but the fact that 392 00:25:51,160 --> 00:25:53,400 he's making them in the first place, there's like a bravado there to them. 393 00:25:53,960 --> 00:25:57,720 He can be like I don't want to say he's a wizard at playmaking 394 00:25:57,720 --> 00:26:02,000 in the open floor, but he's danger as a decision maker in the open 395 00:26:02,039 --> 00:26:06,319 floor, and he would work on defense. I am so intrigued by every 396 00:26:06,359 --> 00:26:10,799 single one of Houston's rookies. And I'll also give an honorable mention to Usman 397 00:26:10,880 --> 00:26:12,920 Druba included, because it would have been nice if they just uncorked him a 398 00:26:12,920 --> 00:26:17,319 bunch this season. I understand he was considered one of the ross prospects in 399 00:26:17,359 --> 00:26:19,920 the draft, but you talk about when I went back, I watched minimal 400 00:26:21,119 --> 00:26:23,720 film on him, so admit that it looks like he might be able to 401 00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:27,480 defend twenty seven of the five positions that are on the floor, just the 402 00:26:29,240 --> 00:26:32,839 positions on the floor on the same possession. So I think Houston has a 403 00:26:32,920 --> 00:26:36,240 very intriguing asset base. But Josh Christopher is sort of he was probably the 404 00:26:36,319 --> 00:26:40,079 rookie that was talked and not just because he was drafted lowest for them, 405 00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:42,039 but he was a rookie that was talked about the least among those four in 406 00:26:42,119 --> 00:26:48,599 Shangoon Guruba and then of course Jalen Green. I'm he's another one of those 407 00:26:48,599 --> 00:26:49,880 players where I don't know what he's going to end up as in the NBA. 408 00:26:51,000 --> 00:26:55,480 But of non star career ox Ox Arcas, I can't talk today. 409 00:26:55,480 --> 00:26:57,799 It tellesn't matter with me too much. Podcasting over the past few hours. 410 00:26:57,880 --> 00:27:00,480 I'm gonna be watching him. Besides, think he's going to be really good 411 00:27:00,480 --> 00:27:04,799 and that the rocket's mind of potential gem there. I like it. I 412 00:27:04,799 --> 00:27:08,039 would have gone Gordon too, I just think because because I am not really 413 00:27:08,079 --> 00:27:11,319 considering contracts so much for this. But I think that's part of the reason 414 00:27:11,400 --> 00:27:15,519 that he definitely gets into the underrated conversation. The only other name might throw 415 00:27:15,559 --> 00:27:21,119 out as Garrison Matthews just shooting matters. I think he should be fired. 416 00:27:21,279 --> 00:27:25,960 But yes, yeah, well yeah, what he's he's your what what what's 417 00:27:25,960 --> 00:27:29,200 your Duncan Robinson? Comp for him? What you called Duncan Robinson? Eighty 418 00:27:29,240 --> 00:27:34,559 million dollars Garrison Matthews or it's not that far off, except that Garrison Matthews 419 00:27:34,599 --> 00:27:38,440 does have a superpower, which is getting laid out, trying to get over 420 00:27:38,480 --> 00:27:41,640 the top of screens and drawing offensive fouls. Nobody in the league is better 421 00:27:41,640 --> 00:27:45,440 than that, better at him, better at that than him. I can't 422 00:27:45,440 --> 00:27:48,200 talk either, So like I think, if you look up in the hust 423 00:27:48,200 --> 00:27:51,400 I should have done this. But if you look up on an NBA NBA 424 00:27:51,480 --> 00:27:53,839 dot COM's hustle stats where they have charges drawn, he's got a whole bunch 425 00:27:53,839 --> 00:27:57,200 of them and like all of them are that where he's just getting he just 426 00:27:57,279 --> 00:28:00,519 like bursts into flame. Is when he tries to get around a big guye 427 00:28:00,559 --> 00:28:04,400 on the screen and like flies twenty feet away, like in a like a 428 00:28:04,480 --> 00:28:08,559 Michael Bay movie or something like. He's he's super good at that and he 429 00:28:08,599 --> 00:28:12,160 gets away with it all the time, and it's great an offense too. 430 00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:15,279 His free throw, yeah, he takes normal charges. Oh yeah, I 431 00:28:15,279 --> 00:28:18,119 know, I see what you're saying. Yeah, he's more than well. 432 00:28:18,160 --> 00:28:22,000 He jumps way forward on his three point shot too. He's like he's he's 433 00:28:22,039 --> 00:28:26,960 like low key one of the like best game like most has the most gamesmanship 434 00:28:27,079 --> 00:28:30,519 in the league for like a guy that nobody ever sees, you know. 435 00:28:30,640 --> 00:28:33,599 He kind of reminds me of did you ever play the three point contest in 436 00:28:33,720 --> 00:28:37,599 like the NBA Live video games where it felt like if you held down the 437 00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:41,720 shoot button long enough they would land inside the art. Yeah, yeah, 438 00:28:41,759 --> 00:28:47,440 yeah, yeah, he's got that. Uh No, Eric Gordon is the 439 00:28:47,480 --> 00:28:52,759 right pick. We are now onto the Los Angeles Clippers, another tough team, 440 00:28:52,880 --> 00:28:56,599 especially this year because there's a bunch of guys that have been bumped up 441 00:28:56,640 --> 00:29:02,079 into you know, bigger roles than they otherwise would have played. So, 442 00:29:02,279 --> 00:29:04,680 like, you know, Terrence Man, I think probably although he had that 443 00:29:04,759 --> 00:29:08,240 huge playoff game against the Jazz, that kind of might actually have him overrated, 444 00:29:10,079 --> 00:29:11,960 But I like him a lot. I went with Nick Batoum. I'm 445 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:15,920 pretty sure I mentioned him more than once on the East Pod because I just 446 00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:19,039 like to compare guys that are low usage, smart, good passers, lord 447 00:29:19,119 --> 00:29:22,119 versatile defenders. I feel like all my underrated guys have kind of fit that 448 00:29:22,160 --> 00:29:27,839 mold. But I think a couple of factors kind of add to him being 449 00:29:27,920 --> 00:29:32,759 underrated, and one is that I still feel like he's thought of in tandem 450 00:29:32,759 --> 00:29:36,640 with the twenty sixteen contract he signed that was immediately like one of the worst, 451 00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:38,400 you know, that was what you'd point to when it went bad for 452 00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:42,079 him in Charlotte as like one of the worst, you know, twenty sixteen 453 00:29:42,119 --> 00:29:47,160 deals in a summer of really terrible ones. But you know, again not 454 00:29:47,240 --> 00:29:49,319 his fault, like you're gonna say no to that, like what you know, 455 00:29:49,759 --> 00:29:52,559 big deal. I could see Charlotte hornets Man being a little peeved though, 456 00:29:52,640 --> 00:29:56,160 just like this is what he becomes after he was right and he was 457 00:29:56,200 --> 00:30:00,279 never a locker room problem there. It is credit, but like he's doing 458 00:30:00,279 --> 00:30:02,799 so much more for the Clippers over the past two seasons they did over his 459 00:30:02,880 --> 00:30:06,480 final two in Charlotte. Yeah, no, I agree, And part of 460 00:30:06,480 --> 00:30:08,000 that was injury. I think he had an elbow injury towards the end of 461 00:30:08,039 --> 00:30:11,680 that. But he just heat disappointed he didn't live up to the contract. 462 00:30:11,799 --> 00:30:14,519 And I don't I don't hold that against him. You know, four position 463 00:30:14,559 --> 00:30:17,599 defender, he's a he's slowed down a little bit. I think, you 464 00:30:17,640 --> 00:30:21,240 know, last year was really the revelation that because you know, he was 465 00:30:21,880 --> 00:30:25,400 kind of on the way out, it seemed like. But still, you 466 00:30:25,400 --> 00:30:29,240 know, in three of the last four years in terms of points per shot 467 00:30:29,279 --> 00:30:32,079 attempt, he's kind of up, you know, above the eightieth percentile. 468 00:30:32,160 --> 00:30:33,920 So he doesn't shoot a lot, he doesn't create a lot of his own 469 00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:37,720 offense, but he makes the shots that are created for him, and he 470 00:30:37,759 --> 00:30:40,799 moves the ball quick when he doesn't have it. So I just think, 471 00:30:41,400 --> 00:30:44,079 you know, on a team like the Clippers that are going to be built 472 00:30:44,079 --> 00:30:48,640 around stars in theory, once everybody's healthy and can just put these nasty you 473 00:30:48,680 --> 00:30:53,039 know, all everybody's six seven to six nine lineups on there on the floor 474 00:30:53,079 --> 00:30:56,400 in a playoff game, but two figures into that heavily, and the fact 475 00:30:56,400 --> 00:31:00,680 that he doesn't need anything drawn up for him to be effective, like really 476 00:31:00,720 --> 00:31:04,880 matters when you're gonna have two high usage stars. So I know I will 477 00:31:06,039 --> 00:31:08,119 concede that. You know, the advanced metrics don't like him, the on 478 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:14,359 off stuff doesn't like him this year. But I'm just I'm just I'm just 479 00:31:14,400 --> 00:31:17,920 thinking of him in terms of what he means to this team at full strength, 480 00:31:17,960 --> 00:31:19,759 and just like you know, what he actually is capable of doing on 481 00:31:19,799 --> 00:31:23,759 the floor, I don't think is appreciated very much. I think that's a 482 00:31:25,039 --> 00:31:26,599 I think that's the right answer. I think you can make a case for 483 00:31:26,680 --> 00:31:30,759 Norman Powell given what it costs to get him out of Portland. That was 484 00:31:30,759 --> 00:31:33,440 an abomination of a trade by the Blazers. I'll stand by that, unless 485 00:31:33,480 --> 00:31:38,839 Keian Johnson turned into the next big thing or they use their flexibility to actually 486 00:31:38,839 --> 00:31:42,119 do something inspiring this offseason. I would bet against the ladder. I bet 487 00:31:42,160 --> 00:31:45,200 against both those snarrats cotting out. I think I might have picked a mere 488 00:31:45,279 --> 00:31:51,039 coffee though, just and I don't know if this is sort of an instance 489 00:31:51,119 --> 00:31:55,960 of circumstance where he's putting up No, they're not gaudy numbers, but like 490 00:31:56,000 --> 00:31:59,599 he's having an opportunity he wouldn't otherwise have. They've given a more on ball 491 00:31:59,640 --> 00:32:02,799 response ability because of what their point guartation has become. He's been solid for 492 00:32:02,799 --> 00:32:07,759 them Defensively, He's shooting fifty four percent basically on two's nearly thirty seven percent 493 00:32:07,759 --> 00:32:12,519 on mostly above the break triples this season. There's a plug and play element 494 00:32:12,519 --> 00:32:16,279 to his offense, but he can get by defenders when he's using his left 495 00:32:16,319 --> 00:32:21,839 hand. So I think that he's someone who becomes he's found money right now, 496 00:32:21,880 --> 00:32:23,559 but if you scale him to the longer term version of this roster, 497 00:32:23,880 --> 00:32:29,079 he fits with the motif that you just outlined of let's just throw out these 498 00:32:29,160 --> 00:32:32,279 hillacious lineups that don't necessarily have a big and they're going to defend their asses 499 00:32:32,319 --> 00:32:36,039 off and be able to do a bunch of different things on offense. I'm 500 00:32:36,039 --> 00:32:39,039 just not sure given how much credit la is received for one it's defense, 501 00:32:39,400 --> 00:32:44,039 and then two, I think we've looked at players like Reggie Jackson. The 502 00:32:44,599 --> 00:32:49,440 coaching job of course of Tylou even more a mere coffee has just been like 503 00:32:49,519 --> 00:32:52,319 absolutely rock solid for them, and that's after playing you know, this is 504 00:32:52,599 --> 00:32:57,359 I look at this is essentially his rookie season too, because he's played sub 505 00:32:57,400 --> 00:33:00,720 It was about sixty games in this first two years come by before this season. 506 00:33:00,759 --> 00:33:05,599 He's already played in at this recording sixty games this year. So I'm 507 00:33:05,599 --> 00:33:09,079 fascinated to see whether he's someone who sticks with them because at like six seven, 508 00:33:09,319 --> 00:33:13,440 handle the ball a little bit, shoot threes off the catch and above 509 00:33:13,480 --> 00:33:15,640 the b I don't even even stand in the corner. I know, above 510 00:33:15,680 --> 00:33:17,039 the break. Technically he could be in the way if that's where he's standing, 511 00:33:17,079 --> 00:33:21,000 but they don't need to be. These short threes. He's shooting better 512 00:33:21,039 --> 00:33:23,920 out above the break threes than on corner triples this season. I'm just I'm 513 00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:28,079 intrigued by him. And so the Clippers have done. They've been scrappy as 514 00:33:28,119 --> 00:33:30,759 any anyone this year, and I think that they've found, you know, 515 00:33:31,039 --> 00:33:35,480 just like they found Nick Batoum last year. I feel like they're m Terrence 516 00:33:35,519 --> 00:33:38,839 Man as well. They're finding like Isaiah Hartenstein and a Mere Coffee like those 517 00:33:38,880 --> 00:33:43,960 are guys that I think can help them when they're at full strength. Yeah, 518 00:33:44,000 --> 00:33:49,200 and I think, you know, sometimes in a position like this where 519 00:33:49,519 --> 00:33:52,079 the big guns are out and it's kind of becomes a it's like a well, 520 00:33:52,119 --> 00:33:54,759 somebody's got to get the number situation, you know, if but the 521 00:33:54,759 --> 00:33:59,000 Clippers aren't a bad team, so it's not it's not like, you know, 522 00:33:59,119 --> 00:34:01,480 to just it's not like we're struggling to find Oh, like, man, 523 00:34:01,519 --> 00:34:05,279 look at this guy on the pistons or the or the rockets or the 524 00:34:05,519 --> 00:34:08,199 or the magic or whatever that's getting numbers and a coffee is not A coffee 525 00:34:08,239 --> 00:34:13,039 is different than that because the Clippers are actually competitive and it's not like he's 526 00:34:13,079 --> 00:34:15,199 just putting up volume. So it's it is kind of similar in that, 527 00:34:15,239 --> 00:34:19,280 like he wouldn't have gotten this shot had the Clippers been as good as they 528 00:34:19,280 --> 00:34:22,079 wanted to be. But the fact that you know, somebody's got to get 529 00:34:22,119 --> 00:34:27,360 these numbers, it doesn't mean that his numbers are are meaningless like they might 530 00:34:27,400 --> 00:34:30,000 be on a bad team. It's it's a little bit different, if anything. 531 00:34:30,000 --> 00:34:32,719 It would be like if he was averaging fifteen point let's seems averaging double 532 00:34:32,840 --> 00:34:36,000 the points where he's at eight point eight for the year. If he was 533 00:34:36,000 --> 00:34:39,239 averaging fifteen points per game, and he was shooting like forty three percent on 534 00:34:39,320 --> 00:34:43,199 two's and thirty three percent. Like then it's, oh, is this a 535 00:34:43,199 --> 00:34:45,239 matter of volume? But I's he's on a team that really hasn't been that 536 00:34:45,280 --> 00:34:49,320 great on offense this year, and they've been banged up, like no Paul 537 00:34:49,360 --> 00:34:52,719 George, no Kauai and then even losing Norman Powell immediately have do they get 538 00:34:52,800 --> 00:34:58,199 him? So I'm interested to see any he's like, he's not young, 539 00:34:58,440 --> 00:35:00,039 but he's young. He's twenty four, and so this is someone that I 540 00:35:00,079 --> 00:35:05,440 think could help them or another team just moving forward. Do I have to 541 00:35:05,480 --> 00:35:07,519 pick someone for the Lakers. I'm glad you do, because I have no 542 00:35:07,559 --> 00:35:10,239 idea who what I would think. I'm gonna scramble while you start talking. 543 00:35:10,679 --> 00:35:16,079 So I like stared at their death chart for forever and I didn't even know 544 00:35:16,119 --> 00:35:20,840 who to pick. I think this is the state of their team. I 545 00:35:20,840 --> 00:35:23,000 think you could make a case for Mellow. I'm not going to, but 546 00:35:23,360 --> 00:35:29,280 I think you can make a case for Mellow because he is still like he's 547 00:35:29,320 --> 00:35:31,239 clearly not a star and he's going to hurt you on defense, but the 548 00:35:31,280 --> 00:35:36,000 lineups they have him in this year where there are times where he's basically the 549 00:35:36,000 --> 00:35:38,239 center, even if he's not actually the center, and then he's quietly just 550 00:35:38,519 --> 00:35:43,039 playing way more minutes than he should, but also shooting way better than you 551 00:35:43,039 --> 00:35:45,719 would think he would on threes and averaging more points than he would Just I 552 00:35:46,320 --> 00:35:51,280 respect that when you're now in your late thirties and you're still able to get 553 00:35:51,559 --> 00:35:53,960 outside buckets with any semblance of a fit, I don't care how they're coming, 554 00:35:53,960 --> 00:35:57,519 and they're still shocks he takes where it's like, oh, this is 555 00:35:57,559 --> 00:36:00,960 too much mellow. That's not Mellow's fault anymore. There's too much mellow. 556 00:36:00,000 --> 00:36:05,760 Because the Lakers built their roster their offseason was I don't know what it was. 557 00:36:05,880 --> 00:36:07,280 It was a disaster and we don't need to labor it. I went 558 00:36:07,320 --> 00:36:13,599 with Austin Reeves. Yeah, I don't think that there's unless you really believe 559 00:36:13,639 --> 00:36:16,480 in sort of the Malik Monk has come on this year. I don't think 560 00:36:16,480 --> 00:36:21,480 that makes him underrated. I firmly believe that he probably could have gotten more 561 00:36:21,519 --> 00:36:23,639 than minimum money elsewhere, or maybe he couldn't have. I thought about this 562 00:36:23,639 --> 00:36:28,639 too, because when he signed with the Lakers, they've given Kendrick Nunn more 563 00:36:28,639 --> 00:36:31,480 money. At the time, so I like, if you want to say 564 00:36:31,519 --> 00:36:35,000 he's the pick here, that's fine. If you want to say it's town 565 00:36:35,039 --> 00:36:37,840 Horton Tucker who's come on of late, I kind of get that. I 566 00:36:37,920 --> 00:36:40,320 just feel like he should be way better defensively than he is. There are 567 00:36:40,360 --> 00:36:44,920 games where it actively looks like he's trying to help the other team extend their 568 00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:50,679 lead when he's on defense. So I went with Austin Reeves just because I 569 00:36:50,719 --> 00:36:54,159 guess the out of nowhere element here. But he's hit enough of his spot 570 00:36:54,199 --> 00:36:59,480 up triples to be a threat from out there. And he is basically the 571 00:36:59,519 --> 00:37:04,519 only Acres guard that can still or wing that consistently stays in front of anyone 572 00:37:04,800 --> 00:37:08,880 on defense, so to see him work there. And he's also like shooting 573 00:37:08,960 --> 00:37:15,119 seventy plus percent between four and fourteen feet and seventy three percent at the rim. 574 00:37:15,159 --> 00:37:17,119 It's minimal volume. We're talking about a sub fifty shot sample size here. 575 00:37:17,199 --> 00:37:21,800 So far, I don't care, just because he's been like very like. 576 00:37:22,079 --> 00:37:23,840 You watch him and it's like, this is someone who, even if 577 00:37:23,920 --> 00:37:28,159 LA was a little bit better, he might actually be in their rotation. 578 00:37:28,239 --> 00:37:31,360 I do not think that he is a substitute for Alex Caruso, just because 579 00:37:31,360 --> 00:37:37,760 they're both Caucasian and we're surprisingly good and came out of nowhere, I guess 580 00:37:37,800 --> 00:37:42,199 for the Lakers. But he's been solid for them, and the effort he 581 00:37:42,199 --> 00:37:46,199 gives them on defense is just worlds better than what they're getting from so many 582 00:37:46,280 --> 00:37:52,760 other players who were supposed to figure in more prominently. I just I feel 583 00:37:52,840 --> 00:37:57,400 weird because I also feel like we could pick Maleague Monk or Austin Reeves and 584 00:37:57,400 --> 00:37:59,880 it could be a case of, well, they're overrated because they are getting 585 00:37:59,880 --> 00:38:02,840 a ton of attention since they do play for the Lakers, But amid a 586 00:38:02,960 --> 00:38:07,679 really shittastic season, I feel like he's one of the scant few silver linings 587 00:38:07,719 --> 00:38:12,079 that have emerged. I think I think that's the right pick. That's the 588 00:38:12,119 --> 00:38:15,480 only real option here because it's the Lakers, and it's hard for anyone to 589 00:38:15,519 --> 00:38:20,480 be underrated. But I think just within the context of the team, like 590 00:38:20,639 --> 00:38:23,880 they're playing Lebron at center, and Reeves is constantly, like almost everybody else, 591 00:38:23,920 --> 00:38:28,920 guarding up a position and so and there's no there's no back line help, 592 00:38:29,039 --> 00:38:32,599 so like he has to be super aggressive and he has to like he 593 00:38:32,920 --> 00:38:37,880 I swear this is anecdotal again, but he's had more than more than once, 594 00:38:37,159 --> 00:38:42,079 like like recovery chase down block in the half court where he just gets 595 00:38:42,079 --> 00:38:45,079 beat and there's nobody behind him to protect the rim, and he gets there 596 00:38:45,119 --> 00:38:49,360 and he puts de Pens into the glass. Like he's still he's still really 597 00:38:49,360 --> 00:38:52,239 really competitive in a situation where like nobody else is trying, which is also 598 00:38:52,280 --> 00:38:55,760 a factor for being underrated. So I like that pick. I don't. 599 00:38:55,800 --> 00:39:00,440 I don't have anybody else even really close. And I'm also still amazed. 600 00:39:00,440 --> 00:39:01,519 I know, I just said he's shooting I think a little bit over thirty 601 00:39:01,559 --> 00:39:06,199 seven percent on spot of triples. But there are teams, there are more 602 00:39:06,199 --> 00:39:08,000 teams. I would expect that like kind of fall for his pump and drive 603 00:39:08,079 --> 00:39:10,599 game, and he's pretty good at the pump and drives. But it's also 604 00:39:10,719 --> 00:39:14,480 like, at the end of the day, it's Austin Reeves, Like, 605 00:39:14,480 --> 00:39:16,000 why don't you just let him take that shot? Like why are we overreacting 606 00:39:16,079 --> 00:39:20,519 to a potential shot attempts from Austin Reeves? But I'm not. I don't 607 00:39:20,559 --> 00:39:22,440 even mean to troblem. He's been one of the very few bright spots of 608 00:39:22,519 --> 00:39:29,559 their season. Yeah, no doubt, I have the Grizzlies, and I'm 609 00:39:29,559 --> 00:39:32,440 gonna start my run of big that's only too long. I want with Steven 610 00:39:32,480 --> 00:39:37,960 Adams, and I think, like Withoom, the contract is a problem for 611 00:39:38,039 --> 00:39:42,239 him in terms of how he's perceived. And I think also because he's a 612 00:39:42,280 --> 00:39:45,719 big guy that can barely move, it looks like sometimes which is you know, 613 00:39:45,840 --> 00:39:50,920 just basically going extinct and is almost has almost gone extinct in the league. 614 00:39:51,000 --> 00:39:54,039 That hurts him. But like you think of the team, so he's 615 00:39:54,079 --> 00:39:58,000 been he's kind of had a he's had a little bit of a trip, 616 00:39:58,079 --> 00:40:00,440 you know, over the last several years, because he was there through several 617 00:40:00,440 --> 00:40:08,320 iterations of some channel like very good and then very different and very uh I 618 00:40:08,360 --> 00:40:13,800 don't know ever changing thunder teams uh. And then he was on the Pelicans 619 00:40:13,840 --> 00:40:17,119 weirdly, and now he's on the Grizzlies. He let his right, doesn't 620 00:40:17,119 --> 00:40:22,719 that feel like that never happened? But his his on offs are good every 621 00:40:22,800 --> 00:40:27,079 year. So and that's through and again, like I've said this last time, 622 00:40:27,639 --> 00:40:30,920 those are noisy, except when you're changing teams as often as he has, 623 00:40:31,079 --> 00:40:35,840 and the personnel around you keeps changing, and the one constant is you're 624 00:40:35,920 --> 00:40:39,960 you're going against starters every night and your team outscores them, and so eventually 625 00:40:40,159 --> 00:40:45,519 the you know, correlation becomes causation to some extent. So that's the first 626 00:40:45,519 --> 00:40:47,440 thing I kind of looked at with him. The other thing, this is 627 00:40:47,480 --> 00:40:51,639 just like the great of course, Steven Adams leads and all this stuff, 628 00:40:52,079 --> 00:40:55,159 league leader in screen total screen assists, lead leader in box outs, uh. 629 00:40:55,360 --> 00:41:00,039 And so as a result, and he crushes He's got by far the 630 00:41:00,079 --> 00:41:05,079 most box outs on the offensive boards because he just like can't be moved and 631 00:41:05,119 --> 00:41:07,679 when a shot goes up, he just I would like to stand here now, 632 00:41:07,719 --> 00:41:09,960 please, gentlemen's please get out of the way. I will I will 633 00:41:10,280 --> 00:41:14,440 occupy this space right under the hoop, and nobody can do anything. And 634 00:41:14,480 --> 00:41:17,079 so Memphis leads the league in second chance points by like a ton. And 635 00:41:17,159 --> 00:41:20,960 that's that's like, it's because of him, that's it, full stop. 636 00:41:21,199 --> 00:41:23,320 Partly like it's just that's an asset to a team, and it's not something 637 00:41:23,360 --> 00:41:28,440 you think about when you're valuing players. So that's also part of the reason 638 00:41:28,800 --> 00:41:34,840 that his positive net swings are mostly on offense. Defensively not so great because 639 00:41:34,840 --> 00:41:37,119 of his mobility, but he adds a ton on offense just because he gets 640 00:41:37,159 --> 00:41:40,760 in the middle of the middle of the restricted area and can't be moved by 641 00:41:40,800 --> 00:41:46,360 anybody, so that's huge. Raptor has a number two on Memphis, which 642 00:41:46,440 --> 00:41:50,960 is hilarious. Uh EPM doesn't like him quite as much, but he's still 643 00:41:51,039 --> 00:41:54,679 in the positive there. He's also a good passer's his assist percentages are always 644 00:41:54,760 --> 00:42:00,639 high for his position, and he's decent if he's the primary defender at the 645 00:42:00,719 --> 00:42:05,360 rim inside six feet about fifty eight percent is the field will percentage a low, 646 00:42:05,440 --> 00:42:07,239 which is like not elite, but it's good. It's better than better 647 00:42:07,239 --> 00:42:12,639 than average. So all that put together with like his really sneaky value on 648 00:42:12,719 --> 00:42:15,800 offense, which I don't think most people would you would think of first with 649 00:42:15,880 --> 00:42:20,400 him, I think he's still like a really good, you know, better 650 00:42:20,440 --> 00:42:24,960 than average maybe fringey, like top twelve starting center in the league, and 651 00:42:25,360 --> 00:42:29,159 is the type of guy that like just keeps showing up on really good teams. 652 00:42:29,280 --> 00:42:31,719 So I really like him. I think he doesn't. He's gotten a 653 00:42:31,719 --> 00:42:35,440 bad rap because of the money and because of just the position and the way 654 00:42:35,440 --> 00:42:39,559 he plays it. And that trade was roasted when they did it because the 655 00:42:39,559 --> 00:42:44,480 thought was that they gave up just a lot of Valancrunus was the better player. 656 00:42:44,679 --> 00:42:46,719 I think overall you still make that argument, but Steven Adams is doping 657 00:42:46,800 --> 00:42:51,679 good for Memphis, and when that sort of coincides with the growth you've seen 658 00:42:51,719 --> 00:42:55,280 from Jaren Jackson junior on both ends of the floor, that is super valuable 659 00:42:55,280 --> 00:42:59,519 to you. So yeah, there's still just a dirty work guy who does 660 00:42:59,559 --> 00:43:01,880 everything. Like he said, he doesn't move as well on defense anymore, 661 00:43:02,119 --> 00:43:07,400 but that's just like and I'm worried about. I think he's gonna be valuable 662 00:43:07,400 --> 00:43:09,480 to them in the playoffs. I one wonder how they sort of hold up 663 00:43:09,519 --> 00:43:15,119 defensively though when he's on the court. At the same time, their offense 664 00:43:15,159 --> 00:43:19,559 makes me uneasy because of how predicated on getting out in transition or second chance 665 00:43:19,599 --> 00:43:23,559 opportunities, like just how relying it is on both of those play types. 666 00:43:23,920 --> 00:43:28,840 And they're gonna need the ladder because I imagine that when you have time to 667 00:43:28,880 --> 00:43:30,960 really zero in on a team for a best of seven series, you're gonna 668 00:43:30,960 --> 00:43:35,159 be able to take away unless you play the Lakers, a lot of those 669 00:43:35,199 --> 00:43:37,639 transition opportunities, maybe not in the first round, depending on who you pulled, 670 00:43:37,639 --> 00:43:42,639 but definitely in the second round, so he could end up being incredibly 671 00:43:42,679 --> 00:43:45,519 valuable to them. My pick for this team, and I'm like mad. 672 00:43:45,559 --> 00:43:49,159 I'm not mad. I'm happy for Desmond Baine, but I was. I'm 673 00:43:49,199 --> 00:43:51,840 normally behind the eight ball. I was so far in front of the eight 674 00:43:51,880 --> 00:43:52,559 ball with him. I saw him in some league and I was like, 675 00:43:52,960 --> 00:43:55,559 he is going to be so good this year. But he was just so 676 00:43:55,599 --> 00:44:00,000 good immediately that Desmond Baine is mainstream. Desmond Bayan is mainstream. Now think 677 00:44:00,039 --> 00:44:06,880 about that, because he might be danger of being overrated pretty soon. He's 678 00:44:06,880 --> 00:44:10,599 been he's been like returning to solid ground lately, so that's fair. And 679 00:44:10,639 --> 00:44:14,320 I think you could just make a case for Kyle Anderson. The pace at 680 00:44:14,320 --> 00:44:19,119 which he plays is all his own. It's so like idiosyncratic. I love 681 00:44:19,159 --> 00:44:23,920 it. But my pick is Taias Jones. I just like solid when and 682 00:44:24,000 --> 00:44:29,119 also when he's like actually hitting threes at anything that's resembling an okay clip, 683 00:44:29,440 --> 00:44:32,320 I just don't know, Like he's one of the best, single best backup 684 00:44:32,320 --> 00:44:36,039 point guards in the NBA. Fifty point two percent on twos this year, 685 00:44:36,280 --> 00:44:39,199 thirty six point five percent on threes. True shooting is still all over the 686 00:44:39,199 --> 00:44:44,199 place. It's not great under fifty four, but this guy does not turn 687 00:44:44,239 --> 00:44:47,320 the ball over in the three point error, which is as far as turnover 688 00:44:47,360 --> 00:44:52,480 percentage goes back. Here's a list of every player to assist on at least 689 00:44:52,480 --> 00:44:57,039 twenty five percent of their team's buckets when they're on the court, So have 690 00:44:57,119 --> 00:45:00,360 a twenty five assist percentage or higher when they're on the floor, having a 691 00:45:00,400 --> 00:45:04,519 turnover rate under eight, and they have to qualify for minutes per game. 692 00:45:04,559 --> 00:45:07,800 So I wanted volume in here. Here's a list of every player with an 693 00:45:07,840 --> 00:45:10,239 under eight turnover rate and an over twenty five assist percentage for the year, 694 00:45:10,599 --> 00:45:15,800 Tias Jones. That is the end of the list. That is, I 695 00:45:15,880 --> 00:45:17,360 know he, I know what type of role he's playing, and I know 696 00:45:17,400 --> 00:45:23,000 he's not some like genius maestro, but that is incredible to me. And 697 00:45:23,039 --> 00:45:28,239 like, the only comps that come up is so like Kemba eight point three 698 00:45:28,320 --> 00:45:31,599 turnover rate in twenty fourteen fifty, Michael Jordan eight point four turnover rate in 699 00:45:31,679 --> 00:45:35,480 ninety two, ninety three, t mac in two thousand and two, two 700 00:45:35,480 --> 00:45:38,039 thousand and three, Michael Jordan again, Vince Carter. So it's like and 701 00:45:38,079 --> 00:45:42,000 by the way, Thias Jones appears twice in the top ten on this list. 702 00:45:42,920 --> 00:45:47,000 So it's all these secondary playmakers who weren't even except for Kemma Walker, 703 00:45:47,639 --> 00:45:51,559 except there was twenty four year old Kemba Walker and he was like he was 704 00:45:51,599 --> 00:45:54,400 the fact that he only had a twenty seven assist percentage that season is indicative 705 00:45:54,400 --> 00:45:58,760 of how score first he was at that time. Still, aside from Kemba 706 00:45:58,840 --> 00:46:02,000 Walker, like you're looking at mostly these secondary playmakers, whereas Tyas Jones is 707 00:46:02,000 --> 00:46:07,239 the actual backup point guard here. So there's just the ability to protect a 708 00:46:07,280 --> 00:46:14,079 ball and run, just sound plays and not make mistakes is huge, And 709 00:46:14,280 --> 00:46:16,679 that's someone I believe he's entering fore agency this year. I'd be curious to 710 00:46:16,719 --> 00:46:20,800 see what he gets or whether they feel the need to keep him around because 711 00:46:20,840 --> 00:46:24,599 they have higher end concerns or higher end priorities on this roster, but like 712 00:46:24,639 --> 00:46:29,679 they don't really have, you know themthy Melton doesn't play the same type of 713 00:46:29,719 --> 00:46:32,800 game. Do you want Zayer Williams to take on like the maestro reps he's 714 00:46:32,800 --> 00:46:36,679 been. I actually, really I'm way higher on Tyer Williams than I was 715 00:46:36,719 --> 00:46:38,599 at the start of the season. You think Desmond Baine can take on that 716 00:46:38,599 --> 00:46:43,199 type more playmaking responsibilities. He just might be someone who low key they need 717 00:46:43,239 --> 00:46:46,719 to keep around for a minute. Yeah, Jones is an example of another 718 00:46:46,719 --> 00:46:51,760 player type that has always underrated in addition to the like the guy who guards 719 00:46:51,760 --> 00:46:54,840 four positions that we keep covering and he's just like he doesn't do anything wrong 720 00:46:55,079 --> 00:46:59,480 right, Like, the worst he can be is an adequate game manager who 721 00:46:59,480 --> 00:47:01,760 will not turn it over, will take the right shots, and like, 722 00:47:01,800 --> 00:47:07,239 defensively he's pretty he's undersized, but like he's always way up there and steals 723 00:47:07,239 --> 00:47:10,719 per minute. He's always up there in deflections. He never fouls like ever, 724 00:47:12,480 --> 00:47:15,239 It's unbelievable how he can play backward defense without fouling. That's really hard 725 00:47:15,280 --> 00:47:19,000 to do. So yeah, I love that pick. I love that as 726 00:47:19,079 --> 00:47:22,639 a as another one, this go figure. Memphis, one of the best 727 00:47:22,639 --> 00:47:24,639 teams in the league, has a bunch of guys that are underrated from a 728 00:47:24,679 --> 00:47:30,599 small market. That kind of checks out. I have Minnesota. They were 729 00:47:30,679 --> 00:47:37,880 kind of tough because I don't know for at a point where Jade McDaniels or 730 00:47:37,280 --> 00:47:42,440 Jared Vanderbilt are considered properly rated, Because I do Vanderbilt's gotten a lot of 731 00:47:43,159 --> 00:47:45,719 look if it. First of all, if if an energy drink took bodily 732 00:47:45,760 --> 00:47:50,960 form, it would be Vared Vanderbilt. But I feel like he's gotten a 733 00:47:50,960 --> 00:47:57,079 lot of praise for his defensive energy this year and being recognized as one of 734 00:47:57,079 --> 00:47:59,840 the best contracts in the NBA, the fact that they were able to get 735 00:47:59,880 --> 00:48:02,119 him that cheaply. So I'm gonna settle on Jane McDaniels because I feel like 736 00:48:02,119 --> 00:48:06,480 he's gotten less love this year since it turns out, oh, hey, 737 00:48:06,519 --> 00:48:10,360 he's not going to shoot forty percent from three on a ton of volume, 738 00:48:10,360 --> 00:48:13,320 And so you look at him on offense and you're like, yeah, there's 739 00:48:13,320 --> 00:48:15,880 stuff that he can do on drives and when he gets to the basket, 740 00:48:15,920 --> 00:48:19,559 But how often is he actually going to do that? Thirty one point three 741 00:48:19,599 --> 00:48:23,199 percent on mediocre volume of threes is definitely a concern still, And I'll get 742 00:48:23,239 --> 00:48:25,800 to his defense in a minute. Fifty eight point two percent on twos, 743 00:48:27,039 --> 00:48:30,239 and there's a little bit more directionality to what he does inside the r than 744 00:48:30,280 --> 00:48:31,639 I think there was last year, where it's yeah, he's still gonna be 745 00:48:31,679 --> 00:48:36,440 at his best when he can make the straight line be line towards the basket, 746 00:48:36,679 --> 00:48:39,880 but he can still sort of navigate the floor in more complex fashion than 747 00:48:39,960 --> 00:48:43,800 that. And then you look at what he does on defense. Is a 748 00:48:43,840 --> 00:48:46,199 twenty one year old he can be stifling. And then there's just the way 749 00:48:46,239 --> 00:48:51,159 he moves is like a blur. And it's not a blur in the sense 750 00:48:51,239 --> 00:48:57,679 of north south. It's this east west haze of speed. And he is 751 00:48:58,199 --> 00:49:00,239 I would say defensively in vigor ratings, where I don't know if he can 752 00:49:00,280 --> 00:49:04,480 ever be you know, on the he's not going to be in the same 753 00:49:04,480 --> 00:49:07,599 conversations as like a Matisse Thyble all the time. And I'm not even talking 754 00:49:07,639 --> 00:49:09,559 about in terms of disruption, but of the scope of assignments necessarily that he 755 00:49:09,599 --> 00:49:15,159 covers. But he can be i think the second best defender for one of 756 00:49:15,159 --> 00:49:17,159 the league's best defensive teams. And when you talk about defensive anchors, I 757 00:49:17,199 --> 00:49:21,960 think you're inclined to assume that we mean Biggs for the most part, as 758 00:49:22,320 --> 00:49:24,079 and I'll and other people have said this, but like when you look at 759 00:49:24,159 --> 00:49:28,000 him, Michael Bridges, I think there's proof that, yeah, you can 760 00:49:28,039 --> 00:49:31,039 build a defense around like what a perimeter guy does, or even in certain 761 00:49:31,079 --> 00:49:36,239 lineups like where Janie isn't on the court this season, Like you can build 762 00:49:36,239 --> 00:49:40,679 a defense around Drew Holiday type players. So I'm not saying that Jane McDaniels 763 00:49:40,800 --> 00:49:43,960 is that guy, but the fact that he can be the second guy to 764 00:49:44,119 --> 00:49:46,800 that guy, whether it's a big or another perimeter defender, I think is 765 00:49:46,840 --> 00:49:51,559 super important. And if he does develop just to stand still consistent, stand 766 00:49:51,599 --> 00:49:54,840 still three point stroke where he's hitting let's say thirty five thirty six percent of 767 00:49:54,920 --> 00:49:59,039 his off the catch threes, and that translates into the postseason, you have 768 00:49:59,599 --> 00:50:02,800 one of the you have the single most valuable role player archetype in the NBA. 769 00:50:04,000 --> 00:50:07,119 Is just that positional valuability on defense coupled with it's not three in d 770 00:50:07,320 --> 00:50:09,559 like there's a little bit more to his offense when you put the ball in 771 00:50:09,559 --> 00:50:13,719 his hands. Yeah, I like that. I would I would have gone 772 00:50:13,800 --> 00:50:17,880 Vanderbilt just because I still think that unless you're watching a lot of Wolves games, 773 00:50:17,920 --> 00:50:24,559 you don't really appreciate like just how incredibly frenetic and NonStop, you know, 774 00:50:24,760 --> 00:50:30,719 his activity is, which like McDaniels, McDaniels has a similar value because 775 00:50:31,079 --> 00:50:34,599 the theory for me of this team was always going to be like man if 776 00:50:34,599 --> 00:50:39,119 you're gonna play Towns and Russell and Edwards, you better have to just lights 777 00:50:39,159 --> 00:50:44,920 out energy, dirty work defensive guys out there, and they do like and 778 00:50:45,079 --> 00:50:46,480 that's I mean, the stars of the reason the Wolves are good, but 779 00:50:46,519 --> 00:50:52,480 they've got the right to kind of unsung type of defense first guys mixed into 780 00:50:52,519 --> 00:50:55,880 that, mixed into that unit. So I think I like Vanderbilt just because 781 00:50:55,920 --> 00:51:04,880 of the like he's always at cranked to eleven. Okay, watch the Timberwold, 782 00:51:05,000 --> 00:51:07,400 just just for him, because he's He's a lot of fun. I 783 00:51:07,480 --> 00:51:13,079 have the New Orleans Pelicans and this was a hard one for me. I 784 00:51:13,119 --> 00:51:15,480 feel like Herb Jones is, well, you tell me, do you think 785 00:51:15,480 --> 00:51:20,320 everybody's onto Herb Jones to the extent you can be onto like a rookie, 786 00:51:21,440 --> 00:51:24,519 you know, defense first guy on a small market team, because I feel 787 00:51:24,559 --> 00:51:29,440 like people know I would say yes, but I do sometimes feel like when 788 00:51:29,440 --> 00:51:31,679 you and this isn't I'm not even trying to sound elad us here, but 789 00:51:31,679 --> 00:51:37,159 when you're do what we do, we're plugged into a level of NBA Twitter 790 00:51:37,679 --> 00:51:42,320 that's different from maybe people who aren't doing what we do, like what they're 791 00:51:42,400 --> 00:51:46,280 consuming. Because our our friend Adam and the co host of this podcast, 792 00:51:46,840 --> 00:51:52,079 tweeted that he would have Herb Jones on first team all rookie basically, and 793 00:51:52,119 --> 00:51:55,639 I don't think that's an egregious thing to say, but he caught so much 794 00:51:55,679 --> 00:52:00,400 shit on Twitter for it, so I think you could still go him. 795 00:52:00,639 --> 00:52:05,880 But from my perspective, I've read so many tweets and like even appreciation articles 796 00:52:05,920 --> 00:52:09,679 for him. It's like, I I've been like overstimulated with Herb Jones. 797 00:52:09,960 --> 00:52:14,679 But that doesn't mean that he's not underrated. He's definitely not overrated. I 798 00:52:14,679 --> 00:52:17,119 don't think that's that's a thing for him yet, right, So I shied 799 00:52:17,159 --> 00:52:20,840 away because I'm in the same silo that you are, where it's like, 800 00:52:20,840 --> 00:52:22,760 oh, yeah, Herb Jones is going to be on you know, six 801 00:52:22,960 --> 00:52:27,840 all defensive first teams in the next decade, like it's just a given, 802 00:52:27,920 --> 00:52:30,639 and you know, not on her. But that's like the Pelicans do that 803 00:52:30,679 --> 00:52:34,159 every time he has a great play defensively in the you know, on home 804 00:52:34,199 --> 00:52:37,519 games, so it probably should be him. I went with Valanciunists, I 805 00:52:37,519 --> 00:52:40,000 think probably because I had just done Steven Adams and I was like, you 806 00:52:40,000 --> 00:52:45,000 know what, he's like plotting Biggs, nobody appreciates him anymore, and Valentiunis 807 00:52:45,039 --> 00:52:47,800 does a lot of the same stuff Adams does. He's kind of right up 808 00:52:47,840 --> 00:52:52,199 there with him in terms of box outs and you know, the second chance 809 00:52:52,199 --> 00:52:55,719 points he generates because he's similar, and that he's just too strong for the 810 00:52:55,760 --> 00:53:00,239 way Biggs are sort of constituted physically now in the league. He's just always 811 00:53:00,440 --> 00:53:05,559 unless he's playing Steven Adams or Joel Embiid or Yoki, he's just gonna have 812 00:53:05,599 --> 00:53:08,440 a physical advantage. And he's a good post player. He just overpowers people. 813 00:53:08,559 --> 00:53:13,840 Except he's actually a good three point shooter and he doesn't take a lot 814 00:53:14,079 --> 00:53:16,840 and he kind of milks this upfake that he has the super slow mo upfake, 815 00:53:17,360 --> 00:53:21,639 but it still works sometimes and he can put it on on the deck 816 00:53:21,719 --> 00:53:24,480 for a couple of dribbles and like make something happen. Not gonna go all 817 00:53:24,480 --> 00:53:28,280 the way to the basket, but he's capable in that regard, So I 818 00:53:28,320 --> 00:53:32,599 think that kind of distinguishes him from the atoms where you got to rely on 819 00:53:32,880 --> 00:53:37,880 knocking people over screen assists, box outs like that type of thing. And 820 00:53:37,920 --> 00:53:40,599 I think too, it's kind of wild that he's in the top ten and 821 00:53:40,639 --> 00:53:45,199 screen assists, and the Pelicans like don't have a pick and roll guard, 822 00:53:45,280 --> 00:53:47,679 or certainly didn't until C. J. McCollum got there, and he's not 823 00:53:47,960 --> 00:53:51,960 that type of guard, so a lot better. I don't know if this 824 00:53:52,000 --> 00:53:53,480 was just the way they were using him in Portland, but even during the 825 00:53:53,519 --> 00:53:58,039 non game stretches, I just feel like he's shown a level of passing that 826 00:53:58,400 --> 00:54:02,079 wasn't really there in Yeah, didn't have an opportunity or wasn't asked to do 827 00:54:02,119 --> 00:54:06,239 it, or wasn't there wasn't the confidence in him. But I think I 828 00:54:06,280 --> 00:54:09,519 think so to that, and I think McCollum and Valentunis could, like you 829 00:54:09,559 --> 00:54:13,639 know, if they get some chemistry gone, they can play together enough. 830 00:54:13,679 --> 00:54:15,400 I think that that's like, that's workable. I don't know how much that 831 00:54:15,440 --> 00:54:19,960 matters if Zion has the ball again, if that ever happens, but it's 832 00:54:20,039 --> 00:54:23,519 nice to have. He's basically the second best player on the team. If 833 00:54:23,519 --> 00:54:29,360 you're looking at you know, the advanced alphabet soup numbers. Like Adams, 834 00:54:29,400 --> 00:54:31,920 he always has positive differentials basically over the last half decade, and this year 835 00:54:31,960 --> 00:54:36,639 that's a big It's like a plus nine. When I last looked so another 836 00:54:36,679 --> 00:54:40,079 big guy. I guess I'm getting a soft spot for them because I like 837 00:54:40,159 --> 00:54:45,599 the variety in the league and as much fun as as downsizing and you know, 838 00:54:45,719 --> 00:54:47,639 the Raptors approach and what the Clippers are going to be able to do 839 00:54:49,000 --> 00:54:52,360 with all these big wings. I think it's still kind of fun if there's 840 00:54:52,400 --> 00:54:55,679 just like a monster out there that just is shouldering people around, and Valentiunas 841 00:54:55,760 --> 00:54:59,800 is doing it effectively. It's not just like he's a he's just being a 842 00:55:00,000 --> 00:55:02,440 This was a team I'm happy I didn't have to do because I was trying 843 00:55:02,440 --> 00:55:06,159 not to pick brookies and I would have picked a rookie. It would have 844 00:55:06,199 --> 00:55:09,039 been Herb Jones or Jose Alvarado, who would be my actual pick. He 845 00:55:09,159 --> 00:55:13,559 is six foot and he looks it when he looks like he might be five 846 00:55:13,599 --> 00:55:16,159 eight when he's running around the boat like some bigger guys. The energy he 847 00:55:16,239 --> 00:55:21,000 brings and like, yeah, he'll like he can score just enough if he's 848 00:55:21,039 --> 00:55:23,199 going to actually take shots, but some of the passes he's able to throw 849 00:55:23,559 --> 00:55:29,000 in the pocket, nice bounce passes. He just seems like really good chemistry 850 00:55:29,000 --> 00:55:31,639 that everyone around him. His defensive energy, Oh my god, there was 851 00:55:31,679 --> 00:55:36,519 a play and actually brought this up on a podcast I recorded recently when we 852 00:55:36,559 --> 00:55:40,880 talked about the Pelicans. It was garbage time against Phoenix. But he's like 853 00:55:42,599 --> 00:55:46,840 derailing Bismac Biambo's role to the basket. So there's six foot Jose Alvarado just 854 00:55:46,880 --> 00:55:50,400 like cutting in front of him, and he's I think he was basically face 855 00:55:50,440 --> 00:55:53,599 guarding him down there too, And so he plays with like a a freneticness 856 00:55:54,000 --> 00:55:59,159 and energy on defense where it's, oh, he might have a career even 857 00:55:59,159 --> 00:56:01,119 though he's only six foot and could textually get torched. I'm not saying Bismack 858 00:56:01,199 --> 00:56:06,400 Nyambo is like the barometer for you know, a smaller guard to show that 859 00:56:06,400 --> 00:56:08,559 he's a good defender. But doing things like that, So if you're watching 860 00:56:08,599 --> 00:56:14,320 the Pelicans and then they're giving Jose Alvarado run, give him a look just 861 00:56:14,559 --> 00:56:16,159 on defense, offense, away from the ball, whatever, I think he 862 00:56:16,199 --> 00:56:21,000 can kind of he's probably the closest thing to an actual floor general they have 863 00:56:21,639 --> 00:56:23,840 right now, just because is that DeVante Graham is a McCullum. I think 864 00:56:23,840 --> 00:56:29,440 Brandon Ingram actually might be that guy traditional point guard style, though he is 865 00:56:29,480 --> 00:56:32,840 way more of a floor general than DeVante Graham and certainly than the injured Kyra 866 00:56:32,920 --> 00:56:37,599 Lewis Jr. I think you also could go with just based off the reaction 867 00:56:37,679 --> 00:56:40,480 to the trade Larry Nanns Jr. Where it's like, I know, he's 868 00:56:40,519 --> 00:56:45,119 been injured a lot, but the Pelicans were panned nationally at least for the 869 00:56:45,159 --> 00:56:50,559 way that they obliterated flexibility, which I don't want to belabor this point because 870 00:56:50,559 --> 00:56:52,840 I've said it on the podcast before. We just wrapped up an off season 871 00:56:53,119 --> 00:56:58,039 where we were shipping all over them because they tried to use caps basically get 872 00:56:58,079 --> 00:57:00,920 Chris Paul and Kyle Lowry and now we're gonna get mad at them for wasting 873 00:57:01,360 --> 00:57:07,119 potential future flexibility to get good players. But Larry has Junior's just really good, 874 00:57:07,320 --> 00:57:10,320 and his injuries can overshadow that fact. Also how bad Portland was the 875 00:57:10,360 --> 00:57:15,159 season, But everyone loved that trade when Portland made it at the time. 876 00:57:15,480 --> 00:57:17,360 And what's funny about Portland is they made a bunch of those moves where it 877 00:57:17,440 --> 00:57:20,760 was like, oh, you like the Robert Covington trade at the time. 878 00:57:21,159 --> 00:57:23,000 It's just that they kept aiming for singles and doubles when they should have went 879 00:57:23,000 --> 00:57:27,320 fro home runs. But he's just not. It was like when Robert Covington 880 00:57:27,440 --> 00:57:30,480 was used as a throw in in the Powell deal basically, or when Danny 881 00:57:30,480 --> 00:57:32,639 Green was just sent to Toronto in the Kwai Lanard deal. And I know 882 00:57:32,760 --> 00:57:37,079 that there's like math and money making it work, there are other ways to 883 00:57:37,119 --> 00:57:39,679 go about that. I kind of view him in that same vein where it's 884 00:57:39,679 --> 00:57:44,679 like, if Zion comes back next year healthy and Larry has Junior is healthy, 885 00:57:45,000 --> 00:57:46,360 that's like a front court. Like if you don't want to play valent 886 00:57:46,400 --> 00:57:51,280 Tunis or Jackson Hayes alongside Zenon for certain stretches, that's a front court. 887 00:57:51,280 --> 00:57:53,440 And if you have Herb Jones and Brandon Ingram with the way he's defended this 888 00:57:53,480 --> 00:57:55,800 season, and then maybe you just go with CJ. McCombs. You don't 889 00:57:55,800 --> 00:58:00,360 really need a point guard. If you have Zion, that lineup could do 890 00:58:00,400 --> 00:58:04,239 some real damage and his super versatile. So I think Larry Nance Junior is 891 00:58:04,239 --> 00:58:07,320 probably the bigger name that could be underrated. My actual pick would be Jose 892 00:58:07,480 --> 00:58:10,199 Alvarado because in terms of this year's I'll put this in quote, it's rookie 893 00:58:10,239 --> 00:58:14,960 class. Since Alvarado obviously is not techinically the Brookie. He's a rookie. 894 00:58:16,079 --> 00:58:21,440 He just hasn't entered the fold of Wow, look how deep this year's rookies 895 00:58:21,480 --> 00:58:23,000 are. He doesn't feel like he's a part of that discourse just yet. 896 00:58:23,639 --> 00:58:25,800 Yeah, I like it, I do. I like I like when the 897 00:58:25,840 --> 00:58:29,320 defense first point guard gets a little note, he gets a little left. 898 00:58:29,400 --> 00:58:36,039 That's good. Oklahoma City was mine, and I could have went with Kenrick 899 00:58:36,079 --> 00:58:38,320 Williams here because the fact that no one offered enough to get him be a 900 00:58:38,360 --> 00:58:42,599 trade from okay See at the deadline just proves to me that he's underrated. 901 00:58:42,639 --> 00:58:45,320 But if Okasey really wanted a first round pick plus other stuff for him with 902 00:58:45,400 --> 00:58:49,559 a year left on his contract, maybe he is more properly right than I 903 00:58:49,559 --> 00:58:52,920 thought. I'm gonna step out on a limb here and say that for so 904 00:58:52,039 --> 00:58:57,599 long we viewed Alexei Pokachevki as this novelty, and I know he's only been 905 00:58:57,599 --> 00:59:01,360 in the league for a year and change. He's a real all NBA prospect 906 00:59:01,440 --> 00:59:05,599 if you watch him this season, like more recently since he re entered the 907 00:59:05,719 --> 00:59:08,880 rotation. I think just before shils Oxander came back. There is a rhyme 908 00:59:09,280 --> 00:59:15,000 and a reason in actual coherence to his game now and it can still look 909 00:59:15,039 --> 00:59:19,960 funky. There are still like the moments of like a plum that really he 910 00:59:20,039 --> 00:59:22,199 hasn't earned where he's going to be way too overconfident what he can do. 911 00:59:22,440 --> 00:59:25,960 He fits all of a sudden off the ball. He's hustled on a bunch 912 00:59:27,000 --> 00:59:30,280 of defensive plays even from behind, but really just some nice rotations. He 913 00:59:30,320 --> 00:59:35,320 can still do some some on ball stuff I'm intrigued of. Yeah, it'd 914 00:59:35,360 --> 00:59:37,480 be nice if he can face up, work off the dribble, attack the 915 00:59:37,480 --> 00:59:40,719 basket, hit these crazy fadeaways, these these pull ups. Maybe he does 916 00:59:40,760 --> 00:59:43,639 do that. But the fact that he can move around off the ball, 917 00:59:43,679 --> 00:59:45,719 or hit shots off the catch now, or sort of find crevices and a 918 00:59:45,719 --> 00:59:51,119 half court defense in half court defenses, even though the Thunder don't traditionally operate 919 00:59:51,199 --> 00:59:53,800 with a ton of room in a half court anyway, that's like a big 920 00:59:53,800 --> 00:59:57,320 deal. And it's another case of I don't know that I would call him 921 00:59:57,360 --> 01:00:00,239 a potential corner, so I'm not that high on him. He's a real 922 01:00:00,320 --> 01:00:02,440 NBA prospects though, and I feel like we kind of lost sight of that 923 01:00:02,800 --> 01:00:07,440 last year because he looked and played like more of a shot in the dark 924 01:00:07,880 --> 01:00:12,480 novelty than anything else. Yeah, I am so glad I didn't get this 925 01:00:12,519 --> 01:00:16,960 team, just like I think I think Pokashevski for sure is I don't. 926 01:00:17,000 --> 01:00:22,079 I just don't know how he's viewed around the league. It's it's so hard 927 01:00:22,119 --> 01:00:25,119 for me to get a gauge on him. I don't know, Like Aaron 928 01:00:25,159 --> 01:00:30,800 Wiggins had a minute there, and Trey Mann has moments. Darius Basley's defense 929 01:00:30,840 --> 01:00:36,000 doesn't receive enough credit too. I just still don't trust anything he does on 930 01:00:36,079 --> 01:00:38,599 offense enough. I was just gonna say, every time I watch him, 931 01:00:38,800 --> 01:00:44,519 he does some he's like the million dollars moved five cent finished guy, Like 932 01:00:44,559 --> 01:00:47,880 he'll do this incredible. You know, he'll do something remarkable for a player 933 01:00:47,920 --> 01:00:51,320 his size to get to the basket and he'll smoke the lay up or he'll 934 01:00:51,400 --> 01:00:53,719 just it's just like it's not all quite there. But yeah, defendsively. 935 01:00:53,800 --> 01:00:57,800 He has real value that I guess he might have been my pick. I 936 01:00:57,840 --> 01:01:00,599 also would have tried to find a way to just shoot horns ash Gilly in 937 01:01:00,639 --> 01:01:04,119 there, because I think he's in like the top five percent of NBA players 938 01:01:04,199 --> 01:01:07,679 right now in terms of like how he maps the floor and the way that 939 01:01:07,760 --> 01:01:10,760 he sees uh, you know, all nine people moving, and I don't 940 01:01:10,800 --> 01:01:15,119 think that's something that you know, necessary. But like he's, you know, 941 01:01:15,320 --> 01:01:17,519 twelve eight and six as a rookie, I think probably everybody's kind of 942 01:01:17,519 --> 01:01:22,880 onto the fact. I do think that's yeah, for sure, for sure. 943 01:01:23,159 --> 01:01:27,800 I thought about j R. E. Jeremiah Robinson Earl for a minute, 944 01:01:27,800 --> 01:01:30,519 but he hasn't played in six weeks. And just like they were, 945 01:01:30,599 --> 01:01:32,880 they just they decided, hey, he's a center in the NBA at six 946 01:01:34,039 --> 01:01:36,960 nine, and I don't think he was. They've had a scrappy defense. 947 01:01:37,039 --> 01:01:38,719 They are. I haven't checked this in a while, but per cleaning the 948 01:01:38,719 --> 01:01:43,039 glass, they were the only team as of last week that ranked in the 949 01:01:43,079 --> 01:01:47,280 top seven of both the frequency with which opponents reached the rim and then opponent 950 01:01:47,320 --> 01:01:50,960 field goal percentage at the rim. And so it's like, Okay, one 951 01:01:51,000 --> 01:01:53,880 of those things is can be lucky not both of them, and you had 952 01:01:53,960 --> 01:01:57,960 him playing a lot of your center minutes. You can also go Mike Muscala 953 01:01:58,039 --> 01:02:00,039 here just they clearly wouldn't trade him for a reason and he stretched the floor 954 01:02:00,480 --> 01:02:04,599 for them. But yeah, they were a tough team. Aaron Wiggins didn't 955 01:02:04,599 --> 01:02:07,920 sustain. He was the one that I had circled, and I I tend 956 01:02:07,960 --> 01:02:12,199 to not There's been a lot of strong feelings about Trey Man in recent months, 957 01:02:12,239 --> 01:02:15,159 and I can't I feel this is the best way to frame it. 958 01:02:15,159 --> 01:02:17,519 It's only because they have the same first name. I'm way higher on the 959 01:02:17,519 --> 01:02:22,039 future of Trey Jones in San Antonio than I am on tray Man in Oklahoma 960 01:02:22,119 --> 01:02:27,280 City. And if we're comparing trays flaming there, Yeah, no, I 961 01:02:27,679 --> 01:02:30,760 think Muscala. I mean Scala shooting forty three percent from three, I'm like, 962 01:02:30,920 --> 01:02:36,199 so, and I mean, that's that's I don't I don't think you 963 01:02:36,199 --> 01:02:39,320 would have pegged that coming into the season so or that he was arguably like 964 01:02:39,400 --> 01:02:44,800 one of their most positively impactful players per minute. But yeah, I'm super 965 01:02:44,880 --> 01:02:46,199 glad you got that team, and now I'm happy. I'm happy I didn't 966 01:02:46,239 --> 01:02:50,400 get the next team. Yeah, they were. This was the hardest one 967 01:02:50,440 --> 01:02:52,920 for me because it's the same thing we talked about with the Bucks. I 968 01:02:52,960 --> 01:02:55,719 talked about the Warriors, like everybody kind of has a gauge of what the 969 01:02:55,760 --> 01:03:00,280 Suns are and who matters, and like we're past the point, like mckail 970 01:03:00,280 --> 01:03:04,599 bridge has got ninety million dollars. He's not underrated anymore. Everybody acknowledges he's, 971 01:03:04,760 --> 01:03:07,280 if not the best, he's one of the best wing defenders in the 972 01:03:07,320 --> 01:03:09,719 league. He makes threes, he's got more often, So we can't we 973 01:03:09,760 --> 01:03:15,199 can't do that. Eighten's really good. Everybody knows it. Jay Crowder has 974 01:03:15,199 --> 01:03:20,039 been around for what feels like a thousand years and just voters this year. 975 01:03:20,440 --> 01:03:22,079 He just everybody knows he's good. Chris Paul, We're gonna do Chris Paul, 976 01:03:22,199 --> 01:03:25,199 Devin Booker, So I just did. I just did Cam Johnson, 977 01:03:27,760 --> 01:03:34,480 which I don't know, Like he's another guy that we know what he does. 978 01:03:34,800 --> 01:03:40,679 He's probably properly rated, but like forty five percent from deep he holds 979 01:03:40,760 --> 01:03:45,920 up defensively, He's okay there. He's like Bridges a year and two years 980 01:03:45,920 --> 01:03:49,119 ago, is adding like the one dribble and two dribble stuff when he gets 981 01:03:49,199 --> 01:03:52,280 run off the line. He's like, he's capable that type of thing. 982 01:03:52,639 --> 01:03:55,159 He plays a position that's just super valuable, that the combo forward spot, 983 01:03:55,239 --> 01:04:00,639 and if you can hold up defensively and make threes, cool. He's admittedly 984 01:04:00,639 --> 01:04:02,960 like not asked to do a lot because I was looking at so he takes 985 01:04:03,000 --> 01:04:06,800 five point nine threes a game, five point seven of them are either open 986 01:04:06,920 --> 01:04:11,960 or wide open. So like he's got just it's easy pickings for him. 987 01:04:12,000 --> 01:04:15,960 But he's still got to make him and he does make him. So all 988 01:04:15,000 --> 01:04:21,960 that package of he's doing this on a team that is getting everyone's full attention 989 01:04:21,960 --> 01:04:27,559 every night that is playing. You know, he's done it against great teams. 990 01:04:27,559 --> 01:04:31,119 He's done it in playoff runs like so it's just it's almost by default. 991 01:04:31,119 --> 01:04:34,679 But I do think of the players on the Suns that maybe don't get 992 01:04:34,679 --> 01:04:38,519 appreciated enough. I just I kind of had to go with him, but 993 01:04:38,599 --> 01:04:42,800 this team was easily the most difficult in the West. From me, I 994 01:04:42,920 --> 01:04:45,360 probably went all. I probably would have went with Cam Johnson myself, just 995 01:04:45,360 --> 01:04:48,360 because I actually think there's more to his offensive game than just hitting those threes. 996 01:04:48,400 --> 01:04:51,199 And he's somebody who could fly around in a half court and then hit 997 01:04:51,199 --> 01:04:55,599 those quick fire threes. He has like a nice connection with the players around 998 01:04:55,679 --> 01:04:59,239 him if they need him to pass. We've seen like him show these I 999 01:04:59,280 --> 01:05:00,559 just don't think he's asked dood enough and he was doing a little bit more 1000 01:05:00,559 --> 01:05:02,960 of it after Chris Paul injury, and then during that brief time they didn't 1001 01:05:02,960 --> 01:05:06,800 have Devin Booker before Cam Johnson gets injured where he can hit some like off 1002 01:05:06,800 --> 01:05:11,800 the dribble middies. So I think it has to be him just because there's 1003 01:05:11,800 --> 01:05:15,440 a level of player there where he's the Sun sixth man and you're at a 1004 01:05:15,480 --> 01:05:17,840 point where it's like, how do you find he's someone who should be playing 1005 01:05:17,840 --> 01:05:23,199 thirty minutes per game? And even if the Sun sort of mismatched their rotation 1006 01:05:23,239 --> 01:05:25,400 a little bit, I don't know how you find him thirty minutes a game 1007 01:05:25,679 --> 01:05:29,840 just because of how important your top five players are. I do think you 1008 01:05:29,880 --> 01:05:31,880 could go with Aaron Holliday based off how well he has played since the trade 1009 01:05:31,880 --> 01:05:34,960 deadline for them. I think you could also go eighton. And this might 1010 01:05:35,000 --> 01:05:40,599 be Recncy biased for me kicking in, but I just expected I don't know 1011 01:05:40,599 --> 01:05:43,079 if I expected to drop off, but it felt like there was going to 1012 01:05:43,119 --> 01:05:46,159 be a lot of self discovery within the Suns when Chris Paul got injured as 1013 01:05:46,159 --> 01:05:49,480 to what Aton's value really was. And I think he's earned himself a bunch 1014 01:05:49,519 --> 01:05:54,559 of or solidified himself a bunch of money intrisit free agency by how buy and 1015 01:05:54,679 --> 01:05:59,800 large well, he's played on offense without Chris Paul and our good friends over 1016 01:05:59,840 --> 01:06:03,440 the Timeline Pod Mike v Hill and Sam Cooper and then also David on Twitter 1017 01:06:03,519 --> 01:06:08,800 is at the four point play with four spelt written as ivy. They've pointed 1018 01:06:08,800 --> 01:06:14,280 this out a bunch. Eighton is shooting like sixty something percent or ridiculous on 1019 01:06:14,320 --> 01:06:15,719 hook shots this year, and so he has that aspect to his game. 1020 01:06:16,360 --> 01:06:18,880 He still doesn't go up with as much force as you want, but the 1021 01:06:18,880 --> 01:06:23,920 fact that the finesse within his game or like the touch that's a little bit 1022 01:06:23,920 --> 01:06:27,480 further out from the basket than you would like is is coming along. That's 1023 01:06:27,559 --> 01:06:30,840 big for them. And there's what he does defensively. I personally think that 1024 01:06:30,920 --> 01:06:36,559 Michael Bridges is the best defender and most important defender on the Sun's team. 1025 01:06:36,679 --> 01:06:39,800 I think there will be some people that make the case that it is Eighten 1026 01:06:39,840 --> 01:06:42,800 And if you look at just I know we're dealing with someone a rookie contract, 1027 01:06:42,800 --> 01:06:45,360 but if you just look at where he was in his rookie season and 1028 01:06:45,360 --> 01:06:48,039 then fast forward to now the you know he was still really good last year. 1029 01:06:48,039 --> 01:06:53,239 But just like make the entire leap to this point, he's somewhat The 1030 01:06:53,239 --> 01:06:56,360 fact that we could have a conversation is is DeAndre Eten like the anchor of 1031 01:06:56,400 --> 01:07:00,280 the Sun's defense is just like a wild thing to think. So they're not 1032 01:07:00,320 --> 01:07:02,239 a team that I wanted because the options are just so sparse, but also 1033 01:07:02,280 --> 01:07:06,199 maybe because they're one of my favorite watches. I find it funny when people 1034 01:07:06,360 --> 01:07:12,079 say that they play too slow and they're like per and predictable. They're like 1035 01:07:12,199 --> 01:07:15,519 fifth in average possession time because it's like, yeah, they're not traditional transition, 1036 01:07:15,599 --> 01:07:18,719 but like they get out in semi transition and make quick decisions and they're 1037 01:07:18,719 --> 01:07:21,960 just so so good. So they're so good that I don't know if they 1038 01:07:23,000 --> 01:07:26,480 have anyone who's underrated. I think it's Cam Johnson, just because we probably 1039 01:07:26,480 --> 01:07:30,280 don't know the full extent of his game just yet, even with sort of 1040 01:07:30,280 --> 01:07:34,920 the flickers into his offensive polio, that polio offensive portfolio that was gotten. 1041 01:07:39,360 --> 01:07:42,480 That would leave me with I also didn't want this team, by the way, 1042 01:07:42,559 --> 01:07:47,760 because they've just undergone so much like changes that they're barely recognizable. It's 1043 01:07:47,760 --> 01:07:53,800 the Portland Trailblazers. I don't even know I really wanted to be the asshole 1044 01:07:53,840 --> 01:07:56,840 that went with through U Banks because I couldn't believe that the Raptors just waived 1045 01:07:56,880 --> 01:08:00,519 him. I think he's someone who after they traded him, but required him 1046 01:08:00,559 --> 01:08:03,159 via trade. I'm just gonna settle on Josh Hart here if you want to 1047 01:08:03,199 --> 01:08:09,639 make the case for Trendon Watford, who I think there's like a when I 1048 01:08:09,679 --> 01:08:13,599 watch him move on the court, like end to end, I just want 1049 01:08:13,599 --> 01:08:17,520 to move that gracefully and that purposely. And it's just I don't know, 1050 01:08:17,720 --> 01:08:21,159 like if it means anything, like he can find spaces when he's weathering the 1051 01:08:21,159 --> 01:08:25,960 open floor if there's like tight spots, and he just feels like he's where 1052 01:08:26,079 --> 01:08:29,159 he needs to be, whether it's with her, like is he going to 1053 01:08:29,319 --> 01:08:31,720 the ball? Is he getting around the basket preparing for a pass, making 1054 01:08:32,079 --> 01:08:35,039 navigating this path away from the ball in the half court to get ready for 1055 01:08:35,079 --> 01:08:38,960 that pass. I feel like sometimes he is the reason. Yeah, there's 1056 01:08:38,960 --> 01:08:44,000 a tension being given to some of their ball handlers pre Anthony Sibins injury since 1057 01:08:44,000 --> 01:08:45,399 they just don't have when you just look at who's in the elbow right now 1058 01:08:45,439 --> 01:08:50,159 for this team, it's it's laughable, but it feels like he has moved 1059 01:08:50,239 --> 01:08:55,079 himself open in a lot of half court setch, which says a lot. 1060 01:08:55,279 --> 01:08:58,039 I think. Now with all that said, I just feel like Josh Hart 1061 01:08:58,359 --> 01:09:01,439 super rock solid player. He has never received enough credit, I think for 1062 01:09:01,479 --> 01:09:04,840 what he can do on defense, Like there's a center of gravity there that 1063 01:09:04,920 --> 01:09:10,199 probably if you really wanted to extend him one through four consistently enough, you 1064 01:09:10,239 --> 01:09:14,640 could. He is always someone that I think you look at or you watch 1065 01:09:14,720 --> 01:09:19,439 him, or just anecdotally you think that he shoots a lot better one three 1066 01:09:19,479 --> 01:09:23,720 pointers than he actually does, and so it'd be nice if that aspect of 1067 01:09:23,760 --> 01:09:27,920 his game was stronger. But he and he has looked discredit. He's shooting 1068 01:09:27,920 --> 01:09:30,560 almost thirty six percent on threes in Portland. That's just not a high number, 1069 01:09:30,840 --> 01:09:33,560 but he can really get things moving downhill inside the r fifty seven point 1070 01:09:33,560 --> 01:09:38,399 three percent on twos since joining the Blazers and fifty nine point two percent on 1071 01:09:38,399 --> 01:09:41,439 two's overall this year. That is a guy where I think, if you 1072 01:09:41,479 --> 01:09:45,960 want to build a contender, it's almost of the different players, but where 1073 01:09:45,039 --> 01:09:49,039 I think that Jay Crowder just makes sense on every single contender. I could 1074 01:09:49,039 --> 01:09:53,279 say almost the same about Josh Hard. The three point volume makes it a 1075 01:09:53,319 --> 01:09:55,760 little iffy, and I think Jay Crowd is a better defender overall, but 1076 01:09:55,840 --> 01:10:00,479 that's the brand of player that I feel like he's quietly developed into. I 1077 01:10:00,520 --> 01:10:02,479 think the only thing that's overrated, aside from if you if you consider him 1078 01:10:02,520 --> 01:10:06,319 three and D when the three hasn't necessarily always been there. There's definitely evidence 1079 01:10:06,319 --> 01:10:10,920 when you look at the numbers and just the context of them that his rebounding 1080 01:10:11,000 --> 01:10:14,439 is just not all that valuable. But it's still someone who's six five and 1081 01:10:14,439 --> 01:10:16,359 you can grab you just a bunch of rebounds like there's you know, we're 1082 01:10:16,399 --> 01:10:20,159 not This is not Russell Westbrook egregious, where you have like eight guys boxing 1083 01:10:20,159 --> 01:10:24,960 out just to get Russell Westbrook the rebounds. So he's my pick with the 1084 01:10:25,000 --> 01:10:28,840 caveat. Maybe there are a bunch of guys here that are underrated because they're 1085 01:10:28,840 --> 01:10:32,960 trying to find stuff out about their future while they don't have literally anyone. 1086 01:10:35,560 --> 01:10:42,960 Yeah, I think I think it's probably hard if you wanted to kind of 1087 01:10:43,479 --> 01:10:47,319 like really do some gymnastic. I think Simon's could be someone you'd mentioned, 1088 01:10:47,439 --> 01:10:51,720 only because I'm not sure since no one's watching this team, and since Dame 1089 01:10:51,760 --> 01:10:55,800 got hurt. Nobody has watched this team. I'm not sure everybody's kind of 1090 01:10:55,880 --> 01:11:00,399 up on like Simon's is someone that is going to shoot forty percent and deep. 1091 01:11:00,560 --> 01:11:02,680 He's got such a pretty shot. It's so you hear like he shoots 1092 01:11:02,680 --> 01:11:05,640 an easy ball, like Donovan Mitchell shoots an easy ball. Simons is in 1093 01:11:05,680 --> 01:11:12,960 that class, except it like he's twenty two. So I think I think 1094 01:11:12,960 --> 01:11:15,399 Simon's as like a guy that he's another you know, we talked last time. 1095 01:11:15,560 --> 01:11:18,840 If you're if you're thinking about guys that are gonna make like capital l 1096 01:11:18,920 --> 01:11:23,960 leaps, I think he is on definitely on that list, maybe on the 1097 01:11:24,039 --> 01:11:27,680 very short list of it. I'm not sure everybody's aware of that. Maybe 1098 01:11:27,720 --> 01:11:30,039 maybe they are, I don't know. It doesn't feel like he's you know, 1099 01:11:30,199 --> 01:11:33,239 got the national consciousness type of thing. Uh. Which also but probably 1100 01:11:33,279 --> 01:11:39,399 important there is that his performance translated to a much worse Blazer's team, And 1101 01:11:39,479 --> 01:11:42,840 there's you can call those empty numbers then, but the fact that he was 1102 01:11:42,880 --> 01:11:47,159 still hyper efficient and like hitting these toggling between these frum scratch trays or these 1103 01:11:47,239 --> 01:11:51,279 ultra deep catch and shoot opportunities. And I also think we've seen I wouldn't 1104 01:11:51,319 --> 01:11:55,840 say he's on the same level of Sejion McCollum when McCollum was traded or anything 1105 01:11:55,840 --> 01:11:59,800 he's done in New Orleans, but there's a difference in the in the decisions 1106 01:11:59,800 --> 01:12:01,920 he's making on the move as a passer, where there was real tunnel vision 1107 01:12:01,920 --> 01:12:04,760 there through his first two years. Again and limited examples, but it feels 1108 01:12:04,800 --> 01:12:08,920 like he's more trustworthy there. I get, I just thought of this, 1109 01:12:08,960 --> 01:12:12,640 so you know, walk me back. But I feel like there's a little 1110 01:12:12,720 --> 01:12:16,800 zach Lavine type of development trajectory for him where you knew immediately like this guy's 1111 01:12:16,840 --> 01:12:21,079 a monster athlete, like he's he's been in the dunk contest and now like 1112 01:12:21,199 --> 01:12:29,119 the ease and the smoothness and the versatility of his three point shot and kind 1113 01:12:29,119 --> 01:12:30,920 of getting past the tunnel vision thing, Like there's a lot of parallels. 1114 01:12:30,920 --> 01:12:34,079 I think. I don't I don't know. Asking someone to be as good 1115 01:12:34,079 --> 01:12:41,119 offensively as zach Lavigne is is a big deal the rim nearly for someone who's 1116 01:12:41,119 --> 01:12:45,720 say there's a stall to his game for some reason. That's the piece of 1117 01:12:45,800 --> 01:12:49,159 the athleticism is not getting translated into like what it feels like it should. 1118 01:12:49,239 --> 01:12:54,039 And again given his youth, it's very possible that that could change. So 1119 01:12:54,199 --> 01:12:57,319 I like the upside, but yeah, heart heart feels more like the underrated 1120 01:12:57,680 --> 01:13:00,920 pick that leaves. There's only one for this team, for the Kings, 1121 01:13:00,960 --> 01:13:06,319 A Sacramento Kings, is there? I mean, so I just picked Harrison 1122 01:13:06,359 --> 01:13:10,439 Barnes. I'm so soured on so many of the Kings because I I don't 1123 01:13:10,439 --> 01:13:14,880 know, like I just thought Dearon Fox was going to be a fringe All 1124 01:13:14,920 --> 01:13:16,399 Star or he was a Friends All Star. I thought he made at some 1125 01:13:16,479 --> 01:13:21,319 point. He's looked that part since before the Haliburton trade, like there's it's 1126 01:13:21,319 --> 01:13:25,600 been basically since the New Year. He's looked do it for a year. 1127 01:13:26,239 --> 01:13:29,119 You gotta prove it now because I've gone to bat for him too many times. 1128 01:13:29,239 --> 01:13:31,520 He's got to do it before. Ahead of Chris Paul in the NBA 1129 01:13:31,600 --> 01:13:36,279 one h during last season. Oh boy, well I didn't go that far. 1130 01:13:36,880 --> 01:13:40,279 I did. I think I did say I put him on a list 1131 01:13:40,319 --> 01:13:45,000 of something I did where like dark horses to win a scoring title or something, 1132 01:13:45,079 --> 01:13:48,359 because he'd averaged like twenty five and you know it still wasn't that efficient 1133 01:13:48,479 --> 01:13:50,600 a couple of years ago. And so I was like, oh, yeah, 1134 01:13:50,600 --> 01:13:53,840 he's he could get the thirty. Why not just get to the line 1135 01:13:53,840 --> 01:13:57,199 a couple more times, make one extra three, We're there. I did 1136 01:13:57,239 --> 01:14:00,119 not pick him. I picked Barnes just because I get. What I appreciate 1137 01:14:00,239 --> 01:14:08,520 most about his game is the way that he's proved to be really effective in 1138 01:14:08,600 --> 01:14:12,079 so many different ways. And that's so weird for a guy that came into 1139 01:14:12,079 --> 01:14:16,520 the league as like a fifth option that was so mechanical. Like the analogy 1140 01:14:16,560 --> 01:14:20,439 I used to use for him was he was like a character you'd make on 1141 01:14:20,520 --> 01:14:26,159 two K that you like gave ninety nine everything and then you handed the controller 1142 01:14:26,199 --> 01:14:29,439 to someone who didn't know what the buttons were. So it was like his 1143 01:14:29,640 --> 01:14:32,960 all of his drives would be totally mechanical and weird stops and starts, and 1144 01:14:33,119 --> 01:14:38,039 it just like it didn't work. But then he would do like do you 1145 01:14:38,079 --> 01:14:42,079 remember the Donkey had on Nicola Pekovic, Like as its first or second year, 1146 01:14:42,239 --> 01:14:45,159 it was it's like an altimer and so athletically he was just unlimited. 1147 01:14:45,399 --> 01:14:48,640 He developed into a really good three point shooter, but just it never was 1148 01:14:48,680 --> 01:14:51,560 there. And then he goes to Dallas and he's like one of the best 1149 01:14:51,560 --> 01:14:56,600 isolation scorers in the league for a year plus and it's just that's the absolute 1150 01:14:56,680 --> 01:15:00,199 last thing you would ever expected for him based on the buttons thing, and 1151 01:15:00,239 --> 01:15:02,439 then he just keeps getting better. This year, he's it's a couple of 1152 01:15:02,479 --> 01:15:06,039 days old now, but he's got He's at sixty three percent true shooting, 1153 01:15:06,079 --> 01:15:11,720 which is like sixty percent is the bar of Like this is an elite efficient 1154 01:15:11,760 --> 01:15:16,680 efficient score and he's doing it on a bad team, which in this case 1155 01:15:16,720 --> 01:15:20,239 I'm using to say, like that's harder because he's not being set up, 1156 01:15:20,319 --> 01:15:26,159 especially now that Tyrese Haliburt's on, so his degree of difficulties kind of up 1157 01:15:26,199 --> 01:15:30,560 there. He just does whatever he's asked to do. He's great. We 1158 01:15:30,640 --> 01:15:33,119 haven't I haven't gone to this, you know, gone to the well on 1159 01:15:33,159 --> 01:15:35,840 this one yet. But in terms of like a locker room guy, the 1160 01:15:35,880 --> 01:15:41,000 adult in the room thing, like he's an a plus there that matters that 1161 01:15:41,000 --> 01:15:45,600 that never gets factored into the underrated overrated calculus. Fine on defense, as 1162 01:15:45,600 --> 01:15:48,479 long as you know you're not asking him to play small forward, he can't 1163 01:15:48,520 --> 01:15:54,359 do that anymore. But yeah, like he shoots thirty eight percent every year 1164 01:15:54,399 --> 01:15:58,319 since fourteen fifteen. Other than when he from deep other than the Dallas years 1165 01:15:58,319 --> 01:16:01,439 when he was like suddenly a number one and his shot difficulty just went way 1166 01:16:01,520 --> 01:16:08,039 up. So I think you know, Harrison Barnes is like you cannot describe 1167 01:16:08,079 --> 01:16:11,800 him without using the term solid, and you're kind of getting dangerous if you 1168 01:16:11,840 --> 01:16:15,880 say he's better than that. But there's immense value to me and a guy 1169 01:16:15,920 --> 01:16:19,319 that just like is there every night on both ends and is zero maintenance and 1170 01:16:19,600 --> 01:16:25,680 is able to play like depending on the circumstances, just a ton of in 1171 01:16:25,720 --> 01:16:28,800 a ton of different ways, which you know, I think speaks to like 1172 01:16:28,840 --> 01:16:30,479 his lack of ego, where he's just gonna do what he is asked of 1173 01:16:30,560 --> 01:16:34,359 him. So I'm curious who the only pick was going to be. I 1174 01:16:34,439 --> 01:16:38,760 will say you did make a pretty compelling case. I thought about it a 1175 01:16:38,760 --> 01:16:42,800 lot. I won't lie. I'm not surprised that you picked a form of 1176 01:16:42,840 --> 01:16:45,760 warrior, to be honest with you, but shouldn't be so, And I 1177 01:16:45,840 --> 01:16:47,760 think it's by the way I've gone from I ranked him as one of the 1178 01:16:47,760 --> 01:16:53,399 worst contracts in the NBA, like middle in the middle of his last deal 1179 01:16:53,439 --> 01:16:56,319 with Dallas, because it was just like they had him in this role where 1180 01:16:56,319 --> 01:16:59,960 he was the focus of their offense, didn't get to the free throw on 1181 01:17:00,239 --> 01:17:03,399 and his efficiency in isolation was like still above league average, but it wasn't 1182 01:17:03,600 --> 01:17:09,680 a league average offensive output if that's your most important source of it. And 1183 01:17:09,760 --> 01:17:12,479 I'm now at the point and this is for the Kings, I'm like, 1184 01:17:12,520 --> 01:17:15,840 they need to extend this guy after this season. He has one year an 1185 01:17:15,840 --> 01:17:18,319 eighteen point four million dollars less, but he wants to stick around and he's 1186 01:17:18,319 --> 01:17:21,520 willing to extend off that number. Do it because I think he's crucial to 1187 01:17:21,600 --> 01:17:27,319 making this a bonus and Fox pairing work. This is a fun team to 1188 01:17:27,319 --> 01:17:29,439 do. And you have the Spur All I have the Spurs. You have 1189 01:17:29,520 --> 01:17:31,399 the Spurs. Yes, I almost tripped up there because I've put a lot 1190 01:17:31,439 --> 01:17:33,960 of thought into I picked for the Jazz and I'm assuming you're going to pick 1191 01:17:33,960 --> 01:17:38,760 the same player, But anyway, I doubt it. After this last one, 1192 01:17:40,840 --> 01:17:44,800 I think I'm gonna go with Devin Vassel. Still, people still sort 1193 01:17:44,800 --> 01:17:48,479 of view him as a specialist. In San Antonio has treated him like one 1194 01:17:48,640 --> 01:17:51,840 with decreasing frequency. We saw it a little bit this year. The freedom 1195 01:17:51,840 --> 01:17:57,800 he's given a dribble into his little pull ups, and now since the Derek 1196 01:17:57,800 --> 01:18:00,720 White trade, they've given him more ball streams and that's been fun to see. 1197 01:18:00,960 --> 01:18:03,680 And then knowing what he's capable of doing on defense, there's value there 1198 01:18:03,720 --> 01:18:06,720 if he wanted to move off the ball as a cut as a cutter. 1199 01:18:08,000 --> 01:18:11,159 I also think I already mentioned it, but Trey Jones has like a quaint 1200 01:18:11,279 --> 01:18:15,520 little mid range game and he can throw some pretty creative pocket passes as well, 1201 01:18:15,199 --> 01:18:18,520 so he would be someone to watch. I am curiously with Josh Primo 1202 01:18:18,600 --> 01:18:21,439 turns into still I think he's gonna end up being really good. He's a 1203 01:18:21,520 --> 01:18:24,600 rookie, though, so I try to stee you're clear of that. If 1204 01:18:24,640 --> 01:18:28,000 you wanted to say Zach Collins at this point, or Kelvin Johnson because he's 1205 01:18:28,000 --> 01:18:32,239 done more on the ball, that's that's totally fine. But it's to me 1206 01:18:32,279 --> 01:18:38,119 it's just Stevin mis Sell because I think there's more than he's eventually or invariably 1207 01:18:38,119 --> 01:18:43,840 going to be pigeonholed into this like three and D archetype, and he's just 1208 01:18:43,920 --> 01:18:45,760 going to be so much more than that. I don't know if he's I'm 1209 01:18:45,760 --> 01:18:49,199 not saying he's the next Kawhi Leonard in San Antonio, But he's someone that 1210 01:18:49,199 --> 01:18:54,760 would keep an eye on if there's a gap between the perception of what you 1211 01:18:54,800 --> 01:18:58,279 think he's going to be and what he actually might become. This is someone 1212 01:18:58,319 --> 01:19:01,600 that I could see having sort of different games, but sort of a mccale 1213 01:19:01,680 --> 01:19:09,000 bridges type rise in perception where he might also just be heavier volume on offense 1214 01:19:09,039 --> 01:19:12,640 because he's not playing aloside Chris Paul and Devin Booker, And it feels like 1215 01:19:12,640 --> 01:19:14,760 he even has a little bit more confidence in himself on the ball. I 1216 01:19:14,800 --> 01:19:18,000 feel like mccale is two unselfish at points. Still, I think Vassell is 1217 01:19:18,039 --> 01:19:23,239 a great pick. I this wasn't my team, but just throughout the course 1218 01:19:23,279 --> 01:19:27,560 of this year, Kelvin Johnson has increasingly like just seems seemed like just one 1219 01:19:27,600 --> 01:19:30,439 thing away from because he's so he's at in the three point shot. He's 1220 01:19:30,479 --> 01:19:31,800 forty one percent from deep this year. And he still is just like a 1221 01:19:31,840 --> 01:19:35,840 bowling ball downhill. But like, hey, Kelton Johnson gets to the foul 1222 01:19:35,920 --> 01:19:39,279 like he gets to the foul line two point nine times a game. I 1223 01:19:39,359 --> 01:19:43,880 don't know how that's possible with the physicality that he brings driving. He shoots 1224 01:19:43,920 --> 01:19:46,920 more often from three to ten feet than inside three feet, so just like 1225 01:19:47,239 --> 01:19:50,720 one more step and just run somebody over and you're good. And then suddenly 1226 01:19:50,960 --> 01:19:56,159 he's averaging twenty a game instead of what is at sixteen this year. He'll 1227 01:19:56,239 --> 01:19:59,119 he'll get there, I think, Vassell. I do agree, though totally 1228 01:19:59,119 --> 01:20:01,840 so portable, like right now, portable, like the kind of guy that 1229 01:20:01,880 --> 01:20:06,039 you want whip the bridges upside and then potentially more offensively. I think I 1230 01:20:06,319 --> 01:20:10,319 have no, no, no issue with that pick. You, however, 1231 01:20:10,640 --> 01:20:14,560 are going to have an issue with my Utah Jazz pick because I really struggle 1232 01:20:14,600 --> 01:20:18,119 with this, and I think I, like so many players on the Jazz 1233 01:20:18,119 --> 01:20:21,920 that I'm a bad gauge for this. But I picked Boyam Bogdanovich, and 1234 01:20:21,960 --> 01:20:25,800 there's no chance that that's who you would have picked, right, No, 1235 01:20:25,960 --> 01:20:29,319 But I get it because there's and I don't want to see what you're gonna 1236 01:20:29,319 --> 01:20:31,600 say. But when people were talking about should they trade him, is he 1237 01:20:31,720 --> 01:20:35,079 their path to an upgrade? If you see a wing who's six seven sixty 1238 01:20:35,119 --> 01:20:40,119 eight and just has better than sixty true shooting on the season, you're over 1239 01:20:40,199 --> 01:20:44,000 like that. We might be over like that's just hyper valuable, right, 1240 01:20:44,239 --> 01:20:48,000 So I agree, and so start with the small sample since the All Star 1241 01:20:48,079 --> 01:20:51,279 break, forty eight point two from the field, forty five point two from 1242 01:20:51,319 --> 01:20:56,279 three, he's plus six point four, which is the best on the Jazz 1243 01:20:56,279 --> 01:21:00,479 since the break. Overall, though, like he's just he just is. 1244 01:21:00,520 --> 01:21:06,560 The offensive efficiency is elite. He's he's perfectly situated. I'll admit in an 1245 01:21:06,600 --> 01:21:11,680 offense that, like the term Utah uses all the time as advantage basketball, 1246 01:21:11,960 --> 01:21:15,079 getting him the ball like on the move kind of mitigates the lack of you 1247 01:21:15,079 --> 01:21:17,840 know, start and stop speed that he has. It does it for everybody 1248 01:21:17,840 --> 01:21:20,800 on the team, but I think he and Joe Ingles too when he was 1249 01:21:20,840 --> 01:21:26,279 on the roster and healthy, benefit the most from that because it just puts 1250 01:21:26,279 --> 01:21:30,000 guys that don't have you know, blazing sprinter speed or quick you know, 1251 01:21:30,399 --> 01:21:35,279 quick twitch anything in positions to where they're you know, they're downhill, they're 1252 01:21:35,319 --> 01:21:39,359 always a threat to stop and shoot. He's a decent passer. He's a 1253 01:21:39,399 --> 01:21:42,520 shoot first guy for sure, which you should be if you're as accurate as 1254 01:21:42,600 --> 01:21:47,239 him. He's pretty much always good for thirty nine from deep. The downsides 1255 01:21:47,239 --> 01:21:51,640 for him are obviously, I think he's gonna eat forever on whatever that playoff 1256 01:21:51,680 --> 01:21:55,880 series was years ago where he did a good job defending Lebron James. But 1257 01:21:55,960 --> 01:22:00,920 he's he's probably a minus defender. But fine, if you're getting you know, 1258 01:22:00,000 --> 01:22:02,640 beat, you're still big and you have Gobert behind you, so he's 1259 01:22:02,680 --> 01:22:06,840 in the right place to sort of hide what he doesn't do well. I 1260 01:22:06,920 --> 01:22:12,159 just think I think he matters more than he gets credit. Four on a 1261 01:22:12,159 --> 01:22:15,720 team like for sure, you know Gobert, Mitchell Conley, that that's where 1262 01:22:15,800 --> 01:22:20,000 the Jazz, you know, our season future or whatever is going to be 1263 01:22:20,000 --> 01:22:25,520 decided. But I just think the offensive efficiency does not get enough credit, 1264 01:22:26,319 --> 01:22:30,000 especially since like he kind of has to pick his spots because he's not close 1265 01:22:30,079 --> 01:22:35,119 to the top option on this team. I see that I have Royce O'Neill 1266 01:22:35,159 --> 01:22:39,359 because I just feel like he's become a forgotten man since we harp a lot 1267 01:22:39,399 --> 01:22:43,600 on what Utah needs on the perimeter defensively, and that he can't go it 1268 01:22:43,680 --> 01:22:48,359 alone there. They just ask him to defend these wildly difficult assignments for twenty 1269 01:22:48,680 --> 01:22:54,600 thirty plus minutes every single game. Oh he's just quietly shooting above from three. 1270 01:22:54,640 --> 01:22:56,640 I know he's not high volume on offense, and there have been times 1271 01:22:56,640 --> 01:22:58,840 where it feels like he can be overstretched if he put the ball in his 1272 01:22:58,880 --> 01:23:00,560 hands. You don't need to ball in his hands anymore. Like we're past 1273 01:23:00,640 --> 01:23:06,800 that version of the Utah Jazz and this is this is wild. But over 1274 01:23:06,840 --> 01:23:12,319 the past three seasons, he has cleared two thousand minutes and a matchup difficulty 1275 01:23:12,800 --> 01:23:17,680 of ninety nine in each of the last three seasons. That is absurd. 1276 01:23:18,319 --> 01:23:21,159 It's also by default, though, like somebody's got to do it on that 1277 01:23:21,199 --> 01:23:25,560 team. But but I'm just I'm just nipping. But this is also like 1278 01:23:26,079 --> 01:23:29,520 it's in two thousand plus minutes every single season. It's it's by default. 1279 01:23:29,680 --> 01:23:32,680 But he's also been available while holding up against all of that. And hey, 1280 01:23:32,760 --> 01:23:39,279 he's like he's super complimentary on the offensive end. He would be if 1281 01:23:39,319 --> 01:23:42,199 they really, honestly, if they're trying to make an upgrade this offseason, 1282 01:23:42,279 --> 01:23:45,119 I think the default move is going to be can we attach Jordan Clarkson's money 1283 01:23:45,399 --> 01:23:49,760 or Bardanovitch's money to how many future first? Like they can move at first. 1284 01:23:49,800 --> 01:23:53,479 I think the sooness is two and twenty six. Are they willing to 1285 01:23:53,479 --> 01:23:56,479 go that route? If you really wanted to make an upgrade, I guarantee 1286 01:23:56,520 --> 01:24:00,840 that you can probably get first round value for Royce O'Neil just because the breath 1287 01:24:00,880 --> 01:24:04,159 of what he covers on defense. Yeah, it's a problem that Utah's things 1288 01:24:04,159 --> 01:24:08,159 pick it up. But they need someone who's bigger den Royce O'Neil, because 1289 01:24:08,399 --> 01:24:11,399 yeah, he's mostly gonna he'll go up against the number one or number two 1290 01:24:11,439 --> 01:24:14,680 options, But like if you you can't put him on the super big wings, 1291 01:24:14,720 --> 01:24:15,960 he's just not big enough. That's not that's not on him, and 1292 01:24:15,960 --> 01:24:18,760 he'll cover some of them. He is. I think his most frequently guarded 1293 01:24:18,800 --> 01:24:23,439 position, or second most rely league guard position is the three spot this year. 1294 01:24:23,520 --> 01:24:26,520 If I'm not mistaken, I'll the double check that. But just it's 1295 01:24:26,600 --> 01:24:29,920 every game like it's it's not even oh, who's gonna cover It's no, 1296 01:24:30,039 --> 01:24:32,359 it's just him. Roy Something's basically on the best perimeterside and if if you 1297 01:24:32,399 --> 01:24:35,720 can't put him on that person, you're fucked. That's the other thing. 1298 01:24:35,960 --> 01:24:40,680 They just have no safety net. So I just feel like he deserves even 1299 01:24:40,680 --> 01:24:45,039 if it's by default this workload. He has held up for it over each 1300 01:24:45,039 --> 01:24:47,640 of the past three seasons, and I feel like, yeah, it's time 1301 01:24:47,760 --> 01:24:50,800 that he receives his kudos for it. I agree. I was being a 1302 01:24:50,800 --> 01:24:56,039 physicians like I think the fact that like his job sucks, like because he 1303 01:24:56,640 --> 01:24:59,439 has to guard it doesn't at all. It doesn't matter. He's like, 1304 01:24:59,479 --> 01:25:02,000 man, I'm give enough four inches and forty pounds of this guy, or 1305 01:25:02,039 --> 01:25:06,039 I'm chasing around someone that Conley's not quick enough, like you know, he 1306 01:25:06,039 --> 01:25:11,680 he the fact that he is sort of overmatched sometimes but it doesn't matter, 1307 01:25:11,680 --> 01:25:14,560 like three you said at three years and he just guards the best guy, 1308 01:25:14,720 --> 01:25:16,359 like that's just how it has to be, and to put up with that 1309 01:25:16,399 --> 01:25:19,479 and to sort of in terms of the shots he gets, it's just scraps 1310 01:25:19,640 --> 01:25:24,479 generally, or he's getting left because You's always has a bunch of other bigger 1311 01:25:24,520 --> 01:25:30,359 threats. I think. I think the thanklessness of his of his job really 1312 01:25:30,199 --> 01:25:33,520 puts him in line with like a bunch of the guys I've already picked. 1313 01:25:33,520 --> 01:25:38,960 So I definitely can't go against that. Since I've cited defensive matchup difficulty and 1314 01:25:39,760 --> 01:25:42,960 uh, guys who are good at defense several times, I'd have to go 1315 01:25:43,000 --> 01:25:45,560 back and remember who you pick. But maybe these guys are just standing out 1316 01:25:45,560 --> 01:25:49,359 to me. You were like really in on the slow people in this one 1317 01:25:49,359 --> 01:25:55,119 Badanovitch Steven Adams joint his valanjudis. Do you just you hate speed? Do 1318 01:25:55,119 --> 01:25:58,720 you hate yes, slows slows the new fast. That's that's the thing, 1319 01:25:58,760 --> 01:26:00,600 everybody, you know, It's all about controlling the pace. It doesn't matter 1320 01:26:00,640 --> 01:26:06,600 what the pace. Luca, please send Grant all your viral three toad sloth 1321 01:26:06,880 --> 01:26:11,880 videos. I'd love to watch those for hours at a time. Grant, 1322 01:26:11,920 --> 01:26:15,319 this was a lot of fun and I think a very informative exercise. Are 1323 01:26:15,319 --> 01:26:18,840 you able to just tell our listeners where they can find your work and where 1324 01:26:18,880 --> 01:26:21,800 they can find you on social media? Once every six months? Yeah, 1325 01:26:21,920 --> 01:26:28,479 check me out a Bleacher Report, hopefully right alongside Dan but not next to 1326 01:26:28,560 --> 01:26:30,640 him, so that I don't look bad for what I put out compared to 1327 01:26:30,720 --> 01:26:35,800 him and get underscore hees. On Twitter, I tweet once in a while, 1328 01:26:36,000 --> 01:26:41,239 and I don't waste my tweets. I'm an efficient tweeter. So I 1329 01:26:41,239 --> 01:26:43,760 think you can attest to that because you still get alerts when I tweet, 1330 01:26:43,880 --> 01:26:46,399 like every I like when I get the Grant like And I don't know why 1331 01:26:46,399 --> 01:26:48,680 Twitter sends it to me about you. Maybe because you're like one of the 1332 01:26:48,960 --> 01:26:51,760 I followed you for one of the longest times on I don't I don't get 1333 01:26:51,800 --> 01:26:55,640 it for anybody else, but it's Grant. Maybe it's because I've tagged you. 1334 01:26:55,720 --> 01:26:58,119 I don't know like how it goes into it. I will get every 1335 01:26:58,159 --> 01:27:00,840 time you have an original tweet. He was tweeted for the first time in 1336 01:27:00,880 --> 01:27:03,760 a while, and I'm like, oh shit. And then and then You're 1337 01:27:03,800 --> 01:27:08,000 like, why is he talking about managing and Nobole retired for like five years. 1338 01:27:08,000 --> 01:27:11,760 He's cared like it's fucking Tuesday in March twenty twenty two. What does 1339 01:27:11,800 --> 01:27:15,159 manage and Noble have to do with anything that's happenday right now? Everything? 1340 01:27:15,920 --> 01:27:19,560 Uh, this was great and I will be pasturing us years as you know 1341 01:27:19,800 --> 01:27:21,680 right now. Thanks Dama,