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What's up, y'all is Drewski and
I've teamed up with Mountain Dew to produce

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a hilarious new basketball podcast called The
due Zone with Drewski. Learned the backstories

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of your favorite balls and celebrities like
Jamal Murray. Did you have like a

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favorite team? Was it the Raptors
at the time or no? Was the

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Raptors even started on the topic?
Come on, bro, I had that.

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He's talking like I'm vifty, Taylor
Rogues, Asian Wilson, and many

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more. You won't want to miss
this. Listen to The Due Zone with

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Drewski on Apple Podcast, Spotify and
wherever you listen to podcasts what is Crackaback

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and hardwarnas listeners, I am Dan
Belly coming at you with Alex my fantabulous

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co host Adam Bromo. I am, however, pleased to be joined to

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buy regular guest good friend, longtime
colleague Grant Hughes. Follow him on Twitter

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at gt Underscore Hughes. A quick
note before we get started, an apology

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to anyone who downloaded the last podcast
and only heard me coming out of the

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left ear. I was going solo
because Adam had to cancel and it turns

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out my microphone on the program that
I was using to record it, which

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I never used to record it,
only records that particular microphone in stereo,

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which in turn only comes out of
the left ear, So that will not

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happen again. But just apologies to
the people that reached out and said that

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I was only coming out of your
left earphone, So apologies once again,

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Grant. How are you doing?
Can you hear me coming out of both

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of your AirPods right now? Yeah? I just maybe wonder if you have

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a disproportionate percentage of your listenership that
has a right ear hearing trouble, Like,

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how are we sure that's not the
problem. One of my friends reached

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out, and I thought he was
bonkers. I was like, did you

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check to see if your headphone was
working? But then I try it and

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it actually happened. I was only
coming out of the left ear. So

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I blame Adam because he had to
get his second COVID shot and he wasn't

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feeling too well, so he had
to cancel. So it's obviously his fault

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because if he were there this never
I never would have used that program.

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It's never would have happened. I
would like to preemptively blame any bad takes

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that I'm about to have on Adam
just IF's if that's what we're going to

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do, Like I think he would, he would, he'd be okay with

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that. Yeah, And I think
that goes without saying on the podcast that

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anything wrong is Adam Fromo's fault at
Promo Zer or nine if you need to

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yell at him. I brought you
on to do a really complicated topic.

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We're gonna do some factor fiction,
I know, very high bress stuff here.

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We were just talking though that it's
hard to discuss anything at this point

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when the games still matter, but
like there's no EBB and flow to what's

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happening based on injuries, availability,
what all these different teams are doing,

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and the awards discussion has been just
talked about to no end, especially on

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the MVP front, And so I
wanted to get a little bit topical or

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big pictures as while there were no
holes bars on this, no limitations,

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and just go factor fiction with statements. And I actually have one that I

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think might cut your soul a little
bit. So I am I was excited

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about this. Yeah, sorry you
preface We were texting to set this up,

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and you did threaten to cut my
soul, and so I tried to

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think about what it could possibly be. I have you I'm gonna guess.

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I won't try to guess. I
just want to hear from me before so

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I can just take the cut,
you know, without getting ready. I

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do have to ask you first,
do you have any thoughts, opinions,

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musings on whatever the hell is going
on in Indiana at the moment? I

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mean, would just with respect to
all the Yorker and stuff, did you

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see the clip of Goga going at
Foster? Yeah, Greg Foster? Yeah,

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No, I didn't see that.
I just read about it in amid

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all the Yorker and stuff that's come
out the last couple of days. I

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guess like the overall takeaway is and
Jake Fisher for for br head at some

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of this of like, how do
you not talk to enough people that could

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have told you that the guy are
about to hire after like a search that

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involved twenty some OD candidates or something
like that. How do you not talk

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to the right people that would have
told you that you might be in for

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the type of toxic culture where stuff
like this is going to happen at the

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end of the season, Like,
that's wild to me. I just I

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don't I want to know who they
Yeah, I don't know. The thing

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that blew me away was reportedly the
Pacers did not talk to TJ. Warren,

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who played for Yorker and when he
was an assistant with Phoenix, and

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then Warren supposedly requested a trade because
he's like he couldn't play. I just

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was like, man, you gotta
at least talk to him. What happened?

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Who did they talk to? Right? And if they spoke with Nick

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Nurse and he endorsed him, Like, there's some subterfuge going on here,

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right, he was trying to sabotage
the patients from the outside. How are

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you What would be the point of
it? Because what would be the point

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of endorsing him when this was apparently
known stuff throughout the G League, throughout

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his past teams dating back to Phoenix. How are you then this stuff was

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happening in Toronto, is my point? Apparently where he was acting that my

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favorite aside from the War World,
my favorite adult was like he had to

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be the vessel through which communication was
run between players and the head coach.

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They couldn't talk to one another,
so that stuff was happening. What is

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Nick? Was Nick Nurse like get
him the fuck out of here? Or

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was he like, you know,
they're in the East. We don't know

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what's gonna happen next year, so
I'm just gonna sab atops them from afar.

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I don't I don't get it.
So that's so so I this is

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why I feel like really naive now, because when I read that part off,

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like they talked to nurse a lot, and nurse obviously, I mean

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if I just assumed that it's just
like a it's an unwritten rule that like

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if one of your assistance is up
for a head coaching job, you just

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have to support him no matter what. But the alternative is a little more

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plausible now seeing seeing how badly it's
gone. Like now, like the next

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team that hires a nurse assistant and
asks the nurse's opinion will just have to

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be like, I don't know,
dude, this last one didn't goes so

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good. I think maybe you're gonna
need to be a little more forthrighting with

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us this time, because I can't
imagine what he would have said. He

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clearly didn't say any of this stuff, so so yeah, yeah, I

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don't know me and this is this
is wild and just to have this spiral

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so fast, like it just a
year. Usually it takes a while for

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you know, for whatever true colors
to come out, or for players to

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get sick of coaches, like the
Pacers got sick of McMillan. You know,

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the players kind of tuned him out
towards the end, but that took

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a while. This is like fast
track. Yeah, there's there's no way

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that he's going to beat in yeah
and next season, right, like,

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there's just none I can't imagine.
I cannot imagine. This is and this

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is worse than the Igorka Koshkov stuff
in Phoenix, right, this definitely exceeds

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that. Oh that's another one.
Yeah, that's another one. Yeah,

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because I don't this feels like I
mean, it's almost like cartoonish some of

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the things that are being described with
how he flies off the handle if like

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a ball rack is in the wrong
place, or I mean it's it's it's

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wild. It's like it's like bad
you know, community college type of coach

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stuff where he's just like, I
don't know. I first of all,

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I will say is I cannot wait
for more stuff to come out, because

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now when you get this kind of
a couple of reports like this coming out,

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you know that there's going to be
more because now the floodgates are open,

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and I need to know who he
pissed off recently that that this came

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out now, because there's no value
add to the organization at this point.

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You're not going to get rid of
the change is going to come over the

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off season. And even if you
did get rid of him, I don't

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know, you know what it's going
to do. So did something just happen

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that triggered all of this? Yeah, I don't know. I'd be curious

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to know, like, you know, all of the comments that have just

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come out, how how long the
reporting goes back that source those you know,

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like if this if some of the
comments in like Jake's piece, for

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example, or from two months ago
or something like that, and who knows,

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we'll find out. I think we're
gonna the ship has hit the fan,

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and now the fan is like just
got flipped from medium to high.

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So it's really gonna it's really good
everywhere everyone is over. I didn't want

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to get quite that deep into it. I got halfway into that metaphor and

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decided I was going to going to
back out. But thanks for taking a

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song. Did you want me to
start with the factor fiction that I think

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will be gutting for you? Do
you want to finish with that? I

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feel like we should start with Noo, I want to start with it.

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I'm curious now, Okay, fact
or fiction? Stephen Curry is more likely

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to force his way out of Golden
State than Damian Lillard is to do so

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with Portland fiction. I thought you're
gonna have to fight about that a little

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more. This was obviously in reference
I don't look the Chris haynesbi's which clearly

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wasn't like him. I know he
has a relationship with Dame, but he

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clearly was not saying Dame said like
f this, f that, all this

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happening, And then the Knicks,
like you know, Mark Burmer the post.

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I took it and ran with it. Oh, the Knicks would be

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interested in Damian Lillard. Well,
obviously they and twenty eight others. Yeah,

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yeah, yeah, no, That's
that's the reason why I was so

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quick to to to say fiction,
because, like one, I guess to

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start with the step thing. I
don't think it's impossible like that he could

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come to management and say, like, guys were stuck. I can't do

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any more than I'm doing. You
got a year to sort of he wouldn't

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phrase it this way, but you
got another We got another year. And

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if if this is the same result, if we're like if I'm killing myself

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to make us five hundred, we
got to work something out like that seems

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plausible to me. Unlikely but plausible. But with when a report like that

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comes out, and I have the
same thought too. Haines has connections to

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Portland, like he's been dialed in, plugged in there for a really long

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time. I think he started there, like on the Blazers beat. Maybe

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I could be wrong about that,
but that is the type of thing that

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comes out. You know, the
sourcing is Lillard or his camp, because

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that's not coming from the Blazers,
I don't think so. It seems like

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that is sort of what's the that's
just sort of paving the way for if

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the guy that has professed loyalty forever
and by all accounts is loyal and dame

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like is just unimpeachable. But like
now there's now there's like sort of we're

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easing into a scenario where like suddenly
it wouldn't be this world altering shock if

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if if Dame started to show up
in like trade conversations or something like that,

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or he angled, he changed his
stance a little bit on I'm going

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to stay here forever. Like,
I think this was just the little nudge

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and it was very calculated, so
that's what makes it seem more likely to

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me. But even that is still
hard to imagine. I think they'll try

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to do like everything else first,
like McCollum would go, uh, stots,

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obviously he's getting fired. It seems
like that riding is very much on

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the wall. But yeah, I
think I think it's it's it's like it's

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it would not surprise me at all
if we're if if Dame was the next

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guy you know that suddenly became available
that we didn't think ever would. I

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want to be spicy and say fact
on my statement, but I think I

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agree with you. I do feel
like you. And it's funny how we

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sort of flipped roles here because you
were low around the Warriors going into the

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season than I am. I feel
like we might be underestimating the raging incompetence

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of Golden States like Powers that Be. I don't think that they like I

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know, their flexibility was limited this
past offseason, and you can't the Clay

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injuries nobody's fault at the same time, like they're that roster around stuff felt

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like it was built without a rhyme
or reason, like even the pieces on

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the margins. Yes, I like
the brad Wanamaker acquisition at the time,

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and he turned out to be like
one of the worst players in basketball during

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his stretch there. Yeah, I
Kelly Uber Junior thing was always questionable because

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it was another play finisher who didn't
really space the floor. So I he

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is Curry is extension all this summer, but he could enter free agency in

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twenty twenty two. I mean,
you throw the you try and extend him.

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He's worth whatever age thirty three.
The fact that he's playing at this

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level, I don't I don't care. And he's not the type of player

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to force his way out. And
we have not seen this Dame type story

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where where it's been oh it's not
from Steff, but maybe it's from Steff.

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And the fact that he's won three
championships obviously helps here, but like,

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if you are Steph free agency,
is that close? You're at least

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entering the final year year deal.
As the end of this season, you'll

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be talking about an extension. Whatever. How do you not think about it?

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Because you have to look at this
roster and say, we get Clay

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back, we still lack another shot
creator, like Clay has just never been

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that guy, or what does Clay
look like coming off Achilles and acl tears.

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I honestly, if Golden State gets
the Timberwolves pick and like won't move

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it, and James wise move that
player and James Wiseman for I won't even

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say Bradley Beal, just whatever,
like higher profile name or names become available.

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I think that could be a tipping
point. Or the other tipping point

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would be the Timberwolves keeping their pick
and then the Warriors have James Wiseman,

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who he's not damaged goods, but
like insofar as he has a trade value,

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you know, tearing your meniscus after
not having the best rookie season and

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probably not being deployed in the best
way for most of it. What are

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you getting with James Wiseman as the
centerpiece? Or are the twenty twenty two

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Wolves pick, which, yes,
he is unprotected, but the Wolves kind

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of sort of might not suck at
that point when you're looking at Edwards,

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Cat Delo, healthy, Mollie Beasley
and then another high pick from this year,

204
00:13:20,399 --> 00:13:24,799
and so I'm just wondering, there
has to be a limit to Curry's

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00:13:24,799 --> 00:13:28,759
allegiance, right, there has to
be. So this is something I've flipped

206
00:13:28,759 --> 00:13:31,840
on over the course of the years
I was I was. I defended the

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00:13:31,879 --> 00:13:35,039
Wiseman pick. I thought it was
the right pick at the time, just

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because to me, it seemed like
he gave them the biggest lottery ticket towards

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Like this is the guy that has
Steph Twinds down. He becomes our Anthony

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Davis, and like we get a
sort of Spurs Kauai transition of power type

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00:13:50,799 --> 00:13:56,159
of thing from the Duncan Jenovli Parker
era. But Wiseman, like he just

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he didn't have it. Like it's
so early, and it's so crazy to

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00:14:00,080 --> 00:14:01,840
say all this stuff about a guy
that you know in three college games,

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00:14:01,879 --> 00:14:07,279
blah blah blah. Stuck into a
situation where like this is the great failing

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00:14:07,320 --> 00:14:09,159
of the season where the Warriors sort
of tried to do both. They try

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00:14:09,200 --> 00:14:11,639
to develop him, and they tried
to win, and they tried to like

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00:14:11,720 --> 00:14:15,840
involve him in the winning, and
he just wasn't ready to do that and

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it ruined his confidence. He has
a major like he can't catch the ball.

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00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:24,960
He's totally lost on both ends.
So I don't see like superstardom in

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00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:28,879
his future, which again, like
it's ridiculous to say this this early in

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00:14:28,919 --> 00:14:33,200
his career. But if they don't
trade him and this pick or the whichever

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00:14:33,320 --> 00:14:37,279
iteration of the Wolves pick they have, if they don't do that, I

223
00:14:37,279 --> 00:14:41,080
think it's a mistake. Like I
think even though I also don't know that

224
00:14:41,080 --> 00:14:43,519
there's a trade out there that puts
them into the contender class, Like I

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00:14:43,519 --> 00:14:46,879
don't, like we've talked about this
before. I don't know if that Beale

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00:14:46,919 --> 00:14:50,159
puts them in the contender class,
Like I'm skeptical about that. But if

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00:14:52,279 --> 00:14:54,519
but they got to do it now, right, Like there's fact that,

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00:14:54,559 --> 00:14:56,919
like there's no question they have to
make that move that like Steph is too

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00:14:56,919 --> 00:15:01,240
good and like the point you just
praised of, like the door will be

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00:15:01,240 --> 00:15:05,279
open soon. So if you care
about him staying, you have to the

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00:15:05,279 --> 00:15:09,080
trade. Wiseman has to be moved
and that pick has to be part.

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00:15:09,159 --> 00:15:13,120
Like that's just it seems simple to
me. Now ask me again in like

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00:15:13,200 --> 00:15:15,559
three months. But that's how it
looks to me right now. Would you

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00:15:15,639 --> 00:15:20,679
do And this is because if Dame
isn't available and Bradley Beale isn't available,

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and I'm trying to think of,
would there be even another star that you

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00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:26,679
could have? Is the next one
Karl Anthony Towns feels at least a year

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00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:31,320
away from that becoming a problem.
Would you give up the pick and Wiseman

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00:15:31,919 --> 00:15:35,360
for and whatever other salary you need
to. I think it gets weird because

239
00:15:37,120 --> 00:15:39,000
these two players, Wiseman and this
year's pick would make so much money but

240
00:15:39,039 --> 00:15:43,559
it's not a ton of money.
But like you can't attach Andrew Wiggins,

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00:15:43,600 --> 00:15:48,639
but the framework would be Wiseman and
the pick for Malcolm Brogden and Miles Turner.

242
00:15:48,480 --> 00:15:54,200
Oh Man, I wouldn't dismiss that
out of hand. I think that

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00:15:54,279 --> 00:15:58,240
might be what it so unless the
next star, the next non Dame star

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00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:03,600
to sort of set be to take
over Bill's spot and the guy we speculate

245
00:16:03,679 --> 00:16:07,440
over forever. I think that's like
what they might have to settle for and

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00:16:07,759 --> 00:16:10,679
like, really they'd get that would
make them so much better than it would

247
00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:12,919
be like that that could make a
huge difference because you get, Yeah,

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00:16:14,000 --> 00:16:15,879
I like that trade a lot.
I would think hard about that, I

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00:16:15,960 --> 00:16:19,399
really would. But that so you
But so I guess what then you're saying,

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00:16:19,679 --> 00:16:22,480
and I think i'm an agree with
you, is that they're probably at

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00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:26,679
the point where they need to settle
for the non star scenario incoming because Turning

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00:16:26,720 --> 00:16:30,759
and Broaden at their peak fringe all
stars. Well, yeah, I mean,

253
00:16:30,639 --> 00:16:33,600
you can't make the trade for the
player that's not available, So like

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00:16:33,679 --> 00:16:37,279
if you're stuck in a position where
you've got to pull the trigger, you

255
00:16:37,360 --> 00:16:40,080
just sort of aim at whatever's in
front of you, Like you can't conjure

256
00:16:40,120 --> 00:16:42,200
up a target that isn't you know. So yeah, like that's that's totally

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00:16:42,200 --> 00:16:48,000
plausible that that's what they're stuck doing. And yeah, I would suck if

258
00:16:48,360 --> 00:16:51,759
you know that pick. It depends
on where I would feel a lot better

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00:16:51,799 --> 00:16:55,840
if that pick like was eighth or
ninth or something, but if it was

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00:16:55,879 --> 00:16:59,399
like four or five, then I
would really hesitate because yeah, I don't

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00:16:59,399 --> 00:17:02,120
know, I don't know, but
yeah, I think that's the type of

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00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:04,599
thing they might have to be ready
to settle for because you can't. I

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00:17:04,640 --> 00:17:07,960
forget who I was talking to the
other day, but like, oh,

264
00:17:07,000 --> 00:17:11,079
but Clay is going to be back. It's like, Okay, what's he

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00:17:11,079 --> 00:17:14,319
gonna look like? How like how
can you even price him in as like

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00:17:14,319 --> 00:17:18,599
a yeah, I mean, like
is he a positive I assume he's a

267
00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:21,519
positive player, But there's like no
chance he's going to be an All Star,

268
00:17:21,680 --> 00:17:25,799
right, Like that's I mean,
he'll be better than Wiggins and Ubre

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00:17:26,119 --> 00:17:29,720
I guess, but like, I
just I don't know. You can't.

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00:17:29,759 --> 00:17:30,400
That's like not an argument to me. It's like, oh, well,

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00:17:30,440 --> 00:17:33,920
Clay will be back, so they
have their seconds. No, it's not,

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00:17:33,200 --> 00:17:36,440
he's not You can't pry. You
can't count on him as a second

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00:17:36,440 --> 00:17:38,960
star, even the version, even
pre injury. Clay. I don't know

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00:17:40,000 --> 00:17:42,559
if he alone would have made the
Warriors contenders, definitely would have brought them

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00:17:42,599 --> 00:17:48,200
closer. But just what this team
needs. Their offense craters by almost sixteen

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00:17:48,240 --> 00:17:52,799
points per one hundred possessions without Steph
and Curry, and Steph is like only

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00:17:52,880 --> 00:17:55,880
lifting them up to a league average
offense when he's on the court. It's

278
00:17:55,920 --> 00:17:59,759
not like their lights out and then
they're dropping down to league average without him.

279
00:17:59,759 --> 00:18:03,599
It's, oh, this is an
NBA offense versus you're probably facing something

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00:18:03,839 --> 00:18:07,119
some variation of this at the Why
when you go play pick up without him?

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00:18:07,359 --> 00:18:11,720
Yeah? They, I mean they, It's we're talking about stuff that's

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00:18:11,720 --> 00:18:18,200
two years old now, But like
the necessity of guys like Iguadala and Sean

283
00:18:18,279 --> 00:18:22,839
Livingston is now like being felt because
you know, they've had their flaws,

284
00:18:22,880 --> 00:18:26,440
but they understood like not only how
to maximize Steph, but how to play

285
00:18:26,480 --> 00:18:30,279
off of him and get easy buckets
for themselves, where just like Wiggins doesn't

286
00:18:30,279 --> 00:18:33,319
have that feel to that level,
Ubras definitely doesn't have that feel to that

287
00:18:33,400 --> 00:18:36,440
level, and like no one else
on the roster really does. So it's

288
00:18:36,440 --> 00:18:41,400
just like if Steph isn't you know, doing what he's doing, Like you

289
00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:44,880
said that off the offense is like
a G League offense basically, if he's

290
00:18:44,920 --> 00:18:47,799
not out there, this is a
quick side at I toote. But did

291
00:18:47,799 --> 00:18:51,440
you see the thing I think it
was on Reddit about Andrew Wiggins. I

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00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:55,480
think they were responding to someone saying
Wiggins doesn't show commitment to the game,

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00:18:55,799 --> 00:18:59,000
and I would argue with just the
way he's defended this year, that's not

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actually true. And some people just
all right, you know, they're not

295
00:19:03,000 --> 00:19:07,079
as like viscerly like energetic. But
I don't know, like I've never heard

296
00:19:07,279 --> 00:19:10,400
of oh his demeanor. He clearly
doesn't care unless you know, unless it's

297
00:19:10,440 --> 00:19:15,720
Kevin Love, you know, fair
damn bunder ball, then yeah. But

298
00:19:15,079 --> 00:19:19,559
he they were using it as evidence
to justify as quitman by saying he had

299
00:19:21,079 --> 00:19:23,400
his girlfriend, and I'm they collected. I'm hoping we may collectively decided she

300
00:19:23,559 --> 00:19:27,200
was going into labor, and they
waited to induce until after the game because

301
00:19:27,200 --> 00:19:32,160
he wanted to play in the game. And I would argue that unless his

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00:19:32,279 --> 00:19:37,359
girlfriend insisted on that happening, you
should not be using that as evidence of

303
00:19:37,440 --> 00:19:40,960
anything positive. And it's certainly not
a positive reflection of Andrew Wiggins. There

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00:19:40,960 --> 00:19:44,799
would be a positive reflection of the
mother of his child, of his girlfriend.

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00:19:44,960 --> 00:19:47,960
Like, I could not believe that
that was just it was out there.

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00:19:48,039 --> 00:19:49,759
I'll send you the link to it
afterwards, But I did. I

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00:19:49,799 --> 00:19:53,240
didn't understand, Like, why would
anyone use this as a means to prop

308
00:19:53,359 --> 00:20:00,599
up Andrew Wiggins. You gotta get
off Reddit, I guess I don't everyone

309
00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:03,920
on Twitter, but it exists.
I'm okay, Sugar Ray, Leonard,

310
00:20:04,200 --> 00:20:11,200
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311
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320
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Do you want one? Do you
have another? Factor fiction that you've been

321
00:20:59,440 --> 00:21:02,000
sitting on? Should I try?
Should I hit you with one? If

322
00:21:02,000 --> 00:21:03,559
you have one, feel free to
hit me with one. I'm a little

323
00:21:03,559 --> 00:21:06,799
disappointed it didn't seem to sear your
soul as much. I'm happy to trade.

324
00:21:06,920 --> 00:21:10,799
Proposal at least got you thinking a
little bit. Yeah, and usually

325
00:21:10,839 --> 00:21:14,160
I dismissed those out of hand.
But no, that's like it's sad that

326
00:21:14,279 --> 00:21:17,200
that's actually a pretty Then really,
I don't know what I would do.

327
00:21:17,480 --> 00:21:21,160
I think I think I would probably
do that. And yeah, the me

328
00:21:21,319 --> 00:21:25,440
of a few months ago would have
definitely said no, Okay, this is

329
00:21:25,480 --> 00:21:29,279
a big picture one and it's just
one and it seems convenient now based on

330
00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:32,119
how these two teams are performed over
the last like a week or so.

331
00:21:32,559 --> 00:21:34,880
But I swear I thought this,
I don't know, like a month ago

332
00:21:36,200 --> 00:21:40,680
or started coming around to this,
and it's sort of a it's two of

333
00:21:40,720 --> 00:21:42,279
them, so you can take them
in whatever order you want. One factor

334
00:21:42,359 --> 00:21:48,160
fiction, the Suns are the most
likely West Rep in the NBA Finals and

335
00:21:48,440 --> 00:21:52,960
the Bucks are the most likely East
Rep. In the NBA Finals. You're

336
00:21:52,079 --> 00:21:55,880
talking to the right person about the
Suns. If you want someone to say

337
00:21:56,079 --> 00:21:59,720
fat, there, I have to
credit you. Sorry, I'm gonna cut

338
00:21:59,759 --> 00:22:02,160
you off and say you were in
on the Sun's way before I was,

339
00:22:02,279 --> 00:22:06,200
but I'm a thousand percent in now
you were there first. Though I've mostly

340
00:22:06,319 --> 00:22:10,039
defaulted to unless you tell me that
Lebron is not going to be playing for

341
00:22:10,079 --> 00:22:12,240
the Lakers. They're the team that
you have to go with. I am

342
00:22:14,240 --> 00:22:17,240
probably leaning towards fact on that being
the West thing. When you look at

343
00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:22,319
Denver without Jamal Murray, now the
Clippers like they're kind of frisky, but

344
00:22:22,359 --> 00:22:25,920
they just they have these losses or
these moments where it's just like, holy

345
00:22:26,039 --> 00:22:27,960
crap, what is going on there. I don't want to say I think

346
00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:33,000
the Jazz are paper Tiger, but
they feel sort of a very specific archetype

347
00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:37,680
of player. Short, if that
makes any sense, I'll say fiction with

348
00:22:37,720 --> 00:22:41,920
the Bucks because one that allows me
to board the Nets bandwagon a little bit.

349
00:22:41,960 --> 00:22:44,640
And I think the Sixers are actually
my pick to come out. I

350
00:22:44,680 --> 00:22:48,440
think they probably pose the tougher defensive
matchup for Brooklyn. And that's how I've

351
00:22:48,440 --> 00:22:52,319
been viewing the context of coming out
of the East. Because you have Tieball,

352
00:22:52,640 --> 00:22:56,680
you have Green, you have Ben
Simmons, who you can't stop these

353
00:22:56,759 --> 00:23:00,400
guys, but if there's any perimeter
defender that can just delete one of them

354
00:23:00,440 --> 00:23:03,799
from the planet, it's him,
Like that's what he functions as a lot

355
00:23:03,799 --> 00:23:06,640
of time. And then you have
Joel ebide on the back line. Will

356
00:23:06,680 --> 00:23:10,319
they generate enough offense? Is fair? The Brooklyn's defense is not going to

357
00:23:10,400 --> 00:23:11,880
be you know, maybe it throws
off Philly with all their switching. I

358
00:23:11,920 --> 00:23:15,359
don't know, but so I'll call
fiction there. I'll say fact on the

359
00:23:15,440 --> 00:23:22,440
suns. Where are you landing on
that? So I similarly feel better and

360
00:23:22,519 --> 00:23:29,559
better about the Suns and being going
fact on that I do. I keep

361
00:23:29,640 --> 00:23:32,319
coming back to the Clippers because with
all the other teams, like, yeah,

362
00:23:32,440 --> 00:23:34,799
Utah, they can only play drop
coverage in the pick and roll.

363
00:23:34,880 --> 00:23:37,880
Teams always solve that, Like it's
just they're so limited in what they do

364
00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:41,359
and what makes the Jazz great and
what works for them just isn't what works

365
00:23:41,400 --> 00:23:45,920
in the playoffs. So that easy
dismissal Right, the Lakers, Lebron and

366
00:23:45,000 --> 00:23:48,440
Davis, if they're not fully healthy, can dismiss the Nuggets. Yokich is

367
00:23:48,519 --> 00:23:53,240
by himself crazy, is dismiss nobody
else is really serious. But it's like

368
00:23:53,519 --> 00:23:57,720
for the Clippers, I find myself
just kind of not having a great,

369
00:23:59,119 --> 00:24:03,000
like logical explanation for why I don't
believe in them, And it's I hate

370
00:24:03,039 --> 00:24:06,960
being like, well, they've collapsed
once, so they're you know, they

371
00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:10,160
don't have it, but like,
I don't know, that's something, and

372
00:24:10,480 --> 00:24:15,200
they depend on jump shots and they
maybe like Serge Ibaka is super important.

373
00:24:15,200 --> 00:24:18,599
If he's not healthy, they have
to play zobots and then you can only

374
00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:22,920
play drop coverage with him. So
I don't know, there's there's there's stuff

375
00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:25,319
there. But but yeah, So
with the Bucks, the reason I was

376
00:24:25,359 --> 00:24:32,079
coming around to the Bucks is like
I do think that I agree the Sixers

377
00:24:32,119 --> 00:24:34,480
are very well equipped to guard the
nets. I'm much more skeptical that they're

378
00:24:34,519 --> 00:24:40,440
going to be able to score with
them because one like we just haven't seen.

379
00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:45,799
I just think Simmons is too much
of a exploitable but critical piece,

380
00:24:45,920 --> 00:24:48,839
Like if you have to have him
out there for defense, which you do,

381
00:24:49,200 --> 00:24:52,359
I think the offensive stuff it's all
the same stuff we've always talked about.

382
00:24:52,400 --> 00:24:56,759
It's just sort of tough to make
that work. And if you can

383
00:24:56,839 --> 00:25:03,519
put a bunch of bodies on embiid
and say like Danny Green Seth Curry beat

384
00:25:03,599 --> 00:25:04,880
us from three, you know and
be, it still turns it over a

385
00:25:04,920 --> 00:25:10,240
lot. Like there are ways there, so I'm less. I just feel

386
00:25:10,240 --> 00:25:14,200
like the Bucks Middleton Holiday, Honest, that's pretty solid three guys to defend.

387
00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:18,039
And I think I just kind of
feel like the Bucks were the team

388
00:25:18,079 --> 00:25:22,519
that this year's They spent the year
like sort of figuring out, like,

389
00:25:23,000 --> 00:25:27,519
here's how we should play like in
a series where we have to be flexible

390
00:25:27,599 --> 00:25:30,519
and all that stuff, because that
was the big criticism that they weren't flexible,

391
00:25:32,119 --> 00:25:37,119
And I just kind of think they
seem like they have the combo that

392
00:25:37,200 --> 00:25:40,359
none of these other teams have,
of like here's our base style that we

393
00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:44,920
know will work against like the crappy
first round teams we're gonna play, but

394
00:25:45,000 --> 00:25:47,880
then now we can sort of do
this other stuff that we couldn't before.

395
00:25:48,279 --> 00:25:51,680
So I kind of just like the
feel of and plus the continuity, plus

396
00:25:52,279 --> 00:25:56,000
the like big time something to prove. I like all the all the you

397
00:25:56,119 --> 00:26:03,920
know, the hackeying head aspect.
I feel better about the Suns than I

398
00:26:03,960 --> 00:26:07,160
do about the Bucks, so I'd
probably go fact on both, but I

399
00:26:07,279 --> 00:26:10,680
feel better about the Sun's half of
it, for sure. The Clippers are

400
00:26:10,720 --> 00:26:14,200
interesting because I think my main knock
against them would be jump shooting teams can

401
00:26:14,240 --> 00:26:18,000
clearly win championships, but they were
just so perimeter dependent. They've been about

402
00:26:18,279 --> 00:26:19,680
and I was looking this up while
you were talking. I didn't realize it.

403
00:26:19,759 --> 00:26:22,960
Since the Rondo trade, they've been
about league average in the frequency with

404
00:26:23,079 --> 00:26:26,359
which they take their shots from the
rim and their free throw attempt rate.

405
00:26:26,920 --> 00:26:30,880
And if they're going to hover around
league average in both those categories, they

406
00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:33,319
might be the I don't want to
say a sleeping giant, but sort of

407
00:26:33,359 --> 00:26:36,799
how the Bucks have been overlooked in
the East. I feel like because of

408
00:26:36,839 --> 00:26:41,039
Brooklyn and Philly, they might be
that powerhouse in the West that hasn't been

409
00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:45,000
and maybe people writing them off because
Paul George became a meme. They've dealt

410
00:26:45,039 --> 00:26:48,759
with injuries and then the perhaps last
year I have So I have two for

411
00:26:48,880 --> 00:26:53,400
you, and this is a good
segue. It's Suns. It's the Suns.

412
00:26:53,480 --> 00:26:57,880
One factor. Fiction. Devin Booker
is just as important to the Suns

413
00:26:59,480 --> 00:27:07,319
as Chris Paul. I'm gonna say. I'm gonna say fiction, I think

414
00:27:07,400 --> 00:27:11,519
Paul is more important. But the
thing you just talked about we were talking

415
00:27:11,519 --> 00:27:15,440
about the Clippers kind of made me
think about it a little bit more,

416
00:27:15,480 --> 00:27:21,240
which is that so when you like
the Clippers just have Kawhi and Paul George,

417
00:27:21,279 --> 00:27:25,519
they have two big wings that are
just hard to handle, and Bookers

418
00:27:25,599 --> 00:27:29,319
not that Obviously. Defensively, he's
not where they are, And I mean,

419
00:27:29,720 --> 00:27:32,200
I guess offensively he probably is about
as good, but he's not as

420
00:27:32,240 --> 00:27:34,240
big as either of those guys.
But you need like that kind of guy,

421
00:27:34,599 --> 00:27:37,640
I think, to get you the
bad shots and make the bad shots

422
00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:41,480
at the end of possessions where the
good playoff defense has prevented you from getting

423
00:27:41,680 --> 00:27:45,200
what you're trying to get, like
the first five things you were trying to

424
00:27:45,240 --> 00:27:48,240
get. So he has a ton
of value. He might be more valuable

425
00:27:48,279 --> 00:27:51,559
in the playoffs in the regular season
for that reason. But I still think

426
00:27:51,599 --> 00:27:53,960
I think the statistical case for Paul
is like pretty ironclad, Like it's just

427
00:27:55,119 --> 00:27:57,559
your the you know, box plus
minus and the you know whatever catch all

428
00:27:59,519 --> 00:28:02,400
stuff you look at it. I
know, box plus minus you significantly better.

429
00:28:02,480 --> 00:28:04,400
The on off stuff is kind of
hinky. I think Booker's actually been

430
00:28:04,480 --> 00:28:08,839
better if you look at cleaning glasses
on off than Paul. I don't know.

431
00:28:10,039 --> 00:28:12,720
That's not super persuasive to me.
But the thing that I think Paul

432
00:28:14,640 --> 00:28:17,680
again, we'll do like a talking
head take on this, but I think

433
00:28:17,720 --> 00:28:19,920
it matters, Like Paul just transformed
the team. Like, I don't think

434
00:28:21,759 --> 00:28:26,839
whatever whatever intangibles he brought, I
think have been significant. And it's it's

435
00:28:26,920 --> 00:28:30,000
like the leadership, it's the experience, it's the attitude, it's that type

436
00:28:30,039 --> 00:28:33,519
of thing. But it's also like
we can just run pick and rolls to

437
00:28:33,599 --> 00:28:37,680
death, and I'm gonna make ten
foot leaning jumpers from just inside the right

438
00:28:37,759 --> 00:28:41,440
elbow when we need one every time, Like, I don't know that's valuable

439
00:28:41,480 --> 00:28:45,440
too, So I think it's Paul. But but Bookers had a great I

440
00:28:45,480 --> 00:28:48,960
think Bookers actually, you know,
Booker's year maybe hasn't been as good as

441
00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:53,039
some people think, but he's very
valuable. Just Paul. Paul's done too

442
00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:57,000
much for that team, I think. See I think I call it uh

443
00:28:57,519 --> 00:29:02,359
fat. And if you took Chris
Paul off this team, they're substantially worse.

444
00:29:02,640 --> 00:29:04,359
But if he took Devin Booker off
this team, I think they're just

445
00:29:04,640 --> 00:29:08,839
as worse, if not more so. And I've argued this on the pot

446
00:29:08,839 --> 00:29:11,720
before a lot of it comes out, that he might be more valuable in

447
00:29:11,720 --> 00:29:15,079
the playoffs. CP three's has a
good playoff resume, you know, the

448
00:29:15,599 --> 00:29:21,160
only one Western Conference Finals appearance.
Flip be damned Booker having that, you

449
00:29:21,200 --> 00:29:23,400
know he doesn't have the experience,
but just because he is bigger and he

450
00:29:23,599 --> 00:29:26,480
is going to have a better time
getting off what should be tougher shots.

451
00:29:26,519 --> 00:29:30,240
But also when you look this season, and I hate to like repeat this

452
00:29:30,319 --> 00:29:33,200
staff because I had it on,
I think the last podcast that I recorded

453
00:29:34,079 --> 00:29:38,440
is while Chris Paul draws more double
teams per game, the percentage of his

454
00:29:38,559 --> 00:29:42,920
possessions on which he draws double teams
is actually higher for Devin Booker and the

455
00:29:44,000 --> 00:29:45,680
Suns are their offenses lights out whenever
it happens for either of them. They're

456
00:29:45,680 --> 00:29:49,319
averaging one point one nine points per
possession when Booker's double teams and one point

457
00:29:49,400 --> 00:29:53,000
one eight when Chris Paul's double teams. I think when it matters, most

458
00:29:53,039 --> 00:29:56,319
you're going to see teams are gravitating
towards book or more but cut because he's

459
00:29:56,359 --> 00:30:00,720
bigger, and they might view as
some one person's gonna be able to not

460
00:30:00,880 --> 00:30:03,759
lock down but be more of a
nuisance to Chris Paul. That's gonna be

461
00:30:03,799 --> 00:30:07,839
for Booker. And I just also
don't think that we appreciate how much Booker

462
00:30:07,880 --> 00:30:10,920
has improved. I think he's better
defensively this year. And it's most noticeable

463
00:30:11,000 --> 00:30:15,039
off the ball, but his offense, the way he can manipulate defenses when

464
00:30:15,079 --> 00:30:18,839
he's going downhill. He's a really
good passer. And my other thing that

465
00:30:18,839 --> 00:30:22,720
I keep coming back to, and
I think I've really become This has been

466
00:30:22,759 --> 00:30:25,920
a stronger opinion for me ever since
Chris Paul was inserted to the periphery of

467
00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:30,160
the MVP discussion, because that's what
it is. It's the race for contingency

468
00:30:30,240 --> 00:30:34,079
consideration. Yokis is gonna win it
and runaway as he should, like did

469
00:30:34,119 --> 00:30:37,759
the bubble not happen last year?
And more to the point, did all

470
00:30:37,759 --> 00:30:41,480
the other moves not happen over the
like Jay Crowder was a great addition for

471
00:30:41,599 --> 00:30:45,039
this team. Having a healthy Dario
Scharitz as your backup five has worked for

472
00:30:45,119 --> 00:30:48,119
a lot of the year. I
understand that Chris Paul has probably elevated DeAndre

473
00:30:48,240 --> 00:30:52,680
Ayton. DeAndre Ayton also has not
been this billboard for consistency either, and

474
00:30:52,759 --> 00:30:57,319
he had shown a bunch of improvement
on defense last year. Specifically moves like

475
00:30:57,440 --> 00:31:02,759
having Tory Craig. I think they
would be significantly worse because Chris Paul is

476
00:31:02,799 --> 00:31:06,160
just so much better than Rubio and
Kelly Bridge Junior in a vacuum. But

477
00:31:06,279 --> 00:31:08,599
like Wen, I just feel like
we're looking at it too much of Oh,

478
00:31:08,680 --> 00:31:11,400
the Suns were bad and now they
have Chris Paul and they're good,

479
00:31:11,759 --> 00:31:17,119
when they clearly were at least tracking
in a better direction before he ever arrived,

480
00:31:17,240 --> 00:31:19,279
and that was probably a big reason
why he wanted to come to Phoenix

481
00:31:19,319 --> 00:31:22,640
in the first place. That's a
good point. I don't think it's right

482
00:31:22,720 --> 00:31:29,359
to say that, you know,
Paul is responsible for you know, Booker

483
00:31:29,519 --> 00:31:33,440
making the improvements that he's made,
or you know whatever whatever else entirely Like

484
00:31:33,599 --> 00:31:37,799
I mean, even like Cam Johnson
and Campaigne, like you saw flashes and

485
00:31:37,920 --> 00:31:41,319
I think Payne was pretty good in
the bubble, so like coming out of

486
00:31:41,359 --> 00:31:47,960
nowhere last year too, those guys
were just better than you thought they would

487
00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:51,559
be. Imagine this team with Tyrese
Haliburton too, by the way, if

488
00:31:51,599 --> 00:31:55,559
they'd gotten that right. It's amazing
how this is a national podcast and the

489
00:31:55,799 --> 00:31:59,880
Tyrese Haliburton pick has come up way
too often where its imagine how good they

490
00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:01,279
would be with him? And I
also feel that way about the Knicks.

491
00:32:01,319 --> 00:32:04,440
I know they have a manuel quickly, but for a team that's been on

492
00:32:04,519 --> 00:32:07,880
the hunt for like a high end
guard point guard forever. Why not just

493
00:32:08,000 --> 00:32:10,720
take Tyree's Halibert. I'm not saying
Obie Toppin's gonna suck, and he's played

494
00:32:10,759 --> 00:32:15,119
better in recent weeks. I just
the Knicks and the Suns of the two

495
00:32:15,160 --> 00:32:16,960
teams, I'm like, yeah,
he's doing great, Halbert's doing great on

496
00:32:17,039 --> 00:32:20,799
the Kings, But how do you
pass him up if you're the Knicks.

497
00:32:20,880 --> 00:32:22,920
But also he would have gotten to
learn under Chris Paul and Phoenix. That

498
00:32:23,079 --> 00:32:28,559
is just wild. Yeah. No. The other thing that's interesting about the

499
00:32:28,599 --> 00:32:31,079
Suns, since we're just talking about
them, is that, like I was

500
00:32:31,160 --> 00:32:36,599
doing some work on I forget like
maybe a weakness of theirs for something I

501
00:32:36,680 --> 00:32:40,359
wrote a week or so ago,
and like Paul and Booker are like ninety

502
00:32:40,440 --> 00:32:45,599
six and ninety fifth percentile in mid
range jump shop frequency and especially like short

503
00:32:45,640 --> 00:32:47,839
mid rangers, which if you just
picture the Sun's playing, you can see

504
00:32:47,920 --> 00:32:52,759
Paul shooting that shot a million times
and Booker just gets a guy on his

505
00:32:52,480 --> 00:32:55,200
backpedaling a touch and pulls up and
shoots over him all the time. But

506
00:32:55,319 --> 00:32:59,640
like it started, that seems like
a weakness. You shoot a lot of

507
00:32:59,680 --> 00:33:02,960
mid ringers. But then it's like
if playoff defense is whole deal is to

508
00:33:04,079 --> 00:33:07,359
run you off the three point line
and stay attached to the role guy,

509
00:33:07,519 --> 00:33:09,880
and they're going to concede exactly those
kinds of shots. Are the Sun's just

510
00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:15,160
gonna make like seventy percent of their
two point jumpers and just win every game

511
00:33:15,240 --> 00:33:20,119
by twenty points. Like they're like
they're weirdly equipped to make all the bad

512
00:33:20,720 --> 00:33:24,160
the quote unquote I'm doing air quotes
bad shots that playoff defenses are like conditioned

513
00:33:24,200 --> 00:33:28,480
to surrender, because what's the alternative? Like you dive out at Chris Paul

514
00:33:28,480 --> 00:33:31,599
as he's shooting from fourteen feet and
then like Eighten dunks twenty five times a

515
00:33:31,640 --> 00:33:35,240
game. I don't know what the
fix is. I mean, Eten has

516
00:33:35,279 --> 00:33:37,640
to want a dunk, and that
that could be if he get true.

517
00:33:37,720 --> 00:33:42,359
That's terrible. I think the biggest
knock is probably for Booker has been that

518
00:33:42,440 --> 00:33:45,160
he's like Chris Paul has been easily
better in the clutch. Bookers nine of

519
00:33:45,279 --> 00:33:49,440
thirty one in the final two minutes
of one possession games. That's twenty nine

520
00:33:49,440 --> 00:33:52,640
percent overall, two of ten from
three. I just think he becomes more

521
00:33:52,720 --> 00:33:54,839
valuable in those situations for the playoffs. And I'm totally with you on the

522
00:33:54,920 --> 00:33:59,240
Sun's If they're taking the shots,
defenses will probably give them. That's huge.

523
00:33:59,480 --> 00:34:02,680
They're good defensively like they and they
can run out a bunch of different

524
00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:07,200
ways. I don't know how well
the Sharks at the five units will hold

525
00:34:07,279 --> 00:34:09,199
up in the playoffs, but I
would say DeAndre Aton is more likely to

526
00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:13,480
get played off the floor on offense
that he is on defense. And they

527
00:34:13,559 --> 00:34:15,639
also can go to this. They've
gone to it a little bit. They

528
00:34:15,760 --> 00:34:19,960
have like this Tory Craig Jake Crowder
front court that they can just run out

529
00:34:19,960 --> 00:34:23,239
because you have these other bigger wings
too with mcal Bridges fantastic by the way,

530
00:34:23,480 --> 00:34:27,559
and Cam Johnson, so they can
go that route as well. I

531
00:34:27,639 --> 00:34:30,960
think they're people are harping to me
too much on the well, no one

532
00:34:30,960 --> 00:34:34,639
aside from Crowder and Paul really has
postseason experience. I do think that matters,

533
00:34:35,239 --> 00:34:38,320
but I think it's become like too
heavy of a talking point. Yeah,

534
00:34:38,360 --> 00:34:40,239
I agree with that. I think, Yeah, I don't know,

535
00:34:40,320 --> 00:34:45,280
We're both we're just can this be
the Sun's Bandwagon podcast? Is that you

536
00:34:45,599 --> 00:34:49,400
have you looked into getting branded well, so the Timeline podcast, which is

537
00:34:49,440 --> 00:34:52,000
the Suns podcast under the bluelyar umbrella
as well. I had the two hosts

538
00:34:52,119 --> 00:34:58,000
on when I did Phoenix's outlook for
the season, and I was higher on

539
00:34:58,119 --> 00:35:00,360
the Suns than them, and so
on their part specifically, I've been branded

540
00:35:00,400 --> 00:35:04,639
as the national Suns homer, so
that you're on the right podcast for you

541
00:35:04,800 --> 00:35:08,880
for that terrific. This is the
other one that had for you. Factor

542
00:35:09,000 --> 00:35:14,639
fiction. Denver without Jamal Murray is
more likely to come out of the West

543
00:35:14,960 --> 00:35:21,400
than the Utah Jazz. Oh that's
a good one, Dan. What did

544
00:35:21,440 --> 00:35:24,320
they go like nine and one in
the first ten games? Murray missed something

545
00:35:24,400 --> 00:35:28,280
like that. I think they're ten
and two or ten and three overall.

546
00:35:28,800 --> 00:35:35,760
Okay, so in the in the
ballpark, I think that's gotta be fiction

547
00:35:37,559 --> 00:35:42,719
as much as great as yokichs Uh
I do think, and we did.

548
00:35:42,800 --> 00:35:46,440
We have kind of ship on the
Jazz, like indirectly only really said bad

549
00:35:46,519 --> 00:35:51,000
things about them so far, but
like that's still a really good team that

550
00:35:51,760 --> 00:35:55,039
I think actually can I cop out
and like look at the matchups to just

551
00:35:55,119 --> 00:35:58,920
see what the what they who knows
what they're gonna be? Yeah, I

552
00:35:58,920 --> 00:36:00,639
don't know. So you're looking at
if the three six happened right now,

553
00:36:00,679 --> 00:36:04,159
it's Denver Lakers. I'd be a
little worried about that. If I were

554
00:36:04,199 --> 00:36:09,320
the Nuggets and then the Jazz are
gonna get probably the Warriors or Blazers.

555
00:36:09,519 --> 00:36:14,800
I don't know. Yeah, I
just I think the Jazz. I think

556
00:36:14,840 --> 00:36:22,280
the Jazz could be a conference finalist, which is like pretty low praise for

557
00:36:22,639 --> 00:36:24,639
the top seed and like the best
team all year by a lot of metrics.

558
00:36:25,199 --> 00:36:30,079
I just don't see Denver as having
that ceiling, assuming you can sort

559
00:36:30,119 --> 00:36:36,400
of make Yokich, like, you
know, twenty percent less effective than regular

560
00:36:36,440 --> 00:36:38,800
season. I just unless Michael Porter
Junior is going to average like thirty eight

561
00:36:38,840 --> 00:36:43,599
points a game for a full series, I just feel like there are going

562
00:36:43,679 --> 00:36:47,320
to be at a major talent disadvantage
against almost anybody they play. I'm in

563
00:36:47,400 --> 00:36:51,760
agreement with you, but I think
it's after watching the Nuggets, I think

564
00:36:51,800 --> 00:36:55,239
it's closer just because how good Yokich
is. We're there. I'm so I'm

565
00:36:55,239 --> 00:36:58,079
trying to be like, oh,
I'm the five contenders in the West.

566
00:36:58,119 --> 00:37:00,800
They have to be fifth now without
Jamal Murray, and I do think they'll

567
00:37:00,800 --> 00:37:04,119
miss the element of what he brings
in postseason crunch time, just because Michael

568
00:37:04,119 --> 00:37:07,679
Porter Jr. Isn't used to creating
for himself that much. They're also dealing

569
00:37:07,760 --> 00:37:10,639
with a crap ton of other injuries
Mante Morris, while Barton PJ. Dozier

570
00:37:10,719 --> 00:37:14,840
is gonna be out a while.
They're playing Austin Rivers and Shack like they

571
00:37:14,880 --> 00:37:16,599
need Shack Harrison and Austin Rivers right
now, which is always a problem.

572
00:37:16,920 --> 00:37:20,360
So I had to fall to that, do you others or do you want

573
00:37:20,360 --> 00:37:23,280
me to keep rattling them off for
you? I have a quick one,

574
00:37:23,400 --> 00:37:28,159
since we already sort of hit the
Blazers factor. Fiction. Terry Stotts is

575
00:37:28,239 --> 00:37:34,119
the main problem in Portland and firing
him will make the Blazers better. I'm

576
00:37:34,159 --> 00:37:39,039
gonna say fiction. I know people
talk about he hasn't been inventive enough defensively,

577
00:37:40,199 --> 00:37:44,039
but the numbers with use of Nurkis
on the floor have been fine.

578
00:37:44,320 --> 00:37:47,960
They're above average on defense when Nurkis
plays, and without Nurkis, Like,

579
00:37:49,039 --> 00:37:52,679
what else are you supposed to have
done? Is it? Because he's relegated

580
00:37:52,760 --> 00:37:57,119
Derek Jones Junior too out of the
rotation and Melow's still in it. Melow's

581
00:37:57,159 --> 00:38:00,119
been good on offense this year.
The opinions are always going to be split

582
00:38:00,199 --> 00:38:02,719
on him, but you can average, he can score and he's shooting a

583
00:38:04,440 --> 00:38:08,320
good clip from three. I understand
why you would play him. So I

584
00:38:08,480 --> 00:38:12,079
feel like this, and I was
higher on their defense coming into the season.

585
00:38:12,079 --> 00:38:14,519
I thought the Roco pickup was gonna
end up being huge, and having

586
00:38:14,880 --> 00:38:19,159
DJJ I thought that was gonna be
huge too. I just looking back,

587
00:38:19,199 --> 00:38:22,880
it's like they don't really have that
individual defender. I think if you would

588
00:38:22,880 --> 00:38:29,960
have inserted Aaron Gordon here as opposed
to Roco or even DJ, Like if

589
00:38:29,960 --> 00:38:32,519
you had Roco and Aaron Gordon and
this defense was shitty, I get it.

590
00:38:34,000 --> 00:38:35,960
But like Aaron Gordon, even though
he's not the best one on one

591
00:38:36,000 --> 00:38:38,320
defender, he gives you more juice
there than I think Robert Covington does.

592
00:38:38,400 --> 00:38:42,960
Who he's a little bit slighter,
and I think he's just more disruptive as

593
00:38:42,960 --> 00:38:46,639
a team defender. And that's not
a he's a great defender. I don't

594
00:38:46,679 --> 00:38:50,800
think they have that lynchpin aside from
Nur Kitchen when he's gonna miss as much

595
00:38:50,800 --> 00:38:52,440
time as he has, Like,
what else are you supposed to do.

596
00:38:52,519 --> 00:38:55,679
And I know they're kind of at
the point where it's you have to change

597
00:38:55,679 --> 00:38:59,480
the coach. What else are you're
supposed to change? So I get that

598
00:39:00,039 --> 00:39:04,639
coach is coming in here and immediately
improving their defense. Yeah, So I

599
00:39:04,760 --> 00:39:07,599
just think it's it's a personnel thing. You know. Nurkis has been fine,

600
00:39:07,920 --> 00:39:12,599
but basically any other center they play, the defense kind of just doesn't

601
00:39:12,639 --> 00:39:16,199
work. Cancer obviously is a prime
example. I just was thinking, like

602
00:39:17,199 --> 00:39:21,360
the coaches you've heard rumored, you
know, there are retread options like Dave

603
00:39:21,440 --> 00:39:24,360
Yager, who I think is a
good coach that's just run into personality clashes.

604
00:39:24,960 --> 00:39:30,639
It's kind of too often for it
to be an anomaly. And we're

605
00:39:30,719 --> 00:39:34,800
like, I think I saw Brent
Barry, who's in the Spurs front office,

606
00:39:34,920 --> 00:39:37,440
is another candidate, and like,
I love I love me some Brent

607
00:39:37,519 --> 00:39:42,079
Barry, like as a very very
skinny, white shooting guard as a young

608
00:39:42,400 --> 00:39:44,800
as a kid, like Brent Barry
was kind of right up my alley.

609
00:39:44,840 --> 00:39:47,960
It was. It was a figure
I idolized, But I mean, like

610
00:39:49,360 --> 00:39:52,559
he's got the defensive fix. And
again, like you said, the personnel

611
00:39:52,760 --> 00:39:55,760
sort of seems like it should work. It got too defensive minded forwards,

612
00:39:55,880 --> 00:40:00,519
like it was heartless and Amnu all
over again, but like seeming better and

613
00:40:00,719 --> 00:40:05,400
it didn't work. So yeah,
I don't think a change is gonna change

614
00:40:05,440 --> 00:40:08,559
of the head coach is gonna meaningfully
alter what the Blazers can do with the

615
00:40:08,639 --> 00:40:13,119
personnel they have. I also think
they've been like top ten or top twelve

616
00:40:13,199 --> 00:40:15,280
in defense since Nurka's return. I'll
have to double check that, but like

617
00:40:15,360 --> 00:40:19,960
their defense has not been completely incapable. There might just be. I think

618
00:40:19,960 --> 00:40:24,039
there's a talent deficit after Dame and
CJ. McCollum for the rest of the

619
00:40:24,119 --> 00:40:29,719
ROSSA relative to these teams that they
do have to go up against. I

620
00:40:29,880 --> 00:40:35,280
have this one is I think it's
tough fact or fiction. The two teams

621
00:40:35,360 --> 00:40:37,920
that will come out of the East
play in tournament are it'll either be Miami

622
00:40:38,039 --> 00:40:40,119
or Boston because I have no idea
which one of them is gonna make it,

623
00:40:40,599 --> 00:40:45,599
and then Washington. So I read
something before I'm gonna I'm gonna be

624
00:40:45,840 --> 00:40:51,320
wishy washy for a second. I've
read some stuff about Charlotte that's very encouraging

625
00:40:51,400 --> 00:40:53,360
for its playoff fate, like that
it might be able to punch above its

626
00:40:53,400 --> 00:40:58,719
weight a little bit, got some
switchable personnel. They shoot a lot of

627
00:40:58,800 --> 00:41:01,239
threes, Terry Rogier can do some
cool stuff at the end of games.

628
00:41:01,320 --> 00:41:05,280
Like there's just sort of a decent
this team might be a little better in

629
00:41:05,320 --> 00:41:09,159
the playoffs in the regular season thing
happening with them. But the Wizards are

630
00:41:09,239 --> 00:41:14,480
just like they're just so hot and
they have They're gonna have the best player

631
00:41:15,280 --> 00:41:19,880
in the playing game that they play. I mean, maybe even if they

632
00:41:19,960 --> 00:41:23,039
play Miami, like I mean,
I don't some have shakes out that way,

633
00:41:23,239 --> 00:41:29,960
because they'll have Bal and Westbrook sort
of undeniable that he's been good lately.

634
00:41:30,400 --> 00:41:31,800
You know, I've always I think
we both have probably been dismissive of

635
00:41:31,840 --> 00:41:35,920
the counting stats, you know that
he puts up for a while as not

636
00:41:36,039 --> 00:41:39,159
being totally indicative of how helpful he
is. But yeah, I think it's

637
00:41:39,239 --> 00:41:44,039
I think it's fact. I think
for sure, Miami Boston, whichever of

638
00:41:44,079 --> 00:41:47,119
those is seven. But I think
Washington's got the momentum and I think they

639
00:41:47,159 --> 00:41:51,000
have the talent, And like,
I don't know if Westbrook's just going to

640
00:41:51,119 --> 00:41:53,599
keep doing this and Bal is gonna
get you thirty, Like, yeah,

641
00:41:53,639 --> 00:41:57,440
I think they're better than the Pacers. I think they're and the Pacers are

642
00:41:57,480 --> 00:42:00,280
coming on glued. We've talked about
that, so I think I'm kind of

643
00:42:00,320 --> 00:42:02,920
into that. Yeah, it's a
fact for me as well. I think

644
00:42:02,960 --> 00:42:06,320
the Miami, if they're in the
play in is a given to me.

645
00:42:06,679 --> 00:42:09,280
Just I would expect them to beat
the Hornets in a in the first game.

646
00:42:09,519 --> 00:42:14,559
Even though their offense has been not
so great this year. I think

647
00:42:14,599 --> 00:42:17,719
I'm buying into Washington now. And
it's more so the fact that they've had

648
00:42:17,760 --> 00:42:22,199
a top ten defense while they've been
going on this current tear and seth part

649
00:42:22,239 --> 00:42:27,480
now for The Athletic wrote about this. They were really unlucky on opponent and

650
00:42:27,519 --> 00:42:30,000
three point shooting at the start of
the year, and that's kind of started

651
00:42:30,000 --> 00:42:34,920
to normalize. So it's like teams
are over the stretcher shooting slightly blow thirty

652
00:42:34,920 --> 00:42:37,519
six percent on above the break threes. Now that's not first of all,

653
00:42:37,519 --> 00:42:43,280
that's not unsustainably low, and it's
sort of a trade off where it's just

654
00:42:43,480 --> 00:42:46,480
correcting when teams were shooting like forty
percent against them above the break in the

655
00:42:46,559 --> 00:42:50,079
beginning of the year. And the
other thing is the rim protection has been

656
00:42:50,119 --> 00:42:52,039
better, which also kind of makes
sense because of how Daniel Gaffer has been

657
00:42:52,079 --> 00:42:57,320
playing, and now instead of having
Moe Wagners like the primary big instead of

658
00:42:57,400 --> 00:43:02,239
Robin Lopez, there's also there's Daniel
Gafford so and Alex Lynn for that matter,

659
00:43:02,280 --> 00:43:06,639
who's been pretty good for them.
And what I keep coming back to

660
00:43:06,760 --> 00:43:08,400
is, unless you are playing the
Heat, not only you have the best

661
00:43:08,480 --> 00:43:12,639
player of who you're going up against, but you probably have the two best

662
00:43:12,679 --> 00:43:15,519
players of the other three teams in
the playing tournament. Right if you're looking

663
00:43:15,559 --> 00:43:21,199
at Indiana and Charlotte as the other
two teams. Excuse me because I think

664
00:43:21,280 --> 00:43:24,519
Butler is probably the best player of
the four right now, but of Charlotte,

665
00:43:24,519 --> 00:43:29,239
Indiana, and Washington, Bell and
Westbrook are probably the top two players

666
00:43:29,320 --> 00:43:31,239
from that three from those three teams, right, Yeah, I think so.

667
00:43:31,480 --> 00:43:35,239
The only pushback I give is that
I've just always been reluctant to give

668
00:43:35,280 --> 00:43:38,320
Westbrook full credit. But yeah,
I mean, like he's better than Sabonus.

669
00:43:38,320 --> 00:43:43,119
I think he's better than whatever else, whoever else you'd list for The

670
00:43:43,159 --> 00:43:45,920
Pacers and the Hornets are just kind
of a bunch of guys. I mean,

671
00:43:46,199 --> 00:43:49,880
there's not like a top line star
I Hayward, I guess, but

672
00:43:50,079 --> 00:43:52,679
I mean you don't really know what
you're going to get there. Yeah,

673
00:43:52,719 --> 00:43:58,400
I think that's interesting. I do
think two. I was writing about this

674
00:43:58,519 --> 00:44:01,480
the other day, the Whizz It's
potentially getting the Nets in the first round

675
00:44:02,480 --> 00:44:08,079
as the eight one matchup would be
a lot of fun because russ might just

676
00:44:08,360 --> 00:44:14,360
like literally explode with competitive rage trying
to beat Durant and Harden and just beat,

677
00:44:14,480 --> 00:44:15,800
you know, knock off this giant. I think that would be one

678
00:44:15,840 --> 00:44:19,480
of my most anticipated series if we
ever, if we could get it,

679
00:44:19,920 --> 00:44:23,280
I think we might need Washington to
like, can they get to seven?

680
00:44:23,320 --> 00:44:25,400
That's not even possible. Must they
get to the top eight? Right?

681
00:44:25,480 --> 00:44:28,880
Yeah? So I think it might
need to be the two seven. Yeah,

682
00:44:29,039 --> 00:44:31,880
Brooklyn's three losses behind the Sixers for
first place. Yeah, and we're

683
00:44:31,920 --> 00:44:35,679
at the point now where that matters. Like I had been dismissive of the

684
00:44:36,440 --> 00:44:38,519
of like those top three teams and
that how many games back anybody was,

685
00:44:38,679 --> 00:44:42,599
But then the end of the season
really snuck up on me. So I

686
00:44:42,719 --> 00:44:45,840
think those deficits actually kind of matter
now. I have a quick one that

687
00:44:45,920 --> 00:44:47,239
sort of related to that. For
you, unless you have another one that

688
00:44:47,320 --> 00:44:53,079
you've thought harder about. No,
I'm ready all right own factor fiction.

689
00:44:53,280 --> 00:45:00,519
Only one of the Nets Sixers Bucks
trifecta will appear in the East in conference

690
00:45:00,559 --> 00:45:04,800
finals, which means that two of
those get eliminated prior to the conference finals.

691
00:45:05,719 --> 00:45:07,840
I'm gonna say fiction, just and
you must feel that it's going to

692
00:45:07,880 --> 00:45:10,440
be Philly in Brooklyn because you have
the Bucks coming out of the East.

693
00:45:12,039 --> 00:45:15,440
Anything that's gonna happen. I just
they're not going to face a real threat

694
00:45:15,559 --> 00:45:20,920
in the first round, is anybody
I guess whoever gets Miami? Is that

695
00:45:21,119 --> 00:45:23,559
the or all Boston too. I'm
discounting, but right now Milwaukee would be

696
00:45:23,599 --> 00:45:28,960
matching up with Boston, so it
would really depend on matchups. I guess

697
00:45:29,000 --> 00:45:32,719
there are some mine like there's some
mine fields here because of Boston and Miami

698
00:45:32,800 --> 00:45:37,320
being now. But Boston is just
you don't know unless Kemba's gonna be Kemba.

699
00:45:37,360 --> 00:45:38,480
You don't know who their third best
player is going to be on a

700
00:45:38,599 --> 00:45:44,599
night tonight basis on offense. And
that's a problem I Miami, I do

701
00:45:44,719 --> 00:45:46,880
we trust their up. Maybe they'll
have that sort of postseason bump like they

702
00:45:46,920 --> 00:45:51,400
did last year in the bubble.
I'm gonna say fiction. I think we

703
00:45:51,519 --> 00:45:54,000
get two of those teams in the
Eastern Conference Finals. But if you're predicting

704
00:45:54,840 --> 00:45:59,679
a Knicks, you know, Sixers
or Knicks Bucks Conference Finals, I'm totally

705
00:45:59,679 --> 00:46:04,599
here for it's it's fiction. It
would have been a better like is there

706
00:46:04,639 --> 00:46:07,280
a thirty percent chance or like or
you know, twenty five percent. And

707
00:46:07,360 --> 00:46:13,039
it's just based on my overarching thing
with this season, which is that the

708
00:46:13,079 --> 00:46:16,840
regular season is like worthless in terms
of predictive value, and so I would

709
00:46:16,880 --> 00:46:22,320
just almost treat going into the playoffs
with like some exceptions, as if this

710
00:46:22,480 --> 00:46:25,559
were the beginning of the regular season
and you're asking me to pick like conference

711
00:46:25,639 --> 00:46:34,599
finalists. I think my amire in
Boston would be like much facilities, and

712
00:46:34,719 --> 00:46:37,320
so uh yeah, the standings would
have to kind of get a little wonky

713
00:46:37,360 --> 00:46:40,079
for this to even be possible.
But I just think Boston and Miami are

714
00:46:40,199 --> 00:46:44,480
much more dangerous than the regular season
play shows. And I think it's possible

715
00:46:44,639 --> 00:46:47,639
that the Sixers and really all three
of those, the Sixers, Bucks,

716
00:46:47,719 --> 00:46:51,880
and Nets are less dangerous than the
regular season shows. So I think they're

717
00:46:51,920 --> 00:46:57,599
all actually closer than and then the
standings would indicate in terms of like their

718
00:46:57,679 --> 00:47:00,679
playoff, I don't know seeing things
or they're what they could do. So

719
00:47:00,760 --> 00:47:02,519
that's just kind of the basis for
that. But yeah, I think it's

720
00:47:02,519 --> 00:47:07,599
fiction too. Those those three teams
at the top are have a lot fewer

721
00:47:07,719 --> 00:47:10,119
question marks than anybody else in that
conference. I think I have a good

722
00:47:10,199 --> 00:47:14,840
one for you, fact or fiction. Chris stops Porzingis is not on the

723
00:47:14,960 --> 00:47:20,840
Dallas Mavericks to start next season,
So you're saying they're gonna trade him for

724
00:47:21,159 --> 00:47:28,760
what cap space? Yeah, to
go get that second star they need.

725
00:47:30,400 --> 00:47:34,599
I'm gonna say fiction. But I
really like where this question is coming from

726
00:47:34,920 --> 00:47:38,000
because I was just say, we
haven't mentioned Ricks like once this whole time,

727
00:47:38,360 --> 00:47:43,679
and I think it's because we maybe
just I don't think view them as

728
00:47:44,119 --> 00:47:49,480
like a real serious I was just
gonna say, I think they're one to

729
00:47:49,599 --> 00:47:52,400
one point five players away from a
title right now, which is why we're

730
00:47:52,400 --> 00:47:57,199
just not mentioning them. And there's
the level of I guess if it looked

731
00:47:57,239 --> 00:48:00,800
like christophs was gonna beat the series
against the Clippers, then he was injured

732
00:48:00,920 --> 00:48:05,199
last year, so he gives the
meaningful contributions and stays healthy now maybe that

733
00:48:05,320 --> 00:48:08,199
changes the trajectory, and I think
we have enough evidence just given what they

734
00:48:08,280 --> 00:48:13,320
still need, that he's not He
could be on this team and be one

735
00:48:13,360 --> 00:48:15,480
of the three or four best players. I don't know if he could be

736
00:48:15,599 --> 00:48:19,960
that number two. My main issue
with saying fact here, my reticence would

737
00:48:20,000 --> 00:48:22,880
be, well, who's trading for
Christoph's Porzingis right now? I just know

738
00:48:23,119 --> 00:48:27,880
Charlotte would be interesting, But what
are you giving Dallas to make that?

739
00:48:29,119 --> 00:48:30,920
What they like, you know,
Terry Rosy or and what are they going

740
00:48:31,000 --> 00:48:32,800
to be interested in? That?
Is Dallas going to be interested in that?

741
00:48:34,400 --> 00:48:37,440
There's you run into. I can't
think of obvious suitors for KP.

742
00:48:37,039 --> 00:48:40,599
Yeah, I think he feels I
think it's I think it's fiction because I

743
00:48:40,679 --> 00:48:45,039
think Dallas would like to get that
third guy in free agency and sort to

744
00:48:45,079 --> 00:48:47,320
see what it looks like with Porzingis, maybe like as a two A and

745
00:48:47,400 --> 00:48:52,159
two B situation, or even third
if they got like, I don't know

746
00:48:52,199 --> 00:48:57,199
who, if they got Kyle Lowry
or something like that. But Porzingis is

747
00:48:57,280 --> 00:49:00,000
the type of guy that you know, how like how Miles Turner comes up

748
00:49:00,239 --> 00:49:01,639
all the time of like you know, who'd really fit well? On this

749
00:49:01,800 --> 00:49:06,360
team. It's like the guy who's
defend I mean, Turner is a different

750
00:49:06,440 --> 00:49:10,079
level of defender than Porzingis is,
but like the big guy that stretches and

751
00:49:10,199 --> 00:49:15,599
kin block shots like I think Porzingis
is. Market is pretty vast. But

752
00:49:15,960 --> 00:49:21,079
but yeah, like it's a different
salary bracket than Turner. But I think

753
00:49:21,320 --> 00:49:23,239
it won't be hard to trade him
as long as he's like semi healthy.

754
00:49:23,960 --> 00:49:30,239
But I don't think that's going to
happen unless next year is disappointing and like

755
00:49:30,360 --> 00:49:32,760
he's part of it. That would
that would be my guest. Although I

756
00:49:32,760 --> 00:49:36,239
don't know how much longer his contract
runs. I didn't pull that up while

757
00:49:36,239 --> 00:49:40,719
you're talking after this one, Okay, Yeah, so that's that's plausible that

758
00:49:40,800 --> 00:49:44,119
after next year, if they don't
like how it's gone, that he could

759
00:49:44,159 --> 00:49:47,000
move in. But I think he'll
be on the roster to start this coming

760
00:49:47,079 --> 00:49:51,840
season. I have two very quick
ones for you. Fact or fiction.

761
00:49:52,599 --> 00:49:57,639
The Toronto Raptors will be one of
the top three contenders in the Eastern Conference

762
00:49:57,679 --> 00:50:05,840
of Kyle Lowry returns next season.
I think that is fiction. I love

763
00:50:05,880 --> 00:50:08,719
you know, I love Kyle Lowry, and I like I think Siakaman and

764
00:50:08,840 --> 00:50:13,199
and Obi and Van Fleet. That's
like those four guys pretty darned good.

765
00:50:13,559 --> 00:50:19,960
I don't know if the next year, one year older version of Lowry without

766
00:50:20,000 --> 00:50:23,840
more help on that roster gets them
up to the level of the Brooklyn's and

767
00:50:24,960 --> 00:50:30,599
Phillies and Milwaukee's. Do you think, I mean, was that factor fiction

768
00:50:30,679 --> 00:50:32,360
for you? It'd be a fact
for me, and you kind of outlined

769
00:50:32,360 --> 00:50:36,440
it because they've actually destroyed people in
the minutes those four have played together.

770
00:50:37,159 --> 00:50:39,559
You'll probably bring Gary Trent Junior back, and they've had They just haven't played

771
00:50:39,559 --> 00:50:43,960
their best players together season. Part
of that has been injuries in COVID and

772
00:50:44,000 --> 00:50:46,840
then over the post trade deadline or
maybe a little bit after that, it's

773
00:50:46,840 --> 00:50:52,039
been on purpose. It feels like
basically they also now it doesn't look like

774
00:50:52,119 --> 00:50:53,719
I picked them to get into the
plane and win it a few weeks ago,

775
00:50:53,760 --> 00:50:57,360
which was clearly stupid. They're gonna
have a lottery pick. Now,

776
00:50:57,960 --> 00:51:00,639
what if you know if they jump
into the top lords would be over.

777
00:51:00,679 --> 00:51:04,280
I guess the real factor fiction would
be will Kyle Lowry be back? And

778
00:51:04,400 --> 00:51:07,519
I hope that their decision not to
move him at the trade deadline applies more

779
00:51:07,559 --> 00:51:12,039
of a commitment to keeping him because
I think that there's still something like,

780
00:51:12,119 --> 00:51:15,199
you're not in a position to necessarily
rebuild. You have Van Fleet, you

781
00:51:15,280 --> 00:51:17,199
have Siakam, you haven't a Nobi. You're about to pay Gary Trent Junior.

782
00:51:17,599 --> 00:51:21,679
You can be really good, And
so I think if he stays,

783
00:51:21,719 --> 00:51:24,199
they'll be in the top three.
And I'm hoping he does stay because I

784
00:51:24,280 --> 00:51:29,320
like Kyle Lowry on the Raptors.
But I guess the real factor fiction is

785
00:51:29,719 --> 00:51:32,079
will Kyle Lowry still be in Toronto? I just I don't know the teams

786
00:51:32,119 --> 00:51:36,480
that they were dealing with to trade. The Lakers and Sixers don't have cap

787
00:51:36,559 --> 00:51:39,239
space. The Heat will and there
can always be signed in trades. Somethink.

788
00:51:39,239 --> 00:51:43,679
It's the most ridiculous thing in the
world that people thought the Raptors passed

789
00:51:43,719 --> 00:51:49,920
on this incredible offer from the Lakers
because of Tucker and Dennis Shrewder. It's

790
00:51:50,000 --> 00:51:52,880
like, I mean, you're gonna
have to pay Dennis and then Town Horton.

791
00:51:52,920 --> 00:51:55,679
Tucker's this nice mystery box who you
also have to pay at the end

792
00:51:55,719 --> 00:51:59,920
of the season. I don't think
you missed out on anything that the Lakers

793
00:52:00,000 --> 00:52:04,840
were offering you. Yeah, I
think I think it's probably fiction that Lowry

794
00:52:04,880 --> 00:52:07,320
will be back. I hope that's
wrong. But the only reason I feel

795
00:52:07,360 --> 00:52:10,199
that way is it does seem like
they were open to the possibility of trading

796
00:52:10,280 --> 00:52:14,880
him at the deadline, and like, yeah, I could have just signed

797
00:52:14,960 --> 00:52:17,519
him in free agency after that,
but he seemed to be negotiating his next

798
00:52:17,559 --> 00:52:20,880
deal with whoever he was going to
sign with, So I think if they

799
00:52:20,920 --> 00:52:23,519
were open to moving him, which
seems true, and he was looking to

800
00:52:24,440 --> 00:52:29,320
sign a new deal basically ahead of
time with wherever he went, which seems

801
00:52:29,360 --> 00:52:32,039
true. I don't know it augurs
towards him not coming back, but I

802
00:52:32,119 --> 00:52:35,960
think they theoretically they could be.
They could be very good without him.

803
00:52:37,039 --> 00:52:38,840
I just yeah, it would be. It would be gratifying if that.

804
00:52:39,320 --> 00:52:42,480
I love that course so much.
I did the same thing. I kept

805
00:52:42,519 --> 00:52:45,159
picking them to make the play in
like against all evidence that they were not

806
00:52:45,360 --> 00:52:50,599
trying to win every game. But
I'm with you now. I think I

807
00:52:50,719 --> 00:52:54,199
think the lottery pick could make a
difference, and that's probably worth more to

808
00:52:54,239 --> 00:52:57,920
them at this point than like just
giving a top seat to run in the

809
00:52:57,960 --> 00:53:00,199
first round my last one, because
I know you have to get out of

810
00:53:00,199 --> 00:53:05,320
here. Fact or fiction. The
Chicago Bulls are screwed unless they jump into

811
00:53:05,400 --> 00:53:07,920
the top four of the draft.
Well they lose the pick, right,

812
00:53:08,519 --> 00:53:12,800
Yeah, top four protective unless they
jump into the top four. How about

813
00:53:12,960 --> 00:53:16,320
just take off the second half of
that factor fiction, Chicagos are screwed.

814
00:53:19,280 --> 00:53:27,559
I like fact, big fact.
Uh It's I feel like I've been too

815
00:53:27,639 --> 00:53:31,199
harsh on them writing about them,
but like, I just think you sort

816
00:53:31,239 --> 00:53:37,599
of gave away two first rounders for
like the ceiling that the Magic used to

817
00:53:37,679 --> 00:53:43,320
have, which is like overly simplistic
and harsh. But it's like Muchevich puts

818
00:53:43,320 --> 00:53:46,360
a cap on what you can do. He's like, that's just that's just

819
00:53:46,480 --> 00:53:50,000
how it is. And Zach Lavine, I think as great, as as

820
00:53:50,119 --> 00:53:53,280
much better as he's been this year, I still think that he's like the

821
00:53:53,440 --> 00:54:00,039
empty calories are still there and they're
those are the cornerstones. And maybe Patrick

822
00:54:00,079 --> 00:54:06,480
Williams becomes like a guy that offsets
some of their defensive weakness. Yeah,

823
00:54:06,519 --> 00:54:08,199
Like, I just I hate how
that team is built now. And both

824
00:54:08,239 --> 00:54:13,440
of Vukovic and Lavine their contracts are
not ridiculous at all, Like they're reasonably

825
00:54:13,519 --> 00:54:17,239
paid and movable and but you gotta
think about Lavine's next deal. Yeah,

826
00:54:17,320 --> 00:54:20,920
they're screwed, I think. I
mean, if those picks, if those

827
00:54:20,960 --> 00:54:24,480
picks convey, like, oh my
god, like that's just it's that's brutal.

828
00:54:24,599 --> 00:54:28,440
They're in they're in a tough spot. Conversely, they could be in

829
00:54:28,480 --> 00:54:31,960
a good one if the pick doesn't
convey, because it means that you they

830
00:54:32,039 --> 00:54:35,159
have like a thirty as of now, would be like a thirty one point

831
00:54:35,280 --> 00:54:38,360
nine percent chance of getting a top
four pick, which if you add that

832
00:54:38,719 --> 00:54:43,800
to having Vouch and Lavine, Patrick
Williams, Kobe White keep Daddy as Young

833
00:54:43,880 --> 00:54:47,440
around, that gets interesting really quickly. The other thing is, unless I'm

834
00:54:47,519 --> 00:54:53,039
reading this wrong, the expiration after
this year's just gone, like they don't

835
00:54:53,079 --> 00:54:57,320
have this doesn't defer. If it
doesn't convey, it's just top four,

836
00:54:57,840 --> 00:55:00,920
and if they keep it, they
also the top four protective pick. In

837
00:55:00,960 --> 00:55:02,679
twenty twenty three, there's like no
deferral's listed and I'm looking at the real

838
00:55:02,760 --> 00:55:07,000
GM pick commitments. So you went
in a number of ways. There's a

839
00:55:07,079 --> 00:55:10,119
chance that missing the play in which
they're obviously going to do ends up helping

840
00:55:10,159 --> 00:55:14,280
them. But it's now this very
precarious position. More so, than before

841
00:55:14,480 --> 00:55:16,679
where you acquired voots because you thought
you were going to be one of those

842
00:55:16,760 --> 00:55:21,119
play in teams. You're not.
And that's look that Zach Lavine having to

843
00:55:21,119 --> 00:55:23,360
go in the least health and safety
protocols. That's not something you could have

844
00:55:23,480 --> 00:55:27,320
predicted. It's something you could have
planned around. I'm sure by not making

845
00:55:27,400 --> 00:55:30,199
this trade, like where you go
from here, now, you've obliterated most

846
00:55:30,280 --> 00:55:34,880
of your cap space unless you want
to get rid of Fat and Saturanski who

847
00:55:34,920 --> 00:55:38,559
have those partially guaranteed deals. I
don't think Lavine signs an extension because he's

848
00:55:38,599 --> 00:55:43,079
capped at a twenty percent raise,
and that's like a difference of based off

849
00:55:43,119 --> 00:55:45,800
thirty percent of the cap in twenty
twenty two, it's a difference of like

850
00:55:45,840 --> 00:55:49,840
ten million dollars a year. And
now you don't maybe you will. Do

851
00:55:49,920 --> 00:55:52,440
you have the cap space to renegotiate
and extend him to max him out immediately

852
00:55:52,559 --> 00:55:57,079
starting next season. If you don't
do that, I'm not saying Levine doesn't

853
00:55:57,079 --> 00:56:00,239
want to be in Chicago, but
if you go through next year, don't

854
00:56:00,280 --> 00:56:02,760
make the playoffs or just get annihilated
in the first round or the play in

855
00:56:02,920 --> 00:56:07,000
or whatever happens. He has to
start looking at other places, So there

856
00:56:07,119 --> 00:56:12,679
was always a risk involved here.
It just feels much worse and to the

857
00:56:12,719 --> 00:56:15,320
point that we're not even talking about
it enough now that they're not going to

858
00:56:15,400 --> 00:56:17,559
make the play in and I feel
like they have a lot more at stake

859
00:56:17,679 --> 00:56:22,440
in the draft lottery than has really
been discussed right now, unless they have

860
00:56:22,519 --> 00:56:25,039
sort of sort of air tight commitment
behind the scenes from him, which I

861
00:56:25,119 --> 00:56:28,880
think you have to know he at
least is opened the staying. Otherwise,

862
00:56:28,920 --> 00:56:31,079
why I make this trade? You
can't. This isn't Kevin Durant. You

863
00:56:31,119 --> 00:56:35,800
don't go all in to make sure
that you keep zach Lavine in twenty twenty

864
00:56:35,840 --> 00:56:37,440
two. But you know, if
he said, oh I might leave,

865
00:56:37,920 --> 00:56:43,800
you don't make this trade, right. I agree. I think they've They've

866
00:56:43,880 --> 00:56:45,840
got two players that they've sort of
are treating like cornerstones that I think are

867
00:56:45,920 --> 00:56:51,679
just like not the cornerstones of the
type of team that you should be aspiring

868
00:56:51,800 --> 00:56:58,119
to be. So yeah, that's
I. Yeah, they're screwed for lots

869
00:56:58,159 --> 00:57:00,719
of reasons. I think I have
I have a quick one for you to

870
00:57:01,119 --> 00:57:05,079
go out on, which and it's
really dumb, but I just want to

871
00:57:05,119 --> 00:57:07,639
see what your reaction is if you
don't have a if you don't have a

872
00:57:07,679 --> 00:57:09,639
good one for me, I am
I'm fresh out of good ones. I'm

873
00:57:09,639 --> 00:57:12,480
not sure I had a good one
to begin with, but now I'm fresh

874
00:57:12,519 --> 00:57:15,559
out of the ones. I thought, oh you had, you had great

875
00:57:15,599 --> 00:57:20,000
ones, So this would be better
as an over under and the numbers should

876
00:57:20,000 --> 00:57:22,679
be like one point five. But
I'll have to do factor fiction for it.

877
00:57:23,000 --> 00:57:28,159
Factor fiction. Kevin Porter Jr.
Will make at least two All Star

878
00:57:28,280 --> 00:57:34,440
Games during his career. I'm just
gonna say fiction. I don't he does

879
00:57:34,519 --> 00:57:37,880
he have the license to fire away
that he has right now on a better

880
00:57:37,079 --> 00:57:43,119
version of any team, and obviously
the Rockets being chief among them. Like,

881
00:57:43,960 --> 00:57:46,679
Okay, I just wanted to talk
about Kevin Porter Junior because he's one

882
00:57:46,719 --> 00:57:51,559
of my favorite like late season stories
right now, just because of all the

883
00:57:51,639 --> 00:57:54,960
Cavs stuff, and then he got
fifty at age twenty and the guys that

884
00:57:55,039 --> 00:57:59,199
have done that, I'm sure you've
seen. Lebron did it twice, Brandon

885
00:57:59,280 --> 00:58:02,079
Jennings and Devin Booker. So Devin
Booker made two All Star Games, Lebron

886
00:58:02,199 --> 00:58:07,360
made a million. Brandon Jennings did
not make an All Star Game and was

887
00:58:07,440 --> 00:58:09,800
out of the league had a torn
achilles, but was out of the league

888
00:58:09,840 --> 00:58:14,360
before he turned thirty. So you
got a real broad spectrum of what happens

889
00:58:14,440 --> 00:58:17,719
the guys that can score fifty when
they're twenty. So that's kind of fun.

890
00:58:17,960 --> 00:58:22,719
But yeah, the as a as
a long suffering Warriors fan who lived

891
00:58:22,840 --> 00:58:27,960
through just that, I can remember
when Tony Delk scored fifty points, and

892
00:58:28,280 --> 00:58:31,760
I can remember like getting excited about
Fontego Cummings like having nineteen points, or

893
00:58:31,920 --> 00:58:37,320
just like when you're a fan of
a really bad team, which the Rockets

894
00:58:37,480 --> 00:58:40,119
very much are, you see some
weird stuff and you think it means something

895
00:58:40,360 --> 00:58:45,280
and it never means anything. I'm
not saying that's Kevin Porter, because he's

896
00:58:45,360 --> 00:58:49,599
clearly talented, but like, that's
a wild thing that Kevin. We're talking

897
00:58:49,679 --> 00:58:52,639
a lot about Kevin Porter Jr.
At the end of a season that has

898
00:58:52,679 --> 00:58:55,280
been super weird, and I'm just
here for it. I'm enjoying like all

899
00:58:55,360 --> 00:59:00,719
of the craziness of that whole situation. I just like he's sub thirty two

900
00:59:00,760 --> 00:59:06,360
percent on three sub thirty percent of
us. There's like that, you know,

901
00:59:06,639 --> 00:59:08,519
this isn't quite rookie of the year. Michael, No, I'm not

902
00:59:08,519 --> 00:59:13,159
even gonna say that because that's so
rude. I just don't know. For

903
00:59:13,280 --> 00:59:15,199
him to make an All Star team, there has to be a year where

904
00:59:15,239 --> 00:59:19,440
he's the best player on like a
bulls level team. Looking at Levigne,

905
00:59:19,840 --> 00:59:22,239
I just I don't know. If
he gets to that point, I would

906
00:59:22,280 --> 00:59:25,280
be I would be astounded if he
gets there. I thought you were going

907
00:59:25,320 --> 00:59:31,079
to say that he'll never touch fifty
point finds again, which is actually I

908
00:59:31,159 --> 00:59:34,280
bet you you will get another.
I don't know, man, we talked

909
00:59:34,280 --> 00:59:37,239
too much about Kevin Porter Junior.
Should we wrap it up? Yeah?

910
00:59:37,760 --> 00:59:39,920
I'm with it. Thank you for
coming on, guys. Follow Grant on

911
00:59:40,000 --> 00:59:45,000
Twitter if you've not already at GT
Underscore Hughes, remember a rate review and

912
00:59:45,039 --> 00:59:49,039
subscribe to the podcast wherever you get
your podcast if you've not already, I

913
00:59:49,159 --> 00:59:52,239
hope that this audio is coming out
of both your your your phones too as

914
00:59:52,280 --> 00:59:55,760
well. Until next time, leave
you with a shout out to the one

915
00:59:57,280 --> 01:00:04,400
the only future All Star all in
a runaway MVP in honor of Grant Hugh's

916
01:00:04,639 --> 01:00:15,599
Kevin Porter Jr. Sugar Ray,
Leonard, Roberto Duran, Marvelous, Marvin

917
01:00:15,679 --> 01:00:21,199
Hagler and Thomas Hearns, legends whose
four way rivalry define one of the greatest

918
01:00:21,360 --> 01:00:25,360
errors in boxing history, relive their
decade of dominance in the new Showtime Sports

919
01:00:25,440 --> 01:00:30,800
documentary The Kings, a four parts
series premiering Sunday, June sixth, only on Showtime