What is rack lacking? All was about Fishman. I am Dance Valley coming out. You're out in my vocabulous cot at promo this time. I am, however, super pleased and excited to be joined to buy Keith Smith. Follow him on Twitter at Keith Smith NBA. If you don't already, I'm sure that you do. He has eighty eight plus thousand followers. He is a contributor for spot Track Celtics Blog. Also host a Front Office show. Check them out on Twitter at Front Office Show. Spelled exactly as it sounds. We get into our biggest questions for all eight eliminated MBA playoff teams. We recorded it on Thursday morning. There was no basketball on Thursday, so there's nothing that we said that should be incredibly outdated unless there's more news about the Dylan Brooks verdict after what happened with Gary Payton. The second we get in the Ben Simon injury talk, a whole bunch of cool stuff. I think you'll enjoy the show very quickly. 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Without further ado, let's get to talking about our biggest questions for every eliminated NBA playoff team heading into the off season with Keith Smith. Keith, thank you so much for coming back on the Hardwood Knox podcast. Is always a pleasure to have you around. The playoffs aren't full swing obviously and getting super intense, but we're here to talk about the off season because those teams matter too. But first and foremost, how the heck are you. I'm doing great. Hey, you know, I'm psyched to start talking off season. This was I was just telling someone the other day. So this is a really fun time of year because we're both there's great basketball every night minus this tonight Thursday. Like, I don't know what the league was doing with no games. Come on, now, he'll leave us shy and dry like this, we're not having like the Celtics and play games on Tuesday, and then I game through until Saturday and Phoenix and Dallas played twice before. The soap busines are right, Yeah, the whole thing is weird, but anyway, it's you get great games just about every night, and then I'm also deep in off season prep work. I'm starting to learn these guys who are gonna be in the draft class. Like all of it's kind of coming together, and it's I love this time of year for that. It's extremely busy, but it's like the best kind of busy. Yeah, I'm totally with you. And it's even better after the first round because I get super frazzled trying to keep track of every single first round game. Yeah, and then in addition to doing like the off season prep work, which is definitely not success of what you're doing. But the first round of the playoffs is apply when I'm at my most like that, and maybe maybe the trade deadline, but I'm my most frazzled. I love those two weekends where we get like eight games between Saturday and Sunday. But by the time we're like to that like fourth game on Saturday, like I'm dragging, like I'm really having a hard time staying awake. I'm here on the East Coast so live that if that fourth game isn't tipping off to like ten ten thirty at night, I'm struggling to get to it. And then then Sunday, like I make it through those first two and sometimes I hope that that third one's kind of not that good because I'm mad enough to admit I might fall asleep in the recliner every once in a while. Oh it's happened to me during the It's normally on the Sunday nights like that fourth game, and I'll get mad if the game isn't good and I committed to like I will be I will feel personally affronted if that happens. Yeah, I hear. We did a live show for game two of Phoenix Dallas through through playback, which was a lot of fun. We did a live version of Front Office show Trevor Lane and I did in the game just I mean, the Sun's made it a clinically, so we I was. I was like, so this is what it's like when the real play by play guys have like twelve minutes of filler that they have to do, like and you gotta think sort through. I mean, thankfully, I mean we were able to get away. We started talking talking Marvel movies and all sorts of other stuff, and I was like, all right, well we could have a little bit of fun that these guys can't necessarily get into U. And look, if you're dealing with blowouts and like a semi regular basis, like, that's even harder. Like you're gonna run out of Marvel movies at some point, Oh yeah, yeah, without a doubt. Well, I mean we're pretty good catalogue, you know, we're pretty big fans, so we'd find something to rank, you know, so the second bananas in each movie or something like that. But yeah, but that's not what we're here to talk about. What's U. Let's do Let's do this, man, I'm excited off season. Yeah, I actually come on to tackle our biggest questions for every eliminated playoff team that you know, hopefully their fans aren't have recovered from their their postseason losses. I figured we could begin with alphabetical order, and so I'll throw it to you. What is your biggest question for the Atlanta Hawks entering this offseason. I think it's it's kind of two, but they're they're related. It's how do they rebalance this roster a little bit as far as the cap sheet goes, but not downgrading too much in talent. I thought it was very interesting that travishlank. It's funny because people made fun of him a little bit because the quote that was pulled was we're going to try to upgrade the roster members, Like isn't that your job every like off season? But the real picture was when he said, we we stood pat and we probably shouldn't have We we we were okay with the status quo, and you know, we probably should have been more aggressive. And I think what's happened is now it sounds great to use all that cap space a couple of years ago as they did, and I think team generally used it well. But then you do extensions for Kevin Hurder point Capella, and then the big one for Trey Young which kicks in next year, which is likely to be the so called supermac's extension for him. That gets into a tricky spot because now all of a sudden, you're very, very expensive for a team that barely made it through the play in. So that's a that's where you gotta start to figure out where were we going? Because DeAndre Hunter's up next and all that. So I'm very curious to see how do they how do you rebalance while not going so crazy with your your cap and tax payment right, and they're not a team that's gonna just eat all those sort of extra costs, and they have the I think Gallinari is five million partial guaranteeing at twenty one point five. My question was along the similar lines, and when you look at their cap sheet is how do they make everyone's like they need to make a consolidation trade And that comes down to sort of rebalancing the roster where it doesn't feel like they're even struggle a lot this year. It was good to close the season. It's tough to read into what happens when you close the season. But their live ball defense in particular was just bad this year. And you have Dandre Hunter probably skewed more towards disappointment than someone who made progress. But sort of like after him and Clint Capela, you have the loan right, you can bring him back, but like, how do you retinker with this roster to make it better defensively? And I think it's easy for me to sit here and you want to sit here, and I'm guilty for this doing all the time. Oh, they need to make a consolidation trade for who for what? When you just look at this market of who could become available, I think the name that gets thrown out a bunch is Jeremy Grant. That's that's someone you consolidate into. In my book, like you're not looking to trade John Collins and stuff for Jeremy Grant, Like that doesn't make any sense. And so that's some of the real challenges of this roster is can they add more defense given their flexibility? And if you think you need to make a consolidation trade, because I look at the front line immediately, I think John Collins is still wildly underrated. But between him Capella. I love on Kokungu. I love me some Jalen Johnson too, Like he played in some small ball lineups this year. I just don't know what you necessarily do, especially when you can't stand pat because we just saw what happens when you stand pad. Yeah, that's it's funny because they think you have to have some really honest conversations in that front office as you're sitting down and mapping this out of who are we? Are we the team that made it to these finals? Are we the team that barely made it into the playoffs? Or are we somewhere in between that? Like, and that's probably where the truth lies, right. They're probably not quite as bad as they looked this year, and they're probably not as good as you're making these finals. But then it becomes where are we going? This is clearly Trey Young's team, right, there's no question about that. You paid him. He's I didn't know. Right now people are beating him up because like, you can't wait with a guy like that and all the stuff. Well, I mean you can't, and you just gotta get the right guys around him. We've seen teams win with guys like Trey Young. Before and clearly they thinking because otherwise it would not have paid him the way they did. But I think what really becomes kind of the question now is who are those right guys around him? Do you have the do you have some of them already? Yeah? Probably? I think John Collins is one of them. I'm with you. I've loved John call I'm not a big call basketball guy. I'm the guy who flies in conference tournament week and then's like I make all my pronouncements from there through the tournament and look like an idiot, right, But I fell in love with John Collins because I was just like, this guy's got a nice fift foot jump shot, swarm looks like it'll stand out to the three point line. He rebounds and new I mean, we've a year over year over year, it's been proven that's the one skill that definitely translates to the NBA is rebounding. And like I was, this guy's just gonna be good and then as the league and then all those things. You know, it's one of the rare times I was like, absolutely right on somebody who get picked. You know, it's out of the top five. So I really like him. I just I myself looking at I'm like, boy, I like a lot of these guys. So one thing, it's funny saying consolidation, trade, figure it out, all this stuff. I hope they don't go too far and go crazy make it moves, because I think a lot of it is like it was for a lot of teams this year, better health less games missed due to COVID stuff. And you're probably right back, you know, kind of in the mix in the middle of the East playoff picture versus you know, being a true top tier team. But they're better than they look last year. So we just don't go crazy trying to you know what, we get to tear it all down and reset and rebuild, because I think that's going too far. I'm totally with you, and I'm also just curious as to like, maybe I'm way off here, But it feels like you could move Clink Cappella and improve the roster more so than upgrade from John Collins. And that's what's tough for me to wrap my head around, because Collins all of a sudden was thrust in this role where he couldn't be the primary screener once you got Capella, and he adapted to it, the way he moves off the ball, a little bit of a floor game shooting. I know Clink Cappella is better defensively, but he feels like the player that would be easier to replace, as much as I hate to say it. And I also just don't know who are you getting if you're featuring either of them in a trade. And I don't want to talk about this scenario too much because we will get to this team in particular, Like, are you one of the people that fall into the camp of like Clint Capella, build out the package from there and go after Rudy Gobert and that does enough for you? Or do you still sort of fall into some of the same problems you have where Rudy Gobert is a generational rim protector and defender. He's an upgrade from Clint Appella, clearly, but like you're not while acquiring Rudy Gobert, like you're still not addressing some of your live ball defensive issues on the perimeter. Yeah, I too, There's a lot to unpack there. I think the first part I would say is I'm with you with the I would keep Collins over Capella too, And I think there is almost this sense of well, what Collins does is a four is very replaceable. You can replace them with a smaller player, bigger minutes for DeAndre Hunter. Whatever, I think we gets overlooked. And I think this is what has maybe been forgotten from the prior playoff run, was he actually showed he can handle some small ball five minutes in that run to these finals, more on second units, like you can get away with downsizing there. He said, He's not somebody you're gonna plug in against starters, you know, playing small ball five, because they'll just get taken advantage of. But I do think I would build that out, and I do wonder if you could build that package Capella and something, you know, hunt our herd our stuff. Yeah, for Gobert, I don't hate that idea because there's two things. One, I think we've seen Rudy Gobert can be pretty good as a roleman and as a lob threat around the rim. Trey Young is he's more than willing to throw those passes, more so than the Utah guards have been. I also think it's you know, yeah, the upgrade defensively is just so massive, you just got to be cautious. I wouldn't want to sacrifice too much of my wing depth to go get that, because I think that's the single hardest thing to find is quality wing depth in the league. Right now. You can find bigs, you can find guards. It's just those true wings that can kind of play on both ends. That's where you can get yourself in trouble. But Atlanta's dealing with dealing from a little bit of a position of strength there because you've got Bogdanovich, Hunter and Hurd who were all pretty good that you could move in. And you still have Delon Right that you can bring back. And I think I think they could get more mileage out of Right and Young playing together than they did this year. I would like to see that that as a combo because that also allows Tray Young to work a little bit more off ball, and I think he can be a pretty dangerous weapon. I think this is just for Atlanta. It's now you had your good playoff experience, you had your rough bounce back here. Now it's growing from there and growing into whatever you're going to be as kind of your fully formed version of this generation iteration of the team. We are. The eight minutes on the team are up but you mentionally that I wanted to throw you really quickly. Do you think that the players that are on this team will allow Trey Young to be off the ball next And it feels like this will be the third consecutive offseason in which we're wondering whether that happens. And Nate McMillan, I think mentioned something about it in the exit interview. Is this it doesn't. I think you could get better personnel so that you could move Trey Young off the ball, But this doesn't necessarily feel like a case of they have Bogdanovitch, even Kevin Herder like in Delon right, like that's enough. It's just it doesn't feel like they tried it. Whether that's coaching or Trey Young's you know, functional proclivities, I don't know. But I'm just curious to see are they going to do anything with a move or a transaction in terms of adding players, or is this just we have to commit to it next season to try it? Yeah, I think it's I think just general this is an opinion I've had for a little bit now, and it's kind of been formula for a couple of years. I think when somebody wants to play it really dominant offensive player off ball. One of the things is de tends seems to be to make it work, you have to have a big that can really pass, because that's generally how you open up a lot of that stuff. He pulls the other big away and that just opens up that screening act and remove that clutter as a player tries to work themselves open. Atlanta doesn't really have that, but I think you can still get there. You just have to be really deliberate about the way you're going to design those sets and actions to do that, and I think you could get a lot out of you know, hey, use Tray Young as a screen or for a guy like Hurder because then you put your stress in the defense therese Hurder's a really good shooter or Bogdanovitch, because if you switch it and he gets a smaller guy, he'll just take that guy down, back up, down, and shoot the jumper over top of him. So that's where I think you could get a lot more creative. It just you gotta have somebody to deliver that pass. But whether that's the lawn right, maybe you could put a little bit more on Collins plate to do those kind of things. I do think that is something you have to figure out because I think that's the best way to unlock and make the game easier for Trey Young as well. Just imagining Trey Young setting screens, hopefully he's better at those than defending yeah right, I mean yeah, I mean teams are just gonna kind of blow through them most like he's a ghost, right, because it's gonna be quait was there the screen there? I didn't feel, I will say, does seem like his game would be more scalable in that regard offensively, even if you tried to use Luca or ever James Harden in that type of role where people compare him to them so often, I do feel like there's a little bit of a difference there based off the way he shoots and the way we've seen him move. And I don't want to be the millionth person to make the Steph carry camp here, but they get a lot out of Steff setting really crappy screens and slipping them because the defense is so worried about where he's gonna go and whether that I mean over the years. But again that's with Draymond facilitating from the top, where it's you know, he's setting those for Klay Thompson. And now if you're defense, like, well, we're in a crappy spot either way on this because we straight switch it. Thompson's gonna shoot over carry, gets the advantageous matchup and those things. But that's where I do think you can get a little bit more of that stuff, just more than Trey Young handling the ball forty feet from the basket into yet another pick and roll, Like, just get a little bit more creative with your offense to find some more variants and Drew hardwar knots form We're ready a couple of minutes over the team. I imagine this next team both of us are going to have some variation of the same question. But the Brooklyn Nets, what is your biggest question for them? For me, it's can they build a quality roster with depth, with proven playoff performers around Durant Irving And they clearly have fallen short on that. I think two years in a row. Yes, I realized they were, you know, Kevin Durant having a smaller shoe size away from you know, maybe making the NBA Finals and all those things. But it's this past year that really came to light, and I don't have a kind of interest in, you know, re revisiting why they were without You know, guys, we all know what that is. But the reality is, yes, Kyrie Irving is not going to miss games due to being unvaccinated next season most likely, but he's gonna miss time. He's just the realities. He's always hurt stuff. Yeah, there's something with him. Yeah, yep. Kevin Durant. Now, I think if if you get sixty to sixty five games out of Kevin Durant going forwards his career, that's probably probably the top bout maximum quite frankly, probably should be at this point because you need him ready to go come playoff time. And I think he was worn down in that first round. Seriously. Got to find ways to add good quality depth around that and then the second. But the biggest thing is what the world happens with Ben Simmons. Yeah, that was my question was about his fit and I sent that to you before we heard news that he was going to have back surgery. Maybe even as we're recording this. That's what the update was from the nets. That sucks, like back injuries are fickle. I want to know what happened to where he was cleared for contact on April nineteenth, to you fast forward two and a half three weeks and now he's having back surgery. That is I hope he's okay. They sent the recovery timelines three to four months. I that's just you know, that's an iffy timeline when you're looking at trying to get ready for training camp in the season. So you have that to consider, and that makes your point all the more important because if he's not ready, if he's not a strength, if you're expecting him to miss games, death becomes all the more important. And so they will have Seth Curry going into next year. Hopefully Joe Harris is healthy. Nicholas Clackson's going to be a free agent, and he was probably after Bruce Brown, their most important defender. Hey, Bruce Brown's a free agent too. Are you paying these guys? Is Joe Sai going to be annoyed that he just funneled all this luxury tax money into what was a borderline NBA lottery team They were playing team at this point, and you mentioned even Kevin Durant. Stuff like Steve Nash came out and I think December before Kadi's injury and said, yeah, he's playing an unsafe amount of minutes. And then he comes back by the end of the season, he's still playing that same type of workload. I don't know what they do there. They do have some picks now and some intriguing players on that roster. They can make moves. Their needs are many, though, I would say, and once Ben Simmons comes back, and I don't know where you land on this, A lot of people just assume he's going to be this clean fit. I get what he does for you defensively, and because we saw what the Nets did Kady and Bruce Brown a little bit as the front court, like, I have no doubt my mind, they could make Ben Simmons work, and you know, while not having too many non shooters on the court, even though the makeup of their roster right now could make that difficult. I don't see it on offense as much as other people do. I know Ben Simmons did dunker spots stuff in Philly. Does he want to do that all the time? Are you taking the ball out of Kevin Durant and Kyrie's hand so that Ben Simmons can have it in transition maybe sure, But in the half court no. And we've always mentioned, and I was a proponent of when he was in Philly, why not use him as the screener more. It was something that seldom happened, so we don't know how good he is at it, and when it did happen, the numbers on and have not been pretty. So I just don't actually think that he's like this defensively. Sure, he will be a game changer for them. I mean, anyone who plays defense will be a game changer for them after watching that first round series, but I don't I don't know that I see it being like this happy, go lucky, hunky dory offensive fit. Maybe they figure it out, but it does feel like something that could take time. They completely agree, and that's where this is lost time now because for months, and I'm gonna go with the longer timeline because just getting the history here, it is that's not quite the beginning of training camp, but it's pretty close. And that's my guess is that four months before it's like really start getting back on the court and doing their stuff. And we know teams will get together end of August, beginning of September that's when they start scrimmaging and that kind of stuff. And that's when you really, you informally start to build all those things. And and you said a lot of stuff that that I'm completely there with you one is, and keep hearing this, Well, they're gonna put him at five. He didn't even want to play the four, and now all of a sudden's gonna be at five, you know, after back problems and everything else. And I don't care. You know, people could say the game's you know soft now and all that stuff. Your five still needs to bang bodies where that's inside as a room protector. That's you know, screening and all that other stuff. I've never seen them set a good screen in my life, Like I's never happened, right, Like I can't like so all this stuff of like he's going to be this reinvented player. I also go back to I've made it instead of a million times. Yes, his ideal role is something like what Draymond Green does for the Warriors. That the biggest single differences. There is a major major difference between a bad shooter and a non shooter. Bad shooters Marcus Smart, for the large chunks of his career was a bad shooter, he still had a guard him because at least every five games he was gonna have one of those seven for eight kind of nights. And I was like, now we got to get out there. Draymond's not a good shooter. The teams still he still left the guard him because he's still gonna take them and that. But with Simmons, I've seen te guys not only did they knock close out, they turn their back because they just know he's not going to do anything out there with the ball. And you know, I always go back to when Philly played the minutes. They would play him and t J McConnell together. It was like you're playing three on five on offense because he's one of those guys wants to shoot ever like they just don't want to. So that's where it gets very messy. I'm with you. Defensively, he is the most versatile defensive player in the league. He guards truly guards one through five. Any guards all five spots. Well. With a full year, hopefully healthy coming back, I don't expect to see much slippage there. It's that offensive fit though, like it's a little weird, and yeah, I've dreamed about the whole Kyrie, Currie, Harris, Durant Simmons lineups, because I think that could be devastating to teams. I just that starts to turn into boy, that's a big ass for Ben Simmons defensively, because like that's you know, I know, Joe Harris is better than he gets credit for, but Curry and Kyrie, I don't have a whole lot of interest on that end of the floor, Kadie. It's spotty when he brings it or not. But yeah, I just I'm with you. I don't think it's it's there in One thing I want to go all the way back to what you said, is is Joe Saire gonna be willing to just dump a ton more luxury tax into this team. He just came out on the record and complained about how he's not happy with they didn't make money through the Barclay Center and all that stuff where it was a problem. So I don't think this is a Warriors situation where it's just just keep spending. We'll keep spending and we'll we'll this will all sort itself out, you know, a decade from now. I think it is. He's in a situation where he's gonna curb it at some point and say, hey, this is uh, you know, we're done throwing good minutes after good, good money after bad like like we we have to, you know, sort through this and eventually that's gonna cost him a player or two. When is that? Bruce Brown and Nick class them. Yeah, maybe if other teams, you know, throw the right offers their way, you know, it could could get kind of tough to keep those guys. I'm I'm totally with you on all those fronts. At the point you made about Marcus Martin, There's there's value in the volume and it's why Ben Simmons like you can't even compare them to what Janie does as well, he's still been willing to take shots from the perimeter. Uh. The next team that we have up in this exercise is the Chicago Bulls. What is your biggest question for them entering the offseason? How do you find the right fits that improve your defense but don't take away from what you were offensively? And I'm removing the questions of health because you know, I tend to be an optimist with those things. And hopefully Ball and Leavine if Lavine resigns, right. I guess that's probably the real biggest question, is is Zach Lavine going to resign Because he didn't exactly say yep, I'm back yea. Let's go at his exit interview. He did leave that a little open. But that's that's how do you find the right defensive fits and can you make it work with this three wing group that you're kind of playing with Pat Williams, de Rosen and Lavine. I think maybe you can, but I don't know if Ruchovic is the right guy to anchor the back playing against that group. I think I think they're They've they've got some questions that they've got to figure out, just as far as you know, improving that defense enough, because once it started slipping, I mean it fell, you know, going over the edge of a waterfall or something like. It was not even close, Like it got really bad. So that's they've got to figure out a way to fix that. Yeah, I'm I'm trying to think, like, is Zach Lavine's free agency do you anticipated being an issue? Just based off what they've done, I've assumed that he's he is a no brain or max player, and I don't know why at this point they would equivocate on giving it to him personally. Yeah, I think that's more of Zach Lavine saying, hey, I've never done this because to remember, right, he signed an offer sheet with the Kings and the Bulls matched it and then that's been it for his entire career so far, he's played, you know, on those two contracts. So I think he's probably looking forward to, hey, let's you know, hey, Lakers, there's absolutely no way you can acquire me, but sure that will come to La line and die me. You know, let's have some fun. So I think there is you know that sense, Yeah, you want your guys to come out of a season saying yes I'm resigning here, I'm gonna stay. But the problem is anything goes sideways with that. No one ever blames the team, everybody rips the player, and it ends up in a whole ugly conversation. So I want to see it get to a point for Lavigne where, yeah, don't mess around, resign them. You're built to win right now. If if you could that be an issue four years, year five, yeah, maybe, but deal with that when it comes. Get get them resigned. You signed the throws in a ball for now, you know, for to win right now, so you know, get that sorted and go, because yeah, I don't I don't want that to you know, be don't don't be silly about this. But it's Jerry Ryan Storff, so that can occasionally gets a little messy. My biggest question for them is, because I'm just assuming xactly is to come back, is do they have like the every possession wing on their team that they need in a playoff series. Whether you think that Patrick Williams and that's an addition to Alice Crusoe, Monzo Ball, or whether you think it could be Io Tasumu, or do they have the assets necessary or the gall necessary to go out and get that guy. If it said they were linked to Jeremy Grant pretty heavily at the trade deadline and you look at you know they have that pick in the future, oh to Orlando. That certainly makes their trade packages a little bit more challenging. And I think they might look at it from the perspective of a wood if Patrick Williams and Lonzo Ball and als Crusoe were all healthy the entire season. I think we've seen at this point with every single team. You can't just bank on getting even close to great health. Do you see them being aggressive and trying to get maybe more of a veteran presence on the wings or is this going to be more of a wolpay zacch Levine And we think that our team is going to be good enough as is if it's healthy. Yeah. I was a big proponent before the injuries became too much. I thought it to trade deadline. They were built to trade guys, young guys, maybe even Patrick will because at the time I remember he was out and missed a large junk of the season. Do you trade him and Kobe White and something and go get Harrison Barnes, Jeremy Grant, somebody like that. I thought those guys would have been perfect fits because they just didn't think they were going to have that size come playoffs. And then of course they got the worst possible matchup they could in the box for them because they don't have anybody who could handle Jannis. And that's I mean breaking news. Right, team can't defend Yannis. But it's it's you've got to figure that out. I want to see them get either somebody who is a true four sized guy, but you know, can ideally play inside outside, so like a Barnes or a Grant, or get somebody who's a four or five that allows you to take Vukovich off the floor at the end of games and you can slide that guy over to the five and then you can scale up your lineups with Ball and Crusoe in the backcourt, Lvian and Dorozen on the wing, and you know, hopefully can put together a good enough defense or do you think that. I know some people have floated. I don't want to get too much in the jazz territory, but there are people that are folded that they could upgrade from the Bouche minutes at this point at the five. And I don't want to say him firmly against that, but it feels like, should you really be doing that when you gave up so much to get him, so now you're gonna take more stuff. That's the word of this podcast. Attach it to Boots and then try and upgrade the center spot and look, his connective passing and just volume from the outside is important when you're working with DeMar de Rosen powered offense because he's a non shooter, like he's an expert in the mid range, but he's not someone who's gonna chuck a ton of threes. And you also have yeah, Lonzo Ball and Lavine good high volume three point shooters. Now you don't have the luxury of volume necessarily a lot of your wingspots. Caruso is not the best shooter either, and that's also something you probably need to take into account if you're going to go after that three four type player that joins you know, a Lavigne and Demard Rosen as your primary building blocks. Yeah, that was why I thought of Barnes is like the perfect fit because one he is, He's is arguably has plug and play a guy as there is in the league because you just put him in you're going to play the three or the four and play play defense like you do. And then he's used to playing in star center teams where he's the third guy. So I don't that part they don't really worry too much about. I like tend to look at it as you know, you could fit a guy like that. And Jeremy Grant I'm a little less sure of because he clearly wants to be very involved. He wants of the ball a lot. So yeah, but the the vouch Yeah, that that whole vote Gobert trade talk stuff that's out there. I don't love Gobert for this team like I do some other teams, just because I think, now you've got kind of two non three point shooters in your opening group. At least you're probably best with Crusoe. Now you're looking at three. That starts to get real messy. You're gonna really struggle, I think, to put together the best kind of offense you can with a set up that So I don't love that trade because it's also going to cost you more than just woot. It's gonna cost you something else to go get that. And that's that. What is that something else? That that becomes a major question as well. I will be curious to see and they look like on the sheet that I'm using, that they have enough room or wiggle room below the apron this year to use their full non taxpayers mid level. Maybe it gets a little bit tight after Zack Lavine's new deal, it'll be close. I'm just wondering, based off the free agent market and how little like cap space beyond the mid level is available, if they can use that to get appreciably better. But you also go through the list of most likely free agents and it's like, right, well, who is Like who is that guy? And it's you you know, this year is for agency class, Like I just don't see that guy. And that makes it even more challenging because it almost feels like they have to go the route of acquiring a wing via trade rather than hoping that free agency is enough. Yeah, or year you have to really bang that Patrick Williams is that guy and that that's gonna cut in and be there. And then maybe what you do is you you go get a I'm just a random names out here, but a Pat Connton type or a Daniel House or somebody who can fill in minutes just in case what Williams doesn't doesn't pop like that, or you know, could they be a team that says, you know what we're gonna go with. You know what, We'll look at a guy like Kylie Anderson. We can play the three in the four and you know we we can fit him in and he's used to coming off the bench and he can, you know, do do a lot of different stuff. Or you know, they they already went down this road, but a different guy now than he was before. But like an auto quarter junior type. You know, that's somebody where we could make work. You know, I think that ship is probably sailed on quarter side. But those are the things I think you're gotta get a little bit creative with there. And then finding a better quality backup for Vooch, I think is also important. You're not gonna spend a ton of money on that, but just somebody who can give you a ten fifteen minutes a night, because if you overextend Vooch in the regular season, he's just not going to have enough left cone playoffs. I trust me. I live in Orlando. I saw that up up close some personal two years in a row, and you typically can get service a big man help on the cheap. And I mean, I don't know, Like when you look at the available centers this year, there's no one that necessarily stands out as like, you know, yeah, I like the idea of a Nick Lackson or Mitchell Robinson more of the Mitchell Robinson specifically is more of a rim runner type behind foods. But you're not spending let's just say he costs a mid level Like that's not the resource that you should be funneling your mid level into exactly. Yeah, I know, you're I'm looking more minimum more. You know, if you give seven million or mid level to a guy, then you have three of three million of it left and give that to, you know, a back up, you know, center, like even if it was somebody like JaVale McGee or somebody like that. I think just you know, you can get by with that for ten fifteen minutes a night and you're you're good and then that position is just handled and you don't have to worry about it, or you do it by get a four or five. But that's really hard to find because especially you're not getting that in free agency. Not would just Smith all available? No, not at all. Our next team, the Denver Nuggets. What is your biggest question and is it? Why are the spreadsheets choosing the MVP winners? That's funny. Yeah, oh man, we could do a whole you know, we could use a whole eight minutes on that, but I want this course is just terrible and it's Lebron James made it worse by saying that sweet that said that Jaw is basically too good to improve. I don't know if Yeah, one of the most ass I know that killed me because it's like, man, all you're doing is just starting fights that didn't need to be started. Back in the playoffs. We don't have to deal with this, right exactly. Yeah, yeah, get him back on a mode. Yeah and shut his Twitter down again. All right, So this one's really like this sounds super simple. And then you know, man, maybe maybe a little dumb, but can you get healthy and get Mari Importer Junior back on track? Because if you can, you've got everything you need. They they they are, you know, gonna slot right in as one of the top wasstern conference teams. It takes a lot off, yo, could just play. I'll say this, if Quarter and Mario are back, Denver is a better team, yo, kids, maybe a better player with less stats because it's just gonna get spread around more. It's gonna look and people are gonna be like, see this guy was not that good. Look they're better with these guys back, and they'll be a whole stupid discourse that comes right shocking. Now, what a surprise. But that's that's it for me. Because they don't have a ton of flexibility to do a lot move wise. They're gonna be in the tax most likely, So it's all stuff around the edges for them rotationally, and you'll probably probably bringing back a couple of guys. But if you bring back a guy like Austin Rivers and he is your fifth guard instead of your third guard, you're probably pretty good. You're probably pretty good shape. So that's where I think for the Nuggets, I want to see them just kind of get their guys back. Can you get the mac healthy reincorporated in the offense to defense and just go because I they think they've got everything that they need to be a really really good team. Yeah, they If Murray never gets injured last year, I'm just very intrigued to see how the playoffs would have unfolded. For me, it's there's obviously that that's in there. And look, I don't think we can count on Murray's coming back from a serious injury. We know that acls are not the career rumors they used to be. The Michael Porter junior back issues are harrowing, and so we just can't assume that he's going to be playing in a ton of games. You still get enough even if you just have Jamal Murray on a consistent basis. It does so much for this team. I look at this team, and one of these three concerns, I think it is clearly less of a priority than the other, because Murray and Porter Junior can both be great shooters in their own right, but given the flexibility or the limited flexibility and or zero flexibility that they have just because they're going to be a luxury tax. Given that and whatever trade assets they do have, are they able to address I would say at least two of the three. In the sense of better point of attack defense, I think Aaron Gordon's just He's fantastic. He's going to be overtaxed in that role, and you need better options there overall shooting and then improving or at least like consistent proofing the minutes behind Nikola Yokich at the five. I like Jeff Green, I like Zeke Naji, but it feels like you need a different five option there. That should not be your top priority because Nikola Yokich exists. But those are three needs that identify with the roster. I'm just point of attack defense is just going to be tough to find, even if you're willing to throw your whole minimun level at someone. And I'm very curious to see if they are able to, aside from the returns of Murray and Porter Junior, whether they're able to do anything with this roster that upgrades it or at least changes the cosmetic makeup of the rotation a little bit more. Yeah, I don't know that they can get their money wise, especially a pull him away from Brooklyn. But guy like Bruce Brown I think would fit this team perfectly with what he does on offense. It's hard because right you have to very much believe that the forty percent three point shooting is real and scalable with more volume, Like even if it dips to thirty six or thirty seven, but on four attempts per game, that's that's You're you're good there, You're you're solid enough. He's a good cutter, he's a good pass or you can screen, you can do all their their things. I think in a way he becomes their new Gary Harris, which oddly enough free agent if you could, you know, if you want to go that route, and Gary Harris is like, I'm willing to come back. But problem is they're only gonna have the mini mid level, and that's that's probably not enough to do a lot there, so you can't he can't really work aside and trade because you're gonna be over the tax apron, so you're not even allowed and even if you get under, it just gets very messy. So that's where I start to look at if you're banking on Porter making it to fifty five to sixty games, which I think would be pretty good, I think you you can feel solid about that. Can you trade Will Barton? Because at that point Will Barton goes back to that six man role. Can you trade him for, you know, maybe a little more defense and something that looks a little different for you really kind of go back into that, uh you know, three guard rotation with Mary Morris and somebody you know, whether it's a terrorist type or a brown type or something like that, I think could make a lot of sense. It's just it's getting that move. It's a good front office. Tim Connolly does a really good job. But yeah, you gotta get I'm with you, gotta get some some form of better perimeter defense out there, and ideally something with a little bit of size and switchability so that it's not all falling to all right, Aaron Gordon, just take whoever the guy is because it's he's I like Aaron Gordon a lot as a player. I think it just gets he gets made into this you know, defensive stopper that he's never really been. He's a good defender, but he's not the guy you lock onto somebody and say, all right, that guy's gone, like he's he's out for the night. Like it's just that it's not who he is on defense. Yeah, and he's been. I feel like he's entire and you would know this being based out of Clara, just like he feels like he's been miscast on both ends of the floor for the majority of his career, which is just wild to happen. There doesn't seem like I don't you mentioned they have the many mid level and let's assume they we'll want to spend it. Is that even enough they get you liked lan right? I don't know. I thought about can you? It depends on what direction this team is going to go. But do they have enough asset equity to try and trade for a contavious called Loo Pope, someone who's going to give you more defense and then some shooting. You probably don't want him handling the ball too much, but he'll want to handle the ball a bunch for sure. That seems like maybe the ceiling on a trade or signing acquisition that they would have. And I might even think that I'm being too pipe dream me there, but that's the that's the player archetype that I feel this team is short of. Of. Even with Murray import and your being like one of the inarguable heavyweights in the West, they should be if they're healthy, one of the heavyweights in the West anyway. Nakolyo Kich is just fantastic, Murray's fantastic, and there's a trickle down effect for everyone on offense. But there does need there seems to be like there needs to be a very real infusion of defensive talent on this roster. I think, at least for the playoffs. Yeah, I completely agree. I think as sneaky target pending health and return for them, could have been a guy like Gary Big the second I think you could really make a guy like him work there. It also weakens a team, you know, in theory you need to get through in the West, because you'd be taking him away from the Warriors, I would think, considering he's made relatively nothing in his career, you know the mini mid level might be off. Now the Warriors clearly there's no no spending cap to what they'll spend and they could you pay him that same amount of money too. So you know, that made a challenge to pull him away because we often see guys like that when they make it, they feel that loyalty to the team that finally got them there and those things. But a guy like him him would make sense if you really wanted to change it up. I know he's getting along in the tooth, but I think he's still got something left. You'll again talking fourth fifth kind of guard here, guy like Gavid Bradley. You could maybe help a little bit but that, but you're talking minimum signings and that's you know, is that going to be enough guy in a minimum? I I don't know, but yeah, that's the Peyton one jumps out to me. He was my favorite target for every team is I think like, and they need an on ball defender that can really kind of guard one through three and hold his own and isn't gonna cost to odd and doesn't really need or want the ball. And that's turned into where do we go with this? But it's uh, you know, that's now we'll see you know, hopefully, hopefully you know, back healthy and looks pretty good. I'm I'm a little worried. I started getting os Andrew Bogitt like where he's like, man, he broke his elbow and there was never the same player again. And it's his left elbow when he's left handed. So that's you know, scary too. He was letting my favorite target with so many teams I had him the new on these Pelicans was my favorite fit for him. But yeah, and I was wondering if he was gonna get the full non taxpayers mid level someone and that's what would price amount of Golden State. Do you have any struck? Really? Do you have any strong opinions on how you As of right now, we haven't heard anything about how the MBA is going to treat a Dylan Brooks, but a lot of people over the mind like, oh, he should be suspended for how long? Gary Payton the second is out for? Do you fall like anywhere on one side of fence on this issue? Yeah, this suspended for how long the guy's out? Stuff that that's too far for me. I mean, that's you know, I can't go there because I just things happen, right, It's I'm okay if he gets a game suspension because I do think you know, it was what he did was completely unwarranted and maybe maybe maybe this sis a lot about me and deosis I'm a bad person. I would feel different if he wiped Draymond Green out because Draymond's the one who wiped this guy out, Like but to just Claber Gary Payton the second and nothing could do with what happened to Brandon Clark in game one and completely get out of here. If like anybody's like, well, you know, you might have been trying to make a play. He wasn't. They can play atoll. He blasted a guy in the head in the air like that's not you know, and that wasn't even like hey, it's funny because like people people are like, oh man, you guys are so soft today. Kevin McHale clothesline. Kurt Ramason was like, yeah, I know, I watched it happen. When it happened, like that's the teams I grew up on. And even then that was like oh, like and yeah, they call the common follow moved on. But here's the good thing. We learned things as human beings that we shouldn't you know, destroy each other. Hopefully it's you know, it's right, And it's one of those things where I think, like it's like football, right, like where people like all the games soft. Now they don't like guys hit it anymore. Well, I'd rather have guys able to walk when they're forty five and fifty years old and know their own name. Then you know, a big hit that makes the highlights. So yeah, it's I'm all, I'm fine if he gets a one game suspension, I get it. Then it turns into whole what about isms of knowing about Draymond and all that, But yeah, suspending them for as long as uh Peyton is out, that's that's that's too far me. I can't can't cross, and there's just no precedent for it. Yet it helps to come out of the blue. I think that makes it tougher. Exactly. Look this next team, I don't know if you notice that you're talking or no that you're talking to Apparently one of the foremost jokes in Minnesota Timberwolves circles per my Twitter mentions, Yeah, that's me. Apparently, Well, because I thought I think the Pelicans and Clippers are more likely to make the playoffs next year than the Timberwolves, So that means that I don't do my job in my research. What's your biggest question for the Minnesota Timberwolves though, heading into the offseason, it so the big kind of overarching question is what's next because the last time they were in this position, they kind of fumbled it and it didn't go great. Now I realized Jimmy Butler basically lit everything on fire and then you know, ran out of the building screaming, like I get that. But it's you gotta get this right. From a personnel standpoint, people are going way too far that I've seen some of the like Seacats not a winner, Like you gotta think about its ridiculous, like stop, it's just stop fifteen, like it just wants to move on. He's ridiculously good. Did he have kind of a bad series at times? Yes? Was his final game not good? Like that's thirty five foot three pointer he took early in the clock, Like that was just dumb. But that part of the process is figuring that stuff out as you get to that stage. They have a D'Angel Russell problem. You can't have a thirty million dollar player on your bench in the fourth quarter. That's just it doesn't work. So you've got to figure out something with that spot. I'm not a milite Beasley guy. I could not be more of an Anthony Edwards guy. I think he is fantastic. I love a lot of their role players. I thought they missed an opportunity that one. It was a game too maybe that they lost and didn't play Jordan McLoughlin at all, Like that can't happen. You gotta have that guy needs to be out there. So I really like him. I really like Jared Vanderbilt. I love McDaniels. I think he's it's going to be really something there. So I like a lot of their pieces. Patrick Beverley, it's hey, there's just too much, Patrick Beverley. Sometimes games like tweeting at home on the couch while watching players are being eliminated that they didn't give up forty seven to job. Yeah, that was exactly The comment I made on the live show was, well, you tweeted this from the couch, dude, and if I remember, you may not have given up forty seven. But it's not like John Rant didn't have some huge games in that series too, But I like him, like, I think he's good. I think clearly he was great for them as a tone center, especially defensively, and you know somebody who I think it was good to have somebody to come in and challenge the younger guys and say like here, you need like you need to do this, you need to do that, because I think there was just too much comfort level with that. But it's that's I guess. I don't have any one big question of him. What do you do with D'Angel Russell if you do move him, where does that leave you with Kak because we know that they're super close. Yeah, but at some point, I mean you could be friends. I mean Lebron's buddies up until you later born on on all of his teams and like they're all buddies and doing their their things like and stuff. So yeah, I just you gotta get that sorted and figure that out. And I thought, by the way, I'm inna love with Jade McDaniels as well with you. I D'Angel Russell was better than he probably got credit for during the regular season. The issue is, as you mentioned, being on the bench in the fourth quarter at a pivotal moment in the playoffs. Other than that, it's just can you have thirty one plus million dollars funnel? They're just such a high variance player, whether it's the regular season of the playoffs, the answer is no, you just you can't. And especially when maybe if he was sort of more of a lifeline for you offensively, and I get that he gets them into He's like a connective tissue a lot of times for him on offense. But you have Anton Edwards, now, who's just that he's gonna contend for like best player in the NBA at some point in his grew close to that tier, and so put the ball in his hands more. And I'm also more of an advocate of just put the I know there's Cat's decision making out of double teams could be wonky. But part of the reasons why it feels like he disappears or makes some poor decisions at times is that the offense isn't necessarily run through him as much as it should be. Exactly that's the inherent risk of having what your best player, or if you're thinking anthy Edwards as usurped him, I would push back against that. But having your best or second best player not be such a central focus of starting offensive players, Like, yeah, he could finish them, but when you're more of a play finisher, you only have so much influence over what's happening. I just don't know what you're able. Like, they could make an interesting package, but to me, the D'Angel Russell him being expiring contract and a useful player, that does help you if you pair him with the word of this podcast stuff. But you get into the realm of like do you want who are you getting and do you want to give up Jaden McDaniels in addition to picks to get said player. I look at this team and still think probably their biggest need is like maybe a cleaner fit at four, just because Jared Vanderbilt can compromise your spacing a little bit. Do you want to play McDaniels at the four? It's on They're a good Jeremy Grant destination, I guess. Is that also how we're back to this question with Jeremy Grant extension looming knowing the player he is, like, is that someone who can be considered You're all in play? And that was sort of my question, is whether they have the asset equity and the urgency slash impetus to be like not just super aggressive, but make that all in play on the trade market, assuming the opportunity even presents itself, or they better off trying to do something in between where it's depending on what Sacramento does. Harrison Barnes would be great for this team as well. So I have so many questions for a roster that seems like it's so close on the cusp of something like if you have kar Anthy Towns and Anthy Edwards, like there's an element of wow, Okay, you're so damn close, and it's like, but the finishing touches still feel like they're further away, and that the roster could stand and get deeper, and that some of the lineup combinations need to be ironed out a bit, and I do. I would cite I call it the four but I'm not a big fan of positions, but like that front court spot alongside karl Anthy Towns feels like that might have the potential for the most growth, unless you think it's you know, maybe the three spot, but like that three four spot would be an area of the biggest need for me. Yeah, I think your point of do you make it an all in trade, and if you do, you better make the right one because you're you're just you run the risk of painting yourself into too much of a corner roster wise, inflexibility wise, you could end up in a really bad spot. And that's where I think you've got to be really careful with the way you do this. And the best value in the NBA remains really great players on rookie scale deals, even when it's Anthony Edwards and it's one of the higher ones, because but that only lasts for four seasons, So you've got to get it right, you know, before that's up, because then after that he's gonna be a Max guy, potentially even a super Max guy, you know, pending you know where his career goes. There's a very good chance that's where that turns into and then towns. At the same time, it's going to be up for his next contract, and that's where you're running into. You've got to get these next moves right wherever it is. And and I'm with you, I think there's two big needs here. One is a more traditional point guard that can just get you into your stuff and maybe that's the guy who can tell Kat no more drifting out here, don't set the screen and then slowly meander off to you know, the week side corner like he tends to do in those kind of things. Now set the screen, roll hard, or get your butt in the post like I'm gonna get you to the ball. We'll get that worked out. Challenges. Chris Paul exists one place, and that's Phoenix. So you know who else, right, who else can be that guy? Because it's it's not Patrick Beverley. He can say those things, but he's not gonna be the one who delivers the ball and gets it's there. I do wonder is odd as it sounds because he was a former wolf, but like, is there a play to be made to get a guy like Tyson Jones back and say, you know what, we can give him a bigger role. Let him do it now. It's not necessarily that veteran voice, but just a steady hand. You can run your stuff, get you guys where they need to be and do those kind of things. But it's guys like that that's where you'd be looking. And I'm with you, I'd like to see them get just a different kind of four out there, maybe somebody who can provide some weak side shop blocking alongside Towns or something like that, somebody who can just kind of help him out and not leave it to like, hey, you gotta do the rim protection and all this other stuff, and then that would allow Vanderbilt to go into like that kind of super sub big role where it's like, just come in and play with a crap ton of energy, run all over the place, and make stuff happen. Those are arguably my favorite kind of players in the league. Like, I love guys like that because there's always a place for them on really good teams. I just think, right now, you're a little over extended with Vanderbilt, despite fact that I really really like his game. So yeah, those would be the two roster things I was looking at that point guard. That's the tricky part, and maybe that's where the Russell trade comes up, is getting that guy that can tell Towns like, all right, man, hey, we gotta do this, and also just as importantly say we're gonna run through through in right now. Right He's he's gonna be the guy we're gonna run you know, the next next ten minutes or tonight or this series whatever it is, like he's going to be the guy you're still gonna get touches. It'd be involved. And I don't think Kad is the kind of guy who's gonna bristle at that. I think he'd be okay. I think he seems like the kind of guys like we're gonna win. Great, cool, I'm good, let's go. I don't think he's the kind of he's got to be involved, Like he's not going to be content to just be out there. But yeah, that that's That's what I'm looking for, is who's that next guy to say go, because right now, I think it's too many, too many guys who all defer to each other, Like it's it's a whole bunch of like no, you go, you go. It's like coming to a four way stop and he's like you go, you go, and then you're just kind of passing it around the four way stop and nobody actually goes. It's like, all right, somebody has to take control here. That's that's the way it should be. I'm also wondering if they have the potential to make like the offbeat move of the offseason. Just when you look at the names they've been linked to over the past year, like there was they were linked to loosely Miles Turner John Collins when he was headed into restricted free agency, And I'm guessing that talents gives you a lot of flexibility up front. But it also seems like their defensive rebounding it's an issue and it's something that they're going to need to address. But they also seem to be very confident in the way that Chris Finch is going to coach their defense and how aggressive they are the number of turnovers they're going to force that maybe they're more inclined than the numbers would suggest, because they had the best offense in the league over like the past half of the season to go after not leaning in more into offense, but to maybe take a bigger risk where it's, oh, this feels like more of an offense first mover, a way to change up the offense more so than it does to solidify some of the holes or flaws that you have on defense. I actually kind of respect that belief. I don't know if it works, we'd have to see, but it does seem like they're open to sort of whatever, just judging off of who and what they've been linked to, even loosely in the past. I think sometimes they're in the NBA, there is too much of a rush to to change the other side of the ball from what makes you special. And I just wrote about this with the New York Knicks, they were so good defensively, but what they did was we have to upgrade our offense, and by picking Evan Fournier and Kem Walker, who are not good defenders, you didn't upgrade your offense enough to offset that slippage that you were no longer a super special defense. And that's where I'm kind of with you, where sometimes I think it's we still matter. I mean, it's going to be twenty forty and people assuming to defense wins championships, right, And it's like there's truth to it, sure, but like, how who are the guys who make this Wolves defense really really good that they could get They may not exist? So yeah, why not go lean more towards your offense? Like there's nothing wrong with that, Like it's it's you know, if you become such an unstoppable scoring team, it can be really hard. Then it doesn't. It almost doesn't matter where your defense as long as it's Okay enough. You know, as long as it's fifteen to twenty, you're not twenty five to thirty. You can be fine as long as you're you know, top one, two three defense or offense rather. So yeah, that's I just sometimes I feel like teams get too stuck on we have to find this great balance when that great balance doesn't always exist. And I know all the stats say you're gonna have a top ten defense and offense if you want to win a championship and all that stuff. I get all that, but it's only one team's gonna win the title. You know. For me, it's put yourself in position and maybe be that team and things break right. It's not the end of the world. The next team might be my favorite team to loster in the offseason, the New Orleans Pelicans. What is your biggest question for them entering this summer? All right, I'm gonna take the zion one off the table because I mean it's Zion right, Like what happens? Like, can you play? Can you reincorporate them? Can everything? Everything's II on? Right? For me, it's they have one free agent, like a non two way guys, they have one free agent. So it's where where do they go with the rest of the roster, because you've got you kind of look at it and it's I find it hard in their top ten to eleven guys to really look at somebody, right, well, that's the spot everyone one upgrade, that's the one I want to replace. And again this is all as humans ion is there. But when you're they're five point eight million under the tax, they're they're about, you know, eleven point eight or so under the apron, I look at it and I start to say, well, that's enough where you could as long as you want to go into the tax or you feel like we can get out of a deal later if we need to, you can use that full mid level go get somebody. Because as we talked about a lot a while back, is there's not a ton of cap space out there. So what turns into is the mid level then has that's real spending that you can get something where in a market where five six seven teams I've catched basicly may not have that same spending power. So that's that's what I'm I mean, obviously, it's it's it's zion Zion, Zion fully get that. But if it's not him, where are you going? But it's what is it that you need top grade? Because I I kind of like a lot of what they've already got at place. Yeah, and I'm with you, And look, they people will look at the record and say, well, why are you expecting who jumped them? Why are they so good? They weren't even great after the season McCollum trade. They just took the best team in the NBA to six games. Devin Booker was missing, but hey, so was Zion for the Pelicans. And I think also I was so impressed with how Willie Green had them hustling in transition on defense, specifically after they started it was the three and sixteen or whatever, and the fact you found Herb Jones and Jose Alvarado them having another year of experience. I think this team adding Zion and i'd be with you. I guess I won't. I've been told it's not a non issue, but like he's not going anywhere, Like there's just well he signed extension or get the restricted free agency? To me is the question, and I would lean towards some version of an extension. But so, yeah, I'm with you that that's not the issue. I'm more like, well, what could this team be with him? And the two things that stand out. I think Zion with Ingram and Steve MCom give you flexibility in the sense that you can change up your looks at the quote unquote one and they need a better option than DeVante Graham right now, like just someone who's not shooting the ball as well as it used to and became a defensive liability playoff liability for them big time. I also think, though, if you're gonna be playing Zion Williamston, you need to upgrade like the rim protection element of your roster. And I know Pelican Stantz will tell me that you want to found Junis is a better defender than credited and that he is technically a floor spacer. At this point, I'll agree with all that. I know Jackson Hayes can be frenetic on the defensive end as well. I still think there's room to upgrade from there. A lot of people think maybe Larry Nance Junior is just more of the answer and that you don't need to I still said New Orleans should be in on a Miles Turner trade if he becomes or stays available, and I'll stand by that if you don't want that, I'm in love with Larry Nance Junior in the way he played. I got Danny Green to the Raptors throwing vibes and he was just thrown into that CJ. McCollum deal with with New Orleans. So they are set up, but it feels like if you can get like you know, we mentioned Gary Payton the second, even a Tist Jones type option at the one, like going from DeVante Graham to to that, is there a trade you could make where look, you have this Lakers pick now, and can you what can you attach to that? You have stackable contracts, even if they're not on players that team's deem useful, or even if they're not on particularly high end contracts like DeVante's. Graham's deal is not agent to all at this point, so there are assets that they have in avenues to explore, and it feels like making an addition at that level where if it's a Tiat Jones or if Gary Payton the seconds, okay, or if we're able to make a trade to improve your rim protection or even just having another rim protective body on the roster to choose from. This could be like I know the West is going to be hilacious next year, but this still feels like with aion they could have top five in the league potential of top five in the conference potential, and that then leads me to believe. And given who they were linked to last summer when we all made fun of them for whipping on Kyle Lowry and Chris Paul, it just feels like they're going to default to a sense of urgency, especially after that CJ. McCollum trade. And I'm absolutely unequivally here for it. I'm with you on all but one thing do you said? I actually I think DeVante Graham in the six man scoring guard role can be pretty good. I think I think he's a little over matched when you need a lot more out of him. But now you've got McCollum. McCollum's going to clearly be the the point guard. I'm putting it in quotations because it's not right. He's not going to function that way necessary traditionally, but he's going to be the one in all terms, and in what he'll really defend is the weaker of the two guards, because Herb Jones will take the better of the two but you've got more than enough playmaking with Zion and brandon Ingram on the floor, right, think Curb Jones, that's probably the next thing. Everybody's full focused on that shooting. I want to see him maybe take a mcal bridges like approach where can get three four ses per game, you know, just off of the short roll and making you know, plays just kind of the probably not secondary but like tertiary attacks like you know, driving as the defense is scrambled and those kind of things. I mean, I'm with you, Miles Turner next, his eye on fit seems like the ideal world right for everybody because he blocks shots, he shoots with range, he does all that stuff. How you get there, I don't know, but yeah, I am. I'm with you too. Where there's a lot of different things they can do. They've kind of that Garrett Temple contract that's just kind of sitting there is it's not really part of the rotation. I know he's a respected veteran in their locker room and all that. But now you've got CJ. McCollum, you've got Valianciois. You've got guys who can handle that part of it. You would hope so you know, is that where you go and the other thing. Yeah, them snagging Nance and that deal was like really like I even remember when that all kind of came down. I was like, they're getting mc collumn and I was like, all right, I kind of don't hate this idea. And then when it was like later it was like they're also getting Nance, I was like, wait, now I love this for New Orleans, like yeah and y yeah, And then you've got that Lakers pick sitting out there, like what if that pick? What if you have lottery luck and that ends up the top three or four pick in this draft. You don't even need to use it. If you're the Millikans, you could turn around and trade it right and say no, I want player X, Y and Z, because yeah, because you've got those stackable deals, you know, then you can you can get there to go get a twenty thirty million dollar player with relative ease. So, I mean, as much as it looked bad early like there, and that's also something you said to Willie Green, getting this group to just play and just they could have very easily said this sucks. It's all gone sideways, Zion as a plan forget it. We're done, but just playing night after night, playing hard, getting after it so big. I mean, that's why they were able to even make the playing tournament, and then you'll win him from there, you're big. I think they nailed the coach higher with him. I think this team is really set up to make that big jump next year. And maybe that's low hanging through Becauzion will be back, but I don't know how low hanging through to that really even is. And the final thing all that here is that if they're not going to go like we want the better rim protection route around Zion, I'd like to probably see them pick up a bigger wing to just encourage more of the smaller looks with nance on the court. You know, you have Trey Murphy, the third, you have herb Jones. Is this a team that could take a flyer on if he's healthy. TJ. Warren might just be interesting to help facilitate those type of units that would not be I prefer the rim protection route. And that's that's a great port on DeVante Graham, is that you could maybe argue that he was miscast. I would probably still I think, yeah, him in the sixth man role makes so much sense but I would still keep an option open, like if you could change up the looks at the one. But yeah, that's he's not on a deal that's backbreaking. That's a great point. Him in a sixth man role is completely different. Well, look, you can't take minutes away from Jose Lvarado now like that. Sure, yeah, but that's the nice thing, right because if all of a sudden, if you're sitting in like, you know what, we have enough bench scoring, We've got enough depth at the one. Graham's contract is not so bad. Teams would look at that and say, all right, yeah, we can get him in and bring him in here and make him work. It's our scoring bench option. Because you nailed that Alvarado find, you know, undrafted two way and then onto the roster like they you know, that's that's great, you know when you can pick those guys off. And then we didn't even mention him. But I think Trey Murphy is gonna make a big jump next year. I think I think you're gonna see it took a long time for them to use him this year, and I remember just so many Pelicans fans like, play Trey Murphy, What is going on? Please play and please play him. I tend to trust coaches, no, right, they see these guys every single day, so they know. But when he finally was ready, and I think a lot of it was he didn't know anything what he's doing defense, Well, he's such a train wreck early in the year defensively when he finally started to figure out, all right, this is the way we want to play. Hey, did you got something? There is? At least you know that's a big time bench shooting option, and that's something every good team is looking for. Now the Pelicans don't have to find it. They've already got there. And I think it's a lot about how intriguing this team is that we just didn't even mention, like what if there's a bounce back year from Naji Marshall and what happens if Kyra Lewis is just healthy? Is he still they have a lot of different things they could do. I think again, they're they're like one of the three teams I'm gonna be watching the most this offseason, our final two, and this is another team that I'm emotionally attached to for some reason. I had no idea why. But over the past like three or four years, right before the Kwi Leonard trade. I just developed an emotional attachment too the Toronto Raptors. What is your biggest question for them entering the off season? What is the plan I guess long term to make this sustainable? Because yeah, it sounds cool to have all these dudes who are foot seven through six foot nine with super long arms. Does it really work like that? Does that fit? You know? Where we go in with this? How do you how do you change an upgrade? Do you do you need more of a true old school five presents? I tend to doubt it, but I also think you're asking an awful lot of Pascal Siakam. If you're gonna ask him to play the five eighty two games and then be fresh and ready for the for the playoffs, I just it, just like that, that's a big gask. But yeah, just what is the play at now? I say that with very little skepticism, because there's no GM in the league. I trust more to figure it out than Messiah, Jerry and Bobby Webster and that that front office staff there. And I also will say when when is the next time Messiah takes the home run cut? Because it's coming. We know it's coming. He's he's he's building, he's stacking pieces, he's he's it's coming. I don't know that it's this offseason, but but it's coming, and it's and soon he is gonna, you know, no nobody will you know, go for Gopher it all more than than he will, like he he has that cachet to do it, and knowing if he misses, well that's all right, we'll just you know, retool around it and figured out after so. But but it's it's coming. There's gonna be somebody's gonna pop and he's gonna go get him. That's, you know that the way you phrase it, that's I should rephrase my question, which was what is the barrier most separating them from becoming a fringe title contender or re entering that fold? I had shooting more of a like another half court initiative because they including me that or is it the raptor's desire to even bust through that barrier for the time being to where they might be content. Let's see if Scotty Barnes can become that half court initiator. Still, we have Pascal Siak and we have dread Van Fleet pressures Atcha came along during the middle of the season after not starting the year all that well. We still have Gary Trent Junior. They're a very good team. They were just top five in the Eastern Conference. They could very well be just as high, if not better than that, next season without doing anything wholesale to the roster. I still would like to see them I'm totally I don't think they need a traditional big with the way that their roster is built right now. They're my least favorite or among my least favorite Rudy Gobert destinations. I would like to see them add at least more dependable shooting or like I said, it does feel like having just the Akaman for ad Van Fleet is your primary half court options with asking you know it was, I think it was great experience in the regular season that Scottie Barnes was running some crunch time sets you can try and extend to o Gianna Nobi and Gary Trent Junior off the dribble. I still think they need, like even if it's just someone to come off the bench to serve as that role, because it doesn't look like they believe it's Malkai Flynn. It feels someone along those lines would make a doesn't have to be a star, but it feels like someone along those lines would make all the difference in the world for a team that is just already terrifying. Yeah, that top five there is really good. They've got a firm up. They're death going in the next year because it's just not good, Like that's that killed them in the first round. Because you once Van Vleet was tobbled and then out and then Trent being kind of more or less kind of out for a little bit. You really that dad got exposed. The depth is just not there. So yeah, figure that depth part of it out and and go because you have that that top five. It's funny too because for a long time I was like, I was like, oh, gee, man, that's that's the guy. There's no way they could ever move him. Now I'm like, is he the guy who goes because you got Scotty Barnes. Like, I'll quick decide on Scotty Barnes. So I don't live very far from mont Vert Academy, so I pop over there when I can to check that team out. I saw him and I was like, holy crap, this dude is he's gonna be an NBA player when he was still in high school. Because it just you could just see it. It's like this guy, he just got it. He was so damn competitive, you know, at that level. And that's that's a team that you know, I mean they I don't say this, you know, with a lack of respect, but they could beat a lot of low level Division one college teams as a high school team because they're they're just that good. I mean, and that's not like the whole like good Kentucky, you beat the worst NBA team like stuff. That goes on. Why I feel confident saying that is every kid from Montberg goes on to play high level division want basketball, So it's not like every kid from Kentucky makes it into the NBA. But but that's a whole other thing. But you could just see I saw it with him right away, like and I was a little surprised that they want with him for as their player. Pick I was so high and still I'm on Jail and Suggs, but I am too. They made the right Yeah, yeah, I really like Sogs, but yeah, but they made the right decision. He just fits with what they're trying to build. There, So yeah, get your depth sorted while kind of keeping everything ready to go for whatever the next big move is. I think that's where this is seted. I also questioned there, I guess because you have an o Ganna Noby or if you deem Fred van Fleet expendable for some reason, I don't think you would, And then you have Gary Frank Junior. Just they're not owed, they're already traded away like their own first this year. They don't have like a ton of these extra firsts, and so I would question their ability and end willingness by extension to go after such a large acquisition now because it feels like it's going to take two of your mission critical players. And I think some people might say that Pascal Siakam is available in the right trade offer. You probably say the same thing for like all but ten guys in the league, So that doesn't really hold weight to me. He's as close to completely untouchables you would have after the season he just turned in, and that's why I expect them to continue along this gradual path. But if they could even just do something like slightly on the margins, and there's like no names that's bringing to mind. I thought, and I know how free agency works that Toronto's and typically bag them. They were with their mid level to me like a super interesting Victor Oladipo team. I just don't know whether he wants to go to Toronto, no offense. Toronto seems like a great city, but a move of that caliber where it's not a home maybe it's like a double as opposed to a single, feels like it would really position them to make even more of rockets in the East Left next year. Yeah, no, I'm with you there. There's a lot of different guys that again, a team that could you know, pick some guys off maybe and and find some stuff. I think they they they did so well in the draft for a number of years to back end and then Van v lead is you know kind of the the the you know, you know, big find for them. Uh then it there's been some misses in the recent years, like Malkai Flynn hasn't popped the way I think they'd hoped. And and that happens, you know, and it's not a you know, big criticism. Nobody's perfect in the draft, especially when you're picking off quite often in the twenties, it's it's hard to nail all those picks. But but it just shows when you don't, those guys don't develop into the assets you want, and then it it becomes a little bit harder to make those deals without throwing them one of your big ticket guys because that it's just those are the guys who carry the value. But yeah, I'm with you. I think I don't think it's this year, but there it's it's coming. Eventually, they're gonna make that big, big play in there. It'll be probably like it was with Kawhi. It will be somebody who's not overly interested in being where they're at, and the Raptors will say, you know what, we'll bring in and if it's a one or two year thing, so be it. Well we'll go compete for a title and then we'll reset and go after it. I don't think they have any problem with doing it that way. They also obviously need to resign Chris Bouchet, because to do so it would be unforgivable. And I that one without saying he's gonna be a hot free agent. I think I think there's gonna be a lot of teams pushing for him because I think a lot of teams are gonna look at like, hey, this guy can come off your bench, play the four of the five with range. We're in protection like that's I mean, nobody loves bigs that can block shots and shoot more than you know, everybody in the NBA right now, so you know, it's definitely I think they gonna be a free agent target for anful teams. He would be my two favorite fits from outside of Toronto where Charlotte and then I'm not sure if he provides enough shooting now, but if New Orleans is gonna go like the we don't need to go after this high end route. I'd like Christmas Shane's line on the court. At the same time, I'll take that for net energy all day. Our final team also probably our most combustible team. I think we would agree, the Utah Jazz. What is your biggest question? I feel mean asking you to limit it to the biggest question, because I'm sure we all have dozens upon hundreds upon thousands of questions about the Jazz? Is it time to blow it up? And you know, does related kind of subsett of that is is that with Danny Ainge at this point in his NBA life, does he want to do that. Does he want to fully restart again with just got there? And I know people will say, well, Dwayne Wade, Dwyne Wade is a very very small minority owner, does not have sal over personnel decisions, like let's just stop with that. Like he's not going to be you know, he come in and be like, hey, we're trading trading Donovan Mitchell, Like I don't think that's good. And Danny Anges and big yess we're trading Donovan Mitchell Lakey. Danny Ange is running the show there. But it's I think, is it time to blow it up? Or do you make one more run at retooling around the Mitchell Gobert combo and go forward that way? I tend to lean more towards the ladder. I do think we're going to see them make one more run with trying to rebuild it around them versus really kind of going all in and blowing it up. But I do think part of what that equation will be, it'll be one more run with those two guys under a new head coach and then see where it works. So I think Quinn Syder is done there. I agree with you on Quinn Snyder I'm just questioning, if you're gonna make the one more run, why stand basically so pad at the trade deadline. To me, that sort of implied a lack of faith in this core and that some sort of a breakup was inevitable, whatever it was. And I think they're good enough to wear as many problems as they had if you would have made that type of a trade, and I know they would have to trade distant first round picks twenty twenty six, the first one available for them. The windows in the NBA are just so slim, and this year with the Nuggets and the Clippers sort of out of it, like that arguably would have been the time to do it, and to not do it makes me think that they are going to skew toward wholesale changes. And I had I knew we were going to have the same question. I said it to you when you were looking at including Quinn Snyder, just their entire core of Rudy Gobert, Donnovan, Mitchell, Jordan Clocks, Clarkson, Boon mcdonovitch, Mike Conley, royce O'Neill, if you set the over under of like two point five of those guys being gone before next season, would you take the over or the under on that I would take the over. I just don't know that it's going to be the two guys. Everybody thinks like I do. Think it's to my experience of you know, twenty years. Basically, if Danny Age running on vancover most closely is a lot during those twenty years, I'm sure, yeah, there is no it's not it's not a sense of loyalty that he lacks, because there is loyalty, but there's no sentimentality. There is no like this even less so, he didn't draft any of these guys, He barely signed any of these guys, and he traded for almost none of their main guys. So for him to come in and say, yeah, hey go this guy's out of here, go that we're doing this, We're doing that, I mean, that's how he started his Celtics tenure. He came in and the media it was like see you later, Antoline Walker, and everybody's like, wait, what, like that's you know, Antoline Walker, And then then you know, I mean, he did it. This is the guy who very well I think almost loves that. He went and told Red Hour back, you're crazy for not trading burden McHale and extending ear your window pass this and it's like that's completely blasphemy in Boston, like trade burden McHale, Like what are you thinking? But that's just how he thinks. He it's all about winning a championship and what puts us closest. So it would not surprise me at all if we're you know, having a conversation, you know, four months now in the beginning of training camp about how like and I don't who are these guys in Utah and they've got you know, seven hundred draft picks moving forward? Like that wouldn't surprise me at all if that's the direction this goes. I just I just something tells me they're going to give it one more go with Mitchell and Gobert, but with kind of if they can all different pieces around them, because someone will talk themselves into Mike Conley will be better for us, Like and we need you know, where we talked about Minnesota. If you're Minnesota and you're like, you know, we need that veteran point guard, you can just kind of set us and get us there. Could they talk to themselves and yeah, Mike Conley is good and if you're the jazz, could you'd be like maybe dandel Russell would be okay, like you know scoring and he's not a dange guy, so that's not a perfect fit by any means. But but like that's someone will talk to themselves in him like Conley and and we'll see. But I just something tells me they're going to give it one more run around those two. You know, it's actually you kind of just talking me into that was I kind of thought, if you were gonna move one of Rudy Gobert Donovan Mitchell, you might as well move both of them, because you're not going to get better in that in either situation. There's I just I will not I know Rudy Gobert has his limitations on offense, but you're just not going to talk me into the Jazz being better. And so if you give it one more shot, it makes it Donovan Mitchell's trade value still final of two more guaranteed years left on his deal. You also see I would also argue that he is I know some people and I was going to throw this to you have posed the idea of what if you just rebuild or retooled around Gobert instead of Donovan Mitchell. I just can't talk myself into a scenario where that happens. When you look at Gobert's age and how if you trade Mitchell, regardless of what you think of Mitchell, he is your number one. If you don't think he could be the number one, you trade Mitchell, Now you need a one attit two, is what you're saying, because like you're starting from scratch there and just giving the age timeline, the fact that we don't see these mid twenties players so early and the rookie scales would come available, I would be staunchly against going that route. If you're gonna trade mitchellor you might as well trade Gobert and maybe it becomes easier to go the super seismic path if you give it one more going It's okay, Look we tried. There will be two more years left on Rigo bears Well, three more years after next year. Yeah, three more years after next year. Dono Mitchell will be a free agent in two years with that player option, maybe that's when you make that call. I personally, though, I'm prepared for anything in Utah this offseason, with the exception of an actual Donovan Mitchell trade because that just feels so far fetched relative to what we know about how these players contracts end up panning out throughout the course of history. Yeah, and I also think this is where the age factor comes into. He has historically built teams are around a good on ball point guard or at least on ball guard, without a lot of concern to even if the guy is considered to be undersized or not. Whether that was you know, Rondo or kind of early on, you know, when he rebuilt the Celtics and then Kyrie and Kemba Walker and Isaiah Thomas, like he was content to you'll build team around that. That that So, yeah, I don't think Mitchell's the one who who goes if anybody's gonna go this summer, it's gonna be Gobert. I feel very confident in that. And I think that's one too. We mentioned a couple of teams with their teams that will say like, all right, yeah, hey, this we're bringing him in. This is a you know, every year, he's a top you know, defensive Player of the Year candidate, and he's going to be the new backbone of our defense and we're gonna set everything around you know, what he does defensively, blah blah blah blah blah, And that's why that becomes easy. So I think trading Mittell is weird. I tend to think if you traded Mitchell and kept Gobert and you got the Mitchell trade right, you can build a really good team around Rudy Gobert. If you trade Gobert and keep Mitchell as long as you again you gotta get the right kind of guys, you could potentially still build a great team. I just think that's the difference. I think Mitchell is a guy who can be the the star of the leader of a great team, and I think Gobert is the guy who can kind of be the star leader of a really good team. But maybe the answer is just keep them both together and find the right players around them, and you can be a great team. Then too. It's just we're running out of time, right Like It's it's like it's you that most this has one more year shelf life under a new coach, and you know that's how everything feels fresh and off we go. But if it doesn't work after one more year, then it's it's it's out, and it's and then you run the risk and now you wasted another year in Mitchell and he's going to be upset, and do you lose him into a year like That's where you you've got to balance, you know, what's good for us today versus what's good for us tomorrow, verse a year from now vers two years from now. That's you've got to be looking at all the time horizons. My final question here is just do you think that Rudy Gobert's contract, where it's basically four years and one seventy left on it after this year, do you think that adversity impacts his trade value just because by seeing a team like the Mavericks link so heavily to him. I'm looking at what the Mavericks best packages, and it's this year's pick tent twenty six whatever it is, and then twenty twenty five and twenty twenty s like do you want those long distance first round picks? And the other issue there is are the Jazz even looking to fully reset if they're moving Golbert, they're trying to remain competitive around Donovan Mitchell immediately because that would make a package that Dallas can offer, I would argue, much less attractive. And so what do you think would happen if they wind up moving Golbert? Are we going to be shocked at how little he goes for or people just generally underrating what his market will be he gets more of the ladder they think there is still I mean, this guest still wins Defensive Player of the Year or is in contention for it every season, and I don't see why that would necessarily change at least over the next two or three years. Yeah, he can't bring him in and be like, here's our great two way star, right, because it's just not what he is offensively. But I think a lot of other teams would look at him be like, this dude gives Team USA all sorts of problems on offense in the Olympics, Like why can we not you know, get him, just get him the ball on the roll and lobs and all those other things. So that's or, you know, I think that some team will buy in and he'll go for a pretty good package of stuff. I also though, if I was the Jazz, I would not be upset if you know, I could get picks, you know, three or four years down the line now, maybe even five or six, because I do think there's potential that when Goilbert goes as far as like gauges out, it's just gonna go quick and it's gonna be done. You know, he's gonna fall into the realm of you know down he's just a backup who can do some stuff. You know, it's just kind of how guys like him go. So I would not be too afraid of taking on longer term assets because then all of a sudden, unless it's a team that can really flip and reset very quickly, like like the Lakers. Can you know if I'm I'm not saying there's a trade to be made there, but if if it's like if it's a team like that, then I don't know that I want you'll pick you know that are five six years out, but if I can get them from another team that you might struggle a little bit to reset things. Yeah, I'm content to go that direction for sure. But I guess Danny Ainge would be the type of CEO that would make that deal. I mean we've seen them prioritize distant picks in the past. Yeah, they'll be They'll be mega interesting for the offseason. Kith, Thank you so much for giving us ninety plus minutes on this podcast, are be able to tell our fantastic listeners where they can find you and all the great work that you do. Yeah, you can find me on Twitter at Keith Smith NBA. I be forewarned, I tweet a lot, but you can find my written work at spot track. We've got right now. We've got offseason team out looks going up pretty much three four a week right now to we'll get there, and then as teams get eliminated from the playoffs, we'll start picking those ones up. We're still still working our way through the lottery teams right now. And then if you're, for whatever reason looking for super Celtics specific coverage, Celtics Blog is part of eSPI Nation. And then if you like this kind of stuff talking about trades, transactions and all that stuff, NBA Front Office Show, that's our YouTube show with Trevor Lane and I. It's also a podcast version and check that out. We have a lot of fun. We get in a lot of different stuff there and a lot of just beat NBA talking. I'd highly recommend following Keith a ton of followers already, but I love watching you tweet through Celtics games. That's one of my favorite NA timeline during during Celtics games. Keith, thank you so much and as I'm sure you know by now, I'll be pestering you again in the future. So thanks for giving me so much of your time. I appreciate it. Thanks for having me