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What is krack Alac and fellow thermonuclear
a efforts. I am Dan PAVALLEI coming

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at you with my certified fantabulous dripping
with fantabulous miss co host mister Grant Hughes.

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We're excited to bring you another episode
of the biggest, most awesomest podcast

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in the media business. Yes,
it has happened. It took a little

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while to get here, almost two
weeks. We are the most popular media

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property as of now, ranked number
one every single chart you see. Incredible.

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Thank you all for your support.
Grant, how the heck are you

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doing? Actually, I'm gonna say
very quick psych because I've decided of what

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I'm already going to title this episode, and it's gonna be misleading for anyone

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who is clicking on this and expecting
your one thing. It's gonna be something

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else. We're going to talk about
the NBA playoffs. Go figure, Grant,

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how the heck are you doing?
I'm doing well. I I've you.

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You broke the news to me,
surprising. I didn't know that today

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was the day that we had ascended
to the mountain top of all media.

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That's really exciting. Also, I
when you start that bit each time so

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far, I've like forgotten that that's
like a thing that's happening frequently now,

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and it's just like, wait,
what what are we? All? Right?

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Right, it's the bit I'm doing
very well? What bit? These

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are facts? No? No,
no, yeah, I know the bit.

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I mean we should move on.
I feel like I just stepped all

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over it. NBA playoffs, Huh, they're happening every series. We're well,

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should we even say okay, I
know we weren't going to say,

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oh, this is stale, this
is stale. We're just going to talk

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about the situation as it exists right
now, uh, and go with it.

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Yeah. Yeah, So we're recording
this before the do the diead of

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Game five that we are going to
see on Tuesday. This will live immediately,

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so maybe you're listening to this before
those Game five shout out to you.

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And we're basically just going to get
into our biggest question slash questions for

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every remaining NBA playoff team in so
far as they have to do with the

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series. It's not going to be
well, the Cavalier is going to trade

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down the Mitchell he after this summer. That'll be a question for a different

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podcast. So let's where do we
want to start. Let's start with the

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teams that are not playing on Tuesday. If you want to bounce around,

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you will see the time stamps.
I always put them in there because we

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are the biggest sports media property or
the biggest media property in existence. We

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all make sure you have time stance
about like that's that's just the level that

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we're operating at right now. Of
all these luxuries, Well, maybe we

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ought to start with the easy one
of the of the two that are not

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in action tonight, which is which
is Boston Cleveland. I don't know how

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you absorbed it, but like I
I vaguely remember that Donovan Mitchell had a

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oh that didn't quite look right with
in Game three with the calf and then

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like fairly close to tip because I
just hadn't been up on it. It's

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like, oh, he's not playing. It's like, well, am I

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watching this game now? And I
did, and you know it was like

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I guess, I guess before I
throw it to you. The number one

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thing I could take away from that
game, which is like obviously compromised because

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you don't have Jared Allen and now
you don't have Donovan Mitchell and Boston is

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Boston. I think probably the main
thing I would take away is that,

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like from Cleveland's side, I am
starting to wonder really seriously about whether the

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whole is less than the sum of
the parts in Cleveland, which is,

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you know, like you should have
gotten smoked really without Mitchell there. But

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Garland played pretty well. I think
he had thirty and Mobley didn't have crazy

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numbers but actually had some finishes inside
where he was just like, oh,

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I'm bigger than whoever's on me.
I'm gonna turn around and dunk it.

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Which you know, those have been
into my mind like fairly short supply,

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and you just wonder, like,
you know, we're not going to get

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into all the offseason stuff necessarily,
but I feel like that game offered a

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little more evidence that maybe like the
two big in two smalls, which we've

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talked about a ton, just isn't
producing the returns that it feels like it

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should, and they're not that much
worse off maybe with you know, one

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of each or two of one and
one of the other. Obviously they're worse

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without Donovan Mitchell. Like that's we
don't even need to like put that out

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there. By the way the performance
he had He's Grade three where he really

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went at Boston's defense and like they
were made, like the way that the

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Caps operate out of the pick and
roll in that game, and he was

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injured ap like it's just and he's
been banged up to the PRP injection right

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before the playoffs too. Just absolutely
magnificent. So kudos to him. But

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he's as we're recording this, he's
i think listed as questionable and not many

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people are expect him to play in
Game five. And then Jared Allens is

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dealing with this rib injury and the
fact that it's kept him out through these

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critical games is like shit, I
can't believe he still listened as questionable,

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Like at some point it's are you
doing that as gamesmanship to maybe to keep

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the Celtics on tilt and you just
know that like the just rule him out

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for the series and season at this
point. Yeah, Well, speaking of

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unless you want to hit the my
half baked theory about Cleveland, well I

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did go. I'm I just I
wonder how much of it is, Like

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is it I guess because we saw
it earlier in the year when they were

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dealing with these injuries. And like
they just go on these runs, but

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it's or not go on these runs. But they had that incredible record during

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the stretch where Mobley and Garland missed
a ton of time. And now we're

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kind of seeing it's not the inverse, like now Mitchell's not there, and

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then the Cavs looked one way like
this, But it helps that you're not

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always gonna get that game from Max
Struce. I think there's probably Carousel verts

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one of his better games of the
Playoffs, And so I wonder how much

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of it actually used to do with
is it less about the four and how

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they fit together and more about what
does this embolden some of the other like

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supporting cast members to even Sam Merrill
goes two for seven from the field,

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but like, okay, the volume
is there, and he was crucial at

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the beginning of the game he hit
those two threes. I think in the

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first quarter. I don't I'm not
dismissing your theory. I guess there's something

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to It's funny that I said we're
not gonna do this through the CASI to

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break it up at this one.
I find that interesting, but I still

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feel like it would be more of
a situation where it's one of the four

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where you think it makes it easier, and I just I'm very much of

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the mind that we haven't seen enough
of what their best five man unit would

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be to kind of go that route. You might get to a point and

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say, you know what, that
kind of like where the Pelicans are now,

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it's we're just never gonna be at
full strength when it matters most,

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and so like that's the sample and
we have to work off it. So

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I'm not quite as far there as
you, I really do think, to

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throw it back to you, I
just I want to see where this team

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would be if they didn't have so
many of the stop and start absences,

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to where it almost feels like Donovan
Mitchell and Darres Carnan were better together last

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year than this season, and a
lot of that probably had to do with,

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well, there was more time on
the court together from them. And

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so does that familiarity those reps?
How much do those matter? And that's

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why you know, it's different when
you're fitting in a supporting cast member on

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the fly, whereas you know we
need to play Marcus Morris tonight. It's

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just it's easier to account for a
guy like that, and you might look

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better because it's you have your one. You're pecking order is simplified because you're

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missing not to forget about Jared Allen, but offensively like okay, you're missing

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don to Mitchell, Like we know
what's gonna happen now with Darius Garland and

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Evan Mobley, and then what's going
to happen on the margins with everybody else.

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And when you're fitting at smaller pieces
around that, you're bound to look

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better because it's an easier adjustment.
Whereas now if you're throwing another all star

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player into the mix, so certainly
someone who needs to operate on ball into

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the mix, it just gets like
you're forcing adaptation, not just from role

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players, but from there's a trickle
down effect on at least two stars there.

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Yeah, I think it's just it's
really I want to clarify, like

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I'm also not totally convinced that we
got to bust it up. This isn't

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gonna work it. The thing that
as you were talking, strikes, it's

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just so unfortunate that this is year
two of this roster essentially, like you

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know, they added Max Struz this
year, but like I feel like we

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know less now than we did before
because like and you know, you said,

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and you're right that Garland and Mitchell
weren't as good together this years last,

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and that's like discouraging, but like
I mean, some of that is

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just Garland has been worse, you
know, And and he's the one that

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again started the year out with like
a couple of freak injuries and just like

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that can throw the whole operation off. And then to say nothing of like

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everybody else you know, having long
stretches where they're out. So yeah,

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I I don't know. I think
really it was a game effort to just

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get back to the game from the
Calves for most of it. I also

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never once thought that Cleveland could win
that game, you know. And that's

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with and to flip it to Boston
now, like to ask a question about

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the Calves, Sure, yeah,
what is it going to take for them

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to generate Evan Mobley easier bucket?
You mentioned it was cool that he had

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those possessions where it was just kind
of you know, not strictly yamming on

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dudes, but oh, you're smaller
than me, and like I am a

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little bit stronger than I was last
year, and so I like seeing that

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physicality from him, but I'm just
like, can we do something that doesn't

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involve getting him the ball from a
standstill? Yeah, it's kinda it's got

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to be addressed on all sides.
Like some of it is he's still not

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just he doesn't I don't know what
it is, like he's not an intuitive

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bucket getter, like he's just doesn't
seem totally wired that way, which is

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why I was so encouraging to see
him get like some Aaron Gordon duck Ins

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on small guys and just go up
right, like just don't don't think about

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it, don't think about you know, where's the right pass what like I

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gotta gather, just go up,
you know. Use he's so long,

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like he really can't just extend over
centers too. He had a couple of

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little baby hooks too that were just
oversized, like he can do that.

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So some of it's him I think, and being drilled on just like,

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hey, remember how big you are
when you're close to the basket. We

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don't need to overthink anything. I
think some of it is, like you

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know, the spacing crunch when he
plays with Alan, like that's a real

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thing. Some of it is.
I don't know, maybe he's just too

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deferential to to the fact that like
we have Mitchell and Garland and those guys

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generate the offense and I'm not,
you know, thinking to score that way.

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And then I guess the other aspect
is just schematically like there it just

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needs to be a point of emphasis
for bicker Staff and for the rest of

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the guys on the roster that actually
have the ball to figure out like is

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it on the roll? Is it
like does he need to be like a

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baseline cutter like again to draw the
air and yeah, like bring it up.

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See what happens, Like initiate a
pick and roll with one of the

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small guards and like, I don't
know, have Mobily be the ball handler.

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See if that gets you anywhere.
The very worst, you might get

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a switch where a big is out
on Garland all of a sudden or something.

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I hope, I don't know,
I seem more creative. And again

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I like he's actually been he's been
really good this series. Yeah optimistic now,

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I'm I feel better about mobilely now
certainly than last postseason. And I

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kind of thought though, just like
we might see more of that functional progression

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because of the injury to Jared Allen, but now also in that game for

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specifically Donovan Mitchell's out. But I
guess maybe it's like, if it's not

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something they've been actively doing or been
unable to prioritize because of their seasons,

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felt so stop and start, yeah, right and through the postseason. So

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it's probably unrealistic to think about.
But to your point about him maybe not

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being wired as a score if you're
putting him in situations where either it's you're

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using him as like kind of this
on the move playmaker, or you're just

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giving him less time to think and
it's more like about reacting than trying to

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get those deliberate buckets. I feel
like that might be where he excels even

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more than that. So I was
just something that stood out. But I

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think you absolutely have to appreciate what
you said, which is having some of

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those really physical possessions and coming out
on the on the right end of it,

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because that needs to be definitely a
tool in his belt. It's just

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when you look at him because of
how he's built, it's not something that

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I view as that like playing me
Aaron Gordon type role as the an that's

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just not something I view as I
don't want to say sustainable, but the

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optimal deployment of Evan Mobley. Yeah, and like Aaron, we look,

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I think we both are very in
on Aaron Gordon, like he's phenomenal at

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what he does, but like you
want Mobley to be to do all that

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and more right, Like ideally I
just think Gordon's yeah, I know,

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I don't know, just anecdotally too, Like it doesn't feel like you see

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a lot of probably because Alan is
in there a lot of the time,

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not in this series, but generally
where it's like, how often do you

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just see a straight pick and roll
that gets mobilely a lob for a dunk?

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Like I don't feel like you get
a whole lot of those with with

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Cleveland, And I probably should have
just looked it up because that information exists.

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But uh, it seems like if
you're talking about let's get him something

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where like talk about one where you
don't have to think and you just react,

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it's like he can't do like the
Derek Lively just go up and get

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it type of thing, or you
know, even GAFFERD. Gafford's kind of

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GAFFERD is like hardwired to catch lobs. That is like what he does.

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But I feel like if you're trying
to spoon feed is maybe not the right

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term, but just kind of make
it easier, like some of that would

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be great and just more cutting more. I don't know if putting the ball

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in his hands is gonna be the
way to like get him in a position

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where he's not thinking more. You
know, Like I feel like that's when

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the gears start to grind a little
bit more. He's had three and a

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half rollman possessions per game at the
moment, which is like almost a quarter

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of his offensive possessions. I would
just say that number needs especially when you're

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gonna when there's only the one big
it feels like that number should be exponentially

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higher. Yeah, it's easy to
explain it if there's a second guy there

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because you just sort of can't do
it. But yeah, okay, that

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that that that rings true. You
watched you got for Boston? Well,

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like I guess all the big picture
question is like should we be discouraged that

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like they kind of had Cleveland hanging
around in this game. I mean,

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like you're kind of concern trolling at
this point because they're gonna win this series,

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it's probably I'll be done in five. You know, they they gave

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away one. Like I said,
Game four never felt like it was,

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you know, really up in the
air. But like the reason that the

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Cows kind of hung around is a
lot of the same Boston stuff like happened

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offensively with the the ball mount moving, the pull up jump shot like after

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fifteen seconds, and dribble pounding like
that kind of stuff was very much still

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just part of their identity. And
you mess around and get away with that

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against Cleveland with you know, two
starters out. It's one thing. I

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guess the quote maybe the biggest question
is is like can will Boston just be

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able to continue getting away with what
it does through the Eastern Conference playoffs,

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which is like because you're gonna get
New York or Indy and it's just for

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different reasons. I don't know that
either of those teams are going to be

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up to like really making you pay
for the bog down offense and for the

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for all the stuff we've always you
know, harped on about the Celtics like

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it's hard to come up with another
takeaway for me, honestly, because like

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plus porzingis isn't there that might change
things a lot to guarantee that Porzingis is

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gonna be the one is he's put
we haven't heard anything resembling a concrete timeline

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for Yeah, I don't know.
How do you feel about Boston? Do

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you? Is it kind of the
same thing, like just yeah, we

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know what the issues are. They
haven't had to pay for him yet.

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I would agree with that. And
then I sometimes wonder if do we read

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too much into games like they,
okay, they played down to the shorthanded

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Cavaliers. That could happen with teams. Do you lose that game to Miami

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with basically playing nobody at that point? But it's okay, they they made

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eighty three pointers, and so if
if for some reason with Boston it feels

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like we read into the variants of
their opponents and then sometimes read lesson to

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their own variants, where case in
point, here they're shooting the Boston for

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00:15:52,559 --> 00:15:56,200
the series is shooting thirty three point
three percent of wide open threes. Yeah,

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that number is what it's at like
forty percent for the playoffs, which

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isn't astronomically high, but when you're
also factoring in the thirty three point three

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percent they've been shooting through the last
four games. That is astronomically high,

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and so it's okay Derek White should
be hitting more of his open looks.

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Al Horford couldn't buy a bucketing game
four, and so there's going to be

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variability caked into the way that they
like to play. So I'm I don't

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feel worse about Boston. If anything, it feels like they might be the

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team that we understand the best,
but maybe we also don't because it's well

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they be tested at the level they
need to be tested before they get to

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the finals. It's like the question
would be like is there even a way

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or is it Is it realistic to
expect them to change the way they operate

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00:16:38,039 --> 00:16:41,559
on the offensive end when it's been
something that's not just ingrained into this season

257
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but basically like the past few years
of Celtics basketball. And I guess what

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gives me hope or makes me incline
to hold them to a higher standard is

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that we've seen when it doesn't stick
when they're not playing to drain the shot

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clock, like they kind of wear
down the stretch with Cleveland, And so

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part of it to me is is
this a mindset thing where it comes back

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00:17:03,279 --> 00:17:07,079
to ad Jason Tatum or even sometimes
you'll see it from a jail in brown

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00:17:07,240 --> 00:17:11,400
Less so from a Drewllide or Derek
White. And is that a good thing?

264
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Is it a bad thing? It
might just be the defining flaw of

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this team. I just the more
I watch them, I don't know if

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it's it's definitely not going to be
a fatalistic flaw in the Eastern Like if

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they don't make it out of the
Eastern Conference, let whatever takes. We

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probably won't, but I give everyone
permission or I encourage them, let it

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takes fly, because that's just this
is not a team, even with flaws

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and all, or even you think
they're kind of sleepwalking through this, this

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is a team that should emerge from
the Eastern Conference losing a total of maybe

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four playoff games, and they've already
lost two of them, so you have

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two more in the bank. They're
that good even without Porzingis. I would

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argue they definitely don't need him to
reach the finals, going against the Nuggets

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or the Wolves of the Thunder or
the Mass entirely different story. So I

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don't know that I feel I definitely
don't feel worse about them, especially when

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you're to your one about Cleveland specifically, Like when you look at that Miami

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game, it's just they hit twenty
three three pointers, right what you're losing.

279
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You're losing that game. That's a
bit basically like it's like, so

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what do you want them to do? And then in this one, it's

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more just like, well, Cleveland's
kind of been the optimized version of himself

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when it has two of its four
best players missing. I can't explain it,

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but like that's just been something that
they've that they've done. I mean,

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like they also had this is like
get having Dean Wade backs a big

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deal for Like, I don't think
people realize how important he was to what

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00:18:26,799 --> 00:18:30,759
they're doing defensively, and so I
don't. I still it would put me

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00:18:30,839 --> 00:18:33,759
in like if you this might be
the way to frame it based off what

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00:18:33,759 --> 00:18:37,519
you've seen and I don't necessarily know
where your priors have been. If the

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00:18:37,559 --> 00:18:42,079
Celtics make it to the finals,
which of the West teams would you pick

290
00:18:42,200 --> 00:18:45,720
them to beat in a best of
seven series? Of the four that are

291
00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:48,039
remaining? Yeah, I mean I
was gonna flip it and say, like,

292
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don't you think that either any of
the four West teams remaining would be

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00:18:52,319 --> 00:18:56,079
giving Boston a better series than it's
gonna get prior to the finals. Like

294
00:18:56,160 --> 00:19:00,279
it's true, good, but will
Boston made a series on its own accord?

295
00:19:00,400 --> 00:19:03,920
Yeah, no, I think I
will. Obviously I would say Denver

296
00:19:04,240 --> 00:19:07,119
now, although sure wouldn't have said
that last time a recorder when they were

297
00:19:07,160 --> 00:19:11,160
down oh two, I'd probably say
Minnesota could beat them, and I think

298
00:19:12,039 --> 00:19:15,319
Dallas and okac't. I'm not sure, but certainly at least two of the

299
00:19:15,400 --> 00:19:21,200
four I think I would pick over
Boston in the finals, Like, yeah,

300
00:19:21,480 --> 00:19:23,039
what's your number is? Do you
think it's more than two? It's

301
00:19:23,079 --> 00:19:27,279
only the MAVs at this point,
I think even with and we'll get to

302
00:19:27,279 --> 00:19:30,400
the Thunder eventually, so I won't. I won't jump there, but I

303
00:19:30,400 --> 00:19:34,079
think it's the Thunder have shown that
even when they're struggling, there's like a

304
00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:38,359
there's there's like a more of a
stability. And maybe it's because they have

305
00:19:38,440 --> 00:19:44,160
more optionality on the roster, where
it's Boston's optionality just built into their top

306
00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:47,319
five, like you don't need anything
else of those stuff like you can't anything

307
00:19:47,319 --> 00:19:51,559
that you have an issue with with
Boston, it can be resolved with their

308
00:19:51,559 --> 00:19:53,319
top five or six players, whereas
okay, see, it's what we kind

309
00:19:53,319 --> 00:19:56,440
of have to play like the gidea
like a like are we pulling him?

310
00:19:56,640 --> 00:20:00,440
And then it's all right if Isaiah
Joe isn't really taking or make three is

311
00:20:00,440 --> 00:20:02,799
like what do we do? Theirs
is case of Wallas Knight, so they

312
00:20:02,799 --> 00:20:04,440
have more buttons that they kind of
need to push an experiment with. But

313
00:20:04,880 --> 00:20:08,519
the way that they've played and even
like they're win in game four over the

314
00:20:08,559 --> 00:20:12,880
Mavericks just like where it's just Shay
but then they're finding they're so imperfect and

315
00:20:12,920 --> 00:20:18,480
yet they're still finding ways to beat
you out on the margins. Boston seems

316
00:20:18,480 --> 00:20:25,440
to lack that sometimes where it feels
like when they're not playing up to their

317
00:20:25,559 --> 00:20:30,839
usual standard, it's a confluence of
things that kind of just compound on top

318
00:20:30,880 --> 00:20:33,720
of one another and makes the entire
products worse rather than man if we could,

319
00:20:33,920 --> 00:20:37,359
it's not just at the offense bogging
it's bogging down. It's like they

320
00:20:37,480 --> 00:20:41,440
kind of just look lackluster with their
ham court defense when they're not making shots,

321
00:20:41,480 --> 00:20:45,079
and so it's like infectious almost Yeah, for a while, I don't

322
00:20:45,119 --> 00:20:49,880
know, maybe this is still something
worth exploring. Like for Boston, do

323
00:20:49,920 --> 00:20:53,039
you ever think about how the fact
that you know, you mentioned their top

324
00:20:53,079 --> 00:20:57,440
five guys, and that's very different
than when you're including porzingis because he is

325
00:20:57,480 --> 00:21:03,400
the guy that punishes switches, but
others when it's Horford and the four wings

326
00:21:03,400 --> 00:21:07,759
slash guard slash forwards, it's kind
of like every defense is just gonna switch

327
00:21:07,799 --> 00:21:11,480
at least one through four and even
probably feel okay switching one to five,

328
00:21:11,799 --> 00:21:15,440
And so that just invites a lot
of the like stagnant you know, I'm

329
00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:18,599
gonna get a two point jumper off
the dribble or a step back three up

330
00:21:18,599 --> 00:21:23,519
because we can't create advantages by guys
having to you know, fight over screens,

331
00:21:23,559 --> 00:21:27,119
go under trail like rear view contests. It's just like it's kind of

332
00:21:27,160 --> 00:21:30,880
built in a little bit where it's
like you're almost asking for ISO ball when

333
00:21:30,960 --> 00:21:37,319
you have four like primary ball handler
slash scorers that can all theoretically be guarded

334
00:21:37,400 --> 00:21:40,799
just as well by like a two
as a four or whatever. So you're

335
00:21:40,799 --> 00:21:42,880
just gonna switch a lot. But
that doesn't explain the other stuff you're talking

336
00:21:42,880 --> 00:21:47,200
about with Boston, where it's like
it's not just that the offense bogs down.

337
00:21:47,240 --> 00:21:49,759
It's that for stretches, they kind
of just don't seem to have it

338
00:21:49,880 --> 00:21:55,559
like competitively or defensively or just like
mentally so and you know that they do,

339
00:21:55,640 --> 00:21:59,200
which makes it more frustrating that it's
not, oh Ken, it's not

340
00:21:59,240 --> 00:22:02,000
a team with questions, Well,
can they actually reach and sustain that level?

341
00:22:02,319 --> 00:22:04,079
Yes, we've seen it. Yeah, that that makes them so maddening.

342
00:22:04,759 --> 00:22:08,519
Yeah. Well, I mean,
like it's it's so hard to just

343
00:22:08,680 --> 00:22:15,319
dismiss how dominant the regular season was
for them, like just i mean not

344
00:22:15,359 --> 00:22:18,920
talked about enough, like one of
the all time most just run away you

345
00:22:18,960 --> 00:22:22,759
know, conference finishes, and just
the net rating was way up there all

346
00:22:22,880 --> 00:22:27,079
year. But then it's just like, this doesn't seem like that team so

347
00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:30,640
far, and I think it's just
because they haven't had to be. And

348
00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:33,319
then you worry about, like,
well, how good of a team do

349
00:22:33,359 --> 00:22:37,880
you have to be for us to
trust you have you can flip the switch,

350
00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:40,599
so to speak, like because it
does feel like Boston will have to

351
00:22:40,640 --> 00:22:44,519
flip it at some point, probably
in the finals. But and you look

352
00:22:44,519 --> 00:22:45,640
at the regular season and say,
like, well, clearly they can,

353
00:22:47,079 --> 00:22:48,440
but we just haven't quite seen it, and you wonder if you get like

354
00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:52,960
deconditioned a little bit by I saw
somebody today was asking like, will this

355
00:22:52,039 --> 00:22:55,799
be the easiest road to the finals
any team has ever had? And it's

356
00:22:55,839 --> 00:23:00,359
like it's a conversation just because of
the injuries that they've seen on the other

357
00:23:00,400 --> 00:23:04,119
side, and and what what's probably
waiting in the conference finals, Like you're

358
00:23:04,160 --> 00:23:08,240
you're just not gonna get I mean, the fact that Indiana would be like

359
00:23:08,920 --> 00:23:12,240
the healthiest team they're gonna see,
and Indiana is a team that, like

360
00:23:12,279 --> 00:23:18,319
I don't think anybody sees as a
serious title threat or has at any point

361
00:23:18,319 --> 00:23:21,680
this year is kind of wild.
Like that's it's pretty wild. So I

362
00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:25,119
guess maybe the real thing is now
I'm just eager to see Boston like really

363
00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:27,559
tested, Like whenever that happens.
I think that's the most exciting thing going

364
00:23:27,559 --> 00:23:30,519
forward, at least in the East. What do you think is the best

365
00:23:30,680 --> 00:23:33,759
It sucks that I would have probably
said of the team's remaining if the Cavs

366
00:23:33,759 --> 00:23:37,519
probably had the best chance of testing
them, But then the Donovan Mitchell injury

367
00:23:37,559 --> 00:23:41,759
happens, and it's so I guess
it probably is Indy at this point,

368
00:23:41,839 --> 00:23:45,279
just because you look at how fast
they play, and like, that's just

369
00:23:45,319 --> 00:23:48,920
not like if Boston's gonna have one
of those high variant nights where they're missing

370
00:23:48,920 --> 00:23:52,240
shoster of Jason Tatum, what is
he shooting twenty three percent from deep for

371
00:23:52,279 --> 00:23:55,480
the conference semifinals, so off his
you know, back to his jumper not

372
00:23:55,559 --> 00:23:57,799
falling at the clip that you you
needed to. So I think it's just

373
00:23:57,799 --> 00:24:02,079
probably in I mean, that's not
really they're the healthiest team. They'ressing Benic

374
00:24:02,119 --> 00:24:03,759
Mathurin for the season, but it's
just kind of like other than that,

375
00:24:03,759 --> 00:24:07,000
they're still dealing with maybe some of
the ramifications of their mid season turnover.

376
00:24:07,519 --> 00:24:14,240
So I it's it is a little
bit uninspiring though this team is so but

377
00:24:14,319 --> 00:24:17,960
you I think it was you mentioning
how dominant they were in the regular season

378
00:24:18,039 --> 00:24:22,839
is important because that team is just
so good and if you look at them

379
00:24:22,839 --> 00:24:26,640
and for like almost I know that
the Nuggets exist. Timbrolves had a great

380
00:24:26,680 --> 00:24:30,559
year, but like the Celtics should
just be the runaway favorites to win the

381
00:24:30,599 --> 00:24:33,799
title. But logistically, the fact
that their odds of coming out of the

382
00:24:33,839 --> 00:24:37,839
East are so hot, like that's
already. Just getting there is a huge

383
00:24:37,839 --> 00:24:41,759
part of the battle, and so
the fact that we think we know they're

384
00:24:41,799 --> 00:24:45,480
going to be there should make them
even more right in the runaway favorite,

385
00:24:45,640 --> 00:24:48,079
right, because yeah, even if
you think Denver and I think I'm getting

386
00:24:48,119 --> 00:24:53,079
back to that like still is the
best team probably or like I think they'll

387
00:24:53,119 --> 00:24:56,559
win it, but like they're not
guaranteed to be there at all, like

388
00:24:56,599 --> 00:25:00,960
they I mean, their percentage chance
of being there was in therobably single digits,

389
00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:03,000
like not that long ago. So
uh, yeah, I don't know.

390
00:25:03,000 --> 00:25:04,920
Should we get to do you have
anything else here? Do you want

391
00:25:04,960 --> 00:25:10,440
to get to Thunder MAVs? Yeah, let's talk about the let me start

392
00:25:10,440 --> 00:25:14,960
with the MAVs. I'm just like, my biggest question is what is it

393
00:25:15,000 --> 00:25:18,960
going to take for not just Kyrie
and Luca don just to get going in

394
00:25:18,000 --> 00:25:23,680
the same game for consecutive games as
scores And I think there are two caveats

395
00:25:23,680 --> 00:25:27,799
here. Is the Lucas knee is
just you can see it like he's put

396
00:25:27,880 --> 00:25:33,759
the He's actually strung together a lot
more good defensive possessions than I would have

397
00:25:33,799 --> 00:25:36,839
expected over the course of these playoffs
with him dealing with that sprain knee,

398
00:25:37,319 --> 00:25:40,240
like you can just see it,
like in terms of getting to his spots,

399
00:25:40,279 --> 00:25:41,880
or when the way that his three
pointer has not been falling for the

400
00:25:41,880 --> 00:25:48,319
most part during these playoffs, and
it's definitely impacting. You know, he's

401
00:25:48,359 --> 00:25:52,759
back to kind of being complaining whiny
Luca whereas we saw it. We saw

402
00:25:52,799 --> 00:25:57,599
it definitely in the game four.
And then with Kyrie, it's it's a

403
00:25:57,599 --> 00:26:02,759
little bit frustrating to see him not
look for his own shot more aggressively,

404
00:26:02,839 --> 00:26:04,519
especially early on. But then it's
he's done some really nice things as a

405
00:26:04,559 --> 00:26:10,319
playmaker. I think he's had specifically
as other a fantastic defensive series. But

406
00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:11,960
you're not like, yes, you
want that stuff from those guys, but

407
00:26:12,119 --> 00:26:15,200
they're you're patting them to get buckets
and I know that, okayc is taken

408
00:26:15,240 --> 00:26:19,079
away, some not taken away,
but they're encouraging you to live with the

409
00:26:19,559 --> 00:26:22,839
well, go give it to PJ. Washington, Go try and throw it

410
00:26:22,880 --> 00:26:26,920
to one of your bigs in the
middle of the floor, or give it

411
00:26:26,920 --> 00:26:29,519
to a Dante Exemer, Derek Jones
Junior or Josh Green and so on and

412
00:26:29,559 --> 00:26:32,319
so forth. Or if you're Jason
Kidd and it's crunch time, and you're

413
00:26:32,319 --> 00:26:36,720
just gonna sum in Tim Hardaway Junior
for some reason. I like, I

414
00:26:36,759 --> 00:26:38,680
don't know what more they're supposed to
do. And it's almost we saw the

415
00:26:38,720 --> 00:26:42,759
thunder because PJ. Washington was playing
so well, especially early on in the

416
00:26:42,920 --> 00:26:47,720
game four, like they kind of
even got away from we're gonna throw the

417
00:26:47,799 --> 00:26:53,359
kitchen sink at these two and it
still didn't like result in either one of

418
00:26:53,400 --> 00:26:57,880
them. I don't even want to
say taking over, but like looking like

419
00:26:59,119 --> 00:27:03,559
they should as scores. And I
do think there has to be something to

420
00:27:03,240 --> 00:27:07,920
the mass are so built around Luka
doncs having the ball. I don't think

421
00:27:07,920 --> 00:27:11,559
that's a bad thing, but when
he is not Luka Danc's, when he's

422
00:27:11,559 --> 00:27:15,000
this injured, it's not that it's
not an excuse, but like you don't

423
00:27:15,200 --> 00:27:19,519
have not even you don't have the
safety valves, you don't have the experience

424
00:27:19,559 --> 00:27:25,000
tapping into them because he is so
central to everything that you typically do.

425
00:27:25,480 --> 00:27:27,079
And I think, as a player, if you're going to be on the

426
00:27:27,079 --> 00:27:30,960
court and that's the level of agency
you had over the offense all year,

427
00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:36,440
but basically your entire stint there,
the onus is still going to then fall

428
00:27:36,480 --> 00:27:40,359
on you. And like then it
becomes fair criticism of like, you know,

429
00:27:40,799 --> 00:27:45,559
like at least don't complain, like, don't exacerbate the situation by not

430
00:27:45,599 --> 00:27:52,400
getting back on defense. Yeah,
I'm surprised you beat me to the complaining

431
00:27:52,480 --> 00:28:00,440
thing, because even in you know, a tightly contested not doing or Die

432
00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:06,559
but like obviously hugely important Game four, I just the thing I thought about

433
00:28:06,720 --> 00:28:11,720
most was how fucking annoyed I was
with Luca and how much like I've just

434
00:28:11,759 --> 00:28:15,039
officially arrived now at the point where
like I don't enjoy watching him play,

435
00:28:15,240 --> 00:28:18,839
like, you know, at least
relative to like how great he is,

436
00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:22,519
like he like, I'm not taking
anything away. This is not like it

437
00:28:22,519 --> 00:28:26,480
shouldn't even need to be said,
Like there's no argument that against him being

438
00:28:26,519 --> 00:28:30,519
a truly great offensive player, and
like he played great defense for most of

439
00:28:30,559 --> 00:28:36,799
the series too, despite being injured. But like the the constant complaining and

440
00:28:36,799 --> 00:28:40,680
and the the foul baiting and the
flailing and just like all of the all

441
00:28:40,720 --> 00:28:44,640
the and not even even when he's
not complaining, Just like his expressions towards

442
00:28:44,680 --> 00:28:48,559
the refs are just like this is
I don't know what somebody will measure this

443
00:28:48,599 --> 00:28:52,680
someday, but like it cannot have
a positive effect on your teammates when you're

444
00:28:52,759 --> 00:28:57,599
just like like it just I don't
know it. It's super frustrating. He's

445
00:28:57,640 --> 00:29:00,559
so much better than this, Like
it doesn't need to be this way,

446
00:29:00,839 --> 00:29:04,240
and it makes him unlikable and like
harder to watch. I don't feel like

447
00:29:04,279 --> 00:29:07,279
that's an uncommon opinion, ie like
maybe that's how a lot of people feel,

448
00:29:08,759 --> 00:29:12,440
but like, I think the fact
that he's clearly injured is is making

449
00:29:12,480 --> 00:29:17,519
all of that worse, and that
that was like my main takeaway weirdly through

450
00:29:17,559 --> 00:29:22,799
most of that game of Game four
was just just the fact that we gotta

451
00:29:22,319 --> 00:29:26,000
like, I know you're hurt.
I know it's frustrating. I know lou

452
00:29:26,039 --> 00:29:30,079
Dort is basically like tackling you on
every possession, like we just can't,

453
00:29:30,240 --> 00:29:33,680
we can't do this. This,
this is not helpful and and it just

454
00:29:33,000 --> 00:29:37,519
left a sour taste in my mouth. Having said all that, like pretty

455
00:29:37,559 --> 00:29:42,799
amazing that he's that banged up and
Dallas is still tied in this series with

456
00:29:42,920 --> 00:29:45,440
Kyrie. What do you think about
Kyrie, because it feels like it's being

457
00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:51,799
painted as like a choice like his
his sort of you know, every every

458
00:29:51,920 --> 00:29:53,599
commentator is referring to it like,
well, he kind of likes to ease

459
00:29:53,599 --> 00:29:56,279
into things in the first half and
get teammates involved, and then he goes

460
00:29:56,279 --> 00:30:00,200
on these runs and has big second
halves, except like when he doesn't in

461
00:30:00,240 --> 00:30:03,359
game four or what do you think
that is is? Because it is really

462
00:30:03,400 --> 00:30:08,119
conspicuous how deferential he is early in
these games when maybe he needs clearly with

463
00:30:08,200 --> 00:30:14,000
Luca hobbled, like he needs to
be like I'm getting you forty like every

464
00:30:14,119 --> 00:30:17,880
night, right, Like that's just
I don't understand the thinking. I think

465
00:30:17,960 --> 00:30:22,240
MAVs fans who've watched more of their
games this year can probably to it better

466
00:30:22,279 --> 00:30:26,079
than anyone, but they're like,
I think that's just what he's been in

467
00:30:26,160 --> 00:30:32,119
Dallas. And I don't know if
it's a matter of him and lugadanshich works

468
00:30:32,160 --> 00:30:36,880
so well kind of independently of one
another together, but like we don't see

469
00:30:36,880 --> 00:30:40,079
a lot of like Luca and Kyrie, and maybe it's just because of who

470
00:30:40,160 --> 00:30:42,680
Luca is and just like you can't
like if you were to do something with

471
00:30:42,839 --> 00:30:47,200
like, let's just boil it down
to if you wanted to run pick and

472
00:30:47,279 --> 00:30:51,759
roll with Kyrie and Luca, the
person who is most comfortable handing the ball

473
00:30:51,759 --> 00:30:53,880
in that situation, Like Luga Doncs
is not a screener. That's just not

474
00:30:53,920 --> 00:30:56,559
something that he's going to do.
And so how do you kind of can

475
00:30:56,599 --> 00:30:59,680
you put him in the post?
And then if Kyrie just throw him entry

476
00:30:59,680 --> 00:31:03,119
pass, like that's not really so
it feels like that's just been a season

477
00:31:03,240 --> 00:31:07,279
long theme at least, and I
don't really I don't know that it's actively

478
00:31:07,319 --> 00:31:11,880
a choice, but it almost feels
like it's his role or mindset by design.

479
00:31:12,400 --> 00:31:15,920
And can you ask him to flip
it during the playoffs? And I

480
00:31:15,920 --> 00:31:18,759
guess part of the reason you pay
in trade for Kyrie Irving is so yes

481
00:31:18,160 --> 00:31:21,519
that he will. But I mean, I'm with you there when you kind

482
00:31:21,519 --> 00:31:22,720
of I mean, we could give
all the credit in the world. Jalen

483
00:31:22,759 --> 00:31:26,440
Williams has been all over Kyrie for
a lot of this series, so good

484
00:31:26,440 --> 00:31:30,759
for him, especially when he's been
pretty rough on offense. But like and

485
00:31:30,079 --> 00:31:36,039
they've thrown bodies at the MAVs.
But it's like Kyri there, I don't

486
00:31:36,079 --> 00:31:37,319
know, is it just he's getting
older? And so it's like when you're

487
00:31:37,519 --> 00:31:41,640
like in the face of like this
athleticism or if you're gonna see two on

488
00:31:41,680 --> 00:31:45,680
the ball, like you're just more
deferential in general. I don't. I

489
00:31:45,720 --> 00:31:48,839
honestly don't know. I wouldn't do
you would do you ascribe it to just

490
00:31:49,160 --> 00:31:52,279
as a choice the way that I
didn't. I guess I haven't been paying

491
00:31:52,279 --> 00:31:56,160
to announce the announcers enough to hear. Yeah, I think it's hard,

492
00:31:56,279 --> 00:32:00,680
Like That's why I framed it that
way initially, because it's hard when you

493
00:32:00,759 --> 00:32:02,960
see the things that he can do
still, like I think, I mean,

494
00:32:04,480 --> 00:32:06,640
I don't know, I don't know
who needed to see it or hear

495
00:32:06,680 --> 00:32:09,880
it, but like Kyrie Irving is
just like a breathtaking like offensive basketball like

496
00:32:09,960 --> 00:32:15,359
he still he still has all of
the like he had the I think it

497
00:32:15,400 --> 00:32:17,680
was in Game four where he was
like driving left and one handed it in

498
00:32:17,759 --> 00:32:21,400
his left hand and didn't put his
right hand back on the ball and throws

499
00:32:21,440 --> 00:32:24,240
like sort of an over the head
dump pass like just right underneath perfectly for

500
00:32:24,279 --> 00:32:30,319
a dunk like offhand. He's like
his physical skill is just still beyond like

501
00:32:30,400 --> 00:32:32,119
anything, and so when you see
him do things like that, it's like

502
00:32:32,559 --> 00:32:36,759
you could probably find a way to
like force up a few more like semi

503
00:32:36,799 --> 00:32:38,359
tough shots if you really wanted to. So that's why it feels like a

504
00:32:38,440 --> 00:32:43,559
choice to me, because I just
don't think. I don't think he's someone

505
00:32:43,599 --> 00:32:47,440
that you like shut down like really
ever, Like I just that's that's not

506
00:32:47,920 --> 00:32:52,279
he Like I think the best description
I ever heard of, like why he's

507
00:32:52,319 --> 00:32:55,480
so difficult to guard is like he
doesn't really have a plan. He just

508
00:32:55,559 --> 00:32:59,160
waits for you on defense to like
do a thing and he's like, oh,

509
00:32:59,200 --> 00:33:00,839
I know what to do now,
And just because he can do everything

510
00:33:01,279 --> 00:33:06,200
either hand either foot, there's just
like there's no game plan to stopping him

511
00:33:06,200 --> 00:33:09,400
because he doesn't have a preconceived idea
of what he's doing against you until you

512
00:33:09,440 --> 00:33:14,440
screw up basically, which is just
like the most badass way to play offense.

513
00:33:14,480 --> 00:33:16,519
It's so cool. But yeah,
it doesn't seem like he can be

514
00:33:16,559 --> 00:33:20,640
stopped if he doesn't want to be, or at least prevented from getting shots

515
00:33:20,720 --> 00:33:22,839
up. So yeah, I don't
know. I mean, it's hard to

516
00:33:22,920 --> 00:33:25,759
knock it, like Dallas has advanced
this far and they're not super healthy where

517
00:33:25,799 --> 00:33:29,680
it really matters, so it seems
to be working, but could have done

518
00:33:29,680 --> 00:33:32,960
with a little more. In Game
four is analyzing the rest of this series

519
00:33:32,960 --> 00:33:37,440
from Dallas's perspective, as simple as
like are we going to get a big

520
00:33:37,680 --> 00:33:39,720
Luca game or is this just what
it's going to look like going forward.

521
00:33:39,960 --> 00:33:44,319
I think the other thing you could
ask is are they going to hit their

522
00:33:44,319 --> 00:33:49,359
free throws? Because that I would
argue, there's reasons why they lost the

523
00:33:49,960 --> 00:33:52,000
game four. There was some weird
crunch time decision making, but like they

524
00:33:52,039 --> 00:33:57,839
could have easily put that game away
given how the Thunder shot from three for

525
00:33:58,079 --> 00:34:01,440
I mean the thunder made six and
said they were six of twenty I believe

526
00:34:01,559 --> 00:34:06,519
in the restricted area. And the
other stat I saw is they went thirty

527
00:34:06,559 --> 00:34:12,079
seven minutes in the of game time
without a restricted area basket. That is

528
00:34:12,519 --> 00:34:15,519
that is bonkers. I mean,
like you're ever scoring inside. And also

529
00:34:15,519 --> 00:34:20,360
the other thing that's happening is like
that was all for most of that game.

530
00:34:20,400 --> 00:34:22,039
It was I know, Jayalen Williams
J dub your guy. I don't

531
00:34:22,039 --> 00:34:27,039
know what's going on with him offensively
necessarily, but he's He's come out a

532
00:34:27,039 --> 00:34:30,880
couple times down the stretch, but
it was like Shay willing them back into

533
00:34:30,920 --> 00:34:35,079
that game. And so the free
throw has just become so important, I

534
00:34:35,079 --> 00:34:38,840
mean so important here and they're shooting. I think it's under sixty four percent,

535
00:34:40,039 --> 00:34:42,639
or do you have the box score
up? It was like ten of

536
00:34:42,679 --> 00:34:49,000
twenty something. They they missed more
shots at the foul line than the Thunder

537
00:34:49,039 --> 00:34:52,639
made at the rim. So it's
just like that's not ideal. And when

538
00:34:52,679 --> 00:34:58,920
you have such a like when you
win the three point battle, specifically while

539
00:34:59,000 --> 00:35:02,119
Lucas shooting, so Poorli and Kyrie's
giving it's just my god, that's that

540
00:35:02,239 --> 00:35:07,400
feels like such a missed opportunity by
them, and so like that's a stupid

541
00:35:07,480 --> 00:35:12,000
question, can you hit your free
throws? But it's they've played look for

542
00:35:12,039 --> 00:35:14,679
a lot of that game because they
were leading in Game four, and it's

543
00:35:14,719 --> 00:35:16,840
just been a lot like they're they've
been really physical on defense, Like okay,

544
00:35:16,880 --> 00:35:21,360
so he was missing some higher quality
looks from deep, but like the

545
00:35:21,400 --> 00:35:24,119
Mavericks have been in their face,
they're running them off the line. They've

546
00:35:24,119 --> 00:35:27,800
gotten them to take like, yeah, Shaye wants to get to like the

547
00:35:27,840 --> 00:35:30,159
mid range of his spots. But
I think that this series has kind of

548
00:35:30,199 --> 00:35:35,360
also highlighted how the Thunder could use
more of a not that they need someone

549
00:35:35,400 --> 00:35:37,320
better than Jalen Williams, but he
kind of maybe needs to develop even more

550
00:35:37,400 --> 00:35:42,159
counters inside the arc in terms of
side to side amble, just because you

551
00:35:42,199 --> 00:35:45,159
really only have Shay in that regardless. Also why it's been such a weird

552
00:35:45,199 --> 00:35:49,239
series for Josh Giddy. I know
everyone's kind of pointing to, Oh,

553
00:35:49,280 --> 00:35:52,360
he was a net plus in Game
four, Okay, awesome, Like that

554
00:35:52,400 --> 00:35:55,159
lineup with him on the court is
still getting blasted for the for the playoffs

555
00:35:55,239 --> 00:36:00,280
night or definitely for the for the
series. So I just like, you

556
00:36:00,360 --> 00:36:02,519
have to control your controllables, I
guess from Dallas, and so if Luca

557
00:36:02,599 --> 00:36:07,800
is not going to be Luca,
to just like be this down bat,

558
00:36:07,840 --> 00:36:10,800
the frout line is really problematic for
them, and they're like, look for

559
00:36:10,840 --> 00:36:16,840
the series, they're losing the points
off turnover battle, they are winning the

560
00:36:16,920 --> 00:36:22,360
second chance points battle, They're about
even. It's actually pretty closer on the

561
00:36:22,360 --> 00:36:24,280
break than I would have expected.
I think they've done a good job this

562
00:36:24,440 --> 00:36:28,920
is to say of kind of displacing
Oklahoma City from a lot of their their

563
00:36:28,960 --> 00:36:30,519
element and kind of limiting them to
the half court. And this is also

564
00:36:30,559 --> 00:36:34,639
a team that they're about even It's
like within six points of each other of

565
00:36:34,719 --> 00:36:38,719
points scored inside the paint, which
is you know, that's fine. It's

566
00:36:38,880 --> 00:36:43,000
like the free throw stuff, especially
if you're not going to have the version

567
00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:45,679
of Luka Nachts that you need.
But it probably is as simple. I

568
00:36:45,679 --> 00:36:49,960
don't know if it's I don't want
to absolve Kyrie of blame here, but

569
00:36:50,000 --> 00:36:52,559
it really does. Like if this
is just the version of Luca you have,

570
00:36:52,599 --> 00:36:54,119
I don't know if you're going to
get enough, even if Kyrie is

571
00:36:54,119 --> 00:36:59,000
scoring thirty points a game or something, to then win this series. Yeah,

572
00:36:59,039 --> 00:37:01,000
I think that's right. I want
to correct myself. Twelve of twenty

573
00:37:01,000 --> 00:37:04,639
three. I'm sorry if you said
it was was Dallas from the foul line

574
00:37:04,679 --> 00:37:07,119
in game four, and everybody fixates
on the one that Luca missed because that's

575
00:37:07,119 --> 00:37:10,199
always you know, that's the most
conspicuous that could have tied the game late.

576
00:37:10,239 --> 00:37:15,880
But I mean that's like, I
just don't know how you overcome making

577
00:37:15,960 --> 00:37:19,360
half of your free throw, you
know, slightly more than half of your

578
00:37:19,360 --> 00:37:22,400
free throws in a game you'd lose
by four. That's we don't It's kind

579
00:37:22,440 --> 00:37:24,159
of like fixating on the officiating as
the reason you lost. It's like you

580
00:37:24,199 --> 00:37:27,599
always want to throw out stuff like
free throws too, but like in this

581
00:37:27,719 --> 00:37:31,239
instance kind of I mean, especially
with the Thunder being twenty three of twenty

582
00:37:31,239 --> 00:37:35,440
four, it's like the game really
was decided at the foul line. That's

583
00:37:35,440 --> 00:37:37,960
not like, that's not an outlandish
thing to say. And it's also just

584
00:37:38,000 --> 00:37:40,440
like they have if you if I
told you this at the start of the

585
00:37:40,480 --> 00:37:45,800
series that on possessions in which Derek
Jones Junior has registered as even a partial

586
00:37:45,800 --> 00:37:52,119
defender on Shay Gilgolexander, the Thunder
as a team are averaging under point nine

587
00:37:52,159 --> 00:37:55,440
to nine points per possession. If
I would have told you that at the

588
00:37:55,440 --> 00:37:59,119
start of series that we'd be going
into game five and that's the number.

589
00:37:59,440 --> 00:38:00,880
Yeah, you might said, Dallas
is up three to one, I'd say,

590
00:38:00,880 --> 00:38:05,960
how do we get to game five? Probably? Did they change the

591
00:38:06,039 --> 00:38:08,639
rules? That's crazy, That's that's
amazing. And it's just like, I

592
00:38:08,639 --> 00:38:13,119
mean, it's not like the shots
that Shay hit last night to seal that

593
00:38:13,159 --> 00:38:15,400
game were easy. They were all
just contested pull up twos, like the

594
00:38:15,440 --> 00:38:19,079
one went over the corner of the
back. In the post, it was

595
00:38:19,079 --> 00:38:20,760
like, yeah, that was what
do you say? Like that was ill?

596
00:38:20,800 --> 00:38:23,719
I don't know what that was.
I love his post games because he

597
00:38:23,760 --> 00:38:28,679
actually thinks about the question. You
can tell he like is actually listening to

598
00:38:28,719 --> 00:38:30,679
the question and then basically gives you
an answer like that, or it's just

599
00:38:30,719 --> 00:38:35,519
like yeah, I don't know,
I prepare and I made. It's just

600
00:38:35,519 --> 00:38:39,800
like very simple. One other thought
I had with respect to Dallas, and

601
00:38:39,960 --> 00:38:44,920
like, granted it's part of the
scheme, it seems like for the thunder

602
00:38:44,920 --> 00:38:47,800
that PJ. Washington is gonna just
get some really clean looks at three and

603
00:38:47,840 --> 00:38:53,280
some of them are gonna come from
the corner. But Micro, do we

604
00:38:53,360 --> 00:38:58,639
need to like be careful about deciding
who a player is when he's only ever

605
00:38:58,719 --> 00:39:02,559
played for a team slash a poorly
run franchise, which is the case for

606
00:39:02,840 --> 00:39:09,320
Washington in Charlotte and Macro like,
how much more do we need from Gafford

607
00:39:09,400 --> 00:39:14,800
in Washington, if anything, to
sort of make us have to re litigate

608
00:39:15,079 --> 00:39:19,360
was that trade worth it? Because
I think we both said that it was

609
00:39:19,400 --> 00:39:22,440
too much. You can't like these
guys aren't needle movers of a great enough

610
00:39:22,440 --> 00:39:27,880
degree to justify making it so you
cannot compete with like the bigger offers this

611
00:39:27,920 --> 00:39:30,559
summer in trade because you gave up, you know you've dipped into your first

612
00:39:30,639 --> 00:39:35,079
round pick equity, which wasn't great
to begin with. Like it's kind of

613
00:39:35,119 --> 00:39:37,960
like the go bear question we talked
about before of like is the trade officially

614
00:39:38,039 --> 00:39:42,800
justified now because Minnesota is a contender
and even if that's only for a second,

615
00:39:42,840 --> 00:39:45,119
Like, isn't that all you can
ask for? So, like,

616
00:39:45,760 --> 00:39:49,639
have Washington and Gafford contributed enough and
put the MAVs on a high enough level

617
00:39:49,639 --> 00:39:53,119
to like where that cost is now
justified? I'm asking, I don't know,

618
00:39:53,159 --> 00:39:58,559
we need to work it out.
It's a weird situation because they could

619
00:39:58,599 --> 00:40:00,440
make the conference finals. They it
could happen, and so in theory it's

620
00:40:00,480 --> 00:40:04,239
worth it. I'm just more of
the mind of, Okay, well then

621
00:40:04,239 --> 00:40:07,880
how do you go from here to
actually winning the title? And if it

622
00:40:07,920 --> 00:40:10,039
happens this season or if you make
the finals, then it would seem like

623
00:40:10,119 --> 00:40:13,880
yes, But there seems something I
don't want to say. It's a frameral

624
00:40:14,079 --> 00:40:17,320
about what's happening, but it's the
West is only gonna kind of get harder,

625
00:40:17,320 --> 00:40:21,000
which is a Memphis is gonna be
healthier, and maybe New Orleans is

626
00:40:21,039 --> 00:40:24,119
healthier next year. But they're also
not baron of assets this summer. If

627
00:40:24,119 --> 00:40:27,719
they need, Like they have the
Tiple Hardway junior expiring contract, they still

628
00:40:27,719 --> 00:40:30,840
have some first round equity they could
trade. So I, as of right

629
00:40:30,880 --> 00:40:35,440
now, I'm very much I will
acknowledge that I was apparently too hard on

630
00:40:35,599 --> 00:40:38,159
the trade, but it's weird.
I just didn't see I didn't see the

631
00:40:38,239 --> 00:40:42,159
level of physicality they were going to
bring, specifically with PJ. Washington.

632
00:40:42,199 --> 00:40:44,519
I promise you I've not seen.
Well, he's in the playoffs, so

633
00:40:44,519 --> 00:40:46,480
I've seen more of him in Dallas
than in Charlotte, But I was not

634
00:40:46,760 --> 00:40:51,519
watching way more of PJ. Washington
with the Mavericks versus when he was in

635
00:40:51,559 --> 00:40:55,599
Charlotte. The level of just defensive
physicality that he has brought is unlike anything

636
00:40:55,880 --> 00:41:01,480
that I remember seeing consistently from Charlotte. So maybe I underestimated him bringing that

637
00:41:01,559 --> 00:41:05,280
element of it. It's still in
a weird spot though, where if you

638
00:41:05,400 --> 00:41:08,360
ask me if I'm still making that
trade, if I were the one running

639
00:41:08,360 --> 00:41:13,639
the Mavericks front office, I can't
tell you yes right now. I guess

640
00:41:13,719 --> 00:41:16,840
maybe there's a maybe I'm not adjusting
my priors enough. Maybe that's unfair.

641
00:41:17,119 --> 00:41:21,400
But like if they get to the
conference finals and lose in five, or

642
00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:24,079
it's just like how do you view
like the was it worth it? But

643
00:41:24,119 --> 00:41:27,599
then you can also look at it, well, look at what Luca was

644
00:41:27,639 --> 00:41:29,760
doing when he was banged up.
In the fact that they were still able

645
00:41:29,800 --> 00:41:32,280
to get there wasn't account for something. The answer here is yes. I

646
00:41:32,280 --> 00:41:37,760
guess My whole point is, I
don't if you had to rank the teams

647
00:41:37,760 --> 00:41:40,719
that are most likely to win a
title of those that are left right now,

648
00:41:42,360 --> 00:41:45,440
I'm gonna have Boston and the Timberwolves
and the Thunder and the Nuggets in

649
00:41:45,480 --> 00:41:49,599
front of them. So you're fifth
of You're fifth of eight at this point.

650
00:41:49,679 --> 00:41:51,679
And you know what, if you
told me Cleveland was fully healthy,

651
00:41:52,199 --> 00:41:55,079
I might go with Cleveland above them
too. And so I think what my

652
00:41:55,199 --> 00:42:01,800
issue is is that it feels like
they're still missing something or someone. And

653
00:42:02,079 --> 00:42:06,320
maybe that's the skeleton key that is
Maxi Kleiba and what he can do with

654
00:42:06,360 --> 00:42:08,119
some of those lineups. But we've
kind of seen that, like he's not

655
00:42:08,159 --> 00:42:12,599
always going to be healthy, and
so am like, do you need to

656
00:42:12,639 --> 00:42:15,039
go out and find someone else?
Am I just underestimating what they're able to

657
00:42:15,079 --> 00:42:17,519
do with the PJ. Washington and
A and a big type of setup.

658
00:42:19,360 --> 00:42:23,320
It's just like what And it's almost
I'm again, I'm criticizing myself here by

659
00:42:23,360 --> 00:42:27,880
just saying, what is it more
that I'm looking for from this team?

660
00:42:28,239 --> 00:42:30,559
And it's I honestly, I don't
want to say that. I don't know,

661
00:42:30,639 --> 00:42:35,800
but it still feels like they are
a semi significant player short of getting

662
00:42:35,840 --> 00:42:38,559
there, because it always feels like
they're kind of making when you're looking at

663
00:42:38,559 --> 00:42:45,800
their best lineups, it feels like
they're still making one or two large concessions

664
00:42:45,920 --> 00:42:50,440
at one end of the floor where
it's this guy needs to be not even

665
00:42:50,480 --> 00:42:52,360
just twenty five to thirty percent better, but needs to be like fifty percent

666
00:42:52,679 --> 00:42:55,199
more. Like, yeah, it
will be a different type of player.

667
00:42:57,039 --> 00:43:01,559
Yeah, I think I want one. I wonder if Luca were fully healthy,

668
00:43:01,599 --> 00:43:05,480
like and and in that case,
like maybe this is three to one

669
00:43:05,760 --> 00:43:08,400
Dallas or maybe maybe you know some
or something like that, and Dallas,

670
00:43:08,440 --> 00:43:12,320
you know, had it would have
had an easier time in the first round.

671
00:43:12,360 --> 00:43:16,840
Potentially, Like I think the calculus
on judging the Washington trade fair or

672
00:43:16,880 --> 00:43:21,599
not might be different because you'd say, like holy, like you know,

673
00:43:21,639 --> 00:43:24,599
maybe maybe in that scenario, Dallas
isn't fifth of eight in your title odds

674
00:43:24,679 --> 00:43:30,119
it's like third or fourth or something
like. You know, it's just it's

675
00:43:30,159 --> 00:43:32,159
it's such an interesting I don't have
an answer. It's just I think it's

676
00:43:32,199 --> 00:43:37,079
a topic like we don't really talk
about enough because it's like not buzzy or

677
00:43:37,119 --> 00:43:39,679
not. Like I don't know,
it's it's kind of esoteric, I guess.

678
00:43:39,719 --> 00:43:44,840
But it's like, at what point
can you say, like, this

679
00:43:45,000 --> 00:43:47,639
was a team that was trying to
get better in the immediate and they did

680
00:43:47,679 --> 00:43:52,639
it, and like how good how
good does that better quote unquote have to

681
00:43:52,679 --> 00:43:54,960
be for the trade to pay out? You know what I mean. Like,

682
00:43:54,960 --> 00:43:59,480
it's just there's no right answer because
you don't know if Dallas thought this

683
00:43:59,559 --> 00:44:01,639
is a trade that makes us the
favorite. But I also would say too,

684
00:44:02,679 --> 00:44:07,079
the way Dallas played and defended,
specifically like down the stretch of the

685
00:44:07,119 --> 00:44:10,360
regular season suggests to me that like
they should go into next season, assuming

686
00:44:10,400 --> 00:44:15,599
all the principles are back and healthy, like like expected to be a top

687
00:44:15,599 --> 00:44:20,800
five defense. I think like that
should be the expectation if if you proved

688
00:44:20,840 --> 00:44:23,679
it over that long of a stretch
and you've got Derek Lively, got another

689
00:44:23,760 --> 00:44:28,880
year of experience and theoretically he'll improve
and you've got another, you know,

690
00:44:28,920 --> 00:44:32,280
a full season of Gafford as a
two headed monster protecting the rim and Washington's

691
00:44:32,320 --> 00:44:37,039
there all year, like they should
have a high expectation for next year.

692
00:44:37,039 --> 00:44:40,599
So it's not just like, you
know, everything turns back into a pumpkin

693
00:44:40,760 --> 00:44:45,639
after this postseason run. You had
your one shot at justifying this trade and

694
00:44:45,639 --> 00:44:49,159
you didn't. It's like they're still
next year. But but yeah, I

695
00:44:49,199 --> 00:44:52,239
just it's it's such an interesting thing
because you never know, Like, I

696
00:44:52,239 --> 00:44:53,480
guess I got trades on the brain
because that's what I've been working on a

697
00:44:53,519 --> 00:44:57,639
lot. But it's like, how
do you decide and when do you decide

698
00:44:57,639 --> 00:44:59,920
if a trade was a good one
or a bad one? And Dallas is

699
00:45:00,079 --> 00:45:02,320
like at least making us think about
it, which is which is clearly wasn't

700
00:45:02,360 --> 00:45:07,920
we ethered it? And it's clearly
like the I was wrong on that front,

701
00:45:07,159 --> 00:45:12,360
I guess and what I was.
It really feels like they need someone

702
00:45:12,400 --> 00:45:16,400
that just melds what will the concept
of Tim Hardaway Junior with Derek Jones Junior

703
00:45:17,119 --> 00:45:22,000
and it's like sort of the two
way, like three guys, and it's

704
00:45:22,079 --> 00:45:24,960
just yes, we know what Dante
x Me and Derek Jones Junior able to

705
00:45:24,960 --> 00:45:29,760
do it points offensively during the regular
season, but like they're not super high

706
00:45:29,800 --> 00:45:34,039
volume when it comes to it.
Uh So it always feels like they're kind

707
00:45:34,039 --> 00:45:37,440
of making concession at that spot,
which as Kyrie gets older, I know

708
00:45:37,480 --> 00:45:40,119
he's defended well during these playoffs and
like like a point throughout the season.

709
00:45:40,599 --> 00:45:44,840
It's just that isn't like when Luka
and Kyrie are your back court and you

710
00:45:44,920 --> 00:45:47,159
can't count on them to be exceptional
defensively on a night. To that basis

711
00:45:47,599 --> 00:45:52,239
that three spot. Yeah, really, even with PJ. Washington and Gafford

712
00:45:52,239 --> 00:45:54,280
arelive like it, I think it
needs to be a better player than they

713
00:45:54,280 --> 00:45:57,920
have now. If you're going to
win the title, I would have said,

714
00:45:58,159 --> 00:46:00,280
if you're going to win two playoff
round, that needs to be a

715
00:46:00,280 --> 00:46:02,960
better player. This needs to be
a better setup. I was clearly wrong

716
00:46:04,280 --> 00:46:07,639
about that. I wonder, like, because you mentioned Jones and ExHAM,

717
00:46:08,039 --> 00:46:12,239
I think maybe it's as simple like
it, I don't know who this player

718
00:46:12,320 --> 00:46:15,119
is, but just say it's Jones. Because Jones brings a ton of athleticism

719
00:46:15,360 --> 00:46:21,000
and is defended well, but he's
still someone that the opponent is going to

720
00:46:21,079 --> 00:46:24,000
say, if you want to get
up nine threes and you think you can

721
00:46:24,079 --> 00:46:28,360
make four or five of them,
we will happily lose that way. You

722
00:46:28,400 --> 00:46:30,400
know, like that's just an exum
even you know, exhem gets dared to

723
00:46:30,400 --> 00:46:36,920
shoot even more. If that player
can bring most of what Jones does,

724
00:46:37,000 --> 00:46:42,039
like defensively, athletically, rebounding in
tangibles and also is like we can't leave

725
00:46:42,119 --> 00:46:45,519
him, then that Like that's the
kind of player you're talking about, right

726
00:46:45,559 --> 00:46:49,880
that whatever percentage better that is.
It's like, now Dallas is officially just

727
00:46:50,159 --> 00:46:52,719
I don't know what you do on
defense with with another like doesn't even have

728
00:46:52,719 --> 00:46:55,440
to be like a premium shooter,
like if it's Jalen Williams, Like if

729
00:46:55,440 --> 00:47:00,239
it's if it's him instead of Derek
Jones, maybe that's all all it takes.

730
00:47:00,960 --> 00:47:02,880
What do you got for the Thunder? It's your biggest question for them,

731
00:47:04,239 --> 00:47:06,199
that's my biggest question for the Thunder. I don't know, well,

732
00:47:06,239 --> 00:47:08,119
I mean after last night, it's
like how much longer? How long can

733
00:47:08,159 --> 00:47:15,280
you survive with Shae being the only
guy that can create and make difficult shots

734
00:47:15,440 --> 00:47:19,960
like that was it was amazing to
watch, but like I just kept possession

735
00:47:20,000 --> 00:47:23,800
after possession, with with the Thunder
being unable to one get into the lane

736
00:47:23,840 --> 00:47:28,719
for a clean look or get anything
up or finish anything because Dallas is just

737
00:47:28,800 --> 00:47:32,039
walling off and like it wasn't just
like Giddy wasn't out there long enough to

738
00:47:32,079 --> 00:47:35,840
just blame him. It's like Gafford
was on him some. Gafford was on

739
00:47:36,079 --> 00:47:39,079
Aaron Wiggins some and was like sagging
and just you know, if a thunder,

740
00:47:39,079 --> 00:47:42,760
if you want to have Aeron Wiggins
shoot a bunch of threes, that's

741
00:47:42,760 --> 00:47:45,920
scarier than Derek Jones. But we're
good with that, and we'll just wall

742
00:47:45,960 --> 00:47:50,119
off the paint like that. The
Thunder have to crack that. It can't.

743
00:47:50,199 --> 00:47:53,320
You can't just have Shae, you
know, making what was I forget?

744
00:47:53,360 --> 00:47:57,000
I saw the stat earlier, but
it was just like I think it

745
00:47:57,079 --> 00:48:00,639
was sixteen two point jump shots or
it was like the highest we've ever seen.

746
00:48:00,719 --> 00:48:05,639
I'll pull it up while you're talking
next. But like that's unsustainable even

747
00:48:05,639 --> 00:48:08,000
for someone as great as SGA,
like that can't be the driver of your

748
00:48:08,000 --> 00:48:12,440
offense. So I'm curious to see
if Jaylen Williams can get anything gone.

749
00:48:12,480 --> 00:48:15,440
I'm curious to see if they can
just make better use of Isaiah Joe as

750
00:48:15,440 --> 00:48:20,960
someone to just run around and create
chaos and get some spacing going. But

751
00:48:21,039 --> 00:48:24,039
I guess it's mostly offensively for the
Thunder Just maybe that's recency biased, but

752
00:48:24,119 --> 00:48:29,039
I need to see them figure out
some other ways to score as the series

753
00:48:29,079 --> 00:48:30,559
goes on. No, I think
I think that is kind of the big

754
00:48:30,679 --> 00:48:34,639
question. And they do still seem
at their best when they're able to get

755
00:48:34,679 --> 00:48:37,840
well at least everybody else does,
when they're able to get into more of

756
00:48:37,880 --> 00:48:44,159
their early offense stuff. So that's
something that could be like like a greater

757
00:48:44,199 --> 00:48:45,599
focus. And I mean, look, that's where Jay Dubb has been at

758
00:48:45,599 --> 00:48:50,400
his best in this series. It
feels like going into like those early offensive

759
00:48:50,719 --> 00:48:57,159
situations you mentioned the Joe thing and
that lineup where you're basically having him come

760
00:48:57,199 --> 00:49:01,599
in for giddy has absolutely destroyed the
Mavericks. I think they're like a plus

761
00:49:01,760 --> 00:49:07,679
eight that that five is like a
plus eighteen and no, they're yeah,

762
00:49:07,719 --> 00:49:12,039
they're a plus eighteen in twenty three
minutes. And so yeah, part of

763
00:49:12,039 --> 00:49:13,840
that is, Okay, there's streeting
nine to twenty from three, YadA,

764
00:49:13,960 --> 00:49:16,639
YadA, YadA, But like that
makes so much more sense because it's changing

765
00:49:16,840 --> 00:49:21,519
fundamentally the way that Dallas can defend
since it's i mean, like you say

766
00:49:21,519 --> 00:49:23,920
the same thing if you go from
like Giddy to Case and Wallace, or

767
00:49:23,920 --> 00:49:27,800
even if you want to like they
threw some Kendrick Williams in there, but

768
00:49:28,000 --> 00:49:32,480
because Isaiah Joe is so dangerous as
a movement guy, it really does bend

769
00:49:34,119 --> 00:49:37,320
a lot of the stuff that Dallas
wants to do. And I know there

770
00:49:37,320 --> 00:49:39,000
are probably some people that are calling, like why is Giddy even starting at

771
00:49:39,000 --> 00:49:42,440
this point? It's just Mark Daniel's
kind of done the thing all year.

772
00:49:42,519 --> 00:49:45,119
It's like Giddy's gonna start and sometimes
he won't start in the second half,

773
00:49:45,119 --> 00:49:50,000
and he's gonna limit his minutes is
as he sees fit. It's I'm gonna

774
00:49:50,000 --> 00:49:52,719
be fascinating to see how they continue
to sort of juggle that because as you

775
00:49:52,760 --> 00:49:55,840
can just say, like, yeah, he's clearly he's clearly Mark Dagnell and

776
00:49:55,840 --> 00:50:00,440
the under clearly making a decision that's
the best to win. Otherwise would be

777
00:50:00,480 --> 00:50:04,400
playing more if they were getting into
sort of the political equity of like this

778
00:50:04,480 --> 00:50:07,079
guy is supposed to be super important
to our future. He's extension eligible this

779
00:50:07,159 --> 00:50:10,079
summer, and so you know that
when push comes to shove, they're gonna

780
00:50:10,119 --> 00:50:15,000
have what they deem is the best
lineup on the corporate When you are struggling

781
00:50:15,679 --> 00:50:20,039
outside of Shake Gillier's Alexander to generate
easy offense, it's well, do we

782
00:50:20,119 --> 00:50:22,400
need to go to this sooner?
Do we need to go to it from

783
00:50:22,440 --> 00:50:23,960
the jump? Do we need to
go to it more? And if we're

784
00:50:24,000 --> 00:50:27,440
not going to, well, then
how do we kind of open up things

785
00:50:27,480 --> 00:50:30,159
for I think we've seen it a
lot with just looking at the quality of

786
00:50:30,159 --> 00:50:34,960
looks that Chet, Honggrin and JDub
are getting with Giddy on the floor versus

787
00:50:35,039 --> 00:50:37,280
relative to him not or when Dallas
feels like they can play off anybody,

788
00:50:37,559 --> 00:50:40,920
even like a case in Wallace which
made Dallas. He made Dallas pay a

789
00:50:40,960 --> 00:50:45,320
couple of times, you can kind
of just see the material shift and the

790
00:50:45,360 --> 00:50:49,000
types of maybe not even the types
of looks, but the level of difficulty

791
00:50:49,480 --> 00:50:52,039
on them. And so I would
agree with you that it kind of comes

792
00:50:52,079 --> 00:50:54,760
down to, like, all right, how are they gonna kind of run

793
00:50:54,760 --> 00:50:58,760
their offense here? And it's like
they haven't been by the way, They're

794
00:50:59,079 --> 00:51:01,079
a one to twelve, say,
offensive rating for the series which isn't like

795
00:51:01,960 --> 00:51:07,519
astronomically low, but it's like that
game against Dallas felt like such a slog

796
00:51:07,599 --> 00:51:10,079
to get through because of how tough
life was for them offensively, and it

797
00:51:10,119 --> 00:51:14,679
really came down to just the clamps
they were able to put on Dallas defensively.

798
00:51:14,719 --> 00:51:16,960
Which are you able to rely on
that if Lucas having a Luca game,

799
00:51:17,000 --> 00:51:20,199
or if he's a little bit healthier
or a spry or in a certain

800
00:51:20,199 --> 00:51:22,800
matchup. Yeah, it's so funny, like we're we get so deep into

801
00:51:22,800 --> 00:51:28,079
the weeds and I just circle back
to like what if Dallas made sixty percent

802
00:51:28,079 --> 00:51:30,400
of its free throws? You know, we're like early trying to unpack this

803
00:51:30,440 --> 00:51:34,559
whole thing, and it's always little
things like that. I got to have

804
00:51:34,679 --> 00:51:37,119
the stat. So SGA was twelve
of sixteen on mid range shots in Game

805
00:51:37,159 --> 00:51:42,039
four, tying Land Marcus Soldiers for
the most mid range buckets in a playoff

806
00:51:42,079 --> 00:51:45,000
game over the last ten years.
So that's all to say what we just

807
00:51:45,000 --> 00:51:49,239
spent eight to ten minutes talking about, like the thunder of gotta find some

808
00:51:49,280 --> 00:51:53,599
ways to get baskets that don't involve
record setting mid range shooting. That's the

809
00:51:53,679 --> 00:51:58,280
challenge ahead anything else on this or
should we should we go to the games

810
00:51:58,280 --> 00:52:00,800
for tonight. I will say I
feel a lot better after watching Cason Wallace

811
00:52:01,280 --> 00:52:05,519
on both ends of howrbes specifically defensively, and like, yeah, sometimes he's

812
00:52:05,519 --> 00:52:07,800
not you know, sometimes he's getting
vested by if if he's on Kyrie.

813
00:52:07,840 --> 00:52:12,639
But feel really good about putting him
on first team All Rookie after watching him,

814
00:52:12,719 --> 00:52:15,880
Yeah, I think you should feel
pretty solid about that one. Let's

815
00:52:15,920 --> 00:52:20,519
do Nick Pacers, which team you
got a question for? I mean it's

816
00:52:20,519 --> 00:52:22,920
got to be the Knicks, and
it's how many bodies? Yeah, they

817
00:52:22,920 --> 00:52:25,960
even have left? And I will
say, I don't know what, I

818
00:52:27,239 --> 00:52:30,159
don't have answers like I just my
question is just like do they have enough

819
00:52:30,159 --> 00:52:35,159
to win this series? And how
do you respond following a game four like

820
00:52:35,199 --> 00:52:38,880
that? On what that was?
Just in a basketball atrocity. But I'm

821
00:52:38,920 --> 00:52:45,280
looking at this team and it's just
Pacers have made some adjustments more Aarony Smith

822
00:52:45,320 --> 00:52:50,559
on Jolen Brunson and even just having
that slightly extra length the exercise. I

823
00:52:50,559 --> 00:52:53,000
think he has like two inches on
Andrew Nemhar. It's gone, it's gone

824
00:52:53,039 --> 00:52:58,440
really well. And then we also
kind of saw that he Nemhard was tracking

825
00:52:58,519 --> 00:53:01,159
Dante DiVincenzo More which took him.
It looked like out of the element in

826
00:53:01,239 --> 00:53:06,039
Game four? How do the Knicks
respond to that? But the bigger thing

827
00:53:06,159 --> 00:53:12,119
is fifteen I think it's fifteen point
three percent of their shots are coming late

828
00:53:12,599 --> 00:53:15,440
in the shot clock between seven and
four seconds left. Now, if you

829
00:53:15,519 --> 00:53:17,800
include zero to four seconds, that
shoots up to like almost thirty percent.

830
00:53:17,800 --> 00:53:22,840
I think it's like twenty seventh percent
of their shots are coming early and late

831
00:53:22,159 --> 00:53:27,760
ultra eight in the shot clock.
Those who combine that is by far and

832
00:53:27,760 --> 00:53:30,880
away would have been the largest share
during the regular season. And there are

833
00:53:30,920 --> 00:53:35,159
just too many possessions right now where
you're watching them, and it's they don't

834
00:53:35,199 --> 00:53:38,119
even especially if Jalen Brunson is not
in the game or if he's not handling

835
00:53:38,159 --> 00:53:43,400
the ball. It took them seventeen
seconds to get inside the three point line

836
00:53:43,559 --> 00:53:46,599
or look that entire possession went by. It wasn't like an early offensive possession

837
00:53:46,599 --> 00:53:50,039
where they got a shot up.
It was twenty one seconds kicked off the

838
00:53:50,039 --> 00:53:52,519
clock and they didn't even get inside
the three point line. And I'm watching

839
00:53:52,599 --> 00:54:00,199
Jalen Brunson and if he you know, summons just something from the depth of

840
00:54:00,199 --> 00:54:02,519
whatever he has left after playing all
these minutes and playing hurt and has some

841
00:54:02,559 --> 00:54:08,400
of that jiggle joggle to put the
Pacers defense back on tilt. I don't

842
00:54:08,639 --> 00:54:12,519
know the solve. I think the
Knicks can play better defensively. I think

843
00:54:12,519 --> 00:54:15,639
when you look at the personnel,
like they are built to play better defensively

844
00:54:15,679 --> 00:54:19,719
than they did obviously in game four, Like the just level of intensity wasn't

845
00:54:19,760 --> 00:54:22,079
there, but you knew they were
down bad when Josh Hart needed a rest

846
00:54:22,639 --> 00:54:25,760
right game four. It it's just
like, I don't want to oversimplify this

847
00:54:25,800 --> 00:54:30,039
because we've been driving it home throughout
the entire playoffs, but are they running

848
00:54:30,039 --> 00:54:32,519
out of bodies? Are they running
out of stamina? And look, maybe

849
00:54:32,599 --> 00:54:36,320
it works in their favor that,
you know, the starters were kind of

850
00:54:36,320 --> 00:54:37,679
some of the starters were kind of
in pretty late in game four, you

851
00:54:37,679 --> 00:54:40,119
know what, because the Knicks are
run out of bodies and like you can't

852
00:54:40,159 --> 00:54:46,679
just like emptying your bench means what, Yeah, so I I don't I

853
00:54:47,360 --> 00:54:50,679
know that I still picked it.
I don't move off my picks. We

854
00:54:50,719 --> 00:54:52,639
saw some of this in the Nuggets
thing. I got Nuggets responses, which

855
00:54:52,840 --> 00:54:55,840
By the way, Nuggets fans like
you know, we were wondering if they

856
00:54:55,840 --> 00:55:00,360
were broken. Absolutely take your victory. Lap. I didn't not of us

857
00:55:00,400 --> 00:55:01,840
picked them to lose the series.
We just said we were more uneasy.

858
00:55:01,960 --> 00:55:05,199
So I won't move off my pick. I just don't do that, Like

859
00:55:05,239 --> 00:55:07,079
I'll just what I'm thinking. But
the more I'm watching this team, I'm

860
00:55:07,119 --> 00:55:10,159
just like, how do you pick
them to win this series? Right now?

861
00:55:10,199 --> 00:55:15,639
You could say it's they've responded to
adversity all year. We're reaching critical

862
00:55:15,719 --> 00:55:19,480
mass here where it's not just the
adversity they're facing, but the toll that

863
00:55:19,519 --> 00:55:22,280
it has taken on the players who
are actively still in the game and just

864
00:55:22,280 --> 00:55:28,320
without ogn and Obi specifically like won
the backbone of their defense, the nervous

865
00:55:28,320 --> 00:55:30,280
system to it all. And then
just like the minute he's gotta been playing,

866
00:55:30,280 --> 00:55:34,360
then the injured Jalen Brunton, and
there is Yo. This is the

867
00:55:34,360 --> 00:55:37,639
one thing. Here's a little aside
of an anecdote. I cannot stand.

868
00:55:37,800 --> 00:55:42,159
It's I understand that there are different
levels of fandom, but I'm at Mother's

869
00:55:42,239 --> 00:55:45,920
Day brunch, well, Matt,
my family hosted it, uh and I'm

870
00:55:45,960 --> 00:55:47,400
speaking with they don't listen to this
podcast. I'm just gonna put them on

871
00:55:47,480 --> 00:55:52,199
blast. One of my brother in
laws saying he doesn't like Jalen Brunson always

872
00:55:52,239 --> 00:55:55,639
has the ball, doesn't like his
attitude, and I'm trying to explain to

873
00:55:55,719 --> 00:56:00,800
him, I can picture you like
crawling out of your skin trying other things

874
00:56:01,119 --> 00:56:04,679
said as well that I need to
bite my lip about, as you know

875
00:56:04,760 --> 00:56:07,840
full well, but this is just
strictly basketball, and I'm trying to explain

876
00:56:07,880 --> 00:56:12,519
to him. They first of all, you can't ascribe a player's play style

877
00:56:12,599 --> 00:56:16,320
to attitude. It's like ascribing Tobias
Harris makes this much and he's not playing

878
00:56:16,360 --> 00:56:19,719
well, so he's a terrible human
being, Like you don't you don't give

879
00:56:19,760 --> 00:56:22,880
from like point A to point Z
like that. I'm trying to explain him.

880
00:56:22,159 --> 00:56:27,400
They don't have anyone else. And
I tried to point out a possession.

881
00:56:27,480 --> 00:56:29,960
I was like, look, John
Brunson didn't touch the ball there and

882
00:56:30,000 --> 00:56:32,800
the Nicks didn't get inside the three
point line, and he just dismissed it,

883
00:56:34,199 --> 00:56:37,800
like so that's but that's what this
team is like. It's literally like

884
00:56:37,880 --> 00:56:42,440
I know what people think about Josh
Hart in the early offense and in transition,

885
00:56:42,599 --> 00:56:44,920
I know what Isaia Hartenstein can do. I know what, I know

886
00:56:44,960 --> 00:56:46,440
what. I don't think Evincenzo can
do on like he has some certain pop

887
00:56:46,480 --> 00:56:51,960
on possessions. John Brunson is the
only from Score their second best frum scratch

888
00:56:52,000 --> 00:56:54,760
creator right now? Is Al Birks? Right? That's not okay, that's

889
00:56:54,760 --> 00:56:59,000
where we are. That's where we
are. I think. I mean,

890
00:56:59,079 --> 00:57:02,599
Jokic is obviously the answer, but
if you exclude him, you could have

891
00:57:02,639 --> 00:57:07,639
come into this playoff saying is there
another player who is more singularly important to

892
00:57:07,679 --> 00:57:13,119
his team's success than Brunson. When
you said is the answer, I was

893
00:57:13,159 --> 00:57:15,719
like, to what this team needs? The question? Yeah, that was

894
00:57:15,760 --> 00:57:19,039
all. I think the Knicks need
Jokich. They should trade for him.

895
00:57:19,079 --> 00:57:21,840
What do you think? Did discuss? No, Like, I'm not look,

896
00:57:21,880 --> 00:57:23,679
I'm not breaking up the Villainova squad
for Nicole? Did he go to

897
00:57:23,719 --> 00:57:29,840
Villanova? Sorry, Chris Jenkins or
who that's That's who made the shot?

898
00:57:29,920 --> 00:57:35,199
Right? No? Because it's just
it's like you said, there just isn't.

899
00:57:35,239 --> 00:57:38,079
It's not just that the Knicks are
losing bodies and guys are breaking down.

900
00:57:38,159 --> 00:57:44,400
It's that they came into this postseason
hobbled as it was like Julius Randall

901
00:57:44,559 --> 00:57:49,440
is by no means like a like
the kind of shot creator you ideally want

902
00:57:49,480 --> 00:57:52,079
on a playoff team, But for
the Knicks like, hey, we'll take

903
00:57:52,119 --> 00:57:54,480
it, because if it's not him, then it's yeah we could. We

904
00:57:54,519 --> 00:57:59,800
don't beggers, can't be choosers,
Like we'll take nob And everyone was excited

905
00:58:00,199 --> 00:58:01,440
he had he had the game of
his life, I will say, before

906
00:58:01,440 --> 00:58:05,760
he got injured. Yeah, really
he can do ain and then missed that

907
00:58:05,800 --> 00:58:08,440
finish. He can do a little
bit O g could. But that's like,

908
00:58:08,679 --> 00:58:13,760
that's that's that just illustrates the point
of like if you're to the if

909
00:58:13,760 --> 00:58:17,880
you're at a place where og Annobi's
individual offensive creation is actually very important to

910
00:58:17,920 --> 00:58:22,239
your success, Like that's a pretty
clear signal that you are short on shot

911
00:58:22,280 --> 00:58:28,119
creation. And like if Brunson again
it's I hate this, but like it's

912
00:58:28,199 --> 00:58:31,039
kind of like Dallas with Luca.
It's like, how do you discuss the

913
00:58:31,119 --> 00:58:37,360
series in any way without starting with, well, this guy is beyond critical.

914
00:58:37,480 --> 00:58:40,639
Like if if Brunson I saw that, I didn't know they could do

915
00:58:40,719 --> 00:58:45,119
this. I think it's second Spectrum
or some kind of tracking software that said

916
00:58:45,280 --> 00:58:49,079
well, Brunson's jumping an average of
like two inches lower on his pull ups

917
00:58:49,159 --> 00:58:52,440
or on his shot attempts, and
it's just like as an indicator of like,

918
00:58:52,519 --> 00:58:54,880
yeah, he's which like no shit, he's obviously injured and hurt and

919
00:58:54,920 --> 00:59:00,599
like not one hundred percent. But
like if he can't be just a forty

920
00:59:00,599 --> 00:59:04,960
point guy, then what are we
talking about? Like that you just because

921
00:59:05,000 --> 00:59:09,960
you can't get It's like Dante DiVincenzo
has exceeded expectations. He's he was clearly

922
00:59:10,000 --> 00:59:14,920
tired, as was everybody else,
but like he was gassed in in game

923
00:59:14,960 --> 00:59:17,000
four, and like he's not a
shot creator. That just isn't what he

924
00:59:17,039 --> 00:59:21,599
does. And so like neither is
Josh hart Neither is I mean Hartenstein's a

925
00:59:21,599 --> 00:59:24,360
good passer, Like maybe maybe we
just start running the offense through him if

926
00:59:24,360 --> 00:59:29,039
you're the Knicks, I don't know
it. We're over complicating it, I

927
00:59:29,039 --> 00:59:34,559
think to a pretty significant degree if
we get too far beyond what if do

928
00:59:34,800 --> 00:59:37,599
me? Bride plays like he has
a pulse again on offense because like that

929
00:59:37,920 --> 00:59:42,920
it's it's but it is fair at
the end. I hate that so many

930
00:59:43,000 --> 00:59:45,679
well not so many, but I
guess, well, yeah, so many

931
00:59:45,719 --> 00:59:49,159
three of these series. I kind
of dismissed the Cavaliers boss, like,

932
00:59:49,239 --> 00:59:51,639
yes, Cleveland's missing. It's I
don't want to dismiss it. The Cavs

933
00:59:51,679 --> 00:59:52,639
are a good team, but like
so many of these series are just we're

934
00:59:52,639 --> 00:59:55,280
gonna look back and say, was
this just a war of attrition? Because

935
00:59:55,679 --> 00:59:59,320
you know, one of the three
best players in the world and the Dallas

936
00:59:59,320 --> 01:00:02,440
okayc series was clearly not healthy,
a player who finished top five on the

937
01:00:02,519 --> 01:00:06,880
MVP vallot in Pacers Nicks wasn't healthy. And look, hey, they were

938
01:00:06,920 --> 01:00:10,159
already missing their second most important shot
creator, and then they were missing I

939
01:00:10,159 --> 01:00:13,440
guess you call him to your second
most important center at this point, but

940
01:00:13,480 --> 01:00:15,280
he was your starting center at the
beginning of the year. And that's oh,

941
01:00:15,320 --> 01:00:19,119
their most important defender just went down. And then it's I mean,

942
01:00:19,199 --> 01:00:22,800
Cavs Celtics. It's well, they're
missing two of their four best players in

943
01:00:22,880 --> 01:00:24,599
game in Game four, and they've
missed Jared Allen for what he was he

944
01:00:24,639 --> 01:00:28,360
missed now since the end of the
was it just game seven he missed against

945
01:00:28,400 --> 01:00:30,639
Orlando or he missed more time than
it doesn't match. They missed him as

946
01:00:30,639 --> 01:00:32,159
at least one might have been two, but yeah, but he's been out

947
01:00:32,159 --> 01:00:36,400
the whole series. So it's just
like I hate that, Like thank God

948
01:00:36,480 --> 01:00:38,079
for timber Wolves Nuggets, which we'll
get into it side, So there's no

949
01:00:38,159 --> 01:00:42,960
point in overcomplicating for the I do
think I've seen a lot of well,

950
01:00:43,000 --> 01:00:45,639
like the Knicks, like now they
can run it back and like everyone gets

951
01:00:45,639 --> 01:00:46,880
healthier. And I will say,
you read into this and you look at

952
01:00:46,920 --> 01:00:50,360
and you say, if you want
to run it back, you need to

953
01:00:50,360 --> 01:00:53,239
be damn sure. Do you think
Julius Randall is the missing shot creator type

954
01:00:53,239 --> 01:00:55,199
of needed And the answer to that, by the way, is no,

955
01:00:55,280 --> 01:00:59,320
he's not. And it's that's just
that's where I'm at. I think he

956
01:00:59,360 --> 01:01:00,960
did a good jobkind of blending in
more in the larger pitcher this year.

957
01:01:01,239 --> 01:01:05,920
They are not one Julius Randall away
from kind of playoff proofing their offense.

958
01:01:05,920 --> 01:01:07,880
It's just I'm sorry if they're not
there, and so you need to take

959
01:01:07,920 --> 01:01:13,320
that. I think it might be
even harder to understand that because of what's

960
01:01:13,320 --> 01:01:15,440
going on with Jalen Brunson right now, and even just because of the success

961
01:01:15,559 --> 01:01:20,360
like the lineup with og and Obi
and Hartenstein and Brunton and I think it

962
01:01:20,400 --> 01:01:23,000
was is it Devincenzo and Hardley?
They absolutely destroyed the Pacers in the minutes

963
01:01:23,000 --> 01:01:25,920
they played before OG went down.
Uh, so that's something they need to

964
01:01:25,960 --> 01:01:29,400
remember. Unless you had anything else
to add on the Knicks, what's kind

965
01:01:29,440 --> 01:01:32,039
of your biggest question here for uh
Indiana? For the Knicks, I would

966
01:01:32,119 --> 01:01:35,599
just one more. I think that
Chwa needs to play a lot more.

967
01:01:35,920 --> 01:01:37,639
I oh, fuck, look,
here's what needs to happen with it.

968
01:01:37,679 --> 01:01:42,719
Youua, he can play more,
don't start games and then keep Jericho Sims

969
01:01:42,800 --> 01:01:45,239
all the way from this series.
This is not the matchup for him.

970
01:01:45,280 --> 01:01:47,559
So well, I guess I didn't
mean to dismiss that, like don't we

971
01:01:47,559 --> 01:01:52,599
don't need to start pressed like that? No, we don't like that paves

972
01:01:52,639 --> 01:01:54,119
the way for you to that or
you need to play way more so you

973
01:01:54,159 --> 01:01:58,599
don't lean on a jerk because this
isn't the Jericho Sims series. Like it's

974
01:01:58,599 --> 01:02:01,280
just clear the way the Pacers space
the floor and like even just some of

975
01:02:01,280 --> 01:02:06,519
the lines like with the bench right
yeah, I mean, and to be

976
01:02:06,559 --> 01:02:08,639
fair to Sims, he is like
the fourth big on this team, so

977
01:02:08,679 --> 01:02:13,320
he shouldn't be I'm getting into,
Well, you need to play precious to

978
01:02:13,360 --> 01:02:15,360
chew him more like, what are
we doing here? No, yeah,

979
01:02:16,079 --> 01:02:21,480
Jalen Brunson's secondary imports a chewa needs
forty minutes. That's just the fact for

980
01:02:21,559 --> 01:02:23,920
the pacers. I mean, I
don't know. I will just say I

981
01:02:24,000 --> 01:02:28,480
just love the Aaron Smith experience.
Uh. It's kind of one of my

982
01:02:28,480 --> 01:02:34,360
favorite role players all year. He
he's like I had the thought of watching

983
01:02:34,440 --> 01:02:37,280
him play because like he will make
the odd like bad foul, or he'll

984
01:02:37,280 --> 01:02:42,480
like run his guy over or or
like knock into someone accidentally. He's like

985
01:02:42,960 --> 01:02:46,079
a missile that you know how like
missiles have like the four fins like on

986
01:02:46,159 --> 01:02:50,199
the back to like keep it steady. That's like he's like one of those,

987
01:02:50,480 --> 01:02:52,880
which means he's really fast and destructive, but like he's missing one of

988
01:02:52,880 --> 01:02:57,079
those, so it kind of wobbles
as it goes. But it's still he's

989
01:02:57,199 --> 01:03:00,159
just like his athleticism is always turned
off all the way up and it's just

990
01:03:00,199 --> 01:03:05,559
but it's like not always like in
this perfect straight line where and that's almost

991
01:03:05,559 --> 01:03:08,079
a good thing for like really intense
defense against someone like Brunson, because he's

992
01:03:08,119 --> 01:03:12,039
just like all over the place.
He's all arms and legs. He's super

993
01:03:12,039 --> 01:03:16,519
physical and kind of reckless and kind
of dangerous seeming, and that's like what

994
01:03:16,559 --> 01:03:21,840
you want on all on a smaller
guard if you can get it. And

995
01:03:21,880 --> 01:03:27,039
the fact that moving Nemhrd somewhere else
didn't really hurt Indy because maybe just because

996
01:03:27,079 --> 01:03:30,719
Devincenzo was exhausted and maybe because nem
har is just better suited to guard someone

997
01:03:30,760 --> 01:03:34,760
like him, pretty encouraging. I
just, you know, I don't know

998
01:03:34,800 --> 01:03:38,599
where else to go based off Game
four, just because things over like I

999
01:03:38,639 --> 01:03:43,360
don't know at the twenty five minute
mark, I mean maybe before that,

1000
01:03:43,400 --> 01:03:45,760
maybe the twenty minute mark, it
was fairly well decided. It was a

1001
01:03:45,760 --> 01:03:47,840
twenty point game in the first quarter. Like, you know, I don't

1002
01:03:47,880 --> 01:03:52,480
know how much how much credit do
you give the pacers, you know,

1003
01:03:52,599 --> 01:03:55,840
for being where they are versus like
how much are we just going to acknowledge

1004
01:03:55,840 --> 01:03:59,760
that the Knicks are fo You have
to give him a ton of credit because

1005
01:03:59,840 --> 01:04:01,159
I know that the Knicks are banged
up, Like this team was down two

1006
01:04:01,159 --> 01:04:04,239
to zero and very well could have
been down three toero based off towards the

1007
01:04:04,360 --> 01:04:08,840
ending of Game three, which was
tight and it was I think I don't

1008
01:04:08,840 --> 01:04:11,639
know if we recorded since that podcast, but I definitely I think I texted

1009
01:04:11,639 --> 01:04:14,480
this to you and it said it
felt like, as odd as it sounds,

1010
01:04:14,519 --> 01:04:17,559
that the Knicks needed that game,
ye just to give themselves a margin

1011
01:04:17,639 --> 01:04:23,159
for error that was more doable.
And so I give a ton of credit

1012
01:04:23,239 --> 01:04:27,000
to Andy, and I'm sort of
like, again, the adjustments they've made

1013
01:04:27,039 --> 01:04:30,079
defensively, I think have absolutely impacted
the Knicks, and injuries I'm sure have

1014
01:04:30,119 --> 01:04:33,199
helped it. But like the other
thing that I've really appreciated, and I'm

1015
01:04:33,199 --> 01:04:39,280
wondering if they need to get It's
counterintuitive because it involves maybe staggering Tyres Haliburt

1016
01:04:39,320 --> 01:04:43,000
and Pascal Siakam even more. But
there are these kind of bench heavy mobs

1017
01:04:43,400 --> 01:04:46,679
that they're running out and they're just
nuke and the Knicks in these small samples,

1018
01:04:46,760 --> 01:04:50,079
and the two lineups that stand out
to me have played a total thirteen

1019
01:04:50,119 --> 01:04:55,000
minutes in this series and they've outscored
the Knicks by twenty one total points.

1020
01:04:55,239 --> 01:04:59,440
And so there's the TJ McConnell,
Miles Turner, Obi Toppin, Haliburt and

1021
01:04:59,480 --> 01:05:01,360
Ben Shep unit that we've seen in
a couple of games, and then there's

1022
01:05:01,360 --> 01:05:05,079
the TJ. McConnell, Pascal Siakam, Ernie Smith, Isaiah Jackson, Ben

1023
01:05:05,119 --> 01:05:10,199
Sheppard unit that we've also seen in
a couple games, and like those two

1024
01:05:10,199 --> 01:05:14,880
combinations and even like throw the what's
been one of the more part like the

1025
01:05:14,960 --> 01:05:19,360
McConnell's Siakam Toppin' Jackson and Shepherd one
too. Like those, you've gotten to

1026
01:05:19,440 --> 01:05:24,880
these starter light, one star Bencher
heavy mobs that have been able to just

1027
01:05:24,960 --> 01:05:28,960
really take the Knicks down, And
I don't necessarily is it because you're playing

1028
01:05:28,960 --> 01:05:31,239
even faster or is it like I
think you're better suited in some of those

1029
01:05:31,320 --> 01:05:34,159
units, And maybe it's you know, especially when you're yanking Turner off the

1030
01:05:34,199 --> 01:05:38,960
court and you're throwing some Jackson,
like are you just better suited to rumble

1031
01:05:38,960 --> 01:05:41,199
with the Knicks on the glass.
That's the other thing that they've done.

1032
01:05:41,199 --> 01:05:45,440
I know that the Knicks have like
you look at the Knicks offensive rebounding rate

1033
01:05:45,519 --> 01:05:48,079
and it's, oh, okay,
it's at it's at thirty percent for this

1034
01:05:48,199 --> 01:05:53,320
series. Uh, that's high,
but it's also not super high for the

1035
01:05:53,400 --> 01:05:57,639
Knicks to relative to they play And
fun fact, Indiana has more second chance

1036
01:05:57,679 --> 01:06:00,840
points than the Knicks, right now
in this series. So it's again the

1037
01:06:00,840 --> 01:06:03,920
offensive rebounding rate. There's difference like
on that, but you're you're winning that

1038
01:06:04,079 --> 01:06:09,360
battle. So I'm I guess my
one question for the Pacers is are they

1039
01:06:09,400 --> 01:06:13,239
able to like keep this up and
take advantage of the situation that they've done.

1040
01:06:13,320 --> 01:06:15,639
And my answer almost is yes,
like to answer my own question,

1041
01:06:15,679 --> 01:06:19,280
because you've seen some of the adjustments
that they've made, and I'm just I'm

1042
01:06:19,400 --> 01:06:23,119
very curious to see what kind of
happens when if they get punched in the

1043
01:06:23,119 --> 01:06:25,840
mouth where it's game five, or
if you know, in a game six

1044
01:06:26,239 --> 01:06:29,559
or something, and is their room
to see more of these Again, it's

1045
01:06:29,599 --> 01:06:32,800
counterintuitive because you should want Haliburton and
Siakam on the court at the same time.

1046
01:06:32,840 --> 01:06:36,039
But like these bench mobs, and
they're not strictly just going up against

1047
01:06:36,079 --> 01:06:39,480
the Knicks bench because then they don't
play their bench because they don't have a

1048
01:06:39,559 --> 01:06:44,280
bench right now, they're absolutely like
slaughtering these dudes during those minutes. Yeah,

1049
01:06:44,320 --> 01:06:46,119
I feel like, you know,
not to turn it back on the

1050
01:06:46,159 --> 01:06:49,360
Knicks a little bit, but it's
related, Like I definitely came into the

1051
01:06:49,360 --> 01:06:54,159
postseason thinking what TJ McConnell has done
during the regular season is nice, but

1052
01:06:54,320 --> 01:06:58,199
like that's there's gonna be ways to
make it so you just as the Pacers

1053
01:06:58,599 --> 01:07:02,159
cannot lean on McConnell for as much
as he played during the season, and

1054
01:07:02,239 --> 01:07:05,880
like you could almost make him a
detriment, right you would think, like

1055
01:07:06,880 --> 01:07:11,599
he doesn't want to shoot threes and
he's the size disadvantage is like you could

1056
01:07:12,320 --> 01:07:15,079
finagle some offensive sets where you're getting
a bigger guy on him. But the

1057
01:07:15,119 --> 01:07:20,360
Knicks just like aren't built to do
anything to exploit like other team's weaknesses right

1058
01:07:20,360 --> 01:07:25,559
now if you think about it,
because like they ideally they play like fairly

1059
01:07:25,800 --> 01:07:30,760
like sized guards. You know,
between de Vincenzo Brunson and Heart. I

1060
01:07:30,760 --> 01:07:33,760
mean, Heart's not really a guard, but you know he's six four six

1061
01:07:33,840 --> 01:07:39,519
' five, and so it's not
like you can so easily like let's get

1062
01:07:39,599 --> 01:07:42,679
McConnell switched on to like a big
that can punish him with size. It's

1063
01:07:42,679 --> 01:07:45,000
like, okay, so precious Achua
is now gonna attack McConnell. Honestly,

1064
01:07:45,000 --> 01:07:50,079
Like that's not so. I think
credit to Indy for just like getting away

1065
01:07:50,239 --> 01:07:55,760
with playing guys that on. In
normal circumstances, you might be like less

1066
01:07:55,760 --> 01:07:58,599
inclined to put out there in a
postseason series because of the way they might

1067
01:07:58,639 --> 01:08:01,719
get exploited, and to the Pacers
for just like they're still running. There's

1068
01:08:01,760 --> 01:08:05,519
still I mean, if anything like
this is the god this is the wrong

1069
01:08:05,599 --> 01:08:10,760
series for a tired team to be
playing, right because the Pacers still are

1070
01:08:10,920 --> 01:08:15,639
just just gonna get X number of
just runouts on made baskets because guys are

1071
01:08:15,679 --> 01:08:17,560
tired on the other team. So
yeah, I don't know. I mean,

1072
01:08:17,640 --> 01:08:23,840
like, if you're Indiana, well
this it feels so trite to say

1073
01:08:23,840 --> 01:08:28,119
because it's Game five and it's tied
to to I still feel like it's a

1074
01:08:28,199 --> 01:08:31,359
more important game for the Knicks to
win because if the Knicks somehow are rested

1075
01:08:31,399 --> 01:08:34,760
and get this one, then you
can lay another egg and you still get

1076
01:08:34,760 --> 01:08:38,640
another shot Game seven home court in
the best of three series right now,

1077
01:08:38,720 --> 01:08:43,239
obviously, but like, if Indiana
can get this one, man, like,

1078
01:08:43,359 --> 01:08:45,119
I just I'll be so impressed,
because I don't know, I just

1079
01:08:45,520 --> 01:08:50,039
I didn't think that Siakham was a
good enough second, you know, star,

1080
01:08:50,239 --> 01:08:54,880
I didn't think that a lot of
Indies players would be like up to

1081
01:08:54,960 --> 01:08:58,439
the challenges of the postseason. So
yeah, I don't know. I don't

1082
01:08:58,600 --> 01:09:00,119
It's hard to have a lot of
notes for the pace after like a game

1083
01:09:00,159 --> 01:09:04,039
that was spent mostly One of the
questions I felt I might have is how

1084
01:09:04,039 --> 01:09:09,399
do we make sure that Tyre's Haliburton
stays higher volume on the offensive end?

1085
01:09:09,439 --> 01:09:12,319
And like he's done that basically the
past three games. There are still these

1086
01:09:12,359 --> 01:09:15,600
pockets as time when he's on the
court and it feels like he's not,

1087
01:09:15,520 --> 01:09:19,800
but it's they've gotten they've definitely gotten
progressively smaller, and he's now turned in

1088
01:09:20,239 --> 01:09:24,960
a handful of just really good games, so that's not even a question for

1089
01:09:25,000 --> 01:09:28,279
them at this point. I was
even thinking like what would the Pacers do

1090
01:09:28,319 --> 01:09:30,279
if the Knicks kind of change the
way that they're defending Haliburton? And I'm

1091
01:09:30,319 --> 01:09:32,920
kind of just looking at it,
like what else are Like who who is

1092
01:09:32,960 --> 01:09:35,479
the guy that you're deciding to say, oh, do they need to have

1093
01:09:35,560 --> 01:09:40,239
more Duce McBride on Tyre's Haliburton?
Like what is that? What is that

1094
01:09:40,319 --> 01:09:43,840
even doing? I think from the
Pacers side, if you're you know,

1095
01:09:43,960 --> 01:09:48,000
more of a from a standpoint of
more of like how do they like stick

1096
01:09:48,039 --> 01:09:53,479
the knife in? Like Siakam was
seven of nine in Game four, and

1097
01:09:53,880 --> 01:10:00,439
the more often the Knicks go with
McBride as like the fourth guy uh instead

1098
01:10:00,439 --> 01:10:04,560
of a Chua like can just go
to work in like the mid post and

1099
01:10:04,560 --> 01:10:08,880
on the elbows and if you get
him on one of those smaller guys in

1100
01:10:08,920 --> 01:10:13,239
a pick and roll, like Siakim
is someone that really should have like a

1101
01:10:13,239 --> 01:10:15,800
at some point before this series is
over, based on how the Knicks like

1102
01:10:16,359 --> 01:10:19,720
how limited their options are in terms
of like wing size, he should be

1103
01:10:19,720 --> 01:10:23,600
able to have like a monster game
or two. I would think it might,

1104
01:10:23,720 --> 01:10:27,319
you know, it just seems like
he has such an advantage with his

1105
01:10:27,479 --> 01:10:30,680
length, and like all he's got
to do is take two hard dribbles and

1106
01:10:30,720 --> 01:10:32,960
spin and then he's six feet away
and there's a six foot four guy on

1107
01:10:33,039 --> 01:10:36,520
him. Like it just seems like
that's somewhere that the Pacers could really go

1108
01:10:36,600 --> 01:10:42,920
to much more often, just because
the Knicks aren't don't have the personel to

1109
01:10:42,960 --> 01:10:46,159
like do anything about it. Really, Like I'm surprised Sakam hasn't hasn't had

1110
01:10:46,199 --> 01:10:49,800
like a super kick ass game,
you know, at least you know,

1111
01:10:49,960 --> 01:10:54,800
once in the last couple Just with
that, I've actually kind of wondered why

1112
01:10:54,840 --> 01:11:00,600
they haven't used him to go after
Jollen Brunson Moore sure to where And maybe

1113
01:11:00,600 --> 01:11:02,680
it's part of it because who Jalen
Brunson is predominantly inn guard, It's going

1114
01:11:02,680 --> 01:11:09,560
to be Aaronie Smith or Andrew Nemhard. But it's like, just have those

1115
01:11:09,640 --> 01:11:12,239
dude screen for Sakam then And I
know Nick don't like to switch, but

1116
01:11:12,279 --> 01:11:14,840
maybe is that going to force and
if if maybe if they're switching, like

1117
01:11:14,880 --> 01:11:16,800
are they gonna try and do you
know scram or peel switching and then it's

1118
01:11:16,800 --> 01:11:20,520
gonna complicate matters and you bust up
the defense that way. That's something that

1119
01:11:20,560 --> 01:11:23,800
I kind of thought about could they
do, But I'm almost just like,

1120
01:11:24,399 --> 01:11:27,319
it really feels like the key to
what the Pacers do is that when they're

1121
01:11:27,359 --> 01:11:30,199
playing so fast, not only is
that kind of exhausting the Knicks's stores,

1122
01:11:30,239 --> 01:11:32,840
but like they're just not you've seen
the Knicks defense. It feels like the

1123
01:11:32,920 --> 01:11:39,359
best A few games get progressively more
confused when it comes to not even the

1124
01:11:39,399 --> 01:11:42,159
game. Game four is its own
beast, like very early on, but

1125
01:11:42,239 --> 01:11:45,479
yeah, you're kind of sea where
the matchups just aren't where they're not supposed

1126
01:11:45,479 --> 01:11:48,039
to be or they're just not set. And so it feels like that is

1127
01:11:48,079 --> 01:11:51,560
more of a collective key to what
India is doing. And it's it's not

1128
01:11:51,560 --> 01:11:55,560
even a question because it's just like
that's just ingrained. It's more of a

1129
01:11:55,600 --> 01:11:59,039
question for the Knicks is well,
how do you slow down the pacers?

1130
01:11:59,520 --> 01:12:02,279
And it's make shots so you can
get your defense set. And right now,

1131
01:12:02,319 --> 01:12:06,199
they're just not built to make shots
in the half court on a consistent

1132
01:12:06,239 --> 01:12:09,680
basis. And then you could say, well, if they're getting we we

1133
01:12:09,720 --> 01:12:12,359
did talk about this. There's a
duality here. Well, if you start

1134
01:12:12,399 --> 01:12:14,439
to get up and down the floor
fast or one, where's that doing to

1135
01:12:14,479 --> 01:12:17,600
Brunson's leg? And two that's Indie's
strength. Like that's like, so if

1136
01:12:17,640 --> 01:12:20,960
you're not gonna be hyper efficient,
you're just gonna put yourself in a more

1137
01:12:21,000 --> 01:12:25,520
compromising position because Indy's gonna either come
off of a turnover a live rebound and

1138
01:12:25,560 --> 01:12:29,520
get the push out of that situation. Yeah, it's it's like the Knicks

1139
01:12:29,520 --> 01:12:33,359
are at the risk of like having
a really nasty feedback loop where like you

1140
01:12:33,880 --> 01:12:36,920
can't score and so there's a bunch
of live ball rebounds and they run the

1141
01:12:36,920 --> 01:12:40,119
other way, which tires you out, which makes it harder for you to

1142
01:12:40,119 --> 01:12:42,960
score, which creates more live It's
just like, how do you get how

1143
01:12:42,960 --> 01:12:45,039
do you pull out of that tailspin? It's it's gonna be tough. But

1144
01:12:45,119 --> 01:12:47,399
I do think, I don't know, this may not matter. I do

1145
01:12:47,399 --> 01:12:50,399
think the Knicks are gonna win Game
five. I just that's if I had

1146
01:12:50,399 --> 01:12:54,680
to get wait to date a podcast, right, God, seventy two minutes

1147
01:12:54,720 --> 01:12:58,000
into it, you're always doing that. I just have to be honest.

1148
01:12:58,399 --> 01:13:02,720
Speaking of dating the podcast, let's
start with the Nuggets, who I was

1149
01:13:03,159 --> 01:13:06,399
beyond impressed with. I don't know
how I felt. I think I was

1150
01:13:06,439 --> 01:13:14,680
more morbidly curious with a degree of
nervousness, because I didn't want this series

1151
01:13:15,079 --> 01:13:17,119
to devolve into a shit show where
if they would have lost Game three,

1152
01:13:17,359 --> 01:13:21,399
well this is co I want a
competitive series with these other three series where

1153
01:13:21,399 --> 01:13:26,319
there are so many people injured and
it's only gotten worse in most cases.

1154
01:13:26,720 --> 01:13:31,439
So the way they responded in games
three and four on the road is just

1155
01:13:31,560 --> 01:13:35,319
like, okay, like this kind
of not that we needed to be reminded

1156
01:13:35,359 --> 01:13:39,439
that these were the reigning champs,
but it's a lot of people pointed this

1157
01:13:39,479 --> 01:13:43,520
out and they were right. I
will not diminish them going and winning the

1158
01:13:43,560 --> 01:13:45,960
title last year. I think people
who do that don't recognize that they were

1159
01:13:46,000 --> 01:13:48,560
the only great team in the Western
Conference. Okay, the Western Conference only

1160
01:13:48,560 --> 01:13:51,000
had one great team. It was
them, and that's why they won the

1161
01:13:51,000 --> 01:13:57,159
way that they did. Now this
season, they've already been I think Minnesota

1162
01:13:57,199 --> 01:13:59,880
is the toughest test that they faced
over the past, and it's not even

1163
01:14:00,039 --> 01:14:02,079
close. I think you can argue
both postseasons. It was the toughest test

1164
01:14:02,439 --> 01:14:08,159
for them to come back like they
did and to see like the functional adjustments

1165
01:14:08,439 --> 01:14:12,720
that they're making of just you know, yeah, Jamal Murray has made some

1166
01:14:12,720 --> 01:14:15,000
tough shots, but they also feel
like they don't. I would have to

1167
01:14:15,000 --> 01:14:16,920
go look at the possession time,
which I'm just not inclined to do when

1168
01:14:16,920 --> 01:14:20,159
it's a game by game basis,
Like they're not having the ball in his

1169
01:14:20,199 --> 01:14:24,279
hands from the jump as much.
It's more of Nikola Jokic being aggressive,

1170
01:14:24,600 --> 01:14:27,399
or it's more of we're putting the
ball in Aaron Gordon's hands. Because this

1171
01:14:27,439 --> 01:14:30,439
is gonna force like you can't hide, well you can. It forces the

1172
01:14:30,439 --> 01:14:34,199
timberlves this awkward decision where it's okay, we'll still press Aaron Gordon, but

1173
01:14:34,239 --> 01:14:38,359
then like we kind of need to
hand him off to Rudy Gobert once he

1174
01:14:38,720 --> 01:14:41,079
gets there, and that's not great. And then okay, we can defend

1175
01:14:41,720 --> 01:14:45,079
Jokic straight up And look, I
think Rudy Gobert has defended Jokic straight up

1176
01:14:45,560 --> 01:14:48,319
incredibly physically, which is to say, well, it doesn't fucking matter when

1177
01:14:48,359 --> 01:14:51,760
Nikola Jokic is in the mindset of
I'm gonna take these shots. He hits

1178
01:14:51,840 --> 01:14:56,119
tough shots. I don't want to
boil it down to Nikola Jokic decided to

1179
01:14:56,119 --> 01:14:59,399
be a score. And that's what
happens. When Nikol Jokic takes tough shots.

1180
01:14:59,520 --> 01:15:01,920
They're not a he's easy. They're
physical. He's using all these different

1181
01:15:01,960 --> 01:15:04,479
like you look at him under the
basket and sometimes you can't like, is

1182
01:15:04,479 --> 01:15:08,000
he gonna go up? It's like
he will miss a shot, grab his

1183
01:15:08,039 --> 01:15:11,239
own board without having like a he
doesn't need a second jump so much.

1184
01:15:11,239 --> 01:15:14,159
It's just like he's just there.
He's just gonna grab it. The dude

1185
01:15:14,199 --> 01:15:17,920
is both physical, crafty, has
this level of finesse. But you've seen

1186
01:15:18,319 --> 01:15:23,560
a shift in how the Nuggets are
playing and I really appre that it even

1187
01:15:23,600 --> 01:15:26,359
feels like and which I think is
smart. Like they've changed the way they're

1188
01:15:26,359 --> 01:15:30,720
defending Anthy Edwards and they've part of
that has been all right, Like it's

1189
01:15:30,720 --> 01:15:34,079
not just not like it's it's playing
Christian Brown sometimes at the expense of Michael

1190
01:15:34,079 --> 01:15:38,319
Porter Junior's minutes, because like we
know that Christian Brown could hold up against

1191
01:15:38,319 --> 01:15:43,159
some of these defensive assignments. More
just a masterclass I think in not losing

1192
01:15:43,600 --> 01:15:47,600
their composure after get like for the
series and just making these I don't even

1193
01:15:47,640 --> 01:15:51,760
think that they're the I think what's
really wild is that these aren't subtle adjustments

1194
01:15:53,039 --> 01:15:57,119
is that they're they feel more.
Maybe they are subtle in the like I'm

1195
01:15:57,119 --> 01:16:00,039
not an NBA head coach, but
like they're they're real to where it's something

1196
01:16:00,039 --> 01:16:01,920
that you could argue, well,
why would they get away from this?

1197
01:16:02,000 --> 01:16:05,279
Yeah, we've seen more Jokic Murray
two man action. It feels like they

1198
01:16:05,319 --> 01:16:08,920
even want to slow it down a
little bit more. That's where the most

1199
01:16:08,920 --> 01:16:11,439
comfortable. They were a little bit
too sped up through those first two games.

1200
01:16:11,640 --> 01:16:15,359
But it's like what you're doing with
Aaron Gordon, ye, Like that's

1201
01:16:15,359 --> 01:16:18,000
a material adjustment, and so I
give them kudos to not getting I was

1202
01:16:18,039 --> 01:16:23,439
say, stuck in their ways,
but to be willing to make an adaptation.

1203
01:16:23,600 --> 01:16:27,600
That is, if it's not stark, it's significant enough that I don't

1204
01:16:27,640 --> 01:16:30,520
think it's a guarantee other teams would
have made it. I think, I

1205
01:16:30,560 --> 01:16:34,840
think that's really interesting. I remember, I'll keep notes in my phone,

1206
01:16:34,920 --> 01:16:38,319
like as I'm watching games, just
like throughout the course of the year,

1207
01:16:38,479 --> 01:16:41,680
like just some thought I'll have that
I know I'm not gonna remember. And

1208
01:16:41,800 --> 01:16:43,800
one of the ones I made,
I don't know, it could have been

1209
01:16:43,800 --> 01:16:47,520
like December or something. Was.
Yokic always has the last word tactically,

1210
01:16:47,960 --> 01:16:53,159
like in terms, so like whatever
you think is gonna work against Jokic,

1211
01:16:53,560 --> 01:16:56,680
he will have the last word in
that exchange, like he will counter it,

1212
01:16:56,720 --> 01:16:59,479
and then you won't have a counter
to the counter and he wins like

1213
01:16:59,520 --> 01:17:01,800
that, you know, whether that's
defensive coverage, whether that's the types of

1214
01:17:01,800 --> 01:17:05,800
shots you want to make him take. I think what Games three and four

1215
01:17:05,840 --> 01:17:11,479
have shown is that it's not just
Yokic like that that applies to it's Denver

1216
01:17:11,560 --> 01:17:16,039
as a whole, and it's it's
again like, how do you ever evaluate

1217
01:17:16,039 --> 01:17:19,159
this stuff. But I think it's
a lot of Michael Malone too, because,

1218
01:17:19,239 --> 01:17:24,960
like one, it would have been
really easy to let this series get

1219
01:17:24,960 --> 01:17:27,880
away after that O two hole for
like a number of reasons, like from

1220
01:17:27,920 --> 01:17:30,720
a motivational perspective or from like you
push the wrong buttons, you panic a

1221
01:17:30,760 --> 01:17:33,960
little bit, you make the adjustment
you think is going to work, and

1222
01:17:34,000 --> 01:17:40,319
it doesn't. But it just feels
like the Gordon thing in particular is huge

1223
01:17:41,119 --> 01:17:45,800
that like Denver, I think is
showing now that it as a unit is

1224
01:17:45,840 --> 01:17:49,520
going to have the last word tactically, like it will make the last adjustment

1225
01:17:49,880 --> 01:17:54,279
and put you back on your heels
and force you to say, Okay,

1226
01:17:54,279 --> 01:17:59,439
what do we do against that now? And it feels like the Wolves may

1227
01:17:59,479 --> 01:18:03,039
not have a great counter to the
counter, like we've we've seen this series

1228
01:18:03,079 --> 01:18:08,560
shift now and I don't know what
needs to happen for Minnesota to shift it

1229
01:18:08,800 --> 01:18:13,800
back. Maybe that will happen,
like it's it's it's it's hard to be

1230
01:18:14,000 --> 01:18:17,399
super confident because neither of us foresaw
the Wolves winning the first two games,

1231
01:18:17,399 --> 01:18:20,760
and like nobody saw that, so
we don't have a great grasp on the

1232
01:18:20,800 --> 01:18:25,960
series, like from the jump,
pretty obviously. The other thing I think

1233
01:18:26,840 --> 01:18:30,760
just macro because I think you definitely
hit on like some of the key specifics

1234
01:18:30,760 --> 01:18:34,119
of it, but big picture,
I think you said it last time we

1235
01:18:34,159 --> 01:18:39,159
talked, you root for chaos,
which, like the Wolves beating the beating

1236
01:18:39,279 --> 01:18:43,600
Denver the first two games and seemingly
putting a stranglehold on the series was chaos

1237
01:18:43,640 --> 01:18:45,439
and it was awesome because it was
like what do we now what? Like

1238
01:18:45,720 --> 01:18:49,399
everything is in disarray league wide?
Denver was our pick, Like this is

1239
01:18:49,439 --> 01:18:53,640
awesome unless you're a Denver fan,
like this is this is the most fun

1240
01:18:53,640 --> 01:18:58,800
it could be. Watching Denver come
back and win games three and four reminded

1241
01:18:58,840 --> 01:19:01,680
me that what I actually like,
even more than the chaos is when greatness

1242
01:19:01,800 --> 01:19:06,720
says like hold on, like we
know we will will decide what happens here.

1243
01:19:06,760 --> 01:19:11,159
And I think that's a symptom of
coming up as a basketball fan,

1244
01:19:11,560 --> 01:19:15,520
like during the second Bulls three peat, where they'd be down and Jordan would

1245
01:19:15,600 --> 01:19:19,119
just be like, Nope, I'm
gonna find a way to win this game,

1246
01:19:19,199 --> 01:19:23,239
whether it's the flu game or just
whatever, or you know, the

1247
01:19:23,319 --> 01:19:27,000
last sequence against Utah with the steel
and the jump around Brian Rut like just

1248
01:19:27,560 --> 01:19:30,279
greatness just finds a way. And
I think that like formed me as like

1249
01:19:30,279 --> 01:19:33,920
a real one of the formative things
of my basketball fanom and seeing a team

1250
01:19:33,960 --> 01:19:40,239
I think is great and a player
I think is great just reassert like this

1251
01:19:40,279 --> 01:19:43,920
is what it looks like, which
is what Denver's doing is fucking awesome.

1252
01:19:44,079 --> 01:19:46,279
Like, I just I love the
response. I love how good they looked

1253
01:19:46,279 --> 01:19:50,760
in games three and four. I
love that, like just now going forward,

1254
01:19:50,800 --> 01:19:55,880
it feels like Minnesota is really on
its heels because Edwards had frigging forty

1255
01:19:55,880 --> 01:20:00,079
four points in Game four and it
just wasn't like close to enough. I

1256
01:20:00,079 --> 01:20:04,520
I just it made me read we
like chaos. For I like chaos.

1257
01:20:04,640 --> 01:20:12,520
I love seeing like something special,
just like certify that it's special and that

1258
01:20:12,560 --> 01:20:15,239
feels like what we what we got
in games three and four. Yeah,

1259
01:20:15,399 --> 01:20:18,079
I that that's a great way to
frame it. And I guess if you

1260
01:20:18,159 --> 01:20:21,960
were asking for like a question with
Denver, because now it's like they're almost

1261
01:20:23,000 --> 01:20:27,279
they're back to being that kind of
no notes team. It's like I almost

1262
01:20:27,359 --> 01:20:30,640
kind of focus on what by the
way, recognizing from kind of the jump

1263
01:20:30,680 --> 01:20:34,880
that this needed to be a justin
Holiday series and Peyton Watson series. I

1264
01:20:34,880 --> 01:20:39,000
mean, that's amazing, but you
also kind of have to wonder, like,

1265
01:20:39,119 --> 01:20:43,000
is he going to continue to shoot
sixty two from three? Yeah,

1266
01:20:43,159 --> 01:20:46,560
like he's kind of sixteen for the
series, I think something wild like that.

1267
01:20:46,840 --> 01:20:50,199
So he missed two in game four, so I've really dragged his numbers,

1268
01:20:50,199 --> 01:20:56,119
so he's already fallen off. Yeah, So I just but again,

1269
01:20:56,439 --> 01:20:59,039
like that would probably be my question, and it's do you get to a

1270
01:20:59,079 --> 01:21:01,920
point where because of how you like
to run your offense and like you've been

1271
01:21:01,960 --> 01:21:08,199
playing for more. I mean,
look, they use the in game four,

1272
01:21:08,600 --> 01:21:11,039
that twenty eight to four run where
it was kind of like you show

1273
01:21:11,079 --> 01:21:13,920
that you could punch the mouth,
But if it's later, does that have

1274
01:21:13,960 --> 01:21:15,119
to change the way they run their
rotations at all? Does it limit what

1275
01:21:15,199 --> 01:21:18,319
you could do with Christian Brown because
he's giving you some offense, but he's

1276
01:21:18,359 --> 01:21:23,199
not necessarily a four space who's a
great mover off of it. But you

1277
01:21:23,239 --> 01:21:25,680
also kind of need him because you've
had to change the way that you were

1278
01:21:25,680 --> 01:21:29,079
defending Anthony Edwards and a lot of
that is CACP. By the way,

1279
01:21:29,119 --> 01:21:31,720
we talk about Murray's cash strain caseyp's
dealing with an ankle issue, and that

1280
01:21:31,720 --> 01:21:35,479
would probably be my other biggest question
is that how do you overcome because we

1281
01:21:35,520 --> 01:21:39,600
even saw it in game four where
there's just like there's pockets of time where

1282
01:21:39,680 --> 01:21:42,720
Murray doesn't look like Murray or isn't
playing too well. What did you get

1283
01:21:42,720 --> 01:21:46,319
another game yeah where that's the case
or games and how do you respond to

1284
01:21:46,359 --> 01:21:50,520
that? That's kind of my question
with them. If you don't have anything

1285
01:21:50,520 --> 01:21:56,000
else on the Nuggets, I do
have, like what is your biggest question

1286
01:21:56,119 --> 01:22:00,319
for Minnesota for the rest of the
series. I mean, like it's it's

1287
01:22:00,399 --> 01:22:03,880
definitely got us well, just in
terms of like nuts and bullets, like

1288
01:22:04,359 --> 01:22:13,319
how are we gonna handle the Gobert
Aaron Gordon like interplay? Because I think

1289
01:22:13,359 --> 01:22:15,000
what was you said it was so
successful in the first couple of games.

1290
01:22:15,039 --> 01:22:18,119
Is Gobert being able to kind of
rove a little bit and be there as

1291
01:22:18,159 --> 01:22:21,840
a second defender or to pick Yok
up if he needs to and someone else

1292
01:22:21,840 --> 01:22:26,239
will recover out to Gordon and so
far as the Wolves are even interested in

1293
01:22:26,319 --> 01:22:30,840
doing that, if he's beyond the
arc like it is, what's the adjustment

1294
01:22:30,840 --> 01:22:33,239
to the adjustment? So let's assume
that Gordon does more ball handling and is

1295
01:22:33,720 --> 01:22:38,720
forcing Gobert or whatever forcing the Wolves
to not do what they wanted to do,

1296
01:22:39,439 --> 01:22:43,840
Like what's what? What? What? Then? What what is Minnesota's

1297
01:22:43,880 --> 01:22:45,079
move? Like? How do you
do? You do? You put Kat

1298
01:22:45,119 --> 01:22:48,840
out there now? And because Cat
has quietly not quietly, but like we

1299
01:22:48,880 --> 01:22:54,159
haven't really discussed him at all,
had a really rough game four, Like

1300
01:22:54,279 --> 01:22:58,239
I just don't know what the tactical
switch is there. And then I think

1301
01:22:58,319 --> 01:23:01,720
to like somebody besides, and this
may just be Cat, Like it can't

1302
01:23:01,800 --> 01:23:08,119
just be Edwards making tough shots or
breaking down the defense on his own and

1303
01:23:08,159 --> 01:23:12,439
finishing layups, which he does like
so easily. I can't understand it sometimes

1304
01:23:12,439 --> 01:23:15,439
how he's able to just get layups
out of isolation against the said defense.

1305
01:23:16,319 --> 01:23:19,880
Yeah, I don't know. I
think I think the guy that needs to

1306
01:23:19,920 --> 01:23:24,600
play really well on both ends,
and that might mean he's also covering Gordon

1307
01:23:24,640 --> 01:23:28,079
a little bit more as Towns,
because that's got he's got to be able

1308
01:23:28,159 --> 01:23:31,960
to supplement Edwards scoring. Maybe some
pick and roll some some Cat Edwards pick

1309
01:23:32,000 --> 01:23:35,680
and rolls however you want to structure
those would be good. Yeah, I

1310
01:23:35,680 --> 01:23:40,199
don't know, I don't I guess
it's just like the biggest question for the

1311
01:23:40,239 --> 01:23:44,039
Minnesota is like how do you get
your feedback on the ground after being up

1312
01:23:44,119 --> 01:23:46,720
too oh and then seeing Denver like
hit another level that you couldn't match for

1313
01:23:46,760 --> 01:23:53,239
two games. Yeah, and I'm
wondering could an adjustment be and we saw

1314
01:23:53,239 --> 01:23:58,239
it a little bit in game four? Do you go three bigs and like

1315
01:23:58,279 --> 01:24:00,600
you're kind of just banking on Well, then you can have nas Reed do

1316
01:24:00,680 --> 01:24:03,920
the Gordon thing and that'll still you
could still try to figure out ways to

1317
01:24:03,960 --> 01:24:08,000
then have Rudy Gobert on the bet, have Towns on Jokic and then are

1318
01:24:08,039 --> 01:24:11,800
you hope But again, what is
who's Rudy Gobert on? So it's just

1319
01:24:11,840 --> 01:24:14,199
I guess it depends on so if
they have Brown in there instead of Michael

1320
01:24:14,199 --> 01:24:17,159
Porter Junior like during those minutes,
maybe that's something. Look or at this

1321
01:24:17,239 --> 01:24:21,560
point with the way he's been shooting, is it just like CACP becomes that

1322
01:24:21,600 --> 01:24:26,560
guy. I'm just wondering if it's
worth trying that. I'll be very interesting

1323
01:24:26,680 --> 01:24:30,680
if are there any more wholesale adjustments
there? You mentioned kat Is is a

1324
01:24:30,720 --> 01:24:33,279
really good one where Okay, there's
the blowout and only takes seven shots and

1325
01:24:33,319 --> 01:24:36,880
there's a very inefficient game in game
four. The answer is like, who

1326
01:24:36,880 --> 01:24:41,119
are you else? Are you expecting
to level up your offense? We've seen

1327
01:24:41,119 --> 01:24:44,279
the half court offense fall off since, you know, the first two games.

1328
01:24:44,520 --> 01:24:46,720
It's been the opposite with Denver,
where they had they were averaging like

1329
01:24:46,760 --> 01:24:50,079
point eight to nine points in the
half court during those first two games,

1330
01:24:50,119 --> 01:24:54,039
and now and again it feels like
to me that they're I mean, they're

1331
01:24:54,079 --> 01:24:57,920
going with their bread and butter of
Murray and Jokic, but they've also kind

1332
01:24:57,960 --> 01:25:00,920
of like allowed them cells to slow
down where it feels like they were trying

1333
01:25:00,920 --> 01:25:03,760
to actively or at least Murray was
maybe trying to actively make quicker decision or

1334
01:25:03,800 --> 01:25:06,600
Yokic was trying to get rid of
the ball. And now over the past

1335
01:25:06,600 --> 01:25:11,239
two games, Denver has a half
court offensive rating a one point one eight

1336
01:25:11,680 --> 01:25:15,039
per possession, which is that's high
especially after that's pretty good. Uh,

1337
01:25:15,079 --> 01:25:19,119
But yeah, with Minnesota, it's
you need and it's Towns is just such

1338
01:25:19,199 --> 01:25:23,960
a fascinating player, especially when it
comes to the postseason. Just the peaks

1339
01:25:23,960 --> 01:25:27,760
and valleys that he's able to explore. But like, if it's not going

1340
01:25:27,800 --> 01:25:30,000
to be him, are we really
sitting here saying okay, well, then

1341
01:25:30,479 --> 01:25:34,159
you know we need Nasried to really
step up and drop twenty points a game

1342
01:25:34,159 --> 01:25:38,119
when it feels like, you know, the Timberwolves are kind of worried about

1343
01:25:38,119 --> 01:25:42,399
how he's going to hold up on
defense against Denver's peak offense. And after

1344
01:25:42,439 --> 01:25:44,600
that it's okay, well then we'll
just you know, a thirty six year

1345
01:25:44,600 --> 01:25:47,560
old Mike Conley, or after that
it's like deh is it Nikhil Alexander?

1346
01:25:47,600 --> 01:25:53,000
Well, I just it has to
be Towns, And I don't know what

1347
01:25:53,119 --> 01:25:56,880
it's really a matter of either is
how do you go about getting Towns?

1348
01:25:57,159 --> 01:25:59,359
You know, the volume is one
thing, but how do you go about

1349
01:25:59,439 --> 01:26:02,279
getting him him? I get,
I guess more volume, but to be

1350
01:26:02,359 --> 01:26:09,119
more consistently present on the offensive end. Yeah, it's hard like he it's

1351
01:26:09,119 --> 01:26:12,039
he's one of the I know,
we overreact to every game in the series,

1352
01:26:12,159 --> 01:26:14,600
or at least I do. Where
it's like if Team X wins,

1353
01:26:14,640 --> 01:26:16,720
it's like impossible for me to imagine
how Team Why is ever going to win

1354
01:26:16,760 --> 01:26:19,600
a game in the series. When
Kat has a bad game, it's just

1355
01:26:19,640 --> 01:26:24,399
like I can't ever imagine how he's
going to be effective going forward. Like

1356
01:26:24,520 --> 01:26:28,840
because his bad looks bad, Like
it's the Wayward drives out of control stuff,

1357
01:26:28,840 --> 01:26:32,159
the passes to nobody, Like when
he doesn't look right, it's it's

1358
01:26:32,239 --> 01:26:38,479
so conspicuous, but like he's still
someone that you got to be able to

1359
01:26:38,479 --> 01:26:42,039
get. He's got to be how
many he had I guess he got a

1360
01:26:42,319 --> 01:26:45,640
He got four to threes in thirty
eight minutes in game four. I need

1361
01:26:45,680 --> 01:26:48,640
Cat shooting like eight or nine threes
just to just to like maybe all this

1362
01:26:48,760 --> 01:26:54,640
time just uh, you know,
unclogged the offense a little bit, right,

1363
01:26:54,720 --> 01:26:57,960
Like that seems that's always seemed like
one of the easier fixes for a

1364
01:26:57,960 --> 01:27:00,479
Wolves offense. That has been it's
weak link for you know, all year.

1365
01:27:01,079 --> 01:27:04,039
It's just like, see what happens
if Kat gets up ten threes in

1366
01:27:04,039 --> 01:27:08,279
a game or whatever. I know
that's easier said than done, obviously,

1367
01:27:08,279 --> 01:27:11,039
but like if you're looking for fixes, it's, like you said, it's

1368
01:27:11,039 --> 01:27:15,399
got to come from him either getting
downhill with an advantage or just spacing out

1369
01:27:15,439 --> 01:27:18,439
to where the guys on him can't, you know, feel comfortable. I

1370
01:27:19,239 --> 01:27:23,680
was fascinated by the big lineups that
the Wolves used a little bit in Game

1371
01:27:23,720 --> 01:27:30,239
four, Like it I just wonder
while there will be some payoffs, like

1372
01:27:30,680 --> 01:27:35,199
if you have too many bigger,
slower, relatively speaking guys on the floor,

1373
01:27:35,560 --> 01:27:41,359
is that just kind of begging Jokic
to just pick you apart as his

1374
01:27:41,479 --> 01:27:44,960
smaller teammates are moving around off the
ball and getting into space, and like

1375
01:27:45,319 --> 01:27:48,159
it's just harder for big guys to
one navigate screens they get hung up,

1376
01:27:48,399 --> 01:27:55,600
and two just to move as quickly
like I would expect if the Wolves go

1377
01:27:55,800 --> 01:27:59,000
bigger, because they had like I
can't even remember what it was. It

1378
01:27:59,079 --> 01:28:05,039
must have been go Bear Towns read
Edwards and like Alexander Walker or McDaniels was

1379
01:28:05,079 --> 01:28:08,039
the one that they had out there
in Game four for a while and it

1380
01:28:08,119 --> 01:28:13,560
was just like every guy on the
floor is enormous and just physical. I

1381
01:28:13,560 --> 01:28:16,159
think if you do that too much, as the Wolves, you might end

1382
01:28:16,239 --> 01:28:20,239
up getting burned by it. It
might not be as valuable defensively as you

1383
01:28:20,279 --> 01:28:24,159
think if the Nuggets can space it
out and just like kind of cut it

1384
01:28:24,199 --> 01:28:29,199
to pieces. But the line of
your about was Edwards and McDaniels. Yeah,

1385
01:28:29,640 --> 01:28:32,119
with the three bigs, I might
try it. I would not do

1386
01:28:32,199 --> 01:28:35,039
because you sort of have to try
it, but I would also be really

1387
01:28:35,039 --> 01:28:39,199
ready to pull the ripcord if you
get back cut like three times in a

1388
01:28:39,279 --> 01:28:43,039
row type of stuff. But yeah, I like, well that's the thing.

1389
01:28:43,279 --> 01:28:45,600
One of the other ways to go
though, is just a bunch more

1390
01:28:45,680 --> 01:28:48,079
conly go bear like high pick and
roll or so you know, things like

1391
01:28:48,079 --> 01:28:50,520
that. So then but then you
need Conley out there, because that might

1392
01:28:50,560 --> 01:28:54,600
be one of the other ways you
can score. It's that. I think

1393
01:28:54,640 --> 01:28:58,359
it's gonna be the type of thing
where the Wolves just have to like try

1394
01:28:58,399 --> 01:29:00,399
some difference, try both of them
those things and several other things, and

1395
01:29:00,479 --> 01:29:03,760
whichever one starts to work for a
while, just running into the ground and

1396
01:29:03,840 --> 01:29:08,560
hope it gets you enough to pay
off in the end. I will also

1397
01:29:08,600 --> 01:29:14,560
say the other question on half for
the wolves is can they regain control of

1398
01:29:14,600 --> 01:29:17,600
the non yo kicch minutes of which
there aren't going to be many. But

1399
01:29:17,640 --> 01:29:21,000
they were actually worse during non yokitic
minutes. And it had to do with

1400
01:29:21,039 --> 01:29:24,399
like one minute stretch, Like that's
how these things work, the entire thing

1401
01:29:24,399 --> 01:29:26,680
when you look at the minute yokiest
play and it is a mini stretch.

1402
01:29:27,119 --> 01:29:30,199
But they ended up getting outscored by
five points when the Coole Yaks was off

1403
01:29:30,199 --> 01:29:34,159
the court in Game four, which
is worse than what it was in Game

1404
01:29:34,199 --> 01:29:38,680
three, where I think they still
won the non Yokic minutes if I remember

1405
01:29:38,720 --> 01:29:44,520
correctly, Like, that's just I
understand that you want to mirror certain looks

1406
01:29:44,960 --> 01:29:47,720
of your lineup like at that point, but at the same time, it's

1407
01:29:47,920 --> 01:29:50,600
I mean, if you're getting I'm
trying to think of what the lineup was

1408
01:29:50,640 --> 01:29:54,720
that was blitzing them. I think
it was Murray, Gordon, Holliday,

1409
01:29:54,760 --> 01:29:59,079
Porter and Brown. If that lineup
is going through like this two or three

1410
01:29:59,119 --> 01:30:02,079
minute stretch and they're just you know, outscoring you by like nine or ten

1411
01:30:02,079 --> 01:30:08,000
points whatever, it ends up like
that can't like those are those are precious

1412
01:30:08,000 --> 01:30:10,840
Like It's the same way if you're
the Nuggets and you're looking at okay Anthy

1413
01:30:10,920 --> 01:30:14,279
Edwards is off the court, that
is precious time. Yeah, that you

1414
01:30:14,319 --> 01:30:17,479
cannot afford to squad like at least
play it to a debt, even because

1415
01:30:17,479 --> 01:30:20,560
sometimes yes, there's gonna be the
dual star looks. I mean, like

1416
01:30:20,600 --> 01:30:24,119
the dual Stars, they'll be out
at the same time. But it's just

1417
01:30:24,159 --> 01:30:27,600
sort of you know, you're looking
at Anti Edwards place forty point five minutes

1418
01:30:27,600 --> 01:30:29,479
a game, Those seven and a
half minutes he's off the court, those

1419
01:30:29,520 --> 01:30:31,960
are big for the Denver Nuggets.
Nicoleyoka is that like forty minutes a game

1420
01:30:31,960 --> 01:30:35,079
for this, so it's like he
can't especially when there's other yea like the

1421
01:30:35,079 --> 01:30:39,920
way that Yoka is playing himself.
I don't know necessarily what the answer is.

1422
01:30:40,000 --> 01:30:42,720
You just mirror saying, you know
what, like do we completely flip

1423
01:30:42,760 --> 01:30:46,560
flop it where it's okay, we'll
pull like go bear off the court during

1424
01:30:46,560 --> 01:30:49,119
that time, but we want,
you know, like we're gonna throw like

1425
01:30:49,159 --> 01:30:56,319
we're gonna play everyone else like that's
gonna be Edwards Conley Towns read who's your

1426
01:30:56,600 --> 01:30:59,439
McDaniel? Like, do you just
put out your best non go bear five

1427
01:30:59,520 --> 01:31:02,600
during that? Say, our goal
here is to create some separation or at

1428
01:31:02,680 --> 01:31:05,000
least bridge the gap. I like, is that is that stupid to?

1429
01:31:05,079 --> 01:31:09,920
You know? I love it because
I think like if you if you're putting

1430
01:31:09,960 --> 01:31:15,680
together the list of what absolutely must
happen for us to beat the Nuggets while

1431
01:31:15,680 --> 01:31:18,199
they're playing, well, it's like
you got to be plus ten and like

1432
01:31:18,319 --> 01:31:23,239
this the four to eight minutes,
Yokic isn't on the floor because you're not

1433
01:31:23,279 --> 01:31:26,279
winning the other minutes general, most
likely if the Nuggets are going well.

1434
01:31:26,319 --> 01:31:29,560
So like, however you do,
like what if you just turn those stretches

1435
01:31:29,600 --> 01:31:32,199
into like the most high variance portion
of the game where all you do is

1436
01:31:32,239 --> 01:31:34,960
come in and like, let's get
up if it's a three minute stretch,

1437
01:31:35,199 --> 01:31:39,079
let's get up a three like every
time down, let's like just hunt,

1438
01:31:39,119 --> 01:31:42,920
like hunt space, hunt threes,
run it like crazy, like just hope

1439
01:31:42,960 --> 01:31:45,119
that you can go you get you
get your plus eight in those three minutes

1440
01:31:45,159 --> 01:31:48,000
and maybe you get another section of
plus two or three, Like you can't.

1441
01:31:48,359 --> 01:31:53,439
That's a must because you aren't.
History suggests you are not winning the

1442
01:31:53,520 --> 01:31:57,520
Yokic on minutes as the Wolves like
you're just or anybody else like you can't

1443
01:31:57,560 --> 01:32:00,520
do it. So you have to
find the advantage in that tiny window and

1444
01:32:00,560 --> 01:32:04,399
whatever whatever you need to do to
exploit it, like you gotta because yeah,

1445
01:32:04,479 --> 01:32:09,479
like Denver did have lineups out there
and has had lineups out there during

1446
01:32:09,520 --> 01:32:13,840
the series where it's like, how
is this a functional offense? You know,

1447
01:32:13,960 --> 01:32:16,520
because it'll be brown and it'll be
like they're just maybe it's a hobbled

1448
01:32:16,600 --> 01:32:21,399
Murray and like four other guys that
aren't gonna create shop it happened they want

1449
01:32:21,439 --> 01:32:25,880
like Reggie Jackson wasn't. It's like
okay, like the can't like this.

1450
01:32:27,119 --> 01:32:30,119
Yeah, that's that is the lowest
hanging fruit of any series against the Nuggets,

1451
01:32:30,119 --> 01:32:32,479
and you just have to pick all
of it. And I don't know,

1452
01:32:32,680 --> 01:32:35,800
you know, if the Wolves,
maybe that's just the barometer, like

1453
01:32:35,840 --> 01:32:42,800
if the Wolves can win those minutes
handily, that's gonna offset the bulk of

1454
01:32:42,800 --> 01:32:45,560
the minutes of the game, which
you aren't gonna probably win. I don't

1455
01:32:45,600 --> 01:32:49,760
know this this series is still would
you say this is the most interesting series

1456
01:32:49,840 --> 01:32:55,760
still? Like, because there's kind
of interesting, But I think you can

1457
01:32:55,840 --> 01:32:58,560
make a case that I think some
people have made the case and I just

1458
01:32:58,560 --> 01:33:00,680
won't go there because I have a
ton of respect for Boston and Oklahoma City

1459
01:33:00,720 --> 01:33:06,000
specifically that this is basically the NBA
Finals playing out. It's just such a

1460
01:33:06,640 --> 01:33:12,199
it's such a slugfest here and there's
just there's so much like weird noise that

1461
01:33:12,279 --> 01:33:17,159
isn't necessarily injury related because you're looking
at it and it's the Nuggets like primary

1462
01:33:17,399 --> 01:33:21,960
baseline, like they're starting five.
I believe has been outscored for this series

1463
01:33:23,039 --> 01:33:25,920
still, and so it's like Howard's
almost like, well, how are the

1464
01:33:25,960 --> 01:33:30,319
Wolves like not even up by even
more? There? So I and like

1465
01:33:30,399 --> 01:33:33,600
the Wolves' own starting lineup is like
this huge plus for the series. So

1466
01:33:33,880 --> 01:33:38,279
there's just a lot of weird like
like noise there. So I do think

1467
01:33:38,319 --> 01:33:41,680
this is the most interesting series,
and I think it's the one where my

1468
01:33:41,680 --> 01:33:45,680
my my whims have shifted game to
game more than most other series too.

1469
01:33:45,760 --> 01:33:50,000
I think maybe the Knicks might be
an exp like when you're losing like a

1470
01:33:50,079 --> 01:33:54,159
starter a game basically is what it
feels like like that's just gonna happen.

1471
01:33:55,119 --> 01:33:59,439
Yeah, I think again, you're
always trying to learn something about like how

1472
01:33:59,479 --> 01:34:04,520
to approach things next time. Even
so, let's make a pledge next time

1473
01:34:05,079 --> 01:34:10,079
something like this happens where the Wolves
are up a team like the Wolves that

1474
01:34:10,159 --> 01:34:13,920
isn't supposed to is up two to
oh on a team like Denver which isn't

1475
01:34:13,920 --> 01:34:17,199
supposed to fall behind by two oh. We don't freak out because I just

1476
01:34:17,319 --> 01:34:21,479
thought I really didn't think, like
I mean, I thought that it would

1477
01:34:21,520 --> 01:34:24,600
still be a series. But it's
like, how do you come back from

1478
01:34:24,640 --> 01:34:27,600
losing the first two games at home? If either of us said, which

1479
01:34:27,640 --> 01:34:30,640
I don't think we did, that
they were absolutely going to lose the series,

1480
01:34:30,720 --> 01:34:33,520
we said, or that they looked
like they were broken, and then

1481
01:34:33,600 --> 01:34:38,720
you know what, because we're the
number one media property in the world,

1482
01:34:38,760 --> 01:34:42,880
they might have listened heard that,
and that's what prompted Nikoliochic to send the

1483
01:34:42,920 --> 01:34:48,640
team text. They deserved all the
criticism for that lifeless ass performance. They

1484
01:34:48,119 --> 01:34:53,239
their coach gave it to him worse
than we did. Like in the media,

1485
01:34:53,319 --> 01:34:55,439
if we sat here and said there's
no chance they were winning, then

1486
01:34:55,520 --> 01:34:58,199
yes, we were wrong. We
don't normally, I at least don't adjust

1487
01:34:58,239 --> 01:35:01,119
my playoff predictions like that. So
well, I think I have a memory

1488
01:35:01,159 --> 01:35:05,039
of saying It's like, as we
were getting out of the conversation about them

1489
01:35:05,079 --> 01:35:09,520
after Game two, I think I
said, like, Minnesota probably wins this,

1490
01:35:09,640 --> 01:35:12,760
right, and like, I don't
know if that goes as far as

1491
01:35:12,800 --> 01:35:15,920
saying, like if who said that
we were wrong and we're sorry, but

1492
01:35:15,960 --> 01:35:19,920
I have hashtag no regrets. Yeah, they deserve to be they deserve to

1493
01:35:19,920 --> 01:35:25,319
be crucified after that game to performance. But game one close, competitive,

1494
01:35:25,439 --> 01:35:29,640
lose, it happens. Game two
was bullshit. I just uh, I'll

1495
01:35:29,640 --> 01:35:31,479
get all the way back to My
favorite point about this whole series is like,

1496
01:35:31,560 --> 01:35:36,840
it's pretty awesome when a really great
team just decides we're we're not gonna

1497
01:35:36,920 --> 01:35:41,319
let this happen and it's tied to
to so maybe like the less word has

1498
01:35:41,359 --> 01:35:44,760
not been issued the series where you've
kind of I guess, would India and

1499
01:35:44,840 --> 01:35:47,199
New York be the second most one
where you've seen them kind of deviate from

1500
01:35:47,239 --> 01:35:50,119
I don't want to call them,
call them core principles, but maybe they've

1501
01:35:50,159 --> 01:35:54,319
deviated from. This is how we're
entering the series. We're gonna try to

1502
01:35:54,359 --> 01:35:57,279
do this and then we're just gonna
completely shift it. I'm trying to think,

1503
01:35:57,359 --> 01:36:02,039
like what other series would be like
this defin not thunder MAVs that you

1504
01:36:02,279 --> 01:36:05,119
like, but yeah, it's not
in this postseason I think you go back

1505
01:36:05,159 --> 01:36:10,399
away as it's like, you know, teams will switch starters, you know,

1506
01:36:10,479 --> 01:36:14,199
and take guys out of the rotation
and stuff like that. That's like

1507
01:36:14,239 --> 01:36:15,920
we haven't had anything quite like that, but yeah this, I mean,

1508
01:36:15,960 --> 01:36:20,760
look, and that's the reason this
series has tilted so drastically, right,

1509
01:36:20,880 --> 01:36:25,319
is like you had two games where
one team looked unbeatable, and then two

1510
01:36:25,399 --> 01:36:30,359
more where things changed significantly strategically,
and like, I guess from a give

1511
01:36:30,399 --> 01:36:33,319
a shit standpoint, and like now
it's completely the other way and it's all

1512
01:36:33,359 --> 01:36:36,399
square and the series is awesome.
Give me, give me more of these

1513
01:36:36,439 --> 01:36:41,159
forever non playoff related thing grant.
I don't know if you know this,

1514
01:36:41,239 --> 01:36:45,520
but the Atlanta Hawks won the twenty
four million draft lottery despite entering with the

1515
01:36:45,640 --> 01:36:49,119
tenth best odds of doing so.
We also saw Houston ends up with the

1516
01:36:49,199 --> 01:36:53,800
number three pick. We also saw
a few media companies not this one,

1517
01:36:54,279 --> 01:36:58,439
we're bad at math, and said
that the Pistons basically got fucked when statistically

1518
01:36:58,520 --> 01:37:02,760
they're basically right where they should at
number five. We're not. We're neither

1519
01:37:02,800 --> 01:37:06,399
of us are. Like I've started
to get shin deep into draft prep because

1520
01:37:06,399 --> 01:37:09,399
I had to write a little bit
about it. We're not gonna talk about

1521
01:37:09,399 --> 01:37:13,399
the prospects here other than I do
have a question about it being so wide

1522
01:37:13,399 --> 01:37:15,960
open. But I really think the
I mean, he's tied two together.

1523
01:37:16,800 --> 01:37:25,840
Does the Hawks winning the draft lottery
set the stage for more collective chaos or

1524
01:37:25,880 --> 01:37:29,279
is this a situation where it just
kind of made Atlanta's own decision tougher because

1525
01:37:29,319 --> 01:37:31,880
We have talked about them as a
team that could look to do they move

1526
01:37:31,960 --> 01:37:35,720
Murray or Young? Would they consider
moving both? Like are they gonna look

1527
01:37:35,760 --> 01:37:40,159
to maybe even buy? Does this
make that decision even harder? Because now

1528
01:37:40,239 --> 01:37:43,520
you have the number one pick,
and so it's not just a matter of

1529
01:37:44,199 --> 01:37:46,199
oh, okay, we're gonna move
Murray and be done or is that still

1530
01:37:46,239 --> 01:37:51,560
what it is because you owe your
first round your San Antonio controls your first

1531
01:37:51,600 --> 01:37:56,520
basically twenty five, twenty six,
and twenty seven. Yeah, So everything

1532
01:37:56,680 --> 01:38:02,239
we could possibly discuss about Atlanta,
specif or the draft lottery itself is complicated

1533
01:38:02,279 --> 01:38:05,640
by the fact that nobody thinks this
draft is any good. I had had

1534
01:38:05,640 --> 01:38:09,840
a good authority that people around the
league, and I told you this before

1535
01:38:09,880 --> 01:38:14,760
we started, that they think there
are five players that could realistically go number

1536
01:38:14,760 --> 01:38:16,920
one. Now pius the season for
noise, and just based off the little

1537
01:38:16,920 --> 01:38:19,399
that I know, I just feel
like, who's ever at one? Should

1538
01:38:19,399 --> 01:38:25,680
pick Alex R and move on.
But that's not like the most wide wide

1539
01:38:25,720 --> 01:38:30,960
open I remember it being was the
Jabbari Smith, Palo Bank Caro and chet

1540
01:38:30,000 --> 01:38:33,600
Hondren debate, and then before that
it was do you remember I think it

1541
01:38:33,680 --> 01:38:36,920
was the twenty thirteen draft or Anthony
Bennett ends up. The Bennett draft came

1542
01:38:36,960 --> 01:38:42,119
to mind. Yet feel like it
might have the level of mystery that twenty

1543
01:38:42,359 --> 01:38:46,880
thirteen has, which is bonkers.
Yeah, no, I I I'm not

1544
01:38:47,000 --> 01:38:50,800
even like I know the names,
like I gues Sar keeps coming up at

1545
01:38:50,800 --> 01:38:55,399
the top, and Zachary Resache is
another name that we keep hearing as a

1546
01:38:55,439 --> 01:38:58,119
possibility, and then after that,
I don't know. Yeah, if it's

1547
01:38:58,159 --> 01:39:00,800
five, great that could go number
one. So but to get back to

1548
01:39:00,840 --> 01:39:05,079
Atlanta, I'm I'm and I'm like
Pinky toenail deep in draft prep right now.

1549
01:39:05,359 --> 01:39:08,920
So you've got a huge advantage on
me. By that, you mean

1550
01:39:08,960 --> 01:39:12,039
that you know it takes place in
June? Is it? Does it?

1551
01:39:12,079 --> 01:39:15,119
Is that? What? Yeah?
Maybe they rescheduled it, like the draft

1552
01:39:15,159 --> 01:39:17,880
lottery for the afternoon on a Sunday. Is the draft tomorrow? I think

1553
01:39:17,880 --> 01:39:20,479
that's what. That's why the way
I freaked out. It was Mother's Day

1554
01:39:20,560 --> 01:39:25,279
and I already mentioned earlier with Puckast
that we were hosting brunch at our house.

1555
01:39:25,319 --> 01:39:27,800
But of course, like I have
the lottery on some I in they're

1556
01:39:27,840 --> 01:39:30,399
watching it, and I see Atlanta
jump up to the top four, and

1557
01:39:30,479 --> 01:39:33,680
so I'm like, when I saw
it they won, I literally said,

1558
01:39:33,960 --> 01:39:38,560
holy fuck. And all I heard
from like my kitchen slash I was,

1559
01:39:38,600 --> 01:39:44,439
what's wrong. I was just like
this basketball team on this draft lottery,

1560
01:39:45,359 --> 01:39:46,439
I thought you were going to get
so many on from the other room like

1561
01:39:46,520 --> 01:39:51,079
language. Oh they know. I
can't help. I don't know what it

1562
01:39:51,159 --> 01:39:55,199
is. I think I grew up
in a household where my mom wouldn't let

1563
01:39:55,239 --> 01:39:58,159
me say, wouldn't even let me
have like the parental advisory seat. She

1564
01:39:58,239 --> 01:40:02,119
used to confiscate them, which I
got them that maybe like as I got

1565
01:40:02,119 --> 01:40:05,479
olders, just all I'm gonna encoorse
all the because now I just use profanity's

1566
01:40:05,520 --> 01:40:13,960
like a form of compliment. Atlanta
Hawks. No. I So, okay,

1567
01:40:13,960 --> 01:40:17,119
here's what I think. I think. To me, it doesn't make

1568
01:40:17,720 --> 01:40:23,840
Atlanta's direction any clearer necessarily, like, well, because they got number one,

1569
01:40:23,960 --> 01:40:28,840
it means they're way more likely to
do to to trade Murray or Trey

1570
01:40:28,920 --> 01:40:30,920
Young or neither, or to keep
the pick or like I just I don't

1571
01:40:31,199 --> 01:40:35,039
have a good feel for that.
What I do think, I think I'm

1572
01:40:35,079 --> 01:40:41,760
confident that it offers you cover at
least from like a I don't know,

1573
01:40:41,800 --> 01:40:46,319
like a pr standpoint to do like
a semi drastic thing like trade Tray Young

1574
01:40:46,439 --> 01:40:50,600
because you can say it's not like
you're gonna sell anyone on like, well,

1575
01:40:50,640 --> 01:40:54,199
we have this and this is gonna
be our next superstar. Because I

1576
01:40:54,199 --> 01:40:57,119
think even casual Hawks fans will know, like, this doesn't seem like the

1577
01:40:57,199 --> 01:41:00,039
draft for that although if Alex Starr
has been the one that whenever you talk

1578
01:41:00,079 --> 01:41:03,399
about these comps and I know they're
imperfect, you normally land in like the

1579
01:41:03,439 --> 01:41:06,600
middle end when people are trying to
make them, and Sar keeps getting compared

1580
01:41:06,640 --> 01:41:10,760
to Jaron Jackson Junior, and I'm
like, you're didn't draft him, that's

1581
01:41:10,760 --> 01:41:15,159
great. Yeah, I mean,
it's it's just so unknown, but I

1582
01:41:15,199 --> 01:41:17,279
do do you see you understand what
I mean though, Like it if you

1583
01:41:17,319 --> 01:41:20,039
were let's say they had landed where
they were supposed to win the lottery,

1584
01:41:20,079 --> 01:41:26,560
which is like what tenth Yeah,
then you trade Trey Young for whatever you

1585
01:41:26,600 --> 01:41:30,640
get for him, and like the
tenth pick is whatever, Like it doesn't,

1586
01:41:30,680 --> 01:41:33,600
it doesn't. It's not like a
needle mover in terms of hey,

1587
01:41:33,600 --> 01:41:38,000
but hey we got this, you
know, let's think about this. Let's

1588
01:41:38,000 --> 01:41:41,199
focus on this, this like,
this is a bright thing for our future

1589
01:41:42,239 --> 01:41:45,279
being number one. I think I
don't know, maybe it's just me,

1590
01:41:45,399 --> 01:41:47,359
but I think if you move young
or Murray, like that might feel like

1591
01:41:47,399 --> 01:41:50,760
a disappointment in a vacuum where if
the circumstances were different, because it's like

1592
01:41:51,279 --> 01:41:54,920
things are gonna change and they may
not get better in the short term,

1593
01:41:54,960 --> 01:41:58,960
although that would be the point of
trading any of those guys. But having

1594
01:41:58,960 --> 01:42:02,800
that pick is kind of like just
offers like cover or offers like a distraction

1595
01:42:02,920 --> 01:42:06,600
isn't quite the right word, but
it's like, is it optionality, other

1596
01:42:06,680 --> 01:42:12,119
avenue of things we can think about
as Hawks fans or as an organization we

1597
01:42:12,199 --> 01:42:15,039
can still like, but hey,
we still have this. I don't know,

1598
01:42:15,039 --> 01:42:16,199
it just that's what it feels like
to me, not not having a

1599
01:42:16,239 --> 01:42:21,079
good feel for like should they just
use the pick on someone or should they

1600
01:42:21,079 --> 01:42:26,039
move it or anything like that.
Yet I think what's tough about because what

1601
01:42:26,079 --> 01:42:30,199
it doesn't solve is I don't think
it gives them the I don't think it

1602
01:42:30,199 --> 01:42:34,039
gives them the cover to enter a
full tilt rebuild unless no, that's not

1603
01:42:34,079 --> 01:42:36,560
what I mean. No, No, I know, but I'm saying because

1604
01:42:36,560 --> 01:42:40,520
it gives them some level of optionality. But does it also because if you're

1605
01:42:40,560 --> 01:42:43,640
just saying, let's just say Stars
the pick and it kind of works out,

1606
01:42:43,640 --> 01:42:45,239
where's like, yeah, they do
need wings, but like that's the

1607
01:42:45,279 --> 01:42:48,600
position you come in. We've seen
some rookies play really well defensively over the

1608
01:42:48,640 --> 01:42:51,840
past few years, right, And
like Clin Capella is there as a placeholder

1609
01:42:51,880 --> 01:42:55,880
you're not really married to when Yekakungu
as your starter, not that you need

1610
01:42:55,920 --> 01:42:58,600
to move him him it Sark could
probably play together if you believe in Stars

1611
01:42:58,680 --> 01:43:01,640
jump shot, But like I feel
like if you're to frame it this way

1612
01:43:01,680 --> 01:43:04,760
for me, that is it more
likely that they just draft Alex Sar and

1613
01:43:04,760 --> 01:43:09,119
then kind of stand pat and go
the rout of what does it? Or

1614
01:43:09,159 --> 01:43:12,960
maybe they move Clint Capella and like
what does this do for us? Or

1615
01:43:13,039 --> 01:43:17,319
do they do something more drastic.
I'd probably go with the stan Pat because

1616
01:43:17,680 --> 01:43:24,279
everything just feels pointless because even if
you're moving Murray, there's unless you're attaching

1617
01:43:24,319 --> 01:43:27,439
picks to Murray, which okay,
who are you getting? But where is

1618
01:43:27,479 --> 01:43:30,920
the trade that you're getting better at
the top of your roster? You're rather

1619
01:43:31,000 --> 01:43:35,439
breaking him up into more depth,
or you're trading him for picks, and

1620
01:43:35,560 --> 01:43:41,199
unless those picks are your own picks, which san Antonio controls for three years

1621
01:43:41,520 --> 01:43:45,479
in twenty twenty five twenty seven,
the twenty six one's a swap like this

1622
01:43:45,520 --> 01:43:50,720
doesn't make entering a rebuild to me
any more palatable. And so it's the

1623
01:43:50,720 --> 01:43:54,560
same question with Trey Young. I've
seen a lot of the framing of this

1624
01:43:54,680 --> 01:43:58,680
makes it more likely they trade Young. And now, if you're telling me

1625
01:43:58,720 --> 01:44:01,079
that the Spurs are giving them back
all their own picks, fine, then

1626
01:44:01,119 --> 01:44:04,199
I'll listen. But if they're not, then you need to explain to me

1627
01:44:04,720 --> 01:44:09,920
how this makes Atlanta better in the
short and long term by moving Trey Young

1628
01:44:09,960 --> 01:44:12,880
after winning the number one pick.
Yeah, because like, if you do

1629
01:44:13,000 --> 01:44:15,279
the let's just say it's to the
Lakers and you get Reeves and Hatchamura and

1630
01:44:15,319 --> 01:44:19,800
gave Vincent and a first or two
or whatever, you better get the three

1631
01:44:19,840 --> 01:44:23,319
first that they could offer. If
you're if you're flipping Tray Young, that's

1632
01:44:23,319 --> 01:44:25,960
all. If yeah, I don't
know, are they willing? Yeah,

1633
01:44:26,039 --> 01:44:30,880
right, so they probably should be
willing to do that. But like that

1634
01:44:30,039 --> 01:44:33,600
plus the number one pick, plus
Murray and the current Ross, Like,

1635
01:44:33,640 --> 01:44:38,439
what is what is that? You
know? I don't it's not a better

1636
01:44:38,479 --> 01:44:41,680
team than you had. I don't
think probably not, so then you are

1637
01:44:41,960 --> 01:44:44,680
I don't know, maybe maybe we're
overthinking it, and like the number one

1638
01:44:44,680 --> 01:44:48,960
pick actually doesn't play a role at
all in Atlanta, whether Atlanta should rebuild

1639
01:44:49,359 --> 01:44:53,920
or not, because it's not the
type of pick that anyone views as like

1640
01:44:53,960 --> 01:44:57,680
they're cornerstone coming like here, here
we go, we're getting Chet, we're

1641
01:44:57,680 --> 01:45:01,119
getting Pallo, we're getting Edwards,
whatever, although none of those guys were

1642
01:45:01,159 --> 01:45:04,119
viewed as corner stones at the time, which is maybe instructive. And it's

1643
01:45:04,159 --> 01:45:06,479
like Edward, there were questions about
Edwards. Remember it was like, oh,

1644
01:45:06,479 --> 01:45:13,039
this draft's not so hot. But
like maybe I don't know, maybe

1645
01:45:13,119 --> 01:45:15,960
just make the pick and assume that
because everybody thinks this draft sucks, they're

1646
01:45:15,960 --> 01:45:20,319
all wrong and like there's gonna be
a half dozen guys that'll be all stars,

1647
01:45:20,319 --> 01:45:25,199
slash whatever coming out of this.
So just I don't know, I

1648
01:45:25,359 --> 01:45:28,399
was, I mean, see if
they if you start hearing leaks of like

1649
01:45:28,439 --> 01:45:31,399
they're shopping it, like unequivocally shopping
it like that, that would be very

1650
01:45:31,399 --> 01:45:34,359
interesting to me. Well, Landrey
Fields was basically speechless when they were asking

1651
01:45:34,439 --> 01:45:38,439
them questions about anything, because it
was basically, how the fuck did this

1652
01:45:38,520 --> 01:45:42,239
happen? Like, why are we
sitting here right now at this I think

1653
01:45:43,279 --> 01:45:45,479
I think we'll hear a lot of
noise about them shopping it, but it

1654
01:45:45,479 --> 01:45:49,640
could just be degrees of they're looking
at getting a. I mentioned this too

1655
01:45:49,760 --> 01:45:54,680
from the top, like what if
Washington really wants Sar and they're worried Landa

1656
01:45:54,680 --> 01:45:58,159
will take them. They're offering you
number twenty six and number two for number

1657
01:45:58,199 --> 01:46:00,840
one, and so the Hawks get
to play the really like one of these

1658
01:46:00,840 --> 01:46:03,479
wings that are that are right there, and then we're gonna get an extra

1659
01:46:03,520 --> 01:46:05,840
first round pick, and so we
like it could be something like that.

1660
01:46:05,880 --> 01:46:09,880
There's also I mean you talk about
the Spurs giving them back their own picks,

1661
01:46:09,920 --> 01:46:12,560
like the Spurs have four and eight
in Atlanta's own picks, Like how

1662
01:46:12,640 --> 01:46:15,560
many do you need to attach to
four or eight to move up to one?

1663
01:46:16,000 --> 01:46:18,840
Because then in Atlanta, I'm like, doesn't like if this happened if

1664
01:46:18,840 --> 01:46:23,359
the Spurs said, hey, here's
number eight, We'll give you back your

1665
01:46:23,399 --> 01:46:27,840
twenty five and then either your swap
or your twenty twenty seven pick to move

1666
01:46:27,920 --> 01:46:30,319
up to first, Like that actually
makes a rebook more palatable because you control

1667
01:46:30,359 --> 01:46:33,840
more of your own future draft and
you're still some high up in the order.

1668
01:46:34,199 --> 01:46:38,319
I think there could be something like
that in terms of sheer player equity,

1669
01:46:38,359 --> 01:46:41,560
though I was trying to think of, Okay, the Hawks are a

1670
01:46:41,560 --> 01:46:43,760
team because you do have Trey Young, maybe they really want to win.

1671
01:46:43,880 --> 01:46:48,279
Now, who is the best player
that you could envision getting for the number

1672
01:46:48,319 --> 01:46:54,960
one pick, and like you don't
need to attach anything else other than salary

1673
01:46:55,000 --> 01:46:58,800
to it. And the name I
came up with, I really like him,

1674
01:46:59,079 --> 01:47:00,840
Like, I don't know if it's
a nut. Was McHale Bridges.

1675
01:47:01,319 --> 01:47:05,079
And it's so Brooklyn comes at you
and says, we will give you McHale

1676
01:47:05,079 --> 01:47:13,159
Bridges, Dorian Finney Smith and Phoenix's
twenty twenty seven pick for number one.

1677
01:47:13,479 --> 01:47:16,520
I don't know who says no there, given what we know about this draft,

1678
01:47:16,600 --> 01:47:20,720
is it why would Brooklyn do all
that? Or is it Atlanta say

1679
01:47:20,800 --> 01:47:24,680
okay, like we're giving up the
number one pick for the chance to get

1680
01:47:25,439 --> 01:47:29,560
McHale Bridges, who can be the
third best player on the title team,

1681
01:47:29,600 --> 01:47:32,960
which is yeah, that's great,
But it's tough because I don't know how

1682
01:47:32,960 --> 01:47:39,800
to evaluate Bridges right now. He's
in this weird like middle space. My

1683
01:47:39,880 --> 01:47:43,840
first reaction was like, oh,
I think Brooklyn says no, because Bridges

1684
01:47:43,880 --> 01:47:46,359
is like a known commodity and is
very good but maybe not great, and

1685
01:47:46,560 --> 01:47:49,800
this number one pick might get you, Like, what are the odds that

1686
01:47:49,840 --> 01:47:54,960
this first overall pick gets you someone
that will become as good as Bridges?

1687
01:47:55,279 --> 01:47:58,399
Probably less than fifty percent, right, Yeah, I don't know. I

1688
01:47:58,399 --> 01:48:01,199
mean that's again, it's hard because
we're not somehow we're still not totally sure

1689
01:48:01,199 --> 01:48:05,000
how good Bridges is exactly. I
think he's probably I think he's showing that

1690
01:48:05,039 --> 01:48:09,399
he could be like two point five, like yeah, okay, like an

1691
01:48:09,399 --> 01:48:15,000
option to B or something, but
like but with like insane scalability, like

1692
01:48:15,079 --> 01:48:17,880
with just the any and anywhere fit. Right, So that's like maybe that

1693
01:48:17,920 --> 01:48:20,720
gets them all the way up to
the equivalent of like a number two but

1694
01:48:20,840 --> 01:48:24,199
not, but you know what I
mean, like via a different route.

1695
01:48:25,640 --> 01:48:28,760
I don't know. If Andrew Wiggins
was the second best player on the title

1696
01:48:28,800 --> 01:48:31,159
team the Coal Bridges can certainly be
the best second best player on Let us

1697
01:48:31,199 --> 01:48:36,039
never, let us never forget,
let us never forget that Glory Woking situation

1698
01:48:36,199 --> 01:48:41,600
is complicated themselves because they don't control
their own draft. Their next next time,

1699
01:48:41,640 --> 01:48:43,680
they control their own drafting. I
think it's twenty twenty eight, like

1700
01:48:43,680 --> 01:48:45,359
Atlanta does. It's like maybe it's
okay, well, it's cool that we

1701
01:48:45,359 --> 01:48:48,520
have there's number one PIP, Like
we're not good. That's not gonna augment

1702
01:48:48,800 --> 01:48:55,279
our own asset base. Uh I
am. I do think though that the

1703
01:48:55,479 --> 01:48:59,279
this speaks to a larger draft class
than Atlanta. I would just make the

1704
01:48:59,319 --> 01:49:00,479
pick. By the way, if
I'm Atlanta, I'm sure I'm assuming you

1705
01:49:00,520 --> 01:49:03,119
had if it's a matter of moving
down and like you're not really that high

1706
01:49:03,159 --> 01:49:08,079
on SAR and you want to capitalize, like maybe San Antonio or Detroit or

1707
01:49:08,079 --> 01:49:12,039
someone really wants them. But I
would make the pick. I do think,

1708
01:49:12,079 --> 01:49:17,600
though, the ambiguity or the shallow
impressions of this draft class are going

1709
01:49:17,600 --> 01:49:24,600
to lend itself to chaotic activity when
it comes to trades leading up to or

1710
01:49:24,640 --> 01:49:28,159
on Draft night. Yeah, I
think it could go that way. I

1711
01:49:28,199 --> 01:49:30,520
also think what we could see is
a bunch of teams want all wanting to

1712
01:49:30,560 --> 01:49:34,680
trade down, and nobody being interested
in trading up. You know that because

1713
01:49:34,760 --> 01:49:42,079
if you're not sure, like what
the difference is between six and one or

1714
01:49:42,319 --> 01:49:45,319
ten and four or seven and three, Like you're not gonna want to move

1715
01:49:45,399 --> 01:49:48,640
up into that spot, like although
that could maybe that changes as we get

1716
01:49:48,640 --> 01:49:53,520
through more workouts and things like that, where it's like Sar just is clearly

1717
01:49:53,560 --> 01:49:58,720
the guy. For example, if
I'm Atlanta, my number one choice would

1718
01:49:58,760 --> 01:50:02,640
probably be the trade back if I
could, But I don't think there's gonna

1719
01:50:02,640 --> 01:50:06,399
be like a line out the door
of teams scrambling to get that pick.

1720
01:50:06,439 --> 01:50:10,479
It doesn't it's at least it doesn't
seem like that right now. Would you

1721
01:50:10,640 --> 01:50:16,159
trade number one and de Jontay Murray
to Detroit for number five Asar Thompson and

1722
01:50:16,239 --> 01:50:24,560
Jade and Ivy yep? I would? Who says no? Uh, Atlanta

1723
01:50:24,760 --> 01:50:28,159
says yeah yes, So Detroit is
saying no. Had to really work that

1724
01:50:28,199 --> 01:50:30,800
out myself there, I guess,
because if you're moving up to get Sar,

1725
01:50:30,880 --> 01:50:32,439
and you already have Duran, but
I don't think Durn's good enough to

1726
01:50:33,279 --> 01:50:36,560
like, and you could probably sandwich
Duran into that deal, but it's to

1727
01:50:36,600 --> 01:50:40,880
me Jay and Ivy just doesn't really
have trade value right now. Like maybe

1728
01:50:40,880 --> 01:50:45,039
he's different outside the confines of Detroit
or out of Monty Williams's doghouse. But

1729
01:50:45,880 --> 01:50:48,560
he has not shown at minimum,
I'll put it. I think this is

1730
01:50:48,600 --> 01:50:54,159
the kindsay he's not shown enough as
an off ball, just shooter, offensive

1731
01:50:54,159 --> 01:50:57,760
player for me to be like,
this guy has net positive trade value two

1732
01:50:57,760 --> 01:51:01,680
seasons into his career. Yeah,
I mean, look, he's in the

1733
01:51:01,680 --> 01:51:04,680
PJ. Washington camp to some extent
of like, let's see what it looks

1734
01:51:04,760 --> 01:51:10,600
like on a real team. I
unabashedly still have some Jade and Ivy stock,

1735
01:51:10,760 --> 01:51:14,920
and it might need to be relinquished
next year if we get another season

1736
01:51:15,600 --> 01:51:18,600
like this. But I probably value
him more highly than than certainly you do,

1737
01:51:18,720 --> 01:51:25,079
and and most like. But if
you're selling if if it's if it's

1738
01:51:25,159 --> 01:51:29,840
from Atlanta's perspective, and maybe if
I'm trading Murray, I'm probably not trading

1739
01:51:29,880 --> 01:51:31,159
Trey Young. Let me get some
of S. R. Thompson on this

1740
01:51:31,199 --> 01:51:34,840
team to defend. I think that's
pretty exciting to me. My only pause

1741
01:51:34,880 --> 01:51:40,960
for Lanta would be there is a
chance that as soon as next season you

1742
01:51:41,159 --> 01:51:46,039
ended up trading away the two best
players in this deal. But yeah,

1743
01:51:46,279 --> 01:51:49,720
there's there's a chance that the number
one pick is better than usar Thompson,

1744
01:51:49,920 --> 01:51:54,560
Like there's a chance that could absolutely
happen. It kind of should be likely,

1745
01:51:54,760 --> 01:51:57,600
you would normally right, right,
And so like that's why I was

1746
01:51:57,600 --> 01:52:00,039
like do they need durn too?
But then like how intrigued are they by

1747
01:52:00,119 --> 01:52:03,279
him? And a Kung Wu?
Just and also what is Jaden purposes?

1748
01:52:03,399 --> 01:52:09,159
Jay and Ivy serve in Atlanta?
It's like, Okay, Murray's gone and

1749
01:52:09,199 --> 01:52:11,079
now you have this really high imprint. Does it make it? Then?

1750
01:52:11,359 --> 01:52:14,840
Oh we could move young and like
now we're really gonna or is it all

1751
01:52:14,880 --> 01:52:16,760
we want to try and groom more
develop him or is he just trade bait

1752
01:52:16,960 --> 01:52:20,680
in a whole field? That's it's
really hard because, like I mean,

1753
01:52:20,720 --> 01:52:25,159
even Landry Field basically said it.
I keep pulling the same quote up when

1754
01:52:25,199 --> 01:52:28,960
I'm talking about the Hawks of like
basically he says like we've seen the numbers,

1755
01:52:29,000 --> 01:52:30,319
the lineup data, like we kind
of know it doesn't work, and

1756
01:52:30,359 --> 01:52:33,279
he's referring to He doesn't say it
quite that explicitly, but was like,

1757
01:52:33,399 --> 01:52:36,399
we know we have the information.
I think is about as far as he

1758
01:52:36,439 --> 01:52:39,800
went, but the implication is like, yeah, we get it. The

1759
01:52:40,119 --> 01:52:43,159
young Murray thing has not been what
we wanted it to be, and so

1760
01:52:43,319 --> 01:52:47,720
like that leads you to think,
well, like because together in Atlanta,

1761
01:52:47,800 --> 01:52:53,159
they aren't really that valuable, Like
it doesn't work that you know, Okay,

1762
01:52:53,880 --> 01:52:58,399
there we can pretend like they both
don't have separate objective trade value,

1763
01:52:59,079 --> 01:53:02,399
where like the package should still be
like pretty significant for both of those guys,

1764
01:53:02,920 --> 01:53:06,720
because you know, Trey Young on
Team X is like super valuable maybe

1765
01:53:06,720 --> 01:53:12,039
and same with Murray on another team, but together on Atlanta, their value

1766
01:53:12,039 --> 01:53:15,520
is not very high. So it's
like, when you're putting together trade package,

1767
01:53:15,560 --> 01:53:17,880
it's really difficult for me to like
square the fact that, well,

1768
01:53:17,880 --> 01:53:20,680
we all know this doesn't work here, and so like how do we even

1769
01:53:21,039 --> 01:53:24,560
like how do we get anything for
these guys? But other teams are like,

1770
01:53:24,600 --> 01:53:27,399
yeah, we'll take Tray Young.
He's an offense by himself, We'll

1771
01:53:27,479 --> 01:53:30,800
work with that. I don't know. So that's another layer to like the

1772
01:53:30,840 --> 01:53:34,800
complications the number one pick brings is
like, how do you what are the

1773
01:53:34,840 --> 01:53:40,439
relative valuations of both of those guards
around the league? I don't feel like

1774
01:53:40,479 --> 01:53:42,319
I know, I don't feel like
I have a great sense of what those

1775
01:53:42,359 --> 01:53:45,159
guys are worth. No, i'd
be with you. I think everyone assumes

1776
01:53:45,159 --> 01:53:47,000
that they would get a haul for
Tray Young, But then everyone if you're

1777
01:53:47,000 --> 01:53:50,880
sitting here saying that they should look
to trade Tray Young. I tend to

1778
01:53:50,960 --> 01:53:54,960
value Trey Young more than you do. But just if that's the impression of,

1779
01:53:55,279 --> 01:53:58,720
yeah, they should move him,
if that's how you're feeling about someone

1780
01:53:58,760 --> 01:54:02,680
who's just during his prime and supposed
to be all NBA type player, like

1781
01:54:02,760 --> 01:54:06,880
why why are all these other teams
gonna feel so much differently that there's gonna

1782
01:54:06,880 --> 01:54:11,600
be the sweepstakes? Yeah for him? So I don't it's hard. I

1783
01:54:11,640 --> 01:54:18,600
don't know any other draft thing.
No, there's no other draft things because

1784
01:54:18,600 --> 01:54:23,600
I have moved on to stat Paddy. That's two times in a row I've

1785
01:54:23,680 --> 01:54:28,840
stepped on the sound effect for stat
padding. Not a good I mean,

1786
01:54:28,880 --> 01:54:32,239
that's a major bummer. Thanks to
everyone who sent stuff in. I'm so

1787
01:54:32,399 --> 01:54:36,119
far behind in my direct messages because
I'm trying to figure out how to do

1788
01:54:36,159 --> 01:54:42,119
thirty hours of work in twenty four
hour days. But I can start us

1789
01:54:42,119 --> 01:54:45,439
off for you. We have one
from a Rubik scal Are you yetty?

1790
01:54:45,560 --> 01:54:49,399
Who won? I grew up in
a single parent household. My mom worked

1791
01:54:49,399 --> 01:54:55,359
at multiple jobs to raise the family. That is not gonna help me.

1792
01:54:57,039 --> 01:55:00,720
Okay, who too? My last
ring was with the Los Angeles Lakers towards

1793
01:55:00,720 --> 01:55:03,640
the end of my career, though
most people associate me with another franchise.

1794
01:55:05,239 --> 01:55:13,720
Last ring was with my last ring
most people Robert Dorry incorrect? I like

1795
01:55:13,800 --> 01:55:15,920
the guests though. Was his last
ring with the Lakers? I don't know.

1796
01:55:16,000 --> 01:55:20,319
Probably not now. I meant it
was or no need to get a

1797
01:55:20,359 --> 01:55:24,399
spurs one after I thought he got
a spurs one at but I can't remember.

1798
01:55:24,479 --> 01:55:29,119
He probably did, Okay who three? I have played roughly one thousand

1799
01:55:29,199 --> 01:55:34,479
games and started over seventy five percent
of them, so big time starter ring

1800
01:55:34,560 --> 01:55:39,319
with the Lakers, which was his
last ring, but had some with other

1801
01:55:39,439 --> 01:55:47,920
teams. Uh well, now I
was Gonnah? Is it? Danny Green?

1802
01:55:48,680 --> 01:55:51,319
Incorrect? Oh? Fel good about
that one? Thought I had it?

1803
01:55:51,479 --> 01:55:56,560
Okay? Who four? I am
primarily remembered for playing one position,

1804
01:55:56,640 --> 01:56:03,600
though I've played both guard positions.
Oh mmmm, My last dring was for

1805
01:56:03,640 --> 01:56:09,800
the Lakers. Who's a guard that
is not associated with the Lakers but won

1806
01:56:09,840 --> 01:56:15,439
a title there Combo guard? I
feel like I should throw a guess out

1807
01:56:15,479 --> 01:56:27,399
just because it's not Rondo. Rondo
is only a point guard. That is

1808
01:56:27,439 --> 01:56:31,279
correct. It is Rondo. Hey, there's but there's kind of a twist

1809
01:56:31,319 --> 01:56:33,800
here. Okay, I'm all gonna
go through the clues one by one,

1810
01:56:33,920 --> 01:56:36,840
all right. Five. I have
played for the Lakers, Clippers, the

1811
01:56:36,840 --> 01:56:42,239
Cavaliers, and the Bulls and perhaps
other teams. Clu six. I was

1812
01:56:42,319 --> 01:56:45,880
drafted in the first round two years
after the goat, and I want to

1813
01:56:45,960 --> 01:56:49,960
ring with him. Clue seven.
I averaged one point five plus steals per

1814
01:56:50,039 --> 01:56:54,840
game over my career, and multiple
seasons with more than two steals per game.

1815
01:56:55,720 --> 01:56:59,560
Clue eight. I wore the number
four and number nine jerseys. And

1816
01:56:59,600 --> 01:57:03,119
here's twist. Clue nine. What
if I told you I'm not one but

1817
01:57:03,199 --> 01:57:08,319
two players. That's right, every
one of these clues fits two NBA players

1818
01:57:08,399 --> 01:57:13,000
drafted in different years. Hint.
The goats in question are Lebron and Jordan.

1819
01:57:13,560 --> 01:57:16,840
Would you care to venture a guess
as to who the other player is?

1820
01:57:17,239 --> 01:57:21,279
Wait a minute, So and these
so the all these clues apply to

1821
01:57:21,479 --> 01:57:26,760
somebody else besides Rondo. So one, I'll give you the additional clue.

1822
01:57:27,479 --> 01:57:31,199
One of us went to Miami University
in Oxford, Ohio, and the other

1823
01:57:31,279 --> 01:57:35,680
went to the University of Kentucky and
Louisville, Kentucky. We know that the

1824
01:57:35,840 --> 01:57:41,920
Kentucky one is obviously Rondo, god
who got the but this is also a

1825
01:57:42,279 --> 01:57:48,800
so two years after Jordan is this
other guy? Right? Okay? Yeah?

1826
01:57:48,840 --> 01:57:55,800
Two years after Jordan. So that's
eighty seven played for the Lakers,

1827
01:57:55,800 --> 01:57:59,680
Clippers, Caves, and Bulls.
Oh god, so much work went into

1828
01:57:59,680 --> 01:58:03,800
this. I also want to ring
with Jordan. Don't forget oh shit,

1829
01:58:05,399 --> 01:58:11,760
Lakers, Clippers, Caves, and
Bulls. Ron Harper correct, there you

1830
01:58:11,800 --> 01:58:16,600
go. Ron Harper is a we
are I mentioned the ninety six Bulls team

1831
01:58:17,439 --> 01:58:21,880
or the second three people Bull's team
that was psychopathic stuff. Rubik scal favorite

1832
01:58:23,680 --> 01:58:27,680
intense. I appreciate that effort.
Before we go any farther. Uh you

1833
01:58:27,720 --> 01:58:30,960
asked me last podcast, like what
rule would I change? And I feel

1834
01:58:31,000 --> 01:58:33,479
like I really dropped the ball.
I was unprepared. I did think of

1835
01:58:33,520 --> 01:58:38,159
one. Well, they're prepared because
you don't get warnings for stat pat That's

1836
01:58:38,159 --> 01:58:42,640
okay, I should have had it
ready. It's a specific rule if you

1837
01:58:42,760 --> 01:58:46,840
act like you were hitting the face
in an NBA basketball game and in fact

1838
01:58:46,880 --> 01:58:50,880
we're not hit in the face.
Upon review, it is a technical foul

1839
01:58:50,880 --> 01:58:55,880
on you, and if you do
it again, you can be ejected like

1840
01:58:56,279 --> 01:59:00,279
it's a normal technical foul. The
other thing I thought about was, is

1841
01:59:00,319 --> 01:59:02,560
like whatever the penalty would have been
had you been hit in the face as

1842
01:59:02,600 --> 01:59:06,399
severely as you acted like you were, that penalty is assessed to you if

1843
01:59:06,399 --> 01:59:10,800
you were not hitting the face.
I'm just sick of guys like getting hit

1844
01:59:10,840 --> 01:59:14,119
in the chest or shoulder or not
hit at all, and go down in

1845
01:59:14,119 --> 01:59:16,520
a heap with hands over face and
like act like they've been shot. So

1846
01:59:16,720 --> 01:59:20,520
I would like to let you you
don't like flopping. It really all comes

1847
01:59:20,560 --> 01:59:24,760
back to flopping. I'm sick of
it. And this did happen to come

1848
01:59:24,840 --> 01:59:27,640
up while I was watching the Dallas
Mavericks, So I'll leave it there,

1849
01:59:29,399 --> 01:59:32,439
all right. I have one for
you, Dan from Nicole Cha Coole ev

1850
01:59:32,439 --> 01:59:39,159
here. This is a guy that
comes up very often for so many reasons.

1851
01:59:39,560 --> 01:59:43,199
That's the clue, not a clue, that's just the clue. Number

1852
01:59:43,239 --> 01:59:47,560
one. After a three year career
at Marquette, invaluable information for Dan.

1853
01:59:47,960 --> 01:59:54,079
I was drafted in the thirties.
Just get players go, Greg Buckner.

1854
01:59:55,600 --> 01:59:59,720
Clue number two. My draft was
a weird one despite only twenty three teams

1855
01:59:59,720 --> 02:00:04,039
exis at the time. The Cleveland
Cavaliers were awarded a courtesy twenty fourth pick

1856
02:00:04,319 --> 02:00:09,560
because their owner Ted Steppien kept trading
away their first round picks, which prompted

1857
02:00:09,600 --> 02:00:14,720
the eventual rule against trading first round
picks in consecutive years. So they were

1858
02:00:14,800 --> 02:00:17,239
drafted twenty fourth overall, is what. No, they said they were drafted

1859
02:00:17,279 --> 02:00:20,800
in the thirties. Drafted in the
thirties. The draft was a weird one

1860
02:00:20,800 --> 02:00:25,079
though, because he's basically giving you
like you know, there's only twenty three

1861
02:00:25,159 --> 02:00:29,000
teams, so this is like a
minute ago. But the Cavs got a

1862
02:00:29,000 --> 02:00:35,560
twenty fourth because Ted Stepien was a
lunatic. I don't even have a guest,

1863
02:00:35,600 --> 02:00:40,800
all right, clue three. I
promise you will get this before I

1864
02:00:40,840 --> 02:00:43,680
got drafted in nineteen eighty three,
So now we have the year. I

1865
02:00:43,800 --> 02:00:46,720
represented the US men's national team at
the nineteen eighty two World Championship, helping

1866
02:00:46,720 --> 02:00:50,079
them win a silver Individually, I
was awarded the MVP of the tournament.

1867
02:00:50,239 --> 02:00:55,600
I'm assuming you don't remember the nineteen
eighty two World Championships. Nope, are

1868
02:00:55,600 --> 02:00:58,600
here you go? During my thirteen
year career. I ended up playing for

1869
02:00:58,640 --> 02:01:01,520
four teams one time All Star.
I spent eight years playing for the team

1870
02:01:01,560 --> 02:01:05,199
that drafted me, tem X.
I was the all time leading assist man

1871
02:01:05,199 --> 02:01:11,920
for TMX with three and sixty six
until earlier this year when they're multi time

1872
02:01:12,000 --> 02:01:15,680
All Star passed me. He now
has exactly two assists more than me.

1873
02:01:21,880 --> 02:01:26,279
Yeah, I got nothing, okay, uh, CLU five. I come

1874
02:01:26,279 --> 02:01:29,720
from a family of basketball players.
My uncle Jim Brewer was the nineteen eighty

1875
02:01:29,880 --> 02:01:34,239
was a nineteen eighty two NBA champion. I don't remember Jim Brewer. I

1876
02:01:34,279 --> 02:01:39,560
don't remember him either, all right, CLU six, remember that All Star

1877
02:01:39,640 --> 02:01:43,079
guard that passed me as the leading
assist man on TX. There's a chance

1878
02:01:43,119 --> 02:01:50,239
he doesn't get to extend his lead
this coming season. There's a chance he

1879
02:01:50,319 --> 02:01:55,479
doesn't get So he's a free agent. I guess is what there is what

1880
02:01:55,520 --> 02:01:59,960
they're saying, that's how I took
it. A guard who's a free agent,

1881
02:02:00,039 --> 02:02:01,800
and that just set a record for
the franchise. And that's not even

1882
02:02:01,800 --> 02:02:06,159
the answer of what the question is. When I looked through this earlier,

1883
02:02:06,199 --> 02:02:13,600
I couldn't. I don't know who
that is. Yeah, trying to think

1884
02:02:14,199 --> 02:02:23,000
so someone's long standing they're a free
agent, are they or are they just

1885
02:02:23,199 --> 02:02:30,439
like going to be traded? This
is tough. Yeah, yes, continue

1886
02:02:30,520 --> 02:02:34,199
to give me. Well, well
let me see, let me see if

1887
02:02:34,199 --> 02:02:38,960
I could just pull something. No, that's not something I keep thinking of,

1888
02:02:39,079 --> 02:02:42,840
Like, oh, I'm trying to
backtrack from Yeah, we would hold

1889
02:02:42,840 --> 02:02:45,199
the record and assists, and then
it's like, well, they're not going

1890
02:02:45,279 --> 02:02:48,680
to leave, but they're not in
a position to where they're ye. And

1891
02:02:48,720 --> 02:02:54,279
then even if you get that player, you have to know that this other

1892
02:02:54,479 --> 02:02:58,279
the actual guess a player you're doing
here played for that franchise, which is

1893
02:02:58,319 --> 02:03:02,560
like there's two layers going on.
Yeah, please carry on right, changing

1894
02:03:02,560 --> 02:03:06,720
gears. Clue seven, back to
my talented family. My oldest son has

1895
02:03:06,760 --> 02:03:11,319
played in the NBA G League,
My daughter played volleyball at the University of

1896
02:03:11,319 --> 02:03:15,239
Florida and is married to an NBA
player, while my middle son has spent

1897
02:03:15,279 --> 02:03:30,159
eleven years in the NBA. Is
this uh no? But is it spent

1898
02:03:30,279 --> 02:03:36,319
eleven has spent eleven years in the
NBA. Can you read that last clue

1899
02:03:36,319 --> 02:03:40,840
again? Yep? Clue eight.
Did I mention how talented my family is?

1900
02:03:40,960 --> 02:03:45,039
I've spent more than twenty years.
I've almost blew it reading you Clue

1901
02:03:45,039 --> 02:03:49,039
eight because it starts the same way
back to my talented family Clue seven.

1902
02:03:49,119 --> 02:03:53,920
My oldest son has played in the
NBA G League. My daughter played volleyball

1903
02:03:54,000 --> 02:03:58,000
at the University of Florida and is
married to an NBA player, while my

1904
02:03:58,039 --> 02:04:08,880
middle son has spent eleven years in
the NBA. Ugh my middle son,

1905
02:04:09,199 --> 02:04:12,960
I have no idea. Can you
probably will get it here? Uh?

1906
02:04:13,039 --> 02:04:15,199
Klue ait? Did I mention how
talented my family is. I've spent more

1907
02:04:15,279 --> 02:04:18,960
than twenty years as a head coach
in the NBA. During that River,

1908
02:04:20,119 --> 02:04:24,920
you say Doc Rivers, it is
Doc Rivers? Is I didn't realize that.

1909
02:04:25,119 --> 02:04:29,840
I didn't know that Austin Rivers was
a middle child. I guess I

1910
02:04:29,880 --> 02:04:32,319
thought about that. I should have
just said Doc Rivers one. I wonder

1911
02:04:32,399 --> 02:04:38,000
that was I feel like I should
know this. So I think when you

1912
02:04:38,039 --> 02:04:41,359
said like or is he going to
be traded? I think maybe the guy

1913
02:04:41,720 --> 02:04:45,319
that passed Rivers for all time assists
for a team as Trey Young with the

1914
02:04:45,359 --> 02:04:47,680
Hawks, because I think Rivers was
drafted by the Hawks. But I really

1915
02:04:47,840 --> 02:04:53,399
don't know. I think of Rivers
as I don't know what like a nick

1916
02:04:53,600 --> 02:05:01,279
maybe? Uh. I always associated
Doc Rivers with three to one leads people

1917
02:05:01,319 --> 02:05:05,720
out, So I don't know.
I'm gonna I'm gonna look it up.

1918
02:05:06,880 --> 02:05:12,840
Uh Are you ready to uh do
a guess a player from Mike? Yes,

1919
02:05:12,960 --> 02:05:16,279
I am, okay. It wasn't
Land by the way, Sorry,

1920
02:05:16,319 --> 02:05:18,960
go ahead, so that it must
have been Trey, I think so.

1921
02:05:20,640 --> 02:05:25,159
Clue one, I was drafted by
the Washington Bullets in the lottery in the

1922
02:05:25,279 --> 02:05:35,199
nineteen eighties. Gotta try Bullets eighties. That's just that's too far back.

1923
02:05:35,239 --> 02:05:41,479
I can't think of anybody that's on
the Bullets from eighties. I would love

1924
02:05:41,520 --> 02:05:44,479
to have attempted a one shot,
but I'm not gonna have an answer for

1925
02:05:44,560 --> 02:05:48,520
that. Clue two. My playing
times are rookie dropped significantly when my coach

1926
02:05:48,640 --> 02:05:55,359
was fired and replaced by Wes Unseld
Senior. Clearly, poor coaching decisions ran

1927
02:05:55,399 --> 02:06:00,159
in the family regardless despite only starting
fourteen games, the team in steals.

1928
02:06:00,560 --> 02:06:08,720
Oh. I was gonna say minute
Bowl, but I don't think he's a

1929
02:06:08,800 --> 02:06:14,159
highest Steel incorrect, Nor was I
sure that the Bullets drafted him or that

1930
02:06:14,199 --> 02:06:17,279
it was in the eighties. Uh. Sorry, led the team in steals

1931
02:06:17,600 --> 02:06:24,560
as a sophomore. Uh as a
rookie. As a rookie, yeah,

1932
02:06:25,159 --> 02:06:30,800
only started fourteen games and led the
Bullets and steals. I got nothing CLEW

1933
02:06:30,920 --> 02:06:34,039
three, Washington, going to Washington. They left me unprotected in the upcoming

1934
02:06:34,079 --> 02:06:44,319
expansion draft. Hmmm, Scott Skiles
incorrect. Good guess though CLU four.

1935
02:06:44,760 --> 02:06:47,439
The following season, the expansion team
that drafted me made me a sixth man.

1936
02:06:50,079 --> 02:06:54,920
I'll just guess Scott styles again,
probably still interact, believe it or

1937
02:06:54,960 --> 02:06:58,520
not. So wait, so this
is a I guess we could be late

1938
02:06:58,560 --> 02:07:03,640
eighties and our expansion team was or
what like Miami and then Orlando or Charlotte.

1939
02:07:03,680 --> 02:07:11,560
I guess is probably in there.
Oh uh is this Muggsy correct?

1940
02:07:11,760 --> 02:07:15,920
That's good. You got it on
CLU three of eleven. I read a

1941
02:07:15,960 --> 02:07:20,720
biography of Muggsy Bogues in seventh grade. I remember there was like a big

1942
02:07:20,760 --> 02:07:24,439
deal that because he was from Baltimore
and it was a big deal that he

1943
02:07:24,520 --> 02:07:28,039
got that the Bullet He played for
the Bullets for a minute. I'm sorry

1944
02:07:28,079 --> 02:07:30,600
you got it on CLU four out
of eleven, though, that was impressive.

1945
02:07:30,920 --> 02:07:32,720
Five. I'm going to become a
fixture in the team's high tempo offense

1946
02:07:32,760 --> 02:07:36,319
for the next ten years CLU six
and ninety seven. My relationship with the

1947
02:07:36,319 --> 02:07:41,600
team sour massively as my coach suggested
I retire due to knee issues I'd been

1948
02:07:41,640 --> 02:07:45,000
having. The next week, they
signed my replacement, CLU seven. Two

1949
02:07:45,000 --> 02:07:47,640
games into the ninety seven season,
I was traded to the Warriors with Tony

1950
02:07:47,680 --> 02:07:51,560
Delk for bj Armstrong. I went
on to lead the Warriors and assists despite

1951
02:07:51,640 --> 02:07:56,920
only playing thirty six games due to
hamstring and knee injuries and chicken pox.

1952
02:07:57,199 --> 02:08:01,000
I'm starting to think I'm somewhat cursed. In nineteen eighty nine, I signed

1953
02:08:01,000 --> 02:08:03,000
with the Raptors, reuniting with my
best friend from two teams ago, Del

1954
02:08:03,079 --> 02:08:07,920
Curry Clue nine. I played eighty
three games in the Purple, Black and

1955
02:08:07,960 --> 02:08:11,439
Red before being traded again to the
Knicks for Chris Childs in a first round

1956
02:08:11,439 --> 02:08:16,279
pick. That offseason, I was
shipped again to Dallas for Shandon Anderson,

1957
02:08:16,319 --> 02:08:18,720
Howard Eisley, and Glenn Rice.
I stepped away from basketball to take care

1958
02:08:18,760 --> 02:08:22,319
of my sick mother. CLU ten. Mark Cuban, who just bought the

1959
02:08:22,319 --> 02:08:26,119
Maps, fully guaranteed the remainder of
my contracts. Before waiving me so that

1960
02:08:26,159 --> 02:08:30,079
the rest of my contract will be
paid out to me, tolling over three

1961
02:08:30,119 --> 02:08:33,039
million dollars, something I publicly thanked
Cuban four in twenty eleven, as his

1962
02:08:33,119 --> 02:08:37,920
active kindness was not lost on me. Cool eleven, I'm the short king,

1963
02:08:37,479 --> 02:08:43,600
as I am the shortest player in
NBA history. Nice Hellve Mosey Bogues

1964
02:08:43,680 --> 02:08:46,880
was a very early favorite player for
me, like among my favorites, just

1965
02:08:46,920 --> 02:08:50,199
because like, oh he's little,
Like that's cool. I'm almost that tall,

1966
02:08:50,920 --> 02:08:54,840
all right, I have several from
Mike. I'll give you one of

1967
02:08:54,880 --> 02:09:00,239
them, would you like, like, what level of obscurity would would you

1968
02:09:00,279 --> 02:09:03,720
prefer here? Like on a one
to ten scale, with one being not

1969
02:09:03,840 --> 02:09:11,760
obscure, give me a give me
a seven. Oh okay, there's only

1970
02:09:11,760 --> 02:09:18,680
one choice here then, clue number
one. I was drafted in twenty nineteen

1971
02:09:18,800 --> 02:09:24,720
outside the lottery. Who is the
number one pick in twenty nineteen? Again,

1972
02:09:24,079 --> 02:09:35,159
that was Jesus who was twenty nineteen
too early for the Because twenty nineteen

1973
02:09:35,199 --> 02:09:41,199
twenty twenty doesn't twenty twesdays two twenty
three, this would have been a fifth

1974
02:09:41,239 --> 02:09:46,640
season, which means they're already on
their extension well, if they're outside the

1975
02:09:46,680 --> 02:09:50,520
lottery, I mean that they might
have only got like a like one of

1976
02:09:50,520 --> 02:09:56,359
those two year deals or three year
deals. Didn't say how far outside the

1977
02:09:56,399 --> 02:09:58,319
lottery. Oh wait, outside the
lottery, outside the first round, there's

1978
02:09:58,439 --> 02:10:03,840
outside the there's still scale, So
that's the same difference. What if Okay,

1979
02:10:03,840 --> 02:10:05,239
all right, he was drafted.
That's all. That's all I know

1980
02:10:05,359 --> 02:10:09,279
so far. Oh okay, all
right, keep going. Well, I

1981
02:10:09,279 --> 02:10:11,239
I haven't read the rest of the
clues. I don't want to mislead you

1982
02:10:11,279 --> 02:10:13,399
and say like, it's definitely not
the first round. I don't know.

1983
02:10:13,439 --> 02:10:16,399
Oh yeah, I'm just describing.
So I'm thinking he was still drafted in

1984
02:10:16,399 --> 02:10:20,479
the first round. Okay, drafted
outside the lottery in twenty nineteen, twenty

1985
02:10:20,560 --> 02:10:22,399
twenty, I mean in twenty nineteen. But I'm my point was this would

1986
02:10:22,399 --> 02:10:26,119
be his fifth season then, because
yeah, nineteen twenty te yeah yeah,

1987
02:10:26,159 --> 02:10:31,319
yeah, yeah, right, so
this this was his fifth season unless he's

1988
02:10:31,319 --> 02:10:35,920
out of the NBA. Who was
drafted out nineteen that's still in the NBA

1989
02:10:37,640 --> 02:10:48,359
fifth season? Do I think of
who started the Uh? Aaron Smith is

1990
02:10:48,399 --> 02:10:52,680
not Aaron Smith by the way,
Do you can we sidebar and figure out

1991
02:10:52,680 --> 02:10:54,880
who was the first pick in twenty
nineteen, because I can't remember. Is

1992
02:10:54,880 --> 02:11:00,560
that the Ions draft? No,
it couldn't be. Couldn't he just started

1993
02:11:00,560 --> 02:11:03,840
his extension this year, ton't or
no this ion jaw. I don't want

1994
02:11:03,840 --> 02:11:07,359
to look it up because then I'm
yeah, I know, well, I'll

1995
02:11:07,399 --> 02:11:09,760
look it up later. I'm so
bad at that going by the year,

1996
02:11:09,800 --> 02:11:15,279
Okay, Klutu. Before being drafted, I played professionally for the Serbian team

1997
02:11:15,399 --> 02:11:18,279
KK Megabasket, also being loaned out
to two other teams in that league,

1998
02:11:18,560 --> 02:11:22,319
one in Serbia, one in Montenegro. I am not from one of the

1999
02:11:22,319 --> 02:11:33,319
former Yugoslavian nations. Oh Man Fakuno
Komposo wasn't drafted, right, I don't

2000
02:11:33,359 --> 02:11:39,920
know. I don't think, so
Okay, carry on all right. Clue

2001
02:11:39,960 --> 02:11:45,760
three, I am the second highest
drafted player from my home country, which

2002
02:11:45,840 --> 02:11:48,079
is yeah, I don't know it. We don't know it. And as

2003
02:11:48,079 --> 02:11:50,399
I'm trying to think of it because
I know who it is because I looked

2004
02:11:50,439 --> 02:11:56,560
ahead, I I can't remember.
Clue four. Though not a lottery pick,

2005
02:11:58,039 --> 02:12:01,479
I was thought of as someone who
could could have or should have gone

2006
02:12:01,479 --> 02:12:05,640
in the lottery because of my upside
having been coached at KK Megabasket, a

2007
02:12:05,640 --> 02:12:13,600
club known for developing NBA talent.
Zip zilch noda for me, I don't

2008
02:12:13,600 --> 02:12:16,760
even have a name, did there? I was just started named a few

2009
02:12:16,800 --> 02:12:20,039
that were drafted in twenty nineteen.
That's assuming what thing you get the right

2010
02:12:20,119 --> 02:12:24,279
draft class? Right. Well,
I also could not have told you that

2011
02:12:24,359 --> 02:12:28,479
this guy was drafted in twenty nineteen. Like if you'd given me like a

2012
02:12:28,520 --> 02:12:31,920
three year window, I probably could
have got close. But I just so

2013
02:12:31,000 --> 02:12:33,840
you're saying you thought he was in
the league for less time or more time.

2014
02:12:35,720 --> 02:12:37,800
I mean, now that I've had
time to think about it, sounds

2015
02:12:37,840 --> 02:12:41,119
about right, but I'd probably say
less. If I had to guess,

2016
02:12:41,199 --> 02:12:46,920
I would lean towards less. You
asked for a seven on the obscurity scale.

2017
02:12:46,960 --> 02:12:48,720
So this is you signed up.
I know this player, Yeah,

2018
02:12:48,760 --> 02:12:52,840
you know, you know? Uh, clue five. I didn't get much

2019
02:12:52,840 --> 02:12:56,239
playing time in my first two seasons, averaging only ten minutes a game in

2020
02:12:56,319 --> 02:12:58,640
ninety nine games, as I was
buried behind a glut of other big men

2021
02:12:58,720 --> 02:13:03,760
on my team. Okay, so
they're a big man and there's a glut,

2022
02:13:07,399 --> 02:13:09,560
and that doesn't really help me.
No, just a big in twenty

2023
02:13:09,840 --> 02:13:16,000
nineteen, now, keep going okay, in the postseason, in my second

2024
02:13:16,000 --> 02:13:20,039
season, I was fined by my
team for getting into an on court altercation

2025
02:13:20,159 --> 02:13:26,800
with an assistant coach. I feel
like I should know this one now I

2026
02:13:26,800 --> 02:13:33,039
don't remember that. Then maybe not
fine for an altercation in what year in

2027
02:13:33,079 --> 02:13:37,520
the playoffs? It'd be his second
season, so it'd be the twenty one

2028
02:13:37,520 --> 02:13:43,039
playoffs. Yeah, right, pandemic
time. My brain was mush, like

2029
02:13:43,239 --> 02:13:48,239
what month even were the playoffs that
year? August? Yeah? Yes,

2030
02:13:48,319 --> 02:13:54,000
keep there was a young big fine
for an altercation on a team where he's

2031
02:13:54,039 --> 02:14:00,039
buried behind a glut of other bigs. That's a good clue because I do

2032
02:14:00,199 --> 02:14:05,600
think of him like in that context
at that time. Yeank you going all

2033
02:14:05,680 --> 02:14:09,600
right? Clue seven. The next
season, I started sixteen games and started

2034
02:14:09,600 --> 02:14:16,960
to develop the signs of an outside
shooting game. Holy hell, who is

2035
02:14:18,000 --> 02:14:24,079
this? That's such a good clue. This was a third season, I

2036
02:14:24,079 --> 02:14:33,439
believe, so yeah, yes,
two starts apparently taking threes. Rashaun Holmes.

2037
02:14:35,079 --> 02:14:39,319
No, that's a good guess though, also you know that well is

2038
02:14:39,359 --> 02:14:45,800
it said explicitly this is a guy, This is a European guy. Based

2039
02:14:45,800 --> 02:14:50,199
on all this kk MEGA and oh
yeah, I forgot about that, although

2040
02:14:50,239 --> 02:14:52,960
like the clue, to be fair, the clues don't say that specifically.

2041
02:14:52,039 --> 02:14:56,159
It says he's not from Serbia or
Montenegro, but like, okay, I'll

2042
02:14:56,159 --> 02:15:01,079
just tell you that that might give
it away. All right, carry on,

2043
02:15:01,319 --> 02:15:03,920
all right? Uh Clue eight,
here you go, Dan. In

2044
02:15:05,000 --> 02:15:09,239
my fourth season, I was waved
after the trade deadline and ultimately signed with

2045
02:15:09,399 --> 02:15:22,319
Orlando. Oh is it Bobol Nope? Is this waved? And then signe

2046
02:15:22,439 --> 02:15:28,000
with Orlando? Move Wagner? Nope, he signed in free agency. That's

2047
02:15:28,079 --> 02:15:35,359
right, at the trade deadline.
Go go Pitazz. That's correct. I

2048
02:15:35,920 --> 02:15:37,840
wanted to tell you, like you're
so close, so you're just all over

2049
02:15:37,880 --> 02:15:43,199
it. Uh okay, clute,
you only had two more here, I

2050
02:15:43,239 --> 02:15:46,760
think for sure. Cluton nine was
I started thirty three games this past season,

2051
02:15:46,880 --> 02:15:50,159
and some people thought that the Magic
might move Wendell Carter Junior because I

2052
02:15:50,199 --> 02:15:54,319
was playing so well. As we've
got it there, Yeahahice, because we

2053
02:15:54,560 --> 02:15:58,199
definitely talked about that. And also
the shooting clue was really sneaky because like,

2054
02:15:58,680 --> 02:16:03,199
that's not the player he became like
he became. And now I'm remembering

2055
02:16:03,239 --> 02:16:05,800
his altercation on the Pacers with an
assistant coach, right. I don't know

2056
02:16:05,840 --> 02:16:09,159
if that was in the clue.
Yeah, I don't remember that. I

2057
02:16:09,199 --> 02:16:13,720
remember the minute there where it was
like this pacer center that's behind Turner and

2058
02:16:13,760 --> 02:16:18,079
I guess Sabonis and probably somebody else
is like, oh, he can shoot

2059
02:16:18,119 --> 02:16:20,199
threes. But that was like just
I don't know, maybe a month or

2060
02:16:20,239 --> 02:16:24,319
two or something. Clue ten was
I went viral before ever getting drafted,

2061
02:16:24,319 --> 02:16:28,600
as there was a photo of hundreds
of reporters interviewing the player at the table

2062
02:16:28,640 --> 02:16:31,120
beside me, Zion Williamson, there
you go, there's our answer, and

2063
02:16:31,159 --> 02:16:33,959
no one was at my table to
interview me. Dwayne Wade and Draymond Green

2064
02:16:35,000 --> 02:16:37,000
both said on podcasts that I should
use that image as motivation. I have

2065
02:16:37,159 --> 02:16:41,719
not. You don't know that,
Mike. Maybe he's very motivated by that.

2066
02:16:41,799 --> 02:16:46,799
Still he's still in the league.
I'm go gobaze sufficiently obscure. I

2067
02:16:46,840 --> 02:16:50,680
think that was That was a tough
one. I should have went with an

2068
02:16:50,680 --> 02:16:54,239
easier one to feel good about myself. But a couple other ones I think

2069
02:16:54,799 --> 02:16:58,639
you would have gotten pretty quickly.
Although I haven't read the clues, so

2070
02:16:58,719 --> 02:17:01,200
I don't know. Well, considering
we've been going for over two hours and

2071
02:17:01,239 --> 02:17:03,600
sixteen minutes, those will be safe
for next time. Grant, would you

2072
02:17:03,639 --> 02:17:07,840
like to take us out of here? Sure? Another banner get in and

2073
02:17:07,840 --> 02:17:09,559
Get out podcasts by the book,
we're only dropping two a week. Although

2074
02:17:09,559 --> 02:17:11,680
we dropped three, we've drop this
is the first week. We're probably gonna

2075
02:17:11,719 --> 02:17:15,319
drop two unless I put out one
over the weekend. But we're giving you

2076
02:17:15,399 --> 02:17:18,479
probably over four hours of content.
Some would say too much. Probably,

2077
02:17:18,559 --> 02:17:22,959
I don't know, maybe not enough. Thanks everyone, especially to those of

2078
02:17:22,959 --> 02:17:26,760
you who contributed for the guest players
always appreciated. Thanks for listening. If

2079
02:17:26,760 --> 02:17:30,879
you're not rating, reviewing, subscribing, please please help us out and do

2080
02:17:30,920 --> 02:17:33,239
those things. Tell your friends about
the podcast, spread the word. We

2081
02:17:33,280 --> 02:17:35,680
don't know where there is to go
beyond number one. We'd just like to

2082
02:17:35,719 --> 02:17:41,200
explore and see what other heights are
out there. I think that's going to

2083
02:17:41,280 --> 02:17:43,959
do it. Other than to say, if you want to contribute in the

2084
02:17:43,959 --> 02:17:46,280
future, join our discord and leaks
for that YouTube and podcast description the same

2085
02:17:46,319 --> 02:17:50,159
place we find some merch shouts Frank
Milakeina apologies, Jaed Allen