Speaker 1: What is up, fellow sikos. I am Dana Valley coming
at you with my certified fantabulous co host, mister Grant Hughes.
We have a very fun episode for you today. We
have one hot take for every NBA team heading into
this season. But at the end, stay tuned. We had
a bunch of submissions from subscribers, listeners, Discord members, Twitter followers,
the whole nine and I selected the best, like or
the most what we thought were the best fifteen or so,
so your submissions may have made it to the end
of the show about whether this is essentially going to
be we're each providing a hot take, but we're also
the other person's gonna have to judge whether we think
it's hot or not. So this is a lot of fun.
We're also putting out a podcast on a Saturday, so
you're welcome or I'm sorry. It feels like a trillion
years since and I have podcasted, even though we did
a stream following the Karl Anthony Towns trade, we did have.
I mentioned this to our Discord members lost to it's
not lost because it's up. Go check out the NBA podcast.
But we did lead past rankings, so we had three
hours locked and loaded, graphics and stuff ready for you
to go on YouTube. That shit ain't seem the light
of day anymore. Folks blame Minnesota and New York and
I guess Charlotte tangentially, but they didn't really do too much.
Grant and everyone shout out to Grant. He's just recovering
from being sick this week, which is why we're recording
so later in the week, and he's powering through to
do it. It's not even just another podcast, It's in
every team podcast. So shout out Grant Hughes as always.
How are you feeling, mister Hughes.
Speaker 2: I'm feeling excited and also in need of clarification because,
as I've mentioned to you, the whole hot take thing, Like,
I think it's pretty clear I have a lot of
failings as a person and a podcaster, But like my
grip on what is and is in a hot take
is real loose.
Speaker 1: I'm not sure.
Speaker 2: So I feel like I ask you this all the time,
but in your mind, so if we're saying this is
a hot take or it is not a hot take,
like when we're doing the judging portion of it, is
it is it a hot take if it's in the
sweet spot of oh that's kind of implausible, but I
like it. Or is it a hot take if it's
like that's never happening.
Speaker 1: No, I think you've me that's a delusional take. And
so it's just like I think there's fire through Where
is it hot or not? So if it I view
a hot take as it's something you believe but you
don't necessarily set out for it to be, even though
the theme of this podcast is hot takes, but it's
it's something you believe that you think is contrarian to
what everybody else believes, and that determines the level of
hotness where I like, if you sit here when you
do because Grant has the west eye of the East
and you're like, Steph Curry will lead the Warriors and scoring,
that's not a hot take.
Speaker 2: That's not a hot take because everybody believes that, right.
Speaker 1: But if you're sitting here and like if like trying
to be purposely contring where Steph Curry is going to
rank fifth on the Warriors and points per game, well,
it's like, okay, no, so that's also not a hot take.
It's a well it is, it's diluted at that it's
too hot, that's what it is. So it's it's so
it's is it hot or not? And then is it
too hot? So that you get into the mix of that.
And as I was going through it before, we get
started very quickly anything I do. I actually changed a
couple from trades because I found myself predicting trades a lot.
And you know why those feel so hot because of
just the I know, we just had the Karl Anthony
Towns blockbuster, but teams are just still trying to figure
out how to navigate and plan like on a year
by year basis, with the first Apron the second Apron,
the limitations within they work, and how we saw it
with the Nixon Timberwolves, where these apron teams functionally can't
trade with one another unless it's a dollar for dollar match,
which makes it interesting. So inherently, if you're sitting here saying,
like any trade happens, it's almost a hot take because
it's like, well like.
Speaker 2: Yeah, okay, so I think I think where I get
into trouble is like the bold prediction, right, is its
own thing where it's like when you make bold predictions,
it's like I'm not sure I think this will happen. Like,
and if you make ten bold predictions, like the target
is like maybe two of them should actually happen, But
you're just making a case for why it's plausible. So
this isn't that the hot take is really dependent on
what is the conventional wisdom? Where do I diverge from it?
And do I diverge from it in the correct amount
in that it's like not insane, but it also just
has to not be conventional wisdom.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that's a great when when we're both
doing bold predictions. I mean, Bleach Report never asked us
to do bold predictions or fake trades. It's really weird,
but they never ask us to do them. But on
the off chance we have to do them bold predictions
I do always set out like I'm trying to get
like a ten percent or twenty percent rate on these things.
But with the hot takes, I don't I actually don't
know if some of these are hot. There's more conviction
behind what word Like all these are things that if
you ask me to predict, I don't know if I would,
But there are things that I actually believe some of them.
I wouldn't predict if I don't want to be wrong.
Speaker 2: So even the hot takes that I'm gonna give that
I don't actually believe I will sell them as if
I do, so they fall into the hot take a bucket.
Speaker 1: Yeah, there you go. Maybe there are consensus hot takes?
Is that an oxymornon?
Speaker 2: I don't know. We should probably start We're just I'm
I feel like I'm slightly less confused than usual.
Speaker 1: Yes, we're gonna go alphabetically across the whole league, which
is always a dangerous proposition because the alphabet for some
reason changes all the time. Grant, it's just one of
those moving targets. We begin with the Atlanta Hawks. Look
at that already experts in the alphabet. I have the
Eastern Conference. So grant hot or not. Jalen Johnson's max
salary in an extension that he tacicely could sign before
this podcast comes out is thirty eight point seven million dollars.
I think he will get thirty three million dollars or
more in his extension or if this goes to restricted
free agency, his next deal. Is that hot or not?
Speaker 2: I'm not sure that's hot because I personally agree with you.
I don't know if I'm representative of conventional wisdom there,
but I think I think the expectation should be that
he gets real close to the max, right, I think.
I mean there's some risk there just because he really
has just had the one breakout year, But like in
a lot of cases, that's enough, given his youth, given
the position he plays, given all of the you know,
the production he's had to this point. So I guess
if I got to choose, I think that's not a
hot take, because I do I just agree with you.
I think that's about the number, if you know, thirty
three plus. He might like he might just get the max, right, Like,
that's totally within play.
Speaker 1: I do feel like if he got the max, that
would be hot just because he's had one season. He
hasn't like had a season yet where he's averaged fifteen
minutes fifteen minutes more than fifteen minutes per game and
played in more than sixty five games because last year
was supposed to be that year and ends I'm not
hitting the game's minimum. I also find it and maybe
this just gets resolved in restricted free agency? What are
the Hawks doing? I just had this conversation with Lauren
Williams from the AJC, and it's their direction is fascinating
because they don't control their next three picks. They just
drafted Zachary Reci's shade number one. Overall, they won't pay
the tax. We know that, Yet Trey Young makes a
bunch of money. Jalen Johnson's coming up and what could
be a mega extension, so I don't know. And then
just the limited sample size with him as a central
player makes me wonder would they And if he's gonna
sign it and he's dealt with some injuries, is he
just going to take like thirty million? So I probably
agree with you that it wouldn't. It's not a hot
enough daste. So if I sat here and said, Jalen
Johnson get the max, would you consider that hot?
Speaker 2: That's that's a lot hotterer to me, just because of
the reasons you outline, Like it's not like there aren't
questions here about him. He's definitely the best, like the
most maxible candidate that Atlanta has and would be the
most maxible candidate that like a lot of teams would have.
But it's it's certainly not a no brainer. So like
if he just got the max, it would be, it
would be a sub. We would we would have a
discussion about it, and we would talk about all the
reasons why that might be a bad call, right, And.
Speaker 1: I won't predict because I honestly don't think he's gonna
get the MAX. And if he does, I think it's
probably because he went to RFA like he gets an extension.
I will be, that'll be I'll be floored if he
gets the max and an extension.
Speaker 2: I would agree with that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, which means that per the alphabet, we get to
move on to your Boston Celtics. How exciting is that
Grant Hughes hot or not, Jalen Brown will lead the
team in points per game. Now do I need to
give you well, do I need to give you my
rationale behind it? I don't think so. First you need
to tell me if it's hot or not.
Speaker 2: My first reaction is that's a hot take just because
Jason Tatum exists and he's a better scorer than Jalen Brown.
But it is in the It is right in that
sweet spot you want because you know, finals MVP like
just kind of continues to get better. Uh, but are
you factoring in that Jason Tatum is still seventeen years
old and could get a lot.
Speaker 1: From nineteen Grant he's aged a little. No, he's not aged.
That's we've reached that point in the age, the aging.
So my thought process was this is they were closer
then I think many people realized last season because maybe
they're still remembering when Jason Tatum averaged thirty points a
game in twenty two twenty three, Jaysa was at twenty
six point nine, Jalen Brown was at twenty three. Now
my rationale is there might be more. There should be
more shots to go around because of christophs Porzingi's injury,
Like you're not gonna give those shots to Lou Cornette
and Xavier Tillman and Namy his Cada. But the other
thing for me is I really think that Jason Tatum
is going to have a career year as a playmaker
and so kind of the version we saw of him
towards like the last his last seven games of the playoffs,
not just in the finals where he averaged over seven
assists per game. I think that's gonna be more of
a focus from him, and maybe subconsciously he might be
thinking about I want to have the same type, because
isn't it weird, Like Jayson Tatum could average twenty seven
points five assists and we're like kind of eh, but
if he averaged like twenty five and eight or nine,
we'd be like, Wow, he belongs to the MVP discussion.
And so I feel like it's gonna be that type
of a season. I don't know conviction level behind this,
if I had to assign, like on a scale of
one to ten, is probably like a five. Like I'm
very much in the middle of it. But I also
think Jalen Brown is blossom enough in terms of his
scoring package, and also kind of just understanding that, all right,
they need me to play make when I'm getting downhill.
I can't have a tunnel vision, but like, you're not
going to lean on Jalen Brown for a ton of
secondary playmaking. So I think just kind of understanding his
identity coupled with I really do think that we're gonna
see Jason Tatum focus on playmaking this year. That's where
I'm gonna go with. But this is this is one
of the ones that I feel like could age like milk.
Speaker 2: I mean, the way that you get there, You're you're
thinking about it correctly, because I do think Tatum, you know,
it's the whole, the whole thing with Tatum of like,
well he's he's not a top five guy, and like
it's just well it doesn't matter. They got a title now,
so who cares. But it's like the way he might
change that narrative is by a sort of adding a
new not adding because he can already do it, but
like really like cranking up the non score aspects of
his game, and like Brown, I don't like Brown can't
do that right or it's like there's not a lot
of evidence to suggests that Brown has like a bunch
of playmaking upside, whereas Tatum like actually has already shown
that and is just better to begin with. So I
do like, I do like the thinking of how you
get there. So it's it's a hot take, but it's
like there's a real like logical underpinning to it. So
it's not too hot, No, it's appropriately hot.
Speaker 1: That appropriately hot. Next up is your Brooklyn Nets. Now
my hot take is Ben Simmons will be promoted to
social media manager or not. But so my actual prediction,
this one does deserve a little preamble. I'm saying Cam
Thomas will have a thirty five usage rate or higher. Now,
Luca Dacis was the only player in the league to
have that last year, So that's the framing behind this
and Cam Thomas, for what it's worth, did rank eleventh
in usage rate last year? Hot or not?
Speaker 2: I'm trying to decide if it would be a hot
take to say he was going to lead the league
in scoring? Did you consider that at all? I feel
like you see that out there every once in a while.
That's more of a bold prediction.
Speaker 1: That's like, you know what would have scared me? I
never believed it, But what was scaring away from his
everyone thinking that Jordan Poole had a chance at the
scoring title last year in Washington and look at you.
Did you predict this on last year's episode? It might
have been a bolder I don't know. It's I could.
Speaker 2: I can one hundred percent see myself being talked into like, yeah,
he's gonna shoot thirty two times a game, like he's
going to back into the scoring title. But yeah, no,
is it hot or not?
Speaker 1: That's a high usage rate.
Speaker 2: I do well, everybody expects him to shoot a ton
right for a bad team it's the situation, like that's
how he's wired, and it's a somebody's got to do
it situation. Thirty five percent is so high.
Speaker 1: You know what if they trade him to a good
team to write except so that good good teams want
camp Thomas, Dan, I don't know, way too low on Campton.
I know I am.
Speaker 2: I'm way too long Campton. I'm way too low on
that player type in general. Although I did, I don't
know if you saw.
Speaker 1: It, mister, don't trade Jordan Poole for SGA. That's the
only reason why I ever said that.
Speaker 2: I refuse to believe it. You could show me video
of me saying that it would be fake. You doctored it.
The cam Thomas, I think I saw a clip from
Media to Day, and so I don't have context for it.
But he he was kind of asked like do you
Basically he was responding to it, like what do you
have to prove? Like kind of question. It might have
been in the context of like an extension or whatever,
and his response was kind of like, I've you guys
know who I am more or less like I've proved
I've proved it, and so I can't decide if that
makes me think like he actually really is going to
go out and prove it this year and is really
gonna chuck or if it's like he's just gonna kind
of be the same guy and not really up his usage,
up his you know, his shot volume, all that stuff.
It's just the logical conclusion here is that he just
like he's gonna shoot a ton, right, Like that's just
on this team.
Speaker 1: Who's gonna do it if not him? The two things
where I would provide push back to my own hot
take would be he's so low turnover that that could shot.
Speaker 2: But bad shots are turnover, I mean, you know, for
all tens of purposes.
Speaker 1: But he did kind of ratchet up to playmaking last year,
and if they envisioned him as like, well, we're gonna
try and plumb the depths of him as a passer,
that will bring his Basketball reference usage rate down. We
could get into total usage, which would factor and assists.
So there is a scenario to me in which maybe
he just kind of has the same usage rate, if
not a little lower, because he's focusing more on being
a passer. There's also this scenario in which he if
he gets traded, which he could if they don't like
they're entering this interesting phase where you don't want to
be the raptors necessarily, where you're kind of early on
in your rebuild, but everyone's getting paid their second and
third contract by you, so there's that to account for.
And then there's also just they might just cap what
he's doing, where this could be more of an egalitarian approaches.
They're trying to figure out more information about other guys
on their team, whether it's like a trendon Watford with
the ball in his hands or Jalen Wilson. So I
think it's pretty hot. Just Luca was the only player
last year to have it, so it has to be hot.
But I don't think for the reasons that you just outlaid.
I don't think it's inappropriately hot. Yeah, I'm with you.
Our next team is your Charlotte Hornets, your favorite team
of all time. So my prediction or hot take is
lamellow Ball will make an All NBA team.
Speaker 2: That's hot. That's a hot take. Games games played, not
a lot of evidence he's gonna hit that. That's one
way your conventional wisdom would say he's not gonna do it.
It's real hard to make an All NBA team as
a guard. That's another factor. It's not like out of
the blue though, because the guy's been an All Star,
Like the arrow was pointing way up until the ankle
stuff started to happen a couple of years ago. So
it's it's hot, but it's like not shocking, Like you're
not like blown away if he winds up third team
All NBA, Right, that's that's not so. I think you're
just like you're threading the just hot enough needle here,
like pretty effectively.
Speaker 1: So far. I feel like this might be an agenda
of mine. I just feel like people are way too
low the Melo ball because of the injuries and grant
through their first four seasons. There have been three players
throughout NBA history who've averaged twenty points and seven assists LaMelo,
Luca and Trey. If this guy is healthy, you don't
have to say he'll make an All NBA team. I
think he's absolutely an All NBA caliber. Yeah, now, I
think I actually think what's spicier is not that LaMelo
will have the numbers to warrant All NBA. It's you
mentioned the availability. You know, is he more likely to
end the season with seventy games played or wearing a
brace that goes from ankle to thigh. And the other
thing would be, can you make all NBA playing for
this iteration of the Hornets? Are they going to be
good enough to wear like the bar for just like
a play? Like people get mad that Lebron and ad
made all NBA teams last year the Lakers won where
they were at forty six games. I don't think the Hornets,
even if they stay healthy, a're gonna win forty six games.
And we already know they're not staying healthy because Mark
Williams is injured.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, no that I mean there's a lot of
obstacles right the Mark Williams, things like come on, can
we just there's there's so many teams right now where
it's like, can these guys catch a break? We'll get
to Memphis in a minute. But yeah, that one hurts. Okay,
that's another good one. Oh, I've already been looking at
your next one. I'm eager to get to the Bulls one.
Speaker 1: Oh god, the Chicago Bulls. They will trade Kobe White
by the trade deadline.
Speaker 2: Explain explain your reasoning to me?
Speaker 1: Before I went in the Wizards already explained my reasoning,
because they flipped any Avia at the peak of his
value on a bargain bin extension that he will not
extend off because the number, the one hundred and forty
percent raised from his salary is declining. So it's you know,
it gets to twelve or thirteen million, he's not taking
one hundred and forty percent of that, And if he does,
it's because something has gone It's been a catastrophe. Kobe
White's in the same boat, except that it's coming up
even sooner. He's two years left on his deal, including
this one. He's not extending off of a sub thirteen
million dollars salary. It's just not going to happen. And
if you were the Bulls, you could say, like, all right,
he's sort of young, so you want to pay him
a bunch of money before you're good enough for that
to matter, And like, the best thing he's gonna do
is what ruin your ability to have a high draft pick.
And the other thing here and why I'm predicting it,
I don't think that the Bulls have had this revelation,
and we know they're rebuilding. For all we know they
might fancy themselves contenders still Tomatos and Andre Drummond, those
like those guys were auditioned by subtraction. Caruso, you have
Josh Gidding now, who in some way is going to
infringe upon the usage of Kobe White. I understand Kobe
White is good enough to play off of other primary
ball handlers, but when you just saw his own progression
on the ball last year as even a decision maker,
even if you maybe don't trust the shot making. Why so, my,
if you were another team and the Magic would be
the team that I say, like, oh, just go out
and get Kobe White if you can get two first
round picks and a young guy, Like if you got
Trician da Silva and two first round picks from the Magic,
or even if it was Jet Howard and two first
round picks for the Mat, just fucking take that deal. Yeah.
Speaker 2: I think the Magic's a great example, not just because
of the positional need they have and the and the
off just general offensive needs that they have, but like
it's harder for me to imagine, even though he's young,
like a bad team or a rebuilder wanting Kobe White
because or wanting him as much as a team like
Orlando that does have like win now designs, just because
if you're a bad team and you bring White on,
it's like, well, first of all, why are we trading
the kind of stuff Chicago would want? We need those picks,
we're bad. And then also like you just put yourself
in the same position where once like you can't you're
not going to extend him, So it would have to
be a team that wants what Kobe White can give
them like this year, next year, and then we'll just
observe we'll just take on the hazard of him hitting
unrestricted free agency, which again is like that's that's a
point that like we discuss all the time, but it's
like it's it's important because this is one of those
weird situations where like his contract is too good for
him to be maximumly valuable to the team he's on.
So it's something needs to change in the CBA to
where like this situation doesn't happen because you're really penalized
for signing a guy to a good deal.
Speaker 1: But yeah, I could.
Speaker 2: I mean, from the bulls perspective, I do think it
makes sense to trade him because you do you know,
this is two years down the road, whatever you could,
you could just lose him for nothing like that really
is like in the cards, and that is all. I
say that all the time, and it doesn't always happen,
but it's always something I'm gonna be concerned about just
because it's such a One, it's a terrible look and
two it's just like so destructive to your team planning
to just watch a good player walk.
Speaker 1: It also just happened to them because they didn't really
get anything for Tomorto Rosen Right, yeah, right, no, I
I the Spurs got something for tomorrow, Rod.
Speaker 2: What are the Spurs gonna get for Kobe White? We'll see.
Speaker 1: I don't know, you know, it would be a sneaky
team for him. If you're Detroit, would you trade one
of your young wings for Kobe White? Because I'm assuming
the Bulls don't want Jade and Ivy if they have
Josh Giddy there, Yeah, I mean you trade Jade and
Ivy and one of your own first round picks for
Kobe White? I think.
Speaker 2: Again you run into the same problem the Bulls have.
But the fit is so much more sensible of White
next to Kate Cunningham than like I just named the
other Pistons guard wing that you would like to think
about in the deal. So are you talking about like,
are you talking Thompson or Holland or like, I don't
think they're trading either of those guys, would you?
Speaker 1: But I'm asking if I don't think I would trade,
you have so much equity investment in both, And I
personally wouldn't trade Thompson for Kobe White because I'm so
high on a star Thompson. I just haven't seen enough
of Ron Holland, but he was number one on Johnathan
Wasserman's of Bleach Reports Big Board. So my guess, my
gut would say, no, they're not giving up one of
the young wings. I do wonder like you could maybe
rope into the like if you were giving up Jade
and Ivy and a first round pick. I wonder if
that would be like, you know, maybe it peak the
Bulls interest or can you rally a third team who
values j n Ivy to the point that they'll send
the Bulls another first round pick or something?
Speaker 2: I think before we move on, Like, isn't it just
such an amazing uh, Like I don't know symptom of
the Bulls like status as roster builders that the two
players on the best contracts on the team. White and
Iodson mu are like guys they should probably trade because
they can't resign them, but they can't extend them. They
could resign them. We always like just blow over that possibility.
But it's like, if you're either of those guys, all
things being equal, are you gonna take the same money
from Chicago or you're gonna go somewhere else? Like I
don't know. The extension thing is so ridiculous.
Speaker 1: By the way, I came very close to predicting that
Lonzo Ball would play in forty two or more games
this year. I would love to just manifest that into existence.
Speaker 2: I'm so ready for Lonzo Ball to be good again.
It's just like completely irrational, but that's one of my
I'm definitely hoping for that.
Speaker 1: Our next team is the Cleveland Cavaliers, and I have
I might need to change this one a little bit,
so I'm prepared to move up from it. Evan Mobley
will double history point attempts per game. Now. The problem
here is he averaged one point two last year. When
he came back from injury, he was at one point eight.
So maybe I'll reframe it to say Evan Moley will
average at least three three point attemps per game next season.
Speaker 2: I mean, I'm disappointed if you're wrong. So I don't know.
I don't know what you know, right, Like that isn't
that that just has to happen and new coach, So
maybe maybe Kenny Atkinson like gets him to do what
he hasn't in the past more than Yeah, I don't
know if that's hot enough, Dan. I think I think
like the mark needs to be like he's gonna get
up if you said he's gonna get up five a game, Like.
Speaker 1: Have we ever seen someone go from one point two
to five? I have no idea.
Speaker 2: I'm trying to think of just like who, well, like
like a brook Lopez situation maybe where it's just like
does not shoot threes and suddenly that's the most important
part of his offensive game. I don't even know if
Lopez did that though, like just because I'm trying to think, like,
I guess it was he did.
Speaker 1: He went Okay, that was a great good. Give me
the numbers. So twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen in Brooklyn zero
point two to three point attemps per game. Twenty sixteen
twenty seventeen in Brooklyn, five point two attempts per game.
We're talking about over seventy appearances in each season, So.
Speaker 2: Like ten exit, is that what you're telling me?
Speaker 1: From here to he more than ten xtit forty xdit
whatever Nobley's gonna get up.
Speaker 2: Eighteen three is a game. You heard it here first.
Speaker 1: You know you're probably right that maybe I should have
been more ambitious here because I think a lot of
Calves fans or people who cover the Caps push back
and say it's not normally shooting that's as important as
him developing his handle. But the best way to try
and get him in situations to handle the ball is
space the floor so that you can catch it and
then attack that way.
Speaker 2: I was thinking about this with with another team. We're
going to get to and we're not going to talk
about him, So it's not like burning the idea, but
like the idea Klay Thompson, like Klay Thompson has never
been like, oh my god, look at that handle, but
like that guy got to the rim like a lot
for someone with no bag and like, you know, no
real offensive zip just cause oh my god, he's gonna
shoot it. I have to close out at a million
miles an hour. Mobley's never going to be anything like that.
But if like a cornerstone of his game becomes a
willingness to shoot threes without hesitation on the catch, like
suddenly he's gonna look like a better ball handler and driver.
So like, I think you're focused very much on the
right thing. I just I mean, like, yeah, my number's five,
Like I think he's got to get up five and that,
and like he probably won't, but that would be the
hot take territory for me.
Speaker 1: Well, wait, we need to we should timeline this out
properly because so Brook Lopez, who was coaching the Nets
in twenty fifteen twenty sixteen, that was do you remember
Off Cuff? I mean, no Act Hollins and Tony Brown,
and then the next season, guess who comes in is Act?
Oh wow, my god, it's gonna happen. So the proper
adjustment would be Evan Mobley. Should we meet in the
middle and say four, what do you think it needs
to be five?
Speaker 2: I think it to be a hot take, it's five
because it's.
Speaker 1: I honestly believe it's gonna be five now because of
just the I had no idea that I've forgotten about
the Brook Lopez jump. Which really funny is I was
covering that team on a day to day basis, like
boots on the ground, that first NET team under Kenny Atkinson,
and the whole Brook Lopez shooting threes thing was a revelation.
I guess I didn't appreciate in real time that he
went from point two to three point at times per
game to five point two. I mean, he kind.
Speaker 2: Of, but he really I haven't as you've been talking,
I've been trying to think of somebody else at a
jump like that, and Lopez might just be the only guy.
Speaker 1: Like I'm he has the same coach though, like, come.
Speaker 2: On, it helps, it helps, Like he's He's gonna definitely
go to Evan Mobley and say, like it worked for
this guy who also now is like a defensive Player
of the Year perennial candidate, kind of like you like,
not not the worst blue Now, if Jared Allen starts
getting up five threes, then we'll know something's really going on.
Speaker 1: What Okay, If Evan Molbley's taken five threes a game
and hitting them at a league average clip, what is
he like? Forget about the rest of his offensive game,
he becomes the what best player in the NBA, like
within the next half decade, like no lower than the ten.
Speaker 2: Like I don't I was gonna be like, I don't know,
top twenty five. You really went for it, uh, I mean.
Speaker 1: Think about what he does defensively and if he's shooting
league average on like real volume from three, Yeah.
Speaker 2: He becomes like Jonathan Isaac, except if Jonathan Isaac played
thirty three minutes a game and shot three and shot more,
so player doesn't exist, I guess, so he would be.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean he's immensely.
Speaker 2: He's so valuable as it is, but just like that
dimension would be what he'd be bam Adebayo with a
three point shot altering I don't know, Like, yeah, it
makes I would if if you told me that that
Evan Mobley finished the season averaging five threes a game
at like thirty five percent, I would say the Cavs
have the best record in the East by like five games.
Just like there's I mean, that's a hot thing. Well,
I mean they might have the best record in the
East anyway. I don't know what the playoff situation is
going to be, but like that would change everything for them.
It would be because because.
Speaker 1: Altering for sure.
Speaker 2: Yeah, because then like yeah, we can play Isaacakoro. We
don't care, we have we're getting. We're getting volume three
point shooting from this position that nobody so many like
nobody else really does. Now we can just put this
awesome defender out that like it changes your whole like
roster makeup, potentially good one.
Speaker 1: I'm glad we stumbled into the brook Lopez, Kenny Atkinson
little and I don't because a look at Jermaine here,
Kenny Atkins literally go to the cabs. Now that's amazing.
Speaker 2: Turn oh man, take a break, Dan, that was the
run for you. I got a couple in a row here. Okay,
So based on yours, this already feels like not hot enough.
But I think Derek Lively is going to break the
all time field goal percentage record, which was set by
his teammate Daniel Gafford last season at seventy two point
five percent. Now that you can get some like really
wonky numbers if you don't filter for like qualify, if
you don't make sure they qualify for the field goal
percentage league league lead, but like seventy two point five percent,
is very, very high. I just think think the case
is that Lively has never been in a better position
to just do what he's really good at, which is
catch and finish. He's gonna have more space to roll, more,
more space to potentially offensive rebound because everybody's gonna be
like sucked out on Klay Thompson and the Luca Kyrie
like two headed monster of playmaking is going to command
a ton of defensive attention. You can't like adequately cover
all those threats and also close down the defensive boards
very well. So I think he's getting a million putbacks.
I think if I'm gonna critique this, it's one maybe
not you know, out there enough, and two it presumes
he's gonna, you know, play enough, not get hurt, not
get you know, minutes taken away by Gafford like that
kind of thing. It's a percentage stat so it's like
he just needs to qualify. But still, I don't know,
what are your thoughts?
Speaker 1: Hot? Not hot, not hot enough? I think it might
be appropriately hot just because he's going he put up
shots between like three and ten feet last year and
hit them at a fifty percent clip, and so I
think or fifty two percent clip whatever it was, that's
a number that could feasibly come down, right, And so
the fact that he shot, I mean, his average shot
distance I'm actually looking now two point seven feet, and
so that makes you think, Okay, that's really not hot enough.
But if he's gonna you know, look at a DeAndre
Jordan like was never putting up those other types of shots.
So the fact that I think there'll be at least
the slightest variability in like, you know, twenty three percent
of his twenty percent of his shots came with three
between three and ten feet last year, So I actually
think that's appropriately hot, Like maybe that share comes down
or but like also how does he deal with being
higher volume too? I assume that this year you mentioned
him getting injured, but he might just play more and
have to take more shots. And so you look at
it and say, well, what did he shoot on twos
last year? He shot seventy five percent on twos? Right,
So just like it's hot because like now you're talking
about a larger body of work and there's always just
gonna be variants in there. So you know, if it
was different and we had like okay, this is his
fourth season and he's been right around seventy five percent
like the entire on his field goals the entire time.
But because he's entering his sophomore year working off a
high baseline, defense is going to be more keyed into
his playmaking in the middle of the floor too, which
could end up impacting him. I don't think it's a
bad hot take. I think it's appropriately hot, though it might.
Speaker 2: Have been more fun to just say, like both him
and Gafford will shoot over seventy two percent or something
insane like that, because the man who's got it better
than rolling centers for Dallas, it's just as good as
it gets. Let's go to the Denver Nuggets this one.
I feel like he is hot because public sentiment has
turned on this guy like nobody's business. I think Jamal
Murray is going to make his first All Star team.
Speaker 1: It were like, move on, it's not happening. Here's the thing.
Speaker 2: Looked awful in the summer during the Olympics, fell off
in the playoffs last year. Has just struggled to stay healthy.
The lower body injuries have kind of piled up over.
You know, it's not like he's been in the league
for one hundred years, like he's still relatively young. But yeah,
I just think the case the case is like one
we've just swung too far towards the Jamal Murray is
a bad contract. He's never going to get it back,
like we're forgetting He had one of the best really
statistically by a lot of measures, the best year of
his career. Last year shot the best he's ever shot
from three. I think it's forty two. I don't have
the numbers up. I think it's forty two and a
half percent scored over twenty a game. And just like
Christian Brownie picking up the case, not there's not a
lot of case hep slacked to pick up offensively, Christian
Brown's not picking up all of it.
Speaker 1: I think.
Speaker 2: I think Murray is in a position where like more
is going to be asked of him. I think unless
you really think Russell Westbrook's gonna run those second units
and it's all gonna go great, Like, don't see that.
So the the argument you'd make, which you should make now,
is like he's not staying healthy. He might not even
play enough games to qualify and he's kind of slipping.
I just don't see that based on the bulk of
last year. I think we've gone too far towards Murray's
not good.
Speaker 1: I think it's fair to I mean, anyone who's saying
Jamal Murray is ain't good is just an idiot, Like
I don't know it there, Yeah, but my whole thing
is Shay Gills, Alexander Under, Steph Curry, Luka doncic. I mean,
even like the peak of Jamal Murray, which other potential
Devin Booker, John Morant, Anthony Edwards. I mean, maybe Anthony
Edwards ends up being a front court player, and I'm
sure maybe there'll be some fun you know, futzing and
fiddling to make Devin Booker from like who is like
the peak of Jamal Murray is better than how many
backcourt players in the Western Conference? The ones?
Speaker 2: Not any of those guys you just mentioned.
Speaker 1: I mean, maybe you could say Steph's getting older, but
just like how dare you? But it's just a fact.
I'm not saying that he's no, he's mad. You don't
know that he's not the aging like like fourteen year
old Jason Tatum. So I just that's way too hot.
I think it's I think it's way too hot. But
I do think it's a nice correction from where the
public sentiment is. And I was having this conversation with
Adam Otdaz during our Denver Nuggets look ahead last year.
I was going on shows Denver Nuggets shows, multiple ones,
and they were asked me, is Jamal Murray a top
ten player? And so it's like this time, like coming
that championship glow really does a lot for you. And
now it's well, why would the Nuggets max him out? Yeah,
they have no other options, and I don't know who
they trainable, why would they give him max money? So
I do agree with you that the discussion around him
has shifted too far. There's gonna have to be a
rush of snake fights throughout the entire Western Conference back court.
If he's gonna make an All Star team, it's just
if not happening. And frankly, he's not good enough. So
I mean, like we could also, I.
Speaker 2: Think you're the best argument is like, even if he's
fully healthy and does what he did last year for
the first half of the season, like it's just it's
a log jam. There's too many guys that are just better.
Speaker 1: He's gonna come out and average twenty five and eight.
I don't know why I keep coming back to that number,
but like that's the and is he gonna I guess
you could say sure, but also I.
Speaker 2: Was gonna say, and like we do have the thing,
it still happens where it's like I don't know that
I I actually do know. I don't think this is
likely where the Nuggets are like way ahead of everybody
else in the West as voting concludes, and it's like
we got to give him two. We can't just have
Jokic like that. That's maybe a way in I don't know,
because we've had some like semi undeserving All Stars with
that justification in the past.
Speaker 1: Watch him make the All Star Game now, I'm not
I won't feel bad if it's because all these other
guys just end up missing time. I just can't see
a pathway to him being better than so many of
these different dudes to me already. Yeah, give me Detroit
short little break. So, speaking of All Stars, Caid Cunningham
will make the All Star Game this year, Grant hot
or not? Hmm.
Speaker 2: I wish I could catalog all the all the guys
in the East. I wish I could do the same
thing you did with the West, it's like, so who
are the who are the All Star locks in the
back court?
Speaker 1: If healthy? In the East, it's well the other things
just like the positions are so fungible now they're gonna
be like, well, kid six six, is he really because
you can vote? Yeah, that helps, I think Ja Murray
though he doesn't have that flexibility which is a part
so that.
Speaker 2: By definition, because there's isn't it Like I don't know Haliburton,
Jalen Brunson, like those guys are gonna be better than
anything Kay does. But then it's like, okay, cool, he's
a forward, so like you just you don't even have
to worry about those guys. Ah, it's a little hot.
It's a little hot. I don't think conventional wisdom would
expect him to be an All Star, but it's it's
better than the Murray take for sure.
Speaker 1: He ended up at twenty three points, seven and a
half assists last year while hitting thirty five and a
half percent of his threes. He had the step back going.
He'll probably need to get to the basket more finished
better once he gets there, he has actual This is
him working for majority of last season without actual spacing.
One of my other hot predictions was almost that Detroit
ranks in the top ten of three point and ten
three because you can say whatever, there's a lot of
redundancies with their youth in terms of space that they
occupy our weaknesses. Let's say with Ron Holland, Jasar Thompson,
Jalen Duran's not gonna take threes and then Jay n
Ivey's a wild card. But Tobias Harris, Simorty, Fontecio, Malik
Beasley's there, Tim Hardaway Junior is gonna get threes up.
If Marcus Sasser plays, he will get threes up. Kate
Cunningham plus spacing is a thing now in Detroit, and
that's not something we could say this time last year.
So I think this is someone who's probably gonna be
at like a wouldn't shock me if he let's throw
twenty five and eight out there. I mean he was,
he was twenty three and seven and a half last year.
Speaker 2: Twenty five and eight even is I was gonna bring up, like,
what about the team's success component that matters for All Star,
Like twenty five and eight might just make it not
matter if the Pistons aren't winning enough.
Speaker 1: I suldn't I mean depend I mean, I guess Jane
and Ivy will play a bunch, but like if Jane
and Ivy's not good, like, this could be a thirty
and ten guy. Really for what, like what level of
the offense is he gonna need to run? Where's the
relief coming? I guess you say Linnel experiment with US R.
Thompson and Ron Holland running things. So I don't I'm
not predicting thirty and ten for Kate Cunningham. But this
is my version of the Jamal Murray where it's because
he's on his fun max. I don't think people are
a you know, like taken aback by what he got.
But also he got a shit ton of money and
just maxed him out like a no brainer. And the
discourse was why would you do that? Why not play
the RFA game? And it's you're Detroit, you don't get
you don't have the luxury of doing that. And also
I firmly believe that he's good enough. So as you
were kind of coming to the defense of Jamal Murray,
I think people saw there's the injuries with kid from
the previous season, and I think people looked at the
turnover issues he had for like the first quarter of
last season or whatever it was, and that just became
the defining issue around him. It's like, well, well those
got better, even though the Pistons really didn't.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and like I definitely am I've said several times
before with the with the RFA stuff like use it
as a tool, like you got you, this is a
weapon you can use teams. I don't feel like that
was the move with Kate Cunningham and a couple other guys,
like you just paid you just pay that guy at
your first opportunity.
Speaker 1: There's I think, unless you're a market that can actually
cap space to use so like if Detroit. But if
if you are a team like Detroit that's in battled
and the players don't have a reason to get like
you're not Philly, like you just don't have the track
record of Darryl Morey in general, like you there's a
new front office there, and just if you're Detroit, I
guess the only reason to have cap space would be
for trades too. No one's coming to for it, like
you yo, you getting free agency, Tobias Harris inflated contract right,
So okay, good one.
Speaker 2: Let's go to the Warriors here. I can't wait for
you to weigh in on this, Dan. I think Andrew
Wiggins this season will no longer be viewed as a
bad contract slash deadweight slash negative contract anymore. I think
we're gonna swing back to the days of when he
signed that deal coming off of Holy shit, this guy
was like the second best player on its idle winner
for you know, a couple of weeks still happened. I
think we're gonna get closer to that than where we
are right now, where it's like, oh my god, he's
coming off a career low and scoring. He was unavailable
for a good chunk of two years and I'm just
looking at this graphic now and I'm I'm so upset.
I've never seen it before.
Speaker 1: Would appreciated hat tip friend of the podcast Jacob Bourne
for texting me this image. I thought, doesn't Andrew Wiggins
look like he was aied in this? I wasn't sure
that it was him, but.
Speaker 2: It almost looks like it's well it's I see the
cheers the cheer squad in the background, because it almost
kind of looks like a Gary Payton like doppelganger too.
It's like, are these just two.
Speaker 1: Dudes that look like Andrew Wiggans and Gary Payton in
front of the former host of this podcast, Adam Frommell
said they look like cardboard cutouts. They do look like
maybe that either way? Love it?
Speaker 2: Uh? What do you think?
Speaker 1: Too hot?
Speaker 2: Not hot enough?
Speaker 1: I'm gonna say why it's too hot? Okay, because he
already missed time in Hawaii because he was.
Speaker 2: Out getting late. I don't know this story.
Speaker 1: No, he he missed time that he was sick apparently,
so I've made a little broke there. But I don't
think it's if I had to pick, it might not
be hot enough if I had to pick. That's the
entire point.
Speaker 2: I love that you think that.
Speaker 1: I don't think it's hot enough because expectations have a way,
like now that they've kind of normalized where no one's
expecting him to be the second best player on a
title contend or even a third best player. So the
bar is so low, and I think you could look
at it this way. Do you want the next two
years of DeAndre Ayton's contract for the next three years
of Andrew Wiggins's contract, that's a debate right now. Yeah,
if you're just gonna tell me that he comes in
kind of plays within himself on offense and like like
any even like his three points, like even when he's
been bad, like the threes have by and large gone
down in a decent clip anyway, So it's probably not
hot enough. But I guess if you're family it has
a good contract, that's probably the appropriately amount of hot
because I think there will still be that inherent distrust
no matter how well he plays. But like you're not
asking him to do something he hasn't done in Golden
State before, and it's just sort of you know, but
I guess the pushback would be like that was the
outlier season for him, Like just like because we're gonna
dismiss it for Jordan Poole, why are we giving Andrew
Wiggins the better of the doubt? Right? Yeah?
Speaker 2: No, I I mean we probably have gone too far
without mentioning like he's had off court stuff the last
couple of years.
Speaker 1: Turns out his father was really sick. His father passed away.
Speaker 2: Condolences like that's I could sympathize with anybody that had
a rough time and with missing time and like not
prioritizing being in shape and like all this other stuff,
real world shit was happening to Andrew Wiggins. It's hard
to square that with like his reputation in Minnesota of
like he floats in and out of games and he's
you know, not super committed, and that's certainly there have
been elements of that in Golden State, even at the
best times, I think. But it's like we can't just
discount the fact that he's coming out the other side
of like a horrible personal situation. So that's part of it.
And like I know we're focusing on, like is you
a value contract? It's like he's gonna be just under
nineteen percent of the cap this year, eighteen after that,
seventeen after that, Like for a guy who's like pretty
even in his worst, like pretty clearly a starter, I think,
and can help on both ends. Like I don't think
it's a huge stretch that he's gonna but I that
he's gonna become like a neutral value contract or one
that like teams are giving up stuff to get Hypothetically,
I don't know if the Warriors are gonna trade him.
I just think his reputation is like it's it's about
as bad as it can be right now, right based
on the last year plus of how he's performed, and I.
Speaker 1: Guess also factoring in the off course stuff for sure,
and then the drop off was just so big last
year to where like he didn't even take four threes
a game, And so I guess you could also question
two if they're gonna really try and develop Jonathan Kaminga,
if they're actually gonna give most of this moody a chance.
And then I know, Kyle Aderson is gonna play a
bunch of small ball five, but you have the Anthony
Melton who can kind of play the wing as well,
what will his role look like on this team especially?
But I think Jonathan Kaminga is the big one. Is like,
that's the one where, well, can you play those two
dudes together a bunch? And maybe but like if if
you view that as a fragile dynamic that probably skews
towards well, then this is gonna be too hot because
how important is Andrew Wiggins in the like to the
let's say, the core lineups or core looks of this
Warriors team just out of the gate, is even gonna
have the chance to kind of rebuild his value.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I would close by saying, because the next team
is mine anyway. I just so completely understand how Andrew
Wiggins gets you as a fan and how I understand
where the frustration with him comes from, because like he
just goes out and shows you how incredible he can be,
and he's like, Nope, you're not going to see that
for eighteen months, just like oh, there was some more
of it and then it's gone again.
Speaker 1: I totally get it. I think I'm rooting for Sorry,
you should have came in and said, Andrew Wiggins is
going to average five defensive rebounds per game for the
first time in his career. That would have been a
hot take.
Speaker 2: He only does that in the finals. I have the
Houston Rockets, Dan. I think Reed Shepherd is going to
shoot under thirty eight percent from deep, which might sound like,
oh okay, that's abovely gaverage. He made over half his
threes in college, so miss me with the like that's
not I mean, that would be surprisingly low I think
for someone like him, and he's still gonna run away
with Rookie of the Year.
Speaker 1: I just okay, that is hot. The latter part makes
it hot. I I don't care about the.
Speaker 2: Shooting, so let's just amend it. I think he's gonna
win Rookie of the Year. And the reason that would
be a hot take is because everybody's like, is he
gonna play? That's my response is like, he's gonna be undeniable.
I think it's just gonna get to a point where
the Rockets say to themselves, we can't we just can't
keep him off the floor. We're trying to win. I
think he's gonna make a huge impact on both ends.
I think every clip of film you see, granted it's
summer league, and then it's like workouts in camp. I know,
if you saw the one the other day where it's
just like he's dominating both ends in a scrimmage, you
can't show me a clip where it's just like, oh yeah, no,
I can see why they'd bench him. It's like, no,
you're gonna find twenty nine minutes for this guy, and
then maybe you trade Fred van Vliet cause you and
maybe you trade Jalen Green because you don't want to
extend him. I just think he's gonna be so obviously
impactful that Houston will find a way to help me
skirt the playing time caveat here, which is admittedly like
the that's what you would say is like he can't
win Rookie of the Year. He's gonna barely play in
that guard rotation.
Speaker 1: So well, yeah, it's hot for that reason because we
don't know how quickly. And when we were talking to
Salmon Ali during the Houston Rockets, look at it. He
doesn't seem to think that he's gonna play a huge
role on this team. And if he does, I would
imagine they have traded at least one of Jalen Green
or Alprin Shangun, just like in terms of making him
a central focus of the offense. And it says they
have Cam whitmore on this team, and then do you
want to give Am and Thompson more on ball? I
know Reachebbert doesn't have to play on the ball, but
like that's kind of the if you're gonna have reach
Eperd on the court, you schots'll probably let him pay,
like the way he can get to his mid range
spots when he's on the ball. So that's why it's
too hot. And the other thing, too is let's just
say he's he's undeniable when he's on the floor, like
the minutes thing with the team. So Victor Wemenyama wins
it last year at twenty nine point seven minutes per game,
LaMelo Ball wanted it twenty eight point eight in twenty twenty,
twenty twenty one. Malcolm Brogden won it in twenty sixteen
twenty seventeen in a banner year for rookies at twenty
six point four. Those are the only Rookie of the
Year winners since the year two thousand and one one
that have logged under thirty minutes per game, and even
Mike Miller in two thousand and two thousand and one
twenty nine point one. So we're looking at four Rookies
of the Year averaged under thirty minutes per game. I
think that's all time. I'm scrolling through it now, so
like that is super hot. Like, so five Rookie of
the Year winners have averaged under thirty minutes per game,
that's a you need to, like he need and he
needs to. The lowest total for rookie year is twenty
six point four with Malcolm Browden. I don't even think
he's as short of that. But if your argument is
he's undeniable. I tend to agree with you. I actually
think that if you treated him and I'm not saying
he deserves this, you have Shanggun, you have other Aman Thompson.
But if they treated him as like, no, this is
our tenth pole building block, that he would win Rooie
of the Year and run away with it. I just
don't know if they're gonna view him in those terms.
Speaker 2: I think, yeah, the minutes are obviously that to me
is why it's a hot take. In probably too hot,
I can just I don't know. I think I'm obviously
way too in the bag, but I'm not.
Speaker 1: That's the thing. Well, here's the thing. I think the
path to.
Speaker 2: Whatever the minutes need to be high twenties minimum, right.
I think if you're the Rockets in a way that
is pretty different from almost all of your other like
the million rookie scale guys you have. Is like, it's
not like it's not like you you put Shepherd out
there and say like, oh, we're giving away something. It's
more like, we need better shooting.
Speaker 1: Let's play read Shepherd. We need more playmaking.
Speaker 2: Let's play read Shepherd. We need more defensive disruption. Let's
play read Shepherd. Like all all of the things you
might need he can provide. I And now this is
insane to say because he hasn't played an NBA minute yet,
but everything we've seen and heard and read is just
like this guy just contributes across the board in a
way that defies like the prototype, prototypical, like small, white guard,
and so like, I just I just think there's gonna
be so many ways where it's obvious that he's helpful
that it's like it's on the fringes of possibility that
he's gonna get the minutes to do it. But yeah,
I think it's not a hot take if you said, like,
if he plays thirty plus minutes, he's like he's just
gonna win Rookie of the Year because this class sucks
and most of these guys are gonna be on terrible teams.
That's another different aspect, is he's gonna be playing. I mean,
it cuts both ways because his team has better players,
but like he's gonna get noticed more. He's definitely like
he's gonna do impactful stuff for a team that's winning.
It's like Sara could have crazy numbers in Washington. I
don't think he will, and everybody will be like, Okay, cool,
they won fourteen games, Like, that's just not Rookie of
the Year stuff.
Speaker 1: I guess that would be the strong well, not the
strongest argument, but the pushback to the minutes would be
he's just gonna be so much better than the field
that if he's averaging twenty three minutes versus Zachary Resische
getting thirty and like not doing much of the Atlanta Hawks,
perhaps that will make up the difference. Yeah, Like you
would have to be a Victor wembin Yama level of undeniable, right,
And I still even think that if you're that and
you're averaging under twenty five minutes a game, people are
just gonna be like, well, no, we have to go
with availability.
Speaker 2: And playing time. Yeah. I think the quality of the
class overall is like a decent you know, uh, decent
support for him winning Rookie of the Year because it
might be a broggeden situation even if he doesn't get
to the minutes where it's like, who the hell else
are we gonna pick?
Speaker 1: Like all these guys, all these.
Speaker 2: Guys are as advertised, this class was thought to be bad.
Speaker 1: It is bad, and so somebody's got to win it.
I don't know, we're on to me. I have the
Indiana Pacers, who are also just your team, your Indiana Pacers.
My prediction or hot take, excuse me, at least one
of Benicmathrin and or Jarris Walker will be traded. And
if you're watching on YouTube, you know which which player
I think is more likely to be traded.
Speaker 2: I don't know if this is hot enough. I mean,
I fully agree with this, and I also would say.
Speaker 1: There's YouTube commenters, this would be the hottest take of
all time.
Speaker 2: Okay, we'll consider this the like every every set of
team's fans just overval It's like the truest thing ever.
They overvalue their own young guys and undervalue everybody else's assets,
like the the Pacers should trade one or both of them,
right like, And they've been acting as if they like
don't care about the futures of either of these guys, Like.
Speaker 1: I don't know that's that's a hard.
Speaker 2: But it's like they're not exactly put it this way,
they're not exactly like setting up the roster to feature
Benedict Matheren or Jarris Walker.
Speaker 1: Correct, I mean they kind of have with Jarvis Walker,
just not in the ways that I think that Jarvis
Walker is gonna be good to where it's okay. They
need him to be strictly a wing defender now, and
maybe he gets there. I don't know what he the
stuff he does the best on offense. I guess if
he's gonna hit threes that the Klippie did last year,
but it was he barely played. It was low volume.
But it's like the stuff out of the short role
that he could like, that's you're not getting that if
you have to play with Pascal Siakam and or Miles Turner.
So I guess prohybly it's a hot take here though,
is like Indiana has paid Tyre's Halburton, they've paid Obi Toppin,
they've paid Pascal Siakam, they've Andrew Nemhar' deal is gonna
kick in the year after this one, And you start like,
this isn't a team that's gonna just readily pay the
tax willy nilly, And what you've also kind of done
is okay, like you do have some limited like salary,
like you're not gonna I guess you could trade Obi
top and once his restriction lifts. But the reason why
I view it as hot is because this is a
team that I think is you know, they don't want
to give up on young guys that they might believe in.
I think when you look at the parts and the
roster and say, well, they clearly need a wing, why
wouldn't you trade Jaris Walker for one? I mean that
was true the past two offseasons and they still kept
him like after drafting him. So that's why it seems hot.
And then it's also just what is the trade value
of either of these guys? And then what is the
trade value of the primary matching salary? Like Obi toppin Okay,
he played well for the Pacers. Four years and sixty
million is not a contract that's viewed favorably around the league.
I'll tell you that right now. So are you giving
up Bennick Mathern or Jaris Walker to get you Dorian
Finney Smith? Like? That's why it feels like I'm gonna
say I probably would give up Bennanick Mathern Dorrian Phinney Smith.
I'm just not a Bennick Matherne guy. That is a
hot take. That's why I didn't throw it here. I'm
not there, but I still have more hope for Jaris
Walker in the larger context of this team. But even
if you think these guys are good, the Pacers have
diminished their ability to stand out with the way that
they've built out their roster. Like, just what is Benic
Mathern's role unless you think that he's gonna come in
and you remember that game against Milwaukee where he looked
like the defensive player of the year before his injury,
unless that's the new default, Like he's not a win defender.
So I kind of think this might not be hot enough.
But then when I start to go sit there and
do like, well, who are you training them for? Like
you could say Jeremy Grant would be great on this team.
Do the Pacers want his money? Getting to that number
will be a chore, It might cast you both Mathrin
and Jarris Walker. And then are you doing that for
Jeremy Grant? Now, if I was a billionaire, I'm not
gonna care. Yeah, I'd probably do that. Like I think
Jeremy Grant might put the team.
Speaker 2: That's not the guy, that's the guy I keep thinking of.
I mean, he's a little bigger than you want, But
if you think he can still guard wings, like that's
your guy, and you do give up both for that.
This is if you, as the Pacers, are not put
off by like, oh my god, Boston's too good, Philly's
too good, the Knicks are too good. We're a level
below that even with Jeremy Grant. So maybe then you
don't do it. But like just in terms of like
if you're trying to make the product as good as
it can be this year, next year, the year after,
I think I think you trade both of them.
Speaker 1: Here's a good example. I think this is predicated on
teams probably like to have him defend down and so
it's like, okay, well you have Andrew Nemhard and TJ
McConnell's this makes sense, but if you get Dylan Brooks,
I'll give up either one of these guys for Dylan Brooks. Yeah,
I think I would too. So you're saying, but so
is it do you ultimately think? I don't know what
you went on. Is it is it still not hot enough?
Or is it just knowing how the Pacers operate and
maybe the realities of their trade val because look, you
certainly with Jars Walker if they just trade him for
like a guy who's either coming off the bench or
not closing like guaranteed, I guess if he's even closing games.
But if it's a role player and you're trading what
was a top ten pick in his second year for that,
that just takes a level of kind of admittance that
you're not used to seeing teams.
Speaker 2: No, I guess I I My initial reaction is it's
not hot enough. And I don't know if I'm I'm
probably not reflecting consensus, but it's just in my opinion, like, yes,
obviously you trade one or both if you're the Pacers
for all the reasons.
Speaker 1: We talked about, I can's the worst player. You would
like you'd probably trade Ben mcmathm for Cody Martin, wouldn't you.
Speaker 2: That's a really good one. If you told me Cody
Martin was gonna be healthy for the whole year, I
think about it.
Speaker 1: You have issues, I do. I feel like Cody Martin's
your guy too. You like both Cody Martin. Before Caleb Martin,
there was there was literally that you were. You were
in on Cody before people were in on Kleb. How
about that? Right? So he just needs to stay healthy.
I would I trade one of these guys for him,
Like that's probably not because of the health factor predominantly, but.
Speaker 2: That would have been a sufficient hot take, is they
will trade one of these guys for Cody Martin Specifically,
that would have been hot.
Speaker 1: I would love to give Kevin Pritchard truth sierm and
ask who the like the worst player he would trade
one of these four is because publicly he'd probably say, like,
I don't know, like Zion or someone like Herb Jones
or something, but would you It'd be really funny if
the Pelicans were so just desperate for people that they
think could play like the center position. If you could
get Trey Murphy for Jaris Walker and picks Tray Murphy's
injured right now in.
Speaker 2: This hypothetical, do they think Jaris Walker is gonna play
center for them?
Speaker 1: Well, he's six eight and like the rest of their
dudes are like six eight that are gonna be playing satur.
Speaker 2: Isn't Daniel Tys listened? He's probably listened sixty nine. Yeah,
he probably is six eight, but is listed six nine.
Speaker 1: I was having this conversation the other day. Doesn't Daniel
Tice feel like he's thirty seven years old? He's not
even thirty is that right? He's not thirty.
Speaker 2: He does feel like he's been around.
Speaker 1: Maybe he had a birthday, but I for some reason,
I don't even It's not like he's playing for a
zillion teams, but he Oh he's thirty too, Okay, but
doesn't you trust that?
Speaker 2: I just wish you wouldn't say ridiculous things. Sometimes that
was just flat out wrong.
Speaker 1: But it doesn't even feel older than that. I feel
like Dan Los Angeles Clippers are gonna trade Kawhi Leonard
this season.
Speaker 2: What are your thoughts on that?
Speaker 1: One? That you're in The Lakers date might involve JJ Reddick.
But it's hot because it's hot because they're in the
Into Its Dome and I'm assuming they can't like, by
the way, the whole they're opening up the Into It
Dome and there's.
Speaker 2: A just gonna stop you and we're gonna have to
do five minutes on the whole, like, well, they're start
opening and because I've done it too, the whole like, oh,
it's a new arena.
Speaker 1: They got to have a product in there, right, But
the other thing is they have a product in there
because they don't have their first round picks for the
next five years. They don't have control over them. But
I was actually the aside was, isn't it wild that
the in the window might open without Kawhi or Paul
George in the first game because Kawhi is injured and
Paul George left and James Warden might just be the face.
I never would have predicted that two years ago. Whatever. Anyway,
it's hot because even if you throw the picks like,
you don't own your own picks, and I don't think
OKAYC is going to trade for Kawhi Leonard when they
have to look, you say, if they did, how fun
is that? If they did, But they have the clippers
over a ballot to the point where they're like, yeah,
we'll give you back like one of your first round picks.
Are you gonna do it?
Speaker 2: At that point, if it's twenty twenty, what do they have.
Speaker 1: They don't have twenty twenty five, do they? Or do they?
Speaker 2: I can't remember.
Speaker 1: Twenty twenty five might be going somewhere else, but they
do have twenty twenty six. I believe we don't look
that up. But my whole thing is because you don't
control your own picks, and even let's just say you
trade him to the Oklahoma City Thunder, which that is
a way even if the cost was low, you have
to you pay Shay, You're don't have to worry about
paying j Dub and chet Holme grinning. You're not getting
either of those dudes for Kawhi Leonard at this point,
so like, what are you getting back for him? That
would be like, Okay, this is fine. We don't own
a picks, but we got enough stuff back that it's confident.
So and by the way, Okase could techicly I think,
end up with their twenty five first, but there's like
a bunch of different swap machinations there. They also own
a twenty twenty six from Houston or the Clippers they'll
be getting they have they have too many picks for
me to go through. They have a twenty twenty seven
first coming from the Clippers, but they also may have
to send out I think that one might be a swap. Yeah, so,
but more of the story is the Clippers don't control
their own first round pick I think until twenty and thirty.
So you that's hot because even if you're willing to
move on and recognize that, like you're kind of just
floating around the middle of nowhere. Right now, you have
to get enough stuff back the Knicks trade for McHale bridges.
If you're the Nets and you weren't trading mckal bridge,
or you weren't getting your own picks back from Houston,
the Knicks were at least putting enough on the table
where you could think about it. Right, Which team is
doing that with Kawhi Leonard?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's the answer is nobody, I think
there or nobody's putting the Bridge's package on the table,
that's for sure. I think I agree that it's it's
a hot take, and it's probably closer to like a
bold prediction that has like that twenty percent figure attached
to it, if it's even that high. But it's just
get I get hung up on this all the time,
thinking about say Atlanta of like, oh they should trade
trade Young It's like, well, what's the point like they
unless they trade with San Antonio and get those picks back.
It's like, well, yeah, okay, the perfect scenario is to
get your own picks back so that your pick is valuable.
But it's like first round picks are still first round picks.
Those there are still assets if they're coming from some
other team. As long as they're not these you know,
the Washington and Detroit ones from the Knicks for example,
or whatever that have all these protections, there are going
to be seconds like, yeah, the best outcome is getting
your own picks back and getting control of your draft
and by extension, your like future, you know, incentivizes you
to lose. The next best thing is just getting someone else's.
It's it's not nothing. It's just because you can't get
the best thing doesn't mean it's a bad call to
trade a guy that you're on the hook for AE
hundred and fifty million four who might play who won't
play one hundred and fifty games over the next three years.
Speaker 1: Like, I just I.
Speaker 2: Think the real issue is like, and I think you're right.
I don't know that it's gonna make sense from a
value standpoint to trade him because you know, when he's healthy,
he's still great and maybe that matters. And I just
don't know outside like Oklahoma City is someone I can
really talk myself into if they're.
Speaker 1: Just like themself anyway, but that would be so out
of character and also just so you're paying kawhi are
do you envision scenario where they pay or all four
of those guys their core guys.
Speaker 2: Well, the argument you'd make is like they'll just deal
with it until his contract expires, and it's kind of
a Toronto situation where it's like, we're just.
Speaker 1: Happy to have him here for as long as he's
here and then he's gone.
Speaker 2: But you can't quite do that because they got all
these other obligations.
Speaker 1: I have they interject there though. Now, So let's just
say that either that scenario is open, or maybe some
team is putting a godfather offer on the table, give
me the list of destinations that Kawhi Leonard can be
traded to at which he won't immediately retire everything. Yeah.
Speaker 2: That when I was coming up with this, that was
actually the first thing I thought of, was like, well,
he specifically chose the Clippers because he wanted to be
in a certain place, and if you're an acquiring team,
you just cannot have any level of confidence that one
he'll want to be there or two just like give
you you know, I don't know. I feel like he's
always played hard whenever wherever he's been, but like you're
you're signing up for some real difficulties potentially because like
he just wanted to be in La and that's where
he is, and does he want to be anywhere else? Like,
so far it doesn't seem like it.
Speaker 1: Would you do everything the Lakers could offer? If they
put Austin Reeves their two picks, their's sweet swaps on
the table and then their salary, I would bounce out.
Would you do that? Wow? Yeah? I would. There's no
demorant play when you play in Sacramento? How are they doing?
You're not giving up Keegan Murray in that?
Speaker 2: I wouldn't anyway, Well, the Kings, the Kings fans aren't either.
Uh do you use the martyros In salary in La?
Speaker 1: It's perfect if somebody gets to be in La. Yeah.
Speaker 2: I mean, if I'm the Lakers, I just do it.
Let's let's take one crack at it, and we'll just,
you know, sweep up the ashes when it's all over
in a couple of years.
Speaker 1: Could you see Miami doing it? Putting it would have
to be just all their picks and swaps, which isn't many.
How do you get to the number without it being
Jimmy Butler? I guess it's like ter or Tyler hero
two of those guys help you get there. Yeah, would
give up if they put Jim A. Hawkes on the
table in that. I mean, you know what would be
an interesting dark horse. I don't know if he would
go there. But Atlanta they don't control their next three picks.
Like are they just like doubling down on now with
Trey and Kawhi.
Speaker 2: I mean, it's it's weird because like we're I'm not
having this conversation or not putting this hot take out
there if not for the knee stuff right now, because
it's just like, oh, the Clippers can't go down this
road again.
Speaker 1: First of all, you should be if if he wasn't healthier,
it would make more if he excuse me, if he
was healthy, would make more sense to move him.
Speaker 2: I just think they're so reluctant to trade him that
it it would take something like them just being like, Okay,
this is we're not doing like year six or seven
or whatever it is of hoping he stays healthy. But
another's it's like a but maybe it'll work for a
situation for the other teams that are like we just
need the one year if you're the Lakers or the Heat.
Two good examples that say you know, throw caution to
the win. Let's try to win a title this year.
Kawhi plus Lebron and ad or Kawhi plus Jimmy and bam.
Like you're in the conversation at that point, right, like,
at least hypothetically until he gets hurt. But I don't know,
somebody else could talk themselves into it.
Speaker 1: We should move on. I might come back home in
and see if they already expensive, we might as well
just do it again.
Speaker 2: All right, you are correct. My hot take for the
Lakers does include JJ Reddick. This will probably be a
shorter discussion because it's pretty niche. I think he's gonna
lead all coaches in technical fouls.
Speaker 1: Hot or not. I would say that's not hot enough
because I feel like the disdain that he would show
during broadcasts lead me to believe that perhaps the Lakers
have given him some sort of mandate, or he's been
talked like maybe the Coaches Association talked with him or
something that hey, you have to rein it in. I
don't think that's hot enough.
Speaker 2: I can kind of see it, yeah, I mean like
I feel like anytime you're predicting someone will lead the
league in something, it's like a little hot, because just
statistically they probably won't unless it's like Luca and usage rate.
But just the obvious arguments are, like it's a highly
pressurized situation. He's hyper competitive. He has like had no
issue mouthing like anybody that's ready to go back at
stephen A. Smith like right away, like right the second
they're on TV. Is like clearly not concerned with like
decorum or what the norms are. I just think, you know,
he's You're right, it's not hot enough. But I thought
leading the league in something would would get me there.
Speaker 1: I'm trying to think of what would be. But you
think he'll like lead the league in the average amount
of time it takes him to use his challenge where
it's like the first three minutes of every game, he's
just so frustrated he's throwing his challenge at Illinois. I
don't know.
Speaker 2: It's interesting, like he is making an effort to always
cite like some of the analytics is so loaded. But
like when asked what the starting lineup was gonna be,
is like, it'll be the one that went twenty three
and ten, like and you know, because the numbers say
that's who He's not saying because the numbers say that's
who it should be. But he does seem pretty like
more to a greater extent than most coaches to just
like point to the stats and say like this dictates
the correct decision. So the challenge, I don't know, like
I I'll bet you they've had conversations or he has
about like the what is the actual optimal strategy like
mathematically for your challenges? Like what types of plays should
I use it on? What's the success rate on these
plays when in the game? Does it make the most
sense statistically to do it? I'll bet you that he's
had those conversations.
Speaker 1: Do you A bolder one would be like the Lakers
rank in the top like five of like cuts like
possessions finished off cuts or something like that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, or like Anthony Davis does finally shoot six threes
a game or something.
Speaker 1: But what about Bronnie making all rookie that.
Speaker 2: That would be a hyper bold prediction. All right, you
want to move to Memphis. I got another one here, man.
Speaker 1: All my Memphis takes are getting just ruined by the injuries.
I'm sticking with it.
Speaker 2: Even though he strained his hamstringing is gonna miss three weeks.
I think Jared Jackson Junior is gonna finish ahead of
Ja Moran and MVP voting not prepared to put like, oh,
he's gonna be seventh and John's gonna be fifteenth or whatever? Uh?
Speaker 1: Is this is this hot? Is this not hot?
Speaker 2: Is this like?
Speaker 1: Who cares?
Speaker 2: Because the Grizzlies are clearly gonna just miss a million
injury games?
Speaker 1: Again, I think I think it's hot because jarme j
Justson Junior is not like the billboard for durability either.
So you if you want to push back to say,
we'll just jog going to play in enough games and
Jared Jackson Junior gets there by default. The idea of
Jaron Jasher jun are just getting MVP votes at all
is like a pretty big deal because I in that conversation,
I'm not even calling anyone out. We're probably guilty of it. Two,
you're just gonna gravitate towards people whose identity at least
encompaences like sixty percent of it is offen. It's just
like God is a great example because it's he's most
valuable probably on the defensive, but his numbers are just
so ridiculous on offense. And Jared Jackson Junior, even though
he's a better self creator. I don't know that his
numbers are ever gonna be They're never gonna be honest
his but are they ever gonna be high enough to
where the thing that he does best can then amplify
those up into the MVP discussion. So I think it's
I think it's hot, but I don't think it's too hot.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think the logic obviously, this is again before
the hamstring news, which just again was like, oh right,
he has a hard time saying healthy. Like the way
he would do it is he's defensive player of the
Year again or like real close to it, or you know,
is in the conversation all season Memphis has a top
five defense and the numbers show that like, oh, he's
the reason, which is like, yeah, that maybe it should
be the expectation if he's healthy, and then all the
games he made offensively last year, are you know, I
don't think it's realistic assuming the rest of that roster
is healthy, which by the way, it's not. Vince Williams
and Gig Jackson are already hurt. Like if he's maybe
less volume but still holds the gains in isolation, scoring
and all this other stuff. And the other thing is
we've seen him be a really valuable volume three point shooter.
It's kind of like if the pieces all come together,
which has always been the case with Jared Jackson, It's
just like if all of these highs that he's shown
us in various categories like coalesce in one season, like
that guy's an MVP can like he's he's a top
ten MVP guy, Like that season is in him if
all the best little components of his game happen at
the same time.
Speaker 1: You kind of basically just described if Evan Mobley shot
five three pointers a game a little bit, right.
Speaker 2: Yeah, maybe that's the guy we should have pointed to.
Is he Could he be a Jared Jackson type?
Speaker 1: Yeah? Similar, I don't. Yeah, I think that's that's a
good hot take. I mean, the injury is just a bummer,
But I mean John Murran's probably gonna been three weeks
at some point two.
Speaker 2: He's only gotta be that one guy on the team.
Speaker 1: I don't need to laugh at injuries. That is something
I will never I might, you know, be snarky about
a player's durability, but I don't want anyone ever to
get injured. I like watching these players and the Grizzlies.
This is anecdotal. I'm sure there's they ate at a
back last year. There's data to back this up. But
they just feel more snake bit than like any other
team in recent memory to where it's okay. The Clippers
is an example, it's this one, dude. It's Kawhi all
the time and Paul George was sprinkled in. But with
the Grizzlies, it's no, it's just equal opportunity. You're fucked, like.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and like it didn't even wait, didn't even wait
till the season started. I'm gonna have to revise, like
all of my Memphis is gonna just kick everyone's ass.
This year takes just because apparently they're the unluckiest team
on the planet.
Speaker 1: I am up, which means that we go to your
Miami Heat. My hot take rant Khalil Wair will finish
the season as a starter next to bam Adebayo.
Speaker 2: I don't, but you're asking the wrong guy because I
kind of want him to. I've dabbled with thinking he
should start as a starter to begin the season, start
as he should just be in the first unit. That's
probably that would be the hot take. I I I
think it's hot because it's a rookie, and the heat,
at least at this point, seem like they're you know,
they didn't Jimmy Butler.
Speaker 1: They're not going to extend him.
Speaker 2: It doesn't seem like but you know, this is a
team that has two really good players that's gonna try
to win. They're hoping Tyler heroes healthy, like Terry Rozier
gives them a full season. So for a rookie to
crack that first unit is that's like a big deal.
I just like him so much that it's hot. But
it's not like, oh my god, Dan, you're out of
your mind right, Like that's well player type that makes
sense if he is what he kind of looked like
in Summer League.
Speaker 1: Do you know why it's hot, Well, because I think
he's gonna start because Bam gets traded. Do you okay, Well, no,
I don't think that we need to discuss that hot take. No.
I think honestly that the heat. Do you remember a
couple of years ago they were talking about before he
got injured over your seven playing with bam Adebayo and
then like we saw them kind of try that Kevin
Love stuff. I think that they kind of even though
they haven't necessarily played that way. They've had a bunch
of like undersized furs or maybe more traditional furs at points.
I really think they want to try playing big with
bam Adebayo and last year maybe that maybe that impetus
has kind of declined because Bam was so He's always
been so good defensively. Let me make it clear, but
he was playing and drop more. Cooper Morehead wrote a
great piece on it, I think in March on heat
dot com, but like he was like using every defensive
coverage possible and like at the max possible volume while
spreading it out. So maybe because you know that Bam
can kind of handle the not that you didn't think
he couldn't handle it, but because he excels as the
traditional room protector and a different in addition to doing
all the other stuff on the perimeter, well, that you're
not as inclined to try it. But I really think
that they've wanted to and just haven't found someone hasn't
been healthy enough, or when they've tried it hasn't worked out.
And so at least people believe like, well, why wouldn't
they try it with khalil Ware? And I can kind
of see it working out because both of these are
guys that can really work on the perimeter, and so
it makes them a little bit more interchangeable offensively. You
really do need Bam to kind of channel his team
USA Sprang from the corner self, but that's not impossible.
Speaker 2: Or you need I was gonna say it's a bet
on one or the other. You don't need both, just
having a serviceable three point shot at decent volume. Bam
is probably the more likely, but we like what didn't
wear shoot over forty percent is last season in college
and it was low volume. But it's like, I don't know,
maybe he's the one that can get up, you know,
two or three threes a game and make you know,
in the mid thirties. Like that's probably enough to justify it,
given the gains you would have in just athleticism size defense.
Speaker 1: I do agree.
Speaker 2: I think the Heat want this, like want something like
this to work. But for a team that like it's
if it's struggled on one end or the other. Last
few years it's been on offense, and like it could
be a short leash if it's pretty clear that neither
of them BAM or or where can can space. But
like I mean, I think it so it's it's hot,
but it's like you can kind of see that, like
this could be something they explore for sure.
Speaker 1: We are up to my Milwaukee Bucks. Anyone who's watching
on YouTube's or a spoiler twice because I'm not doing
well with the low graphic that we made. But up there.
So my hot take grant is two of Chris Middleton,
Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis Junior get traded at least
two this season. Now you know why it's particularly spicy.
They can't get traded in the same deal, just as
the Bucks can't aggregate salaries.
Speaker 2: Well, go on, like you can talk about all the
other restrictions to you gotta match salary. You can't take
back more than you come.
Speaker 1: Like I guess technically if they were making a deal,
I don't know like what that deal looks like, but
you could send two of these guys out together as
long as you finish underneath second after the fact.
Speaker 2: Which if you're doing that, then you're thinking about fielding
Giannis trade offers because he's pissed.
Speaker 1: If it's a cost savings. My logic here before you
go into it, is I think that both all three
of these guys could be free agents. I don't know
what's gonna happen with Chris Midleton, he has the player option.
They are starting, even the front office has kind of
started thinking in bigger picture terms when you look at
just look at the amount of roster spots. I don't
view any of them as blue chip prospects. Look at
the amount of roster spots that are just taking up
on kind of these younger, unproven guys. I don't know
if it's gonna be in the name of draft equity
because maybe you think you can get away with not
having Bobby Portis, or if it's just, hey, we kind
of need to reorient the roster. And honestly, when I'm
looking at it, I kind of hate saying this, but
I think of the three, is Brook Lopez the most
valuable to this team? Now, I normally would have always
defaulted to Chris Middleton, because that dude is a is
a bucket in the postseason, which is a big deal.
Speaker 2: Well Man, so you've piled another hot take on for
me to evaluate. I think Lopez, Well, Lopez just gives
him stuff that nobody else can. You could have said
that about Middleton, but the couple ankle surgeries, the injuries
piling up the last couple of years, it's like, are
you counting on Chris Middleton the way you can count?
Like Lopez had the back issue and then he's been
incredibly durable the last two years, even though he's older.
So like I do, I think it's fair to say
that he might be the most valuable. I can't decide
ultimately if this take is too hot just because of
how funktionally difficult it would be to trade these guys
or not hot enough, because you could go farther and say, like.
Speaker 1: They're gonna trade be honest, because if you trade both
of these guys, Yannis is like, I'm out, I'm sorry,
there's not You're not trading Yanni's mid season That was
just like, what is the that's an off season thing
of it happens. My whole point was, I don't think
I'm predicting this because I don't think that they're gonna
punt on the y honest window, and I think that
you can move these guys and not like you can
hope to renovate. I don't know if you would be it.
You can't necessarily say it would be a guaranteed upgrade,
but maybe it's a renovation that changes just the complexion
of the way that you're playing. I kind of bandied
about though it feels doesn't it feel less hot to
say they trade Damian Lillard than this?
Speaker 2: Uh? Yes, I would agree, just because like what I
was thinking was like, okay, if you're if you're restructuring,
as you put it, like who are you getting back?
Like if you trade Middleton or Lopez just in a
vat vacuum. It's the type of trade of team mix
that like, oh, we need to get younger and more
versatile and flexible and cheaper. It's like, I don't know
who you're trading those guys for that bring back more
present value, you know, bringing Moody and a pick first
round pick, well, Wiggans is going to be a positive
value contract.
Speaker 1: So I don't know what you're talking about.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's interesting. More likely to try, I think, probably
more likely to trade Dame because you could just imagine, like, well, one,
he's not part of this core, so I guess it's
easier to move him for that reason, but two like
you could trade it in Miami for stuff, whereas like,
you know, I don't know that you can do that
with these other two guys.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean if you could get Hawkes, and then
it would have to be I guess Terry wrote I.
I mean, honestly, I don't mean to say this because
Damian Lord is gonna be better this year. People are like, oh,
he's getting all he was missing wide open threes last year.
That's not like that's not a thing that's gonna happen.
But if you're the Bucks, I wouldn't make this argument.
So I want to make this clear. Could you talk
yourself how much worse are you? You remove Damian Lillard,
but you add Terry Rozier or Tyler hero Duncan Robinson
and Himey Hawkes.
Speaker 2: I mean, you're definitely more interesting and deeper then.
Speaker 1: Man. If you well, by the way, there have to
be another team involved here, because.
Speaker 2: Right if if if you think Lillard is going to
be closer to the guy we'd seen, you know in
the ten years leading up to last season, maybe not
like maybe you're not better. And I know you're saying
like you're not sure either. Actually you don't think so either.
But like, if what you get is last year or
you get last year minus whatever percentage of falloff, you
would normally assign to someone Dame's age small guard alert
by the way, like bad don't age. Well, then it's like, yes, please,
let's get three other guys in here that can give
us some shooting, you know, diversify a little bit easier
to move if you want to really strip things down
to Yeah, I don't know, being a.
Speaker 1: Super soaker filled with two years old ranch dressing to
your head or to your to your mouth, that's weird.
Would you rather I didn't want to use for you know,
sure you know I'm a gun toting right so I
honestly would you rather have I don't know what the
other machinations are, Tyler Hero and him hawks on the
bucks or Damian Lillard. I would rather have Dame.
Speaker 2: I think I'm with you until I get more information
on like is he falling off or not? Right? Like,
but it's just like if it's today right now, it's like, no,
I'll take Dame, And do you.
Speaker 1: Think and this is I'm not I don't mean to
insult Dame. If anything, it's a comp For me, it's
a comment to Chris Middleton to where if you told
me that Chris Middleton, which is gonna be healthy in
the playoffs, It's like you have Tyler Like I could
kind of talk myself into it now because you know
there have to be other players to Like, you're probably
looking at a scenario where I don't know what the
machinations end up being, but like the I don't even
think the money might work between because what is Tyler
Hero at now? Is he making thirty million dollars? It's
right around there. It was like four for four for one. Like,
Tyler Hero is good enough of generating his own looks
that you could say, well, if we're getting on my hawks,
we're also revoting with picks and Middleton's going to be healthy.
I think I want to see more of the Damiannis praying,
which why I didn't go that robic. So I don't
think even if they do make that decision, I still
think that's more of an off season thing than a
trade deadline thing.
Speaker 2: What if you could just have Drew Holliday, do you
think they could ever get him?
Speaker 1: I think it might be time to move on to
Minnesota Timberwolves if you're getting all right, uh.
Speaker 2: Dan, I think that nas Reed is gonna be the
Wolf's second leading scorer. And I am fully aware that
they just traded for Julius Randall.
Speaker 1: What are your thoughts that's too hot? I just don't
so your is your bridition that Julius Randall's gonna get
retraded's or just not play a bunch like that's I think.
Speaker 2: I think that the more I've thought about this trade,
the more the clearest best way for it to work
is for Julius Randall to not start. And I don't
think Julius Randall is likely to uh warm to that
idea and factoring, And also that the more I've thought
about this trade, the more it does feel like we
initially talked about it, I was like, what percentage of
this is financial? I'm like increasingly convinced that the financial
component is a big deal, and Randall was just like, yeah,
we'll take that back, despite him saying he feels wanted here, Like,
I don't think that's a well founded belief. So I
think Red is going to be able to not do
a cat impression but give you eighty percent of it.
That's kind of my take initially when we talked about
the trade. I think that's totally on it, like totally
plausible that he just can do a lot of what
Cat did offensively from the shooting perspective, from like he's
a second option type thing. And I think the Randall
trade is in play, and I don't see any other
candidates beyond Randal, So I think, like that's kind of
where I'm coming from.
Speaker 1: By the way, I think that's how we get our
answer with how financially motivated it was, where if Julius
Randall opts out, do they just let him leave or
does he get traded again and broken up in a
smaller contracts because he's not necessarily any way, who is
paying Julius Randall thirty million dollars a year in free agency.
Speaker 2: The same people that are gonna give Brandon ingram A
two hundred million dollars.
Speaker 1: Not these guys aren't good. They're just such specific fits
that are tough to build around in larger contexts or
fit into already established contexts. I think that's way too hot,
just because I do think you start Julius Randall and
you see in theory how it goes, Like the idea
of just like taking the ball out of Anthy Edwards's
hands to get Julius Randall going downhill and he can
kick out. Not the worst idea in the world, unless
you think that Anthony Edwards can't hit catching shoot threes
in the space the floor in that context, which I
think we both believe that he can. And also what
you could do is you start him. They're staggering patterns
where the Wolves all of a sudden probably have one
of the more dangerous second units in the league, where
if you're kind of building it around Julius Randall not
coming off the bench but eating these bench units that
might include nas Dante DiVincenzo and then Nikhil Alexander Walker
as like that's your four setup, and then maybe it's
do you give Rob Dillinghand a shot in those or
you just like, is there another starter in there? Jade McDaniels,
So I think that's way too hot, because I do
think even if you're making this trade for financial reasons,
kind of like the crux of it is we need
someone else to put the ball in their hands, and
Julius Randall's very clearly that guy more than nas Reed
is who Yeah, he can generate his own offense, but
he's not going to set up a ton for everybody else.
Speaker 2: Would you agree that maybe you've kind of brushed up again,
brushed up against this if there were no if contracts
weren't a thing, and like reputations weren't a thing, and
like ego and player expectations weren't a thing. That the
best version of the Timberwolves has Julius Randall playing on
the second unit with Devincenzo and Dillingham as like I'm
going to lighten the load on Dillingham. We have Devincenzo
as like the spacer and the fireman, and nos Reed
is a starter just so you preserve some not a
some semblance, but you get better spacing out of the
first unit with Gobert, Like, do you think that's the
correct basketball decision if you remove all the other variables,
which obviously we cannot because those are huge factors.
Speaker 1: I would probably mean towards you, yes, But I'm closer
to now that we've had like a week to marinate
on this trade, not being sure because are you going
to get enough aggregate playmaking out of that starting five?
Then beyond Anthony Edwards because my Commi's getting older, and
it's okay, yeah, the playmaking is there, but when it's
not also coming with the same level of like kind
of shot making off the dribble, what does that do?
And that's where that's what just makes this trait so fascinating, right, Well.
Speaker 2: Because you're giving up if it's Randall, you're giving up spacing.
If it's Read, you're giving up playmaking. And it's like, well,
this offense was seventeenth last year, so you can't really
give up a lot and expect to get better. But
there's a sacrifice either way. But there's a sacrifice.
Speaker 1: But you have to answer your question, who's more likely
to check both of the boxes of playmaking and spacing
the floor, Julius Randall or nas Reed, And he answered
Julius Randall. And also I think, and I don't know
if this is the correct terminology for it, but he
has more on ball gravity to where he shot thirty
one percent on threes last year, Like they're going to
react to what he's doing with the ball in his hands,
and probably even in definitely in ways that they wouldn't
a cat, but also in ways that they're not going
to nas I don't mean to like denigrade cat in
that way. But so I still think I'm at least
trying it with Julius Randall and the starting a lot
of him, by the way, that's the pathway to also
justifying the true Like even if it was for financial reasons,
that's the way that you're able to hide behind. No,
it wasn't he's starting.
Speaker 2: That's that's bad motivation. I mean, maybe it wasn't, but like,
if that that's my concern, that's like you're in a bad.
Speaker 1: Place, isn't this isn't there a chance I don't want
to belabor this trade, but isn't there a chance that
this ends up being kind of the KCP trade for
the Denver Nuggets, not that Minnesota wins the title, though
maybe they do do. But okay, you did cut costs,
but like, it wasn't I don't even want to call
it a side benefit, but it was dual beneficial because
Casey p ended up being not just important, but he
upgraded your championship stock. There is a scenario where Julius Randall,
maybe you shooting thirty eight percent on catching shoot threes
this year or something like, there is a scenario where
this works out and ends up making you a better team.
I think I said in our semi immediate reaction, I
think the Wolves are worse overall from a playoff perspective.
That's from having watched Julius Randall in the playoffs. Yeah,
so that is still that's all. That's honestly more than
Julius Randall's regular season fit. I'm like, can he have
a good playoffs? And that's like, that's where, so I
understand what you're saying. I think everything under the sun
is in play right, which is so intriguing.
Speaker 2: This trade is I can't remember when that was so
that I've kind of like, yeah, I could see it
from this side, and now I love it from this side,
and now I have real questions.
Speaker 1: It's just like everything. I can't remember a trade.
Speaker 2: That I was more excited to see play out on
both sides, like in actual games, than this one, because
it's just like, who knows.
Speaker 1: Two contenders doing business with each other, one trying to
address weaknesses, the other doubling down on strengths. Yeah, it's
just so fascinating.
Speaker 2: I got another one Dan for the New Orleans Pelicans.
I think Zion is going to average over one block.
And one steal this season. Nine guys did that last year,
which we're talking about like defensive statistics, and Zion Williamson
not something he's known for. And I'm saying he's gonna
be one of you know, fewer than a dozen guys
that pulls this off. I'll explain the rationale, but how
does that strike you just offer it?
Speaker 1: So one block and one steal, yeah.
Speaker 2: Something nine guys did last year, all of whom are
noted very good defenders.
Speaker 1: I think that's appropriately hot. Just because Zion's never averaged
zero point seven blocks was a career high for him
last year, So you're also kind of bay. I mean,
so if he's healthy, he does play over thirty minutes
a game, so you have that going for you. You
know what really gets me is the blocks, because it's
how much time I keep getting this Repelicans fans by
the way, and it's gravading the shit out of me.
Zion's not going to be the center. Well, Zion's gonna
be like the day facto big and yeah, you might
have Herb Jones doing a lot of the stuff and
other people like around the basket, they're going to be
look at the makeup of this roster. There are going
to be moments where Daniel Pie is not on the
floor and Zion's your primary big. I'm not saying he's
a center. I went out of my way to say
Zion is the lone big. Are you gonna tell me
Herb Jones or brandon Ingram or Trey Murphy's you're big?
I just sorry that dem and Kings fans with the
siding Tomato Rosen's defensive raiding are just getting out of control.
That we can talk about that when we get to
the Kings, but so not pinning everyone with a broad brush.
It's never everyone when I'm saying fans in general. But
I think this is appropriately hot because I'm having like
last year was his best defensive season of his career
and he averaged point seven blocks. But the fact that
like there were other bigs, like bigs on the court
with him to where I just think by default he's
gonna have to do more of the center stuff this year,
like the traditional big man stuff. So I think it's
appropriately hot.
Speaker 2: I think the other component of it is that's a
lot of it is just like if not him, who
like he's just going to be in the position to
have to do a little more of this stuff. I
am drinking a little bit of the hopefully sugar free
kool aid on him, like, yeah, he might really be
in shape, and like he might really like this might
really year and he's still right. It's like, but I
think the combination I've just I don't know. I'm a sucker.
I am buying almost all of the like oh. Like,
for example, when Luca, I think Tim McMahon or somebody
described Luca at media Day as slim, and I was like, oh,
it's over, Like I just I just buy it. I
just I'm so easy to fool with the best shape
of his life stuff.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry. It's like I should be better than this.
I'm sorry this. I almost think you're not giving yourself
or Zion enough credit here. I was doing my MVP
ladder the other day, and if you just told me
that Zion was going to play in seventy games, I
might just put him in the top five based off
what we saw that next year, because he I don't like.
I understand that availability is a skill in itself, but
look at the defensive improvement he made last year, specifically
away from the ball, and I would like to provide
a rebuke to the people that because in my mind,
I'm just like, he's really not contesting shots around the
basket and you're not going to like trust him to
block jumpers. So how does he get to that block
per game? Do you know how he gets to a
block per game? Grant? Here are the leaders in shots
contested at the rim per game for the New Orleans
Pelicans last year, Yonas, Valentiunas, Larry nanst Jr. Dyson Daniels,
Herb Jones, Zion Williamson. Of the top five, the three
the three players in the top three are all gone, right,
that's how Van Williams is. So who are you who
else is contesting shots in the basket aside from Herban Zion?
Right now you want to say Ingram, Trey Murphy, Tye, Okay, fine,
but like no on Ingram and Murphy, sorry no, like
they might do some, but like to just say no,
like yeah, they're gonna do more of the rim protecting
than Zion. It's just how much is Daniel Tys gonna play?
Are you even gonna see it? And many of the
other bigs maybe they make a trade and that's how
it doesn't get there, But I just think the way
that they're built right now, he might get there by default.
It's got yeah, right, default, that's the right way.
Speaker 2: If it's like it's it just no one else can
do it, and like he may or may not be
able to, but he's gonna be asked to write long stretches.
Speaker 1: I still think it's a hot take because I think
that they will try to insulate him against doing that
as much as possible. Yeah, I'm up, and we have
the New York Knicks. I struggled on what to settle
on for them. I'm ultimately going to say I think
they will still have a top ten defense. My other
one grant was that Karl Anthony Towns will rank in
the top ten of three point attempts per game. He's
never ranked higher than seventeenth. He's only ranked in the
top fifty of three point attemps per game twice, which
just feels like I blame him for that. I think
more get him up, man, what are you doing? But
so here's my thinking. They have oj Ananobi, they have
Josh Hart, they have McHale Bridges, they have Duce McBride.
Even pressure to chew of coming off the bench. Mitchell
Robinson I assume will at least play at some point
this season, and so if you have him going up
against second units or even playing with Towns for stretches
like the defense there should be fine. This to me
is more about Karl Anthony Towns himself. I think, after
being very critical of his defense for years and even
for part of last season, I thought he was very
good overall defensively, And I think what it might come
down to more with the Knicks is how much is
Tibbs willing to deviate from kind of his base principles.
And I think we've seen enough flexibility from Tis over
the last two seasons or season and a half whatever
that I think we'll see more of Karl Anthony Town's
just going to be defending at the level, and maybe
the Knicks are going to do more switching. Maybe we'll
see a lot of scram switching, like trying to scramble
out of mismatches even before they happen. I thought Karl
Anthony Town's did good like was good there last year too,
and I think part of that is, well, do you
have the personnel to make that work? And I think
the Knicks do like when you look at the perimeter guys,
like if you were having to rely on making these
reads to be aggressive or switching. Now, the Jalen Brunton
of it all makes it difficult, but I'm just going
to I trust that, like, Okay, well some of the
non starting lineups, even if the starting lineup is basically
offense first, but even look at the starting lineup and
there's three above average defenders in there, two of whom
are just super elite. That I think it probably comes
down to do you think this team is going to
be healthy enough? And that's you know, og always kind
of missing time, knowing how much time Anton Robinson is
going to miss. So that's where I think the risk
is caked in here. But this is to me, it's
more about my belief that No, if you're putting Karl
anthy Towns in a deep drop, do I think that
he is going to be the anchor of a really
like or do you want to funnel guys to him?
Speaker 2: No?
Speaker 1: But I think that the Knicks have the ability to
play differently, and part of that ability is I believe
Tom Thibodau is more flexible than before, and I believe
that Karl anthy Towns is better defensively than he was
even a year ago. Let's say, so, I'm gonna say
the Knicks will still have a top ten defense overall,
And again I will reiterate part of that can be
some of the non base lineups just might really anchor
these high Like think about the Knicks where a lot
of times, like some of their best net ratings were
just being propped up by the bench destroying everyone. The
starting lineup sucked, but the bench units were so good
they had these elite rankings overall.
Speaker 2: I think I think it's hot. It's a hot take
as measured against like what the knee jerk public reaction
of the idea of Towns being your defensive anchor would
like create, right, like, because I just think, and it's
not like Randall was a great defensive player, and and
like you lose Hartenstein so that's a big deal. And
Mitchell Robinson, who knows December at the earliest whatever. So
I think that the normal thought on it would be
like they're just gonna be worse, but it'll be worth
it because of the offensive games. Right, But but I see,
I can see it. I do think, like you look
at how the Wolves performed with Kat as the center
last year, and it was like, I guess i'd say
it was surprisingly good, but it was just good on defense.
Small samples, but like, how different really supporting cast wise
in terms of defensive quality is what the Knicks have
compared to what the Wolves have had with Kat last year.
It's like you got your McDaniels and you got your
Edwards and you got you know, go Bear. It's like, well,
you got anob and you got mckill bridges, Like that's
that's not nothing, and you've got some wiggle room between
sixth and tenth of your just trying to decide, like
how much better or worse are they so a little
hot as compared to like public perception?
Speaker 1: But I'm I'm with it.
Speaker 2: I think I agree with you.
Speaker 1: Wow, you agree. So it's not even that it's appropriately hot.
You're willing to you're with you.
Speaker 2: I would I would get out on hot take Island
on this one with you.
Speaker 1: I mean. And by the way, if their top ten
in defense, it's kind of just does that mean the
trade worked out for them then?
Speaker 2: Right? Because because you would just assume they're going to
be top ten on offense, Like pretty comfortably right, because I.
Speaker 1: Mean, if they're not.
Speaker 2: Wrong, yeah yeah, yeah, well that's a title contender profile,
which they are, so that that checks out.
Speaker 1: I'm the pages me with that. But let's get to
the Minnesota Timberwolves. I mean, Wes, you want to go back?
Are alright? I got the thunder, We're going back to.
Speaker 2: The All Star Well here, Jaylen Williams and chet Holmgren
are both All Stars this year.
Speaker 1: Now, Williams, I think is probably every way before you
get to justify it. So you've now predicted Jamal Murray,
Jalen Williams, and chet Holmgren are all going to make
all Who are these how many of these players are
just throwning other players in the West Man?
Speaker 2: You know, I just think Devin Booker's washed and nobody's
gonna vote for Lebron or Kevin Durant just you know, it's.
Speaker 1: A new time. That's just not even a consideration.
Speaker 2: No, he's done, he's thirty six, he's aging.
Speaker 1: You said it. I don't believe it, but you said it.
Speaker 2: So I think of the two, Williams is the more likely,
just because, like he was, there was some buzz for
him last year. So it wouldn't be a shock if
he just took like another step forward. Honestly, a lot
of this is I think this is not the hot take.
I think the Thunder are going to be so good
as a regular season team that we will be in
a position where it's like two's not enough, Like Sja
is going to be an All Star, like just unless
he's hurt and then you got to give him another one.
So really it's just how does Chet get in there?
And it's he's gonna be like a top five defensive
player in the league. He's gonna shoot forty percent from three,
he's gonna take a step as large as the one
Jadab took in his second year. I'm just like, I'm
beyond in the bag for this team, which again is
not a hot take place to be because everybody is.
Speaker 1: But wait until we get to the end of this exercise.
Speaker 2: Okay, if the Thunder are who I think they're gonna
be and who a lot of people think they're gonna be,
this is a this is just a team with three
All Stars, and so yeah, your point is right of
like who's who's who's falling out of the All Star
you know.
Speaker 1: Family for these two but so this one I think
is appropriately hot because I think that it might they
might just be undeniable, as you said. But the other
aspect of it is is you're now taught like Shay,
we already know, we'll just make it because he's one
of the five best players in the NBA or seven
or whatever you want to say. Yeah, these two guys
can get in as front court members. And I think
that gives you some more flexibility because you're looking at
it and it's like, well, Regal Bear is not guaranteed
to be in there, or Julius randall the Timberwolves around
my brain right now clearly, and it's Lebron is older.
What if he's just not playing in enough games. I
have to imagine Lebron w get in, and you would
have to imagine Anthony Davis gets in, but it's not
outside the realm of possibility. You have to imagine Wemby
gets in. But it does feel like there's more, and yes,
some bonus and Shanggon, there's Zion, there's a ton of
front court talent. It just feels like when you're you're
trying to name two new entrants, if you had to
ask me whether that needs to come in the front
court or the back court. I mean there's just more
There's three front line spots in the starting lineup, so
there's more flexibility there, and then you have the wild
card of it all of course. So I think it's
appropriately hot, mostly because I'm in the bag for these
two as well. It's just funny when kind of combined
with their Jamal Murray take is Grant is a particularly
the downfall of a lot of these just not older heads,
but the current regime. Apparently.
Speaker 2: My other prediction is that the All Star rosters will
expand to fifty players each and like then.
Speaker 1: We got no problem. I think that's appropriately hot. Thank you.
We move on to my Orlando Magic. Actually I can't
take ownership with them because I'm mad about their off season.
How about this picture up on screen? What do you think? Great?
Speaker 2: Where do you get a blue rim? Right?
Speaker 1: First of all, you should be allowed to have different
colored rims. Would be a lot of fun. Why not
come on it? Probably something with like just perception of it.
I would assume home court advantage. I mean, like, yeah,
we have these baseball stadiums where it's just like all
these different lengths of the field, does it.
Speaker 2: If you can make your your in season tournament floors
like look like an acid trip, I can't.
Speaker 1: They should test it out during the in season tournament games.
Multi colored rims.
Speaker 2: Get Adam silver on the phone. We need multi like
tied eyed rims in Portland for Bill Walton, Like, we
could do all kinds of great stuff.
Speaker 1: And by the way, that would that I feel like
that would help that rim stands out more than just
kind of like the orange brown.
Speaker 2: Why's the net gotta be white?
Speaker 1: What are we doing with the nets? More? Could chane net?
Although no, no, that could actually hurt somebody because these
guys are Yeah, I'm thinking of myself, who like can't
even touch the So anyway, my initial prediction was hot
take was that they the magic We're gonna trade for
LaMelo Ball or Anthony Simons. But I'm actually gonna go
with I think Jalen Suggs is gonna win most improved
player going to do because he will improve the most.
Oh right, sorry, So they've already talked maybe this is
me look sipping kool aid in training camp. They've talked
about him handling more of the traditional floor general responsibility,
and there's a level of that's not revelatory. There's a
level of well, duh, you decided not to add anybody
who could do any better for you, And I think
a lot of people like well Anthony Black could do more.
And it's why are they playing Anthony Black a ton
more minutes when they just got KCP. I know they've
lost folks, but you have KCP. I look at Jalen Suggs,
and he improved a lot last year. I think is
just a shot maker from beyond the art. Decision making
on the ball the question for him, and I think
the playmaking is there. He passed better out of drives
kind of the full floor vision is good. If this
team could get out in transition a proper amount, your
z's playmaking tick up, and maybe they will this year.
You have to go back to the half court, slow
things down. Do you want him running a pick and roll?
He averaged grant in the playoffs last year point three
three points per pick and roll possession. Is that good? Yeah?
It's high. I mean it's higher than point three to two, right,
So I think he can get there because the spacing
should be a little bit better enough. But I just
look at him and he has gotten better, and it's no,
I don't know if he's well, I shouldn't say I
don't know. He's not gonna be making like the Luca
Dodges Lebron level type of reads or throwing these one
handed skip passes. But in terms of just like if
the Magic are healthy and they set a ball screen
for him and he's not going downhill with a full
blast of speed, I think he's gotten better at kind
of the I call it the directionality or the jiggle
joggle of being on ball where it's you're not just
making these super direct or predictable b lines, and I
think there's more variability there from him as a score
and decision maker. It's Kenny get there as you like,
kind of anticipating these passes. I think he can. And
then just it's not just about the passing. I just
feel like this is someone and I it's not. I
guess it's not being talked about at all. But are
we sure that Franz Vogner is more important to the
Magic future than Jalen Suggs. Honestly, no, okay, good, But
so this last year he averages fifteen points over fifteen
points per thirty six minutes, over a block per thirty
six minutes, over two steals per thirty six minutes, and
five assists per thirty six minutes. Like the list of
players who have just done the same, Dwayne Wade, Michael Jordan,
Scottie Pippen, Like that's Clyde Drexler, Ron Harper and that's it.
And so I'm in the band like as a guy
who can kind of fill it up from anywhere, and
we know is just going to have like this And sorry,
he was sub five assists per thirty six minutes, but
my point is, I think he gets to five assists
per thirty six minutes, and so or I would even
say it's what he's end up at with per game.
Last year he was at like what was it three? Oh,
he was under three to two point seven. It just
wouldn't shock me if the assist total doubles. And so
we're looking at someone who's averaging twenty points five assists
and then has the counting stats of the steals in
the blocks, and we know he has the reputation of
an all defense level defender. So I think he's gonna
win Most Improved Player, and I think it will be
driven by the fact that we will see him improve
multiple levels on the offensive end playmaker score that whole nine.
Speaker 2: I think it's a hot take, But the way you
end up being right is maybe partly like the whole
year late on it thing, where it's like he actually
had a real most improved case last year and like
everybody catches on this time around, and just the idea
that something now I think we got to talk about,
like the sheer rarity of the shooting leap that he
made was like how like insane it was for him
to become like a massive liability like under thirty percent
right to like he just the leaping. I love how
I just throw out like I think it was this,
and then you have to go look at it from so.
Speaker 1: Year one twenty one point four percent, year two thirty
two point seven percent, and then year three thirty nine
point seven percent.
Speaker 2: So that's I mean insane. But so that cuts both ways,
Like one, well, he's gonna regress because that kind of
leap is just ridiculous and that makes most improved hard
if you regress at anything. But then it's like, well,
why are you betting against a guy that has gotten
so much better already? Like he's it's a Jada argument.
It's just like why would it stop now? He's just
like clearly he's someone that works at his weaknesses and
gets better. So it's a hot take, but I believe
that it is appropriately hot for in just just because
like maybe there's another factor too, as I'm thinking of it,
like Orlando has bet on organic growth before and been right,
and like they just didn't go get a playmaker, and
it could because they think Jalen Suggs can add that
to his game. And that's another and they'll be right
about that too, Like why like that's not a crazy
thing to think, so hot take because it's hard to
get better to that degree twice. But I do think like,
if you're gonna pick somebody to do it, someone likes Suggs.
Speaker 1: Is the right guy, right, And I think the path
like if you were trying to dilute the pathway down
even further, it's there's no three point shooting regression. And
he leads this team and assists or finish his second
behind Palo bank Carrol. That is, oh, that's a huge
jump then, because I mean even Paulo Bank Carol lets
the team in assists at five point four and so
it's not like if you put the ball in someone's hands,
more so outside the realman possibility that there's a new
team leader and assists per game. And at this point
I feel like I think there'll be people with differing
opinions here and that's fine, but it could be Jaalen Suggs.
Now it banks out a ton of improvement, but it's
kind of the whole point of most improved player. There
you go. We are on to the Philadelphia seventy six ers.
Uh do you know who that is on screen? Grand?
I just want to I just want to make sure.
Speaker 2: Yes, I do know. He is a former NBA player
who was a very good French national team contributor, who
is an NBA player again.
Speaker 1: Oh, he also blew past the screen. I apologize, why don't.
I'm getting really bad at it. There, huge muscles, huge
ash too nice, nice tobbed to him. Hey, like on
the same team. Just crazy. So I'm going to predict
that it's kind of by the way, it's kind of
spicy to come up with like real hot takes for
the Sixers, though we actually have one that I thought
was a great one from a subscriber anyway, Gershan Yabuselli
will start more games than KAYLEB Martin or Kelly Ubridge Junior.
Speaker 2: That's real hot. I'm gonna need you to lay this
out for me just because.
Speaker 1: I get a properly sized for. And maybe I shouldn't
throw Kelly Ubrige Junior in there because he could start
technically as a two if you really wanted to. So
I think Yabuselli starts more games than Kayla Martin, Like
maybe let's stick it there, because you're not gonna start
Kayla Martin as like you're not gonna start Kayla Martin,
Yabuseli and Paul George. So I look at it as
just like who is the four? Yes, Kayla Martin and
Paul George. You can have them do that. And I
guess if you want Kelleyobridge Junior to do it and
kJ Martin before you inevitably trade him, and that would
be probably the pushback to as well, they're eventually going
to make a trade and maybe they get a starting for.
I just feel like their depth has been a little
bit overblown to where it's like, if you do start
Kaylen Martin, it's all right, Like what are we looking at?
With the bench really now, and so yeah, you could stagger,
but I think that maybe they won't start like this,
but we'll get to a point in the season where
it's we want the body of Yabuselli out there to
just like kind of handle, especially against certain matchups. You
might just prefer if you're going up against Boston and
they're playing two bigs, or what if the Knicks at
some point are starting Karl Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson,
They're at Cleveland, Jared Allen and Evan Mobley. The list
goes on. I mean, so Orlando even Pallo, ben Caro
and Wendell Carter Junr. So I just think for the
body type that he has and just like knowing that
you want to maximize your bench minutes while also insulating,
I would argue the amount of reps you want to
see Kayla Martin and Paul George. Let's call it guarding up, Like,
who else is the answer here if it's not going
to be Yabuselli. So, by the way, this was classic
what is the spicy thought on the sixers? Right? But
you know what I mean?
Speaker 2: Yeah, because like it wouldn't be just to create some contrast,
It would not be a hot take to say Yabasel
is gonna will not be in the rotation like in
December like that, because they'd be.
Speaker 1: Like, yeah, all right, I could see it.
Speaker 2: So that's why this is a hot take. It might
it's a little hot for me, just I mean, if
you've been out of the league, it's I don't ever
feel great about you starting a lot of games, but
like your points will take like he does address something
and kind of balances things out if you, you know,
for depth perspective. So good, good hot take. It's skewing
a little hot for me.
Speaker 1: That's so that's the first one I think you've said
of mine that's too hot. I had your Jamal Murray one.
I just dumped all over.
Speaker 2: Then there's this one for me, so and I'll be back.
I think the two of Middleton and Lopez getting traded
and port Is getting traded, I thought it was a
little hot. But again I'm I don't know what hot
takes are.
Speaker 1: That's fair. That's the what hot takes are. For like
an hour and fifty minutes, you one got a hot one.
Speaker 2: Dan Phoenix Suns, either Kevin Durant or Devin Booker will
not finish the season on the Phoenix Sun.
Speaker 1: Here's why that's not hot enough. Oh, we're overdue for
Kevin Durant trade requests. It's been over about that this morning.
I think. No, I think that's hot because it's you
go through all the it's just one of those for
you to move them, one of those guys has to
demand out. And even if let's say, okay, Devin Booker
is an example in raw time, like maybe he has
the equity built up with the organization to ask for
a trade and they'll give it to him. You look
at his contract that he doesn't have that leverage. Kevin
Durant might, So things would have to be going exceedingly
poorly for them to do.
Speaker 2: Things have to go exceedingly poorly for Kevin Durant to
be unhappy. Or can he win two titles and make
a third finals and still not be happy?
Speaker 1: Okay, well, what hypothetically on this team is antagonizing him?
Speaker 2: Listen, he was unhappy before Draymond Green and Tech. No,
can I police my own hot take? This is too
because I.
Speaker 1: Actually I actually think it. I think we got the
Kevin Durant trade request already and they figure it out
to work around it, just because do you remember when
Wojes tweeted that Houston was targeting Kevin Duran Devin Booker
in the equation, It's like that didn't just come out
of nowhere.
Speaker 2: Yeah, nope, yeah, that's right. Well now it's definitely gonna happen.
But I actually have been leaning much more towards like
the Sons are gonna be a monster this year. I
just I'm s so you have one that's not a
hot take, but in terms of like what I actually
believe versus I need to come up with a hot
take for this team. Like I do think that like
if you said the Suns won sixty two games, I'd
be like I could see it more so than like
Kevin Durant's But this is what Kevin Durant does, like
or like something goes really badly and it's just like
we gotta trade Devin Booker. We're stuck. You know, Kevin
Durant like falls off or gets hurt, and then Bradley
Beal is not available, and it's like we got Devin
Booker and you know whoever we put together on the minimums.
Speaker 1: If that happens, we're just penciling him in for Houston
right a billion? Yeah, Like that's that's the move. I
think you went two different ends of the spectrum where
the Sons are a monster? Isn't how that's just what.
Speaker 2: I actually believe is too hot monster?
Speaker 1: Yeah, so I would say, like, is there something in
the middle. Can can Devin Booker finish top five in
MVP voting? Or would it be a hot take to
say no, I don't want to do that.
Speaker 2: Would it be a hot take to say, like, we
will get another Bradley over six Men of the Year
hot Monte Morris outproduces Tyas Jones. That would be too hot?
Speaker 1: Okay, what about this one? The Suns will trade their
twenty thirty one pick by the trade deadline.
Speaker 2: Shouldn't that be the expectation based on how they're operating?
Speaker 1: I guess, But just like, well, yeah, I mean they
did sign josh Okobe that contract, so you have to
like single out a player the Sun's trade for someone
who closes games for them in the playoffs.
Speaker 2: Yeah, because then it's like you've got you gotta trade
like Nurkic probably to get anyone.
Speaker 1: But isn't that the same thing because you're not trading
your twenty thirty one pick for someone who won't be
closing games for you. So I kind of just said
the same thing without Yeah, I don't know. Uh, let's
move on.
Speaker 2: I don't know the Suns are the Sons are going
to be a monster, but might also try to.
Speaker 1: Say Devin Booker gets more MVP credit than Devin Kevin Durant.
Speaker 2: I think I like that. I think I mean Durant's
gonna slip at some point, you know, like it's just
it's gonna happen.
Speaker 1: Well, one of the ten best players in basketball. Yeah,
I don't know. Uh allah. No, I think this is
a hot take. What the Suns will be better on
the defensive end this year than they were last year
when they were twelve, That would be a hot take.
I don't believe it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, now we've moved straight. I don't understand what hot
takes are, but that's not one. Uh.
Speaker 1: Actually, I have a legitimate query about this team. When
you look at their Tias Jones comes, I'm assuming we
know he's gonna start, and I'm assuming he wouldn't come
if he didn't think he was gonna have the opportunity
to close games. Yeah, so if you're closing games with
Kevin Durant, like our Tias Jones, Bradley Beald Booker, and
Kevin Durant all just locks as part of your crunch
time five.
Speaker 2: I mean, if they're not, what's happened? Like, what then
is that?
Speaker 1: Is that your like the defensive one.
Speaker 2: I mean I guess Royce O'Neil might be the guy,
or even like right that's the guy, or Grayson Allen,
I guess like would be someone else or it's not
Nurkic and you play Durant at center against certain matchups
Like but I I once came over thinking like I'm
gonna start, and they I don't know if they would
have made promises. You can't really make the promise of
like we're gonna close with you because that's always like
dependent on so many variables.
Speaker 1: So yeah, maybe maybe that's not a lock, do you
because that I mean you could argue though, like would
Bradley Beal not be closing some games? Is that he's
not closing? What are we doing like that? Okay, so
how about we settle on this the closing top. Kevin
Durant at the five quote unquote at the five receives
more crunch time minutes than use of nurkic.
Speaker 2: That would a hot.
Speaker 1: Take, I think, but I believe it. I think, well
then I don't know, is it?
Speaker 2: Yeah? Okay, then that that's a prerequisite.
Speaker 1: You have to believe it.
Speaker 2: So that's that's that's kind of better than my trade one.
Speaker 1: I like that one. So is that that's appropriately hot?
Speaker 2: Well, that's appropriately hot. Yeah, you believe it. And it's like,
I don't know that might or might not happen. Most
people probably don't think that. Okay, here we go.
Speaker 1: This was a hard one. I didn't know what to
do with for Portland.
Speaker 2: Uh and again it's already like do I believe this?
But I'll make the case. I think Portland could finish
ahead of at least three teams in the West. So
we eliminate the usual suspects, which for them is.
Speaker 1: Like nobody's that because they're predicted to.
Speaker 2: Be the So we satisfied one hot take criteria, and
that most people do not agree with this point. The
way it's the way it happens is I think the
Clippers over under has already fallen like below forty and
and like they have blowed up. We've talked about a
Kuhi enter trade doesn't mean it will happen, but it's there. Utah,
Like they're the only other one that the only other
team in the West that's like could really has steered
into the skid in the past, just not for a
full season. And they've got the security of like we
got market and locked up, that's okay, we like don't
need to worry about too much there, so we can
just be bad. We can let Keanta, George Taylor, Hendras,
everybody play, so they could be belown. Then it's just
like there's a mystery team that needs to slip. Probably
not the Spurs, I think people would nominate them, but
between like the Lakers, the Warriors, who else am I missing?
That could be like, oh no, they got old and
bad fast, Like there's got I.
Speaker 1: Think the Pelicans kind of have the potential. If Zion
gets injured, what happens there?
Speaker 2: So I think you've got like two legit candidates in
the Clippers and the Jazz, and then you just need
one of these. There's always going to be somebody, right
that just falls apart, Like there's who's going to be
Memphis this year? Like maybe that's an extreme case, but
like it might be Memphis again like ming, that's not
off the table, so too hot?
Speaker 1: You think, I think that's appropriately hot because and you
wonder what makes it? I think because I think you
could sit there and say that's too hot, but we
don't actually know that. The Blazers would lean into the
skid if they're not skidding. Look at the talent on
this froide of it, right, they're good players. You're stacked.
They're not stacked like, oh they're gonna be. They're like
every single position you're like, well, how are you gonna
there's always it feels like they're gonna be like the
Bigs or the wings or the guards. It's they have
so much talent. So I think that's appropriately hot. I
was gonna throw to you, and I think this would
dovetail with would they steer into the skid? They have
the potential, I think, to be an above average.
Speaker 2: Defense, just like they could put lineups out there for sure,
like between you've got Tyble and Kamara like that.
Speaker 1: There's your that's a start, right. I thought Jane Charp
got a little bit better last year. More importantly, I
think you have Robert Williams the third there's I don't
you know, we we tend to have this idea that
rookies aren't good defensively right out of the gate. I
do feel like over the past few years it's kind
of been like Evan Mowley comes in, Usar Thompson comes in,
Victor Webbinyama comes in. That feels like, anecdotally, it's just
not as true anymore. And so if you're asking someone
to just come in and protect a hoop, I don't
think you could do that.
Speaker 2: I was gonna say, what if what if Donal and
Cleon gives you a Walker Kesseler rookie season where it's
just like, oh my god, this guy's like.
Speaker 1: Remember another one? And then Denny Avdya is now on
this team, which is also kind of it's he's young,
but the idea and I know they had picks in
twenty twenty nine to spare, but you just gave up
a lottery pick for him. So it's kind of just
like there's an element of I don't think where where
it's the bulls, I consider it damning and franchise malpractice.
I don't necessarily understand what Portland's end game is here,
but I don't hate it as much that undefined destination
for them, So I think that's an appropriate amount of hot.
A lot of it probably comes down to, though, like
will Scoot or Shade and Sharp kind of make that
leap to well, okay, they both need to be healthy.
I thought Sharp shows some stuff last year. When you
playing thirty something games, those guys are gonna be so
central to what this team is doing that if they're
bad that it's kind of like, okay, like what are
we doing there?
Speaker 2: They definitely, like to a really extreme degree, because of
all the good players we just mentioned, like they're in
control of this and if they don't want to be
like the you know, third from the bottom or fourth
from the bottom, you just who wants Jeremy Grant? Who
wants Anthony Simons? There's gonna be no shortage of suitors.
Speaker 1: For a lot of those guys. You know what. The
other thing is too, I do feel like in season
trades are harder now because of the aprons. What's fascinating
this is really Galaxy brain I'm calling my own point fascinating.
It's fascinating immediately is that you could say, well, like,
why wouldn't they want to trade these guys? Some of
the names you mentioned all of them are under contract
beyond this season, and if the Blazers are somehow I
know this is stupid, but like eleventh or tenth in
the West. I mean they're tenth in the West and
made the plane for sure, but like it's because those
guys played well and were probably healthy. Their trade value
is that increased. Yeah, look at someone like Jeremy Grant
less time on his deal. Everyone's freaking out about that.
But like, if Ayton has a good season, he becomes
more valuable as an expiring contract, and Frey Simon's he
has value right now, but he'll has value as an
expiring contract. So it's just there. Almost might be like, yeah,
you don't want to finish eleventh, but it's just the
lottery odds are flattened anyway, So this team could be
eleventh or tenth and maybe they win the top four
pick regardless. But you could look at this and say, well, no,
they'll make trades because they have to make trades, and
it's well, couldn't they argue that if they're trying to
maximize the value of the players who are most likely
to be traded, that having a better than expected season,
not just half season is the way to do that.
Speaker 2: Not only that, but the other side of the are
we just talking ourselves into the Blazers by the way
I feel I feel like.
Speaker 1: Like, think about this, if we're gonna end this, Grants like, yeah,
I think they could get to the Western Conference line
right well.
Speaker 2: I like, so if you're in that position right where
typically we would say like teams don't want to be
here where it's like we could finish tenth, right, like
that's possible, Like we could do maybe ninth, Like maybe
we'll get you know, maybe we'll get what about eighth,
we can get two cracks at a play. And when like,
if you're in that sort of you know, you're not
like way down at the bottom and you're the Blazers,
you look at the roster and say, like, yeah, we
could trade these guys the Jeremy Grants, the DeAndre Ads
or whatever. But it's like we sort of already have
And if you are that good, chances are someone likes
Scoot and Sharp and whoever else have like played pretty
well right like, or at least not been damaging. You
look at your roster and say, like, we kind of
already have. We just drafted klinging, we haven't seen a
lot of sharp we have. We believed Scoot was a
franchise altering guy. Kamara is not old. You'd be like,
we kind of have the young guys already, So like,
are we gonna trade Jeremy Grant for more picks?
Speaker 1: I mean like in a vacuum, Yeah, you probably do that.
Speaker 2: But it's like our young core is sort of here,
and if you are in this hypothetical position we're talking about,
it's like, well, clearly it's pretty good because they helped us,
you know, not be the worst team in the conference.
So like that pushes against selling off even more. Like
in addition to upping the value of the vets, it's
just like, we got our guys. We're just gonna give
them this experience in a playoff setting that'll be valuable.
We don't need another top five pick.
Speaker 1: Like that's a great point. It's like a shot, well
really good. Wait so this isn't hot enough then yeah,
maybe we need to say they'll make the play in
I don't know, we've kind of we.
Speaker 2: Probably should relax a little bit.
Speaker 1: But they got some I mean, they have their staffed
the way they feel.
Speaker 2: So they feel like a team we would normally criticize
for not picking a direction, but like, actually the case
is they can kind of have it both ways, which
feels unfair to the teams would criticize for no direction.
Speaker 1: But like, I don't know. They got a bunch of
young guys, Like how many more do you need?
Speaker 2: Like, I don't know. It's it's a weird thing.
Speaker 1: I do this thing, you know, every year Bleacher Report,
and some people don't get the bit, and it's just
very funny because it's very obvious that it's a bit.
But it's why your favorite basically why your favorite team sucks,
but for every team. So I'm writing about why all
thirty teams sucks. So like, understand the bit. I provide
nutshell case for people who hate reading where there are
like one or two lines. My nutshell case of the
Blazers was having concepts for loose outlines of unfinished blueprints
for a plan. Is in something about which to brag,
and that's it. You're right in a sense that we
would normally criticize teams that don't sort of have this
clear cut direction, but with the Blazers, and I hadn't
even thought of it in these terms it's just if
you think you already have your guys in place, which
some people might say, did you see the season that's
scoot just that that's a pretty big if, but they
could believe it still. Yeah, so man, so yeah, come
up with a different hot take. You just provided like
the most lukewarm table. We just got to move it
up to the plan.
Speaker 2: This is a little hotter, I would say.
Speaker 1: About to get someone's gonna get lectured. I don't know who.
I'm lecturing someone at large at some point in this,
but it's.
Speaker 2: Gonna happen, all right. Uh Malik Monk will finish the
season on another team.
Speaker 1: Uh yeah, you have Sorry, I was gonna say that's
I'd probably say that's appropriately hot in the sense that,
given how quickly he re signed, it either showed that
he really wanted to be there or he kind of
understood that the market was going to fall out where
it was. Oh, if Orlando's not going to go after me,
then who.
Speaker 2: Right, And there's that component of it, and there's just
the like we've beaten it into the ground, but like
the Kings are just over indexed on like guys who
need big minutes and deserve them frankly, that are kind
of on ball first type of guys, right, And it's
like the roster's a little unbalanced, And that's frankly, that's
true even if Keegan Murray and Kean Ellis are just
like great defensive players, which probably like and I think
Murray has done enough to suggest like, yeah, he's just
a good defender and Mike might get much better than
that great and Ellis has in small samples, has been like, oh,
that guy's causing some trouble out there.
Speaker 1: I want him on the floor.
Speaker 2: So even if those guys are both, you know, the
high end of what we think is possible for them,
you still just have this thing of like, well, DeRozan
needs the ball, he doesn't space dearon Fox deserve to
have the ball because he's awesome Demonasabonis his value he
was mainly on the ball because he's such a good
passer and he's so unselfish and he sets all these
screens in the handoff game and this, that and the other.
And then like Monk is an awesome six man who
like would start for a lot of teams and is
a huge like piece of the closing puzzle. But that's
like that's four guys, so it's just like it's I'm
almost like, is this even hot? But like they did
just sign him, so it's like, do you trade that guy?
Speaker 1: I don't know.
Speaker 2: He's the piece that I think they'd be most willing
to move of those four on ball dudes. And I think,
like you know, the problem with it is, and maybe
this is why it's hot, is if somebody really wanted
Malik Monk, they would have just signed him. And why
are you going to trade for him?
Speaker 1: Now? You wouldn't need a cap space to do that,
so if you didn't have I'm just talking about Orlando
mostly by the way, I do think it's appropriately hawks.
I asked Greg Wissinger when we did the Kings Look
Ahead about this thing. Is there a chance that Monk
everyone's talking about, Oh, Kevin Herder's salary? I said, is
there chance that Monk becomes I don't want to say
trade ballast because he's not empty salary, but like someone
who's traded because you have Drosen. He told me no,
so I would say this is appropriately hot. But I'm
with you on everything you said. And also he's young
enough to where it's not you know, if you're trying
to trade Demart Rosen is an example to it, like
a team that's rebuilding, it's.
Speaker 2: A limited number of suitors for someone like him. Monk
is like, yeah, I mean he's he's in his prime
and he can really score, he can run an offense.
We'll take him like at a number.
Speaker 1: Yeah. And so I think this is appropriately hot because
you do have to if you're trading him and you're
not making like the person coming back. I think if
you're trading Monk, and maybe this is dumb to say
because you have Keon Ellison Keegan Murray, so maybe you're
closing lineups written in stone with the Rosens, the Bonus
and uh Fox. But I would say if you're trading
him and you're not getting a clear like sixth guy
who could be a part of some of your closing lineups,
that's where it gets tricky. But we're also not talking
about someone who doesn't space the floor or is it big.
So it's like if you need a wing or just
sort of a bigger perimeter player, like like I don't
know if I would flip him for a rim protector
if that rim protector is like kind of a four,
maybe i'd consider it. I think, Yeah, I think that's
appropriately hot. Yeah. I was surprised you didn't go with
the Martin Rosen makes all defense because he had a better.
Shout out to all the Kings fans who have found
the defensive raiding column on Basketball Reference or NBA dot
com or whatever it is. It's not it's not an
individual stat. But I appreciate you all trying to tell
me that the defensive rating proves that the Martin ros
is a better defender than the Barnes. I hate this
is not all Kings fans, and the Kings fans that
I care about, like we're the ones that I interact
with on Twitter. For the most part, they've gotten in
on the joke. But I'm just I'm amazed at how
many people are just penciling into Martin Rosen is a
defensive upgrade in Sacramento. I'm an upgrade. He's a talent upgrade.
That's not for dispute. That's indisputable. I just you can't
come and all is they will cite for me is
defensive rating defensive raiding.
Speaker 2: If you were if you're citing individual defensive rating in
a serious way and thinking that like ends the conversation.
I'd like to welcome you to twenty eleven. Glad you're here.
Congratulations on making it like we've that's like beyond anyway,
let's move to the Spurs. This probably isn't hot enough, uh.
I think Victor wemb Yama is going to be in
everybody's MVP ladder, in the top five by mid November,
and he will not fall out of that status. Like
I just think, whatever we've how many different times have
we just like half jokingly hyperbolized about him, Like I
think I used undeniable for Red Shepherd, Like he's going
to be truly undeniably good where the numbers are like
he can't be outside of the top five and MVP,
like he just can't.
Speaker 1: So, by the way, so I'm staring at the picture
I have it him on screen. I don't know if
I'm just looking at too hard, But doesn't it kind
of look like that's NBA two K. I mean, like
it doesn't look like a real person, and it kind
of looks like he just like conquered a country and
this is he's posing pain too that they're building outside
his palace. That's what it looks like to me. So
I think that's probably Honestly, I would say it's appropriately
hot to too hot because you could look at it.
So Luka doncic. I think he finished ninth in MVP
voting as a sophomore. Lebron finished sixth. I believe. So
it's just like you have those we have a track
record of Okay, guys can finish that high, but they're
still and I'm not saying it's right or wrong, Like
if I don't, how do you view it in the
MVP discussion. Well, let's say the Spurs have like a
plus ten net rating with women Yam on the court,
but they're negative thirty without him. They're not gonna win
enough games for him to be in the discussion. And
I've never I still I'm not even you know, I
shit on people like subtweet them while talking or whatever
we'll call it, throw shade. I don't know how to
reconcile that. It's like, well, how much do we I
understand the interests, like, well, the MVP should come from
someone on a top tier team, but how much do
you penalize someone for what's happening when they're not on
the court. Isn't that sort of make there, and there's
been an uptick in this is we want guys who
are on great teams, but they make their team so
much better because their teams struggle without them on the court.
That's not gonna be Wemby. I don't think that the
Spurs are gonna win enough games to put him in
the top five of the MVP ballot. We're talking about,
like just to run through some names here, so he
has to finish ahead of at least one of Luca Giannis, Embiid,
Shay Tatum, Jalen Brunson, Anthony Edwards, Jo Kicch fuck Yokich
is go get that John Moran like and look at
like kind of the other story like John Moran. If
the Grizzlies are good, like if they are just all
of a sudden the third best team in the West
again after that gap year, he's gonna get a bunch
of credit. I think it's that makes it the appropriate
amount of hot, because I think wemb Miyama will be
good and impactful enough to do that. But this idea
that we've gotten to a point where I'm not even
just saying that voters are okay with it, but that
it is okay, in general, to have someone so high
up in the MVP discussion who's not on a team
that's above Like are the Spurs gonna be if they're
above five hundred, it's because they won what forty two games?
So if you're saying this, and I'm not saying that
you're saying this. If you're if this is your take,
I think you also have to believe that the Spurs
are gonna win at least forty five games.
Speaker 2: I think that's that's yeah. I think realistically it's like,
you know, remember when Westbrook was I was going to
reference him for another reason, but like, what did the
thunder finished sixth? The year that he averaged the first
the triple though?
Speaker 1: Wasn't that the year? Yeah? And it was just like
can we give this guy the MVP? And the answer
was like yeah it was. I think it was the
wrong answer, but the answer was like yeah, the numbers
are just like what do we? How do we? Not?
Speaker 2: Right? Like how do how do But he also had
all the crazy clutch stuff where it was like, no,
he actually did just win them games that they shouldn't have,
so like that win total was like, oh no, it's
like extremely attributable just to him anecdotally because he won
them this game and then this one and this one
in addition to the numbers. I just think, like all
like the Yokic argument of like look at the on
off and like the Russ argument of like look at
the box score numbers, and we'll combine with like the
hype machine and the possibility that the Spurs are actually
like close to good enough as a team that it's
just that we're gonna get like not that far into
the season where we just have to kind of like
throw our hands up and say, like I don't know,
like how do how do we not like how how
do we how do we not have him in the
top five?
Speaker 1: It would actually be could you see people viewing it
as like it doesn't matter because he's fifth, not like
I be finishing fit where it's this really isn't going
to impact it, like the like maybe if if it's
in the top three, for instance, it's all like this
could change things if if it's a really deep MVP
landscape or it's up for debate, But if you're throwing
him fifth, it's like, well, he's not going to win anyway.
Who am I actually impacting. That might be like the
strongest argument.
Speaker 2: Back in the Booker zone, where it's like we have
to put him here. He's not gonna win, but we
just got to put him here to just ignore, like
as a let's keep a record of history to make
sure everybody realizes. But with him, I think the numbers
are just going to be so extreme that it's like
something a little different than like the obligatory Tatum brunts
and whatever v you know that level of m VP.
Speaker 1: We're on too. It's my turn again the Toronto Raptors,
so I have it won't be a long preamble, but
it deserves a preamble. Why it's hot anyway, Scottie Barnes
will average twenty five points and eight assists per game
this year, and now I'm going to tell you Grant
why that is hot. While this whoops, Man, I'm getting
really bad at the screen things. I apologize. Anyone who's
watching and having a seizure will seeing it. So twenty
five and eight, when you're eight before your twenty fifth
birthday is rarefied air. The list of players to do
it is Luca has done it four times, Trey did
it three times, and then Oscar Robertson, who I am,
by the way, doing shorts. Robertson did it twice? I
call him Oscar Robinson or it sounds like I do
so many times, and I don't understand why I.
Speaker 2: Would correct you, But I think I have become immune
to it because you do it all the time, all
the time.
Speaker 1: I don't I don't know who he is, which I
guess is fair. But I obviously know who Oscar Robertson is.
But my pronunciation is so bad. It's my nasally voice.
I'm really saying Robertson, but it sounds like Robinson, right,
So you'd Scotty barn is going to average twenty five
and eight, which do so before your twenty fourth fourth birthday.
Only Luca Trey, Oscar Robertson, Tiny Archibald, and John Morant
have done.
Speaker 2: I like the approach because those are some names.
Speaker 1: I I'm worried.
Speaker 2: I feel like it might be it might be too hot,
only because like isn't quickly gonna have the ball, like uh,
I don't know. I'm I'm stuck between too hot and
like appropriately hot. It's not it's not an issue where
I don't think it's not hot enough. If anything, it's
too hot, So what's your what's your just just he's
like he's just gonna be that much better and the
playmaking burden is huge, and that's that's how he does it.
Speaker 1: That's how he does it. But okay, so Emanuel Quickly's
gonna have the ball? Who else is running the offense?
Speaker 2: Yaka Pearl at the elbow? Baby?
Speaker 1: All right? Yaka Pearl R J. Barrett. Maybe Bruce Brown
if he is healthy, But realistically, Bruce Brown probably gets
traded ats some appointment season if assuming he's healthy, you're
not want to run too much of your offense through
yaka Peertle. Do you even have the spacing to do that?
So I'm just looking at it from I think he's
good enough. I want to make it clear. I think
he improved enough last year basically every part of his game,
and I just think the use it like the opportunity.
I'll frame it as for him to because who's going
to be the better off ball option? So let's look
at their core lineups. A manual Quickly or Scotti Barnes.
I think you prefer to have a manual Quickly off
the ball, just because of his own shooting yep, So
I think, I mean, I can't say it's not hot enough,
but I do think the opportunity is gonna be there
that because Scotty Barnes is so skilled, it'll be within reach.
And it really comes down to I mean, to me,
what do you think is more likely that he averages
twenty five points through averages eight assists? Huh?
Speaker 2: I mean it's it's hard to get to, I feel
like for a non point guard, although he's kind of
gonna be that.
Speaker 1: He was at six point one last year. Yeah, he
was at about twenty points and six assists, so that's
a huge He probably wins most I know, I picked
Jim and Sugs to win it, but if he's at
twenty five and eight, he probably wins most improved player does.
Speaker 2: And that'll be another one where it's like this guy
had it last year and just didn't play enough, so
we gotta give it to like you know what I mean,
Like there's gonna be a delayed MP thing. That's I
you're right on the border of too hot for me,
because that doesn't that's crazy twenty five and eight for
a forward unless you're lebron Is, which even like I mean, yeah,
he he struggles to do that like in his prime.
Speaker 1: That's just so many assists. That's a good one.
Speaker 2: I'm not gonna I'm not gonna say that's not hot enough.
It's it's some degree of appropriately hot.
Speaker 1: Well, you to answer the initial question is what would
you feels more likely hitting the twenty five or hitting
Oh I.
Speaker 2: Think I think he's more likely to get to get
twenty five, just because even though that's a bigger jump,
the eight is like, that's just hot.
Speaker 1: I don't know.
Speaker 2: It's so dependent on other guys, and it's like if
one of your questions about this team is like, who
other than Grady Dick is going to make shots? Like,
I don't know, some of those assists might be hard
to come by, So I think he, I guess twenty five.
I mean they're both gonna be tough to get to
obviously historically they're they're really hard.
Speaker 1: That. I mean, that's to your Washington all right, Oh
you tah Jazz, I already skipp you out there.
Speaker 2: No no, no, well, because I don't even see your
Washington one coming up, So you're gonna have to vamp
I get or freelance that one.
Speaker 1: Oh I already know it. I guess I just didn't
put it in our handy dandies pro Okay, well, it'll
be a mystery to me.
Speaker 2: Uh I think the Jazz are gonna make a win
now trade that sends out at least three future First,
how is that gonna jive with Portland not finishing below them?
I don't know.
Speaker 1: I didn't think about that. Uh. I waited funny that
the Jazz and the Blazers are both like in the
top ten of the West. It would be hysterical. I mean,
stranger things have happened.
Speaker 2: So this is another one where it's like, I don't
think they should have the degree of confidence that they
have their guys at like Portland does, which even that's
a little iffy, certainly, not to the extent like, okay,
so you did a couple of years ago. But I
do think there's sort of a confluence of events where
the Jazz have a trillion picks. There just seem to
be a lot of guys I've got trades on like
trade requests on my mind, and so I'm thinking about
like veteran guys that might ask out, and there's kind
of feels like there's kind of a lot that could
plausibly have that, like Jimmy Butler or like obviously brandon
Ingram could be someone that is available, and it's just
like going down the list, Like how much like Utah
clearly doesn't want to tank, they just sort of have
done it when they realized they needed to. And so
combining like their preferred way to go forward with Danny
Ainge's opportunism, with the glood of picks they have, with
the possibility that they already have a bunch of young guys,
it just seems like it's it's maybe this is why
it's a hot take, is it's like somewhere around a
coin flip for them that they just suck on purpose,
which they have not wanted to do, or they just
say like fuck it, let's go get somebody at good
value that's worth three of these future first because we
got a million of them. And by the way, since
the ones coming from Cleveland and Minnesota are going to
be in the twenties, like who cares anyway, So I
just think, I don't know if this is one where
it's like do I believe it? Maybe you've just you
know what you.
Speaker 1: Kind of just described. They're the brandon Ingram team.
Speaker 2: How well, maybe that's I mean, I I think like
there will come a point where somebody's gonna say, like
we've okay, this guy's actually good, like we should get
him and we can afford to pay him because we
have like one other big contract on the books and
it's a is it a by low if you get
brandon Ingram for like two of those first, I'm saying three,
so I'm obviously aiming a little higher. I don't think
you give up three first for Ingram.
Speaker 1: Oh that's right. I forgot about the three first out.
Three first is a lot. That's why it's hot. It's
just like, oh my god or something right? That's that
would be a name?
Speaker 2: Uh Kawhi Leonard? Why not?
Speaker 1: I don't know you saw it? You know what the
name would be? Who? Lamello? LaMelo? Sure?
Speaker 2: Or if it's like what if you younger, what if
you target a guy that's like the guys that haven't
signed extensions that like may or may not, like a
you're not getting. I don't think it's three first to
get like Jonathan Kaminga or something like that. But like
you've got all this, Ammo, you can go target all
these unextended guys and say like, well, Pam.
Speaker 1: Wait, I can't suggest players who cost less than three
first round picks, but you can. Yeah, So I think this,
I think this leans towards too hot. I don't think
the Jazz are gonna let themselves like full right, just
like it's hard for me to envision effort what we've
seen at the past two trade deadlines. Your point though,
about them having so many picks, I would say, though,
they would have to be closer to Portland situation in
the sense that and this is the one point I
disagree with you on where you kind of said like
they have a bunch of young guys already in place.
I think in Portland you can make the case that
there's two to maybe three, depending on how you feel
about kling Kong. Shout out to our discord for letting
me know that's his nickname. By the way, great the Jazz.
I don't think you can point to anybody and say that, dude,
is it among the young guys, No, I don't.
Speaker 2: I don't think they're Yeah. I don't think that they're
at the level of Portland where you could like, like
do you nobody should be like, yeah, Keante, George has
it like he's definitely a cornerstone. It's like maybe or
Taylor Hendrix or whoever you want to walk. Kesler clearly
is not someone's the most.
Speaker 1: Likely to become it. It's probably just Cody Williams. By
virtue of mystery box status.
Speaker 2: Well, yeah, the mystery box is so tempting. Like the
less you know about a prospect, the more likely you
are to say, like he has that's crazy.
Speaker 1: Rank these three. August four ranked these four prospects in
terms of long term value or just ceiling. Can't they?
Speaker 2: George Walker, Kessler, Taylor Hendrix, Cody Williams. I know you
want me to say Cody Williams, and I know you'll
say Cody Williams. So I actually think if it's just long,
are we talking pure upside because I think for me
it might be Hendricks just as a.
Speaker 1: Pure the other correct answer, So nice job.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think there were two awesome and then it's
probably I guess I go Williams second, George third, and
then Kessler. Like I think Kesler has the highest floor
just because we know he can be awesome at like
a niche one is rim protection a niche thing I
don't know that that's probably selling it short. But like
he's not someone that's going to be like a multi
time All Star, but I think he could just be
a starter for ten years potentially.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I probably it's either appropriately hot or to too hot.
It's definitely you're not in danger of it not being
hot enough.
Speaker 2: It's too hot, I'll say so. Like, I don't know
if I believe it. But it's like, I don't know.
The Jazz I keep coming back to like they clearly
don't want to just suck on purpose until they have to,
Like they keep trying to be okay, I don't know, I.
Speaker 1: Mean the coaching staff and the player. Sure. I think
the front office is thought that they were bad enough
and right maybe that's the issue.
Speaker 2: They like just thought they misjudged how bad they might be.
Speaker 1: Very very quickly. Here are a couple list of things
that are more likely to happen than the Jazz making
a win now trade are you ready? Yes? Will Hardy,
their head coach, will receive a twenty game suspension without
pay for conduct conduct not detrimental enough to the team. Yeah,
Drew Eubanks will start a point h Cody Williams will
miss six to eight weeks after burning the roof of
his mouth while eating ice cream.
Speaker 2: Do you have these like teed up you?
Speaker 1: I came up with a list for why I hate
your team. This one's too this one's too convoluted. I'mnna
read it anyway. I wont read. This will be the
last one. I had a bunch injury reports before games
will start to include ailments such as tackle bell indigestion,
Bruce fingernail, morning, pair of lost air pods and DNS
borrowed DeAndre Ayton's gravel and lego, stuffed mastress, DNS, Stanford
did not sleep.
Speaker 2: You're working way too hard on a thirty slider if
that's if that's what those are from.
Speaker 1: Let's get to the Washington Wizards. Here is this hot
I honestly want to know what you're gonna say about this.
The Washington Wizards are gonna have the worst defensive rating
an NBA history.
Speaker 2: Oh I love an NBA history hot take. Okay, uh man,
it's gonna be so hard for them to be good.
Speaker 1: Uh.
Speaker 2: I think that's now that's a hot take because anytime
your all time in it, it's a hot take. But
I don't think it's too hot one because you're probably
given a lot of minutes in the middle of Alex Star,
probably playing Jordan Poole. Kyle Kuzma is a passable defender,
You're probably trading him. You might play Bub Carrington or
Rookie a lot. I mean, like, I guess maybe the
other way to get there is just like who on
this team is you traded Denny Avdia, Like, who's gonna
be a plus defender or even an average defender in
his position? Cool Bally, I feel like he's just gonna
make a bunch of mistakes.
Speaker 1: Still, I don't know that. Here's here's the thing. So
last year, because this is just that, and you could
do it in comparison to the like the league average
in that year. But last year, Grant, we had the
five worst so it means highest defensive ratings in NBA
history according to Basketball Reference, the Jazz, the Spurs, oh no,
I'm sorry, four the Spurs from twenty twenty twenty twenty
three were on there. But the Jazz of last year,
the Hornets of last year, the Wizards of last year,
and the Atlanta Hawks of last year had four of
the five worst defensive ratings. On record at Basketball Reference,
and so the worst is from the Jazz of last
year won twenty point four. And I just feel like
the way offense is gone, and you traded Denny Avdia,
so you've gotten worse defensively to me unless you think
Star is gonna be good right out of the gate.
And it doesn't even seem like they want to play
him as a big man, like the primary big right
out of the gate. So I almost wonder if this
isn't hot enough. But yeah, it's hot.
Speaker 2: I could see how you can get there, though not
too hot for me. I mean, the Wizards are gonna
be the worst at something, just they're they're gonna try.
Speaker 1: So they've been the team that they're making sure. They're
gonna make sure you know them in the nets. I
think I'm most confident in, Oh, we know that they're
not gonna be if they're too good out of the gate,
they're gonna do something to make sure that that doesn't stick. Yeah,
I agree with that.
Speaker 2: All right, you want to get to the gets.
Speaker 1: All right, we've wrapped up our hot takes. Let's get
to some listener slash subscriber hot takes that were sent
to us I picked. There's like fourteen or fifteen in
here of the ones that I thought did not overlap
too much with what we were talking about. And then
there was a lot of overlap anyone who sent in.
We had so many for the Spurs and the Grizzlies
and the Thunder. For some reason, I found that the
Thunder I got, and I guess the Spurs just being
when I mean the Grizzlies were were interesting. Let's get
to the first one. So first up we have, as
it comes on the screen, this is from the Cultcha Kolev.
The Spurs will finish ahead of the Clippers. I'm assuming
they mean in the regular season standings. Grant hot or not.
Speaker 2: Uh, it's a little hot, but I mean you can
see it right like it just the Clippers fall apart,
Kawhi gets hurt, James Harden demands to be traded. Like
there's kind of the.
Speaker 1: Logic you used a little bit's different to get there.
But when you were talking about the Jazz being better
than three teams.
Speaker 2: In the West, mm hmmm, yeah, I mean it's totally
plausible the Clippers are all if you're picking it like
a playoff team from last year to fall apart. Everyone's
picking the Clippers, right, I'm trying.
Speaker 1: To think, Yeah, are we missing somebody? No, Yeah, I
think that's that's probably I would say it's the appropriate
amount of hot, right, Yeah. Next up we have well,
this is a this is a it's a two parter,
another Spurs one. The San Antonio Spurs will win forty
five plus games and make the play in. This comes
from be Rich in Discord and the Spurs will make
the playoffs. On Twitter, faux underscores from low.
Speaker 2: I mean it's hot just because forty five is a
crazy jump from what do they win twenty two last year?
I think so, I mean that almost never happens. Houston
improved by like nineteen and that was ridiculous. But like,
can you rule anything out because of winmbin Yama, Like
and I just I don't know, it's it's not it's hot,
but it's not, like again, not unthinkable.
Speaker 1: I think if you stop, if I so, be Rich,
stop that just make the play in rather than including
the forty five plus games that I think this scues
toward the forty five plus to me, skews toward two,
Like where are those wins coming from? In the West?
You just that Wemby's one of the five best basketball
players of all time. I don't know. Ron didn't Lebron
win like forty six games in his second season with
the Calves in the East like a Wemby winning. I
would have to see what the Cleveland's record was in
two thousand and four. But that's just that's a really heavy.
Speaker 2: Lift, super heavy.
Speaker 1: That's why it's a hot. Take the Spurs making the
play in or making the playoffs by virtue of the
play and that's not The Caps won forty two games
with Lebron as a sophomore. Yeah, I mean so, I
don't know. Again, I think it's hot. I think these
are too hot for me a little bit. Next up,
I think we're entering our Grizzlies phase of the podcast.
Oh no, still Spurs. Oh, this one's hot. I coach
Pop retires from coaching by the end of the season.
This comes from mcguill.
Speaker 2: That's too hot.
Speaker 1: What's what's he want out? I mean, why is he
want out with you?
Speaker 2: We're not on the ground floor, but we're just heading
up the elevator with Wembyama, I don't know, I don't
know what would happen even.
Speaker 1: One hundred years old, Yet why would he retire? Well,
the other thing is I think it's hot and too hot,
which is like, that's the point of this exercise. Like
he really seems over the past few years that he
seems reinvigorated, like he seems to enjoy the of it all. No,
I said, the past few years they've had Wemby for
a second, like he'vigorated.
Speaker 2: By Blake Wesley. That's how you know you're into it.
Speaker 1: I mean he plays like human caffeine. So I could
see that the Rockets will get a top six seed
in the West. This West, this comes from cosmic raccoon. Uh,
that's not hot enough, I don't think, do you? You
already picked Reed Shepherd to be unanimous Rookie of the Year.
I mean, well, I mean go through the teams though,
So who are your bona fide playoff teams in the West.
You have Denver, Minnesota, like you, you would be shocked
if they fell out of the top six, is my point? Denver, Minnesota,
Oklahoma City, Dallas to be in there, right, Yes, then
what I think people would say Memphis, But just the
injury risk alone there, I.
Speaker 2: Think you got you got like Memphis, Houston. And then
are we already in like the Lakers, Kings, Warriors tier
of the Suns the Son Yeah, right, okay, the Sun's
so the Suns is five. I would assume the Suns
finish ahead of the Rockets. But then it's just like
it I get, I don't know, is it hot if
it's like they're in the mix with like five other
teams for the sixth spot. Maybe, but like, like, why
are the Rockets gonna be worse? They were a five
hundred team last year?
Speaker 1: Like what you need to be six?
Speaker 2: Well, to be six you got to probably get in
the high forties minimum, right, just based on the last
few seasons.
Speaker 1: Sixth was forty nine by the Sun last year. So
we know we think the Clippers will fall out, so
there's a spot open. But you're saying, if I think
all our five teams are right, maybe they'll be a
curve ball. You're saying the Rockets will be better than
all of these teams, the Lakers, the Pelicans, the Kings,
the Warriors, and the Grizzlies. And then if you want
to throw the Spurs in there too, since they keep
coming up, I think I think that's the appropriate amount
of hot because it's hot, But it's like, you're not
prepared to guarantee any of those other teams will be
better than Houston? Are you maybe Sacramento?
Speaker 2: Okay, I'll back off a little bit. It's hot, but
it's like pretty low on the Scoville, Like if it's
like hot ones or whatever, this is like the third
or fourth wing. I mean, we're not like nobody's nobody's
falling apart here.
Speaker 1: I like that one. I think it's the appropriate amount
of hot. Okay, the New York Knicks will win the
twenty twenty five NBA Championship from Andrew Abraham Grant. Is
that hot or not? I don't think that's hot enough.
Speaker 2: What they got the like second or third best odds
right now? Don't they postcat trade? So like, I mean
it's just I mean, if you frame it that way,
then it's not. But it's like, so they're better than
the Celtics and the thunder that's and they probably have
to beat both of those teams.
Speaker 1: Yeah, they might have to be both of them. Yeah,
it's hot, it's hot. It's the appropriate amount of hot, right,
because do you view them as a title contender or not?
That's what this comes down to. I mean I do.
Speaker 2: I don't know if they're not favorites, but they're contenders.
Speaker 1: You know they're I will say, I think the teams,
if you were to make your championship pick rankings of
like who's going to be the most frequent championship pick,
I think Okac gets more, Boston gets more. I'd probably
say Denver would still get more. They're in iffy territory. Now,
what about like the Timberwolves in Dallas.
Speaker 2: So just because I don't think it's I still don't
think it's outdated to say, like there's just more really
good title contenders in the West than the East. And
so like if you frame it around like well, if
you get to the finals by definition, like that's your
chances are better and you gotta beat Boston, you gotta
be phil like it's not gonna be easy. But like
I think it's still just easier to get to the
finals in the East than the West. So I mean
it's a hot take, but like it's not. I don't know,
I think the Knicks are going to be Like if
the Knicks are worse than third in the East, like
something like oh my god, what happened, right they I
think at.
Speaker 1: This point they'll probably be the second most popular title
pick in the East. But it's weird because I agree
with everything you said, but like I think that there
are more teams in the West that people would pick
to win the title if they're making like I just yeah,
looking at Dallas or I would say, come up more frequently,
even with the OKC of it all there. Yeah, Next
up we have Ja Morant wins MVP and grizz win
their first championship at Daniel Sage Poetry.
Speaker 2: This is a hot take, first of all, because I
said Jared Jackson was going to be higher an MVP
than Josh, So I have to stay consistent.
Speaker 1: No, I mean I wish.
Speaker 2: I don't know how i'd feel if not for the
injuries that have already accumulated for them. But I was
ready to just go all in. I still kind of
am on the Grizzlies just being awesome. We just talked
about how many good teams.
Speaker 1: There are in the West.
Speaker 2: Though, Like that's it's hot. It's real hot.
Speaker 1: I might be too hot. I would say it's closer
to too hot than appropriately hot, but it's appropriately hot
for this, Like if you want it to be hot take.
This is a hot take. Yeah yeah, I mean Job
like I mean, I guess it's they're kind of intertwined.
If he's winning MVP, it means that the Grizzlies might.
But yeah, good, they would be one of the more
surprising teams to me to win it. I guess I
just don't the snake bitten aspect of their roster. Yeah well,
this is like the counter to it though, so grant,
sit back, grab a couple of coffee. This is from Allen.
Memphis is actually overrated, despite every NBA podcast saying everyone
is sleeping on them. Everyone is penciling in Eadie to
be good right off the bat. On top of just
assuming that the incredibly small stretch of games that Job
played are just replicable across the entire season, a team
like the Wolves has already proven they have leap frog
with the Grizzlies. To me, not to say Memphis isn't
going to be good, but they are getting glazed to
a ridiculous degree currently Again, because I like that in
detail stuff. Here here's my thing. Despite I don't I
don't know if this is hot enough, because it's are
people just assuming I I guess I haven't seen much
of everyone's talked about oh or people forgetting about Memphis.
But everyone also seems to me hesitant to be like
Memphis is going to be really good because of everything
that was just outlaid. Yeah. I mean for me, it's
less about can ja be good across at large sample
size more so of can he stay healthy and available
across that the any of it all is fascinating though,
because I do like for all of what he does
really well, and he could be everything Memphis Grizzly, the
Memphis Grizzies need next to Jared Jackson Junior. He is
still a rookie. We did also just talk about how
rookies it feels like anecdotally they are better defensively like
some of the higher end ones. So I don't know where,
but that's a fit. Like we're just penciling in Eatie
as Alan says, like he's gonna play a huge role.
Are we sure it's gonna be that he's gonna make
a positive impact while doing so? Yeah, I mean, like
show me the lie here.
Speaker 2: This is this is like too, this is too sober
and well reasoned of an opinion to be a hot
take like this is just like, yeah, you're probably right. Yeah,
God damn it, Alan Alan too good of a too
good of an argument, so it can't be a hot take.
Speaker 1: Next up, we that was such a good one. Well,
that was too good a one with two? Next up
for Maddy l Lebron James and Anthony Davis will not
meet the sixty five minimum games played and will not
be eligible for end of season awards, therefore blowing up
the Lakers season.
Speaker 2: Again. This should be the expectation, probably, Like if you
had to bet on it, you wouldn't bet on either
of them playing more than sixty five games? Would I wouldn't,
would you?
Speaker 1: Well, I know that we've had available villa excuse me,
availability issues with both. How often do both of them
not appear in sixty five games? Though? It's basically I
guess just that's a question for Lebron just because like
Anthony Davis, it's we'll just pick a year and is
he there? So yeah, in two twenty twenty three, Lebron
played in fifty five games. How many did Anthony Davis
play in that year? I'm assuming it was probably less.
So I actually think that this might be the appropriate
amount of hot. We're just gonna assume that both of
these guys having it.
Speaker 2: Be both is a way to get it to being
a hot take. But I just for me, I don't like,
I don't know. I'm just happy, Like you wouldn't be
surprised in the least if this is exactly how it
went right.
Speaker 1: No, I so both of them did not play in
sixty five games in each of the previous two seasons,
or the equipment. So I still think it's a I'll
say appropriatelyat hot.
Speaker 2: I think it's hot, but it's barely hot, just just
because you've got two variables in there that you have
to hit.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Thank you for the submission, Maddie Discord user Maddie,
oh boy, oh this is fine. Grant from at do
notts on Twitter there will be thirteen teams with forty
wins in the Western Conference. I'm assuming they don't mean
forty exactly, because that would be.
Speaker 2: That would be what an exciting can you imagine trying
to sort suss out in time breakers At the end of.
Speaker 1: Reference, Grant, there was eleven that won at least forty
one last year.
Speaker 2: Is this just exactly what Adam Adam Silver in the
NBA who crave parody want.
Speaker 1: This is too fat, it's I think it's too hot.
But so if you penciled into everyone, So of the teams,
let me list them off very quickly. Okay, see Denver, Minnesota,
the Clippers, the MAVs, the Suns, the Lakers, the Pelicans,
the Kings, the Warriors, and the Rockets all won at
least forty last year. Which of those teams are you
most worried about not winning forty this year? It feels
like there's one of them. Yeah, just the Clippers.
Speaker 2: I think the other way to do it is like Portland, Utah, Clippers,
San Antonio. One of those can win forty. The other
three may not. Like if you're just thinking like of
like other than those four, and then you say, again,
who's gonna Memphis it? So do the Warriors fall apart,
to the Lakers fall apart to join the Clips? Like
the Kings aren't going to fall apart like that, they're
kind of safer.
Speaker 1: That's a lot. I wonder if has that ever happened.
I bet that's never happened. I mean, you're also I'm
assuming that there'd just be some really really really bad
Eastern Conference teams.
Speaker 2: Right, the West just never lose against the East ever. Yeah,
I mean it's it's hot, but like I could see
how you got there just because we're doing it.
Speaker 1: It's really hard to like other than Portland and Utah,
who we.
Speaker 2: Just both talked up, like who's who's losing? I mean,
who's basically under five hundred. I don't know, It's it's
not that easy.
Speaker 1: That was a good one. We have back to back
thunder ones here. The first one is from Miroslav Shook
Oklahoma City will not reach the Western Conference finals.
Speaker 2: I mean that has to be a hot take just
because if we're going with like, what's public sentiment saying
everybody's in on the thunder?
Speaker 1: Right, Yes, but isn't are you always a posting bet
against a field?
Speaker 2: Well yeah, I mean but no, this is well, this
is running up against like the two sides of the
hot take. So you don't think this is a hot take, No,
I think if you're weighing it against what most people
are thinking right now and everybody but he's in the
bag for the under So if you're going to lose
the conference semifinals, like I think that's what they did
last year Statistically, that's likely, right, But if we're talking
about like, is this like a contrarian take, Like, I
don't know, man, I think everybody thinks the thunder are
going to be great.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know what, that's right. That's so it's appropriately
hot then, yeah, were shook. Good one. Here's another one
on the Thunder, Gran. I'm very curious to hear your
thoughts on this. I remember the oris specifically, Oklahoma City
will reach the Western Conference Finals at okcts not hot,
not hot relatives to consensus. Statistically speaking, the hot take
would be the finals, right, Like that is that the
only aside from winning the title. So the levels of
hot takery for Oklahoma City's end of season finish is
reaching the finals or winning the title, right, I.
Speaker 2: Mean I get even then it's like they're they have
the best odds in the West right to win the
title and make the finals.
Speaker 1: Yeah, So if you're basing it specifically on consensus, yeah,
you're right. So there's there's not an outcome for Oklahoma
City that qualifies as hot in terms of it would
have to be. So you're saying, all right, here's a
good one. If I say Oklahoma City loses in the
semi finals. That's hotter than saying Oklahoma City wins the title.
Speaker 2: I think so, I think so like just I mean,
for me personally, that's what I would think, and then
I do, look the odds say it, and then and
then public sentiment is what it is that everybody just
believes in the thunder and I count myself among them.
Speaker 1: The Sacramento Kings will be a top four seed in
the West. From Kyle A. Madson.
Speaker 2: That's pretty hot just because we just listed the teams
that were like, well, you know, okay, see uh stunning
if the Kings finish ahead of them Denver, Dallas, Phoenix,
I forget, I'm again Minnesota, So you got to be
a couple of those to get up to fourth.
Speaker 1: So that feels that feels appropriately hot to me. There
they are the teams that are sort of because aside
from OKAC, is there a team like if you had
to figure out the order even for number do you
even view there as that like there's a clear cut
second best team in the West.
Speaker 2: No, because it's it could be any one of Denver, Dallas, Minnesota.
I think in my mind like those seem like maybe
Phoenix is in that clump. Too.
Speaker 1: All right, we have two more grants. Are you ready?
Mm hmm. It's Eastern Conference teams though, so you're gonna
be upset your Western cover. Tyrese Maxi will lead the
Sixers in points per game, threes and assists Brian eight.
Brian Hart pr I mean that's hot.
Speaker 2: He's gonna outscore. I mean, is it like that Embiid
doesn't qualify because the points feel like a given? I mean,
the the points is where I'm I'm having a hard
time that. I guess that makes it a hot take
because that that would be nobody thinks that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, but is it appropriately hot if you think he's
gonna check two of these three categories? Right? And by
the way, the path would be like do they just
view it as the ball is gonna be in his
hands the most? That's not.
Speaker 2: It's it's closer to too hot to me than appropriately hot,
because it's just like Embiid's gonna get you thirty? Is
Maxi getting you thirty one? Like, how's that gonna happen?
Speaker 1: Isn't that? Is it being getting you thirty? When Paul
George is on the team?
Speaker 2: Well, is Maxi getting you thirty?
Speaker 1: If Paul George's Who's I mean, who is more likely
to be running the offense.
Speaker 2: I mean, Maxi will have the ball plenty. I don't
think Maxi's ever gonna take more shots than Embiid and
he's damn sure not gonna get more free throw attempts.
So I just don't know where the points are coming
from to be. So it's a hot take, I mean,
is where we got to come down on it.
Speaker 1: I don't know if it's too hot. I think it's
appropriately hot. I like that was a good one. I
thought that was a really good one. I think this
is a good one as well. It comes from at
OD three holiday bam Adebayo makes an All NBA team.
Speaker 2: I let's say, I wish I I don't know, is
that hot. I'm leaning toward that's not a hot take.
Speaker 1: So I would say it's appropriately hot just because he's
never done it before. I was, is that right? I was,
Oh my god. Yeah. Now it's positionless, so I feel
like it's harder when it was when you had to
put a center on there. I would say, Okay, this
is probably maybe it's not hot enough. But even that,
it's like so you would still say, oh, he's the
fourth best, the third best center in basketball, and like
there's enough bigs to wear? Okay? Is that so I
would say this is appropriately hot? Yeah? I certainly was
all NBA caliber, but it's not a sure thing I would.
Speaker 2: Have been if you'd said, has beam Outebaio made an
All NBA team? I would have, like, without hesitation, say yeah,
of course, but like the fact this appropriately hot?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean he's been an All Star three times
and he's made five All Defense teams. Yeah? Are you?
This was fun? I enjoyed it.
Speaker 2: Oh we're done, all right? H what's your favorite hot
take of those.
Speaker 1: Of the ones that we just got? Honestly, I think
it might be the Tirese maxie.
Speaker 2: That's mine too, because that made me think, like how
does that happen? The best thought exercise for sure?
Speaker 1: Yeah, look at Yeah. I think that was the one
that made me really think the most. I like the
Kings one too, because the West is such like just
this morass, like good to great teams. So yeah, do
you want to take us out of here? Yeah?
Speaker 2: Well this was fun.
Speaker 1: So many hot takes.
Speaker 2: I think, you know, we covered so many hot takes
that I think I have a better understanding of what
one is. However, next year when we do this, I
will still require clarification. Thanks everybody, especially those who submitted,
appreciate those. A lot of good ones in there, so
that was fun. Thanks for contributing there. Maybe we'll do
something like that in the future. Although hot takes are
really like ripe for that, so appreciate that. If you
have not done so already, please remember, as always a
rate review, subscribe, comment on YouTube, help the algorithm, love us,
promote us, tell your friends, tell your enemies, join our
discord links for that in YouTube and podcast description. That's
a great, great way if you don't want to reach
out on Twitter, if you're not on Twitter or whatever,
to get get into the conversation.
Speaker 1: Submit stuff like we cover today, All good ways to engage.
We appreciate all of it. That's gonna do it.
Speaker 2: We're gonna close, as always with a shout Frank the team.
I'm gonna apologies to Jared Allen