WEBVTT - Pacers and Nuggets Even Series, Mavs Thunder and Celtics Cavs Previews 0:00:05.280 --> 0:00:09.760 Ords crash the ball and with a turnover, myce Denbarde 0:00:09.880 --> 0:00:10.880 put at the other. 0:00:10.840 --> 0:00:13.080 End and he times and he ktch it to go 0:00:13.720 --> 0:00:17.560 pity in the clock cordlink that's intercepted Henry Good at the. 0:00:21.680 --> 0:00:27.400 Time for oh what I. 0:00:27.640 --> 0:00:34.640 Shot right when Minnesota had this in single digits. Two 0:00:35.040 --> 0:00:41.879 turnovers that were huge, a five point swing for the Nuggets. 0:00:42.120 --> 0:00:45.720 I am stunned right now, Ain't nothing wrong a Reggie 0:00:45.760 --> 0:00:50.960 Miller run in the final fifteen seconds of the first half. 0:00:51.800 --> 0:00:54.880 Welcome into the NBA Polster production of iHeartRadio in the NBA. 0:00:54.960 --> 0:00:58.680 I'm Sarahkustag, NBA analyst for the Yes Networking Today is Monday, 0:00:58.880 --> 0:01:02.280 May thirteenth, from our extraordinary core group of NBA journalists 0:01:02.280 --> 0:01:05.240 were joined now by NBA dot Com senior writer Steve Ashberner, 0:01:05.280 --> 0:01:07.880 And oh gosh, we got to going. We got a 0:01:07.920 --> 0:01:11.600 couple series that have tied up, and it's been fun 0:01:11.640 --> 0:01:14.080 to watch just kind of the way things have shifted 0:01:14.080 --> 0:01:17.960 a little bit. Last night you have the Denver Nuggets 0:01:18.000 --> 0:01:21.680 getting back into a little bit of their their defending 0:01:21.760 --> 0:01:25.119 champion form as they beat Minnesota one fifteen, one oh seven, 0:01:25.319 --> 0:01:27.800 even up the series and New York Knicks lost the 0:01:27.840 --> 0:01:31.920 Pacers in Indiana one twenty one to eighty nine. Let's 0:01:31.920 --> 0:01:35.440 first go touch on that Denver Minnesota game, because it 0:01:35.480 --> 0:01:37.959 felt like things really shifted. It was close game, back 0:01:37.959 --> 0:01:41.200 and forth, but closing out the half, the last twenty 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:45.520 four seconds of that second quarter, things just changed in 0:01:45.600 --> 0:01:48.560 terms of momentum. How Denver was able to make a push. 0:01:48.600 --> 0:01:52.920 Anthony Edwards was spectacular last night. Forty four points, five rebounds, 0:01:52.920 --> 0:01:55.800 five assists, two steals, five of eight from a three 0:01:55.840 --> 0:01:59.640 point line. He hit a three that pulled Minnesota within 0:01:59.720 --> 0:02:02.480 seven with about a minute to go, and then it 0:02:02.520 --> 0:02:06.280 was a series of events, some turnovers, ended with a 0:02:06.360 --> 0:02:10.000 Jamal Murray half court shot that then changed the complexion 0:02:10.120 --> 0:02:12.959 of things put Denver back up by fifteen. They got 0:02:13.320 --> 0:02:16.800 compliments of a lot of players contributing, including Aaron Gordon, 0:02:16.919 --> 0:02:19.399 who did a little bit of everything the entire night. 0:02:19.440 --> 0:02:21.920 What he was doing on the offensive end twenty seven points, 0:02:22.400 --> 0:02:25.000 knocked down some three point shots, six assists, two blocks. 0:02:25.040 --> 0:02:28.880 His defense on Karl Anthony Towns has been exceptional. Nikola 0:02:28.960 --> 0:02:32.640 Jokic with thirty five seven seven and three steals. Jamal 0:02:32.720 --> 0:02:35.680 Murray despite everything that happened in game two did not 0:02:35.760 --> 0:02:38.240 get the suspension. These last two games, it's looked more 0:02:38.360 --> 0:02:41.480 of the Jamal Murray that we've been accustomed to seeing 0:02:42.040 --> 0:02:44.079 when you break down this game and where things are at. 0:02:44.080 --> 0:02:48.239 Because after those first two games, Minnesota just dominated Denver. 0:02:48.320 --> 0:02:49.680 I think you had a lot of people thinking this 0:02:49.760 --> 0:02:53.000 could have in some ways been a sweep or been 0:02:53.040 --> 0:02:55.040 a very short series, and now it looks like it 0:02:55.080 --> 0:02:57.960 may go the distance. What stood out to you most 0:02:58.560 --> 0:03:02.280 about the way Denver played and started to handle that 0:03:02.360 --> 0:03:04.760 Minnesota defense in their win last night? 0:03:05.639 --> 0:03:12.560 Yeah, Hi, Sarah, I mean it's rather probably surfacy, I guess, 0:03:12.560 --> 0:03:15.440 but I just think that those two defeats against the 0:03:15.480 --> 0:03:19.720 Timberwolves in Denver really was, you know, a couple of 0:03:19.760 --> 0:03:23.200 slaps across the face of the Denver Nuggets. They had 0:03:23.200 --> 0:03:25.480 gotten away with that bad habit of sort of easing 0:03:25.520 --> 0:03:29.960 in the games, being able to take control halfway through 0:03:30.680 --> 0:03:33.639 and winning that series against the Lakers in the first 0:03:33.760 --> 0:03:37.800 round in five games. They weren't able to recover when 0:03:37.840 --> 0:03:41.320 they eased into those games in Denver, and I think 0:03:41.360 --> 0:03:44.440 that that reality really hit hard for the Denver Nuggets. 0:03:44.480 --> 0:03:47.040 You know, they had played, they had played hard down 0:03:47.120 --> 0:03:49.280 the stretch, of the season with an eye on the 0:03:49.360 --> 0:03:53.320 number one seed, and they did not get it. So 0:03:53.400 --> 0:03:55.280 there was a little bit of failure. But then when 0:03:55.280 --> 0:03:58.720 they lost, you know, the first two games in this round, 0:03:59.480 --> 0:04:01.240 they were looking get a lot of failure and they 0:04:01.280 --> 0:04:06.920 weren't ready for their defending championship season to end. To me, 0:04:07.040 --> 0:04:10.720 a couple of things yesterday just it. It reminded me that, 0:04:10.800 --> 0:04:13.160 you know, we talk about playoff series and the adjustments 0:04:13.160 --> 0:04:16.120 from game to game, and a lot of times, you know, 0:04:16.200 --> 0:04:20.599 we talk about how, well, yeah, the defense gets tighter 0:04:20.880 --> 0:04:23.560 and they can clamp down and take away options, and 0:04:23.600 --> 0:04:26.040 the coaches have to be more creative in terms of 0:04:26.800 --> 0:04:30.039 the players to whom they turn for, you know, to 0:04:30.120 --> 0:04:33.600 generate the scoring they need. But I think Denver's defense 0:04:33.640 --> 0:04:38.200 has has uh, they've been they've been fine, But I 0:04:38.200 --> 0:04:41.560 think offensively, you know, they have they have done things 0:04:41.640 --> 0:04:47.320 differently in terms of disrupting that great Minnesota defense, just 0:04:47.600 --> 0:04:52.039 screens and angles and things to you know, get the 0:04:52.080 --> 0:04:54.160 Timberwolves a little out of sorts on that end of 0:04:54.200 --> 0:04:57.360 the floor, and that's been as dramatic as as anything. 0:04:57.360 --> 0:05:00.479 And then I look at Jokic and he seemed play 0:05:00.480 --> 0:05:03.560 with as much energy as I've seen him play now, 0:05:03.560 --> 0:05:06.760 I have voted for him for MVP three years, so 0:05:06.839 --> 0:05:08.960 I know he's very good. Whether he seems all that 0:05:09.120 --> 0:05:12.600 energetic or not, but he just seemed to have an 0:05:12.720 --> 0:05:16.400 urgency about him yesterday, whether he was willing to grab 0:05:16.400 --> 0:05:20.400 a rebound and head up court, you know, attack the basket, 0:05:20.520 --> 0:05:24.320 put up some shots. I just thought that Jokic refused 0:05:24.360 --> 0:05:27.160 to let that team fall into a three to one hole, 0:05:27.800 --> 0:05:31.839 and you know that that was striking And maybe Dendro 0:05:31.880 --> 0:05:35.360 has found itself and the Timberwolves are sort of back 0:05:35.360 --> 0:05:38.479 where they were when the series began, having to navigate 0:05:38.560 --> 0:05:42.520 high altitude and figure out a way to win there. 0:05:43.320 --> 0:05:46.160 Yeah, and that's an interesting point. I agree with you 0:05:46.240 --> 0:05:48.719 on just the placement on the floor, not just with Jokic, 0:05:48.960 --> 0:05:51.160 in where they're sending some of these ball screens, how 0:05:51.160 --> 0:05:53.520 they're attacking him, what they use is in terms of 0:05:53.560 --> 0:05:55.400 him as a fulcrum to play off of. But they 0:05:55.400 --> 0:05:57.080 did the same thing with Aaron Gordon a line. For 0:05:57.120 --> 0:05:59.240 as much as I've I've been raving about his play, 0:05:59.320 --> 0:06:02.200 like his ability to bring the ball up the floor 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:05.480 allowed Jamal Murray to play off the ball, and how 0:06:05.520 --> 0:06:08.600 they're initiating getting into their offense. I think it's a 0:06:08.600 --> 0:06:12.159 lot of little things like that that just shift the 0:06:12.240 --> 0:06:15.559 dynamic of how Minnesota is playing defense, where they're gonna 0:06:15.560 --> 0:06:18.240 come at him, because they were absolutely smothering those first 0:06:18.240 --> 0:06:20.080 two games. It felt like there was six players on 0:06:20.120 --> 0:06:22.800 the floor, which how much ground they were covering, the 0:06:22.800 --> 0:06:25.680 way that they could pressure the ball. I also think 0:06:25.720 --> 0:06:28.480 it was just some solid minutes, whether it was from 0:06:28.520 --> 0:06:31.480 Holiday coming off the bench, Brown doing a good job, 0:06:32.040 --> 0:06:35.320 it was just a good kind of push of Michael 0:06:35.360 --> 0:06:37.960 Malone of who he had and when and how those 0:06:37.960 --> 0:06:41.560 combinations were working that I thought was really impressive. But 0:06:41.640 --> 0:06:44.880 I think this is long from over, as we know, 0:06:45.040 --> 0:06:47.040 and I think for the Timberwolves too, just kind of 0:06:47.839 --> 0:06:51.599 the experience there, the environment, the extraordinary environment. I know, 0:06:52.080 --> 0:06:55.080 you're accustomed to it. To Ash, you've seen it, you've 0:06:55.080 --> 0:06:56.800 been a part of it. In Minnesota, I. 0:06:56.839 --> 0:06:59.400 Yes, to know, you know, they often didn't have that 0:06:59.480 --> 0:07:02.800 much excite at Target Center. I was there during the 0:07:02.839 --> 0:07:05.440 Kevin yardet run and when they went to the count 0:07:05.520 --> 0:07:07.479 and when they went to the conference final. So yeah, 0:07:07.560 --> 0:07:10.800 it was special then, But for the most part, Target 0:07:10.800 --> 0:07:14.160 Center has been sort of a sleeping giant and those 0:07:14.160 --> 0:07:17.000 people have waited a long time for this and it's 0:07:17.040 --> 0:07:20.720 not over yet basketball fans. I hope we get seven. 0:07:21.320 --> 0:07:23.360 Certainly going to be fun to watch and ash. The 0:07:23.440 --> 0:07:26.800 earlier game, Indiana Pacers, as I had mentioned, beat the 0:07:26.800 --> 0:07:29.680 New York Knicks one twenty one to eighty nine, and 0:07:30.120 --> 0:07:33.520 it was a circumstance of which felt like New York 0:07:33.560 --> 0:07:36.400 in some ways, a quick turnaround. The early game just 0:07:36.680 --> 0:07:38.320 ran out of gas. We have talked a lot about 0:07:38.360 --> 0:07:41.360 the players that they've been playing without Julius Randall for 0:07:41.440 --> 0:07:43.240 the better part of the final stretch of the season, 0:07:43.320 --> 0:07:48.040 losing Mitchell Robinson earlier, og Anobi more recently. And the 0:07:48.080 --> 0:07:50.640 Pacers did what they liked to do. They ran, and 0:07:50.680 --> 0:07:53.760 they got to go in transition. Their ability to get 0:07:53.760 --> 0:07:56.119 stops allowed them to get run outs. They had thirty 0:07:56.520 --> 0:08:00.480 eight transition points, six players in double figures, Tyre's Burton 0:08:00.880 --> 0:08:03.320 with twenty. But they also did a good job just 0:08:03.360 --> 0:08:06.680 pressuring up the floor. Aaron nee Smith second straight game 0:08:06.680 --> 0:08:09.120 that he has been defending Jalen Brunson and just been 0:08:09.520 --> 0:08:13.239 extremely physical with him, bumping him, doing everything he could. 0:08:13.280 --> 0:08:15.400 I thought that the game changed in some way the 0:08:15.480 --> 0:08:19.080 tenor of it, and it typically does when TJ McConnell enters. 0:08:19.160 --> 0:08:21.480 He had fifteen points, ten assists. But there was something 0:08:21.480 --> 0:08:24.040 different just with how Indiana was able to play early 0:08:24.080 --> 0:08:26.200 in extend leads. And the Knicks haven't been a team 0:08:26.240 --> 0:08:29.440 throughout the course of this postseason that have necessarily been 0:08:29.480 --> 0:08:32.880 great in the first quarters, but it felt like Indiana 0:08:33.000 --> 0:08:35.120 was just able to shut the door with how they 0:08:35.200 --> 0:08:38.760 continued to play. Brunson finished with eighteen points, five assists, 0:08:39.600 --> 0:08:41.560 and you got a wonder too the sore foot that 0:08:41.600 --> 0:08:45.120 he hurt in Game two. He has played in both 0:08:45.160 --> 0:08:47.760 of these last two games, but oh five from the 0:08:47.800 --> 0:08:50.160 three point line, he just didn't quite look the same. 0:08:50.240 --> 0:08:53.040 Josh Hart just two points one to six from three. 0:08:53.120 --> 0:08:56.240 The only other double figure players were Miles McBride off 0:08:56.280 --> 0:08:59.720 the bench with sixteen points and Alec Burk's with twenty points. 0:08:59.760 --> 0:09:02.360 Got twenty three minutes because at the end of the 0:09:02.400 --> 0:09:05.800 third quarter, Tom THIBODOVII pulled pulled the plug and said okay, 0:09:05.840 --> 0:09:07.800 and the guys finally got some rest, not in a 0:09:07.840 --> 0:09:10.720 way that he probably wanted them to. You saw the 0:09:10.760 --> 0:09:13.320 bench play and everyone play a lot of minutes in 0:09:13.320 --> 0:09:16.480 a manner that the Knicks, certainly we're not looking forward to. 0:09:17.200 --> 0:09:20.040 But now that this shifts back to Madison Square Garden 0:09:20.080 --> 0:09:22.880 for Game five with the series tied up after New 0:09:22.960 --> 0:09:26.040 York won those first two close ones, what's your expectations 0:09:26.640 --> 0:09:32.160 after seeing that, after watching that, for the Knicks to refresh, rebrand, rebound, 0:09:32.400 --> 0:09:34.920 and start to look like the team in some of 0:09:34.920 --> 0:09:37.719 the ways to spite those high minutes despite the high 0:09:37.840 --> 0:09:40.520 usage here in game five. 0:09:41.160 --> 0:09:44.680 Well, I would think both teams will be different, you 0:09:44.679 --> 0:09:49.120 know back in Madison Square Garden, you know, Indiana, maybe 0:09:49.240 --> 0:09:54.880 not with quite the verve and bravado, but but the 0:09:54.960 --> 0:09:58.840 Knicks also a little bit more rested. The best thing 0:09:59.040 --> 0:10:01.880 that happened to them was that being a blowout, they 0:10:02.120 --> 0:10:04.360 could have gotten forty eight minutes of rest and played 0:10:04.400 --> 0:10:07.400 subs the whole game and gotten the same results. So 0:10:08.040 --> 0:10:10.199 you know, you'd say, well, this is the next best 0:10:10.240 --> 0:10:12.880 thing that they didn't have to gut out a close defeat. 0:10:14.320 --> 0:10:18.000 They took this one and can move on, you know, 0:10:18.160 --> 0:10:21.160 one day in between games. Now it's better than the 0:10:21.200 --> 0:10:23.920 regular season. It's not as good as maybe the first 0:10:24.000 --> 0:10:26.640 round could give you, where you have two three days 0:10:26.640 --> 0:10:30.559 between games. The Knicks need as much time as possible 0:10:31.040 --> 0:10:37.880 to recover and rejuvenate. But yeah, I think they'll be 0:10:38.040 --> 0:10:41.240 I think they'll be a better team for this. You 0:10:41.360 --> 0:10:45.160 just wonder about the attrition O g Annobi. To me, 0:10:45.679 --> 0:10:47.840 that's a huge loss if he's not available to play. 0:10:47.840 --> 0:10:50.320 They were a different team when they did have him 0:10:50.640 --> 0:10:54.680 after he arrived from Toronto. And to say, well, and 0:10:55.000 --> 0:10:57.760 I heard Tibbs quote, you know, well he missed a 0:10:57.800 --> 0:10:59.840 lot of time during the season too. Yeah, well you 0:11:00.040 --> 0:11:02.920 at the same team when he wasn't there. He makes 0:11:02.920 --> 0:11:06.760 a difference. He gives you bonus offense and you can 0:11:06.760 --> 0:11:10.199 put him on just about anybody you need to defensively 0:11:10.240 --> 0:11:13.000 at a given moment. So you know that, to me, 0:11:13.160 --> 0:11:17.559 is is the greatest problem right now. And of course Brunson. 0:11:17.880 --> 0:11:20.079 You know, Brunson is less than one hundred percent. I mean, 0:11:20.080 --> 0:11:23.280 he can be effective. If he's less than eighty percent, 0:11:23.720 --> 0:11:25.559 you've got a problem. There was a reason that he 0:11:25.640 --> 0:11:29.920 was on a lot of our MVP ballots, and it's 0:11:30.040 --> 0:11:34.000 that sense that he is their engine. Without him, you know, 0:11:34.080 --> 0:11:40.360 that team is a lottery team, you know, so that 0:11:40.400 --> 0:11:42.760 would be unfortunate if he's not able to get back up, 0:11:42.840 --> 0:11:47.160 you know, to play at a high level of his potential. 0:11:47.679 --> 0:11:52.120 But yeah, Indiana, you know, they have to stick with 0:11:52.160 --> 0:11:54.960 what's what's working, and they have to play that game 0:11:55.080 --> 0:12:00.320 that's theirs. McConnell has earned the right to play in 0:12:00.520 --> 0:12:03.200 at the end of games. I mean, Carlisle, you know, 0:12:03.240 --> 0:12:05.240 has a habit of going back to his starters, and 0:12:05.559 --> 0:12:09.800 I just think McConnell is troublesome enough. He's able to 0:12:09.840 --> 0:12:12.760 bother New York at both ends. And I was surprised. 0:12:12.800 --> 0:12:15.959 I mean, he's fifteen and ten came in the fewest 0:12:16.000 --> 0:12:19.360 minutes ever in an NBA playoff game. I think he 0:12:19.400 --> 0:12:22.040 played twenty minutes and generated that sort of production. So 0:12:23.240 --> 0:12:27.560 you know, he's he's extremely valuable in a certain smaller 0:12:28.960 --> 0:12:33.120 digest level way. He does for that team. What Brunson 0:12:33.200 --> 0:12:35.760 does all game long for the Knicks, I mean is 0:12:35.800 --> 0:12:40.559 a he's a driving force. He's pesky, he's difficult to defend, 0:12:40.960 --> 0:12:44.480 and he's rising to the occasion. I'm not saying he's 0:12:44.480 --> 0:12:48.120 been an underused star or anything like that, but it's 0:12:48.120 --> 0:12:52.959 almost like remember JJ Barrea in the twenty eleven final, Yes, 0:12:53.080 --> 0:12:55.760 I do, that's what this reminds me of. 0:12:56.600 --> 0:12:59.480 One Jose Brea Oh it made a different but that 0:12:59.559 --> 0:13:02.400 always makes difference anytime you're trying to play in the 0:13:02.440 --> 0:13:04.440 postseason and make a run. As some of those individuals 0:13:04.480 --> 0:13:06.480 we talk about, TJ McConnell, I think Obi top and 0:13:06.520 --> 0:13:10.000 two just how he's able to come in and obviously 0:13:10.080 --> 0:13:12.520 he's got a little bit of revenge on his mind 0:13:12.520 --> 0:13:15.440 with the Knicks and the way things had finished with him. 0:13:15.440 --> 0:13:17.559 But yeah, but I think the Pacers did get back 0:13:17.600 --> 0:13:19.480 to playing and the way we saw them play throughout 0:13:19.480 --> 0:13:22.760 the course of the season, the high powered offense sometimes 0:13:22.840 --> 0:13:24.880 as their best defense, but they're doing just enough at 0:13:24.880 --> 0:13:27.520 that end, so to me, more of it is going 0:13:27.600 --> 0:13:30.640 to be interesting to see how the Knicks look and 0:13:30.679 --> 0:13:33.880 if that attrition does actually start to factor in at 0:13:33.880 --> 0:13:35.840 this point of the postseed and with the minutes and 0:13:35.880 --> 0:13:38.040 with the usage that they have been playing. As we're 0:13:38.040 --> 0:13:41.199 going to get to work you are at in Cleveland, 0:13:41.240 --> 0:13:44.679 as we got two game fours taking place tonight on 0:13:44.840 --> 0:13:50.120 TNT Boston at the Calves and the Oklahoma City Thunder 0:13:50.280 --> 0:13:53.319 at Dallas as they tried to even things up as well. 0:13:53.320 --> 0:14:03.040 Get to that right after the RT Welcome back to 0:14:03.120 --> 0:14:06.360 NBA Paul Sarahkustak, joined by the great Steve Asberner and 0:14:06.440 --> 0:14:11.120 Ash Boston at Cleveland. Cleveland got one, but it looks 0:14:11.160 --> 0:14:14.320 like the Celtics are continuing to put things together. They've 0:14:14.360 --> 0:14:18.040 been playing without Christaps Porzingis. For Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell has 0:14:18.080 --> 0:14:21.640 been exceptional, but just not quite enough help, especially with 0:14:21.640 --> 0:14:24.360 the compliments of how Boston can play on both ends 0:14:24.360 --> 0:14:28.080 of the floor. They had a nice win on Saturday one, 0:14:28.320 --> 0:14:31.560 six ninety three in Cleveland. They will play tonight at 0:14:31.600 --> 0:14:35.200 seven pm Eastern on T and T. As I had mentioned, 0:14:36.280 --> 0:14:38.240 what do you have your eye on here for this 0:14:38.320 --> 0:14:41.840 matchup tonight is Boston tries to in some ways take 0:14:41.880 --> 0:14:45.400 a even more command of this series than can Cleveland. 0:14:45.920 --> 0:14:47.040 Even things up here. 0:14:47.440 --> 0:14:50.560 You know, Boston is what it is. They lost Game 0:14:50.600 --> 0:14:53.400 two against Miami in the first round. Miami had a 0:14:53.840 --> 0:14:57.200 crazy good night from the three point line that night, 0:14:57.320 --> 0:15:00.560 and that's that bailed them out and and even that 0:15:00.680 --> 0:15:04.440 series briefly, even though the Heat were undermanned without Jimmy 0:15:04.480 --> 0:15:08.240 Butler and others. Cleveland I thought had a more thorough 0:15:08.480 --> 0:15:11.520 victory in Game two in this one, and it was 0:15:11.560 --> 0:15:14.880 more to their credit than I mean, there there were 0:15:14.960 --> 0:15:18.520 elements of Boston not coming in playing its a game 0:15:18.760 --> 0:15:21.840 and not responding well. And that's why the Celtics you know, 0:15:21.920 --> 0:15:25.080 got taken into the woodshed a little bit after that game. 0:15:25.160 --> 0:15:27.200 But Cleveland did a better job. I think the way 0:15:27.240 --> 0:15:31.000 they had Mitchell sort of feel out the game and 0:15:31.040 --> 0:15:35.080 get his teammates going. He scored six points in the 0:15:35.080 --> 0:15:37.440 first half on his way to twenty nine by the 0:15:37.480 --> 0:15:40.360 time it was over, and it seemed like a pretty 0:15:40.360 --> 0:15:44.560 good formula. But that didn't happen in game three. Game three, 0:15:45.280 --> 0:15:47.800 he was looking to score, teammates were not getting going. 0:15:47.920 --> 0:15:51.320 He didn't have a lot of help. You know. Evan 0:15:51.360 --> 0:15:54.080 Mobley does what he can, but he tweaked an ankle again, 0:15:54.200 --> 0:15:58.400 so that limited him a little bit. And Boston woke 0:15:58.520 --> 0:16:00.480 up and said, you know, we were better team than this, 0:16:00.560 --> 0:16:04.440 were the better team in the series, and they took 0:16:04.520 --> 0:16:07.400 care of their business. I just you know, it just 0:16:07.400 --> 0:16:12.600 seems like they follow their leader. Jason Tatum. Extremely talented. 0:16:12.720 --> 0:16:15.080 I mean, there's so much he can do just smooth. 0:16:16.840 --> 0:16:19.840 But he's not He's not a fire iron, you know, 0:16:19.880 --> 0:16:22.960 he's not somebody who you know, he's not ruthless on 0:16:23.000 --> 0:16:26.120 the floor like as I wrote, I mean, he's not 0:16:26.200 --> 0:16:28.560 Kobe Bryant. He's not Michael Jordan. He might not even 0:16:28.600 --> 0:16:31.160 be Anthony Edwards when it comes to that killer instinct. 0:16:31.560 --> 0:16:35.560 He's just so good he can get away with, you know, 0:16:35.600 --> 0:16:38.560 maybe floating through some games or periods of games. But 0:16:38.640 --> 0:16:41.640 he also has tried to do multiple things. His shooting 0:16:41.680 --> 0:16:44.200 has been off, but he has looked for teammates and 0:16:44.240 --> 0:16:47.840 he has rebounded the ball, and his stats overall are 0:16:48.040 --> 0:16:51.640 pretty good except for the percentages. I just think Boston 0:16:51.720 --> 0:16:53.360 is that that sort of team. They know they have 0:16:53.440 --> 0:16:55.640 the talent, they know they have the depth, and at 0:16:55.640 --> 0:16:59.640 this level, at this at this round, they probably have 0:16:59.680 --> 0:17:02.160 taken things a little lightly and they are without Porzingis. 0:17:02.240 --> 0:17:05.280 Let's not you know, let's not overlook that he's a 0:17:05.280 --> 0:17:07.359 pretty important piece to what they want to do. I 0:17:07.400 --> 0:17:11.160 just don't think they particularly need him until the finals, 0:17:11.600 --> 0:17:12.960 assuming that they can get there. 0:17:14.680 --> 0:17:17.840 Horford, Yeah, Horford though play in a ton of heavy minutes, 0:17:17.880 --> 0:17:21.520 and to see how that factors in. Donovan Mitchell, who's 0:17:21.600 --> 0:17:27.000 on the injury report, is questionable with calf injury. So 0:17:27.400 --> 0:17:30.080 I think you could hopefully assume he'll be playing, but 0:17:31.080 --> 0:17:34.280 how he'll be hampered by that. Jared Allen is also 0:17:34.359 --> 0:17:36.520 questionable on the injury report, which is a positive sign 0:17:36.600 --> 0:17:39.720 for Cleveland because obviously the fact they've been playing without 0:17:39.760 --> 0:17:42.240 him throughout the course of this early part of the 0:17:42.280 --> 0:17:45.640 series has not helped in ways in which he could 0:17:45.680 --> 0:17:48.520 be impactful, in particular on the inside. What's your pick 0:17:48.720 --> 0:17:49.240 for tonight? 0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:52.800 Oh, I have to go with the Celtics. I think 0:17:52.800 --> 0:17:56.080 that they did get doused with cold water with Game 0:17:56.119 --> 0:17:58.960 two and they don't want this to go any longer 0:17:58.960 --> 0:18:01.840 than need be. I think they are the better team. 0:18:01.880 --> 0:18:04.000 I think Cleveland has sort of run out of options. 0:18:04.680 --> 0:18:08.400 Jerry Allen could help defensively, he could help with the rim. 0:18:08.640 --> 0:18:12.040 He must have, you know, a pretty seriously injured rib. 0:18:12.080 --> 0:18:14.439 I've heard that not only does it hurt, you know, 0:18:14.880 --> 0:18:17.600 if he has contact, but it's even when he breathes, 0:18:17.680 --> 0:18:20.679 he feels this thing. Yeah, so hard to play in 0:18:20.720 --> 0:18:25.040 those circumstances. Yeah, it would surprise me if Cleveland is 0:18:25.440 --> 0:18:27.760 able to tie up this thing and make it a 0:18:27.800 --> 0:18:28.560 best of three. 0:18:28.840 --> 0:18:31.600 Absolutely, and obviously got to see him quite a bit 0:18:31.640 --> 0:18:33.520 with Brooklyn in the early part of his career, and 0:18:34.000 --> 0:18:36.320 if he can be out there, you know he will 0:18:36.440 --> 0:18:40.679 the following game nine thirty pm Eastern on TNT Oklahoma 0:18:40.720 --> 0:18:45.960 City at Dallas, and Dallas has won the last two games. 0:18:46.600 --> 0:18:51.200 Kyrie Irving continues to put together on some special, special 0:18:51.280 --> 0:18:56.119 highlight plays. Pja Washington has been fantastic for this team 0:18:56.280 --> 0:18:59.720 afterting twenty eight points per game in these last two games. 0:19:00.600 --> 0:19:03.400 What do you expect out of this one here tonight 0:19:03.960 --> 0:19:06.480 with the MAVs looking to open things up a little 0:19:06.520 --> 0:19:09.280 bit or if Oklahoma City can even up this series. 0:19:10.000 --> 0:19:12.399 Well, I hope Luca doesn't leave some body parts on 0:19:12.440 --> 0:19:14.760 the wrong side of half court. You know, when it 0:19:14.840 --> 0:19:18.920 seems like he's falling, he's getting knocked down, he's hurting 0:19:18.960 --> 0:19:21.760 in his knee, he's hurting other you know, he's landing 0:19:21.960 --> 0:19:25.040 flat on his back and it's a real passion play 0:19:25.119 --> 0:19:29.280 for him. But I do think that, you know, Dallas 0:19:29.359 --> 0:19:31.720 is sort of the saltier, a little more veteran team. 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:36.040 Oklahoma City is fun to watch. I just think that 0:19:36.560 --> 0:19:39.280 they're not big enough. I think chet Holmgren might be 0:19:39.359 --> 0:19:42.200 wearing a little bit down. He doesn't seem as effective 0:19:42.240 --> 0:19:44.720 against and again it could be a matchups thing. But 0:19:45.160 --> 0:19:49.240 with Daniel Gafford and with Derek Lively, you know, he's 0:19:49.240 --> 0:19:51.320 got his hands full there. Are sort of two sides 0:19:51.320 --> 0:19:55.040 of a coin. And you know, home Grin doesn't have 0:19:55.119 --> 0:19:58.400 a lot of tall help on that team. I think 0:19:58.440 --> 0:20:00.679 they are a little bit undersized there. Fun to watch 0:20:01.280 --> 0:20:05.160 jam all all credit, but this is about where they 0:20:05.240 --> 0:20:08.640 seemed likely to max out. And I just think when 0:20:08.640 --> 0:20:13.440 you've got Irving and Docicch, you're covered if the game 0:20:13.520 --> 0:20:18.119 is close, and you know the way Dallas has played, 0:20:18.160 --> 0:20:21.080 I'm not even sure that we'll need that much, you know, 0:20:21.680 --> 0:20:26.960 close game prowess, because I just think that if they've 0:20:27.000 --> 0:20:31.919 found themselves, adding Washington and Gafford during the season transformed 0:20:31.960 --> 0:20:34.399 that team here and here, and so we're seeing the 0:20:34.440 --> 0:20:35.440 results of that now. 0:20:36.480 --> 0:20:38.480 And I don't think I think there was questions too 0:20:38.600 --> 0:20:45.159 with Washington and Charlotte in Gafford, in in Washington, in Washington, Uh, 0:20:45.760 --> 0:20:47.359 just the concept of what it would look like in 0:20:47.359 --> 0:20:50.359 the postseason the playoffs. Does that translate given how they'd 0:20:50.359 --> 0:20:52.560 played and how they would fit. And I don't know 0:20:52.560 --> 0:20:53.840 if it was you who I was talking to her 0:20:53.840 --> 0:20:55.720 at some point when that trade was I have always 0:20:55.760 --> 0:20:58.679 been high on PGA Washington and just the versatility and 0:20:58.720 --> 0:21:01.119 adaptability that he brings on both ends of the floor 0:21:01.160 --> 0:21:04.640 and those guys have been special for this Dallas team 0:21:04.680 --> 0:21:06.720 and impactful. And I also think that it gives you 0:21:06.760 --> 0:21:09.160 a little bit of leeway with Derek Lively coming off 0:21:09.160 --> 0:21:10.960 the bench and just how you can use him and 0:21:11.280 --> 0:21:14.000 work him in being a rookie being as young as 0:21:14.040 --> 0:21:16.439 he is, So no question, it is going to be 0:21:17.040 --> 0:21:19.399 fun to see how this continues to play out. Ash 0:21:19.880 --> 0:21:23.240 have fun in Cleveland. I hope you get a good one, 0:21:23.320 --> 0:21:26.000 safe travels to your next stop, and as always, we 0:21:26.040 --> 0:21:28.280 appreciate you your time and we look forward to talking 0:21:28.320 --> 0:21:28.879 with you again. 0:21:29.240 --> 0:21:30.399 Thanks very You're welcome. 0:21:31.160 --> 0:21:33.000 NBA Pulse with Sarahu Stack is a production of the 0:21:33.080 --> 0:21:35.960 NBA and iHeartRadio. Please rate, review, and subscribe on the 0:21:36.000 --> 0:21:38.680 iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcast.