WEBVTT - Kurt Helin Joins The Heat Check! 0:00:00.520 --> 0:00:06.480 Break was breaking down all the biggest NBA storylines, So 0:00:06.600 --> 0:00:10.080 the heat Check. The Heat Check was Trista Craig, the 0:00:10.160 --> 0:00:13.200 best podcast covering all the drama around the association. 0:00:15.720 --> 0:00:17.680 Now we're in for a big treat. We got Kurt 0:00:17.680 --> 0:00:20.640 Healing on. Kurt is the blogger in chief of Pro 0:00:20.680 --> 0:00:23.680 Basketball Talk dot com but also NBC Sports dot com 0:00:23.920 --> 0:00:26.520 and the managing editor in NBC. We had a wide 0:00:26.600 --> 0:00:29.440 ranging interview. It touched on a lot of inner storylines 0:00:29.440 --> 0:00:32.080 that come up for the season. So let's get into it. 0:00:32.520 --> 0:00:36.080 Welcome to the show. My man, Kurt Healing, lead NBA Rider, 0:00:36.159 --> 0:00:39.720 managing editor NBC Sports dot Com, just one of the 0:00:40.360 --> 0:00:43.600 I would say, more honest guys in their assessments of 0:00:43.640 --> 0:00:46.519 what's happening around the NBA. I've got a ton of questions. 0:00:46.520 --> 0:00:50.200 There's a lot developing, and we could spend all day, 0:00:50.440 --> 0:00:52.159 but I figured I would call it down to the 0:00:52.159 --> 0:00:55.200 teams that I personally am the most interested in based 0:00:55.200 --> 0:00:57.920 on what we saw opening night, but also some of 0:00:57.960 --> 0:01:02.720 the sleeper teams too. So I am really intrigued by Phoenix. 0:01:03.400 --> 0:01:08.240 I think that's a team that could potentially break the 0:01:08.280 --> 0:01:12.040 mentality of the super team right being dead and Bradley 0:01:12.040 --> 0:01:15.120 Beal obviously is a guy that they got for absolutely nothing. 0:01:15.240 --> 0:01:19.040 They made moves at in the summer with Nurkic, which 0:01:19.040 --> 0:01:21.559 I think is super interesting, got a lot of depth. 0:01:21.760 --> 0:01:24.119 They get a bunch of guys from the Blazers, and 0:01:24.400 --> 0:01:26.680 I think when they went to Chase last night or 0:01:26.720 --> 0:01:29.160 on Tuesday night, we were wondering how they would look 0:01:29.160 --> 0:01:32.679 against a team that has largely been a contender anytime 0:01:32.680 --> 0:01:36.280 Steph is healthy. So the thing that stuck out to 0:01:36.319 --> 0:01:40.480 me was Devin Booker. You watch him and it looked 0:01:40.480 --> 0:01:42.240 like he was the best player on the floor pretty 0:01:42.280 --> 0:01:45.600 much the entire night thirty two six and eight one steal, 0:01:46.440 --> 0:01:49.080 and that was with Steph doing you know, Steph things. 0:01:49.400 --> 0:01:53.400 Do you think Devin Booker is a legit MVP candidate 0:01:53.440 --> 0:01:55.480 if he plays on a team that Kevin Durant plays on. 0:01:55.680 --> 0:01:57.600 I think it'd be hard to be MVP with Kevin 0:01:57.640 --> 0:02:00.920 Durant sitting there because unless he does like every night, 0:02:00.960 --> 0:02:03.840 but Durant was cold shooting, and by the way, everybody 0:02:03.920 --> 0:02:06.520 not named Booker and they came like great put up numbers, 0:02:06.560 --> 0:02:08.800 but he was like eight of twenty and everybody else 0:02:08.919 --> 0:02:11.800 was just ice cold. For both teams. I think it 0:02:11.880 --> 0:02:15.040 solidifies his all NBA spot. Probably. I picked the Suns 0:02:15.040 --> 0:02:17.639 to go to the finals. I am. I'm like, I am, 0:02:17.800 --> 0:02:19.959 I'm big on them. I don't know that they're like, 0:02:20.360 --> 0:02:22.200 I don't think they're there right now, even though they 0:02:22.200 --> 0:02:23.600 you know, they got a nice win the other night, 0:02:23.680 --> 0:02:26.400 and they got some promising signs because you had I 0:02:26.400 --> 0:02:28.600 got questions about Nurkic and his health and whatever, but 0:02:28.639 --> 0:02:31.440 he looked pretty good in the opener. I got questions 0:02:31.440 --> 0:02:34.040 about like Josha Kogie, but he's hitting key corner threes 0:02:34.240 --> 0:02:37.240 and making plays. So I just think over the course 0:02:37.280 --> 0:02:39.519 of eighty two and maybe with a move at the deadline, 0:02:39.919 --> 0:02:42.600 a smaller move, like a role playery move. The question 0:02:42.680 --> 0:02:45.960 isn't the top end. The question is like depth defense 0:02:46.080 --> 0:02:48.840 all that, and I think they'll figure it out. But 0:02:48.880 --> 0:02:50.959 I still think, look as much as Booker's going to 0:02:51.000 --> 0:02:53.679 stand out, I think it'd be hard. You're just hard 0:02:53.720 --> 0:02:56.160 pressed to do that against next to Kevin Durant, who 0:02:57.120 --> 0:02:59.800 wasn't great in that first game. But you you know, 0:03:00.040 --> 0:03:02.320 I don't like we all know, like there's a big 0:03:02.440 --> 0:03:04.200 Kevin Durant stretch coming. 0:03:04.800 --> 0:03:07.000 Yeah, I mean, he always produces and that's what we 0:03:07.040 --> 0:03:09.240 know he's going to be able to do. The Bradley 0:03:09.280 --> 0:03:12.959 Beal thing is weird. I wondered why how he ends 0:03:13.040 --> 0:03:15.799 up recovering and rehabbing all offseason and then we don't 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:19.960 see him with back spasms, especially with this NBA new 0:03:20.160 --> 0:03:24.040 rule about load management. Obviously that's not Low's management. Is 0:03:24.080 --> 0:03:27.400 Bradley Bule's help a concern or a factor for you 0:03:27.440 --> 0:03:29.480 at all in terms of you thinking that this is 0:03:29.480 --> 0:03:30.519 a finals team. 0:03:30.840 --> 0:03:33.880 I don't really. I think the only way to judge 0:03:34.120 --> 0:03:37.360 of preseason is to say a team is healthy unless proven. 0:03:37.480 --> 0:03:39.560 Like do I think Kawhi Leonard is going to play 0:03:39.560 --> 0:03:40.360 eighty two games? 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:43.400 Probably not right, Like I think we're gonna safely say no, 0:03:43.680 --> 0:03:47.080 But I kind of presume going into the season that 0:03:47.120 --> 0:03:50.080 he's healthy for the playoffs or you start playing a 0:03:50.080 --> 0:03:52.480 really random game, and so. 0:03:52.400 --> 0:03:54.280 I'm going to assume that he's healthy. But I think 0:03:54.320 --> 0:03:58.320 it's with his history and Kevin Durant's history, it is 0:03:58.440 --> 0:04:01.600 absolutely on one of the things that can derail the Suns. 0:04:01.600 --> 0:04:04.520 It is it is a legitimate concern that he's not 0:04:04.720 --> 0:04:09.440 there opening night, But you're right, it's it's not load management. 0:04:09.520 --> 0:04:11.560 But also just between you and me, do you know 0:04:11.600 --> 0:04:13.640 how many guys are gonna have Like we're gonna take 0:04:13.680 --> 0:04:16.080 our time bringing Dreamond Green back from this ankle thing 0:04:16.120 --> 0:04:17.800 because we can get him a little rest right now, 0:04:17.839 --> 0:04:20.520 we could like the guys are gonna go down with 0:04:20.560 --> 0:04:23.919 these injuries all season long that are just rest nights. 0:04:24.440 --> 0:04:27.640 So you think there's gonna be manipulating of that, then yeah. 0:04:27.600 --> 0:04:29.919 Yes, the league says they're going to come in. But 0:04:30.480 --> 0:04:32.359 it's the thing about the NBA, and frankly, you know 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:36.160 anybody watching who's an NFL fan. By week what three, 0:04:36.760 --> 0:04:39.200 any guy in the NFL can take a week off 0:04:39.200 --> 0:04:41.200 for an injury if they want to, right like they're 0:04:41.240 --> 0:04:43.880 all they've all got enough bumps and bruises. What the 0:04:43.960 --> 0:04:46.560 NBA is pretty much that way a month into the season, 0:04:46.680 --> 0:04:51.200 like everybody's got knee tendonitis or their achilles aches a 0:04:51.240 --> 0:04:54.359 little bit, whatever it is. There's all sorts of things 0:04:54.360 --> 0:04:56.200 that you can come up with to get a guy 0:04:56.240 --> 0:04:58.039 a night off if they really want to. It's not 0:04:58.080 --> 0:05:00.520 gonna be hard. And I'm really cute is to see 0:05:00.520 --> 0:05:03.560 how that shakes out with the new league rule on 0:05:03.720 --> 0:05:06.080 sixty five games to get your end of you know 0:05:06.120 --> 0:05:08.760 to be eligible for end of season awards, and like, 0:05:08.800 --> 0:05:10.520 I think we're gonna see a whole lot of guys 0:05:10.520 --> 0:05:11.880 play sixty six games. 0:05:12.240 --> 0:05:16.320 Yeah, and just because the line is sixty five in 0:05:16.440 --> 0:05:19.480 order to get all NBA and MVP and all these awards. 0:05:19.760 --> 0:05:21.719 Eric Gordon was really good in that game. He didn't 0:05:21.800 --> 0:05:26.200 produce offensively, but he was still like plus whenever he 0:05:26.279 --> 0:05:29.000 was on the floor. I think he was a huge pickup. 0:05:29.080 --> 0:05:31.560 Not a lot of people are talking about him. Utah 0:05:31.560 --> 0:05:34.400 Wattonabe obviously came over just because he wanted to play 0:05:34.400 --> 0:05:37.760 with Kevin Durant. I'm curious from your perspective and what 0:05:37.800 --> 0:05:41.680 you see, who is that number one X factor role 0:05:41.680 --> 0:05:43.760 player that you think is gonna bring the Suns over 0:05:43.760 --> 0:05:46.080 the top to get them to the finals and beat 0:05:46.080 --> 0:05:47.120 a team like Denver. 0:05:47.880 --> 0:05:49.360 Eric Gordon's gonna have a big role. I kind of 0:05:49.360 --> 0:05:51.680 think it's a Kogi just because they're gonna need his defense. 0:05:51.800 --> 0:05:54.760 They're going to need somebody out. I mean, he's got 0:05:54.800 --> 0:05:58.239 to be offensively good enough to stay on the floor. 0:05:58.640 --> 0:06:01.400 But ultimately, I mean, Kevin Durant, it's a pretty good 0:06:01.440 --> 0:06:03.960 defender when he is geared up for it and wants 0:06:03.960 --> 0:06:05.080 to be, but he's not going to do it over 0:06:05.080 --> 0:06:07.039 eighty two. Nurkic is a big body in the middle. 0:06:07.279 --> 0:06:09.560 They don't have a lot of great defenders, and it's 0:06:09.600 --> 0:06:12.400 on a very defensive minded coach and Frank Fogel to 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:14.760 find a way to get enough defense out of this team. 0:06:14.760 --> 0:06:17.360 Playing a lot of drop coverage with the big body 0:06:17.360 --> 0:06:20.120 of Nurkic, I imagine. But I think a kogie comes clear, 0:06:20.200 --> 0:06:22.239 and then I think you're right. I think Eric Gordon 0:06:22.279 --> 0:06:25.200 is the one guy on that bench right now going 0:06:25.240 --> 0:06:27.440 into the season like, yeah, he's going to be rock 0:06:27.480 --> 0:06:29.719 solid for eighty two, He's going to be rock solid 0:06:29.720 --> 0:06:32.200 for the final sixteen, you know in the playoffs. He's 0:06:32.200 --> 0:06:35.240 not the guy I'm worried about. They just need, you know, 0:06:35.480 --> 0:06:37.880 who are the other guys to step up? Really? I mean, 0:06:38.000 --> 0:06:40.320 they've just got to find at the end of the day, 0:06:40.360 --> 0:06:41.800 don't you basically got to get to a seven man 0:06:41.880 --> 0:06:46.880 rotation you trust by April. And my guess is they 0:06:46.880 --> 0:06:47.719 get there, but we'll see. 0:06:48.040 --> 0:06:50.800 Are you sleeping on Denver, Like tell me the truth, 0:06:50.839 --> 0:06:53.560 because I feel you're kind of doing what everyone is 0:06:53.640 --> 0:06:57.480 doing right now, which is like, oh, they they lost 0:06:57.600 --> 0:07:02.120 Jeff Green, They lost Bruce Brown, who will come in 0:07:02.200 --> 0:07:06.160 and save them off the bench. And last night Opening Night, 0:07:06.200 --> 0:07:09.080 it really didn't even matter. Reggie Jackson looked like he 0:07:09.240 --> 0:07:12.400 was that guy. But I mean it was spread all 0:07:12.440 --> 0:07:15.640 the way through. Everybody was producing, and they still scored 0:07:16.080 --> 0:07:17.920 over one hundred and twenty points and it was like 0:07:18.800 --> 0:07:20.640 not a lot of bench production. 0:07:21.080 --> 0:07:23.440 I felt like Game five of the Western Conference Finals 0:07:23.440 --> 0:07:26.560 from last year, didn't it just like it's like it's 0:07:26.600 --> 0:07:28.960 just a continuation of what we saw. I thought their 0:07:28.960 --> 0:07:31.760 bench played okay too. Christian Brown was a Brown. I 0:07:31.760 --> 0:07:36.640 wouldn't call him Broun because it's Christian Brown. Christian Brown. 0:07:36.720 --> 0:07:39.480 That's he played really well. I thought that they're bench 0:07:39.520 --> 0:07:43.600 in general, Reggie Jackson. You can count on Reggie Jackson 0:07:43.640 --> 0:07:46.120 for some points, a few highlights, on some trash talk. 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:48.960 I think their bench isn't bad. I don't. I just do. 0:07:49.000 --> 0:07:50.560 I trust it as much as Bruce Brown. I just 0:07:50.760 --> 0:07:52.800 let's put this away. I think they're very, very good. 0:07:52.840 --> 0:07:55.920 I think they're the bar for the entire NBA. If 0:07:55.960 --> 0:07:59.480 your Phoenix or Frankly, if you're Boston or Milwaukee or 0:07:59.480 --> 0:08:03.800 any other team with championship designs, you gotta be better 0:08:03.880 --> 0:08:07.160 than Nikolai, Jokis, Jamal Murray and Denver and at the 0:08:07.240 --> 0:08:09.320 end of the day, maybe nobody is. I just got 0:08:09.360 --> 0:08:11.840 a feeling somebody's gonna pass them this year, and we'll see. 0:08:12.120 --> 0:08:13.840 I think they will miss Bruce Brown in the platfs 0:08:13.840 --> 0:08:15.960 as much as I like Christian Brown and everybody else. 0:08:16.040 --> 0:08:18.600 Like Bruce Brown was huge in the postseason, but you 0:08:18.600 --> 0:08:20.960 can't blame the man for go get the bag. Like 0:08:21.600 --> 0:08:23.160 you know, they don't got it for you in Denver, 0:08:23.200 --> 0:08:24.680 you gotta go get it. And by the way, I 0:08:24.760 --> 0:08:25.840 like the Pacers. 0:08:25.400 --> 0:08:28.840 Too, Love the Pacers, love what they're doing. We'll definitely 0:08:28.920 --> 0:08:32.040 hit on that. I think Nikolak could actually win the 0:08:32.160 --> 0:08:37.040 MVP again if that's oh that sounds crazy because he 0:08:37.040 --> 0:08:39.880 he had three assists at halftime something like that, still 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:43.600 finished with eleven, and it feels like maybe more aggressive 0:08:43.720 --> 0:08:46.760 offensively than he's been to start the year. He was 0:08:46.880 --> 0:08:50.160 just bullying Ad down in the post. It was come 0:08:50.200 --> 0:08:53.199 and stop me. I'm going into the paint. I'm going 0:08:53.240 --> 0:08:55.800 to score every time if I want, I'll grab my 0:08:55.880 --> 0:08:58.880 own put back and get the points as well. So 0:08:59.440 --> 0:09:03.320 it feels like maybe there's even another level production wise 0:09:03.360 --> 0:09:06.800 from a points perspective, then Nikole Jokic was even doing 0:09:06.880 --> 0:09:10.240 the year before when he won MVP two years ago 0:09:10.400 --> 0:09:12.280 or the year before that, or even last year when 0:09:12.400 --> 0:09:15.040 MB won it. What are you seeing or what did 0:09:15.040 --> 0:09:17.640 you see from him? Did you see what I saw? 0:09:18.520 --> 0:09:22.200 Yeah, he's really become good at that at And I 0:09:22.200 --> 0:09:25.480 think that's interesting because we were talking earlier, like, hey, 0:09:25.559 --> 0:09:28.199 the Sons go get use of Nurkic in play it 0:09:28.280 --> 0:09:31.280 out in place of the issues they had with another 0:09:31.320 --> 0:09:34.440 big body guy in DeAndre eight. But I think if 0:09:34.480 --> 0:09:37.079 you're looking at the West and you want to get 0:09:37.080 --> 0:09:39.600 through the West, one of your questions has to be, hey, 0:09:39.640 --> 0:09:41.240 how do we how do we match up with him? 0:09:41.240 --> 0:09:43.360 How do we even slow him? And Anthony Davis last 0:09:43.400 --> 0:09:46.040 year I think was as good or better a defender, 0:09:46.120 --> 0:09:48.920 probably the best defender in the playoffs. He was phenomenal, 0:09:49.760 --> 0:09:53.440 and Jokic just destroyed it and then did it again, 0:09:53.440 --> 0:09:57.280 and like, you've got to have one of those big bodies. 0:09:57.280 --> 0:09:59.120 I wonder if again, I think with the Suns, did 0:09:59.160 --> 0:10:02.080 they get Nurkic thinking back, thinking we've got to have 0:10:02.160 --> 0:10:06.079 somebody to put a body on him who's somewhat more 0:10:06.160 --> 0:10:08.480 if he can just stay healthy, his decision making and 0:10:08.800 --> 0:10:10.800 just iq r off the charts. That's the thing that 0:10:10.920 --> 0:10:13.480 just hey, all right, I can go through Anthony Davis 0:10:13.520 --> 0:10:15.600 and get mine. Oh they've adjusted the defense. I'm going 0:10:15.640 --> 0:10:18.000 to keep finding guys. I mean, I think the most 0:10:18.000 --> 0:10:20.000 telling play of the game was late. It's actually I 0:10:20.000 --> 0:10:21.920 think the play he got the triple double assist on 0:10:22.840 --> 0:10:25.640 you just set a pick for Jamal Murray. Jamal Murray 0:10:25.679 --> 0:10:27.959 was hot, so both defenders kind of went to him. 0:10:28.440 --> 0:10:30.600 He went to the little Draymond Green short roll, got 0:10:30.600 --> 0:10:32.880 the ball at the free throw line, saw the defense 0:10:32.920 --> 0:10:35.080 start to rotate, and just whipped it to MPG in 0:10:35.080 --> 0:10:37.760 the corner wide open three. It was like, I don't 0:10:37.760 --> 0:10:39.440 know how you defend the team when they're playing like 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:41.439 that and all those guys are cooking. 0:10:41.559 --> 0:10:43.920 Yeah, and it makes it feel like the role players 0:10:43.920 --> 0:10:47.280 don't even matter, right, like you, Yes, starting five can 0:10:47.320 --> 0:10:52.240 do what they did, and they absolutely gassed Ad. Nicola 0:10:52.320 --> 0:10:55.880 Jokic turned Ad into an absolute zero in the second half. 0:10:55.880 --> 0:10:59.000 He's getting crushed on first take, he's getting crushed on 0:10:59.040 --> 0:11:02.440 social media. I actually like fine with it. I don't 0:11:02.440 --> 0:11:05.440 think you can really take anything from AD's lack of 0:11:05.480 --> 0:11:09.280 production in the second half because he's tasked with guarding 0:11:09.280 --> 0:11:14.359 a guy who's decided he's going to score thirty, thirteen 0:11:14.880 --> 0:11:18.280 and eleven or whatever it was, right like, So, do 0:11:18.360 --> 0:11:20.320 you think that was unfair criticism? 0:11:20.480 --> 0:11:23.680 Not as much, just because Anthony David. Look what you 0:11:23.720 --> 0:11:26.320 saw from Lebron is what you get from Lebron right now, 0:11:26.360 --> 0:11:28.520 right You're gonna get thirty minutes to night out of him. 0:11:28.520 --> 0:11:30.640 It would have been thirty if they had garbage time 0:11:30.679 --> 0:11:33.600 the last minute and a half thirty minutes tonight and 0:11:33.640 --> 0:11:35.880 he was plus seven. He put up numbers. But the 0:11:36.000 --> 0:11:38.320 end of the day, if this Laker team is going 0:11:38.400 --> 0:11:41.600 to go where they want to go, Anthony Davis has 0:11:41.679 --> 0:11:45.679 to be elite. He has to be on both ends. 0:11:45.720 --> 0:11:48.880 He has to be this high level All NBA player. 0:11:48.880 --> 0:11:51.360 And one of the issues has long been good game, 0:11:51.400 --> 0:11:54.280 bad game, good half, bad half, which we saw last night. 0:11:54.640 --> 0:11:57.319 And I don't think it's all on him, because Trista, 0:11:57.480 --> 0:12:00.520 I hope you are passionate about and believe something in 0:12:00.559 --> 0:12:04.160 your life. As much as Danseel Russell believes in his shot, 0:12:05.040 --> 0:12:09.640 he's going to take it regardless. But and I don't 0:12:09.640 --> 0:12:12.400 think they got Anthony Davis the ball and he had 0:12:12.440 --> 0:12:14.320 all these ISOs and posts up in the first half, 0:12:14.360 --> 0:12:17.000 he just literally wasn't getting them. But he's also got 0:12:17.000 --> 0:12:19.280 to demand those. He's got to take charge. He's got it. 0:12:19.360 --> 0:12:21.360 Like you don't see him be like not getting the 0:12:21.400 --> 0:12:23.480 ball after a while, like get the guy of the ball. 0:12:23.760 --> 0:12:26.120 He's got to show up every night. It's the only 0:12:26.200 --> 0:12:27.679 it's the only way they can be where they want 0:12:27.679 --> 0:12:27.880 to be. 0:12:27.960 --> 0:12:30.000 I took him for MVP. He was my pick for 0:12:30.120 --> 0:12:34.280 MVP as a sleeper at forty to one, and that 0:12:34.280 --> 0:12:37.600 that just did not just did not line up with 0:12:37.640 --> 0:12:39.920 what I was expecting. I also thought he could have 0:12:39.960 --> 0:12:42.520 a legit to chance to if he didn't win MVP, 0:12:42.960 --> 0:12:44.720 to be one of the defensive Player of the year. 0:12:44.800 --> 0:12:45.800 Can yaw. 0:12:45.840 --> 0:12:48.760 He is, That's how he is when he's healthy. And 0:12:49.160 --> 0:12:54.120 it's just a disappointing first game against really a team 0:12:54.160 --> 0:12:56.360 that you know you have to go against to get 0:12:56.400 --> 0:13:00.000 through to the finals. I'm curious about a couple of dudes, though. 0:13:00.880 --> 0:13:05.720 Why sign someone like Christian Wood and Cam Reddish when 0:13:06.120 --> 0:13:09.080 those guys have clearly, throughout the course of their career 0:13:09.679 --> 0:13:15.880 been not locker room cancers, but certainly cultural negatives. 0:13:16.160 --> 0:13:18.959 Because you have Lebron James. I think it's literally it. 0:13:18.960 --> 0:13:22.079 It's just that's the Lebron James locker room. That's he's 0:13:22.160 --> 0:13:24.000 going to set the tone. He's not going to put 0:13:24.080 --> 0:13:26.880 up with guys who aren't focused. So I think there's 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:28.640 a sense of like, you can get away with that 0:13:28.679 --> 0:13:31.800 when Lebron's on your team in a way with There 0:13:31.920 --> 0:13:33.560 may be a couple other guys in the league, but 0:13:33.559 --> 0:13:35.960 there's not many who can set that tone. And the 0:13:36.000 --> 0:13:38.520 other part, especially in Christiano, well, actually both those cases. 0:13:38.640 --> 0:13:42.120 Christian who's better than a minimum contract player. Yeez, whatever 0:13:42.160 --> 0:13:44.600 I think of him, Like why I might talk myself 0:13:44.600 --> 0:13:47.440 out of wanting him on my team. He gets buckets. 0:13:47.440 --> 0:13:49.000 He is better than a minimum contract, and if I 0:13:49.040 --> 0:13:50.600 can get him for a year at the minimum, then 0:13:50.640 --> 0:13:52.400 I've got to take that because that's still a really 0:13:52.440 --> 0:13:56.680 good deal. And another guy that, hey, depending on the situation, 0:13:56.800 --> 0:13:58.680 you might be able to throw into a trade later 0:13:58.840 --> 0:14:01.120 as an enticing piece as some other team knows he's 0:14:01.120 --> 0:14:02.200 more valuable than that too. 0:14:02.520 --> 0:14:05.720 Yeah, dude, I was so high on this Lakers team 0:14:06.320 --> 0:14:08.280 and I don't even like the Lakers as a Portland 0:14:08.280 --> 0:14:10.560 Shoilboizer fan. I was like, man, this could be a 0:14:10.600 --> 0:14:13.240 team who is like top three in the West, and 0:14:13.280 --> 0:14:16.920 if you're not getting production out of your team without 0:14:17.000 --> 0:14:20.840 Lebron on the floor, this could honestly be a seventh seed. 0:14:20.840 --> 0:14:24.120 Again, I think the West is so bunched up that 0:14:24.360 --> 0:14:28.080 after look, Denver's Denver Phoenix, not just last night. I 0:14:28.120 --> 0:14:29.920 just Phoenix is gonna win a ton of regular season 0:14:29.920 --> 0:14:31.760 games because they have Kevin Durant and Devin Booker and 0:14:31.800 --> 0:14:34.800 Bradley Beal and they're just they're gonna outscore teams. I 0:14:34.800 --> 0:14:38.280 think they're one to two in whatever order after that. 0:14:39.000 --> 0:14:42.640 Three through frankly twelve are teams that think they should 0:14:42.640 --> 0:14:44.280 be in the playoffs and it's not going to be 0:14:44.280 --> 0:14:48.240 this huge difference. And that's what's gonna make the West wild. 0:14:48.320 --> 0:14:52.120 It's like, I don't have Utah in the playoffs, dude, 0:14:52.120 --> 0:14:55.760 they still got John Collins and and Laurie marking in 0:14:55.920 --> 0:14:58.720 and like, we're good last year and surprised people the Kings. 0:14:58.760 --> 0:15:00.920 Everybody's kind of sleeping on the Kings a little bit. 0:15:00.960 --> 0:15:04.640 I agree, they're gonna score. They're not gonna stop anybody. 0:15:04.640 --> 0:15:06.600 They're gonna score a ton of points and be tough 0:15:06.600 --> 0:15:10.480 to be Like, so I think three through out of 0:15:10.520 --> 0:15:13.520 the post. You know, missing the play in out West 0:15:13.760 --> 0:15:17.920 is everything's in play for those teams, and the Lakers 0:15:17.960 --> 0:15:19.480 can't afford to get caught in the middle of that 0:15:19.520 --> 0:15:21.760 and try to be breaking out mid season because it's 0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:25.040 gonna be it's gonna be tough. Minnesota's good, everybody, and 0:15:25.080 --> 0:15:29.160 even look, I think the bad teams Houston pretty good, 0:15:29.760 --> 0:15:32.160 pretty good. They've got Fred Benfleet and Dalen Brooks and 0:15:32.240 --> 0:15:35.920 Jared Jalen Green is gonna be good. And Jabari Junior 0:15:35.960 --> 0:15:39.280 looked awesome at Summer League. And the Spurs are gonna suck, 0:15:39.280 --> 0:15:42.320 except you know, Wemby and Devin Basel are gonna be 0:15:42.440 --> 0:15:44.760 entertaining and they're gonna win a few games because like 0:15:45.000 --> 0:15:46.720 there's just not gonna be off nights in the West 0:15:46.800 --> 0:15:50.160 except maybe against Lasers. 0:15:50.240 --> 0:15:55.560 Yeah, I know, it's so bad, We're I don't even 0:15:55.600 --> 0:15:59.240 really know what that team is doing. I like the 0:15:59.320 --> 0:16:03.400 Dame Tradel lot. Yeah, but I'm very curious why holding 0:16:03.440 --> 0:16:06.360 on to Malcolm Brogden and Rob Williams are a thing. 0:16:06.400 --> 0:16:07.960 The only thing that I can think of is that 0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:11.720 they they're waiting for a team that needs them at 0:16:11.760 --> 0:16:14.080 the deadline, and they think that they can extract more 0:16:14.160 --> 0:16:17.880 value from them in January than they can in September. 0:16:18.120 --> 0:16:20.360 Is that kind of what you think is happening. 0:16:20.040 --> 0:16:23.600 To I might even put Jeremy Grant in that list. Yes, yeah, 0:16:24.120 --> 0:16:26.880 I think all those guys, look you're rebuilding right now 0:16:26.960 --> 0:16:29.560 are on Scoot and Anthony Simons, who are, by the way, 0:16:30.040 --> 0:16:32.520 going to be entertaining, like it's gonna be a good show. 0:16:33.160 --> 0:16:37.520 But I think everybody not those two guys is available. 0:16:37.560 --> 0:16:40.160 Maybe I'm curious. I'm really curious to see how DeAndre 0:16:40.200 --> 0:16:42.480 Ayton fits with them and in a system where he 0:16:42.560 --> 0:16:45.840 gets some of the freedom and touches he wants. Probably 0:16:46.040 --> 0:16:48.640 then he he wasn't going to get his option number 0:16:48.640 --> 0:16:51.440 four in Phoenix even last year. I mean, it's just 0:16:51.480 --> 0:16:54.360 better options than him down there. But you know, hey, 0:16:54.400 --> 0:16:57.200 he'll get he'll get more looks up there. So they're 0:16:57.240 --> 0:16:59.080 going to be a fun, interesting team and they're not 0:16:59.160 --> 0:17:01.840 going to be a pushover. There's you know, I don't 0:17:01.840 --> 0:17:03.080 think they're the worst team in the league. I was 0:17:03.120 --> 0:17:04.320 gonna say there is the Wizards. 0:17:04.880 --> 0:17:07.880 Wizards are gonna be a tough watch too. I love Ty, 0:17:07.960 --> 0:17:10.879 I love tyas Jones, So I'm I'm very curious how 0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:13.560 they're gonna be building that roster. Let's talk about this 0:17:13.640 --> 0:17:16.320 sixer team though, because they are right on the brink, dude, 0:17:16.359 --> 0:17:21.760 they are on the brink of a full scale roster meltdown. 0:17:22.359 --> 0:17:26.760 The only player that I think is safe is Tyrese MAXI. 0:17:27.480 --> 0:17:31.320 I think everyone else could potentially either both on their 0:17:31.359 --> 0:17:34.760 own or get kicked out the door. Now, we got 0:17:34.840 --> 0:17:38.840 James Harden coming back to Philly past opening night and 0:17:38.880 --> 0:17:41.080 they're like, no, we don't want you traveling with the team. 0:17:41.560 --> 0:17:43.439 What does that mean? I don't want you traveling with 0:17:43.440 --> 0:17:45.240 the team. Does that mean that a deal is imminent 0:17:45.680 --> 0:17:49.520 or does that mean that we don't want you around 0:17:49.640 --> 0:17:53.840 our players, muddying the water and poisoning the well. 0:17:54.800 --> 0:17:57.840 More that more more the distraction, right Like, and just 0:17:58.760 --> 0:18:01.959 if he's there, then he making things messy and harder, 0:18:01.960 --> 0:18:04.440 and just being just him on the trip and being 0:18:04.480 --> 0:18:07.439 on the bench is going to lead to questions, And 0:18:07.520 --> 0:18:10.400 so I think they think it's just better they go 0:18:10.480 --> 0:18:12.239 from they play in for people who don't know, they 0:18:12.280 --> 0:18:15.800 play in Milwaukee opening night, and then uh Toronto two 0:18:15.880 --> 0:18:18.760 nights later before going back home. I think that he 0:18:18.800 --> 0:18:21.320 won't play in either of those games, and that doesn't 0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:23.399 mean I'll just say I doesn't mean to trade as imminent. 0:18:23.800 --> 0:18:27.000 The people I've talked to and people out with closer 0:18:27.000 --> 0:18:29.800 to the Clippers have been like, the offers the offer. 0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:35.679 Maybe that changes if they get ten games into the 0:18:35.720 --> 0:18:38.840 season and think, oh crap, like we got to do 0:18:39.119 --> 0:18:42.400 Maybe then Terrence Man or a second pick or whatever 0:18:42.440 --> 0:18:45.439 goes into the deal. But right now they've got The 0:18:45.440 --> 0:18:47.320 Clippers have a lot more to think about too, just 0:18:47.359 --> 0:18:51.159 because if you trade for James Harden, who's going to 0:18:51.160 --> 0:18:53.080 be a free agency kind of got to lock him up, 0:18:53.160 --> 0:18:56.720 and then you could extend Kawhi Leonard and Paul George 0:18:56.720 --> 0:18:58.040 a couple of years and hey, do you want more? 0:18:58.560 --> 0:19:00.240 Do you want three more years of those guys? Is 0:19:00.240 --> 0:19:00.560 your core? 0:19:01.040 --> 0:19:01.399 No? 0:19:02.160 --> 0:19:05.080 So yeah, I just don't think they're that eager. It's 0:19:05.160 --> 0:19:07.240 they're they're walking a weird line because they move into 0:19:07.280 --> 0:19:08.800 a new building next year, and they're not going to 0:19:08.880 --> 0:19:11.760 want to move a rebuilding team into a new building. 0:19:11.840 --> 0:19:14.520 But I don't like the path they're on is not sustainable. 0:19:14.520 --> 0:19:17.240 So I'm not sure what happens, but they're they're unlikely 0:19:17.280 --> 0:19:18.800 in the short term to up their offers so the 0:19:19.600 --> 0:19:20.400 bottom line, it's. 0:19:20.320 --> 0:19:24.359 Really fucking them up. They fucked up letting Shae Yogis 0:19:24.400 --> 0:19:27.639 Alexander go, And I don't think that's got to be 0:19:27.680 --> 0:19:33.200