WEBVTT - Suns Surviving a Surgery & The Zion Question 0:00:00.840 --> 0:00:05.000 Come on, come. 0:00:16.160 --> 0:00:23.599 On this episode of the Heat Check. We've got a big, humongous, 0:00:24.280 --> 0:00:34.560 monumentous updates, enormous, gargantuan update on Zion Williamson, and let 0:00:34.600 --> 0:00:39.519 me tell you, it is going to get spicy. Did 0:00:39.560 --> 0:00:45.000 someone say spicy? I love spicy chicken sandwiches myself, extra pickles, 0:00:45.080 --> 0:00:48.440 maybe some mayonnaise anyway down in the Bayou. Did someone say, 0:00:48.479 --> 0:00:52.199 by you, I love gumbo? My god, I love some gumbo. 0:00:52.560 --> 0:00:55.600 No one seems to be going on and knowing what 0:00:55.640 --> 0:00:58.520 the hell is going on with Zion's injury or his 0:00:58.560 --> 0:01:03.760 future plans, and things are getting tense, tense. We check 0:01:03.760 --> 0:01:06.240 in on the Phoenix Suns, who got some bad news 0:01:06.280 --> 0:01:10.040 this past week and finally, very sad end of an 0:01:10.080 --> 0:01:13.440 era at Madison Square Garden. I hate talking about them, 0:01:13.440 --> 0:01:15.839 but more news just keeps coming out, Brock, So drop 0:01:15.920 --> 0:01:31.160 that beat, right, it's update, they update. Just a little 0:01:31.200 --> 0:01:34.560 news around the league as we wrap things up. No 0:01:34.680 --> 0:01:40.319 big stories, Well, one big story. Let's talk about the 0:01:40.400 --> 0:01:46.479 elephant in the room or the elephant hiding in Beaverton, 0:01:46.600 --> 0:01:51.760 Oregon at the Nike campus away from his entirety. I'm 0:01:51.760 --> 0:01:56.400 pushing pee, pushing pee, folks, I'm sorry, I kid, I kids. 0:01:56.440 --> 0:01:59.360 Sometimes the jokes just right themselves, you know what I mean. 0:02:00.280 --> 0:02:04.280 Just I'm pushing pie, he says, I'm pushing pie. Somebody's 0:02:04.320 --> 0:02:07.919 pushing pie on tie stop. Since is how bad things 0:02:07.960 --> 0:02:14.920 have gotten in New Orleans. Zion Williamson, nowhere to be found, 0:02:15.480 --> 0:02:21.160 has dominated post All Star break, which is ironic because 0:02:21.240 --> 0:02:24.440 last year he was dominating in the post during the 0:02:24.480 --> 0:02:28.520 All Star Game. How far we've come? Things have gone 0:02:28.800 --> 0:02:32.520 off the rails. What an absolute force he was last 0:02:32.600 --> 0:02:39.320 year and now he is just crickets nowhere. No one 0:02:39.400 --> 0:02:43.000 sees him, no one knows what's going on. Definitely not 0:02:43.080 --> 0:02:48.960 on the floor. But not good for the Pelicans, not 0:02:49.120 --> 0:02:51.960 good for the NBA, and damn sure not good for 0:02:52.120 --> 0:02:56.280 Zion because he is dominating the news in the worst 0:02:56.320 --> 0:02:59.840 possible way. So let's give a quick timeline, quickly update 0:02:59.840 --> 0:03:04.000 on what happened? Shall we? Randomly? After the last game 0:03:04.160 --> 0:03:07.480 before the All Star breaks. CJ McCollum, former Portland Trailblazer 0:03:08.200 --> 0:03:11.600 New New Orleans Pelicans, was answering questions about his new 0:03:11.600 --> 0:03:15.560 team when someone asked him, Hey, so, like, however, your 0:03:15.560 --> 0:03:21.520 conversation's been with Zion? And uh He's like, oh, uh, 0:03:21.760 --> 0:03:25.760 I haven't talked to Zion yet. Nope, not a peep 0:03:26.200 --> 0:03:29.360 nothing from Zion. And he goes, They go, do you know, 0:03:29.520 --> 0:03:33.600 uh when he's gonna come back? And CJ goes, Nope, 0:03:34.520 --> 0:03:36.760 I know about as much as you do. Right now, 0:03:37.360 --> 0:03:40.240 we have not connected. But I am going to get 0:03:40.360 --> 0:03:45.240 to the bottom of it. Pause pause, hold on, let 0:03:45.240 --> 0:03:51.040 me take a drink and get my popcorn out. Because, 0:03:51.120 --> 0:03:57.400 first of all, CJ. McCollum is not your normal, everyday teammate. 0:03:57.720 --> 0:04:02.480 Besides the fact that he gets paid thirty months million dollars. CJ. McCollum. 0:04:02.680 --> 0:04:06.120 For folks who don't remember this, because these aren't things 0:04:06.120 --> 0:04:08.000 that just come up to the top of the forefront 0:04:08.040 --> 0:04:12.560 of your Sarahbellam. He is the head of the NBA 0:04:12.760 --> 0:04:14.240 Players Association. 0:04:16.240 --> 0:04:17.440 CJ. McCollum is the. 0:04:17.480 --> 0:04:20.839 New Chris Paul excuse me, And you haven't spoken to 0:04:20.880 --> 0:04:24.360 the NBPA president yet. And your new teammate who they 0:04:24.480 --> 0:04:26.480 forced the trade, are not forced to trade, but they 0:04:26.600 --> 0:04:29.120 made a trade in a way that people are a 0:04:29.120 --> 0:04:31.760 little suss on. Just to pair you with someone who's 0:04:31.760 --> 0:04:36.479 a dominant scorer. You haven't spoken out to him. No, Literally, 0:04:36.560 --> 0:04:41.680 the most important teammates Ion might ever have indication how 0:04:41.839 --> 0:04:46.560 fractured Boom since he's fractured his metatarsal, how fractured his 0:04:46.680 --> 0:04:49.440 relationship is with the Pels that he wouldn't even reach 0:04:49.480 --> 0:04:54.400 out and say, Yo, what's up, Welcome to New Orleans. 0:04:54.760 --> 0:04:58.560 Let me show you my favorite creole spots, Smoothie King Arena, 0:04:58.640 --> 0:05:01.880 let me show you are all the smoothies. And that's 0:05:01.920 --> 0:05:05.559 just the beginning. Because JJ Reddick, who has an active 0:05:05.600 --> 0:05:09.240 grind with the Pelicans, went on ESPN and then was like, 0:05:09.880 --> 0:05:12.280 I'm gonna throw some gasoline on this. This is what 0:05:12.320 --> 0:05:12.719 he said. 0:05:13.800 --> 0:05:16.040 I want to get across is how abnormal it is 0:05:16.600 --> 0:05:20.920 for a player to not text or reach out to 0:05:20.960 --> 0:05:24.200 an incoming player, And not just because it was CJ. McCollum, 0:05:24.520 --> 0:05:27.960 who is a great player. You do that for any teammate. 0:05:28.160 --> 0:05:30.440 You do that when you sign a two way player, 0:05:30.520 --> 0:05:32.840 you just do that. I said this earlier on First Take, 0:05:32.839 --> 0:05:34.719 and this is this is the point I really want 0:05:34.720 --> 0:05:38.240 to hammer home here. When you're a professional athlete that 0:05:38.360 --> 0:05:41.560 is playing a team sport, you have to be fully invested. 0:05:41.880 --> 0:05:44.440 You have to be fully invested in your body, your work, 0:05:45.080 --> 0:05:47.040 and most importantly your teammates. 0:05:47.400 --> 0:05:49.280 That's part of the job description. 0:05:49.800 --> 0:05:52.400 When I saw this over the weekend, to me, this 0:05:52.560 --> 0:05:55.560 was like the most cringey thing all weekend. 0:05:55.640 --> 0:05:57.400 I thought the dunk contest was going to be it. 0:05:57.880 --> 0:06:03.320 This was it. When you say this, which part of it? 0:06:03.440 --> 0:06:09.839 So much to unpacked? There? When you've got JJ Reddick, 0:06:09.920 --> 0:06:13.760 who shares an agent with Zion Williamson, Zion's been on 0:06:13.800 --> 0:06:17.360 his podcast at least once sharing personal details of his 0:06:17.480 --> 0:06:21.760 vulnerability in his life. They're friends, they're friendly. This is 0:06:21.800 --> 0:06:24.640 not someone who has an extra grind with Zion. And 0:06:24.680 --> 0:06:26.920 when JJ Reddick, one of the nicest dudes in the 0:06:27.000 --> 0:06:33.360 league who was Zion's teammate, says, I can personally describe 0:06:33.720 --> 0:06:40.120 Zion as a detached teammate. You have to say alert, alert, 0:06:40.400 --> 0:06:43.719 red alert. This is not a test sealing the alarms, 0:06:43.960 --> 0:06:51.159 break the glass. Something is wrong. He then says, Zion's 0:06:51.200 --> 0:06:55.520 not even on the season ticket pamphlet email What excuse me? 0:06:55.839 --> 0:06:58.159 All right? Then he goes on later on first take 0:06:58.200 --> 0:06:59.159 and says this. 0:07:00.240 --> 0:07:02.720 When I was watching Sunday Night and they announced the 0:07:02.760 --> 0:07:06.119 starters Joe El Embiid fifth straight All Star Game, start 0:07:06.440 --> 0:07:09.520 think about the rear view. Now, how long ago it 0:07:09.560 --> 0:07:11.760 seems that there was all these injury concerns and now 0:07:11.760 --> 0:07:16.000 he's just been a complete dominant force for five seasons. 0:07:16.360 --> 0:07:18.640 Zion can get to that, But like I said, you 0:07:18.760 --> 0:07:20.560 have to be fully invested in. 0:07:20.560 --> 0:07:22.679 All those areas and body starts. 0:07:22.720 --> 0:07:25.200 That's where's Lebron famously spends a million dollars a year 0:07:25.200 --> 0:07:25.640 on his body. 0:07:25.720 --> 0:07:27.920 Kobe is flying all over the world to prolong his career. 0:07:27.960 --> 0:07:30.400 Right you think Zion quickly has played his last game 0:07:30.400 --> 0:07:31.760 in New Orleans. No, I don't. 0:07:31.880 --> 0:07:34.080 I don't, and I'm even more optimistic. 0:07:35.440 --> 0:07:39.600 There's a responsibility that you have as an athlete when 0:07:39.600 --> 0:07:43.840 you play a sport to be fully invested, fully invested 0:07:43.880 --> 0:07:47.720 in your body. You'd notice he said that first, the 0:07:47.760 --> 0:07:50.760 body part. He did say that the body part first. 0:07:51.040 --> 0:07:55.000 He said that for a reason fully invested in your body, 0:07:55.280 --> 0:07:59.960 fully invested in your work, and fully invested in your teammate. 0:08:01.040 --> 0:08:05.920 That is your responsibility. And we have not seen that 0:08:06.720 --> 0:08:13.080 from Zion. You can damn well know that that is 0:08:13.120 --> 0:08:18.560 a shot at Zion's lack of conditioning, his locker room demeanor, 0:08:18.920 --> 0:08:23.160 and he admitted he had to call out Zion in 0:08:23.200 --> 0:08:29.840 front of the entire team his rookie year. Yes, he's 0:08:29.840 --> 0:08:32.560 been amazing when he's been on the court, one hundred percent, 0:08:32.840 --> 0:08:35.800 He's amazing to watch. There's no one that can do 0:08:35.840 --> 0:08:38.760 what he does on a basketball court. But as a teammate, 0:08:39.080 --> 0:08:42.599 there's a pattern of behavior, as a fully invested individual 0:08:42.640 --> 0:08:48.320 in New Orleans, there's a pattern of behavior. This is worrisome. 0:08:48.800 --> 0:08:54.120 I'm worried. I'm worried. Are you worried? I've been worried, folks. 0:08:54.240 --> 0:08:58.760 I've been worried since August. I've been worried since whenever 0:08:58.800 --> 0:09:03.080 they're a little media availability, when they slid in that 0:09:03.280 --> 0:09:06.000 Zion had a random surgery that they didn't know about, 0:09:06.520 --> 0:09:11.920 like ever since then, I'm like yours preaking up, brouh Scooby, 0:09:12.240 --> 0:09:13.480 Does anybody else see this? 0:09:13.920 --> 0:09:14.079 No? 0:09:14.600 --> 0:09:17.440 And here we are. He hasn't played a goddamn game yet. 0:09:19.000 --> 0:09:23.760 And then that's when shit literally hit the fan. Everybody 0:09:23.800 --> 0:09:29.160 began to weigh in boom on the Zion drama, many 0:09:29.200 --> 0:09:39.000 of them seemingly shocked about the incredible, incredible disconnect between 0:09:39.160 --> 0:09:44.880 Zion and the Pels front office and his teammates. Of course, 0:09:45.200 --> 0:09:49.319 I could point out I've been talking about this since 0:09:49.360 --> 0:09:53.120 the beginning of the season, but that would be unseemly. 0:09:54.000 --> 0:09:57.040 That would be that would be rude. I could even 0:09:57.360 --> 0:10:00.600 say that I predicted he wouldn't play a single game season, 0:10:02.080 --> 0:10:05.000 but that would be uncouth. That would be very uncouth. 0:10:05.320 --> 0:10:10.199 It would also be what's that word, the truth? It 0:10:10.240 --> 0:10:13.040 would also be the truth. But you know, we're not 0:10:13.080 --> 0:10:15.200 here to talk about all the things that I predicted 0:10:15.200 --> 0:10:17.760 that nobody agreed with me on, and now here we 0:10:17.800 --> 0:10:21.080 are in the brink of disaster. But it's okay. It's fine. 0:10:21.160 --> 0:10:24.680 Like it's just me yelling at clouds all by myself 0:10:24.760 --> 0:10:27.559 until the world falls down around me. It's okay. No worries. 0:10:27.679 --> 0:10:33.000 Peace after peace now breaking on the piciun Tribune paywall 0:10:33.120 --> 0:10:36.240 that I took a lot of time getting passed without 0:10:36.280 --> 0:10:39.480 paying the NOLA took a lot of time getting past 0:10:39.520 --> 0:10:43.440 that article's paywall as well. Today for you listeners, for you, 0:10:44.040 --> 0:10:46.400 I'm not paying a dollar for these guys. I just 0:10:46.400 --> 0:10:52.400 will not headlines like report Zion Williamson's detachment from Pelicans 0:10:52.679 --> 0:10:58.000 stems from lack of trust quote unquote lack of trust. 0:10:58.280 --> 0:11:01.680 We can't even trust Zion on on the off season 0:11:01.920 --> 0:11:05.160 to be by himself alone with a plate of doughnuts, 0:11:05.320 --> 0:11:08.200 Like the lack of trust goes both ways. Here, it 0:11:08.240 --> 0:11:12.320 goes both ways. Listen, like, I promise you that's be 0:11:12.640 --> 0:11:17.960 I didn't say that, but that is what sources tell me. 0:11:18.600 --> 0:11:22.560 Things are saying being said that right now trust we 0:11:22.640 --> 0:11:26.280 can't trust. The trust is wait. Listen, he had a 0:11:26.360 --> 0:11:31.199 surgery without telling the team. The trust issues go both ways. 0:11:31.200 --> 0:11:35.280 Here they go both ways. Even Pelicans podcast hosts can't 0:11:35.320 --> 0:11:38.880 even confidently say that they think Zion will be in 0:11:38.920 --> 0:11:43.080 a Pelicans jersey next year. He's not on an expiring 0:11:43.120 --> 0:11:46.360 deal right now. And you can't tell me whether by 0:11:47.440 --> 0:11:51.280 you know, October of twenty twenty two, whether Zion's gonna 0:11:51.320 --> 0:11:54.880 be rocking Apelicans Jersey or naw, you think maybe or 0:11:54.960 --> 0:11:58.679 not that's how bad it is, or no Lean's or 0:11:58.800 --> 0:12:04.559 no Lens. And everybody is calling him out, being like, no, hey, Zion, 0:12:04.600 --> 0:12:07.000 we need you to pledge your allegiance to the New 0:12:07.160 --> 0:12:13.400 Orleans Flag. We need that. Their speculation is Zion looking 0:12:13.440 --> 0:12:17.840 for real estate in New York City. Maybe he already 0:12:17.960 --> 0:12:21.360 has an apartment on the Upper West Side. So what's 0:12:21.440 --> 0:12:27.000 actually happening? That's the question one. Zion's injury has made 0:12:27.080 --> 0:12:32.679 his future very, very stressful for as a subject matter 0:12:32.760 --> 0:12:36.520 for the Pelicans organization, but also stressful in general. If 0:12:36.640 --> 0:12:38.640 Zion's out for the year, which it certainly seems like 0:12:38.679 --> 0:12:42.320 he will be, he will have played Just here we 0:12:42.360 --> 0:12:44.920 go stick with me here because it's gonna get kind 0:12:44.920 --> 0:12:48.320 of ugly when we do this math Zion will have 0:12:48.440 --> 0:12:53.280 played eighty five games total in his first three seasons. 0:12:54.440 --> 0:12:57.280 Do you know who else was drafted number one overall 0:12:57.320 --> 0:12:59.600 and played eighty two games in his first three years? 0:13:01.240 --> 0:13:04.880 Greg Odin? Yep, it is guess who else went number 0:13:04.920 --> 0:13:08.400 one overall and played one hundred and nineteen games in 0:13:08.480 --> 0:13:13.520 his first three years? Sam Bowie? Yeah, yeah, him. So 0:13:13.640 --> 0:13:17.320 it's not outrageous to make those kind of comparisons, you know, 0:13:17.360 --> 0:13:21.040 those bust comparisons that people like me have made possibly 0:13:21.320 --> 0:13:23.640 in the past and got ripped up by Richard Jefferson. 0:13:23.679 --> 0:13:27.280 It's no problem. But like those comparisons are in fact 0:13:27.360 --> 0:13:32.719 valid because both Blowe and Booie and Odin, had they 0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:36.360 remained healthy, almost certainly would have been All star guys. 0:13:36.840 --> 0:13:40.520 There was nobody who's debating or questioning their skill level, 0:13:40.640 --> 0:13:47.040 athleticism or their potential. But the reason that they went down, 0:13:47.080 --> 0:13:49.560 the reason that they were bused was mostly because of genetics, 0:13:49.840 --> 0:13:55.360 micro fractures for odin strength and power, and torque on 0:13:55.400 --> 0:13:58.880 his body and his knees because of his size really 0:13:59.640 --> 0:14:02.719 and issues in the case of Sambuie that went for 0:14:03.160 --> 0:14:06.840 a long long time timespan. The difference with Zion, though, 0:14:07.000 --> 0:14:10.600 is that Zion is in control. A lot of these 0:14:10.720 --> 0:14:16.560 issues are self inflicted, especially those that revolve around his weight. 0:14:17.800 --> 0:14:22.320 He's showing up way too heavy and that is on him. 0:14:22.560 --> 0:14:25.560 As Christian Clark at the NOLA behind that paywall I 0:14:25.600 --> 0:14:29.960 told you about noted Williamson frequently showed up late to 0:14:30.080 --> 0:14:35.120 rehab work during his rookie season pause red flag. His 0:14:35.400 --> 0:14:38.960 unique body type makes it imperative for him to diet 0:14:39.040 --> 0:14:45.320 and train rigorously, which he has failed to do since 0:14:45.360 --> 0:14:48.720 being drafted by the organization. He showed up to training 0:14:48.760 --> 0:14:53.720 camp in September well above three hundred pounds sources to 0:14:53.800 --> 0:14:58.600 say ideally. One team source says Williamson should or would 0:14:58.640 --> 0:15:01.600 play games at two a n than sixty five pounds. 0:15:02.600 --> 0:15:07.880 That's that's not good. Some reports stay that Williamson weighed 0:15:07.880 --> 0:15:10.960 as much as three hundred and thirty pounds during his 0:15:11.040 --> 0:15:14.840 rehab mascol Mascol mascool. So two sixty five carry the 0:15:14.880 --> 0:15:18.800 one three hundred and thirty. That's fifty five pounds overweight here. 0:15:20.400 --> 0:15:22.680 And we're not talking just muscle, right. I don't think 0:15:22.720 --> 0:15:26.680 it's just muscle, right, we know that. And I'm not 0:15:26.840 --> 0:15:29.800 fat shaming. We do not, we do not. We do 0:15:30.000 --> 0:15:33.400 not fat shame or muscle shame on the heat check, 0:15:33.960 --> 0:15:37.920 I will not. But Zion is a big guy, huge, 0:15:38.680 --> 0:15:43.280 powerful human being when he's completely healthy. And as Skip 0:15:43.320 --> 0:15:47.240 Bayliss was told, this is a guy who loves nothing 0:15:47.440 --> 0:15:50.800 more Zions. I mean, this is obvious logic, but I'm 0:15:50.840 --> 0:15:52.920 just gonna give you the quote anyway. Zion is a 0:15:52.920 --> 0:15:58.200 guy who loves nothing more than quote eating whole pizzas 0:15:59.800 --> 0:16:04.560 washed down with high sugar soft drinks. This is a 0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:08.760 guy who would be is like if Embiid was unhinged, right, 0:16:09.080 --> 0:16:14.280 if unb Embiid decided, you know what, goodbye cruel world. 0:16:14.360 --> 0:16:18.720 It's just me and my Shirley Temples. You know that's 0:16:19.040 --> 0:16:22.880 Zion right now. And to make matters worse, one of 0:16:22.920 --> 0:16:24.960 the reasons cited for the rift between the Pel's front 0:16:25.000 --> 0:16:28.800 office and the Zion camp is really how cautious the 0:16:28.800 --> 0:16:31.920 Pelican's front office and training staff has been with his 0:16:31.960 --> 0:16:36.120 rehab from the bubble to last year to the most 0:16:36.160 --> 0:16:40.000 recent foot issues. Apparently a lot of trust has broken 0:16:40.080 --> 0:16:43.960 down between them because of that thing. Can you fucking 0:16:44.080 --> 0:16:49.600 blame them? Excuse me? You're always heavy, overweight, You're always 0:16:49.640 --> 0:16:53.160 getting hurt and then you never slim down and get 0:16:53.160 --> 0:16:57.080 healthy again. So why wouldn't we be cautiously pessimistic? I 0:16:57.120 --> 0:17:02.400 don't know, Like honestly, it's like, listen, this is a 0:17:02.600 --> 0:17:09.040 problem here. Zion's distrust of David Griffin is also apparently 0:17:09.119 --> 0:17:12.520 playing a role, with Nola reporting that Williamson in his 0:17:12.680 --> 0:17:16.840 camp don't trust Griffin to be truthful. From throwing Alvin 0:17:17.000 --> 0:17:19.400 I mean he's not He's not, but that's I mean, 0:17:19.440 --> 0:17:23.120 neither are you. From throwing Alvin Gentry under the bus, 0:17:23.160 --> 0:17:25.800 to hiring stan Van Gundy, a coach so unpopular in 0:17:25.800 --> 0:17:29.360 New Orleans, Josh Hart said that playing for him destroyed 0:17:29.840 --> 0:17:35.320 his love for basketball. Yes to screwing over JJ Reddick 0:17:35.359 --> 0:17:36.880 and saying he was going to send him to either 0:17:36.960 --> 0:17:39.600 Brooklyn or New York or Philly so that he could 0:17:39.640 --> 0:17:41.440 be closer to his family, and then he sent him 0:17:41.440 --> 0:17:45.320 to Dallas who shares a night agent with Zion, as 0:17:45.320 --> 0:17:49.040 I earlier mentioned, and there are all of those things, 0:17:49.240 --> 0:17:52.119 a lot of reasons not to trust Griffin and the 0:17:52.160 --> 0:17:54.920 Pels if you're Zion. Plus the fact that routine ly 0:17:55.000 --> 0:17:58.000 this front office, this ownership group doesn't like to pay 0:17:58.240 --> 0:18:01.399 into Wow. I mean, they've never paid the luxury tax, 0:18:01.600 --> 0:18:03.720 so we don't really know what their level of commitment 0:18:04.359 --> 0:18:08.320 is to winning. Just when the Zion news was reaching 0:18:08.359 --> 0:18:16.120 a boiling point, Zion speaks Zion finally speaks out. Yes, folks, 0:18:16.400 --> 0:18:19.439 but it was on an Instagram group chat with random 0:18:19.480 --> 0:18:22.480 strangers that then ended up getting posted on the internet 0:18:22.640 --> 0:18:27.880 to protect and defend Zion. That's completely irrelevant. Just keep 0:18:27.920 --> 0:18:31.080 that in mind. Though he said this quote, I don't 0:18:31.080 --> 0:18:34.080 know why everyone thinks that I'm leaving. Everyone that knows 0:18:34.119 --> 0:18:36.360 me knows I love the city of New Orleans. I'll 0:18:36.400 --> 0:18:44.080 be back soon in due time. Blackfast Devil Emoji mentioned it. 0:18:44.280 --> 0:18:47.240 Noticed that he did not mention the actual New Orleans Pelicans. 0:18:47.600 --> 0:18:51.320 He did not whatsoever, which is probably a shot at 0:18:51.400 --> 0:18:54.280 the team for sending out I don't know those season 0:18:54.359 --> 0:18:59.240 ticket renewal emails featuring Brandon ingram Yonis Valanciuna is CJ 0:18:59.359 --> 0:19:03.879 McCollum and chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp, No Zion, no Zion, 0:19:04.000 --> 0:19:07.840 not even a mention of Zion. Imagine the Portland Trailblazers 0:19:08.440 --> 0:19:14.320 putting out season ticket emails. Hey, twenty three season tickets 0:19:14.400 --> 0:19:20.560 are here. It's time down in the Row City. It's 0:19:20.960 --> 0:19:30.240 Yusef Nurkic and Anthronice Simon's nasre little and no one 0:19:30.920 --> 0:19:34.240 And there's like no mention of Dame. That would be 0:19:34.640 --> 0:19:40.480 absolutely bonkers. They took this man number one overall? Uh yeah, 0:19:40.920 --> 0:19:45.800 do we mention Nurkic and Rik? Yeah? Also Cody Zeller here, 0:19:46.080 --> 0:19:49.680 We've got Cody Zeller. Anybody wants season tickets? So how 0:19:49.720 --> 0:19:51.679 does it work out? That's the question, Like what do 0:19:51.720 --> 0:19:56.280 we make of all of this? When Pelicans insiders can't 0:19:56.280 --> 0:19:58.720 decipher whether Zion is going to be there in a 0:19:58.800 --> 0:20:01.560 Pella's uniform next year. We've got four big questions on 0:20:01.560 --> 0:20:05.119 our hands. One, what's the status of Zion's health? We 0:20:05.200 --> 0:20:07.280 don't know. We gotta figure that out. That needs to 0:20:07.280 --> 0:20:09.720 be seen, that needs to be deciphered, that needs to 0:20:09.760 --> 0:20:15.439 happen now. Is the relationship between the Pelicans and Zion fixable? 0:20:15.960 --> 0:20:20.240 Is it actually fractured. All things we need to find out. 0:20:20.960 --> 0:20:24.840 The most important question that we don't even know yet 0:20:25.280 --> 0:20:29.800 is do the Pelicans actually want to re sign on 0:20:29.840 --> 0:20:33.520 an extension? A guy who's three hundred and twenty pounds, 0:20:33.680 --> 0:20:36.960 who won't communicate with the front office, who will not 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:39.960 get in shape, who will not take his rehab seriously, 0:20:40.320 --> 0:20:43.679 who won't play defense, is standoff ise to new teammates 0:20:44.280 --> 0:20:48.240 and has been this way since his rookie season. I 0:20:48.280 --> 0:20:50.600 don't know if that's a risk I'm willing to take. 0:20:50.680 --> 0:20:54.320 If I'm a very cheap ownership group who's never overspent 0:20:54.400 --> 0:20:57.280 in the history of the history, like you're talking about 0:20:57.280 --> 0:21:00.720 a group that treated Chris Paul fowl, and Chris Paul 0:21:00.800 --> 0:21:04.240 was a consummate pro I get this, Zion Ding, I 0:21:04.320 --> 0:21:09.880 don't know. I don't know. And then four, if New 0:21:09.960 --> 0:21:13.960 Orleans won't do it, or if Zion doesn't want to 0:21:14.000 --> 0:21:16.679 be there, because that's also a big question mark. Does 0:21:16.760 --> 0:21:20.160 Zion actually want to be in New Orleans? If it's 0:21:20.200 --> 0:21:23.000 not New Orleans, who's going to roll the dice for Zion? 0:21:25.359 --> 0:21:28.600 I've got a final word to anyone living in New 0:21:28.680 --> 0:21:32.320 York City who might be thinking about pushing play on 0:21:32.359 --> 0:21:35.919 that world wide West. From the top of your Dracoff tower, 0:21:36.880 --> 0:21:39.040 word to the wise, to worldwide West. 0:21:40.119 --> 0:21:50.520 Proceed sir, to spoil you come against Sun. 0:21:51.600 --> 0:21:56.320 We turn Suns a big news, tough news, terrible news. 0:21:56.880 --> 0:21:59.960 Chris Paul is going to be out for the remainder 0:22:00.119 --> 0:22:04.760 of the season with a right thumb evulsion fracture on 0:22:04.800 --> 0:22:10.679 his shooting hand. That that is what we call crushing, tough, 0:22:11.160 --> 0:22:15.879 awful stuff. But do not panic. We have good news. 0:22:16.240 --> 0:22:18.800 The Suns have a six and a half game cushion 0:22:19.160 --> 0:22:22.800 over Golden State and an eight game lead over Memphis 0:22:22.880 --> 0:22:27.359 with twenty four games left, so probably not enough space 0:22:27.359 --> 0:22:30.040 for anybody to catch up. Folks. This is it. They 0:22:30.080 --> 0:22:33.040 have locked up the one seed based around how dominant 0:22:33.040 --> 0:22:35.920 they've been all year. They're backups and really just time. 0:22:36.600 --> 0:22:38.520 Even if let's just go into it like if you 0:22:38.560 --> 0:22:41.040 want to go doomsday situation. So say Phoenix goes five 0:22:41.119 --> 0:22:44.000 hundred in the next twenty four games in CP three's absence, 0:22:44.000 --> 0:22:45.600 which they won't. We know that they will not go 0:22:45.720 --> 0:22:48.960 five hundred in these last twenty four games, but say 0:22:49.000 --> 0:22:53.720 that they do. Golden State has to finish the rest 0:22:53.760 --> 0:22:58.560 of the year with five losses or less without Draymond Green. 0:22:58.680 --> 0:23:02.520 Just to be clear, us to tie, just to tie. 0:23:02.640 --> 0:23:05.439 That's where we're at. No one's catching up. It's done. 0:23:05.520 --> 0:23:09.240 The race is over. That's not going to happen. So 0:23:09.520 --> 0:23:11.800 Phoenix is gonna be the one seed heading into the playoffs, 0:23:11.840 --> 0:23:14.760 and I'll have a little cushion of time to watch 0:23:14.800 --> 0:23:18.840 the play in tournament, get guys healthy, rest up before 0:23:18.880 --> 0:23:21.359 facing a team like I don't know, the Pelicans with 0:23:21.440 --> 0:23:24.560 no Zion of course, or a very hobbled Lakers team 0:23:24.640 --> 0:23:28.639 with Anthony Davis, a Disney what they call them bones 0:23:28.680 --> 0:23:33.040 of glass, skin of steel or paper or something, mister glass, 0:23:33.080 --> 0:23:35.199 and that would be a buzzsaw. That would be an 0:23:35.240 --> 0:23:39.080 absolute buzzsaw. Lakers Night Night sleep mask. Bad news. Is 0:23:39.119 --> 0:23:44.800 this slightly concerning if you're a Suns fan to have 0:23:44.880 --> 0:23:48.199 the engine behind your offense out for two months, because 0:23:49.119 --> 0:23:52.639 not only does he aspect he impacts every aspect of 0:23:52.680 --> 0:23:55.720 the team in these major ways, from team defense to 0:23:56.400 --> 0:24:00.120 the structure of the offensive flow. He also has to 0:24:00.160 --> 0:24:04.080 get back to that place two months and then he's 0:24:04.119 --> 0:24:07.359 able to get back into the game flow. I mean, 0:24:07.480 --> 0:24:11.560 Chris Paul is the Captain America of the Suns. The 0:24:11.680 --> 0:24:16.080 lynchpin upon the rest of the team is built. Here's 0:24:16.080 --> 0:24:18.560 an example of how crucial Chris Paul is to the 0:24:18.600 --> 0:24:21.320 team's success. When CP three is on the floor, Phoenix 0:24:21.480 --> 0:24:24.720 averages one hundred and fifteen point nine points per one 0:24:24.760 --> 0:24:28.359 hundred possessions. When he's off the floor, the number drops 0:24:28.359 --> 0:24:33.040 to one hundred and four point nine. Yikes. CP three's 0:24:33.080 --> 0:24:36.960 net rating is plus ten and a half, which is 0:24:37.000 --> 0:24:40.560 good for third in the entire league among players averaging 0:24:40.600 --> 0:24:43.920 thirty minutes per game. Or more so, consider this also 0:24:44.560 --> 0:24:48.040 in clutch time. At thirty six years old, Chris Paul 0:24:48.920 --> 0:24:52.320 is the best in the entire league. I'll say it again, 0:24:52.640 --> 0:24:55.720 Chris Paul is the most dominant player in crunch time 0:24:55.800 --> 0:24:58.560 clutch time in the league period. For those who don't 0:24:58.560 --> 0:25:01.640 know what that is, clutch time is any time during 0:25:01.680 --> 0:25:04.359 the fourth quarter or overtime when the scores within five. 0:25:05.080 --> 0:25:08.160 CP three leaves the NBA and clutch plus minus at 0:25:08.160 --> 0:25:13.560 plus ninety nine. He's shooting fifty six percent during clutch time, 0:25:13.680 --> 0:25:17.240 and more importantly, the Suns are an NBA best twenty 0:25:17.280 --> 0:25:20.679 four and three in clutch time this season thanks to 0:25:20.760 --> 0:25:26.679 Chris Paul. Sheesh, that is bonkers. So of course, losing 0:25:26.720 --> 0:25:30.800 CP three and having him to get back fully conditioned. 0:25:31.560 --> 0:25:33.760 He can't shoot the ball like this. He won't be 0:25:33.840 --> 0:25:36.399 able to have his feel back. It's almost like a 0:25:36.440 --> 0:25:41.439 golfer who has to get back into putting and chipping. 0:25:41.440 --> 0:25:45.080 It's a feel thing as a shooter that's gonna take time. 0:25:45.359 --> 0:25:47.280 He's not going to be able to use his hand 0:25:47.359 --> 0:25:51.320 on a ball for the next probably six to eight weeks. 0:25:51.359 --> 0:25:54.360 Scary considering that this is a team that absolutely needs 0:25:54.440 --> 0:25:56.320 Chris Paul to win a championship. They cannot do it 0:25:56.359 --> 0:25:58.720 any other way. We saw how it was when he 0:25:58.880 --> 0:26:01.000 was gone in the in the playoffs last year and 0:26:01.000 --> 0:26:03.480 into the finals, when he looked like absolute trash because 0:26:03.520 --> 0:26:06.040 he was injured, not because of anything else, but when 0:26:06.080 --> 0:26:08.679 he's not playing at his best and he's not fully healthy, 0:26:08.720 --> 0:26:14.320 this team is atrocious. Atrocious, so pretty lucky that the 0:26:14.359 --> 0:26:18.080 Suns ended up with Aaron Holiday for cash for cool 0:26:18.160 --> 0:26:20.920 rand shurritos. Aaron Holliday is now the backup point guard 0:26:20.960 --> 0:26:23.639 of this team. He was just on the Wizards like 0:26:23.680 --> 0:26:27.360 two days ago. Wizards considered him Bradley Beal considered him 0:26:27.359 --> 0:26:30.760 to be the number one defender on the team and 0:26:30.800 --> 0:26:32.920 now this guy is going to a backup campaign who's coming 0:26:32.960 --> 0:26:36.440 back from injury. As well, the question how the fuck 0:26:36.760 --> 0:26:40.719 did the NBA allow Aaron Holliday, who is twenty two 0:26:40.960 --> 0:26:44.480 eight and six per forty minutes, like he's averaging twenty 0:26:44.520 --> 0:26:46.919 two to eight and six per forty How did they 0:26:46.960 --> 0:26:50.320