Speaker 1: Welcome to Bullyball, presented by DraftKings. I'm Rachel Nichols. This
Speaker 1: is DeMarcus Cousins. He is back from ten days in
Speaker 1: China on an all noodle diet.
Speaker 2: Right absolutely, man, made the best of it.
Speaker 1: There is great food in China, but I unfortunately cannot
Speaker 1: appreciate it. I don't love spicy food. I know that
Speaker 1: you're used to your things. They don't have your things
Speaker 1: when you're away for that long.
Speaker 3: Right Nah.
Speaker 2: I'm a big fruit, but for the most part, the
Speaker 2: things that I eat on a normal basis just wasn't
Speaker 2: the case in China. But you know, I grew up
Speaker 2: eating a lot of noodles, so made the best of it,
Speaker 2: you know. Made it work out so bad to be
Speaker 2: back home and I can get back to my regular diet.
Speaker 3: So it is.
Speaker 1: It will not make you eat any noodles on this
Speaker 1: podcast today, so you are good. We will make you
Speaker 1: talk about the Oklahoma City Thunder though, because man, they
Speaker 1: are number two in the West. That is a sentence
Speaker 1: that I thought I would say at some point, but
Speaker 1: maybe not this season. They are early early early. We
Speaker 1: knew how good shake Kilgris Alexander was chet though averaging
Speaker 1: eighteen points per game, eight rebounds per game, two point
Speaker 1: three blocks per game. His shooting splits boogie are fifty six,
Speaker 1: forty four, and eighty eight. As I said, Sga killing
Speaker 1: it as always thirty six and six. I mean, look,
Speaker 1: let's talk about chet first, because big Man's a big man.
Speaker 1: Tell me what you see with.
Speaker 2: Him, man, I think he I think he's come in
Speaker 2: and played the right style of basketball. Obviously, you know
Speaker 2: check coming in he was a super talented player, came
Speaker 2: in with a lot of notoriety, super talented on both
Speaker 2: ends of the floor. I don't think he gets enough
Speaker 2: credit for how competitive he is as a player. Yeah,
Speaker 2: he accepts every challenge. He's fearless. It doesn't matter who
Speaker 2: he's matching up with on a ninthly base, he's going
Speaker 2: to go out and give a hundred and ten percent.
Speaker 2: So you know, credit to him. And I think he's
Speaker 2: playing the rest all of basketball. It doesn't do too much.
Speaker 2: He's he's taking the open shots given to him. He
Speaker 2: plays within the system, he plays within the floor of
Speaker 2: the team, and you know he's been a great anchor
Speaker 2: on a defensive van for this team.
Speaker 3: He's doing everything.
Speaker 2: He's doing everything correctly, and I think he's also putting
Speaker 2: up a big case for Rookie of the Year.
Speaker 1: I mean that's one hundred percent. It's interesting, right because
Speaker 1: Victor Rebnyama still projects out is going to be the
Speaker 1: better player eventually, but Chet is he's benefiting from that
Speaker 1: year that he sat because obviously you're still around the
Speaker 1: team even though you're injured in not getting playing time,
Speaker 1: you're learning how to be a professional. And he's playing
Speaker 1: on a better team. I mean, this team is number
Speaker 1: two in the West. As I said, the Spurs have
Speaker 1: lost a lot of games in a row, so many
Speaker 1: I don't have fingers to count, although I think the
Speaker 1: guy behind me does Anyway. Seriously, though, like how much
Speaker 1: would you if you're voting, Like, how much would it
Speaker 1: influence you that Chet is putting up these great numbers
Speaker 1: as part of a winning team where Victor is showing
Speaker 1: these incredible flashes of talent. I mean, he scored buckets
Speaker 1: in like twenty minutes the other day, But obviously it's
Speaker 1: not impacting winning.
Speaker 3: Say, I think you have to put that in this consideration.
Speaker 2: Obviously it's not that big of a difference in the
Speaker 2: talent level, So you have to start putting these things
Speaker 2: into play, well, what team is winning?
Speaker 3: How much of an impact is he having on winning?
Speaker 2: Obviously the success of the team, all of these things
Speaker 2: have to play a part in it. And like I said,
Speaker 2: I think Chet is he's making his case. And I mean,
Speaker 2: we've spoke on Weinby's talent, but you look at check
Speaker 2: play on a nine the basis is there really that
Speaker 2: much of a difference outside of just being hype in
Speaker 2: general and not saying that Winby doesn't deserve a hype
Speaker 2: because he's an incredible talent. He's doing things we've never
Speaker 2: seen before from a player his you know, his nature.
Speaker 2: But at the same time, Chet isn't that far off.
Speaker 2: He's doing a lot of the same things. It's just
Speaker 2: not as much coverage with Chet. But you know, averaging
Speaker 2: these numbers, almost shooting fifty forty ninety for a rookie,
Speaker 2: that's that's that's really impressive. So and on top of that,
Speaker 2: he's winning, So you have to give you have to
Speaker 2: give him his credit with credit is Dukeman. He's he's
Speaker 2: having a huge he's having a huge first year, so
Speaker 2: credit to him.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and as you said, he's got a killer instinct.
Speaker 1: I mean, he definitely was not going into this year
Speaker 1: just you know, given away Rookie of the Year. He
Speaker 1: was like, yeah, you've you've heard of that French guy.
Speaker 1: But look at me, look at me. I love it.
Speaker 1: And his success and how good he's been has created
Speaker 1: an interesting problem for the thunder A good problem, good
Speaker 1: problem to have. I mean, they did such a good job.
Speaker 1: They made out like bandits in that Paul George trade.
Speaker 1: You know, all of these deals along the way, the
Speaker 1: Russell Westbrook trade, they accumulated so many picks, and this
Speaker 1: coming up draft they have four picks just in this draft,
Speaker 1: and they have a question, Now, do you trade away
Speaker 1: some of those and try to get a win now
Speaker 1: kind of player because you've got pieces. I mean, SGA
Speaker 1: certainly has been super patient there, and I would love
Speaker 1: if I was the front office to reward him a
Speaker 1: little bit with like a little bit more firepower next
Speaker 1: to him. Or do you just keep drafting these great players?
Speaker 1: I mean they hit again with Case and Wallace, like
Speaker 1: they know how to draft there. These are this is
Speaker 1: the crew that obviously drafted James hard and Russell Westbrook
Speaker 1: and Kevin Durant altogether, So clearly they could put together
Speaker 1: one of those kinds of teams just through drafting. But
Speaker 1: I don't know. I mean, you're talking about guys who
Speaker 1: look like they're ready. If they had one more big piece,
Speaker 1: what would you do.
Speaker 2: I think they're in the perfect position right now. I
Speaker 2: think they most teams look for as a core group,
Speaker 2: and I think they ended up finding that they have
Speaker 2: Jalen Wims, they have Chet, and they also have Sga,
Speaker 2: who's having a phenomenal year and I think an MVP year.
Speaker 2: I think his name should be in that discussion as
Speaker 2: one of the top guys as an MVP candidate this year.
Speaker 2: But I think the thunder in the position where they
Speaker 2: have their core pieces. Now it's about filling out, you know,
Speaker 2: the pieces around and putting in compliment players to help
Speaker 2: elevate this team to hopefully, you know, championship. Left with
Speaker 2: those four picks this year, you absolutely get rid of it.
Speaker 2: You can add a guy like Pascal Siakam that takes
Speaker 2: that team over the top. You can also go a
Speaker 2: little further and take Pascal and possibly Ogi on a.
Speaker 3: NOOBI and that team is now a serious contender.
Speaker 2: So yeah, and still even out of those two guys,
Speaker 2: you still have what forty plus picks coming up. I mean,
Speaker 2: they have so many picks in the near future, so
Speaker 2: I think they're in the perfect position. I think they're
Speaker 2: in a position now to start thinking, you know, championships,
Speaker 2: So there is perfect for the thunder right now. I
Speaker 2: was just deciding on what they want to pull the
Speaker 2: trigger on and what pieces they want to add around
Speaker 2: those guys.
Speaker 1: I mean, look, obviously you need some things to fall
Speaker 1: your way along the process. I mean, the Paul George
Speaker 1: thing isn't something that you could plan for, right that.
Speaker 1: Kawhi wanting Paul to come with him obviously elevated the
Speaker 1: market and what they could get for PG. All that
Speaker 1: being said, these guys are showing San Presti over and
Speaker 1: over again you can be a small market team and
Speaker 1: build greatness. I mean this is literally the second time
Speaker 1: he's doing it. So I think it's sort of a
Speaker 1: message to the rest of the league. And I don't know, man,
Speaker 1: those guys you mentioned, they're all under thirty. That's the thing.
Speaker 1: I mean, we talk about the timeline, and this is
Speaker 1: a young team, and you want guys who fit into
Speaker 1: their timeline. If guys in his twenties, it works. I
Speaker 1: mean Shay's what twenty five years old, So if you
Speaker 1: had a guy who was twenty eight, twenty nine years old,
Speaker 1: that's that's still in his window and you're not signing
Speaker 1: him to a ten year deal. So I just I
Speaker 1: think even with chat being younger and all of that,
Speaker 1: I don't know. I think SGA has been super patient, right,
Speaker 1: I mean, he got traded to that team. He was
Speaker 1: already we knew when he walked out of the door
Speaker 1: here in La how good he was, and the Clippers
Speaker 1: were very low to give him up. And the idea
Speaker 1: that he has sat through for these years, being on
Speaker 1: this rebuilding team, being in a market where he hasn't
Speaker 1: gotten as much shine as maybe he's deserved for how
Speaker 1: he's playing. I mean, if he was in a Northeast
Speaker 1: team these last you know what, three four years, like,
Speaker 1: you'd be hearing his name more nationally than just with
Speaker 1: hoop fans. So I don't know. If I'm the front office,
Speaker 1: I want to keep him engaged. I want to keep him,
Speaker 1: you know, believing in everything here. I might, you know,
Speaker 1: trade away some of those picks and to try to
Speaker 1: get some win now. And that's kind of the other
Speaker 1: question about this team. So I'm not sure they're going
Speaker 1: to be number two in the West going in the playoffs.
Speaker 1: But how far do you think they could get even
Speaker 1: if they just stay exactly as they are this year,
Speaker 1: no more trades, Like, how far do you think they
Speaker 1: could get in the West?
Speaker 2: I think they're a playoff team this year. Youth is
Speaker 2: kind of the movement right now in the NBA. Youth
Speaker 2: is winning games. So, like I said, I think they're
Speaker 2: in the perfect position to make something happen. What those
Speaker 2: compliment pieces can be as of right now draft picks.
Speaker 2: Having forty draft.
Speaker 3: Picks can't win you games, yep.
Speaker 2: But what you can get back for those forty draft
Speaker 2: picks is what's going to help take this team to
Speaker 2: the next level. So, like I said, they have their
Speaker 2: core foundation. What are you going to add around that
Speaker 2: to take these guys to the next level. Yes, SGA
Speaker 2: has been patient reward put them in a position to
Speaker 2: actually go win something. I think he's playing MVP caliber basketball.
Speaker 2: Put those compliment pieces around it. They got a chance.
Speaker 2: So it just depends on what they want to pull
Speaker 2: the trigger on to, you know, elevate this team to
Speaker 2: the next level.
Speaker 1: I mean, in the conversation right, that's my favorite phrase.
Speaker 1: I think later in the second half of the season,
Speaker 1: we're going to do a segment called in the Conversation
Speaker 1: because I love that about MVP. He's in the conversation,
Speaker 1: all right. Some of the other teams in the West
Speaker 1: not doing as well, Buggie, your former Golden State Warriors
Speaker 1: three and seven in their last ten. Now they do
Speaker 1: get Draymond Green back tomorrow as we sit there. But
Speaker 1: as we sit here, but you know, him being out
Speaker 1: has not been the only problem. Wiggins Man career lows
Speaker 1: across the board. I'm gonna look at these numbers here,
Speaker 1: career lows and points, field goal percentage, three point percentage,
Speaker 1: even minutes per game, and Klay Thompson, And that's why
Speaker 1: I really want to talk about he's struggling. He averaged
Speaker 1: twenty two points a game last season. He's only fifteen
Speaker 1: points a game, which they need more from him. You
Speaker 1: played with Clay. You know how he works and what
Speaker 1: spots he's comfortable in. He just hasn't looked comfortable. Is
Speaker 1: catch and shoot numbers are bad, only thirty nine percent
Speaker 1: on catch and shoot the season. What do you see
Speaker 1: with him? Why he's not doing what he should be doing.
Speaker 2: I don't see anything this early in the season. We've
Speaker 2: seen Clay have you know, slight salt shooting slumps like
Speaker 2: this is all part of basketball. We also seen Clay
Speaker 2: come out and explode for sixty to fifty forty, whatever
Speaker 2: the case may be. So just give it time. I
Speaker 2: think clayill find his rhythm eventually. Shoot or shoot. You
Speaker 2: shoot through your missus. You continue to shoot through your missus,
Speaker 2: and we all know Claill do that. So it's only
Speaker 2: a matter of time before Clay gets back into the
Speaker 2: Clay we're accustomed to scene and you know, putting up
Speaker 2: huge games for this team. So you just kind of
Speaker 2: got to take the bad with the good right now,
Speaker 2: and the good with the bad, and you know, just
Speaker 2: give him a chance to play through this slump. But
Speaker 2: to think that Clay is now, you know, not as
Speaker 2: good anymore. You don't forget how to shoot like that.
Speaker 2: That's something you could be forty fifty years old. You
Speaker 2: can come out and make a jump shot. Is he
Speaker 2: the most athletic player? Is he the fastest? Probably maybe not,
Speaker 2: But as far as him being able to shoot the ball,
Speaker 2: this is what Clay does, and I think he'll get
Speaker 2: back to it eventually.
Speaker 3: It's just a matter that time.
Speaker 1: Look, I mean he's clearly he is will go down
Speaker 1: as one of the best shooters of all time. I mean,
Speaker 1: Steph will tell you that Clay is technique in terms
Speaker 1: of technique, is a better shooter than he is. So
Speaker 1: of course you don't forget how to shoot.
Speaker 3: Absolutely, it's hard.
Speaker 1: From the outside a little bit to know Clay like
Speaker 1: he's you know, I've known him for years and years
Speaker 1: and years, and he's quirky obviously, and he's super laid
Speaker 1: back when he's around us the media. I can't tell
Speaker 1: from the outside if like he gets in his own
Speaker 1: head about his shooting or not. Did you see that
Speaker 1: at all?
Speaker 3: That is something that Clay does.
Speaker 2: Yeah, with any athlete, confidence pushes everything, everything that you
Speaker 2: work on in your craft. Confidence is what pushes that
Speaker 2: a hit. So if his if his confidence is there,
Speaker 2: isn't there to go with everything that he puts into
Speaker 2: the game, then obviously it's going to be some type
Speaker 2: of struggle. Once he does find his confidence, you'll see
Speaker 2: the Clay that average twenty twenty two, twenty three points
Speaker 2: a game. Just a matter of time, and all athletes
Speaker 2: go through it. You have your days where you feel
Speaker 2: like you're the worst, and you had the days where
Speaker 2: you feel like you're untouchable, you're the best to ever
Speaker 2: touch a basketball.
Speaker 3: So that's just part of this journey. This is part
Speaker 3: of the nature at his beast.
Speaker 2: So eventually clayil find this his rhythm and we'll see
Speaker 2: what we're used to seeing from Clay Thompson.
Speaker 1: All right. So given all that and the fact that
Speaker 1: Steph Curry has actually combusted on fire at times this season,
Speaker 1: He's got had some crazy games already, what is your
Speaker 1: worry level for the Warriors within this Western Conference?
Speaker 3: It can go either way.
Speaker 2: Obviously, when they had their court group in Tech with Draymond,
Speaker 2: Clay and Steph, they always have a chance. But what
Speaker 2: happens with this team, it's always about the company, the
Speaker 2: company around them. What are they putting around them to
Speaker 2: elevate this team to make that core group better and
Speaker 2: vice versa. We can go back to talking about the
Speaker 2: Jordan Poole trade. Do I think the trade was necessary? Absolutely?
Speaker 2: I think it was best for both sides, with Jordan
Speaker 2: Poole moving on and figuring out who he is as
Speaker 2: a professional athlete, and obviously this core group moving on
Speaker 2: trying to win more championships. But I don't think the
Speaker 2: trade was handled the correct way. I think it was
Speaker 2: almost where they kind of settled. I think you could
Speaker 2: have got a lot more for that piece. I think
Speaker 2: you could have got a piece that could could have
Speaker 2: elevated this team and not made it kind of you know,
Speaker 2: I guess you could say get worse. It could have
Speaker 2: even been a situation where they kind of evened out,
Speaker 2: and I don't think that happened.
Speaker 3: I spoke on it earlier before.
Speaker 2: Just that addition, with Chris Paul being at the stage
Speaker 2: of his career that he's at, I did not see
Speaker 2: this team being able to elevate like Chris Paul at
Speaker 2: this sage is his career does not elevate this Warrior's team.
Speaker 2: And I think it was just plenty of other players
Speaker 2: or situations that could have been better for this team.
Speaker 2: But like I said, I believe they settled.
Speaker 1: I mean, look, I think Chris has done some good
Speaker 1: things for the Warriors. He's fit in better than I
Speaker 1: expected him to, and his willingness to come off the
Speaker 1: bench and sort of lead that unit is really the
Speaker 1: best way to play him.
Speaker 2: Right.
Speaker 1: That way he can sort of have his own time
Speaker 1: on the floor and do the Chris Paul things that
Speaker 1: he does. So I don't think I think he's had
Speaker 1: some success there, but I get your point that he
Speaker 1: doesn't raise the bar enough for what you'd want to
Speaker 1: get for Jordan. Obviously, Jordan's had some struggles in DC,
Speaker 1: so his trade value maybe has gone down since he's
Speaker 1: gotten there, but it was higher when they dealt him.
Speaker 1: Obviously they had to get rid of him. I mean
Speaker 1: you made the point like you've heard Draymond talk since
Speaker 1: then and everyone around the team talk like the environment
Speaker 1: just was not good. I think it's an Andrew Wiggins
Speaker 1: issue because we saw last year when he was out
Speaker 1: for an extended period of time, you know, the personal
Speaker 1: issues going on. They really missed him as they were
Speaker 1: making that final drive for the postseason. And he's back
Speaker 1: and he's playing now, but again, career lows all the
Speaker 1: way around. If they can get him back to where
Speaker 1: he was when he was really kicking it in the
Speaker 1: middle of the last season, I think that's where the
Speaker 1: leap would be with this team. So I don't know
Speaker 1: my worry level is with you. I'm medium on that
Speaker 1: because I just think you're depending Steph's going to be Steph.
Speaker 1: I agree, Clay's going to get out of a slump.
Speaker 1: Draymond people love hate him. I think he brings huge
Speaker 1: value to that team. You know, for all the reasons
Speaker 1: that don't show up on the stat sheet, but you
Speaker 1: need a guy like Wiggs to actually step up and
Speaker 1: be that extra piece. So we'll see what happens all
Speaker 1: right around the Western Conference down to where I live
Speaker 1: in Los Angeles. We got two teams here on fire now.
Speaker 1: But be cousins who knew both the Clippers and the
Speaker 1: Lakers are four and one in their last five. So
Speaker 1: I got to tell you, ask you who's the better
Speaker 1: team in LA.
Speaker 3: My good is telling me to lean towards the Lakers.
Speaker 2: And the reason I can say that the Lakers know
Speaker 2: who their core foundation is with obviously Lebron and Ad
Speaker 2: everything else around him is just a compliment. With the Clippers,
Speaker 2: I think they're still in the process of figuring that
Speaker 2: out who they are moving forward. They have so much
Speaker 2: talent it's almost an overload in this it's now trying
Speaker 2: to figure out how we're going to make all these
Speaker 2: all this talent and all these egos fit together for
Speaker 2: the betterment of the situation. And I don't think that's
Speaker 2: something that you just figure out in five to ten games.
Speaker 2: I think this is going to be a season long
Speaker 2: process for this Clippers scene. So the reason I can
Speaker 2: lean towards the Lakers is because they know who they
Speaker 2: are with their core, found their cores foundation, and it's
Speaker 2: just about making that core foundation keep moving forward and
Speaker 2: making all the complimentary pieces, you know, continue to play
Speaker 2: at a high level. So I think that's a more
Speaker 2: fixable situation compared to what the Clippers have going on.
Speaker 3: So I'm gonna have to lean towards the Lakers.
Speaker 1: Well, I like what the Clippers have done since Russ
Speaker 1: moved to the bench. I do think that was a
Speaker 1: big part of figuring it out. Obviously, the offense flowing.
Speaker 1: They're getting that spacing that they thought they were missing.
Speaker 1: The reason they got James and look, he still knows
Speaker 1: how to run the floor in a way that frankly,
Speaker 1: they haven't had since Chris Paul left. I mean it definitely,
Speaker 1: you know, makes a difference in terms of getting the
Speaker 1: guys in their spots. PG is still really comfortable with Russ,
Speaker 1: so we've seen them on the floor together more. But
Speaker 1: Kawhi and James have a nice thing developing, so I
Speaker 1: like all of that. It's been a little complicated with Russ.
Speaker 1: I mean, the story came out that Russ asked to
Speaker 1: go to the bench, and I think we all know
Speaker 1: how that works, right, Is that that's sort of what
Speaker 1: you say when a guy like that, who's so proud
Speaker 1: and has had such a great career. I don't know
Speaker 1: who asks who. I'm not going to get into it.
Speaker 1: Clearly willing to be a team play. I mean, the
Speaker 1: important thing is he's willing to be a team player, right.
Speaker 1: I mean, the thing about Russ is that he wants
Speaker 1: to win so badly. I think he's a bit misunderstood.
Speaker 1: That's been partly his own fault at some times. But
Speaker 1: I don't think you can doubt his dedication to this team,
Speaker 1: and he has really put himself in a position where
Speaker 1: he is uncomfortable. He has talked a lot about how
Speaker 1: he needs his routines. He has a certain way he
Speaker 1: prepares for games that all involves being out on the
Speaker 1: floor at tip off. He said that he doesn't know
Speaker 1: who he is or how to get ready when he's
Speaker 1: coming off the bench, so I know this has been
Speaker 1: a huge adjustment for him. He's worried about his body
Speaker 1: and just you know, not getting injured because he's not
Speaker 1: in the right place physically when he comes off the bench.
Speaker 1: So all of that is a lot to ask of
Speaker 1: a guy, and I think we got to give him
Speaker 1: credit for doing it, even though it's clearly impacting him
Speaker 1: negatively his going through He's played five games coming off
Speaker 1: the bench so far. That is the worst shooting stretch
Speaker 1: of his entire career, right, thirty five percent shooting over
Speaker 1: the last five games. He has not been able to
Speaker 1: get his rhythm. On the other hand, he has played
Speaker 1: tough defense. He is still giving maximum effort out on
Speaker 1: the court. In fact, here's a great number, Biggie. Opponents
Speaker 1: are shooting less than forty percent against him, which is
Speaker 1: the third best in the league right now. So I
Speaker 1: don't know, I just got to give a shout out
Speaker 1: to him and the fact that this is working a
Speaker 1: little better because he's making real sacrifices. His numbers are down,
Speaker 1: it's playing time is way down, right, he.
Speaker 2: Is, Like you said, I just don't feel like Russ
Speaker 2: gets the credit he deserves for being the teammate that
Speaker 2: he is, the sacrifices that he continuously makes when it
Speaker 2: comes to trying to win being a winning situation. For
Speaker 2: some reason, all his highlights are his negatives, which is
Speaker 2: unfair to him because there's so much more to go
Speaker 2: to the game besides making shots or shooting percentages. Credit
Speaker 2: to Russ, continue to be the professional that you are.
Speaker 2: Your peers know who you are as a person. Your
Speaker 2: peers know what type of competitor you are. We know
Speaker 2: how much you care about winning, and we know what
Speaker 2: you put into this game. So credit to Russ, love
Speaker 2: bro forever. Just keep your head up and keep pushing.
Speaker 3: We know you will.
Speaker 2: So I think eventually his his the good energy that
Speaker 2: he puts out. I'm a firm believer in that the
Speaker 2: energy you put out is that you get back. Yeah,
Speaker 2: he'll be rewarded for the good energy that he continues
Speaker 2: to put out. And it's just a matter of time
Speaker 2: before the rest of the world catches up and credits
Speaker 2: this guy for what he's done.
Speaker 1: Well, he's loved in the locker room. I know that.
Speaker 1: I know he's super popular in that Clippers locker room,
Speaker 1: and that's what matters. And we'll see where he goes
Speaker 1: from there. With the Lakers, I'm with you that they've
Speaker 1: they've got great you know, looks on paper in terms
Speaker 1: of knowing who they are. I still want to see
Speaker 1: Lebron's minutes go down. I know he is playing some
Speaker 1: of the best basketball of his career. I mean his shooting,
Speaker 1: the way his shooting has improved every season. I think
Speaker 1: for like a day, Gid is crazy. The shooting numbers
Speaker 1: he's got right now are insane. I mean, he's doing
Speaker 1: such incredible things, not just for a guy who's turning
Speaker 1: thirty nine, but period the end period. But he is
Speaker 1: a guy who's turning thirty nine, you know, at the
Speaker 1: end of this year, and if you keep playing him
Speaker 1: so hard for so long at this point of the year,
Speaker 1: we are going to see the effects by the end
Speaker 1: of the season. And they clearly need him to still
Speaker 1: be Lebron James. So I don't know that that's the
Speaker 1: thing I'm gonna keep worrying about. I want them to
Speaker 1: get more help. I think this is a team, a
Speaker 1: roster that we are going to see some tweaks to,
Speaker 1: you know, before the trade deadline. So we'll see. But
Speaker 1: I will tell you in Los Angeles after some doom
Speaker 1: and gloom at points around when I would like go
Speaker 1: to you know, go to bar, go to a coffee
Speaker 1: shop and hear people talking and people were not happy.
Speaker 1: There are some happy basketball fans here, so that's good.
Speaker 3: All right.
Speaker 1: Let's get to on the Radar, presented by DraftKings Sportsbook,
Speaker 1: the n Season Tournament. The games have been fine, but
Speaker 1: I'm insta these games. We've seen hostile moments, we've seen
Speaker 1: close finishes. The pace the Lakers have looked really good.
Speaker 1: The Lakers have said they're in it for the money.
Speaker 1: They've been very blunt. We want to get the guys
Speaker 1: at the end of the bench some cash, so they're
Speaker 1: all in it. They're undefeated in the tournament and Tuesday
Speaker 1: night tomorrow, as we said here is going to dictate
Speaker 1: a lot. But we do have the odds now from
Speaker 1: DraftKings on who is going to win it all, so
Speaker 1: I'm going to read those to you. The Bucks are
Speaker 1: the favorites plus two eighty Lakers plus five hundred Suns
Speaker 1: next plus six hundred. They're in the same group, so
Speaker 1: that could get interesting. Kings plus six fifty also in
Speaker 1: that group, Pacers eight plus eight hundred, Nicks plus twelve hundred.
Speaker 1: I think our producer Dylan Dreyfus threw that in there. Dylan,
Speaker 1: they are not winning the mid season Tournament. I'm just
Speaker 1: going to tell you that now. And the Magic at
Speaker 1: plus two thousand and I got to say, I don't
Speaker 1: think the Magic are favorites to win the mid season Tournament,
Speaker 1: but I do want to give them some credit. Seven
Speaker 1: straight wins, including wins against Indiana, Denver, Boston, they'd be
Speaker 1: number one, number one ranked defense in the league. So
Speaker 1: throw them in those odds. Absolutely. Who do you like
Speaker 1: to win the first ever mid season Tournament trophy?
Speaker 2: Uh, I'm gonna I think I'm gonna have to lean
Speaker 2: towards the Bucks as well. Obviously, with Dame and Giannis
Speaker 2: being your to go to guys, I think they have
Speaker 2: a chance at winning any night. So that's a tough
Speaker 2: that's a tough team to beat regardless of what the
Speaker 2: situation is. So obviously they will be the favorite. But
Speaker 2: my sleeper team, I'm gonna go with the Pacers. Like
Speaker 2: this is a playing incredible basketball being led by the
Speaker 2: young guy Tyrese Halliburn. He's playing incredible ball. I think
Speaker 2: MVP caliber ball. My opinion so I think that they're
Speaker 2: a tough team to beat. Miles Turner playing great basketball.
Speaker 2: He's turned it around playing inspired basketball. Buddy, He'll playing
Speaker 2: some good ball. The compliment pieces around him. They're just
Speaker 2: in a good flow right now. It looks like they
Speaker 2: have fun playing together. They're they're playing inspired basketball on
Speaker 2: a nightly basis, and whatever their motivation is, obviously they're
Speaker 2: they're playing lights out for it. If it's the money,
Speaker 2: if it's just you know, just being able to hold
Speaker 2: up the hardware at the at the end of this tournament,
Speaker 2: whatever the case may be, is pushing them to a
Speaker 2: new high. And I like what I'm seeing from this
Speaker 2: Pacers team.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think the Pacers feel that they've been overlooked
Speaker 1: a little bit. I know Tyres Haliburton feels he's been overlooked.
Speaker 1: He feels like, hey, I should be In the conversation
Speaker 1: also again for the segment in the conversation, Tyree's thinks
Speaker 1: that he should be on that national stage. And I
Speaker 1: think they are very motivated to try to win. And
Speaker 1: we do see with these mid season tournaments in soccer
Speaker 1: and Europe and everything, a lot of times sometimes it's
Speaker 1: the best team in the league, and they're the best team,
Speaker 1: and they keep winning, and they win the mid season
Speaker 1: thing and at the end of the year the big trophy.
Speaker 1: But a lot of times the mid season tournaments in
Speaker 1: different leagues you see guys like the Pacers come and
Speaker 1: steal it because you have the teams the elite elite
Speaker 1: teams like the Denver Nuggets, they're focused on the end
Speaker 1: of the season, whereas a team like the Pacers, they
Speaker 1: want to make noise in Vegas. They want to get
Speaker 1: this done. It'll be interesting. It also depends on how
Speaker 1: much defense is required in these games. The Pacers and
Speaker 1: Hawks last week had that game where I believe the
Speaker 1: teams score to combined four hundred and sixty eight points. Okay,
Speaker 1: not happen, So it'll be interesting to see what happens there.
Speaker 1: But they got great energy and I love it, and
Speaker 1: I'd like to see them in Las Vegas. I think
Speaker 1: that would be incredible. All right, this week, we still
Speaker 1: got to get through the games this week before everyone
Speaker 1: heads to Nevada. So let's take a look at the
Speaker 1: Marquee games. Boogie, I'm going to read you a few.
Speaker 1: You tell me which game is jumping out to you.
Speaker 1: As the one must watch. We got Thunder versus Timberwolves
Speaker 1: on Tuesday, which on paper are like, oh Thunder Timberwolves.
Speaker 1: These are the top two seeds in the West right now,
Speaker 1: as we said here, I mean, that's incredible. So that
Speaker 1: that game is on Tuesday. On Wednesday, you've got Clippers
Speaker 1: and Kings, your old team, and I got to say
Speaker 1: that rivalry is getting good, right, I mean, I like
Speaker 1: how the Kings are nosing in with all these other teams.
Speaker 1: So you got that one. And then on Friday, six
Speaker 1: or Celtics. That is an age old rivalry and even
Speaker 1: higher this year. It's the third meeting of the season,
Speaker 1: which is kind of crazy. I feel like they play
Speaker 1: every week right now, so there's already a little bit
Speaker 1: of bad blood there. And you've got Nuggets and Sons
Speaker 1: on that Friday night. Also, So of those games, who
Speaker 1: you got, what's the one you have to watch?
Speaker 2: Oh man, I think I'm gonna have to go for Friday,
Speaker 2: this game with Sixers and Celtics. Obviously, you know this
Speaker 2: Sixers team is a different team with losing James Harden
Speaker 2: and bringing in some new pieces. But I think it's
Speaker 2: gonna be a good test for them to see who
Speaker 2: they are as a team against top competition. The Celtics
Speaker 2: team is a team they're gonna have to go through
Speaker 2: in the East to hopefully get to a championship level.
Speaker 2: So this is a big test for them. Embat is
Speaker 2: playing incredible basketball. I mean, he won MVP last year
Speaker 2: and we and obviously would win the MVP. It's like,
Speaker 2: how could this guy get better? And he's found a
Speaker 2: way to actually become even better. Uh, he's moving the
Speaker 2: ball greatly, He's I've seen a couple of games where
Speaker 2: he's had eight to nine assists. We just haven't seen
Speaker 2: this element or this or this part of his game
Speaker 2: unlocked since he's been in the league.
Speaker 3: And I think this is great.
Speaker 2: He's fine way is to make the people around him
Speaker 2: better on top of still being a dominant player. So
Speaker 2: this this sixtiest team is they're finding the way and
Speaker 2: like I said, I think this would be a good
Speaker 2: test for them to see where they are as a
Speaker 2: team and the things they can improve on. What could
Speaker 2: they you know, what area of their team could they
Speaker 2: improve or make better.
Speaker 3: So this is a good test for them.
Speaker 2: And obviously with the Nuggets and Signs, these are two
Speaker 2: teams that are gonna be battling one another to come
Speaker 2: out of the West. So we're gonna see which one
Speaker 2: is that. The Nuggets, they're pretty consistent. They won the
Speaker 2: championship last year. His son's team just put together. We're
Speaker 2: gonna see what We're gonna see what can happen.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know what Joel mb is. But he's in
Speaker 1: the conversation always. I got to get to doom scroll
Speaker 1: is my favorite part of the show. On social media.
Speaker 1: Action for you, Uh, Draymond Green, this was all over
Speaker 1: the socials. As we say, he said he does not
Speaker 1: regret putting Rudy Gobert in a headlock. Says that will
Speaker 1: always come. He will always come to his teammates to
Speaker 1: fend you said quote. The league has made it clear
Speaker 1: that they are going to hold my past against me,
Speaker 1: which is I mean, they literally came out and said that.
Speaker 1: So he is correct there. What did you make of
Speaker 1: all those comments?
Speaker 3: Uh?
Speaker 2: This statement, like this is what I fully expected, Draymond.
Speaker 2: It's pretty clear that Draymond wanted to put Ruby in
Speaker 2: the head Let's be honest. I mean, you got to
Speaker 2: be you got to be careful what tree you decided
Speaker 2: to bark up because eventually it's going to come to
Speaker 2: the head, and it did. So, uh, I don't I
Speaker 2: fully expected from Draymond. Obviously it's going to get overlooked
Speaker 2: that he was defending his teammate, which I want any
Speaker 2: teammate I want. I want my teammate to have my
Speaker 2: back at all time, regardless of who it is. So
Speaker 2: you know, Draymond won't get credit for being a good teammate.
Speaker 2: It's obviously going to be viewed in a negative light.
Speaker 2: His past is going to be held against him because
Speaker 2: you know, Draymond continues these type of incidents, So you.
Speaker 1: Know something about that buggy, Yeah, I.
Speaker 2: Do a little bit, But the league is going to
Speaker 2: hold it against and they're never going to give him
Speaker 2: the benefit of the doubt. And as far as showing
Speaker 2: him any grace, that's just non existent. So yeah, that's
Speaker 2: just the territory that he's in right now.
Speaker 1: So one hundred percent. I mean, look, it's interesting we
Speaker 1: just saw it too with Scott Foster and Chris Paul
Speaker 1: like that. You can't escape the past of what all
Speaker 1: the other stuff that's gone on there, right and so
Speaker 1: whether it's you know, officials being too quick to call
Speaker 1: attack on you boogie because like they're like, oh, well
Speaker 1: that's his history, that's what we're doing, or whether it's
Speaker 1: you know, Draymond with some of the things that he
Speaker 1: likes to do. I think we are seeing all that
Speaker 1: come into play. I'm not surprised. It would have been
Speaker 1: nice if he had said, you know, hey, that went
Speaker 1: too far. I shouldn't have done that. I know that
Speaker 1: that is what Steve Kerr would have preferred, but that
Speaker 1: is also not Draymond Green. I get that. I also,
Speaker 1: I mean, look, I want to say very clearly, it
Speaker 1: is wrong for Draymond Green to put Riddy Gobert in
Speaker 1: a headlock the way he did. And it was like
Speaker 1: eight seconds. I mean, this was not a quick thing,
Speaker 1: you know, that kind of thing dragged gone for a while. Also,
Speaker 1: I attended a hockey game the other night, and not
Speaker 1: only were there two significant fights. During the hockey game,
Speaker 1: one involved a player putting another player in a headlock.
Speaker 1: Several times guys took sticks and just whacked at each other,
Speaker 1: and for that offense they got put in a little
Speaker 1: box and we're told to sit down for two minutes.
Speaker 1: So sports are great, obviously hockey and basketball different. But
Speaker 1: I was just sitting there watching all this go on
Speaker 1: in front of me and thinking, Trammont Green gets suspended
Speaker 1: for five games for eight seconds of hugging Rudy Gobert's neck,
Speaker 1: and in this other sport that we all watch and
Speaker 1: I personally love, guys are like going at each other
Speaker 1: physically hard and they're like, yeah, you just go said
Speaker 1: for two minutes, come back out here. Everything's different. There
Speaker 1: we go, all right, Jordan Poole, We got to get
Speaker 1: to this because this has also been a big matter
Speaker 1: of conversation. You know, look, we saw a couple of
Speaker 1: weeks ago some video surface of him. He wasn't paying
Speaker 1: any attention during timeouts. An assistant coach had to like
Speaker 1: drag him back. He was talking a lot of smack
Speaker 1: about hey, it's my team and all this stuff, and
Speaker 1: he got a ton of criticism online. NBA Twitter went
Speaker 1: hard on him for this. Then suddenly we saw a
Speaker 1: video of him the other day and he is so
Speaker 1: locked in during this time out you would think that
Speaker 1: someone had like the winning lottery numbers in front of him.
Speaker 1: It was unbelievable. So my question is do we think
Speaker 1: that the reaction he got, you know, all that you
Speaker 1: hear about it right As a player, if that's all
Speaker 1: over NBA Twitter, you're gonna have people sending you the tweets,
Speaker 1: people are knocking off, and you're gonna have guys texting you.
Speaker 1: Do you think this is a result of the fans
Speaker 1: getting on him the way they do.
Speaker 2: I'm not really sure what is a result of. But
Speaker 2: regardless of what it is, I'm okay with this. This
Speaker 2: is this is showing that he can't hold hisself accountable.
Speaker 2: He's realizing that he has been bullshitting and he has
Speaker 2: been everything that we wanted to see from Joan Poole,
Speaker 2: you know, taking that huge step.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 2: We kind of compare his situation to James Harden of
Speaker 2: the past, like this is his chance to become this
Speaker 2: superstar and elite. He's done the complete opposite of that
Speaker 2: since he's joined the Wizards, so obviously it's been he
Speaker 2: needs a little humbling. He needs to come to reality
Speaker 2: and realize, like this situation is a lot more urgent
Speaker 2: and severe than he thinks. It's not just about going
Speaker 2: out being flashy, you know, shooting turn around threes before
Speaker 2: they go it like, all that's cool, but at the
Speaker 2: end of the day, like they put you in a
Speaker 2: position to be a franchise corner store, and these are
Speaker 2: the responsibilities that come with it. You have to lead
Speaker 2: a certain way. Uh you can't go out there and
Speaker 2: just talk to talk. You also have to walk the
Speaker 2: walk like obviously. So you know this is you know,
Speaker 2: a little humbling for Jordan Pool, but I think this
Speaker 2: can also help put him back on track, put him
Speaker 2: put his mind in the in the space that it
Speaker 2: needs to be in the lead this Wizards team. And
Speaker 2: you know, he has to realize this shit is a
Speaker 2: lot harder than just you know, making basks. So whatever
Speaker 2: it takes to you know, help get him on track.
Speaker 2: But that small clip of him being locked in on
Speaker 2: the bench paying attention compared to what we saw a
Speaker 2: couple of weeks fer, I think that's an improvement and
Speaker 2: I'm okay with that. So he does realize that he
Speaker 2: has been bullshitn't it. Like I said, he can get
Speaker 2: back on track and he'll lead this Wizards tea.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm sure it's been more than NBA Twitter. I'm
Speaker 1: sure west Son sel Junior has had a couple of
Speaker 1: words for him as well. So, uh, we'll see, We'll
Speaker 1: see what he gets we'll see where he goes. This
Speaker 1: story is crazy. Bug I literally had to read this twice. SGA.
Speaker 1: The quote in the New York Times is Shay Gilders
Speaker 1: Alexander dream house turned into a nightmare. That's the headline.
Speaker 1: Here's the deal. So in May, he bought a six
Speaker 1: million dollars dream house in Toronto, right from Canada. You know,
Speaker 1: this is it. This is the house he's going to
Speaker 1: raise his family in. This is amazing. You know, finally
Speaker 1: made it. You know, your big contract, you buy the house.
Speaker 1: This is it. Two days after he moved in, menacing
Speaker 1: visitors began to appear at the house looking for the
Speaker 1: previous occupant of the house. It turns out that this
Speaker 1: guy was a self proclaimed crypto king who apparently owes
Speaker 1: more than twenty five million dollars to one hundred and
Speaker 1: fifty different people. And they're all looking for him, and
Speaker 1: they all think he lives there. And apparently they're not
Speaker 1: playing around because when he did live there before the
Speaker 1: house got sold to SGA, someone came kidnapped him, tortured him.
Speaker 1: There's photos of him after he was released. He is
Speaker 1: like totally his face was basically rearranged and now there's
Speaker 1: more guys come into the house looking to do the
Speaker 1: same thing, but instead of this guy answering the door,
Speaker 1: it's like SGA and his wife, I mean, like, you
Speaker 1: don't want that, right, you don't want you don't want
Speaker 1: that shown up at your house if you're trying to
Speaker 1: raise a family there or anything else like that. And
Speaker 1: at no point during the sale did anyone tell SGA
Speaker 1: or his group that who used to be in the house,
Speaker 1: So they had no idea that this was going to happen.
Speaker 1: They basically packed up and left. So now they're trying
Speaker 1: to reverse the sale and they're going to court over it.
Speaker 2: That's nuts, though, right, that's pretty crazy, and I think
Speaker 2: he's definitely taken the right step. So I would definitely
Speaker 2: get some lawyers involved, like it might be time to
Speaker 2: sue some people.
Speaker 1: Like it took the Sopranos involved.
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's that's a scary situation.
Speaker 2: And I hope that works out in his favor and
Speaker 2: his family's favor, and hopefully they can get to a
Speaker 2: place where they're comfortable and able to you know, raise
Speaker 2: their family and leave live in peace. But that's definitely
Speaker 2: a scary situation. I don't wish that on anybody.
Speaker 1: I mean, look, obviously, even if you're home, you don't
Speaker 1: want that going on, but especially if you're a pro
Speaker 1: athlete and you're on the road a lot like that's
Speaker 1: that that's just not okay, Like that's that's bonkers to me.
Speaker 1: I also don't know how you can owe one hundred
Speaker 1: and fifty people more than twenty five million dollars collectively,
Speaker 1: but I guess if you work really hard at it.
Speaker 3: Dude was definitely into some jankie business.
Speaker 2: So yeah, that's that's a different a situation.
Speaker 1: I just want you know, most fans out there are
Speaker 1: not buying homes for six million dollars. But it's not
Speaker 1: all it's not all the sweet life people. Apparently things
Speaker 1: go wrong for them too, So I don't know a
Speaker 1: nicer story. Victor Weber, as we know, has been You
Speaker 1: mentioned the hype around him. I mean, everybody wants a
Speaker 1: piece of what they think is going to be this
Speaker 1: incredible NBA legendary story. And his first game, warn Jersey
Speaker 1: just went up for auction. It sold South Thebes for
Speaker 1: seven hundred and sixty two thousand dollars for one jersey
Speaker 1: that cracked the top five. Ever, I mean that's that's
Speaker 1: what's bonkers. Think about all of NBA history, all the
Speaker 1: jerseys that have gone on the memorabilia market, all that stuff.
Speaker 1: This became number five, number one. Michael Jordan's nineteen ninety
Speaker 1: eight game NBA Finals Game one jersey. Right, I want
Speaker 1: to know what that last game where he hit the shot,
Speaker 1: but anyway that he probably has that one at home.
Speaker 1: But yes, Michael Jordan's nineteen ninety eight NBA Finals Game
Speaker 1: one jersey that went for ten million dollars, so nuts
Speaker 1: but understandable. Wilt Chamberlain his seventy two NBA Finals jersey,
Speaker 1: that Lakers jersey went for nearly five million dollars. Kobe
Speaker 1: Bryant had one that went for like a little over
Speaker 1: three and a half million dollars, is rookie jersey. But
Speaker 1: the fact that Victor webin Yama is in that conversation
Speaker 1: now in the top five those names Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain,
Speaker 1: Kobe Bryant, and Lebron James. That jersey also is in
Speaker 1: the top fives. And now Victor webin Yama. I mean,
Speaker 1: that's where we already.
Speaker 2: Are with this guy, and it's just you got to
Speaker 2: credit his talent. I mean obviously, obviously these people believe
Speaker 2: in his young kids talent. They believe he's going to
Speaker 2: have an incredible career.
Speaker 3: I believe that dollars.
Speaker 1: I don't know. If you had a you think about
Speaker 1: who you're like loves were growing up, like who your
Speaker 1: favorite players were. If you could, if you could have
Speaker 1: one jersey from one era or one particular style of
Speaker 1: jersey from one player, who would you shell out some
Speaker 1: money for?
Speaker 2: Oh man, I was actually lucky enough to get that jersey.
Speaker 2: I have a signed Bo Jackson jersey. So Jackson fan. Yes,
Speaker 2: Alabama guy, So I'm big on all my natives from Alabama,
Speaker 2: So I know the feeling. But I'm gonna be honest,
Speaker 2: it definitely Wasn't this cost.
Speaker 1: A million dollars.
Speaker 3: Nah, not even close. So it was actually gifted to me,
Speaker 3: like thank you.
Speaker 2: Yeah, So, but to come out of my pocket, I
Speaker 2: don't know.
Speaker 3: I don't know.
Speaker 1: I'm sure Bo Jackson's a fan of you too, So again,
Speaker 1: you all your Alabama guys got to stick together. Yeah.
Speaker 1: I just shudder to think if Wemby's in an NBA finals,
Speaker 1: if already his rookie year jersey is nearly a million
Speaker 1: we'll see, we'll see what happens, all right, but you
Speaker 1: will leave it there. You guys can catch all the
Speaker 1: episodes of Bullyball on YouTube Showtime Basketball's channel. You can
Speaker 1: also get it wherever you get your podcasts. Give us
Speaker 1: those five star reviews, those helping us in the algorithm.
Speaker 1: I'm not ashamed. I'm going to ask for them. I'm
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Speaker 1: I am asking you go give that five star review
Speaker 1: because that will help us out spread the love, spread
Speaker 1: the love of bully Ball. We will be back next Monday.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Boogy cousins.
Speaker 3: Thank you,