WEBVTT - What Sparked This Turnaround for the Lakers? 0:00:08.920 --> 0:00:12.639 Your thoughts on the Kyrie situation. 0:00:13.000 --> 0:00:16.880 Well, I think it's pretty telling as far as like 0:00:17.560 --> 0:00:20.160 how I think the most upsetting thing to me about 0:00:20.160 --> 0:00:22.400 it was like the lack of sort of like support 0:00:22.560 --> 0:00:25.880 obviously for not just like the Jewish community, but just 0:00:25.960 --> 0:00:30.400 like like anti hate speech from other players and like 0:00:30.440 --> 0:00:32.479 coaches and people in the league in general, Like, obviously 0:00:32.560 --> 0:00:36.239 it's not their responsibility to like account for speak for Kyrie, 0:00:36.880 --> 0:00:39.960 but the few voices I did here to speak about 0:00:39.960 --> 0:00:42.840 it were like mostly supporting his right to like say 0:00:42.840 --> 0:00:45.560 whatever he wants, which I thought was really upsetting. 0:00:47.000 --> 0:00:48.960 There wasn't a lot of pute players. 0:00:48.640 --> 0:00:51.320 Coming out and being like, you know, like, for example, 0:00:51.400 --> 0:00:55.840 like like osmond On the Calves is a Jewish NBA player. 0:00:55.880 --> 0:00:59.520 It must have really sucked to have zero Cleveland Cavaliers 0:00:59.560 --> 0:01:02.280 come out like hey, one of our teammates is Jewish 0:01:02.320 --> 0:01:07.000 and like this really sucks. But uh, I like, I mean, 0:01:07.000 --> 0:01:08.840 I thought Lebron's statement on it at the time was 0:01:08.880 --> 0:01:13.080 great since he's sort of like, you know, he said 0:01:13.080 --> 0:01:15.640 some stuff since then that like weaken the statement a 0:01:15.640 --> 0:01:17.720 little bit because I think he honestly just wants Kyrie 0:01:17.800 --> 0:01:19.840 to be a Laker, and so he's like trying to 0:01:19.920 --> 0:01:22.520 like lay the groundwork for that, which I get on 0:01:22.560 --> 0:01:25.000 a basketball level and a human level, it kind of sucks. 0:01:25.040 --> 0:01:28.160 But but yeah, I don't know. I mean, I think 0:01:28.160 --> 0:01:31.399 it's like we're in such a weird time in history 0:01:31.400 --> 0:01:34.319 where like people can like say stuff like that and 0:01:34.400 --> 0:01:37.280 kind of be okay, And it's like, what, like can you. 0:01:37.280 --> 0:01:41.000 Imagine like even I don't know, in like the George W. 0:01:41.080 --> 0:01:44.360 Bush time, like not even like Obama like before that, 0:01:44.720 --> 0:01:46.280 like even like that was a pretty. 0:01:46.120 --> 0:01:47.200 Dark time in American history. 0:01:47.200 --> 0:01:50.520 We were like invading Middle Eastern countries and like it 0:01:50.600 --> 0:01:52.560 was pretty bad. I mean, like George Bush was like 0:01:52.880 --> 0:01:55.560 very problematic in his own ways, but like can you 0:01:55.560 --> 0:01:58.280 imagine someone just saying something like wildly into semitic and 0:01:58.320 --> 0:02:01.320 like survive weathering that storm at all? Like it just 0:02:01.760 --> 0:02:05.280 it was outrageous, you know, And like a lot of 0:02:05.360 --> 0:02:08.360 stuff that's said now, I feel like I think we 0:02:08.440 --> 0:02:14.480 got so desensitized, like so much insane horrifying stuff being 0:02:14.560 --> 0:02:18.120 like hurdled at us every single day, like like a 0:02:18.160 --> 0:02:21.480 different crazy thing that Trump was saying, a different mass shooting, 0:02:21.520 --> 0:02:26.000 a different like potential world war like every day that 0:02:26.040 --> 0:02:28.000 we were sort of just like, oh, like, look at 0:02:28.040 --> 0:02:30.360 your phone something horrifying. Okay, yeah, now I have to 0:02:30.360 --> 0:02:32.440 go to Starbucks, So I guess I'll deal with that later. 0:02:33.800 --> 0:02:35.919 And so I think people are sort of like, I 0:02:35.960 --> 0:02:40.120 think they have like a shock exhaustion, like, and people 0:02:40.200 --> 0:02:42.880 just are it's really hard to be outraged all the time, 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:45.400 and it's actually not They shouldn't be, Like it's really 0:02:45.440 --> 0:02:47.840 bad for you. So I think when something like the 0:02:47.919 --> 0:02:50.280 Kyrie thing happens, it's just like, oh, there's. 0:02:50.080 --> 0:02:54.640 A fucking Kyrie being Kyrie. And I think. 0:02:54.520 --> 0:02:59.240 People were rightfully really upset, But I think, how can 0:02:59.280 --> 0:03:01.800 you maintain being upset about something like that for longer 0:03:01.840 --> 0:03:03.600 than like two or three days, Like you just can't. 0:03:03.680 --> 0:03:04.960 There's so much else going on. 0:03:05.480 --> 0:03:07.919 Yeah, And it was it felt like there were these 0:03:08.000 --> 0:03:12.760 other groups that were mad because quote unquote Kyrie didn't 0:03:12.760 --> 0:03:15.799 do anything really, you know, and so they're like, oh, 0:03:15.960 --> 0:03:21.000 Kyrie's being you know, unlike drugged through the coals on 0:03:21.080 --> 0:03:26.840 something that's very insidious, very painful, but that there wasn't 0:03:26.840 --> 0:03:28.440 an even I don't know if you saw this, but 0:03:28.600 --> 0:03:32.320 Jay Williams went on Ryan Clark's podcast and they were 0:03:32.360 --> 0:03:35.240 basically like, yeah, Kyrie's just trying to figure out his 0:03:35.400 --> 0:03:39.000 heritage and there's nothing wrong with that, and it's like, 0:03:39.720 --> 0:03:44.080 no way, See, the facts don't support that, right, the 0:03:44.080 --> 0:03:49.440 facts don't support that. The sort of crux of what 0:03:49.560 --> 0:03:53.840 he's trying to do and getting at and discovering is 0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:58.040 not something to discover and that discovery sort of puts 0:03:58.360 --> 0:04:01.640 other people's history and watched that history in a really 0:04:01.960 --> 0:04:02.839 insidious way. 0:04:03.120 --> 0:04:03.400 Yeah. 0:04:03.440 --> 0:04:05.120 And it was also just like, it's not even just 0:04:05.160 --> 0:04:07.120 this idea, because I mean, the fundamental idea of I 0:04:07.120 --> 0:04:09.320 think what he was like get trying to get behind 0:04:09.400 --> 0:04:12.040 was this idea of that the original that like like 0:04:12.080 --> 0:04:14.520 the black Israelites and that the original Jews are actually 0:04:14.560 --> 0:04:16.400 black and that has been wiped from history. 0:04:16.440 --> 0:04:18.520 And it's like that's a conspiracy theory. 0:04:18.560 --> 0:04:20.800 But like, I understand why that would be intriguing to 0:04:20.839 --> 0:04:23.480 you if you're someone like Kyrie who like has historically 0:04:23.480 --> 0:04:26.159 been drawn to conspiracy theories and drawn to like, oh, 0:04:26.160 --> 0:04:28.279 people are trying to hide my history from me. The 0:04:28.360 --> 0:04:30.800 other problem that I think was like the bigger problem 0:04:30.880 --> 0:04:34.800 was that the actual piece of film slash literature that 0:04:34.839 --> 0:04:37.480 he was promoting had a bunch of other stuff in it, 0:04:37.880 --> 0:04:40.840 like Hitler wasn't that bad type of stuff, so like 0:04:41.480 --> 0:04:43.479 that stuff comes with it and you don't get to 0:04:43.520 --> 0:04:46.800 like cherry pick. And the way he reacted to it 0:04:46.839 --> 0:04:49.640 was super like, well, I'm entitled to do whatever, and 0:04:49.680 --> 0:04:51.920 you guys are the ones saying that I'm promoting and 0:04:51.960 --> 0:04:54.000 I'm just like tweeting it and that's not a promotion. 0:04:54.200 --> 0:04:56.600 Like he was just being kind of like I feel like, 0:04:56.680 --> 0:04:59.000 kind of petulant in his response, and I think that 0:04:59.120 --> 0:05:02.440 also was part of it. But yeah, I mean I 0:05:02.480 --> 0:05:07.320 think like, and also this is like obviously such a complicated, 0:05:07.400 --> 0:05:10.120 nuanced issue because like I think a lot of people's 0:05:10.160 --> 0:05:13.600 responses in Kyrie's defense are pointing out something which is 0:05:13.680 --> 0:05:17.240 just fundamentally true, which is that like Jewish people and 0:05:17.279 --> 0:05:20.680 I am one, as much as we have been persecuted 0:05:20.839 --> 0:05:23.679 and there is racism and hatred against us, we also 0:05:24.120 --> 0:05:26.640 the majority of us benefit from white privilege, which is 0:05:26.680 --> 0:05:27.240 a real thing. 0:05:27.960 --> 0:05:29.160 So it's not just like. 0:05:29.200 --> 0:05:34.440 Cut and dry like hatefulness and cut and dry prejudice 0:05:34.480 --> 0:05:36.760 that we're dealing with, because we're also beneficiaries of like 0:05:36.920 --> 0:05:39.479 very real privilege at the same time. And so I 0:05:39.520 --> 0:05:41.160 think that like a lot of people who are coming 0:05:41.160 --> 0:05:45.640 to Kyrie's defense are responding really less to like the 0:05:45.680 --> 0:05:48.400 actual problem at hand and more to like years and 0:05:48.480 --> 0:05:53.360 years and years of being victims of racism. And I 0:05:53.440 --> 0:05:55.560 think that's totally understandable, and I have a lot of 0:05:55.560 --> 0:05:58.200 empathy for that. So that's why I'm sort of like, uh, 0:05:58.240 --> 0:06:01.880 it's real complicated because it's like the people who look 0:06:02.080 --> 0:06:05.680 like the people who are being, you know, victims of 0:06:05.680 --> 0:06:09.960 prejudice in this instance, are the very same looking people 0:06:10.120 --> 0:06:13.039 for the most part, who have made black people's lives 0:06:13.040 --> 0:06:13.640 a living hell. 0:06:14.200 --> 0:06:15.800 Like that's just white people across the board. 0:06:15.839 --> 0:06:18.240 I'm not saying Jewish people specifically, but like white people 0:06:18.320 --> 0:06:21.359 in general. So like, I think that that's understandable that 0:06:21.360 --> 0:06:23.720 there would be like complicatedness there and it wouldn't just 0:06:23.880 --> 0:06:26.000 all be like, oh, kumbaya, we're all in this together, 0:06:26.000 --> 0:06:29.560 because we're all persecuted and we're all like marginalized, Like 0:06:29.920 --> 0:06:33.680 there's marginalizations obviously, like very complicated and there's a lot 0:06:33.720 --> 0:06:37.000 of nuance there. So I just wish that people like 0:06:37.080 --> 0:06:41.840 Kyrie were more like willing to actually educate themselves and 0:06:41.920 --> 0:06:45.279 like not just like watching YouTube video and think that 0:06:45.320 --> 0:06:49.320 they have all the answers and also something that I 0:06:49.320 --> 0:06:52.360 think is a problem that is born out of internet 0:06:52.360 --> 0:06:56.159 culture is like reluctance to admit when you're wrong. Like 0:06:56.240 --> 0:06:59.320 I think that's like when he realized what he promoted. 0:06:59.680 --> 0:07:01.520 I think he just was too proud to be like, 0:07:01.600 --> 0:07:03.960 oh fuck, I fucked up. There's some bad shit in 0:07:03.960 --> 0:07:05.000 that video, you know. 0:07:05.480 --> 0:07:07.680 And let's be honest, Like he didn't watch that movie. 0:07:08.160 --> 0:07:10.440 I watched the whole thing. No, he probably watched like 0:07:10.480 --> 0:07:11.280 a clip from it. 0:07:11.320 --> 0:07:14.160 So that's the thing, is like we're all human, we 0:07:14.200 --> 0:07:17.520 all make mistakes, we all maybe like promote something that 0:07:17.600 --> 0:07:20.560 ends up being problematic, like whatever, like. 0:07:21.000 --> 0:07:23.920 Just own it, just be like, my bad, this was 0:07:23.960 --> 0:07:26.440 actually really messed up. Actually don't believe this because it's 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:26.880 not real. 0:07:27.240 --> 0:07:30.240 So that's likely that's that we can at least get 0:07:30.240 --> 0:07:32.160 that far as a human race, that we can like, 0:07:32.240 --> 0:07:35.720 if we're gonna keep being dead wrong, at least maybe 0:07:35.760 --> 0:07:38.040 we can like own it at some point and like 0:07:38.200 --> 0:07:39.880 be willing to like grow and move on from it 0:07:39.920 --> 0:07:41.680 and not just like die on every single hill. 0:07:42.360 --> 0:07:46.880 So let's talk a littlekers. Yeah, there's a lot, girl, 0:07:47.280 --> 0:07:49.360 there's going on. Where to begin? 0:07:50.920 --> 0:07:54.160 It feels like the season has already like had a 0:07:54.200 --> 0:07:54.720 full one. 0:07:54.960 --> 0:07:59.800 Right, There's been three seasons all win five and then 0:08:00.080 --> 0:08:02.320 this sort of like middle zone and then this crazy 0:08:02.400 --> 0:08:07.840 dominance from Anthony Davis, which, yeah, I mean everything data Davis, right, 0:08:07.880 --> 0:08:08.560 that's nick. 0:08:10.160 --> 0:08:12.040 I didn't think it was gonna work. I didn't think 0:08:12.040 --> 0:08:13.800 that the and maybe it still won't. 0:08:13.880 --> 0:08:17.040 Right, No, I'm not fully convinced yet, but but he's 0:08:17.040 --> 0:08:18.360 been amazing for sure. 0:08:18.840 --> 0:08:22.040 So, like, what do you think has changed for the 0:08:22.120 --> 0:08:26.880 Lakers from going on five and people saying, hey, trade 0:08:26.880 --> 0:08:30.760 everyone to and like trade Russ. 0:08:30.440 --> 0:08:31.520 And maybe waving to me. 0:08:32.240 --> 0:08:35.160 I definitely said that, yeah, trade them or wave them 0:08:35.280 --> 0:08:38.240 or get rid of them, to whatever version that we 0:08:38.280 --> 0:08:40.360 see now. And what is that version now? 0:08:41.040 --> 0:08:43.280 I mean, I think there's honestly so many things that 0:08:43.360 --> 0:08:46.680 broke right for the version of the Lakers right now 0:08:46.880 --> 0:08:49.200 where they're winning. I think the most important thing that 0:08:49.320 --> 0:08:52.360 changed is that Anthony Davis is healthy and he's super 0:08:52.400 --> 0:08:56.880 motivated and he's playing like absolute peak Anthony Davis. And 0:08:56.920 --> 0:08:59.200 I think, you know, coach Ham said in the off season, 0:08:59.280 --> 0:09:01.640 like that's everything for this team. Like if Anthony Davis 0:09:01.679 --> 0:09:04.600 is playing like an MVP, it's a completely different story. 0:09:04.640 --> 0:09:06.640 So I think that's The biggest thing that's changed is 0:09:06.960 --> 0:09:09.200 he came out at the beginning of the season looking 0:09:09.240 --> 0:09:11.920 a little like not like apathetic, but just like he 0:09:12.000 --> 0:09:14.240 wasn't giving a thousand percent like he is now, and 0:09:14.280 --> 0:09:16.560 he seems like he's just on a tear, like he's 0:09:16.600 --> 0:09:18.480 just like has something to prove now, which I think 0:09:18.480 --> 0:09:19.559 he should have to begin with. 0:09:19.679 --> 0:09:22.319 But that's one two. 0:09:22.400 --> 0:09:26.040 I mean, like it sounds inconsequential, but like they did 0:09:26.080 --> 0:09:27.920 have some players that were out to start the season, 0:09:27.960 --> 0:09:30.199 like Dennis Shruder, I think is like a good bench 0:09:30.240 --> 0:09:31.400 option for a point guard. 0:09:31.520 --> 0:09:34.880 He wasn't available. Thomas Bryant was also out. 0:09:34.920 --> 0:09:37.760 Like those aren't going to like change your season, but 0:09:37.800 --> 0:09:41.720 it is a factor, like they weren't fully fully healthy obviously. 0:09:42.040 --> 0:09:45.120 The Westbrook thing, I think he was very resistant to 0:09:45.160 --> 0:09:47.600 coming off the bench in the beginning. He said that 0:09:47.840 --> 0:09:49.720 it was going to be the cause of injuries because 0:09:49.720 --> 0:09:51.680 he didn't know how to stay warm if he was 0:09:51.720 --> 0:09:52.520 coming off the bench. 0:09:52.520 --> 0:09:54.720 He was being like a big big baby about it. 0:09:55.200 --> 0:09:57.400 And I do think at first when they brought him 0:09:57.440 --> 0:09:59.960 off the bench, they kind of tried, like they tried 0:10:00.080 --> 0:10:03.720 him and the like having him, you know, start and 0:10:03.800 --> 0:10:05.839 then immediately come off the floor and then come off 0:10:05.840 --> 0:10:08.280 the bench. They kind of tried, they really tried to 0:10:08.320 --> 0:10:10.160 be bullish on having him in closing lineups. 0:10:10.200 --> 0:10:11.079 That really doesn't work. 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:14.120 So I think having him just like in a straight 0:10:14.200 --> 0:10:17.720 up bench role, like not opening, not closing, just right 0:10:17.720 --> 0:10:21.800 in the middle has been super helpful. And then Lebron 0:10:21.880 --> 0:10:24.120 is like, you know, finding his rhythm. He had a 0:10:24.160 --> 0:10:26.400 really rough start to the season. He's looked a lot 0:10:26.400 --> 0:10:30.199 better in recent games. He had you know, tweaked his ankle, 0:10:30.679 --> 0:10:32.920 kind of tweaked his kind of growin injury come back. 0:10:33.000 --> 0:10:36.320 So like I think Lebron playing at the level that 0:10:36.360 --> 0:10:39.240 he's kept capable of, ad playing at the level he's 0:10:39.240 --> 0:10:42.240 capable of, and everybody else kind of buying in. I 0:10:42.280 --> 0:10:45.520 still don't think that's like a championship team personally, because 0:10:45.559 --> 0:10:48.680 like I think that they do if in my ideal world, 0:10:48.720 --> 0:10:51.440 like they at least need to move Patrick Beverley and 0:10:51.520 --> 0:10:55.760 a pick if not Russ. But they're way more fun 0:10:55.800 --> 0:10:58.480 to watch now and they're not a complete disaster. They're 0:10:58.559 --> 0:11:01.079 like a playing team at least, So that's I mean, 0:11:01.640 --> 0:11:04.040 that's way better than what they weren't to start the season. 0:11:04.080 --> 0:11:06.679 It was like some of the most depressing basketball I've 0:11:06.679 --> 0:11:11.400 ever seen. It was joyless, skillless, like death. 0:11:11.559 --> 0:11:12.520 It was so bad. 0:11:13.040 --> 0:11:17.280 And the amount of airball brick three much. 0:11:17.960 --> 0:11:21.760 It was just so so bad, so so freaking bad. Yeah, 0:11:21.880 --> 0:11:22.760 so bad. 0:11:23.280 --> 0:11:25.600 You said that you thought the Lakers were in a 0:11:25.640 --> 0:11:28.640 toxic relationship with Russell Westbrook in The Guardians. 0:11:29.200 --> 0:11:31.040 You think that's true still. 0:11:32.640 --> 0:11:34.600 I mean, I think it's complicated because I think they're 0:11:34.600 --> 0:11:36.960 in that weird if I had to describe where they 0:11:37.000 --> 0:11:39.480 are in their relationship to keep going with the metaphor 0:11:39.520 --> 0:11:41.080 I was using in the piece, which is that they're 0:11:41.080 --> 0:11:44.319 in this long term relationship that like maybe wasn't very 0:11:44.360 --> 0:11:46.600 thought out, and like maybe you like have a really 0:11:46.600 --> 0:11:48.640 fun couple weeks with someone on vacation and then you 0:11:48.679 --> 0:11:50.480 move in together and then you're like, oh, we actually 0:11:50.520 --> 0:11:52.559 have like nothing in common. This is kind of a disaster. 0:11:53.200 --> 0:11:55.520 Like in keeping with that metaphor, I think they've been 0:11:55.559 --> 0:11:58.960 to couple's therapy. I think they're both trying to work 0:11:59.000 --> 0:12:02.640 it out. I don't think I mean for sure it's 0:12:02.679 --> 0:12:04.840 over after this season. I mean, at the very most, 0:12:04.920 --> 0:12:06.720 it's going to be one more season. They're not going 0:12:06.760 --> 0:12:10.000 to bring him back. If they did they'd be absolutely insane, 0:12:10.040 --> 0:12:13.800 and I really don't think they will. I still think 0:12:13.800 --> 0:12:16.640 it would probably be better to trade him, Like, even 0:12:16.679 --> 0:12:20.600 though it's going better, a forty seven million dollar bench 0:12:20.600 --> 0:12:24.000 player is like not the best case scenario for anyone, 0:12:24.040 --> 0:12:27.160 Like he would way prefer to have a bigger role 0:12:27.240 --> 0:12:29.520 I think on a different team, and they would way 0:12:29.520 --> 0:12:31.840 prefer to have that forty seven million dollars broken up 0:12:31.880 --> 0:12:34.319 into a couple of other bench players that could be 0:12:34.400 --> 0:12:39.920 equally helpful and impactful, but more of them. So I 0:12:40.000 --> 0:12:43.160 still think if they could trade him with one pick, 0:12:43.360 --> 0:12:45.680 I would still say to do it. I think it's 0:12:45.840 --> 0:12:47.840 it's going well enough now that if they would have 0:12:47.880 --> 0:12:50.959 to use two picks to trade his contract halfway through 0:12:50.960 --> 0:12:52.800 the season, yeah, it probably doesn't make a whole lot 0:12:52.840 --> 0:12:58.040 of sense because it's working enough, and you know, they 0:12:58.040 --> 0:13:00.000 can probably move Beverly and get somebody back. 0:13:01.800 --> 0:13:05.160 But it's one of those things. It's like I think 0:13:05.200 --> 0:13:06.240 I said this in the article. 0:13:06.280 --> 0:13:09.160 It's like if someone starts doing the dishes but you 0:13:09.200 --> 0:13:09.720 don't agree. 0:13:09.880 --> 0:13:11.720 One of you wants kids and one of you doesn't. 0:13:12.160 --> 0:13:14.400 It's like, yeah, that's great that you're doing the dishes now, 0:13:14.440 --> 0:13:14.880 but like. 0:13:15.120 --> 0:13:17.719 We still want completely different things, And I feel like 0:13:17.760 --> 0:13:20.440 that's the Russell Westbrook thing, is like it's going better, 0:13:21.280 --> 0:13:24.160 but at the end of the day, they both know 0:13:24.360 --> 0:13:25.720 it's not right. 0:13:26.559 --> 0:13:28.000 So I don't know. 0:13:28.040 --> 0:13:30.760 I'm I'm like, sort of, I still think it would 0:13:30.800 --> 0:13:33.520 be preferable for them to move him, but I understand 0:13:34.480 --> 0:13:36.440 that it's looking a lot better and I understand why 0:13:36.480 --> 0:13:37.480 they wouldn't. 0:13:38.000 --> 0:13:41.760 One of the things that was like really prominent chatter 0:13:42.559 --> 0:13:45.560 was that the Lakers would be really the only asset 0:13:45.640 --> 0:13:48.559 that they really have, I mean because right, like, Russell 0:13:48.559 --> 0:13:51.280 Westbrook's not an asset. He's a liability, which is why 0:13:51.320 --> 0:13:53.000 you have to hatch picks. 0:13:52.720 --> 0:13:54.600 To him in order to get rid of him. 0:13:54.679 --> 0:13:57.240 Right, So the only asset that you know, the chatter 0:13:57.440 --> 0:14:01.160 was that they really could trade was Ad right, Ad 0:14:01.559 --> 0:14:06.560 last nine thirty four, sixteen three with the steal and 0:14:06.600 --> 0:14:09.840 three blocks. But before those nine games, like he was 0:14:11.880 --> 0:14:15.320 very suspect play, like you said, padetic probably not going 0:14:15.400 --> 0:14:19.040 to get a lot back for a d at that point. 0:14:18.720 --> 0:14:21.040 Which is ridiculous because it's just a few games. I mean, 0:14:21.080 --> 0:14:24.600 people are so they have like fly memories. It's like 0:14:24.680 --> 0:14:29.120 he like when the Lakers traded everything, they traded for him, 0:14:29.560 --> 0:14:31.880 like no one people thought that was a lot, but 0:14:31.920 --> 0:14:34.120 they weren't like that's preposterous. 0:14:34.120 --> 0:14:35.520 They're like, this is one of the top five best 0:14:35.520 --> 0:14:36.360 players in the league. 0:14:36.840 --> 0:14:39.400 Since that time, he's won a championship and then, you know, 0:14:39.480 --> 0:14:41.880 dealt with some injuries that were a lot of which 0:14:41.920 --> 0:14:43.680 I think a lot of the discourse about it is 0:14:43.720 --> 0:14:45.120 kind of silly because like a lot. 0:14:44.960 --> 0:14:46.120 Of it is really bad luck. 0:14:46.440 --> 0:14:48.400 Like like it's kind of like Joel and Bid Like 0:14:48.400 --> 0:14:50.960 I feel like Joel and Bad's just had bad injury luck, Like, yes, 0:14:51.000 --> 0:14:53.280 he does. He need to learn how to fall so 0:14:53.280 --> 0:14:55.120 that he doesn't like hurt himself, Like yeah, he should 0:14:55.120 --> 0:14:57.280 probably be better at falling as like an enormous person. 0:14:57.400 --> 0:15:00.280 But like people were like like someone just like hit 0:15:00.360 --> 0:15:02.320 him in the face and like broke his face ball 0:15:02.440 --> 0:15:04.960 like stuff like that, like eighties, someone just like stepped 0:15:05.000 --> 0:15:08.280 on him. So to some degree, I think it's a 0:15:08.320 --> 0:15:11.800 little overblown, the like you know, the Anthony Davis like 0:15:11.960 --> 0:15:15.600 speculation about like can he stay healthy? But I get it, 0:15:15.680 --> 0:15:18.120 but I think there was like some luck involved there. 0:15:18.320 --> 0:15:21.040 I think you think a d and beat he cursed 0:15:21.240 --> 0:15:22.160 with the injury bug. 0:15:22.840 --> 0:15:25.600 I mean, shit, man, like they kind of feel a 0:15:25.600 --> 0:15:27.920 little cursed cause there's, like I said, there's just so 0:15:28.000 --> 0:15:34.640 much bad luck involved. But also, yeah, I think when 0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:38.360 you're that big, there's just like bodies aren't really supposed 0:15:38.360 --> 0:15:42.040 to be that tall, so just things go wrong. I mean, 0:15:42.080 --> 0:15:43.960 I think any big man in the league is going 0:15:44.040 --> 0:15:46.040 to deal with a certain level of injury, especially to 0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:48.480 the like lower half of the body, because that's just 0:15:48.520 --> 0:15:51.400 a lot of weight. And like that's why people worry 0:15:51.440 --> 0:15:54.200 about about Zion is like it's just a lot of 0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:57.040 weight like on the upper half of your body to 0:15:57.120 --> 0:16:00.560 be running around with like pounding like your you're gonna 0:16:00.560 --> 0:16:03.520 have foot in ankle issues when you have like you know, 0:16:03.840 --> 0:16:06.280 that much weight and height on your body. 0:16:06.320 --> 0:16:07.720 But I don't know. 0:16:07.840 --> 0:16:13.400 Lebron's like six' nine and he stayed prett damn, Healthy SO. 0:16:12.600 --> 0:16:16.560 I don't know different dudes, too, Right, like, yeah some 0:16:16.600 --> 0:16:19.960 of the discourse Around lebron versus eight is like work ethic, 0:16:20.160 --> 0:16:24.480 Related and so you wonder what with, flip what the 0:16:24.520 --> 0:16:28.200 switch has, flipped like between the eighty that we've seen 0:16:28.240 --> 0:16:30.600 the last two years and this version of, eighty like you, 0:16:30.640 --> 0:16:34.280 said hyper, Motivated like why do you think that light 0:16:34.360 --> 0:16:37.200 switch has gone. On do you think that that's A 0:16:37.280 --> 0:16:41.440 Darvin ham related switch? Flipper like This Frank volee will 0:16:41.440 --> 0:16:42.920 bring this side out Of? Ad do you? 0:16:42.960 --> 0:16:46.360 THINK i think Like dardham deserves a ton of credit 0:16:46.440 --> 0:16:49.119 because from Everything i've heard from like inside the organization 0:16:49.240 --> 0:16:52.640 and from them, themselves like they have a great. RELATIONSHIP 0:16:52.880 --> 0:16:54.800 i think they have like a great, relationship not just 0:16:54.840 --> 0:16:56.080 a player, coach but like as. 0:16:56.120 --> 0:16:57.920 PEOPLE i think they have a lot of mutual respect 0:16:57.920 --> 0:16:58.160 for each. 0:16:58.160 --> 0:17:01.680 Other darvin is, Awesome LIKE i SPENT i, MEAN i 0:17:01.720 --> 0:17:04.359 went to like five home games WHEN i was working 0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:07.720 on that reci, piece and every MINUTE i sent Around, 0:17:07.800 --> 0:17:09.520 DARVIN i was just, like oh, yeah like you. 0:17:09.560 --> 0:17:11.679 COULD i would literally trust this man with my. 0:17:11.720 --> 0:17:13.359 LIFE i don't know him at, all but he's just 0:17:13.359 --> 0:17:15.720 like has such a presence about. Him he has such 0:17:15.720 --> 0:17:20.280 a like like, calming like paternal, presence AND i think 0:17:20.320 --> 0:17:23.919 that works really well for some, players like AND i 0:17:23.920 --> 0:17:26.359 think it's it's really resonated With. Ad LIKE ad is 0:17:26.359 --> 0:17:29.919 a pretty sensitive, SOUL i, think AND i Think darvin 0:17:30.000 --> 0:17:33.359 is like just communicated really well with. Him SO i 0:17:33.359 --> 0:17:35.760 do think he deserves some. CREDIT i, MEAN i also, 0:17:35.800 --> 0:17:38.440 think LIKE i feel Like ad is kind of in 0:17:38.560 --> 0:17:41.960 like HIS. MJ i took that personally, Era like you 0:17:42.040 --> 0:17:46.359 Had Bill simmons speculating after the first few games of the, season. 0:17:46.080 --> 0:17:49.920 Like should The lakers even bother Trading? Ad is he worth? 0:17:49.960 --> 0:17:52.520 Anything could they even get like a fraction of What 0:17:53.080 --> 0:17:55.320 utah got For Rudy, gobert you, know like he was 0:17:55.359 --> 0:17:57.439 saying stuff like, that and at a certain, POINT i 0:17:57.480 --> 0:18:00.280 mean like you should take that, personally you, know to be, 0:18:00.320 --> 0:18:03.560 like excuse, Me I'm anthony Fucking, davis like lest you. 0:18:03.720 --> 0:18:06.080 Forget SO i think it's a. 0:18:06.119 --> 0:18:09.080 COMBO i think it's Like DARVINHAM'S i think a really good, 0:18:09.080 --> 0:18:12.080 coach and especially on the person l side of, THINGS 0:18:12.359 --> 0:18:13.920 i mean on the x's AND o side of, THINGS 0:18:13.960 --> 0:18:16.399 i feel, like, yeah He's he's made some questionable decisions at, 0:18:16.400 --> 0:18:19.159 times BUT i think the most important thing about being 0:18:19.160 --> 0:18:21.480 a coach is like how you deal with personalities and, 0:18:21.520 --> 0:18:25.360 egos and especially in a situation like The lakers where 0:18:25.359 --> 0:18:31.040 there's three enormous, personalities like enormous, stars like that's really 0:18:31.119 --> 0:18:34.879 difficult to deal. With SO i, think for sure credit to, 0:18:34.960 --> 0:18:36.760 him AND i Think ad also has just started to 0:18:36.760 --> 0:18:39.159 be like have a little bit of a chip on 0:18:39.200 --> 0:18:39.880 his shoulder about. 0:18:39.880 --> 0:18:42.320 It. YEAH i remember one of the biggest videos THAT 0:18:42.359 --> 0:18:45.639 i did when the podcast first started was is ad? 0:18:45.880 --> 0:18:49.240 Soft AND i remember. 0:18:49.440 --> 0:18:52.520 On a storyline for, sure it really Has it's a valid. 0:18:52.600 --> 0:18:55.080 Question and this was like maybe two years. 0:18:55.080 --> 0:18:57.920 Ago AND i remember in the postseason when they went 0:18:58.640 --> 0:19:01.159 they played The, sons it was like right before, that 0:19:01.240 --> 0:19:05.040 he was, like there's just a lot of people calling me, soft, Right, Yeah, 0:19:05.520 --> 0:19:09.120 yeah you can tell that these guys read a lot 0:19:09.320 --> 0:19:13.399 and watch a lot and absorb a, lot and you 0:19:13.440 --> 0:19:15.560 talk About darvin Ham as as a coach and what 0:19:15.600 --> 0:19:17.879 he's done from just an ex's AND os, perspective like 0:19:18.440 --> 0:19:20.840 this is Probably Anthony davis says this is his third 0:19:20.920 --> 0:19:23.120 or fourth best stretch in his. Career BUT i went 0:19:23.240 --> 0:19:24.840 through his career game by game. 0:19:24.720 --> 0:19:25.840 To be the best stretch of his. 0:19:25.880 --> 0:19:28.479