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Speaker 1: Welcome to the State of the Lakers post game show

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Speaker 1: versus The King's Jason is out tonight. Uh, he was

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Speaker 1: a game time decision, but he's on a ski trip

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Speaker 1: and so he decided to take this one off. So

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Speaker 1: I'll be solo here, so kind of bear with me.

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Speaker 1: This was a tough one. Of course, I was, you know,

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Speaker 1: lower on the Memphis loss and others. I didn't really

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Speaker 1: think it was that big of a deal, like as

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Speaker 1: big a deal as people thought. I have. Memphis kind

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Speaker 1: of been closer to the Utah Phoenix tier than the

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Speaker 1: one the bundle up of the West with us to MAVs, Clippers,

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Speaker 1: et cetera. So I wasn't really mad at that we went.

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Speaker 1: We won our last at least six games other than

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Speaker 1: the two Memphis losses, but tonight was definitely a step back.

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Speaker 1: We'll get into it. Russ obviously is again the poster story.

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Speaker 1: His players will be plastered everywhere, and I'll definitely get

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Speaker 1: into him. We scored sixty seven points in that first half,

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Speaker 1: so this game was definitely winnable. You're up six. Honestly,

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Speaker 1: to me, this game was lost on the defensive end here.

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Speaker 1: The King's really ran simple actions and you know, you

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Speaker 1: can blame continuity, you can blame effort. I think all

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Speaker 1: those things are kind of intertwined. And I'm gonna try

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Speaker 1: to kind of put some clips up here of stuff

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Speaker 1: that I'm talking about, so again, people listening on the

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Speaker 1: pod or on dash radio tomorrow, I'll kind of explain

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Speaker 1: the player. It's pretty simple. So the first player is

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Speaker 1: kind of up there, and I'm gonna try to, you know,

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Speaker 1: integrate basketball players into the you know, into the podcast

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Speaker 1: a little bit here so I can kind of have

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Speaker 1: a little bit more visuals so it's a little easier

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Speaker 1: to see. But the first tweet is up there now.

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Speaker 1: So the Kings run this double draft screen, and it's

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Speaker 1: pretty simple here. They runned it, and they ran this

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Speaker 1: all night, right, It's basically just two screens for their

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Speaker 1: guard against whoever's defending whoever's against Leek Monk or every

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Speaker 1: Bradley or someone that we can't switch against, right, And

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Speaker 1: it was lay up after layup, or corner three after

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Speaker 1: corner three. It was and look, I don't I don't

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Speaker 1: know how to like start this, but we lost this

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Speaker 1: game defensively, and the rustuff is super frustrating obviously, and

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Speaker 1: he ended a lot of our big runs, but I

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Speaker 1: thought Lebron wasn't engaged on that end. And I don't

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Speaker 1: blame Lebron for and that's my kind of first point.

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Speaker 1: I don't blame Lebron for not being engaged defensively every

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Speaker 1: single night, right because he has a huge scoring load,

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Speaker 1: Like that's just what he has on his on his

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Speaker 1: plate every night. He has to score thirty thirty points

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Speaker 1: for us to be competitive. But when you go small ball,

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Speaker 1: you're big has to be engaged. And on these plays

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Speaker 1: we have no clue who the help guy is supposed

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Speaker 1: to be. And again I'm not sure where that responsibility lies.

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Speaker 1: But Stanley or Russ have to kind of step in here,

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Speaker 1: or Lebron has to show and recover back to Bagley.

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Speaker 1: And this is I just picked one play. This was

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Speaker 1: one of the first players of the game, and we

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Speaker 1: never really even adjusted to this. The King scored every

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Speaker 1: single point pretty much in the paint. There were four

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Speaker 1: for fourteen from three in the first half and still

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Speaker 1: put up sixty something points um. And that's kind of

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Speaker 1: where I want to start with this, because eight is

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Speaker 1: gonna be out a little bit longer as well, and

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Speaker 1: we can't just go into a nose dive here. I

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Speaker 1: would have liked to see Dwight Howard play a little bit,

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Speaker 1: play a little bit more, but there has to be

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Speaker 1: an identity to go along with the small ball where

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Speaker 1: we have a defensive identity as well. And this is

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Speaker 1: stuff that I just saw all night. I could have picked,

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Speaker 1: you know, five more plays of that. Darren Fox got

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Speaker 1: right to the basket. I thought Austin Reeves was our

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Speaker 1: you know, best defender on him tonight. I'll get into

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Speaker 1: Austin Um a little bit later and kind of why

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Speaker 1: I think he needs to play more. But d n

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Speaker 1: Fox got lay up after lay up. Looking at the

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Speaker 1: you know, plus minus always isn't always the best, you

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Speaker 1: know barometer for things like that, but Dwight Howard was

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Speaker 1: a plus nine tonight in fifteen minutes. I don't think

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Speaker 1: that's an accident. The Kings went up big twice. Actually,

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Speaker 1: I thought both our runs came from playing Dwight. And

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Speaker 1: I understand we want to move our identity and I

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Speaker 1: want to keep you know, I'm trying to keep this

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Speaker 1: podcast a little bit more on tonight. That's what happens

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Speaker 1: when you do a post game show every day. But

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Speaker 1: we're trying to move to this small ball identity, but

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Speaker 1: it can't be this rigid, right Like, there has to

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Speaker 1: be some leeway for versatility here because if Lebron is

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Speaker 1: not going to be engaged, and again I don't blame

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Speaker 1: him for that because of his scoring though, like I

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Speaker 1: talked about, but you have to kind of switch up here.

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Speaker 1: I think, you know, Dwight Howard should have played more.

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Speaker 1: Now does that change the outcome of this game? Who knows? Right?

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Speaker 1: And I think, you know, the offensive stuff is our

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Speaker 1: issues as well. I think the defense has to get better. Man,

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Speaker 1: there has to be some kind of identity there because

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Speaker 1: we gave way too many points in the paint, and

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Speaker 1: we came back out of the second half of the

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Speaker 1: same energy, with the same effort, and it really felt

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Speaker 1: like we could outscore the Kings tonight, right Like, That's

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Speaker 1: kind of what I felt that, That's kind of how

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Speaker 1: we operated this whole game. We were scoring at ease,

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Speaker 1: our jumpers were going down, and once those didn't go down,

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Speaker 1: the Kings, you know, just continued to score at the basket.

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Speaker 1: At the Darren Fox got lay up after lay up,

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Speaker 1: and again that double drags King is just one kind

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Speaker 1: of operation of them, if you could see it up there.

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Speaker 1: For wherever just came in, Kings ran that they ran

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Speaker 1: a just a simple ball screen, and our rotations were

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Speaker 1: so off, which is so against what a vocal team is. UM.

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Speaker 1: If you remember last year Lebron and a d went down,

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Speaker 1: but our defense stayed number one, and I don't expect

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Speaker 1: this team's defensive state number one. Of course, the you know,

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Speaker 1: the personnel is totally different, but the scheme still it

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Speaker 1: just feels like it's off a little bit. And we

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Speaker 1: have guys who help in different places, and we definitely

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Speaker 1: have people that players go at. I talked about they

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Speaker 1: went out Lake Monk and every badly a ton of

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Speaker 1: because they know that we're not going to switch those actions, right,

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Speaker 1: So when when the Kings run this double drag, they

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Speaker 1: make you operating more of a drop type of coverage,

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Speaker 1: UM and and we really got destroyed with that. And

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Speaker 1: I just didn't see enough adjustments there. I thought, why

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Speaker 1: Howard was just a nice player to put in there

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Speaker 1: just to get just to change it up. And I

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Speaker 1: love that they kind of he kind of mirrored his

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Speaker 1: minutes with Alex Land. I just wish we closed with that.

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Speaker 1: I wish we closed the half with that as well, right,

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Speaker 1: because I thought, darn Fox just got to the basket.

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Speaker 1: The Kings weren't even hitting their outschild outside shots tonight.

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Speaker 1: Like I talked about four for four team from three,

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Speaker 1: they got little bit hot in the third quarter, but

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Speaker 1: when he scored sixty of the points like that, you

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Speaker 1: should be up more at halftime, And you know I was.

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Speaker 1: I was a little bit worried about that. And again,

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Speaker 1: like I, I don't agree to the fact that, you know,

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Speaker 1: the loss to Memphis or even the lost of the Kings,

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Speaker 1: and I throws away the stuff we've kind of built

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Speaker 1: up in our small ball identity, because again, this is

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Speaker 1: a new team. It's a new new, non new team,

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Speaker 1: but a whole new identity that we're moving towards. Right,

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Speaker 1: We've moved towards this small ball thing, and it's a

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Speaker 1: all new continuity. And we talked about how, you know,

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Speaker 1: DeAndre Jordan is not in the rotation anymore, but you

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Speaker 1: know this is stuff you'll see with You'll see you'll

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Speaker 1: see us give us a big, big up, give give up,

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Speaker 1: big leads and stuff like that. But I just want

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Speaker 1: to see a little bit more, little less rigid in

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Speaker 1: our rotations here, and I thought, you know, Frank kind

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Speaker 1: of pushed the wrong buttons uh tonight, And it's kind

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Speaker 1: of nitpicking as well. At again, like I talked about,

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Speaker 1: I'm not sure how much we're gonna win when Lebron

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Speaker 1: has that kind of effort, But I would just like

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Speaker 1: to see, like us to play a little bit more

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Speaker 1: of a traditional game there with with d why Howard,

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Speaker 1: because when we're small like that, and we're and when

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Speaker 1: you're small and not switching everything, that means your help

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Speaker 1: has to be insane or you have physical guards that

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Speaker 1: can protect the rim, right, Like, that's what happens when

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Speaker 1: you go small. The point of going small is to

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Speaker 1: be able to have a bunch of life size guys

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Speaker 1: that can defend. But again, when you're going small and

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Speaker 1: it's League Monk and every Bradley out there, and you

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Speaker 1: have Lebron who's just engaged as the back line center,

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Speaker 1: and again I'll keep using this caveat. I don't blame him,

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Speaker 1: just this is what happened tonight. And again at the end,

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Speaker 1: there was a lot of plays where you know he's

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Speaker 1: jogging back in transition and the Kings get open three

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Speaker 1: in the corner. But when you have that type of play,

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Speaker 1: I would have loved to see kind of dry Howard play.

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Speaker 1: And this is not just about Duy Howard. I just

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Speaker 1: mean like just from a sense of just changing it

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Speaker 1: up a little bit, play a little bit more traditional defense. Uh.

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Speaker 1: The King's again are bad team. They came in tonight

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Speaker 1: eleven games under five hundred, and they have some talent

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Speaker 1: on that roster, but there's no way they should be

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Speaker 1: scoring at will like they were in the paint. I

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Speaker 1: would just like to make a couple of different decisions, right,

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Speaker 1: show that Marvin Bagley can catch and swing to the

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Speaker 1: corner on the week side corner, right, and show that

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Speaker 1: you know met you can catch in the paint and

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Speaker 1: swing to the corner like that stuff that I feel

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Speaker 1: like we should have at least made them go into

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Speaker 1: and really did, and they caught it float after floating

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Speaker 1: after floating in the rim, and we just kind of

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Speaker 1: gave them baskets in that way. And it's just it's

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Speaker 1: tough because I feel like we are in such wind

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Speaker 1: collection mode now we're weak. Like obviously you're experimenting with

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Speaker 1: small ball lineups, but you have to kind of play

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Speaker 1: with the game is going as well. Uh, And I

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Speaker 1: really just didn't think we did that. Uh. And I

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Speaker 1: thought tonight felt very similar to Memphis in a way.

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Speaker 1: Obviously Memphis does it on a higher level. They execute

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Speaker 1: at a higher level, but the way that Jaw just

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Speaker 1: put his head down right and got to the basket

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Speaker 1: on us, Darren Fox did that tonight. Darren Fox average

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Speaker 1: is twenty seven a game against us on pretty high efficiency.

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Speaker 1: I was seeing too when there when the King's excuse me,

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Speaker 1: when the King's posted his numbers against us, and that's

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Speaker 1: just tough. It felt like a layup line. And when

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Speaker 1: Lebron is not engaged in that way, I think you

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Speaker 1: have to kind of find other ways. Our small ball

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Speaker 1: has a breaking point right defensively like that's and when

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Speaker 1: it has that kind of breaking point, you have to

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Speaker 1: kind of switch up there. And if Lebron is not

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Speaker 1: in the Draymond role, and it's just gonna be tough

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Speaker 1: for us to kind of survived these type of games,

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Speaker 1: especially when Russ is playing the way he was. And

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Speaker 1: I thought, you know, and I guess I can kind

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Speaker 1: of move on to Russ because I'm sure that's what

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Speaker 1: everyone pretty much wants to hear about well before I

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Speaker 1: get into that, Like, I'm tired of the four million

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Speaker 1: dollar conversation. Like I think that's you know, been extended

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Speaker 1: as much as it has um. I think bringing up

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Speaker 1: how much Russ makes it's pretty negligent to the season.

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Speaker 1: That's an offseason conversation, right, Like Russ as whatever you

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Speaker 1: want to if you want to call it. And I

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Speaker 1: don't like using the word asset, but you know, that's

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Speaker 1: how UH people talk when they talk about transactions and

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Speaker 1: stuff like that. That's for the that's for the off

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Speaker 1: season here. Like there's stuff that Russ does. But my

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Speaker 1: expectations of him, and I think a lot of people

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Speaker 1: have discussed as well, are not to be a score

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Speaker 1: or even the second option. And I think you're seeing

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Speaker 1: that in these last few weeks, right. And he's had

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Speaker 1: a bunch of low turnover games and I think tonight,

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Speaker 1: let me check how many turnovers he had, he had

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Speaker 1: one turnover tonight, Right, And you're starting to see him

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Speaker 1: in his head a little bit kind of decide shot past,

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Speaker 1: you know, and those decisions that he just never had

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Speaker 1: to really be as cognizant of when he was the

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Speaker 1: main guy. Right, And you're seeing this transition. And I've

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Speaker 1: talked about Russ in terms of this is a season

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Speaker 1: where he's facing his own mortality, right, and every player

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Speaker 1: kind of gets to that that point. And a player

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Speaker 1: like Russ who's been, you know, not just the number

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Speaker 1: one an option, like the only option right on a

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Speaker 1: lot of teams like where in the last few years,

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Speaker 1: like with Washington, right, he was the number one ball

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Speaker 1: handley option on that team. Bradley Beale was more of

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Speaker 1: a come off, you know, downscreen type of offense guy.

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Speaker 1: Russ Westbrook was running pick and roll, you know, with

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Speaker 1: Daniel Gafford, you know, and all those guys and the

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Speaker 1: bigs to make their run. But that's not how I

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Speaker 1: see him on this team. And I think tonight in

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Speaker 1: that first half was probably the most off the ball

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Speaker 1: I've seen Russ uh and I've seen Lebron be turned

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Speaker 1: into a full time screener. And if you go reway

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Speaker 1: that first have it was just all it was Malik

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Speaker 1: Monk Lebron screen reactions. It was Avery, Bradley Lebron screen

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Speaker 1: actions like and Lebron full time screenal Like I talked about,

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Speaker 1: he's the full time finisher. Um, that's kind of why

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Speaker 1: I'm seeing with Russ and these you know, these switches

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Speaker 1: from player. It's never pretty, right, and uh, I think

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Speaker 1: people have also compared it kind of to Carmelo Anthony, right,

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Speaker 1: and it wasn't pretty when Carmelo Anthony went through an okay, see,

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Speaker 1: which is you know, it's kind of funny how you know,

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Speaker 1: these things kind of intertwined because they played together in

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Speaker 1: Oklahoma City. But when it was Russ, Paul George and

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Speaker 1: Carmelo as the third option when one of those when

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Speaker 1: one of those guys sat out, Carmelo couldn't just fill

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Speaker 1: into the second option, right like he just he was

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Speaker 1: just not at that point in his career. And that's

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Speaker 1: what I'm seeing with Russ as well. And obviously those

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Speaker 1: laking decision makings are always tough. And I don't know

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Speaker 1: what that late possession was. We were down, I believe

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Speaker 1: for Lebron had just hit a lay up. Russ comes

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Speaker 1: up the left side of the floor, Lebron doesn't go

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Speaker 1: get the basketball. Malik Monk decides to set a little

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Speaker 1: brush screen. Lebron sets a little flare screen from the

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Speaker 1: league Monk and he just goes stands on the other

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Speaker 1: side and rust the sides, Harrison Barnes goes under the

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Speaker 1: pick like every player in the league will do when

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Speaker 1: defending him, and he gets, you know, an open three

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Speaker 1: that doesn't go. But I think it was interesting in

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Speaker 1: this game to kind of keep it tonight. So Russ

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Speaker 1: started this game with Darren Fox on him right, and

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Speaker 1: he took him to the basket almost every single time,

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Speaker 1: or even when it was Haliburton or anyone. And in

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Speaker 1: the second half, the Kings switched Harrison Barnes onto him right,

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Speaker 1: and that really just switched his whole flow of the game.

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Speaker 1: And when that happens, there has to be an adjustment

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Speaker 1: there where Russ has to be like, Okay, I have

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Speaker 1: Harrison Barnes on me. Now, that's not a guy I

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Speaker 1: can overpower the rim. That's not a guy I can

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Speaker 1: you know, get to the basket finish, you know, rock

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Speaker 1: the rock the baby like you did tonight, like on

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Speaker 1: one play. But that's just not a guy you can

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Speaker 1: go through, right, And teams are gonna try to throw

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Speaker 1: guys that Russ can't go through. And we always discussed

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Speaker 1: the Lakers Houston playoff series. The Lakers had Anthony Davis

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Speaker 1: on Russ. They have some you know, Joe Schlow guarding him,

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Speaker 1: or they didn't have even our good defenders and Alex

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Speaker 1: Gruso and Kyle Kosma and DCP because he was just

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Speaker 1: too strong so he would be able to bully to

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Speaker 1: the basket. And we had Anthony Davis to throw on him.

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Speaker 1: And that changed the complexion of that series. And I

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Speaker 1: thought throwing Harrison Barnes on him, Uh, tonight changed the

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Speaker 1: complexion of tonight for us. He was kind of getting

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Speaker 1: to the basket. Uh, he was. Again, he's not gonna

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Speaker 1: make a lot of those, and he misses a lot more,

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Speaker 1: it feels like, and he makes at the rim. I

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Speaker 1: think I was seeing he was shooting at the rim

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Speaker 1: on layups and stuff like that, but just his pressure

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Speaker 1: at the basket and intertwme. It intertwines to me why

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Speaker 1: I would like to see Dwight Howard Um play a

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Speaker 1: little bit and let me see if I can kind

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Speaker 1: of share this share this plane, bear with me, all right,

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Speaker 1: if you guys can see the play here. So Russ,

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Speaker 1: this is what Russ does though, right, He's gonna attack

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Speaker 1: the rim, so yeah, Haliburton on him. But when however,

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Speaker 1: and gets to the basket, and this is why I

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Speaker 1: want him to like, especially but when Anthony Davis isn't

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Speaker 1: bad because this would be a D right, and a

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Speaker 1: d can kind of feel the Dwight role. Obviously he

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Speaker 1: can feel the Dwight role, but he can feel that

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Speaker 1: offensive rebound role. And I think that's so important when

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Speaker 1: Russ is playing, especially without Lebron, when he's gonna have

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Speaker 1: the ball more at the top of the key. So

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Speaker 1: Russ drives on this play right, and alex Land has

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Speaker 1: to come over, and the big will mostly come over

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Speaker 1: on a rush dry Ruskin. If Russ gets his his

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Speaker 1: shoulder passed the guard, the big will come over, and

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Speaker 1: then you have I believe that's Harrison Barnes trying to,

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Speaker 1: you know, take away Dwight from the offensive rebounds. And

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Speaker 1: I like, to me, that's just stuff that's important right

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Speaker 1: now when adies out. I don't like when, you know,

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Speaker 1: especially when Russ plays without Lebron and no centers. So

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Speaker 1: when it's like Trevor reesa Carmelo, if our shooter is

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Speaker 1: not Inferno there, it's like layups at the rim a reason. Still,

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Speaker 1: I thought this was the best of reason looks, but

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Speaker 1: he's still kind of slow right when he's when he's

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Speaker 1: moving around, he's still not quick um and Stanley Johnson

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Speaker 1: is good but still sana Johnson's and underst center. So

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Speaker 1: like those are just three points that you can kind

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Speaker 1: of pick up so that every you know, Russ lay

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Speaker 1: up miss at the rim, isn't the team going the

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Speaker 1: other way? And transition, you know, you can kind of

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Speaker 1: you can kind of pick off some of these easier

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Speaker 1: points there with what Dwight Howard in the game, and

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Speaker 1: that's another reason I'd kind of like him to get

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Speaker 1: more minutes, especially until eighties get eight gets back. I

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Speaker 1: just think a backup center is important. I think again,

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Speaker 1: our offense was great tonight and Lebron not being engaged

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Speaker 1: defensively was was part of the reason I think we lost.

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Speaker 1: But that's just stuff. And you know, this season has

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Speaker 1: kind of I said that from like the fifth game

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Speaker 1: of this year, like the season has become about acquescing

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Speaker 1: to Russell Westbrook, and I think that I think that's

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Speaker 1: magnified one of one of our stars gets out, And

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Speaker 1: I'm not telling you to change your expectations because like

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Speaker 1: that's just what it is. The contract to me, is

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Speaker 1: just negligent for what the season asked for right, and

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Speaker 1: this is the season we're trying to win a championship,

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Speaker 1: Like that's the whole point of this year. So what

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Speaker 1: can we do to put rust in better positions to

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Speaker 1: where we're successful when he's on the floor, right, his

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Speaker 1: contract means nothing once that ball tips up because he's

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Speaker 1: on the team, like, and he's gonna be on the

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Speaker 1: team after I don't remember when the trade deadline is

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Speaker 1: February something, for the fifteenth, I think, but he's gonna

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Speaker 1: be on the team after that. I promise you. The

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Speaker 1: best is not going anywhere for this whole season, So

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Speaker 1: trying to find out places that we can kind of

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Speaker 1: put them, And I think when Adie gets back, it

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Speaker 1: does slot him in a little bit better position. But

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Speaker 1: this is not excusing his play, right, Like he can't

365
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Speaker 1: be missing layups, he can't be taking these awful jumpers.

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Speaker 1: And again I thought tonight it was just another terrible,

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Speaker 1: I guess decision making game from him in terms of

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Speaker 1: when to shoot, when to pass. And I'm sorry if

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Speaker 1: I'm rambling here, but I feel like there's places on

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Speaker 1: the floor you have to put them. And I did

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Speaker 1: a video on the you know, when we beat the Kings,

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Speaker 1: the last time we went to Lebron Malik Monk two

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Speaker 1: man game every single time down the floor, and I

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Speaker 1: don't know why we went away from it tonight. We

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Speaker 1: didn't pick on Buddy Healed at all, we didn't pick

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Speaker 1: on Darren Fox as a defender at all. We didn't

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Speaker 1: force the Kings to do anything any of those actions.

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Speaker 1: Lebron took. Uh, he took twelve threes tonight, which I

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Speaker 1: think is just a little too high. And again maybe

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Speaker 1: that's part of the that might be intertwined as well

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Speaker 1: into the load managing stuff. Not wanting to drive to

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Speaker 1: the rim, But twelve threes to me, just get twenty

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Speaker 1: nine shot attempts to total for Lebron. So I can't

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Speaker 1: you know, Betwo nippicky, but you know, twelve threes is

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Speaker 1: a lot three or twelve from three from Lebron and

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00:17:19,920 --> 00:17:22,240
Speaker 1: and all that's kind of intertwined. But there's places we

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Speaker 1: have to kind of put Russ there, and it's just

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Speaker 1: it's just tough to watch him. I guess in a

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Speaker 1: role that I don't think he was supposed to. I

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Speaker 1: guess b for this team, and I'm not sure if

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Speaker 1: that's the role that they imagine for him, but this

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00:17:33,880 --> 00:17:36,159
Speaker 1: is just not the role that his skill set now

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Speaker 1: asked for, right. He needs to be a guy that's

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Speaker 1: attacking and already compromise defense. He can't be the guy

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Speaker 1: at the top of the key running a pick and

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Speaker 1: roll and trying to make decisions out of that, especially

397
00:17:46,320 --> 00:17:48,919
Speaker 1: in late game. And I think he's gonna transition. We do.

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Speaker 1: We do a nice job, you know, setting some brush

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Speaker 1: screens for him where he can attack a defender that

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00:17:53,640 --> 00:17:55,720
Speaker 1: he likes, like meant to was a guy that I

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Speaker 1: thought he liked in transition. He got a few baskets

402
00:17:58,000 --> 00:17:59,600
Speaker 1: off that, but there's just stuff we have to kind

403
00:17:59,600 --> 00:18:03,440
Speaker 1: of find for him, uh, and that we're really not doing.

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00:18:05,000 --> 00:18:06,560
Speaker 1: Last thing I want to kind of get into Rust

405
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Speaker 1: is passing here because I think I think it's an

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Speaker 1: interesting kind of Russ passes to areas not players, right

407
00:18:13,280 --> 00:18:15,359
Speaker 1: and and having a new team, it's kind of hard

408
00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:18,800
Speaker 1: to find, I guess, uh, it's kind of hard to

409
00:18:19,080 --> 00:18:21,639
Speaker 1: how too hard to find players tendencies when you're not

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Speaker 1: playing much together, right. And I posted a statue night

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Speaker 1: that Lebron and Russ with a d at center of

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Speaker 1: only played minutes together, which is absolutely nothing in the

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00:18:32,560 --> 00:18:35,840
Speaker 1: season Stanley Johnson, Lebron and Russ have already played eighty

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Speaker 1: eight minutes together over almost half of that time, right,

415
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Speaker 1: And it's just tough to kind of find stuff. But

416
00:18:40,920 --> 00:18:44,360
Speaker 1: Rust is a guy, so when he drives, he does

417
00:18:44,359 --> 00:18:46,600
Speaker 1: around two to three reads, right, so his first read

418
00:18:46,640 --> 00:18:49,879
Speaker 1: will be the cutter, then he'll look for the opposite corner, right,

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Speaker 1: And that's just that's every time he drives, and it's

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Speaker 1: a rigid kind of decision making for him. So you'll drive,

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Speaker 1: look for a cutter, or look for the opposite wing

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00:18:57,600 --> 00:18:59,119
Speaker 1: or the top of the key, right, it's all areas

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00:18:59,160 --> 00:19:00,520
Speaker 1: he's not looking for. A player is on the floor

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00:19:00,640 --> 00:19:03,320
Speaker 1: is not like looking at players, So when the floor

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Speaker 1: is not space that way, it becomes really difficult. It's

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Speaker 1: why you see those high turnover games. Right. So let

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Speaker 1: me see if I can kind of throw another play

428
00:19:11,480 --> 00:19:14,040
Speaker 1: up here at the top again bear with me. Is

429
00:19:14,119 --> 00:19:22,880
Speaker 1: second here. Okay, so this is one on this play

430
00:19:22,920 --> 00:19:27,200
Speaker 1: here if you can kind of see it at the top. Um,

431
00:19:27,240 --> 00:19:28,399
Speaker 1: if you can kind of see the play at the

432
00:19:28,440 --> 00:19:30,800
Speaker 1: top peering and people listening on the podcast or dos

433
00:19:30,920 --> 00:19:33,520
Speaker 1: Rio tomorrow, it's basically just Russ kind of drives from

434
00:19:33,520 --> 00:19:35,760
Speaker 1: the corner right into isolation. So what he does his

435
00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:39,520
Speaker 1: first thread is always that corner. But a Reason cuts right,

436
00:19:39,800 --> 00:19:41,760
Speaker 1: a Reason cuts from the wing as his guy turns

437
00:19:41,800 --> 00:19:43,920
Speaker 1: his head and he's able to find he's able to

438
00:19:43,920 --> 00:19:46,520
Speaker 1: find him the basket. That stuff that Avery Bradley has

439
00:19:46,560 --> 00:19:48,600
Speaker 1: picked up, but just stuff that I think the team

440
00:19:48,640 --> 00:19:50,960
Speaker 1: has to find out because when Russ is driving, it's

441
00:19:51,080 --> 00:19:54,880
Speaker 1: very rarely just to score. He's looking. He's a he's

442
00:19:54,920 --> 00:19:56,800
Speaker 1: a past first guy and and people kind of use

443
00:19:56,880 --> 00:19:59,080
Speaker 1: that against him as a triple double, you know, hunter

444
00:19:59,280 --> 00:20:01,240
Speaker 1: or or however want to call it, but that's just

445
00:20:01,280 --> 00:20:04,280
Speaker 1: what he is. He he's the past first guard, which

446
00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:05,720
Speaker 1: is weird to say for a guy who avers like

447
00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:07,760
Speaker 1: twenty something for his for his game, but like that's

448
00:20:07,800 --> 00:20:09,920
Speaker 1: kind of what he is on this team. And I

449
00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:11,159
Speaker 1: think this is the kind of stuff that you have

450
00:20:11,240 --> 00:20:12,800
Speaker 1: to find. And that's why I would like Austin to

451
00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:14,520
Speaker 1: play a little more. If you watch that play again,

452
00:20:15,080 --> 00:20:18,160
Speaker 1: it's called fill and replaced, right, So when when Aresa cuts,

453
00:20:18,160 --> 00:20:21,639
Speaker 1: Austin feels his his spot Austin. That's why Austin got

454
00:20:21,640 --> 00:20:23,040
Speaker 1: a bunch of threest in that as well. They were

455
00:20:23,040 --> 00:20:25,560
Speaker 1: all for us with Westbrook passes because Austin is very

456
00:20:25,560 --> 00:20:29,000
Speaker 1: good at, you know, giving guys passing wings, passing angles

457
00:20:29,320 --> 00:20:31,520
Speaker 1: to get open threes. And I would like him to

458
00:20:31,560 --> 00:20:32,960
Speaker 1: kind of play more with us as well. But that's

459
00:20:32,960 --> 00:20:35,280
Speaker 1: just kind of stuff that Russ does. That's the positive

460
00:20:35,280 --> 00:20:37,280
Speaker 1: stuff that he does. And and looking at him as

461
00:20:37,320 --> 00:20:41,119
Speaker 1: the forty four million dollars star player, like, that's not

462
00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:43,240
Speaker 1: the guy you have. That's not the guy on the roster,

463
00:20:43,480 --> 00:20:45,720
Speaker 1: that's not the guy who's gonna be playing in the the playoffs,

464
00:20:45,720 --> 00:20:47,080
Speaker 1: Like this is the guy you have. This is his

465
00:20:47,119 --> 00:20:48,920
Speaker 1: skill set, and you have to kind of mold the

466
00:20:48,960 --> 00:20:51,639
Speaker 1: team around that. And I think, you know, moving this

467
00:20:51,720 --> 00:20:55,760
Speaker 1: on to like Anthony Davis coming back, that's that's the

468
00:20:55,840 --> 00:20:58,000
Speaker 1: key here, right because it's so and it's not really

469
00:20:58,000 --> 00:20:59,720
Speaker 1: fair to keep saying, you know, we can't judge this

470
00:20:59,720 --> 00:21:01,560
Speaker 1: scene until this guy gets back. We said about the

471
00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:04,520
Speaker 1: reason we said about Kendrick Nunn. But this team is

472
00:21:04,560 --> 00:21:07,240
Speaker 1: going to be revolved around eight now. And I think

473
00:21:07,240 --> 00:21:09,639
Speaker 1: we've we've played forty one games. Russ has played in

474
00:21:09,680 --> 00:21:12,840
Speaker 1: all forty one. I think it's extremely care clear what

475
00:21:12,960 --> 00:21:15,840
Speaker 1: his skills are and what they aren't. And I'm kind

476
00:21:15,880 --> 00:21:18,280
Speaker 1: of again rambling here on Russell Westbrook. But I think

477
00:21:18,280 --> 00:21:20,840
Speaker 1: it's important because I've just seen the conversation that it's

478
00:21:20,840 --> 00:21:26,439
Speaker 1: tilted to, like comparing Russ to the combined numbers of

479
00:21:26,600 --> 00:21:30,280
Speaker 1: k CP, kusbun Harrold's just very misguided, right, Like, that's

480
00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:33,439
Speaker 1: just that's just not the way to kind of I

481
00:21:33,440 --> 00:21:35,760
Speaker 1: think think about this team and think about Russell Westbrook,

482
00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:38,119
Speaker 1: and it's super frustrating. Of course, I just think you're

483
00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:41,399
Speaker 1: seeing him in the oversized role that he's not supposed

484
00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:44,480
Speaker 1: to be in, and I like, that's that's the main

485
00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:46,639
Speaker 1: point I want to get across here. And it's not

486
00:21:46,760 --> 00:21:51,760
Speaker 1: about you know, changing the expectations for him to minimize them.

487
00:21:51,800 --> 00:21:54,159
Speaker 1: It's just putting them where they are. We have a

488
00:21:54,160 --> 00:21:57,919
Speaker 1: team that's built around Lebron and a D, and Russell

489
00:21:57,920 --> 00:22:00,680
Speaker 1: Westbrook needs to fit into that. It's nine team built

490
00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:03,080
Speaker 1: around Russ, LEBRONO a D. Right, It's Lebron and a

491
00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:06,000
Speaker 1: D surrounded by guys that are supposed to support them.

492
00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:09,040
Speaker 1: And then Russell Westbrook is a supporting player to them.

493
00:22:09,080 --> 00:22:12,240
Speaker 1: And again that sounds strange for a guy with his contract.

494
00:22:12,240 --> 00:22:14,080
Speaker 1: But again I keep saying the contract and vigible this

495
00:22:14,160 --> 00:22:16,520
Speaker 1: season to me, he's on the team, like there's there's

496
00:22:16,600 --> 00:22:19,680
Speaker 1: no there's no reason to you know, continue to uh

497
00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:21,960
Speaker 1: to calm about about that, in my opinion, So there's

498
00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:24,280
Speaker 1: places to put him. And I keep talking about I

499
00:22:24,320 --> 00:22:26,719
Speaker 1: don't think that you know, four game winstry grieving tonight

500
00:22:26,840 --> 00:22:28,639
Speaker 1: because you lose to the Kings, like it throws away

501
00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:30,800
Speaker 1: what we've kind of built on. We're in a small

502
00:22:30,800 --> 00:22:32,720
Speaker 1: ball team. We found that putting Russ in the dunker

503
00:22:32,760 --> 00:22:34,760
Speaker 1: spot is the place he can be effective. Putting him

504
00:22:34,800 --> 00:22:38,040
Speaker 1: in the stretch baseline where he can attack for offensive

505
00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:41,000
Speaker 1: rebounds and those are points that up take his skill

506
00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:43,760
Speaker 1: right and and that's that's the place we kind of

507
00:22:43,800 --> 00:22:46,600
Speaker 1: have to place him there. I think that's you know

508
00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:49,879
Speaker 1: enough about Russ. A couple of few things here and

509
00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:51,919
Speaker 1: I guess, uh, you know, I kind of wrap this

510
00:22:51,960 --> 00:22:55,760
Speaker 1: one up. So Lebron and Monk I've continued to kind

511
00:22:55,760 --> 00:22:58,359
Speaker 1: of have a palpable chemistry to them, right, And I

512
00:22:58,400 --> 00:23:00,119
Speaker 1: think again without a d you want to find and

513
00:23:00,160 --> 00:23:04,040
Speaker 1: stuff that translates when he comes back. And I think

514
00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:06,960
Speaker 1: those two have definitely found a synergy and I think

515
00:23:06,960 --> 00:23:09,840
Speaker 1: they've had it since the beginning of the season. But

516
00:23:09,880 --> 00:23:12,320
Speaker 1: I think the Monk Lebron screen role, and I talked

517
00:23:12,320 --> 00:23:15,120
Speaker 1: about how this is the most you know, Lebron has

518
00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:19,200
Speaker 1: been a screener in his whole career. Like in my opinion,

519
00:23:19,280 --> 00:23:22,560
Speaker 1: like tonight, go watch that first half. Every single almost

520
00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:25,520
Speaker 1: offensive possession he was screening, which is just something you

521
00:23:25,560 --> 00:23:28,880
Speaker 1: don't see from Lebron, right, It's just it's it's incredible

522
00:23:28,880 --> 00:23:31,760
Speaker 1: to watch him kind of transformed into that. And again

523
00:23:31,800 --> 00:23:33,679
Speaker 1: that's part of with Russell Westbrook on the team, Like

524
00:23:33,720 --> 00:23:35,960
Speaker 1: that's kind of what just this team needs and needs,

525
00:23:36,160 --> 00:23:38,040
Speaker 1: you know, Lebron to be a score It needs to

526
00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:40,320
Speaker 1: him to be the finisher a lot of times, right

527
00:23:40,320 --> 00:23:42,600
Speaker 1: because you have the ball in Russe's hands on even

528
00:23:42,640 --> 00:23:45,200
Speaker 1: closeouts on and Malik Monk as well as the ball hangler.

529
00:23:45,240 --> 00:23:48,160
Speaker 1: So Lebron is kind of transformed into this center who's

530
00:23:48,160 --> 00:23:49,960
Speaker 1: a screener and can score off that. And I think

531
00:23:49,960 --> 00:23:52,480
Speaker 1: it's been incredible to watch him, you know, move into

532
00:23:52,520 --> 00:23:54,960
Speaker 1: that transition of his career. But I think Leake Monk,

533
00:23:55,040 --> 00:23:57,560
Speaker 1: you know, he had a bad game against Memphis, and

534
00:23:57,600 --> 00:24:00,240
Speaker 1: like in the words of Russell Westbrook, he's to have

535
00:24:00,280 --> 00:24:02,639
Speaker 1: a bad game, right, Like I think Malik Munk fills

536
00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:05,840
Speaker 1: into that just another crazy, crazy offensive game. I think

537
00:24:05,840 --> 00:24:08,119
Speaker 1: we're gonna have to kind of find ways where we

538
00:24:08,119 --> 00:24:10,240
Speaker 1: can put him in better defensive spots because again I

539
00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:12,280
Speaker 1: thought the King's picked on him, and our you know

540
00:24:12,320 --> 00:24:13,960
Speaker 1: effort wasn't great with that. But you know, just the

541
00:24:14,359 --> 00:24:16,280
Speaker 1: even the not just the double screen actions, but the

542
00:24:16,280 --> 00:24:18,800
Speaker 1: regular screen actions where we just can't switch. And again,

543
00:24:18,800 --> 00:24:21,480
Speaker 1: if our lebron or our centers not engaged in that way,

544
00:24:21,520 --> 00:24:23,320
Speaker 1: we're just gonna get picked on. But I thought mink

545
00:24:23,359 --> 00:24:26,880
Speaker 1: Monk again just an incredible night for him, at least offensively.

546
00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:29,000
Speaker 1: Struggled a little bit in the second half, but six

547
00:24:29,040 --> 00:24:33,440
Speaker 1: for nine from three, like seven for thirteen from the field. Uh.

548
00:24:33,680 --> 00:24:35,600
Speaker 1: He was a minus FOURT team, which is interesting. But

549
00:24:35,640 --> 00:24:38,160
Speaker 1: again I don't think plus minuses is to tell all.

550
00:24:38,200 --> 00:24:41,600
Speaker 1: But I thought he was just again just a great

551
00:24:41,600 --> 00:24:44,560
Speaker 1: offensive punch, and we're starting to run you know actions

552
00:24:44,640 --> 00:24:47,520
Speaker 1: for him to uh as well. We ran this, We

553
00:24:47,600 --> 00:24:49,359
Speaker 1: ran a couple of like dummy plays where it was

554
00:24:49,400 --> 00:24:52,160
Speaker 1: like Stanley fake like coming off the screen and then

555
00:24:52,160 --> 00:24:54,920
Speaker 1: he re screened from Leak Monk. He got open three are.

556
00:24:55,000 --> 00:24:57,000
Speaker 1: Our first play of the game was actually an elevator

557
00:24:57,040 --> 00:25:00,280
Speaker 1: doors uh option for link Bunk, which something you I

558
00:25:00,280 --> 00:25:01,879
Speaker 1: think they put in probably the last few days. It

559
00:25:01,920 --> 00:25:04,120
Speaker 1: looked like US where Monk comes off a double screen

560
00:25:04,119 --> 00:25:05,639
Speaker 1: work and then it closes at the end of it.

561
00:25:05,640 --> 00:25:06,920
Speaker 1: It was it was kind of nice to see them

562
00:25:06,960 --> 00:25:09,480
Speaker 1: kind of move into more offensive options here, and I

563
00:25:09,480 --> 00:25:12,040
Speaker 1: think that's the important thing. And we're not winning anything though,

564
00:25:12,040 --> 00:25:14,280
Speaker 1: obviously with our defense looking like it did tonight, I'm

565
00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:15,760
Speaker 1: just trying to look at stuff that we can kind

566
00:25:15,760 --> 00:25:18,840
Speaker 1: of take take forward here. And I guess the you know,

567
00:25:18,920 --> 00:25:21,800
Speaker 1: last thing I'll kind of get into is, uh, Austin Reeves. Right,

568
00:25:21,840 --> 00:25:27,800
Speaker 1: Austin Man just an incredible player that they found undrafted right,

569
00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:30,800
Speaker 1: and again tonight kind of showed why. I think he

570
00:25:30,920 --> 00:25:34,280
Speaker 1: just needs more minutes man in a in a revolutionary

571
00:25:34,359 --> 00:25:37,919
Speaker 1: move to small ball. I think it's important to have

572
00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:41,879
Speaker 1: players who are not only good and and and try

573
00:25:41,920 --> 00:25:44,600
Speaker 1: hard on defense, but know what they're doing right. And

574
00:25:44,640 --> 00:25:48,240
Speaker 1: I think that's extremely important And looks expecting like a

575
00:25:48,280 --> 00:25:50,280
Speaker 1: month to be that kind of defender isn't fair. That's

576
00:25:50,280 --> 00:25:51,840
Speaker 1: not what he's here's not what he's paid to do.

577
00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:55,200
Speaker 1: But having two way guys and you know, we prop

578
00:25:55,280 --> 00:25:56,919
Speaker 1: up two way guys for a reason because guys who

579
00:25:56,960 --> 00:25:59,440
Speaker 1: can you know, in Austin is such a he's such

580
00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:02,320
Speaker 1: a smart player, and the Carusoe coms are you know, uncanny,

581
00:26:02,359 --> 00:26:04,440
Speaker 1: and they obviously fit because they're two white dubes that

582
00:26:04,480 --> 00:26:07,879
Speaker 1: play basketball but in the NBA. But it's kind of fitting.

583
00:26:07,880 --> 00:26:10,119
Speaker 1: He's a super in high i Q. We throw that

584
00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:12,399
Speaker 1: around a lot as well. But just knows how to

585
00:26:12,400 --> 00:26:15,359
Speaker 1: play off Lebron James, and I think that's important. A

586
00:26:15,359 --> 00:26:17,080
Speaker 1: guy who knows how to play off your best player

587
00:26:17,119 --> 00:26:19,000
Speaker 1: and even knows how to play off for Russ as well.

588
00:26:19,040 --> 00:26:20,520
Speaker 1: He's the guy again I talked about earlier. He knows

589
00:26:20,560 --> 00:26:23,359
Speaker 1: how to find the open spaces and just defensively, I

590
00:26:23,400 --> 00:26:26,040
Speaker 1: thought he was our best guy on Darren Fox, which

591
00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:28,439
Speaker 1: is interesting with this is his first player, first, you know,

592
00:26:28,720 --> 00:26:30,480
Speaker 1: year in the league. I just thought he was good

593
00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:32,639
Speaker 1: and I'll play that kind of I thought signified it.

594
00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:34,840
Speaker 1: And again it's kind of simple stuff here as well.

595
00:26:36,040 --> 00:26:38,720
Speaker 1: But let's see if I can share this one in here.

596
00:26:40,640 --> 00:26:43,560
Speaker 1: So you know Reeves on this play, So Taylan Horn

597
00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:47,560
Speaker 1: Tucker is so again people listening on the podcast or

598
00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:51,040
Speaker 1: dash radio later, So on this play here you have

599
00:26:51,040 --> 00:26:54,399
Speaker 1: Taylan Horn Tucker defending Darren Fox. Right, and if you

600
00:26:54,440 --> 00:26:56,320
Speaker 1: watch this play, and I should have slowed it down

601
00:26:56,320 --> 00:26:58,600
Speaker 1: a little bit more, but Darren Fox kicks it to

602
00:26:58,640 --> 00:27:01,400
Speaker 1: alex Land and watched, you know, Austin Reaves this whole possession.

603
00:27:01,600 --> 00:27:04,119
Speaker 1: So when Dwight Howard comes over to help on the

604
00:27:04,160 --> 00:27:07,880
Speaker 1: Fox drive, Reeves is ready to drop down on alex Land.

605
00:27:07,880 --> 00:27:09,879
Speaker 1: He closes out to Deer and Fox. He then picks

606
00:27:09,920 --> 00:27:14,040
Speaker 1: off Fox who's in a close out position attacking at

607
00:27:14,080 --> 00:27:16,920
Speaker 1: full speed. Like that's just like, that's stuff you can't

608
00:27:16,960 --> 00:27:20,360
Speaker 1: you know, teach in a like in a just general sense, right,

609
00:27:20,359 --> 00:27:23,080
Speaker 1: like that type of instincts and stuff. It's not like

610
00:27:23,119 --> 00:27:25,159
Speaker 1: a big deal. It's not flashy, it's not huge, but

611
00:27:25,160 --> 00:27:27,000
Speaker 1: it's just stuff that he does on a regular basis

612
00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:29,680
Speaker 1: that you don't see. It doesn't even obviously, the steal

613
00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:31,480
Speaker 1: this time goes up in the in the in the

614
00:27:31,520 --> 00:27:34,080
Speaker 1: box score, but that stuff that doesn't really even show up.

615
00:27:34,119 --> 00:27:35,600
Speaker 1: He'll you know, be vertical at the ram and the

616
00:27:35,640 --> 00:27:37,760
Speaker 1: guy will miss and he gets zero. You know, he

617
00:27:37,800 --> 00:27:40,040
Speaker 1: gets zero credit for those type of plays. But that's

618
00:27:40,040 --> 00:27:41,560
Speaker 1: why I mean, when I think he needs to play more,

619
00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:44,240
Speaker 1: and he was a plus zero tonight, um, And I

620
00:27:44,280 --> 00:27:46,080
Speaker 1: think he came back when we were down like thirteen

621
00:27:46,119 --> 00:27:48,479
Speaker 1: and brought us all the way back before Russ had

622
00:27:48,480 --> 00:27:50,399
Speaker 1: those tough moments to to kind of that put the

623
00:27:50,480 --> 00:27:52,240
Speaker 1: lead back. But I thought he was great. I thought

624
00:27:52,280 --> 00:27:54,200
Speaker 1: this was the you know, third or fourth game where

625
00:27:54,200 --> 00:27:57,200
Speaker 1: like he was the main positive. Obviously had the game

626
00:27:57,240 --> 00:28:00,080
Speaker 1: winner against Dallas. But he's just lookit good man, and

627
00:27:59,800 --> 00:28:02,000
Speaker 1: I'm I just wanted to give him a shout out here.

628
00:28:02,040 --> 00:28:06,280
Speaker 1: He has legit defensive and offensive instincts that fit perfectly

629
00:28:06,640 --> 00:28:08,720
Speaker 1: on a team that's you know, plays with a lot

630
00:28:08,760 --> 00:28:12,120
Speaker 1: of players that are very helo centric. Anthony Davis post ups,

631
00:28:12,200 --> 00:28:15,120
Speaker 1: Lebron James isolation at the top, Russell Westbrook driving off

632
00:28:15,160 --> 00:28:17,199
Speaker 1: isolations like uniqu players that know how to move, and

633
00:28:17,240 --> 00:28:21,639
Speaker 1: Phil opens faces. Uh and he's really good at that. Um.

634
00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:24,960
Speaker 1: I think that's pretty much all I have for tonight.

635
00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:28,680
Speaker 1: There's no way to sugarcoat this. Another loss to a

636
00:28:28,920 --> 00:28:33,160
Speaker 1: very team ten games under five. D um, That's that's

637
00:28:33,200 --> 00:28:36,119
Speaker 1: not going to be easy. But I see my man

638
00:28:36,280 --> 00:28:38,760
Speaker 1: rush is requesting, I'll see if I can get to

639
00:28:38,800 --> 00:28:41,200
Speaker 1: a few people here. I think I have like twenty

640
00:28:41,400 --> 00:28:45,800
Speaker 1: twenty minutes left I'll bring Rush up here. But man,

641
00:28:45,840 --> 00:28:47,360
Speaker 1: like that's just a it's a it's a tough night,

642
00:28:47,400 --> 00:28:49,400
Speaker 1: and I think it's it's interesting to kind of try

643
00:28:49,440 --> 00:28:53,000
Speaker 1: to break break down instead of just going straight into

644
00:28:53,120 --> 00:28:56,720
Speaker 1: trade everybody right, Like, it's that's not happening. So our

645
00:28:56,720 --> 00:28:58,800
Speaker 1: trade pieces are Kendrick done and THHD. The rest of

646
00:28:58,840 --> 00:29:00,880
Speaker 1: the team pretty much gonna stay the stay intact to

647
00:29:00,920 --> 00:29:03,000
Speaker 1: my opinion, So what can we do to kind of

648
00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:04,960
Speaker 1: for that? But Rouge, are you there? Man? Can you

649
00:29:04,960 --> 00:29:11,120
Speaker 1: hear me? I don't think I can hear Rush, But yeah,

650
00:29:11,320 --> 00:29:13,600
Speaker 1: like that's kind of, uh, that's kind of the way

651
00:29:13,600 --> 00:29:15,800
Speaker 1: that I would kind of frame this, I guess, because

652
00:29:15,800 --> 00:29:19,600
Speaker 1: it's it's come full circle into just Russell Westbrook contract.

653
00:29:19,600 --> 00:29:26,840
Speaker 1: But Ruge, can you hear me? Okay, I don't think

654
00:29:26,880 --> 00:29:30,040
Speaker 1: I can. I can hear him, but yeah, the conversation

655
00:29:30,080 --> 00:29:32,040
Speaker 1: devolving into you know, rest is contract and that makes

656
00:29:32,080 --> 00:29:35,040
Speaker 1: sense for assets and stuff. It's just I just think

657
00:29:35,080 --> 00:29:36,680
Speaker 1: that that's not the way this team is going to

658
00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:39,000
Speaker 1: be built. And we're in a title connection mode and

659
00:29:39,080 --> 00:29:40,760
Speaker 1: Russell Wepper it's going to be on the team when

660
00:29:40,760 --> 00:29:42,360
Speaker 1: that happens. So I want to try to find out

661
00:29:42,560 --> 00:29:44,880
Speaker 1: ways that we can kind of build that instead of

662
00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:49,680
Speaker 1: instead of instead of just focusing on that. I guess

663
00:29:50,280 --> 00:29:52,560
Speaker 1: that's the last chance. I'll ask if Ruge can hear me,

664
00:29:52,600 --> 00:29:55,440
Speaker 1: and if not, and I'll kind of move up to

665
00:29:55,480 --> 00:29:58,080
Speaker 1: a few people here. You have like ten or fifteen minutes,

666
00:29:58,760 --> 00:30:19,720
Speaker 1: and then I'll call it a day. Yo, Desmon, can

667
00:30:18,800 --> 00:30:23,040
Speaker 1: you here? What's going on? Much? I just got a

668
00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:25,640
Speaker 1: few comments. Um, I mean, I agree with you everything

669
00:30:25,680 --> 00:30:27,480
Speaker 1: you said about rest of mean, we're stuck with rest Of.

670
00:30:27,520 --> 00:30:31,960
Speaker 1: As much as people want to trade him, and you know, nobody,

671
00:30:32,200 --> 00:30:35,920
Speaker 1: we can't get enough players to meet that contract with

672
00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:37,880
Speaker 1: the teams that even want Rest, I mean, we're just

673
00:30:37,920 --> 00:30:40,400
Speaker 1: stick with Rest. I think I think a lot of

674
00:30:40,400 --> 00:30:42,400
Speaker 1: these things to be put on Frank as well. I

675
00:30:42,400 --> 00:30:46,560
Speaker 1: mean we Frank needs to get back into um playoff

676
00:30:46,600 --> 00:30:50,400
Speaker 1: mode with his adjustments. UM. I mean, we got to

677
00:30:50,440 --> 00:30:52,920
Speaker 1: start looking at lineups that actually work. We gotta start

678
00:30:52,960 --> 00:30:57,160
Speaker 1: looking at at positions of players on the offensive andem.

679
00:30:57,160 --> 00:30:59,120
Speaker 1: But we can't stick Rest in the corner. But we

680
00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:01,040
Speaker 1: stick rest of the corps are playing five or four

681
00:31:01,080 --> 00:31:05,240
Speaker 1: basketball with three fourths of the floor. Um, I mean,

682
00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:08,160
Speaker 1: he's not Pacha taker over there. People actually respect p J.

683
00:31:08,280 --> 00:31:11,120
Speaker 1: Tiker in the corner. You put Rusts over there. They're

684
00:31:11,160 --> 00:31:13,520
Speaker 1: just they're wanting in the shoot. They want that type

685
00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:16,560
Speaker 1: of offense from the Lakers. They want rust to go

686
00:31:16,640 --> 00:31:18,560
Speaker 1: one on one. They want Rests to do that little

687
00:31:18,560 --> 00:31:21,200
Speaker 1: pull up bake shot. They want Russ to do whatever

688
00:31:21,320 --> 00:31:23,520
Speaker 1: they on the offensive and to keep the ball out

689
00:31:23,520 --> 00:31:27,040
Speaker 1: of Monk Braun mellow and then eighty when he comes back.

690
00:31:27,080 --> 00:31:28,920
Speaker 1: I mean, that's what the defense wants. I mean, that's

691
00:31:29,400 --> 00:31:32,800
Speaker 1: I think it's easy for anybody to see. Um. So,

692
00:31:33,000 --> 00:31:34,480
Speaker 1: I mean, I agree with you. We have to find

693
00:31:34,600 --> 00:31:37,880
Speaker 1: something to do with wrestling offensive vent because he's not

694
00:31:39,040 --> 00:31:40,920
Speaker 1: he just hasn't been a positive on the offensive end.

695
00:31:40,960 --> 00:31:42,920
Speaker 1: He has been a positive on the defensive ended. We

696
00:31:42,960 --> 00:31:47,680
Speaker 1: obviously can't sit somebody who's making forty four million dollars.

697
00:31:47,720 --> 00:31:49,560
Speaker 1: So I mean, there's just something and that has to

698
00:31:49,600 --> 00:31:52,320
Speaker 1: be has to be done with the Russ to where

699
00:31:52,360 --> 00:31:55,720
Speaker 1: he he even becomes some sort of a plus or

700
00:31:55,800 --> 00:31:58,800
Speaker 1: some sort of just an even to where you know,

701
00:31:58,880 --> 00:32:02,320
Speaker 1: we feel like we can we can win, because I

702
00:32:02,320 --> 00:32:04,880
Speaker 1: think I don't think anybody thinks right now that if

703
00:32:05,000 --> 00:32:07,840
Speaker 1: Russ is pulling, Russ is shooting fifteen shots a game.

704
00:32:08,280 --> 00:32:10,479
Speaker 1: I don't think anybody is comfortable with that. And just

705
00:32:10,520 --> 00:32:13,320
Speaker 1: the way he's been shooting, what the shots he has

706
00:32:13,360 --> 00:32:16,800
Speaker 1: been shooting, the decisions, it's just it's just all confusing

707
00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:19,520
Speaker 1: to a lot of fans to what Frank is doing

708
00:32:20,040 --> 00:32:22,200
Speaker 1: and what this coaching staff is doing. You know, it's uh,

709
00:32:22,960 --> 00:32:27,680
Speaker 1: get off and let you discuss that. Sure, And I

710
00:32:27,680 --> 00:32:29,200
Speaker 1: think you know, Ruche, are you up there? I don't

711
00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:31,640
Speaker 1: know if you can hear me now? Uh yeah, yeah?

712
00:32:31,680 --> 00:32:33,719
Speaker 1: Can you can you hear me now? I can? But

713
00:32:33,840 --> 00:32:35,560
Speaker 1: really quickly on your point, does me like I think

714
00:32:35,600 --> 00:32:38,560
Speaker 1: you know Russ is going through a transition, right, And

715
00:32:38,600 --> 00:32:41,360
Speaker 1: it's again I talked about like the zero assist stuff

716
00:32:41,400 --> 00:32:42,960
Speaker 1: is what we've been I mean, sorry, not sure it

717
00:32:43,000 --> 00:32:45,720
Speaker 1: says zero turnover stuff is what we've been asking for.

718
00:32:45,880 --> 00:32:48,040
Speaker 1: But again that has a domino effect to it. And

719
00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:50,880
Speaker 1: I've always said tempering Russ's aggression to me was never

720
00:32:51,200 --> 00:32:52,880
Speaker 1: the answer, right, And you can see he's kind of

721
00:32:52,880 --> 00:32:55,959
Speaker 1: in his head even more now than he was before, right,

722
00:32:55,960 --> 00:32:58,000
Speaker 1: And and some of that, you know, convoluted with a

723
00:32:58,120 --> 00:33:00,760
Speaker 1: d being out, But you can see the past shoot

724
00:33:00,840 --> 00:33:03,800
Speaker 1: decisions have become just so more magnified for him, and

725
00:33:03,800 --> 00:33:06,040
Speaker 1: he's trying not to turn the ball over, which to

726
00:33:06,120 --> 00:33:09,360
Speaker 1: me has tempered his aggression in a way. So like,

727
00:33:09,440 --> 00:33:11,160
Speaker 1: I think there's a fine line to it that you

728
00:33:11,200 --> 00:33:13,040
Speaker 1: have to kind of fine. And I'm okay with some

729
00:33:13,080 --> 00:33:16,120
Speaker 1: of the turnovers if you know, if if, if they're

730
00:33:16,120 --> 00:33:18,320
Speaker 1: in aggression, I think that's the mine we have to

731
00:33:18,320 --> 00:33:21,720
Speaker 1: feel there. But Ruch, what's going on? Man? Yeah? Man,

732
00:33:21,720 --> 00:33:23,600
Speaker 1: thanks for having me. I always like to come and

733
00:33:23,600 --> 00:33:26,040
Speaker 1: talk rust with you guys, because I think you and

734
00:33:26,080 --> 00:33:28,880
Speaker 1: I have talked about Russ with the Lakers for I mean,

735
00:33:30,160 --> 00:33:31,560
Speaker 1: I don't know, we've done it a lot. Basically, we

736
00:33:31,600 --> 00:33:34,920
Speaker 1: did a whole podcast on it, a lot of it, honestly,

737
00:33:35,240 --> 00:33:37,640
Speaker 1: a lot of exact go back and go back and

738
00:33:37,640 --> 00:33:39,800
Speaker 1: listen to that State of the Lakers podcast for yourself,

739
00:33:39,880 --> 00:33:41,480
Speaker 1: Lakers fans and something what you think if if we

740
00:33:41,600 --> 00:33:44,160
Speaker 1: nailed it, if we were on point or what. But um,

741
00:33:44,200 --> 00:33:46,360
Speaker 1: as much as people you know don't want to talk

742
00:33:46,400 --> 00:33:49,000
Speaker 1: about it, I feel like it's it's really inevitable, right,

743
00:33:49,080 --> 00:33:52,480
Speaker 1: Like salary aside, like you said, that's irrelevant to the season.

744
00:33:52,520 --> 00:33:54,400
Speaker 1: But his role, he was brought in to fill a

745
00:33:54,520 --> 00:33:57,200
Speaker 1: role and that role is not being fulfilled and it's

746
00:33:57,320 --> 00:34:00,440
Speaker 1: resulting in Lebron over extending himself right, Like, we've been

747
00:34:00,440 --> 00:34:03,800
Speaker 1: getting vintage Lebron performances and the Lakers are still not

748
00:34:03,840 --> 00:34:05,680
Speaker 1: getting over the hump. They had that stretch where they

749
00:34:05,720 --> 00:34:07,480
Speaker 1: want to forget you know, four in a row whatever

750
00:34:07,480 --> 00:34:11,239
Speaker 1: it was, um, you know, albeit against worst competition, and

751
00:34:11,239 --> 00:34:13,399
Speaker 1: then they ran into the Grizzlies and got beat and

752
00:34:13,480 --> 00:34:15,279
Speaker 1: you know again, they're losing tonight, and now they're back

753
00:34:15,280 --> 00:34:18,279
Speaker 1: to five. We can talk about offense all day, but

754
00:34:18,360 --> 00:34:22,680
Speaker 1: I think defense is really where it's at. Um, Lebron

755
00:34:22,719 --> 00:34:24,680
Speaker 1: has been at his best, man, and you guys know

756
00:34:24,760 --> 00:34:27,320
Speaker 1: this better than me, but Lebron's at his best when

757
00:34:27,640 --> 00:34:29,520
Speaker 1: with the Lakers, when he's got a D and then

758
00:34:29,560 --> 00:34:31,840
Speaker 1: just three guys that can spread the floor and switch

759
00:34:31,920 --> 00:34:34,160
Speaker 1: and defend and and and who know how to play

760
00:34:34,160 --> 00:34:36,560
Speaker 1: off of him. I think you've really found something with

761
00:34:36,600 --> 00:34:39,480
Speaker 1: Austin Reeves. Um, it's kind of incredible how he's like

762
00:34:39,640 --> 00:34:42,920
Speaker 1: filling the Crusoe road is white boy whopin, But you

763
00:34:43,000 --> 00:34:45,239
Speaker 1: got him. I think Malik Monk has looked really good

764
00:34:45,239 --> 00:34:48,000
Speaker 1: as well. Um, and then once the rotation kind of

765
00:34:48,040 --> 00:34:49,960
Speaker 1: slims down, I think you just got a phone in

766
00:34:50,000 --> 00:34:52,319
Speaker 1: and find like I almost hesitate to say that you'd

767
00:34:52,320 --> 00:34:55,400
Speaker 1: be better assuming a D comes back, but you'd be

768
00:34:55,400 --> 00:34:58,080
Speaker 1: better with a D Lebron and just three shooters, um,

769
00:34:58,120 --> 00:35:00,400
Speaker 1: because those guys shoot and then they defend. And like

770
00:35:00,480 --> 00:35:03,120
Speaker 1: that formula has proven that it works for the Lakers

771
00:35:03,120 --> 00:35:06,799
Speaker 1: and for Lebron specifically, and and Rust's issues as as

772
00:35:06,800 --> 00:35:08,920
Speaker 1: many issues as he has on offense because he can't shoot.

773
00:35:09,360 --> 00:35:11,120
Speaker 1: His turnovers are down, but he can't finish at the

774
00:35:11,160 --> 00:35:13,359
Speaker 1: rim anymore. And you know, just when you need him

775
00:35:13,360 --> 00:35:15,000
Speaker 1: to make a smart play, he does something like he

776
00:35:15,000 --> 00:35:17,319
Speaker 1: did tonight when it was sixteen and then he brick

777
00:35:17,400 --> 00:35:19,359
Speaker 1: that three. But as much as he does that kind

778
00:35:19,400 --> 00:35:22,160
Speaker 1: of stuff, he just ball watches so much on defense,

779
00:35:22,239 --> 00:35:25,560
Speaker 1: and it kills the connectivity of a defensive scheme right,

780
00:35:25,600 --> 00:35:28,239
Speaker 1: Like there's no defense is all about communication and moving

781
00:35:28,239 --> 00:35:30,960
Speaker 1: on a rope, guys filling in for other guys, guys,

782
00:35:31,040 --> 00:35:33,160
Speaker 1: anticipating where the action is going to be, and people,

783
00:35:33,280 --> 00:35:35,080
Speaker 1: you know, stepping where they need to step and then

784
00:35:35,360 --> 00:35:36,880
Speaker 1: and then getting back to where they need to get back.

785
00:35:36,880 --> 00:35:38,759
Speaker 1: I think Austin Reaves does an incredible job of it.

786
00:35:38,800 --> 00:35:40,800
Speaker 1: You guys have clipped a lot of kind of clips

787
00:35:40,840 --> 00:35:43,799
Speaker 1: where he's like, you know, switching and chasing people off

788
00:35:43,800 --> 00:35:46,520
Speaker 1: the ball and then getting back and playing incredible defense.

789
00:35:46,560 --> 00:35:48,879
Speaker 1: But too often man rust just kind of sits there

790
00:35:48,880 --> 00:35:51,640
Speaker 1: and watches, And I think that's the biggest issue. You know,

791
00:35:51,719 --> 00:35:54,000
Speaker 1: as basketball fans, we love to focus on offense because

792
00:35:54,000 --> 00:35:55,920
Speaker 1: that's the easiest way we can think of, you know,

793
00:35:55,960 --> 00:35:57,920
Speaker 1: to kind of conceive of the game and like hey this,

794
00:35:58,040 --> 00:35:59,359
Speaker 1: you know, you do X, y Z, and that's how

795
00:35:59,400 --> 00:36:01,480
Speaker 1: you win. But I think you're scoring, you know, and

796
00:36:01,480 --> 00:36:03,160
Speaker 1: I think Lebron is proven that you guys can score

797
00:36:03,200 --> 00:36:05,719
Speaker 1: in the league. Monk has stepped in in a huge

798
00:36:05,760 --> 00:36:08,359
Speaker 1: way and he's scoring and shooting well and hitting big

799
00:36:08,400 --> 00:36:11,520
Speaker 1: shots too. But defensively, like that, it's going to collapse.

800
00:36:11,520 --> 00:36:13,839
Speaker 1: And I really wonder, So that's defensively, then I wonder

801
00:36:13,840 --> 00:36:16,640
Speaker 1: when a D gets back, does the rust fit get

802
00:36:16,680 --> 00:36:20,520
Speaker 1: even funnier because a D doesn't trust the floor, you know,

803
00:36:20,560 --> 00:36:22,040
Speaker 1: not out to the three and not the way that

804
00:36:22,080 --> 00:36:24,359
Speaker 1: you need him to for for the whole rust thing

805
00:36:24,400 --> 00:36:26,719
Speaker 1: to work. And so it's just kind of crazy to

806
00:36:26,760 --> 00:36:30,000
Speaker 1: see how much like obviously I'm spurned as a Rockets

807
00:36:30,000 --> 00:36:32,480
Speaker 1: fan with you know, the Russ experiment and how that

808
00:36:32,560 --> 00:36:35,760
Speaker 1: kind of turned turned out and basically imploded the franchise.

809
00:36:36,160 --> 00:36:38,640
Speaker 1: That's a different story, but I pay attention to how

810
00:36:38,640 --> 00:36:41,479
Speaker 1: he performs and how teams perform as he hops around

811
00:36:41,480 --> 00:36:43,279
Speaker 1: and skips around. And it seemed like the Wizards was

812
00:36:43,440 --> 00:36:46,600
Speaker 1: was the type of team for him, right, not high aspirations,

813
00:36:46,640 --> 00:36:48,359
Speaker 1: just happy to make the play in he could get

814
00:36:48,360 --> 00:36:50,879
Speaker 1: the ball, get the rock, do his thing, and just

815
00:36:51,480 --> 00:36:56,200
Speaker 1: play Russ basketball, you know, great stats, kind of turns over,

816
00:36:56,320 --> 00:36:58,960
Speaker 1: turns the ball over done, played good defense, not winning basketball.

817
00:36:58,960 --> 00:37:01,080
Speaker 1: And so now now he's with Lakers and the expectations

818
00:37:01,080 --> 00:37:02,920
Speaker 1: are higher, and he was brought in to kind of

819
00:37:02,920 --> 00:37:05,279
Speaker 1: carry the carry the load so the Lebron could show.

820
00:37:05,800 --> 00:37:07,799
Speaker 1: But that's all gotten messed up with a d out

821
00:37:08,239 --> 00:37:10,440
Speaker 1: and Russ isn't carrying the load. So now Lebron has

822
00:37:10,480 --> 00:37:12,520
Speaker 1: to step in and be be like Lebron that the

823
00:37:12,560 --> 00:37:14,239
Speaker 1: guy that just spokes that Frank needs to get into

824
00:37:14,280 --> 00:37:18,279
Speaker 1: playoff um adjustment mode. But I think that's a lot

825
00:37:18,360 --> 00:37:21,279
Speaker 1: to ask halfway through the season to you know, be

826
00:37:21,360 --> 00:37:25,040
Speaker 1: making like playoff intensive adjustments with the roster that's simply

827
00:37:25,080 --> 00:37:27,880
Speaker 1: not defending to the caliber that you need and I

828
00:37:27,920 --> 00:37:30,040
Speaker 1: think it it bodes poorly on on the other end

829
00:37:30,080 --> 00:37:32,279
Speaker 1: of that spectrum, though, I will say, as long as

830
00:37:32,320 --> 00:37:35,920
Speaker 1: you guys limp into the playoffs and everyone is healthy,

831
00:37:36,160 --> 00:37:40,759
Speaker 1: anything can still happen. Um, you know. But but I

832
00:37:40,840 --> 00:37:43,120
Speaker 1: just don't know how you solve it. Defensively is my

833
00:37:43,160 --> 00:37:45,319
Speaker 1: only issue. Like, offensively, I really think you could bench

834
00:37:45,320 --> 00:37:47,240
Speaker 1: for us. Well maybe that maybe that's all the defensively

835
00:37:47,239 --> 00:37:49,359
Speaker 1: if you bench for us. But but offensively, I think

836
00:37:49,400 --> 00:37:51,360
Speaker 1: you could just go Lebron a D or even like

837
00:37:51,440 --> 00:37:53,680
Speaker 1: Lebron and Dwight and just three shooters and you could

838
00:37:53,680 --> 00:37:56,600
Speaker 1: win some regular season games. But then on defense, man

839
00:37:56,800 --> 00:37:58,320
Speaker 1: is where it all falls apart from me. So I

840
00:37:58,360 --> 00:37:59,879
Speaker 1: guess you guys are gonna be faced with the question

841
00:38:00,080 --> 00:38:02,480
Speaker 1: do you bench him? Um? And if you do, you know,

842
00:38:03,040 --> 00:38:04,799
Speaker 1: how do you see that plane? Now? Is that even

843
00:38:04,800 --> 00:38:08,439
Speaker 1: a possibility for you? It's not for me. I don't

844
00:38:08,440 --> 00:38:10,960
Speaker 1: think you can mention him. He's not Montrez Harold right,

845
00:38:11,040 --> 00:38:13,480
Speaker 1: Like you can't just see him on the bench, Like

846
00:38:13,719 --> 00:38:16,040
Speaker 1: that's just not how this works. And you said, you

847
00:38:16,040 --> 00:38:18,960
Speaker 1: know you can just put three players, you know, Lebron

848
00:38:19,000 --> 00:38:21,440
Speaker 1: a D with three shoots and defenders, like you're probably right,

849
00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:23,400
Speaker 1: Like that's been a proven formula. I think that they

850
00:38:23,440 --> 00:38:26,120
Speaker 1: have to be a certain you know, level of three

851
00:38:26,120 --> 00:38:28,200
Speaker 1: and D guys to at least to at least make

852
00:38:28,239 --> 00:38:30,359
Speaker 1: that work. But you're probably right. This is a brand

853
00:38:30,360 --> 00:38:32,719
Speaker 1: new thing to me. And my whole thing was it's

854
00:38:32,719 --> 00:38:35,360
Speaker 1: obviously been ugly, and there's enough people rage tweeting and

855
00:38:35,480 --> 00:38:38,640
Speaker 1: rage podcasting where I don't really need to feel that void, right,

856
00:38:38,680 --> 00:38:41,160
Speaker 1: I think that void is there and it's understandable why

857
00:38:41,160 --> 00:38:43,000
Speaker 1: it's there, and I don't just I don't think those

858
00:38:43,040 --> 00:38:46,720
Speaker 1: people are necessarily necessarily wrong. I just think like putting

859
00:38:46,800 --> 00:38:49,960
Speaker 1: energy into that it's very you know, it doesn't really

860
00:38:49,960 --> 00:38:52,160
Speaker 1: make sense to me, Like it's very clear what Russ

861
00:38:52,239 --> 00:38:55,160
Speaker 1: is to me forty forty one games, ruce of watching

862
00:38:55,200 --> 00:38:58,200
Speaker 1: every single some of these games twice, right, watching Russell

863
00:38:58,200 --> 00:39:01,400
Speaker 1: Westbroog and watching what his skills are and aren't and

864
00:39:01,440 --> 00:39:04,560
Speaker 1: what his tendencies are. And it's tough because you know,

865
00:39:04,600 --> 00:39:06,680
Speaker 1: this season started and we kind of had both and

866
00:39:06,680 --> 00:39:09,200
Speaker 1: then Lebron went out, right, he was out for like

867
00:39:09,239 --> 00:39:11,320
Speaker 1: two weeks, and then a D went out, a D

868
00:39:11,520 --> 00:39:12,839
Speaker 1: was in and out, and then a D went out

869
00:39:12,880 --> 00:39:15,480
Speaker 1: full time. A couple of weeks ago, so now you

870
00:39:15,560 --> 00:39:17,800
Speaker 1: don't really have those three. And even when they were together,

871
00:39:17,880 --> 00:39:19,520
Speaker 1: we didn't have any of our wings, right, So we

872
00:39:19,520 --> 00:39:22,239
Speaker 1: were playing like week one with Avery Bradley, you know,

873
00:39:22,320 --> 00:39:24,040
Speaker 1: with them, and we had no wing players that to

874
00:39:24,080 --> 00:39:26,080
Speaker 1: throw on the floor, so it was never really a

875
00:39:26,080 --> 00:39:29,560
Speaker 1: full team. And now you get this, which is probably

876
00:39:29,600 --> 00:39:32,800
Speaker 1: the most maximized version of him, right, it's super charge.

877
00:39:32,800 --> 00:39:35,000
Speaker 1: It's Lebron in the Clint Capella role, like you would

878
00:39:35,040 --> 00:39:37,239
Speaker 1: in the you know, in the PJ. Tucker role. I'm

879
00:39:37,280 --> 00:39:39,480
Speaker 1: sorry on Houston, and you know, you can kind of

880
00:39:39,480 --> 00:39:41,719
Speaker 1: feel a d back into that. But like I'm at

881
00:39:41,719 --> 00:39:44,920
Speaker 1: the point where and like we talked about this on

882
00:39:44,960 --> 00:39:47,000
Speaker 1: the preview pod, but like I'm at the point where,

883
00:39:47,080 --> 00:39:50,719
Speaker 1: like Russ to me is now a complementary piece to

884
00:39:50,800 --> 00:39:52,680
Speaker 1: the two stars, right, And I think that's the way

885
00:39:52,719 --> 00:39:54,200
Speaker 1: I look at it. And it's kind of less than

886
00:39:54,280 --> 00:39:57,319
Speaker 1: the frustration I guess by me for you know, for

887
00:39:57,440 --> 00:40:00,399
Speaker 1: the season, because I kind of understand how I would

888
00:40:00,440 --> 00:40:03,080
Speaker 1: view him, Like I don't expect rust, you know, make

889
00:40:03,320 --> 00:40:05,799
Speaker 1: his open threes, and I think, you know, it's a

890
00:40:05,800 --> 00:40:07,640
Speaker 1: better decision for him not to take those. And I

891
00:40:07,640 --> 00:40:09,640
Speaker 1: think that's something we can kind of work towards. But

892
00:40:09,719 --> 00:40:11,520
Speaker 1: you can see it in his head man. It's obviously

893
00:40:11,760 --> 00:40:14,360
Speaker 1: like no turnover games are super rare for him, and

894
00:40:14,400 --> 00:40:16,360
Speaker 1: he's had two in the last like four games. You

895
00:40:16,360 --> 00:40:17,880
Speaker 1: can see him in his head even more. And I

896
00:40:17,880 --> 00:40:19,880
Speaker 1: don't think that's the place we need to get that

897
00:40:20,000 --> 00:40:21,879
Speaker 1: there has to be a fine line here. I think

898
00:40:21,880 --> 00:40:24,520
Speaker 1: we found positive stuff like him him in the dunker spot,

899
00:40:24,640 --> 00:40:26,680
Speaker 1: him as the center um in a lot of actions

900
00:40:26,680 --> 00:40:29,239
Speaker 1: where they invert stuff him and Lebron screen role. I

901
00:40:29,239 --> 00:40:30,719
Speaker 1: think it's something we can kind of build on. But

902
00:40:30,719 --> 00:40:32,520
Speaker 1: you're right, man, it's gonna be tough. But I don't

903
00:40:32,560 --> 00:40:36,239
Speaker 1: think he's vengeable in the defense. Obviously, he's a he's

904
00:40:36,239 --> 00:40:40,480
Speaker 1: a ball watching like turnover creating chaos creating defender, right,

905
00:40:40,520 --> 00:40:44,000
Speaker 1: And that's doesn't really fit a defensive scheme, right. So

906
00:40:44,080 --> 00:40:47,319
Speaker 1: like Vogel, Vogel loves to where Vogel loves to run

907
00:40:47,360 --> 00:40:49,480
Speaker 1: like a drop coverage type of scheme, and Rust is

908
00:40:49,520 --> 00:40:51,919
Speaker 1: more of a gambling type where like he'll play off

909
00:40:51,920 --> 00:40:53,239
Speaker 1: his guy. And that's why I don't like him on

910
00:40:53,239 --> 00:40:55,920
Speaker 1: guys like Buddy yield Um and guys like that, because

911
00:40:55,920 --> 00:40:57,760
Speaker 1: you know you have to kind of be You can't

912
00:40:57,800 --> 00:40:59,320
Speaker 1: look away. You have to be focused, you have to

913
00:40:59,360 --> 00:41:01,320
Speaker 1: be attached. You have the top log those type of guys,

914
00:41:01,480 --> 00:41:02,879
Speaker 1: and the rest is the guy who will cheat over

915
00:41:03,120 --> 00:41:04,799
Speaker 1: Desmond Band got a bunch of threes on him that

916
00:41:04,840 --> 00:41:07,520
Speaker 1: way on our last game, So like it's interesting kind

917
00:41:07,560 --> 00:41:10,759
Speaker 1: of fitting, Like even though he's a complimentary player, you

918
00:41:10,760 --> 00:41:12,840
Speaker 1: have to fit his skills around with stars, which is

919
00:41:12,880 --> 00:41:14,680
Speaker 1: a weird way to kind of put that, But I

920
00:41:14,680 --> 00:41:16,759
Speaker 1: think that's where we are. Does that make sense, Rucie,

921
00:41:16,840 --> 00:41:18,440
Speaker 1: you know what I'm saying there? Yeah, no, I think

922
00:41:18,440 --> 00:41:20,080
Speaker 1: it makes a lot of sense. Um. Last thing I

923
00:41:20,080 --> 00:41:21,400
Speaker 1: just wanted to say real quick is I just want

924
00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:24,680
Speaker 1: to caution people because I saw the Lakers fans talking

925
00:41:24,680 --> 00:41:26,759
Speaker 1: about it. I know his rackets fans, we talked about it,

926
00:41:26,920 --> 00:41:28,759
Speaker 1: and you know, to rust his credit, he does try

927
00:41:28,800 --> 00:41:31,439
Speaker 1: to change, and he deserves credit for trying to change

928
00:41:31,440 --> 00:41:34,120
Speaker 1: his game and fit but I just want to caution people. Man,

929
00:41:34,120 --> 00:41:36,040
Speaker 1: when you've got a guy that's, you know, in his way.

930
00:41:36,080 --> 00:41:38,200
Speaker 1: He's thirty three now, one of the m v P

931
00:41:38,520 --> 00:41:41,239
Speaker 1: has been playing the way he's been playing, you know,

932
00:41:42,080 --> 00:41:45,120
Speaker 1: fantasizing or theorizing about ways he can change his game

933
00:41:45,239 --> 00:41:49,160
Speaker 1: to like fit the perfect scheme for a team is

934
00:41:49,200 --> 00:41:52,879
Speaker 1: often fools gold or at least in some to some extent, ruche.

935
00:41:52,880 --> 00:41:55,719
Speaker 1: Wouldn't you say he's facing his mortality though? Now, like

936
00:41:55,760 --> 00:41:57,719
Speaker 1: I see it even more than I think. I Like,

937
00:41:57,719 --> 00:41:59,239
Speaker 1: you watched him every day for Houston, but like I

938
00:41:59,320 --> 00:42:01,880
Speaker 1: feel like he's or am I being like hopeful? I

939
00:42:01,880 --> 00:42:03,879
Speaker 1: guess here because I feel like he's facing at least

940
00:42:03,880 --> 00:42:07,359
Speaker 1: somewhat mortality. I feel like the low turnover kind of

941
00:42:07,400 --> 00:42:10,640
Speaker 1: switch there is a product of that. Or is that? Well? No, No,

942
00:42:10,680 --> 00:42:12,800
Speaker 1: he is facing his mortality, but the low turnovers have

943
00:42:12,880 --> 00:42:14,319
Speaker 1: been a very recent thing prior to I mean, he's

944
00:42:14,320 --> 00:42:16,200
Speaker 1: still averaging four and a half turnovers the game I'm

945
00:42:16,239 --> 00:42:18,680
Speaker 1: talking about recently. Yeah, for sure. But but no, he's

946
00:42:18,680 --> 00:42:20,640
Speaker 1: faith I mean, look, he's You're right, he's trying. He's

947
00:42:20,680 --> 00:42:22,839
Speaker 1: like taking off. He has no lift, right, he can't

948
00:42:22,880 --> 00:42:25,080
Speaker 1: finish around the rim um in the ways that he

949
00:42:25,200 --> 00:42:27,040
Speaker 1: used to. He's like getting hung on the rim sometimes

950
00:42:27,120 --> 00:42:28,719
Speaker 1: it's just like he'll he'll make the move to the

951
00:42:28,719 --> 00:42:31,120
Speaker 1: basket and just straight up lose the ball, you know,

952
00:42:31,160 --> 00:42:33,160
Speaker 1: and he's going through it. But I think they go

953
00:42:33,239 --> 00:42:35,040
Speaker 1: hand in hand. You know, like he's still trying to

954
00:42:35,040 --> 00:42:36,719
Speaker 1: play like the guy he knows how to play like,

955
00:42:36,760 --> 00:42:38,640
Speaker 1: because that's what he made his career off of. You know,

956
00:42:38,800 --> 00:42:41,040
Speaker 1: this this deep end and I'm just saying, turning that

957
00:42:41,120 --> 00:42:44,040
Speaker 1: switches is hard. It's never pretty either. It's not a

958
00:42:44,040 --> 00:42:46,880
Speaker 1: pretty like switch when people turn it. It's not especially

959
00:42:46,920 --> 00:42:49,239
Speaker 1: when your game is predicated on athleticism. His whole game

960
00:42:49,320 --> 00:42:52,520
Speaker 1: was burst in thunder, you know, and there was the finesse.

961
00:42:52,640 --> 00:42:55,600
Speaker 1: He had some finesse at the rim. People remember and

962
00:42:55,680 --> 00:42:57,480
Speaker 1: kind of talk about, like, oh, you used to have

963
00:42:57,520 --> 00:43:00,839
Speaker 1: that elbow jumper. Yeah he did, but not at the

964
00:43:00,960 --> 00:43:02,640
Speaker 1: rate that like you'd really if you go back and

965
00:43:02,640 --> 00:43:04,120
Speaker 1: look at the numbers, he doesn't really hit it the

966
00:43:04,120 --> 00:43:05,719
Speaker 1: way that we kind of think he used to hit

967
00:43:05,760 --> 00:43:08,160
Speaker 1: it in like two thousand, thirteen and fourteen, and now

968
00:43:08,160 --> 00:43:10,120
Speaker 1: it's completely gone. So when you don't have any skill

969
00:43:10,200 --> 00:43:13,200
Speaker 1: to polish, you know, when you lose your burst and

970
00:43:13,200 --> 00:43:15,440
Speaker 1: when you lose that thunder, this is kind of what

971
00:43:15,480 --> 00:43:17,319
Speaker 1: you're seeing, Like some nights he's got it, but some

972
00:43:17,440 --> 00:43:19,680
Speaker 1: nice man it's just ugly. And also credits to Mellow

973
00:43:19,920 --> 00:43:22,920
Speaker 1: because Mellow really polished his game to kind of you know,

974
00:43:23,000 --> 00:43:25,000
Speaker 1: he wasn't like a deadly three point shooter. He was

975
00:43:25,040 --> 00:43:27,640
Speaker 1: a capable three point shooter. But he but he's made

976
00:43:27,640 --> 00:43:29,680
Speaker 1: his career last by really getting his touch and his

977
00:43:29,760 --> 00:43:32,400
Speaker 1: skill refined to the point where you know he can

978
00:43:32,440 --> 00:43:34,600
Speaker 1: still hoop like that, um, or at least like a

979
00:43:34,680 --> 00:43:37,239
Speaker 1: lesser version of himself. But but yeah, with Russ, I mean,

980
00:43:37,320 --> 00:43:39,160
Speaker 1: you're gonna have gonna have to hope that like dunker

981
00:43:39,200 --> 00:43:41,080
Speaker 1: spot or cutting off the corner or something like that

982
00:43:41,120 --> 00:43:44,680
Speaker 1: really works. Um. But that's why we all scratched our

983
00:43:44,719 --> 00:43:46,600
Speaker 1: heads when the move was made. Man Lebron needs three

984
00:43:46,600 --> 00:43:48,520
Speaker 1: in d Lebron, these guys that catch and shoot from

985
00:43:48,520 --> 00:43:50,600
Speaker 1: the corners, guys that catching shoot from the wings, or

986
00:43:50,640 --> 00:43:53,000
Speaker 1: guys that catch and close out with efficiency, and and

987
00:43:53,160 --> 00:43:55,520
Speaker 1: you know that's really not Russ's game. So it's kind

988
00:43:55,520 --> 00:43:57,920
Speaker 1: of sad to see him facing his mortality. Um. And

989
00:43:57,960 --> 00:43:59,800
Speaker 1: it's you know, I think the hardest part to watch

990
00:44:00,600 --> 00:44:02,160
Speaker 1: is like on a night where he's two of twelve

991
00:44:02,840 --> 00:44:04,719
Speaker 1: Lakers on an eight eight to two run to cut

992
00:44:04,719 --> 00:44:06,239
Speaker 1: the lead eight oh run to cut the lead to two.

993
00:44:06,239 --> 00:44:09,279
Speaker 1: Then Darren Fox hits the bucket, game point, game minute left,

994
00:44:09,280 --> 00:44:12,480
Speaker 1: and then he just stares his mortality in the fucking

995
00:44:12,480 --> 00:44:14,480
Speaker 1: face and just bricks the ship out of that three.

996
00:44:14,600 --> 00:44:18,440
Speaker 1: It's it's sad to see um, but there. I just

997
00:44:18,440 --> 00:44:20,520
Speaker 1: think there are ways around it. He just you might

998
00:44:20,560 --> 00:44:22,439
Speaker 1: have to just minimize his role. He played thirty seven

999
00:44:22,440 --> 00:44:25,719
Speaker 1: minutes tonight. Obviously there's injuries, but I feel like if

1000
00:44:25,760 --> 00:44:28,440
Speaker 1: you if you decrease his minutes, or maybe if you

1001
00:44:28,480 --> 00:44:30,400
Speaker 1: get something from like a Kendrick nun or if a

1002
00:44:30,400 --> 00:44:33,319
Speaker 1: reason can get kind of back to form, then maybe

1003
00:44:33,360 --> 00:44:35,520
Speaker 1: you just spread those minutes out throughout the regular season.

1004
00:44:35,600 --> 00:44:37,920
Speaker 1: But but I don't know. Look in a playoff game,

1005
00:44:38,480 --> 00:44:40,440
Speaker 1: in the playoff series, you guys know this better than anyone,

1006
00:44:40,520 --> 00:44:42,640
Speaker 1: and you you hit on it with the fact that

1007
00:44:42,800 --> 00:44:45,080
Speaker 1: the Lakers had Caruso kind of bodying him and then

1008
00:44:45,120 --> 00:44:47,400
Speaker 1: you had a D. Everything funneled into a D. So

1009
00:44:47,440 --> 00:44:50,080
Speaker 1: it's not like you'll necessarily face that. But let's say

1010
00:44:50,120 --> 00:44:51,840
Speaker 1: you face like a DeAndre at and in the playoffs,

1011
00:44:51,880 --> 00:44:54,200
Speaker 1: for example, you know the Phoenix is just gonna be

1012
00:44:54,239 --> 00:44:58,200
Speaker 1: funneling rust into the middle and then living with the results. Um,

1013
00:44:58,200 --> 00:45:00,040
Speaker 1: and I think that's gonna be the biggest thing to

1014
00:45:00,120 --> 00:45:02,080
Speaker 1: get around. I still don't think it's impossible I still

1015
00:45:02,080 --> 00:45:04,320
Speaker 1: think the Lakers have a chance. I'll never count Lebron

1016
00:45:04,320 --> 00:45:07,080
Speaker 1: out and a D hasn't been playing, so obviously that's

1017
00:45:07,080 --> 00:45:09,759
Speaker 1: going to change the results here. But um, but yeah,

1018
00:45:09,880 --> 00:45:12,000
Speaker 1: it's interesting. But defensively, man, that's that's where it's all

1019
00:45:12,000 --> 00:45:15,239
Speaker 1: that for me. Defensively, No, yeah, no, I totally agree

1020
00:45:15,280 --> 00:45:16,800
Speaker 1: with that. And like I don't think you know, putting

1021
00:45:16,840 --> 00:45:18,840
Speaker 1: him in the dunker's but it sounds like some you know,

1022
00:45:18,960 --> 00:45:22,000
Speaker 1: demotion or something like that, or you know, regulating him there.

1023
00:45:22,080 --> 00:45:24,560
Speaker 1: I just think, like, to me, it was never about

1024
00:45:25,440 --> 00:45:28,120
Speaker 1: like tempering him, because that's what's happening right now, right like,

1025
00:45:28,160 --> 00:45:30,719
Speaker 1: because you could see him just decide less, Like that's

1026
00:45:30,760 --> 00:45:32,839
Speaker 1: why I think the jumpers are coming, because he's like, oh,

1027
00:45:32,840 --> 00:45:35,359
Speaker 1: this is my time to attack. I need to score here.

1028
00:45:35,400 --> 00:45:37,319
Speaker 1: Instead of being like okay, let me read like what

1029
00:45:37,360 --> 00:45:39,120
Speaker 1: am I supposed to do? Do? I drive Like, it's

1030
00:45:39,160 --> 00:45:40,960
Speaker 1: more like, oh, I need to shoot this because I

1031
00:45:41,000 --> 00:45:42,440
Speaker 1: haven't got a shot in a while, right, And then

1032
00:45:42,480 --> 00:45:45,000
Speaker 1: he'll take like three straight jumpers because he hasn't had

1033
00:45:45,040 --> 00:45:47,080
Speaker 1: the ball in his hands for like five to six

1034
00:45:47,120 --> 00:45:49,520
Speaker 1: minutes straight. Because we run offense through league Monk, Now,

1035
00:45:49,560 --> 00:45:52,359
Speaker 1: we run offense even uh to th HT like when

1036
00:45:52,400 --> 00:45:54,920
Speaker 1: th HD and Russ share the floor. Now THHD has

1037
00:45:54,920 --> 00:45:57,040
Speaker 1: the basketball like Russ has put on the week side

1038
00:45:57,280 --> 00:45:59,560
Speaker 1: and he just stands there and I'm sure that's such

1039
00:45:59,600 --> 00:46:01,680
Speaker 1: a just spent for him. And you know, he had

1040
00:46:01,719 --> 00:46:04,239
Speaker 1: that press conference as well where Dave mcmonimum asked him

1041
00:46:04,280 --> 00:46:06,839
Speaker 1: like as a point guard and he laughed like, you know,

1042
00:46:06,920 --> 00:46:10,640
Speaker 1: like that's funny, Like I'm essentially like saying like he's

1043
00:46:10,680 --> 00:46:13,200
Speaker 1: not really up in a point guard's role right now.

1044
00:46:13,440 --> 00:46:15,360
Speaker 1: And again that you know this, I don't. You know,

1045
00:46:15,480 --> 00:46:18,360
Speaker 1: Russ after a loss is always you know, an interesting

1046
00:46:18,400 --> 00:46:21,560
Speaker 1: press conference, but like he's definitely going through that adjustment.

1047
00:46:21,600 --> 00:46:24,160
Speaker 1: I never thought that adjustment would be pretty um and

1048
00:46:24,200 --> 00:46:27,280
Speaker 1: it's better to happen in January than in eighth mid March.

1049
00:46:27,440 --> 00:46:29,400
Speaker 1: I guess, um, I just would like to see it

1050
00:46:29,440 --> 00:46:31,759
Speaker 1: with a D back, of course. But nothing you said

1051
00:46:31,800 --> 00:46:34,600
Speaker 1: there is wrong, man, It's just this is a new thing.

1052
00:46:34,800 --> 00:46:38,359
Speaker 1: I guess, like the lebron a D and three three

1053
00:46:38,360 --> 00:46:40,759
Speaker 1: and D players has worked. It's just this is brand new.

1054
00:46:40,840 --> 00:46:42,359
Speaker 1: Like I don't know if it works. I just know

1055
00:46:42,400 --> 00:46:44,640
Speaker 1: that this is not what the team is. And this

1056
00:46:44,680 --> 00:46:47,399
Speaker 1: is like Judging this team right now is tough because

1057
00:46:47,400 --> 00:46:49,839
Speaker 1: I don't think they have their central peace based on

1058
00:46:49,840 --> 00:46:52,640
Speaker 1: how tapped in you are. Is there any chance that

1059
00:46:52,640 --> 00:46:54,839
Speaker 1: the Lakers look to move him because obviously I think

1060
00:46:54,840 --> 00:46:59,160
Speaker 1: the only realistic no destination is you know, you can

1061
00:46:59,200 --> 00:47:00,920
Speaker 1: bring in a good old on the wall who I

1062
00:47:00,920 --> 00:47:03,120
Speaker 1: actually think would fit a little bit better. But is

1063
00:47:03,120 --> 00:47:06,719
Speaker 1: that realistic whatsoever from the worker's perspective. Absolutely not. Man,

1064
00:47:06,760 --> 00:47:08,959
Speaker 1: there's just there's just no way. And it's not even

1065
00:47:09,040 --> 00:47:11,359
Speaker 1: just the outside stuff, right. He he was brought in

1066
00:47:11,400 --> 00:47:13,080
Speaker 1: as an l A guy who was you know, l

1067
00:47:13,160 --> 00:47:16,080
Speaker 1: a roots. That was you know, a huge marketing point

1068
00:47:16,120 --> 00:47:17,600
Speaker 1: from the Laker team. And they're not saying they were

1069
00:47:17,600 --> 00:47:19,480
Speaker 1: wrong to do that because of course Russ is and

1070
00:47:19,640 --> 00:47:21,440
Speaker 1: l A guy. You're gonna bring that stuff up, right

1071
00:47:21,480 --> 00:47:24,120
Speaker 1: and the kid coming home right? Is the stuff that

1072
00:47:24,160 --> 00:47:27,360
Speaker 1: it was kind of uh put in, you know, exclamation

1073
00:47:27,400 --> 00:47:29,319
Speaker 1: points and stuff like that. And it's not just that

1074
00:47:29,360 --> 00:47:32,200
Speaker 1: you don't you're not going to get anything close like

1075
00:47:32,320 --> 00:47:34,760
Speaker 1: that's going to help you win this year. Trading Russ

1076
00:47:34,800 --> 00:47:36,640
Speaker 1: like that. It just doesn't get you anything. And some

1077
00:47:36,680 --> 00:47:39,320
Speaker 1: people have asked, Jason asked me on the last podcast,

1078
00:47:39,360 --> 00:47:41,480
Speaker 1: is the team better if you just take Russ off

1079
00:47:41,520 --> 00:47:43,560
Speaker 1: it and you get nothing back. And I disagree with that.

1080
00:47:43,560 --> 00:47:45,560
Speaker 1: I don't think that's true either, and that's just not

1081
00:47:45,640 --> 00:47:47,839
Speaker 1: how you know it works. I don't think you can

1082
00:47:47,880 --> 00:47:49,759
Speaker 1: take off Russ from this team and they're better. I

1083
00:47:49,760 --> 00:47:52,120
Speaker 1: think we've seen what our guards are like, you know,

1084
00:47:52,160 --> 00:47:54,359
Speaker 1: when when he's when him and Lebron aren't aren't there.

1085
00:47:54,360 --> 00:47:57,040
Speaker 1: But it's interesting though, But no, I don't think he's

1086
00:47:57,040 --> 00:47:59,120
Speaker 1: going anywhere, man, Like, There's just no way. I mean,

1087
00:47:59,320 --> 00:48:00,960
Speaker 1: I think that's the so interesting because we used to

1088
00:48:00,960 --> 00:48:02,520
Speaker 1: see we used to think the same thing, right Like,

1089
00:48:02,560 --> 00:48:04,680
Speaker 1: there were times where it took Russe a minute to

1090
00:48:04,719 --> 00:48:06,799
Speaker 1: fit to fit in Houston, and for a minute it

1091
00:48:06,800 --> 00:48:10,360
Speaker 1: looked really good. But everything other than that was very inconsistent,

1092
00:48:10,400 --> 00:48:12,120
Speaker 1: and up and down there were there were super high

1093
00:48:12,200 --> 00:48:15,560
Speaker 1: highs and super low lows, and a lot of rackets.

1094
00:48:15,600 --> 00:48:17,920
Speaker 1: Fans really thought like, man, let's just just give me

1095
00:48:18,000 --> 00:48:21,200
Speaker 1: James Harden and four guys that can hustle and shoot um.

1096
00:48:21,239 --> 00:48:23,480
Speaker 1: And we didn't have the luxury of Anthony Davis. But

1097
00:48:23,520 --> 00:48:26,279
Speaker 1: obviously Lebron, James and Anthony Davis, you know, I mean,

1098
00:48:26,280 --> 00:48:29,000
Speaker 1: you won a championship with you know, role players. So

1099
00:48:29,120 --> 00:48:32,080
Speaker 1: I don't think that's out of the realm of possibility.

1100
00:48:32,120 --> 00:48:35,759
Speaker 1: I really don't. And it's drastic like the optics, he's

1101
00:48:35,760 --> 00:48:38,280
Speaker 1: a high level role player. Like that's what Russell Westfork

1102
00:48:38,440 --> 00:48:40,759
Speaker 1: is like take away the contract, take away, you know,

1103
00:48:40,800 --> 00:48:45,640
Speaker 1: the star, the fashion, but the substance in the context

1104
00:48:45,640 --> 00:48:48,000
Speaker 1: of the role he played, Like I said, you need shooters.

1105
00:48:48,360 --> 00:48:49,960
Speaker 1: I mean, playing at simple you just need guys that

1106
00:48:50,080 --> 00:48:53,279
Speaker 1: hit threes, you know, and defend right like his role

1107
00:48:53,360 --> 00:48:56,319
Speaker 1: he he's a role player, but not by choice and

1108
00:48:56,400 --> 00:48:58,920
Speaker 1: not by you know, I don't know how to word it,

1109
00:48:58,920 --> 00:49:01,359
Speaker 1: but he his game him isn't playing a role right.

1110
00:49:01,440 --> 00:49:03,759
Speaker 1: His game is he's playing superstar basketball. But it's just

1111
00:49:03,800 --> 00:49:06,480
Speaker 1: not working right now. Sometimes it works right some nights,

1112
00:49:06,520 --> 00:49:07,840
Speaker 1: like earlier in the season he had he had some

1113
00:49:07,920 --> 00:49:09,600
Speaker 1: nights where it really works. But then you have the

1114
00:49:09,680 --> 00:49:11,399
Speaker 1: nights where he's just like two or thirteen or whatever

1115
00:49:11,440 --> 00:49:14,160
Speaker 1: it was. Um, yeah, and I do. I don't know

1116
00:49:14,280 --> 00:49:16,600
Speaker 1: the outsider perspective, but I do think it actively makes

1117
00:49:16,640 --> 00:49:20,280
Speaker 1: the Lakers less just less scary, like against bad teams

1118
00:49:20,280 --> 00:49:22,279
Speaker 1: like Bruss went off against the rock As he killed us,

1119
00:49:22,680 --> 00:49:24,640
Speaker 1: so you know, against bad teams that will work. But

1120
00:49:24,640 --> 00:49:26,000
Speaker 1: I feel like when you get to those good teams

1121
00:49:26,040 --> 00:49:29,239
Speaker 1: warrior sons, maybe you can feed uh utah, you know,

1122
00:49:29,280 --> 00:49:30,960
Speaker 1: it'll it'll just be an issue. But but I don't know.

1123
00:49:31,040 --> 00:49:32,759
Speaker 1: I appreciate you let me speak to me, so thank

1124
00:49:32,760 --> 00:49:34,680
Speaker 1: you for sure. For sure. Yeah, And and and those good

1125
00:49:34,680 --> 00:49:37,360
Speaker 1: teams are never going to like go go over on

1126
00:49:37,400 --> 00:49:39,319
Speaker 1: a Russ screen, right like you saw some bad teams

1127
00:49:39,360 --> 00:49:41,200
Speaker 1: do that. They're always going to play off him, They're

1128
00:49:41,200 --> 00:49:43,600
Speaker 1: going to go to his tendency. It's gonna be interesting.

1129
00:49:44,200 --> 00:49:46,160
Speaker 1: I don't have the correct answer. I just like, and

1130
00:49:46,200 --> 00:49:48,400
Speaker 1: people are saying, you know, I'm giving Russ excuses, but like,

1131
00:49:49,040 --> 00:49:51,080
Speaker 1: I just don't think that's the player he is right now.

1132
00:49:51,120 --> 00:49:53,080
Speaker 1: He is not a second star type of guy who

1133
00:49:53,080 --> 00:49:55,160
Speaker 1: can carry you, and he might even be lower than

1134
00:49:55,160 --> 00:49:57,279
Speaker 1: that right now, he might even be he's probably playing

1135
00:49:57,320 --> 00:50:00,239
Speaker 1: lower than a third star, you know, quote unquote. But

1136
00:50:00,320 --> 00:50:02,560
Speaker 1: to me, he's not a star. He's a you know,

1137
00:50:02,640 --> 00:50:08,040
Speaker 1: he's a high functioning role, content, complimentary piece on this team.

1138
00:50:08,040 --> 00:50:10,880
Speaker 1: And maybe that's just a problem in terms of roster construction.

1139
00:50:10,960 --> 00:50:13,279
Speaker 1: We can speak on that later, but just him as

1140
00:50:13,280 --> 00:50:15,719
Speaker 1: a basketball player and his skill set he's like the

1141
00:50:15,719 --> 00:50:18,160
Speaker 1: fourth option on offense and on defense. There's a lot

1142
00:50:18,200 --> 00:50:20,279
Speaker 1: of players where he goes for steals and stuff like that,

1143
00:50:20,360 --> 00:50:22,960
Speaker 1: and that works. And I honestly, I think going small

1144
00:50:23,040 --> 00:50:25,480
Speaker 1: you kind of lend towards being more of a chaos

1145
00:50:25,480 --> 00:50:28,600
Speaker 1: turnover turnover creating defense. But that's just where we are

1146
00:50:28,680 --> 00:50:30,719
Speaker 1: right now with the rest experience, and when Adi gets back,

1147
00:50:30,719 --> 00:50:33,000
Speaker 1: we'll get a full, more full picture here. It's just

1148
00:50:33,120 --> 00:50:35,760
Speaker 1: I think we're looking at, you know, half the screen

1149
00:50:35,800 --> 00:50:37,960
Speaker 1: before we get him back. But Rouche, I appreciate you

1150
00:50:38,000 --> 00:50:40,200
Speaker 1: coming up. I'm gonna close this out. I think I've

1151
00:50:40,200 --> 00:50:42,240
Speaker 1: been going for like an hour now. Thanks to everyone

1152
00:50:42,280 --> 00:50:44,720
Speaker 1: for listening. Uh this has been the State of Lakers

1153
00:50:44,800 --> 00:50:47,919
Speaker 1: podcast and uh I'll catch you guys next time.