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Speaker 1: Welcome to This League Uncut in the world of twenty

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Speaker 1: four hour NBA news. Just do you lose Chris Haines,

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Speaker 1: it's time, Mark Stein, It's show time. Woo shuklaka Chris

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Speaker 1: Hanes and Mark Stein. This link uncutt is underway and

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Speaker 1: then fire. This should be a good one. Haines and Stein.

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Speaker 1: Back again with another good one. Back again with another

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Speaker 1: episode of This League Uncut. Chris, you were in Minneapolis

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Speaker 1: on Tuesday night. Joel Embiid put on another show and

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Speaker 1: we're over We're over due for some Eastern conference talk

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Speaker 1: on this podcast, and your interview with him certainly got

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Speaker 1: people talking. Let's actually listen to some of that first

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Speaker 1: MVPs Defensive Day All the Year. Yeah, I doesn't you

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Speaker 1: know what I mean anything to me. I'm just still

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Speaker 1: gonna be the best bell on the floor. That's a

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Speaker 1: nice segue to my question that you know that's coming. Joe.

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Speaker 1: There is a he did debate out there about who's

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Speaker 1: the front runner for the MVP Award. So I want

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Speaker 1: your unbiased opinion, who do you feel is the favorite

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Speaker 1: in the front runner right now? I don't know, that's

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Speaker 1: not for me to answer. I feel like you know,

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Speaker 1: you know, obviously being in the running the last few years,

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Speaker 1: you know has been whatever. And you know this year,

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Speaker 1: you know, I've taken a different appostion. She's trying to

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Speaker 1: focus on the white things. Uh, you know, win games, dominate, Uh,

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Speaker 1: which I've been doing, and whatever happens happens. Uh. You know,

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Speaker 1: obviously who would have loved to you know, win one.

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Speaker 1: That's the you know, the best award anyone anyone can get.

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Speaker 1: So but like I said, I'm just focused on making sure,

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Speaker 1: you know, first of all, staying healthy, winning games, and dominating.

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Speaker 1: I love how you put the question right too. In

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Speaker 1: full court press from Freds though there because we all

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Speaker 1: want to know what he's what he's thinking on this

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Speaker 1: MVP stuff. He knew it was coming, so there was

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Speaker 1: a okay, what was it towards the end. So towards

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Speaker 1: the end of the third quarter, he goes back to

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Speaker 1: the locker room and he just runs him to the back,

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Speaker 1: and so producers in my ear during the game, hey

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Speaker 1: go check on MB. So I go back there and

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Speaker 1: I'm waiting for I'm waiting for him for probably about man,

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Speaker 1: it seems it seemed long. It seemed like a long time.

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Speaker 1: Probably about five minutes. Then I heard he was using

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Speaker 1: the bathroom, and then somebody told me he usually goes

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Speaker 1: that's like a routine of his, like towards the end

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Speaker 1: of the third quarter, he'll go in the back and

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Speaker 1: like get some oxygen or do whatever he does. I

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Speaker 1: don't know exactly what he does. And so I'm like, okay,

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Speaker 1: So I figured I'll just wait out, just wait him out,

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Speaker 1: And so as he comes out, he's like chopping it

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Speaker 1: up with me. We're actually having a conversation as he's

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Speaker 1: walking back up to the walking back inside of the

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Speaker 1: side of the red only you, because that is not

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Speaker 1: normal Sidehind reported to walk and talk in the middle

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Speaker 1: of the game. Yeah, look, it was. It wasn't like

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Speaker 1: an interview. He was asking me what game I got next,

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Speaker 1: and I told him I think I might be in

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Speaker 1: um La in a few weeks. And he was like, oh,

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Speaker 1: he's still giving you know, Lakers still getting getting all

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Speaker 1: the love or something like that. It was just something

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Speaker 1: like like it was just like small chat stuff and

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Speaker 1: we were just talking and so um I said, hey,

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Speaker 1: I'm gonna have you because at that point, Sixers were

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Speaker 1: up a pretty sizeable lead on the Timberwolves. I said, hey,

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Speaker 1: i'm gonna have you for the walk off interview. I'm

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Speaker 1: gonna ask you about the MVP that he just smiled.

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Speaker 1: He's like, all right, I'll be ready and so that

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Speaker 1: So that's that's what that's why when I alluded to

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Speaker 1: it in the interview, I said, Okay, you know what's coming,

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Speaker 1: and here it is. So that's how it's all set up.

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Speaker 1: You know, when you listen to him, he somewhat sounds

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Speaker 1: resigned that it's already out of his grasp. I actually

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Speaker 1: doesn't think it's out of his grasp yet. That's what

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Speaker 1: I got at. That's what that's what I took away

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Speaker 1: from it. He didn't say it, but he seems like

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Speaker 1: he can sense that the votes are going in the

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Speaker 1: direction of most likely the Joker, and so he wanted

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Speaker 1: to make it clear that, Okay, I have no control

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Speaker 1: over the votes, but what I do have control over

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Speaker 1: is my play. And you know, I think he made

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Speaker 1: a strong statement right there, saying, no matter who he's

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Speaker 1: playing against, he's always going to be the best player

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Speaker 1: on the court, and I think that speaks volumes in

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Speaker 1: and another. And look, Joe, he wants that MVP for

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Speaker 1: sure he wants that MVP. I think last year he did,

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Speaker 1: he did a little bit more campaigning. I think he's

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Speaker 1: a little disappointed this year. I think he's disappointed with

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Speaker 1: the narrative. You know, Joker's having a great, unbelievable season.

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Speaker 1: Should he be the front runner? You know whatever. I

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Speaker 1: think i'll vote this year. I chose not to last year,

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Speaker 1: but I think I will this year. And so I

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Speaker 1: don't know which way I'm going as a right now,

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Speaker 1: but I get the sense that embiid is kind of

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Speaker 1: like just disappointed with the process and the narrative that's

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Speaker 1: taking place, and and and I think that way he

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Speaker 1: said that Stein to also get voters to kind of

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Speaker 1: look at him a little bit more, with him saying

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Speaker 1: I'm always I'm gonna be the best player on the court.

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Speaker 1: Oh you are, huh okay, Well let's see. I want

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Speaker 1: to say, let me look at the schedule. I'll let

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Speaker 1: you talk best. I think sixers have one more about

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Speaker 1: with the nuggets they do. I'm a check right now.

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Speaker 1: I'm a check right now. But go ahead, you go

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Speaker 1: go ahead and take over. There's lots to unpack her

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Speaker 1: because this hits on fifteen different things that First of all,

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Speaker 1: I think i've I've told you this before. I don't

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Speaker 1: know if I've said it on the pod before, but

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Speaker 1: I've definitely I wrote about it even at the time.

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Speaker 1: Um Joel Embiad is one of my favorite players to

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Speaker 1: talk to. I love interviewing him. I love that he's

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Speaker 1: he's edgy, he's all he's ready to talk. In the Bubble.

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Speaker 1: One of my most memorable experiences in the Bubble was

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Speaker 1: at the beginning of the Bubble. There were twenty two teams,

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Speaker 1: which you remember well. There were so many games at

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Speaker 1: the beginning that the games had to be played in

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Speaker 1: three gyms at the start until they started narrowing the

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Speaker 1: field down. And the Sixers played the Spurs in the smallest,

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Speaker 1: the supposed least attractive of the three gyms, and there

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Speaker 1: were only two reporters there. I'm not going to name

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Speaker 1: the other reporter, but maybe i'll maybe I'll ask him

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Speaker 1: and see if he didn't care later on, but there

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Speaker 1: was only two of us there at this game. The

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Speaker 1: Sixers won on a shake Milton buzzer beater. If I

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Speaker 1: remember this correctly, and knowing me, you have to assume

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Speaker 1: that I might be messing up some of these facts,

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Speaker 1: but hopefully I'm remembering it right as I remember it.

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Speaker 1: Shake Elton won the game on a buzzer beater. My

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Speaker 1: only other press row colleague in the building left, which

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Speaker 1: meant I had both teams to myself. Now. I went

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Speaker 1: there thinking that it might be a chance to get

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Speaker 1: Greg Popovich alone. But obviously, when the Spurs lose on

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Speaker 1: a buzzer beater, that was not going to happen. But

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Speaker 1: I was able to pull off a Chris Haynes like

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Speaker 1: Sidal and I walked Joel. I walked Joel Embid to

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Speaker 1: the Sixers team bus. I was not you were not

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Speaker 1: supposed to based on the letter of the law in

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Speaker 1: the bubble, But I said, you know what, I'm in

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Speaker 1: the third gym. Nobody's here, nobody's watching. Screw it, I'm

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Speaker 1: doing it. Had a great little interview with Joel on

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Speaker 1: the way to the bush. He's a fantastic talker. He

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Speaker 1: knows what he's doing. You're You're absolutely right. I think

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Speaker 1: he knows what he's doing. He's trying to He's like

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Speaker 1: campaigning without campaigning in that interview with you. But look,

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Speaker 1: I he's I don't think it's been decided. I do think. Look,

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Speaker 1: I mean, I don't know how much we want to

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Speaker 1: get into the MVP conversation because it's been so just

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Speaker 1: it just gets worse and worse and worse in spirals

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Speaker 1: to an uglier, uglier place. It has got, it has

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Speaker 1: got ugliest. I've been looking at hey, I've been looking outside.

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Speaker 1: You know, I haven't went outside. I don't play a

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Speaker 1: vents ernolf and getting into those uh, those shenanigans out there.

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Speaker 1: But I'm looking out there. I'm seeing all the talk.

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Speaker 1: But uh, to the point we made yes, MB and

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Speaker 1: Joker do meet one last time March twenty seventh, sixers

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Speaker 1: in Denver, and here like I no longer vote. I

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Speaker 1: mean you mentioned that you didn't vote last year, which

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Speaker 1: I didn't even I didn't even know that. I have

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Speaker 1: not voted since twenty seventeen, when the twenty seventeen awards

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Speaker 1: were the last time I voted. My my the subsequent

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Speaker 1: four seasons I was at the New York Times at

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Speaker 1: the times we were not allowed to vote. And then

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Speaker 1: I just decided, when I started my own substackt that

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Speaker 1: I was going to continue on that path and not vote.

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Speaker 1: And just you know, I still do a faux ballot

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Speaker 1: that I print, and I still print out all my

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Speaker 1: choices of who I would have voted, but I don't

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Speaker 1: I don't cast a real ballot. But I've softened my

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Speaker 1: position because I used to be very absolute about what

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Speaker 1: MVP is, and you just have to realize that the

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Speaker 1: reality is everybody is almost invited to just see this

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Speaker 1: the way they want to see it. There are no

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Speaker 1: strict rules and criteria from the league. The way I've

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Speaker 1: always done it and the way I think a lot

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Speaker 1: of old school writers do it. It's a best season award.

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Speaker 1: And that's why you know when Nash won the MVP

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Speaker 1: in his first season in Phoenix is because they went

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Speaker 1: from twenty nine wins to sixty two and he was

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Speaker 1: the driving force. It's not because he had better stats

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Speaker 1: than Shaquille O'Neil. That's why Steve Nash won. I think

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Speaker 1: Steve's second MVPs the more controversial one and the one

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Speaker 1: that probably pissed Shock off more. But look, Yokich won

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Speaker 1: last season for a lot of the same reasons that

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Speaker 1: Westbrook won in twenty seventeen. He had an amazing stat line,

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Speaker 1: largely without Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Junior. At his side,

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Speaker 1: and his team almost won fifty games. I know for me,

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Speaker 1: I personally use the exact same rationale with Westbrook. In

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Speaker 1: twenty seventeen, the Thunder lost Durrant. They were supposed to

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Speaker 1: fall off the face of the NBA map. They won

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Speaker 1: forty seven games. RUSS average a triple double. They you know,

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Speaker 1: fifty wins has always been the minimum standard. You know,

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Speaker 1: in the modern MVP voting, your team had to win

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Speaker 1: fifty games for you to be an MVP. Yoki won

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Speaker 1: forty eight last season, RUSS one forty seven, So it's

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Speaker 1: like they came close to fifty in adverse situations with

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Speaker 1: a shorthanded team. So but like it just seems like

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Speaker 1: the strongest case against Yoki this season is he's already

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Speaker 1: won two in a row. And I mean, look at

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Speaker 1: it that, you know, it's a one all star team

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Speaker 1: and they're winning the West, and Yoki's numbers are unbelievable.

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Speaker 1: So his case is really really strong. But Joel has

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Speaker 1: a great case too, and Philly has put on an

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Speaker 1: absolute They've been on a monster run now for three

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Speaker 1: months and it's not over. We still have fifteen ish

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Speaker 1: games left in the season, depending on where Philly ends

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Speaker 1: up in the ladder, and if Joel keeps playing the

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Speaker 1: way he's playing, it both ends. I still think he

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Speaker 1: has time, Yeah, I think he does. But Joker's numbers

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Speaker 1: are they're unbelievable, triple double as a right now, number

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Speaker 1: one in the Western Conference standings Philly right now they

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Speaker 1: are third, yeah, third and Eastern Conference. So there are

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Speaker 1: four games back of Milwaukee for the top spot in

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Speaker 1: the Eastern Conference. So there's still some there's still some

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Speaker 1: room for him to make a push. I would say

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Speaker 1: that make a push. But you just hear, you know,

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Speaker 1: you see these straw polls that come out, and you

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Speaker 1: just you hear from a lot of the you know,

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Speaker 1: the NBA talking heads, and you know, you hear Joker

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Speaker 1: pretty much. It seems like he almost hasn't solidified. And

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Speaker 1: so I think that's kind of what Joel is hearing

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Speaker 1: right as a right now, and he's kind of, you know,

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Speaker 1: fed up like Philly. You know, obviously I'm talking from

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Speaker 1: the six er standpoint. Man. They they believe it should

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Speaker 1: be Joel's award hands down this year. And I think

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Speaker 1: Stein to your point, like I think I would have

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Speaker 1: if I voted, I would have voted last year. If

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Speaker 1: I voted, I would have voted for for NBA last

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Speaker 1: year and this year as a right now, the way

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Speaker 1: it stands right now, I don't you know, I can

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Speaker 1: see why somebody has given the ass to Joker is

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Speaker 1: you know, it's crazy. You know, we we we never

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Speaker 1: seen anything like that from a big to put these

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Speaker 1: type of us. I mean, he's shooting forty percent from

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Speaker 1: three point range as well. He's gotten better as field

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Speaker 1: goal percentage. I believe career high field goal percentage as

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Speaker 1: of right now too, So you know, he's playing unbelievable.

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Speaker 1: But Joel embiid Man, that dude is a dominant beast man.

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Speaker 1: He's definitely you could definitely make the case he should

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Speaker 1: have had at least one MVP by now. But yeah,

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Speaker 1: there's there's still more time. So I was saying, b

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Speaker 1: don't give up, keep doing your thing, keep you know,

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Speaker 1: keep killing out there. And that matchup, that matchup against Denver,

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Speaker 1: that could go a long way. Because again I'm going

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Speaker 1: back to that Russell Russ brook Brook MVP. Russ stole

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Speaker 1: my vote the last two weeks of the season. He

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Speaker 1: stole my vote. I had it. I was going to

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Speaker 1: give it to Harden, and I remember the Rockets got

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Speaker 1: mad at me at that, you know, at that time

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Speaker 1: when they found out I voted for Russ. So there's

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Speaker 1: still time for MB to take it, to steal this award. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: And look, you know, like I said, when I when

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Speaker 1: I give my synopsis of the race, it's again using

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Speaker 1: that the way I've always done it, the way, you know,

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Speaker 1: And again this is just me, one voter out of

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Speaker 1: the usual hundred or used to be, I think even

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Speaker 1: more than a hundred. You know, I've always treated it

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Speaker 1: as who had the best season combination of their production

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Speaker 1: and team success. But then other voters might feel like,

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Speaker 1: you know what, Joel Embiide is a sensational two way player.

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Speaker 1: Yokich is not known as a two way player. And

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Speaker 1: I'm going to give my vote to MB because he

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Speaker 1: does it at both ends of the court. And that

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Speaker 1: was always the knock against Nash. Nash was certainly, you know,

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Speaker 1: by no means any kind of force on the defensive end.

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Speaker 1: And so that used to bother the anti Nash lobby

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Speaker 1: that would say, how can this guy be the MVP

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Speaker 1: when he really is only doing it at one end?

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Speaker 1: But that's kind of the whole point is that there

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Speaker 1: are no guidelines. Everybody can do this eye of the

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Speaker 1: beholder and anyone who has a vote can do it

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Speaker 1: anyway they want. I mean, that's really it. You can't

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Speaker 1: and I think yeah, and and you make a good point.

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Speaker 1: We're talking about both sides of the ball right there.

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Speaker 1: I think most people, most unbiased people would say, pound

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Speaker 1: for pound, all around player, they would probably say Joel

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Speaker 1: is probably the more complete player because he could do

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Speaker 1: it on both ends. But again, when when you're talking

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Speaker 1: about the Joker and what he's doing, yes, he's not

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Speaker 1: that efficient on a defensive end, but you know, still

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Speaker 1: like what he provides to a team and how important

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Speaker 1: he is and the numbers he's putting up and how

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Speaker 1: much onnes is he you know, he's a quarterback of

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Speaker 1: that team, so you can't dismiss his contribution. But definitely,

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Speaker 1: like for Pal to me, I don't know if this

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Speaker 1: would be controversial. We'll see on social media. We'll see

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Speaker 1: if if this is aggregated, we'll see if this is controversial.

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Speaker 1: But I don't think it's controversial to say Poal for Pal,

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Speaker 1: Joel Embie is a better player than a Joker and

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Speaker 1: that's not that doesn't mean that his Hibbie p case

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Speaker 1: should be stronger because of that. I'm just stating what

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Speaker 1: I think. It's probably fast. I mean, you just you

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Speaker 1: just kind of summed up one of the biggest debates

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Speaker 1: about this award that has always been is this. And

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Speaker 1: that's why I say I'm from that old school that

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Speaker 1: says this should be a best season award, because if

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Speaker 1: we try to make it about best player again, I

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Speaker 1: came up. I started my first season in the league,

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Speaker 1: was the second half of the ninety four seas and

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Speaker 1: I probably got my first award ballots the next season.

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Speaker 1: So ninety four ninety five, you know, Jordan comes back

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Speaker 1: at the end of that season. But so now you

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Speaker 1: know the first you know, ninety six, ninety seven, ninety eight.

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Speaker 1: If you want to give MVP to the best player

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Speaker 1: on Earth, we could have given it to Jordan on

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Speaker 1: opening night. We didn't need to even have a vote,

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Speaker 1: I mean if And that's why I've always felt that

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Speaker 1: MVP should be best Season. And I think to this

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Speaker 1: point because the Nuggets have been the runaway first place

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Speaker 1: team in the West with only one All Star, with

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Speaker 1: these other guys missing some time, with Yoki putting up

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Speaker 1: the numbers that he has and you know, I think

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Speaker 1: shooting better than sixty percent from the floor. I mean,

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Speaker 1: I'm not saying he's already won it, but I you know,

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Speaker 1: when when you know, I think Tim Bonchamp's from ESPN

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Speaker 1: when he came out with a straw pole that said

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Speaker 1: Joker was in the league, I think Joker was in

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Speaker 1: the lead. But the season ain't over. And so you're right,

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Speaker 1: if Joel Embid comes out in that showdown with Denver

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Speaker 1: later this month and absolutely dominates the Joker, It's only

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Speaker 1: one game, and one game shouldn't change everything, but you

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Speaker 1: know it will. I mean, can you know if that

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Speaker 1: face off the next day, the noise is going to

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Speaker 1: be loud. It shouldn't. But if he wins that face

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Speaker 1: off and dominating fashion, it's much more significant to do

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Speaker 1: it late in the season opposed to haven't done it

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Speaker 1: earlier in the season, because that's going to be the

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Speaker 1: last impression, you know, so that that's a significant game.

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Speaker 1: That game is going to mean more than just one game.

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Speaker 1: It's going to be more than just one performance. That

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Speaker 1: could if he keeps dominating up until that point. The

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Speaker 1: Philadelphia seventy six to continue to climb up in the standings,

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Speaker 1: and he dominates that game where it's a clear cut,

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Speaker 1: no doubt about it. Be got the best of Joker

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Speaker 1: that can that can have a significant that can play

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Speaker 1: a significant part on who's this year's MVP. Yeah, no,

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Speaker 1: it's gonna be fascinating. But you know, to your point

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Speaker 1: about how you know, Joel has kept it focused on

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Speaker 1: the playoffs and on winning, and he's been super consistent

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Speaker 1: with that. I went to Houston in early January and

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Speaker 1: went to the Sixers were playing the Rockets, and the

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Speaker 1: way it turned out, it was actually Harden's return game

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Speaker 1: from his long injury absence. It wasn't planned like that,

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Speaker 1: you know. I had planned to just go to Houston

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Speaker 1: and see the Sixers because they were in Texas, and

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Speaker 1: it just worked so worked out that that that was

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Speaker 1: Harden's comeback game and the rock the The Sixers loss

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Speaker 1: in overtime that night and looked awful, and since then

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Speaker 1: they've just been on an absolute tear since since that game.

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Speaker 1: But I wanted to I wanted to talk to Joel

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Speaker 1: not about the MVP. I wanted to talk to him

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Speaker 1: about which a story which I I've been writing about

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Speaker 1: since I want to say, September and October, a story

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Speaker 1: that I just find so fascinating that France and Team

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Speaker 1: USA are basically in a recruiting war to get Joel

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Speaker 1: to play for their national team. The basketball romantic enemy

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Speaker 1: would love to see and Bead and Siakam team up

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Speaker 1: for Cameroon and see how far they can take Cameroon.

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Speaker 1: But all the rumbles suggest that Joel is either going

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Speaker 1: to play for France or the United States. He is

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Speaker 1: a citizen of both now and has the choice. These

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Speaker 1: are the two best teams in world basketball. You know,

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Speaker 1: France beat the United States at the twenty nineteen World Cup.

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Speaker 1: They beat them at the Olympics. The United States ended

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Speaker 1: up beating them in the medal round and coming back

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Speaker 1: to win that game. But I'm really fascinated by what

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Speaker 1: happens there and and what decision and Bead makes. So

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Speaker 1: I got trying to say, can I say yeah, I

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Speaker 1: think I can say this. I think I can. So

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Speaker 1: there was there was a this was what's Grant Hills role?

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Speaker 1: You know, that's my partner in crime over there at TNT.

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Speaker 1: What what USA basketball? I mean basically GM Okay, So

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Speaker 1: I was we were doing me and Grant were doing

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Speaker 1: a game. M it might it had to been longer.

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Speaker 1: It had to been longer than a year ago. It

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Speaker 1: had to have been. But I was on the phone

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Speaker 1: with with Himbad about something. I don't know if we

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Speaker 1: were doing a six year game or whatever. And this

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Speaker 1: was before you know, this was before you came out

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Speaker 1: with the emerge with the report of that. I thought

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Speaker 1: Grant was playing. So I'm on the phone with him

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Speaker 1: bad and Grant like it is in the background, he

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Speaker 1: heard me talking to Joel and he was like, hey,

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Speaker 1: tell him a come on this side, tell him come

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Speaker 1: on this side, you know. And I didn't know what

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Speaker 1: he was talking about, and so I like, I left

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Speaker 1: it alone. I didn't really entertain it or dig too

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Speaker 1: deep into it. Then when you came out with your

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Speaker 1: story later, I was like, that's what Grant was talking about. Man.

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Speaker 1: That whole time, I had no clue. I had no clue. Man,

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Speaker 1: I was completely lost. But that that would that would

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Speaker 1: be big, that would be I don't know which way

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Speaker 1: he's was, which way he's headed. I'm kind of like you,

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Speaker 1: I kind of I guess I want to see him

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Speaker 1: go against the USA a little bit. That would be cool.

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Speaker 1: But here's the thing. Here's the thing. France has Gobar already.

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Speaker 1: They also now have this guy named when Ban Yama,

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Speaker 1: who I think everybody's heard of. Do they really love

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Speaker 1: and beat as well? The United States actually has a

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Speaker 1: void at center? But does I mean USA basketball has

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Speaker 1: always had the deepest rosters in international competition since nineteen

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Speaker 1: ninety two, when NBA players were allowed to start playing.

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Speaker 1: Does I mean does USA basketball really now need to

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Speaker 1: recruit Joel and bead on top of all the talent

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Speaker 1: they already have. Yes, yes they do. They want the best,

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Speaker 1: they want the best. Yes, I mean it's not it's

403
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Speaker 1: not like, you know, the Team USA has had a

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Speaker 1: resurgence over the last few years, but it's still not

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Speaker 1: like we're night and day above the rest of the world.

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Speaker 1: It's no longer that. So you got to you gotta

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Speaker 1: pile up as many players as you can. I was had.

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Speaker 1: I had a conversation with stan Van Gundhi not too

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Speaker 1: long ago, and we were talking about the process of

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Speaker 1: Team USA and how they select talent now because a

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Speaker 1: lot of stars nowadays. Remember remember when I think it

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Speaker 1: was yeah, when Colangelo took over, there were cuts. You know,

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Speaker 1: you bring in a certain amount of players, you would

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Speaker 1: have cuts. Now players don't want to participate in that process.

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Speaker 1: They want to be guaranteed a spot. They don't want

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Speaker 1: to go through. It's kind of like the All Star Game. Stein.

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Speaker 1: Players don't want to be they don't want to be

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Speaker 1: publicly put out there to be pick lass or pick

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Speaker 1: you know, it's an ego thing. And so the same

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Speaker 1: thing as with the Team USA and how their selection

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Speaker 1: process is now, you're not They're no longer can get

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Speaker 1: the top guys just to come in, come in for

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Speaker 1: a couple of weeks, try them out, then cut them

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Speaker 1: over a period of time. These are still all star

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Speaker 1: players or pretty close to being star players. And so

426
00:24:45,160 --> 00:24:48,199
Speaker 1: that's the tough part, you know. Now it's like you

427
00:24:48,200 --> 00:24:51,040
Speaker 1: know Lebron, you know, you know it's Lebron's KDS. You

428
00:24:51,080 --> 00:24:53,320
Speaker 1: know though you know those guys they're gonna be guaranteed.

429
00:24:53,600 --> 00:24:57,000
Speaker 1: So it's harder to get guys into the fold now.

430
00:24:57,240 --> 00:25:00,280
Speaker 1: So that's why I say what Joel and Bi, Yes,

431
00:25:00,320 --> 00:25:02,719
Speaker 1: you need them. You need them because you don't know

432
00:25:02,800 --> 00:25:06,080
Speaker 1: who's going to come over and commit to the whole process.

433
00:25:06,200 --> 00:25:08,199
Speaker 1: You don't know who you don't even know who's going

434
00:25:08,240 --> 00:25:12,160
Speaker 1: to accept the automatic roster spots. And so that's why

435
00:25:12,160 --> 00:25:14,400
Speaker 1: I say, you gotta just you gotta get as much

436
00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:16,600
Speaker 1: talent as you can and figure it out later. So

437
00:25:16,680 --> 00:25:18,240
Speaker 1: I'm gonna do now what I don't like to do,

438
00:25:18,280 --> 00:25:21,000
Speaker 1: but I can't resist. This is when I this is

439
00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:23,159
Speaker 1: when I know you know a player well and I

440
00:25:23,200 --> 00:25:24,840
Speaker 1: ask you to speak for that player, which is a

441
00:25:24,920 --> 00:25:26,760
Speaker 1: terrible thing for me to do, but I can't resist.

442
00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:29,199
Speaker 1: So your guy Batoum, you will always talk about you

443
00:25:29,280 --> 00:25:32,359
Speaker 1: and Nick Batoum. How far back you guys go? What

444
00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:35,080
Speaker 1: do you think Nick Batoum's reaction would be? And the

445
00:25:35,119 --> 00:25:39,800
Speaker 1: other French vets if Joel picks the United States. I mean,

446
00:25:40,080 --> 00:25:44,080
Speaker 1: France has a wonderful team full of talented NBA guys,

447
00:25:44,119 --> 00:25:48,680
Speaker 1: but none of them I don't think are current All Stars.

448
00:25:48,760 --> 00:25:50,600
Speaker 1: Rudy didn't make the All Star Game this year, so

449
00:25:50,600 --> 00:25:55,600
Speaker 1: it's like France wouldn't have a current NBA All Star

450
00:25:55,640 --> 00:25:58,399
Speaker 1: on their roster. And now Embiid picks the United States,

451
00:25:58,400 --> 00:26:00,720
Speaker 1: you don't think the French would be like, come on, man,

452
00:26:00,800 --> 00:26:03,920
Speaker 1: you guys really need Joel Embiid. You have Durant and

453
00:26:04,000 --> 00:26:09,119
Speaker 1: every you know, everybody on one Hell yeah, they'll be

454
00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:11,440
Speaker 1: piss Hell yeah, they'll they'll go at them and give

455
00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:14,480
Speaker 1: him some flat and rightfully. So I'm just I'm missed

456
00:26:14,480 --> 00:26:17,120
Speaker 1: talking from a you know, from a United States citizen.

457
00:26:17,400 --> 00:26:19,840
Speaker 1: We gotta go after all the big talent we can,

458
00:26:21,040 --> 00:26:25,680
Speaker 1: That's what I'm saying. But of course Dicket and Rudy, Shoot,

459
00:26:25,720 --> 00:26:28,760
Speaker 1: they better be on the recruiting recruiting pride right now.

460
00:26:28,800 --> 00:26:31,360
Speaker 1: They should be calling him every week just to make

461
00:26:31,359 --> 00:26:34,320
Speaker 1: sure that he knows that they still want them and

462
00:26:34,840 --> 00:26:37,080
Speaker 1: get his butt over there and let's let's take down

463
00:26:37,119 --> 00:26:40,840
Speaker 1: the USA. But I'm speaking solely as a member of

464
00:26:40,880 --> 00:26:44,879
Speaker 1: the United States of America. We gotta be getting everybody

465
00:26:44,960 --> 00:26:47,639
Speaker 1: that we can, and Joel Embiid is a big fish.

466
00:26:47,760 --> 00:26:50,639
Speaker 1: That fish should be over here. But I definitely understand

467
00:26:50,680 --> 00:26:54,560
Speaker 1: the other side of the story is money. That was

468
00:26:54,640 --> 00:26:57,560
Speaker 1: and that was again that was before before you came

469
00:26:57,560 --> 00:26:59,080
Speaker 1: out with the story. So I had no clue. I

470
00:26:59,080 --> 00:27:01,520
Speaker 1: didn't even ask, I didn't follow up with him about it.

471
00:27:01,560 --> 00:27:03,600
Speaker 1: I just thought it was some inside joke that they had,

472
00:27:03,680 --> 00:27:06,440
Speaker 1: so I didn't know. Yeah, no, they I mean, that's

473
00:27:06,440 --> 00:27:10,000
Speaker 1: the thing. They want him badly now. But I guess.

474
00:27:10,359 --> 00:27:12,320
Speaker 1: So I went to Houston to try to talk to

475
00:27:12,400 --> 00:27:16,800
Speaker 1: him about this, and you know, again he's he's great,

476
00:27:17,520 --> 00:27:19,840
Speaker 1: took my questions. We ended up having a nice little chap,

477
00:27:19,880 --> 00:27:22,000
Speaker 1: but he's just like, look, I want to stay focused

478
00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:24,320
Speaker 1: on the season. We're trying to win a championship here.

479
00:27:24,600 --> 00:27:27,080
Speaker 1: I do not want to talk about my international future

480
00:27:27,520 --> 00:27:30,480
Speaker 1: until after the season. So he's been he's been consistent

481
00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:34,840
Speaker 1: and steady all year that he knows, you know, campaigning

482
00:27:34,960 --> 00:27:37,480
Speaker 1: for the MVP or whatever else he's tried the last

483
00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:41,200
Speaker 1: two years, he's fallen just short twice. So he's doing

484
00:27:41,200 --> 00:27:44,160
Speaker 1: the smart thing, just keep chasing the championship and see

485
00:27:44,200 --> 00:27:47,840
Speaker 1: where the chips fall. But no, I think you're right.

486
00:27:47,880 --> 00:27:50,159
Speaker 1: I think between the way he's been playing here the

487
00:27:50,240 --> 00:27:53,679
Speaker 1: last few weeks, just crushing it, and then you know,

488
00:27:53,960 --> 00:27:57,439
Speaker 1: your interview with him certainly help help help kind of

489
00:27:57,440 --> 00:28:00,560
Speaker 1: feed more into it that I do not think this

490
00:28:00,720 --> 00:28:05,040
Speaker 1: MVP race is over. I really don't. Yeah, man, I

491
00:28:05,119 --> 00:28:06,880
Speaker 1: want to see I want to see those two goal.

492
00:28:06,960 --> 00:28:09,920
Speaker 1: I want to see it be a head on head

493
00:28:10,440 --> 00:28:14,880
Speaker 1: collision course down the stretch. I think, um, I think

494
00:28:14,960 --> 00:28:18,000
Speaker 1: Embiat has had a phenomenal season. He definitely should be

495
00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:21,040
Speaker 1: in the run out. Hope, hopefully people still have an

496
00:28:21,119 --> 00:28:24,680
Speaker 1: open mind about this, as you tend to believe Stein

497
00:28:24,800 --> 00:28:28,360
Speaker 1: so because in beat Man, he's doing some unbelievable things. Man,

498
00:28:28,800 --> 00:28:31,040
Speaker 1: The way he's the way he moves on the court, man,

499
00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:33,200
Speaker 1: the things that he can do at that size, Man,

500
00:28:33,440 --> 00:28:37,040
Speaker 1: it's nobody else in the league can even compare. You know,

501
00:28:37,200 --> 00:28:41,520
Speaker 1: as great as Joker is what Embat does on that offense,

502
00:28:41,680 --> 00:28:44,320
Speaker 1: being the way he moves, I'm talking about the dribbling,

503
00:28:44,440 --> 00:28:47,160
Speaker 1: the step backs to like that. Dude, he has the

504
00:28:47,160 --> 00:28:51,560
Speaker 1: whole game and defensively he's a beat So you know,

505
00:28:51,640 --> 00:29:00,960
Speaker 1: we'll see Steine. Let's let's talk about embat teammates the

506
00:29:01,080 --> 00:29:04,240
Speaker 1: other start. He didn't make the All FTAR team this year,

507
00:29:04,360 --> 00:29:09,479
Speaker 1: but how about that, so let me let me let

508
00:29:09,480 --> 00:29:11,400
Speaker 1: me talk. So I had a I had a I

509
00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:16,000
Speaker 1: was able to talk to briefly his um, his new agent.

510
00:29:16,120 --> 00:29:18,760
Speaker 1: You know, James Harden hasn't had an agent over the

511
00:29:18,920 --> 00:29:24,360
Speaker 1: last man. Hasn't been a handful of years already, this

512
00:29:25,920 --> 00:29:29,040
Speaker 1: three four years something along those lines. He hasn't had

513
00:29:29,080 --> 00:29:31,680
Speaker 1: an official agent at the time. So he hired his

514
00:29:31,800 --> 00:29:37,720
Speaker 1: longtime friend business partner Troy Payne and he launched Equity

515
00:29:37,800 --> 00:29:41,040
Speaker 1: Basketball Agency. So me and him were going back and

516
00:29:41,080 --> 00:29:44,520
Speaker 1: forth on a text exchange the day of the game

517
00:29:44,760 --> 00:29:47,440
Speaker 1: between the Sixers and ten Bulls, and so I didn't

518
00:29:47,440 --> 00:29:50,200
Speaker 1: get to use this on air, so I can I

519
00:29:50,240 --> 00:29:51,640
Speaker 1: can use it here. I didn't use it on air

520
00:29:51,680 --> 00:29:55,440
Speaker 1: because James didn't play. So, you know, it's kind of

521
00:29:55,440 --> 00:29:58,320
Speaker 1: been like with the success that James is having. He's

522
00:29:58,360 --> 00:30:02,960
Speaker 1: having a phenomenal season and kind of just reinventing his game,

523
00:30:03,600 --> 00:30:08,000
Speaker 1: shooting a career high from three point percentage, twenty something

524
00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:10,680
Speaker 1: assists or whatever game he had. I can't remember the

525
00:30:10,760 --> 00:30:13,600
Speaker 1: number on top of my head, but he's just playing unbelievable.

526
00:30:14,040 --> 00:30:16,240
Speaker 1: But you know, there's been a little bit of a

527
00:30:16,280 --> 00:30:20,520
Speaker 1: cloud over the Sixers team once you go past this

528
00:30:20,600 --> 00:30:23,920
Speaker 1: year because we heard the reports or the rumors about

529
00:30:24,360 --> 00:30:27,680
Speaker 1: how James Harden is looking to get back to Houston,

530
00:30:28,440 --> 00:30:32,600
Speaker 1: and that's kind that's kind of weird because we heard

531
00:30:32,600 --> 00:30:36,360
Speaker 1: this back in December, I want to say, so it's

532
00:30:36,440 --> 00:30:38,360
Speaker 1: kind of weird time you really don't hear a story

533
00:30:38,440 --> 00:30:43,040
Speaker 1: like that on a team that is a contending team.

534
00:30:43,240 --> 00:30:45,320
Speaker 1: You don't really hear the stories like that come out

535
00:30:45,840 --> 00:30:49,120
Speaker 1: but there's been an awful lot of people talking about

536
00:30:49,120 --> 00:30:52,120
Speaker 1: it in the industry, so there's seemed to be some

537
00:30:52,920 --> 00:30:59,600
Speaker 1: some some level of credibility to these reports. So I

538
00:30:59,680 --> 00:31:04,040
Speaker 1: asked Troy Paying, his new agent, about that, and he said, look,

539
00:31:04,240 --> 00:31:08,240
Speaker 1: everything right now is a distraction. He said, James is

540
00:31:08,280 --> 00:31:11,960
Speaker 1: focused solely on Philly. He said they have really a

541
00:31:12,040 --> 00:31:15,160
Speaker 1: real chance to make a legitimate run for a championship,

542
00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:18,600
Speaker 1: and James is doing everything that he can to try

543
00:31:18,600 --> 00:31:25,760
Speaker 1: to facilitate that process. And he talked about not being sidetrack,

544
00:31:25,880 --> 00:31:28,680
Speaker 1: talked about how James doesn't want to be sidetrack with

545
00:31:29,160 --> 00:31:32,560
Speaker 1: all these outside noises talking about what he could do

546
00:31:32,680 --> 00:31:36,920
Speaker 1: next season whatever. He said, he's committed to He's committed

547
00:31:36,920 --> 00:31:39,480
Speaker 1: to Philly. They're trying to do something right now, and

548
00:31:39,640 --> 00:31:42,440
Speaker 1: he wants to stay in the moment. And so and

549
00:31:42,640 --> 00:31:46,360
Speaker 1: I asked him about, you know, just All Star did

550
00:31:46,400 --> 00:31:49,120
Speaker 1: he feel did James feel slighted at all? And he

551
00:31:49,160 --> 00:31:51,800
Speaker 1: said that definitely. He said he felt there was disrespect

552
00:31:51,920 --> 00:31:55,360
Speaker 1: and he felt that his performance this season should have

553
00:31:55,640 --> 00:31:59,760
Speaker 1: got it should have been enough to warrant him being

554
00:32:00,160 --> 00:32:02,280
Speaker 1: to the All Star team, he says, so he's definitely

555
00:32:02,520 --> 00:32:06,080
Speaker 1: has used that as fuel to help him, he said,

556
00:32:06,080 --> 00:32:09,400
Speaker 1: but ultimately, the number one goal is to win a championship.

557
00:32:09,760 --> 00:32:12,400
Speaker 1: And he said, that's where James's head is right now.

558
00:32:12,600 --> 00:32:16,840
Speaker 1: He's not looking beyond next beyond this season. So what

559
00:32:16,880 --> 00:32:19,600
Speaker 1: do you say to that. St Well, look, when it

560
00:32:19,680 --> 00:32:21,600
Speaker 1: came out that he had a new agent, I think

561
00:32:21,640 --> 00:32:24,640
Speaker 1: that only whipped up more of the speculation and the

562
00:32:24,720 --> 00:32:28,360
Speaker 1: rumbles around the league that he wants to go back

563
00:32:28,360 --> 00:32:31,240
Speaker 1: to Houston. And I do think there is some level

564
00:32:31,360 --> 00:32:33,680
Speaker 1: of credence to it. I mean, like you said, it

565
00:32:33,800 --> 00:32:37,040
Speaker 1: is just talked about way too much in league circles

566
00:32:37,320 --> 00:32:40,960
Speaker 1: for there to be nothing to it. The talk about

567
00:32:41,040 --> 00:32:44,440
Speaker 1: Harden wanting to go back to Houston again. I do

568
00:32:44,520 --> 00:32:48,800
Speaker 1: think it is real to some degree. To what specific degree,

569
00:32:48,920 --> 00:32:52,040
Speaker 1: I don't think anybody could tell you in early March,

570
00:32:52,120 --> 00:32:56,480
Speaker 1: because let's face it, if the Rockets win the lottery

571
00:32:56,800 --> 00:33:00,760
Speaker 1: and win the right to draft Victor wemman Yama, presumably

572
00:33:00,960 --> 00:33:03,720
Speaker 1: they are going to do everything they can to build

573
00:33:03,720 --> 00:33:06,520
Speaker 1: around wembon Yama, and I doubt that they would have

574
00:33:06,680 --> 00:33:10,880
Speaker 1: interest in a James Harden reunion if the Rockets don't

575
00:33:10,920 --> 00:33:14,720
Speaker 1: win the lottery and don't get Wembanyama and are looking

576
00:33:14,720 --> 00:33:18,440
Speaker 1: at a situation where they're bringing in another young player

577
00:33:18,480 --> 00:33:20,840
Speaker 1: to add to the slew of young guys they already have.

578
00:33:21,600 --> 00:33:26,080
Speaker 1: And Tilman, for Tita, I think wants to be back

579
00:33:26,120 --> 00:33:29,320
Speaker 1: in the playoff mix. I don't think he wants to

580
00:33:29,360 --> 00:33:32,800
Speaker 1: put up with any more rebuilding. And they you know,

581
00:33:32,880 --> 00:33:37,800
Speaker 1: it has been a tumultuous season in Houston. There's a

582
00:33:37,840 --> 00:33:41,720
Speaker 1: lot of uncertainty there with where this team is going

583
00:33:41,760 --> 00:33:47,360
Speaker 1: in the future heading into this draft lottery. If if

584
00:33:47,360 --> 00:33:52,880
Speaker 1: they don't get Wembanyama, would that make the Rockets as

585
00:33:52,920 --> 00:33:58,200
Speaker 1: intrigued and as interested in a James Harden reunion as

586
00:33:58,400 --> 00:34:02,400
Speaker 1: people around the league think. James is you know, I

587
00:34:02,440 --> 00:34:04,760
Speaker 1: don't think that that is a way out of left

588
00:34:04,800 --> 00:34:08,640
Speaker 1: field connecting of the dots. So I think we have

589
00:34:08,640 --> 00:34:10,360
Speaker 1: to keep an eye on the draft lottery first. I

590
00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:14,120
Speaker 1: think that will tell us everything. But that's a doomsday

591
00:34:14,120 --> 00:34:18,759
Speaker 1: scenario for Philly because you know, Harden took this shorter contract,

592
00:34:19,320 --> 00:34:22,080
Speaker 1: he took the pay cut that facilitated the ability to

593
00:34:22,160 --> 00:34:26,680
Speaker 1: bring in PJ. Tucker and Daniel House and DeAndre Melton

594
00:34:26,960 --> 00:34:29,200
Speaker 1: and make these you know, make the moves to make

595
00:34:29,239 --> 00:34:34,240
Speaker 1: their you know, taking lesser money with a player option

596
00:34:34,280 --> 00:34:36,840
Speaker 1: for next season enabled Philly to make moves that it

597
00:34:36,880 --> 00:34:38,680
Speaker 1: didn't look like the Sixers were going to be able

598
00:34:38,680 --> 00:34:43,080
Speaker 1: to make. But if Harden then walks, I mean, that's

599
00:34:43,200 --> 00:34:49,840
Speaker 1: Darryl Moorey's guy. I mean, it would be stunning if

600
00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:53,920
Speaker 1: that's the way that this played out, that Hardened, you know,

601
00:34:53,960 --> 00:34:58,120
Speaker 1: opted out and left. Even that we're talking about it,

602
00:34:58,320 --> 00:35:00,920
Speaker 1: even though people have been talking about it season, it

603
00:35:01,000 --> 00:35:03,319
Speaker 1: seems like I still think it would go down as

604
00:35:03,360 --> 00:35:08,240
Speaker 1: a shock that Daryl Morey waited. You know, Darryl Moorey

605
00:35:08,280 --> 00:35:10,600
Speaker 1: tried to get James Harden almost as soon as he

606
00:35:10,680 --> 00:35:14,560
Speaker 1: got to Philly. He spent all last season trying to

607
00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:17,799
Speaker 1: get him until he actually did. He wouldn't entertain Ben

608
00:35:17,800 --> 00:35:20,480
Speaker 1: Simmons offers from other teams because he wanted James Harden.

609
00:35:20,960 --> 00:35:24,080
Speaker 1: Got James Harden. I mean, if Harden were to leave

610
00:35:24,160 --> 00:35:26,600
Speaker 1: Philly after a season and a half, that would be

611
00:35:26,920 --> 00:35:33,839
Speaker 1: an absolute seismic development. It would you touched on it

612
00:35:33,880 --> 00:35:38,440
Speaker 1: because you know what they did to get him, and

613
00:35:38,480 --> 00:35:43,400
Speaker 1: then the sacrifice, the financial sacrifice James Harden made to

614
00:35:43,920 --> 00:35:49,360
Speaker 1: acquire certain players, and if he were to bolt huge blow,

615
00:35:50,200 --> 00:35:53,440
Speaker 1: this would be this would be I would say this

616
00:35:53,480 --> 00:35:57,360
Speaker 1: would be a tougher blow than what Toronto had to

617
00:35:57,400 --> 00:36:00,800
Speaker 1: deal with with Kauhai leaving after or a year because

618
00:36:00,800 --> 00:36:05,000
Speaker 1: of everything that went on with UM with James prior

619
00:36:05,040 --> 00:36:09,840
Speaker 1: to this season. So with that being said, I still

620
00:36:11,560 --> 00:36:14,240
Speaker 1: I still want to see how this season ends with Philly.

621
00:36:14,480 --> 00:36:17,560
Speaker 1: You know, what if they make it to the NBA

622
00:36:17,600 --> 00:36:22,040
Speaker 1: Finals or what if they win the NBA Finals. You

623
00:36:22,120 --> 00:36:25,400
Speaker 1: don't you don't think that that has any type of

624
00:36:26,560 --> 00:36:29,880
Speaker 1: leaves any type of influence on James to say, Okay,

625
00:36:30,200 --> 00:36:33,960
Speaker 1: maybe I need to hang around another year. He has

626
00:36:34,000 --> 00:36:36,560
Speaker 1: a player option for next year, correct, right, So it's

627
00:36:36,640 --> 00:36:39,719
Speaker 1: his choice. It's his choice, yea. The assumption is that

628
00:36:39,760 --> 00:36:42,719
Speaker 1: he would decline the option and redo, you know, do

629
00:36:42,800 --> 00:36:46,080
Speaker 1: a new deal with Philly for more. But you know,

630
00:36:46,120 --> 00:36:49,840
Speaker 1: this Houston talk has been there for literally months with

631
00:36:49,960 --> 00:36:54,600
Speaker 1: an S So I still think there's other scenarios that

632
00:36:54,680 --> 00:36:57,200
Speaker 1: could play out depending on how the season shakes out

633
00:36:57,880 --> 00:37:02,200
Speaker 1: and how they finish. So it's it's a weird story,

634
00:37:02,440 --> 00:37:04,719
Speaker 1: a weird story to be covering because this is a team,

635
00:37:04,760 --> 00:37:06,719
Speaker 1: this is the Philadelphia seventy sixer team that is a

636
00:37:06,760 --> 00:37:10,000
Speaker 1: legitimate title contender, So it's kind of a weird story

637
00:37:10,040 --> 00:37:12,919
Speaker 1: to be covering right now, especially when it came out.

638
00:37:13,360 --> 00:37:17,520
Speaker 1: That's report came out in December, so a little weird,

639
00:37:17,640 --> 00:37:21,040
Speaker 1: but hey, this is the NBA, that's this league. That's

640
00:37:21,080 --> 00:37:25,200
Speaker 1: that's why we do this. Who says that this league?

641
00:37:25,800 --> 00:37:30,200
Speaker 1: This league? Hashtag this league uncut? Yeah, like it's I

642
00:37:30,239 --> 00:37:34,839
Speaker 1: mean that loss in Houston December fifth, Harden comes back

643
00:37:34,840 --> 00:37:39,320
Speaker 1: from injury. The Sixers lose in double overtime, not one overtime,

644
00:37:39,360 --> 00:37:43,000
Speaker 1: double overtime. I told you my memory sucks. Sixers lose

645
00:37:43,160 --> 00:37:48,560
Speaker 1: in double overtime at Houston on December fifth, go home

646
00:37:48,880 --> 00:37:52,399
Speaker 1: for a one two, three, four, five six seven game

647
00:37:52,480 --> 00:37:57,040
Speaker 1: homestand the Sixers sweep that homestand and go seven and oh.

648
00:37:57,120 --> 00:38:01,120
Speaker 1: Since that Houston game, they were twelve and well on

649
00:38:01,200 --> 00:38:06,200
Speaker 1: December fifth, they are now they are thirty one and ten.

650
00:38:06,920 --> 00:38:10,080
Speaker 1: Since that night that I saw that, I spoke to

651
00:38:10,160 --> 00:38:13,839
Speaker 1: mister Embiide in Houston, so they have been absolutely fantastic.

652
00:38:14,600 --> 00:38:18,919
Speaker 1: And you know, no, I'm not no, I'm not the reason.

653
00:38:18,960 --> 00:38:21,040
Speaker 1: I mean they yeah, they got they got me out

654
00:38:21,040 --> 00:38:24,760
Speaker 1: of their sites and then started. I'm not the reason.

655
00:38:25,800 --> 00:38:28,960
Speaker 1: But look, I mean the you know, we talked so

656
00:38:29,080 --> 00:38:31,160
Speaker 1: much about the West. I'm actually glad we did it.

657
00:38:31,480 --> 00:38:33,000
Speaker 1: We didn't even plan it this way, and it just

658
00:38:33,040 --> 00:38:36,120
Speaker 1: kind of this ended up being a full on Eastern

659
00:38:36,160 --> 00:38:40,520
Speaker 1: Conference podcast because you know, Philly, with with the way

660
00:38:40,560 --> 00:38:44,480
Speaker 1: Boston has struggled here lately, with the way Milwaukee has

661
00:38:44,520 --> 00:38:50,319
Speaker 1: just been playing fantastic, but you know, Philly, they've really

662
00:38:50,400 --> 00:38:52,680
Speaker 1: kind of made it a three team show out there.

663
00:38:52,680 --> 00:38:56,320
Speaker 1: We're in the West. We have so many question marks

664
00:38:56,360 --> 00:39:00,200
Speaker 1: in the West, but this is good that we u

665
00:39:00,719 --> 00:39:02,560
Speaker 1: you know again, just you know, we're recording this on

666
00:39:02,600 --> 00:39:06,960
Speaker 1: Wednesday night. This drops Thursday. Just today we had Memphis

667
00:39:06,960 --> 00:39:09,480
Speaker 1: come out and say that John Morant will will not

668
00:39:09,560 --> 00:39:11,600
Speaker 1: be with the team for at least four more games.

669
00:39:12,239 --> 00:39:15,279
Speaker 1: Luca don Chich exited the Dallas loss at New Orleans

670
00:39:15,360 --> 00:39:19,839
Speaker 1: with an injury. KD twists his ankle pregame. Can't even

671
00:39:19,880 --> 00:39:22,560
Speaker 1: play for Phoenix tonight and what would have been his

672
00:39:22,640 --> 00:39:25,520
Speaker 1: first home game. Zion Williamson is out for at least

673
00:39:25,560 --> 00:39:30,240
Speaker 1: two more weeks in New Orleans. So nothing but question

674
00:39:30,320 --> 00:39:33,600
Speaker 1: marks in the West that we will keep getting to

675
00:39:33,719 --> 00:39:36,360
Speaker 1: and analyzing and dissecting and breaking down. But in the East,

676
00:39:37,040 --> 00:39:40,720
Speaker 1: props to Philly. It's been all the talk This season

677
00:39:40,840 --> 00:39:44,280
Speaker 1: was about Milwaukee and Boston. And it started out Boston

678
00:39:44,280 --> 00:39:48,600
Speaker 1: and Milwaukee being a tier under themselves. And Joel Embiid

679
00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:51,000
Speaker 1: and James Harden have powered these guys. It's a three

680
00:39:51,120 --> 00:39:53,160
Speaker 1: It's a three team tier at the top of the East.

681
00:39:53,840 --> 00:39:57,720
Speaker 1: And yes, we are here to proclaim that the MVP

682
00:39:57,920 --> 00:40:02,359
Speaker 1: race is not over breaking news. The season is still going.

683
00:40:03,480 --> 00:40:06,200
Speaker 1: Let it play out. Let it play out, Stein, And

684
00:40:06,280 --> 00:40:08,239
Speaker 1: before before we get out of here, Stein, let me,

685
00:40:08,520 --> 00:40:10,359
Speaker 1: let me let me stick with the East real quick.

686
00:40:10,440 --> 00:40:12,759
Speaker 1: Let me ask you a question. See how you feel

687
00:40:12,760 --> 00:40:15,760
Speaker 1: about this. I want to go to the Milwaukee Bucks.

688
00:40:16,280 --> 00:40:19,200
Speaker 1: And no, I'm not talking about Yannis. I'm not going

689
00:40:19,239 --> 00:40:22,640
Speaker 1: with Yannis. I'm not talking Drew Holiday, I'm not talking

690
00:40:22,880 --> 00:40:27,239
Speaker 1: Chris Milton. I want to talk about something that I

691
00:40:27,400 --> 00:40:32,640
Speaker 1: witnessed firsthand with Pat Connington. This had to have been

692
00:40:33,600 --> 00:40:39,439
Speaker 1: a month ago. Bucks Lakers. I'm covering Bucks Lakers, so Stein,

693
00:40:39,560 --> 00:40:42,440
Speaker 1: I'm minding my own business. Or walk into the arena

694
00:40:42,840 --> 00:40:46,719
Speaker 1: is right before the game, and I see Pat Connington

695
00:40:47,280 --> 00:40:50,759
Speaker 1: about to take a picture with a young boy. This

696
00:40:50,800 --> 00:40:53,600
Speaker 1: boy looked like he's about nine years old, eight or

697
00:40:53,719 --> 00:40:57,520
Speaker 1: nine years old. The young boy asked Pat, Pat is

698
00:40:57,600 --> 00:40:59,319
Speaker 1: my guy. By the way, me throw that out there.

699
00:40:59,840 --> 00:41:07,080
Speaker 1: He also started his career in Portland. But this just

700
00:41:07,160 --> 00:41:12,720
Speaker 1: throw that out there stock full disctosure. So this young boy,

701
00:41:12,880 --> 00:41:17,640
Speaker 1: he's sitting courtside, he asked Pat Connington for a picture.

702
00:41:18,480 --> 00:41:23,320
Speaker 1: Pat Connington comes over and grant he's about to grant

703
00:41:23,400 --> 00:41:26,680
Speaker 1: him this picture, but he noticed. He noticed it's the

704
00:41:26,840 --> 00:41:31,000
Speaker 1: jersey that this young boy is wearing. The young boy

705
00:41:31,760 --> 00:41:35,920
Speaker 1: is wearing a Lebron James Lequer jersey. He makes the

706
00:41:36,040 --> 00:41:40,000
Speaker 1: young boy take the jersey off before he took the

707
00:41:40,080 --> 00:41:42,480
Speaker 1: picture with him. And so I walked past, and I'm

708
00:41:42,520 --> 00:41:45,719
Speaker 1: seeing the boy as I as I'm walking past, I'm

709
00:41:45,719 --> 00:41:48,440
Speaker 1: seeing the boy take the jersey off. And so I

710
00:41:48,560 --> 00:41:50,600
Speaker 1: look at Pat. I'm like, Pat, you made him do that.

711
00:41:50,800 --> 00:41:53,840
Speaker 1: He said, that's right, that's right, that's right. Want to

712
00:41:53,840 --> 00:41:55,719
Speaker 1: take a picture of me take that jersey off. That's

713
00:41:55,800 --> 00:41:58,000
Speaker 1: right that the boy did it. He took the picture.

714
00:41:58,320 --> 00:42:00,480
Speaker 1: It was funny. I would have mentioned it during the

715
00:42:00,520 --> 00:42:03,400
Speaker 1: game if it was time for it. So, Stein, do

716
00:42:03,480 --> 00:42:07,239
Speaker 1: you have a problem with Pet Connaughton making this young

717
00:42:07,360 --> 00:42:10,600
Speaker 1: eight nine year old kid take his lebron jersey off

718
00:42:10,640 --> 00:42:14,160
Speaker 1: as he's taking a picture with Pet you know what,

719
00:42:14,320 --> 00:42:20,440
Speaker 1: I think, I side with Connaughton here. I watched and

720
00:42:20,480 --> 00:42:23,840
Speaker 1: of course again because my mem man, it's getting old sucks.

721
00:42:23,880 --> 00:42:27,960
Speaker 1: This happened Saturday, and I can't even remember the specifics exactly,

722
00:42:27,960 --> 00:42:32,719
Speaker 1: but on the ABC pregame show, they actually showed footage

723
00:42:33,520 --> 00:42:37,879
Speaker 1: of I want to say, it was a young Bucks fan,

724
00:42:38,360 --> 00:42:41,880
Speaker 1: and I think she had Embad's jersey on and I

725
00:42:42,760 --> 00:42:47,120
Speaker 1: think she got Embad's autograph pregame, and then she took

726
00:42:47,160 --> 00:42:49,880
Speaker 1: the jersey off and was actually wearing a Bucks jersey

727
00:42:49,960 --> 00:42:53,360
Speaker 1: underneath it because she's really a Bucks fan. So wow,

728
00:42:54,120 --> 00:42:56,520
Speaker 1: it was a very savvy move by this young lady.

729
00:42:56,560 --> 00:42:58,719
Speaker 1: And like I said, I'm I really hope I'm not

730
00:42:58,760 --> 00:43:00,520
Speaker 1: screwing up the story because like I said, I watched

731
00:43:00,520 --> 00:43:04,120
Speaker 1: it Saturday, it's Wednesday night. But apparently for me, remembering

732
00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:06,960
Speaker 1: something from four days ago as impossible. So I said,

733
00:43:07,040 --> 00:43:13,360
Speaker 1: I think I'm I'm retelling the story properly. But um,

734
00:43:13,600 --> 00:43:15,920
Speaker 1: maybe maybe maybe Pat was a you know, I guess

735
00:43:16,040 --> 00:43:17,759
Speaker 1: you also got a factor in the age. If the

736
00:43:17,840 --> 00:43:21,320
Speaker 1: kid was really eight or nine, that's probably too. I

737
00:43:21,880 --> 00:43:25,480
Speaker 1: would probably say if it's a teenager, okay, but you know,

738
00:43:25,480 --> 00:43:27,279
Speaker 1: eight or nine, I think you just rolled with it

739
00:43:27,560 --> 00:43:29,759
Speaker 1: and that was cool. It was fun, you know what

740
00:43:29,880 --> 00:43:32,840
Speaker 1: I'm I'm I'm saying this just to start some engagement.

741
00:43:32,920 --> 00:43:38,120
Speaker 1: But I'm rocking on what Pat did. I'm rocking one hundred.

742
00:43:38,120 --> 00:43:40,960
Speaker 1: I have no problems whatsoever. I was a little surprised,

743
00:43:41,200 --> 00:43:43,960
Speaker 1: but I'll rock with him one hundred. Listen, they're going

744
00:43:44,680 --> 00:43:47,480
Speaker 1: he's going up against the Lakers. That's a that's a

745
00:43:47,520 --> 00:43:51,000
Speaker 1: big game. That's a big showdown. Can't be taking pictures

746
00:43:51,400 --> 00:43:55,080
Speaker 1: with somebody rocking Lebron's jersey. Like now, if he would

747
00:43:55,080 --> 00:43:57,520
Speaker 1: have did it, I wouldn't you know. I wouldn't tripped,

748
00:43:57,520 --> 00:43:59,760
Speaker 1: I wouldn't said anything, I wouldn't have any second thoughts.

749
00:44:00,200 --> 00:44:02,520
Speaker 1: But the fact that he handled it that way, I'm like,

750
00:44:02,640 --> 00:44:05,920
Speaker 1: pet That's why I messed with you. Man. You petty,

751
00:44:05,960 --> 00:44:07,800
Speaker 1: You petty like me, That's why I messed with I

752
00:44:07,920 --> 00:44:09,960
Speaker 1: had no problems if he wasn't if you guys were

753
00:44:10,000 --> 00:44:13,920
Speaker 1: in in Portland together, No, no, no, I didn't. Actually

754
00:44:13,920 --> 00:44:16,040
Speaker 1: I wasn't covering the Blazer. I wouldn't a beat writer

755
00:44:16,120 --> 00:44:18,040
Speaker 1: when he was there. Man, How am I to tell

756
00:44:18,160 --> 00:44:20,600
Speaker 1: Scott Cassiola of the New York Times, who I thought

757
00:44:20,719 --> 00:44:24,800
Speaker 1: was the president, the media president of Pat Connaughton's fan club.

758
00:44:24,960 --> 00:44:26,920
Speaker 1: How am I going to tell him that you that

759
00:44:27,160 --> 00:44:29,760
Speaker 1: I rock with Pet, that you are tight with Pat Connors.

760
00:44:29,760 --> 00:44:32,719
Speaker 1: I rock with Pet. That's that's so petty and I

761
00:44:32,840 --> 00:44:36,080
Speaker 1: rocked with it one one hundred percent. I know some people,

762
00:44:36,160 --> 00:44:38,000
Speaker 1: some of the people probably feel some type of way

763
00:44:38,040 --> 00:44:40,360
Speaker 1: about it. Oh, he's a kid Stein You being the

764
00:44:40,880 --> 00:44:44,200
Speaker 1: gentleman you are, I figure you'd be like, uh, he's

765
00:44:44,280 --> 00:44:47,520
Speaker 1: eight nine. No, you know, I may be a gentleman,

766
00:44:47,560 --> 00:44:50,720
Speaker 1: but I've got I've got plenty of pettiness and grudge holding.

767
00:44:51,880 --> 00:44:56,839
Speaker 1: You know, you know, you know, I do know. I'm

768
00:44:56,840 --> 00:44:58,279
Speaker 1: trying to get it out of you. Stop. I'm trying

769
00:44:58,320 --> 00:45:01,240
Speaker 1: to get it out of you one day day, slowly

770
00:45:01,239 --> 00:45:04,960
Speaker 1: but surely. We got many, many, many pods for my

771
00:45:05,040 --> 00:45:09,359
Speaker 1: pettiness and grudges to be revealed here and there. This

772
00:45:09,480 --> 00:45:13,520
Speaker 1: was awesome. I love that this. Very little of this

773
00:45:13,600 --> 00:45:15,840
Speaker 1: was planned and this we did a whole pod that

774
00:45:16,000 --> 00:45:20,680
Speaker 1: just kind of organically flowed. Absolutely love it. Thanks everybody

775
00:45:20,760 --> 00:45:25,040
Speaker 1: for joining us on another edition of this League uncut.

776
00:45:25,120 --> 00:45:29,719
Speaker 1: If my voice sounds lower about halfway through this pod

777
00:45:29,760 --> 00:45:31,840
Speaker 1: than it was, that's because I'm recording this in a

778
00:45:31,920 --> 00:45:34,200
Speaker 1: hotel room, and I think I was shouting so loud

779
00:45:34,239 --> 00:45:36,759
Speaker 1: at the beginning that someone next to my room was

780
00:45:36,800 --> 00:45:38,360
Speaker 1: pounding on the wall, so I had to tone it

781
00:45:38,400 --> 00:45:40,879
Speaker 1: down a little bit. Chris and I will be back

782
00:45:41,200 --> 00:45:45,600
Speaker 1: very very soon, back Monday on our normal schedule. Please

783
00:45:46,120 --> 00:45:52,160
Speaker 1: please rate, review, subscribe, have a great weekend, and let's

784
00:45:52,160 --> 00:45:54,759
Speaker 1: get some of these guys healthy. Be good everyone, and

785
00:45:54,880 --> 00:45:57,319
Speaker 1: that'll do it for us. See you next time. This

786
00:45:57,400 --> 00:45:59,360
Speaker 1: league uncut is and I heard radio production