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Speaker 1: All right, welcome to hoops tonight here at the volume

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Speaker 1: heavy Thursday. Everybody in Happy New Year. I hope ball.

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Speaker 1: If you guys had a great celebration, got a jam

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Speaker 1: pack show for you today. The Cleveland Cavaliers off the

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Speaker 1: top are three and zero so far in the West

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Speaker 1: Coast road trip. They're riding an eight game winning streak

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Speaker 1: where they've won every single game by double figures. Really

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Speaker 1: impressive basketball from them. We're going to do a deep

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Speaker 1: dive into them off the top. I've been really keyed

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Speaker 1: in on the calves over the last couple of weeks

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Speaker 1: as their schkeed jewel has gotten tougher and I got

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Speaker 1: a lot of stuff that I want to get into

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Speaker 1: on that front. I'm also finally I told you guys

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Speaker 1: I wanted to watch more games. First, I'm finally ready

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Speaker 1: to officially place the Cleveland Cavaliers in my contender rankings.

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Speaker 1: We're going to do that at the tail end of

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Speaker 1: that segment. After that, I want to talk about the

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Speaker 1: Milwaukee Bucks. I had a big impressive comeback win on

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Speaker 1: Tuesday against the Indiana Pacers. I want to talk a

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Speaker 1: little bit about Giannis and some stuff with the guard rotation.

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Speaker 1: After that, Golden State Warriors fans are depressed right now,

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Speaker 1: and I want to help offer some perspective as someone

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Speaker 1: who's been equally depressed about my team at an earlier

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Speaker 1: point in the season and talk about why I still

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Speaker 1: believe that team is worth investing in. And then the

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Speaker 1: Los Angeles Lakers at the tail end of the show,

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Speaker 1: I just want to talk briefly about their showdown with

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Speaker 1: the Cleveland Cavaliers and some of my takeaways. You guys

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Speaker 1: know the job before we get started. Subscribe to the

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Speaker 1: Hoops and Night YouTube channel. You don't miss any more

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Speaker 1: of our videos, follow me on Twitter and underscore JSNLT

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Speaker 1: so you guys don't miss announcements. So forget about a

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Speaker 1: podcast for you where you get your podcast under hoos Tonight.

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Speaker 1: It's also helpful if you leave a rating and a

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Speaker 1: review on that front. We also have brand new social

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Speaker 1: media feeds on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. We're releasing content

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Speaker 1: throughout the year under the Hoops Tonight banner. Makes sure

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Speaker 1: you guys follow us there. In the last not least,

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Speaker 1: keep dropping mail back questions in the YouTube comments. Schedule's

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Speaker 1: gonna be a little weird over the course of this

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Speaker 1: weekend because I'm going on my first ski trip of

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Speaker 1: the year Sunday through Tuesday, So I'm probably going to

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Speaker 1: work on Saturday and maybe even Sunday morning as well.

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Speaker 1: But then we won't be working on Monday and Tuesday,

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Speaker 1: so the mail bag might not be on Friday this week.

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Speaker 1: It might be on like Saturday or Sunday. I'll let

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Speaker 1: you guys know, but make sure you guys keep dropping

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Speaker 1: mail back questions in those YouTube comments. All right, let's

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Speaker 1: talk some basketball. So, as I said, I've been really

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Speaker 1: keyed in on the Cavs over the course of the

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Speaker 1: last two weeks as their schedules gotten tougher. It's just tough.

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Speaker 1: They had been playing the easy literally the thirtieth ranked

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Speaker 1: schedule in the league. Just part of that's the Eastern Conference.

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Speaker 1: Part of that's just the way things kind of broke.

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Speaker 1: They were on some tough travel schedule at times, but

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Speaker 1: like in terms of the quality opponents they were playing,

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Speaker 1: they were playing a lot of lesser teams out in

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Speaker 1: the East, and they've played a bunch of really good

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Speaker 1: teams as of layer. I shouldn't say they haven't played

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Speaker 1: the great teams, like the top tier teams like Boston

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Speaker 1: and Oklahoma City, but they've played a bunch of really

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Speaker 1: good teams in the last couple of weeks. They played

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Speaker 1: the Bucks, they played the Sixers, albeit down Stars, but

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Speaker 1: they played the Nuggets, they played the Lakers, they played

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Speaker 1: the Warriors, and they've just been ripping through all of them.

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Speaker 1: They're three to zero on the West Coast road trips

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Speaker 1: so far. They've won every game of this eight game

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Speaker 1: winning streak by double figures. In this eight game span,

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Speaker 1: they have a won twenty four offensive rating, which is

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Speaker 1: best in the league. One oh seven defensive rating in

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Speaker 1: that span, which is fifth best in the league. I

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Speaker 1: want to zoom in on Darius Garland to start, because

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Speaker 1: he's just become one of my favorite players to watch

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Speaker 1: in the league this year. He has this confidence about

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Speaker 1: him now that wasn't there in years past as it

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Speaker 1: pertains to getting to his spots. And remember, getting to

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Speaker 1: your spots is very much like a combination of a

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Speaker 1: bunch of factors, right, Like it's vector of your a

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Speaker 1: combination of like your athletic traits, like are you big

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Speaker 1: and strong? Are you mobile? Like a combination of those

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Speaker 1: sorts of traits. Right. Darius Garland in particular, is incredibly

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Speaker 1: quick footed. He can start, stop, and change direction incredibly quickly, right,

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Speaker 1: and so that allows him to get to his spots.

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Speaker 1: The second piece of it is like ball handling, the

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Speaker 1: ability to control the basketball while you're getting to those spots.

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Speaker 1: And then the third piece of it is footwork, right,

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Speaker 1: that's the ability to actually weaponize your athleticism to get

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Speaker 1: to spots. Right. Great example of that is like in

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Speaker 1: the Lakers game, every when he did that step through

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Speaker 1: move where he like kind of pivoted like he was

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Speaker 1: going to shoot over his left shoulder, but then he

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Speaker 1: stepped back through to the left and then took that

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Speaker 1: extra step to engage ad just to drop it off

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Speaker 1: to Jared Allen so that he could get a dunk.

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Speaker 1: Like that's a footwork piece that allowed him even though

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Speaker 1: the defender cut him off, it allowed him to get

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Speaker 1: even more penetration into the lane to engage the rim

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Speaker 1: protect protector for him to get a drop off pass.

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Speaker 1: I have really enjoyed watching him because it actually kind

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Speaker 1: of reminds me of watching like a really really good

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Speaker 1: running back in tight space environments. The way he can

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Speaker 1: kind of like just change direction and just weave through

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Speaker 1: those situations and get where he needs to go. And

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Speaker 1: that's been one of the primary driving forces of the calves,

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Speaker 1: getting defenses in rotation all the time, which is a

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Speaker 1: great which is a great driving force behind the quality

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Speaker 1: three point shots that they get, as well as the

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Speaker 1: quality rollman touches that they get. And it's kind of

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Speaker 1: funny because, like, there are a dozen reasons why the

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Speaker 1: calves are so much better now than they were last year,

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Speaker 1: and we're going to talk about a bunch of them today.

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Speaker 1: But if I had to simplify it down, if someone

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Speaker 1: said Hey, Jason in one sentence, won quick sentence, tell

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Speaker 1: me why the Cleveland Cavaliers are so much better this

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Speaker 1: year than they were last year. I would just say

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Speaker 1: Darius Garland and Evan Mobley are both way better than

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Speaker 1: they've ever been. That is a influx of talent that

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Speaker 1: has turned this into like a two rock solid player team.

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Speaker 1: Because Jared Allen's rock solid. You know, it's like a

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Speaker 1: role player center. Although he's kicked eights ass again and

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Speaker 1: he keeps out playing some of the better centers in

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Speaker 1: the league. So there's that that we have to contend with.

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Speaker 1: Maybe Jared Allen is just needs to be ranked a

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Speaker 1: lot higher among centers, right, But Jared Allen was rock solid.

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Speaker 1: Donovan Mitchell was rock solid. But it's just kind of

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Speaker 1: like Mobiley and Garland and just kind of depended on

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Speaker 1: the night With those guys, right, both of them have

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Speaker 1: become way more reliable and their ceilings are higher. That

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Speaker 1: is the simplest way that I can describe the improvement

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Speaker 1: in this team. I want to start with Darius. So,

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Speaker 1: Darius is at sixty three percent true shooting this year.

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Speaker 1: That's four percent higher than he's ever been in his career.

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Speaker 1: In this eight game stretch, twenty one points and eight

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Speaker 1: assists per game, with one point eight steals per game,

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Speaker 1: fifty one percent from the field, forty four percent from three.

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Speaker 1: That's a sixty five percent true shooting percentage. His efficiency

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Speaker 1: is off the chart. And again, what stands out to

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Speaker 1: me on film, and this is the part that I

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Speaker 1: enjoy watching so much, is his ability to get to

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Speaker 1: his spots. I'm watching him against good perimeter defenders a

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Speaker 1: lot of the times, like you're seeing athletes in front

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Speaker 1: of Darius Garland, and he's just confidently, almost like with

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Speaker 1: a pep in his step, dribbling past these guys and

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Speaker 1: getting wherever he wants to on the floor. Once you

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Speaker 1: have the ability to get wherever you want to on

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Speaker 1: the floor, it becomes about two things. The ability to

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Speaker 1: make shots and the ability to make the passing reads.

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Speaker 1: And he's always been a great passer, but his shot

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Speaker 1: making has been the piece that's been inconsistent with him

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Speaker 1: in the past, and his shot making is on another

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Speaker 1: level this year. Listen to some of these numbers, it's crazy,

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Speaker 1: Like I said, four percent higher and true shooting percentage

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Speaker 1: than any season in his career, forty six percent on

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Speaker 1: catch and shoot jump shots field goal percentage forty six percent.

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Speaker 1: He's making almost half of them forty two percent off

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Speaker 1: the dribble waited for threes. He's getting one point one

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Speaker 1: zero points per shot in off the dribble situations. Out

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Speaker 1: of the thirty two players in the league to attempt

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Speaker 1: at least one hundred and fifty pull up jump shots,

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Speaker 1: Darius Garland ranks fifth out of those thirty two guys.

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Speaker 1: He's become a deadly pull up jump shooter. This is

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Speaker 1: the crazy one. He's shooting sixty four percent on floaters.

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Speaker 1: That's Jokic territory. He's fifth in the league in total

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Speaker 1: floaters made. By the way, for those of who are curious,

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Speaker 1: Jalen Brunson's number one total floaters made, LaMelo balls number two.

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Speaker 1: Interesting one here Jared Jackson at three and then Darren

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Speaker 1: Fox at four before we get to Garland at five.

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Speaker 1: But sixty four percent on floaters is ridiculous. He's a

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Speaker 1: little lower at the ram. He's like fifty four percent

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Speaker 1: at the rim, but that's somewhat to be expected with

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Speaker 1: a small guard. But the shot making is vital to

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Speaker 1: opening up the passing reads. Right Like in the past,

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Speaker 1: Darius Garland used to be the kind of guy you

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Speaker 1: could run a deeper drop coverage against because one he

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Speaker 1: was a capable pull up shooter and a capable floater maker.

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Speaker 1: But he was a little more inconsistent and the aggression

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Speaker 1: wasn't always there. It wasn't always willing to take those shots.

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Speaker 1: That's been a big part with Kenny Atkinson. He's getting

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Speaker 1: him to be more willing to take that pull up

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Speaker 1: three when it's there, even if it's a little bit

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Speaker 1: earlier in the possession, right, But like the aggression in

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Speaker 1: the shot making is there. What that has done is

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Speaker 1: forced teams to come up to the level. And like

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Speaker 1: you want to know why Jared Allen is always wide

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Speaker 1: open on the pocket. You want to know why his

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Speaker 1: roleman efficiency is up. You want to know why he's

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Speaker 1: fourth in the entire league and role man field goals

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Speaker 1: made A big part of that is Darius Garland is

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Speaker 1: now bringing aggressive pick and roll coverages out to the

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Speaker 1: perimeter because of his shot making. He had Anthony Davis

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Speaker 1: out at the perimeter that entire game. Every time he

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Speaker 1: hit Jared Allen in the pocket, He's rolling downhill and

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Speaker 1: it's like Max Christy on the back line, or you

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Speaker 1: know Lebron at times who you know doesn't make those

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Speaker 1: rotations all the time during the regular season, and he's

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Speaker 1: just bigger and he's just finishing over those guys. But

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Speaker 1: the only way you're pulling Anthony Davis out to the

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Speaker 1: perimeter there is if you are that scoring threat. Darius

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Speaker 1: Garland has been the second pick and roll ball handler

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Speaker 1: in the entire league this year with a minimum of

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Speaker 1: four hundred reps. Number one is Tyree Slliburton. Number two

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Speaker 1: is Darius Garland. He's become one of my favorite players

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Speaker 1: to watch in the league. It's a joy to watch

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Speaker 1: him dribble around the floor and get wherever he wants.

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Speaker 1: He's picking teams apart right now while scoring on him

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Speaker 1: to can't say enough about Darius Garland. Well, Evan Mobley.

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Speaker 1: It comes down to two things. It's a change in

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Speaker 1: the way he's been used on offense. We talked about

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Speaker 1: this a lot in the earlier part of the season.

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Speaker 1: Right Like, his roleman touches are down, which is good

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Speaker 1: because he's not very good at the roleman touches, and

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Speaker 1: then his ball handling touches are up, which is good

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Speaker 1: because he's a good playmaker, and he's at his best

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Speaker 1: when he's trying to get his momentum going towards the

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Speaker 1: rim with the ball in his hands. Off the dribble.

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Speaker 1: He's run eighty eight ISOs and pick and rolls this year,

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Speaker 1: including passes for eighty nine points. That's over a point

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Speaker 1: per possession, so he's generating offense there. And then the

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Speaker 1: big one is his spot up shooting. He's shooting fifty

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Speaker 1: percent on threes during this win streak, this eight game

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Speaker 1: win streak on three point four attempts per game, that's

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Speaker 1: pretty solid volume, and he's up to forty three percent

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Speaker 1: on the season. Teams are leaving him open and he's

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Speaker 1: just making them, and he's making them at a great rate.

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Speaker 1: So as a result, you're getting real offensive firepower out

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Speaker 1: of Evan Mobley. Nineteen points per game that's functional both

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Speaker 1: on the ball and off the ball, with four assists

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Speaker 1: per game during this eight game streak, that's a real uptick.

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Speaker 1: And then most importantly, both Evan Mobley and Darius Garland

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Speaker 1: have addressed their biggest weaknesses, which are weaknesses that got

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Speaker 1: them beat in the pass. Like with Mobley, it was

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Speaker 1: how do we use this guy on offense right when

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Speaker 1: he was in pick and roll, his shortcomings and making

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Speaker 1: decisions on the role became a problem. Now where he's

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Speaker 1: still getting the occasional role man touch, but now that

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Speaker 1: he's doing more of his work offensively as a spot

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Speaker 1: up guy and hitting shots and on the ball generating shots,

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Speaker 1: it's made him into a useful offensive player in a

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Speaker 1: way that he wasn't in years past. With Garland, it

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Speaker 1: was two things. It was can he be aggressive as

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Speaker 1: a scorer and successful as a scorer in big spots,

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Speaker 1: which we'll talk about in a minute, and then the

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Speaker 1: defensive end of the floor. And here's the deal. Teams

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Speaker 1: are attacking Darius Garland. They are, but he's fighting and

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Speaker 1: he's not as easy to target as he looks. I

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Speaker 1: think he's at his best when he's trying to be disruptive.

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Speaker 1: When he can be passive, it can be an issue

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Speaker 1: with his size, But when he's aggressive and he's attacking

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Speaker 1: the basketball, he can force turnovers and speed guys up.

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Speaker 1: That's the real Those are the reps that I see

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Speaker 1: with him that look best. But on offense, he's demonstrated

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Speaker 1: a clear step forward, but the next step is doing

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Speaker 1: it in the postseason, and this is Cavs fans worry

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Speaker 1: about this sometimes, this is what a lot of people

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Speaker 1: around the league are thinking about, right Like, the next

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Speaker 1: step is doing it in the postseason. He's averaging fourteen

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Speaker 1: points per game inefficiently in seventeen playoff games in his career.

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Speaker 1: That said, I am optimistic. I think Darius Garland is

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Speaker 1: gonna have a very successful playoff run this year. The

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Speaker 1: main reason why is because there are clear signs that

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Speaker 1: he's just improving. Like, he's way better in the postseason.

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Speaker 1: He was way better last year than he was the

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Speaker 1: first year, right like in the knixt Series he was

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Speaker 1: so bad, then not as good as you want him

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Speaker 1: to be in the Orlando Series, but better. And then

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Speaker 1: he's obviously way better this year than he was last year.

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Speaker 1: So there are these clear signs of improvement, which to

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Speaker 1: me are like a clear sign that the guy's working

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Speaker 1: his ass off behind the scenes, and that to me

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Speaker 1: means you're destined for improvement. So my guess is we

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Speaker 1: get another big leap forward for Garland this year in

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Speaker 1: the playoffs. Does that mean he's going to be just

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Speaker 1: as efficient in volumess with the scoring as he was

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Speaker 1: in the regular season, not necessarily, but I think he's

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Speaker 1: going to be better than he has been. Now. Obviously,

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Speaker 1: we focused in a lot on Darius Garland and Evan

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Speaker 1: Mobley today, but I want to talk about some team

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Speaker 1: wide stuff and then I want to talk about Donovan

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Speaker 1: Mitchell and how he fits into all this. First of all,

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Speaker 1: this is one of the hardest playing teams that I've

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Speaker 1: seen in my entire time watching the NBA. Do you

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Speaker 1: know how hard it is to win eight consecutive games

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Speaker 1: by double figures with the EBB and flow of effort

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Speaker 1: in the NBA? And when teams do finally kick in

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Speaker 1: with desperation late and they can get a game close,

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Speaker 1: it's that fake comeback thing that all of us fans

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Speaker 1: have seen with our favorite teams right like, it is

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Speaker 1: hard to do this. The main reason why is they

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Speaker 1: have incredible running habits on both ends of the floor.

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Speaker 1: When the possession ends either way, whether they get a

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Speaker 1: stop or they miss a shot on offense, all five

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Speaker 1: guys quickly disengage from whatever they're doing and they start

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Speaker 1: sprinting their lanes. This is how they generate somebody transition threes.

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Speaker 1: This is something I've been talking a lot about they're

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Speaker 1: shooting forty four percent on transition threes this year, and

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Speaker 1: I think they're third in makes in terms of transition

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Speaker 1: threes per game. And a big part of that is

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Speaker 1: everyone's running their lanes so that when they throw those

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Speaker 1: kick ahead passes or when the ball handler attempts to

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Speaker 1: pressure the rim, there are kickout options. If you don't

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Speaker 1: run the floor, there are no kickout options, right, And

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Speaker 1: like a lot of times, these are rotation situations. Driving

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Speaker 1: kick basketball is how we get wide up in threes, right, Like, oh,

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Speaker 1: beat this guy off the dribble, draw help kick. Oh

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Speaker 1: he gets a close out, but you make an extra pass,

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Speaker 1: so that guy drives a close out. There's another guy

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Speaker 1: someone's wide open finally and they shoot the three. Right.

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Speaker 1: That's how you do it in the half court. In transition.

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Speaker 1: It's the same concept. You throw a kick ahead pass,

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Speaker 1: that dude drops it off to the trailer, guy closes

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Speaker 1: out at himy pump fakes and he rips. There needs

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Speaker 1: to be a guy in the right corner. There needs

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Speaker 1: to be a guy in the corner ready for that

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Speaker 1: kickout pass, and if he misses, there needs to be

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Speaker 1: another or if he gets closed out at there needs

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Speaker 1: to be another option, right, Like those options are available

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Speaker 1: in transition when you run the floor, and it is

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Speaker 1: just habitual for this team. Everybody runs all game and

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Speaker 1: most importantly, they do it every possession of every game.

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Speaker 1: This is why most of their games end in blowouts.

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Speaker 1: Teams no Cleveland likes to run, so they start games

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Speaker 1: all sharp and focused and they're playing hard and they're

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Speaker 1: getting back in transition and they hang around, but the

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Speaker 1: onslaught never stops, and eventually that team like, let's go

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Speaker 1: of the rope, and then the Calves blow you out

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Speaker 1: because they just keep running. The Warriors game was a

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Speaker 1: great example of that. The Warriors were hanging for the

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Speaker 1: most part, and then in that third quarter stretch they

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Speaker 1: let go of the rope for a minute. It was

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Speaker 1: like bam transition, three, bam transition three bam transition three.

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Speaker 1: Oh shit, we're down twenty. The game's over, right, Like

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Speaker 1: that's what they do. The second reason I wanted to

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Speaker 1: talk about is the shooting. The Calves are shooting preposterously well,

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Speaker 1: two percent better than anyone else from three, two percent

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Speaker 1: better than anyone else on wide open threes, five percent

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Speaker 1: better than anyone else on clutch threes, and they're making

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Speaker 1: the most opthagibble threes in the league. Now I want

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Speaker 1: to focus more on what the Calves themselves can control.

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Speaker 1: There's gonna be a lot of discussions surrounding will Cleveland

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Speaker 1: make threes when they get to the playoffs, And that's

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Speaker 1: a real factor, right, Will they make threes could play

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Speaker 1: a huge role in whether or not they end up

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Speaker 1: getting where they want to go. But I find that

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Speaker 1: conversation kind of pointless because we don't know. It's all

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Speaker 1: speculation and there's only one way to find out, which

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Speaker 1: is let's go to the playoffs and let's see what happens. Right,

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Speaker 1: But we're not gonna be able to do that for

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Speaker 1: the short term. I think it's important to discuss the

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Speaker 1: way that Cleveland generates their threes. And there's two things

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Speaker 1: that I want to get into there. First of all,

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Speaker 1: is the transition piece. Right, we already broke that down,

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Speaker 1: running your lanes, kick ahead passes, pressuring the rim, playing

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Speaker 1: quick driving, driving kick sequences in the chaos of the

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Speaker 1: transition situations. But it's also in the half court. This

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Speaker 1: team is addicted to making the right reads, making the

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Speaker 1: extra pass, and hunting the great shots. On every single possession.

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Speaker 1: Talked to earlier about transition, their top five and transition

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Speaker 1: threes generated and number one and transition three percentage. But

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Speaker 1: over the course of games, they generate twenty point four

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Speaker 1: wide open threes per game, that's ninth in the NBA.

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Speaker 1: And they generate fifteen point three open threes per game.

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Speaker 1: So wide open is defender at least six feet away.

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Speaker 1: Open is defender between four and six feet away. So

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Speaker 1: all threes where the defenders at least four feet away.

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Speaker 1: They're generating thirty five point seven per game, which is

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Speaker 1: in the top ten in the NBA. They do that

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Speaker 1: through their decision making. They do that through making the

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Speaker 1: extra pass. They do that through hunting the right closeout

398
00:17:28,359 --> 00:17:31,280
Speaker 1: reads no one is there. It was so funny watching

399
00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:34,680
Speaker 1: that Lakers Calves game because you'd see Ruy Hachimura drive

400
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Speaker 1: and Evan Mobley disengage off of Day and Finney Smith

401
00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:41,159
Speaker 1: and come to double Ruey Hachimura from behind, and he

402
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Speaker 1: just doesn't see it, and so Evan Mobley blocks him.

403
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Speaker 1: Now the Calves are running out the other way, Whereas

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Speaker 1: every single time a Laker would offer help in a

405
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Speaker 1: situation like that, the Calves are making that extra pass

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Speaker 1: they're making that kickout pass. It was stark to see

407
00:17:54,760 --> 00:17:57,919
Speaker 1: the difference between the guys like Ruy Max Christy Dalton

408
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Speaker 1: connect on their driving kick reads compared to the driving

409
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Speaker 1: kick reads that guys for Cleveland were making. It was

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Speaker 1: really stark and that's something to call out because that's

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Speaker 1: part of the identity of this team. Lastly, the defense.

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Speaker 1: Calves aren't a perfect defense. They're currently eighth in the NBA.

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Speaker 1: They have some entry points that you can attack. They

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Speaker 1: still struggle on the defensive glass from time to time

415
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Speaker 1: like they have in the past, but they compete. This

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Speaker 1: actually reminds me of Boston in the sense that there's

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Speaker 1: an organizational pride to where every individual competes defensively, even

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Speaker 1: the lesser defenders. When they get hunted, they take it

419
00:18:44,920 --> 00:18:46,720
Speaker 1: personally and they compete in the slide their feet. You

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Speaker 1: see Georgia kneeing sliding his feet in trying to get stop.

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Speaker 1: You see Sam Merril sliding his feet. You see Darius

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Speaker 1: Garland sliding his feet. Those guys do their best, and

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Speaker 1: then schematically they're really smart with their help and recover.

424
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Speaker 1: When they see a ball handler has his back turned

425
00:18:59,680 --> 00:19:01,920
Speaker 1: or he's now seeing the floor. They're digging, they're doubling,

426
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Speaker 1: they're being aggressive, but they stay home when it comes

427
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Speaker 1: to the easy kickout reads, which is a big part

428
00:19:06,119 --> 00:19:08,280
Speaker 1: of how they force turnovers. Again, they're one of the best.

429
00:19:08,480 --> 00:19:11,840
Speaker 1: They're second in the league in scoring off of opponent turnovers.

430
00:19:12,119 --> 00:19:15,400
Speaker 1: All of those things are team wide details that Cleveland

431
00:19:15,440 --> 00:19:18,240
Speaker 1: is excellent with every single night, which always gives them

432
00:19:18,240 --> 00:19:20,359
Speaker 1: a great chance to win the game. Again, if you

433
00:19:20,400 --> 00:19:22,800
Speaker 1: look at a basketball team as a combination of like

434
00:19:22,800 --> 00:19:25,639
Speaker 1: your talent, what they're capable of, and then the basketball

435
00:19:25,720 --> 00:19:28,520
Speaker 1: character the brand of basketball you're playing. Even if we

436
00:19:28,640 --> 00:19:31,320
Speaker 1: just remove talent from the equation, which, like we talked about,

437
00:19:31,560 --> 00:19:34,800
Speaker 1: Darius is awesome. Excuse me, Donovan's awesome, Jared Allen's awesome,

438
00:19:34,880 --> 00:19:37,479
Speaker 1: Darius Garland's way better than he's ever been. Evan Mobley's

439
00:19:37,520 --> 00:19:39,280
Speaker 1: way better than he's ever been. It's like a big four.

440
00:19:39,600 --> 00:19:42,360
Speaker 1: So they're talented. I'm not trying to undercut that. But

441
00:19:42,480 --> 00:19:46,119
Speaker 1: on the side, they're also just playing the best overall basketball. Like,

442
00:19:46,160 --> 00:19:49,359
Speaker 1: irrespective of talent, they're playing the best basketball that anyone's

443
00:19:49,400 --> 00:19:51,560
Speaker 1: playing in the league right now. And what that's done

444
00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:54,320
Speaker 1: is it slotted Donovan Mitchell as the perfect tip of

445
00:19:54,359 --> 00:19:56,720
Speaker 1: a spear that you need him to be rather than

446
00:19:56,800 --> 00:19:59,200
Speaker 1: asking him to do too much. I've loved his role

447
00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:01,399
Speaker 1: on this team. His usage is the lowest it's been

448
00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:04,080
Speaker 1: since his rookie year. He just gets to pick his spots.

449
00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:06,479
Speaker 1: I thought the Warriors game was the perfect example of this.

450
00:20:06,520 --> 00:20:08,880
Speaker 1: He's kind of just floating through the game, letting things

451
00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:10,199
Speaker 1: go the way they're going to go. And then in

452
00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:13,320
Speaker 1: the third quarter the Warrior the Calves are up like

453
00:20:13,400 --> 00:20:15,679
Speaker 1: eleven or something like that, and Donovan Mitchell's like, I

454
00:20:15,720 --> 00:20:17,560
Speaker 1: smell blood in the water. I think these dudes are

455
00:20:17,600 --> 00:20:19,120
Speaker 1: about to quit if I hit a couple of big

456
00:20:19,119 --> 00:20:21,080
Speaker 1: shots here and he gets hyper aggressive and he hits

457
00:20:21,240 --> 00:20:23,440
Speaker 1: two or three pull up threes in a row, all

458
00:20:23,440 --> 00:20:25,840
Speaker 1: of a sudden, you're up twenty and the game is over, right,

459
00:20:25,920 --> 00:20:28,199
Speaker 1: Like that's the type, Like that's a great way to

460
00:20:28,280 --> 00:20:31,480
Speaker 1: use Donavan Mitchell is as this tip of a spear

461
00:20:31,480 --> 00:20:33,639
Speaker 1: who can be hyper aggressive in these shorter spurts, but

462
00:20:33,640 --> 00:20:35,720
Speaker 1: you're not depending on him to be Luka Doncic for

463
00:20:35,760 --> 00:20:38,159
Speaker 1: the entire game. Right. So, as I look at this

464
00:20:38,200 --> 00:20:41,040
Speaker 1: team in the big picture, I think I'm ready to

465
00:20:41,040 --> 00:20:44,000
Speaker 1: place them in my contender rankings. Finally, before the show,

466
00:20:44,040 --> 00:20:46,399
Speaker 1: I had Boston number one, Oklahoma City number two, in

467
00:20:46,480 --> 00:20:49,720
Speaker 1: Dallas number three. I want to move them above Dallas.

468
00:20:50,560 --> 00:20:52,720
Speaker 1: I think they represent a better version of Dallas in

469
00:20:52,760 --> 00:20:54,920
Speaker 1: a lot of ways. Like they also have excellent rimp

470
00:20:54,920 --> 00:20:57,040
Speaker 1: protection in the front court. I think Mobiley and Allen

471
00:20:57,119 --> 00:21:00,480
Speaker 1: is just a better front court than like PJ. Washington,

472
00:21:00,760 --> 00:21:04,040
Speaker 1: Derek Lively and Daniel Gafford. They have two great shot creators. Now,

473
00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:07,280
Speaker 1: obviously Luca and Kyrie is a better duo for sure

474
00:21:07,359 --> 00:21:09,320
Speaker 1: than Donovan mitchell On and Darius Garland. But I do

475
00:21:09,359 --> 00:21:11,879
Speaker 1: think I like Cleveland's overall offensive skill more. They have

476
00:21:11,880 --> 00:21:14,479
Speaker 1: more shooting. I think Ty Jerome is a better backup

477
00:21:14,920 --> 00:21:17,600
Speaker 1: backup guard than going with someone like Spencer Dinwoodie for

478
00:21:18,280 --> 00:21:20,080
Speaker 1: who's been getting a lot of those reps for Dallas

479
00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:22,280
Speaker 1: as of late. In general with Lavert too, like I

480
00:21:22,359 --> 00:21:25,760
Speaker 1: just think Cleveland's overall ball handling is better. I think

481
00:21:25,840 --> 00:21:28,320
Speaker 1: Luca is also a bigger weak point in a defense

482
00:21:28,359 --> 00:21:31,160
Speaker 1: than Garland. The main reason why is one Garland competes

483
00:21:31,200 --> 00:21:33,920
Speaker 1: more on the defensive end, and two Garland is fast

484
00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:36,560
Speaker 1: enough for some schematic flexibility you can't hedge and recover

485
00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:38,879
Speaker 1: with Luca because he's too slow. You can hedge and

486
00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:40,960
Speaker 1: recover with Darius and try to avoid him getting into

487
00:21:40,960 --> 00:21:43,800
Speaker 1: switches because he's fast enough and capable of closing out

488
00:21:43,880 --> 00:21:46,320
Speaker 1: and existing in that rotation type of situation where you're

489
00:21:46,320 --> 00:21:49,680
Speaker 1: sprinting around. And then lastly, the basketball character piece. I

490
00:21:49,720 --> 00:21:52,800
Speaker 1: think Cleveland is a sharper basketball team. That's no offense

491
00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:55,080
Speaker 1: to Dallas. They're the sharpest basketball team in the league

492
00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:57,840
Speaker 1: when it comes to details and execution. No one's doing

493
00:21:57,920 --> 00:21:59,960
Speaker 1: it better than Cleveland right now. So I want to

494
00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:02,320
Speaker 1: move them above Dallas, and then I want to move

495
00:22:02,359 --> 00:22:04,920
Speaker 1: them above OKAC. And the main reason why there is

496
00:22:04,960 --> 00:22:08,159
Speaker 1: their shooting. I think Cleveland's offense is more resilience. As

497
00:22:08,200 --> 00:22:10,720
Speaker 1: a matter of fact, between all the units Cleveland's offense,

498
00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:14,680
Speaker 1: Cleveland's defense, Oklahoma City's offense, Oklahoma City's defense, I think

499
00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:19,320
Speaker 1: Oklahoma City's offense is easily the least trustworthy of any

500
00:22:19,359 --> 00:22:21,840
Speaker 1: of those groups. We've seen just too many times how

501
00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:25,360
Speaker 1: Oklahoma City's offense can literally bog down into nothing. Shay

502
00:22:25,440 --> 00:22:27,560
Speaker 1: I think is a better player than Donovan Mitchell, but

503
00:22:27,600 --> 00:22:30,639
Speaker 1: I think the overall shot creation is also better for Cleveland. Like,

504
00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:34,280
Speaker 1: take Shay and Donovan out, who do you trust Darius Garland,

505
00:22:34,520 --> 00:22:39,560
Speaker 1: Ty Jerome and a Karris Lavert or Jalen Williams who's

506
00:22:39,800 --> 00:22:42,919
Speaker 1: really young, and Chet Holmgren who's really young. Right, Like,

507
00:22:43,160 --> 00:22:45,399
Speaker 1: That's why I lean, now Oklahoma City can end up

508
00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:47,520
Speaker 1: making a trade and making this more complicated. But I

509
00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:50,840
Speaker 1: think I trust Cleveland's shot creators more too. Now I'm

510
00:22:50,840 --> 00:22:53,040
Speaker 1: not ready to move them ahead of Boston because I

511
00:22:53,080 --> 00:22:55,800
Speaker 1: think Boston still has more versatility on both ends of

512
00:22:55,800 --> 00:22:57,600
Speaker 1: the floor. They have more defensive looks they can go

513
00:22:57,680 --> 00:23:00,000
Speaker 1: to in more ways. They can attack you on offense

514
00:23:00,080 --> 00:23:02,920
Speaker 1: by virtue of them having five dudes who make thirty

515
00:23:02,920 --> 00:23:06,400
Speaker 1: million dollars a year, that's just kind of their talent advantage, right.

516
00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:10,000
Speaker 1: I also think Boston schematically has the ability to turn

517
00:23:10,119 --> 00:23:12,560
Speaker 1: Allan Jared Allen into more of a dunker spot guy

518
00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:15,240
Speaker 1: than a roleman. This is the Jason Tatum luxury, right.

519
00:23:15,280 --> 00:23:19,520
Speaker 1: He can guard and make that action switchable, which could

520
00:23:19,600 --> 00:23:22,520
Speaker 1: force Cleveland into using Evan Mobley as a roleman more,

521
00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:24,440
Speaker 1: which is something that we know that he can struggle

522
00:23:24,480 --> 00:23:28,520
Speaker 1: with at times. And so I actually think that Boston

523
00:23:28,560 --> 00:23:33,160
Speaker 1: still has some significant advantages there. Now, I will say this,

524
00:23:34,000 --> 00:23:37,119
Speaker 1: and this is a message to the Boston Celtics. The

525
00:23:37,160 --> 00:23:40,520
Speaker 1: Cleveland Cavaliers are coming for you. They're addicted to winning,

526
00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:43,680
Speaker 1: and at this specific point in time, they're playing better

527
00:23:43,720 --> 00:23:47,679
Speaker 1: basketball than the Celtics. That's not really up for debate

528
00:23:47,760 --> 00:23:50,000
Speaker 1: if you just look at the results. I'm not saying

529
00:23:50,000 --> 00:23:53,159
Speaker 1: they're a better team, but right now they're playing better basketball.

530
00:23:53,680 --> 00:23:56,720
Speaker 1: And while Cleveland has been attacking this season from start

531
00:23:56,760 --> 00:23:59,879
Speaker 1: to finish, the Celtics have been relaxing and playing some

532
00:24:00,080 --> 00:24:02,359
Speaker 1: of the worst basketball that they've played in this era.

533
00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:06,000
Speaker 1: Now here's the deal. You are better than Cleveland. The

534
00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:09,119
Speaker 1: Celtics are better than Cleveland. You have more talent, you

535
00:24:09,160 --> 00:24:13,320
Speaker 1: have more experience, but Cleveland right now is sharper than you.

536
00:24:14,040 --> 00:24:17,879
Speaker 1: The question will be, is your talent advantage bigger than

537
00:24:17,920 --> 00:24:20,960
Speaker 1: the deficit you have and how sharp you are compared

538
00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:24,399
Speaker 1: to Cleveland. If the Cleveland Cavaliers are sharper to a

539
00:24:24,440 --> 00:24:27,119
Speaker 1: greater extent than you are more talented, they will beat you.

540
00:24:28,119 --> 00:24:32,560
Speaker 1: Right now, I lean Boston, but Cleveland absolutely can win

541
00:24:32,640 --> 00:24:35,399
Speaker 1: that series. And the challenge, and this is the challenge,

542
00:24:35,560 --> 00:24:38,040
Speaker 1: like Boston has to take this seriously because if they don't,

543
00:24:38,320 --> 00:24:41,439
Speaker 1: they need to have the appropriate amount of fear, is

544
00:24:41,480 --> 00:24:44,600
Speaker 1: my point. You have to have a goal now between

545
00:24:44,680 --> 00:24:49,040
Speaker 1: now and April of becoming sharper to minimize that gap

546
00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:52,200
Speaker 1: so that your talent gap can carry you over the top.

547
00:24:52,240 --> 00:24:55,760
Speaker 1: And that sort of matchup again, it's just a challenge.

548
00:24:56,320 --> 00:24:59,560
Speaker 1: The Boston Celtics deserve to be favored, but they need

549
00:24:59,600 --> 00:25:02,720
Speaker 1: to have the appropriate fear of this matchup. But shout

550
00:25:02,720 --> 00:25:05,679
Speaker 1: out to the Cleveland Cavaliers at this point second place

551
00:25:06,400 --> 00:25:09,639
Speaker 1: in my contender's list. All right, let's go on. I

552
00:25:09,640 --> 00:25:12,920
Speaker 1: want to talk briefly about that Indiana Milwaukee game. The

553
00:25:13,000 --> 00:25:14,840
Speaker 1: late game chess match was really interesting to see the

554
00:25:14,880 --> 00:25:17,560
Speaker 1: way the two offenses were playing all ball screens for

555
00:25:17,600 --> 00:25:19,639
Speaker 1: Giannis but like on ball, so he was running like

556
00:25:19,960 --> 00:25:23,080
Speaker 1: ball screens with Bobby Portis and really picking on Miles Turner.

557
00:25:23,119 --> 00:25:27,000
Speaker 1: It's been fun watching Giannis's playmaking continue to level up

558
00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:28,800
Speaker 1: over the years. One of the things that Miles Turner

559
00:25:28,880 --> 00:25:31,040
Speaker 1: was doing is he was kind of like showing up

560
00:25:31,119 --> 00:25:33,840
Speaker 1: high to stop Giannis from turning the corner as so

561
00:25:33,880 --> 00:25:36,040
Speaker 1: that he wouldn't get ahead of steam in those ball screens,

562
00:25:36,080 --> 00:25:37,960
Speaker 1: forcing him to kind of like come up with a

563
00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:41,359
Speaker 1: hesitation dribble rather than just attacking. But in the process

564
00:25:41,400 --> 00:25:43,520
Speaker 1: he would then turn around and then run back to

565
00:25:43,560 --> 00:25:48,600
Speaker 1: Bobby Portis or Brook Lopez and Jannis got brooked with

566
00:25:48,640 --> 00:25:51,800
Speaker 1: it once and Bobby with it once, but literally just

567
00:25:51,880 --> 00:25:54,800
Speaker 1: as soon as Miles Turner would turn his head, Jiannis

568
00:25:54,840 --> 00:25:57,120
Speaker 1: would then throw the pass just right over his head,

569
00:25:57,520 --> 00:25:58,800
Speaker 1: right to the role man and get a layup. And

570
00:25:58,800 --> 00:26:02,240
Speaker 1: I'm like, that's such a cool little like like a

571
00:26:02,359 --> 00:26:05,240
Speaker 1: development in Gianni's playmaking where it's not even just about

572
00:26:05,240 --> 00:26:07,520
Speaker 1: reading where the defender is, but whether or not the

573
00:26:07,520 --> 00:26:11,040
Speaker 1: defender's paying attention. That's a huge difference, Like the like,

574
00:26:11,240 --> 00:26:13,720
Speaker 1: if a defender is not paying attention, that's the best

575
00:26:13,720 --> 00:26:15,560
Speaker 1: time to throw that pass because you have that split

576
00:26:15,640 --> 00:26:18,000
Speaker 1: second before they even realize what's happening and can try

577
00:26:18,040 --> 00:26:19,640
Speaker 1: to make a rotation or try to get an arm

578
00:26:19,720 --> 00:26:22,040
Speaker 1: up or something along those lines. But there's a lot

579
00:26:22,040 --> 00:26:23,960
Speaker 1: of that. It was also a lot of inverted ball screens,

580
00:26:23,960 --> 00:26:26,280
Speaker 1: a lot of like aj Green screening for Yannis and

581
00:26:26,280 --> 00:26:28,840
Speaker 1: then slipping out of it, Damian Lillard screening for Yannis

582
00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:30,359
Speaker 1: and slipping out of it, and Giannis was doing a

583
00:26:30,359 --> 00:26:32,600
Speaker 1: ton of damage there. But then on the other end

584
00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:34,960
Speaker 1: of the floor, the Pacers were running the exact same

585
00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:37,560
Speaker 1: thing every time. They were running a pick and pop

586
00:26:37,920 --> 00:26:40,800
Speaker 1: with Turner in Halliburton. And as I've told you, guys,

587
00:26:40,880 --> 00:26:43,640
Speaker 1: the pick and pop is always open against the drop coverage.

588
00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:49,560
Speaker 1: It's just quite literally always open. So Milwaukee had no

589
00:26:49,640 --> 00:26:52,560
Speaker 1: choice but to rotate from the weak side. So basically,

590
00:26:52,640 --> 00:26:55,520
Speaker 1: like the Pacers were just running the pick and pop,

591
00:26:55,840 --> 00:26:59,200
Speaker 1: pitching it back to Turner, Milwaukee was rotating. Then they'd

592
00:26:59,240 --> 00:27:01,640
Speaker 1: swing it to the Wayne and Andrew and Emhart whoever

593
00:27:01,680 --> 00:27:02,880
Speaker 1: it was that was over there, and then they would

594
00:27:02,880 --> 00:27:04,600
Speaker 1: just play driving kick out of it. And so they

595
00:27:04,640 --> 00:27:07,200
Speaker 1: were consistently having those advantage situations. So it kind of

596
00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:11,119
Speaker 1: turned into this interesting contest of like Yannis surgical in

597
00:27:11,160 --> 00:27:14,439
Speaker 1: the half court versus like, how well do the Bucks

598
00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:17,560
Speaker 1: rotate when they're dealing with all these guys driving and

599
00:27:17,640 --> 00:27:19,960
Speaker 1: kicking on them? And you know, I have to say,

600
00:27:20,119 --> 00:27:22,280
Speaker 1: like I thought, the Bucks did a really good job

601
00:27:22,359 --> 00:27:25,919
Speaker 1: in their defensive rotations the entire second half, even in

602
00:27:25,960 --> 00:27:28,119
Speaker 1: their zone. Look when they were getting pulled into all

603
00:27:28,160 --> 00:27:30,680
Speaker 1: these different directions, guys are just sprinting and making those

604
00:27:30,720 --> 00:27:34,240
Speaker 1: efforts even guys that were not making those efforts earlier

605
00:27:34,280 --> 00:27:36,680
Speaker 1: in the season, like Damian Lillard and Gary Trent Junior.

606
00:27:36,720 --> 00:27:40,040
Speaker 1: They were making those efforts and then kind of came

607
00:27:40,080 --> 00:27:42,560
Speaker 1: down to this like crazy sequence where Gary Trent ends

608
00:27:42,640 --> 00:27:44,720
Speaker 1: up saving the day with a couple of rescue possessions.

609
00:27:44,720 --> 00:27:47,159
Speaker 1: He hits like a off of this crazy sequence. He

610
00:27:47,240 --> 00:27:48,680
Speaker 1: hits a catch and shoot three on the left wing,

611
00:27:48,680 --> 00:27:52,399
Speaker 1: and then he hits like a smothered, wonderable like push

612
00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:54,760
Speaker 1: shot out of the right corner that he knocked down

613
00:27:54,760 --> 00:27:56,679
Speaker 1: that ended up being kind of the dagger in this one.

614
00:27:57,040 --> 00:27:59,399
Speaker 1: But then Yannis the other thing that was big in

615
00:27:59,400 --> 00:28:01,880
Speaker 1: the fourth quarter, Jannis is off the dribble shot making.

616
00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:04,280
Speaker 1: He hit like a turnaround jump shot over his right

617
00:28:04,280 --> 00:28:05,840
Speaker 1: shoulder during the stretch of the game where he was

618
00:28:05,920 --> 00:28:08,840
Speaker 1: just absolutely frying Jaris Walker, and then he had a

619
00:28:08,840 --> 00:28:11,959
Speaker 1: won like fade away over Jarifs Walker he hit to

620
00:28:12,040 --> 00:28:14,360
Speaker 1: ice the game. He had like this nasty step back

621
00:28:14,440 --> 00:28:17,119
Speaker 1: jump shot out by like the left elbow extended that

622
00:28:17,200 --> 00:28:19,800
Speaker 1: put him up by seven in the final minute. The

623
00:28:19,800 --> 00:28:22,840
Speaker 1: biggest thing that stood out to me there was his confidence,

624
00:28:23,080 --> 00:28:28,679
Speaker 1: like he's talking shit, he's hunting those shots, and it

625
00:28:28,680 --> 00:28:30,960
Speaker 1: didn't even feel like settling. It felt like the right

626
00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:34,560
Speaker 1: balance to what he was doing off the dribble in

627
00:28:34,600 --> 00:28:37,320
Speaker 1: those situations, like he was attacking in those ball screens

628
00:28:37,359 --> 00:28:39,520
Speaker 1: and getting downhill NonStop. But it was such a good

629
00:28:39,560 --> 00:28:43,520
Speaker 1: balance between not over penetrating when the coverage dictated it

630
00:28:43,560 --> 00:28:45,880
Speaker 1: and making the right passing raid like those passing raads

631
00:28:45,920 --> 00:28:49,680
Speaker 1: in pick and roll, the ending late clock situations with

632
00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:52,200
Speaker 1: off the dribble, shot making when he needed to, getting

633
00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:54,240
Speaker 1: downhill to the rim, and being that wrecking ball that

634
00:28:54,280 --> 00:28:55,800
Speaker 1: we all know that he can be. It was such

635
00:28:55,840 --> 00:28:59,760
Speaker 1: a magnificent offensive second half from Giannis as he pulled

636
00:28:59,800 --> 00:29:01,680
Speaker 1: them back. He just refused to let his team lose

637
00:29:01,720 --> 00:29:03,400
Speaker 1: that game. And then again, one of the big things

638
00:29:03,400 --> 00:29:05,920
Speaker 1: that's been standing out to me all season is the

639
00:29:05,960 --> 00:29:08,720
Speaker 1: Bucks having kind of like an interesting guard rotation now

640
00:29:08,760 --> 00:29:11,280
Speaker 1: in a way that was a huge problem all of

641
00:29:11,360 --> 00:29:13,680
Speaker 1: last year and looked like a problem to start this year.

642
00:29:13,680 --> 00:29:16,080
Speaker 1: And they have so many options right like aj Green's

643
00:29:16,080 --> 00:29:18,960
Speaker 1: the best shooter, and his shooting was huge in the

644
00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:20,920
Speaker 1: second half of this game. He had like this crazy

645
00:29:21,040 --> 00:29:23,440
Speaker 1: three off of an offensive rebound in the off the

646
00:29:23,480 --> 00:29:25,320
Speaker 1: left wing that was like a twenty eight footer hit

647
00:29:25,320 --> 00:29:27,920
Speaker 1: a big right corner three in another chaos situation. Late,

648
00:29:28,280 --> 00:29:31,840
Speaker 1: AJ's your shooter. Andre's your best athlete and your best defender.

649
00:29:32,160 --> 00:29:33,959
Speaker 1: So like, if you just need a wrecking ball at

650
00:29:33,960 --> 00:29:36,760
Speaker 1: the spot, Andre's the way to go. Gary Trent Junior

651
00:29:36,800 --> 00:29:39,400
Speaker 1: is probably the best overall offensive player in terms of

652
00:29:39,400 --> 00:29:41,840
Speaker 1: ball handling and shot making. He ended up getting the

653
00:29:41,880 --> 00:29:44,000
Speaker 1: nod late in this game, right, and it was the

654
00:29:44,080 --> 00:29:47,160
Speaker 1: right call. Doc has all season long, has had a

655
00:29:47,160 --> 00:29:49,320
Speaker 1: great feel for like, am I going with Gary Trent

656
00:29:49,400 --> 00:29:50,800
Speaker 1: or am I going with Aj Green? Am I going

657
00:29:50,840 --> 00:29:53,360
Speaker 1: with Andre Jackson, am I going with Bobby Portis, or

658
00:29:53,400 --> 00:29:57,400
Speaker 1: am I going with Brook Lopez? Right? Like, He's had

659
00:29:57,400 --> 00:29:59,920
Speaker 1: a great feel for that all year. Even Ryan Rolin

660
00:30:00,440 --> 00:30:03,480
Speaker 1: seems to be kind of an interesting future option for

661
00:30:03,560 --> 00:30:05,920
Speaker 1: the Bucks at that two guard spot. He's a good

662
00:30:05,960 --> 00:30:09,000
Speaker 1: perimeter athlete that can shoot the ball. He's shooting really

663
00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:11,400
Speaker 1: well and catch and shoot situations. This year, I've seen

664
00:30:11,480 --> 00:30:13,640
Speaker 1: him make some pretty impressive athletic plays. He had this

665
00:30:13,680 --> 00:30:16,120
Speaker 1: play where he was against the Bulls where he's chasing

666
00:30:16,200 --> 00:30:18,080
Speaker 1: Kobe White over the top of his screen and blocked

667
00:30:18,120 --> 00:30:21,280
Speaker 1: him on a rear view contest. He had this kind

668
00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:23,480
Speaker 1: of a garbage time play against the Wizards where he

669
00:30:23,560 --> 00:30:26,080
Speaker 1: got Alex sar in Iso and just hit him with

670
00:30:26,120 --> 00:30:28,520
Speaker 1: the between the legs crossover, toasted him off the dribble,

671
00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:31,080
Speaker 1: and just dunked all over him with his left hand,

672
00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:33,880
Speaker 1: like he's an interesting option for the future. They just

673
00:30:33,920 --> 00:30:36,520
Speaker 1: have a lot more options in those spots than it

674
00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:38,480
Speaker 1: appeared to be at the beginning of the season, and

675
00:30:38,520 --> 00:30:40,680
Speaker 1: certainly a hell of a lot more than last year.

676
00:30:40,960 --> 00:30:42,920
Speaker 1: You anchor that with how these guys have been playing

677
00:30:43,040 --> 00:30:45,440
Speaker 1: like since the n Season tournament ended their three and

678
00:30:45,560 --> 00:30:49,280
Speaker 1: three all three of their losses. Jana stam Or both

679
00:30:49,440 --> 00:30:52,880
Speaker 1: were out for those games. They're fourth in defensive rating

680
00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:56,000
Speaker 1: over that six game span, a one zero six defensive rating,

681
00:30:56,240 --> 00:30:58,920
Speaker 1: which means even when their talent has been out, they've

682
00:30:58,960 --> 00:31:01,200
Speaker 1: been competing. And again, and I talked about their defensive

683
00:31:01,240 --> 00:31:05,840
Speaker 1: rotations against Indiana, they are committed. That's the most exciting

684
00:31:05,840 --> 00:31:08,800
Speaker 1: development like the Bucks to me, look like a team

685
00:31:08,840 --> 00:31:11,520
Speaker 1: that is now fully committed to the work. They are

686
00:31:11,600 --> 00:31:14,880
Speaker 1: bought into the daily process of being the best basketball

687
00:31:14,920 --> 00:31:16,840
Speaker 1: team that they can be. And so I really want

688
00:31:16,880 --> 00:31:20,640
Speaker 1: to shout out Doc rivers, Damian Lillard and Jannison Tannakoombo.

689
00:31:20,840 --> 00:31:23,720
Speaker 1: All three of them have just been so locked in

690
00:31:23,840 --> 00:31:26,080
Speaker 1: and doing some of their best work. And again, like

691
00:31:26,200 --> 00:31:28,080
Speaker 1: I talk about this all the time, but this is

692
00:31:28,080 --> 00:31:32,040
Speaker 1: a non negotiable part of the championship process, especially for

693
00:31:32,080 --> 00:31:35,160
Speaker 1: teams that don't have overwhelming talent. Milwaukee's a lot more

694
00:31:35,160 --> 00:31:36,920
Speaker 1: talented than I thought they were to start the year,

695
00:31:37,480 --> 00:31:41,600
Speaker 1: but they are not overwhelmingly talented, like Boston has been

696
00:31:41,640 --> 00:31:44,040
Speaker 1: relaxing a lot this year, but they have a huge

697
00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:47,240
Speaker 1: talent advantage. And even with Boston, I feel like they're

698
00:31:47,240 --> 00:31:51,280
Speaker 1: playing a dangerous game with respect to Cleveland, like they

699
00:31:51,400 --> 00:31:53,840
Speaker 1: if they're not sharp enough, Cleveland can beat them. Like

700
00:31:54,400 --> 00:31:57,160
Speaker 1: sharp sharpness is the difference in a lot of cases.

701
00:31:57,160 --> 00:32:00,160
Speaker 1: The team that runs and rotates and executes and is

702
00:32:00,160 --> 00:32:03,000
Speaker 1: the right thing every single possession puts themselves in a

703
00:32:03,000 --> 00:32:05,720
Speaker 1: position where their talent can push them over the top,

704
00:32:05,840 --> 00:32:07,920
Speaker 1: especially when you have guys like Giannis and Name. I've

705
00:32:07,960 --> 00:32:11,520
Speaker 1: just been really impressed by them. And again, like it

706
00:32:11,560 --> 00:32:13,400
Speaker 1: could not have looked worse than it did in that

707
00:32:14,160 --> 00:32:16,640
Speaker 1: two and eight start, but this team looks completely engaged

708
00:32:16,680 --> 00:32:32,240
Speaker 1: and completely bought into that process. All right. A couple

709
00:32:32,320 --> 00:32:33,640
Speaker 1: things I wanted to get into before we get out

710
00:32:33,640 --> 00:32:36,720
Speaker 1: of here. The Warriors. I've since a lot of negativity

711
00:32:36,720 --> 00:32:39,880
Speaker 1: for Warriors fans. I did a radio hit in the

712
00:32:39,880 --> 00:32:42,160
Speaker 1: San Francisco area on Tuesday where there was quite a

713
00:32:42,200 --> 00:32:45,320
Speaker 1: bit of negativity as well. Like I understand the sentiment,

714
00:32:46,080 --> 00:32:48,600
Speaker 1: like this is a remarkably long slump. You were twelve

715
00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:49,920
Speaker 1: and three at one point in time and now you're

716
00:32:49,920 --> 00:32:52,960
Speaker 1: five hundred, Like, I get it, But I do really

717
00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:56,000
Speaker 1: think that mostly this is a slump, like nobody is

718
00:32:56,040 --> 00:32:59,640
Speaker 1: playing well for the Warriors right now. The team as

719
00:32:59,680 --> 00:33:04,200
Speaker 1: a team against Cleveland was oh for fourteen on wide

720
00:33:04,200 --> 00:33:07,600
Speaker 1: open threes, meaning the defender was at least six feet away.

721
00:33:08,400 --> 00:33:11,400
Speaker 1: They were oh for fourteen. Steph Curry and Buddy Heeld,

722
00:33:11,440 --> 00:33:14,800
Speaker 1: your two best shooters, were oh for seven on wide

723
00:33:14,920 --> 00:33:18,960
Speaker 1: open threes. Even if you think Steph is losing his step,

724
00:33:19,760 --> 00:33:21,880
Speaker 1: Even if you think he's not as capable of getting

725
00:33:21,920 --> 00:33:25,000
Speaker 1: separation as he used to, He's gonna shoot better than

726
00:33:25,120 --> 00:33:26,960
Speaker 1: oh for four on wide open threes like he did

727
00:33:26,960 --> 00:33:31,240
Speaker 1: against Cleveland. Buddy Held will play better, Andrew Wiggins will

728
00:33:31,240 --> 00:33:34,280
Speaker 1: play better. Gary Paynon, the second will get healthy. Role

729
00:33:34,280 --> 00:33:37,520
Speaker 1: players will make more shots. A lot of this is

730
00:33:37,560 --> 00:33:40,040
Speaker 1: just the reality of the nature of the regular season

731
00:33:40,160 --> 00:33:44,080
Speaker 1: in the Western Conference. Denver just had a stretch where

732
00:33:44,080 --> 00:33:46,160
Speaker 1: they lost three out of five and things were looking bleak.

733
00:33:46,600 --> 00:33:48,720
Speaker 1: Now they've won three in a row. They have the

734
00:33:48,720 --> 00:33:51,560
Speaker 1: seventh best record in the league. Earlier the season, the

735
00:33:51,640 --> 00:33:54,640
Speaker 1: Nuggets lost seven out of eleven. Here's where they're at now.

736
00:33:54,880 --> 00:33:56,880
Speaker 1: So there have been two separate points already this season

737
00:33:56,880 --> 00:33:59,200
Speaker 1: where I've seen Nuggets fans, Nuggets fans that I follow

738
00:33:59,240 --> 00:34:03,000
Speaker 1: and talked to, are like, this shit looks bleak. Now

739
00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:05,760
Speaker 1: it looks good again. The Lakers. You remember I had

740
00:34:05,760 --> 00:34:09,239
Speaker 1: a complete meltdown three weeks ago about the Lakers, and

741
00:34:09,520 --> 00:34:11,520
Speaker 1: they've currently won five out of seven and things have

742
00:34:11,520 --> 00:34:14,800
Speaker 1: stabilized for them. This is the nature of the Western Conference.

743
00:34:15,080 --> 00:34:19,160
Speaker 1: You're always two good weeks from being the five seed,

744
00:34:19,440 --> 00:34:22,400
Speaker 1: in two bad weeks from being the eleven seed. That

745
00:34:22,520 --> 00:34:25,040
Speaker 1: is how this goes. You're in one of the downstretches

746
00:34:25,120 --> 00:34:28,520
Speaker 1: right now, and exceptionally downstretch. I get it, but that's

747
00:34:28,520 --> 00:34:32,600
Speaker 1: all this is. It's a downstretch in my opinion. The

748
00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:37,000
Speaker 1: Golden State Warriors right now are three games back from

749
00:34:37,080 --> 00:34:40,200
Speaker 1: the seventh best record in the league. You're two good

750
00:34:40,239 --> 00:34:45,320
Speaker 1: weeks from the seventh best record in the league. But Jason,

751
00:34:45,360 --> 00:34:47,680
Speaker 1: we can't beat the tough teams in the league, so

752
00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:50,439
Speaker 1: why should we try to improve this roster. Well, first

753
00:34:50,440 --> 00:34:55,000
Speaker 1: of all, that's a loser mentality. If the cases we

754
00:34:55,040 --> 00:34:58,520
Speaker 1: can't beat Boston, Cleveland, or Oklahoma City then or those

755
00:34:58,560 --> 00:35:01,959
Speaker 1: three teams are obviously better us, then twenty seven teams

756
00:35:01,960 --> 00:35:03,719
Speaker 1: in the league should just pack it up and quit.

757
00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:08,560
Speaker 1: That's foolishness. You go for it because anything can happen.

758
00:35:09,239 --> 00:35:12,879
Speaker 1: A star gets hurt, a team gets upset. What if

759
00:35:12,880 --> 00:35:15,080
Speaker 1: a lesser team gets out of the East, like a

760
00:35:15,080 --> 00:35:17,600
Speaker 1: team that's not Boston or Cleveland gets out of the

761
00:35:17,640 --> 00:35:20,640
Speaker 1: Eastern Conference, and then suddenly it's like, if we beat

762
00:35:20,680 --> 00:35:23,680
Speaker 1: Oklahoma City, we have a chance to win the title.

763
00:35:24,480 --> 00:35:27,400
Speaker 1: You guys have all seen how Oklahoma City's offense can crumble.

764
00:35:29,160 --> 00:35:32,640
Speaker 1: Milwaukee is a team that if you ask Golden State fans, like,

765
00:35:32,640 --> 00:35:34,759
Speaker 1: how much better is Milwaukee than you, most of you

766
00:35:34,760 --> 00:35:37,680
Speaker 1: guys aren't going to think they're that much better. They've

767
00:35:37,680 --> 00:35:44,040
Speaker 1: had big down stretches this year. Milwaukee handled Oklahoma City

768
00:35:44,120 --> 00:35:47,160
Speaker 1: because they're veteran, they're older, they're more experienced than they

769
00:35:47,200 --> 00:35:49,160
Speaker 1: were able to defend the way they needed to do.

770
00:35:49,160 --> 00:35:51,360
Speaker 1: You think Golden State's older in experience and capable of

771
00:35:51,360 --> 00:35:54,160
Speaker 1: defending the way they needed to. I think everybody in

772
00:35:54,200 --> 00:35:57,200
Speaker 1: the Western Conference is beatable. Oklahoma City's offense can fall apart.

773
00:35:57,200 --> 00:35:59,080
Speaker 1: We talked about that, so can Memphis is because they're

774
00:35:59,080 --> 00:36:01,759
Speaker 1: spot up shooting. Their ability to convert spot up possessions

775
00:36:01,840 --> 00:36:05,720
Speaker 1: is really poor in this league. Houston's offense sucks. Denver

776
00:36:05,840 --> 00:36:08,880
Speaker 1: is the weakest they've been since twenty twenty one. Dallas

777
00:36:08,880 --> 00:36:11,600
Speaker 1: has injury issues. I like Dallas, but they have injury issues.

778
00:36:11,800 --> 00:36:14,480
Speaker 1: The Clippers are depending on James Harden and Kawhi Leonard.

779
00:36:14,560 --> 00:36:16,640
Speaker 1: The Lakers are depending on forty year old Lebron and

780
00:36:16,680 --> 00:36:20,399
Speaker 1: still don't have a starting two guard. Minnesota, their entire three,

781
00:36:20,440 --> 00:36:23,640
Speaker 1: four five just can't shoot. So now follow this through

782
00:36:23,680 --> 00:36:26,960
Speaker 1: with me to conclusion. What if you make a deal

783
00:36:26,960 --> 00:36:29,960
Speaker 1: for a higher level offensive player and that comes in

784
00:36:30,239 --> 00:36:32,840
Speaker 1: and helps screeze the wheels for you offensively. Now, for

785
00:36:32,920 --> 00:36:35,239
Speaker 1: the record, before you say, Jason, why are you trying

786
00:36:35,239 --> 00:36:37,359
Speaker 1: to trade Jonathan Kaminga? This is an important clarification because

787
00:36:37,360 --> 00:36:41,200
Speaker 1: I've seen this on Twitter and on YouTube comments. I

788
00:36:41,239 --> 00:36:44,640
Speaker 1: am not advocating for the Warriors to trade Jonathan Kaminga.

789
00:36:44,760 --> 00:36:47,000
Speaker 1: I am advocating for the Warriors to make a trade

790
00:36:47,040 --> 00:36:52,919
Speaker 1: like Jonathan Kaminga. As good as he is, he is young,

791
00:36:53,200 --> 00:36:56,640
Speaker 1: he's mistake prone, he's inconsistent. That doesn't mean you just

792
00:36:56,680 --> 00:36:59,239
Speaker 1: get rid of him. If you can make a deal,

793
00:36:59,760 --> 00:37:02,040
Speaker 1: if you can go get if you can go get

794
00:37:02,120 --> 00:37:05,879
Speaker 1: a good offensive player and not include Jonathan Kaminga by

795
00:37:05,920 --> 00:37:09,880
Speaker 1: all means do it. I'm just saying, if that's the

796
00:37:10,360 --> 00:37:13,000
Speaker 1: if that's the sticking point, you got it, include it.

797
00:37:13,520 --> 00:37:16,719
Speaker 1: The numbers are pretty clear. As good as Jonathan Kaminga is,

798
00:37:17,239 --> 00:37:19,759
Speaker 1: he doesn't really impact winning that much at this point

799
00:37:19,760 --> 00:37:23,640
Speaker 1: in his career. He can't consistently knock down spot up shots,

800
00:37:23,680 --> 00:37:25,799
Speaker 1: and he's a bad off ball defender. Those are two

801
00:37:25,840 --> 00:37:29,359
Speaker 1: things that will be crippling in a postseason series. If

802
00:37:29,360 --> 00:37:31,600
Speaker 1: you're getting lost off the ball and you're not following

803
00:37:31,640 --> 00:37:33,640
Speaker 1: the game plan defensively, and you can't knock down a

804
00:37:33,680 --> 00:37:35,799
Speaker 1: wide open shot when a defense is daring you to

805
00:37:35,840 --> 00:37:38,200
Speaker 1: do it, those are things that are going to be

806
00:37:38,239 --> 00:37:41,560
Speaker 1: a problem in a postseason matchup. As good as you

807
00:37:41,719 --> 00:37:43,640
Speaker 1: I have a big believer in Jonathan Kamina. In the

808
00:37:43,680 --> 00:37:46,400
Speaker 1: big picture, I don't even care that he's mistake prone.

809
00:37:46,440 --> 00:37:49,920
Speaker 1: He's a young forward. He's a young athletic forward who

810
00:37:49,960 --> 00:37:52,400
Speaker 1: is raw. I would love for him to have an

811
00:37:52,400 --> 00:37:55,560
Speaker 1: opportunity to go to some team or even with the Warriors,

812
00:37:55,719 --> 00:37:59,000
Speaker 1: to have lots of usage, lots of shots, to make

813
00:37:59,040 --> 00:38:01,000
Speaker 1: a lot of mistakes and learn to play on the

814
00:38:01,000 --> 00:38:03,840
Speaker 1: fly and not have that kind of pressure. That's not

815
00:38:03,920 --> 00:38:06,040
Speaker 1: this situation. You're on a roster with Steph Curry and

816
00:38:06,120 --> 00:38:10,080
Speaker 1: Draymond Green. He's not gonna get that leash here. So

817
00:38:10,120 --> 00:38:13,000
Speaker 1: my thing is, if push comes to shove and a

818
00:38:13,040 --> 00:38:16,000
Speaker 1: team goes, yeah, you can have this player, but you

819
00:38:16,080 --> 00:38:18,680
Speaker 1: gotta give us Jonathan Kaminga, I would give him up.

820
00:38:19,239 --> 00:38:21,440
Speaker 1: That's all I'm saying. I'm not saying you give him

821
00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:23,759
Speaker 1: up just because I'm not saying you trade him just

822
00:38:23,760 --> 00:38:25,759
Speaker 1: because you want to get him off the roster. If

823
00:38:25,760 --> 00:38:27,880
Speaker 1: you can have his upside and play him on the

824
00:38:27,880 --> 00:38:30,000
Speaker 1: games he's playing well, and sit him in the games

825
00:38:30,000 --> 00:38:33,000
Speaker 1: he's not, that's the ideal outcome. But I'm just saying,

826
00:38:33,000 --> 00:38:34,600
Speaker 1: if it push comes to shove and the team goes,

827
00:38:34,600 --> 00:38:37,440
Speaker 1: we want Jonathan, you gotta include Jonathan. But follow me

828
00:38:37,480 --> 00:38:40,200
Speaker 1: through this. Through with this to conclusion. If you make

829
00:38:40,239 --> 00:38:42,919
Speaker 1: a deal for a higher level offensive player, that guy

830
00:38:42,960 --> 00:38:45,320
Speaker 1: comes in and helps squeze the wheels. What if Steph

831
00:38:45,360 --> 00:38:48,319
Speaker 1: starts playing better, which I believe he will. What if

832
00:38:48,320 --> 00:38:50,600
Speaker 1: that reinvigorates your defense and you get to the level

833
00:38:50,640 --> 00:38:52,480
Speaker 1: you were at earlier in the season. What if that

834
00:38:52,520 --> 00:38:55,480
Speaker 1: creates smaller roles for everyone else that they can suddenly

835
00:38:55,520 --> 00:38:57,839
Speaker 1: thrive in. I know it's hard to imagine right now,

836
00:38:57,880 --> 00:39:01,479
Speaker 1: but remember this isn't the only Warriors team we've seen

837
00:39:01,520 --> 00:39:04,879
Speaker 1: this year. This same group went into Boston and beat

838
00:39:04,960 --> 00:39:08,000
Speaker 1: the Celtics. The same group went into Oklahoma City and

839
00:39:08,040 --> 00:39:12,320
Speaker 1: beat the Thunder. They are capable. You're seeing the bottom

840
00:39:12,440 --> 00:39:17,000
Speaker 1: version of them right now. Now Again, Jason, it's insane

841
00:39:17,000 --> 00:39:19,239
Speaker 1: for you to think that they're a championship contender. I

842
00:39:19,280 --> 00:39:21,360
Speaker 1: don't think they're on the same level as Cleveland, Boston

843
00:39:21,400 --> 00:39:24,400
Speaker 1: or Oklahoma City. But I think if they make a trade,

844
00:39:24,440 --> 00:39:26,879
Speaker 1: they can get into that second tier. And if you're

845
00:39:26,880 --> 00:39:30,080
Speaker 1: in that second tier, anything can happen. And as a

846
00:39:30,120 --> 00:39:33,439
Speaker 1: competitor who has Steph Curry on their team, you owe

847
00:39:33,440 --> 00:39:36,560
Speaker 1: it to him to give him that shot, especially when

848
00:39:36,560 --> 00:39:39,680
Speaker 1: you're destined to tank no matter what I've said this before,

849
00:39:39,719 --> 00:39:41,800
Speaker 1: but the Warriors offense with kaminga off the floor and

850
00:39:41,840 --> 00:39:45,480
Speaker 1: Steph on is dogshit, it's terrible. You're not going to

851
00:39:45,520 --> 00:39:48,440
Speaker 1: compete in the Western Conference post Steph, not unless you

852
00:39:48,520 --> 00:39:51,439
Speaker 1: trade Steph and get a boatload of good players back,

853
00:39:51,760 --> 00:39:54,880
Speaker 1: and that's not gonna happen. You're not trading Steph. So

854
00:39:55,000 --> 00:39:56,560
Speaker 1: I do think that this team is better than they

855
00:39:56,560 --> 00:39:59,080
Speaker 1: look right now. I do think with the right trade,

856
00:39:59,280 --> 00:40:01,560
Speaker 1: they could enter in to that second tier of contention.

857
00:40:01,920 --> 00:40:04,480
Speaker 1: I do think with the second tier of contention, anything

858
00:40:04,520 --> 00:40:06,600
Speaker 1: can happen, and you might find yourself in that spot.

859
00:40:06,760 --> 00:40:08,960
Speaker 1: I do think Steph is better. I will be better,

860
00:40:09,040 --> 00:40:10,920
Speaker 1: and I think that Steph is still a guy that

861
00:40:10,960 --> 00:40:15,040
Speaker 1: can be difficult to contend with in a playoff setting.

862
00:40:15,560 --> 00:40:18,719
Speaker 1: And yes, if it came down to trading kaming guy,

863
00:40:18,719 --> 00:40:20,080
Speaker 1: I would do it. That doesn't mean I would do

864
00:40:20,120 --> 00:40:22,480
Speaker 1: it just because. Lastly, before I get out of here,

865
00:40:22,520 --> 00:40:25,800
Speaker 1: just had a couple thoughts on the Lakers. Two thoughts

866
00:40:25,800 --> 00:40:28,480
Speaker 1: from the Caves game. One one of my biggest fears

867
00:40:28,480 --> 00:40:30,719
Speaker 1: going into that game is the Lakers are not used

868
00:40:30,719 --> 00:40:33,600
Speaker 1: to running that much, and what ends up happening is

869
00:40:33,640 --> 00:40:35,520
Speaker 1: like as a competitor, you end up in that situation

870
00:40:35,560 --> 00:40:37,080
Speaker 1: and you do. And by the way, I'm proud of

871
00:40:37,080 --> 00:40:38,960
Speaker 1: the Lakers as a fan for the way they fought

872
00:40:38,960 --> 00:40:42,040
Speaker 1: that entire that entire game. They never let go of

873
00:40:42,040 --> 00:40:45,320
Speaker 1: the rope. I pulled this. I saw this stat earlier

874
00:40:45,520 --> 00:40:47,400
Speaker 1: the Calves had. I'm gonna try to pull it up

875
00:40:47,440 --> 00:40:48,840
Speaker 1: right here so I can give you the exact numbers.

876
00:40:49,000 --> 00:40:53,040
Speaker 1: The Calves had scored over thirty points in transition in

877
00:40:53,200 --> 00:40:57,479
Speaker 1: like five consecutive games going into that matchup. I'm pulling

878
00:40:57,520 --> 00:41:00,400
Speaker 1: it up right now. But they were running everybody out

879
00:41:00,400 --> 00:41:03,160
Speaker 1: the gym, and the Lakers were the first team to

880
00:41:03,239 --> 00:41:06,480
Speaker 1: kind of contain them in transition. To their credit, they

881
00:41:06,560 --> 00:41:08,600
Speaker 1: had here. I got the numbers right here. They had

882
00:41:09,080 --> 00:41:12,040
Speaker 1: thirty six points in transition against Philly, thirty two points

883
00:41:12,080 --> 00:41:15,279
Speaker 1: in transition against Utah, thirty six points in transition against Denver,

884
00:41:15,680 --> 00:41:18,800
Speaker 1: thirty points in transition in Golden State, only nineteen against

885
00:41:18,800 --> 00:41:21,839
Speaker 1: the Lakers. They battled, They did their job. But one

886
00:41:21,880 --> 00:41:24,680
Speaker 1: of the problems there is the Lakers couldn't make shots.

887
00:41:25,200 --> 00:41:28,520
Speaker 1: And it's because the Calves are used to running all

888
00:41:28,680 --> 00:41:32,040
Speaker 1: damn day and making shots while doing it. The Lakers

889
00:41:32,080 --> 00:41:34,360
Speaker 1: are not. And when you start running like that, you

890
00:41:34,400 --> 00:41:36,439
Speaker 1: lose your legs. When you lose your legs, you don't

891
00:41:36,440 --> 00:41:39,480
Speaker 1: make shots. Point being all I'm saying, I don't think

892
00:41:39,320 --> 00:41:41,840
Speaker 1: the Lakers are capable of being better than the Calves.

893
00:41:42,000 --> 00:41:45,840
Speaker 1: I think the Calves are a better team. My point is, hey, Lakers,

894
00:41:46,280 --> 00:41:48,560
Speaker 1: if you play like that every day, if you play

895
00:41:48,600 --> 00:41:51,279
Speaker 1: that hard, You're going to condition yourself to be able

896
00:41:51,320 --> 00:41:53,160
Speaker 1: to play in that setting and to make shots and

897
00:41:53,160 --> 00:41:55,120
Speaker 1: give yourself a better chance to compete. It's just something

898
00:41:55,160 --> 00:41:57,680
Speaker 1: to keep in mind. That's why you practice playing championship

899
00:41:57,719 --> 00:42:00,680
Speaker 1: basketball every day instead of playing it only when you

900
00:42:00,680 --> 00:42:03,120
Speaker 1: feel like it. And then, lastly, I thought last night

901
00:42:03,320 --> 00:42:05,239
Speaker 1: that game was another great example of why they need

902
00:42:05,239 --> 00:42:08,560
Speaker 1: that upgrade at the two. One just way too comfortable

903
00:42:08,680 --> 00:42:11,360
Speaker 1: Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell getting to their spots, and

904
00:42:11,360 --> 00:42:14,200
Speaker 1: then two, how many possessions like that late kickout three

905
00:42:14,239 --> 00:42:16,239
Speaker 1: to Cam Reddish in the left corner. It's like, as

906
00:42:16,280 --> 00:42:18,160
Speaker 1: I'm watching, I'm like, I just wish that was a

907
00:42:18,200 --> 00:42:22,080
Speaker 1: better player than Cam Reddish. The biggest issue for this

908
00:42:22,160 --> 00:42:25,040
Speaker 1: team is they need a starting caliber two that can

909
00:42:25,080 --> 00:42:26,880
Speaker 1: defend at the point of attack and be a functional

910
00:42:26,920 --> 00:42:29,239
Speaker 1: part of their offense. That's why I'm keed in on

911
00:42:29,280 --> 00:42:31,800
Speaker 1: a guy like Bruce Brown. I've seen some other examples.

912
00:42:31,800 --> 00:42:33,560
Speaker 1: I had a buddy pitch me an idea for a

913
00:42:33,600 --> 00:42:36,360
Speaker 1: trade for like Robert Williams and Anferny Simons and Fortiez.

914
00:42:36,360 --> 00:42:39,560
Speaker 1: Simons can't really defend it's a move towards offense, but

915
00:42:39,640 --> 00:42:41,720
Speaker 1: like there's a bunch of different directions they can go there.

916
00:42:41,880 --> 00:42:44,640
Speaker 1: But you need a higher level player at the two

917
00:42:45,120 --> 00:42:47,400
Speaker 1: than what they've had access to over the course of

918
00:42:47,440 --> 00:42:49,919
Speaker 1: this season. That's something that they have to address. All right, guys,

919
00:42:49,960 --> 00:42:51,920
Speaker 1: that's all I have for today. As always, a sincerely

920
00:42:51,920 --> 00:42:53,879
Speaker 1: appreciate you guys for supporting me and supporting the show.

921
00:42:53,920 --> 00:42:56,040
Speaker 1: Will be back tomorrow with a breakdown of a jam

922
00:42:56,440 --> 00:42:58,359
Speaker 1: of Jam packed a Thursday Night Slate. I will see

923
00:42:58,400 --> 00:43:03,480
Speaker 1: you guys then the volume. What's up guys. As always,

924
00:43:03,520 --> 00:43:06,520
Speaker 1: I appreciate you for listening to and supporting Hoops tonight.

925
00:43:06,600 --> 00:43:08,600
Speaker 1: It would actually be really helpful for us if you

926
00:43:08,600 --> 00:43:11,239
Speaker 1: guys would take a second and leave a rating and

927
00:43:11,400 --> 00:43:13,560
Speaker 1: a review. As always, I appreciate you guys supporting us,

928
00:43:13,560 --> 00:43:15,000
Speaker 1: but if you could take a minute to do that,

929
00:43:15,280 --> 00:43:16,520
Speaker 1: I'd really appreciate it,