WEBVTT - NBA Quick Hitters

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<v Speaker 1>M all right, welcome to the State of the Lakers.

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<v Speaker 1>Hasn't a boy dads badio. Thank you guys for making

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<v Speaker 1>some time on a Saturday. This is gonna be really quick,

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<v Speaker 1>maybe ten fifteen minutes. My wife is out of town,

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<v Speaker 1>had a little bit of extra free time. I had

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<v Speaker 1>a couple of thoughts about a couple of NBA related

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<v Speaker 1>topics that I wanted to touch on, so I figured

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<v Speaker 1>we might as well hop on a space is really quick. Um,

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<v Speaker 1>my goal is to hit on steps shooting this slump

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<v Speaker 1>that he's been in for the vast majority of this season.

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<v Speaker 1>I want to talk a little bit about Grayson Allen

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<v Speaker 1>and uh, you know, kind of how I feel about

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<v Speaker 1>what makes him different from some of the other dirty plays,

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<v Speaker 1>dirty players that we see around the league, and why

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<v Speaker 1>I think he can be so problematic. And then at

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<v Speaker 1>the end, I want to talk about Russ in this

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<v Speaker 1>ridiculous little media tour that he's been doing over the

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<v Speaker 1>last couple of days that I think is kind of

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<v Speaker 1>tone deaf and uh, completely unaware of what Laker fans

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<v Speaker 1>are actually looking for from him. So three quick topics.

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<v Speaker 1>Like I said, ten fifteen minutes. I appreciate you guys

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<v Speaker 1>coming to hang out. Let's go ahead and get started.

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<v Speaker 1>So step shooting, as we know, he is below from

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<v Speaker 1>three this year, and for basically the last basically half

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<v Speaker 1>of their games games, he's shooting well below what we

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<v Speaker 1>would expect um from a player of his caliber. His

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<v Speaker 1>field goal percentage has been in the high thirties and

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<v Speaker 1>his three point percentage has been in the low thirties

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<v Speaker 1>for this stretch. And I, you know, I see Warriors

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<v Speaker 1>fans in particular kind of working through it in a

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<v Speaker 1>bunch of different ways, trying to blame stuff with rotations,

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<v Speaker 1>trying to blame stuff with his shot selection, trying to

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<v Speaker 1>blame stuff with you know, the way he's being utilized

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<v Speaker 1>on and off the ball. And I remain just completely

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<v Speaker 1>and utterly unconcerned. I can't think of anything that worries

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<v Speaker 1>me less than whether or not Steff is going to

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<v Speaker 1>start making shots at some point. Um. The reason why

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<v Speaker 1>is because he looks great physically. This is the big

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<v Speaker 1>thing that we look at here. You know, when I

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<v Speaker 1>watch people get upset about Lebron having a rough game

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<v Speaker 1>or poor shooting night, or failing to get his step

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<v Speaker 1>on a guy, a lot of times, all I have

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<v Speaker 1>to do is see one or two moves that he

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<v Speaker 1>might make over the course of the game where I

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<v Speaker 1>can say, oh, like his legs are still there. He's

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<v Speaker 1>just having an off night forever for whatever the reason

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<v Speaker 1>might be. Now, when it comes to when it comes

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<v Speaker 1>to jump shooting in particular, it gets a lot more

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<v Speaker 1>finicky because there's so much related to the mental side

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<v Speaker 1>of the game. Like, for instance, step this year is

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<v Speaker 1>shooting fifty six percent when he's tightly guarded, very tightly guarded.

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<v Speaker 1>I should say, according to NBA dot Com, he's shooting

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<v Speaker 1>forty when he's tightly guarded. He's actually been making the

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<v Speaker 1>tougher you know, classic Steph Curry types of shot, and

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<v Speaker 1>he's been missing the wide open ones. Is wide open.

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<v Speaker 1>Three point percentage is five percent lower than it was

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<v Speaker 1>last season. So it's one of those things where it's

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<v Speaker 1>very flukey to me. I think a lot of it

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<v Speaker 1>is confidence related, you know, Like I said, jump shooting

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<v Speaker 1>is kind of like this. It can be one of

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<v Speaker 1>those things where you know, gets in your head and

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<v Speaker 1>you start to overthink things and you get you stopped

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<v Speaker 1>stop thinking about your form, and you start thinking like

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<v Speaker 1>you've got the yips, or you just don't have it tonight,

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<v Speaker 1>or man, I just wish one of these would go down,

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<v Speaker 1>and it just gets in your head and it can

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<v Speaker 1>really be it can really be a problem. That's what's

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<v Speaker 1>different between a jump shooting centric player and a player

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<v Speaker 1>likes to get to the rim. They can typically impact

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<v Speaker 1>the game no matter what, just by you know, pushing

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<v Speaker 1>through that physical barrier of trying to put their head

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<v Speaker 1>down and get to the rim. Now, to be clear,

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<v Speaker 1>Steph has still had an amazing season. I think there's

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<v Speaker 1>a case to be made that he still our m

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<v Speaker 1>v P because of all of the attention that he

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<v Speaker 1>drags all over the court. There is you know, if

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<v Speaker 1>you look at the Warriors metric, the way that their

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<v Speaker 1>teammates performed with step on the step on the floor

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<v Speaker 1>is vastly better than the way they performed with Steph

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<v Speaker 1>off the floor. So we have to be clear in

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<v Speaker 1>understanding that Steph just because he's not shooting particularly well,

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't mean he's having a bad season. He's been very

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<v Speaker 1>good defensively, He's been very good in in big moments

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<v Speaker 1>at the end of games. He had another big crunch

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<v Speaker 1>time moment last night. I actually think that's gonna be

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<v Speaker 1>the one that gets him going, because I do believe

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<v Speaker 1>this is associated with his confidence. So again, I he

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<v Speaker 1>looks great physically, the team looks great. I'm not even

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<v Speaker 1>remotely concerned about step I think he's gonna be fine.

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<v Speaker 1>The one thing I was gonna say, if I had

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<v Speaker 1>to be really nitpicky with step is related to shot selection.

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<v Speaker 1>And I've noticed this, especially over their last couple of games.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, Steph is a gunner from three. He's one

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<v Speaker 1>of the few guys in the league that being a

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<v Speaker 1>gunner from three works for him. It's actually beneficial to

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<v Speaker 1>the team in a lot of ways. That's where he

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<v Speaker 1>gets his gravity from. However, step has been in the

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<v Speaker 1>league for a long time now, you know, they're in

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<v Speaker 1>two thousand sixteen and two thousand fifteen. So much of

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<v Speaker 1>what he was doing was catching the league off guard,

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<v Speaker 1>and his style of play was so unusual that he

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<v Speaker 1>could have success, you know, basically based on defensive schemes,

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<v Speaker 1>having no idea how to handle what he was bringing

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<v Speaker 1>to the table. Now it's completely different. Over the course

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<v Speaker 1>of the last six seven years, there's been a blueprint

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<v Speaker 1>formed for how to guard Steph Curry. Now, for the record,

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<v Speaker 1>there's a blueprint that exists for every superstar in the league.

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<v Speaker 1>So I don't mean that as a negative. I just

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<v Speaker 1>mean during that early phase of the Steph era, he

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<v Speaker 1>there was no blueprint because he was so unusual. There

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<v Speaker 1>was no one had seen anything like it, no one

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<v Speaker 1>knew how to guard him. Well, now there's a blueprint.

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<v Speaker 1>You rough him up off the ball. You're grabbing your

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<v Speaker 1>hold so that as he's doing his off ball actions,

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<v Speaker 1>you fatigue him and it makes it harder for him

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<v Speaker 1>to move around. And essentially you get somebody on your

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<v Speaker 1>team who's a ball hawk who does a good job

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<v Speaker 1>of making sure that after Steph gives up the basket

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<v Speaker 1>all he doesn't lose focus or get out of his stance,

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<v Speaker 1>because that's when step is most dangerous. So now there

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<v Speaker 1>are a handful of guys in the league that actually

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<v Speaker 1>can do a decent job against him. So this is

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<v Speaker 1>where Steph has to evolve with them, right, just like

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<v Speaker 1>every other star that has has come through the league,

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<v Speaker 1>especially as as they get older, you have to find

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<v Speaker 1>a way to evolve faster than defenses have been. And

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<v Speaker 1>so what I would like to see is to see

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<v Speaker 1>step take a little bit more advantage of guys over

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<v Speaker 1>playing him to the three point line and make a

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<v Speaker 1>greater attempt to score in other spots on the floor.

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<v Speaker 1>Steph is one of the best midrange shooters that we

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<v Speaker 1>have in our league. It's a it's a shot that

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<v Speaker 1>he has to learn to lean on more, especially when

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<v Speaker 1>you've got guys risking position, getting out of position for

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<v Speaker 1>the sake of chasing you off the three point line

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<v Speaker 1>when there's an option there for you in the paint,

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<v Speaker 1>and he's got an arsenal of these like scoop shots

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<v Speaker 1>and floaters that when Steph is really clicking, that he

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<v Speaker 1>can go to. So again, if I'm being nitpicky, I'd

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<v Speaker 1>like to see Steph just embrace a little bit or

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<v Speaker 1>of of of a very varying shot profile, take on

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<v Speaker 1>a little bit more of some of the other spots

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<v Speaker 1>on the floor rather than hunting those threes all of

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<v Speaker 1>the time. I've seen his story too many times this year.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, Warriors down three late and Steph comes down

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<v Speaker 1>and he just jacks the three, and it's like sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>they go in and sometimes they don't. You know, if

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<v Speaker 1>he adds a little bit more versatility there, I think

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<v Speaker 1>it will get him back into his confidence, which then

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<v Speaker 1>will unleash that barrage of Step three pointers that we

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<v Speaker 1>all know. But again, you look at the numbers, it's

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<v Speaker 1>the wide open ones that he's missing. His body looks great,

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<v Speaker 1>so it's just a typical shooting slump. I wouldn't overthink it.

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<v Speaker 1>I feel pretty confident that step is gonna have a

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<v Speaker 1>big time end of the season. I wouldn't be shocked

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<v Speaker 1>if he ended up over by the end of the season.

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<v Speaker 1>One last note on Steps something that's a little bit interesting, Uh,

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<v Speaker 1>he in his last two postseason runs is underneath from three.

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<v Speaker 1>That would be an indicator of serious decline. Now, obviously,

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<v Speaker 1>in the two was a nineteen playoff run, he um

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<v Speaker 1>was the focal point of the defense because of a

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<v Speaker 1>couple of injuries, so that's a little bit different. But

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<v Speaker 1>it'd be interesting to see this year what he shoots

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<v Speaker 1>from three in the postseason. I think that'll be a

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<v Speaker 1>good indicator of where he's seriously at in terms of

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<v Speaker 1>any sort of alleged decline. Um. But let's let's move

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<v Speaker 1>on to Grayson Allen for a second. So I was

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<v Speaker 1>thinking a lot about you know, what makes Grayson Allen

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<v Speaker 1>different from other players around the league that get people hurt,

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<v Speaker 1>because we've seen a bunch of them. I've seen, you know.

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<v Speaker 1>We we see that play like the Solomon Hill play

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<v Speaker 1>on Lebron or Matthew Dellavedova in the two thousand fifteen playoffs,

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<v Speaker 1>diving into Kyle Korver's legs, that sort of thing. There

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<v Speaker 1>is an epidemic in the NBA of dangerous hustle. This

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<v Speaker 1>is something that needs to be talked about. That's separate

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<v Speaker 1>from the Grayson Allen issue. I don't think guys should

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<v Speaker 1>It's I don't think I should be diving for loose

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<v Speaker 1>balls when guys are running next to him. It's kind

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<v Speaker 1>of similar to diving at a quarterback selex. Obviously, if

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<v Speaker 1>you're a defensive end and an offensive lineman is pushing

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<v Speaker 1>you down to the ground, sometimes you you have to dive, right,

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<v Speaker 1>But the league basically decided, even though that's a natural

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<v Speaker 1>football play, it's far more important for our quarterbacks to

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<v Speaker 1>be healthy because that's what's best for the league. It's

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<v Speaker 1>best for the league if our quarterbacks are on the field,

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<v Speaker 1>that's when we get our best television product. And all

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<v Speaker 1>of the thirty two teams agreed, and that's the way

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<v Speaker 1>they chose to proceed. That's kind of the type of

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<v Speaker 1>angle that I think the NBA needs to take. Like, yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>we get it, it's a hustle play. You're going for

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<v Speaker 1>a loose ball. But in my opinion, similar to the

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<v Speaker 1>Kawhi Leonard play, where the the Zaza Petulia and Kawhi

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<v Speaker 1>Leonard play where we decided we didn't want defenders coming

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<v Speaker 1>up under jump shooters anymore, we have to do the

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<v Speaker 1>same thing with all of these weird fake hustle plays

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<v Speaker 1>where guys are diving on the floor in blowing guys

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<v Speaker 1>knees out and blowing guys uh ankles out. We need

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<v Speaker 1>to have a rule that if you die for a

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<v Speaker 1>loose ball and there's a player where the ball is

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<v Speaker 1>and you take out their legs, it needs to be

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<v Speaker 1>some kind of flagrant, some sort of some sort of

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<v Speaker 1>accountability there, because again, it's just more important for the

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<v Speaker 1>sake of the league, for the health of the league,

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<v Speaker 1>for the TV product, to have our basketball players actually

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<v Speaker 1>available and able to play. But that's different. Like when

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<v Speaker 1>I think of like other dirty players in the league,

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<v Speaker 1>like Patrick Beverley is a good example. Patrick Beverley, Like

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<v Speaker 1>when I think about dirty plays from him, they're typically

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<v Speaker 1>related to hustle, so they might fall in that category

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<v Speaker 1>that I'm talking about, like maybe it should be penalized

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<v Speaker 1>with a flagrant or something like that. The stuff that

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<v Speaker 1>Grayson Allen does is flat out dangerous and it's not hustle.

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<v Speaker 1>It's just dirty. There's a huge difference between the two.

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<v Speaker 1>You stick in your foot out and tripping a guy

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<v Speaker 1>that has nothing to do with you trying to make

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<v Speaker 1>a basketball play that happens to be dangerous and getting

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<v Speaker 1>someone hurt, that's you just being a prick. That's you

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<v Speaker 1>just being a jerk who's trying to hurt somebody at

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<v Speaker 1>then like a child, unable to control your urges to

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<v Speaker 1>lash out when you get beat off the dribble. There's

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<v Speaker 1>it's it's absolutely inexcusable, and I there's absolutely no place

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<v Speaker 1>for it in basketball. And the same thing goes with

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<v Speaker 1>two basketball players that I want to use as an

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<v Speaker 1>example of what I'm talking about, Taylan Horton Tucker last

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<v Speaker 1>night against Orlando. On a play when Jalen Suggs took

0:11:22.080 --> 0:11:24.480
<v Speaker 1>off to go to the basket, Taylor Horton Tucker went

0:11:24.559 --> 0:11:26.880
<v Speaker 1>with two hands towards the ball to try to make

0:11:26.920 --> 0:11:30.839
<v Speaker 1>a play. He got both hands on the basketball during

0:11:30.880 --> 0:11:33.280
<v Speaker 1>the process. He got some wrist as well, and he

0:11:33.800 --> 0:11:36.240
<v Speaker 1>his momentum was at an angle that it was unfortunate,

0:11:36.360 --> 0:11:38.920
<v Speaker 1>and it pulled Jalen Suggs to the ground and it

0:11:39.080 --> 0:11:42.160
<v Speaker 1>ended up being a dangerous play and Jalen Suggs ended

0:11:42.200 --> 0:11:45.199
<v Speaker 1>up getting hurt. Now there's a blame pie there that

0:11:45.400 --> 0:11:48.319
<v Speaker 1>all three players are involved, because Jalen Suggs had no

0:11:48.480 --> 0:11:50.679
<v Speaker 1>business trying to take off right there. He had no angle,

0:11:51.000 --> 0:11:53.600
<v Speaker 1>there was no advantage. It was just an extremely dangerous

0:11:53.640 --> 0:11:56.839
<v Speaker 1>move on his part. Taylan obviously pulling the ball down

0:11:57.000 --> 0:11:59.360
<v Speaker 1>that's dangerous as well. There's an angle to where Lebron

0:11:59.480 --> 0:12:01.720
<v Speaker 1>kind of has hands up in there, kind of pushing

0:12:01.800 --> 0:12:04.559
<v Speaker 1>Jalen in the chest. That's all dangerous, But they're all

0:12:04.679 --> 0:12:09.160
<v Speaker 1>basketball plays. What Grayson Allen did was not a basketball play.

0:12:09.480 --> 0:12:11.760
<v Speaker 1>He wasn't looking, he didn't know what was happening. He

0:12:11.880 --> 0:12:14.199
<v Speaker 1>knew he had Alex Cruise up by the arms. He

0:12:14.360 --> 0:12:16.920
<v Speaker 1>knew that by pulling him it was gonna be uh,

0:12:17.080 --> 0:12:20.319
<v Speaker 1>something super dangerous and the worst case in the weapon.

0:12:20.440 --> 0:12:24.240
<v Speaker 1>And now a player who deserves consideration for the All

0:12:24.320 --> 0:12:27.280
<v Speaker 1>Defense Team is gonna miss two months of basketball because

0:12:27.320 --> 0:12:30.800
<v Speaker 1>Grayson Allen couldn't control himself again and got somebody hurt.

0:12:31.200 --> 0:12:35.760
<v Speaker 1>I think Grayson Allen deserves a significantly long suspension, something

0:12:35.840 --> 0:12:38.920
<v Speaker 1>that sends this very important message. Yeah, we might be

0:12:39.040 --> 0:12:42.760
<v Speaker 1>able to hustle, to legislate dangerous hustle out of the league,

0:12:43.120 --> 0:12:45.800
<v Speaker 1>but this business with Grayson Allen doing this jan ky

0:12:45.880 --> 0:12:48.800
<v Speaker 1>dirty stuff has to get out. The only way it's

0:12:48.840 --> 0:12:51.840
<v Speaker 1>gonna happen is if they levy a heavy suspension on him.

0:12:52.120 --> 0:12:54.400
<v Speaker 1>There needs to be a point if Grayson Allen is

0:12:54.400 --> 0:12:56.199
<v Speaker 1>going to stay in the league, there needs to be

0:12:56.280 --> 0:12:59.359
<v Speaker 1>a point where he actually starts to encounter these situations

0:12:59.640 --> 0:13:01.960
<v Speaker 1>and it's dada just sticking his foot out or doing

0:13:02.040 --> 0:13:05.440
<v Speaker 1>something stupid. He finally thinks about a consequence for once

0:13:05.679 --> 0:13:07.960
<v Speaker 1>and he stops doing it. It needs to be done

0:13:08.360 --> 0:13:11.720
<v Speaker 1>before somebody gets seriously, seriously hurt, and maybe it's worse

0:13:11.760 --> 0:13:14.599
<v Speaker 1>than a couple of months. Alright, really quickly, before we

0:13:14.640 --> 0:13:16.040
<v Speaker 1>get out of here. I wanted to hit on this

0:13:16.200 --> 0:13:27.480
<v Speaker 1>Russell Westbrook thing. So after the catastrophe against the Indiana

0:13:27.520 --> 0:13:30.000
<v Speaker 1>Pacers the other night, we had the story from Davig

0:13:30.040 --> 0:13:32.920
<v Speaker 1>Mediment about Russ walking off the floor essentially, and then

0:13:33.320 --> 0:13:35.760
<v Speaker 1>DeAndre Jordan's kind of trying to shepherd him back to

0:13:35.840 --> 0:13:38.240
<v Speaker 1>the bench. And then we heard that he skipped on

0:13:38.280 --> 0:13:40.000
<v Speaker 1>the media session, but not only did he skip on

0:13:40.040 --> 0:13:43.560
<v Speaker 1>the media session, he skipped the postgame meeting with the team.

0:13:43.679 --> 0:13:45.640
<v Speaker 1>Like he ran back to the locker room. It took

0:13:45.679 --> 0:13:47.480
<v Speaker 1>a quick shower and ran out of there. And so

0:13:47.640 --> 0:13:52.679
<v Speaker 1>then Russ goes on the offensive, right, he tells, uh,

0:13:52.840 --> 0:13:55.560
<v Speaker 1>he I think he did the interview with Adrian Morzanowski

0:13:55.600 --> 0:13:58.640
<v Speaker 1>and he does this lengthy story about all the how

0:13:58.720 --> 0:14:01.360
<v Speaker 1>difficult this has been and how he's just working through

0:14:01.480 --> 0:14:03.360
<v Speaker 1>it and how all he wants to do is win

0:14:03.600 --> 0:14:06.200
<v Speaker 1>and he's gonna do whatever it takes to to make

0:14:06.280 --> 0:14:08.760
<v Speaker 1>sure he fits into that role. And you know, everyone's like, oh,

0:14:08.840 --> 0:14:10.680
<v Speaker 1>Russ is saying all the right things, And I thought

0:14:10.679 --> 0:14:12.480
<v Speaker 1>the same thing. I'm like playing Russ is saying all

0:14:12.480 --> 0:14:14.480
<v Speaker 1>the right things. But they said all the right things

0:14:14.520 --> 0:14:17.960
<v Speaker 1>in that story before the season when Anthony Davis, Lebron

0:14:18.040 --> 0:14:20.720
<v Speaker 1>and Russ met up and talked about what this would

0:14:20.760 --> 0:14:23.560
<v Speaker 1>look like, and during that that time, Russ said all

0:14:23.600 --> 0:14:25.400
<v Speaker 1>the right things about what he would have to do

0:14:25.600 --> 0:14:28.160
<v Speaker 1>to fit with Lebron and Anthony Davis. That was all

0:14:28.280 --> 0:14:31.200
<v Speaker 1>said before. This is all This is a classic talk

0:14:31.320 --> 0:14:34.440
<v Speaker 1>is cheap type of situation. I just no one's interested,

0:14:34.480 --> 0:14:36.280
<v Speaker 1>and you're saying you have to do all the right things.

0:14:36.560 --> 0:14:38.320
<v Speaker 1>Just go out and do all the right things for us,

0:14:38.440 --> 0:14:40.840
<v Speaker 1>Like the Laker fan base. If there's one thing about

0:14:40.920 --> 0:14:44.600
<v Speaker 1>the Laker fan base, they're gonna be real with you, man, like,

0:14:44.760 --> 0:14:46.880
<v Speaker 1>if you play really well, if you do all the

0:14:46.960 --> 0:14:49.680
<v Speaker 1>little things well, if you do what's necessary to fit

0:14:49.720 --> 0:14:53.320
<v Speaker 1>into this team, the fan base will embrace you again.

0:14:53.560 --> 0:14:56.920
<v Speaker 1>They'll stop demanding that you get traded, they'll stop tweeting

0:14:56.960 --> 0:14:59.760
<v Speaker 1>out every bad play you make. If you actually tip

0:14:59.840 --> 0:15:02.480
<v Speaker 1>this scales to where what you do good outweighs what

0:15:02.600 --> 0:15:05.720
<v Speaker 1>you do bad, your impression around the team, You're impression

0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:08.640
<v Speaker 1>around the fan base will change, and it will Frank

0:15:08.680 --> 0:15:10.600
<v Speaker 1>will start playing any more. There's so much good that

0:15:10.720 --> 0:15:13.000
<v Speaker 1>comes from that. Just focus what's going on the court.

0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:18.000
<v Speaker 1>And then we get this ridiculous story today in ESPN

0:15:18.120 --> 0:15:21.320
<v Speaker 1>talking about how Russ got back on track against the

0:15:21.440 --> 0:15:25.560
<v Speaker 1>Orlando Magic, and it's just so like tone deaf to me, like,

0:15:25.720 --> 0:15:29.520
<v Speaker 1>come on, man, like we we you do you really

0:15:29.680 --> 0:15:32.720
<v Speaker 1>think that you're going, you know whatever, it was like

0:15:32.880 --> 0:15:35.560
<v Speaker 1>seven for fifteen or whatever it was against the Orlando

0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:39.000
<v Speaker 1>Magic and having some success getting to the rim against

0:15:39.040 --> 0:15:43.360
<v Speaker 1>that absolute dogshit defense, that that's gonna be what turns

0:15:43.480 --> 0:15:46.720
<v Speaker 1>everything around. Like, come on, man, like have some standards,

0:15:46.800 --> 0:15:50.080
<v Speaker 1>have some understanding, like don't be so tone death, be

0:15:50.640 --> 0:15:53.520
<v Speaker 1>aware of what people are asking for from you. We

0:15:53.680 --> 0:15:56.840
<v Speaker 1>play the Miami Heat tomorrow. The Miami Heat have one

0:15:56.880 --> 0:15:58.720
<v Speaker 1>of the best defenses in the league. They're one of

0:15:58.760 --> 0:16:00.960
<v Speaker 1>the best, most well co to his teams in the league,

0:16:01.120 --> 0:16:04.520
<v Speaker 1>well coached teams in the league. Eric Spoelstra is going

0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:06.360
<v Speaker 1>to have a game plan that is going to be

0:16:06.440 --> 0:16:10.120
<v Speaker 1>geared towards exposing all of Russell Westbrok's weaknesses. And what's

0:16:10.160 --> 0:16:12.040
<v Speaker 1>really going to happen in that game is russ is

0:16:12.080 --> 0:16:14.600
<v Speaker 1>gonna have an opportunity to show us what he really

0:16:14.800 --> 0:16:17.200
<v Speaker 1>means when he says what he said to Adrian W.

0:16:17.320 --> 0:16:19.360
<v Speaker 1>Dronowski the other day. Is he going to go into

0:16:19.440 --> 0:16:22.560
<v Speaker 1>that game and do his defensive job on every single possession.

0:16:22.960 --> 0:16:24.520
<v Speaker 1>Is he going to go into that game and never

0:16:24.600 --> 0:16:26.880
<v Speaker 1>get lost off ball? Is he gonna go into that

0:16:27.000 --> 0:16:29.840
<v Speaker 1>game and stop hunting rebounds but rather hunt his box

0:16:29.880 --> 0:16:32.680
<v Speaker 1>out which is more important to the team concept. Is

0:16:32.720 --> 0:16:35.440
<v Speaker 1>he on the offensive end going to make the right

0:16:35.640 --> 0:16:39.720
<v Speaker 1>read to take away what or to directly attack with

0:16:40.000 --> 0:16:42.760
<v Speaker 1>Miami is game planning to take away from you? Or

0:16:42.960 --> 0:16:44.880
<v Speaker 1>is it gonna look like it's looked against every other

0:16:45.000 --> 0:16:48.080
<v Speaker 1>good team this year, where it's fast and loose. For

0:16:48.160 --> 0:16:50.760
<v Speaker 1>every good defensive play, there's a bad defensive play or

0:16:50.840 --> 0:16:53.920
<v Speaker 1>bad jump shot selection getting into the lane and picking

0:16:54.000 --> 0:16:56.640
<v Speaker 1>up your dribble and getting yourself in a bad position.

0:16:57.000 --> 0:17:00.480
<v Speaker 1>Those that's what we're really watching. Russ. We don't care

0:17:00.560 --> 0:17:02.960
<v Speaker 1>what you did against the Orlando Magic. We don't care

0:17:03.040 --> 0:17:06.159
<v Speaker 1>what you say to Adrian Warzanowski. You have a good stretching.

0:17:06.240 --> 0:17:08.439
<v Speaker 1>You have a stretch of games here coming up against

0:17:08.520 --> 0:17:11.280
<v Speaker 1>really good teams. If you go into this stretch of

0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:15.680
<v Speaker 1>games and you do your job on defense every single

0:17:15.720 --> 0:17:19.560
<v Speaker 1>possession or the vast majority of the possessions, and on offense,

0:17:19.640 --> 0:17:22.760
<v Speaker 1>you play within the five out concept, just like Malik

0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:25.320
<v Speaker 1>Monk is, just like Stanley Johnson is, just like all

0:17:25.400 --> 0:17:27.760
<v Speaker 1>these guys are. Just do your job on both ends

0:17:27.800 --> 0:17:30.960
<v Speaker 1>of the floor. I promise you, Lak your fans will

0:17:31.000 --> 0:17:33.119
<v Speaker 1>be thrilled to have you on the team, like your

0:17:33.160 --> 0:17:35.320
<v Speaker 1>fans will be thrilled to think about what this next

0:17:35.359 --> 0:17:38.040
<v Speaker 1>two years would be like. The only reason they're not

0:17:38.560 --> 0:17:41.200
<v Speaker 1>the only reason I'm saying trade you. The only reason

0:17:41.400 --> 0:17:43.720
<v Speaker 1>all these guys are saying trade you is because you're

0:17:43.760 --> 0:17:46.239
<v Speaker 1>not paying attention to that stuff, and you're far more

0:17:46.320 --> 0:17:50.000
<v Speaker 1>wrapped up in the old RUSS instead of embracing what

0:17:50.160 --> 0:17:51.920
<v Speaker 1>the new RUSS needs to be. So no more of

0:17:52.000 --> 0:17:54.480
<v Speaker 1>these stories, no more of these weird puff pieces and

0:17:54.560 --> 0:17:57.040
<v Speaker 1>quotes coming out. Just go out and play basketball, Russ.

0:17:57.200 --> 0:17:59.680
<v Speaker 1>If you go out and you play well, everything is

0:17:59.720 --> 0:18:02.040
<v Speaker 1>going to turn around for you. It's really that simple.

0:18:02.359 --> 0:18:04.040
<v Speaker 1>Al Right, guys, that's all I have for today. This

0:18:04.200 --> 0:18:06.000
<v Speaker 1>is gonna be on our Twitter feed or excuse me,

0:18:06.080 --> 0:18:09.280
<v Speaker 1>our podcast feed here in about fifteen twenty minutes and

0:18:09.560 --> 0:18:12.760
<v Speaker 1>Rod roges out of town. So Venet was kind enough

0:18:12.800 --> 0:18:15.000
<v Speaker 1>to offer to join. So Venet is gonna be joining

0:18:15.040 --> 0:18:18.000
<v Speaker 1>me for the post game show tomorrow, the final right

0:18:18.040 --> 0:18:20.280
<v Speaker 1>after the final buzzer. I believe it is a three

0:18:20.800 --> 0:18:24.760
<v Speaker 1>pm Pacific Standard time. Tip. We appreciate your support as always,

0:18:24.800 --> 0:18:25.919
<v Speaker 1>and I'll see you guys tomorrow