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Speaker 1: I'm Rachel Nichols as always, mister DeMarcus Cousins across from me,
Speaker 1: and we have a friend today. No, it is not
Speaker 1: Boogie's fern planting mcplanterson that he does have in the shot.
Speaker 1: Is that a fern? Is that a palm tree? I
Speaker 1: don't know what that is there. That's your friend, our project,
Speaker 1: our magical plant.
Speaker 2: That's a whole different thing. That's a their magical plants
Speaker 2: look different. But I'm just going to say non plant division.
Speaker 2: Our other friend Rajon Rondo Dell.
Speaker 1: Welcome to the show, and you've been the name on
Speaker 1: everyone's lips. This week, Lebron James did his first podcast
Speaker 1: with JJ Reddick, and you're the guy, he said, his
Speaker 1: former teammate who should be coaching?
Speaker 2: Who's not? He said?
Speaker 1: It was you, and they were wondering why you're not coaching.
Speaker 1: So we've got you. Why aren't you coaching?
Speaker 3: Oh well, I'm just waiting on bron to buy that
Speaker 3: team in Vegas and then I'll be pretty ready to go. No,
Speaker 3: I'm I'm just at home obviously with the fam finishing
Speaker 3: my out ofgree at University Kentucky. The main priorities is
Speaker 3: my daughter getting off of college properly, and you know
Speaker 3: she's really big in the volleyball right now and getting
Speaker 3: a lot of recruitment.
Speaker 4: So I just want to be here for and you
Speaker 4: know that's my main focus.
Speaker 3: So eventually, hopefully, really soon, I'll be in coaching alongside,
Speaker 3: ready to hire my new staff. I believe Bug might
Speaker 3: make the cut. I do need enforce on the staff
Speaker 3: because these kids nowadays, you know, they fight the coach.
Speaker 3: I got to need a guy like book on the
Speaker 3: staff and security purposes.
Speaker 4: He'll have dual purposes on the staff.
Speaker 2: So I was gonna say, what would his if he
Speaker 2: was one of your assistant coaches? What would his would
Speaker 2: just put his his specialty?
Speaker 4: Uh security slash big man coach?
Speaker 2: All right, just check out you taking that chat book?
Speaker 5: Absolutely?
Speaker 6: Yeah, I gotta walk out with my dog. But you
Speaker 6: know he's given me short in onder stick, which is fine.
Speaker 6: You know, I work my way up, but I'm all
Speaker 6: game winning players are ran through me. I don't get it.
Speaker 6: I don't get the damn what he has to say.
Speaker 6: That's part of my contract. That's on the way I'm signing.
Speaker 4: So that's on the way I'm signing. Well, I don't
Speaker 4: want to.
Speaker 1: I don't want to predict anyone's demise because every single
Speaker 1: one of us on this podcast today are big coach
Speaker 1: cal fans.
Speaker 2: But your alma mater could be calling you guys soon.
Speaker 2: I don't know.
Speaker 1: It has been rough, rough down there at Kentucky. It's
Speaker 1: been what four or five days, guys, since UK dropped
Speaker 1: to one in four in its last five NCAA tournament
Speaker 1: games under coach cal I'd be remiss if I didn't
Speaker 1: ask you guys about this before we get to the
Speaker 1: NCAA stuff.
Speaker 2: There is blood in the streets down there.
Speaker 1: First of all, the Lexington Herald Leader newspaper misspelled coach
Speaker 1: Calipari's name today in the paper in an article about
Speaker 1: whether he should be bought out of his contract or not.
Speaker 1: Calipari with a K. I don't know if this was
Speaker 1: just a copy editor error. There's people online saying that
Speaker 1: that copy desk was fired recently and that there hasn't
Speaker 1: been enough people fact checking. I don't know if it
Speaker 1: was just intentionally disrespectful. Honestly, it doesn't matter. It's disrespectful
Speaker 1: either way. And the fact that so many people are
Speaker 1: calling for coach cal to be fired. I want to
Speaker 1: ask you, guys, we sit here on Monday morning. He
Speaker 1: still has his job. That could change by the time
Speaker 1: this podcast comes out. What do you think should happen
Speaker 1: to Kentucky in the future with that program? What do
Speaker 1: you think should happen on the bench with the coach's seat,
Speaker 1: and what do you think should happen in the approach
Speaker 1: of the way that they recruit players do I'm gonna
Speaker 1: start with you.
Speaker 3: I'm not going to simper and say, hey, want should
Speaker 3: be fired. Obviously, what he's done for the program of
Speaker 3: the last decade speaks for himself. With obviously the last
Speaker 3: couple of years hasn't been so great. And as a
Speaker 3: Kentucky fan, as a Kentucky alumni, you know they expect
Speaker 3: greatness night in the night out each year. High expectation,
Speaker 3: especially when you have the number one recruiting class coming in.
Speaker 3: People expect nothing but the championship, and the mindset is
Speaker 3: pretty much championship or bus.
Speaker 5: You know.
Speaker 3: He set the standard so high when he first came in,
Speaker 3: but he won in twenty twelve. With all the NBA players,
Speaker 3: he has all the things he's done for all the
Speaker 3: players that he's coached in the past history, you know.
Speaker 3: But now with the loss of Oakland, allowing a guy
Speaker 3: like Jack to shoot, to even shoot twenty three point
Speaker 3: attempts in the game, no one coming into the game plan.
Speaker 3: He's only taken I think four to eight mid ranges
Speaker 3: all game, all season and to come out.
Speaker 1: All season eight all season before that game he meant
Speaker 1: and for.
Speaker 3: Him to come out three. For him to come out
Speaker 3: and make ten three, seven in the first half. To me,
Speaker 3: that is on the coach coaching staff that isn't a
Speaker 3: player personnel as well.
Speaker 4: Understand the game plan.
Speaker 3: It'scount report that guys shouldn't have had any effect on
Speaker 3: the game, let alone thirty two points with zero assists.
Speaker 3: It's unacceptable before University Kentucky playing against a team you know,
Speaker 3: with all the respect, there's no way they shouldn't even
Speaker 3: been in the game. Uh. And I get you know,
Speaker 3: they're a little bit older. Some people want to use
Speaker 3: that excuse. But for me, with the amount of time
Speaker 3: that you have as a college player, the preparation that
Speaker 3: you have, you know, being across the street from the gym,
Speaker 3: not even across the street, you know, ten yards away
Speaker 3: from your gymnasium, all the practice times they put in,
Speaker 3: there's no excuse for them to loser a team like Oakland,
Speaker 3: And like I said, with the talent, they have seven
Speaker 3: potential NBA draft picks, it's just accepting for them to
Speaker 3: lose those guys what you got because.
Speaker 6: First off, you know, my story at Kentucky started off
Speaker 6: under calib period. So I was one of the first
Speaker 6: classes to come in, well the first class to come
Speaker 6: in under calib period. So you know, I understand a
Speaker 6: standard that was you know, helped set with that team
Speaker 6: and with you know, being a part of his first
Speaker 6: team being there. So it was a standard set which
Speaker 6: was you know, championship or bucks. It was a standard
Speaker 6: step because of the quality of players that not only
Speaker 6: came in that first year, but we knew would come
Speaker 6: in later on down the line.
Speaker 5: So it's going to.
Speaker 6: Always be the top talent, always the top kids to come,
Speaker 6: you know, out of each class.
Speaker 5: So that's a standard.
Speaker 6: But uh, where I get kind of confused about it
Speaker 6: all is if it was a standard set by you know,
Speaker 6: a class that came in and what was it before that?
Speaker 6: And that's where I kind of get lost with it.
Speaker 6: It's like, how do we get to this place of
Speaker 6: you know, we're now disrespecting the guy that created a standard.
Speaker 2: If it is what have you done for me lately?
Speaker 4: World?
Speaker 2: Right?
Speaker 6: Which is totally and I understand, but it's like he's
Speaker 6: brought more positivity to this university and to this fan
Speaker 6: base than any negativity he could have.
Speaker 5: And that's just my opinion.
Speaker 1: There's different ways this problem, but there's different ways you
Speaker 1: solve that problem. Right, So, either you can get rid
Speaker 1: of him, right, that's one to say, great, he hasn't
Speaker 1: been able to compete in this market in a while,
Speaker 1: let's get someone else.
Speaker 2: I always ask, then, who are you bringing in?
Speaker 1: It's not a question of like should we get rid
Speaker 1: of him or not, it's can you get someone better?
Speaker 2: So that's the biggest question.
Speaker 5: No, okay, I was well.
Speaker 1: Okay, so that's a big, big question. And then the
Speaker 1: other part is I was talking to Anthony Davis about
Speaker 1: this over the weekend after a Laker game, and he
Speaker 1: was saying he thought when Kenny Paine left us his
Speaker 1: number two, that was a big hit, and that maybe
Speaker 1: the program needs to bring either Kenny physically back in
Speaker 1: under Cal or someone else like that instead of just
Speaker 1: getting rid of Cal, who obviously is such a powerful.
Speaker 2: Presence at that school.
Speaker 1: But that idea of who else is on that bench
Speaker 1: makes a huge difference in terms of who the players
Speaker 1: feel they can talk to.
Speaker 5: I agree with that one hundred percent.
Speaker 6: This is this game is about, you know, evolving with
Speaker 6: the times college basketball has evolved. Again, this is a
Speaker 6: guy that's evolved with each generation of basketball. We talk
Speaker 6: about a guy that's found success when he was at UMass.
Speaker 6: So this isn't a guy that can't you know, find
Speaker 6: his way through the evolution of the game. So that's
Speaker 6: more so why I'm so confused as to how we
Speaker 6: got to this point because no matter what university, no
Speaker 6: matter what legendary coach, they all went through a dry
Speaker 6: a dry spell of you know, losing tournaments, not really
Speaker 6: meeting the standard for that year.
Speaker 5: It happens with every program, like.
Speaker 4: And they get fired.
Speaker 5: That's not true. That's not true.
Speaker 6: We're talking and we're talking about the category of elite coaching.
Speaker 5: We're talking about the elite. College is an elite.
Speaker 3: How many chips? How many chips got enough? No, no,
Speaker 3: don't give me enough missing facts.
Speaker 5: That is that is a fact enough and it's not.
Speaker 4: And it's been over a deck. It's been plus a decade.
Speaker 4: That's cool, said earlier. It's about what have you done
Speaker 4: for me lately?
Speaker 5: Work revenue, revenue is booming. You've been the UK that.
Speaker 4: It's not just and that's what you just said, Like
Speaker 4: you just said, it's university winning chis in Kentucky, do not.
Speaker 3: I never never nevers colleges of all time. I got
Speaker 3: there kul and sept the standard that it's winning basketball.
Speaker 4: Now it's been that.
Speaker 5: No, it wasn't. When I got there. It wasn't. It
Speaker 5: was down it was.
Speaker 4: How man championships they got, how many championships they got.
Speaker 5: I'm talking it was in the thirties.
Speaker 6: I'm talking about when I got I'm talking about when
Speaker 6: I got there.
Speaker 5: I'm only speaking on when I got there.
Speaker 6: The standard wasn't championship or bus.
Speaker 5: Yes, what was championship a bus with Billy? The less
Speaker 5: are we We couldn't even get his games? Like, what
Speaker 5: are we talking about?
Speaker 4: Listen, that was a tied. That was a bad hire.
Speaker 6: When I got there, the standard wasn't championship. When we
Speaker 6: got there, whips.
Speaker 4: It still was Kentucky basketball.
Speaker 3: And I'm like changing that the Los Angeles Lakers, Like,
Speaker 3: we're not trying to Detroit.
Speaker 5: Even those franchises have dry spells. That's the point I'm making.
Speaker 4: You're right, it ain't easy to win, you right, It's
Speaker 4: not so my.
Speaker 6: I don't understand how we get to the point where
Speaker 6: our next best option is to replace this coach that
Speaker 6: doesn't even.
Speaker 5: Make with what.
Speaker 4: I never said it replace him.
Speaker 6: Everything that Cayler Perry brings to a program, it's going
Speaker 6: to go down. If they replace this guy, everything is
Speaker 6: going down.
Speaker 4: I disagree with that. It is u K, it is
Speaker 4: the brand. It is due.
Speaker 5: Who would who would you bring?
Speaker 4: I never I never said fire cal I said that clearly.
Speaker 4: I never said.
Speaker 3: All I'm saying is this is the biggest, one of
Speaker 3: the biggest brands of basketball.
Speaker 4: At any level. That's all I'm saying.
Speaker 3: So whoever they bring in you right, they got big
Speaker 3: ass shoes and feel and it's not an easy job
Speaker 3: at all. He's done a hell of a job. Again,
Speaker 3: I'm not that's my guy, so I'm not going to
Speaker 3: disrespect him. Will say he should be fired out. No,
Speaker 3: I'm just telling the facts about my disappointment in this
Speaker 3: particular loss vision, and I agree.
Speaker 6: One hundred percent it's unacceptable. It looks, it looks bad
Speaker 6: for the brand.
Speaker 5: I agree.
Speaker 1: Do you think he's got to make a major change
Speaker 1: either in the way her think.
Speaker 6: It's about his staff. I think it's about his staff,
Speaker 6: and I think about the way he recruits. I think
Speaker 6: you should. I think you would be foolish not to
Speaker 6: go for all the top talent that comes out every year.
Speaker 6: That's that's a getting you have to do. But you
Speaker 6: now have to find a way to blend that young
Speaker 6: fresh talent with some experience, like season talent. And I
Speaker 6: think that blend helps this situation more so than going
Speaker 6: out there with five freshmen expecting them to to over
Speaker 6: it or or overachieve on a yearly basis, because at
Speaker 6: this point that's what it's becoming. You're right, though it
Speaker 6: has only been one championship team, that was also led
Speaker 6: by freshmen. But time after time, we're starting to see
Speaker 6: like this formula isn't gonna work. So I do, like
Speaker 6: I was saying earlier, this is a guy that's evolved
Speaker 6: with every generation of basketball that he's been a part of.
Speaker 6: So I think he can once again do it again.
Speaker 6: It'll start with changing his staff. I think KP is
Speaker 6: a big part of that. They have to go get
Speaker 6: Kenny painback. I think he'll be available once Louisville decides
Speaker 6: to make their decisions. KP they did alright, So KP
Speaker 6: is available. That's a step forward. We already know what yes,
Speaker 6: what it brings available. Yes, absolutely, Rondo's available, I.
Speaker 5: Think too.
Speaker 6: I think t u Less is a great is a
Speaker 6: great player, a great mind on the bench as well.
Speaker 6: So I think a few slight changes the way in
Speaker 6: recruitment and this thing is going to be rolling just
Speaker 6: like the standard we set in twenty ten.
Speaker 3: It'll be like about this because I just feel like
Speaker 3: that he has to get the guys to buy in.
Speaker 5: That's never been a problem.
Speaker 4: I no know, I'm saying no, no, just hear me out.
Speaker 3: I'm saying as far as buying into wanting the best
Speaker 3: for one another, sacrificing because again you got as a strand.
Speaker 4: Listen to what I'm saying. Every personnel is different.
Speaker 3: So when I come into it, when you were Ak Tuck,
Speaker 3: if I'm Rob Dealing, I'm Re Shepherd, I'm doing DJ Wagner.
Speaker 3: Like these guys are looking at the damn draft boards
Speaker 3: every day every other you know what I mean. So
Speaker 3: it's like mentally, it's like, Okay, I want to do
Speaker 3: what's best for the team. At the same time my
Speaker 3: agents calling me. You know, the nil deal money is
Speaker 3: coming in, So these are these are different times that
Speaker 3: you kids are going through to buy in to understand, Okay,
Speaker 3: it's about sacrificing every night on the floor.
Speaker 4: I don't think they did that completely and understanding. Okay,
Speaker 4: we need to focus on.
Speaker 3: Winning versus looking at the draft board because again you're
Speaker 3: your personnel is different from when you came in eight
Speaker 3: These team is different, so the times are different.
Speaker 4: Like I said, they'll get money.
Speaker 3: Down, so I feel like they have to buy in
Speaker 3: kind of how I hate to always go back to it,
Speaker 3: but like how Doc got us are buying with the
Speaker 3: twenty eighteen.
Speaker 4: You know, we had a lot of new faces than
Speaker 4: what you said, mixed in with.
Speaker 3: Some high IQ guys, mixing some veteran guys that know
Speaker 3: the game with the young talent and mess to buy
Speaker 3: in to get one common goal. And I don't think
Speaker 3: they did it this year, and that's why I think
Speaker 3: they get bopped early exit because of that.
Speaker 4: And it's hard. I wasn't a kid at that age
Speaker 4: getting all this attention.
Speaker 3: Put Drake's pulling me out on stage, they telling me
Speaker 3: I was not a first round pick.
Speaker 4: Now I'm top five picking Red Shepherd.
Speaker 3: So again, that's a lot of pressure to understand quite
Speaker 3: out all the noise and focusing on winning one game
Speaker 3: at a time. And I think that's what they didn't
Speaker 3: do a great job there, and I think that starts
Speaker 3: with Cal and the staff getting them to buy into
Speaker 3: that system.
Speaker 1: For me, So let's go to the NBA guys, because
Speaker 1: there's still a lot happened in our league. Houston has
Speaker 1: been on fire. They've won eight straight, nine out of ten.
Speaker 1: They are only one game back in the lost column
Speaker 1: from Golden State for that final playing spot. There's thirteen
Speaker 1: games left and all of this is happening with Shan
Speaker 1: Gun being out. He's been out for the past six
Speaker 1: games and counting after a sprain to ankle, they don't
Speaker 1: necessarily expect him back for the rest of the regular season.
Speaker 2: I don't know.
Speaker 1: I mean the Rockets don't really have anything to play
Speaker 1: for in either direction, meaning that like, yes, they can
Speaker 1: make the plan, but without Shangoon, especially if he can't
Speaker 1: come back, I don't know what they're doing from there.
Speaker 1: But also they don't have their first round draft picks,
Speaker 1: so it's not like they have to lose to get
Speaker 1: better draft position.
Speaker 2: What do you expect from them going forward?
Speaker 6: I think the eight game winning streak that they're on
Speaker 6: right now is more so credit to the level of
Speaker 6: play that Jalen Green is playing. That the kid is
Speaker 6: playing lights out basketball out. I want to say, he's
Speaker 6: averaging thirty plus over this stretch. He's playing the best
Speaker 6: basketball of his career. Obviously, they're missing a big piece
Speaker 6: in their big man, young big man Sagoon. But if
Speaker 6: you get you get the big fella back in this kid,
Speaker 6: Jalen Green playing at this level, and you put these
Speaker 6: two back together on the floor, you know, that's that
Speaker 6: scary potential right there. And I think this is just
Speaker 6: a small sample size of you know, what Houston has
Speaker 6: to build on, you know, any type of momentum they
Speaker 6: can build, you know, going into this year and they
Speaker 6: finishing out this year going into the next season, I
Speaker 6: think it's great for them. They hire uh Udoka with
Speaker 6: the mindset of being a playoff team eventually, So everything
Speaker 6: that we're seeing umfold for this team is all part
Speaker 6: of their plan in my opinion, So they're taking the
Speaker 6: steps into becoming a good team. So regards to how
Speaker 6: they finish out this year, I think this was a
Speaker 6: positive year for them, and uh you know, next year,
Speaker 6: I think it'll be a big jump as they'll probably
Speaker 6: look to add more veteran presence, you know, actually put
Speaker 6: some talent around, you know, their core guys, and they'll
Speaker 6: figure out, you know, with the young pieces. They do
Speaker 6: have what they want, what they want to keep, and
Speaker 6: what they can get rid of. So I think everything's
Speaker 6: playing exactly, planning out exactly how they wanted to finishing
Speaker 6: out this year Going into next season, I.
Speaker 3: Would agree that schedule, they do have some winnable games
Speaker 3: the rest of the rest of their schedule. But like
Speaker 3: you said, because a young kid is playing extremely well,
Speaker 3: and I think we give enough credit to your Dooku.
Speaker 4: You know what he's been through the last.
Speaker 3: Two years, mischange agent scenery and him to come in
Speaker 3: and do what he's doing with the I'm gonna say
Speaker 3: lack of talent, but the young talent that he has
Speaker 3: in Houston, giving the point guard Freddie Vanfleet the hell
Speaker 3: of the credit.
Speaker 4: Kudos to him. He's been running the show leading these guys.
Speaker 5: Uh.
Speaker 3: And then the og Jeff Green is down there. You
Speaker 3: know it's a teammate of mind. They don't have a
Speaker 3: lot of bests, but again, you know, he's a winner. Uh,
Speaker 3: you know, you toach his name with winning, and I'm
Speaker 3: happy he's doing well exactly you know down there as well.
Speaker 3: So they have a lot of young talent, you know,
Speaker 3: their best players obviously out right now.
Speaker 4: But at the same time, you.
Speaker 3: Know, it's the next man up mentality, and these guys
Speaker 3: are competitor, competitors in this league. You know, they wouldn't
Speaker 3: be in this league without you know, having that type
Speaker 3: of mindset. So they definitely want it went out and
Speaker 3: I believe they do want to, you know, get their
Speaker 3: foot in the game regards with their best players that
Speaker 3: are not if they can get to the playing game,
Speaker 3: which I think they could possibly get there.
Speaker 4: U because you never know.
Speaker 3: You know, the Warriors are in front of them, but uh,
Speaker 3: they're I don't want to wish it on anybody, but
Speaker 3: their injury away or they're you know, something happened in
Speaker 3: the locker room or where they don't have their chemistry
Speaker 3: or things happen and things can change in the last
Speaker 3: teen games of the season, and I would like to
Speaker 3: see those guys get into a playing game. They'll be
Speaker 3: fun to watch on TV, especially when it all counts.
Speaker 3: So I'm looking forward to them finishing the season. I'll
Speaker 3: be looking closely how it plays out. And like I said,
Speaker 3: you just never know. There's a young, fun team to watch,
Speaker 3: and especially him, that young talent at point guard position,
Speaker 3: Jalen Green.
Speaker 1: Well, it could be a great experience for them, right
Speaker 1: if they do get into the play in Obviously it's
Speaker 1: not as much as pressure as a playoff situation, but
Speaker 1: it is experience, and it's being in that high stakes
Speaker 1: here we go experience. If some of their younger players
Speaker 1: do get a taste of that this year, that just
Speaker 1: puts them a step.
Speaker 2: Ahead for next year.
Speaker 1: You mentioned Jalen Green, I mean, obviously he's been streaky
Speaker 1: up and down, but he has been a rock star
Speaker 1: the past couple of weeks. Thompson has been great, stepping
Speaker 1: in after Shanghun got hurt and sort of putting him
Speaker 1: in that dunker spot. And I just think he's been
Speaker 1: so impressive. And you mentioned Udoka. We say culture change
Speaker 1: or culture shifter or something like that a lot, and
Speaker 1: people toss that around and it can mean a lot
Speaker 1: of different things. But you have to remember how bottom
Speaker 1: of the barrel the Rockets felt just a couple of
Speaker 1: seasons ago, right, Like the vibe around them was terrible.
Speaker 1: You know, there was so much junk being talked around
Speaker 1: the league about you don't want to be there, you.
Speaker 2: Don't want to go there, you know where people go
Speaker 2: to die, right.
Speaker 1: You know, I mean just I seriously, like no one
Speaker 1: wanted to be there, no one to be around there.
Speaker 1: And now it's considered a team where, you know, if
Speaker 1: people want to be in that locker room, that team
Speaker 1: looks fun, like they have a good time together. Udoka
Speaker 1: obviously he's got great discipline, great defensive strategy. He is
Speaker 1: a coach who clearly players want to play for it.
Speaker 1: We saw it in Boston and now we're seeing it here,
Speaker 1: So I think that matters just in terms of carryover,
Speaker 1: whether it goes into the summer, who they might pick up,
Speaker 1: you know, who wants to be there all of a
Speaker 1: sudden when it goes into the experience they've got going
Speaker 1: into next year. And then if Shangun can come back
Speaker 1: and they can make some noise, I think that'll be
Speaker 1: a big deal. The Warriors, man, I don't know what
Speaker 1: they're going to do and how this is going to
Speaker 1: set them up. I think they've lost six of ten.
Speaker 1: These teams play each other coming up in this next
Speaker 1: stretch too, so we'll see where they are. But it
Speaker 1: is there's going to be a lot of questions in
Speaker 1: Golden State over when this ends, no matter how this ends,
Speaker 1: of what do we do next? Okay, Clay was willing
Speaker 1: to come off the bench in the end this season,
Speaker 1: but what does that mean for the contract that they
Speaker 1: have to negotiate now with him this summer?
Speaker 2: You know?
Speaker 1: Do they want to be a team that just keeps
Speaker 1: it together no matter what until the wheels fall off?
Speaker 1: Have the wheels already fall off? You know? All of
Speaker 1: these questions are still coming up for them.
Speaker 2: It's it's a lot.
Speaker 1: I don't know quick quick on the Warriors guys though,
Speaker 1: would you would you make a huge change there this
Speaker 1: summer if either getting the plan and lose or you know,
Speaker 1: if things things don't end in a great way this year.
Speaker 4: Absolutely I'll make a change. I'll make a big splash.
Speaker 4: If they don't get in, what would I do? Yeah,
Speaker 4: I might have to.
Speaker 3: Figure out where we can put you know, Draymond and Clay,
Speaker 3: I don't know. You know, Booge probablyn speak to that more.
Speaker 3: He's played with those guys personally. But for me, it
Speaker 3: might be time to break up that dynasty. I don't
Speaker 3: think you continue to hold on to it, Just how
Speaker 3: they broke up the Big Three in Boston. It's got
Speaker 3: to be a point in time where you do break
Speaker 3: it up and try to move for not necessarily meaning rebuild.
Speaker 3: Depend on the draft picks and who else is available
Speaker 3: to come trade time this summer. But they don't make
Speaker 3: the play and it definitely got to get rid of,
Speaker 3: you know, some people on the team.
Speaker 6: My opinion, I think it's I've spoken on this before,
Speaker 6: but I think it's time for changing leadership at the
Speaker 6: head coach position. You know that small ball era of
Speaker 6: basketball is done, and I think that's what Steve curves.
Speaker 6: You know, specialty was in that, you know, in that
Speaker 6: style of play in that moment in time. I don't
Speaker 6: think I mean, the last championship team had a seven
Speaker 6: foot center, so obviously the small ball era is over.
Speaker 6: I'm also lean towards the leadership. I still think you
Speaker 6: have great core pieces in those guys. I think they're
Speaker 6: the foundation. I think they deserve a ride off in
Speaker 6: the sunset on their own terms. They've done that much
Speaker 6: for the Golden State Warriors. Once again, I don't just
Speaker 6: look at the production, you know, of what they they've
Speaker 6: done on the court. I think about everything they brought
Speaker 6: to the organization when they when they purchased the organization,
Speaker 6: it was I may be wrong, but it was somewhere
Speaker 6: around five six hundred million. You look at this organization now,
Speaker 6: it's worth three billion dollars. Joe Lacob did not do that.
Speaker 6: Steve Curry did not do that. Draymond Steph Curry and
Speaker 6: Klay Thompson did that. And let's throw in Kevin Durant
Speaker 6: as well. Like those guys did that. So, like I said,
Speaker 6: I feel like they should be able to go out
Speaker 6: on the terms they want to go out on. You
Speaker 6: know what Clay is going through. I get it, bro
Speaker 6: Like I was, I was in that spot trying to,
Speaker 6: you know, accept the criticism of guys who've never done
Speaker 6: it at your level. But you got to you got
Speaker 6: to accept, you know, their opinion of what you should
Speaker 6: be as a player. Like it's hard to deal with. So,
Speaker 6: I know Clay is in a tough spot right now,
Speaker 6: but I think it's a time. I think it's time
Speaker 6: for changing leadership. I think those guys ride off in
Speaker 6: the sunset and you know, you figure out a new
Speaker 6: style of play and what talent took place around those
Speaker 6: guys to be a productive team. Steph Curry Hill has
Speaker 6: a lot in the tank. Steph still has I mean
Speaker 6: Clay has a lot in the tank, and so does Draymond.
Speaker 6: I think it's about filling out, you know, the roster
Speaker 6: with real idea of talent that also enhanced them and vice.
Speaker 4: Versa, because what can you fill it out with with
Speaker 4: their contracts? What can you fill that roster?
Speaker 5: Again, I'm not saying I'm not saying contracts an change.
Speaker 6: I said they should be able to ride off in
Speaker 6: the sunset if you know how crase.
Speaker 1: Deal is not done yet, so we're going to see
Speaker 1: what happens this summer and whether you know, Clay, they
Speaker 1: put an offer on the table to him this past summer.
Speaker 2: He didn't take it obviously. Now that offer is going
Speaker 2: to be a lot lower.
Speaker 1: So so the question is sort of how little are
Speaker 1: you paying him and what what does that free up?
Speaker 2: I don't know. They's still way over extended.
Speaker 6: That's the reason I said I understand what the place
Speaker 6: Clay is in because it will be a change, and
Speaker 6: you know his value amongst the league, and I believe
Speaker 6: he thinks he'll be able to, you know, maybe find
Speaker 6: it somewhere else, which may not be.
Speaker 5: The case, you know what I mean, that's just how
Speaker 5: the league works.
Speaker 6: But I still think it should be something where this
Speaker 6: guy rise off into sunset on his own terms. I
Speaker 6: think he's due to respect to figure it out. So
Speaker 6: that's more so what I mean by when it comes
Speaker 6: to that, I agree with you. Contracts do have to
Speaker 6: change because the production isn't the same. It's only one
Speaker 6: guy gonna be making the money is worth and he's
Speaker 6: one of the faces of the league.
Speaker 5: Understanding correct, And this.
Speaker 1: Is going to say is By the way, it doesn't
Speaker 1: matter in the end what any of us watching think.
Speaker 1: It matters what Steph Curry thinks.
Speaker 2: Right.
Speaker 1: If Steph would rather keep this team together and just can't,
Speaker 1: let's see what we can do, they will be there.
Speaker 1: If he wants Steve Curti to stay there, Steve Kerr
Speaker 1: will be there. If Steph goes to management, or management
Speaker 1: comes to Steph and said, what's more important to you?
Speaker 1: Sort of the loyalty factor in being with these guys
Speaker 1: or winning another title. Those are not the same thing anymore.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's pretty obvious that those are two different roads.
Speaker 2: So it's okay. The answer could be either one.
Speaker 1: Either answer is okay. The question is which is your answer?
Speaker 1: And I think what Steph answers that question will sort
Speaker 1: of determine this franchise. It's just always a bummer to
Speaker 1: see sort of some of the ups and downs and
Speaker 1: backs and forths of what you say, are these great
Speaker 1: champions and guys who've given so much to just league
Speaker 1: the team. We've watched them do so much and accomplished
Speaker 1: so much. I'm very interested to see how this next
Speaker 1: stretch goes. You know, with these teams we're talking about Houston,
Speaker 1: the Warriors, obviously, the Lakers, and then there's jostling in
Speaker 1: the middle of that Western Conference bracket too. We got
Speaker 1: to talk about what's going on with the Pelicans, guys,
Speaker 1: because they've won eight of ten. Zion was a beast
Speaker 1: on Sunday. He scored thirty six points beating the Pistons.
Speaker 1: And look it was the Pistons. They were shorthanded.
Speaker 2: I know again.
Speaker 1: It okay, but we have seen Look we've seen all
Speaker 1: over the league this year. You know, the Earth Lakers
Speaker 1: from the Lakers go in without Lebron to Boston and
Speaker 1: they win.
Speaker 2: I mean, you know, stuff happens.
Speaker 1: You still got to beat the teams you're supposed to beat,
Speaker 1: and we haven't seen that all season. So the fact
Speaker 1: that Zian went in beat this team, as you said,
Speaker 1: thirteen for fourteen from the floor, ten for fourteen from
Speaker 1: the line. This all happened in thirty six minutes, seven rebound,
Speaker 1: six assists. The crowd, the Pistons crowd cheered him when
Speaker 1: he left the game. Things are going well for this team.
Speaker 1: They're only why are you laughing at me?
Speaker 2: Okay?
Speaker 3: What I mean, it's like it's the truth back when
Speaker 3: it's like when you played against Phoenix Sons, you new
Speaker 3: you were to get your numbers. It's like, you know
Speaker 3: this this is a game where it's like, Okay, I'll
Speaker 3: get my numbers up, or you know, I need to
Speaker 3: reach a certain milestone on my contract.
Speaker 4: This is the team you get it on.
Speaker 3: But looking forward, No, seriously, Look, I went to the
Speaker 3: game I watched against Boston.
Speaker 4: I didn't know.
Speaker 3: Again, I don't want to be sunder second, but I
Speaker 3: went to the game I played. I watched the Boston
Speaker 3: Detroit game. Yeah, I could name two players on the
Speaker 3: floor of Detroit. I mean I got been there for
Speaker 3: a while. I'm a little older. I was watching much basketball.
Speaker 3: But at the same time, I didn't know a guy
Speaker 3: on the floor. But jump back to the Pelicans. These
Speaker 3: guys have a tough ass stretch coming up. Maybe okay
Speaker 3: see buck Celtic Sons magic Now with BT brandon ingram Out,
Speaker 3: I don't know what. I feel like they possibly could
Speaker 3: drop even though all these games are at home, which
Speaker 3: role players play.
Speaker 4: Better at home.
Speaker 3: But at the same time, these are the top teams
Speaker 3: in our league coming in ready to go. So I
Speaker 3: don't know what is gonna say that these guys going
Speaker 3: it is obviously next man up mentality and the design
Speaker 3: cam play the.
Speaker 4: Way he's playing.
Speaker 3: But again, these elite teams, he will not shoot thirteen
Speaker 3: for fourteen from the field. I mean, I'm sure they're
Speaker 3: gonna pack the paint maker shoot the game. So again,
Speaker 3: obviously discounting for will be different. The personnelity's about to
Speaker 3: play against is going to be completely different, and he's
Speaker 3: going to find a different way to be effective. And
Speaker 3: to me, who's the other playmaker? You know, all the
Speaker 3: respects he J McCullen. You know, he's obviously a score
Speaker 3: first guy. But with bi Olt who creates the offense.
Speaker 4: For the Pelicans coming up at Okay, because.
Speaker 3: Against the Celtics, the Bucks, the Studs, Okay, I'm actually
Speaker 3: I'm gonna watch these games particularly just just talk shit
Speaker 3: to you the next the next two weeks, see how.
Speaker 6: Well I feel completely different than this guy. I'm gonna
Speaker 6: get the Pelicans and Zion a lot more credit because
Speaker 6: they're not getting that. I mean early on shit, I
Speaker 6: would say the past two seasons, two and a half season,
Speaker 6: Zion has received so much criticism, like we've we've we've
Speaker 6: talked down, we told him all the things. Well, I
Speaker 6: ain't gonna say talk down. He's received a lot of
Speaker 6: it was just.
Speaker 2: It was just earlier this season.
Speaker 1: It was only there were all those headlines about about like, oh,
Speaker 1: he's not listening to coaching staff, he still won't change
Speaker 1: his diet. I mean it's been this way and it's
Speaker 1: been as recent as just a couple of months ago.
Speaker 6: Well, the kid looks incredible as of lately. His body
Speaker 6: looks like he's in shape. He's playing at a high level.
Speaker 6: He's helping carrying his team. Also with you know b
Speaker 6: I obviously bys out right now, but I think they're
Speaker 6: well coached with Willie Green, I think they have a
Speaker 6: good young core. Herb Jones, Obama guy got a shout
Speaker 6: out him. I think he's a great two way player.
Speaker 6: Trey Murphy, he's under the radar guy, but he can
Speaker 6: really really play this game. He's a young, up and
Speaker 6: coming talent talking like you know that that version that
Speaker 6: that wing version of the Paul George's that's being created,
Speaker 6: that Brandon Miller's. Trey Murphy is also kind of in
Speaker 6: that category, Like he's a really really talented wing and
Speaker 6: I think his him stepping up in replacement of b I.
Speaker 6: Obviously everybody's gonna be able to you know, notice his
Speaker 6: talent a little more. I think he'll also be able
Speaker 6: to you know, carry a bit of that way. He's
Speaker 6: not the level of b I, but you know he
Speaker 6: has the potential to be.
Speaker 4: So.
Speaker 6: But uh, this, this Repelicans team has a lot of
Speaker 6: talent and I think they're playing well. I want a credit, zign.
Speaker 6: I'm proud of you. I'm I'm I love that you
Speaker 6: receive a criticism actually win, applied it and bettered yourself.
Speaker 6: That that's a true sign of a pro that's a
Speaker 6: that's a sign of a guy that wants to get
Speaker 6: it right. That's actually chasing greatness. You got two options.
Speaker 6: You can either crumble from it or you can take
Speaker 6: in the information and build yourself up with it. And
Speaker 6: I think he did that. So I want to give
Speaker 6: you your flowers. I'm proud of me and I love
Speaker 6: what I'm seeing from you as of lately. So you know,
Speaker 6: stay on that. And you know, I think this Pelicans
Speaker 6: team has a lot of potential. So uh, I feel.
Speaker 4: Completely opposite that I was talking about the next five games.
Speaker 4: Though they think they have a.
Speaker 6: Chance to win, they are a really good team. They
Speaker 6: have a chance to win every time. You got a
Speaker 6: chance to win, a high chance to win.
Speaker 5: About that.
Speaker 1: They just got it. You've got and I'm gonna say're
Speaker 1: gonna get it.
Speaker 2: We're gonna get the best.
Speaker 4: Okay, waits the game.
Speaker 5: Cool man, I need to work on my ship anyway,
Speaker 5: I ain't tripping, bro. Fifty fifty fifty fifty.
Speaker 2: So this is for the next five games on the
Speaker 2: Pelicans schedule. I just want to get this down. Next
Speaker 2: five games on the Pelicans schedule.
Speaker 1: You've got Okay, see Milwaukee, Boston, Phoenix, Orlando all five games?
Speaker 2: Are we doing per game? Or are we doing one
Speaker 2: of those games?
Speaker 5: Hold on, let me look at this again.
Speaker 6: Okay, one examined.
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's let's do.
Speaker 4: What are the stakes not to game?
Speaker 2: Okay, fifty a game?
Speaker 4: Okay, all right, fifty.
Speaker 5: I know I got one. Said with boss, now I
Speaker 5: got one.
Speaker 3: We talk about we talked about zion transformation, transformation in
Speaker 3: the next.
Speaker 4: Push.
Speaker 1: Well, like the Pelicans are in fifth right now, you know,
Speaker 1: they're definitely a striking distance of the Clippers and fourth.
Speaker 1: I'm not sure it matters, you know, where those teams
Speaker 1: go in in terms of you know, who has home.
Speaker 2: Court in a potential series there.
Speaker 1: I think both of them just have to worry about
Speaker 1: staying out of that sixth spot. With the Clippers, though, Look,
Speaker 1: they've not had a good stretch, right That's the At
Speaker 1: one point in the middle of the season, it looked like, man,
Speaker 1: they could actually be a title contender here. Right now,
Speaker 1: it just looks like they're struggling to find themselves going
Speaker 1: into the playoffs. Obviously, the Russell Westbrook injury, we all
Speaker 1: said it at the time. Obviously the players, Paul George
Speaker 1: made a big deal at the time. This is not nothing.
Speaker 1: Just because Russell Westbrook was the guy, the odd man
Speaker 1: out when Harden went in, he was the guy who
Speaker 1: ended up on the second unit.
Speaker 2: That was a huge difference maker for their team.
Speaker 1: And we're seeing some of it, and we saw it
Speaker 1: on Sunday the Sixers came in defeated the Clippers.
Speaker 2: This was the first.
Speaker 1: Game played between these two teams since James Harden got traded.
Speaker 1: You know, I just feel like the Clippers are still
Speaker 1: trying to find their way and the Sixers, who've been
Speaker 1: trying to stay afloat without Embiid, are starting to see
Speaker 1: a light at the end of the tunnel, they're eighth
Speaker 1: in the East. They're tied Indiana Miami. In the lost
Speaker 1: column they have six and seven. But Embiid's been progressing.
Speaker 1: He could be back in the next couple weeks. And
Speaker 1: I guess I want to ask you guys, if he
Speaker 1: is able to come back, what will that be like
Speaker 1: for him? He has been missing from nearly two months,
Speaker 1: I think just around two months. What is it like
Speaker 1: to come back from an injury, especially a big man bug?
Speaker 2: What can we expect?
Speaker 6: We can expect, you know, an adjustment period for him,
Speaker 6: you know, being a seven foot two eighty plus guy,
Speaker 6: I'm gonna say two ninety plus, two ninety plus.
Speaker 5: He's a big guy. He's a really big guy.
Speaker 6: And you know, missing that much time, you have to
Speaker 6: you know, you have to be comfortable in your movements
Speaker 6: coming back from injury.
Speaker 5: That's not an easy thing to do.
Speaker 6: It's a mental it's like a mental block there sometimes
Speaker 6: with certain players, especially when you experience injury a lot.
Speaker 6: You have to be comfortable in your movements. You have
Speaker 6: to trust your movements. You know, game speed and rehab
Speaker 6: speed and just workout speed. It's not the same, no matter,
Speaker 6: no matter how you try to simulate it.
Speaker 5: It's not the same.
Speaker 6: So coming it's one thing to come back regular season
Speaker 6: trying to find your rhythm and things like that, but
Speaker 6: it's a it's a whole other beast trying to do
Speaker 6: it among amidst the playoffs, and you know, the playoffs
Speaker 6: is a monster. Guys will know you're coming back and
Speaker 6: injury and attack you purposely like that will literally be
Speaker 6: the game. They are literally attack it's just left me.
Speaker 6: We're gonna attack left every time like that would be
Speaker 6: a game plan. So you know, those things are real
Speaker 6: and it's not as simple as you know, just you know,
Speaker 6: making shots. I mean, obviously, him coming back, he could
Speaker 6: be sixty seventy percent Joe LMB and that's still better
Speaker 6: than ninety percent of the NBA. But with that being said,
Speaker 6: we for him to carry this sixties team in the playoffs,
Speaker 6: we need him at one hundred percent or as close
Speaker 6: to one hundred as he can get.
Speaker 5: So you can.
Speaker 6: Expect a huge adjustment and definitely some rusts with him
Speaker 6: coming back. I think we'll see a lot of rush
Speaker 6: and obviously conditioning will be a factor.
Speaker 3: It will, I agree everything becuz my thing is obviously
Speaker 3: I come back.
Speaker 4: I came back from.
Speaker 3: ACL and I'm not too n plus, but the mental
Speaker 3: part of it coming back mentally trusting yourself, understanding that
Speaker 3: it's going to take time, not getting frustrated with not
Speaker 3: being able to be or step one hundred percent, and
Speaker 3: I think it's going to be It's going to take
Speaker 3: a big toll on the staff as well to be
Speaker 3: able to manage his minutes, manage him, not trying.
Speaker 4: To overdo him, over ezell them himself amongst play.
Speaker 3: And when I think of these past months that he's
Speaker 3: been out, has given his teammates confidence. You know, when
Speaker 3: you got to start player that goes down, you got
Speaker 3: a guy like Kelly Bredy steps up. Cameron Cameron Payne
Speaker 3: went crazy last night against the Clippers, So I mean,
Speaker 3: you give those type of guys confidence to when they
Speaker 3: when he does come back, he's going to give them
Speaker 3: more confidence and he's going to be able to trust
Speaker 3: his teammates more that he doesn't have to go out
Speaker 3: and score forty and twenty every night. So I think
Speaker 3: they ease him back in they can avoid Boston in
Speaker 3: the first round. I think he'll be okay and he'll
Speaker 3: continue to improve each round. That they can further, they
Speaker 3: can get but I don't and I don't see them
Speaker 3: coming back and try to put him playing thirty minutes
Speaker 3: a night. So if he's okay, we'll come back playing,
Speaker 3: you know, four minute stretches like most like a hockey rotation. Subwise,
Speaker 3: keeping them loose on the bench and trusting itself mentally
Speaker 3: because low extremities are hard to come back from and
Speaker 3: be able to overcome. And again they're going to run
Speaker 3: the shit out of and probably over down the court
Speaker 3: trying to chest that left knee. But at the same time,
Speaker 3: Tyre Smax, he's playing well. Tobias Harris has been playing well,
Speaker 3: so the team confidence has grown.
Speaker 4: They haven't been great the last team games.
Speaker 3: I think they're four and six, but again again, going
Speaker 3: and get a win like that against the Clippers, who
Speaker 3: actually had all the guys playing speaks volumes of that team,
Speaker 3: and I think they're going to be I think they'll
Speaker 3: be okay.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean I.
Speaker 1: Spent a little bit of time around the Sixers this
Speaker 1: past couple of days, and look, I think they all
Speaker 1: know they were hanging on. I was at that game
Speaker 1: against the Lakers. They just shot horribly. They played really
Speaker 1: hard though they're still playing. They're all still bought in,
Speaker 1: which you know, we all know is kind of the
Speaker 1: big thing when your star goes down. I think this
Speaker 1: could be interesting for Embeid on the flip side, if
Speaker 1: he can can get back, if the conditioning, if the wind,
Speaker 1: if sort of the rhythm can come back, he can
Speaker 1: avoid what we've seen in some recent playoffs, which is
Speaker 1: that him running out of gas has been an issue.
Speaker 2: Right.
Speaker 1: I mean, he's had this two month break, so it
Speaker 1: works on the flip side too. Your body has had
Speaker 1: those two months to rest in other places. Obviously you're
Speaker 1: still rehaving that injury. But you guys know there's you know,
Speaker 1: it's not just a knee. If it's a knee, it's
Speaker 1: a knee and an ankle and a wrist that's been
Speaker 1: bothering you and that this is and of that, and
Speaker 1: my body's tired. And if he is able to get
Speaker 1: his wind and is rhythm back from the injury, if
Speaker 1: the injury can hold up, because as you said, guys
Speaker 1: are going to attack him right and left with that,
Speaker 1: the flip side is he's going to have that burst
Speaker 1: that he would not have in the postseason. And we've
Speaker 1: seen in recent years, So I don't know. In the
Speaker 1: East is a wildcardsan b man. I know that the
Speaker 1: Celtics obviously are just a class above. We're gonna talk
Speaker 1: about them later in the show, and it's just a
Speaker 1: whole different factor. But once we get past them, I
Speaker 1: can't tell you what the Bucks are going to do.
Speaker 1: I can't tell you what the magic A're going to do.
Speaker 1: They're threatening to be in third. I mean, it just
Speaker 1: it feels like anything could happen in the East, and
Speaker 1: so I'm interested to see if embiid comes back. And look,
Speaker 1: the Celtics even I know it's been a historic season,
Speaker 1: but until they get to a finals and win it, Jean,
Speaker 1: there's always going to be questions about them, right, even with.
Speaker 2: These incredible crazy bunkers numbers they're putting up.
Speaker 3: Absolutely, I mean talked about Kentucky earlier. These certain franchises
Speaker 3: that you have to win regardless of regular season records. Uh,
Speaker 3: you can break all the in season records you want,
Speaker 3: but if you don't hang a banner uh in Beantown, Uh,
Speaker 3: it's a failure. So I look forward to obviously the
Speaker 3: new change. I'm a big fan of coach Joe Missoula
Speaker 3: and what he's done already so far. So I'm rooting
Speaker 3: for those guys and I hope they do well and
Speaker 3: hang another banner.
Speaker 4: But uh, it's going to be a lot of pressure
Speaker 4: and they know that.
Speaker 3: Uh. They brought in a guy like Drew Holliday. Uh,
Speaker 3: prising is not having to be the first or second option.
Speaker 3: I think it's big uh for their for their growth.
Speaker 3: And then you got the role players that have stepped
Speaker 3: up this year pretcher Sam, they got a lot of
Speaker 3: role players and not not I can't beget my guy
Speaker 3: number nine, Eric White, So you know he's I think
Speaker 3: he's definitely ex factor.
Speaker 4: Him and Drew. Uh, they play well, they win. Uh,
Speaker 4: we know we're going to get from tATu when we're
Speaker 4: gonna get from Brown.
Speaker 3: So I feel like they have a well deep team
Speaker 3: and a well coached team. Even the staff along with
Speaker 3: Sam Pacel and the other guy he's brung in, will
Speaker 3: help tremendously in this playoff run I think they're going
Speaker 3: to make. I think they're going to make a deep
Speaker 3: run and look forward to them in the championship.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 1: I mean, look, look, I have a hard time sometimes
Speaker 1: and we talked about it a couple of weeks ago
Speaker 1: putting the Celtics regular season in perspective, because so much
Speaker 1: is through the lens of they've had these playoff kind
Speaker 1: of fumbles, and so it is hard to talk about
Speaker 1: what is largely the same group and say, oh, they're amazing,
Speaker 1: they're great, they're whatever, when they haven't gotten it done
Speaker 1: when it counted. So it's just hard to have that
Speaker 1: discussion about them. But it's also hard to avoid the
Speaker 1: fact that they are playing so insanely well. They're fourth
Speaker 1: all time and net points per game differential like all
Speaker 1: that stuff. Producer Nate and I were getting into an
Speaker 1: argument before the show started because I was saying that
Speaker 1: the scoring differential doesn't mean much to me because scoring
Speaker 1: has just inflated so much. So I can't look at
Speaker 1: that and say, oh, they're up there with the twenty
Speaker 1: sixteen Warriors, they're up there with the Bulls, great both teams,
Speaker 1: because you know of the scoring differential that that's not
Speaker 1: what I can do. How that doesn't do it for me.
Speaker 1: But I guess my question for you, book is, as
Speaker 1: you're looking at the Celtics team, can you put what
Speaker 1: they're doing this regular season in context or just it doesn't.
Speaker 1: You can't without the postseason helpment.
Speaker 5: I say yes and no.
Speaker 6: And the reason I say one, I can't, I can't.
Speaker 6: I can you got My answer is yes and no.
Speaker 5: But you want to be how can you do? But
Speaker 5: I say yes and no, yes, because.
Speaker 6: The regular season gives you a simple size of what
Speaker 6: you can be in the playoffs. You know, It's it's
Speaker 6: rare that, you know, a bad regular season team ends
Speaker 6: up winning a championship.
Speaker 5: That's a rare thing.
Speaker 6: It's usually one of the better teams throughout the regular
Speaker 6: season that ends up winning. So that's the reason I
Speaker 6: do say yes. The reason I say no, they've historically
Speaker 6: done this and went to the playoffs and laid in
Speaker 6: egg like So that's the reason I say yes and no.
Speaker 6: This Celtics team has shown time and time again that
Speaker 6: they will get to the playoffs and kind of fumbling.
Speaker 6: This is another opportunity to you know, you know, compete
Speaker 6: for another championship. I think this is the best version
Speaker 6: if they have shown of themselves throughout regular season over
Speaker 6: you know the history of them being together, these young
Speaker 6: team being together.
Speaker 5: The thing that is on their side.
Speaker 6: This young group has a lot of experience that most
Speaker 6: you know, young groups don't really see early on. Jason
Speaker 6: Tatum and Jaylen Brown have you know, basically experienced the
Speaker 6: playoffs and finals since they've come into the league, So
Speaker 6: they have a lot of experience being on this stage.
Speaker 6: So eventually experience is gonna you know, play out in
Speaker 6: your favor.
Speaker 5: So these guys have been here before.
Speaker 6: You know. I'm a big believer and you learn from
Speaker 6: your losses. They've taken a lot of losses being on
Speaker 6: these stages. This is the opportunity to show that they've improved.
Speaker 6: So I think this is the best version of them
Speaker 6: and they have a great chance to you know, bringing
Speaker 6: it home this year.
Speaker 1: All right, Joe, So if if the Celtics make a
Speaker 1: rail run, are we seeing you know, our little all
Speaker 1: the smoke group here, especially with KG and Paul coming
Speaker 1: into with their pod and their projects. Are we seeing
Speaker 1: a full Celtics eight team representation in support of this
Speaker 1: Celtics squad.
Speaker 2: You guys are going to be courtsied. What's the plan here?
Speaker 4: I'm definitely showing up.
Speaker 3: I'm gonna be in coached hopefully coach Miss locker Room
Speaker 3: picking his brain, learning from them.
Speaker 4: And what it takes.
Speaker 3: Obviously to get to that level and if I'll be
Speaker 3: able to share some notch, you know, from that aspect.
Speaker 3: But at the same time, I'm a fan, you know,
Speaker 3: I'm rooting for the young guys, rooting for the city
Speaker 3: of Boston, UH to have this type of group together
Speaker 3: this year in particular, I think they got they can
Speaker 3: get it done. So yeah, you probably will see a
Speaker 3: lot of us there. I know you will see a
Speaker 3: lot of us there, hopefully more than the starting five,
Speaker 3: Like I said, even the other guys that were there
Speaker 3: alongside of us, and I know Eddie House to be there,
Speaker 3: Brani will be there, so yeah, yeah, we'll be in
Speaker 3: support absolutely, all.
Speaker 2: Right, you hear that, Boston. You got the guys coming
Speaker 2: to get We.
Speaker 3: Try to get cuz there at one point it just didn't.
Speaker 1: Honorary one time, man, Honorary.
Speaker 2: I love it. I love it.
Speaker 1: All right, Let's get on to I'll take that bet
Speaker 1: presented by DraftKings. We're looking at Most Improved Player Award.
Speaker 1: We're looking at the odds here. Tyrese Maxie is still
Speaker 1: the leader in the clubhouse here minus two fifty. Kobe
Speaker 1: White is now at plus one seventy. Jonathan Kuminga is
Speaker 1: at plus eight thousand. That's interesting, and j Deb also
Speaker 1: plus eight thousand. So if you put one hundred bucks
Speaker 1: down on Tyree's maxie those you only make seventy five,
Speaker 1: that's not worth it.
Speaker 4: It's a positive, you know, it depends like you look
Speaker 4: at money. It's your perspective. It's a positive.
Speaker 5: That's true.
Speaker 4: You put a thousand coming and you don't lose a thousand.
Speaker 2: All right, So you're taking any of these bets. You're
Speaker 2: waiting the next DraftKings back.
Speaker 5: Yeah, we're gonna wait for the next round.
Speaker 3: I'm put some gas money in my pocket. Man, I'm
Speaker 3: gonna go with Tyre. I need, I'll take it.
Speaker 5: Well, well, obviously, is he not the favorite to win it?
Speaker 4: Yeah?
Speaker 6: He was?
Speaker 5: Yeah, I mean congrats congratulations. Right, I'm glad. I'm glad
Speaker 5: to be the first one to give you your congrats.
Speaker 6: Man.
Speaker 1: All right, So Joe, you haven't been on the show
Speaker 1: since we started doing this boogie and I have been
Speaker 1: handed two stats and a lie from our producer Nate Bronson,
Speaker 1: and so far it has not gone as well as
Speaker 1: we would have hoped. Is how I'm going to say it,
Speaker 1: book right, that's the nice way to say it. Both
Speaker 1: of us have have had some failure on the job.
Speaker 1: So dolle come in, help us wrap a little bit better.
Speaker 2: Here we go.
Speaker 1: Three stats, Two of them are true. One is a lie.
Speaker 1: Number one. The Sun's rank three thirty overall last in
Speaker 1: the league in fourth quarter scoring. That is stat one.
Speaker 2: Stat two. Luca leads the league in text.
Speaker 4: That is true.
Speaker 2: That it's that three. Yannis ranks first in total free
Speaker 2: throws made.
Speaker 4: That's a trick one right there.
Speaker 2: I know that's easy.
Speaker 4: I'm gonna go with the first Sons, the thirtieth.
Speaker 3: I don't know how to hell their thirtieth, you know,
Speaker 3: in the fourth quarter, but on that roster, I know,
Speaker 3: and thinking about who they don't have.
Speaker 5: But who the hell passing is?
Speaker 4: That's what I said.
Speaker 5: I've been, I've been, has been.
Speaker 2: Since the beginning of the year.
Speaker 3: I'm gonna go with uh Luga and Jannie.
Speaker 2: Well, okay, so which one is a lie?
Speaker 4: The lie is Yannis ranks first and total free throws made?
Speaker 2: What about your book?
Speaker 5: I think.
Speaker 6: The Sons and the Luca ones are true?
Speaker 2: Is the lie? All right? I'm gonna make that an
Speaker 2: even three.
Speaker 1: Well, look, I know that they ranked the Suns ranked
Speaker 1: last and fourth quarter scoring as of like four or
Speaker 1: five days ago, because it came up, Nate, are we
Speaker 1: are we?
Speaker 2: Correctness is a lie.
Speaker 6: Ding ding ding Yay, don't spark up.
Speaker 4: I'm selling it's time to celebrate. Man, Okay, right, perfect.
Speaker 2: All right.
Speaker 1: That fourth quarter scoring scoring stat with the Sons, though,
Speaker 1: is bonkers. I just I heard that the other day
Speaker 1: and I was like, you got to be And I
Speaker 1: knew that it wasn't going well, but you've got to
Speaker 1: be kidding me. And that's something that even when their
Speaker 1: guys are playing and but you're right, you've been on
Speaker 1: it since the beginning, not having a true point guard
Speaker 1: in there, you know, to organize them in those moments.
Speaker 1: I think Book has done a very good job. I think,
Speaker 1: in fact, he's done as good a job as you
Speaker 1: could have asked him to do. As the player who
Speaker 1: he is.
Speaker 2: That's just different than having a guy like no one
Speaker 2: there or someone.
Speaker 6: Like The whole opinion on it is it's a championship
Speaker 6: point guard. Matter of fact, he's top five all time
Speaker 6: working in your organization. I think you might want to
Speaker 6: listen to the advice he gives you on constructing a team.
Speaker 5: Mm hmm. I think it.
Speaker 6: I think it might play out in their favor. How
Speaker 6: do you have a top not you, motherfucker, not you.
Speaker 6: His name is Isaiah Thomas, not the not the one
Speaker 6: on that think said. Yeah, So I just feel like
Speaker 6: his voice should be, you know, respected a little more.
Speaker 5: Like he's done this, he's done it.
Speaker 6: He's done it as a player, like he understands what's
Speaker 6: it takes, what it takes to you know, be a
Speaker 6: championship team.
Speaker 5: So you know, I've spoken to him personally.
Speaker 6: And I just feel like his voice should be a
Speaker 6: little more respected because this, this.
Speaker 5: Three guard scorn, it makes no sense to me. Literally,
Speaker 5: it doesn't. It just doesn't. And obviously it's not working.
Speaker 5: So that's just my two six.
Speaker 1: Well, the Phoenix Suns, a team that used to have
Speaker 1: two hundred starting point guards on the roster, now has
Speaker 1: no no put.
Speaker 2: It's just like a whole man that position right in
Speaker 2: a very long time.
Speaker 1: So so I don't know, all right, Well, gentlemen, I
Speaker 1: hope by the time I see you next, Kentucky Basketball
Speaker 1: will have solved all problems.
Speaker 2: Possibly with the two of you, we'll see.
Speaker 1: I want to know what's the outcome of the betting
Speaker 1: you've done on the show tonight. We'll have to see
Speaker 1: what happens there. Watch particular jobs for John Rondo is
Speaker 1: up for over the next four or five days. We'll
Speaker 1: have to find that out. There is a lot going
Speaker 1: on on Bollietball. Boogie's plant. Does that plan have a
Speaker 1: name yet? By the way, weren't we discussing?
Speaker 6: No?
Speaker 5: But just know it's flourishing, all.
Speaker 2: Right, plan show do put it more in the frame.
Speaker 2: Show do what you got here. It's a special friend.
Speaker 2: Can love your plant? Boogie? Just don't love your plant?
Speaker 6: No, no, no, it ain't. It ain't on no weird ship.
Speaker 6: But I do love my plants. So you talk to them,
Speaker 6: You talk to them all it depends on.
Speaker 4: Okay, you're supposed.
Speaker 2: To talk to plants.
Speaker 3: And that's that's what I'm saying. All right, Yeah, that's
Speaker 3: what I'm asking. I mean, we can we can spend
Speaker 3: time right.
Speaker 1: For the NBA basketball, stay for the horticultural advice. You
Speaker 1: can catch all episodes of our show on the DraftKings Network.
Speaker 1: That's exciting. All the Smoke Productions YouTube channel. You can
Speaker 1: listen to us wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 2: We will be here. Rate review us. We will see
Speaker 2: you next Monday, see you