1
00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:17,600
Speaker 1: M m all right, welcome to the state of Lake

2
00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:19,280
Speaker 1: because on Dad's ready. How thank you guys so much

3
00:00:19,280 --> 00:00:21,319
Speaker 1: for coming to hang out on Christmas Day. I hope

4
00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:24,360
Speaker 1: if you celebrate that you enjoyed celebrating. If you don't celebrate,

5
00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:26,560
Speaker 1: I hope you enjoyed the day off from work. If

6
00:00:26,600 --> 00:00:28,480
Speaker 1: you did have to work for whatever reason, I hope

7
00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:30,560
Speaker 1: you had a good day. But first of all, Rods,

8
00:00:30,560 --> 00:00:34,400
Speaker 1: how are you doing, buddy? I'm doing well, doing well? Man,

9
00:00:34,479 --> 00:00:37,800
Speaker 1: had a nice holiday. Uh, Merry Christmas to you and

10
00:00:37,880 --> 00:00:40,400
Speaker 1: everyone in here, and again, like if you celebrate obviously,

11
00:00:40,400 --> 00:00:43,120
Speaker 1: and happy holidays to everyone. That was a rough one.

12
00:00:43,400 --> 00:00:45,839
Speaker 1: We did have some good basketball though today before that,

13
00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:48,159
Speaker 1: so there was some good NBA um and today was

14
00:00:48,240 --> 00:00:50,919
Speaker 1: a fun game at the end. But yeah, how are you, man?

15
00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:53,400
Speaker 1: Merry Christmas to you and your your family, and happy

16
00:00:53,440 --> 00:00:58,080
Speaker 1: Holidays to you and your family. Good basketball earlier the day.

17
00:00:58,120 --> 00:01:01,480
Speaker 1: That's that is a I should say, a fun end

18
00:01:01,560 --> 00:01:03,680
Speaker 1: to the game. That's an interesting way to characterize it

19
00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:07,880
Speaker 1: because from my perspective, it was like we were already

20
00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:11,880
Speaker 1: deeply irritated by a deep irritating basketball game, and then

21
00:01:11,880 --> 00:01:14,360
Speaker 1: the basketball gods were like, why don't we top it

22
00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:17,720
Speaker 1: off by making it seem like there's an opportunity to

23
00:01:17,720 --> 00:01:20,640
Speaker 1: win before it blows up in your face. Um, I

24
00:01:20,680 --> 00:01:23,360
Speaker 1: think we have to start with Russ And I'm gonna

25
00:01:23,800 --> 00:01:26,280
Speaker 1: Ross Raj Beary with me here for a second, because

26
00:01:26,280 --> 00:01:28,600
Speaker 1: I'm gonna get something off my chest, something that I've

27
00:01:28,720 --> 00:01:32,399
Speaker 1: I've been complaining about a lot this season coming into

28
00:01:32,400 --> 00:01:38,160
Speaker 1: the season, and that my biggest spear with Russell Westbrook.

29
00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:43,360
Speaker 1: My biggest spear with Russell Westbrook from the beginning had

30
00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:46,120
Speaker 1: very little to do with fit. I had a feeling

31
00:01:46,360 --> 00:01:49,320
Speaker 1: that you know, over the course of a playoff series

32
00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:51,720
Speaker 1: and over the course of the regular season, he would

33
00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:54,520
Speaker 1: be mostly a net positive in terms of what he

34
00:01:54,560 --> 00:01:57,279
Speaker 1: brings to the team with his athleticism and his energy

35
00:01:57,320 --> 00:02:00,320
Speaker 1: and his good leadership and just the sheer force will

36
00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:02,960
Speaker 1: that is Russell Westbrook, and there's obviously so much good

37
00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:06,040
Speaker 1: that comes with that. But he is his own worst

38
00:02:06,120 --> 00:02:09,120
Speaker 1: enemy because he can't see one inch in front of

39
00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:11,880
Speaker 1: his face with his decision making on both ends of

40
00:02:11,919 --> 00:02:14,000
Speaker 1: the floor. And as I told you during the summer,

41
00:02:14,440 --> 00:02:18,040
Speaker 1: my biggest fear with Russell Westbrook wasn't you know what

42
00:02:18,080 --> 00:02:21,160
Speaker 1: would happen in the meat and potatoes, but rather a

43
00:02:21,320 --> 00:02:25,240
Speaker 1: handful of crucial possessions at the end of a playoff game. Now,

44
00:02:25,240 --> 00:02:27,440
Speaker 1: this was not a playoff game. We thought the Lakers

45
00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:30,200
Speaker 1: were probably gonna lose tonight. You know, it looked like

46
00:02:30,240 --> 00:02:32,680
Speaker 1: they were going to get absolutely destroyed tonight if you

47
00:02:32,880 --> 00:02:36,840
Speaker 1: paid attention there in the third quarter. So obviously this,

48
00:02:36,840 --> 00:02:40,000
Speaker 1: this in and of itself, isn't a crisis right now.

49
00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:43,400
Speaker 1: But what you saw tonight is what I'm so scared of.

50
00:02:43,919 --> 00:02:48,360
Speaker 1: Crucial game. Team is fighting. You're playing against the contender.

51
00:02:48,800 --> 00:02:55,160
Speaker 1: Everything's on the line. Two completely bone headed, critical mistakes

52
00:02:55,200 --> 00:02:58,600
Speaker 1: that cost her team of basketball game. On a possession

53
00:02:58,639 --> 00:03:00,639
Speaker 1: where the Lakers do a bunch of switching, Russ ends

54
00:03:00,680 --> 00:03:03,400
Speaker 1: up getting switched on Patty Mills he's guarding him at

55
00:03:03,440 --> 00:03:06,120
Speaker 1: the top of the key. He immediately turns his back

56
00:03:06,160 --> 00:03:10,080
Speaker 1: to Patty Mills and just starts drifting listlessly over to

57
00:03:10,160 --> 00:03:13,280
Speaker 1: the elbow, paying no attention to where Patty is. Patty,

58
00:03:13,440 --> 00:03:16,480
Speaker 1: because he's a smart basketball player, just relocates to the

59
00:03:16,480 --> 00:03:20,160
Speaker 1: weak side corner, easy driving kick. Russ is nowhere to

60
00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:22,360
Speaker 1: be found. Patty Mills is going to make that shot

61
00:03:22,480 --> 00:03:26,760
Speaker 1: nine times out of ten. That's a huge huge catastrophic mistake,

62
00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:29,680
Speaker 1: and then I think it was two possessions. Later on

63
00:03:29,720 --> 00:03:33,080
Speaker 1: the offensive end, Lebron drives into the lane, throws a pass,

64
00:03:33,080 --> 00:03:37,160
Speaker 1: gets deflected and it lands into Russ's hands. But there's

65
00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:39,600
Speaker 1: plenty time on the shot clock. There's no need to

66
00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:43,440
Speaker 1: rush anything. Russ sees a driving lane, gets into the lane,

67
00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:45,720
Speaker 1: has an opportunity to lay the ball up with his

68
00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:48,480
Speaker 1: left hand, especially since the shot blocker was on the

69
00:03:48,560 --> 00:03:50,200
Speaker 1: right side of the rim, so he could have used

70
00:03:50,200 --> 00:03:53,440
Speaker 1: the rim to protect his own shot. And for whatever reason,

71
00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:56,040
Speaker 1: even though I think he's dunked on one person this season,

72
00:03:56,320 --> 00:03:58,520
Speaker 1: and that one crazy run that he had, I can't

73
00:03:58,520 --> 00:04:01,960
Speaker 1: even remember what team it was against, but against the Celtics,

74
00:04:02,040 --> 00:04:04,960
Speaker 1: but he's missed more dunks than he's made this year.

75
00:04:05,560 --> 00:04:08,640
Speaker 1: He's very clearly not had the same lift that he's

76
00:04:08,680 --> 00:04:12,040
Speaker 1: had in years past. And he tried to left hand

77
00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:16,080
Speaker 1: dunk the ball and he was probably four or five

78
00:04:16,120 --> 00:04:18,960
Speaker 1: inches short of ever being able to make that attempt,

79
00:04:19,320 --> 00:04:21,320
Speaker 1: launched it into the rim, and just like that, the

80
00:04:21,360 --> 00:04:23,600
Speaker 1: game was over. And again, like you can live with

81
00:04:23,640 --> 00:04:26,040
Speaker 1: the four or seventeen or whatever he started the game,

82
00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:28,000
Speaker 1: You can live with any of that stuff because he's

83
00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:30,920
Speaker 1: getting offensive rebounds. He gets a loose ball here and there,

84
00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:33,120
Speaker 1: he gets a tie up, forces a jump ball. He

85
00:04:33,200 --> 00:04:35,440
Speaker 1: brings a lot of good to the table. But it's

86
00:04:35,480 --> 00:04:39,280
Speaker 1: those catastrophic decisions at the end of these games that

87
00:04:39,320 --> 00:04:42,919
Speaker 1: will cost you. It will cost you a loss in

88
00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:47,320
Speaker 1: a playoff series. Literally watched him do it to Kevin Durant.

89
00:04:47,360 --> 00:04:50,240
Speaker 1: No ca See, that's my biggest fear. So talk me

90
00:04:50,279 --> 00:04:52,160
Speaker 1: off the led rage, tell me how it's all gonna

91
00:04:52,160 --> 00:04:56,720
Speaker 1: be okay. Yeah, I'll try to be a little bit

92
00:04:56,760 --> 00:04:58,880
Speaker 1: more more measured with it. I don't know about talking

93
00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:00,840
Speaker 1: to you off the ledg. It feels like we've been

94
00:05:00,880 --> 00:05:03,520
Speaker 1: standing right at the ledge for a while now. Every

95
00:05:03,520 --> 00:05:05,440
Speaker 1: other game is rock bottom and then they all of

96
00:05:05,480 --> 00:05:07,960
Speaker 1: a sudden dig another bottom. Right, So we just keep

97
00:05:07,960 --> 00:05:10,680
Speaker 1: on falling through and just keep finding more rock bottoms. No,

98
00:05:10,839 --> 00:05:13,920
Speaker 1: Russ was bad throughout this whole night. I mean, you said,

99
00:05:13,960 --> 00:05:16,520
Speaker 1: you know, critical possession in the game. I think the

100
00:05:17,120 --> 00:05:19,040
Speaker 1: you know, the late run is a little fool's gold.

101
00:05:19,120 --> 00:05:21,560
Speaker 1: I thought Brooklyn really took their foot off the gas.

102
00:05:21,839 --> 00:05:25,160
Speaker 1: James Harden, who also has questionable decision making right in

103
00:05:25,160 --> 00:05:27,560
Speaker 1: in big pressure moments, I thought you saw that as well.

104
00:05:27,920 --> 00:05:29,680
Speaker 1: When the game got tied. He saw him kind of

105
00:05:29,720 --> 00:05:32,440
Speaker 1: take tough shots, make bad passes, and that end of

106
00:05:32,440 --> 00:05:34,120
Speaker 1: the run was kind of fools gold we were down

107
00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:37,080
Speaker 1: twenty or something with the fourth quarter. RUSS was just

108
00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:40,320
Speaker 1: bad tonight, And just putting this into context, this is

109
00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:43,040
Speaker 1: probably the worst RUSS you're gonna get. And you said

110
00:05:43,120 --> 00:05:45,599
Speaker 1: we can live with the four for twenty. We can't

111
00:05:45,600 --> 00:05:47,800
Speaker 1: live with the four for twenty, not with the way

112
00:05:47,839 --> 00:05:51,000
Speaker 1: that we're shorthanded right now, not without Anthony Davis and

113
00:05:51,040 --> 00:05:55,240
Speaker 1: the shots he's missing, like he's missing layups at the rim.

114
00:05:55,279 --> 00:05:58,080
Speaker 1: I thought the turnovers were just awful tonight and him,

115
00:05:58,320 --> 00:06:00,240
Speaker 1: him and Lebron had a nice little two man game.

116
00:06:00,480 --> 00:06:02,680
Speaker 1: Lebron was fronted in the post by the Nets a lot,

117
00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:04,839
Speaker 1: and he found him on the back doors when they

118
00:06:04,880 --> 00:06:07,440
Speaker 1: did high low action. But a lot of his turnovers

119
00:06:07,480 --> 00:06:10,000
Speaker 1: tonight he tried to push off makes, which is really

120
00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:12,640
Speaker 1: tough with this team. We're really slow to start the game.

121
00:06:13,000 --> 00:06:15,160
Speaker 1: We had Dwight Howard obviously starting, and he tried to

122
00:06:15,279 --> 00:06:17,599
Speaker 1: run and we just weren't with him. And he would

123
00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:20,520
Speaker 1: drive in and do a lot of high risk, low

124
00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:23,320
Speaker 1: reward passes. It was just a lot of stuff that

125
00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:25,680
Speaker 1: was just really bad for him, and it was a

126
00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:28,240
Speaker 1: rough start and I thought that carried through the whole game.

127
00:06:28,360 --> 00:06:30,880
Speaker 1: He was just really bad. There's nothing to say, and

128
00:06:30,960 --> 00:06:34,560
Speaker 1: the late game decision making, man, are our best offense

129
00:06:34,600 --> 00:06:37,839
Speaker 1: tonight was Lebron Malik Monk screen roll right, like, that's

130
00:06:37,839 --> 00:06:40,880
Speaker 1: to me where we got our best offense? And Lebron

131
00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:43,080
Speaker 1: would dry kick it out to us and he would

132
00:06:43,160 --> 00:06:45,599
Speaker 1: drive or take these awful shots. He took a bunch

133
00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:48,360
Speaker 1: of job step three tonight, which made no sense. And

134
00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:50,839
Speaker 1: again not to pin everything on him, because the loss

135
00:06:50,920 --> 00:06:53,680
Speaker 1: is kind of you know, convoluted with a bunch of factors,

136
00:06:53,680 --> 00:06:56,120
Speaker 1: but no, he was really bad. We went on and

137
00:06:56,160 --> 00:06:58,720
Speaker 1: again these numbers aren't fair to him as well, because

138
00:06:58,720 --> 00:07:01,480
Speaker 1: I think there's stuff that this lineup did that are

139
00:07:01,560 --> 00:07:04,279
Speaker 1: productive just to the skill sets of the roster. But

140
00:07:04,360 --> 00:07:07,480
Speaker 1: we went on a seventeen because your run without him tonight, Jason,

141
00:07:07,720 --> 00:07:11,000
Speaker 1: that turned the fourth quarter around, and people are asking,

142
00:07:11,240 --> 00:07:13,200
Speaker 1: I saw our friend dom and saying, how the hell

143
00:07:13,240 --> 00:07:15,960
Speaker 1: could you put us back in? It's a bigger story

144
00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:18,040
Speaker 1: if you don't put us back inside, and I don't,

145
00:07:18,240 --> 00:07:20,000
Speaker 1: and I don't think they want that right now, and

146
00:07:20,120 --> 00:07:22,840
Speaker 1: I get that you have to find ways to have

147
00:07:22,960 --> 00:07:25,960
Speaker 1: Rus be you know, impactful in these minutes, and he

148
00:07:26,040 --> 00:07:29,760
Speaker 1: just wasn't. And I tweeted cruel after he missed that dunk,

149
00:07:29,800 --> 00:07:32,640
Speaker 1: because that's what it was. Right two thousand eight or

150
00:07:32,640 --> 00:07:35,000
Speaker 1: two thousand nine or even two thousand twelve of us

151
00:07:35,040 --> 00:07:37,640
Speaker 1: probably is still hanging on the rim right in that

152
00:07:37,760 --> 00:07:39,800
Speaker 1: kind of uh, in that kind of play, but he's

153
00:07:39,840 --> 00:07:42,240
Speaker 1: just not there, could not lift. And I think the

154
00:07:42,280 --> 00:07:45,680
Speaker 1: mislayups are part of that. We discussed his finesse. I

155
00:07:45,720 --> 00:07:47,960
Speaker 1: think he's lost a finesse part of his game, which

156
00:07:48,000 --> 00:07:50,160
Speaker 1: is just so fascinating to me. I know you say

157
00:07:50,200 --> 00:07:52,720
Speaker 1: he's never really had it, but I disagree just in

158
00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:54,880
Speaker 1: terms of I've seen the way he finished in the past.

159
00:07:54,920 --> 00:07:57,240
Speaker 1: But he was bad tonight, man, There's no there's no

160
00:07:57,280 --> 00:07:59,200
Speaker 1: sugarcoating it. He was. He was al He was I

161
00:07:59,200 --> 00:08:01,400
Speaker 1: think a minus twin six in the game we lost

162
00:08:01,400 --> 00:08:03,640
Speaker 1: by like four or five like that, just and plus

163
00:08:03,680 --> 00:08:08,320
Speaker 1: minus isn't always to tell all. Yeah, it matches the

164
00:08:08,360 --> 00:08:11,400
Speaker 1: eye test, man. And again if you probably you if

165
00:08:11,400 --> 00:08:13,679
Speaker 1: you don't put Russ back in this game, you probably

166
00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:15,560
Speaker 1: have a better shot at winning. But that's not how

167
00:08:15,680 --> 00:08:20,160
Speaker 1: a team works, right, That's not how construction, locker room chemistry, politics,

168
00:08:20,160 --> 00:08:22,600
Speaker 1: whatever you want to call it. You just can't bench

169
00:08:22,880 --> 00:08:25,640
Speaker 1: Russ in this type of game right now. It's it's

170
00:08:25,760 --> 00:08:28,240
Speaker 1: just not gonna happen. So it was bad, man, and

171
00:08:28,240 --> 00:08:30,640
Speaker 1: the fit was bad. I thought him. I thought Taylan

172
00:08:30,680 --> 00:08:32,280
Speaker 1: played well when he was off the bench. I like

173
00:08:32,360 --> 00:08:36,640
Speaker 1: the tailor Lebron monk with Melow lineups, but Russ was bad.

174
00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:39,000
Speaker 1: There's no sugar coning in for sure. Yeah. You know,

175
00:08:39,160 --> 00:08:41,320
Speaker 1: you said yourself, You're like, we can't, we can't live

176
00:08:41,320 --> 00:08:43,640
Speaker 1: with the four twenty games. And I agree with you

177
00:08:43,679 --> 00:08:45,520
Speaker 1: in the sense that if Russ is gonna have like

178
00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:48,640
Speaker 1: just absolutely disastrous offensive games, that it's going to have

179
00:08:48,760 --> 00:08:51,880
Speaker 1: a massive negative impact on the team. That goes without saying.

180
00:08:52,120 --> 00:08:55,160
Speaker 1: The problem is is Russ is just as likely to

181
00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:58,560
Speaker 1: make those types of mistakes when he's having a great game. Yeah,

182
00:08:58,760 --> 00:09:01,120
Speaker 1: you know, I'll even expanded out to the to the

183
00:09:01,200 --> 00:09:04,559
Speaker 1: to the larger scheme of the season. To start this season,

184
00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:08,200
Speaker 1: Russ was very reserved and crunch time and deferred to

185
00:09:08,280 --> 00:09:13,240
Speaker 1: Lebron almost exclusively and was avoiding those kinds of mistakes

186
00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:17,080
Speaker 1: but then suddenly tonight he lost his mind. And that's

187
00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:20,000
Speaker 1: the thing. You could be in a playoff series like that,

188
00:09:20,360 --> 00:09:22,280
Speaker 1: and he could be really good in the crunch time

189
00:09:22,320 --> 00:09:24,040
Speaker 1: a game one, and really good in the crunch time

190
00:09:24,080 --> 00:09:26,800
Speaker 1: a game too, but maybe the road team, you know,

191
00:09:26,840 --> 00:09:28,880
Speaker 1: maybe it's too too after five games, just because of

192
00:09:28,920 --> 00:09:31,280
Speaker 1: the way the series shakes out, and he loses his

193
00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:33,800
Speaker 1: mind in game five and bam, you're down three two

194
00:09:33,880 --> 00:09:36,320
Speaker 1: going on the road or whatever. It is, the circumstances

195
00:09:36,400 --> 00:09:39,000
Speaker 1: that the series provide. But that's the thing with Russ,

196
00:09:39,520 --> 00:09:43,280
Speaker 1: it's there's a difference between you can depend on me

197
00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:46,800
Speaker 1: to consistently make the right decision, and it's a con

198
00:09:46,840 --> 00:09:50,040
Speaker 1: total coin flip. One night, I'm reserved and I'm playing

199
00:09:50,080 --> 00:09:52,760
Speaker 1: the game measured and I'm slow down and I'm making

200
00:09:52,760 --> 00:09:54,920
Speaker 1: the right decisions. And then the next night it's like

201
00:09:55,000 --> 00:09:57,520
Speaker 1: you might as well just shot me like a baby

202
00:09:57,600 --> 00:09:59,400
Speaker 1: in a tiny room and I'm just bouncing off the

203
00:09:59,440 --> 00:10:01,840
Speaker 1: walls and no one knows what I'm doing. Like that's

204
00:10:01,880 --> 00:10:05,440
Speaker 1: that is the Russell Westbrook experience in a nutshell. Again,

205
00:10:05,480 --> 00:10:08,760
Speaker 1: it's like a couple of plays before the two horrible

206
00:10:08,800 --> 00:10:10,880
Speaker 1: plays that I'm talking about that post up play where

207
00:10:10,920 --> 00:10:13,600
Speaker 1: he's posting at Patty Mills. It's like, dude, you haven't

208
00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:16,160
Speaker 1: been able to make a layup all game long, So

209
00:10:16,200 --> 00:10:18,800
Speaker 1: if you're going to any sort of complicated layup, I

210
00:10:18,840 --> 00:10:21,200
Speaker 1: should say so, if you're gonna post up Patty Mills,

211
00:10:21,400 --> 00:10:23,640
Speaker 1: you need to be thinking I am above the rim

212
00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:27,040
Speaker 1: by myself, or I'm kicking it out any sort of

213
00:10:27,040 --> 00:10:30,480
Speaker 1: below the rim finesse type of hook anything like that.

214
00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:33,199
Speaker 1: It's like, man, you just don't have it tonight. That

215
00:10:33,280 --> 00:10:35,720
Speaker 1: has to be moved around. But that that that's my

216
00:10:35,840 --> 00:10:39,040
Speaker 1: that's my thing. He could go twelve or twenty in

217
00:10:39,120 --> 00:10:43,160
Speaker 1: a pivotal playoff game and make two completely bone headed mistakes,

218
00:10:43,200 --> 00:10:45,480
Speaker 1: one on defense and one on offense, and it can

219
00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:48,120
Speaker 1: cost you a playoff series. And that's the problem. It's

220
00:10:48,160 --> 00:10:50,280
Speaker 1: like the example that I always uses that two thousand

221
00:10:50,320 --> 00:10:53,160
Speaker 1: fourteen series against the Spurs. In Game six, they're inside

222
00:10:53,280 --> 00:10:58,000
Speaker 1: there in Oklahoma City, okay see, it is actually down

223
00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:01,880
Speaker 1: pretty big late in Russ. Russ goes on an amazing

224
00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:05,480
Speaker 1: run in the middle late fourth quarter to get okay

225
00:11:05,559 --> 00:11:08,040
Speaker 1: see back in the game, and you're like, man, great Russ.

226
00:11:08,760 --> 00:11:12,760
Speaker 1: Two completely awful pivotal mistakes at the end of that

227
00:11:12,800 --> 00:11:15,679
Speaker 1: game that costs Okay, see the game. And that's the

228
00:11:15,720 --> 00:11:17,520
Speaker 1: kind of thing I'm talking about. It's good good, good

229
00:11:17,559 --> 00:11:19,559
Speaker 1: bad dad, you know, or it's good bad good bad

230
00:11:19,600 --> 00:11:21,880
Speaker 1: good bad, or nights like tonight where it's all bad.

231
00:11:22,200 --> 00:11:25,920
Speaker 1: But he cannot control his decision making at the end

232
00:11:26,040 --> 00:11:30,319
Speaker 1: of high leveled situations. And that is a potentially lethal flaw.

233
00:11:30,800 --> 00:11:34,560
Speaker 1: And I don't again, like he could play amazingly well

234
00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:37,840
Speaker 1: and amazingly reserved for the rest of the regular season.

235
00:11:38,120 --> 00:11:40,280
Speaker 1: He could do it for the entire first round, he

236
00:11:40,320 --> 00:11:42,360
Speaker 1: could do it for the entire second round, and we

237
00:11:42,400 --> 00:11:44,520
Speaker 1: could be sitting in Golden State and I would be

238
00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:47,360
Speaker 1: sitting on my couch terrified that he's going to do

239
00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:50,400
Speaker 1: that again, because that's that's the Russell Westgroup experience. And

240
00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:52,960
Speaker 1: and I don't know, I don't know how. I don't

241
00:11:53,000 --> 00:11:54,920
Speaker 1: know how you prepare for that. I don't know what

242
00:11:54,960 --> 00:11:57,800
Speaker 1: you do, because it's like it's like tonight, just one second,

243
00:11:57,840 --> 00:11:59,559
Speaker 1: you have all the momentum and it feels like you're

244
00:11:59,559 --> 00:12:01,480
Speaker 1: gonna win the game, and then the next second is

245
00:12:01,480 --> 00:12:04,400
Speaker 1: gone like that that that it's it's over. But when

246
00:12:04,400 --> 00:12:06,280
Speaker 1: when those mistakes happen at the end of a game

247
00:12:06,320 --> 00:12:10,200
Speaker 1: like that, there you cannot recover from them. And so again,

248
00:12:10,240 --> 00:12:12,600
Speaker 1: it's just it's very discouraging. And I mean, there's a

249
00:12:12,600 --> 00:12:14,120
Speaker 1: lot more to take from this game, guys. And we're

250
00:12:14,120 --> 00:12:16,319
Speaker 1: gonna get into we're gonna talk about their start, We're

251
00:12:16,320 --> 00:12:18,520
Speaker 1: gonna talk about Stanley Johnson, We're gonna talk about all

252
00:12:18,559 --> 00:12:21,280
Speaker 1: this stuff. But I think the story of this game

253
00:12:21,320 --> 00:12:25,320
Speaker 1: at the beginning here is Russell Westbrook. This is this

254
00:12:25,440 --> 00:12:29,120
Speaker 1: is part of the Russell Westbrook experience. He can almost

255
00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:35,120
Speaker 1: single handedly derail a game and that and that's that's problematic. Yeah,

256
00:12:35,160 --> 00:12:38,000
Speaker 1: the you know, the experience is a roller coaster, right,

257
00:12:38,000 --> 00:12:40,080
Speaker 1: and you talked about that playoff game. You know, he

258
00:12:40,120 --> 00:12:42,360
Speaker 1: brought us back, and he does this a lot in

259
00:12:42,400 --> 00:12:45,120
Speaker 1: every game, right. It seems like every game that he starts,

260
00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:47,839
Speaker 1: he really walks into it, right, He tries to feel

261
00:12:47,880 --> 00:12:50,080
Speaker 1: it out, and he makes his impact later on. And

262
00:12:50,120 --> 00:12:52,720
Speaker 1: you know, sometimes that's fine, you'll have a huge third quarter,

263
00:12:52,760 --> 00:12:55,080
Speaker 1: but you don't get the good without the bad with

264
00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:57,040
Speaker 1: him and right, and a lot of and this season,

265
00:12:57,120 --> 00:12:58,640
Speaker 1: like to give him a little bit of credit, like

266
00:12:58,679 --> 00:13:00,600
Speaker 1: he has kind of pushed the pace. He has kind

267
00:13:00,600 --> 00:13:02,520
Speaker 1: of try to keep our energy up when the when

268
00:13:02,520 --> 00:13:04,760
Speaker 1: the body language has been bad. So I don't want

269
00:13:04,760 --> 00:13:06,800
Speaker 1: to make this, you know, like he's been awful this season,

270
00:13:06,840 --> 00:13:09,880
Speaker 1: but you're right in crunchtime situations like it is a question.

271
00:13:09,960 --> 00:13:12,200
Speaker 1: It's why you know, a lot of late game situations

272
00:13:12,240 --> 00:13:16,200
Speaker 1: he has, you know, questionable plays, questionable shot selection. Even

273
00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:18,240
Speaker 1: in the Dallas game, Right, that three went in, But

274
00:13:18,320 --> 00:13:20,760
Speaker 1: Jason has probably be an awful shot, right to be honest,

275
00:13:20,760 --> 00:13:23,120
Speaker 1: Like we're like down three, uh and he hits three

276
00:13:23,120 --> 00:13:25,560
Speaker 1: to time, but that's probably a bad shot. This isn't

277
00:13:25,600 --> 00:13:27,600
Speaker 1: the first time it's happened either, right, I believe against

278
00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:29,679
Speaker 1: the Bulls, we were on our way to a comeback

279
00:13:29,720 --> 00:13:31,720
Speaker 1: and he like drove and tried to make like a

280
00:13:31,800 --> 00:13:34,280
Speaker 1: left hand lay up. I forgot who's at the rim.

281
00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:36,600
Speaker 1: I think it was Ruchevich or someone, and he just

282
00:13:36,640 --> 00:13:41,040
Speaker 1: missed that right at the basket's shot that I thought

283
00:13:41,120 --> 00:13:44,080
Speaker 1: that I was. I remember that right, right, And here's

284
00:13:44,120 --> 00:13:46,240
Speaker 1: the only like silver lining. I guess like that I

285
00:13:46,280 --> 00:13:48,880
Speaker 1: can go because we have this. We have seen a

286
00:13:48,920 --> 00:13:52,080
Speaker 1: few games of this team fully healthy, and we've seen

287
00:13:52,120 --> 00:13:54,760
Speaker 1: close games. And what has it been. It's been Lebron

288
00:13:54,880 --> 00:13:57,720
Speaker 1: with the basketball and Russ either as the screener or

289
00:13:57,800 --> 00:14:00,719
Speaker 1: in the dunker spot where Lebron's using another guard to

290
00:14:00,760 --> 00:14:03,080
Speaker 1: set the screen, or using Russ as a screener and

291
00:14:03,120 --> 00:14:05,600
Speaker 1: he can play four on three. We haven't really seen

292
00:14:05,840 --> 00:14:09,000
Speaker 1: very many times this season where Russ has the basketball

293
00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:11,840
Speaker 1: in like in late game situations where he's the kind

294
00:14:11,880 --> 00:14:14,040
Speaker 1: of main creator. And I thought tonight he got a

295
00:14:14,040 --> 00:14:16,880
Speaker 1: few of those possessions. And again, that's not how basketball works.

296
00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:19,240
Speaker 1: You can't just tell someone to never touch the ball late.

297
00:14:19,280 --> 00:14:21,200
Speaker 1: And there's players where Lebron, you know, it's gonna have

298
00:14:21,200 --> 00:14:22,680
Speaker 1: the ball, he's gonna have to kick to Russ and

299
00:14:22,720 --> 00:14:25,280
Speaker 1: he has to make high levels decisions. But I think

300
00:14:25,320 --> 00:14:27,680
Speaker 1: for the most part, and we are so far away

301
00:14:27,720 --> 00:14:30,240
Speaker 1: from that. I guess where we have to, you know,

302
00:14:30,280 --> 00:14:33,480
Speaker 1: worry about late game situations. I watched the Phoenix and

303
00:14:33,520 --> 00:14:36,080
Speaker 1: Golden State game today, and my goodness, we are so

304
00:14:36,120 --> 00:14:40,480
Speaker 1: far away from executing or compete, like competing or even

305
00:14:40,560 --> 00:14:43,920
Speaker 1: being at that level to a basketball that those teams

306
00:14:43,960 --> 00:14:46,400
Speaker 1: are playing at. We're on a ladder trying to climb

307
00:14:46,440 --> 00:14:48,480
Speaker 1: up there. And there's still time to you know, get

308
00:14:48,560 --> 00:14:51,800
Speaker 1: up those steps. There's process that we can do. Um,

309
00:14:51,920 --> 00:14:54,000
Speaker 1: and again that I feel like there's stuff that doesn't

310
00:14:54,360 --> 00:14:56,840
Speaker 1: help us out either. I think the starting lineup is

311
00:14:56,840 --> 00:14:58,360
Speaker 1: a big part of it. We can get into that

312
00:14:58,720 --> 00:15:01,280
Speaker 1: next as well, all the lineup stuff and all the

313
00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:04,440
Speaker 1: shifting that we're doing. But yeah, man, Russ was bad

314
00:15:04,520 --> 00:15:07,600
Speaker 1: and this was another tough one, just bad decision making late.

315
00:15:08,360 --> 00:15:11,080
Speaker 1: And hopefully he's not in those positions when eight is healthy,

316
00:15:11,160 --> 00:15:14,720
Speaker 1: when Lebron, you know, is there controlling the decisions in

317
00:15:14,760 --> 00:15:16,640
Speaker 1: the playoffs. I just don't think he'll be put in

318
00:15:16,680 --> 00:15:19,320
Speaker 1: those situations for the most part. But tonight's just a

319
00:15:19,360 --> 00:15:21,160
Speaker 1: really bad rest game. And we talked about over the

320
00:15:21,160 --> 00:15:23,320
Speaker 1: summer these are gonna happen. He's gonna have four for

321
00:15:23,400 --> 00:15:26,200
Speaker 1: twenty games. It's gonna be loud, and it was loud tonight.

322
00:15:26,240 --> 00:15:29,240
Speaker 1: And his mistakes are very much like what were you

323
00:15:29,280 --> 00:15:32,520
Speaker 1: thinking there? You know, or like what was the what's

324
00:15:32,520 --> 00:15:35,000
Speaker 1: the reward there of getting that passed through? Like a

325
00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:37,000
Speaker 1: lot of times it's like a screen roll and he

326
00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:40,920
Speaker 1: throws that pocket pass with like zero finesse. It's just hard,

327
00:15:40,960 --> 00:15:43,880
Speaker 1: it's down, there's no like if it gets through, it's

328
00:15:43,960 --> 00:15:46,000
Speaker 1: by luck, you know what I mean. So a lot

329
00:15:46,040 --> 00:15:47,880
Speaker 1: of players like that happened. But yeah, Russ was just

330
00:15:47,960 --> 00:15:50,120
Speaker 1: bad man and that was it was tough to watch,

331
00:15:50,120 --> 00:15:52,160
Speaker 1: and it's don't want to blame everything on him because

332
00:15:52,200 --> 00:15:54,560
Speaker 1: that's not fair because there's lineup stuff that we can

333
00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:56,560
Speaker 1: kind of go into next. But he was it was

334
00:15:56,600 --> 00:15:59,920
Speaker 1: bad man, and that's and there's no sugarcoating that tonight.

335
00:16:00,800 --> 00:16:03,520
Speaker 1: That's why I used the expression he can't see one

336
00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:05,760
Speaker 1: inch in front of his face, you know, like a

337
00:16:05,800 --> 00:16:10,760
Speaker 1: good game manager always sees the big picture. That's what

338
00:16:10,960 --> 00:16:12,880
Speaker 1: Lebron is so good at. He sees the big picture

339
00:16:12,880 --> 00:16:15,120
Speaker 1: of the possession right Like he sees, Okay, if I

340
00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:18,160
Speaker 1: beat this man at the point of attack, this rotation

341
00:16:18,280 --> 00:16:21,000
Speaker 1: is probably coming to take away the point, the pocket

342
00:16:21,000 --> 00:16:23,280
Speaker 1: pass or the week side corner or whatever. He's always

343
00:16:23,280 --> 00:16:25,880
Speaker 1: seeing several steps ahead. But at the same time he

344
00:16:25,880 --> 00:16:27,760
Speaker 1: also sees behind. He's like, okay, is this guy in

345
00:16:27,800 --> 00:16:29,800
Speaker 1: a rhythm? Knows this guy in a rhythm? Yes? Like,

346
00:16:30,440 --> 00:16:32,760
Speaker 1: is they haven't gotten a shot for so and so

347
00:16:32,880 --> 00:16:36,200
Speaker 1: in a while? You know, what's the what's the flow

348
00:16:36,280 --> 00:16:38,640
Speaker 1: of this game? Is this game flowing in a way

349
00:16:38,640 --> 00:16:41,080
Speaker 1: where they need me to be more aggressive offensively? Or

350
00:16:41,120 --> 00:16:42,720
Speaker 1: is this a great time to try to get other

351
00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:46,280
Speaker 1: guys involved. Like Lebron always sees the bigger picture, and

352
00:16:46,280 --> 00:16:48,520
Speaker 1: he also sees the bigger picture of the regular season.

353
00:16:48,560 --> 00:16:50,600
Speaker 1: That's why he can be such a good leader in

354
00:16:50,640 --> 00:16:53,600
Speaker 1: these types of environments with a team that has championship aspirations.

355
00:16:53,600 --> 00:16:57,040
Speaker 1: But with Russ, there's none of that. There's nothing outside

356
00:16:57,040 --> 00:16:59,240
Speaker 1: of what's one inch in front of his face. Think

357
00:16:59,240 --> 00:17:01,760
Speaker 1: about that last session where he missed the dunk. It's

358
00:17:01,760 --> 00:17:05,360
Speaker 1: a ricochet pass from Lebron that lands in his hands. Okay,

359
00:17:05,600 --> 00:17:09,720
Speaker 1: a couple of possessions earlier, Stanley Johnson catches the ball

360
00:17:09,760 --> 00:17:13,600
Speaker 1: on the wing wide open in transition, but he sees

361
00:17:13,640 --> 00:17:15,800
Speaker 1: the bigger picture of the possession and goes, I could

362
00:17:15,800 --> 00:17:18,800
Speaker 1: shoot this, but actually a better option is to go

363
00:17:18,840 --> 00:17:21,119
Speaker 1: to Lebron. Here swings it to Lebron. Lebron bullyballs is

364
00:17:21,119 --> 00:17:23,280
Speaker 1: way in the basket and gets a layup. That's the thing.

365
00:17:23,359 --> 00:17:25,479
Speaker 1: In that moment, Russ saw Lane and you know what,

366
00:17:25,480 --> 00:17:27,760
Speaker 1: he thought, it would be cool if I dunked this here,

367
00:17:28,800 --> 00:17:30,680
Speaker 1: Like if I if I dunked this one man, I'll

368
00:17:30,680 --> 00:17:32,960
Speaker 1: be all over the House of highlights. And he saw

369
00:17:33,040 --> 00:17:37,240
Speaker 1: that in that like that tiny little fraction of time,

370
00:17:37,640 --> 00:17:40,639
Speaker 1: he made a calculated decision that it was worth it

371
00:17:40,680 --> 00:17:43,359
Speaker 1: to go for the highlight, whereas if he was seeing

372
00:17:43,480 --> 00:17:46,720
Speaker 1: anything outside of that tiny, little fraction of moment, he

373
00:17:46,800 --> 00:17:50,840
Speaker 1: might have thought, actually, this this ball I need. We

374
00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:54,280
Speaker 1: happened to gain control of a loose ball. This is

375
00:17:54,320 --> 00:17:56,560
Speaker 1: a great time to get the ball back to Lebron

376
00:17:56,640 --> 00:17:59,240
Speaker 1: so we can make a real basketball decision. Or if

377
00:17:59,240 --> 00:18:01,480
Speaker 1: you see a lane, okay, I see e lane here,

378
00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:03,720
Speaker 1: I'm going to get into his body and try to

379
00:18:03,720 --> 00:18:05,639
Speaker 1: either get a foul or lay up. You know not,

380
00:18:06,240 --> 00:18:09,359
Speaker 1: Here's a low percentage play that even if i'm you

381
00:18:09,359 --> 00:18:11,800
Speaker 1: know all season long, I've been missing, I'm just gonna

382
00:18:11,800 --> 00:18:12,919
Speaker 1: go for it. You know what I mean? Like that

383
00:18:13,040 --> 00:18:15,400
Speaker 1: kind of decision making? Is that That's what I mean

384
00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:17,360
Speaker 1: when I say he can't see more than one inch

385
00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:19,520
Speaker 1: in front of his face. Now moving on to the

386
00:18:19,720 --> 00:18:21,160
Speaker 1: start of the game, because I thought this was really

387
00:18:21,200 --> 00:18:24,320
Speaker 1: interesting because you and I we were we had planned

388
00:18:24,359 --> 00:18:27,600
Speaker 1: on talking to start this game about their lackluster effort

389
00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:31,679
Speaker 1: and uh and body language in the with the starters.

390
00:18:31,720 --> 00:18:34,320
Speaker 1: And I think there's two elements to it. One is

391
00:18:34,359 --> 00:18:36,960
Speaker 1: that that basketball character thing that we that we keep

392
00:18:36,960 --> 00:18:39,720
Speaker 1: talking about all season having to do with guys just

393
00:18:39,760 --> 00:18:42,159
Speaker 1: not being willing to do the dirty work. But a

394
00:18:42,200 --> 00:18:44,800
Speaker 1: big part of it is just a foundational structure of

395
00:18:44,840 --> 00:18:47,920
Speaker 1: the lineup. We have talked. We talked a while back

396
00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:50,600
Speaker 1: about basic lineup rules, so you remember that it was

397
00:18:50,600 --> 00:18:53,120
Speaker 1: actually something that our guy Anthony Irwin from Silver Screen

398
00:18:53,119 --> 00:18:56,480
Speaker 1: and Roll kind of conceptualized. And one of the rules

399
00:18:56,640 --> 00:19:01,280
Speaker 1: was you cannot play Russ and th httgether or or

400
00:19:01,320 --> 00:19:03,960
Speaker 1: with the big was the big one. Basically, if you're

401
00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:06,439
Speaker 1: gonna play t h T and Russ, you need to

402
00:19:06,480 --> 00:19:09,080
Speaker 1: take Dwight off the floor. The idea being let's try

403
00:19:09,119 --> 00:19:12,640
Speaker 1: to limit it to two nonshooters, and anything over two

404
00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:16,280
Speaker 1: nonshooters it just gets way too clunky and it's impossible

405
00:19:16,280 --> 00:19:19,399
Speaker 1: to get anything going. And those two problems compound each other. Right,

406
00:19:19,440 --> 00:19:21,040
Speaker 1: because we get Russ, t h T and Dwight in

407
00:19:21,119 --> 00:19:24,080
Speaker 1: the lineup, there's no shooting. Everything becomes stagnant. You get

408
00:19:24,080 --> 00:19:26,400
Speaker 1: a lineup like what or you get a defensive scheme

409
00:19:26,440 --> 00:19:28,280
Speaker 1: like what Brooklyn does where they're just kind of switching

410
00:19:28,280 --> 00:19:31,480
Speaker 1: everything and floating around. It becomes like, Okay, somebody's got

411
00:19:31,480 --> 00:19:33,080
Speaker 1: to take a jump shot because there's just someone in

412
00:19:33,119 --> 00:19:34,960
Speaker 1: the paint. We even had a clip if you remember,

413
00:19:35,080 --> 00:19:38,080
Speaker 1: James Harden miked up going up to Claxton saying, hey, buddy,

414
00:19:38,720 --> 00:19:40,879
Speaker 1: you're living in the paint. You don't pay attention to

415
00:19:40,920 --> 00:19:43,159
Speaker 1: anybody live in the paint. That's a side effect of

416
00:19:43,200 --> 00:19:45,719
Speaker 1: that lineup. But those two things speed off each other, right,

417
00:19:45,880 --> 00:19:49,920
Speaker 1: line up and structure and basketball character. If you are

418
00:19:49,960 --> 00:19:54,760
Speaker 1: a lazy team, then it's gonna be exacerbated by lineup

419
00:19:54,800 --> 00:19:58,719
Speaker 1: shortcomings that are gonna make you even lazier, you know.

420
00:19:58,880 --> 00:20:00,919
Speaker 1: And it all like the eads off of each other,

421
00:20:00,960 --> 00:20:03,920
Speaker 1: and it's like it just waterfalls into this. Now we're

422
00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:07,600
Speaker 1: getting rolled with Lebron James and Russell Westbrook on the floor,

423
00:20:07,600 --> 00:20:10,399
Speaker 1: which should never happen, right, And so that that that

424
00:20:10,480 --> 00:20:12,680
Speaker 1: kind of is what frustrated me about that is I'd

425
00:20:12,720 --> 00:20:14,720
Speaker 1: like for them to play harder, but I'm not sure

426
00:20:14,720 --> 00:20:18,920
Speaker 1: that they will until you start putting functional lineups together. Yeah,

427
00:20:18,960 --> 00:20:21,199
Speaker 1: I mean that's fair. I just don't think like that

428
00:20:21,240 --> 00:20:23,399
Speaker 1: should be the reason that they played hard, like they

429
00:20:23,440 --> 00:20:26,840
Speaker 1: were so disengaged to start this game. And it reminded

430
00:20:26,880 --> 00:20:29,480
Speaker 1: me a lot of the Spurs game actually, because the

431
00:20:29,520 --> 00:20:32,520
Speaker 1: nets just came down simple James Harden pick and roll right.

432
00:20:32,520 --> 00:20:35,080
Speaker 1: There was nothing fast, there was nothing complicated. You knew

433
00:20:35,119 --> 00:20:36,879
Speaker 1: this was coming to start the game, Like, there's no

434
00:20:36,920 --> 00:20:39,280
Speaker 1: way you didn't know. The nets were going high ball, screen,

435
00:20:39,359 --> 00:20:41,520
Speaker 1: screen and roll every time, and it was literally just

436
00:20:41,640 --> 00:20:43,720
Speaker 1: no one tags, No one tags a roll man. It

437
00:20:43,800 --> 00:20:46,840
Speaker 1: was a layup or wide open corner three. And again

438
00:20:46,880 --> 00:20:48,280
Speaker 1: I need to go back and watch the tabe and

439
00:20:48,280 --> 00:20:50,960
Speaker 1: see if that's Lebron just deciding not to tag, if

440
00:20:50,960 --> 00:20:53,479
Speaker 1: that's th Ht not knowing where to go. Those are

441
00:20:53,480 --> 00:20:55,400
Speaker 1: stuff that I feel like they need to clean up,

442
00:20:55,440 --> 00:20:58,320
Speaker 1: no matter what the lineup is. And that's identity. That's

443
00:20:58,400 --> 00:21:01,520
Speaker 1: you know, your called your basketball culle ture. I've been

444
00:21:01,560 --> 00:21:03,640
Speaker 1: saying like for a long time, and after this Stirs game,

445
00:21:03,640 --> 00:21:05,440
Speaker 1: you were kind of more positive writing or saying, this

446
00:21:05,600 --> 00:21:07,240
Speaker 1: is a lot. You know, we're playing a lot of

447
00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:10,800
Speaker 1: lineups that aren't real right, and I totally agree with that.

448
00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:13,440
Speaker 1: I still think there's an identity to this team that's

449
00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:17,280
Speaker 1: just not fitting with our circumstance. We're two games under

450
00:21:17,320 --> 00:21:20,320
Speaker 1: five now, like there's no reason to come out tonight,

451
00:21:20,480 --> 00:21:23,800
Speaker 1: super disengage, awful defense to start it right, and the

452
00:21:23,960 --> 00:21:27,359
Speaker 1: stuff that just easy to fix. Our friend Darius Soriano

453
00:21:27,440 --> 00:21:29,359
Speaker 1: said it was a clown show to start the game,

454
00:21:29,359 --> 00:21:31,720
Speaker 1: and I agree with that. We were walking up and

455
00:21:31,760 --> 00:21:34,320
Speaker 1: down the court and the lineups are bad. Look, you

456
00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:38,680
Speaker 1: can't start why th HT and Russ together and Russ

457
00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:40,639
Speaker 1: is not going anywhere, So the other two are the

458
00:21:40,640 --> 00:21:42,520
Speaker 1: one where you kind of have to fill out where

459
00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:44,679
Speaker 1: to go with it. And th HT we'll see if

460
00:21:44,680 --> 00:21:47,639
Speaker 1: he continues to start. He still looks absolutely lost in

461
00:21:47,680 --> 00:21:49,679
Speaker 1: the offense. I thought it looked better when he was

462
00:21:49,720 --> 00:21:51,920
Speaker 1: in for us. I think, uh, in that big run

463
00:21:51,960 --> 00:21:53,800
Speaker 1: we went on, I think he was on the floor.

464
00:21:53,880 --> 00:21:56,080
Speaker 1: But we just can't start games this way. And it's

465
00:21:56,160 --> 00:21:59,000
Speaker 1: kind of really unfortunate that we have two centers that

466
00:21:59,040 --> 00:22:01,679
Speaker 1: are just kind of unplayable right now. Like I mean,

467
00:22:01,760 --> 00:22:04,760
Speaker 1: Dwight Howard's better than DeAndre Jordan's, but he didn't look

468
00:22:04,840 --> 00:22:07,760
Speaker 1: great tonight either against the Nets. I thought he played

469
00:22:07,800 --> 00:22:10,080
Speaker 1: hard in his minutes, but he just was not functional

470
00:22:10,560 --> 00:22:13,040
Speaker 1: um to do anything defensively. So we had to go

471
00:22:13,359 --> 00:22:17,360
Speaker 1: Lebron at the center and then obviously our favorite Carmelo

472
00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:19,320
Speaker 1: at the five, And we went Carmelo at the five

473
00:22:19,400 --> 00:22:22,240
Speaker 1: with four guards, which really just put the game away.

474
00:22:22,280 --> 00:22:25,199
Speaker 1: In my opinion, they put the nets up twenty, but

475
00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:27,439
Speaker 1: that starting lineman is is just so rough, and I

476
00:22:27,480 --> 00:22:30,399
Speaker 1: think we just go so rigid with our decisions. Like

477
00:22:30,440 --> 00:22:32,880
Speaker 1: in the second half, we didn't start Dwight Howard, which

478
00:22:32,880 --> 00:22:35,960
Speaker 1: is fine, like I totally agree with that assessment, but

479
00:22:36,000 --> 00:22:38,200
Speaker 1: then we just decided not to plan the whole half,

480
00:22:38,200 --> 00:22:40,159
Speaker 1: which again led to those off the line up. But

481
00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:42,959
Speaker 1: that start, we need to clean that up. Jason, did

482
00:22:42,960 --> 00:22:44,359
Speaker 1: you see this as well, because I put in my

483
00:22:44,359 --> 00:22:46,560
Speaker 1: my notes here as well. Our body language picked up

484
00:22:46,560 --> 00:22:49,680
Speaker 1: when Lebron went to the five, Like it's just everything

485
00:22:49,760 --> 00:22:51,480
Speaker 1: kind of picked up. It seemed like, and I don't

486
00:22:51,480 --> 00:22:53,679
Speaker 1: know if that was just stubbing Malik Monk in for

487
00:22:53,800 --> 00:22:55,800
Speaker 1: us at the six minute mark, but it seemed our

488
00:22:55,840 --> 00:22:58,399
Speaker 1: whole energy kind of switched when that happened. And Malik

489
00:22:58,440 --> 00:23:01,320
Speaker 1: Monk's probably too small to be start. Although his defense

490
00:23:01,359 --> 00:23:03,880
Speaker 1: was fine tonight, uh Wayne Allington was kind of getting

491
00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:06,160
Speaker 1: picked on. I didn't think he was the problem. Expecting

492
00:23:06,240 --> 00:23:08,320
Speaker 1: him to guard James Harden isn't it. But it's just

493
00:23:08,359 --> 00:23:10,840
Speaker 1: stuff that we started these games so slow. It's a

494
00:23:10,920 --> 00:23:12,520
Speaker 1: first quarter league to me as much as it is

495
00:23:12,560 --> 00:23:14,640
Speaker 1: a fourth quarter League, we were down like double jiu JITs.

496
00:23:14,800 --> 00:23:17,480
Speaker 1: We were down fifteen of like four minutes left. That stuff,

497
00:23:17,520 --> 00:23:19,320
Speaker 1: to me, has nothing to do with a d being out,

498
00:23:19,400 --> 00:23:21,960
Speaker 1: with the reasoning out, Kendrick now being out, Austin Reads

499
00:23:22,000 --> 00:23:25,200
Speaker 1: being out, that's just We're gonna get to Stanley Johnson later.

500
00:23:25,240 --> 00:23:27,159
Speaker 1: But a guy who just plays hard jumps off the

501
00:23:27,240 --> 00:23:29,720
Speaker 1: damn page on this team. Like Stanley Johnson is a

502
00:23:29,720 --> 00:23:32,120
Speaker 1: good defender, he hasn't skills as a defender. I think,

503
00:23:32,160 --> 00:23:34,720
Speaker 1: you know, defensive skills go underrated when we talk about

504
00:23:34,800 --> 00:23:37,359
Speaker 1: basketball kind of uh in a total sense. But he

505
00:23:37,440 --> 00:23:39,520
Speaker 1: just played his ass off and I jumped off the page.

506
00:23:39,560 --> 00:23:42,160
Speaker 1: But these starting lineups are just are just so rough,

507
00:23:42,520 --> 00:23:45,720
Speaker 1: and we're starting these games out so lethargic, so against

508
00:23:45,800 --> 00:23:47,879
Speaker 1: what I think our identity of the team is. And

509
00:23:48,000 --> 00:23:50,640
Speaker 1: we went all into Russ and I think these are interconnected.

510
00:23:50,760 --> 00:23:53,280
Speaker 1: I think Russ not starting well also is a part

511
00:23:53,280 --> 00:23:54,919
Speaker 1: of this. But yeah, these line ups are rough, man,

512
00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:57,040
Speaker 1: I don't know where we Hopefully we get some guys back,

513
00:23:57,080 --> 00:24:00,480
Speaker 1: hopefully get a reason back. But I think just starting

514
00:24:00,560 --> 00:24:03,520
Speaker 1: Kaylin and Dwight next to us makes Lebron's life a

515
00:24:03,560 --> 00:24:04,960
Speaker 1: lot harder as well. Where do you think we go

516
00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:06,880
Speaker 1: with this news? Because I think I think that's where

517
00:24:06,920 --> 00:24:09,040
Speaker 1: we kind of fixed. Lebron's played super Wealth the last

518
00:24:09,040 --> 00:24:11,520
Speaker 1: few games and he still lost. He's playing his ass

519
00:24:11,560 --> 00:24:13,600
Speaker 1: off at least in the second half of these games,

520
00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:16,119
Speaker 1: and we're still losing. Where would you where would you

521
00:24:16,200 --> 00:24:18,359
Speaker 1: kind of go with this? I guess going into the

522
00:24:18,440 --> 00:24:20,679
Speaker 1: Rockets game next year? Well, you and you and I

523
00:24:20,680 --> 00:24:23,080
Speaker 1: have been on this already, this idea that Lebron and

524
00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:26,399
Speaker 1: Dwight should stagger the center. Tick a pick a center

525
00:24:26,400 --> 00:24:29,640
Speaker 1: you're gonna play, which obviously should be Dwight, and stagger

526
00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:32,240
Speaker 1: him in Lebron. It's that simple, Like Lebron plays thirty

527
00:24:32,280 --> 00:24:34,520
Speaker 1: five minutes a game, he's going to be the center,

528
00:24:34,960 --> 00:24:38,679
Speaker 1: and then when uh, let Dwight check in for that

529
00:24:39,400 --> 00:24:41,919
Speaker 1: to six minute shifts to seven minute shifts, whatever, and

530
00:24:41,960 --> 00:24:44,240
Speaker 1: let him play his butt off allays out there and

531
00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:46,480
Speaker 1: he will be effective. That that was it made absolutely

532
00:24:46,560 --> 00:24:49,280
Speaker 1: no sense to go to that lineup with Carmelo Anthony

533
00:24:49,280 --> 00:24:51,960
Speaker 1: and the four guards. That's just that's just nonsensical. Like,

534
00:24:52,119 --> 00:24:54,840
Speaker 1: as I always say, there are jobs that need to

535
00:24:54,840 --> 00:24:57,280
Speaker 1: be done on the basketball court, and the jobs won't

536
00:24:57,320 --> 00:25:02,679
Speaker 1: be completed unless you have guys that can fill those roles, Like, yes, Lebron,

537
00:25:02,720 --> 00:25:04,520
Speaker 1: you want to know why Lebron works at center because

538
00:25:04,520 --> 00:25:06,840
Speaker 1: he could do stuff that centers do. It's it's not

539
00:25:07,119 --> 00:25:09,680
Speaker 1: any more complicated than that. But this brings me back

540
00:25:09,720 --> 00:25:13,520
Speaker 1: to the frustrating part of the of of like roster construction,

541
00:25:13,640 --> 00:25:16,359
Speaker 1: right because you know, we just watched the Warriors play

542
00:25:17,480 --> 00:25:19,800
Speaker 1: and the Warriors were down. You know, the Warriors were

543
00:25:19,840 --> 00:25:24,360
Speaker 1: down five of their best wings, right, Like, they're down

544
00:25:24,400 --> 00:25:28,440
Speaker 1: Andrew Wiggins, they're down Jordan's Pool, They're down Clay Thompson,

545
00:25:28,760 --> 00:25:32,159
Speaker 1: They're down uh andre A Guadala, they were down a

546
00:25:32,280 --> 00:25:35,240
Speaker 1: Damian Lee. But it's like they still have all of

547
00:25:35,240 --> 00:25:37,439
Speaker 1: these guys that can guard up and down several positions,

548
00:25:37,480 --> 00:25:40,120
Speaker 1: Gary Payton Jr. And Raymond Green obviously in the starters,

549
00:25:40,200 --> 00:25:45,800
Speaker 1: but then beyond it, it's like, yeah, Jonathan cominga, Jonathan Wantaskano,

550
00:25:45,880 --> 00:25:49,560
Speaker 1: Anderson and Otto Porter. They had like five additional wings

551
00:25:49,600 --> 00:25:54,000
Speaker 1: they could play because foundationally, the Warriors organization understands that

552
00:25:54,440 --> 00:25:57,120
Speaker 1: in the future of basketball, it's a lot of switching

553
00:25:57,760 --> 00:25:59,520
Speaker 1: and in a lot of running up and down at

554
00:25:59,560 --> 00:26:02,280
Speaker 1: higher pay So like having size and athleticism and guys

555
00:26:02,280 --> 00:26:05,439
Speaker 1: that can guard multiple positions is directly what relates to

556
00:26:05,480 --> 00:26:07,800
Speaker 1: your abilities succeed on the basketball court, which is something

557
00:26:07,840 --> 00:26:11,000
Speaker 1: that I preached all year last year in the playoffs

558
00:26:11,240 --> 00:26:14,960
Speaker 1: in in respect to the l A Clippers, who lost

559
00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:17,800
Speaker 1: their best player and came within two wins of an

560
00:26:17,880 --> 00:26:22,320
Speaker 1: NBA uh N NBA Finals appearance, because they thoroughly embraced

561
00:26:22,400 --> 00:26:25,960
Speaker 1: that concept, and meanwhile, the Lakers have just been kind

562
00:26:25,960 --> 00:26:28,119
Speaker 1: of allergic to going after that kind of guy. I

563
00:26:28,160 --> 00:26:30,440
Speaker 1: told you guys that I had heard through the grape

564
00:26:30,480 --> 00:26:32,760
Speaker 1: vine that they had an opportunity to sign Ruddy Gay,

565
00:26:32,800 --> 00:26:34,480
Speaker 1: but they were unwilling to pay him more than the

566
00:26:34,800 --> 00:26:38,240
Speaker 1: veteran minimum. So clearly they valued a guy like Kendrick

567
00:26:38,359 --> 00:26:40,719
Speaker 1: Nunne for five and a half million more than they

568
00:26:40,800 --> 00:26:42,840
Speaker 1: valued a guy like Rudy Gay for five and a

569
00:26:42,840 --> 00:26:46,359
Speaker 1: half million. That's a that's a basketball philosophy that I

570
00:26:46,400 --> 00:26:51,200
Speaker 1: just can't understand. You know, Stanley Johnson looked really good

571
00:26:51,240 --> 00:26:54,080
Speaker 1: tonight for two reasons, and one of them is effort.

572
00:26:54,119 --> 00:26:56,240
Speaker 1: I've been talking about this with you on this podcast

573
00:26:56,280 --> 00:27:00,359
Speaker 1: for a while, Like the the urgency of of lying

574
00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:02,359
Speaker 1: and fighting for your spot in the n b A

575
00:27:03,000 --> 00:27:07,280
Speaker 1: breeds effort naturally, and that's something that this team desperately

576
00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:10,320
Speaker 1: needs because it's missing down the roster. So voila. Put

577
00:27:10,359 --> 00:27:12,440
Speaker 1: a guy in there who's fighting for his NBA life,

578
00:27:12,760 --> 00:27:16,080
Speaker 1: who has some size and athleticism. It's gonna reap some rewards.

579
00:27:16,119 --> 00:27:19,200
Speaker 1: But the second half of that is the fact that

580
00:27:19,320 --> 00:27:25,240
Speaker 1: functional basketball lineups in the modern NBA require guys between

581
00:27:25,359 --> 00:27:28,199
Speaker 1: six four and six eight that can move and that

582
00:27:28,240 --> 00:27:31,240
Speaker 1: can guard multiple positions, run up and down the floor.

583
00:27:31,320 --> 00:27:33,480
Speaker 1: They don't even have to be able to knock down

584
00:27:33,560 --> 00:27:37,000
Speaker 1: a three necessarily, preferably you want them to be able to.

585
00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:40,639
Speaker 1: But Stanley Johnson's spacing did not hurt the team tonight

586
00:27:40,720 --> 00:27:43,880
Speaker 1: because of how much other good he brought to the table. Now,

587
00:27:44,040 --> 00:27:46,960
Speaker 1: the Lakers have two really good defensive forwards right now

588
00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:50,000
Speaker 1: and help and safety protocols in Austin Reeves and Trevor Resa.

589
00:27:50,240 --> 00:27:52,080
Speaker 1: So do they have as many forwards as I would

590
00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:54,199
Speaker 1: hope for them to have the way Golden State does? Know.

591
00:27:54,640 --> 00:27:57,040
Speaker 1: But in theory, again, if you're looking for some optimism here,

592
00:27:57,080 --> 00:28:00,240
Speaker 1: this is where you hope to God that Jennie us

593
00:28:00,720 --> 00:28:03,639
Speaker 1: is not going to pinch pennies on Stanley Johnson. The

594
00:28:03,720 --> 00:28:07,640
Speaker 1: obvious move here is to cut DeAndre Jordan or somebody

595
00:28:07,720 --> 00:28:09,560
Speaker 1: like that at the end of the bench and make

596
00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:12,119
Speaker 1: room for this guy. I know it's just one game,

597
00:28:12,440 --> 00:28:15,720
Speaker 1: but it's a it is a structural problem with this roster.

598
00:28:16,119 --> 00:28:18,840
Speaker 1: He fits a specific need and at the at the

599
00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:20,480
Speaker 1: end of the day, even if you keep him on

600
00:28:20,520 --> 00:28:22,840
Speaker 1: a non guaranteed deal, at least then you have the

601
00:28:22,840 --> 00:28:26,040
Speaker 1: flexibility to have him until a better option comes up.

602
00:28:26,320 --> 00:28:29,800
Speaker 1: But Stanley Johnson is the type of the archetype of

603
00:28:29,840 --> 00:28:33,040
Speaker 1: player that this team desperately needs in order to run

604
00:28:33,359 --> 00:28:36,440
Speaker 1: functional basketball lineups. And then, like I tweeted out earlier,

605
00:28:36,480 --> 00:28:39,040
Speaker 1: and this last thing I'll say about it, when you

606
00:28:39,400 --> 00:28:42,720
Speaker 1: there's there's one thing that is one thousand percent under control,

607
00:28:42,840 --> 00:28:45,000
Speaker 1: under your control in a basketball game, a bunch of

608
00:28:45,000 --> 00:28:48,040
Speaker 1: things that are out of your control knocking down shots.

609
00:28:48,080 --> 00:28:50,800
Speaker 1: That's that's the game, the game sort of thing. I mean, Heck,

610
00:28:50,800 --> 00:28:53,360
Speaker 1: we just watched against the Spurs the other night. We

611
00:28:53,400 --> 00:28:56,640
Speaker 1: watched Mellow and Wayne Ellington go to for eleven from three.

612
00:28:56,680 --> 00:28:59,240
Speaker 1: That's gonna happen sometimes. Those are two guys that have

613
00:28:59,320 --> 00:29:02,320
Speaker 1: been shooting of lights out when they're open this year,

614
00:29:02,560 --> 00:29:05,240
Speaker 1: and they didn't make shots. That that happens from time

615
00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:08,120
Speaker 1: to time. Layups sometimes lamps don't go in. We literally

616
00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:11,520
Speaker 1: watched the Lakers smoke like six layups tonight that rolled

617
00:29:11,520 --> 00:29:14,240
Speaker 1: in and out of the rim. That's unfortunate like that

618
00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:16,720
Speaker 1: that that I can't you can't necessarily control that, but

619
00:29:16,800 --> 00:29:20,680
Speaker 1: you can control your effort and attention to detail. That

620
00:29:20,800 --> 00:29:23,400
Speaker 1: is one thousand percent under your control. And when you

621
00:29:23,400 --> 00:29:27,479
Speaker 1: put in effort and attention to detail in combination with

622
00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:30,840
Speaker 1: size and athleticism, it is a guaranteed impact on a

623
00:29:30,840 --> 00:29:33,480
Speaker 1: basketball game. And you saw that with Stanley Johnson tonight

624
00:29:33,640 --> 00:29:37,040
Speaker 1: played his butt off, has great physical tools, automatic impact,

625
00:29:37,600 --> 00:29:39,200
Speaker 1: And so that that's the kind of thing that the

626
00:29:39,240 --> 00:29:42,000
Speaker 1: Lakers need to lean into more over the course of

627
00:29:42,040 --> 00:29:45,680
Speaker 1: the next couple of weeks. More Austin Reeves, more, drev Reason,

628
00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:49,240
Speaker 1: more Stanley Johnson. Those guys play hard. Those guys have

629
00:29:49,280 --> 00:29:52,080
Speaker 1: great physical tools, as Series doesn't even have great physical tools,

630
00:29:52,080 --> 00:29:55,520
Speaker 1: and it's still impacts the game because of how already tries.

631
00:29:55,600 --> 00:29:58,200
Speaker 1: So those that's the direction that the Lakers need to

632
00:29:58,240 --> 00:30:01,200
Speaker 1: lean into more. Yeah, and I want to start like

633
00:30:01,320 --> 00:30:03,440
Speaker 1: kind of macro here and then kind of go onto

634
00:30:03,480 --> 00:30:05,880
Speaker 1: the basketball court I feel like there's like a market

635
00:30:05,960 --> 00:30:10,080
Speaker 1: in efficiency, a little bit of like defensive minded players

636
00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:13,240
Speaker 1: who can't score right or who aren't offensive options or

637
00:30:13,280 --> 00:30:16,080
Speaker 1: even liabilities offensively, and I think we're kind of seeing

638
00:30:16,080 --> 00:30:18,160
Speaker 1: that around the league. GP two, right, is one guy

639
00:30:18,360 --> 00:30:20,840
Speaker 1: watching that Warrior Sons game, just seeing him impact the

640
00:30:20,840 --> 00:30:22,920
Speaker 1: game without really having a jump shot right at the

641
00:30:22,920 --> 00:30:27,040
Speaker 1: guard positions can guard one through five. Alex CRUs obviously

642
00:30:27,120 --> 00:30:29,000
Speaker 1: is kind of the face of that. Although he's gotten

643
00:30:29,000 --> 00:30:31,959
Speaker 1: better offensively, and not to give Stanley Johnson because it's

644
00:30:32,000 --> 00:30:34,480
Speaker 1: been one game, I think it's easier, easiest for us,

645
00:30:34,480 --> 00:30:36,320
Speaker 1: and he played really well tonight, and I think he

646
00:30:36,360 --> 00:30:39,400
Speaker 1: has defensive skills that kind of can translate what this

647
00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:41,400
Speaker 1: team needs. We have to see it a little bit

648
00:30:41,400 --> 00:30:43,840
Speaker 1: more consistently. Right, Let's see if he can keep that

649
00:30:43,960 --> 00:30:46,560
Speaker 1: up going forward. But again, just guys who are He's

650
00:30:46,560 --> 00:30:48,160
Speaker 1: not going to be an offensive threat. And I don't

651
00:30:48,200 --> 00:30:50,480
Speaker 1: even think he has to have a jumper Jason for

652
00:30:50,520 --> 00:30:52,520
Speaker 1: this for him to be successful on this team. We

653
00:30:52,600 --> 00:30:55,680
Speaker 1: have enough scoring options on this team, and it was

654
00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:58,560
Speaker 1: nice just to have a guy who's defensive minded, right,

655
00:30:58,560 --> 00:31:02,240
Speaker 1: who's defensive for who's that's what he puts his money

656
00:31:02,280 --> 00:31:04,560
Speaker 1: into right, that's what his heart had kind of goes to.

657
00:31:04,680 --> 00:31:07,840
Speaker 1: It's onto defense and watching him in the isolation defense

658
00:31:07,840 --> 00:31:10,720
Speaker 1: against James Harden, that got me excited and reminded me

659
00:31:10,760 --> 00:31:12,960
Speaker 1: of the twenty nine team, and we continue to latch

660
00:31:13,000 --> 00:31:15,520
Speaker 1: onto that because that was kind of our last positive.

661
00:31:15,560 --> 00:31:17,840
Speaker 1: I guess, look at this team after a d got

662
00:31:17,920 --> 00:31:20,560
Speaker 1: hurt um in February last year. But just going back

663
00:31:20,560 --> 00:31:23,840
Speaker 1: to that, defensive minded guys watching him mirror James Harden, right,

664
00:31:23,920 --> 00:31:26,960
Speaker 1: James Harden trying to cross him over and him matching. Uh,

665
00:31:27,040 --> 00:31:29,520
Speaker 1: you call it mirroring when you're guarding a guy defensively.

666
00:31:29,560 --> 00:31:32,240
Speaker 1: Just watching him do that fight on the rebound, fight

667
00:31:32,280 --> 00:31:34,400
Speaker 1: on the boards, man, and I thought he looked good.

668
00:31:34,440 --> 00:31:37,600
Speaker 1: And you're right, six eight physical wing. We're hoping Johnny

669
00:31:37,640 --> 00:31:39,239
Speaker 1: Brown could kind of be that, but I don't think

670
00:31:39,400 --> 00:31:42,440
Speaker 1: his body is ready or he's not NBA ready. Stanley

671
00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:45,400
Speaker 1: Johnson has been around the league enough where he's kind

672
00:31:45,440 --> 00:31:48,720
Speaker 1: of card his niche as a defensive player. Now, the

673
00:31:48,800 --> 00:31:51,600
Speaker 1: offensive limitations are why he's on the team, But I

674
00:31:51,640 --> 00:31:53,920
Speaker 1: think he is a good defensive player. I think he

675
00:31:53,960 --> 00:31:55,960
Speaker 1: can fit right in. And again, it's not like Stanley

676
00:31:56,000 --> 00:31:58,520
Speaker 1: Johnson's this great players just on this team. It stands

677
00:31:58,560 --> 00:32:00,600
Speaker 1: the hell out when you have all these small guards

678
00:32:00,640 --> 00:32:03,280
Speaker 1: that we're playing. We'll talk about Darren Collinson next. Who

679
00:32:03,360 --> 00:32:06,080
Speaker 1: he's actually listed at. Darren Collinson is listed at six ft.

680
00:32:06,120 --> 00:32:08,240
Speaker 1: Isaiah Tomas step five nine, so it's not like you're

681
00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:10,760
Speaker 1: getting so much more of a height advantage, and he

682
00:32:10,840 --> 00:32:13,400
Speaker 1: had some rough foul snipe. But man, Stanley Johnson, I'm

683
00:32:13,440 --> 00:32:15,440
Speaker 1: hoping he can kind of fit in. And it just

684
00:32:15,480 --> 00:32:17,520
Speaker 1: works when you have a guy who's defensive minded. You

685
00:32:17,520 --> 00:32:19,960
Speaker 1: could throw on James Harden where Lebron didn't have to

686
00:32:19,960 --> 00:32:22,280
Speaker 1: be that guy th HD with him being young, you

687
00:32:22,320 --> 00:32:24,760
Speaker 1: don't have to have him being the full guy defensively.

688
00:32:25,080 --> 00:32:26,600
Speaker 1: I thought it fit. I thought he was a big part.

689
00:32:26,640 --> 00:32:28,360
Speaker 1: I didn't get to look at his plus minus night.

690
00:32:28,600 --> 00:32:30,000
Speaker 1: I think it was pretty good. I thought he was

691
00:32:30,040 --> 00:32:32,720
Speaker 1: a part of all the runs we went on. He

692
00:32:32,840 --> 00:32:35,080
Speaker 1: just fits the archetype that this team needed. He's on

693
00:32:35,120 --> 00:32:37,040
Speaker 1: a two way. I think he's gonna stay on the

694
00:32:37,040 --> 00:32:39,440
Speaker 1: two way. I think Isaiah Thomas is probably done who

695
00:32:39,440 --> 00:32:43,120
Speaker 1: didn't play tonight, but yeah, his archetype just fits hard

696
00:32:43,120 --> 00:32:45,120
Speaker 1: working player and if he can if he can stick

697
00:32:45,560 --> 00:32:48,560
Speaker 1: him Reeves and Areza. And again, that's such a tough

698
00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:50,280
Speaker 1: thing to throw on a guy who wasn't in the

699
00:32:50,360 --> 00:32:52,920
Speaker 1: league a couple of weeks ago and an undrafted kid.

700
00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:55,160
Speaker 1: But that's kind of where at we're at right now.

701
00:32:55,200 --> 00:32:57,400
Speaker 1: We need guys who need to who need to play hard,

702
00:32:57,440 --> 00:33:00,360
Speaker 1: to go along with our young guards. But that's where

703
00:33:00,360 --> 00:33:02,280
Speaker 1: I think it is. I think there's a marketing efficiency

704
00:33:02,440 --> 00:33:04,240
Speaker 1: if we can kind of tap into that a little

705
00:33:04,240 --> 00:33:08,920
Speaker 1: bit um and tap into a few defensive minded players around,

706
00:33:09,000 --> 00:33:10,760
Speaker 1: you know, going small, because it feels like that's where

707
00:33:10,760 --> 00:33:12,800
Speaker 1: we're gonna go to. We're gonna go to Lebron at

708
00:33:12,800 --> 00:33:14,880
Speaker 1: the five a lot we went to Mellow at the

709
00:33:14,920 --> 00:33:18,080
Speaker 1: five with guys who just can't defend. You need some leading,

710
00:33:18,120 --> 00:33:20,560
Speaker 1: a little blend, a better blend of both, and I

711
00:33:20,560 --> 00:33:23,000
Speaker 1: think Stanley Johnson can fit in that. He was in

712
00:33:23,080 --> 00:33:25,240
Speaker 1: the league a couple of weeks ago. But this team

713
00:33:25,240 --> 00:33:27,520
Speaker 1: just is begging for an archetype like that, and hopefully

714
00:33:27,720 --> 00:33:31,960
Speaker 1: he sticks man. Ye I mean, you know, the coaching

715
00:33:32,000 --> 00:33:35,120
Speaker 1: staff is into under a tough predicament here. You know,

716
00:33:35,320 --> 00:33:38,520
Speaker 1: It's it's really easy for us from our couch to

717
00:33:38,560 --> 00:33:40,800
Speaker 1: say that we have better solutions, and I like to

718
00:33:40,840 --> 00:33:42,880
Speaker 1: think that we're right about some of the stuff. But

719
00:33:43,280 --> 00:33:45,280
Speaker 1: at the end of the day, like they were tossed

720
00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:50,360
Speaker 1: a uh like basically the residue of of a basketball

721
00:33:50,480 --> 00:33:53,240
Speaker 1: roster and then forced to add a bunch of guys

722
00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:55,520
Speaker 1: off the street into it and then try to win

723
00:33:55,560 --> 00:33:57,920
Speaker 1: basketball games. But now again, a lot of other teams

724
00:33:57,960 --> 00:34:01,040
Speaker 1: around the league are dealing with it similarly, but functionally

725
00:34:01,120 --> 00:34:02,840
Speaker 1: they have to come up with a better strategy than

726
00:34:02,840 --> 00:34:05,000
Speaker 1: what they've been coming up with. So, like we said,

727
00:34:05,320 --> 00:34:09,239
Speaker 1: Stagger Lebron and and Dwight, that Dwight, there's been a

728
00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:11,600
Speaker 1: lot of slander directed towards Dwight as a light the

729
00:34:11,680 --> 00:34:14,520
Speaker 1: dude was in COVID protocols and then came, you know,

730
00:34:14,640 --> 00:34:16,840
Speaker 1: just straight off the street to try to play against

731
00:34:16,840 --> 00:34:20,160
Speaker 1: san Antonio, excuse me, straight up more or less the

732
00:34:20,160 --> 00:34:22,600
Speaker 1: same because he was locked in the hotel room for

733
00:34:22,600 --> 00:34:26,360
Speaker 1: for ten days. So Dwight, after he gets back in

734
00:34:26,400 --> 00:34:29,160
Speaker 1: the lineup consistently, he's going to get back to what

735
00:34:29,239 --> 00:34:34,080
Speaker 1: he is, which is a perfectly fine backup center. Dwight

736
00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:37,920
Speaker 1: is a perfectly fine backup center. That's that is not

737
00:34:38,040 --> 00:34:40,319
Speaker 1: a weak point on the roster for us, But when

738
00:34:40,360 --> 00:34:43,839
Speaker 1: we start him, if we decided to start him and

739
00:34:43,880 --> 00:34:46,760
Speaker 1: then do a poor job of staggering him in Lebron

740
00:34:46,800 --> 00:34:50,359
Speaker 1: and now play Carmelo as center, Carmelo Anthony is a

741
00:34:50,480 --> 00:34:55,399
Speaker 1: terrible backup center, So that's where functionally make mistakes there.

742
00:34:55,440 --> 00:34:58,120
Speaker 1: And then you know, that concept of going with four

743
00:34:58,160 --> 00:35:00,880
Speaker 1: guards has to go away as we get our forwards

744
00:35:00,920 --> 00:35:03,640
Speaker 1: back right now, you know, I get it, you know,

745
00:35:04,000 --> 00:35:06,680
Speaker 1: like even though I personally wouldn't go with some of

746
00:35:06,719 --> 00:35:10,919
Speaker 1: those pairings, like I, I I get under the circumstances why

747
00:35:10,960 --> 00:35:14,719
Speaker 1: it at least was tried. But moving forward, if you

748
00:35:14,760 --> 00:35:18,320
Speaker 1: look at our roster build as now in the time

749
00:35:18,440 --> 00:35:20,560
Speaker 1: without Anthony Davis, if you look at it as a

750
00:35:20,560 --> 00:35:24,719
Speaker 1: simple breakdown of Lebron and Dwight our our centers, then

751
00:35:24,760 --> 00:35:27,120
Speaker 1: the rest of those minutes we have to put as

752
00:35:27,200 --> 00:35:29,600
Speaker 1: many of our wing players on the floor at any

753
00:35:29,600 --> 00:35:32,640
Speaker 1: given time, I mean those switchable, multiple position wings. So

754
00:35:32,960 --> 00:35:36,319
Speaker 1: Austin reeves th h T. I know THD continues to

755
00:35:36,400 --> 00:35:40,319
Speaker 1: struggle offensively, offensively, his fit makes absolutely no sense on

756
00:35:40,320 --> 00:35:42,000
Speaker 1: this team that it is what it is at this point.

757
00:35:42,000 --> 00:35:45,120
Speaker 1: But we can't trade until January. But he can guard

758
00:35:45,200 --> 00:35:47,680
Speaker 1: up and down a position. He still is a very

759
00:35:47,680 --> 00:35:52,400
Speaker 1: good defensive player. So him, Austin Reeves, Trevor Reasus, Stanley Johnson.

760
00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:58,800
Speaker 1: We have four completely functional, defensive, defensively versatile forwards. Those

761
00:35:58,800 --> 00:36:01,080
Speaker 1: guys have to take all the minutes at the three

762
00:36:01,120 --> 00:36:03,200
Speaker 1: and the four. Right now. There should never be a

763
00:36:03,239 --> 00:36:06,359
Speaker 1: lineup once Reeves gets out of protocols, once a Reason

764
00:36:06,440 --> 00:36:09,080
Speaker 1: gets out of protocols. There should never be a lineup

765
00:36:09,280 --> 00:36:11,759
Speaker 1: while Anthony Davis is injured where we don't have two

766
00:36:11,760 --> 00:36:14,080
Speaker 1: of those guys on the floor. That just ha, that's

767
00:36:14,080 --> 00:36:16,840
Speaker 1: how we can run functional basketball lineups. We have to

768
00:36:16,840 --> 00:36:20,120
Speaker 1: get away from this three guard lineup, four guard lineup stuff.

769
00:36:20,120 --> 00:36:22,840
Speaker 1: It just doesn't function without Anthony Davis. When Anthony Davis

770
00:36:22,880 --> 00:36:24,799
Speaker 1: is back, maybe you can go back to trying some

771
00:36:24,840 --> 00:36:26,840
Speaker 1: of that stuff. But even then I don't like it that.

772
00:36:26,920 --> 00:36:30,520
Speaker 1: The point is is we we have something here. Um,

773
00:36:30,719 --> 00:36:34,040
Speaker 1: we have enough when co when when the COVID protocol

774
00:36:34,480 --> 00:36:38,160
Speaker 1: losses are behind us, we have enough here to be

775
00:36:38,280 --> 00:36:40,840
Speaker 1: competitive with what we have even without Anthony Davis. We

776
00:36:40,880 --> 00:36:42,640
Speaker 1: just have to lean into those strengths. So it's gonna

777
00:36:42,640 --> 00:36:45,239
Speaker 1: be really frustrating for me and for you as well.

778
00:36:45,360 --> 00:36:48,160
Speaker 1: Rogers for all of us Laker fans is two weeks

779
00:36:48,160 --> 00:36:51,160
Speaker 1: from now, everyone's out of COVID protocols. Were in a

780
00:36:51,160 --> 00:36:54,120
Speaker 1: game against a good team and it's d White at

781
00:36:54,160 --> 00:36:57,319
Speaker 1: center with four guards, or it's Lebron and center with

782
00:36:57,320 --> 00:36:59,719
Speaker 1: four guards. That is not leaning into your strengths. At

783
00:36:59,719 --> 00:37:01,759
Speaker 1: that point, that is where we have to start having

784
00:37:01,840 --> 00:37:04,960
Speaker 1: questions about the coaching staff in doing their job, because

785
00:37:06,120 --> 00:37:09,600
Speaker 1: we're watching too many teams around the league succeed because

786
00:37:09,640 --> 00:37:12,520
Speaker 1: they lean into those things. The Sun's lean heavily into

787
00:37:12,800 --> 00:37:15,160
Speaker 1: Jay Crowder mcail bridges, Cam John's, the guys that are

788
00:37:15,440 --> 00:37:18,600
Speaker 1: big and can guard multiple positions. The Warriors are like

789
00:37:18,680 --> 00:37:21,880
Speaker 1: almost entirely made up of that type of player. That

790
00:37:21,920 --> 00:37:25,520
Speaker 1: has to be the direction we lean into and we

791
00:37:25,520 --> 00:37:28,080
Speaker 1: we we actually is as long as they keep Stanley,

792
00:37:28,080 --> 00:37:31,800
Speaker 1: which I'm hoping they will, we have enough. I prefer

793
00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:35,520
Speaker 1: more depth, but we have enough there to to try

794
00:37:35,600 --> 00:37:38,799
Speaker 1: to run some functional modern basketball here for a month

795
00:37:38,800 --> 00:37:41,799
Speaker 1: without a D. Yeah, and you talked about the tough

796
00:37:41,840 --> 00:37:44,799
Speaker 1: decisions that the coaching staff has, and it is kind

797
00:37:44,800 --> 00:37:47,160
Speaker 1: of a push and pull right because you can't just

798
00:37:47,200 --> 00:37:50,600
Speaker 1: play all defensive lionps around them. That's the reason these

799
00:37:50,640 --> 00:37:53,279
Speaker 1: small guard lineups play because we need to score as

800
00:37:53,280 --> 00:37:55,520
Speaker 1: well when we're out there, right, and when Lebron's at

801
00:37:55,520 --> 00:37:58,200
Speaker 1: the five, you're kind of leaning into your offense. You're

802
00:37:58,200 --> 00:38:00,279
Speaker 1: trying to run and it's hard to do that. Off

803
00:38:00,400 --> 00:38:02,640
Speaker 1: makes obviously, but that's the push and pull that the

804
00:38:02,640 --> 00:38:05,000
Speaker 1: coaching staff is going to have to play. I think

805
00:38:05,040 --> 00:38:07,520
Speaker 1: it's tough when we're playing all these different lineups as

806
00:38:07,520 --> 00:38:11,000
Speaker 1: well to try to be cohesive. Like like like tonight,

807
00:38:11,040 --> 00:38:13,319
Speaker 1: our game plan was to trap James Harden, right, trap,

808
00:38:13,320 --> 00:38:15,400
Speaker 1: trap James Harden at the top and then try to

809
00:38:15,480 --> 00:38:17,560
Speaker 1: rotate out of that, and you have to be in

810
00:38:17,719 --> 00:38:20,280
Speaker 1: somewhat in sync to do that, and we were lost

811
00:38:20,320 --> 00:38:23,560
Speaker 1: all over the place. The effort kind of uh, the

812
00:38:23,880 --> 00:38:26,160
Speaker 1: effort double down on that made that a lot tougher.

813
00:38:26,239 --> 00:38:28,120
Speaker 1: But we were trying to trap, and even when James

814
00:38:28,160 --> 00:38:29,880
Speaker 1: Harden was out of the game, I tweeted once we

815
00:38:29,960 --> 00:38:32,200
Speaker 1: trapped Patty Mills at the top just because that's what

816
00:38:32,239 --> 00:38:34,640
Speaker 1: we were doing. So we just were trapping. James Harden

817
00:38:34,640 --> 00:38:36,359
Speaker 1: went off the floor and we still decided to trap

818
00:38:36,400 --> 00:38:38,840
Speaker 1: at the top. I think James Johnson drove and got

819
00:38:38,920 --> 00:38:41,160
Speaker 1: to lay up off of it. Or got fouled. But yeah,

820
00:38:41,160 --> 00:38:43,480
Speaker 1: there's stuff like that that would like to see cleaned up.

821
00:38:43,480 --> 00:38:45,719
Speaker 1: But it's rough when you're throwing you guys in every

822
00:38:45,719 --> 00:38:48,720
Speaker 1: single day, um, and you're trying to fit these defensive

823
00:38:48,760 --> 00:38:51,000
Speaker 1: guys in now because you realize the roster you have

824
00:38:51,440 --> 00:38:54,040
Speaker 1: isn't good enough, right Deandi Jordan's healthy, Roger and Rondo

825
00:38:54,160 --> 00:38:56,520
Speaker 1: is healthy. Those are guys you you know, put roster

826
00:38:56,600 --> 00:38:59,160
Speaker 1: spots to who just can't play even though we have

827
00:38:59,239 --> 00:39:01,839
Speaker 1: no wings or you know, guards that are able to play.

828
00:39:01,880 --> 00:39:03,920
Speaker 1: We're signing guards off at ten days, we're signing you

829
00:39:03,960 --> 00:39:05,840
Speaker 1: know what I mean. Like, it's just that means you

830
00:39:05,880 --> 00:39:08,600
Speaker 1: have a roster kind of problem here, and maybe that's

831
00:39:08,640 --> 00:39:10,879
Speaker 1: just solved by getting a d back, getting Reeves back,

832
00:39:10,920 --> 00:39:13,440
Speaker 1: getting a reason bag. Um. That's the tough part about it,

833
00:39:13,480 --> 00:39:16,080
Speaker 1: throwing these guys into it. Stanley Johnson, I want to

834
00:39:16,080 --> 00:39:18,200
Speaker 1: ask you about, you know, Darren Coulinson, because I think

835
00:39:18,200 --> 00:39:22,240
Speaker 1: it's interesting he played a lot with Russ and Lebron tonight,

836
00:39:22,320 --> 00:39:25,480
Speaker 1: which kind of confused me, and it worked a little bit.

837
00:39:25,480 --> 00:39:27,480
Speaker 1: You saw Darren Coulinson able to push the ball right

838
00:39:27,560 --> 00:39:30,080
Speaker 1: and have Russ and Lebron work as wings. So you

839
00:39:30,120 --> 00:39:32,480
Speaker 1: have instead of Russ or Lebron running the break, you

840
00:39:32,520 --> 00:39:34,359
Speaker 1: have Russ and Lebron as the wings on the break

841
00:39:34,400 --> 00:39:37,360
Speaker 1: where Jarn Darren Coulinson is in the middle making decisions.

842
00:39:37,520 --> 00:39:39,120
Speaker 1: He had some bad fouls tonight. I thought some of

843
00:39:39,120 --> 00:39:41,120
Speaker 1: them could have went the other way. You tweeted about

844
00:39:41,120 --> 00:39:42,880
Speaker 1: one of them where the shooter kind of jumps into it.

845
00:39:43,080 --> 00:39:48,239
Speaker 1: Don't have to get into that, but no, no, no,

846
00:39:48,600 --> 00:39:50,520
Speaker 1: until you get that, those are rough calls. Man. You

847
00:39:51,000 --> 00:39:54,640
Speaker 1: have to give a shoot never mind not good at that. Yeah, yeah, yeah,

848
00:39:54,640 --> 00:39:57,280
Speaker 1: some other time, but after the game against like Sacramento

849
00:39:57,400 --> 00:40:01,480
Speaker 1: or something, you can get into the exactly. Yeah. Yeah.

850
00:40:01,480 --> 00:40:03,720
Speaker 1: But I thought Darren Collinson, now it's an interesting player

851
00:40:03,800 --> 00:40:07,080
Speaker 1: because he kind of is building on stuff we already have.

852
00:40:07,239 --> 00:40:09,440
Speaker 1: Right when you have milnk Monk already, when you you know,

853
00:40:09,480 --> 00:40:11,319
Speaker 1: have Kendrick and I coming back, and then you throw

854
00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:13,719
Speaker 1: Darren Collinson into it. You also have t Hd who

855
00:40:13,719 --> 00:40:15,960
Speaker 1: wants to be a ball handler. He's a high basketball

856
00:40:16,040 --> 00:40:17,920
Speaker 1: que guy. That was a very good player. You know,

857
00:40:18,760 --> 00:40:21,600
Speaker 1: I think it's three seasons ago, but two years ago.

858
00:40:21,760 --> 00:40:24,680
Speaker 1: I think that's the correct math if I'm doing that right. Um,

859
00:40:24,719 --> 00:40:27,440
Speaker 1: his last game was in, so I think I'm doing

860
00:40:27,440 --> 00:40:28,919
Speaker 1: that math right. But what do you see from Darren

861
00:40:28,920 --> 00:40:31,319
Speaker 1: Coulson tonight? Because I think it's interesting kind of why

862
00:40:31,400 --> 00:40:34,279
Speaker 1: they signed him, right, and they went after him. They've

863
00:40:34,280 --> 00:40:36,880
Speaker 1: been courting for a while, but you already had Isadiah Thomas,

864
00:40:36,920 --> 00:40:39,680
Speaker 1: and obviously that that experiment looks like it's over. But

865
00:40:39,760 --> 00:40:42,319
Speaker 1: what do you think of Darren Coulinson's Darren Coulson's played.

866
00:40:42,480 --> 00:40:45,239
Speaker 1: I loved Darren Collinson's game, and I've loved him ever

867
00:40:45,280 --> 00:40:47,640
Speaker 1: since the Lakers were initially interested in him in the

868
00:40:48,320 --> 00:40:51,920
Speaker 1: season when he was contemplating returning. The thing. The thing

869
00:40:51,920 --> 00:40:54,160
Speaker 1: with Darren Colson because like what he brings to the

870
00:40:54,200 --> 00:40:58,800
Speaker 1: table is is just grown up, veteran professional point guard basketball,

871
00:40:58,920 --> 00:41:02,120
Speaker 1: like just as perhaps Lute dead eye spot up shooter

872
00:41:02,320 --> 00:41:04,960
Speaker 1: when he was in his prime, and like when he's

873
00:41:05,040 --> 00:41:08,040
Speaker 1: wide open, like he just was a reliable spot up shooter.

874
00:41:08,400 --> 00:41:10,400
Speaker 1: He can get your team into the sets, he doesn't

875
00:41:10,440 --> 00:41:14,640
Speaker 1: make mistakes, he runs just grown up basketball offense, and

876
00:41:14,640 --> 00:41:18,080
Speaker 1: then he can defend his position. Fine. Um. The problem

877
00:41:18,120 --> 00:41:21,480
Speaker 1: with Isaiah Thomas is like I'd love for them to

878
00:41:21,520 --> 00:41:23,719
Speaker 1: swap him out for Rondo just because I think he's

879
00:41:23,719 --> 00:41:26,479
Speaker 1: a better basketball option. But the truth of the matter

880
00:41:26,560 --> 00:41:28,719
Speaker 1: is he just doesn't offer anything to this team when

881
00:41:28,719 --> 00:41:31,759
Speaker 1: their whole the The only way you could talk me

882
00:41:31,800 --> 00:41:34,239
Speaker 1: into that potentially be making a lot of sense, as

883
00:41:34,280 --> 00:41:39,720
Speaker 1: if they you know, we had we had that Sham's

884
00:41:39,760 --> 00:41:44,400
Speaker 1: clip when um, you know, shortly after the Anthony Davis's injury,

885
00:41:44,400 --> 00:41:47,000
Speaker 1: when there was some stupid rumors going around that Lebron

886
00:41:47,120 --> 00:41:49,480
Speaker 1: was eyeing going to Cleveland or some stupid crap like that,

887
00:41:49,520 --> 00:41:52,440
Speaker 1: when which which I originally like, immediately was like, well,

888
00:41:52,480 --> 00:41:55,319
Speaker 1: that's not happening because we all just know Lebron's kids

889
00:41:55,320 --> 00:41:56,960
Speaker 1: are all going to see your Kane and he he

890
00:41:57,120 --> 00:41:58,920
Speaker 1: just Lebron just loves it in l a that was

891
00:41:58,960 --> 00:42:01,680
Speaker 1: never was, never wherever gonna happen. He's he's way too

892
00:42:01,680 --> 00:42:03,640
Speaker 1: happy where he is. I'd be shocked if he ever

893
00:42:03,719 --> 00:42:06,239
Speaker 1: wants to play for anybody else. But that's it. In

894
00:42:06,280 --> 00:42:09,000
Speaker 1: that report from Shams, he comes out and says they're

895
00:42:09,000 --> 00:42:11,719
Speaker 1: extremely active in the trade market, and he explicitly brought

896
00:42:11,760 --> 00:42:13,719
Speaker 1: up Jeremy Grant, which is somebody that you and I

897
00:42:13,760 --> 00:42:16,239
Speaker 1: have talked about a million times this year. If you

898
00:42:16,400 --> 00:42:19,600
Speaker 1: think that you're like if Rob Polinka is in his

899
00:42:19,800 --> 00:42:22,719
Speaker 1: in in his office going, we are for sure going

900
00:42:22,760 --> 00:42:25,520
Speaker 1: to trade Kendrick Nunn and t HD for Jeremy Grant

901
00:42:25,880 --> 00:42:28,480
Speaker 1: and you're dropping two guards and bringing back and forward.

902
00:42:28,520 --> 00:42:31,719
Speaker 1: Then yeah, Darren Collison fits into that picture at that point,

903
00:42:31,760 --> 00:42:35,480
Speaker 1: at least as a good backup guard, depth option. It's

904
00:42:35,480 --> 00:42:40,359
Speaker 1: just hard to imagine the Genie Bus shedding a guaranteed

905
00:42:40,400 --> 00:42:44,640
Speaker 1: contract like Gray Jean Rondo uh In in his role

906
00:42:45,360 --> 00:42:47,960
Speaker 1: to pay for a guy like Darren Collison and stick

907
00:42:47,960 --> 00:42:49,600
Speaker 1: around the rest of the season. But I love his fit.

908
00:42:49,800 --> 00:42:53,480
Speaker 1: He's also a guy to Darren's Stanley Johnson because he's

909
00:42:53,560 --> 00:42:56,480
Speaker 1: young and so athletic. He can come off the street

910
00:42:57,160 --> 00:42:59,920
Speaker 1: and have success in a role like what he had tonight.

911
00:43:00,040 --> 00:43:03,319
Speaker 1: Darren Carlson was obviously going to look a little rough

912
00:43:03,360 --> 00:43:06,919
Speaker 1: around the edges. He's he's a small guard who hasn't

913
00:43:06,960 --> 00:43:10,120
Speaker 1: played NBA basketball in almost three years, so that that

914
00:43:10,280 --> 00:43:12,879
Speaker 1: obviously was gonna be a thing with him. My thing

915
00:43:12,960 --> 00:43:15,439
Speaker 1: is like, it only makes sense to bring it back

916
00:43:15,480 --> 00:43:17,080
Speaker 1: if you know you're going to trade a bunch of

917
00:43:17,080 --> 00:43:20,640
Speaker 1: guards for uh for another forward and you think of

918
00:43:20,719 --> 00:43:22,480
Speaker 1: him as debt. I'm with you at that point, But

919
00:43:22,719 --> 00:43:25,720
Speaker 1: Genie's gonna have some tough decisions to make here because

920
00:43:26,600 --> 00:43:30,719
Speaker 1: I think you have to keep Stanley and you just

921
00:43:30,760 --> 00:43:33,359
Speaker 1: can't do I think they have one roster spot left.

922
00:43:33,400 --> 00:43:36,719
Speaker 1: But my guess is they're like the Genie's gonna have

923
00:43:36,719 --> 00:43:38,399
Speaker 1: to make some tough decisions here about what she wants

924
00:43:38,440 --> 00:43:40,560
Speaker 1: to spend, like how much does she feel like spending

925
00:43:40,600 --> 00:43:43,280
Speaker 1: to try to keep this this train on the tracks,

926
00:43:43,480 --> 00:43:46,600
Speaker 1: you know. But I love Darren Carlson's game. Like I said,

927
00:43:46,600 --> 00:43:49,719
Speaker 1: it's just if you're the only way it's gonna work

928
00:43:49,760 --> 00:43:51,440
Speaker 1: out for him in l A Is if he stays

929
00:43:51,440 --> 00:43:53,760
Speaker 1: here for more than ten days, because as a small

930
00:43:53,800 --> 00:43:56,439
Speaker 1: guard who hasn't played NBA basketball basketball in a while,

931
00:43:56,520 --> 00:43:58,520
Speaker 1: he's just not gonna he's not gonna just pick it

932
00:43:58,600 --> 00:44:01,240
Speaker 1: up like he's riding a bike, you know, and mean, yeah,

933
00:44:01,280 --> 00:44:04,239
Speaker 1: he's to me, he's Kendrick Nunn insurance, Like that's kind

934
00:44:04,239 --> 00:44:06,839
Speaker 1: of what I see him as. And he gives another guy.

935
00:44:07,280 --> 00:44:08,799
Speaker 1: And just to go on your point about you know,

936
00:44:08,880 --> 00:44:10,680
Speaker 1: Genie and keeping and I don't want to get into

937
00:44:10,680 --> 00:44:13,359
Speaker 1: all that, but just how just how the rotations are

938
00:44:13,440 --> 00:44:16,760
Speaker 1: kind of going right DeAndre Jordan's we had no centers available,

939
00:44:16,800 --> 00:44:19,800
Speaker 1: DeAndre Dwight Howard couldn't play in the second half, DeAndre

940
00:44:19,840 --> 00:44:21,920
Speaker 1: Jordan couldn't get off the bench. Like, to me, that's

941
00:44:22,000 --> 00:44:23,799
Speaker 1: kind of if you can read through the lines there,

942
00:44:23,840 --> 00:44:25,880
Speaker 1: I'm kind of seeing where this is going. But Jarren

943
00:44:25,880 --> 00:44:28,000
Speaker 1: Collinson again gives us a guy with the midrange kind

944
00:44:28,000 --> 00:44:29,919
Speaker 1: of game, right, he can come off screens and pull

945
00:44:30,000 --> 00:44:32,279
Speaker 1: up and to me, that's something we're missing. And they're

946
00:44:32,280 --> 00:44:34,680
Speaker 1: obviously looking for some guards scoring, right, you don't go

947
00:44:34,680 --> 00:44:37,080
Speaker 1: out and get Isaiah Thomas. And the issue with Isaiah

948
00:44:37,080 --> 00:44:40,440
Speaker 1: Thomas is if he's not scoring, because he's a shoot first, second,

949
00:44:40,440 --> 00:44:42,400
Speaker 1: and third guy, right, and you know that's what he

950
00:44:42,400 --> 00:44:44,240
Speaker 1: should be. He's a five nine guard in the league.

951
00:44:44,239 --> 00:44:46,400
Speaker 1: You have to make your impact offensively. That's just what

952
00:44:46,440 --> 00:44:48,319
Speaker 1: it is. He comes off any kind of screen, he's

953
00:44:48,320 --> 00:44:50,520
Speaker 1: gonna shoot. He's not trying to play make you know,

954
00:44:50,600 --> 00:44:53,120
Speaker 1: he's not really trying to drive and kick and all that.

955
00:44:53,160 --> 00:44:55,000
Speaker 1: He's I'm getting to my spot and pulling up or

956
00:44:55,000 --> 00:44:57,319
Speaker 1: I'm pulling up from three. Darren Collinson is a little

957
00:44:57,320 --> 00:44:59,880
Speaker 1: bit more of you talked about it for general point guard, right,

958
00:44:59,880 --> 00:45:02,040
Speaker 1: he is more of like he can he can create

959
00:45:02,080 --> 00:45:03,440
Speaker 1: and That's why I'd kind of like to see him

960
00:45:03,560 --> 00:45:05,839
Speaker 1: in the second unit. I think him and Malik Monk

961
00:45:05,960 --> 00:45:07,600
Speaker 1: is a kind of fun mix if you can have

962
00:45:07,719 --> 00:45:10,080
Speaker 1: enough defense around him. Him and th Ht I think

963
00:45:10,200 --> 00:45:13,640
Speaker 1: is interesting. Again, I wanted Darren Carlinson when the Lakers

964
00:45:13,680 --> 00:45:16,279
Speaker 1: recording him the twenty nineteen. I think people forget he

965
00:45:16,280 --> 00:45:18,600
Speaker 1: was about to get a big contract that summer. He's

966
00:45:18,640 --> 00:45:21,440
Speaker 1: just a solid guard. You said, growing up basketball. I

967
00:45:21,440 --> 00:45:23,880
Speaker 1: think that fits so well. He reminds me of like

968
00:45:23,880 --> 00:45:26,960
Speaker 1: Wayne Ellington. It's not the same archetype. Ellington is a

969
00:45:27,000 --> 00:45:29,960
Speaker 1: straight shooter, but they're both growing up basketball players. Right.

970
00:45:29,960 --> 00:45:33,800
Speaker 1: They're not high risk. They're very low risk, low reward

971
00:45:33,920 --> 00:45:35,680
Speaker 1: kind of players, right. They just play the right way.

972
00:45:35,760 --> 00:45:38,640
Speaker 1: Jarren Carlson, he's lost a step that's expected for me.

973
00:45:38,760 --> 00:45:40,719
Speaker 1: Um and I want to give him some time as well,

974
00:45:40,760 --> 00:45:43,680
Speaker 1: because they're obviously searching for guard depth. Fear you don't

975
00:45:43,680 --> 00:45:45,239
Speaker 1: go out and get those two guys. But I think

976
00:45:45,280 --> 00:45:47,560
Speaker 1: it's interesting. I think he's gonna play UM and I

977
00:45:47,560 --> 00:45:49,880
Speaker 1: think he can fit grown up basketball player. He's thirty

978
00:45:49,880 --> 00:45:52,640
Speaker 1: four now, but I mean Carmel's thirty seven, you know,

979
00:45:52,760 --> 00:45:55,160
Speaker 1: so it's not like he's the oldest in the bunch.

980
00:45:55,200 --> 00:45:56,960
Speaker 1: But I like his game too. It's a grown up,

981
00:45:57,000 --> 00:45:59,879
Speaker 1: adult game. It's nice to have a controlled ball hand

982
00:46:00,000 --> 00:46:02,120
Speaker 1: it right. Rust For all the good he brings, he's

983
00:46:02,200 --> 00:46:05,080
Speaker 1: very still a chaotic ball handler. He's a chaotic player.

984
00:46:05,120 --> 00:46:06,560
Speaker 1: It's nice to have a guy you just give it

985
00:46:06,640 --> 00:46:08,960
Speaker 1: Dann Collison. Little ball screen at the top, make the

986
00:46:09,040 --> 00:46:12,080
Speaker 1: simple read, the simple bounce pass, or the simple skip

987
00:46:12,080 --> 00:46:15,200
Speaker 1: pass to the corner, or skips like simple plays, or

988
00:46:15,200 --> 00:46:16,920
Speaker 1: the simple pull up jumper in the mid range if

989
00:46:16,920 --> 00:46:19,440
Speaker 1: it's open. Just stuff that he can read. High basketby

990
00:46:19,440 --> 00:46:21,239
Speaker 1: i Q player and I think, I think it'll be

991
00:46:21,280 --> 00:46:23,520
Speaker 1: fine for for a guy until you know, Kendrick Nunn

992
00:46:23,600 --> 00:46:27,640
Speaker 1: can can come back whenever he does. Yeah with you,

993
00:46:27,880 --> 00:46:29,719
Speaker 1: um I wanted to hit one last thing before we

994
00:46:29,760 --> 00:46:31,279
Speaker 1: get out of your guys, and thank you all for

995
00:46:31,600 --> 00:46:34,800
Speaker 1: hanging out with us on Christmas night like this, um,

996
00:46:34,840 --> 00:46:36,640
Speaker 1: as is usually the case, I want to end on

997
00:46:36,800 --> 00:46:41,279
Speaker 1: just a little positive note and the my one, you know,

998
00:46:41,360 --> 00:46:44,279
Speaker 1: saving grace here. The thing I'm clinging to is the

999
00:46:44,320 --> 00:46:47,080
Speaker 1: fact that Lebron continues to look like he's very firmly

1000
00:46:47,120 --> 00:46:49,200
Speaker 1: in the conversation for the best players in the world.

1001
00:46:49,480 --> 00:46:53,000
Speaker 1: He continues to look absolutely incredible. That's three, right. I

1002
00:46:53,040 --> 00:46:56,439
Speaker 1: think it was immediately after the Patty Mills three that

1003
00:46:56,920 --> 00:47:00,440
Speaker 1: put them up five. Lebron comes down in knocks down

1004
00:47:00,520 --> 00:47:04,719
Speaker 1: a forty footer when the net spots of switch on

1005
00:47:04,760 --> 00:47:06,520
Speaker 1: the perimeter. Did you see that? That was just like,

1006
00:47:06,960 --> 00:47:09,839
Speaker 1: that's just like a that's like an f you, I'm

1007
00:47:09,880 --> 00:47:11,840
Speaker 1: the best player on the floor type of shot. And

1008
00:47:11,880 --> 00:47:14,239
Speaker 1: it was. It was just unbelievable stuff from Lebron. And

1009
00:47:14,280 --> 00:47:17,240
Speaker 1: when you pair that with the fact that the Lakers

1010
00:47:17,320 --> 00:47:20,879
Speaker 1: do have some flexibility in the sense that like, as

1011
00:47:20,920 --> 00:47:23,799
Speaker 1: as bad as THHD looks, I do think that he

1012
00:47:24,000 --> 00:47:27,919
Speaker 1: is a trade asset around the league. And I when

1013
00:47:27,920 --> 00:47:30,560
Speaker 1: you look at it from the perspective of Lebron, is

1014
00:47:30,560 --> 00:47:33,920
Speaker 1: still Lebron. A d has this time to get healthy.

1015
00:47:34,160 --> 00:47:37,200
Speaker 1: You have wings, not as many as I'd like, but

1016
00:47:37,320 --> 00:47:41,319
Speaker 1: you have wings. And this, the Stanley Johnson experiment, is

1017
00:47:41,320 --> 00:47:44,320
Speaker 1: a great example of the fact that even if Stanley

1018
00:47:44,360 --> 00:47:47,720
Speaker 1: doesn't stick around, maybe through the buyout market or something

1019
00:47:47,800 --> 00:47:50,640
Speaker 1: like that, or just in free agency through one of

1020
00:47:50,680 --> 00:47:53,520
Speaker 1: these other teams that signs a replacement player, maybe the

1021
00:47:53,600 --> 00:47:56,839
Speaker 1: Laker scouting department can find another somebody like that, there

1022
00:47:57,120 --> 00:48:01,560
Speaker 1: is there is enough good in the trash bag here

1023
00:48:01,960 --> 00:48:06,239
Speaker 1: that that I think. I think there's still a scenario

1024
00:48:06,400 --> 00:48:09,560
Speaker 1: where this all could kind of come together and become

1025
00:48:09,560 --> 00:48:12,440
Speaker 1: a legitimate championship contender. It's like, you know, there's a

1026
00:48:12,760 --> 00:48:16,920
Speaker 1: there's a big difference between optimism about the future and

1027
00:48:17,040 --> 00:48:19,759
Speaker 1: the way I feel about the team right now. You know,

1028
00:48:19,800 --> 00:48:22,000
Speaker 1: because I get made fun of a lot by all

1029
00:48:22,040 --> 00:48:23,839
Speaker 1: of you guys for being so optimistic all the time.

1030
00:48:24,040 --> 00:48:26,440
Speaker 1: I know we sucked. You don't think I know we sucked.

1031
00:48:26,480 --> 00:48:29,600
Speaker 1: I have I have eyes, but I literally I played

1032
00:48:29,680 --> 00:48:31,960
Speaker 1: I played basketball college, I coach kids now like all

1033
00:48:32,000 --> 00:48:34,399
Speaker 1: I do. I live and breathe this game every day

1034
00:48:34,400 --> 00:48:36,480
Speaker 1: of my life. And I know what I'm watching. I'm

1035
00:48:36,480 --> 00:48:41,480
Speaker 1: watching absolute trash basketball. I get it. But that said,

1036
00:48:42,080 --> 00:48:46,680
Speaker 1: there is still in this trash bag a concoction that

1037
00:48:46,719 --> 00:48:50,040
Speaker 1: could work and until like, like I said, I will

1038
00:48:50,080 --> 00:48:52,399
Speaker 1: give up the faith when Lebron and a d can't

1039
00:48:52,400 --> 00:48:54,879
Speaker 1: finish playoff games because I'm still a believer. You can

1040
00:48:55,120 --> 00:48:57,480
Speaker 1: plug in a guy off the street like Stanley Johnson

1041
00:48:57,880 --> 00:49:01,680
Speaker 1: into a role and it were because Lebron is Lebron

1042
00:49:01,800 --> 00:49:05,120
Speaker 1: ng all over the Brooklyn nets, right that that to

1043
00:49:05,160 --> 00:49:08,360
Speaker 1: me is is always going to be a working formula.

1044
00:49:08,440 --> 00:49:12,399
Speaker 1: So I remain optimistic in the sense that this is

1045
00:49:12,600 --> 00:49:16,520
Speaker 1: an achievable thing, but a lot of stuff has to change.

1046
00:49:16,560 --> 00:49:21,319
Speaker 1: Just starts with getting everybody back out of COVID protocols.

1047
00:49:21,920 --> 00:49:26,799
Speaker 1: Then from their play functional lineups. Stop starting a big

1048
00:49:26,800 --> 00:49:29,200
Speaker 1: man with Russ and Pht. It just can't do it.

1049
00:49:29,719 --> 00:49:32,440
Speaker 1: And then from there lean into your strengths, play more

1050
00:49:32,440 --> 00:49:36,560
Speaker 1: of your wings, and get continuity. With guys getting to

1051
00:49:36,600 --> 00:49:39,680
Speaker 1: play together every night, they will start to discover a

1052
00:49:39,719 --> 00:49:42,360
Speaker 1: formula that works for them. And then you just plug

1053
00:49:42,400 --> 00:49:46,680
Speaker 1: Anthony Davison. Because Anthony Davis is the easiest plug and

1054
00:49:46,719 --> 00:49:50,520
Speaker 1: play basketball player ever, because he can defend literally one

1055
00:49:50,520 --> 00:49:53,359
Speaker 1: through five. He can attack close outs, he can play

1056
00:49:53,360 --> 00:49:55,520
Speaker 1: on the perimeter, he can play from the post. He

1057
00:49:55,680 --> 00:49:58,080
Speaker 1: is the easiest plug and play guy. So this is

1058
00:49:58,120 --> 00:50:02,400
Speaker 1: the perfect opportunity to build a working identity and just

1059
00:50:02,480 --> 00:50:05,320
Speaker 1: get it humming on all cylinders and then just plug

1060
00:50:05,360 --> 00:50:08,719
Speaker 1: Anthony Davis back in. Yeah, so I'm gonna kind of

1061
00:50:08,719 --> 00:50:11,160
Speaker 1: bring this to the previous game. I was watching so

1062
00:50:11,200 --> 00:50:13,879
Speaker 1: the Warriors Sons game, right, and again I said, we're

1063
00:50:13,920 --> 00:50:16,719
Speaker 1: playing nowhere near close to this kind of basketball that

1064
00:50:16,800 --> 00:50:18,680
Speaker 1: kind of top to your basketball. But I tweeted out,

1065
00:50:18,920 --> 00:50:20,719
Speaker 1: I would like to see Lebron and Nadi healthy. You

1066
00:50:20,760 --> 00:50:22,640
Speaker 1: get a chance at those two teams, right, And people

1067
00:50:22,640 --> 00:50:24,319
Speaker 1: are like, are you crazy? Have you watched the team

1068
00:50:24,320 --> 00:50:27,120
Speaker 1: this year? But you know, playoff basketball is different. It

1069
00:50:27,200 --> 00:50:29,080
Speaker 1: is very match up hunting. And at the end of

1070
00:50:29,120 --> 00:50:31,080
Speaker 1: that game, you know, Chris Paul and Devin Booker had

1071
00:50:31,120 --> 00:50:33,520
Speaker 1: a tough time getting shots up right, and we talked

1072
00:50:33,520 --> 00:50:36,560
Speaker 1: about shock creation and how important that is, and playoff

1073
00:50:36,600 --> 00:50:39,520
Speaker 1: basketball does come down to, you know, what your stars

1074
00:50:39,560 --> 00:50:43,279
Speaker 1: can do, what your stars can create when defenses are

1075
00:50:43,320 --> 00:50:45,319
Speaker 1: locked in. And I thought that Sons Worriors game where

1076
00:50:45,320 --> 00:50:47,600
Speaker 1: it was as close to a playoff game as I've

1077
00:50:47,600 --> 00:50:49,880
Speaker 1: seen this year. Both teams were locked in, and I

1078
00:50:49,920 --> 00:50:52,520
Speaker 1: think that's still where the hope, I guess is for

1079
00:50:52,560 --> 00:50:55,520
Speaker 1: this team. It's easy to lose track now, I mean,

1080
00:50:55,640 --> 00:50:58,120
Speaker 1: but you know, the last playoff we've seen, leron Nadye

1081
00:50:58,160 --> 00:51:00,000
Speaker 1: were able to kind of take over, and again, we're

1082
00:51:00,120 --> 00:51:02,319
Speaker 1: so far from that. It's tough to even watch those

1083
00:51:02,360 --> 00:51:05,360
Speaker 1: games because the roster has you know, turned over so much.

1084
00:51:05,719 --> 00:51:07,879
Speaker 1: But you're right, that's where the positivity and that's where

1085
00:51:07,880 --> 00:51:09,960
Speaker 1: the hope still is. You kind of have to, you know,

1086
00:51:10,040 --> 00:51:12,480
Speaker 1: screen your eyes now to see it, just because the

1087
00:51:12,560 --> 00:51:15,359
Speaker 1: situations that we've been in. Anthony Davis won't be here

1088
00:51:15,640 --> 00:51:19,279
Speaker 1: until February UM and Lebron, Yeah, Lebron looks incredible. I

1089
00:51:19,280 --> 00:51:22,279
Speaker 1: think it's disappointing. He's played his ass off for the

1090
00:51:22,360 --> 00:51:24,719
Speaker 1: last five games or four games or whatever it is.

1091
00:51:24,920 --> 00:51:27,239
Speaker 1: We've lost every single one of them, and I thought,

1092
00:51:27,280 --> 00:51:28,920
Speaker 1: you know, that that's rough for him to, you know,

1093
00:51:28,960 --> 00:51:32,319
Speaker 1: put effort into that and us losing that way. But yeah,

1094
00:51:32,320 --> 00:51:34,640
Speaker 1: that's where the hope just comes in. Man if Lebron

1095
00:51:34,640 --> 00:51:37,000
Speaker 1: and a d can still be themselves, because that's what

1096
00:51:37,040 --> 00:51:40,040
Speaker 1: playoff basketball comes down to. It comes down to can

1097
00:51:40,120 --> 00:51:42,839
Speaker 1: your worst players switch on my best player? Right, Let's

1098
00:51:42,880 --> 00:51:46,120
Speaker 1: basically what playof basketball is. Can your lowest defenders switch

1099
00:51:46,200 --> 00:51:49,200
Speaker 1: onto my best player? And can you survive that? Can

1100
00:51:49,200 --> 00:51:50,879
Speaker 1: you trap out of that? Can you scheme out of that?

1101
00:51:51,040 --> 00:51:53,640
Speaker 1: And when possessions slow down. That's why you know teams

1102
00:51:53,640 --> 00:51:55,319
Speaker 1: like the Utah Jazz that win a million games the

1103
00:51:55,320 --> 00:51:57,719
Speaker 1: regular season and they're a absolute jugger and I think

1104
00:51:57,719 --> 00:52:00,520
Speaker 1: they're serious title contender and all that. But it's why

1105
00:52:00,560 --> 00:52:02,920
Speaker 1: the playoffs is a different story. And if we can

1106
00:52:03,000 --> 00:52:06,520
Speaker 1: just get there somewhat healthy, going into some kind of rhythm,

1107
00:52:06,760 --> 00:52:08,840
Speaker 1: that's the little gleam of hope you can see. But

1108
00:52:08,960 --> 00:52:11,160
Speaker 1: right now we are nowhere close to that. We are

1109
00:52:11,200 --> 00:52:15,160
Speaker 1: not we haven't built habits that are conductive to getting there. Um.

1110
00:52:15,200 --> 00:52:17,360
Speaker 1: But you know, there's still a path to being good.

1111
00:52:17,480 --> 00:52:21,200
Speaker 1: Like I agree with that. I just we aren't on

1112
00:52:21,239 --> 00:52:23,920
Speaker 1: that train, you know, yet, but there's still time to

1113
00:52:23,960 --> 00:52:26,200
Speaker 1: get on it. So hopefully we can. Hopefully it starts

1114
00:52:26,480 --> 00:52:31,520
Speaker 1: with Houston on Tuesday, Tuesday or Monday is Tuesday, Tuesday? Okay,

1115
00:52:31,600 --> 00:52:34,680
Speaker 1: with Houston on Tuesday, which is great because the Lakers

1116
00:52:34,680 --> 00:52:37,319
Speaker 1: are going to get a chance to probably get a

1117
00:52:37,360 --> 00:52:41,480
Speaker 1: good day or two of practice in and practice that

1118
00:52:41,560 --> 00:52:43,680
Speaker 1: you can keep relatively short and easy on the bodies,

1119
00:52:43,680 --> 00:52:45,520
Speaker 1: but give guys a chance to learn the scheme. Good.

1120
00:52:45,719 --> 00:52:48,879
Speaker 1: Good time to get Stanley Johnson back into the mix.

1121
00:52:48,920 --> 00:52:50,520
Speaker 1: Good time to get all these guys that were walked

1122
00:52:50,560 --> 00:52:53,399
Speaker 1: in their hotel rooms because of COVID tons and tons

1123
00:52:53,480 --> 00:52:57,680
Speaker 1: of shots up let's say Austin Reeves and uh camp

1124
00:52:57,680 --> 00:53:01,000
Speaker 1: Bays more clear protocols. In the next day. You can

1125
00:53:01,040 --> 00:53:03,320
Speaker 1: give them lots of time to get their feel for

1126
00:53:03,360 --> 00:53:05,200
Speaker 1: the game back. It's it's a good time to have

1127
00:53:05,320 --> 00:53:07,360
Speaker 1: that two day break. I'm gonna leave you guys with

1128
00:53:07,440 --> 00:53:12,000
Speaker 1: one quote from Lebron Um. He was asked how he

1129
00:53:12,040 --> 00:53:14,520
Speaker 1: tries to stay patient with this roster, and he said, quote,

1130
00:53:14,520 --> 00:53:17,760
Speaker 1: I'm not a very patient person. But without her head coach,

1131
00:53:17,880 --> 00:53:21,080
Speaker 1: just getting guys back, still missing a few, I just

1132
00:53:21,080 --> 00:53:23,480
Speaker 1: try to stay even keeled. No one is going to

1133
00:53:23,520 --> 00:53:26,600
Speaker 1: feel sorry for us. And it's something that I've appreciated

1134
00:53:26,600 --> 00:53:28,839
Speaker 1: from lebron this year. He's been, you know, a little

1135
00:53:28,840 --> 00:53:32,160
Speaker 1: bit less dramatic and a little bit more you know,

1136
00:53:32,280 --> 00:53:34,520
Speaker 1: in the moment of trying to just do the best

1137
00:53:34,520 --> 00:53:36,719
Speaker 1: he can, and the effort that he's put forward in

1138
00:53:36,760 --> 00:53:40,879
Speaker 1: this nasty stretch has been amazing. And all I would

1139
00:53:40,880 --> 00:53:43,640
Speaker 1: say is, you know, the Lakers just have to keep

1140
00:53:43,640 --> 00:53:45,080
Speaker 1: putting one foot in front of the other. It's like

1141
00:53:45,120 --> 00:53:47,480
Speaker 1: that quote from Camp Baseball, chopped with carry water. All

1142
00:53:47,520 --> 00:53:50,320
Speaker 1: you can do is work hard with what you got.

1143
00:53:50,640 --> 00:53:52,680
Speaker 1: Guys are going to continue to come back into the lineup.

1144
00:53:53,000 --> 00:53:54,880
Speaker 1: As they come back, they're gonna get their legs underneath

1145
00:53:54,880 --> 00:53:56,880
Speaker 1: them and get a rhythm. And then Anthony Davis is

1146
00:53:56,920 --> 00:53:59,359
Speaker 1: on the way as well. And when that happens, if

1147
00:53:59,360 --> 00:54:01,640
Speaker 1: you put in the work now, it'll all come together

1148
00:54:02,040 --> 00:54:04,359
Speaker 1: and it'll all work. Um, guys, thank you so much

1149
00:54:04,440 --> 00:54:06,720
Speaker 1: for coming to hang out with this on Christmas evening

1150
00:54:06,760 --> 00:54:10,320
Speaker 1: like this. This is gonna m hm aeron Dash Radio

1151
00:54:10,840 --> 00:54:13,719
Speaker 1: on Monday morning at seven am Pacific Standard time. It

1152
00:54:13,760 --> 00:54:17,320
Speaker 1: will also be in its entirety on our podcast feed

1153
00:54:17,360 --> 00:54:19,919
Speaker 1: here in about thirty minutes. Thank you guys so much

1154
00:54:20,000 --> 00:54:23,319
Speaker 1: for supporting Rog and I in the show. We appreciate it,

1155
00:54:23,360 --> 00:54:27,520
Speaker 1: and hopefully, if we're lucky, the Lakers will start to

1156
00:54:27,560 --> 00:54:33,040
Speaker 1: turn things around against Houston on Tuesday. Merry Christmas, everybody,

1157
00:54:33,040 --> 00:54:34,560
Speaker 1: Happy Hollidays. Thanks for coming.