Speaker 1: You're tuned into Heat Check with Triste Quick. On this
Speaker 1: episode of the Heat Check, it's mid season grade time, baby,
Speaker 1: Part two. Time to go over the Western Conference. A
Speaker 1: lot of teams are gonna get grades that'll make their
Speaker 1: parents proud. Other ones may want to pretend like doll
Speaker 1: gated lots to cover Nick. So drop that generic ass
Speaker 1: fucking beat. So we've reached the halfway point of the season.
Speaker 1: It's time to give out these mid semester grades. Last episode,
Speaker 1: which was on Monday night Tuesday for you, we covered
Speaker 1: the Eastern Conference, So now we do the West. So
Speaker 1: let's break it down division by division. My Portland Trailblazers
Speaker 1: in the Northwest Division have to go first. They were
Speaker 1: the first to come to mind. And you know what,
Speaker 1: after careful can consideration, the Portland Trailblazers, they get a C.
Speaker 1: It's better than I wanted to give him. Honestly, uh,
Speaker 1: because of the moves right, the moves that they've made
Speaker 1: in the offseason. You can't really ask for much better
Speaker 1: than that. But they are underperforming in a big, big way.
Speaker 1: I love Jeremy Grant's fit on the team. I think
Speaker 1: he's probably a great third or fourth scoring option, best
Speaker 1: defender on the team most likely in terms of you know,
Speaker 1: point of attack, can guard you know, probably one through four,
Speaker 1: two through five, kind of a thing. Gary Payton, the
Speaker 1: second has been injured, but now that he's back, he's
Speaker 1: been amazing defensively, very good on ball defender, kind of
Speaker 1: guy that's disruptive, kind of guy that just is exactly
Speaker 1: who Portland needs. Scrappy, hardworking, annoying, amazing fit for Damian Lillard,
Speaker 1: the Nirkdee boy. He's shooting a lot of threes. Shooting
Speaker 1: a lot of threes. Is three point percentage is way up.
Speaker 1: His three point volume is way up. Everything else has
Speaker 1: been a little erratic, a little touch and go. Portland
Speaker 1: started out super hot, looked like they were number one
Speaker 1: in the West for maybe a week or so. They're
Speaker 1: in the plan right now, not even and I'm not
Speaker 1: even sure what they're gonna do to make a move.
Speaker 1: I don't know if they will make a move, but
Speaker 1: I think everyone expected that this is sort of a
Speaker 1: resetting year. You're getting Shade and Sharp back into the
Speaker 1: mix as a rookie. He hasn't played games before this
Speaker 1: since you know, high school, was chilling in Kentucky just
Speaker 1: doing homework and watching and you know, there's a lot
Speaker 1: to be encouraged in. But you're not necessarily saying that
Speaker 1: this is a successful year either. Denver Nuggets, oh man,
Speaker 1: I'm not just saying this. They get Nay, I'm not
Speaker 1: just saying this because of the number one team in
Speaker 1: the West. But holy shit, are they just fun and
Speaker 1: good Defensively? They're playing elite defense right now, especially in
Speaker 1: the games that they continue to keep focus. Aaron Gordon
Speaker 1: playing the best basketball of his entire career in his life.
Speaker 1: Guys like KCP Bruce Brown really good fits. Drafting Christian
Speaker 1: Brown aka Christian Brawn has been amazing. He's added to
Speaker 1: the versatility of this team. I like the development of
Speaker 1: Bones Highland. Add that to a healthy Jamal Murray. You
Speaker 1: add that to a healthy Michael Porter ju and your
Speaker 1: healthy Ish is pretty much all You're gonna get. Andy Jokic,
Speaker 1: who's playing better basketball than he's played in years and
Speaker 1: gonna win the MVP for a third straight time. Nobody's
Speaker 1: done that since Larry Bird. Insane. Boy, are they a
Speaker 1: dangerous team. They could win it all if they could
Speaker 1: play some defense when Yokic is not on the floor. Utah,
Speaker 1: Utah is uh is something special. Boy, God damn does
Speaker 1: Danny Ainge know how to take a mess and turn
Speaker 1: it into a bask yacht? Right? I mean he's like
Speaker 1: Jackson Pollock, just random spray pieces all over and you
Speaker 1: look up and you're like, oh my god, that's a vision.
Speaker 1: I think I love this Utah team. They are fun.
Speaker 1: I thought they were gonna stink. I thought that they
Speaker 1: were gonna just be right in the dumpster for Victor
Speaker 1: Wambin Yama. But man, they have a bunch of fun players.
Speaker 1: They have a boatload of unprotected picks. They have thirteen
Speaker 1: lightly protected or unprotected draft picks that are first rounders
Speaker 1: just from the Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell trade combined alone,
Speaker 1: just alone, just from that. They also got Lori Marknen
Speaker 1: that I mentioned him, He's probably gonna win Most Improved
Speaker 1: Player of the Year. He is now the leader in
Speaker 1: the clubhouse for that. They have Walker Kestler, who, let's
Speaker 1: be honest, is probably gonna be better than Rudy Gobert.
Speaker 1: He can do more things. Oh, you've got shared Vanderbilt
Speaker 1: nice piece versatil wise and you know that everybody that
Speaker 1: they're not gonna resign. All the old guys, all the
Speaker 1: guys that don't want to stay, they're gone. They're probably
Speaker 1: gonna end up flipping them for more pieces too. This
Speaker 1: team is good, This team in the future is bright.
Speaker 1: They're still in the play in picture. And they didn't
Speaker 1: even want to win. We didn't expect a goddamn thing
Speaker 1: from them. They get name minus. Minnesota gets an f
Speaker 1: really because of the trade with Utah. Danny Ainge fleeces them,
Speaker 1: like you know, that's saying if you can't spot the
Speaker 1: mark in the room that is you, you are said mark.
Speaker 1: That's the Minnesota Timberwolves. They're the mark. They gave away
Speaker 1: so much for a one dimensional center, like so many picks,
Speaker 1: so many players. The fit with Cat is not good.
Speaker 1: Will it ever be good? I don't know. Probably not.
Speaker 1: They could go down as making one one of the
Speaker 1: worst trade decisions in not just NBA history, but sports history.
Speaker 1: Minnesota they've got a bad record for bad trades, herschel
Speaker 1: Walker being one, remember that one like this is up
Speaker 1: there with the herschel Walker trade. But what's sadder than
Speaker 1: the actual trade itself is it's like a what could
Speaker 1: have been story? You know. They were fun, They were exciting.
Speaker 1: They had one of the best offenses in the league,
Speaker 1: up and down, talking trash, taking Memphis to the break.
Speaker 1: Pat Bev was creating culture there. He loved Minnesota. Kat
Speaker 1: was terrible defensively but flourishing in terms of his scoring.
Speaker 1: It was just a team you could get behind. You
Speaker 1: could say, oh yeah, the future's bright for the squad.
Speaker 1: They add a couple more pieces. They have a bunch of.
Speaker 2: Guys fun and all they got now is Rudy Gobah
Speaker 2: and a dry ass empty cupboard with just brown rice
Speaker 2: bagged up and maybe some cans of cannaloney beans.
Speaker 1: That's it. No shade to Aunt Edwards. He's he's everything
Speaker 1: to them. But now you got this guy that you've
Speaker 1: replaced all these young players for a lumbering oath who
Speaker 1: all he does is clog up space for your superstar,
Speaker 1: make his life harder, not easier. This is a puzzling
Speaker 1: decision that Tim Connelly made so early in his tenure
Speaker 1: that it's going to be analyzed for years and years
Speaker 1: and years to come. This team had the possibility of
Speaker 1: locking up a top four, top six spot, and now
Speaker 1: it looks like they're a playing team at best. Chris
Speaker 1: Finch probably gonna get fired, despite the fact that it
Speaker 1: is a success that they've gone six and four in
Speaker 1: their last ten. Just barely being five hundred is like
Speaker 1: taking him from the hot seat and putting him on
Speaker 1: the medium heat seat. Not good. By the way, someone
Speaker 1: commented on TikTok that if the Wolves had traded for
Speaker 1: Mitchell Robinson instead of Rudy Gobert, they'd probably be no
Speaker 1: worse than the fourth in the West. Like that team,
Speaker 1: with all its pieces and all of its picks, probably
Speaker 1: would be better than the MAVs right now. Let's be honest,
Speaker 1: think about that. What a fucked up situation for the
Speaker 1: Minnesota Timberwolves. I feel bad from Minnesota fans. Man. They
Speaker 1: can't catch a break. Okay, see they're in the ninth
Speaker 1: spot right now, they get an a Oh my god.
Speaker 1: Can you just tell when you watch basketball and watch
Speaker 1: these teams do their jobs, you know, not just the
Speaker 1: actual basketball, but the work that goes on behind the scenes.
Speaker 1: They're just some teams with smarter decision makers than others.
Speaker 1: And that is Sam Presty, that's him. He's a monster.
Speaker 1: He is just miles ahead of other teams. Not just
Speaker 1: when it comes to deal making, when it comes to
Speaker 1: treating players well. Like you're hearing stories come out from
Speaker 1: guys who rehabilitated their careers there, like Al Horford saying
Speaker 1: that this is a first class organization. They treated me
Speaker 1: better than any place, and they didn't even intend to
Speaker 1: keep him right. Talent evaluation, incredible talent development, bringing on
Speaker 1: Chip England to help Josh Giddy shoot threes. He's playing
Speaker 1: at a level we have not seen from him before.
Speaker 1: He has a team everyone thought would be tanking in
Speaker 1: the ninth spot. The Thunder have well exceeded expectations. They're
Speaker 1: one win away right now from hitting their win total,
Speaker 1: which was twenty three wins. They have twenty two wins
Speaker 1: at the halfway part mark of the NBA season. Anybody
Speaker 1: think that was gonna happen? Did you think Sam Presty
Speaker 1: was gonna shut it down? Shay has been insane. At
Speaker 1: one point, he was the leader to win Most Improved Player.
Speaker 1: He's going to be an All Star this year. He's
Speaker 1: averaging thirty one, five and five. Josh Giddy is a
Speaker 1: bona fide star with court vision you could only hope
Speaker 1: to have in a player, not to mention. He can
Speaker 1: score and rebound and do all kinds of these things too.
Speaker 1: I love the fits of the two Jalen Williams that
Speaker 1: they got for nothing. They traded some random to move
Speaker 1: up in the draft, and now they get both Jalen Williams,
Speaker 1: one j dub one Jay Well, both good in their
Speaker 1: own right. Chet holmerun mind you hasn't played one game
Speaker 1: this year, not one, been out with the list frank injury.
Speaker 1: This team is good. They are more importantly than good,
Speaker 1: super fun. The future's bright. Everything they've done in the
Speaker 1: offseason was good, excellent, elite, and they're a fun ass
Speaker 1: team where you can't really knock anything that's going on
Speaker 1: right now. Moving on to the Pacific Division, let's start
Speaker 1: with our Kanks. Sacramento buttoned up, put the suit and
Speaker 1: tie on, Sacramento Kings. Now, what can I say about
Speaker 1: the Kings that hasn't already been said. Well, we know
Speaker 1: that they've been in a playoff drought longer than the
Speaker 1: city of Los Angeles has been in a drought for water.
Speaker 1: And just like over LA, just like Sacramento, the watermark
Speaker 1: is high right now. They are overflowing with playoff hopes.
Speaker 1: It's been bleak for this fan base. We know that
Speaker 1: for so damn long, and now it feels like it's
Speaker 1: sort of over. You know, it feels done. Many McNair
Speaker 1: has done wonders. He needs to be extended. His decision
Speaker 1: making quality very high. What he's done in terms of
Speaker 1: drafting players that make sense. The Sabonis trade, Oh my god,
Speaker 1: the Sabonis trade was good. That's probably the Sabonus trades.
Speaker 1: Probably the definition if you look into a dictionary of
Speaker 1: what the NBA was hoping trades would look like. Mutually
Speaker 1: beneficial for both sides, makes both players better, makes both
Speaker 1: teams better as a result of said trade, right, my god,
Speaker 1: both teams, both players flourished because of this trade. They
Speaker 1: just beat the Lakers last night in Staples. You had
Speaker 1: people chanting like the beam in Staples louder than you
Speaker 1: could even imagine. I think they turned Staples purple for
Speaker 1: the Kings last night. And that win over the Lakers
Speaker 1: turns the Kings into the three seed in the West.
Speaker 1: The three seed. Let me say that again. The Sacramento
Speaker 1: Kings are currently the three seed halfway through the season.
Speaker 1: That's cute. Ten games in, we're more than forty one
Speaker 1: games in right now, folks, and they are the three seed.
Speaker 1: They were sixty six to one at one point just
Speaker 1: to win the Pacific Division. They are now plus one
Speaker 1: twenty five to win said division. Wow, they're basically they
Speaker 1: are the leader in the clubhouse to win that division.
Speaker 1: Honestly incredible. Keithya Murray will talk about him. He's been okay.
Speaker 1: He's not somebody that has outperformed expectations. I think he's
Speaker 1: gonna be a good piece for them. He's been up
Speaker 1: and down. He had ten rebounds against the Lakers, which
Speaker 1: is very important for his development. He looks like he's
Speaker 1: gonna be a fan favorite as well. He already is.
Speaker 1: Malik Monk has been adding a lot in terms of
Speaker 1: bench scoring, like a little microwave. Obviously, his connection with
Speaker 1: the Aaron Fox down the stretch with them going to
Speaker 1: Kentucky together being best friends, that's worked out like a charm.
Speaker 1: Harrison Barnes has turned back the clock, turning into war
Speaker 1: we ares Harrison Barnes. Kevin Herder has still been cave on,
Speaker 1: even though he's a little out of shape on back
Speaker 1: to backs. And Fox, of course, as we know, Fox
Speaker 1: is an all star. Sabonis is an All Star. This
Speaker 1: team's really good. They can get a backup big at
Speaker 1: the deadline, someone who can help them in non Sabonis minutes,
Speaker 1: someone who can pass, someone who can rim protect man.
Speaker 1: What they have done though, at twenty five and eighteen,
Speaker 1: there's seven games over five hundred seven games insanely good.
Speaker 1: I just can't believe it. Moving on to our Dubs,
Speaker 1: they get a C minus. About two weeks ago they
Speaker 1: probably would have gotten a D plus. They're gonna be okay.
Speaker 1: We know that the Dubs are fine, the Dubs are
Speaker 1: always fine, but at the halfway mark, we just cannot
Speaker 1: consider this a success in any real way. Let's be honest.
Speaker 1: Steph is missed time. Jordan Poole has been up and down.
Speaker 1: The role players they add, Gary Payton, he's gone out
Speaker 1: of Porter, He's gone Niamna Nia Biolica. However you're saying it,
Speaker 1: you know what I'm saying. He's gone playing in Europe.
Speaker 1: Klay Thompson O bright Spot. He's getting better, much more
Speaker 1: balanced scoring, much more balanced shooting in terms of his
Speaker 1: actual weight distribution. He's taking more set shots, moving off
Speaker 1: the ball, getting easy buckets. So he's been really good.
Speaker 1: He's been Actually sort of a surprise in terms of
Speaker 1: this team Steph Cree's injury. I thought maybe they'd go
Speaker 1: to and eight while he was out. They actually played
Speaker 1: pretty well. They weathered that storm in a way that
Speaker 1: I think was very surprising. But we are worrying about
Speaker 1: this team in a way where you say, okay, knowing
Speaker 1: that I think they're gonna be fine. Can I also
Speaker 1: simultaneously say that there's some fundamental issues here? And I
Speaker 1: think the answer yes, But we have to continue to
Speaker 1: have blind trust, in blind faith in our dubs, because
Speaker 1: what we know is when the lights get bright, as
Speaker 1: long as Steph is healthy, as long as Clay is healthy,
Speaker 1: as long as Draymond's healthy, as long as Kevon Looney
Speaker 1: is healthy, They're gonna be able to turn up the volume,
Speaker 1: turn up the heat when the lights get bright. That's
Speaker 1: just the way it is. You saw it multiple games
Speaker 1: in a row. They go down twenty five, they go
Speaker 1: down thirty, and then in the fourth quarter they turn
Speaker 1: up the heat. They play the stifling defense, They turn
Speaker 1: you over, they make you nervous, they get you flustered,
Speaker 1: they get into transition. Then Steph hits You know some
Speaker 1: of those thirty foot daggers that he hits, he does
Speaker 1: the little poo poo motion, he does the little night
Speaker 1: Night's sleep mask, and all of a sudden, a thirty
Speaker 1: point lead has disappeared and now you are down for
Speaker 1: That's the Warriors, That's what they do. They always make
Speaker 1: it dramatic. They always want to do that, but we
Speaker 1: know that they're still capable of that. So with that
Speaker 1: being said, they get a C minus. However, I'm not
Speaker 1: worried Clippers eight seed right now, they get a C plus.
Speaker 1: Don't know what to make of them. I don't know
Speaker 1: what to make of them. On one hand, their rosters
Speaker 1: very deep, bucke getters everywhere. On the other hand, they've
Speaker 1: all been injured. They've all been out significant minute, significant time. Kawhi,
Speaker 1: it's like a celebration when he plays five games in
Speaker 1: a row. It's only happened one time this season. He
Speaker 1: plays three games, takes one or two off, plays another three,
Speaker 1: takes one or two off. That's his cycle and that's
Speaker 1: like a good thing. That's like about as good as
Speaker 1: it's gonna get for Kuhi right now. Paul George hasn't
Speaker 1: been healthy. John Wall has had signs of brilliance and
Speaker 1: then he's on the bench. They are old as fuck
Speaker 1: right now? Like that, that's what you get when you
Speaker 1: have guys who are in the latter stages of their career.
Speaker 3: We're like, ooh my nees, ooh my back, ooh, I
Speaker 3: gotta take some time put this icy hot on me,
Speaker 3: and you're like, oh god, dude, Like, are you guys
Speaker 3: gonna be able to turn it on during the playoffs
Speaker 3: or nah?
Speaker 1: A guy can't tell. Are we gonna get Kawhi the
Speaker 1: version of him when he made that shot against Philly?
Speaker 1: Are we gonna get Kawhi the version when he wouldn't
Speaker 1: drive with his fucking team to go play the Phoenix
Speaker 1: Suns when he had an ACL tear, didn't even want
Speaker 1: to support them. Are we gonna get the PG version
Speaker 1: of him when he played in Indiana? Are we gonna
Speaker 1: get the version of PG when he turtled in the
Speaker 1: bubble and everybody started calling him pandemic p Are we
Speaker 1: getting PG thirteen? Are we getting Pandemic P? Are we
Speaker 1: getting Norm Powell when he won a chip? Are we
Speaker 1: getting Norm Powell from Portland Trailblazers when he's doing absolutely
Speaker 1: dog shit? See what I just did there. Are we
Speaker 1: gonna get Roco from his time in the Philadelphia seventy
Speaker 1: six ers when he was locking guy? Are we getting
Speaker 1: Roco getting fucking rim checked in a playoff game losing
Speaker 1: the Portland Trailblazers series to the Denver Nuggets throwing the
Speaker 1: ball at a bounce? What are we getting? Are we
Speaker 1: getting Luke Canard when he takes this team out of
Speaker 1: the door drums when they're down twenty six, helps them
Speaker 1: win a game just based on bucket after bucket after bucket.
Speaker 1: Or are we getting Detroit Pistons Luke Canard where he's
Speaker 1: just getting waved? What version of speaking of guys getting waved?
Speaker 1: What version of Reggie Jackson will we get in the playoffs?
Speaker 1: Are we getting mister October or whatever they call it,
Speaker 1: mister September, or are we getting mister sends your ass home?
Speaker 1: They could use something. They're gonna probably make a move.
Speaker 1: Steve Bomber's got unlimited money, so I imagine something's gonna happen.
Speaker 1: Probably a trade with one of the bottom feeders and
Speaker 1: they just get automatically better. Boy On Bogdanovich would help
Speaker 1: them quite a bit. Detroit Pistons are doing absolutely nothing,
Speaker 1: as you guys already know. Let's move on to the
Speaker 1: Phoenix Suns. They get it dus, they get somewhere between
Speaker 1: a D minus and then like sort of a be
Speaker 1: because they've all been fucking hurt. Things could not be
Speaker 1: going worse. When the Sacramento Kings are curb stomping you
Speaker 1: to win your division. Curb stomping they are. They are
Speaker 1: just not a good team right now they're twenty one
Speaker 1: and twenty four, but culturally they're even worse than that,
Speaker 1: right like they are. It started when, let's be honest,
Speaker 1: Robert sarvar was just spitting out racial slurs faster than
Speaker 1: his name was Twista. You know, he just just giving
Speaker 1: it to you fast, like like he was on a
Speaker 1: Kanye West track, Like that was what Robert Sarva was doing.
Speaker 1: It all blew up when DeAndre Eton wanted to get
Speaker 1: paid and they were like, no, you're from the Caribbean,
Speaker 1: you're too soft. Try to get another deal and we'll
Speaker 1: see if we have to match it. And then he
Speaker 1: goes out and get a deal and they begrudgingly match it. Right,
Speaker 1: it becomes toxic. Then when Jay Crowder's like, hey, i'd
Speaker 1: also like to get paid, and they're like, still, no,
Speaker 1: we don't want to pay anyone. He goes on strike.
Speaker 1: Then Cam Johnson goes out for an indefinite period of time.
Speaker 1: He's gonna be back, but how's he gonna look. Then
Speaker 1: you get CP three on his vegan nast diet, breaking down,
Speaker 1: busting down like it's the playoffs when it's still week four.
Speaker 1: You got Cam Johnson or campaign. Excuse me, he's been hurt.
Speaker 1: Devin Booker, where's he been on a milk carton? He's
Speaker 1: been out six sixteen games since December eleventh. Probably won't
Speaker 1: see him for a while. But the most troubling thing
Speaker 1: to me about the Suns is since December first, they've
Speaker 1: lost since just December first, This is very critical. They've
Speaker 1: lost ten games by ten or more points, which is
Speaker 1: more than they had all of last year. And this
Speaker 1: is just since December first. Three of those games are
Speaker 1: at home, which is the same amount of ten point
Speaker 1: losses at the Crib then they had all last year too.
Speaker 1: So I mean they're getting taken to poundtown, you know
Speaker 1: what I'm saying, and not a great way, in a
Speaker 1: bad way, sad way, and the Sun's they gotta do something.
Speaker 1: They gotta move Drake Jake Crowder gotta do that. I
Speaker 1: don't even know if anyone's gonna do that because they
Speaker 1: know that the Suns are so down bad. He's probably
Speaker 1: gonna have to wave him or get him for nothing,
Speaker 1: like just lose him for nothing. They're blowing leads in
Speaker 1: the second half. Can you tell, I'm not optimistic? Can
Speaker 1: you tell? And for the love of the valley, they
Speaker 1: gotta get Devin Booker back healthy. Can we get Kendall
Speaker 1: to go on the road with d book Can we
Speaker 1: give her some sort of magic potion in her watermelon
Speaker 1: to feed to d b book This season's toast if
Speaker 1: we don't figure that shit out fast. Lakers. Lakers are
Speaker 1: interesting team too, set I would say D plus D
Speaker 1: plus for the Lakers, maybe maybe a C minus. It's
Speaker 1: actually like kind of a positive grade because it should
Speaker 1: be an F. Wait based on what they did and
Speaker 1: what they've done and what they continue to do. We
Speaker 1: know they're not gonna move anybody. We know they're not
Speaker 1: trading those two draft picks. Genie Bus has already gone
Speaker 1: on record. There's already whispers about, well, we're not trading
Speaker 1: those twenty five and twenty seven first round picks just
Speaker 1: to make the play in. Ask Braun if he wants
Speaker 1: to make the play or not at all. Hey, we
Speaker 1: can move these two pieces and these two draft picks
Speaker 1: and then we'll give you a shot in the plan,
Speaker 1: or you guys can be the fifteenth seed. How you feel.
Speaker 1: I think Braun would say, yeah, let's try, let's try.
Speaker 1: But she's not doing that. They've been in a bunch
Speaker 1: of games. Compared, they have not been able to close
Speaker 1: many out. They have eight games where they lost by
Speaker 1: six or less. But the thing that makes us all
Speaker 1: quite troubling is how good Lebron's been throughout it all.
Speaker 1: He's been insane. I have never seen anything quite like
Speaker 1: Lebron James in year thirty eight of his natural life.
Speaker 1: He is about to break what we thought was an
Speaker 1: unbreakable record. He is three hundred points short of Kareem
Speaker 1: Abduljabar's all time scoring number, which, let's be honest, is
Speaker 1: the only reason Lebron James is still a Laker because
Speaker 1: he wants to break it. In purple and gold. Let's
Speaker 1: be real, He's averaging more points per game right now
Speaker 1: and last year than in any two year stretch in
Speaker 1: his twenty year career. Think about that, he's averaging more
Speaker 1: right now and last year than in any two year
Speaker 1: stretch ever in his entire career, in his peak of
Speaker 1: the best goaded Miami heat years, those peak Cleveland years
Speaker 1: where he's putting the team on his back. No, no,
Speaker 1: what he's doing now better than that. He's averaged twenty
Speaker 1: nine point four per game from two thousand and five
Speaker 1: to two thousand and seven, and he's averaging thirty point
Speaker 1: one between twenty and twenty one and twenty and twenty three.
Speaker 1: You know those like commercials we've seen where it's like
Speaker 1: Bron versus Father Time. People are making fun of him
Speaker 1: because they're corny, but they are true. Lebron James is
Speaker 1: undefeated right now against Father Time. He's getting better, which
Speaker 1: is not what's supposed to happen. We've only seen this
Speaker 1: from Tom Brady and that was like a Swan song.
Speaker 1: And maybe Roger Clemens. But let's be honest. Do I
Speaker 1: really need to say anything more about Roger Clemens that
Speaker 1: maybe discredits the Fountain of the ad was playing an
Speaker 1: MVP level ball before he got hurt. I have to
Speaker 1: mention because I think it's very important for you to
Speaker 1: know in case you forgot. He did twist his ankle
Speaker 1: mid air. In the air, he sprained his ankle, not
Speaker 1: on the ground. I've never heard of that before. So
Speaker 1: the things that happened to ad continue to literally break
Speaker 1: the rules of physics. So we'll say that if you
Speaker 1: want to call that a mystery, if you want to
Speaker 1: call that a coincidence, if you want to call that
Speaker 1: just him being brittle, whatever you want to say, it's
Speaker 1: all true. And of course Russell Westbrook has been really
Speaker 1: good off the bench. As a sixth Man of the Year,
Speaker 1: Kennedy's probably gonna win it. There's no more consistent prop
Speaker 1: bets to take than Russell Westbrook over fourteen and a
Speaker 1: half points. He just does it. He's a triple double
Speaker 1: machine off the fucking bench. Austin reeves he's getting small
Speaker 1: star votes even though he doesn't deserve him. And even
Speaker 1: Dennis Shrewder has had some good games on a veteran
Speaker 1: minimum contract. They're doing with they can't. It's sad over there.
Speaker 1: They're poor, They're poor. Genie Bus doesn't have anybody else
Speaker 1: She's getting her decision making advice from Linda Rambis it's bad.
Speaker 1: It's bad right now, and they have Lebron James. They'll
Speaker 1: only be okay and be able to salvage if that
Speaker 1: they make the play in tournament and maybe make a
Speaker 1: little run do with the like their upside is what
Speaker 1: the Pelicans did last year. Then think about how bad
Speaker 1: that is. So they're three games under five hundred. But
Speaker 1: yet so are the Suns, So not all bad grades
Speaker 1: are bad grades. We move on to the Southwest Division,
Speaker 1: Memphis Grizzlies. They're in the two spot. They get a B.
Speaker 1: They get a B solid B. I can't give them
Speaker 1: an A because they've had so many damn injuries. Desmond
Speaker 1: Baine's been injured, Jaron Jackson's been injured, Jahn Morant's been injured,
Speaker 1: and even though they've had a decent season, they've been
Speaker 1: patching it together. I just they haven't been as much
Speaker 1: of a wagon. The West stinks. Let's be honest. The
Speaker 1: West is not as good as it has been in
Speaker 1: previous years. So your two seed run is really not
Speaker 1: as impressive as it was last year. And they were
Speaker 1: the Cinderella and now they are the hunted. Everyone wants
Speaker 1: to take them down. They were the league past team,
Speaker 1: and now they're in national darling, and I can't give
Speaker 1: you an a when everybody wants me to. You know,
Speaker 1: they broke through, they were a results. Everybody thinks that
Speaker 1: they're anointed. Jahn Morant, and I love his shit talking.
Speaker 1: I love that he says, hey, if you want to
Speaker 1: jump with me, then you're gonna go viral. I'm not
Speaker 1: worried about anybody in the West. Let's be honest, there's
Speaker 1: really nobody who should be worrying about in the West
Speaker 1: because the West stinks. But if they can be healthy,
Speaker 1: they're gonna be dangerous. They're gonna be the solver gorilla,
Speaker 1: as they say, and it won't matter if teams bring
Speaker 1: their a game because if you've seen Steven Adams when
Speaker 1: he wants to do whatever he wants to do, it's
Speaker 1: impossible jaws like Joe Burrow, impossible to shake confidence wise,
Speaker 1: and as long as he's healthy, this team can go
Speaker 1: as far as he wants them to go. That's how
Speaker 1: I feel. I don't see how the Grizzlies are going
Speaker 1: to be a title contender for as long. Like Joe
Speaker 1: Burrow says, the window is John Moran's career. New Orleans Pelicans.
Speaker 1: They're the four seed. How is it possible they are
Speaker 1: the four seed with all of the shit that's gone
Speaker 1: on with the New Orleans Pelicans A minus they get
Speaker 1: they are having an incredible season with all of the
Speaker 1: things that have been going on with them. So Zion
Speaker 1: came out of the blocks, like his name was, Michael Johnson,
Speaker 1: with the golden shoes, with the like Usain Bolt, making
Speaker 1: us the centerpiece. We have to talk about him in
Speaker 1: the MVP conversation because everybody loves them. Zion, he's gotten skinnier.
Speaker 1: I think I haven't seen him in a while. We'll see,
Speaker 1: but he's now missed sixteen games out of the forty
Speaker 1: something they've played. Brandon Ingram, he's been electric. Have not
Speaker 1: seen him for two thirds of the season this year
Speaker 1: and it's a toe bruise. Okay, he's only played in
Speaker 1: fifteen of the over forty games they've played. Herb Jones,
Speaker 1: my guy, has missed sixteen games so far this year.
Speaker 1: They should not be anywhere in the top four. Their
Speaker 1: top three players outside of CJ. McCollum, three other five
Speaker 1: starting five guys have missed anywhere from one third to
Speaker 1: two thirds of the season and yet they continue to succeed.
Speaker 1: They are bawling out. CJ has been incredible grand theft.
Speaker 1: Alvarado has stepped in and done wonders for this squad.
Speaker 1: Valentiunis love the piece for him. He is just a steady,
Speaker 1: steady rock in the middle. The team's got depth. Naji
Speaker 1: Marshall is averaging ten and a half, Larry Nance junior,
Speaker 1: Davonte Graham, who they'll probably move, Dyson Daniels. I am
Speaker 1: so high on he is like this secret love affair
Speaker 1: that I have. He doesn't know that I love him.
Speaker 1: But he's all playing significant minutes as well. Due to
Speaker 1: the injuries, and then the few times that this year
Speaker 1: that they've been healthy, they've been pretty much unbeatable. If
Speaker 1: they get healthy right before the playoffs, look out, the
Speaker 1: Pelicans could legitimately win the West MAVs five spot right now,
Speaker 1: and you should be grateful to be there. Honestly, it
Speaker 1: is gross. See for the MAVs. They haven't fallen out
Speaker 1: into the playing spot, but again, the West stinks and
Speaker 1: they have benefited from the stinky West. I give him
Speaker 1: a cee because all they do is rely on Luca.
Speaker 1: If Luca continues to play at an MVP caliber, they
Speaker 1: win games. If he doesn't, they lose games. Pretty simple,
Speaker 1: simple as that. If Yogic didn't exist, he would be
Speaker 1: a shoein. He does everything. He shoots, he passes, he defends,
Speaker 1: he complains to the refs, He shit talks to the teams,
Speaker 1: He drinks on the job. Everything that you want from
Speaker 1: a European superstar probably brings hose to the game. But
Speaker 1: the problem is starting to wear a tear a little.
Speaker 1: That's what happens when you're not in shape. You can't
Speaker 1: put up those minutes without you starting to decline. You're
Speaker 1: playing like Ahana Civic right now on the freeway. You're
Speaker 1: a V four and you're wearing out. He's missed two
Speaker 1: of the last six games. In those games that he
Speaker 1: has played, he's only averaged twenty three point six points,
Speaker 1: which is well below what his average is for the season.
Speaker 1: And this is not a team that can survive, can
Speaker 1: do much of anything with Luca scoring twenty four a game,
Speaker 1: no chance. They have no depth, which is why they
Speaker 1: have lost six of their last eight games. One of
Speaker 1: those games, mind you, was to the Atlanta Hawks, which,
Speaker 1: as you know if you listen to this podcast, is
Speaker 1: an absolute disaster. The one saving grace has got to
Speaker 1: be the trade deadline. Tim Hardaway is rumored to be
Speaker 1: on the move christian Wood, maybe Maps. If they can't
Speaker 1: sign them and they can't get a deal done, they
Speaker 1: said that they would prefer to trade them. They can improve,
Speaker 1: they can get to an A, or they can fall
Speaker 1: to an F, depending on what they do moving forward.
Speaker 1: It's all in your hands, Dallas. We'll see what you
Speaker 1: do at the deadline. San Antonio, you getta be plus.
Speaker 1: I know seems weird to give a high grade to
Speaker 1: a team that is woefully terrible, but they understood the assignment.
Speaker 1: Sometimes it's like you go to a virtual online oceanography course.
Speaker 1: You figure out someone who can get you a little
Speaker 1: scrapbook made with a bunch of us see an enemies
Speaker 1: in it, and then you turn it in and that's
Speaker 1: all that you're responsible for doing in order to get
Speaker 1: an A in this class. Okay, san Antonio, spurs only
Speaker 1: assignment is this one thing. Do everything that you can
Speaker 1: put to put yourself in a situation where you're not
Speaker 1: only competitive, but you're losing. Do you know how hard
Speaker 1: that is to be competitive and lose? It's almost impossible
Speaker 1: in fact, and yet the assignment is to do that,
Speaker 1: to put yourself in a position, the best position to
Speaker 1: get Victor wan Binyama. That's it. And to that end,
Speaker 1: they started off a little rocky, winning a lot of games,
Speaker 1: but since then they started to figure it out. Be competitive,
Speaker 1: help Kelvin Johnson get to the next level, get Jeremy
Speaker 1: Sohan some meaningful reps, lose games, and it's going beautifully now.
Speaker 1: Victor seems to be at least a perfect fit in
Speaker 1: the Tim Duncan model, but a new, re vitalized version
Speaker 1: in the modern NBA. Keldon Johnson has been really good
Speaker 1: and very fun, someone I actually want to watch, which
Speaker 1: is very rare for San Antonio Spurs. Devin Vassel has
Speaker 1: been hurt, but he's shown promise. Yaka Purtle probably gonna
Speaker 1: get moved because he's too good for this team right now.
Speaker 1: And listen, they don't need a big they're about to
Speaker 1: get one. Josh Richardson, he's maybe the worst NBA player
Speaker 1: I've ever seen, so to that end, maybe he helps
Speaker 1: them towards their assignment. But so far, so good. I
Speaker 1: think there's gonna be some organizational changes and Popovich's final
Speaker 1: gift is probably the opportunity to build with a new
Speaker 1: franchise cornerstone that will be one of the best in
Speaker 1: the NBA for years to come. Houston C Minus. I
Speaker 1: think they are franchise that I I'm gonna be honest.
Speaker 1: I don't like very much. I don't like the owner,
Speaker 1: I don't like the philosophy. I really don't like the city.
Speaker 1: I think it's maybe the only city worse than it
Speaker 1: and it's close. It's probably Philadelphia. They have five lane
Speaker 1: freeways on either side. If you've ever been on that,
Speaker 1: it's terrifying. They draft poorly. Uh, the organization is cheap.
Speaker 1: They have a coach that probably has not ever led
Speaker 1: strong willed men in his life. He speaks at a
Speaker 1: decibel level that only a mouse could hear. They can't
Speaker 1: play team NBA basketball. They've got a bunch of peer
Speaker 1: hoopers and that's it. Let's be honest, Like they've got
Speaker 1: maybe three guys who can play organized basketball like well
Speaker 1: and want to. Let's be real, they're like athleticism through
Speaker 1: the roof, but like, who really wants to do all
Speaker 1: the fundamental things? Do you see him? Who are they?
Speaker 1: Eric Gordon? He hates it There he wants out so badly.
Speaker 1: He tells him. It's literally he's quiet quitting. Have you
Speaker 1: heard that term? He's quiet quitting. He just keeps saying
Speaker 1: mean things about the team, hoping to be traded, and
Speaker 1: they will not trade him for god knows why, who knows.
Speaker 1: He's like, this team stinks. They're not getting better. They're like, hey,
Speaker 1: how have you improved? We haven't. We hate each other
Speaker 1: knowing plays for one another. And it's true they're one
Speaker 1: in seventeen in their last eighteen games. And I don't
Speaker 1: think they're trying to tank. I don't think that's their assignment.
Speaker 1: Guys like Jalen Green, Josh Christopher, Kevin Porter Junior, he's
Speaker 1: a bucket. He's a bucket. He's a bucket, all talented,
Speaker 1: all can fill it up, stat pad as they say,
Speaker 1: and they cannot get back on defense for their fucking life.
Speaker 1: Is there a coaching problem? Like I said, Steven Silas,
Speaker 1: he's not the one. He knows he's not the one.
Speaker 1: I am sure he's being tuned out religiously. James Harden
Speaker 1: has hinted he wants to go back. Please Lord, don't
Speaker 1: make it happen. I can't. He just wants to go
Speaker 1: back to his restaurant with all the food and the
Speaker 1: and the steak bacon crab at tu Fey that he's
Speaker 1: made with the strippers. He wants that he doesn't want
Speaker 1: to go back to Houston. That place is a fucking mess.
Speaker 1: They are gonna get an f at the end of
Speaker 1: this season. They just I don't even know why I
Speaker 1: gave him the C minus to begin with. They are
Speaker 1: so screwed. That's it. That's all the teams said. That's
Speaker 1: all the episode time that we have for the heat Check.
Speaker 1: We will be back Monday. Let me know what you
Speaker 1: think about these grades. Hit me on the DMS, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter,
Speaker 1: I'm around. Check out the feed as well for past episodes.
Speaker 1: Many episodes which drop not almost every day, but kind of.
Speaker 1: We got Keith Smith coming on Monday. He gave us
Speaker 1: some some serious tea. Do not forget to download. Please subscribe,
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