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Speaker 1: The Volume. All right, welcome to Hoops Tonight here at

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Speaker 1: the Volume. Happy Wednesday, everybody. Hope all of you guys

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Speaker 1: are having a great week so far. We've got a

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Speaker 1: jam packed show for you today, full of preseason reactions.

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Speaker 1: The Boston Celtics had a dress rehearsal of sorts last

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Speaker 1: night against the New York Knicks, where their offense looks

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Speaker 1: devastating in the first half. We're gonna break that game down.

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Speaker 1: The Clippers had a similarly impressive dress rehearsal against the

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Speaker 1: Denver Nuggets. In the last, but not least, Oklahoma City

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Speaker 1: Thunder had an impressive performance against the Milwaukee Bucks led

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Speaker 1: by Damian Lillard and Yannis, who look a little rusty

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Speaker 1: right now. So we're gonna break down all three of

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Speaker 1: those games from the perspective of all six teams. And

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Speaker 1: then I have three mail back questions for the end

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Speaker 1: of the show as well. You guys are the joke.

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Speaker 1: Before we get started, subscribe to the YouTube channel. We're

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Speaker 1: launching a brand new YouTube channel. I think it's actually

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Speaker 1: active right now, but we're in now and sing it

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Speaker 1: tomorrow morning. So keep an eye out for the Hoops

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Speaker 1: Tonight YouTube channel. It would mean the world to me.

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Speaker 1: If you guys would take a second to go over

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Speaker 1: there and subscribe, I think it'd be really cool if

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Speaker 1: we could get that number somewhere really big before the

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Speaker 1: end of the season, and then follow me on all

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Speaker 1: social media platforms, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. I'm gonna be

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Speaker 1: using Instagram and TikTok and Twitter to do a lot

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Speaker 1: more video content this year than I have in years past,

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Speaker 1: especially as I'm doing the film breakdowns. Don't forget about

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Speaker 1: our podcast feed under Hoops tonight and continue to drop

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Speaker 1: mail bag questions in the YouTube comments so we can

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Speaker 1: keep hitting them at the end of the shows, throughout

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Speaker 1: the season, and then last but not least, before we

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Speaker 1: get started. The start of the NBA season is less

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Speaker 1: than a week away, but we still have NFL in

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Speaker 1: full swing, college football in full swing. The Major League

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Speaker 1: Baseball playoffs are going on right now. My Arizona Diamondbacks

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Speaker 1: just got the shit kicked out of them by the

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Speaker 1: Phillies last night. But there's still concerting comedy shows that

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Speaker 1: are touring around the country as well, and the best

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Speaker 1: way to get tickets to any of these is on

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Speaker 1: see your favorite basketball team starting next week. Download game

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Speaker 1: Time today to get those tickets. And again, it's not

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Speaker 1: just sports. There are several huge concerts and comedy shows

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Speaker 1: still on tour, and game Time has your tickets. Download

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Speaker 1: game Time app entercode Hoops. That's Hops for twenty dollars off.

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Speaker 1: No matter where you live, get out and have some

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Speaker 1: fun this week. Download the game Time app. Last minute tickets,

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Speaker 1: lowest price guaranteed. All right, let's talk some basketball. So

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Speaker 1: the dress Russal for the Celtics, they started their five

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Speaker 1: best players like I've been begging for them to do

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Speaker 1: all preseasons. They started Derek White and Drew Holliday alongside

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Speaker 1: Jason and Jalen and Chris tops Porzingis. All five guys

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Speaker 1: played at least twenty four minutes stretching into the third quarter.

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Speaker 1: They scored seventy eight points in the first half, and

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Speaker 1: that was with a little dead stretch there. At the

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Speaker 1: end of the second quarter, they were scoring at will,

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Speaker 1: and it was classic pace in space basketball. Everybody was involved.

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Speaker 1: The ball wasn't sticking anywhere. People were making quick decisions,

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Speaker 1: and because everybody can dribble, shoot, and pass, it's borderline

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Speaker 1: impossible to guard all of these. Kristops. Porzingis picking Pops,

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Speaker 1: he's just standing at the top of the key, wide

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Speaker 1: open on these. They're gonna be able to get good

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Speaker 1: looks out of there all the time they can. It

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Speaker 1: was really like this simple. They dribble the ball up

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Speaker 1: the floor, and if it wasn't Kristops, it'd be someone else,

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Speaker 1: like a guard setting like a ghost screen or something.

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Speaker 1: But they get a closeout opportunity like this. The defense

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Speaker 1: is in rotation and then that guy, let's just say

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Speaker 1: Drew Holliday, comes and sets a ghost screen for Derek

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Speaker 1: White and then pops the three point line. They throw

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Speaker 1: the ball to Drew and Drew's got a guy closing

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Speaker 1: out of him. It's like a pump fake and then

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Speaker 1: like one dribble and then it's a wide open three

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Speaker 1: every single time. And like I think they made like

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Speaker 1: sixteen or seventeen threes just in the first half and like,

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Speaker 1: if you really zoom in on him from the standpoint

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Speaker 1: of shot quality, these are good looks. Like these are

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Speaker 1: really really good looks. This is replicable offense. It's just

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Speaker 1: a combination of Like it's funny because every team needs

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Speaker 1: to have an offensive identity based on their talent, and

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Speaker 1: the Celtics have a great combination of ball handling and

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Speaker 1: shooting down the roster, right, Like, their core five guys

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Speaker 1: are all extremely gifted offensive players, and so does it

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Speaker 1: make sense to run heliocentric style offense with this group.

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Speaker 1: You don't want to go down and just have Derek

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Speaker 1: White and Jalen Brown stand in the corners and Drew

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Speaker 1: Holliday stand on the wing and just have chrisops Porzingis

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Speaker 1: come run pick and rolls. That's not the right way

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Speaker 1: to run this type of team. Whereas if you've got

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Speaker 1: Brook Lopez and Malik Beasley and Chris Middleton, it might

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Speaker 1: be a little different, right, Like in that case, you

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Speaker 1: might want to space more and run more of the

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Speaker 1: same actions over and over again again. Like I talk

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Speaker 1: about this with coaches all the time. You never want

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Speaker 1: to gear your you never want to force your players

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Speaker 1: to play your system. You want to gear your system

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Speaker 1: to your players, and this is a pace in space,

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Speaker 1: drive and kick team, and they can be really formidable

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Speaker 1: offensively when they play like this. It's a big part

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Speaker 1: of the reason why I feel like Boston's gonna run

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Speaker 1: away with the conference. It's one of my biggest ta

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Speaker 1: for this year. I think the Celtics will be at

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Speaker 1: least five games above everyone else in the league, let

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Speaker 1: alone the rest of the conference in the regular season.

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Speaker 1: Now we could talk about the playoffs obviously, Like the

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Speaker 1: Knicks were able to stagnate them a little bit there

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Speaker 1: in the late second early first quarter, there are going

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Speaker 1: to be stretches where rhythm becomes an issue. Like you

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Speaker 1: can kind of see like because everybody can play, certain

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Speaker 1: guys get squeezed a little bit, like Jaylen Brown in particular,

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Speaker 1: kind of seemed out of rhythm in that first half.

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Speaker 1: Started to get going in the second half, but like

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Speaker 1: they were kind of force feeding him the basketball a

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Speaker 1: little bit. So like they're gonna have moments where they

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Speaker 1: don't look great in the postseason, it's still gonna come

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Speaker 1: down to half court shot creation from guys like Jason

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Speaker 1: Tatum and somebody else out of that group. That's gonna

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Speaker 1: have to rise to the occasion. But over the course

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Speaker 1: of the regular season, they're gonna kick the shit out

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Speaker 1: of a lot of people, because in a night in,

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Speaker 1: night out, less scouting, more depth oriented basketball, they are

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Speaker 1: going to thrive in that setting. Jason Tatum looks awesome.

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Speaker 1: He had twenty eight points on fifteen shots. A lot

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Speaker 1: of the usual stuff we're accustomed to seeing from Jayson Tatum,

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Speaker 1: but I liked the aggressiveness I saw out of him

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Speaker 1: in the post, like you'd see him get you know,

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Speaker 1: like you'd see him get Quentin Grimes on the left

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Speaker 1: block and just immediately his eyes would light up and

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Speaker 1: back him down and just bully his way to the basket.

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Speaker 1: Did it to Evan Fournier in the second quarter. He

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Speaker 1: did it to Taikwon Jeffery's in the second quarter. You know,

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Speaker 1: it's funny because we think of Jason Tatum as like

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Speaker 1: a scoring wing, but the dude's gotten huge over the years.

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Speaker 1: He's legitimately a very big and strong basketball player. And

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Speaker 1: I've been begging over the course of the last year

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Speaker 1: for Tatum to maintain his shot variety, not just everything

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Speaker 1: out of a face up or live dribble from the

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Speaker 1: three point line into a step back three or driving

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Speaker 1: into the paint. When you limit yourself, if you shut

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Speaker 1: off the middle of the floor, you make it so

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Speaker 1: that the defense is not even worried about eighty percent

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Speaker 1: of the shots that normal players could take. Right they

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Speaker 1: know they can press up on you in the three

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Speaker 1: point line and offer help at the rim and slow

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Speaker 1: you down. You need to show a willingness to work

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Speaker 1: in the middle of the floor. And again, it doesn't

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Speaker 1: have to be a bunch of step back nineteen footers

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Speaker 1: and really tough turnaround jump shots. Sometimes it's as simple

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Speaker 1: as just turn your back and bully your way to

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Speaker 1: the basket and maybe take like a short fade away

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Speaker 1: that's closer to the rim, or go all the way

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Speaker 1: to try to draw a foul. He's looked really good

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Speaker 1: in the post so far in preseason. He's run eight

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Speaker 1: post ups that have led to fifteen points. It's one

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Speaker 1: point eight eight points per possession. An exciting start for

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Speaker 1: Jason Tatum in the post this preseason. Boston's defense, so

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Speaker 1: the Knicks shot really really well in this game. They

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Speaker 1: made nineteen threes themselves. They came out guns blazing and

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Speaker 1: Dante de Vincenzo hit a long three at the start,

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Speaker 1: Quinton Grime hit a bunch of threes right at the start.

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Speaker 1: They shot the ball well, but they also played extremely

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Speaker 1: hard and they're very athletic, so they kept it close throughout.

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Speaker 1: It was actually really impressed by the Knicks and just

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Speaker 1: their overall, you know, competitiveness in this particular game. But

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Speaker 1: the Celtics did have some stretches of frightening defense. Joe

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Speaker 1: Miszula had them running this like two two one press

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Speaker 1: off of made baskets in the first half, where like

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Speaker 1: occasionally they catch the Knicks off guard and they wouldn't

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Speaker 1: set up a press break and it would just be

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Speaker 1: like Duce McBride in the backcourt just getting trapped and

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Speaker 1: the Knicks through some kick ahead passes to try to

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Speaker 1: beat the press, where like Al Horford was playing center

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Speaker 1: field and was able to make a play. Like they

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Speaker 1: actually kind of caused some issues for the Knicks in

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Speaker 1: their press press defense. But I like it for a

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Speaker 1: couple of different reasons. It really just establishes the defensive

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Speaker 1: end as something they're schematically trying to do, which will

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Speaker 1: keep a mental focus down the roster. That will help

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Speaker 1: them to be more focused on the defensive end of

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Speaker 1: the floor. Right. And then again, to me, it's an

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Speaker 1: aggressive mentality as well. This is not a team that

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Speaker 1: has a dominant defensive front line, right like christ Tops

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Speaker 1: Porzingis is a good rim protector, but he's not a

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Speaker 1: great rim protector. Al Horford and is you know, a

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Speaker 1: good defensive player on the back line, but he's certainly

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Speaker 1: not a great defensive player on the back line. They're

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Speaker 1: not a team like you know, Jannis and Brook Lopez,

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Speaker 1: where it's actually better for them to kind of sit

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Speaker 1: back in the paint and try to funnel guys into them.

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Speaker 1: This is a Celtics team that needs to play aggressive defense.

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Speaker 1: This is a team that has defense down the roster.

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Speaker 1: They're a perimeter defense team. They have a lot of

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Speaker 1: guys that can play passing lanes and get aggressive in

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Speaker 1: ball pressure, and like's the that's the defensive identity that

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Speaker 1: this particular team needs to have. So I like the

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Speaker 1: overall attitude that I've seen from the Celtics so far

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Speaker 1: in preseason looks a lot more close to that twenty

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Speaker 1: twenty one to twenty twenty two season rather than last

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Speaker 1: year where I thought they went down a level defensively,

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Speaker 1: and again like this, if you're a playmaking defense, that

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Speaker 1: means you're up in passing lanes and you're applying ball pressure.

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Speaker 1: That's what ignites you going the other way. In transition,

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Speaker 1: on the Knicks front, a bunch of key guys sat out,

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Speaker 1: So I'm not gonna spend too much time on the Knicks,

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Speaker 1: but a couple of guys that I want to shout out.

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Speaker 1: Duce mcbridey didn't shoot particularly well, But it's always funny

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Speaker 1: to me in these games when the stars are out,

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Speaker 1: because you find out pretty quickly which one of your

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Speaker 1: role players actually is comfortable getting to his spots. And again,

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Speaker 1: duson and shoot particularly well, but he was like the

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Speaker 1: one Nick that seemed like he was comfortable kind of

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Speaker 1: like getting over the top of ball screens, getting the

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Speaker 1: defender and jail on his backside and getting to his

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Speaker 1: spots where he could get a quality look like you

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Speaker 1: saw Dante Devincenzo for instance, kind of struggle with that

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Speaker 1: in this particular game, which is not a big thing

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Speaker 1: because obviously Dante de Vincenzo's more of a role player

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Speaker 1: and not a guy that you're gonna have on the

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Speaker 1: ball a ton, but I think Duce McBride kind of

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Speaker 1: flashed a little bit of his on ball, you know,

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Speaker 1: comfortable miss or comfort or whatever you wanna call it

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Speaker 1: against that Boston defense. Quinn Grimes came out guns blazing

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Speaker 1: from three, made a couple of nice driving kick passes

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Speaker 1: attacking closeouts as well. Dante de Vincenzo, like I said,

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Speaker 1: struggled on offense, but I thought you saw a lot

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Speaker 1: of his defensive upside, particularly in the late second quarter

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Speaker 1: and then in the early third quarter with what he

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Speaker 1: can do on the perimeter disrupting ball handlers. And then,

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Speaker 1: last but not least, Jericho Simms ten rebounds in three

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Speaker 1: blocks in thirty two minutes, had some nice isolation defense

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Speaker 1: possessions against Jalen Brown where you could see his athleticism

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Speaker 1: be a problem. Again, he's only twenty four years old.

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Speaker 1: It's pretty exciting what Jericho Sims could be in the

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Speaker 1: big picture as well. I'd like to give you guys

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Speaker 1: an update kind of big picture on the Knicks in

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Speaker 1: the preseason, but Jalen Brunson and Julius Randall have barely played.

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Speaker 1: I think they've combined to play twenty eight minutes total

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Speaker 1: combined in this entire preseason. So it's hard to say

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Speaker 1: at this point, but the Knicks are gonna be one

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Speaker 1: of the teams that we cover very closely during the

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Speaker 1: regular season. All right, moving on to the Clippers and

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Speaker 1: the Nuggets. So Paul George twenty three points in the

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Speaker 1: first half on nine of thirteen shooting, did a really

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Speaker 1: nice job attacking and getting downhill. Again, that's a huge

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Speaker 1: thing for Paul George. He can be one of those

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Speaker 1: guys that like it's funny because he's renowned around the

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Speaker 1: league as one of the better, you know, skill guys

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Speaker 1: in the league. But this is a guy that was

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Speaker 1: below fifty percent in effective field goal percentage on pull

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Speaker 1: up jump shots last year. And a big part of

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Speaker 1: it is he has a tendency to just take extremely

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Speaker 1: difficult pull up jump shots. And so I like Paul

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Speaker 1: George when he's more aggressive getting closer to the rim.

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Speaker 1: And he made five shots in the pint in this game,

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Speaker 1: including three shots at the rim. But he's getting closer shots.

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Speaker 1: If you look at Paul George's shot chart, it's not

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Speaker 1: a bunch of nineteen plus foot jump shots. It's a

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Speaker 1: lot of stuff closer to the rim, which I think

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Speaker 1: is a direct indicator of his ability to be efficient

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Speaker 1: the way that he was. But he looks healthy and

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Speaker 1: he looks locked in in a good spot coming into

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Speaker 1: the season. Twenty five pick and rolls, ISOs and post

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Speaker 1: ups so far in preseason leading to thirty two points.

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Speaker 1: It's one point two to eight points per possession, which

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Speaker 1: is awesome. I want to spend a minute talking about

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Speaker 1: Russell Westbrook, who had another great game in a Clipper

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Speaker 1: jersey last night. I just love his fit with the Clippers,

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Speaker 1: and again, fit is everything. I talk about this concept

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Speaker 1: all the time on the show. But the list of

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Speaker 1: responsibilities on a basketball court, and your stars are good

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Speaker 1: at taking big chunks of those responsibilities away. But if

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Speaker 1: you have guys that feel the same chunks of responsibilities,

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Speaker 1: so for instance, like rim pressure playmaking, like well, Lebron's

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Speaker 1: two best qualities are rim pressure and playmaking. So if

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Speaker 1: you put him on the same team as Lebron, all

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Speaker 1: of a sudden, like he's kind of trying to do

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Speaker 1: the same things that Lebron is doing. But like Lebron's

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Speaker 1: weaknesses at this phase in his careers, he hasn't been

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Speaker 1: as good of a perimeter shooter, right, and like, like

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Speaker 1: obviously he's trying to conserve energy over the course of games,

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Speaker 1: like on the defensive end of the floor and stuff

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Speaker 1: like that. And like Russell Westbrook at this point, he

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Speaker 1: can't shoot, and he struggles with some of the off

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Speaker 1: ball stuff, at least he did with the Clippers, which

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Speaker 1: we're gonna talk about today. So again, it's not a

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Speaker 1: big shock that he struggled to impact winning within the

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Speaker 1: Lakers system when the things that he was great at

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Speaker 1: were things that they didn't need from him, right. And

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Speaker 1: then we look at the the Clippers in their situation

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Speaker 1: and they the two biggest weaknesses in their offense are

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Speaker 1: rim pressure and playmaking. So you absolutely need the things

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Speaker 1: that he's great at. And you know, he's been better

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Speaker 1: in a lot of the things on the periphery, which

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Speaker 1: we're gonna talk about here in a minute. But like,

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Speaker 1: I also think that kind of stuff is connected. If

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Speaker 1: he's able to impact winning within the two things that

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Speaker 1: he's best at, that's going to naturally make him feel

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Speaker 1: more confident, more bought into the system, just generally happier,

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Speaker 1: and it's easier to be good at your job when

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Speaker 1: you're happy. How often do you go into a relationship,

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Speaker 1: and if you're in a bad mood, it's harder to

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Speaker 1: be nice, it's harder to keep a good attitude about

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Speaker 1: stuff if you're upset because you're hungry, tired, fatigued, annoid,

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Speaker 1: whatever it is. And the same thing stretches into every

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Speaker 1: single relationship, every single job you have. Right, Russell Westbrook

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Speaker 1: was deeply unhappy in a Lakers jersey, and so I'm

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Speaker 1: not surprised that he was less committed to make better decisions,

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Speaker 1: cut back on pull up jump shots, be more committed

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Speaker 1: on the defensive end of the four. Now he's happy

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Speaker 1: with the Clippers and he's more willing to do that stuff.

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Speaker 1: And again, I don't think anybody's blame free from the

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Speaker 1: Lakers situation. It's all of their faults. Russ is to

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Speaker 1: blame Lebron and a dear to blame, the Laker fan

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Speaker 1: bases to blame, the coaches, are everybody's to blame for

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Speaker 1: that situation going south. But at the same time, it

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Speaker 1: was doomed on arrival. So I don't really hold it

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Speaker 1: against anybody involved, including Russ, including the Lakers themselves, And

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Speaker 1: so I'm just happy to see him in a role

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Speaker 1: that makes a lot more sense with the Clippers to

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Speaker 1: talk about a couple of specific ways that he's really

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Speaker 1: helping this team. First of all, in transition. The Clippers

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Speaker 1: made just six hundred and fifteen field goals in transition

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Speaker 1: last year. That was bottom ten in the league. And remember,

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Speaker 1: transition possessions are again you want to talk about your personnel.

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Speaker 1: We talked about this earlier when we were talking Celtics Knicks,

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Speaker 1: but like it's all about your personnel. Like, if you

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Speaker 1: don't have transition personnel, then it's unrealistic to make them

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Speaker 1: run if they're not gonna be good at it. You

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Speaker 1: need athletes, guys that like to run, high motor guys,

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Speaker 1: guys that are more like read and reacting quick as

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Speaker 1: opposed to like slow down in methodical right. PG and

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Speaker 1: CHOI are a little more slow down and methodical, right.

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Speaker 1: But the beautiful thing is is you can do it

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Speaker 1: even when those guys are trailing the play, Like Russ

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Speaker 1: can grab an offensive or grab a defensive rebound, or

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Speaker 1: grab an inbound pass and sprint up the floor, and

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Speaker 1: Kawhi and Paul George can kind of work up at

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Speaker 1: their own pace and as long as Russ makes good decisions,

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Speaker 1: it'll work out right. Like if he goes piling into

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Speaker 1: three three dudes in the paint and turns it over

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Speaker 1: or misses a layup, obviously that's bad. But if he

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Speaker 1: dribbles up the floor and backs down into a quick

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Speaker 1: post up and then identifies that nothing's open and then

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Speaker 1: dribbles it out and they run offense, it can work right.

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Speaker 1: And again, like there were some specific possessions that I

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Speaker 1: saw where where he's just generating really high quality opportunities

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Speaker 1: for guys like Kawhi and Paul George. In transition, there

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Speaker 1: was a play where Russ pushed the ball in transition,

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Speaker 1: turns his back at the right block and starts backing

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Speaker 1: down and Zeke Naji he's guarding Kawhi, who's trailing to

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Speaker 1: play again because Kawhi is not a guy who likes

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Speaker 1: to play with a ton of pace. He's kind of

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Speaker 1: jogging up the left sideline. He gets to the left

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Speaker 1: wing right, Russ is backing down and Zeke Naji sinks

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Speaker 1: down below the foul line. Russ throws it to Kawhi.

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Speaker 1: Naji closes out to Kawhi but closes out short and

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Speaker 1: Kawai just shoots like a standstill, pretty damn open three

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Speaker 1: that he makes, Like that's a really easy shot for

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Speaker 1: a guy who went healthy is a top five player

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Speaker 1: in the entire world. And you can generate those types

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Speaker 1: of open shots through rim pressure, through transition pushes, which

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Speaker 1: were things they were not getting until Russell Westbrook was

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Speaker 1: in the system. There was another Kawhi Leonard transition three

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Speaker 1: in the corner, same type of thing is off a

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Speaker 1: made basket. Julian Strawther hits a pull up three against

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Speaker 1: a bad pick and roll coverage from the Clippers. Russ

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Speaker 1: gets the inbound pass on a make and just runs

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Speaker 1: like crazy down the floor, does like a over the

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Speaker 1: head rip through like that Dwayne Wade over the head

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Speaker 1: pullover dribble against Reggie Jackson, gets all the way to

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Speaker 1: the rim, pulls in a health defender and throws a

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Speaker 1: kick pass to Kawhi Leonard, another completely uncontested three. There's

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Speaker 1: a little a point where you pause right as Russ

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Speaker 1: is throwing the pass to the corner. All five Denver

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Speaker 1: nuggets were in the paint. This is the value of

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Speaker 1: rim pressure, which you can generate in transition as well

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Speaker 1: as you can in the half court shot in the

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Speaker 1: half court as well, like Russ can like really cause

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Speaker 1: problems for smaller guards in the post. Aalen Pickett is

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Speaker 1: a big, strong guard who just got drafted for the Nuggets.

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Speaker 1: Russ like just buried him in the post, and as

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Speaker 1: a result, DeAndre Jordan had to come over and help

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Speaker 1: at the front of the rim. As a result, Justin

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Speaker 1: Holiday had to kind of sink down to help on

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Speaker 1: Zubac and he just throws the kickout pass to Paul

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Speaker 1: George on the right wing. Now, Paul George one of

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Speaker 1: the fifteen best player twenty best players in the world.

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Speaker 1: Pump fake, you know, I can't remember who was I

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Speaker 1: think it was Justin Holliday runs by him on the

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Speaker 1: pump fake, just one easy dribble into about nineteen feet

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Speaker 1: and rising up for basically a practice jump shot for

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Speaker 1: one of the best players in the world. And again,

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Speaker 1: these are things that they absolutely weren't getting before he

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Speaker 1: was in town. And that's I shouldn't say in town

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Speaker 1: because they stayed in the same town, but in a

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Speaker 1: Clippers jersey. I think there are very specific ways that

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Speaker 1: Russ compliments this specific roster. And again, like I've talked

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Speaker 1: about this all the time. One of the most valuable

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Speaker 1: elements of NBA offense is rim pressure. That is what

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Speaker 1: compresses the defense. It is what generates offensive rebound opportunity

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Speaker 1: and close out opportunities when the defense is in rotation

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Speaker 1: or then your aggregate ball handling and guys attacking closeouts

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Speaker 1: and things like that can get great shots. He fills

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Speaker 1: a need. Now. The key to Russ making a winning

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Speaker 1: impact even in this role comes down to three things

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Speaker 1: in my opinion, the fit, which we just talked about,

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Speaker 1: but defensive commitment. We saw him play defense of one

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Speaker 1: of the highest levels of his career in the first

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Speaker 1: two games of that Phoenix Sun series. If he continues

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Speaker 1: to do that, that's something that can push the ceiling

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Speaker 1: of this Clippers team even higher. And again that kind

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Speaker 1: of brings me back to the happiness element element. I

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Speaker 1: think he could be more committed on those details simply

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Speaker 1: because he's happier in a Clippers jersey than he was

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Speaker 1: in a Lakers jersey. And then, last but not least,

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Speaker 1: limiting mistakes taking away bad shots, Like here's the stat

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Speaker 1: for you, Russell Westbrook has not attempted a single pull

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Speaker 1: up jump shot this entire preseason in like thirty something

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Speaker 1: in like thirty seven to thirty eight minutes. That's a

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Speaker 1: significant stat. Last year in the preseason for the Lakers,

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Speaker 1: Russ took six pl jumpers. It was still something that

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Speaker 1: was in his diet back then. Here's some crazy stats

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Speaker 1: for you. A pull up jump shot from Russell Westbrook

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Speaker 1: in the twenty twenty two season. His full season with

430
00:20:09,440 --> 00:20:12,760
Speaker 1: the Lakers was worth zero point eight points. Last year

431
00:20:12,760 --> 00:20:14,800
Speaker 1: with the Lakers, it was worth zero points seven to

432
00:20:14,880 --> 00:20:17,320
Speaker 1: seven points last year with the Clippers, and the regular

433
00:20:17,320 --> 00:20:19,600
Speaker 1: season in the playoffs it was worth zero point eighty

434
00:20:19,600 --> 00:20:22,280
Speaker 1: three points. So it's just been a bad shot for

435
00:20:22,400 --> 00:20:25,679
Speaker 1: years now for the Clippers, and it appears that he

436
00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:28,119
Speaker 1: might finally have made the adjustment just to take it

437
00:20:28,160 --> 00:20:31,560
Speaker 1: out of his game entirely. Again, he's taken zero of them,

438
00:20:31,560 --> 00:20:33,280
Speaker 1: and this is a guy who loves to take those

439
00:20:33,320 --> 00:20:37,520
Speaker 1: jump shots. That's a significant move towards limiting his mistakes,

440
00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:39,760
Speaker 1: limiting turnovers. That's something he's gonna have to get a

441
00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:42,119
Speaker 1: little better at. He's been turning it over at a

442
00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:44,320
Speaker 1: pretty high rate in the Clippers jersey. He's over five

443
00:20:44,359 --> 00:20:47,040
Speaker 1: turnovers per one hundred possessions, and last year's regular season,

444
00:20:47,280 --> 00:20:50,000
Speaker 1: in the playoffs, and in this year's preseason, So he'll

445
00:20:50,040 --> 00:20:51,960
Speaker 1: need to kind of tone back that a little bit.

446
00:20:53,040 --> 00:20:54,960
Speaker 1: And then last but not least the or lastly the

447
00:20:55,480 --> 00:20:58,439
Speaker 1: off ball mistake, so like losing a shooter off the

448
00:20:58,480 --> 00:21:01,720
Speaker 1: ball or missing box. But if he can limit mistakes

449
00:21:02,480 --> 00:21:05,840
Speaker 1: and commit on the defensive end, he I'm not talking

450
00:21:05,880 --> 00:21:08,720
Speaker 1: about he can be. He can impact winning. He can

451
00:21:08,840 --> 00:21:12,440
Speaker 1: impact winning at a top thirty level in the NBA,

452
00:21:12,600 --> 00:21:16,360
Speaker 1: like legitimately at a fringe star level if he does,

453
00:21:17,160 --> 00:21:19,399
Speaker 1: if he checks those boxes on the defensive end and

454
00:21:19,400 --> 00:21:22,639
Speaker 1: in terms of limiting mistakes, that's how valuable he is

455
00:21:23,119 --> 00:21:26,640
Speaker 1: pressuring the rim and as a playmaker within this type

456
00:21:26,680 --> 00:21:30,239
Speaker 1: of system, within this roster where they need what he

457
00:21:30,280 --> 00:21:33,960
Speaker 1: brings to the table. That's how strong his strengths are.

458
00:21:34,480 --> 00:21:36,760
Speaker 1: And again, like there's been a lot of like misconceptions

459
00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:38,600
Speaker 1: surrounding Russ over the last couple of years. Like I

460
00:21:38,640 --> 00:21:41,399
Speaker 1: saw another I can't remember who it was. It might

461
00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:44,479
Speaker 1: have been, Was it Gilbert Arenas? I think it might

462
00:21:44,520 --> 00:21:46,640
Speaker 1: have been Gilbert, but somebody was Like I can't believe

463
00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:50,040
Speaker 1: Russ is ranked eighty nine in the play ESPN player rankings,

464
00:21:50,040 --> 00:21:51,679
Speaker 1: Like how in the world is Russ this low, And

465
00:21:51,680 --> 00:21:54,800
Speaker 1: it's like there is a huge kind of like disparity

466
00:21:54,880 --> 00:21:57,679
Speaker 1: between what most people think about Russ and like a

467
00:21:57,680 --> 00:22:01,280
Speaker 1: lot of like specific player like full players and fans

468
00:22:01,440 --> 00:22:03,960
Speaker 1: think of him right, And Russ does have a very

469
00:22:04,040 --> 00:22:07,680
Speaker 1: loyal fan base of people that are extremely defensive of him.

470
00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:12,040
Speaker 1: And the reason why that big chasm of opinion exists

471
00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:15,920
Speaker 1: is because of the highs and the lows. Russ's highs

472
00:22:16,440 --> 00:22:18,320
Speaker 1: are not quite at the level it was when he

473
00:22:18,359 --> 00:22:21,160
Speaker 1: was an MVP, but they're pretty close. Like he can

474
00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:25,760
Speaker 1: still be like downright destructive to the opponent and for

475
00:22:25,840 --> 00:22:28,879
Speaker 1: stretches of basketball games because of how gifted he is

476
00:22:28,920 --> 00:22:32,399
Speaker 1: athletically at his position still, but it's an up and

477
00:22:32,440 --> 00:22:34,880
Speaker 1: down experience with Russ because he can be very mistake

478
00:22:34,920 --> 00:22:37,840
Speaker 1: prone and in the past the highs outweighed that, but

479
00:22:37,880 --> 00:22:41,520
Speaker 1: it became a more convoluted story in recent seasons, and

480
00:22:41,560 --> 00:22:44,080
Speaker 1: that's where that kind of gap in opinion exists. But

481
00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:46,600
Speaker 1: to be clear, the high end of that opinion, all

482
00:22:46,640 --> 00:22:50,360
Speaker 1: of Russ's fans, the former players that defend him so staunchly,

483
00:22:50,760 --> 00:22:53,560
Speaker 1: that stems from how high his highs are and they

484
00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:55,520
Speaker 1: have still been there over the years and he is

485
00:22:55,560 --> 00:22:59,240
Speaker 1: still capable of reaching those highs. But overall, just say

486
00:22:59,320 --> 00:23:02,480
Speaker 1: is a basketball I have very, very much enjoyed watching

487
00:23:02,600 --> 00:23:05,080
Speaker 1: Russell Westbrook in a Clippers jersey in a way that

488
00:23:05,119 --> 00:23:08,639
Speaker 1: I haven't in recent years. One last note on the

489
00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:12,320
Speaker 1: Clippers before we move on. The Clippers went to a

490
00:23:11,440 --> 00:23:14,679
Speaker 1: an all wings like switching lineup at the end of

491
00:23:14,680 --> 00:23:17,040
Speaker 1: the second quarter. It was Paul George Kawhi Leonard with

492
00:23:17,119 --> 00:23:20,359
Speaker 1: Russell Westbrook, Kenyan Martin Junior, and Nick Patoom and they

493
00:23:20,359 --> 00:23:22,959
Speaker 1: went on a run. They were switching everything. There were

494
00:23:23,040 --> 00:23:25,679
Speaker 1: multiple possession where the Nuggets literally didn't even get the

495
00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:28,440
Speaker 1: ball inside the three point line. Again, like, switching is

496
00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:30,200
Speaker 1: a great way to shut off two man game and

497
00:23:30,240 --> 00:23:32,919
Speaker 1: three man game situations when you communicate well, right, Because

498
00:23:33,240 --> 00:23:34,920
Speaker 1: like if a guy comes off a dribble handoff or

499
00:23:34,960 --> 00:23:36,560
Speaker 1: off of a ball screen and he just runs into

500
00:23:36,600 --> 00:23:39,560
Speaker 1: a new defender and then his defender has switched onto

501
00:23:39,600 --> 00:23:43,680
Speaker 1: the screener, that action has been shut down. There's no opening, right,

502
00:23:44,680 --> 00:23:47,120
Speaker 1: And that's a great way to like stagnate your opponent.

503
00:23:47,200 --> 00:23:49,439
Speaker 1: And they had a lot of success there and they

504
00:23:49,480 --> 00:23:53,000
Speaker 1: went on a little run. There were some downsides, like

505
00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:56,000
Speaker 1: they gave up an offensive rebound as Ignagy, where Russell

506
00:23:56,000 --> 00:23:58,920
Speaker 1: Westbrook was a little overmatched from a size standpoint underneath

507
00:23:58,920 --> 00:24:02,280
Speaker 1: the basket. There are always downsides to switching, but again

508
00:24:02,320 --> 00:24:04,040
Speaker 1: it's about the give and take, and as long as

509
00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:07,000
Speaker 1: you take more than you give back, it can be

510
00:24:07,040 --> 00:24:09,560
Speaker 1: a big positive. And you know, they've they've played a

511
00:24:09,560 --> 00:24:11,960
Speaker 1: lot of switching groups in the past, but they didn't

512
00:24:12,000 --> 00:24:14,639
Speaker 1: have guys like Russ or Kenyon Martin or even this

513
00:24:14,760 --> 00:24:18,520
Speaker 1: version of Terrence Man who are like guards but that

514
00:24:18,600 --> 00:24:21,560
Speaker 1: can guard like Fords but also have like real speed

515
00:24:21,600 --> 00:24:23,840
Speaker 1: and quickness. Like a lot of their old switching groups

516
00:24:23,920 --> 00:24:27,879
Speaker 1: would be like Marcus Morris with Robert Covington and Nick Batom,

517
00:24:27,920 --> 00:24:30,840
Speaker 1: and it's like, Okay, it's a lot of tall, thin guys,

518
00:24:31,400 --> 00:24:34,560
Speaker 1: a lot of guys that aren't super super mobile, right,

519
00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:37,080
Speaker 1: Whereas like now I've got a switching line up here

520
00:24:37,119 --> 00:24:40,520
Speaker 1: with Kawhi Leonard or excuse me, with Russell Westbrook and

521
00:24:40,600 --> 00:24:43,640
Speaker 1: Kenyon Martin Jr. Who are two freaky athletes that are

522
00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:46,200
Speaker 1: just super fast on the perimeter. Like there's a version

523
00:24:46,200 --> 00:24:48,000
Speaker 1: of that where you take Nick Patuma out for Terrence

524
00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:50,399
Speaker 1: May and then they could be even faster right, and

525
00:24:50,400 --> 00:24:52,679
Speaker 1: then when you combine that with the Russell Westbrook like

526
00:24:52,760 --> 00:24:55,480
Speaker 1: or the Russell Westbrook like rim pressure element, because that

527
00:24:55,560 --> 00:24:57,080
Speaker 1: was the other thing is on the other end of

528
00:24:57,119 --> 00:25:00,360
Speaker 1: the floor, they weren't as effective offensively as they could

529
00:25:00,359 --> 00:25:02,840
Speaker 1: have been in those situations. That's where you get the

530
00:25:03,240 --> 00:25:05,840
Speaker 1: Russell Westbrook rim pressure element too. I think the small

531
00:25:05,840 --> 00:25:08,440
Speaker 1: ball lineups for the Clippers could actually be more devastating

532
00:25:08,480 --> 00:25:11,440
Speaker 1: this year than they have in recent seasons of this era.

533
00:25:12,800 --> 00:25:14,600
Speaker 1: On the Nuggets front, I liked what I saw it

534
00:25:14,680 --> 00:25:17,760
Speaker 1: from Julian Strather. Again, he only went three for eleven,

535
00:25:17,960 --> 00:25:20,600
Speaker 1: but there was some pops of high level stuff, especially

536
00:25:20,640 --> 00:25:22,840
Speaker 1: in his first shift because he was getting guarded by

537
00:25:22,880 --> 00:25:25,160
Speaker 1: Kawhi Leonard and still kind of getting to his spots.

538
00:25:26,200 --> 00:25:27,640
Speaker 1: A lot of the shots he missed in this game

539
00:25:27,680 --> 00:25:30,840
Speaker 1: were kind of on rotations, like catch and shoot situations

540
00:25:31,119 --> 00:25:33,639
Speaker 1: and good looks that I expect him to make in

541
00:25:33,640 --> 00:25:36,840
Speaker 1: the long run. He made another tough floater on a

542
00:25:36,880 --> 00:25:39,000
Speaker 1: back cut against Nick Patum that where he was being

543
00:25:39,040 --> 00:25:41,399
Speaker 1: smothered from behind and he still made the floater. He

544
00:25:41,480 --> 00:25:44,359
Speaker 1: got fouled on another floater by Kawhi Leonard. He was

545
00:25:44,400 --> 00:25:47,280
Speaker 1: five of six on floaters before this game in preseason,

546
00:25:47,320 --> 00:25:49,600
Speaker 1: so that's turned into a devastating weapon for him. And

547
00:25:49,600 --> 00:25:51,879
Speaker 1: then he had some really nice feeds on rolls to

548
00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:54,080
Speaker 1: the rim for DeAndre Jordan where he come off with

549
00:25:54,160 --> 00:25:57,479
Speaker 1: ball screen, get two defenders, pump fake high, pull that

550
00:25:57,880 --> 00:25:59,840
Speaker 1: arm way out to the right, and throw that swing

551
00:26:00,080 --> 00:26:03,280
Speaker 1: bounce pass into the post. He's up to nineteen points

552
00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:05,840
Speaker 1: on nine pick and rolls in preseason. That's over two

553
00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:10,120
Speaker 1: points per possession, which is unbelievable. And then Peyton Watson.

554
00:26:10,119 --> 00:26:11,720
Speaker 1: I have two other guys two o the Nuggets. I

555
00:26:11,720 --> 00:26:13,960
Speaker 1: want to shout out. Peyton Watson. Still can't make a

556
00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:16,040
Speaker 1: jump shot and is still missing way too many shots

557
00:26:16,040 --> 00:26:19,000
Speaker 1: at the rim, but his athletic pop off the dribble

558
00:26:19,520 --> 00:26:22,000
Speaker 1: is something that really popped off the screen for me.

559
00:26:22,040 --> 00:26:24,159
Speaker 1: In this game, I talked about that switching lineup for

560
00:26:24,200 --> 00:26:26,800
Speaker 1: the Clippers again. What happens when a team switches. They

561
00:26:26,840 --> 00:26:29,360
Speaker 1: shut down your actions from there. You have to find

562
00:26:29,359 --> 00:26:31,040
Speaker 1: a way to get them in rotation in a one

563
00:26:31,080 --> 00:26:35,760
Speaker 1: on one matchup right, and two of their good offensive

564
00:26:35,760 --> 00:26:40,320
Speaker 1: possessions against the zone were literally Peyton Watson driving closeouts

565
00:26:40,560 --> 00:26:42,280
Speaker 1: and he had one on Paul George and another on

566
00:26:42,359 --> 00:26:46,080
Speaker 1: Kawhi Leonard and again like he's obviously super raw and

567
00:26:46,119 --> 00:26:48,199
Speaker 1: he's gonna have to polish up the skill stuff. But

568
00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:52,679
Speaker 1: Peyton Watson's like slashing ability is a real exciting talent

569
00:26:52,760 --> 00:26:56,159
Speaker 1: that could amount to something in the big picture. And

570
00:26:56,160 --> 00:26:57,399
Speaker 1: then the last guy I wanted to shout out was

571
00:26:57,440 --> 00:27:00,199
Speaker 1: Hunter Tyson, a player haven't had a chance to watch at.

572
00:27:01,119 --> 00:27:03,359
Speaker 1: He's big, and he can score the basketball. He hasn't

573
00:27:03,359 --> 00:27:07,120
Speaker 1: shot well in previous preseason games, but when I watched

574
00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:09,359
Speaker 1: him in the game against the Clippers, he looked like

575
00:27:09,400 --> 00:27:11,520
Speaker 1: an NBA player. He had a nice jumper and pick

576
00:27:11,560 --> 00:27:14,199
Speaker 1: and roll around like ten feet from the basket. He

577
00:27:14,640 --> 00:27:17,479
Speaker 1: had a transition possession where he bodied Robert Covington at

578
00:27:17,480 --> 00:27:19,119
Speaker 1: the rim for a finish. He had a couple of

579
00:27:19,200 --> 00:27:22,040
Speaker 1: nice threes on the move, getting his feet set quickly.

580
00:27:22,240 --> 00:27:25,480
Speaker 1: He had a powerful transition dunk. Again, he just looks

581
00:27:25,480 --> 00:27:26,959
Speaker 1: like an NBA player. I'm not sure if he'll make

582
00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:29,680
Speaker 1: the Nuggets roster, but he just looks like a guy

583
00:27:29,680 --> 00:27:33,480
Speaker 1: that i'd see in the NBA somewhere. He's tall, can shoot, mobile,

584
00:27:33,640 --> 00:27:36,040
Speaker 1: smart kid. I think he's someone that can play in

585
00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:42,400
Speaker 1: the league, all right, Thunderbucks. Chet Holmgren struggled a little

586
00:27:42,440 --> 00:27:47,399
Speaker 1: bit with Robin Lopez's physicality. You could tell Robin was

587
00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:50,360
Speaker 1: going out of his way to just shove him under

588
00:27:50,359 --> 00:27:52,960
Speaker 1: the basket and shove him out of position on box outs,

589
00:27:52,960 --> 00:27:55,040
Speaker 1: and jam him on screens and do everything in his

590
00:27:55,480 --> 00:27:58,120
Speaker 1: power to make him feel uncomfortable. You could tell Chet

591
00:27:58,160 --> 00:28:00,880
Speaker 1: was getting a little frustrated and a little fatigu in particular.

592
00:28:01,160 --> 00:28:03,080
Speaker 1: But I don't think that's going to be an issue

593
00:28:03,080 --> 00:28:05,160
Speaker 1: in the big picture, because Chet also had a good

594
00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:07,240
Speaker 1: game in this game overall, I thought. But I thought

595
00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:08,920
Speaker 1: that was an example of some of the struggles he'll

596
00:28:08,920 --> 00:28:10,840
Speaker 1: have in his first season just by being finn which

597
00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:13,199
Speaker 1: is something that is not unique to him. There are

598
00:28:13,240 --> 00:28:15,879
Speaker 1: a lot of thin big men in the NBA, but

599
00:28:15,920 --> 00:28:17,800
Speaker 1: that's something he'll run into. I thought. You saw some

600
00:28:17,840 --> 00:28:20,600
Speaker 1: of his defensive upside against Damian Lillard. We all saw

601
00:28:20,600 --> 00:28:23,439
Speaker 1: the clip on social media of Dame coming off against

602
00:28:23,480 --> 00:28:26,040
Speaker 1: a switch and hitting that hard step back to his

603
00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:28,600
Speaker 1: right and check blocking him. But there were also a

604
00:28:28,680 --> 00:28:32,160
Speaker 1: couple possessions in that first quarter where Chet really bothered

605
00:28:32,200 --> 00:28:34,280
Speaker 1: Dame on pull up jump shots and pick and roll

606
00:28:34,680 --> 00:28:37,080
Speaker 1: just by having his length up to contest. There's one

607
00:28:37,080 --> 00:28:39,120
Speaker 1: in particular at the top of the key where Dame

608
00:28:39,240 --> 00:28:41,400
Speaker 1: changed his release a little bit and shot it higher

609
00:28:41,440 --> 00:28:43,560
Speaker 1: and ended up leaving it short in a large part

610
00:28:43,560 --> 00:28:45,560
Speaker 1: because Check got a good contest, and if you look

611
00:28:45,600 --> 00:28:48,000
Speaker 1: at the replay, Check didn't even come out that far.

612
00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:50,360
Speaker 1: He didn't even come out above the level of the screen.

613
00:28:50,560 --> 00:28:53,280
Speaker 1: And that's the unique thing with his physical tools, with

614
00:28:53,360 --> 00:28:56,280
Speaker 1: how long he can be, he can just cause problems

615
00:28:56,320 --> 00:28:57,840
Speaker 1: without having to go all the way out, which is

616
00:28:57,880 --> 00:29:01,160
Speaker 1: a real weapon. Josh Giddy had a nice game. He

617
00:29:01,160 --> 00:29:03,600
Speaker 1: had nineteen points on twelve shots, generated a lot of

618
00:29:03,600 --> 00:29:06,560
Speaker 1: good close out opportunities with skip passes. That's his unique talent, right.

619
00:29:06,560 --> 00:29:08,200
Speaker 1: He's big, and he could see over the floor and

620
00:29:08,200 --> 00:29:09,920
Speaker 1: he sees the floor well, so he can make those

621
00:29:09,960 --> 00:29:13,320
Speaker 1: skip passes in a way a lot of smaller players can't.

622
00:29:13,560 --> 00:29:15,920
Speaker 1: He's been an important connective piece for them over the

623
00:29:15,960 --> 00:29:17,640
Speaker 1: course of the last couple of seasons. He's at one

624
00:29:17,640 --> 00:29:20,240
Speaker 1: point three six points per pick and roll and one

625
00:29:20,240 --> 00:29:23,560
Speaker 1: point sixty seven points per ISO in preseason nice game

626
00:29:23,600 --> 00:29:27,320
Speaker 1: from Josh Gitty. Jannis just obliterated the Thunder front line

627
00:29:27,320 --> 00:29:29,080
Speaker 1: when he was out there. It was actually kind of funny.

628
00:29:29,120 --> 00:29:31,200
Speaker 1: There were several possessions where he was posting up Jalen

629
00:29:31,200 --> 00:29:35,120
Speaker 1: Williams and it honestly looked like a man amongst boys,

630
00:29:35,360 --> 00:29:37,600
Speaker 1: Like I don't know, that phrase gets used all the time,

631
00:29:37,640 --> 00:29:39,760
Speaker 1: but this was like the literal version of that. There

632
00:29:39,840 --> 00:29:41,680
Speaker 1: was a play where like he posted up Jalen Williams

633
00:29:41,720 --> 00:29:44,160
Speaker 1: on the left block and like spun baseline and just

634
00:29:44,280 --> 00:29:48,960
Speaker 1: dunked over chet Holmgrin like Jannis is in prime shape obviously.

635
00:29:49,320 --> 00:29:52,120
Speaker 1: Damian Lillard though a little out of shape in my opinion,

636
00:29:52,160 --> 00:29:53,960
Speaker 1: he left a lot of jump shots short on the

637
00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:56,080
Speaker 1: front of the rim in this game. It really just

638
00:29:56,360 --> 00:29:58,640
Speaker 1: he just seems like he's just not quite in that

639
00:29:58,680 --> 00:30:01,800
Speaker 1: mid season groove. Yet He's just three for sixteen on

640
00:30:01,880 --> 00:30:05,600
Speaker 1: jump shots in preseason. That's his best skill as an

641
00:30:05,680 --> 00:30:08,840
Speaker 1: NBA player, right, so obviously he's gonna make those shots.

642
00:30:08,920 --> 00:30:11,840
Speaker 1: I wouldn't overreact to it. To me, it's more important

643
00:30:11,840 --> 00:30:14,880
Speaker 1: that he gets guarded like Dame, and he's still very

644
00:30:14,960 --> 00:30:17,560
Speaker 1: much is getting guarded like Dame. There was a stretch

645
00:30:17,600 --> 00:30:19,880
Speaker 1: in the early second quarter where Dame was out there

646
00:30:19,920 --> 00:30:22,840
Speaker 1: without Giannis and it was all reserves with him, and

647
00:30:22,920 --> 00:30:24,800
Speaker 1: in that lineup, like the thunder were just double teaming

648
00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:27,040
Speaker 1: and whenever he had the basketball and there wasn't enough

649
00:30:27,080 --> 00:30:29,040
Speaker 1: skill on the floor around him to make them pay.

650
00:30:30,120 --> 00:30:32,440
Speaker 1: But like, teams are still guarding Dame like Dame, and

651
00:30:32,480 --> 00:30:35,160
Speaker 1: that will met obviously, and to win the title, they're

652
00:30:35,160 --> 00:30:36,920
Speaker 1: gonna need Dame to make shots, which, by the way,

653
00:30:36,920 --> 00:30:39,959
Speaker 1: I believe he will make shots. But in the big picture,

654
00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:41,960
Speaker 1: especially in the early part of the regular season, while

655
00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:44,360
Speaker 1: Dame's playing his way into shape, it's more important that

656
00:30:44,360 --> 00:30:46,600
Speaker 1: he's guarded like he's Damian Lillard. And he is very

657
00:30:46,640 --> 00:30:49,280
Speaker 1: much still being guarded like Damian Lillard. And he did

658
00:30:49,520 --> 00:30:51,160
Speaker 1: end up coming out for the start of the second

659
00:30:51,240 --> 00:30:54,360
Speaker 1: half and playing an extra shift there in the third quarter,

660
00:30:54,600 --> 00:30:56,600
Speaker 1: and he had a driving left handed layup, and he

661
00:30:56,640 --> 00:30:59,160
Speaker 1: hit a pull up jump shot in pick and roll

662
00:30:59,200 --> 00:31:01,440
Speaker 1: where he didn't have much separation and he rose up

663
00:31:01,440 --> 00:31:03,320
Speaker 1: and knocked it down and was like just inside the

664
00:31:03,320 --> 00:31:05,200
Speaker 1: three point line. So I'm not worried about Dame in

665
00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:07,840
Speaker 1: the big picture. Last Bucks player I wanted to shout

666
00:31:07,840 --> 00:31:10,680
Speaker 1: out was Malik Beasley, got super hot, made six threes.

667
00:31:11,480 --> 00:31:13,240
Speaker 1: Something to keep in mind because I talked a lot

668
00:31:13,240 --> 00:31:15,200
Speaker 1: about how I view Beasley moore as a bench player

669
00:31:15,360 --> 00:31:17,520
Speaker 1: in the big picture, and I think Pat Connaton can start.

670
00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:20,120
Speaker 1: This is something he's capable of doing though, Like he

671
00:31:20,160 --> 00:31:23,360
Speaker 1: played really really poorly with the Lakers last year, but

672
00:31:23,400 --> 00:31:25,640
Speaker 1: he still had four games where he hit six plus threes.

673
00:31:25,760 --> 00:31:29,200
Speaker 1: Like when he gets hot, he can get unconsciously hot,

674
00:31:29,480 --> 00:31:32,120
Speaker 1: and that's just kind of part of the Malik Beasley experience.

675
00:31:32,200 --> 00:31:34,320
Speaker 1: It comes in waves with him, and I think that's

676
00:31:34,360 --> 00:31:36,840
Speaker 1: an interesting way for them to approach the rotation, especially

677
00:31:36,840 --> 00:31:39,480
Speaker 1: when it comes to the Pat Connatan Malik Beasley kind

678
00:31:39,520 --> 00:31:43,320
Speaker 1: of decision making process is like you can go with

679
00:31:43,360 --> 00:31:45,120
Speaker 1: whichever one of them is hot. You know, I think

680
00:31:45,120 --> 00:31:47,560
Speaker 1: Pat Connaton's got a higher floor, but there's no doubt

681
00:31:47,600 --> 00:31:49,800
Speaker 1: that Malik Beasley has a higher singling and you can

682
00:31:49,840 --> 00:31:53,080
Speaker 1: kind of make that read as the coach based on

683
00:31:53,120 --> 00:31:55,040
Speaker 1: which one of them is playing better in that moment.

684
00:31:55,640 --> 00:31:59,160
Speaker 1: All right, let's move on to the mailbag. First question

685
00:31:59,200 --> 00:32:01,800
Speaker 1: is from Teddy. You mentioned in the Bucks video that

686
00:32:01,840 --> 00:32:04,400
Speaker 1: they were a team that were honest with themselves and

687
00:32:04,440 --> 00:32:06,560
Speaker 1: about their weaknesses and then they made a move. Are

688
00:32:06,640 --> 00:32:08,800
Speaker 1: there any other teams in the league that need to

689
00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:10,480
Speaker 1: do that and make a trade I know you've mentioned

690
00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:13,480
Speaker 1: the Calves, but anyone else I put down three teams

691
00:32:13,520 --> 00:32:16,200
Speaker 1: the Bulls. I just think it's amazing that they've been

692
00:32:16,280 --> 00:32:19,160
Speaker 1: running it back despite basically being a below five hundred

693
00:32:19,200 --> 00:32:22,320
Speaker 1: non playoff team, while being fully healthy last year, with

694
00:32:22,400 --> 00:32:24,320
Speaker 1: that kind of star talent on the roster that all

695
00:32:24,360 --> 00:32:27,800
Speaker 1: has trade value, got like Demarta, rozen's on an expiring

696
00:32:27,880 --> 00:32:33,240
Speaker 1: deal and brings real like like playmaking and scoring. You

697
00:32:33,320 --> 00:32:36,440
Speaker 1: have to think that he's valuable to a contending team

698
00:32:36,480 --> 00:32:38,720
Speaker 1: that can take a chance on him to give them

699
00:32:38,720 --> 00:32:41,280
Speaker 1: an up, you know, like a like a potential upside

700
00:32:41,360 --> 00:32:44,360
Speaker 1: during this season and then cap space in the big picture,

701
00:32:44,480 --> 00:32:47,160
Speaker 1: right And then obviously Zach Lavine is another guy that

702
00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:49,000
Speaker 1: a lot of teams have been linked to over the years.

703
00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:50,880
Speaker 1: So it's just kind of weird to me that they've

704
00:32:50,920 --> 00:32:52,880
Speaker 1: continued to run it back that way. I still think

705
00:32:52,920 --> 00:32:54,440
Speaker 1: the Bulls end up blowing it up at the deadline,

706
00:32:54,480 --> 00:32:58,440
Speaker 1: but we'll see the Miami heat like, you just don't

707
00:32:58,440 --> 00:33:00,160
Speaker 1: have enough talent? How many times are you gonna keep

708
00:33:00,200 --> 00:33:02,400
Speaker 1: running it back with Jimmy and Bam and Spoe And

709
00:33:02,520 --> 00:33:05,320
Speaker 1: obviously I think that group needs to stay, but I

710
00:33:05,360 --> 00:33:07,720
Speaker 1: wish they'd get more aggressive on the peripher to try

711
00:33:07,720 --> 00:33:09,280
Speaker 1: to bring in some talent. I'd love to see them

712
00:33:09,320 --> 00:33:12,440
Speaker 1: go after James Harden, even though it's a risk, just

713
00:33:12,480 --> 00:33:15,120
Speaker 1: because there is a window here. Jimmy is getting older,

714
00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:17,920
Speaker 1: right like, and you just simply don't have enough talent.

715
00:33:17,960 --> 00:33:19,840
Speaker 1: So I'd like to see them get aggressive. And then

716
00:33:19,880 --> 00:33:23,360
Speaker 1: lastly the Clippers if they can't be healthy in the

717
00:33:23,360 --> 00:33:25,920
Speaker 1: playoffs this year, Again, at a certain point, it's your

718
00:33:25,960 --> 00:33:28,280
Speaker 1: fault if you keep running it back right and like,

719
00:33:28,320 --> 00:33:29,800
Speaker 1: maybe it all works out and they win the title

720
00:33:29,840 --> 00:33:31,480
Speaker 1: this year. And I'm not saying they should do it now,

721
00:33:31,800 --> 00:33:33,560
Speaker 1: but if they get to the end of the season

722
00:33:33,880 --> 00:33:37,400
Speaker 1: and someone else has the trophy again and Koir Paul George,

723
00:33:37,480 --> 00:33:39,480
Speaker 1: we're unable to finish the season, at what point do

724
00:33:39,560 --> 00:33:41,960
Speaker 1: you just acknowledge that that's the reality of the predicament

725
00:33:41,960 --> 00:33:43,800
Speaker 1: with those two as your foundational stars and make a

726
00:33:43,840 --> 00:33:48,720
Speaker 1: move at that point. Next mail back question, D'Angelo Russell

727
00:33:48,760 --> 00:33:50,360
Speaker 1: said that he wants to shift his game into playing

728
00:33:50,360 --> 00:33:52,760
Speaker 1: like Derek White. If you could give d lo an

729
00:33:52,800 --> 00:33:55,160
Speaker 1: NBA player to study and replicate, who would it be?

730
00:33:55,520 --> 00:33:59,600
Speaker 1: My answer would be Mike Conley. So I actually think

731
00:33:59,600 --> 00:34:01,480
Speaker 1: the Derek White comp makes a lot of sense on

732
00:34:01,520 --> 00:34:05,680
Speaker 1: a couple of levels. Derek White is definitely a better athlete.

733
00:34:05,840 --> 00:34:08,000
Speaker 1: He's a little more slender, a little quicker, a little

734
00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:11,399
Speaker 1: bit longer, has longer arms, better shot blocker, things like that.

735
00:34:11,719 --> 00:34:13,759
Speaker 1: But he's also a very very smart team defender, and

736
00:34:13,800 --> 00:34:17,560
Speaker 1: that's something that Dangel Russell's capable of being. D'angela Russell's big,

737
00:34:17,680 --> 00:34:20,279
Speaker 1: he actually has a decent amount of size and so

738
00:34:20,440 --> 00:34:25,480
Speaker 1: playing passing lanes and switching systems, and he actually has

739
00:34:25,520 --> 00:34:27,680
Speaker 1: been competing a lot in ball screens this year, getting

740
00:34:27,719 --> 00:34:30,560
Speaker 1: over the top and back pressuring. But like in general,

741
00:34:30,680 --> 00:34:32,720
Speaker 1: just by being in the right spot where you're supposed

742
00:34:32,760 --> 00:34:34,799
Speaker 1: to be in the scheme while having a decent set

743
00:34:34,800 --> 00:34:36,560
Speaker 1: of physical tools like he does, you can be an

744
00:34:36,560 --> 00:34:38,839
Speaker 1: impactful defender and then on the offensive end of the floor.

745
00:34:39,120 --> 00:34:41,200
Speaker 1: It's kind of a very similar role in the sense that,

746
00:34:41,320 --> 00:34:43,799
Speaker 1: like you know, a lot of times the Celtics, even

747
00:34:43,800 --> 00:34:45,759
Speaker 1: though they're a Tatum and Brown led team, they would

748
00:34:45,840 --> 00:34:48,160
Speaker 1: use Derek White to get the defense in rotation because

749
00:34:48,160 --> 00:34:50,920
Speaker 1: of his ability to get dribble penetration, and you know,

750
00:34:51,000 --> 00:34:54,799
Speaker 1: D'Angel Russell is just it's less about dribble penetration with him,

751
00:34:54,960 --> 00:34:57,600
Speaker 1: and more about his ability to methodically work and pick

752
00:34:57,640 --> 00:35:00,719
Speaker 1: and roll and make the right reads which generate those

753
00:35:00,760 --> 00:35:02,879
Speaker 1: close out opportunities, which is kind of a similar type

754
00:35:02,920 --> 00:35:06,279
Speaker 1: of impact, right, Like, if you generate a close out

755
00:35:06,280 --> 00:35:09,040
Speaker 1: opportunity for an athlete on the wing, that's every bit

756
00:35:09,080 --> 00:35:11,439
Speaker 1: as good as you slashing by your man. Right, It's

757
00:35:11,480 --> 00:35:14,160
Speaker 1: just who can draw multiple defenders and make the right reads,

758
00:35:14,200 --> 00:35:16,600
Speaker 1: which is something I think D'angela Russell can do at

759
00:35:16,600 --> 00:35:18,680
Speaker 1: a high level. Still, I think Derek White is the

760
00:35:18,719 --> 00:35:21,160
Speaker 1: perfect comp for him, and I'm not surprised at all

761
00:35:21,200 --> 00:35:24,759
Speaker 1: that he said. So last mailback question from Luke. You

762
00:35:24,840 --> 00:35:26,880
Speaker 1: talk a lot about injury luck and luck in general

763
00:35:26,960 --> 00:35:29,120
Speaker 1: being necessary for a championship. Do you think that is

764
00:35:29,200 --> 00:35:31,239
Speaker 1: part of the reason that pat Riley did not throw

765
00:35:31,280 --> 00:35:34,160
Speaker 1: the kitchen sink in for Dame because he can reasonably

766
00:35:34,160 --> 00:35:36,239
Speaker 1: convince himself that injury luck had bounced the other way

767
00:35:36,280 --> 00:35:37,799
Speaker 1: in any of the past four years, the heat would

768
00:35:37,800 --> 00:35:40,280
Speaker 1: have won the chip Bam and Drodgits in twenty twenty,

769
00:35:40,400 --> 00:35:42,320
Speaker 1: Harrow and Jimmy in twenty twenty two, and Harrow in

770
00:35:42,360 --> 00:35:46,920
Speaker 1: twenty three. So and then there's a second question from

771
00:35:47,000 --> 00:35:49,600
Speaker 1: Luke also, will Hoops Tonight be getting exclusive content on

772
00:35:49,640 --> 00:35:51,600
Speaker 1: the channel throughout the season or mostly just reposts. I'll

773
00:35:51,600 --> 00:35:53,799
Speaker 1: answer that in a second, but the gist of it

774
00:35:53,840 --> 00:35:58,040
Speaker 1: is is like I tend to think you need both, Like, yeah,

775
00:35:58,080 --> 00:36:00,360
Speaker 1: you do need injury luck to win the title, But

776
00:36:00,640 --> 00:36:02,279
Speaker 1: have you noticed I don't have the Mini Heat listed

777
00:36:02,320 --> 00:36:04,200
Speaker 1: as a top tier contender, Like, I don't have them

778
00:36:04,239 --> 00:36:06,719
Speaker 1: listed there because as of right now, they simply do

779
00:36:06,760 --> 00:36:09,520
Speaker 1: not have enough talent to go toe to toe with

780
00:36:09,560 --> 00:36:12,160
Speaker 1: the very best teams in the league. They're usually good

781
00:36:12,200 --> 00:36:15,200
Speaker 1: at exposing the flawed teams that are above them, but

782
00:36:15,400 --> 00:36:17,600
Speaker 1: every year they do eventually run into a team that

783
00:36:17,719 --> 00:36:21,080
Speaker 1: just simply brings too much firepower to bear. And so

784
00:36:21,239 --> 00:36:24,600
Speaker 1: like again like, yeah, you need luck. Yeah, Dame is

785
00:36:24,640 --> 00:36:27,160
Speaker 1: a particularly risky pick as a guard who's thirty three

786
00:36:27,200 --> 00:36:29,120
Speaker 1: years old or whatever. But at the end of the day,

787
00:36:29,120 --> 00:36:31,160
Speaker 1: you just simply don't have enough talent right now. So

788
00:36:31,239 --> 00:36:34,040
Speaker 1: luck is even a factor for you because you don't

789
00:36:34,040 --> 00:36:36,800
Speaker 1: have the firepower. So I think they should be aggressive anyway.

790
00:36:38,520 --> 00:36:40,359
Speaker 1: And the second part of his question, will Hoops tonight

791
00:36:40,400 --> 00:36:42,479
Speaker 1: be getting exclusive content on that channel throughout the season

792
00:36:42,600 --> 00:36:46,520
Speaker 1: or mostly just reposts. My shows with Colin Cowhard will

793
00:36:46,520 --> 00:36:49,279
Speaker 1: be on the Volumes feed, but everything else is going

794
00:36:49,360 --> 00:36:51,240
Speaker 1: to be on the Hoops to Night channel. Just imagine

795
00:36:51,760 --> 00:36:54,319
Speaker 1: the way last year went from the same point of

796
00:36:54,320 --> 00:36:57,000
Speaker 1: our content being on the Volumes channel, all of that

797
00:36:57,040 --> 00:36:59,239
Speaker 1: will just be on the Hoops Tonight channel. Now. The

798
00:36:59,280 --> 00:37:01,200
Speaker 1: only thing that's gonna be different this year compared to

799
00:37:01,280 --> 00:37:03,920
Speaker 1: last year is we're using breakout clips. Now, what that

800
00:37:03,960 --> 00:37:05,719
Speaker 1: means is every day I'm gonna do a show like this.

801
00:37:05,719 --> 00:37:08,279
Speaker 1: This show is gonna be right around forty minutes. Most

802
00:37:08,280 --> 00:37:10,000
Speaker 1: of them are gonna be around the same length, maybe

803
00:37:10,000 --> 00:37:14,240
Speaker 1: a little shorter during the season, right, Like that thirty

804
00:37:14,360 --> 00:37:18,320
Speaker 1: forty fifty minute clip is actually gonna have four or

805
00:37:18,360 --> 00:37:21,360
Speaker 1: five topics, right, And what ends up happening is the

806
00:37:21,400 --> 00:37:24,000
Speaker 1: YouTube thumbnail is limited in how much we can market,

807
00:37:24,200 --> 00:37:26,120
Speaker 1: and the title is limited in how much we can market.

808
00:37:26,120 --> 00:37:27,640
Speaker 1: It's why half of you guys think all I talk

809
00:37:27,680 --> 00:37:29,600
Speaker 1: about is the Warriors and Lakers, even though I talk

810
00:37:29,640 --> 00:37:32,319
Speaker 1: about every team in the league. Right, And so what

811
00:37:32,360 --> 00:37:34,600
Speaker 1: we do, what we're going to do this season is

812
00:37:34,640 --> 00:37:37,000
Speaker 1: we'll have the full show, but then we're gonna do

813
00:37:37,080 --> 00:37:39,800
Speaker 1: breakout clips for every segment. So if you're a Celtics

814
00:37:39,800 --> 00:37:42,320
Speaker 1: fan and you only want to listen to the segments

815
00:37:42,360 --> 00:37:45,040
Speaker 1: that are about the Celtics, all you gotta do is

816
00:37:45,080 --> 00:37:47,000
Speaker 1: go to the YouTube channel and look for a Celtics

817
00:37:47,040 --> 00:37:49,160
Speaker 1: thumbnail and it'll be in there somewhere. If you're an

818
00:37:49,160 --> 00:37:51,840
Speaker 1: Oklahoma City Thunder fan, just go look for that, right. So,

819
00:37:51,880 --> 00:37:53,960
Speaker 1: like when we're doing our game breakdowns during the season,

820
00:37:54,200 --> 00:37:57,960
Speaker 1: if I cover five games on a Thursday morning after

821
00:37:58,000 --> 00:38:01,160
Speaker 1: a jam packed Wednesday night slate, it'll be one big show,

822
00:38:01,440 --> 00:38:04,200
Speaker 1: but there will be you know, like you know, it'll

823
00:38:04,239 --> 00:38:05,960
Speaker 1: be like Lakers Nuggets for one of them, and it'll

824
00:38:06,000 --> 00:38:07,759
Speaker 1: be like, you know, Warriors Kings for another one, and

825
00:38:07,800 --> 00:38:10,560
Speaker 1: there will be individual breakout clips in the channel. So

826
00:38:10,640 --> 00:38:12,520
Speaker 1: you can see. Now we are going to try to

827
00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:14,880
Speaker 1: change the marketing so that there's like a very clear

828
00:38:14,920 --> 00:38:17,960
Speaker 1: distinction between the two. So like the thumbnails for the

829
00:38:18,000 --> 00:38:20,680
Speaker 1: full shows will look one way, then the breakout clips

830
00:38:20,680 --> 00:38:22,360
Speaker 1: will look a little different, just so it's easier for

831
00:38:22,360 --> 00:38:24,360
Speaker 1: you guys to see. But it's going to be the

832
00:38:24,400 --> 00:38:27,000
Speaker 1: same coverage. It's just going to be parsed out into

833
00:38:27,000 --> 00:38:29,400
Speaker 1: more videos, just so that people that are from the

834
00:38:29,400 --> 00:38:32,280
Speaker 1: smaller fan bases can still see their content and look,

835
00:38:32,480 --> 00:38:34,799
Speaker 1: I get it. I am a Lakers fan, so I

836
00:38:34,800 --> 00:38:36,719
Speaker 1: talk a lot of Lakers. They're also the largest fan

837
00:38:36,760 --> 00:38:38,440
Speaker 1: base in the NBA, so I talk a lot of Lakers.

838
00:38:38,440 --> 00:38:40,640
Speaker 1: I also talk a lot of Warriors. Right, I'm going

839
00:38:40,680 --> 00:38:43,560
Speaker 1: to talk about a lot of the bigger teams in

840
00:38:43,560 --> 00:38:45,680
Speaker 1: the league a lot, but I also talk about the

841
00:38:45,680 --> 00:38:47,360
Speaker 1: rest of the teams, and if you get sick of

842
00:38:47,400 --> 00:38:50,080
Speaker 1: hearing that stuff, I want to have you, guys be

843
00:38:50,200 --> 00:38:53,439
Speaker 1: able to easily access the content that you're looking for.

844
00:38:53,480 --> 00:38:55,919
Speaker 1: But we have big plans for that YouTube channel this year.

845
00:38:56,080 --> 00:38:59,160
Speaker 1: It's going to be more active than we have been

846
00:38:59,239 --> 00:39:01,840
Speaker 1: in previous year. So just keep an eye on that

847
00:39:01,840 --> 00:39:03,839
Speaker 1: feed over the course of the season. All Right, guys,

848
00:39:03,880 --> 00:39:05,600
Speaker 1: that's all I have for today, where we have one

849
00:39:05,600 --> 00:39:07,359
Speaker 1: more show this week. You're gonna go tomorrow. I think

850
00:39:07,400 --> 00:39:10,319
Speaker 1: I'm gonna do rookies. I think I'm gonna go deep

851
00:39:10,360 --> 00:39:12,320
Speaker 1: dive on like a men Thompson and a Sorry Thompson

852
00:39:12,320 --> 00:39:15,680
Speaker 1: and chat who's technically gonna be playing his first full

853
00:39:15,719 --> 00:39:18,920
Speaker 1: season in Victor Wemban Yama and Brandon Miller's a guy

854
00:39:18,960 --> 00:39:20,880
Speaker 1: I haven't talked about yet. Scoot Anderson's the guy I

855
00:39:20,880 --> 00:39:22,719
Speaker 1: haven't talked about yet, So I think I'm gonna do

856
00:39:22,800 --> 00:39:25,600
Speaker 1: rookies tomorrow, and then Monday we're gonna do like kind

857
00:39:25,600 --> 00:39:27,680
Speaker 1: of a big picture of season preview, just talking about

858
00:39:27,680 --> 00:39:31,319
Speaker 1: some predictions, and then Tuesday night instant reaction videos to

859
00:39:31,360 --> 00:39:33,880
Speaker 1: both of the games before we head into the groove.

860
00:39:33,880 --> 00:39:35,919
Speaker 1: All Right, guys, I appreciate you, and I will see

861
00:39:35,920 --> 00:40:06,480
Speaker 1: you tomorrow. The volume