WEBVTT - Nuggets Crush The Heat In Game 1 0:00:00.480 --> 0:00:06.760 You're tuned into Heat Check with Trystal Quick on this 0:00:06.880 --> 0:00:10.880 episode of the Heat Check. Game one of the NBA Finals. 0:00:10.880 --> 0:00:14.400 It's in the books, folks. Denver draws first blood as 0:00:14.440 --> 0:00:19.360 many expected. Adam Silver did his beginning of the series 0:00:19.480 --> 0:00:22.680 presser like he always does, and this time it wasn't 0:00:22.720 --> 0:00:25.200 about the series at all. There was an ominous message 0:00:25.200 --> 0:00:29.280 for John Morant. Eric Lewis, the referee will not be 0:00:29.480 --> 0:00:32.240 refereeing the finals for the first time in a long time, 0:00:32.280 --> 0:00:35.720 for maybe the most ridiculous reason you've ever heard. It's incredible. Actually, 0:00:35.960 --> 0:00:39.720 Plus we have coaching and GM updates from Detroit, Washington, 0:00:39.880 --> 0:00:42.239 and New York. We even give you an update on 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:45.320 the Lakers and the MAVs. You should get charged double 0:00:45.360 --> 0:00:48.519 for this episode. It's so loaded like a baked potato baby. 0:00:48.680 --> 0:00:51.440 Come on, let's get into it. Nick. Drop that motherfucking 0:00:51.440 --> 0:01:02.280 beat that should be riata. So as a lot of 0:01:02.320 --> 0:01:06.200 people predicted the Denver Nuggets beat down the Heat, they 0:01:06.240 --> 0:01:08.800 gave them a good old Kurb stomp in Game one. 0:01:09.160 --> 0:01:11.600 You could say the little bit of it is a 0:01:11.720 --> 0:01:14.199 hangover from the long series that the Heat had against 0:01:14.240 --> 0:01:17.760 Boston where they let that sweep slip away. You could 0:01:17.840 --> 0:01:22.400 say it was that insane difficult to breathe altitude in 0:01:22.480 --> 0:01:26.000 Mile High City. You could even say that the heat 0:01:26.000 --> 0:01:27.640 were just got off of from three and that was 0:01:27.680 --> 0:01:31.160 the reason. Probably all three have a bit of truth 0:01:31.200 --> 0:01:33.920 to them, really, but the reality of the situation is, 0:01:34.080 --> 0:01:36.400 for at least tonight, Denver was just better. They were 0:01:36.440 --> 0:01:40.400 just much much better than Miami. Because, by the way, 0:01:40.440 --> 0:01:44.120 they're a better team. They have better players, they have 0:01:44.160 --> 0:01:48.000 a better star, they have a better second star. They 0:01:48.040 --> 0:01:51.560 are the superior team. What do we like about Miami. 0:01:51.960 --> 0:01:54.680 They're cockroaches, That's what we like about them. And you 0:01:54.720 --> 0:01:57.760 know what happens with a cockroach. Blow up the home 0:01:57.840 --> 0:02:01.320 that the cockroaches in and see what's still lives the cockroach. 0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:04.320 That's the only narrative we have really to go off of. 0:02:04.680 --> 0:02:08.280 Score one oh four ninety three was never really that close. 0:02:08.520 --> 0:02:13.320 Caleb Martin was a trocious Duncan Robinson, max Sjuice all 0:02:13.360 --> 0:02:17.079 together shot an astounding two for twenty three from the field. Yep, 0:02:17.720 --> 0:02:21.680 you heard that right. Three of Miami's snipers from three 0:02:22.120 --> 0:02:24.520 shot the ball twenty three times. They came away with 0:02:24.919 --> 0:02:29.400 check notes six points total. That's bad. That's really bad. 0:02:30.160 --> 0:02:34.240 The Nuggets held Jimmy Butler to He was not himmy. 0:02:34.600 --> 0:02:38.360 He was more like I don't know. I mean, he 0:02:38.480 --> 0:02:41.160 was more like forgimme, like because you forgot about him. 0:02:41.240 --> 0:02:44.800 He had thirteen points. The heat will not beat anyone 0:02:45.000 --> 0:02:49.120 if their four snipers shoot a combined eight for thirty seven. 0:02:49.400 --> 0:02:51.720 That is twenty one points six percent from the field, 0:02:52.040 --> 0:02:55.959 nineteen total points for a quartet that averaged sixty seven 0:02:55.960 --> 0:02:59.880 points per game in the Celtics series. The only player 0:03:00.000 --> 0:03:02.760 so the entire team with a positive plus minus is 0:03:02.800 --> 0:03:07.680 a shocking, shocking Kyle lowryeta plus two, which, let me 0:03:07.760 --> 0:03:10.600 be honest with you didn't see that coming. But really 0:03:12.040 --> 0:03:14.040 it was really just all about the Denver Nuggets and 0:03:14.080 --> 0:03:16.239 what they did right. You know, their starters they scored 0:03:16.320 --> 0:03:20.920 ninety points compared to Miami sixty one. They played all 0:03:21.080 --> 0:03:24.920 a minimum of thirty six minutes. The only player on 0:03:24.960 --> 0:03:27.760 the starting five that didn't score in double figures was 0:03:28.120 --> 0:03:31.920 Kentavious called woll Pope. Jokic pretty much was able to 0:03:31.919 --> 0:03:34.600 do whatever he wanted, dimed everybody up like he was 0:03:34.639 --> 0:03:40.040 selling rock in Inglewood in Snowfalls twenty seven, fourteen and ten. 0:03:40.360 --> 0:03:44.800 He could add forty twenty and twenty. Honestly, Jokic can 0:03:44.840 --> 0:03:48.800 score whenever he wants. Against bam Adebayo Murray twenty six 0:03:49.280 --> 0:03:54.160 along with ten assists, he was incredible. They looked like 0:03:54.720 --> 0:03:57.920 the team that everybody built them as they nullified much 0:03:57.920 --> 0:04:01.280 of what Miami does really well, managing to be exactly 0:04:01.320 --> 0:04:03.160 what they were supposed to be, and their identity of 0:04:03.200 --> 0:04:07.120 the team was on offense. It was really fun to 0:04:07.160 --> 0:04:10.400 watch if you're a hardcore basketball fan. It was really 0:04:10.440 --> 0:04:12.920 fun to watch if you're a Denver Nugget fan, and 0:04:13.080 --> 0:04:17.400 if you're anyone else, probably was horrible. Actually, specifically if 0:04:17.440 --> 0:04:20.039 you're a Miami Heat fan. I'm sure Dan Lebtard and 0:04:20.040 --> 0:04:22.480 them boys are shaking in their boots. The thing though, 0:04:22.520 --> 0:04:27.919 about this win, the Nuggets just really didn't do anything extraordinary. 0:04:28.800 --> 0:04:31.240 They didn't need a fifty point game from Jamal Murray 0:04:31.279 --> 0:04:35.360 or Yokic. I'm sure Yokic though, could have given them 0:04:35.440 --> 0:04:37.880 fifty at any point in time. In the fourth quarter, 0:04:37.960 --> 0:04:39.800 he decided, oh, I want to score now, and he 0:04:39.920 --> 0:04:43.800 just made everything. They played their starting five pretty much 0:04:43.839 --> 0:04:46.719 the entire game, and they said, listen, see if you 0:04:46.760 --> 0:04:49.279 can beat our starters, and they could not not in 0:04:49.320 --> 0:04:52.520 the first quarter, not in the second quarter, not in 0:04:52.560 --> 0:04:55.640 the third quarter. The only time Miami got traction was 0:04:55.680 --> 0:04:58.000 when the starters for the Nuggets were not on the floor, 0:04:58.400 --> 0:05:02.640 when it was our man Christian Brown and Jeff Green 0:05:02.800 --> 0:05:06.800 getting minutes. So now the heat are They're facing a 0:05:06.800 --> 0:05:09.599 deficit for the first time in this playoffs. I think 0:05:09.720 --> 0:05:12.919 even they might have potentially expected this. We have no 0:05:13.040 --> 0:05:15.880 Jimmy Butler press conference footage, but I'm sure he's gonna 0:05:15.880 --> 0:05:19.360 say they remain confident and to be fair, if Miami 0:05:19.440 --> 0:05:22.719 comes out and they compete well in Game two, I 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:24.960 think that's a big victory for them to split it 0:05:25.000 --> 0:05:28.040 in Denver, or even just compete in Game two. Spolster 0:05:28.120 --> 0:05:31.279 is going to counter. We know that. The question is 0:05:32.640 --> 0:05:38.919 can you attack the Denver Nuggets and make your offense 0:05:39.240 --> 0:05:43.800 the primary thing that they need to counter. Are the 0:05:43.880 --> 0:05:46.120 Nuggets gonna go with their starting five nearly the whole game? 0:05:46.160 --> 0:05:49.840 Once again? Are we gonna see Miami shoot some fucking threes? 0:05:50.920 --> 0:05:55.120 What is Michael Malone aka Mike Malone going to cook up? 0:05:55.520 --> 0:05:58.919 What a fun start to the finals. It is almost 0:05:59.000 --> 0:06:02.200 midnight and I am still juiced, so ready for Game two, 0:06:02.200 --> 0:06:06.039 which comes Sunday. Let's move forward though somber news from 0:06:06.279 --> 0:06:10.880 Adam Silver in front of the NBA Finals Game one. So, 0:06:11.000 --> 0:06:13.760 as you know, Adam Silver takes the podium before the 0:06:13.800 --> 0:06:17.560 Finals every year, takes the mic just before the NBA's 0:06:17.600 --> 0:06:23.000 most important event, and he gives a speech on you 0:06:23.080 --> 0:06:27.800 guessed it, jaum morant and let's just be honest. When 0:06:27.880 --> 0:06:31.920 I watched it, I did not come away thinking, well, 0:06:31.920 --> 0:06:35.479 that's good news for jaw. My guy came away thinking 0:06:35.560 --> 0:06:41.039 oh fuck. It had the tone of the conversation in 0:06:41.200 --> 0:06:49.440 Adam Silver's pause and cadence, and just the entire tenor 0:06:49.760 --> 0:06:53.200 of the vibe we'll call it vibe check bad. Had 0:06:53.240 --> 0:06:56.719 all the gravity of a president in a sci fi 0:06:56.839 --> 0:07:00.840 movie standing up in front of the American people and saying, 0:07:02.000 --> 0:07:06.880 we got ourselves. Unfortunately, we have miscalculated and we have 0:07:07.520 --> 0:07:11.400 an alien invasion. That's what it felt like, folks. He 0:07:13.000 --> 0:07:16.560 looked so sad to be announcing this news. He looked 0:07:17.320 --> 0:07:20.720 even almost menacing, like he was about to hand down 0:07:21.480 --> 0:07:25.600 two years of suspension, like a Mormon father who catches 0:07:25.640 --> 0:07:28.720 his daughter sneaking into the house drunk at four am. 0:07:29.200 --> 0:07:32.440 That is short of it. Really, as I call him, 0:07:32.440 --> 0:07:36.880 now Darth Silver. He basically said that we were investigating 0:07:36.960 --> 0:07:43.000 Jaw as we do, and we found some shit, and 0:07:43.360 --> 0:07:45.040 we're not going to tell you what that shit is 0:07:45.120 --> 0:07:49.560 right now out of respect for our premier event, the 0:07:49.720 --> 0:07:54.960 NBA Finals, And honestly, he's already indefinitely suspended, so it's 0:07:54.960 --> 0:07:58.600 not gonna change much. I was like, holy shit, he said, 0:07:58.800 --> 0:08:03.800 he's already indefinitely suspended. Here if you don't want to 0:08:03.840 --> 0:08:08.240 believe me, I've got obviously receipts. In terms of the. 0:08:08.240 --> 0:08:15.040 Timing, We've uncovered a fair amount of additional information. I 0:08:15.080 --> 0:08:18.760 think since I was still asked about the situation, I 0:08:18.800 --> 0:08:21.240 would say we probably could have brought it to a 0:08:21.280 --> 0:08:26.160 head now, but we made the decision, and I believe 0:08:26.160 --> 0:08:29.000 the Players Association agrees with us that it would be 0:08:29.080 --> 0:08:32.720 unfair to these players and these teams in the middle 0:08:32.720 --> 0:08:35.520 of the series to announce the results of that investigation, 0:08:35.640 --> 0:08:39.680 and given that recourse in the offseason. He has now 0:08:39.760 --> 0:08:44.400 been suspended by the Memphis Grizzlies and definitely and so 0:08:44.600 --> 0:08:46.319 nothing would have changed anyway. 0:08:46.679 --> 0:08:51.160 Nothing would have changed anyway, doesn't mean he's been emancipated, obviously. 0:08:51.240 --> 0:08:54.560 If nothing would have changed, he's probably about to be suspended, folks. 0:08:54.920 --> 0:08:58.760 Adam Silver looks like he's presiding over a weeke. He 0:08:58.840 --> 0:09:01.840 has all the deer of a doctor telling a young, 0:09:02.360 --> 0:09:06.240 seemingly healthy twenty seven year old that he has terminal cancer. 0:09:06.840 --> 0:09:10.880 It was rough, it was bad. Bad. Jaw is gonna 0:09:10.880 --> 0:09:15.680 get suspended, suspended like oh, like Gilbert or Rena suspended. 0:09:15.960 --> 0:09:18.360 I don't even know, man. Maybe it's the entire season. 0:09:18.600 --> 0:09:20.959 Stay tuned, because shit's got to hit the fan and 0:09:21.000 --> 0:09:24.520 the t Morant Jah Morant household. We might be losing 0:09:24.559 --> 0:09:28.680 one of the biggest stars, a player who now everyone 0:09:28.800 --> 0:09:31.959 is wearing his shoes for a half a season minimum. 0:09:32.000 --> 0:09:55.040 Maybe the whole damn year. Wow, bad for business. If 0:09:55.080 --> 0:09:57.880 you follow my rep reports on social media, then you 0:09:57.920 --> 0:10:00.560 know the name Eric Lewis. If if you don't know 0:10:00.600 --> 0:10:04.040 the name Eric Lewis, you probably don't care about the 0:10:04.120 --> 0:10:07.400 NBA because he is no stranger to the REP reports. 0:10:07.600 --> 0:10:11.200 He's one of the NBA's most respected refs. For the 0:10:11.200 --> 0:10:14.200 first time in ages now Lewis will not be working 0:10:14.240 --> 0:10:18.080 in the NBA Finals, and the reason is not because 0:10:18.960 --> 0:10:22.480 he's missing calls. It's not because the body of work 0:10:22.520 --> 0:10:26.600 is so bad. He is being told host it down 0:10:27.920 --> 0:10:33.480 because he got caught with a burner account on Twitter. 0:10:34.720 --> 0:10:36.720 Let me just say that again, one of the most 0:10:36.720 --> 0:10:40.560 respected refs in the NBA is not reughing the premiere 0:10:40.600 --> 0:10:44.880 event of said league because he has a burner account 0:10:44.960 --> 0:10:49.240 on Twitter and is spending all hours of the day 0:10:49.520 --> 0:10:54.480 defending his brethren and him on social fucking media. Yes, 0:10:54.880 --> 0:10:58.280 he seemed if you look at the receipts there, he 0:10:58.400 --> 0:11:00.480 seemed at it's tim to be spending all of his 0:11:00.520 --> 0:11:03.320 free time defending his calls against angry fans, which if 0:11:03.320 --> 0:11:05.560 you follow NBA Twitter at all, you know that's probably 0:11:05.600 --> 0:11:09.160 like seventy eight percent of NBA Twitter, So it was 0:11:09.200 --> 0:11:11.720 probably like a second full time job for mister Lewis 0:11:12.080 --> 0:11:13.840 The truth though, from what I can see is that 0:11:13.840 --> 0:11:15.319 there really wasn't a lot of stuff in there that 0:11:15.360 --> 0:11:18.840 you can get mad about, just him and his little 0:11:18.840 --> 0:11:23.160 burner account and his Twitter fingers defending himself and other refs. 0:11:23.800 --> 0:11:27.400 So why is this a big deal? I mean, it's 0:11:27.480 --> 0:11:31.120 kind of a big deal because Adam Silver knows that 0:11:31.200 --> 0:11:34.160 you don't want to mess around with the perceived propriety, 0:11:34.760 --> 0:11:41.079 the reputational integrity of NBA refs. Why Because it's already 0:11:41.080 --> 0:11:47.240 been damaged. There was a guy and he like took 0:11:47.320 --> 0:11:51.800 money and he changed calls. His name was Tim Donnie 0:11:51.840 --> 0:11:55.000 and there was an old documentary about him. And you 0:11:55.040 --> 0:11:58.280 don't want to have a controversy, especially a controversy cloaked 0:11:58.280 --> 0:12:03.320 in secrecy like secret burner accounts, because it makes other 0:12:03.400 --> 0:12:07.000 fans wonder what other refs are using burners. If they're 0:12:07.040 --> 0:12:10.040 using burners, are they coming after players with those burners 0:12:10.200 --> 0:12:12.880 like Fred van Fleet who criticized those refs by name, 0:12:13.280 --> 0:12:16.480 and does that translate into ref retaliation? Are we gonna 0:12:16.520 --> 0:12:20.360 get a full scale KGB versus the CIA ref versus 0:12:20.360 --> 0:12:25.079 player interaction here? Are we gonna get some espionage? That's 0:12:25.080 --> 0:12:26.720 a can of worms that the NBA just can't have, 0:12:27.160 --> 0:12:30.800 it does not want to open. According to my guy, 0:12:31.000 --> 0:12:35.440 Mike Bass, he's longtime NBA spokesperson, had a communications regarding 0:12:35.559 --> 0:12:39.920 Eric Lewis and the social media posts. We are continuing 0:12:39.960 --> 0:12:42.480 to review the matter and he will not be working 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:46.959 the finals. Shity, you are not gonna be seeing Eric 0:12:47.000 --> 0:12:52.000 Lewis this year, maybe never in the finals again, all 0:12:52.080 --> 0:12:56.080 because he couldn't stand being criticized on social media. NBA 0:12:56.200 --> 0:12:59.120 refs they also put on their pants one at a time, 0:12:59.360 --> 0:13:03.160 NBA ref. They also defend themselves on Twitter. They're just 0:13:03.240 --> 0:13:07.360 like us. Let's move forward. I almost open this segment 0:13:07.400 --> 0:13:11.800 by saying now that the Lakers have been safely eliminated 0:13:11.800 --> 0:13:14.880 from the playoffs, but I thought that would be I 0:13:14.880 --> 0:13:16.320 thought that would be a little rude. I thought that 0:13:16.400 --> 0:13:19.800 might be piling on a little bit, even though I 0:13:19.840 --> 0:13:22.880 can't stand them. As you know, the Lakers, if you remember, 0:13:22.920 --> 0:13:28.120 were swept. They took no games from the Denver Nuggets 0:13:28.120 --> 0:13:31.280 in the Western Conference Finals. They as if they did 0:13:31.280 --> 0:13:36.320 not win one game at all. But really, ESPN now 0:13:36.640 --> 0:13:39.480 has stopped its week long freak out over whether Lebron 0:13:39.559 --> 0:13:42.760 James is going to retire. So I did want to 0:13:42.840 --> 0:13:45.160 take a quick moment to survey how things are going 0:13:45.480 --> 0:13:49.160 in Purple and Gold laker Land, because the Purple and 0:13:49.200 --> 0:13:55.120 Gold Kingdom is having some trouble, mostly because they're a 0:13:55.200 --> 0:13:59.320 victim of their own success. What do I mean, Rot Palinka, 0:14:00.880 --> 0:14:02.959 I've said some mean things about Roy Plink. I'm not 0:14:03.000 --> 0:14:06.320 gonna lie. Some of it's warranted, most of it's warranted. 0:14:06.360 --> 0:14:09.000 But he also made a ton of great moves. Let's 0:14:09.040 --> 0:14:11.360 be real, what he did to get rid of Russell 0:14:11.360 --> 0:14:15.720 Westbrook at the trade deadline, was nothing short of David Copperfield. 0:14:16.760 --> 0:14:20.040 Two guys that he ended up picking up at the deadline, 0:14:20.200 --> 0:14:25.359 incredible Ruiyachi Mura, but then picked up as an undrafted 0:14:25.760 --> 0:14:29.800 free agent two years ago Austin Reeves. And now that 0:14:29.840 --> 0:14:32.520 they've played really well down the stretch, now that they 0:14:32.560 --> 0:14:36.440 played really well in the playoffs, it just might cripple 0:14:36.480 --> 0:14:39.480 the Lakers franchise to the point where they're deep into 0:14:39.520 --> 0:14:41.720 the luxury tags, which Jenie Buss does not want to 0:14:41.760 --> 0:14:46.520 be and like, truthfully, they're kind of having a hard 0:14:46.560 --> 0:14:48.920 time keeping him for the long term. Let's start with 0:14:49.000 --> 0:14:53.000 Ruiyachi Mura. He was jettisoned, largely given up on. I 0:14:53.000 --> 0:14:55.200 think he actually asked for a trade out of Washington. 0:14:55.280 --> 0:14:58.440 But he looked really good for the Lakers, like really 0:14:58.440 --> 0:15:02.560 really good Lakers inside. Jovon Booja noted that the Lakers 0:15:02.560 --> 0:15:05.080 have stated on multiple occasions that they are going to 0:15:05.120 --> 0:15:09.880 match any offer for Ruey Hachimura, since he already turned 0:15:09.880 --> 0:15:12.640 down fifteen million dollars from the Wizards. The market for 0:15:12.760 --> 0:15:15.240 Ruey is rumored to be in the fifteen to eighteen 0:15:15.320 --> 0:15:17.800 million dollar range, but could go up to twenty million 0:15:17.800 --> 0:15:23.120 dollars per year. That's anberony Simon's money. Anything over fifteen 0:15:24.360 --> 0:15:29.320 is a problem for LA. So this is what Booja wrote. 0:15:29.400 --> 0:15:31.560 I think where it gets a little dicey is if 0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:34.040 there's a team that sells themselves on Ruey and offers 0:15:34.120 --> 0:15:39.760 three years sixty million or four years eighty million. The 0:15:39.800 --> 0:15:42.520 impact though, of having to overpay for Rui has ripple 0:15:42.520 --> 0:15:45.200 effects and a one hundred percent impacts how the Lakers 0:15:45.240 --> 0:15:48.920 deal with what do they call him the the Arkansas 0:15:48.920 --> 0:15:51.920 Bird or whatever they call him the Nashville I don't 0:15:51.920 --> 0:15:54.440 know when no one has played themselves into a bigger 0:15:54.440 --> 0:15:57.840 contract than Austin Reeves. As you know, he's from Arkansas. 0:15:57.880 --> 0:16:00.000 As I just said, he's become a real two way 0:16:00.080 --> 0:16:03.360 threat this past season. And the Lakers problem with Reeves 0:16:03.360 --> 0:16:05.800 is that you have an undrafted rookie. They signed him 0:16:05.800 --> 0:16:08.000 to a two year, two and a half million dollar contract, 0:16:08.520 --> 0:16:11.440 but unlike second round draft picks, he became a free 0:16:11.480 --> 0:16:14.640 agent after two years because they were stupid, doodo dumb 0:16:14.680 --> 0:16:18.240 about how they negotiated. And the bigger problem now is 0:16:18.280 --> 0:16:20.880 that the Lakers have his bird rights and they can 0:16:20.920 --> 0:16:24.520 technically match any offer for Reeves. But let's be real, 0:16:24.560 --> 0:16:26.760 they can only offer him four years fifty two million dollars, 0:16:27.840 --> 0:16:29.840 as Mark Stein and others believe, There's going to be 0:16:29.920 --> 0:16:32.760 multiple offers for Reeves as high as twenty million dollars 0:16:32.840 --> 0:16:36.840 again for him. Again, another problem for the Purple and Gold. 0:16:37.640 --> 0:16:40.680 So here's what could happen. A team like San Antonio 0:16:40.840 --> 0:16:45.120 could offer Austin Reeves four years eighty million dollars, certainly plausible. 0:16:45.520 --> 0:16:47.920 The Spurs would be on the hook for twenty million 0:16:47.960 --> 0:16:50.760 dollars per year, but if the Lakers choose to match, 0:16:50.960 --> 0:16:54.080 there's all kinds of ramifications here. The Lakers will get 0:16:54.120 --> 0:16:56.800 Reeves in his first two years of his extension of 0:16:56.880 --> 0:17:00.320 eleven point four million and twelve point two million. Then 0:17:00.400 --> 0:17:03.360 here's where it gets interesting. The final two years become 0:17:03.720 --> 0:17:07.359 a bomb on their cap sheet, and Reeves will make 0:17:07.440 --> 0:17:10.160 more than twenty seven million dollars per season after that. 0:17:10.480 --> 0:17:13.520 This is what the folks and the biz call a 0:17:13.560 --> 0:17:18.399 poison pill for a reason. Michael Scoto notes Orlando, Houston, 0:17:18.400 --> 0:17:21.040 and San Antonio will all have their eyes on Reeves 0:17:21.040 --> 0:17:24.320 in the offseason, and others may be watching and waiting 0:17:24.440 --> 0:17:27.919 as well. So to recap the Lakers are in a 0:17:27.960 --> 0:17:31.159 precarious situation with Ruey and Reeves the cornerstones of the 0:17:31.200 --> 0:17:33.800 depth that Braun and Anthony Davis need. Let's be real, 0:17:33.800 --> 0:17:35.640 it will cost them dearly in the first two years, 0:17:35.640 --> 0:17:40.120 probably around thirty million dollars per year, and could balloon 0:17:40.160 --> 0:17:42.320 to fifty million dollars a year for both of them 0:17:42.359 --> 0:17:44.640 the final two years of their contract, which will get 0:17:44.880 --> 0:17:46.760 make it very difficult for the Lakers to do the 0:17:46.800 --> 0:17:50.120 things that the Lakers need to do to compete. But hey, 0:17:51.080 --> 0:17:54.400 probably retired by then, right, it's only two years away. Well, 0:17:54.480 --> 0:17:56.159 they still also have to find a point guard, and 0:17:56.200 --> 0:17:57.760 now rumors are that they're either going to have to 0:17:57.800 --> 0:18:00.320 sign d lo In as sign and trade or try 0:18:00.320 --> 0:18:02.160 to get him to take a team friendly deal, which, 0:18:02.359 --> 0:18:04.560 let me be honest with you, our guy was sitting 0:18:04.600 --> 0:18:08.119 on the bench getting straight no minutes in crucial playing time, 0:18:08.480 --> 0:18:10.719 and so do you think he's gonna want to be 0:18:10.800 --> 0:18:16.040 a team friendly to the team. No, I sincerely doubt 0:18:16.040 --> 0:18:18.399 that Delo is going to sign any deal that is 0:18:18.440 --> 0:18:22.159 not worth his market, even for the team that treated 0:18:22.280 --> 0:18:25.440 him so well AKA drafting him and then jenisitting him 0:18:25.480 --> 0:18:28.199 out of town the first time which weave is the 0:18:28.200 --> 0:18:30.360 point guard option as Fred van Fleet, who they will 0:18:30.359 --> 0:18:32.600 not be able to afford and to just start signed 0:18:32.600 --> 0:18:34.960 with Clutch Sports. Clutch has used the Lakers like a 0:18:34.960 --> 0:18:36.919 piggy bank for a long time, so we'll see how 0:18:36.960 --> 0:18:39.520 that goes. So don't expect to be Fred van Fleet 0:18:39.560 --> 0:18:41.760 to be giving the Lakers a discount either. The Lakers 0:18:41.800 --> 0:18:45.480 are at a precarious crossroads. A lot of it has 0:18:45.600 --> 0:18:47.640 to do with them being victims of their own success 0:18:47.720 --> 0:18:52.840 and just mismanaging the roster. Funny how Rob Polinka might 0:18:52.920 --> 0:18:53.440 lose again. 0:18:53.840 --> 0:19:12.040 Now for winners. 0:19:13.400 --> 0:19:16.120 All right, Well, we haven't heard much out of Dallas 0:19:17.160 --> 0:19:19.720 since they tanked and they blew the season up in 0:19:19.760 --> 0:19:21.879 the final week of a very successful effort to keep 0:19:21.920 --> 0:19:24.879 the number ten pick in the upcoming draft. Congratulations, you 0:19:24.920 --> 0:19:28.480 did your job. You understood the assignment. Last week, though, 0:19:28.600 --> 0:19:33.879 Eric Pinkus of Leasher Report reported that the Mavericks and 0:19:34.000 --> 0:19:39.480 Kyrie Irving have a some sort of handshake deal before 0:19:39.560 --> 0:19:42.760 the trade with the Brooklyn Nets took place, and that 0:19:42.920 --> 0:19:47.680 Kyrie wouldn't have said yes to the trade without this 0:19:48.080 --> 0:19:52.440 handshaked deal to anything less than the max. Turns out 0:19:53.160 --> 0:19:57.160 that was a bullshit report, there is no handshake deal 0:19:57.200 --> 0:19:59.639 according to Michael Scoto, not to say this is what 0:19:59.680 --> 0:20:01.360 he said, not to say that he won't be back 0:20:01.359 --> 0:20:03.439 in Dallas. They certainly have all the motivation to keep 0:20:03.520 --> 0:20:06.040 him after training for him. They have the financial resources 0:20:06.080 --> 0:20:08.600 to make him the best offer available, but nothing is 0:20:08.640 --> 0:20:11.320 done as of yet. The question is where will Kyrie 0:20:11.320 --> 0:20:15.280 Irving go? What is Kyrie Irving worth? Will Lebron get 0:20:15.280 --> 0:20:18.800 his way? Kyrie Irving is probably gonna have to take 0:20:19.000 --> 0:20:21.040 a team friendly deal in order to get his ass 0:20:21.160 --> 0:20:23.040 to the Purple and Gold. The question is whether Rob 0:20:23.080 --> 0:20:25.720 Plinka wants to make it so. The MAVs would be 0:20:25.760 --> 0:20:27.960 insane to give him a super max over like a 0:20:28.000 --> 0:20:30.440 long period of time. I'm sure the years are gonna 0:20:30.480 --> 0:20:33.440 be the big sticking point. Who wants to saddle themselves 0:20:33.480 --> 0:20:36.159 to Kyrie Irving for four years. I don't even know 0:20:36.160 --> 0:20:38.080 what he's gonna do in the next four months, let 0:20:38.080 --> 0:20:42.000 alone like an entire presidential cycle. Can't imagine they'll be 0:20:42.040 --> 0:20:45.360 having to outbid anyone on a long term contract. As always, 0:20:45.680 --> 0:20:48.240 no one knows what the fuck is going on, not 0:20:48.400 --> 0:20:52.879 even Kyrie Irving. Let's move on. We got to do 0:20:52.920 --> 0:20:55.280 a little housekeeping. We gotta update you on a couple 0:20:55.320 --> 0:21:00.159 of important moves in the NBA front office market. The 0:21:00.240 --> 0:21:02.879 first is a bit of a shocker, I think, not 0:21:03.000 --> 0:21:04.920 if you're a Knicks man, but probably if just you're 0:21:04.920 --> 0:21:07.120 a casual NBA fan. The New York Knicks are now 0:21:07.119 --> 0:21:11.760 looking for a new GM. Scott Perry did not have 0:21:11.880 --> 0:21:14.600 his contract renewed, which means there's going to be some 0:21:14.680 --> 0:21:17.840 major changes going on in the Knicks organization. Ooh, is 0:21:17.960 --> 0:21:21.080 Massaio's year. He going to be the Knicks GM. He's 0:21:21.160 --> 0:21:25.000 been rumored for that gig for a long time. Moving forward, 0:21:25.040 --> 0:21:27.920 Moving forward, moving forward, stay on task. Perry joined the 0:21:28.000 --> 0:21:32.200 Knicks in twenty seventeen, and like that team was really bad. 0:21:32.280 --> 0:21:36.280 Let's let's be honest. That fucking team was atrocious? How 0:21:36.320 --> 0:21:39.320 bad when he took over the Knicks and it's cantor 0:21:39.920 --> 0:21:44.440 excuse me, I'm sorry. Enis Freedom was the highest paid 0:21:44.480 --> 0:21:47.000 player on the roster at twenty one million dollars per year, 0:21:47.240 --> 0:21:51.520 and Ramand's sessions it's a real name, that's not a 0:21:51.560 --> 0:21:54.400 creative player name was the starting point guard for the team. 0:21:54.440 --> 0:21:57.600 They also had Jokim Yo, Noah, Tim Hardaway, and Courtney 0:21:57.680 --> 0:21:59.879 Lee for a combined forty six million dollars. In the books, 0:22:00.920 --> 0:22:03.960 it was a train wreck. It was horrible. Today, of course, 0:22:04.119 --> 0:22:05.560 we know that the Knicks are much better off than 0:22:05.600 --> 0:22:09.399 they were when he got there. So although his tenure 0:22:09.400 --> 0:22:11.119 as the GM saw the Knicks go one hundred and 0:22:11.160 --> 0:22:13.440 ninety two and two seventy four, it's hard to call 0:22:13.480 --> 0:22:17.640 it exactly a failure. They are They lost a hard 0:22:17.680 --> 0:22:21.320 fought second round series against the Miami Heat, who are 0:22:21.320 --> 0:22:23.639 now in the finals. They have a bright future, but 0:22:23.720 --> 0:22:26.919 let's be real, some of this success is due to 0:22:27.040 --> 0:22:32.960 Worldwide West and our man Leon Rose. What did our 0:22:33.000 --> 0:22:36.439 man Scott Perry do? What was his track record? What 0:22:36.600 --> 0:22:39.720 kind of decision making quality did he have? He made 0:22:39.760 --> 0:22:43.520 some awful moves, to be honest. He signed Evan DNP 0:22:43.800 --> 0:22:47.600 Fournier for four year, seventy three million dollars. That's probably 0:22:47.640 --> 0:22:50.600 the most egregious thing he did. Evan Fournier was supposed 0:22:50.640 --> 0:22:52.800 to come in and replace Reggie Bullock, who was also 0:22:52.880 --> 0:22:55.080 not very good to be there a three point sniper, 0:22:55.080 --> 0:22:59.000 and what did he do. He became unplayable. He became 0:22:59.640 --> 0:23:02.399 a guy who really is there to take up space 0:23:02.440 --> 0:23:05.960 on the bench and make twenty something million dollars per year, 0:23:06.880 --> 0:23:08.880 a deal that nobody thought was a good deal then 0:23:09.240 --> 0:23:12.520 and nobody thinks it's a good deal today. He's also 0:23:12.640 --> 0:23:15.639 not a great drafter, our man, Scott Perry, trading away 0:23:15.720 --> 0:23:17.560 a lot of the capitol in twenty twenty one and 0:23:17.600 --> 0:23:20.560 twenty twenty two, coming out with one decent player in 0:23:20.640 --> 0:23:24.480 Quinton Grimes out of four draft picks. He also, as 0:23:24.520 --> 0:23:28.440 you might know, remember, drafting in twenty eighteen, Kevin Knox 0:23:29.520 --> 0:23:36.760 at nine when mckal Bridges went ten. You know, Mikal Bridges, 0:23:36.760 --> 0:23:39.879 he's the guy that is untradeable for the Brooklyn Nets. 0:23:39.920 --> 0:23:43.000 That the team that turned down four first round picks 0:23:43.359 --> 0:23:46.320 from the Memphis Grizzlies to take him off their hands. 0:23:46.400 --> 0:23:49.679 So yeah, I'd say that's a miss, a huge miss. 0:23:49.840 --> 0:23:52.960 He also took RJ. Barrett at three when Darius Garland 0:23:53.000 --> 0:23:58.280 went five. Scott Perry was a holdover from the previous administration. 0:23:58.400 --> 0:24:00.760 The Knicks are now one hundred percent on roses team, 0:24:00.840 --> 0:24:03.320 So that means that Scott Perry, You're just lucky your 0:24:03.359 --> 0:24:06.199 ass didn't get fired before your contract was up. He 0:24:06.280 --> 0:24:09.520 will hire a GM before the draft, But let's be real, 0:24:09.720 --> 0:24:12.439 it's probably not gonna matter. It's it's all Leon and 0:24:12.480 --> 0:24:15.440 Worldwide West all the time. We're gonna finally find out 0:24:15.480 --> 0:24:20.359