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Speaker 1: This is straight fire with Jason McIntyre. What's the party, people,

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Speaker 1: it's your boy. Jason McIntyre, Straight Fire. Wednesday, May nineteen,

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Speaker 1: the NBA playoffs are underway. I don't want to hear

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Speaker 1: anybody tell me I don't like to play in game

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Speaker 1: play games are dumb. Yeah, Pacers Grizzly stunk unwatchable for

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Speaker 1: you know, the final three quarters. But how about Jason Tatum.

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Speaker 1: Tell me you did not like Jason Tatum giving Russell

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Speaker 1: Westbrook and the whiz of fifty Burger seventeen for seventeen

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Speaker 1: on free throws. I could not shake the image of

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Speaker 1: watching Jayson Tatum go to work on Boston and see, man,

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Speaker 1: his footwork is impeccable. This this guy clearly had a

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Speaker 1: deep relationship with Kobe Bryant, and I saw a lot

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Speaker 1: of Kobe Bryant out there from Jayson Tatum when he

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Speaker 1: was going to work inside, outside, like a ballerina in

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Speaker 1: the paint, just going to work like Russell Westbrook had

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Speaker 1: no chance against him. I mean, really, nobody did um

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Speaker 1: They Darvis Burtain's was terrible. He's a three point gunner

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Speaker 1: O for seven from deep and if he's not making shots,

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Speaker 1: you can't put him on the court. They had no

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Speaker 1: matchup for Tatum. He goes for fifty and we gave

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Speaker 1: out a winner on the opening night of the NBA Playoffs.

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Speaker 1: I've fired up folks, very excited for tonight's game. Warriors

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Speaker 1: Lakers obviously the main course. I don't know who's excited

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Speaker 1: for the appetizer, Spurs Grizz. I'll give out that pick

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Speaker 1: a little later. I do want to hype up our

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Speaker 1: guest because he's tremendous. Had a great conversation with Andy

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Speaker 1: Kim and Netsky. He runs a Lakers podcast. He has

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Speaker 1: covered the Lakers for many years, from l A Times

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Speaker 1: to ESPN the magazine. Him and his brother have been

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Speaker 1: a fixture out here covering the Lakers for almost fifteen years.

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Speaker 1: And um, you know, because the guy's trending. Mr kwam A. Brown,

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Speaker 1: I gotta be careful what I say about Kwamy Brown

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Speaker 1: if you follow the story. Uh Andy has actually covered

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Speaker 1: Kwami with the Lakers. We'll get into that a little bit. Um.

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Speaker 1: We touched on Quabe very little earlier this week, but truthfully,

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Speaker 1: if you've seen his YouTube videos, going scortched earth on

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Speaker 1: Gilbert Arenas that Barnes Stephen Jack. I mean it is

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Speaker 1: you know, obviously, don't watch it around the kids. Hashtag

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Speaker 1: dad life. Um, the languages spotty, to say the least. Um,

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Speaker 1: I'm not gonna say anything bad about Kwalmy Brown. I'm

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Speaker 1: not gonna even call him a bust. Kwam Brown is

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Speaker 1: a very uh tough talking individual who says a lot

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Speaker 1: of stuff. I don't want to get on his bad side.

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Speaker 1: We talked to that with Andy, but quickly, UM, let's

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Speaker 1: quickly talk Rob G. We did our all NBA teams

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Speaker 1: I think two weeks ago, maybe last week, and I

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Speaker 1: had Jason Tatum on the third team. Did you have

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Speaker 1: Tatum on any of your teams? I did not. You

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Speaker 1: did not. Do you regret it after his fifty burger

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Speaker 1: to open the playoffs? Uh? No, because it is a

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Speaker 1: regular season award, So no, I knew you were going

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Speaker 1: to go there. I knew you were going to say that.

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Speaker 1: So if Lebron, who I did not put on my

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Speaker 1: all NBA teams because he played forty five games, it's

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Speaker 1: not a disrespectful shot at King James. When you play

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Speaker 1: in sixty two percent of your games, tough to win

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Speaker 1: an award. I mean, every ten games he's playing in

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Speaker 1: six of them. Guys, that's I'm sorry, that's not sufficient

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Speaker 1: for me. But if Lebron is a monster game tonight

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Speaker 1: against Chef Curry, will I regret putting Lebron not putting

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Speaker 1: him on an All NBA team, No, because it's different.

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Speaker 1: He just didn't play enough. Jason Tatum was on my

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Speaker 1: third team All NBA because he is a fantastic player.

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Speaker 1: I saw the stat that he now has three fifty

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Speaker 1: point games this season, tied with Curry for most in

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Speaker 1: the league. And I think if you guys listen to

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Speaker 1: that All NBA podcast, I said Tatum is one of

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Speaker 1: the best one on one players in the league. I

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Speaker 1: act chilly and rob this take is probably a little

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Speaker 1: too hot for you. I am of the belief that

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Speaker 1: the Boston Celtics, with a coaching advantage in Brad Stevens,

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Speaker 1: uh with a advantage in the toughest guy on the floor,

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Speaker 1: Marcus Smart. I think Marcus Smart will probably match up

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Speaker 1: with James Harden and they'll try to cut the head

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Speaker 1: off the snake, and I think Boston can steal a

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Speaker 1: game or two. A lot of people instantly are thinking, oh,

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Speaker 1: it's gonna be a sweep. No Jalen Brown, nothing's easy

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Speaker 1: against this Boston team. I do want to remind people

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Speaker 1: the Brooklyn Nets have barely played their big three together. Yes,

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Speaker 1: their offense was number one in the league. It is

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Speaker 1: the most efficient offense in NBA history. Yes, that is

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Speaker 1: a fact. But they don't play a lick of defense.

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Speaker 1: And I mean I don't see why Boston's defense can't

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Speaker 1: give them some problems. Now, obviously with Jalen Brown it

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Speaker 1: would be a whole another story. I might actually uh

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Speaker 1: throw some shekels on Boston to pull the upset. But

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Speaker 1: no Jalen Brown. They're just not deep enough on the wing. Um. Listen,

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Speaker 1: we're probably gonna see Romeo Lankford matched up at times

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Speaker 1: with Kevin Durant. Suboptimal to say the least. Boston not

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Speaker 1: as great defensively this year. A lot of that has

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Speaker 1: to do with the injuries. Uh smart miss time. Keby Walker,

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Speaker 1: who doesn't play much defense, missed a lot of time.

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Speaker 1: They were tied for fourteenth in the league defensively, Brooklyn

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Speaker 1: ended up nineteenth and defensive efficiency um, but a lot

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Speaker 1: of those numbers are fugazi because when you put their

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Speaker 1: big three on the court, Um, I don't know who

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Speaker 1: the other two guys are. If they're Blake Griffin and

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Speaker 1: Joe Harris, that's gonna be a prop. Boston is gonna

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Speaker 1: get buckets. Rob If I tell you Brooklyn four two,

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Speaker 1: do you laugh at me? No? No, because you know

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Speaker 1: I think that Brooklyn, like you mentioned, they're gonna have

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Speaker 1: some chemistry issues and sort out, especially in the playoffs,

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Speaker 1: anywhere everything grinds down to a halt. It's half court offense.

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Speaker 1: And one thing we learned early on in the James

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Speaker 1: Harden area in Brooklyn is that he seems apprehensive to

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Speaker 1: just fully take over the way we know he can.

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Speaker 1: And I think that he's good enough on his own

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Speaker 1: where he could just will this team talent wise to

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Speaker 1: a four h or a five four one series. But

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Speaker 1: I think he knows they have bigger fish to fry

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Speaker 1: later on in the postseason, So they're gonna be working

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Speaker 1: out a lot of kinks and these games are going

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Speaker 1: to be I'm not gonna be gonna be closer, because

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Speaker 1: I think Brooklyn will win pretty handily. But I wouldn't

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Speaker 1: be surprised that all if if Brooklyn stretched out the

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Speaker 1: six games. Yeah, I was, I was surprised at the

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Speaker 1: number of Jackals who jumped in my Twitter mentions right

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Speaker 1: after the game, saying, oh, Brooklyn swept them this year.

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Speaker 1: They barely had their guys. I'm like, yo, check the

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Speaker 1: box scores. It's not like the Celtics had all their

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Speaker 1: guys all the time. Um. And I'll say this, I

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Speaker 1: like what I saw from Tristan Thompson, who has been

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Speaker 1: often a punching bag on some of those Lebron teams.

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Speaker 1: He was an animal download twelve and twelve, a big

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Speaker 1: plus fifteen off the bench. You can beat Tristan Thompson

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Speaker 1: inside and you know, a little Marcus smart on uh,

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Speaker 1: James Harden and I personally would put Tatum on Kyrie.

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Speaker 1: Now that could lead to foul trouble, and I would

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Speaker 1: put one of your like, I mean, not Evan Fournier. Um,

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Speaker 1: but I think you've got to get creative and maybe throw.

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Speaker 1: I think we're gonna see a lot of Grant Williams

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Speaker 1: in this series. I would not be surprised if we

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Speaker 1: saw a little Romeo Langford action, Like Boston's gonna have

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Speaker 1: to cobble some stuff together. That being said, Boston played

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Speaker 1: Tuesday night. The Nets will have had a full week

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Speaker 1: off before the game on Saturday night. There Saturday evening

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Speaker 1: the Saturday lineup. It's actually pretty damn good. I got

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Speaker 1: a basketball game for my son and two soccer games Saturday.

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Speaker 1: Hashtag dad life. Um, heat Bucks is I think like

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Speaker 1: your Newton game? Dallas Clippers. By the way, did you

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Speaker 1: hear Luca don Chet's Rob said that the Morris twin

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Speaker 1: on the Clippers came up to him and apologized when

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Speaker 1: they met during the regular season for what happened in

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Speaker 1: the playoffs last year. Um, I just file that away.

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Speaker 1: I think things will get heated between these two teams.

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Speaker 1: There is no love lost because, let's be honest, Luca

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Speaker 1: Dante is the best player on the court. Um. Saturday's

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Speaker 1: third game is Boston and Brooklyn. You know I would

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Speaker 1: look if you're looking to gamble on that, I would

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Speaker 1: look strongly at a Boston first half play. Um again,

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Speaker 1: they played this. Uh the Brooklyn Nets have been off

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Speaker 1: all week. Um. James Harden I think has played one

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Speaker 1: game one and a half games in the last three months.

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Speaker 1: Uh maybe maybe, Um Boston comes out and plays well. Uh.

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Speaker 1: And Brad Stevens had something up his sleeve and then

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Speaker 1: of course, the nightcap is Portland Denver. Now we're not

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Speaker 1: gonna get our picks in on the podcast, but I

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Speaker 1: will say this, I like Portland in that series. Rob

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Speaker 1: I have started with some of the numbers. Um, I

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Speaker 1: don't like without Jamal Murray, I don't like. I mean,

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Speaker 1: the backcourt matchup is so tilted towards Portland. And if

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Speaker 1: they can get anything out of Robert Covington, who was

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Speaker 1: pretty dreadful this year, if they can get anything out

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Speaker 1: of Norman Powell to defend Michael Porter Jr. I like

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Speaker 1: the idea of nerk inside. I don't think Yo could

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Speaker 1: steam rolls him. Yoku will get his, but I don't

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Speaker 1: know where the rest of the points come from. And

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Speaker 1: I think Portland will pull the upset in that series.

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Speaker 1: Is that you said, Wow, do you love Portland there?

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Speaker 1: Or I mean, sorry, do you love Denver in that one? No?

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Speaker 1: Not at all. I mean I think it's going to

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Speaker 1: be this one's going seven. Um, it's just it. I

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Speaker 1: haven't heard anybody say I don't think that they are

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Speaker 1: in love with Portland in this series just because Yoka is.

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Speaker 1: I think it's gonna be the runaway the m v P.

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Speaker 1: Michael Porter Jr. Makes a strong case for most improved player.

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Speaker 1: He has I think I read the most efficient season

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Speaker 1: by any player you know in their second season or

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Speaker 1: something some weird specific staff like that. But he's been

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Speaker 1: really good, especially since Jamal Murray has gone down. And

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Speaker 1: Portland is Portland. We know who they are. They're there

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Speaker 1: fun to watch, but they're ultimately not built for playoff basketball.

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Speaker 1: And so for you to go on to Land this

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Speaker 1: early to say that you like Portland in this series,

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Speaker 1: to me is very impressive. Um, it's not that incendiary

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Speaker 1: of a take. When you look at the starting backcourt

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Speaker 1: for the Denver Nuggets, it is probably going to be

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Speaker 1: someone named Facundo Compazzo, Uh, the European who who is

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Speaker 1: a flashy kid to watch. He is fun. I like

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Speaker 1: his game, um, But probably starting at the other guard

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Speaker 1: spot is gonna be Will Barton Um, who's more of

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Speaker 1: a wing. He's not a great shooter. And then you've

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Speaker 1: got MPJ. Are we calling him MPJ yet? Does he? Is?

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Speaker 1: He just an initial guy? No, he's not there. He's

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Speaker 1: not there yet, Okay, And then I like Aaron Gordon

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Speaker 1: and then you know your ki. But I just Portland

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Speaker 1: has such a considerable advantage in the backcourt. I keep

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Speaker 1: leaning on the nets over the Sixers given the backcourt

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Speaker 1: advantage with Kyrie and Harden against uh my guy, Danny Green,

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Speaker 1: former neighbor Danny Green, and um Seth Curry. That's just

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Speaker 1: I can't Basketball is still a guard game in the playoffs.

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Speaker 1: And yes, Yokich will eat and um, I don't have

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Speaker 1: confidence in Aaron Gordon, who I like a lot to

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Speaker 1: step up and be that third score. So yes, I

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Speaker 1: will be taking Portland's Now. We do preview Lakers Warriors

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Speaker 1: significantly with Andy. But I have to ask you, Rob,

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Speaker 1: do you have any financial investment in this game? Lakers

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Speaker 1: favored by an odd four and a half. Uh No,

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Speaker 1: I do not, because I'm not a degenerate gambler. And

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Speaker 1: don't you were friends on Instagram, but you saw I

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Speaker 1: just spent a ton of money to take my daughter

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Speaker 1: to Disneyland. So the funds is low right now, and

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Speaker 1: so we are not going to be investing any money

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Speaker 1: into the betting market. This What do you drop at

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Speaker 1: Disney like four bills? I mean I know that tickets alone,

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Speaker 1: we're almost five, not counting what we spent in the Wow,

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Speaker 1: are you serious? Oh my gosh. That Yeah, that is

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Speaker 1: that's a that's a big one. Was it worth it though? Yeah?

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Speaker 1: I mean you know, when you get to see your

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Speaker 1: your kid's face light up, of course it's worth That's

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Speaker 1: the dad thing to say. Right. Best ride was well,

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Speaker 1: I only got to go on the little kid rides,

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Speaker 1: but I did like what did the Jungle Cruise? No,

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Speaker 1: it's closed for refurbishment. Oh I did like that ride.

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Speaker 1: I'm the guy who's with my kids yelling like, oh

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Speaker 1: my gosh, there's an anaconda and stuff like, like laughing

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Speaker 1: at the corny jokes. I like the bag, Yes, yes,

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Speaker 1: indeed no. But they they refurbished the snow White ride,

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Speaker 1: which was cool. You know, it's probably not appropriate for

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Speaker 1: a one and a half year old, though, I will

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Speaker 1: say it's very dark and ominous in that ride, a

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Speaker 1: lot of dark uh themes, So he was a little scared.

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Speaker 1: Rather than that, we had some good times. Since you

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Speaker 1: went over to Tuesday Night, I thought i'd bring that

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Speaker 1: up against um your guy LaMelo ball uh. Any thoughts

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Speaker 1: on his playoff debut. He was four or fourteen in

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Speaker 1: twenty seven minutes for fourteen points, and he had a

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Speaker 1: minus thirty five. Oh, he looks shook it, but it's

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Speaker 1: it's hard to really jump too much about his throat

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Speaker 1: down his throat because they were down so big, so fast.

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Speaker 1: It was hard to really get a gauge on that

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Speaker 1: game at all because it was a twenty point lead

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Speaker 1: in the first quarters. That game was it was garbage.

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Speaker 1: Um Pacers Wizards interest you at all? No, if you're

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Speaker 1: looking for any excitement for that game. Wizards Pacers they

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Speaker 1: met three times this year. It was the second fastest

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Speaker 1: paced game in twenty five seasons when they played last time.

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Speaker 1: I mean, I think somebody scored a hundred fifty four points.

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Speaker 1: So lean to the over in the Whizz Pacers game.

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Speaker 1: I don't know, Rob, I know you have a bustling nightlife,

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Speaker 1: so Thursday night, I don't know if you're staying in

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Speaker 1: for Whizz Pacers or if you're gonna be out and

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Speaker 1: about on the town. Now you know what I'm gonna

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Speaker 1: be doing is I'm gonna be reading more columns that

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Speaker 1: I saw, like in the Boston Globe where they said

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Speaker 1: that Jayson Tatum would be better off if he idolized

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Speaker 1: Kevin Garnett rather than Kobe Bryant. That's not a real thing.

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Speaker 1: That is a real thing that happened. And and sure enough,

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Speaker 1: a couple of days later he goes and drops fifty

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Speaker 1: and a dude, he's he's such a good player. I mean,

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Speaker 1: I'm just in the listen. I again, I was born

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Speaker 1: in New York, grew up Nick slash Lakers fan. I

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Speaker 1: don't need to tell the story. The first game I

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Speaker 1: ever went to was Knicks Lakers at the Garden, And

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Speaker 1: the second game I ever went to was Knicks Lakers

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Speaker 1: at the Forum on my dad's like only business trip

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Speaker 1: to l A. We got so lucky. It was like

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Speaker 1: the stars aligned. So I would like these teams, and

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Speaker 1: I have disliked. I don't want to say, hey, you know,

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Speaker 1: I got kids. I've hated all Boston teams, Red Sox, uh,

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Speaker 1: kind of the Bruins, even though I don't even really

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Speaker 1: follow hockey. Um, but clearly the Celtics. Jayson Tatum by

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Speaker 1: like a mile is my favorite Celtic player ever. Um,

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Speaker 1: it's not even close. Like, I don't know how you

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Speaker 1: cannot like him when you watch his game. The dude

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Speaker 1: is just unstoppable. He's gifted offensively. I mean he's been

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Speaker 1: to the Conference. I think he's been to the Eastern

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Speaker 1: Conference finals two of the three years he's been in

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Speaker 1: the league, or might have been three or four, I

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Speaker 1: don't know, but bottom line, they got as a winner.

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Speaker 1: He's really talented, and for whatever reason, he just gets

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Speaker 1: lost in this shuffle of like, oh, there's a million

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Speaker 1: great wings. I mean, if you ask me, now, you know,

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Speaker 1: are you building around Jayson Tatum or like the league,

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Speaker 1: I'm taking Tatum. It's like, yeah, I would take Zion

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Speaker 1: over Tatum, and I would take Luca. But after that,

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Speaker 1: like guys under like thirty years old, who am I missing?

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Speaker 1: I mean Curry's over thirty, Lebron's over thirty, k d Harden,

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Speaker 1: I think are all over thirty. I mean Jayson Tatum

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Speaker 1: for me, might be the third best player under thirty

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Speaker 1: in the NBA. I mean, I look at the scoring leaders,

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Speaker 1: rob but I like, I'm absolutely enamored. Like what do you,

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Speaker 1: Donovan Mitchell or Jayson Tatum? Who are you building around? Oh,

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Speaker 1: Jayson Tatum, Bradley Beal or Jayson Tatum. Jason Tatum. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: I mean, the guy's a machine. I'm sorry, somebody's yelling, Jannie,

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Speaker 1: how could you skip you? Honest? I'd have to legitimate

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Speaker 1: think about that because Tatum's played in more Eastern Conference

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Speaker 1: finals then Janice has, and I do think Janice's game

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Speaker 1: is limited given the lack of shooting ability. He's got

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Speaker 1: thirty percent from deep this year, Tatum at thirty eight. Um.

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Speaker 1: I'm in the tank for Zach Lavine, but I'm not

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Speaker 1: taking him over Jason Tatum. Um certainly not Joel Embiid.

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Speaker 1: You guys know, I'm a big fan of Ben Simmons again,

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Speaker 1: Devin Booker, Trey Young. I would take Tatum over Yokich.

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Speaker 1: That's a tougher one. Yokicher Tatum interesting. The passing ability

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Speaker 1: pass it's interesting. I'll wrap up with this before we

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Speaker 1: get to our guests. Rob. I saw some data floating

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Speaker 1: around about who voted for who in the m v

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Speaker 1: P and the Coach of the Year and six manner

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Speaker 1: all that, and it was weird. The m v P

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Speaker 1: column was like it was only twenty votes, but like

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Speaker 1: all of them were for Yoki. Is he going to

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Speaker 1: be the unanimous m v P. Actually had that conversation

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Speaker 1: on Tuesday night with christ we sorry, he is a

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Speaker 1: voter as well, and we talked about I said, what

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Speaker 1: do you vote? He voted Kit, And the question was

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Speaker 1: I asked him and said, hey, do you think it's

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Speaker 1: possible that he becomes a second unanimous player even though

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Speaker 1: we all agree that he probably, you know, for that

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Speaker 1: level of distinction, you don't think of Nickel. Yoki is

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Speaker 1: an unanimous MVP caliber player. But in this quirky season

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Speaker 1: with everybody hurt and guys missing time, and you know,

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Speaker 1: the next biggest competition being Mbiat who only played sevent

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Speaker 1: of the games, you know, is it possible? And and

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Speaker 1: he told me flat out I wouldn't be surprised if

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Speaker 1: he was unanimous. Yeah, I just saw this. Yoki's second

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Speaker 1: in the league in triple doubles. UM kind of a

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Speaker 1: big deal. Fled the league in double doubles, sixty double

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Speaker 1: doubles and seventy two games played in all the games,

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Speaker 1: which is impressive in a season where everybody's hurt. Uh.

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Speaker 1: He was top twenty, top fifteen in minutes per game,

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Speaker 1: number one in player efficiency rating. The guy had an

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Speaker 1: incredible season, um, and you can't penalize him because everyone

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Speaker 1: else was hurt. I just keep going back to the

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Speaker 1: conversation we had, like Steph Curry forty two ninety one.

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Speaker 1: You take about of that team and they are third

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Speaker 1: worst in the NBA. So I I hope somebody voted

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Speaker 1: for Curry. I do. I doubt it happened, but maybe

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Speaker 1: somebody voted in b But it's probably a queen sweet

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Speaker 1: clean sweep for Nicole yokis all right? Without further ado,

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Speaker 1: Um and I forgot before I get to our guest

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Speaker 1: quick picks for tonight's games. We'll go with one and

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Speaker 1: oh after the Celtics winner. Uh, Robbie, I can't help myself.

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Speaker 1: I have to take the Lakers favored by four and

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Speaker 1: a half here. I feel like the numbers a little light.

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Speaker 1: And you know, I'm in the tank for Curry, my

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Speaker 1: favorite player in NBA history. That that is a true story.

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Speaker 1: I've got to go with the Lakers favorite by four

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Speaker 1: and a half here, and and I don't I'm not

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Speaker 1: no official play, but I like the Spurs getting points

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Speaker 1: against Memphis. I think Memphis is a little overrated and

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Speaker 1: the Spurs are deeper and I trust Popovich. So do

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Speaker 1: you have a pick? Rob got the Lakers, big Lee.

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Speaker 1: I think the four points is way too low and

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Speaker 1: that guy have double digits at least. Um the Spurs

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Speaker 1: Grizzlies game is tough just because I don't I don't

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Speaker 1: know what to make of either team. You know, I

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Speaker 1: think that the Grizzlies are a tough team. They're tenacious,

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Speaker 1: but at the same time they would be a massive

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Speaker 1: coaching mismatch with Greg Popovich and he might have something

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Speaker 1: up asleep. So I think I leaned Spurs and that

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Speaker 1: one with the points. I think I saw a stat

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Speaker 1: where that, like one of these networks had their experts

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Speaker 1: picked the game in fifteen of sixteen picked the Grizzlies.

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Speaker 1: You know what that means when the world zigs, yeah, boy,

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Speaker 1: Jay back zags giving us Spurs. All right, guys, without

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Speaker 1: further ado, let's get to our guest, Andy Kimenetsky. Jason

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Speaker 1: likes to think he knows everything when it comes to sports.

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Speaker 1: I know what sports stands want, but for everything he doesn't.

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Speaker 1: He knows a guy who does. Let's just say I

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Speaker 1: know a guy who knows a guy he knows another guy.

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Speaker 1: All right, let's welcome into rate fire. We want to

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Speaker 1: preview the Lakers. Obviously, everybody cares about the Lakers Lakers Warriors.

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Speaker 1: Tonight is a massive game. Um, the most hype playing

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Speaker 1: game ever. Obviously this is the second year of the

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Speaker 1: play in ha ha. So I thought we'd bring in

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Speaker 1: Andy Kemanetski. He has covered the Lakers basically forever, if

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Speaker 1: you have. I've only been out in l A for

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Speaker 1: five years, and it's hard to miss Andy and his brother,

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Speaker 1: they are have been around the team forever. So I

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Speaker 1: thought we'd bring him Andy, Andy, how are you man? Good? Good?

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Speaker 1: How are you doing? Yeah, I'm all right. I'm kind

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Speaker 1: of hyped for the game. Obviously, Lebron first Curry, we

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Speaker 1: got a lot to get into. But I thought before

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Speaker 1: we got to that, I would start with you and

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Speaker 1: how long you've been around the Lakers, because it's weird Andy.

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Speaker 1: Everybody says, oh, well, it's the Lakers and their royalty

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Speaker 1: and Lebron. People forget what like, you know, before Lebron

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Speaker 1: got here, the Lakers were quite bad for six years.

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Speaker 1: Forget that. You you were around the team then, right,

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Speaker 1: well yeah, also too, I mean my first season covering

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Speaker 1: the Lakers. Um right now. My brother and I did

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Speaker 1: the lock On Lakers podcasts part of the Lockdown Network,

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Speaker 1: but we first came in doing it for the l

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Speaker 1: A Times. UM doing what was then their first sports

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Speaker 1: blog covering the Lakers, and that was Phil Jackson's first

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Speaker 1: season back with Phil the beginning of the Kwamie Smush era.

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Speaker 1: So those ten years that I covered Kobe, there there

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Speaker 1: was a lot of chaos. You know, there was the

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Speaker 1: chaos of when he demanded the trade. There was the

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Speaker 1: chaos that came with his Achilles terror, and you know,

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Speaker 1: the organization being thrown into these crossroads. And then there

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Speaker 1: was obviously the attempt at the rebuild and you know,

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Speaker 1: or I think in the Lakers. In the Lakers case,

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Speaker 1: there they're fighting a rebuild, the fighting the perception that

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Speaker 1: they actually trying to rebuild, fighting some of the steps

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Speaker 1: that would have been necessary to do it, which led

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Speaker 1: to some fallow years and I think kind of falling

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Speaker 1: asked backward in the draft picks um that they weren't

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Speaker 1: really going for um. But yeah, they they are at

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Speaker 1: the top again, and you know, coming off a championship season,

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Speaker 1: which it always feels like the Lakers end up, but

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Speaker 1: there's been a pretty big roller coaster in between. Yeah. Yeah, again,

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Speaker 1: I think six straight years no playoffs. The year before

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Speaker 1: that they got dusted in the first round, swept by

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Speaker 1: the spurs, um Andy, But you mentioned it, Uh, Smush

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Speaker 1: Parker and Kwalm Brown that era. You know, we had

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Speaker 1: Jim Jackson on the podcast and he told a funny

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Speaker 1: story about that Smush Parker series. Um and when he

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Speaker 1: knew it was over and you know called addition to

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00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:34,200
Speaker 1: the thousand and six season Jim Jackson. Yes, he called

422
00:22:34,240 --> 00:22:36,400
Speaker 1: his real estate agent, like midway through the series when

423
00:22:36,400 --> 00:22:38,840
Speaker 1: Swish Parker started to you know, get in his feelings

424
00:22:38,920 --> 00:22:40,360
Speaker 1: and was like, all right, you know this is over.

425
00:22:40,359 --> 00:22:43,480
Speaker 1: We're gonna lose the series. Um. And Kwalm A. Brown

426
00:22:43,520 --> 00:22:44,840
Speaker 1: has been in the news a lot this week. And

427
00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:47,920
Speaker 1: that's not a name you've heard, Uh, anybody's mentioned really

428
00:22:47,920 --> 00:22:50,040
Speaker 1: other than you know, it's like a joke of the

429
00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:53,119
Speaker 1: butt of a joke. But Kwam Brown is like pushing

430
00:22:53,119 --> 00:22:55,159
Speaker 1: back against the fact that he was a bust. I

431
00:22:55,200 --> 00:22:57,800
Speaker 1: guess he's just sick of being a whipping dog dog

432
00:22:58,040 --> 00:23:00,560
Speaker 1: for so many years. Uh. And a punchline. What was

433
00:23:00,600 --> 00:23:03,040
Speaker 1: he like around the Lakers? You know, I really liked

434
00:23:03,119 --> 00:23:05,879
Speaker 1: Kami when when I covered him for about two and

435
00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:09,800
Speaker 1: a half seasons. He he was very different than I expected.

436
00:23:09,800 --> 00:23:12,280
Speaker 1: And I've always thought that Kuamy was a really good

437
00:23:12,400 --> 00:23:15,240
Speaker 1: lesson for me because it was really this was the

438
00:23:15,240 --> 00:23:17,800
Speaker 1: first time I ever covered a team, you know, day

439
00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:20,640
Speaker 1: and day out. I had been in sports media before,

440
00:23:20,680 --> 00:23:23,280
Speaker 1: but never I'm still pretty new and never at that

441
00:23:23,320 --> 00:23:25,359
Speaker 1: type of depth. And and it really was a good

442
00:23:25,440 --> 00:23:29,040
Speaker 1: lesson about the way perception can be very different from

443
00:23:29,080 --> 00:23:31,880
Speaker 1: reality and the way we, even people like us who

444
00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:36,600
Speaker 1: are in media often get our impressions of other players

445
00:23:36,920 --> 00:23:40,520
Speaker 1: through other media. And the stories were being told, and

446
00:23:40,600 --> 00:23:43,560
Speaker 1: you know, I, to be totally honest, expected quam Me

447
00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:47,239
Speaker 1: to be this very petulant kid um, you know, not

448
00:23:47,359 --> 00:23:51,240
Speaker 1: necessarily as smart as he really was, because that was

449
00:23:51,280 --> 00:23:55,080
Speaker 1: the perception coming out of Washington about him. And I

450
00:23:55,160 --> 00:23:59,879
Speaker 1: found him to be this very introspective, very bright guy. Uh.

451
00:24:00,200 --> 00:24:02,480
Speaker 1: He did not like dealing with media, not in a

452
00:24:02,520 --> 00:24:04,720
Speaker 1: hostile way, but I think he felt pretty burned. Like

453
00:24:04,720 --> 00:24:07,040
Speaker 1: I used to joke all the time that you know,

454
00:24:07,119 --> 00:24:10,399
Speaker 1: he would have the was it the Rita Hayworth poster

455
00:24:10,480 --> 00:24:13,280
Speaker 1: and Shawshank or whichever star it was, so he could

456
00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:15,360
Speaker 1: tunnel out of the locker room and not see any

457
00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:18,040
Speaker 1: of us because because he just you know, he had

458
00:24:18,080 --> 00:24:20,600
Speaker 1: had such a bad experience there. But when you would

459
00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:23,960
Speaker 1: talk with him. I found him a very thoughtful guy.

460
00:24:24,520 --> 00:24:27,440
Speaker 1: You know, his career didn't turn out the way certainly

461
00:24:27,480 --> 00:24:30,520
Speaker 1: the Wizards or the Lakers thought it could be when

462
00:24:30,560 --> 00:24:34,200
Speaker 1: they drafted him or traded for him. But the reality is, man,

463
00:24:34,240 --> 00:24:36,720
Speaker 1: he had a twelve year career, Like and you know,

464
00:24:36,760 --> 00:24:39,520
Speaker 1: he made I think between sixty to seventy million dollars.

465
00:24:40,080 --> 00:24:45,280
Speaker 1: There are far greater busts in NBA history than Kwamie Brown.

466
00:24:45,320 --> 00:24:49,080
Speaker 1: They were bigger busts in his own draft class than him,

467
00:24:49,119 --> 00:24:51,679
Speaker 1: Like I think Stroe Miles Swift was in his draft class.

468
00:24:51,720 --> 00:24:53,960
Speaker 1: Like and I'm not looking to take shots at guys,

469
00:24:53,960 --> 00:24:57,360
Speaker 1: but like Stroe Mile's career was less successful than Kwamys,

470
00:24:57,640 --> 00:24:59,280
Speaker 1: Like there were there were other guys, and you know,

471
00:24:59,320 --> 00:25:02,399
Speaker 1: he just he was so high profile, and it was

472
00:25:02,440 --> 00:25:06,480
Speaker 1: at a time when you know, the straight to high

473
00:25:06,480 --> 00:25:09,639
Speaker 1: school thing was still pretty controversial and there was a

474
00:25:09,640 --> 00:25:12,320
Speaker 1: lot of resentment against it and a lot of pushback

475
00:25:12,359 --> 00:25:15,960
Speaker 1: against it. And I think he became the poster boy

476
00:25:16,040 --> 00:25:18,719
Speaker 1: for a lot of what was wrong with the NBA

477
00:25:19,520 --> 00:25:22,120
Speaker 1: in ways that weren't totally fair to him. Yes, he

478
00:25:22,720 --> 00:25:24,679
Speaker 1: did not live up to the building, and yes he

479
00:25:24,720 --> 00:25:28,040
Speaker 1: had a lot of shortcomings as a player, But I

480
00:25:28,320 --> 00:25:31,119
Speaker 1: think he has looked back on as a much worse

481
00:25:31,280 --> 00:25:33,600
Speaker 1: player than he actually well, I think he was just

482
00:25:33,640 --> 00:25:36,560
Speaker 1: sort of an ordinary NBA player. He was in the

483
00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:40,480
Speaker 1: Tyson Chandler, Eddie Curry draft class that you know, the

484
00:25:40,520 --> 00:25:42,760
Speaker 1: high school kids coming up to the NBA. Yes, it's

485
00:25:42,880 --> 00:25:45,800
Speaker 1: I cannot imagine what was going through his head when

486
00:25:45,840 --> 00:25:49,040
Speaker 1: your entrance into the league is getting crushed by Michael

487
00:25:49,080 --> 00:25:51,760
Speaker 1: Jordan in practice every day, and then you get shipped

488
00:25:51,760 --> 00:25:55,520
Speaker 1: to the Lakers and now you're getting Kobe Bryant in

489
00:25:55,560 --> 00:25:58,959
Speaker 1: practice well, and also to that's crazy you you're getting

490
00:25:59,000 --> 00:26:03,439
Speaker 1: traded also for Karen Butler, who at the time you know,

491
00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:07,240
Speaker 1: was about to become an All Star or was All

492
00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:10,840
Speaker 1: Star adjacent. He had had a really um good season

493
00:26:12,000 --> 00:26:14,879
Speaker 1: with my with Miami and with the Lakers. He was

494
00:26:14,920 --> 00:26:18,560
Speaker 1: somebody that Kobe immediately got along with really well. Like

495
00:26:18,640 --> 00:26:21,480
Speaker 1: I I had not recalled a teammate at the time

496
00:26:21,960 --> 00:26:24,879
Speaker 1: who fit in with Kobe as easily. Kobe was really

497
00:26:24,880 --> 00:26:28,200
Speaker 1: close to Kuran, so you know, he came in kind of,

498
00:26:28,960 --> 00:26:31,440
Speaker 1: you know, under behind the eight ball that way, and

499
00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:34,320
Speaker 1: the Lakers had just drafted and drew by him, who

500
00:26:34,560 --> 00:26:37,439
Speaker 1: was going to be a project for them, and Kwami

501
00:26:37,640 --> 00:26:40,600
Speaker 1: was considered kind of a project, you know, both in

502
00:26:40,680 --> 00:26:43,560
Speaker 1: the front court. So there was this element of what

503
00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:47,520
Speaker 1: are the Lakers actually doing trading away somebody like Karon

504
00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:51,200
Speaker 1: Butler who seemed like he had more immediate use for

505
00:26:51,320 --> 00:26:55,000
Speaker 1: what was essentially two projects, you know, clearing that way,

506
00:26:55,000 --> 00:26:57,919
Speaker 1: it just it he represented to what what felt like

507
00:26:57,960 --> 00:27:00,400
Speaker 1: a very confusing time for the Lakers. Is the time

508
00:27:00,440 --> 00:27:03,840
Speaker 1: that piste off Kobe and you know, he he became

509
00:27:03,880 --> 00:27:06,480
Speaker 1: the face of a lot of that. Funny side note,

510
00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:09,440
Speaker 1: Andrew Bynum pre pandemic was working out at my gym

511
00:27:09,960 --> 00:27:13,600
Speaker 1: and he had he had dyed his hair silver and

512
00:27:13,680 --> 00:27:17,800
Speaker 1: he looked like Wesley Snipes from that movie Um demolition Man.

513
00:27:17,960 --> 00:27:20,359
Speaker 1: Demolition Man. There you go, Yeah, and he's just you know,

514
00:27:20,480 --> 00:27:23,920
Speaker 1: this gigantic dude and you're like, whoa is that? Whoa?

515
00:27:23,960 --> 00:27:25,720
Speaker 1: That's Andrew Bynum. And I think he was trying to

516
00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:27,800
Speaker 1: attempt to come back, maybe with the Big Three or whatever.

517
00:27:32,840 --> 00:27:36,960
Speaker 1: He was by the time they shipped them out in

518
00:27:37,000 --> 00:27:39,439
Speaker 1: that big trade with Dwight Howard, I think he had

519
00:27:39,440 --> 00:27:42,440
Speaker 1: worn out his welcome, but he was he was one

520
00:27:42,480 --> 00:27:46,040
Speaker 1: of the ultimate no filter players. I've ever seen like that.

521
00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:48,600
Speaker 1: I mean a lot of players talk about they don't

522
00:27:48,680 --> 00:27:51,080
Speaker 1: care what everyone thinks, but you know they kind of do.

523
00:27:51,400 --> 00:27:55,480
Speaker 1: Andrew bind him genuinely didn't for better and worse, depending

524
00:27:55,480 --> 00:27:57,879
Speaker 1: on how you looked at it. All right, let's get

525
00:27:57,920 --> 00:28:00,560
Speaker 1: to the current Lakers, and it's been, you know, a

526
00:28:00,600 --> 00:28:03,240
Speaker 1: difficult season. I have mentioned this a few times on

527
00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:05,960
Speaker 1: the pod and people are instantly like, why are you hating?

528
00:28:06,440 --> 00:28:09,159
Speaker 1: And you know, just let this sink in for a second.

529
00:28:09,160 --> 00:28:12,320
Speaker 1: Andy Lebron gets to the Lakers, he gets injured in

530
00:28:12,359 --> 00:28:15,960
Speaker 1: the first season, they missed the playoffs. Second season, COVID hits,

531
00:28:16,880 --> 00:28:20,280
Speaker 1: they get a little break, Lebron and Lakers winning the

532
00:28:20,280 --> 00:28:23,119
Speaker 1: title in the bubble. Third season, Lebron gets injured again.

533
00:28:23,320 --> 00:28:25,080
Speaker 1: So now he's in his third season in l A

534
00:28:25,240 --> 00:28:27,439
Speaker 1: and two of these three he's been injured. I know

535
00:28:27,560 --> 00:28:30,000
Speaker 1: we like to think of him as a bionic man,

536
00:28:30,000 --> 00:28:33,240
Speaker 1: a cyborg, whatever you want, but the reality is, you know,

537
00:28:33,280 --> 00:28:35,200
Speaker 1: the guy's thirty six. He has more tread on his

538
00:28:35,320 --> 00:28:38,479
Speaker 1: tires than pretty much anybody in NBA history. Given all

539
00:28:38,520 --> 00:28:42,480
Speaker 1: the playoff runs, what's your confidence level in Lebron being

540
00:28:42,520 --> 00:28:46,680
Speaker 1: able to stay healthy for a playoff run here, it's

541
00:28:46,760 --> 00:28:52,479
Speaker 1: reasonably confident. Um, just with the caveat of you know

542
00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:55,960
Speaker 1: that he is vulnerable now, I mean he he absolutely is,

543
00:28:56,280 --> 00:28:58,320
Speaker 1: and I think he's aware of it, and I think

544
00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:01,200
Speaker 1: the team is aware of it. That being said, though,

545
00:29:01,240 --> 00:29:04,160
Speaker 1: the last couple of games that he played he looked

546
00:29:04,160 --> 00:29:07,560
Speaker 1: pretty good. I mean he he looked like Lebron. And

547
00:29:07,640 --> 00:29:11,280
Speaker 1: you know, it's not an apples to apples comparison, because

548
00:29:11,280 --> 00:29:13,719
Speaker 1: what Kobe went through when he tore his achilles was

549
00:29:14,320 --> 00:29:18,160
Speaker 1: far more extreme. But if you're looking to make even

550
00:29:18,240 --> 00:29:23,920
Speaker 1: a hopefully decent comparison, when Kobe came back from the Achilles,

551
00:29:24,400 --> 00:29:27,600
Speaker 1: he would have these pockets of games or you know,

552
00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:31,000
Speaker 1: like five or six possessions where he looked like Kobe,

553
00:29:31,440 --> 00:29:34,640
Speaker 1: but he barely could summon it over the course of

554
00:29:34,800 --> 00:29:38,360
Speaker 1: entire games, like the sixty point outburst in the finale

555
00:29:38,800 --> 00:29:41,640
Speaker 1: that was one of the few times post Achilles where

556
00:29:41,640 --> 00:29:46,840
Speaker 1: he looked like Kobe from start to finish. Lebron. I

557
00:29:46,840 --> 00:29:50,320
Speaker 1: thought these last two games looked like Lebron. And that's

558
00:29:50,360 --> 00:29:53,720
Speaker 1: what gives me more confidence. Obviously, there's a vulnerability again,

559
00:29:53,760 --> 00:29:57,120
Speaker 1: He's coming off a pretty serious injuries. High high ankle

560
00:29:57,160 --> 00:30:01,440
Speaker 1: sprains are no joke. But that being said, you know,

561
00:30:01,840 --> 00:30:04,840
Speaker 1: he's looking like himself, and I think the hope is

562
00:30:05,280 --> 00:30:08,120
Speaker 1: he can just get through a couple of months and

563
00:30:08,280 --> 00:30:10,960
Speaker 1: then from there, you know, really take the time off

564
00:30:11,040 --> 00:30:13,400
Speaker 1: necessary heading in the next season to get himself right.

565
00:30:13,680 --> 00:30:15,719
Speaker 1: It's funny for me to paint it with it just

566
00:30:15,760 --> 00:30:17,520
Speaker 1: a hint of negativity. And then you look at his

567
00:30:17,600 --> 00:30:21,560
Speaker 1: stat line. Oh you seven and seven at the age

568
00:30:21,600 --> 00:30:26,480
Speaker 1: of thirty six. Yeah, that's pretty dark. Good. Yeah, it's crazy.

569
00:30:26,520 --> 00:30:29,120
Speaker 1: What I love about these Lakers is they're so versatile, Like,

570
00:30:30,000 --> 00:30:31,560
Speaker 1: you know, Dennis Shrewder is gonna have a game where

571
00:30:31,560 --> 00:30:34,560
Speaker 1: he goes for thirty, Kuzma could go for twenty. Uh,

572
00:30:34,800 --> 00:30:36,960
Speaker 1: Horton Tucker could have a game like. They've got so

573
00:30:37,000 --> 00:30:40,480
Speaker 1: many weapons. Um, do you think they're gonna have any

574
00:30:40,480 --> 00:30:43,720
Speaker 1: problems with the Warriors at the outset? Simply because Draymond

575
00:30:43,720 --> 00:30:46,440
Speaker 1: Green is basically playing center the entire game for them,

576
00:30:46,480 --> 00:30:49,680
Speaker 1: as opposed to a traditional center. Wiseman's hurt. I guess

577
00:30:49,760 --> 00:30:53,360
Speaker 1: Kevon Looney will play some big but it doesn't sound

578
00:30:53,360 --> 00:30:54,960
Speaker 1: like there's gonna be a lot of minutes for Drummond

579
00:30:54,960 --> 00:30:57,960
Speaker 1: and guest sold in this one. UM, it doesn't worry

580
00:30:57,960 --> 00:30:59,760
Speaker 1: me too much, just in the sense that if they

581
00:30:59,800 --> 00:31:02,440
Speaker 1: need to play Anthony Davis at the five the majority

582
00:31:02,440 --> 00:31:05,560
Speaker 1: of this game, they will. UM. Frank Vogel actually said

583
00:31:06,000 --> 00:31:10,960
Speaker 1: during UM today's practice as we're talking that, uh, they

584
00:31:10,960 --> 00:31:13,240
Speaker 1: had done some stuff with a d at the five,

585
00:31:13,280 --> 00:31:15,200
Speaker 1: and you know that look is is in their bag

586
00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:18,080
Speaker 1: of possibilities. And you know, for all the talk about

587
00:31:18,160 --> 00:31:20,760
Speaker 1: Anthony Davis not wanting to play the five, the truth

588
00:31:20,840 --> 00:31:23,880
Speaker 1: is when it matters, he'll do it. And this clearly matters.

589
00:31:23,880 --> 00:31:25,960
Speaker 1: And if this is the best look he I I

590
00:31:26,000 --> 00:31:28,040
Speaker 1: would be more concerned about the idea that the Lakers

591
00:31:28,080 --> 00:31:30,840
Speaker 1: just haven't practiced as much with him there and just

592
00:31:30,920 --> 00:31:33,800
Speaker 1: you know, the the synergy involved, but the idea that

593
00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:37,400
Speaker 1: they're not equipped to handle that look with with Draymond

594
00:31:37,400 --> 00:31:41,120
Speaker 1: at five are going small that that I don't buy.

595
00:31:41,280 --> 00:31:43,880
Speaker 1: The Warriors are just scary because step is scary. I mean,

596
00:31:44,320 --> 00:31:46,320
Speaker 1: what Steph has been doing like the last month and

597
00:31:46,360 --> 00:31:49,320
Speaker 1: a half is just insane. And you know, the idea

598
00:31:49,400 --> 00:31:53,000
Speaker 1: that he could go off for forty five to fifty

599
00:31:53,080 --> 00:31:56,840
Speaker 1: and everybody else does just enough on a night where

600
00:31:56,920 --> 00:32:00,240
Speaker 1: the Lakers can't hit outside shots, which is deaf, only

601
00:32:00,240 --> 00:32:04,280
Speaker 1: not a possibility beyond the realm. Yeah yeah, something like

602
00:32:04,400 --> 00:32:09,200
Speaker 1: that could happen. Yeah. Yeah, we've seen Curry struggle at Staples.

603
00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:11,520
Speaker 1: I think as somebody posted his last ten games there,

604
00:32:11,520 --> 00:32:14,360
Speaker 1: he's shooting like twenty seven some absurdly. Lakers have done

605
00:32:14,360 --> 00:32:16,400
Speaker 1: a good job with him this year. Well, it's funny.

606
00:32:16,400 --> 00:32:18,320
Speaker 1: The Lakers are the number one defense in the NBA.

607
00:32:18,400 --> 00:32:22,240
Speaker 1: The Warriors are I think fifth defensive. Vision. That's crazy.

608
00:32:22,520 --> 00:32:24,560
Speaker 1: I have no idea how you look at the Jordan's

609
00:32:24,600 --> 00:32:27,960
Speaker 1: Pool and Toscano Anderson and these guys. I'm assuming somebody

610
00:32:27,960 --> 00:32:30,720
Speaker 1: did the math wrong. I don't think that's actually possible.

611
00:32:30,760 --> 00:32:32,920
Speaker 1: It feels very strange. Let me ask you about the

612
00:32:32,920 --> 00:32:35,560
Speaker 1: rest of the West. You know, we'll get We'll save

613
00:32:35,560 --> 00:32:37,800
Speaker 1: the Clippers for the end, but like, Utah and Phoenix

614
00:32:37,800 --> 00:32:39,520
Speaker 1: are the only teams that won fifty games in this

615
00:32:39,640 --> 00:32:43,600
Speaker 1: shortened season, but nobody seems to be picking them. Everybody's

616
00:32:43,640 --> 00:32:46,959
Speaker 1: even either going Clippers or Lakers. Any faith in Utah

617
00:32:47,080 --> 00:32:49,600
Speaker 1: or or Phoenix here? You know what's interesting. Brian and

618
00:32:49,600 --> 00:32:52,680
Speaker 1: I were talking about this on a Lockdown Lakers podcast

619
00:32:52,720 --> 00:32:56,360
Speaker 1: a couple of days ago, and I think Phoenix, I

620
00:32:56,360 --> 00:32:58,080
Speaker 1: think just the issue is they don't have a lot

621
00:32:58,120 --> 00:33:00,560
Speaker 1: of experience. I mean, beyond Chris Paul and a Crowder

622
00:33:00,560 --> 00:33:03,080
Speaker 1: there there's and I guess maybe a little bit Daria Scharitch.

623
00:33:03,160 --> 00:33:05,600
Speaker 1: They just there's no, there's just not a lot there

624
00:33:05,720 --> 00:33:08,160
Speaker 1: in terms of that type of experience. And just you know,

625
00:33:08,200 --> 00:33:10,680
Speaker 1: I don't think Devin Booker is gonna like shrink from

626
00:33:10,720 --> 00:33:12,560
Speaker 1: the bright lights or anything. It's just this is an

627
00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:16,240
Speaker 1: adjustment period, Like this is something really new and different.

628
00:33:16,320 --> 00:33:19,160
Speaker 1: Having teams, you know, with this much time and focus

629
00:33:19,160 --> 00:33:22,640
Speaker 1: scheming against you, that can be more difficult for you know,

630
00:33:22,640 --> 00:33:24,800
Speaker 1: in this particular case, a lot of players to deal with.

631
00:33:25,440 --> 00:33:29,520
Speaker 1: You Taught, they are a really good team and they

632
00:33:29,640 --> 00:33:31,560
Speaker 1: do a lot of things that make them really dangerous.

633
00:33:31,560 --> 00:33:34,239
Speaker 1: They play really good defense, They they can shoot the

634
00:33:34,280 --> 00:33:36,040
Speaker 1: hell out of the ball from outside, and they can

635
00:33:36,040 --> 00:33:39,480
Speaker 1: get on crazy rolls. In part, they don't scare me

636
00:33:39,520 --> 00:33:41,480
Speaker 1: from a Lakers perspective, just because I don't think they

637
00:33:41,480 --> 00:33:44,600
Speaker 1: have a lot of great matchups for Lebron. But also

638
00:33:44,640 --> 00:33:47,720
Speaker 1: I think what makes you Taught not as scary is

639
00:33:47,720 --> 00:33:51,920
Speaker 1: there's nobody on that team that really scares you for

640
00:33:51,960 --> 00:33:58,520
Speaker 1: a playoff series, like come on, come on, two weeks

641
00:33:58,520 --> 00:34:01,000
Speaker 1: ago or something. He's a he's a good player, but

642
00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:03,720
Speaker 1: you're not gonna be scared to him, Like you look

643
00:34:03,760 --> 00:34:05,840
Speaker 1: across the rest of the West, like Lebron and a

644
00:34:05,920 --> 00:34:10,239
Speaker 1: d obviously are scary. Kie, can I call you that?

645
00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:13,360
Speaker 1: I mean Parks, I mean I think he had forty

646
00:34:13,360 --> 00:34:15,520
Speaker 1: in a game this year. He would be looking to

647
00:34:15,560 --> 00:34:21,560
Speaker 1: do it. Man, he was back in l a stomping grounds.

648
00:34:21,880 --> 00:34:25,680
Speaker 1: Dms are probably open. He'll be all excited. But like

649
00:34:25,719 --> 00:34:31,040
Speaker 1: they Portland has Dame who's obviously scary, Like there's nobody

650
00:34:31,160 --> 00:34:34,640
Speaker 1: Donovan Mitchell is obviously a great player, but Heat for

651
00:34:34,680 --> 00:34:38,080
Speaker 1: whatever reason, and maybe this is just me being silly,

652
00:34:38,400 --> 00:34:41,799
Speaker 1: isn't scary in the same way these other like nikolay Kich,

653
00:34:41,880 --> 00:34:44,279
Speaker 1: we've seen him do incredible things in the playoffs, Like

654
00:34:44,640 --> 00:34:47,359
Speaker 1: you know, Durant is obviously scary in the playoffs. Like

655
00:34:47,680 --> 00:34:50,919
Speaker 1: for some reason, Mitchell isn't that guy. Rudy Gobert isn't

656
00:34:50,960 --> 00:34:53,080
Speaker 1: sort of that type of player. So I think that's

657
00:34:53,120 --> 00:34:55,839
Speaker 1: really what it is with Utah's just they don't have

658
00:34:55,920 --> 00:34:58,799
Speaker 1: the guy that frightens you. And maybe this is me

659
00:34:58,920 --> 00:35:01,319
Speaker 1: just mis evaluating him, but that's my read on Well,

660
00:35:01,360 --> 00:35:03,480
Speaker 1: I mean the Donovan Mitchell injury. You know, to your

661
00:35:03,520 --> 00:35:06,280
Speaker 1: point is, you know he is a very good player,

662
00:35:06,320 --> 00:35:07,879
Speaker 1: and now he's injured, so they do have a week

663
00:35:07,920 --> 00:35:10,000
Speaker 1: to practice. I'm sure the Lakers that's why they wanted

664
00:35:10,000 --> 00:35:11,600
Speaker 1: the six so bad. They would love a week to

665
00:35:11,640 --> 00:35:14,640
Speaker 1: get healthy, getting some practices. So that's a huge boon

666
00:35:14,760 --> 00:35:17,960
Speaker 1: for Utah. I am just I had wanted to pick

667
00:35:18,000 --> 00:35:20,320
Speaker 1: the Suns to come out of the West. Obviously. I

668
00:35:20,360 --> 00:35:22,880
Speaker 1: was interested in Denver until Murray went down. But you know,

669
00:35:22,920 --> 00:35:25,080
Speaker 1: Monty Williams, I looked us up. He's never won a

670
00:35:25,080 --> 00:35:28,600
Speaker 1: playoff series in his life and like, yeah, he's owing too.

671
00:35:28,880 --> 00:35:30,799
Speaker 1: You know, that's it. And I'm like, oh, there's only

672
00:35:30,920 --> 00:35:33,760
Speaker 1: been two. He's been an assistant coach on a lot,

673
00:35:33,800 --> 00:35:35,600
Speaker 1: but as a head, I just would I just would

674
00:35:35,600 --> 00:35:37,360
Speaker 1: have thought there had been more. That's interesting. I didn't know.

675
00:35:38,000 --> 00:35:40,480
Speaker 1: And then you're right, it's like Chris Paul like and

676
00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:42,680
Speaker 1: that's it. Like I like Jake Crowder, but I don't

677
00:35:42,719 --> 00:35:45,759
Speaker 1: know about against the Lakers. Although Crowder and Bridges are

678
00:35:45,880 --> 00:35:48,160
Speaker 1: interesting on the wing, they're better than what you did, right,

679
00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:51,680
Speaker 1: Bridges has turned into a really good player. Like if

680
00:35:51,719 --> 00:35:54,680
Speaker 1: the Lakers end up facing the Suns in that first round.

681
00:35:54,719 --> 00:35:56,800
Speaker 1: I think there's gonna be a lot of fans who

682
00:35:57,120 --> 00:35:59,440
Speaker 1: come to recognize just how good of a player Bridges is,

683
00:35:59,560 --> 00:36:02,880
Speaker 1: or maybe even learned who he is. Um, But a

684
00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:06,839
Speaker 1: D is not favorable for the Suns. No, No, it's

685
00:36:07,160 --> 00:36:11,640
Speaker 1: it's not. I think the Son's match up very well.

686
00:36:12,080 --> 00:36:15,640
Speaker 1: From the Lakers perspective like that, that's a pretty good

687
00:36:15,719 --> 00:36:18,880
Speaker 1: matchup for them. I think to start trying to get themselves,

688
00:36:19,400 --> 00:36:22,520
Speaker 1: you know, back in sync, you know, in cemetery, and

689
00:36:22,520 --> 00:36:24,640
Speaker 1: they're gonna have to take Phoenix seriously. And I think

690
00:36:24,719 --> 00:36:27,600
Speaker 1: Chris Paul has been better in the playoffs than his

691
00:36:27,640 --> 00:36:31,440
Speaker 1: reputation might be. But the Lakers are better than him.

692
00:36:31,440 --> 00:36:33,440
Speaker 1: I think they happen to match up very well against Phoenix.

693
00:36:33,640 --> 00:36:35,600
Speaker 1: So the elephant in the West would be the Clippers.

694
00:36:35,600 --> 00:36:38,040
Speaker 1: Now you have covered the Lakers forever, I am curious,

695
00:36:38,120 --> 00:36:41,080
Speaker 1: have you covered a lot of Clippers outside of Lakers

696
00:36:41,120 --> 00:36:43,640
Speaker 1: Clippers matchup? I mean, been around them and stuff like that,

697
00:36:43,719 --> 00:36:46,399
Speaker 1: you know, and you're obviously just living in l A,

698
00:36:47,360 --> 00:36:49,440
Speaker 1: very aware of them, and you know, and last year

699
00:36:49,520 --> 00:36:52,960
Speaker 1: they went so far out of their way to try

700
00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:56,319
Speaker 1: to provoke the Lakers and I think an approach that

701
00:36:56,360 --> 00:36:59,759
Speaker 1: blew up in their faces. But yeah, might might one

702
00:36:59,760 --> 00:37:04,279
Speaker 1: of the one less billboard. Um, but this is the year,

703
00:37:04,320 --> 00:37:06,680
Speaker 1: you know, I gotta I've been going out there bashing

704
00:37:06,680 --> 00:37:08,480
Speaker 1: the Clippers for all the paper clips. I mean a

705
00:37:08,520 --> 00:37:10,879
Speaker 1: lot of people do that. After what happened last year,

706
00:37:11,080 --> 00:37:13,319
Speaker 1: tough not to. And then what happened in the UH

707
00:37:13,320 --> 00:37:15,239
Speaker 1: in the last week of the season here ducking the

708
00:37:15,320 --> 00:37:18,960
Speaker 1: Lakers by tanking against the thunder and Rockets. It's like, really,

709
00:37:19,000 --> 00:37:22,359
Speaker 1: where's the confidence level? I had a buddy, I didn't

710
00:37:22,360 --> 00:37:24,960
Speaker 1: have a buddy text me and say, you know, nobody's

711
00:37:25,040 --> 00:37:28,880
Speaker 1: really taking them that seriously. Maybe this is what happens

712
00:37:28,920 --> 00:37:31,040
Speaker 1: and the Clippers break through this year. Well, they've been

713
00:37:31,120 --> 00:37:33,840
Speaker 1: lower key this year. Like I think they've been quieter

714
00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:36,759
Speaker 1: in a way that serves them well. You know, like

715
00:37:36,400 --> 00:37:38,759
Speaker 1: like I said, last year, they really went out of

716
00:37:38,800 --> 00:37:42,000
Speaker 1: their way to target the Lakers, and I think this

717
00:37:42,080 --> 00:37:46,480
Speaker 1: year they've just been sort of doing their thing more. Um.

718
00:37:46,520 --> 00:37:49,239
Speaker 1: You know, last year they had a lot of chemistry

719
00:37:49,239 --> 00:37:52,759
Speaker 1: issues that that I think really came to surface in

720
00:37:52,800 --> 00:37:56,520
Speaker 1: the bubble. Doesn't seem to be that type of thing

721
00:37:56,800 --> 00:37:59,480
Speaker 1: this year. When Paul George has been on and you know,

722
00:37:59,520 --> 00:38:02,480
Speaker 1: I mean this series ultimately, or however far the player

723
00:38:02,640 --> 00:38:05,000
Speaker 1: the Clippers go in the playoffs, it's going to be

724
00:38:05,040 --> 00:38:07,719
Speaker 1: seen as a referendum Paul George. I think that's just

725
00:38:08,160 --> 00:38:12,600
Speaker 1: obvious fair or not? Playoff? Playoff? God, could anybody have picked?

726
00:38:14,719 --> 00:38:17,600
Speaker 1: I'm telling you, I think half of the Paul George slander,

727
00:38:17,680 --> 00:38:20,640
Speaker 1: if not seventy of it that we here now, would

728
00:38:20,680 --> 00:38:23,600
Speaker 1: disappear if he'd just chosen a better nickname. The nickname

729
00:38:23,680 --> 00:38:26,880
Speaker 1: is awful. Anytime you pick your own nickname, it usually ends,

730
00:38:27,000 --> 00:38:29,719
Speaker 1: especially that one. I mean, playoff p is terrible. But

731
00:38:29,880 --> 00:38:33,160
Speaker 1: in Indiana it was fine, right going back a decade,

732
00:38:33,320 --> 00:38:37,319
Speaker 1: that is true. But that being said, though there have

733
00:38:37,320 --> 00:38:40,600
Speaker 1: been times this season he's been fantastic. He has been

734
00:38:40,800 --> 00:38:42,600
Speaker 1: really good for a lot of this year. You know,

735
00:38:42,719 --> 00:38:45,400
Speaker 1: Kauai obviously has a great track record in the playoffs.

736
00:38:45,760 --> 00:38:49,680
Speaker 1: You know, Marcus Morris has been shooting like crazy. Uh,

737
00:38:49,800 --> 00:38:53,120
Speaker 1: you know, Reggie Jackson has low Ki had a very

738
00:38:53,160 --> 00:38:58,280
Speaker 1: good season. Zoobots has been better. You know, I think

739
00:38:58,640 --> 00:39:00,719
Speaker 1: I think they seem like, again, there's not a team

740
00:39:00,719 --> 00:39:03,479
Speaker 1: I cover, but they seem from a distance like they're

741
00:39:03,480 --> 00:39:06,799
Speaker 1: in a better mental space, and that mental space I

742
00:39:06,840 --> 00:39:09,480
Speaker 1: think was as big a problem for them last season

743
00:39:09,520 --> 00:39:13,799
Speaker 1: as anything else. You know, that being said, looking like

744
00:39:13,840 --> 00:39:17,799
Speaker 1: they're ducking the Lakers, there's a fine line between just

745
00:39:18,440 --> 00:39:23,319
Speaker 1: pragmatic strategy and what you're and what you're signaling. You know,

746
00:39:23,320 --> 00:39:25,560
Speaker 1: there's no extra points for getting through a harder draw,

747
00:39:26,560 --> 00:39:28,759
Speaker 1: But I mean, what would you andy? You know, when

748
00:39:28,800 --> 00:39:31,560
Speaker 1: you look at it, like, oh, the Lakers are banged up,

749
00:39:31,640 --> 00:39:33,600
Speaker 1: they're coming off a bunch of injuries. They have to

750
00:39:33,600 --> 00:39:35,840
Speaker 1: play the play in I would have rather seen the

751
00:39:35,880 --> 00:39:38,640
Speaker 1: Lakers early than three weeks from now, wouldn't you? Or

752
00:39:38,680 --> 00:39:41,759
Speaker 1: for Jared Dudley actually talked about that a few days

753
00:39:41,760 --> 00:39:45,279
Speaker 1: ago that you know, he thinks anybody looking to duck

754
00:39:45,360 --> 00:39:49,280
Speaker 1: this team early on is relatively speaking, making a mistake.

755
00:39:49,760 --> 00:39:52,240
Speaker 1: And there there's a logic to that. How many games

756
00:39:52,239 --> 00:39:56,040
Speaker 1: together have Shrewder Drummond, lebron Kuzma a d Like, how

757
00:39:56,040 --> 00:39:57,920
Speaker 1: many minutes do these guys have to can't be but

758
00:39:58,040 --> 00:40:00,799
Speaker 1: it's got to be under thirty, right, Um, it might

759
00:40:00,840 --> 00:40:04,759
Speaker 1: be more than thirty. I I was, I was surprised,

760
00:40:04,800 --> 00:40:09,839
Speaker 1: Like I thought that the starting five, the starting five

761
00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:14,399
Speaker 1: of Lebron a D Drummond shrewder KCP. I thought they

762
00:40:14,400 --> 00:40:19,120
Speaker 1: hadn't played together at all until Saturday's game. Um, over

763
00:40:19,120 --> 00:40:20,960
Speaker 1: this previous weekend, it turns out they had played a

764
00:40:20,960 --> 00:40:22,960
Speaker 1: little bit. But the answer to your question is not

765
00:40:23,160 --> 00:40:25,239
Speaker 1: a lot. You know, there's a there's a lot to

766
00:40:25,280 --> 00:40:28,640
Speaker 1: get on the same page, Drummond has looked a lot

767
00:40:28,719 --> 00:40:31,120
Speaker 1: better over like the last week or so, and you

768
00:40:31,160 --> 00:40:35,080
Speaker 1: know he's had as rough a transition as anybody. Um, yeah,

769
00:40:35,080 --> 00:40:37,000
Speaker 1: there's a there is a logic that if you want

770
00:40:37,040 --> 00:40:40,840
Speaker 1: to get these guys early before they theoretically start rolling,

771
00:40:41,600 --> 00:40:43,319
Speaker 1: that might be as vulnerable as they're going to be.

772
00:40:43,560 --> 00:40:45,640
Speaker 1: I need to ask you about Montrez Harrold, Who's I

773
00:40:45,640 --> 00:40:48,160
Speaker 1: don't want to say he's the forgotten man, but you

774
00:40:48,200 --> 00:40:51,000
Speaker 1: know he was part of that issue in the Clippers bubble.

775
00:40:51,200 --> 00:40:52,719
Speaker 1: You know, he had the passing of his grandma. But

776
00:40:53,000 --> 00:40:55,360
Speaker 1: also there was like the old guard versus the new guard.

777
00:40:55,440 --> 00:40:59,480
Speaker 1: They've now jettison lou and Harold. I'm assuming, and you

778
00:40:59,560 --> 00:41:02,560
Speaker 1: are around the Lakers a lot. Nobody wants to face

779
00:41:02,600 --> 00:41:06,040
Speaker 1: the Clippers more than Montres Harold, right, probably, I mean,

780
00:41:06,080 --> 00:41:08,759
Speaker 1: I'm sure Lebron is ticked off at Kauai for not

781
00:41:08,880 --> 00:41:11,239
Speaker 1: joining forces with him when he could have. But I mean,

782
00:41:11,280 --> 00:41:14,640
Speaker 1: Harold has seemingly an ax to grind right. Yeah, I

783
00:41:14,680 --> 00:41:17,279
Speaker 1: mean it's been hard to get to know Trea's this year,

784
00:41:17,320 --> 00:41:19,719
Speaker 1: just you know, you're covering the team virtually. But he

785
00:41:20,000 --> 00:41:23,200
Speaker 1: seems like a guy with a long memory, um, at

786
00:41:23,200 --> 00:41:26,840
Speaker 1: the risk of at the risk of making sort of

787
00:41:27,160 --> 00:41:31,240
Speaker 1: snap judgments online. He seems like somebody that doesn't easily forget.

788
00:41:31,400 --> 00:41:34,520
Speaker 1: I think that's fair. Um, I imagine he'd like that.

789
00:41:34,760 --> 00:41:36,799
Speaker 1: Do you think it ended? I mean, is there have

790
00:41:36,880 --> 00:41:39,040
Speaker 1: you heard any rumors of what happened at the end

791
00:41:39,239 --> 00:41:42,720
Speaker 1: in with the Clippers? Not really to be totally honest,

792
00:41:42,719 --> 00:41:45,920
Speaker 1: I mean, it seemed like there was at tension between

793
00:41:45,960 --> 00:41:48,480
Speaker 1: the guys who had been there a while, you know,

794
00:41:48,560 --> 00:41:53,480
Speaker 1: like you had mentioned Lou Williams tres. I don't necessarily

795
00:41:53,520 --> 00:41:56,240
Speaker 1: know if he was any problems. But like Viet Zoobots,

796
00:41:56,360 --> 00:41:58,719
Speaker 1: you know, Patrick Beverley, you know, who have been this

797
00:41:58,880 --> 00:42:02,239
Speaker 1: very scrappy group that managed to give the Warriors a

798
00:42:02,360 --> 00:42:07,040
Speaker 1: really tough first round series a couple of years before two,

799
00:42:07,080 --> 00:42:11,719
Speaker 1: then bringing in Paul George and Kauai Leonard and I

800
00:42:11,719 --> 00:42:14,440
Speaker 1: think a lot of dynamics changed, which they will do

801
00:42:14,480 --> 00:42:17,560
Speaker 1: when you bring in stars, and frankly they should change,

802
00:42:17,719 --> 00:42:19,680
Speaker 1: like you know, if you if you want to get

803
00:42:19,719 --> 00:42:23,359
Speaker 1: past being kind of a cute little story, you need

804
00:42:23,480 --> 00:42:27,240
Speaker 1: guys like kauai And and Paul George who are frankly

805
00:42:27,320 --> 00:42:30,040
Speaker 1: better than who you had. At the same time, though,

806
00:42:30,080 --> 00:42:33,160
Speaker 1: I think also kauai And and Paul George needed to

807
00:42:33,160 --> 00:42:36,520
Speaker 1: grow some as leaders. Um I think they probably had

808
00:42:36,520 --> 00:42:39,040
Speaker 1: to adjust, you know, just the way they go about

809
00:42:39,080 --> 00:42:41,879
Speaker 1: doing things. It seemed like Paul George may have rubbed

810
00:42:41,920 --> 00:42:45,239
Speaker 1: some people the wrong way. Again, I don't know, but uh,

811
00:42:45,280 --> 00:42:49,400
Speaker 1: you know, I don't know specifics with Tread's It just

812
00:42:49,440 --> 00:42:52,120
Speaker 1: seems like Treads was kind of a part all that.

813
00:42:52,160 --> 00:42:55,120
Speaker 1: And then also a lot of treads Is shortcomings as

814
00:42:55,120 --> 00:42:59,080
Speaker 1: a defensive presence I think really became magnified in the

815
00:42:59,120 --> 00:43:01,719
Speaker 1: playoffs and that put him in the spotlight for a

816
00:43:01,719 --> 00:43:04,799
Speaker 1: lot of these problems. Fox Sports Radio has the best

817
00:43:04,840 --> 00:43:07,680
Speaker 1: sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our

818
00:43:07,719 --> 00:43:11,200
Speaker 1: shows at Fox sports Radio dot com and within the

819
00:43:11,239 --> 00:43:14,359
Speaker 1: I Heart Radio app search f s R to listen live.

820
00:43:14,920 --> 00:43:19,080
Speaker 1: So as of today, any prediction as to who comes

821
00:43:19,120 --> 00:43:20,600
Speaker 1: out of the West, I mean, I know there's a

822
00:43:20,600 --> 00:43:26,040
Speaker 1: lot of ifs, like Donovan Mitchell's healthy Lebron um, who

823
00:43:26,040 --> 00:43:27,800
Speaker 1: who would you? Who? Are you leaning towards the gambling

824
00:43:27,800 --> 00:43:30,480
Speaker 1: odds slightly favored the Lakers over the Clippers. I mean,

825
00:43:30,520 --> 00:43:33,879
Speaker 1: if the Lakers are if the Lakers are healthy enough

826
00:43:34,280 --> 00:43:36,600
Speaker 1: to play at a high level, I'm still taking them.

827
00:43:36,760 --> 00:43:38,880
Speaker 1: I still think they are the best team in the West.

828
00:43:39,600 --> 00:43:43,400
Speaker 1: They are more talented than they were last year. They

829
00:43:43,440 --> 00:43:45,799
Speaker 1: still have to create some more synergy than than the

830
00:43:45,800 --> 00:43:48,920
Speaker 1: same team. But you know, remember the Lakers in the

831
00:43:48,920 --> 00:43:51,640
Speaker 1: regular season part of the bubble, before the playoffs, they

832
00:43:51,640 --> 00:43:54,840
Speaker 1: looked awful. It looked really bad. Then maybe the weekend

833
00:43:55,000 --> 00:43:57,560
Speaker 1: before the season ended, I think they beat the Clippers

834
00:43:57,560 --> 00:44:00,120
Speaker 1: and Bucks, yes, or before the like the season was

835
00:44:00,200 --> 00:44:03,120
Speaker 1: it was, it was Lebron had like a monster weekend

836
00:44:03,120 --> 00:44:05,480
Speaker 1: and if he was like, oh Lakers, here we go. Um,

837
00:44:05,760 --> 00:44:07,480
Speaker 1: let me let me ask you this. So you have

838
00:44:07,880 --> 00:44:10,880
Speaker 1: been around the Lakers for I don't know, probably you've

839
00:44:10,880 --> 00:44:12,680
Speaker 1: been Have you been in l A all your life? No,

840
00:44:12,880 --> 00:44:15,120
Speaker 1: I grew up in St. Louis, but I've been in

841
00:44:15,239 --> 00:44:17,920
Speaker 1: l a while. So St. Louis, what what tea? What

842
00:44:18,000 --> 00:44:20,800
Speaker 1: team did you watch like growing up? Basketball. Ways. None,

843
00:44:21,320 --> 00:44:24,239
Speaker 1: I wasn't even into basketball. Really, how did you get

844
00:44:24,239 --> 00:44:26,680
Speaker 1: into basketball? Um? When I moved to l A. I

845
00:44:26,719 --> 00:44:29,880
Speaker 1: started following the Lakers. I I it surprised me. I

846
00:44:30,160 --> 00:44:32,120
Speaker 1: mean it was a bad period. They weren't even good.

847
00:44:33,000 --> 00:44:38,440
Speaker 1: This yeah post Magic right, So then, Yeah, I was

848
00:44:38,520 --> 00:44:43,600
Speaker 1: a college student. I when Magic the announcement of HIV positive.

849
00:44:44,080 --> 00:44:45,799
Speaker 1: That was one of those I remember where I was.

850
00:44:46,320 --> 00:44:49,800
Speaker 1: I was on campus and a friend of mine told

851
00:44:49,800 --> 00:44:51,239
Speaker 1: me about it, a friend of mine who was from

852
00:44:51,400 --> 00:44:53,520
Speaker 1: l A. And like I remember, he had said that

853
00:44:53,560 --> 00:44:56,560
Speaker 1: he was actually wearing a Magic jersey when a friend

854
00:44:56,560 --> 00:44:59,439
Speaker 1: of his told him. You know, this is back before

855
00:44:59,440 --> 00:45:02,480
Speaker 1: the internet, so you know who was spread by by

856
00:45:02,760 --> 00:45:05,880
Speaker 1: mouth and you know, somebody happened to see, you know,

857
00:45:05,920 --> 00:45:08,960
Speaker 1: a news conference or whatever. And that was crazy. I

858
00:45:09,000 --> 00:45:12,000
Speaker 1: mean that was like that felt like a you remember

859
00:45:12,040 --> 00:45:14,600
Speaker 1: where you were when JFK was shot moment? So what

860
00:45:14,760 --> 00:45:18,480
Speaker 1: sports did you gravitate toward? Growing up? Baseball and football?

861
00:45:19,080 --> 00:45:21,920
Speaker 1: More football by the time I graduated high school. So

862
00:45:22,000 --> 00:45:25,000
Speaker 1: like St. Louis Rams, I'm guessing no, no. I I

863
00:45:25,080 --> 00:45:29,160
Speaker 1: was a big fan of the now Arizona Cardinals. You know,

864
00:45:29,360 --> 00:45:31,320
Speaker 1: even though it was tortured to root for those teams.

865
00:45:31,560 --> 00:45:36,240
Speaker 1: I was a huge fand um, well I was there,

866
00:45:36,280 --> 00:45:39,440
Speaker 1: you know, like when Stump Mitchell and Otis Anderson Mitchell

867
00:45:39,480 --> 00:45:44,240
Speaker 1: and punt returner or something like that. Yeah, yes, yeah,

868
00:45:44,280 --> 00:45:47,560
Speaker 1: that was my guy. Wow. Okay. And then so you

869
00:45:47,640 --> 00:45:50,360
Speaker 1: didn't get to the Lakers. Okay, so you missed the

870
00:45:50,400 --> 00:45:55,600
Speaker 1: showtime era quietly Kobe shack obviously. Um then I will

871
00:45:55,640 --> 00:45:58,439
Speaker 1: say the Nick van Exel Eddie Jones back they were fun.

872
00:45:58,600 --> 00:46:01,880
Speaker 1: I love them now again. I'm a kid living in

873
00:46:01,960 --> 00:46:05,680
Speaker 1: Virginia liking the Lakers and Nick van Exel highlights on

874
00:46:05,800 --> 00:46:08,120
Speaker 1: Sports Center were just incredible, Like Nick van Exel, buy

875
00:46:08,160 --> 00:46:10,360
Speaker 1: in the back all this, I just love that backcourt

876
00:46:11,000 --> 00:46:12,799
Speaker 1: and truth be told, I was a little upset when

877
00:46:12,800 --> 00:46:15,399
Speaker 1: they got Kobe. I was like, we're breaking up Eddie

878
00:46:15,480 --> 00:46:17,600
Speaker 1: Jones and Nick van Exel. What are we doing here, dude?

879
00:46:18,200 --> 00:46:22,879
Speaker 1: Living out here? Man? People were mad about that. Eddie

880
00:46:22,920 --> 00:46:28,520
Speaker 1: Jones is still beloved man, like you. Yep, they love him.

881
00:46:28,800 --> 00:46:31,280
Speaker 1: There there are still fans. I'm not I'm not joking.

882
00:46:31,360 --> 00:46:34,759
Speaker 1: I know this from Twitter at Cam Brothers. I've seen

883
00:46:34,760 --> 00:46:37,880
Speaker 1: these people in my mentions. They're still mad about the

884
00:46:37,920 --> 00:46:40,839
Speaker 1: Eddie Jones trade. Even knowing how it all turned out

885
00:46:41,160 --> 00:46:43,960
Speaker 1: in terms of clearing away for Kobe still mad. So

886
00:46:44,040 --> 00:46:45,759
Speaker 1: I do want to ask, Yeah, how did you and

887
00:46:45,840 --> 00:46:49,200
Speaker 1: your brother kind of build this sports empire out here?

888
00:46:49,200 --> 00:46:51,920
Speaker 1: I mean, you guys have done everything radio, TV, writing

889
00:46:52,000 --> 00:46:55,200
Speaker 1: podcast now, Like, how how does that happen? You know?

890
00:46:55,560 --> 00:46:59,080
Speaker 1: It was interesting. We through some mutual friends. You know,

891
00:46:59,120 --> 00:47:01,840
Speaker 1: my my brother and I were at the time focused

892
00:47:01,880 --> 00:47:05,120
Speaker 1: on trying to write screenplays and uh like TV specs

893
00:47:05,160 --> 00:47:08,520
Speaker 1: and stuff, and we met through some mutual friends, um,

894
00:47:08,560 --> 00:47:13,040
Speaker 1: Gary Belski, who at the time, um, yeah, everybody who's

895
00:47:13,040 --> 00:47:16,640
Speaker 1: in this industry knows, yeah, yep. At the time, he

896
00:47:16,840 --> 00:47:22,040
Speaker 1: was running ESPN the magazine essentially, and UH offered us

897
00:47:22,040 --> 00:47:25,520
Speaker 1: the ability, offered us the chance to work for what

898
00:47:25,560 --> 00:47:27,040
Speaker 1: was at the time the front of the book, like

899
00:47:27,080 --> 00:47:29,920
Speaker 1: the funny section, like basically punching up jokes, coming up

900
00:47:29,920 --> 00:47:32,520
Speaker 1: with funny ideas, and we just took them up in

901
00:47:32,520 --> 00:47:34,720
Speaker 1: the offer because they're like sounds kind of cool, um

902
00:47:34,800 --> 00:47:38,040
Speaker 1: and it. We then started, you know, writing a few

903
00:47:38,040 --> 00:47:41,719
Speaker 1: features things like that, started doing some more stuff with them,

904
00:47:41,840 --> 00:47:46,879
Speaker 1: and then UH, through Mike Bresenhan, long time beat writer

905
00:47:47,000 --> 00:47:49,400
Speaker 1: for Yeah at like times at the time, now with Spectrum.

906
00:47:50,080 --> 00:47:53,239
Speaker 1: He recommended us to the Times when they were looking

907
00:47:53,280 --> 00:47:56,640
Speaker 1: to start a Lakers block. Wow. That I knew Mike

908
00:47:56,640 --> 00:47:58,799
Speaker 1: through some mutual friends as well. That's a cool story.

909
00:47:58,840 --> 00:48:02,560
Speaker 1: Gary Belski interest and guy, so I interview through got

910
00:48:02,600 --> 00:48:05,640
Speaker 1: some friends in New York City at ESPN the magazine.

911
00:48:06,120 --> 00:48:07,680
Speaker 1: I did all my homework on him. He's a big

912
00:48:07,719 --> 00:48:11,640
Speaker 1: tennis guy. If memory stirs right. I did all this

913
00:48:11,680 --> 00:48:14,160
Speaker 1: homework on him. He's written books. And I was crushing it.

914
00:48:14,480 --> 00:48:15,879
Speaker 1: And then he's like, you know, Jason, I could tell

915
00:48:15,880 --> 00:48:18,880
Speaker 1: you know your stuff and you're into sports, and then

916
00:48:18,880 --> 00:48:20,759
Speaker 1: he hits me with this curveball. He goes, tell me

917
00:48:20,920 --> 00:48:24,560
Speaker 1: something interesting outside of sports. And I just was so

918
00:48:24,800 --> 00:48:27,360
Speaker 1: laser focused for this that I was just thrown for

919
00:48:27,400 --> 00:48:31,279
Speaker 1: a loop, like, son of a bitch, I'm not. And

920
00:48:31,320 --> 00:48:33,719
Speaker 1: I came up with something like my I had a

921
00:48:33,760 --> 00:48:35,560
Speaker 1: plant to New York City and it was dying and

922
00:48:35,600 --> 00:48:38,879
Speaker 1: my dad had said, Hey, put some epps and salts um.

923
00:48:39,040 --> 00:48:40,600
Speaker 1: You know, you take a bath with EPs and salts

924
00:48:40,640 --> 00:48:42,719
Speaker 1: to like get your body better. Put that in the planet.

925
00:48:42,760 --> 00:48:44,840
Speaker 1: It'll heal it in heartbeat. And I hit him with

926
00:48:44,880 --> 00:48:47,759
Speaker 1: that and he was like, oh, I've never heard that.

927
00:48:48,080 --> 00:48:50,799
Speaker 1: But but in the interim when I when he asked it,

928
00:48:50,920 --> 00:48:53,760
Speaker 1: I took so long, maybe like that five ten second window.

929
00:48:54,000 --> 00:48:55,960
Speaker 1: He could see the look in his eyes. So he's like, Jay,

930
00:48:56,040 --> 00:48:57,759
Speaker 1: we're not gonna offer you the writing gig. We want

931
00:48:57,760 --> 00:48:58,919
Speaker 1: you as an editor. And I was like, I don't

932
00:48:58,960 --> 00:49:00,839
Speaker 1: want to be an editor. I want to write. I'm

933
00:49:00,840 --> 00:49:03,240
Speaker 1: a writer. And so I didn't get it in, dude.

934
00:49:03,600 --> 00:49:06,600
Speaker 1: I walked out of the interview devastated, like, oh my gosh,

935
00:49:06,640 --> 00:49:08,759
Speaker 1: I'm gonna be stuck at US Weekly. But I had

936
00:49:08,800 --> 00:49:11,439
Speaker 1: started this blog called The Big Lead. I was like, fine,

937
00:49:11,480 --> 00:49:13,600
Speaker 1: I'll just pour everything into the blog. And it's funny

938
00:49:13,600 --> 00:49:15,120
Speaker 1: how things work out, you know. I was gonna say,

939
00:49:15,120 --> 00:49:17,000
Speaker 1: I think it ended up working out for you. It

940
00:49:17,000 --> 00:49:18,960
Speaker 1: did end up pretty well. Well. Listen, it's been great

941
00:49:18,960 --> 00:49:20,160
Speaker 1: for you and your brother. I mean, you guys are

942
00:49:20,200 --> 00:49:23,600
Speaker 1: doing everything. How how how have you found the screenplay thing.

943
00:49:23,600 --> 00:49:26,080
Speaker 1: We'll just wrap up on that, um because I am

944
00:49:26,160 --> 00:49:29,439
Speaker 1: obsessed with that as like a side hobby, which can't

945
00:49:29,440 --> 00:49:31,879
Speaker 1: make it as your side hobby. But it's I mean,

946
00:49:31,920 --> 00:49:35,040
Speaker 1: it's a different it's a different you know, writing skill.

947
00:49:35,320 --> 00:49:37,560
Speaker 1: I mean, you know, I I'd like to think we're

948
00:49:37,600 --> 00:49:40,319
Speaker 1: okay at it, I mean, sell anything, but it's very

949
00:49:40,320 --> 00:49:44,120
Speaker 1: difficult to do that. You know. It's still something that

950
00:49:44,160 --> 00:49:46,839
Speaker 1: I would say we we talked about or I you know,

951
00:49:47,520 --> 00:49:50,560
Speaker 1: you know, I own final draft. We'll just say that.

952
00:49:51,320 --> 00:49:55,080
Speaker 1: And we've we've got some stuff. We've got a couple

953
00:49:55,080 --> 00:49:56,759
Speaker 1: of things that have been pitched around a bit and

954
00:49:56,840 --> 00:49:59,160
Speaker 1: you know, fingers crossed, maybe something will still come. Yeah,

955
00:49:59,400 --> 00:50:02,000
Speaker 1: I mean it is. It's cool that you guys, uh,

956
00:50:02,080 --> 00:50:04,840
Speaker 1: you know, work together and are in like the funny

957
00:50:04,880 --> 00:50:08,160
Speaker 1: aspect of it, because it's just fun right Like, Yeah,

958
00:50:08,400 --> 00:50:10,759
Speaker 1: it's just an awesome thing of life to try and

959
00:50:10,760 --> 00:50:13,000
Speaker 1: then then you know, should you accomplish it, even if

960
00:50:13,000 --> 00:50:15,839
Speaker 1: you don't, it's still like a really cool industry. UM,

961
00:50:16,080 --> 00:50:18,560
Speaker 1: congratulate all you guys success. You guys have crushed it.

962
00:50:18,560 --> 00:50:20,960
Speaker 1: You're like an institution out here in l A H

963
00:50:21,360 --> 00:50:23,839
Speaker 1: so so so pomp up the podcast, Go for It.

964
00:50:24,640 --> 00:50:27,600
Speaker 1: Locked On Lakers. It's part of the locked On Network.

965
00:50:27,760 --> 00:50:32,120
Speaker 1: It's five shows a week, Monday through Friday, UM covering

966
00:50:32,280 --> 00:50:36,240
Speaker 1: all things Lakers. We've got um a bunch of different

967
00:50:36,239 --> 00:50:40,919
Speaker 1: Warriors Lakers Warriors previews heading uh into Wednesday's game. UM,

968
00:50:41,000 --> 00:50:46,120
Speaker 1: you can find it anywhere you get your podcasts. Apple, Spotify,

969
00:50:46,840 --> 00:50:51,560
Speaker 1: assumes Stitcher, YadA, YadA, YadA, very I I would like

970
00:50:51,600 --> 00:50:56,680
Speaker 1: to think very complete, thorough, a little bit off beat coverage. UM,

971
00:50:56,719 --> 00:50:59,000
Speaker 1: it's been fun, we really enjoy well. Congrats on all

972
00:50:59,000 --> 00:51:01,600
Speaker 1: your success. Thanks Andy, and uh we'll be in touch.

973
00:51:02,239 --> 00:51:03,080
Speaker 1: Thanks for having me, Man,