WEBVTT - Heat/Lakers Postgame Spaces 0:00:00.120 --> 0:00:17.960 Mmmm. Welcome to the State of the Lakers post game 0:00:18.000 --> 0:00:19.680 show on DASH Radio. I thank you guys so much 0:00:19.720 --> 0:00:22.439 for coming to hang out with Roger night tonight. This 0:00:22.920 --> 0:00:26.840 we were just talking is the probably the biggest win 0:00:26.880 --> 0:00:28.840 that I can remember, biggest regular season win and I 0:00:28.840 --> 0:00:31.120 can remember from this team in a long time. When 0:00:31.120 --> 0:00:34.560 you factor in all of the you know, relevant information, 0:00:34.680 --> 0:00:38.519 not just Lebron being out, but almost a completely and 0:00:38.560 --> 0:00:43.600 totally decimated roster um including losing you know, one of 0:00:43.640 --> 0:00:48.320 their uh not someone that I like for Frank to play, 0:00:48.360 --> 0:00:50.440 but someone that Frank really likes to rely on with 0:00:50.520 --> 0:00:53.840 Lebron out, and Rajon Rondo in Austin Reeves who has 0:00:53.880 --> 0:00:59.120 been one of the primary driving forces of this team's effort, 0:00:59.360 --> 0:01:02.320 and and uh in passion on the defensive end of 0:01:02.320 --> 0:01:05.360 the ball. And then you factor in Miami who was 0:01:06.600 --> 0:01:08.200 am I correct and saying they were the one seed 0:01:08.240 --> 0:01:12.240 in the East coming into tonight, rog Yeah, I'm not sure, 0:01:12.319 --> 0:01:14.600 but if record wise they were, but they they definitely 0:01:14.600 --> 0:01:17.160 played like it. To me, they're the most impressive team 0:01:17.160 --> 0:01:19.320 in the East and honestly maybe throughout the league beside 0:01:19.319 --> 0:01:22.200 the Warriors. This is a really damn good team, Like 0:01:22.240 --> 0:01:24.000 we were texting back and forth and we were like, 0:01:24.240 --> 0:01:26.280 if they lose by like ten or fifteen, would be 0:01:26.319 --> 0:01:27.640 kind of happy, you know what I mean, like if 0:01:27.640 --> 0:01:30.480 they can stay competitive, And they did even more than 0:01:30.520 --> 0:01:32.960 that tonight. But you know, the Heat are a legit 0:01:33.080 --> 0:01:34.679 really good team. Yeah, I had to I had a 0:01:34.680 --> 0:01:37.600 really uh you know, at the end of our last 0:01:37.680 --> 0:01:40.800 odd Um, I told you that I had a kind 0:01:40.800 --> 0:01:43.120 of a vision for what I expected to happen tonight. 0:01:43.120 --> 0:01:45.720 And I'm not I'm not you know, touting this is 0:01:45.800 --> 0:01:49.160 some measure of success, because I'm wrong about stuff all 0:01:49.200 --> 0:01:52.600 the time. But I just like Miami brings the best 0:01:52.600 --> 0:01:55.560 out of people. Like they come in in early and 0:01:55.640 --> 0:01:58.640 the first few possessions in the game, they always hit 0:01:58.680 --> 0:02:01.920 you in the mouth. Um with this, with this physicality 0:02:01.920 --> 0:02:04.920 and focus and intensity, and you know, even even if 0:02:04.960 --> 0:02:07.040 you look at their bench and their coaching staff, they're 0:02:07.080 --> 0:02:11.160 just so animated. Like there's a there's a program, a 0:02:11.200 --> 0:02:13.960 junior college program here in Arizona. It's called Coaches College 0:02:14.200 --> 0:02:17.919 and they're right down by the Mexican border, and uh 0:02:18.000 --> 0:02:20.639 they are in the middle of nowhere, but in the 0:02:20.720 --> 0:02:24.799 JUCO Conference here in Arizona, they're always the team that 0:02:24.960 --> 0:02:28.000 everyone hates to play because they have just this loud 0:02:28.040 --> 0:02:31.480 Boisters coach and they have they just thrive on this 0:02:31.480 --> 0:02:35.800 this this culture, this like intensity, this everything they do 0:02:36.000 --> 0:02:38.360 is just so everything they do is just a hundred 0:02:38.400 --> 0:02:40.400 miles an hour, and a lot of teams just crumble 0:02:40.480 --> 0:02:42.720 under like the intensity of it, you know. And to me, 0:02:42.880 --> 0:02:44.520 the miament he kind of reminds me of that in 0:02:44.560 --> 0:02:49.240 the NBA, Like they they just play a different level 0:02:49.280 --> 0:02:52.840 of intense, intense basketball. And obviously they have all this 0:02:52.919 --> 0:02:55.560 stuff that we hear about with heat culture and the 0:02:55.560 --> 0:02:57.440 way they make people take care of their bodies and 0:02:57.480 --> 0:03:00.840 the way that they approach um, you know, everything and 0:03:00.960 --> 0:03:04.200 every facet of the game. Well, they brought the best 0:03:04.200 --> 0:03:06.560 out of the Lakers tonight. This was their best effort 0:03:06.760 --> 0:03:10.760 that we saw um so far this season. I was 0:03:10.840 --> 0:03:14.840 worried that fatigue would eventually come back to bite them, 0:03:14.840 --> 0:03:16.560 which is something we talked about in the last pot, 0:03:16.600 --> 0:03:19.080 that they would hang around, but eventually Miami would just 0:03:19.080 --> 0:03:20.960 be too much for them, and that kind of is 0:03:21.000 --> 0:03:23.680 what happened. As they got up by I think nine 0:03:23.960 --> 0:03:26.560 in the fourth quarters, either nine or eleven, I remember, 0:03:26.919 --> 0:03:29.720 But all it took was Mellow stuck a big three, 0:03:30.000 --> 0:03:32.400 and then the Leak Monk stuck a big three, and 0:03:32.440 --> 0:03:36.120 then Avery Bradley banked in the three, and and then 0:03:36.200 --> 0:03:39.280 Russell Westbrook started making jump shots and and just like that, 0:03:39.440 --> 0:03:41.080 all of a sudden, the Lakers were able to send 0:03:41.080 --> 0:03:42.680 it to overtime where they were able to get a win. 0:03:42.800 --> 0:03:47.240 But you know, I didn't think I didn't think they 0:03:47.280 --> 0:03:48.920 had much of a chance to win tonight at all 0:03:49.720 --> 0:03:53.040 um and and they got it done, so that obviously 0:03:53.120 --> 0:03:56.360 it's just what a what a great way to kind 0:03:56.360 --> 0:03:59.640 of kickstart what I hope will be the beginning of 0:03:59.640 --> 0:04:02.360 what we hope to see from this team this season. 0:04:03.920 --> 0:04:06.240 And we talked about it, like I think after the 0:04:06.280 --> 0:04:08.680 last spaces, like Miami was going to get our kind 0:04:08.720 --> 0:04:10.560 of a game, like they were going to respect them, 0:04:10.960 --> 0:04:14.120 come with them, come with the competitiveness that they needed 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:17.280 to to play tonight. Like Miami's really damn good. Like 0:04:17.360 --> 0:04:19.200 I know, I kept saying that they run actions that 0:04:19.240 --> 0:04:21.920 are really tough toend to defend, even in our two 0:04:21.920 --> 0:04:24.080 big line up. The offense really ugly. But just like 0:04:24.160 --> 0:04:27.440 the defensive effort there minus like DeAndre Jordan probably in 0:04:27.440 --> 0:04:30.400 the third you saw a d exhausted. I thought at 0:04:30.400 --> 0:04:32.520 the end of the fourth and over time he looked 0:04:32.560 --> 0:04:34.760 like he had very little left left in the tank. 0:04:34.800 --> 0:04:36.560 But like, this is the type of stuff I wanted 0:04:36.600 --> 0:04:38.520 to see. We kept kind of blaming their you know, 0:04:38.560 --> 0:04:41.200 their losses on the injuries, which is true, you know, 0:04:41.279 --> 0:04:44.719 losing the three rotation players outside of just Lebron, But like, 0:04:44.760 --> 0:04:46.800 if you play like this, you don't lose against Okay, 0:04:46.839 --> 0:04:48.480 see twice, you know what I mean. Like, just like 0:04:48.520 --> 0:04:50.640 if you play with this type of effort and you 0:04:50.640 --> 0:04:52.760 know they're not gonna shoot the way they did tonight. 0:04:52.760 --> 0:04:54.560 I think the link Monk was like ten of thirteen 0:04:54.600 --> 0:04:57.760 at one point, but the defense was there. Russ again 0:04:57.839 --> 0:04:59.719 had the turnovers and stuff. But this is just a 0:04:59.760 --> 0:05:01.520 big time win, man. I want to kind of stick 0:05:01.560 --> 0:05:04.440 on that. It could have easily, like you know, faltered 0:05:04.480 --> 0:05:06.599 you talked about Miami went up nine, and I thought 0:05:06.680 --> 0:05:08.360 we kind of let go of the rope there. I 0:05:08.400 --> 0:05:11.919 thought we didn't have enough offense to keep up. But 0:05:12.000 --> 0:05:15.000 like you said, Carmelo, big time three. He had another 0:05:15.000 --> 0:05:17.479 one was like a little dribble in mid range jumper. 0:05:17.520 --> 0:05:20.640 I think when we were down seven or something, he said, 0:05:20.680 --> 0:05:22.360 Miami is a team we don't want to play like 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:24.720 Kyle Lowry and p J. Tugger are annoying as hell 0:05:24.800 --> 0:05:26.320 to play when you're on the other side, like they 0:05:26.360 --> 0:05:28.919 just they just are. Kyle Lord played forty two minutes 0:05:28.920 --> 0:05:31.360 in regulation. Didn't even realize that until I saw the 0:05:31.440 --> 0:05:34.960 numbers in overtime. But yeah, Miami is a tough, tough team. 0:05:35.040 --> 0:05:37.760 It's a big win, man, Like this is. It was ugly, 0:05:37.800 --> 0:05:39.719 there was some turnovers late, but this is just a 0:05:39.760 --> 0:05:41.479 big time win that you can kind of build off 0:05:41.520 --> 0:05:44.679 of here going forward. I think they played the Spurs next. 0:05:44.960 --> 0:05:47.320 I'm not hundred cent sure, but you know, this is 0:05:47.320 --> 0:05:49.440 a this is a big time win that they got tonight. 0:05:49.640 --> 0:05:51.560 I agree. You know, we talked a lot about identity 0:05:51.680 --> 0:05:54.240 right with the Lakers. This this uh, you know, their 0:05:54.279 --> 0:05:56.720 identity in the previous two years was everything that they 0:05:56.720 --> 0:05:59.719 did on the defensive end of the ball. But the 0:05:59.720 --> 0:06:01.919 true phiz is that with the personnel that they have 0:06:02.160 --> 0:06:05.480 right now active with a reason out, with th ht out, 0:06:05.560 --> 0:06:07.960 with Lebron out, it's really hard to have like a 0:06:07.960 --> 0:06:12.880 hard nose defensive identity. But your identity is kind of vague, 0:06:12.880 --> 0:06:15.880 Like your identity doesn't have to be defense like Brooklyn. 0:06:16.160 --> 0:06:19.680 Brooklyn's identity is in defense. Brooklyn's identity is just having 0:06:19.720 --> 0:06:22.520 a bunch of really high i Q players and a 0:06:22.560 --> 0:06:25.560 ton of offensive talent on the floor, and you know, 0:06:25.680 --> 0:06:28.720 just just in the aggregate, when you factor in their 0:06:28.760 --> 0:06:31.680 average defense, that's enough to carry them and every given 0:06:31.760 --> 0:06:34.920 every single night, the way they play offense is their identity. 0:06:34.920 --> 0:06:37.120 The same goes with the Warriors with their ball movement 0:06:37.160 --> 0:06:40.120 and the way that Steph drags attention and and they 0:06:40.200 --> 0:06:42.760 do everything off of that attention that he that he 0:06:43.839 --> 0:06:47.080 gathers from the defense. Well, with this Laker group, like 0:06:47.440 --> 0:06:51.120 maybe the the the the identity becomes them just playing hard. 0:06:51.720 --> 0:06:53.880 And that's what it was tonight, you know, like just 0:06:54.279 --> 0:06:58.520 bringing that you can if your identity becomes that effort 0:06:58.560 --> 0:07:01.039 and focus in every fast out of the game, even 0:07:01.080 --> 0:07:04.080 if you don't have the defensive talent, then when the 0:07:04.120 --> 0:07:07.560 ship it's the fan and things get really hard, you'll 0:07:07.600 --> 0:07:10.560 fall back on that identity. And that identity could just 0:07:10.600 --> 0:07:13.520 be we play really really hard, you know what I mean, 0:07:13.640 --> 0:07:15.360 And and that's what carried them tonight. Like I bet 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:17.760 you when we go back and look at the defensive metrics, 0:07:17.800 --> 0:07:21.160 they'll be good, not great. You know, they didn't blow 0:07:21.280 --> 0:07:24.520 they didn't they didn't strangle Miami tonight. There was they 0:07:24.520 --> 0:07:26.880 gave them some big problems with their two big lineups, 0:07:26.880 --> 0:07:28.480 but when they went with a D at the five 0:07:28.600 --> 0:07:30.280 or with Dwhite Howard at the five, like they gave 0:07:30.360 --> 0:07:32.960 up a lot of baskets tonight. But the truth is 0:07:32.960 --> 0:07:36.200 is throughout the game, with exception of the few rolls 0:07:36.200 --> 0:07:38.520 in there, they were able to maintain a certain level 0:07:38.560 --> 0:07:41.640 of effort uh and focus. And if that, if that 0:07:41.720 --> 0:07:44.760 becomes their identity, if this team plays hard every night, 0:07:45.600 --> 0:07:47.480 when Lebron comes back and all these guys come back, 0:07:47.480 --> 0:07:49.239 they're just gonna start beating the hell out of people 0:07:49.320 --> 0:07:50.840 because they do have a lot of talent. You saw 0:07:50.840 --> 0:07:52.800 that tonight, you know what I mean, And which I 0:07:52.800 --> 0:07:55.200 think is a good good segue into Molik Monk because 0:07:55.600 --> 0:07:59.440 you know, Molik Monk is an extremely talented basketball player 0:07:59.440 --> 0:08:01.440 I've seen a lot of but compare him to to 0:08:01.800 --> 0:08:07.640 Lou Williams, you know, or um like he's just your stereotypical, 0:08:07.720 --> 0:08:11.800 like off the bench, nuclear offensive guard. And it always 0:08:11.800 --> 0:08:14.560 bothered me that Frank was so hesitant to play him, 0:08:14.680 --> 0:08:16.920 or when he would play him, play him in kind 0:08:16.920 --> 0:08:19.000 of a role where he's off the ball all the time, 0:08:19.160 --> 0:08:21.760 you know, where he's primarily just standing in the corner, 0:08:22.400 --> 0:08:25.200 not really involved in the offense. And the truth of 0:08:25.240 --> 0:08:27.040 the matter is that the guy like that, like you 0:08:27.080 --> 0:08:29.720 know the phrase like let him cook. You have to 0:08:29.840 --> 0:08:32.280 you have to let Molik Monk have the ball in 0:08:32.360 --> 0:08:34.560 his hands. Then you have to let him you have 0:08:34.600 --> 0:08:36.000 to let him get comfortable, and you have to let 0:08:36.040 --> 0:08:38.600 him make plays. Like there people you like you said 0:08:38.640 --> 0:08:40.400 at the beginning, like, oh, Molik Monk got hot. Maybe 0:08:40.400 --> 0:08:42.640 that's on characteristic. Yeah, like he's not. The dude's not 0:08:42.640 --> 0:08:45.480 go an average twenty seven. You're right about that. However, 0:08:46.160 --> 0:08:49.040 like that, in order for him to have a game 0:08:49.120 --> 0:08:52.000 like this every two or three games, he has to 0:08:52.040 --> 0:08:54.640 have the ball in his hands. And so I I 0:08:54.720 --> 0:08:58.199 like the direction of going that way as a secondary 0:08:58.280 --> 0:09:01.199 ball handler option, you know, when you're not going through 0:09:01.240 --> 0:09:03.680 Russ and when you're not going with Lebron instead of 0:09:03.720 --> 0:09:05.840 going through Rod though, do you agree as far as 0:09:05.880 --> 0:09:09.520 Milik Monk is concerned. Oh, yeah, he looked. He looked 0:09:09.559 --> 0:09:12.200 awesome tonight, and he was the de facto backup point 0:09:12.200 --> 0:09:14.320 guard right because we had Russ and then just no 0:09:14.360 --> 0:09:16.800 one backing him up, and there were some turnovers with that, 0:09:16.840 --> 0:09:18.800 but yeah, you could see him getting more and more 0:09:18.840 --> 0:09:21.320 comfortable as the game kind of went on with this shot. 0:09:21.640 --> 0:09:24.000 He was really comfortable taking it from far. He was 0:09:24.080 --> 0:09:26.400 running pick and rolls, you know, trying to find a D. 0:09:26.520 --> 0:09:28.760 There were some bad passes there, but you're right, man, 0:09:28.840 --> 0:09:30.439 like just he again I said, he was like ten 0:09:30.480 --> 0:09:32.280 of thirteen. And what I mean by like, he's not 0:09:32.320 --> 0:09:34.199 gonna go off like this every night, but he doesn't 0:09:34.240 --> 0:09:35.720 have to write. You can just be a little bit 0:09:35.760 --> 0:09:38.920 of like a nuclear, like you said, offensive punch off 0:09:38.960 --> 0:09:41.280 the bench. And I kept thinking, like, I want to 0:09:41.320 --> 0:09:43.559 see him next to like Kendrick Nunn, you know, I 0:09:43.600 --> 0:09:46.000 think that's like a really fun kind of backcourd to 0:09:46.080 --> 0:09:48.880 bring off the bench him with like Ellington as well, 0:09:48.960 --> 0:09:51.679 and if you can put defenders around that because he's fearless. 0:09:51.720 --> 0:09:54.400 He's a fearless guy. Gets to the basket. Gave Russ 0:09:54.400 --> 0:09:56.000 a guy you can give the ball too, because they 0:09:56.040 --> 0:09:58.760 just kept switching that Russ and a D ball screen 0:09:59.080 --> 0:10:01.280 and they let Malik kind of just like you said, 0:10:01.360 --> 0:10:03.040 let him cook. They let him cook for a lot 0:10:03.040 --> 0:10:05.440 of that fourth quarter. Uh, there was nothing going on 0:10:05.480 --> 0:10:07.439 the in the half court and they just said here, Malik, 0:10:07.760 --> 0:10:09.520 you know, do your thing. And he was able to 0:10:09.520 --> 0:10:12.600 go off tonight on you know Tyler Hero and Duncan Robinson, 0:10:12.600 --> 0:10:14.760 who again aren't great defenders, but you know, he took 0:10:14.760 --> 0:10:17.400 advantage of that coming off screens, being able to pull 0:10:17.480 --> 0:10:20.040 up off the dribble. He's a guy that this is 0:10:20.080 --> 0:10:23.200 why you go and get these type of offensive players, right, Like, 0:10:23.240 --> 0:10:25.439 this is kind of what you saw in the defense 0:10:25.480 --> 0:10:27.520 for offense trade and I thought you saw that on 0:10:27.600 --> 0:10:29.840 the defensive end as well. Got back cut a lot, 0:10:29.880 --> 0:10:32.000 but like this, his offense was huge and we're gonna 0:10:32.040 --> 0:10:33.640 need him and I want to see him next to 0:10:33.679 --> 0:10:36.839 like the starters and playing next to defensive minded players 0:10:36.880 --> 0:10:38.560 because I think he can really go off. But but 0:10:38.600 --> 0:10:40.720 you're right, he's a nuclear option that they can go to. 0:10:41.160 --> 0:10:42.720 And what I mean, he doesn't have to be the guy. 0:10:42.800 --> 0:10:46.000 But if you have him or Ellington or none or 0:10:46.080 --> 0:10:48.480 Thhd going off, at least one of them going off. 0:10:48.520 --> 0:10:50.880 If you get too, I think we're in business. But 0:10:50.880 --> 0:10:52.560 that's what I saw from the night because this is 0:10:52.600 --> 0:10:54.760 something he definitely can do. He can he can go 0:10:54.840 --> 0:10:57.360 for to thirty on on any given night and you 0:10:57.440 --> 0:11:00.160 can win you game. Like that's the key. Like he 0:11:00.320 --> 0:11:04.280 made a gigantic three in overtime, and he made a 0:11:04.360 --> 0:11:07.120 gigantic three in the fourth quarter that got them back 0:11:07.160 --> 0:11:09.320 into the game. And you know, it goes back to 0:11:09.360 --> 0:11:11.040 that idea that we've talked about a lot this season 0:11:11.080 --> 0:11:14.880 having to do with versatility. You know, if if Malik 0:11:14.960 --> 0:11:17.720 doesn't have it going, if you've given him a six 0:11:17.760 --> 0:11:19.640 minute shift where the ball has been in his hands 0:11:19.679 --> 0:11:21.679 a lot and it's not going, you can go with 0:11:21.720 --> 0:11:24.679 a Bradley, you can go with the Reeves, you can 0:11:24.720 --> 0:11:26.640 go with the th h T or in Ellington, you 0:11:26.679 --> 0:11:29.880 can go with a different option. That there. The whole 0:11:30.240 --> 0:11:33.160 concept of the way this was put together, in my opinion, 0:11:33.240 --> 0:11:38.360 was versatility, like having options, Whereas in previous seasons it 0:11:38.480 --> 0:11:40.959 was like do you want this defensive guard or do 0:11:41.000 --> 0:11:43.400 you want this defensive guard, or do you want this 0:11:43.480 --> 0:11:46.560 guy who probably is gonna, you know, go one for 0:11:46.640 --> 0:11:48.719 four from three or this guy who's gonna go one 0:11:48.760 --> 0:11:50.520 for four from three. No, it's like this year we 0:11:50.600 --> 0:11:53.760 have a mix of all of those types of identities. 0:11:54.200 --> 0:11:56.760 I mean, and we're going to talk about Ellington at 0:11:56.800 --> 0:11:59.199 some point later in the show, and he's another example. 0:11:59.240 --> 0:12:02.600 He's almost like a third a third archetype of guard, 0:12:02.840 --> 0:12:05.520 you know, like we have these guys like Malik Monk 0:12:05.760 --> 0:12:11.480 and Raijion Rondo or these primarily you know, dribble dribble attack, 0:12:11.640 --> 0:12:13.880 have the ball in their hands to feel comfortable type 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:16.640 of guards. But then we have these you know, Austin 0:12:16.679 --> 0:12:20.280 Reeve types, these Avery Bradley types that are just just 0:12:21.400 --> 0:12:23.240 focus on the defensive end and you never have to 0:12:23.280 --> 0:12:24.920 run a play for them and they can just stand 0:12:24.960 --> 0:12:26.800 in the corner and shoot threes. But then we also 0:12:26.840 --> 0:12:29.920 have this Wayne Ellington is like Duncan Robinson type of 0:12:30.000 --> 0:12:33.120 archetype that you can run him off of screens and 0:12:33.240 --> 0:12:35.880 the way that that occupies defenders off the ball. Like 0:12:35.880 --> 0:12:39.760 Wayne hasn't shot the ball well this year, but when 0:12:39.760 --> 0:12:42.319 when he's been out there, the offense has looked very 0:12:42.360 --> 0:12:46.440 fluid because of just his gravity and and what and 0:12:46.480 --> 0:12:50.040 what he brings uh with his intelligence as a as 0:12:50.080 --> 0:12:52.480 a as a off the ball shooter who can move 0:12:52.520 --> 0:12:55.440 around and and keep the defense out of you know, 0:12:55.520 --> 0:12:58.839 off balance. Like that, they're just options here there that 0:12:58.960 --> 0:13:02.880 we're starting final just finally and you know what, Laker fans, 0:13:02.880 --> 0:13:05.080 you deserve it because it's been a rough go here 0:13:05.640 --> 0:13:10.880 early on. But this is finally starting, just barely to 0:13:11.080 --> 0:13:15.080 take shape as what our vision was for what the 0:13:15.160 --> 0:13:18.160 good version of this team could be, which is everything 0:13:18.200 --> 0:13:22.160 that the old teams were, just with versatility to go 0:13:22.240 --> 0:13:25.680 in a different direction when things aren't working, and and 0:13:25.760 --> 0:13:27.679 to and to me, that's exciting. And you know what, 0:13:27.720 --> 0:13:29.880 Malik has been defending better. I think this is a 0:13:29.880 --> 0:13:32.880 good segue into mellow in his defense. You know, we 0:13:32.960 --> 0:13:36.520 talked a lot about We talked a lot about how, 0:13:37.080 --> 0:13:41.760 you know, guys like k CP, guys like how Kuzma Um, 0:13:41.800 --> 0:13:44.880 you know, even Alex Caruso to a certain extent, just 0:13:45.000 --> 0:13:47.880 coming up through the Lakers system and th h T. 0:13:48.559 --> 0:13:50.400 You know, like, if you ship th ht off to 0:13:51.240 --> 0:13:54.520 NBA Siberia and he learns to play basketball somewhere else, 0:13:54.520 --> 0:13:57.040 he might not be the same defender that he's shaping 0:13:57.120 --> 0:13:59.439 up to be under Frank, you know what I mean. 0:13:59.559 --> 0:14:02.600 And and I think it's really cool to watch over 0:14:02.640 --> 0:14:04.960 the last couple of years the way some of these 0:14:05.000 --> 0:14:09.000 really limited defensive players that struggle on that side of 0:14:09.040 --> 0:14:12.600 the floor have shaped into pros who can hold their 0:14:12.600 --> 0:14:15.520 own on that end, and it has been awesome to 0:14:15.600 --> 0:14:20.239 see Mellow start to show some sparks of defensive potential, 0:14:20.320 --> 0:14:22.440 not I shouldn't even say potential, but just being able 0:14:22.440 --> 0:14:24.720 to hold his own, you know. And that the same 0:14:24.800 --> 0:14:28.680 goes for Monk and and I mean even DeAndre Jordan, 0:14:28.760 --> 0:14:31.040 even though we slammer him all the time, he's playing 0:14:31.040 --> 0:14:33.200 a lot better on defense than he was in Brooklyn, 0:14:34.160 --> 0:14:37.040 even though we still want more out of him. It's 0:14:37.080 --> 0:14:38.960 been cool to see that shape together and that was 0:14:39.000 --> 0:14:41.160 gonna take a lot of games. So are you are 0:14:41.200 --> 0:14:42.600 you certain to come around on that as well? Do 0:14:42.640 --> 0:14:44.640 you think this defense could come around to where it 0:14:44.720 --> 0:14:46.480 was in previous seasons by the end of the year. 0:14:48.320 --> 0:14:50.160 I'm not sure to where it was. I mean, they 0:14:50.160 --> 0:14:52.520 were the best defensive the league last year and wear 0:14:52.600 --> 0:14:54.680 before I think they were right there, but it's definitely 0:14:54.760 --> 0:14:57.440 coming up. And we talked about defensive identity to start. 0:14:57.640 --> 0:15:00.960 You went into that ad is kind of defensive identity 0:15:01.000 --> 0:15:02.520 and a lot of times and I thought he was 0:15:02.600 --> 0:15:05.120 just incredible tonight. I don't know if you would agree 0:15:05.160 --> 0:15:08.160 like he was. Miami's again like a really tough team. 0:15:08.520 --> 0:15:10.640 They run a lot of screen actions. Bam is kind 0:15:10.640 --> 0:15:12.320 of in the middle of the floor and he's kind 0:15:12.320 --> 0:15:14.880 of operating. And I thought a D, especially in the 0:15:14.960 --> 0:15:16.600 in the first three quarters, that he got a little 0:15:16.640 --> 0:15:18.800 bit tired there in the fourth, but the shutting off 0:15:18.840 --> 0:15:20.880 all those actions be able to come up help on 0:15:20.920 --> 0:15:23.600 Hero and still get back to Bam defend the rim, 0:15:23.680 --> 0:15:25.840 and he's playing with like a D S surrounded by 0:15:25.880 --> 0:15:28.640 like all these four guards, three guards with Mellow and 0:15:28.680 --> 0:15:31.480 Mellow I'll get into him as well. Just incredible, like 0:15:31.600 --> 0:15:34.440 seeing him, like you said, move his feet defensively. About 0:15:34.440 --> 0:15:36.560 a D. Tonight, I thought was great. Shutting off the rim, 0:15:36.600 --> 0:15:39.280 got a bunch of strips on Bam, some block shots, 0:15:39.640 --> 0:15:41.320 he got beat down the floor a couple of times, 0:15:41.360 --> 0:15:44.080 but taking away lobs like I thought, he was just great. 0:15:44.080 --> 0:15:46.880 Tyler Hero hit a bunch of contested shots over every 0:15:46.920 --> 0:15:48.760 Bradley the hell I guess I'll kind of live with. 0:15:49.040 --> 0:15:50.880 But again, I thought a D was a huge deterrent 0:15:51.200 --> 0:15:55.520 on them and Carmelo man like watching him rotate and 0:15:55.640 --> 0:15:57.440 be right there, you know what I mean. With the Lakers, 0:15:57.480 --> 0:15:59.480 with the coverage they run, and he's starting to understand 0:15:59.520 --> 0:16:01.600 where he's supposed to be, Like I said, he's never 0:16:01.680 --> 0:16:04.120 gonna always get to stop, but he started being the 0:16:04.200 --> 0:16:06.600 right place more than often. Like he's not a guy 0:16:06.640 --> 0:16:08.240 that you can just pick on in the post. They 0:16:08.240 --> 0:16:10.160 try to go at him, and he got to stop there. 0:16:10.440 --> 0:16:13.240 He strips the ball really nicely. It's just really cool 0:16:13.320 --> 0:16:16.960 because this shooting is so it's so important for this 0:16:17.000 --> 0:16:19.520 team right now that if he's just passable defensively, and 0:16:19.560 --> 0:16:21.480 to me, he was even more than that tonight. I 0:16:21.520 --> 0:16:24.120 thought he was actually even kind of a plus defensively, 0:16:24.480 --> 0:16:28.239 especially next day. I agree. I thought he was legitimately 0:16:28.320 --> 0:16:31.160 a plus defensively tonight, which is wild. I cannot believe 0:16:31.160 --> 0:16:34.200 I'm saying it. I thought him in a D like 0:16:34.280 --> 0:16:36.360 as the four or five was our best kind of 0:16:36.400 --> 0:16:39.640 defensive lineup. The way that Dwight was kind of fouling. 0:16:40.040 --> 0:16:42.280 Dwight I think fouled out in eleven minutes. So I 0:16:42.320 --> 0:16:44.520 didn't really get to see much of the Dwight a 0:16:44.920 --> 0:16:47.920 D combo tonight. But yeah, I thought him and Melow 0:16:48.200 --> 0:16:51.480 really were in seeing again. Miami makes you like switch 0:16:51.560 --> 0:16:53.520 and talk on almost every coverage, the way they run 0:16:53.600 --> 0:16:56.800 Duncan Robinson entire hero off all these actions in the corners, 0:16:56.840 --> 0:16:59.000 and I thought Melo held his own, Like we went 0:16:59.040 --> 0:17:01.320 on that run in the fourth we were down nine, 0:17:01.640 --> 0:17:03.120 Mellow was on the floor and when we made on 0:17:03.160 --> 0:17:05.320 that run, and obviously they scored a bunch of points, 0:17:05.359 --> 0:17:07.800 but also got a bunch of stops. I thought he 0:17:07.880 --> 0:17:09.639 was great, Like just seeing him be able to defend 0:17:09.720 --> 0:17:12.080 like that, and like I see people saying he wasn't 0:17:12.080 --> 0:17:14.720 defending like this. I guess in Portland, maybe I wasn't 0:17:14.760 --> 0:17:17.600 really watching that as closely. Body might be a little 0:17:17.640 --> 0:17:20.040 bit better, but he just looks so ready to be 0:17:20.080 --> 0:17:22.120 on a winner and beyond a title contender. It's cool 0:17:22.160 --> 0:17:24.560 to see him playing that out. But yeah, he was 0:17:24.600 --> 0:17:27.359 great and a d I thought really shut them down 0:17:27.440 --> 0:17:29.320 the first in the first few minutes of that game 0:17:29.359 --> 0:17:31.480 to make it even close. Like you said, the offense 0:17:31.560 --> 0:17:33.919 is super ugly to start these games, but the defense 0:17:34.000 --> 0:17:35.600 was there. I thought it was. It was great And 0:17:35.640 --> 0:17:37.320 if they can keep building on this, man, this is 0:17:37.320 --> 0:17:39.399 something you can build off of, Like you can't do 0:17:39.440 --> 0:17:41.600 this and then go do a stinker against whoever they 0:17:41.600 --> 0:17:44.000 play next, Like this is like something you can legitimately 0:17:44.320 --> 0:17:46.480 build off of, even if Lebron is not gonna play 0:17:46.520 --> 0:17:50.200 for a little while. You know, It's it's funny because 0:17:50.560 --> 0:17:54.800 we you and I have talked so much about how 0:17:55.400 --> 0:17:58.320 when Anthony Davis is on the floor, you know, your 0:17:58.400 --> 0:18:01.639 defensive job is less complicated than it is on other teams. 0:18:01.960 --> 0:18:03.840 You know, like if you're if you're playing for the 0:18:03.880 --> 0:18:07.159 Washington Wizards, you have to be so sharp on the 0:18:07.200 --> 0:18:10.119 perimeter and you have to cover so much because you 0:18:10.240 --> 0:18:15.119 don't have that you know, all encompassing defensive mistake a 0:18:15.280 --> 0:18:17.240 racer on the back end, you know what I mean. 0:18:17.480 --> 0:18:21.040 And and that was what was so shameful about the 0:18:21.040 --> 0:18:23.280 way the Lakers played to start the season, is like 0:18:23.680 --> 0:18:27.800 we watched, you know, pretty limited guards you know in 0:18:28.000 --> 0:18:33.240 previous seasons come in and see the very small checklist 0:18:33.320 --> 0:18:36.880 of defensive responsibilities they had in the Laker lineup, and 0:18:36.880 --> 0:18:38.480 and to not and to knock it out of the park. 0:18:38.960 --> 0:18:40.960 And so to see the guys this year coming and 0:18:41.000 --> 0:18:44.920 really struggle, it was frustrating. And because when you watch 0:18:45.000 --> 0:18:46.960 the game, you see it with effort. It was like, Okay, 0:18:46.960 --> 0:18:49.800 this guy just died on that screen, or this guy 0:18:49.880 --> 0:18:53.280 is just not even paying attention off the ball, or okay, 0:18:53.320 --> 0:18:56.439 they beat us off the dribble and we rotated, you know, 0:18:56.520 --> 0:18:58.840 a D stepped over and and stop the guy at 0:18:58.880 --> 0:19:01.680 the rim, and and kicked to the corner, and one 0:19:01.720 --> 0:19:03.840 guy ran out to stop him in the corner. But 0:19:03.880 --> 0:19:07.000 then they swung it one more time and no one 0:19:07.119 --> 0:19:08.760 was there, you know what I mean Like that, it 0:19:08.880 --> 0:19:12.080 just was it was just super super sloppy on that front. 0:19:12.119 --> 0:19:15.280 And what we saw tonight, it was for the first 0:19:15.320 --> 0:19:17.760 time all season for the most part, during the whole game, 0:19:17.800 --> 0:19:21.040 with exception of that ugly stretch there in the fourth quarter, 0:19:21.760 --> 0:19:25.360 they did a really really good job of those responsibilities. 0:19:25.800 --> 0:19:28.639 They were applying ball pressure and chasing guys off the 0:19:28.680 --> 0:19:32.680 three point line, funneling them into Carmelo and a D 0:19:32.920 --> 0:19:35.040 under the rim. And like you said, Carmelo did a 0:19:35.080 --> 0:19:38.640 really really good job in that Lebron role of any 0:19:38.680 --> 0:19:40.720 time anybody caught in the middle of the floor on 0:19:40.760 --> 0:19:43.280 the short roll, he just stepped up and disrupt them 0:19:43.280 --> 0:19:46.040 and made that next past tough. And then and then 0:19:46.040 --> 0:19:48.560 when that read came out of the short roll, guys 0:19:48.560 --> 0:19:52.600 were flying around and rotating the shooters and contesting shots 0:19:53.280 --> 0:19:56.639 and and that's it's really that simple, you know, Like 0:19:57.000 --> 0:19:59.040 that there was there was a job that had to 0:19:59.080 --> 0:20:02.400 be done in this system, and guys weren't doing their 0:20:02.480 --> 0:20:06.000 jobs to start this season. And now over the course 0:20:06.200 --> 0:20:10.919 of uh, you know this, slowly incrementally, guys are starting 0:20:10.920 --> 0:20:12.760 to do those jobs. In the defense is starting to 0:20:12.760 --> 0:20:15.040 look better. And guess what, it's only going to get 0:20:15.520 --> 0:20:19.119 easier and easier to when you when you get Lebron 0:20:19.160 --> 0:20:22.720 in there. You know, like that that if like we've 0:20:22.720 --> 0:20:24.760 talked a lot about you you talk a lot about 0:20:24.800 --> 0:20:27.880 the Russ A D lineups, right, You talked about how like, hey, 0:20:27.960 --> 0:20:30.280 like when when Lebron is off the floor, we have 0:20:30.320 --> 0:20:33.720 to really lean into russ a D ball. Well, if 0:20:33.840 --> 0:20:39.920 Mellow can be a passable defensive power forward in that lineup, 0:20:40.440 --> 0:20:43.480 holy cow, man, Like I'd go Russ Mellow a d 0:20:44.200 --> 0:20:46.480 um and and do do a lot of that kind 0:20:46.480 --> 0:20:49.320 of stuff. Because because with that spacing that they had, 0:20:49.400 --> 0:20:51.720 especially when they went with Monk and Mellow on the wing, 0:20:52.160 --> 0:20:56.320 they were just getting fantastic shots every time down the floor. Um, 0:20:56.359 --> 0:20:58.600 we just could never go to those lineups enough this 0:20:58.640 --> 0:21:01.600 season because they would just get destroyed on the defensive end. 0:21:02.080 --> 0:21:06.760 And now finally, by by virtue of them losing some 0:21:06.880 --> 0:21:09.800 games and put it finding themselves in a position where 0:21:09.800 --> 0:21:12.280 they have to do the job in order to win. 0:21:12.640 --> 0:21:15.159 Guys are starting to do it and so and so 0:21:15.240 --> 0:21:17.879 that's exciting because dude, it's only up from here because 0:21:17.920 --> 0:21:23.040 talent is, reinforcements are on the way right. And I 0:21:23.119 --> 0:21:25.200 want to give Russ like a shout out. We're gonna 0:21:25.240 --> 0:21:27.919 guess we're gonna talk about him pretty soon here his 0:21:28.000 --> 0:21:32.359 offensive moments, but just even defensively, like chasing around Duncan 0:21:32.440 --> 0:21:35.280 Robinson in the late game plays and you know, trying 0:21:35.280 --> 0:21:37.879 to chase around Tyler Hero, watching him get in a 0:21:37.920 --> 0:21:41.239 full like defensive stance and you know, playing full up 0:21:41.280 --> 0:21:43.400 on Tyler here, Like it was awesome seeing him as 0:21:43.400 --> 0:21:45.680 well compete on that end. And that's what we're gonna 0:21:45.680 --> 0:21:46.879 have to have, man, We're gonna have to have the 0:21:46.880 --> 0:21:50.359 whole team kind of competing defensively like this. Miami is 0:21:50.400 --> 0:21:52.160 a really good team. And you could tell the Lakers 0:21:52.359 --> 0:21:55.240 respected them in a way, like they came out with 0:21:55.240 --> 0:21:57.399 the effort, you know, from the tip off, like you 0:21:57.400 --> 0:22:00.439 could tell this was serious. Miami's a team that you know, 0:22:00.520 --> 0:22:02.480 talks back and forth, and you know, it kind of 0:22:02.520 --> 0:22:05.080 got Carmelo going the kind of ship talking back and 0:22:05.080 --> 0:22:07.080 forth but I think this team like they just needed 0:22:07.080 --> 0:22:09.480 that tonight. But I wanted to give Russ a quick 0:22:09.480 --> 0:22:11.639 shout out there as well. Defensively, I thought he was 0:22:12.280 --> 0:22:13.880 I don't know what happened on that last play where 0:22:13.960 --> 0:22:15.960 Tyler hero got open, but you know, just for the 0:22:16.000 --> 0:22:18.160 whole kind of fourth and overtime, I thought he really 0:22:19.119 --> 0:22:21.040 I thought he really competed on that end, and that's 0:22:21.040 --> 0:22:30.439 what we're gonna need. I guess we can kind of 0:22:30.480 --> 0:22:35.359 move move on to Uh, he's just doing like Russ 0:22:35.440 --> 0:22:37.760 is just doing his job now, Like that's that's the key. 0:22:37.960 --> 0:22:43.240 Like there was a there was a certain level of um, 0:22:43.320 --> 0:22:46.320 you know, him carrying over some bad habits from his 0:22:46.400 --> 0:22:50.439 previous destinations into this role, right, which is was to 0:22:50.480 --> 0:22:54.320 be expected, like no one, no one, no one changes overnight, 0:22:54.680 --> 0:22:57.439 you know, especially since we talked about like like if 0:22:57.440 --> 0:23:00.440 you ever watched Austin Reeves play defense man, this guy 0:23:00.480 --> 0:23:03.480 gets hit in the face on everything like every quarter 0:23:03.600 --> 0:23:06.159 at least once, or the shot to the nose or 0:23:06.160 --> 0:23:08.639 an elbow to the ribs or something like doing the 0:23:08.760 --> 0:23:10.840 job of changing. We talked about this a lot on 0:23:10.840 --> 0:23:14.000 the pod. Chasing people over the top of the screen, uh, 0:23:14.200 --> 0:23:17.080 flying around in rotations. It's a dirty job. It sucks. 0:23:17.600 --> 0:23:22.360 And throughout Russ's career, especially after Kad left, he's had 0:23:22.440 --> 0:23:25.600 so much on his plate offensively that he's been able 0:23:25.640 --> 0:23:29.000 to really really relax on that side of the floor 0:23:29.080 --> 0:23:31.600 and take so much of his focus and energy away 0:23:31.600 --> 0:23:35.679 from that. And you know, I think I think we 0:23:35.720 --> 0:23:37.719 saw a lot of that carry over into the season. 0:23:38.320 --> 0:23:42.680 And ideally with Lebron here he'd have lesser offensive responsibility 0:23:42.840 --> 0:23:45.719 so that he can devote more energy to that end. 0:23:46.160 --> 0:23:49.600 But like that short term urgency that Frank was talking 0:23:49.640 --> 0:23:52.960 about plays a big role here. You know, the Lakers 0:23:52.960 --> 0:23:55.320 had an option. They had two options. The Lakers said 0:23:55.640 --> 0:23:57.560 they were sitting at five and five coming off a 0:23:57.640 --> 0:23:59.919 really really bad loss to Oklahoma City, and they had 0:24:00.000 --> 0:24:04.840 two options. It was play better basketball or just keep losing. 0:24:05.640 --> 0:24:07.800 And a lot of guys had to look in the mirror, 0:24:07.920 --> 0:24:10.520 Guys like mellow guys like Rus even a d has 0:24:10.520 --> 0:24:14.200 stepped up his intensity so much over the course of 0:24:14.200 --> 0:24:16.399 of this past week. Like guys had to look in 0:24:16.440 --> 0:24:19.760 the mirror and say, like, are we gonna start to 0:24:20.200 --> 0:24:22.800 fix these problems or are we just going to continue 0:24:22.800 --> 0:24:24.760 with the status quo? Get our butt kicked by Miami, 0:24:24.960 --> 0:24:27.200 get our butt kicked by San Antonio, get our butt 0:24:27.240 --> 0:24:30.600 kicked by Minnesota, and just tell everybody, oh, well, Lebron's gone, 0:24:30.880 --> 0:24:33.840 Like Lebron will be back and then everything will be fine. No, no, no, 0:24:33.880 --> 0:24:38.000 they they're they addressed. They're starting to address those problems. 0:24:38.359 --> 0:24:40.520 And that's the most important part because we already know 0:24:40.560 --> 0:24:43.080 what Lebron can do and we know how he slots 0:24:43.080 --> 0:24:46.480 into all of this, right, So getting all of these 0:24:46.520 --> 0:24:50.000 guys on board with what their jobs were was such 0:24:50.000 --> 0:24:53.960 an important little checkbox in this process. You know, we've 0:24:54.119 --> 0:24:56.679 we've talked a lot about the you know, the little 0:24:56.760 --> 0:24:59.040 checkpoints that you look for over the course of the 0:24:59.119 --> 0:25:02.480 NBA season, and we talked about how that Oklahoma City lost. 0:25:02.520 --> 0:25:05.680 Both of them were bad, they were bad checkpoints, right, 0:25:05.680 --> 0:25:09.520 Like those were examples of like kind of red flags. Right. 0:25:09.920 --> 0:25:14.880 But what happened tonight, this win tonight, in my opinion, 0:25:15.640 --> 0:25:19.840 is a huge example of a good checkpoint, a championship 0:25:20.080 --> 0:25:23.400 chip checkpoint. Winning a game you're not supposed to win 0:25:24.200 --> 0:25:26.640 against the team that was heavily favored. I told you 0:25:26.960 --> 0:25:28.480 on the last part that'd be favored by four or 0:25:28.520 --> 0:25:30.560 five points. It was either four and a half or 0:25:30.600 --> 0:25:34.040 five depending on which book he went to. They like, literally, 0:25:34.440 --> 0:25:37.640 they were supposed to lose this game, your best players out. 0:25:37.920 --> 0:25:40.280 It was either lose and no one's gonna blame you 0:25:40.280 --> 0:25:42.800 because you're supposed to, or go out and win the 0:25:42.880 --> 0:25:45.960 damn thing. And what championship teams do is they go 0:25:45.960 --> 0:25:48.560 out and they win the damn thing. And that's what 0:25:48.600 --> 0:25:50.440 the Lakers did. And so this was kind of a 0:25:50.760 --> 0:25:52.480 doesn't this just kind of like take the taste of 0:25:52.480 --> 0:25:54.680 one of the at least one of those Oklahoma City 0:25:54.680 --> 0:25:57.200 losses out of your mouth? Maybe not both, maybe not both. 0:25:57.240 --> 0:25:59.000 Maybe they need to win the next two, but at 0:25:59.080 --> 0:26:01.239 least one of those Sea games has to be kind 0:26:01.280 --> 0:26:05.000 of wiped away from our memory at this point for sure. Yeah. 0:26:05.200 --> 0:26:07.719 I said, like before the Portland game that if they 0:26:07.720 --> 0:26:09.640 got that one, I would kind of, you know, forget 0:26:09.680 --> 0:26:11.840 about one of the Okay See games. But it's crazy 0:26:11.920 --> 0:26:14.320 that the same team tonight when I got their as kick, 0:26:14.440 --> 0:26:17.040 you know, in Portland by a team that just can't 0:26:17.359 --> 0:26:19.640 get its feed together either. Like that's what I mean 0:26:19.680 --> 0:26:22.159 by they should at least be competitive, you know what 0:26:22.240 --> 0:26:24.960 I mean, Like with even without Lebron, even though a 0:26:25.119 --> 0:26:27.480 d even though a d kind of went out in 0:26:27.760 --> 0:26:30.000 the first quarter. Were there, like there's enough talent on 0:26:30.040 --> 0:26:32.080 this team to where you can be competitive. And you 0:26:32.080 --> 0:26:34.119 can see they're starting to get comfortable right Lebron has 0:26:34.160 --> 0:26:36.200 been out a few games, Like players are starting to 0:26:36.240 --> 0:26:38.560 slot into where they are now. They have to move 0:26:38.640 --> 0:26:41.959 up one in the rotation or whatever. Russ still like 0:26:42.240 --> 0:26:44.560 being the main ball handler. Now, They're still gonna be 0:26:44.640 --> 0:26:46.400 turnovers and stuff. But you saw him kind of get 0:26:46.440 --> 0:26:48.640 his foot together. There's some plays, man, and I guess 0:26:48.720 --> 0:26:51.919 we can kind of transition into Russ's offensive game because 0:26:52.400 --> 0:26:55.000 like those aren't great midrange pull ups, Like Mark Jackson 0:26:55.080 --> 0:26:57.360 was begging him to take those market those pull ups 0:26:57.359 --> 0:26:59.760 all night. Uh, they're gonna be open all night. I'll 0:26:59.800 --> 0:27:02.200 be hit them and they're in rhythm. We talked about 0:27:02.240 --> 0:27:04.560 the mid range jumpers for us. There's ones where it's like, 0:27:05.040 --> 0:27:07.480 you know, come up, it's contested, and there's others where 0:27:07.480 --> 0:27:09.840 he's like in a full on dribble pull up rhythm 0:27:09.880 --> 0:27:11.879 where it just looks a lot smoother. I thought those 0:27:12.000 --> 0:27:14.680 last two, the one was a fade away kind of 0:27:15.080 --> 0:27:16.720 I think he thought he got fouled, but the one 0:27:16.840 --> 0:27:19.760 right over right over on in the mid range where 0:27:19.760 --> 0:27:21.320 he hit like that was that's a that's a good 0:27:21.320 --> 0:27:24.119 shot for him, Like in the late against the switch, 0:27:24.200 --> 0:27:25.720 like I thought that was a good stock for him. 0:27:25.720 --> 0:27:28.160 But yeah, like Russ got his moment and stable center, 0:27:28.280 --> 0:27:30.960 like this is a big time play, big time moment. 0:27:31.200 --> 0:27:33.600 That's what he came here for. You come here to 0:27:33.600 --> 0:27:36.520 play these games for if Lebron's out. When Lebron's out, 0:27:36.560 --> 0:27:38.359 like this is a big game for him. And I 0:27:38.400 --> 0:27:41.320 thought he really came through, especially offensively. They needed it. 0:27:41.800 --> 0:27:44.240 Like we we complain about the turnovers and stuff like that, 0:27:44.359 --> 0:27:46.480 but you saw when he went to the bench, the 0:27:46.480 --> 0:27:49.680 team just had zero offensive rhythm. Miami is too good 0:27:49.760 --> 0:27:51.840 to just run this like throw the ball to a 0:27:51.960 --> 0:27:54.439 d like their health defense is way too good and 0:27:55.920 --> 0:27:59.840 completely under control by the way. Yeah, and band like 0:28:00.000 --> 0:28:02.399 shoves Adie off his spot a lot. He saw Adie 0:28:02.520 --> 0:28:05.040 like catch the ball three point line a lot. Miami 0:28:05.160 --> 0:28:07.160 is just really good at that. They know exactly where 0:28:06.920 --> 0:28:10.360 the place players um and I thought Westbrook really came through. 0:28:10.400 --> 0:28:12.399 They needed every single point. I think he banked in 0:28:12.440 --> 0:28:15.080 a couple of those jumpers dating him and would you 0:28:15.080 --> 0:28:16.600 agree with that? He kind of had his moment tonight. 0:28:16.800 --> 0:28:21.119 Oh absolutely, And I'm happy for Russ because that having 0:28:21.119 --> 0:28:23.919 a moment like that in Staples is what kind of 0:28:23.960 --> 0:28:26.920 just takes some of the pressure off. You know. Vane 0:28:27.080 --> 0:28:30.560 said something that I thought was really really interesting on 0:28:30.600 --> 0:28:36.240 Twitter after the last game, and he said that Russ 0:28:36.560 --> 0:28:41.680 looks like he doesn't want the ball in those moments. Um, 0:28:41.720 --> 0:28:44.680 not because he's afraid of the moment or anything, but 0:28:45.000 --> 0:28:49.200 Russ is Russ is very aware of his limitations right now. 0:28:50.480 --> 0:28:53.720 I truly believe that, like Russ knows he can't shoot, 0:28:54.520 --> 0:28:57.760 and and Russ knows that guys are packing the paint 0:28:57.800 --> 0:29:00.479 on him and that when he drives it's kind of 0:29:00.520 --> 0:29:05.640 a risk reward proposition that's not in his favor. Um. 0:29:05.720 --> 0:29:09.440 But ironically, the Lebron injury and bam At of bio 0:29:09.640 --> 0:29:12.400 just completely shutting a d down, which will get to 0:29:12.520 --> 0:29:15.760 in a second, Um, that kind of put Russ in 0:29:15.760 --> 0:29:19.840 a situation where he had to shoot, which you know, 0:29:19.920 --> 0:29:23.480 in a weird way, when you have to shoot, some 0:29:23.560 --> 0:29:26.840 of the pressure is off because it's not like if 0:29:26.880 --> 0:29:29.240 you like when Russ took that pull up fifteen foot 0:29:29.320 --> 0:29:30.880 or the one that gave him the two point lead 0:29:30.960 --> 0:29:34.960 laid before the one legged fade away. That shot is 0:29:35.000 --> 0:29:38.200 a weirdly low pressure shot because it's like they had 0:29:38.280 --> 0:29:40.040 just dumped it into a D on the wing a 0:29:40.040 --> 0:29:42.880 couple of times and each time he turned in face 0:29:43.040 --> 0:29:46.040 and bam just just swallowed him up. There's just nothing 0:29:46.080 --> 0:29:48.560 that a D had to go to a fade away, 0:29:48.720 --> 0:29:51.880 and he, as we know right now, is just not 0:29:51.960 --> 0:29:54.520 really capable of making that fade away. So in a 0:29:54.520 --> 0:29:56.520 weird way, Russ is like dribbling the ball the floor. 0:29:56.560 --> 0:29:58.920 It's like it's got to be met, and so that 0:29:59.000 --> 0:30:01.560 takes the pressure off. If misses that fifteen footer, no 0:30:01.600 --> 0:30:03.560 one's really gonna yell at him because you're like, I 0:30:03.600 --> 0:30:05.640 guess that's just the best we can do right now, right, 0:30:05.760 --> 0:30:07.600 you know. So in a weird way, it went in, 0:30:07.840 --> 0:30:10.000 and that, you know, gave him some confidence. And then 0:30:10.000 --> 0:30:11.800 he made an even tougher one after that, and then 0:30:11.800 --> 0:30:13.920 he took a way too tough one after that and 0:30:13.920 --> 0:30:15.960 they heard him. But the point is is like, in 0:30:16.000 --> 0:30:19.960 the long run, Russ doesn't want those possessions because he 0:30:20.000 --> 0:30:22.360 knows he's limited, and that's why he's going to defer 0:30:22.400 --> 0:30:24.920 to Lebron so much in those moments and and it's 0:30:24.960 --> 0:30:27.120 not really something we have to worry about. It just 0:30:27.480 --> 0:30:30.480 we what we saw tonight was something that we finally 0:30:30.560 --> 0:30:33.040 got to see that everyone had been talking about, which 0:30:33.080 --> 0:30:35.880 is can Russ bring a game home when Lebron's gone? 0:30:36.480 --> 0:30:39.640 And he did, And so I thought it was awesome 0:30:39.640 --> 0:30:41.400 for him that he had that moment. And for the record, 0:30:41.680 --> 0:30:43.280 this is why I said it a race. Okay, so 0:30:43.360 --> 0:30:45.760 he lost, like that was a huge win, Like seven 0:30:45.880 --> 0:30:48.360 five looks way better than six and six, especially when 0:30:48.360 --> 0:30:51.040 you factor in all the reinforcements coming. And so I'm 0:30:51.040 --> 0:30:53.080 happy for him as far as the A D thing goes. 0:30:53.120 --> 0:30:55.680 And it's actually super interesting, like you know, this is 0:30:55.720 --> 0:31:00.000 where spacing becomes a factor because, um, what's Anthony Day 0:31:00.040 --> 0:31:02.880 this his advantage against bam Adi Bio on the perimeter? 0:31:03.720 --> 0:31:07.720 You're gonna go with ball handling and speed probably right, Um, 0:31:07.760 --> 0:31:12.240 Like A D can't physically overpower bam really anywhere on 0:31:12.240 --> 0:31:14.840 the floor. That's why when he would start fighting for 0:31:14.880 --> 0:31:17.560 position ten ft from the rim, he'd catch eighteen feet 0:31:17.560 --> 0:31:21.040 from the rim. Um. But if over the course of 0:31:21.080 --> 0:31:23.240 the season, when they really start to nail down their 0:31:23.280 --> 0:31:27.800 spacing and how and how to really position everybody that's 0:31:27.840 --> 0:31:30.320 going to turn into a rip through because ball pressure 0:31:30.920 --> 0:31:34.120 actually is an advantage to the ball handler as long 0:31:34.200 --> 0:31:36.440 as they can make reads, as long as they are 0:31:36.520 --> 0:31:40.880 capable of handling the basketball, which ad is, ball pressure 0:31:41.040 --> 0:31:44.120 is good for you because the defender is putting himself 0:31:44.200 --> 0:31:47.959 out of position to try to make you uncomfortable. And 0:31:48.000 --> 0:31:49.640 so what I'd like to see in the long run 0:31:49.680 --> 0:31:52.040 is when when a D finds himself in those matchups 0:31:52.040 --> 0:31:56.240 where really athletic big someone like Bam pressures him and 0:31:56.280 --> 0:31:59.280 pushes him away from the basket, he needs space to 0:31:59.360 --> 0:32:02.560 operate so that he can catch and just ripped through 0:32:03.120 --> 0:32:05.080 and either get a foul or beat him to the 0:32:05.160 --> 0:32:06.440 dribble and get all the way to the rim. And 0:32:06.440 --> 0:32:10.680 that's where the prospect of Monk and Mellow are so exciting, 0:32:10.840 --> 0:32:14.040 because the Lakers finally are going to be able to 0:32:14.080 --> 0:32:17.800 piece together some lineups now that have real spacing, the 0:32:17.880 --> 0:32:20.920 kind of spacing that will make a D feel comfortable, 0:32:21.280 --> 0:32:23.160 the kind of spacing that will allow him to be 0:32:23.280 --> 0:32:26.640 a slasher like that in some cases. And that's all 0:32:26.680 --> 0:32:30.200 super exciting. So I I look forward to a D 0:32:31.960 --> 0:32:34.440 over the course of the season as if he stays healthy, 0:32:34.480 --> 0:32:37.520 which I'm hopefully they will just getting more and more 0:32:37.600 --> 0:32:41.040 comfortable and growing into like the peak version of himself 0:32:41.080 --> 0:32:43.600 as a guy who can handle that type of thing, 0:32:44.000 --> 0:32:46.720 which will require him to have space to operate, which 0:32:46.760 --> 0:32:50.920 this team will finally be able to afford him. Yeah, 0:32:50.960 --> 0:32:52.880 and they kept trying to like post him up, and 0:32:52.920 --> 0:32:55.680 I said earlier, Miami's just too good at that, and 0:32:55.680 --> 0:32:59.200 they were doubling him right away, especially with with our starters. 0:32:59.400 --> 0:33:01.640 They really even though Avery Bradley had like three threes 0:33:01.680 --> 0:33:04.520 in the first quarter, they still really just pinched inside 0:33:04.520 --> 0:33:07.520 the paint. They did not respect you know, Camp baysmore 0:33:07.800 --> 0:33:10.520 every Bradley. Like I said, Russell Westbrook, obviously at shooters, 0:33:10.760 --> 0:33:13.080 a D is still not great passing out of doubles, 0:33:13.120 --> 0:33:15.000 and against a team like Miami that's so good on 0:33:15.000 --> 0:33:17.360 our rotations, it was just gonna be ugly. And again 0:33:17.360 --> 0:33:19.600 they had like p J. Tucker guarding Russ, so there's 0:33:19.640 --> 0:33:22.360 a lot of switching. Uh. They just switched that pick 0:33:22.400 --> 0:33:25.400 and roll all night and eight really got nothing open there. 0:33:25.960 --> 0:33:29.480 But like we talked about Wayne Ellington earlier, just having one, 0:33:29.600 --> 0:33:32.720 you know, one knockdown shooter on the floor just changes 0:33:32.760 --> 0:33:34.680 the balance of that, and then when you put in 0:33:34.680 --> 0:33:37.320 Malik mont Carmelo Anthony, I thought the floor kind of 0:33:37.360 --> 0:33:39.760 really opened up. But I can't wait to see him 0:33:39.760 --> 0:33:42.640 with like actual spacing, actual you know, eighty at the 0:33:42.680 --> 0:33:45.320 five line ups, with defense around. But I just thought, 0:33:45.360 --> 0:33:46.680 you know, it was great to see him next to 0:33:46.720 --> 0:33:50.200 some shooting AD always feels like he's having a rough game. 0:33:50.240 --> 0:33:52.120 They you look at the box score, Um, tonight, you 0:33:52.160 --> 0:33:55.600 played forty five minutes, really toughed it out, twenty four points, 0:33:55.960 --> 0:33:59.160 thirteen rebounds, and they needed every point of that, every rebound, 0:33:59.360 --> 0:34:01.880 a bunch of big ones late. But you're right, Bam 0:34:01.920 --> 0:34:03.440 kind of was able to stay hold on him, and 0:34:03.480 --> 0:34:05.520 I think Miami is more. That was more of Miami 0:34:05.560 --> 0:34:07.880 team defense, but Bam was able to kind of push 0:34:07.960 --> 0:34:09.759 him out of his spot. He got a few really 0:34:09.800 --> 0:34:12.160 big jumpers going, a lot of pick and pop jumpers. 0:34:12.480 --> 0:34:14.200 Still wish he kind of attacked the pain a little 0:34:14.200 --> 0:34:16.480 bit more. But again, I thought he was tired, but 0:34:16.800 --> 0:34:18.680 I thought he was great defensively, and I thought that's 0:34:18.719 --> 0:34:21.279 what mattered really tonight. But hopefully he can kind of 0:34:21.280 --> 0:34:23.440 get his offense going. I saw when I saw him 0:34:23.480 --> 0:34:25.400 Leak Monk going and I was hoping aid he can 0:34:25.440 --> 0:34:28.040 kind of close it out offensively. He got a love 0:34:28.160 --> 0:34:31.160 late right there too, But yeah, just seeing whim, like 0:34:31.480 --> 0:34:32.759 do you agree with that? Like did you see the 0:34:32.760 --> 0:34:34.759 floor when they had Wayne Allington out there? It just 0:34:34.800 --> 0:34:37.600 felt like it changed the whole kind of it changed 0:34:37.640 --> 0:34:40.160 how Miami can defend, and they ran actual actions for 0:34:40.239 --> 0:34:42.840 him as well. I guess we can kind of more 0:34:42.680 --> 0:34:45.040 more morph this into Wayne Ellington as well. They were 0:34:45.080 --> 0:34:47.400 running like, you know, double pin downs for him, and 0:34:47.800 --> 0:34:49.400 he had a bunch of big threes. But I just 0:34:49.400 --> 0:34:51.600 thought the floor spacing. When we have one legit guy, 0:34:51.640 --> 0:34:54.319 they can't leave. It just changed the whole game. And 0:34:54.560 --> 0:34:56.880 I hope to see Wayne kind of play more. His 0:34:56.960 --> 0:35:00.360 jumper looks legit. You know, he's an actual professional shooter 0:35:00.400 --> 0:35:02.400 as they call it. Um. I think Monk's more of 0:35:02.400 --> 0:35:05.720 a score, but Wayne, now it's a legit professional shooter, 0:35:05.800 --> 0:35:08.200 and it's cool to have one on the team, especially 0:35:08.280 --> 0:35:11.320 playing next to you know, so many non jump shooters 0:35:11.400 --> 0:35:13.040 right now in a d and then Russ as well, 0:35:13.080 --> 0:35:15.120 obviously trying to get to the rim. Just one guy 0:35:15.200 --> 0:35:17.160 you can't leave, you know, And it felt like he 0:35:17.320 --> 0:35:22.680 changed the floor. Did I mean on that play, there 0:35:22.760 --> 0:35:24.400 was one in particular that I have in mind with 0:35:24.440 --> 0:35:26.160 Ellington on the floor with the idea, and that was 0:35:26.200 --> 0:35:30.640 so fascinating. It was Ellington. Gosh, was it Ellington, Mellow 0:35:30.719 --> 0:35:33.480 and Monk. I think it was. I think it's Ellington, 0:35:33.600 --> 0:35:37.719 Mellow and Monk like, which is just three three shooters 0:35:37.800 --> 0:35:42.000 that are real shooters, like you cannot leave them open shooters. 0:35:42.440 --> 0:35:45.520 And so A d caught at the elbow and he 0:35:46.200 --> 0:35:48.120 kind of like was had his back turned to the 0:35:48.120 --> 0:35:50.320 basket and he was kind of looking over either shoulder 0:35:50.360 --> 0:35:53.480 trying to survey the floor, and obviously he struggles with that, 0:35:53.560 --> 0:35:56.439 so he kind of ended up spinning like right into 0:35:56.520 --> 0:35:59.160 Kyle Lowry and p J. Tucker like at the same 0:35:59.200 --> 0:36:03.000 time and didn't really have any angle and damn near 0:36:03.080 --> 0:36:05.360 lost his handle but then ran. But the point is 0:36:05.480 --> 0:36:08.720 is like all the all the guys that they're doubling 0:36:08.760 --> 0:36:12.600 off of our just dead eye shooters and so and shooters. 0:36:12.760 --> 0:36:14.640 The best thing about a shooter is it's not just 0:36:14.640 --> 0:36:17.080 about their ability to make the shot. Shooters are so 0:36:17.200 --> 0:36:21.799 good at identifying where their opportunity to shoot is. They 0:36:21.800 --> 0:36:24.879 can kind of see plays develop and they know their 0:36:24.880 --> 0:36:27.320 spot to hit. They know when to flare to the corner, 0:36:27.360 --> 0:36:29.319 they know when to flare to the wing, they know 0:36:29.400 --> 0:36:31.239 when to cut all the way through on the baseline. 0:36:31.239 --> 0:36:33.160 They know it's because that's what they've been doing their 0:36:33.160 --> 0:36:36.800 whole life, especially guys like Wayne Ellington. You know, Mellow 0:36:36.880 --> 0:36:38.640 is going to continue to get better and better at 0:36:38.680 --> 0:36:42.480 that in this phase of his career. But Wayne Ellington 0:36:42.640 --> 0:36:46.239 saw a D and chaos and saw that he was 0:36:46.280 --> 0:36:48.520 out of control. And a D has a tendency when 0:36:48.560 --> 0:36:50.480 he's out of control to throw it back to the perimeter, 0:36:50.600 --> 0:36:52.600 especially behind him, because he does it. He's not a 0:36:52.640 --> 0:36:56.759 great interior passer. And so Ellington just relocated right behind 0:36:56.800 --> 0:36:59.400 a D at the three point line, and a D 0:36:59.600 --> 0:37:01.080 even in all that, hey, I was just kind of 0:37:01.080 --> 0:37:03.040 shoveled it back to him. And Hey, guess what, you 0:37:03.120 --> 0:37:06.040 just left Wayne Ellington wide open. That's probably gonna go 0:37:06.080 --> 0:37:08.640 in like seventy at the time, like when his feet 0:37:08.640 --> 0:37:11.600 are really set and he's really open like that, it's 0:37:11.640 --> 0:37:13.880 going in. And it did. And so that that kind 0:37:13.920 --> 0:37:16.000 of thing, too, is like what's so cool about that? 0:37:16.040 --> 0:37:17.560 And this is why I looks forward to that line 0:37:17.600 --> 0:37:22.200 up moving forward is Anthony Davis is an absolute like 0:37:22.719 --> 0:37:27.400 beast offensively in single coverage. So if you know, obviously 0:37:27.400 --> 0:37:29.520 we talked about the Band thing earlier, but Band is 0:37:29.560 --> 0:37:32.120 probably the best defender in the league to throw at 0:37:32.160 --> 0:37:34.879 a D right. So like the vast majority, the vast 0:37:34.920 --> 0:37:36.920 majority of the guys that a D is gonna see 0:37:37.040 --> 0:37:39.760 are gonna have no capability of sticking with him physically. 0:37:40.200 --> 0:37:42.479 So guess what happens if you hit Ellington a couple 0:37:42.480 --> 0:37:44.840 of times, and you hit Monk a couple of times, 0:37:44.880 --> 0:37:46.640 and you hit Mellow a couple of times, and you 0:37:46.680 --> 0:37:48.759 show a propensity to be able to make teams pay 0:37:48.800 --> 0:37:50.920 for doubling you, You're gonna start seeing a lot of 0:37:50.960 --> 0:37:54.480 single coverage. That's what happens with Lebron. Like the dirty 0:37:54.480 --> 0:37:56.839 little secrets of most of the Lebron's efficiency is he 0:37:56.920 --> 0:38:00.360 passes himself open. That's how he gets such great looks. 0:38:00.760 --> 0:38:02.399 And so that's what's exciting for me. Is like, if 0:38:02.400 --> 0:38:04.680 you get lots of reps with Russ and a D 0:38:04.840 --> 0:38:07.279 line ups with Lebron off the floor with lots of 0:38:07.280 --> 0:38:10.919 shooting in the other three spots, a D should, over 0:38:10.920 --> 0:38:13.880 the course of the season start to take advantage of 0:38:13.880 --> 0:38:17.120 that shooting and open things up for himself, which will 0:38:17.160 --> 0:38:19.760 allow him to start to go to work in single coverage, 0:38:19.760 --> 0:38:22.799 which will cascade into more confidence. This is why I 0:38:22.840 --> 0:38:25.480 hate the two big lineups, is like it just I 0:38:26.160 --> 0:38:29.319 like my superstars to be comfortable and confident, and the 0:38:29.360 --> 0:38:31.400 only way for them to do that is when they 0:38:31.440 --> 0:38:34.760 have space to operate. And then it just feeds everything 0:38:34.760 --> 0:38:38.600 else in the game. Guys defend better, Guys are are 0:38:38.640 --> 0:38:41.960 better leaders, their their attitude is better when everyone's playing 0:38:42.040 --> 0:38:44.560 better if they just feel better, and it just it 0:38:44.640 --> 0:38:47.040 just helps the whole team. And so that's why I'm 0:38:47.040 --> 0:38:49.560 such a huge believer in that. And and we we 0:38:49.719 --> 0:38:54.400 have real shooting this year, like real, real real shooting, 0:38:54.440 --> 0:38:57.239 like problem shooting for the other team. And that's just 0:38:57.320 --> 0:39:01.480 super exciting to think about all the ways that can help, right, 0:39:01.480 --> 0:39:04.040 And that's why I was so high on Ellington this summer. 0:39:04.080 --> 0:39:06.520 And obviously he's not Buddy Healed at all, but it's 0:39:06.560 --> 0:39:08.719 kind of that archetype. He's a movement shooter, right, you 0:39:08.719 --> 0:39:11.480 talked about Monk and Carmelo. Carmelo is more of like 0:39:11.480 --> 0:39:13.880 a stand still, spot up shooter, like he can create 0:39:13.920 --> 0:39:15.840 his own shot once he has the ball. But you 0:39:15.840 --> 0:39:17.719 know at three point line, he's a spot up guy, 0:39:18.040 --> 0:39:20.160 mink Monk as well, like more like a spot up 0:39:20.160 --> 0:39:22.280 guy and stuff guy who's catching off the shot. Wayne 0:39:22.280 --> 0:39:24.960 Ellington can curl and I like that Vogel was actually 0:39:25.080 --> 0:39:27.719 running like curl plays for him, you know what I mean. 0:39:27.719 --> 0:39:29.840 And I thought that was really huge and just it 0:39:29.880 --> 0:39:32.280 just brings a different type of spacing. You talked about 0:39:32.280 --> 0:39:35.120 those two big lineups. Russ is still playing in a 0:39:35.160 --> 0:39:37.239 phone booth, I thought, And that's kind of why we 0:39:37.280 --> 0:39:41.000 have these starts, these offensive starts. DeAndre Jordan's motor just 0:39:41.239 --> 0:39:43.960 to me, isn't good enough to continue to continue what 0:39:43.960 --> 0:39:45.800 we're doing a lot of times where you just staring 0:39:45.800 --> 0:39:48.480 out the ball let alone, this facing issues. But yeah, 0:39:48.600 --> 0:39:50.600 just putting more shooting around, man. And that's why I 0:39:50.680 --> 0:39:53.160 kept saying, just let's lean into this rust ball, especially 0:39:53.160 --> 0:39:54.799 with Lebron out, and I think you can do that. 0:39:54.920 --> 0:39:57.879 Carmelo defends the way he does. Wayne Ellington night, would 0:39:57.920 --> 0:40:00.759 you get Wayne Ellington was like, Okay, defensively he got 0:40:00.760 --> 0:40:03.799 backcut a lot. Miami again a tough team to kind 0:40:03.800 --> 0:40:07.440 of uh to judge that on, but I thought he 0:40:07.520 --> 0:40:09.720 was fine. I think he was fine, defensively in his minutes, 0:40:09.760 --> 0:40:11.799 he didn't make mistakes. He was in the right well 0:40:11.840 --> 0:40:13.879 he main mistakes on backcuts and stuff like that. But 0:40:13.920 --> 0:40:15.520 like for the most part, I thought he was fine. 0:40:15.520 --> 0:40:17.960 But just that shooting. Just have a guy who actually 0:40:17.960 --> 0:40:21.200 comes off when Adi is that second screener, Uh, he 0:40:21.280 --> 0:40:23.160 comes off. They trapped Wayne. He gave it back to 0:40:23.200 --> 0:40:25.160 a d and he hit a mid range jumper or 0:40:25.200 --> 0:40:27.120 he got an open look on a mid range jumper. 0:40:27.160 --> 0:40:29.080 Like That's the stuff that we can start to put 0:40:29.120 --> 0:40:31.319 in and I'd like to see the Vogels using it. 0:40:31.360 --> 0:40:33.520 You know, he didn't run that stuff for anyone else. 0:40:33.719 --> 0:40:36.719 Wayne Allington came back and they started running it for him, 0:40:36.800 --> 0:40:38.680 and I like that they have specific steps for him. 0:40:38.719 --> 0:40:40.640 They have to use him if he's out there. I 0:40:40.680 --> 0:40:43.000 was so high on him this summer. I was disappointed 0:40:43.000 --> 0:40:45.400 in the preseason how he looked, how he didn't have 0:40:45.400 --> 0:40:47.160 a shot there. And he's too good a shooter not 0:40:47.239 --> 0:40:50.560 to at least become somewhat of like maybe not four percent, 0:40:50.600 --> 0:40:53.319 but somewhere in that range. And if his defense can 0:40:53.360 --> 0:40:55.839 just be possible, which it wasn't in the preseason, but 0:40:56.000 --> 0:40:58.200 you know, right now, I think it looks possible enough, 0:40:58.239 --> 0:41:00.640 and his shooting, uh, if it's a man, this is 0:41:00.880 --> 0:41:03.520 this is like the first legit shooter we've had. Carmelo 0:41:03.560 --> 0:41:05.640 obviously has been an inferno. Um, just to have a 0:41:05.680 --> 0:41:08.759 movement shooter next to a D and Lebron would be great. 0:41:08.800 --> 0:41:11.160 So that's why I've been really high on Wayne Ellington 0:41:11.239 --> 0:41:13.839 all summer, and tonight was actually Wayne ellington coming out 0:41:13.880 --> 0:41:16.359 party as well. I forgot how many threes he had, 0:41:16.400 --> 0:41:18.759 but I just thought he met a huge eympatty. I 0:41:18.760 --> 0:41:21.719 actually like Wayne Ellington's defensive fit with this group, and 0:41:21.760 --> 0:41:24.800 I was pretty optimistic with it about it from the beginning. 0:41:25.120 --> 0:41:27.359 And the main reason why I thought people I thought 0:41:27.360 --> 0:41:33.080 people were overreacting to guys lighting up Wayne Ellington in isolation. 0:41:33.320 --> 0:41:35.560 And the reason why it is like like they would 0:41:35.560 --> 0:41:37.400 watch I can't even remember who it was that they 0:41:37.400 --> 0:41:39.279 were playing, but they were watched. I think it was 0:41:39.320 --> 0:41:41.680 that young guard that plays for Brooklyn that's such an 0:41:41.680 --> 0:41:45.640 aggressive jump shooter. I'm blanking on his camp time. Yeah yeah, 0:41:45.640 --> 0:41:49.239 something like that. Anyway, Like it's like like, okay, yeah, 0:41:49.280 --> 0:41:51.640 he took a tough step back jump shot and he 0:41:51.640 --> 0:41:54.040 looked pretty comfortable and he knocked it down on Ellington. 0:41:54.160 --> 0:41:56.560 But it's like, the truth of the matter is what 0:41:56.760 --> 0:41:59.840 you what is far more valuable from a perimeter defensive 0:42:00.320 --> 0:42:04.120 in Frank's scheme, is that they're in the right spot. Okay, 0:42:04.160 --> 0:42:06.880 Like if you when you have guys like Lebron and 0:42:06.920 --> 0:42:09.640 Anthony Davis on the floor, you can look at Ellington 0:42:09.680 --> 0:42:11.279 and you can be like, look, man, if you give 0:42:11.320 --> 0:42:13.239 up a pull up jump shot, we'll live with that. 0:42:14.480 --> 0:42:16.920 Or or if it's an elite shooter, like something like 0:42:16.960 --> 0:42:19.200 a like a just a straight up dead eye shooter, 0:42:19.960 --> 0:42:22.640 you will will live with Drives just chase him off 0:42:22.640 --> 0:42:24.799 the line and they can tell him like, hey, when 0:42:24.800 --> 0:42:26.799 you're on this spot of the floor, you're funnel to 0:42:26.840 --> 0:42:28.800 the left. When you're on this spot of the floor, 0:42:28.840 --> 0:42:30.799 you're funnel to the right, because this is where the 0:42:30.800 --> 0:42:33.319 help is. Like you know, and in a weird way, 0:42:33.360 --> 0:42:36.279 Ellington has so much experience as a shooter that he 0:42:36.320 --> 0:42:40.640 knows what shooters do. So he's actually shown quite a 0:42:40.719 --> 0:42:42.759 quite a bit of promise as a lock and trail 0:42:42.840 --> 0:42:45.320 defender over the course of the last couple of games 0:42:45.560 --> 0:42:47.880 um in my opinion, and a big part of that 0:42:48.000 --> 0:42:52.080 is just he he does that himself, so he understands 0:42:52.120 --> 0:42:54.600 the little tips and tricks that those guys used to 0:42:54.640 --> 0:42:56.600 get open and he can kind of counter those in 0:42:56.640 --> 0:43:00.440 his own way. But again like yeah, like if in 0:43:00.480 --> 0:43:03.279 a playoff series in the highest leverage moments, I'm not 0:43:03.280 --> 0:43:06.279 sure you can play him because guys will attack him 0:43:06.360 --> 0:43:08.800 in isolation and it might cause things to break down. 0:43:09.239 --> 0:43:11.560 But over the course of the minutes that he's actually 0:43:11.640 --> 0:43:13.799 going to play with this group, which will primarily be 0:43:14.080 --> 0:43:17.720 against reserves, which will primarily be you know, little short 0:43:17.800 --> 0:43:21.000 stance in a fifteen minute type of game, that he 0:43:21.080 --> 0:43:24.160 plays like, he's going to be able to do his 0:43:24.280 --> 0:43:28.000 job in Frank's system, Like what what happens with guys 0:43:28.040 --> 0:43:31.200 like Molikue Monk, although he's been better, is way more damaging. 0:43:31.320 --> 0:43:33.640 Were like you just straight up get lost, you know, 0:43:33.800 --> 0:43:36.839 or like you're straight up not paying attention, You're you're 0:43:37.000 --> 0:43:39.840 you're you're straight up losing focus like that. You're not 0:43:39.840 --> 0:43:42.640 gonna have to worry about that with Wayne Ellington. Wayne 0:43:42.640 --> 0:43:47.360 Ellington's problems are going to be physical like footspeed type 0:43:47.360 --> 0:43:50.120 of problems, and he's probably only going to see those, 0:43:50.640 --> 0:43:54.200 uh manifest as guys attacking him off the dribble and 0:43:54.239 --> 0:43:56.799 taking pull up jump shots and things like that, which 0:43:56.800 --> 0:43:59.799 again you can live with, you know what I mean. 0:44:00.040 --> 0:44:03.799 And so I I like Wayne Ellington's fit as a 0:44:03.840 --> 0:44:06.080 defensive player, and I think it's gonna look even better, 0:44:06.800 --> 0:44:09.719 um when when he's playing alongside Lebron and a d 0:44:10.120 --> 0:44:12.440 when you get some of those really really really fierce 0:44:12.960 --> 0:44:16.880 Laker defensive lineups. But you know, as far as his 0:44:17.000 --> 0:44:19.719 movement shooting, you you hit the nail on the head man. 0:44:19.840 --> 0:44:23.360 Like it's just it's it's so funny. Like on every level, 0:44:23.400 --> 0:44:26.120 Like I'm coaching high school basketball right now, we put 0:44:26.120 --> 0:44:27.719 in just we have all these you have to run 0:44:27.800 --> 0:44:31.040 super super basic sets with these high school kids because 0:44:31.040 --> 0:44:34.359 they're just I mean, they're the basketball version of brain lists. 0:44:34.400 --> 0:44:37.239 It's it's it's it's a it's a long process trying 0:44:37.280 --> 0:44:39.560 to teach these kids to play basketball. And like it's 0:44:39.600 --> 0:44:42.919 funny because we just are our actions. You know. The guy, 0:44:43.000 --> 0:44:46.000 the guy that I coach with, you know, we played 0:44:46.040 --> 0:44:49.480 professionally overseas overseas for decades, super super smart guys point 0:44:49.520 --> 0:44:51.839 guard and like he just gets it. He gets all 0:44:51.840 --> 0:44:54.000 these little details and it's like he'll just he will 0:44:54.040 --> 0:44:55.759 never just have a pick and roll action. It's a 0:44:55.800 --> 0:44:57.400 pick and roll action with a guy coming off a 0:44:57.440 --> 0:44:59.600 double screen on the other side. I mean, does that 0:44:59.640 --> 0:45:01.560 because knows these high school kids are gonna be on 0:45:01.600 --> 0:45:03.200 the other side of the floor, are going to be 0:45:03.200 --> 0:45:06.000 obsessed with guarding their man. And the truth is that 0:45:06.040 --> 0:45:09.680 works at every level. And having Wayne Ellington doing anything 0:45:09.880 --> 0:45:13.160 off the ball is going to occupy defenders even if 0:45:13.160 --> 0:45:16.320 he's not making shots. And it just in that, it 0:45:16.440 --> 0:45:18.759 just it's it's all about that cascading effect that we 0:45:18.800 --> 0:45:21.200 talked about. It's just what he does to open things 0:45:21.280 --> 0:45:25.680 up for this team. Um makes up for whatever defensive 0:45:25.719 --> 0:45:29.120 limitations that he might have in isolation against the specific 0:45:29.160 --> 0:45:31.560 bad matchup, you know what I mean. And and again, 0:45:31.600 --> 0:45:34.440 if you're playing the Brooklyn nets and Cam Thomas is 0:45:34.440 --> 0:45:36.839 isolating you for pull up jump shots every time down 0:45:36.880 --> 0:45:40.560 the floor, you're probably gonna win because that's not that 0:45:40.560 --> 0:45:44.560 that's not offense, that's conducive to flow in a rhythm. 0:45:44.960 --> 0:45:48.520 It's it's it's actually stagnant. And and so I I 0:45:48.800 --> 0:45:51.439 I'm a fan of Wayne. You and I were both 0:45:51.480 --> 0:45:54.919 heavy high on him right from the beginning. And uh, 0:45:54.960 --> 0:45:57.239 and I'm hopeful that he will get an opportunity to 0:45:57.239 --> 0:46:01.919 prove us right over the course in the next few months. Yeah, yeah, 0:46:02.000 --> 0:46:04.160 me too, man. I just think we haven't had this 0:46:04.280 --> 0:46:07.040 level of shooter and just looking at his name kind 0:46:07.040 --> 0:46:09.719 of next to our other guys that we you know, 0:46:09.760 --> 0:46:11.920 are close to get close to getting back here. Well 0:46:11.920 --> 0:46:14.759 maybe not close, but we'll see Kendrick Nunn th h T. 0:46:15.280 --> 0:46:18.239 You know, adding Wayne Ellington to that as like a specialist, 0:46:18.600 --> 0:46:20.759 I think it's just really nice having you know, coming 0:46:20.760 --> 0:46:23.120 off your bench. We'll see when the reason gets back. 0:46:23.360 --> 0:46:24.960 But if you're starting, you know, if you're going full 0:46:25.000 --> 0:46:27.080 on into this a d at the five, which is 0:46:27.080 --> 0:46:29.120 what we were kind of sold, you know, on media 0:46:29.200 --> 0:46:31.560 day before all the injuries came. And we'll never know 0:46:31.600 --> 0:46:33.520 if that that was the legit plan, but that's what 0:46:33.520 --> 0:46:35.600 we were kind of told. Uh. And you know, you 0:46:35.680 --> 0:46:38.840 have all these kind of guards coming off, probably not 0:46:38.520 --> 0:46:41.000 another not enough wings, but I'm really excited. Men, we're 0:46:41.000 --> 0:46:43.320 gonna get a bunch of these, Like you said, reinforcements 0:46:44.000 --> 0:46:46.759 are coming and we'll see when that happens. But I 0:46:46.760 --> 0:46:49.640 wanted to, like, I guess close on because Russell Westbrook, 0:46:49.680 --> 0:46:53.000 the Russell Westbrook experienced um is. I think a lot 0:46:53.040 --> 0:46:55.400 of people have you know, said it's a roller coaster, 0:46:56.640 --> 0:46:59.239 like he had a couple of finishes tonight where I'm like, man, 0:46:59.400 --> 0:47:01.759 like you can do that every time. You know, when 0:47:01.760 --> 0:47:03.319 he had one, I think it was in the fourth 0:47:03.360 --> 0:47:05.440 I don't even if you remember it, like in transition. 0:47:05.480 --> 0:47:07.759 I think he had it was lowry back and he 0:47:07.880 --> 0:47:10.560 just perfectly slowed down, you know, he was going full 0:47:10.600 --> 0:47:13.440 speed slowdown, went up with the left hand and finished nicely, 0:47:13.800 --> 0:47:15.680 and I think it put us put us down one 0:47:16.239 --> 0:47:18.240 UM when we were making our runback. There's just stuff 0:47:18.239 --> 0:47:20.200 like that and the others where it's just crazy. But 0:47:20.239 --> 0:47:22.640 the rest of Westbrook experience has been, you know, like 0:47:22.640 --> 0:47:24.560 you said, like I said, an up and down experience. 0:47:24.760 --> 0:47:26.279 But tonight it was great and I kind of want 0:47:26.320 --> 0:47:28.520 to just stick on that point, like I thought, tonight 0:47:28.920 --> 0:47:31.840 he came through and he deserves his kind of flowers 0:47:31.840 --> 0:47:33.680 for that. Like I think this is a big time 0:47:33.680 --> 0:47:36.160 when like Miami is a damn good team like that, 0:47:36.640 --> 0:47:39.120 even without Jimmy Butler in the second half, they came 0:47:39.120 --> 0:47:42.120 in tonight seven and three. UM probably have the best 0:47:42.160 --> 0:47:44.160 defense of the league. I'm not sure if the numbers 0:47:44.160 --> 0:47:47.080 support that just watching the games and to get a win, 0:47:47.360 --> 0:47:50.800 it's just huge, huge tonight, you can tell he's starting 0:47:50.840 --> 0:47:54.319 to get more comfortable, and that's key. Like comfort is 0:47:54.320 --> 0:47:56.680 such a huge, h h huge part of the game 0:47:56.719 --> 0:47:59.560 of basketball. It's like it's the perfect example of this 0:47:59.600 --> 0:48:03.000 is the the Houston Rockets a double header that we played. Like, 0:48:03.440 --> 0:48:05.600 you know, everyone wonders how you know, one night you 0:48:05.640 --> 0:48:08.520 play him and it's and then the next time you 0:48:08.520 --> 0:48:11.080 play him, it's like in the one twenties. And a 0:48:11.080 --> 0:48:13.920 big part of that I thought was especially early in 0:48:13.960 --> 0:48:18.560 that game. You know the Lakers, just like Houston, feel comfortable. Yeah, 0:48:18.760 --> 0:48:21.240 you could tell yourself, oh, they're making contested jump shots, 0:48:21.480 --> 0:48:23.719 but there's a huge difference. There's a huge difference between 0:48:23.760 --> 0:48:26.200 a contested jump shot and a jump shot where a 0:48:26.239 --> 0:48:29.880 jump shooter is uncomfortable. Huge difference. If if if you 0:48:30.000 --> 0:48:32.440 if Tyler Harrow catches the ball and I stick my 0:48:32.480 --> 0:48:35.439 hand up, it's a contested shot, but it's Tyler Harrow 0:48:35.520 --> 0:48:39.000 comfortable or was I in his It was I literally 0:48:39.040 --> 0:48:41.680 in his airspace the entire time he was moving around 0:48:41.920 --> 0:48:44.480 and as he's going up into the shot, he's nervous 0:48:44.480 --> 0:48:46.239 that I'm kind of going to knock the ball loose 0:48:46.320 --> 0:48:48.480 and and like do you see the difference of what 0:48:48.520 --> 0:48:50.520 I'm talking about that kind of like level of comfort 0:48:51.080 --> 0:48:53.439 And this is this is what's so important about having 0:48:53.520 --> 0:48:56.040 Russ play with a d at the five or with 0:48:57.239 --> 0:49:00.800 or with one big instead of two bigs. Having Russ 0:49:00.840 --> 0:49:05.680 feel comfortable with the basketball, helping him to when he 0:49:05.920 --> 0:49:08.279 when he's making that read trying to decide when to 0:49:08.400 --> 0:49:09.560 hit the hole, like because there were a lot of 0:49:09.560 --> 0:49:11.680 those like hit the whole moments with Russ where kind 0:49:11.719 --> 0:49:13.600 of reminds you of an NFL running back tonight, where 0:49:13.600 --> 0:49:15.880 it's like he's kind of moving slow and then he 0:49:15.920 --> 0:49:18.200 sees his area of opportunity and just slams the gap. 0:49:18.239 --> 0:49:19.480 There was one that he had is either at the 0:49:19.560 --> 0:49:21.080 end of the fourth quarter overtime where he had a 0:49:21.120 --> 0:49:23.719 reverse lay up with his right hand where there was 0:49:23.800 --> 0:49:26.600 just a tiny opening and he just hit you just 0:49:26.680 --> 0:49:29.360 hit the opening and like you can tell he's starting 0:49:29.360 --> 0:49:32.520 to feel more comfortable. And again, to circle it back around, 0:49:32.520 --> 0:49:36.359 this is my big problem with starting big, whatever advantages 0:49:36.440 --> 0:49:38.920 you think you get out of it, compensating for the 0:49:38.960 --> 0:49:41.960 last of forwards, lack of forwards, I get it. You know, 0:49:42.080 --> 0:49:44.799 trying to eat innings during the regular season, I get it, 0:49:44.920 --> 0:49:47.480 you know, defensive rebounding or whatever it is that Frank 0:49:47.520 --> 0:49:50.439 has tricked himself into thinking. Or the pluses that come 0:49:50.480 --> 0:49:53.440 with going big, they come with these big downsides, And 0:49:53.960 --> 0:49:57.600 one of those big downsides is comfort. Russ has looked 0:49:57.800 --> 0:50:01.520 visibly uncomfortable in the offense for the most part this season, 0:50:02.280 --> 0:50:04.160 and you have to ask yourself how much of that 0:50:04.280 --> 0:50:07.440 is associated with lineups and how much of it is 0:50:07.480 --> 0:50:11.600 associated with his own limitations, And in my opinion, a 0:50:11.680 --> 0:50:15.000 good percentage of that comes with the circumstances he's been 0:50:15.040 --> 0:50:17.560 put in. And so what I really have liked is 0:50:17.680 --> 0:50:20.680 over the last couple of games in particular, Um you 0:50:20.680 --> 0:50:24.400 could tell tonight was actually a better example because the 0:50:24.520 --> 0:50:26.600 last game was a little bit of a nightmare. But 0:50:26.719 --> 0:50:29.000 the point is that he's starting to get He's starting 0:50:29.040 --> 0:50:33.000 to understand and feel comfortable with where where he fits 0:50:33.000 --> 0:50:35.840 in in this offense, when he's supposed to hit holes, 0:50:36.160 --> 0:50:38.560 when he's supposed to be more passive, when his jump 0:50:38.640 --> 0:50:41.640 shots make sense when they don't. And this is why 0:50:41.680 --> 0:50:43.839 I'm a big believer in going small. I would much 0:50:43.960 --> 0:50:48.520 rather have every game have my stars feel comfortable, which 0:50:48.560 --> 0:50:50.880 is going to lean into confidence, which is going to 0:50:51.000 --> 0:50:54.759 lead into everything else that comes from your stars playing well. 0:50:55.520 --> 0:50:58.240 And even if it means that you'll lose the starter minutes, 0:50:58.680 --> 0:51:00.640 Like if you told me that this already lineup was 0:51:00.640 --> 0:51:02.200 going to get beat by four or five points every 0:51:02.200 --> 0:51:04.520 single time instead of winning by two or three, I'd 0:51:04.560 --> 0:51:07.160 take it if it meant that Russ got two layups, 0:51:08.200 --> 0:51:11.920 or Russ got too easy driving kicks, or Anthony Davis 0:51:12.000 --> 0:51:14.000 was posting up against a small forward on the wing 0:51:14.040 --> 0:51:15.799 that he got on a switch and he was able 0:51:15.840 --> 0:51:17.799 to bully him all the way to the basket for 0:51:17.880 --> 0:51:21.080 an easy shot because there was space to operate. If 0:51:21.239 --> 0:51:23.000 even if you lose those minutes, which I don't think 0:51:23.000 --> 0:51:24.560 they would, I think they would win those minutes. I 0:51:24.560 --> 0:51:26.640 think the Lakers are better when they play that way. 0:51:26.680 --> 0:51:28.480 But even if even if I had to grab Frank 0:51:28.520 --> 0:51:30.640 by the shoulders and shake him and say, listen, man, 0:51:31.360 --> 0:51:33.160 this is what's going to happen when you go this 0:51:33.200 --> 0:51:36.440 way like that, that that that's that's that to me, 0:51:36.600 --> 0:51:38.560 is the huge part of this that gets glossed over 0:51:38.680 --> 0:51:41.480 in that lineup decision is the comfort of your ball 0:51:41.520 --> 0:51:45.239 handlers and and so I I'm off my soapbox now. 0:51:45.239 --> 0:51:47.040 But that that's just kind of that's just kind of 0:51:47.080 --> 0:51:50.320 my two cents on the on on the Russ finally 0:51:50.360 --> 0:51:53.920 starting to feel comfortable, Yeah, for sure. And Frank obviously 0:51:54.239 --> 0:51:56.719 liked the two big look. He likes the archetype of it. 0:51:56.800 --> 0:52:00.439 He likes the comfort of having another shot blocker about there. 0:52:00.480 --> 0:52:02.400 And I think we're going to continue to see it 0:52:02.600 --> 0:52:05.759 until probably Lebron gets back, or maybe one of the 0:52:05.800 --> 0:52:08.080 other wings gets back. I just think that's what he's 0:52:08.120 --> 0:52:10.959 gonna stick to. I thought DJ had like a good 0:52:11.000 --> 0:52:13.680 first shift and then you know this, this has been 0:52:13.719 --> 0:52:16.600 happening every game. In that third quarter, he just decides 0:52:16.680 --> 0:52:20.560 to stop, you know, having his stop revving his motor up. 0:52:20.960 --> 0:52:23.280 It just it just completely dies in the third quarter. 0:52:23.280 --> 0:52:25.759 And maybe that's just who he is now. But you're right, 0:52:25.760 --> 0:52:27.919 you know they should. I keep saying, just lean into 0:52:27.920 --> 0:52:30.080 the rest ball. I think without Lebron, you have to 0:52:30.160 --> 0:52:32.680 kind of, you know, top your advantages on each other. 0:52:33.120 --> 0:52:35.640 And I think right now it's our offense week, Monk, 0:52:35.880 --> 0:52:38.520 get him as much shots as you can. Austin reeves, 0:52:38.920 --> 0:52:41.400 I'll be okay with starting him. I thought we missed 0:52:41.400 --> 0:52:44.400 his defense and honestly, as a guy who chases over screens, 0:52:44.840 --> 0:52:47.200 Avery Bradley I thought did a great job on Tyler 0:52:47.200 --> 0:52:49.799 Hero kind of chasing him. Even even if Tyler Hero 0:52:49.880 --> 0:52:51.920 hit a bunch of contested shot. Did you see they 0:52:51.960 --> 0:52:53.840 made nine straight shots to him the third quarte to 0:52:53.920 --> 0:52:56.520 him the second quarter Miami, did I think going into 0:52:56.520 --> 0:52:58.839 halftime and a lot of them were like Tira Hero 0:52:59.160 --> 0:53:01.919 just you know of prayer shots going up over every 0:53:01.960 --> 0:53:05.520 Bradley starting to talk ship and stuff. But again, like 0:53:05.600 --> 0:53:07.879 I think tonight was a great win. Russell Westbrook tonight. 0:53:07.920 --> 0:53:10.640 We always qualm about his numbers, but I mean twelve points, 0:53:10.680 --> 0:53:13.920 twelve rebounds, fourteen assists, Like the numbers are what they are, 0:53:13.960 --> 0:53:17.600 like though, that's incredible production to get, especially when Lebron's 0:53:17.640 --> 0:53:24.760 out and they probably points No. Twenty five points, twenty 0:53:24.840 --> 0:53:28.880 five points, twelve rebounds, fourteen assists, seven threes is still 0:53:29.080 --> 0:53:31.640 a lot. Three for seven from three and again that's 0:53:31.680 --> 0:53:34.600 just him having the ball a ship tons so when 0:53:34.600 --> 0:53:37.400 they fly, when they go into those screens so disrespectfully, 0:53:37.400 --> 0:53:40.319 like kind of understand it is. Sometimes he's like I'm 0:53:40.400 --> 0:53:42.319 so wide open. He had a couple of corner threes, 0:53:42.360 --> 0:53:45.480 I think early, but you know, I can't really complain 0:53:45.520 --> 0:53:47.200 too much. Like the turnovers are going to be what 0:53:47.239 --> 0:53:49.759 they are all season. There's some you can live with. 0:53:49.800 --> 0:53:51.600 Some of them are just like where he threw like 0:53:51.640 --> 0:53:54.160 a speedball pass at a D I think hit him 0:53:54.160 --> 0:53:56.160 in the head. Just some of those decisions are a 0:53:56.200 --> 0:53:58.880 little questionable, but again, like I kind of live with 0:53:58.920 --> 0:54:00.919 some of those if like the Russian is still there. 0:54:00.960 --> 0:54:03.440 And I thought in transition, he really pushed the pace, 0:54:04.000 --> 0:54:06.280 he got the team running, found the league, monk cutting 0:54:06.280 --> 0:54:08.760 want to play. That's just like stuff that he brings 0:54:09.360 --> 0:54:12.719 to a team. And I thought his competitiveness tonight in 0:54:12.760 --> 0:54:16.200 that fourth quarter taking over, hitting big shots like he was, 0:54:16.360 --> 0:54:18.520 he took over and that's that's what they brought him 0:54:18.520 --> 0:54:20.320 here for. And he did his job tonight. He deserves 0:54:20.320 --> 0:54:23.359 credit for them. The turnovers are still so confounding to me, 0:54:23.520 --> 0:54:27.120 and it's it's tricky because you know, like sometimes I 0:54:27.600 --> 0:54:30.160 don't actually think this, but sometimes I wonder just for 0:54:30.200 --> 0:54:33.120 a second, like if he's ever if he's actually making reads, 0:54:33.200 --> 0:54:35.120 or if he's just kind of a spas, and like 0:54:35.239 --> 0:54:37.680 it's a spas that just happens to occasionally make a 0:54:37.719 --> 0:54:40.560 play from the time to time, because that's how like confusing. 0:54:40.960 --> 0:54:43.000 Sometimes he'll throw passes and you'll be like, I, honest 0:54:43.000 --> 0:54:45.560 to god, don't know what you saw there, Like like 0:54:45.800 --> 0:54:48.000 I'll rewind it and I'll watch the plague and I'll 0:54:48.040 --> 0:54:50.359 be like, what was he thinking like when he pulled 0:54:50.360 --> 0:54:52.640 the trigger on that past what was like the what 0:54:52.719 --> 0:54:55.920 was like the little calculation that his basketball brain was 0:54:56.000 --> 0:55:00.000 running like It's it's hard for me to to understand sometimes. Um. 0:55:00.040 --> 0:55:03.400 That said, what's so funny is he responded to, in 0:55:03.440 --> 0:55:07.360 my opinion, his worst game of the season. Uh uh, 0:55:07.600 --> 0:55:09.560 I shouldn't say his worst game, his worst quarter of 0:55:09.560 --> 0:55:12.279 the season in that fourth quarter against Charlotte where he 0:55:12.560 --> 0:55:15.719 almost single handedly let them back into the game. You know, 0:55:15.800 --> 0:55:17.840 you would think he would respond to that by saying, like, 0:55:17.920 --> 0:55:20.840 I'm going to be more careful. Um, but he didn't. 0:55:20.960 --> 0:55:22.759 But what he did do is he added so much 0:55:22.800 --> 0:55:24.640 more good. You know, we talked about the good bad 0:55:24.719 --> 0:55:27.719 scale with Russ. He just compensated for because I think 0:55:27.760 --> 0:55:30.520 he ended with like seven turnovers tonight, still like, but 0:55:30.600 --> 0:55:33.200 he compensated for that by just making a lot more 0:55:33.280 --> 0:55:36.000 good plays to cover for it. And the exciting, the 0:55:36.040 --> 0:55:37.919 exciting way to look at it, you know, in terms 0:55:37.960 --> 0:55:40.359 of projecting forward, as you can kind of look at 0:55:40.360 --> 0:55:42.680 this and say like, hey man, all you gotta do 0:55:42.880 --> 0:55:44.920 is eventually figure out a way to cut back on 0:55:44.960 --> 0:55:47.600 some of this bad while keeping some of this good. 0:55:48.160 --> 0:55:50.360 And now we're taking a Lebron in a D team 0:55:50.560 --> 0:55:55.319 and adding this really really really positive player. You know 0:55:55.400 --> 0:55:58.279 that that potential is still there, but it's up to 0:55:58.360 --> 0:56:00.920 him to try to figure figure that part out because 0:56:01.239 --> 0:56:04.560 no one. Russ probably thought about valuing the balls with 0:56:04.600 --> 0:56:07.400 the basketball a hundred times coming into this game, but 0:56:07.520 --> 0:56:10.640 for whatever reason, he just can't do it. And you know, 0:56:10.680 --> 0:56:13.400 maybe that's some of that's Miami defense. Maybe some of 0:56:13.440 --> 0:56:16.000 that is just him being super super high usage as 0:56:16.000 --> 0:56:18.600 a result of the injuries. But he will eventually need 0:56:18.640 --> 0:56:21.879 to figure that out. Yeah, I don't think you're gonna 0:56:21.920 --> 0:56:25.719 ever get like super low turnover Russ. Like the key 0:56:25.760 --> 0:56:27.920 there is when Lebron's back, right, Like that kind of 0:56:27.920 --> 0:56:30.120 fixes a lot that you talked about limiting the bad, 0:56:30.160 --> 0:56:32.279 Like limiting the bad is really just getting him out 0:56:32.280 --> 0:56:34.359 there with Lebron, where Lebron is kind of controlling more 0:56:34.400 --> 0:56:36.680 of the actions, where the game matters when it stops, 0:56:36.719 --> 0:56:39.239 when it's in half court situations, like that's really where 0:56:39.239 --> 0:56:41.680 you see a lot of the turnovers. I think a 0:56:41.719 --> 0:56:43.279 lot of it with Russ, Like even like when you 0:56:43.320 --> 0:56:45.640 go back and just rewatch the games, like he does 0:56:45.680 --> 0:56:48.319 a lot of this where he drives with like no 0:56:48.400 --> 0:56:51.360 real intention of scoring. So he'll like drive getting the 0:56:51.719 --> 0:56:53.480 he'll get in the air to pass and you'll like 0:56:53.520 --> 0:56:55.640 turn the ball over there or you think a player 0:56:55.680 --> 0:56:57.879 will cut, or he'll have a like a player, he'll 0:56:57.880 --> 0:56:59.359 try to get them a law. Like it's a lot 0:56:59.400 --> 0:57:02.760 of this, like trying to find teammates in their spots 0:57:02.760 --> 0:57:05.120 when they're really not there, like and those turnums are 0:57:05.120 --> 0:57:07.480 just not going to go away in my opinion. He 0:57:07.520 --> 0:57:10.120 had eight turnovers actually tonight, so he actually shortened him 0:57:10.120 --> 0:57:15.920 one but again like but again he paid uh uh. 0:57:15.960 --> 0:57:18.520 He played forty three minutes to night and with no 0:57:18.720 --> 0:57:22.280 backup guard. But the only other real shock trading guard 0:57:22.360 --> 0:57:25.320 on the team is Malik Monk who who had three 0:57:25.360 --> 0:57:27.520 tourn overs as well. But you know, when that's the case, 0:57:27.560 --> 0:57:29.680 you're gonna get a whole bunch of turnovers. But he's 0:57:29.720 --> 0:57:32.200 a plus ten tonight, and I thought, like those turnovers 0:57:32.200 --> 0:57:34.280 are are what they are. They're not going away this season. 0:57:34.440 --> 0:57:36.680 That decision making is not going away. He has to 0:57:36.720 --> 0:57:38.480 be himself. We talked about this over the time, like 0:57:38.560 --> 0:57:40.880 Russ has to be Russ. And there's a good and 0:57:40.920 --> 0:57:42.720 a bad side to it. There's like a ying and 0:57:42.760 --> 0:57:45.240 a yang, a given a pull. But you know tonight 0:57:45.280 --> 0:57:47.960 you saw the good and that kind of aggressiveness mixed 0:57:48.000 --> 0:57:50.160 with the stars mixed. When a b and Lebron are 0:57:50.160 --> 0:57:52.560 on their on their game like it's it can be 0:57:52.640 --> 0:57:57.560 a winning formula, especially if their defense holds up. Ye agree. Um, 0:57:58.000 --> 0:58:00.200 we've just over an hour now. Is there anything else 0:58:00.200 --> 0:58:03.360 you wanted to touch on tonight before we call it? Uh? No, 0:58:03.480 --> 0:58:05.040 I think that's it, man. I just I just want 0:58:05.080 --> 0:58:06.640 to have on the point like this is a this 0:58:06.720 --> 0:58:08.920 is a big time win, like this is has not 0:58:09.040 --> 0:58:11.840 expected at all. I honestly thought they would loose tonight, Jason, 0:58:11.840 --> 0:58:14.080 You thought they would lose tonight, like beating this Miami 0:58:14.160 --> 0:58:17.000 team that's im playing so well. Uh, they hadn't lost 0:58:17.000 --> 0:58:19.080 before this. But I think they've just been very impressive 0:58:19.120 --> 0:58:20.800 this season, So I think this is a it's a 0:58:20.840 --> 0:58:22.600 big wain to build off of. Man Like They play 0:58:22.640 --> 0:58:26.120 Minnesota actually next on Friday, so that's another one you 0:58:26.120 --> 0:58:28.880 can kind of get. Minnesota has also been playing well 0:58:28.920 --> 0:58:31.400 this season. That's a winnable game, so you can kind 0:58:31.400 --> 0:58:34.960 of build up it. I would say that this is 0:58:35.000 --> 0:58:37.960 the game that if this team ends up winning the 0:58:38.000 --> 0:58:41.080 title or even just goes on any sort of significant 0:58:41.160 --> 0:58:43.720 run here, this is the game. This is the game 0:58:43.760 --> 0:58:45.560 that people are going to look back at as the 0:58:45.600 --> 0:58:49.680 one as the turning point. Um. I feel like they 0:58:49.840 --> 0:58:52.680 kind of sort of discovered a little bit of an 0:58:52.680 --> 0:58:54.720 identity tonight. We talked about this earlier in the show. 0:58:54.880 --> 0:58:57.240 Just like a team that if they can, if they can, 0:58:57.760 --> 0:59:01.320 if they can bottle up this effort in and replicate it, 0:59:01.920 --> 0:59:05.240 they've kind of become a team that can that can, 0:59:05.440 --> 0:59:07.320 that can really really shoot the ball. So if you 0:59:07.360 --> 0:59:10.680 combine that with really consistent effort, and with everything that 0:59:10.760 --> 0:59:12.800 Lebron and Ned bring on the defensive end of the ball, 0:59:12.880 --> 0:59:15.919 this could all kind of shape together into something that's 0:59:15.960 --> 0:59:18.480 really exciting and and the and this could be the 0:59:18.480 --> 0:59:20.600 turning point, but we are going to call it and 0:59:20.600 --> 0:59:23.840 I we I After the Minnesota game, there's a bunch 0:59:23.880 --> 0:59:27.080 of extra league wide stuff that Roger and I want 0:59:27.120 --> 0:59:29.040 to talk about we want to talk about Alex Caruso 0:59:29.640 --> 0:59:33.160 a little bit in the anecdote of this win. Yeah, 0:59:33.160 --> 0:59:39.840 don't want to discuss we'll get there. There was gosh, 0:59:39.920 --> 0:59:42.600 there was another big I wanted to talk about this 0:59:42.720 --> 0:59:46.760 concept of of people because Okay, we went too far 0:59:46.920 --> 0:59:49.640 here with this officiating thing to now it's like, now 0:59:49.680 --> 0:59:52.240 we're pretending like the current players aren't anywhere near as 0:59:52.280 --> 0:59:56.400 skilled as as as they look just because scoring numbers 0:59:56.400 --> 0:59:58.720 are down. I want to talk about that a little bit. 0:59:58.760 --> 1:00:01.440 There's a bunch of there's bunch of different things like 1:00:01.480 --> 1:00:03.400 that we're gonna touch on and we'll kind of try 1:00:03.480 --> 1:00:07.200 to slam that into the postgame show, um after the 1:00:07.200 --> 1:00:11.880 Timberwolves game on what's that Friday. So it sounds like 1:00:11.880 --> 1:00:13.760 a planning. Thank you guys so much for the support. 1:00:14.040 --> 1:00:17.200 We are continue to be completely blown away by how 1:00:17.200 --> 1:00:19.040 many of you guys come to hang out with us. 1:00:19.480 --> 1:00:21.200 And I'm sorry we didn't get to any collars tonight. 1:00:21.320 --> 1:00:23.720 Just had too much exciting stuff to talk about after 1:00:23.760 --> 1:00:26.080 a big win. But we will get to some callers 1:00:26.120 --> 1:00:29.080 on Friday. This will be on DASH Radio tomorrow morning 1:00:29.120 --> 1:00:31.720 at seven am, and it will be on our podcast 1:00:31.800 --> 1:00:34.600 feed here in about thirty minutes. Thank you again as always, 1:00:34.600 --> 1:00:36.840 and we will see you guys on Friday. Thanks everyone,