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Speaker 1: The crown is yours. Welcome to the Bullyball Podcast presented
Speaker 1: by DraftKings. I'm Rachel Nichols. Bats to Marcus Cousins. At
Speaker 1: least I think that's Boogye Cousins because bog my monitors
Speaker 1: going in and out here, so I can hear you.
Speaker 1: I can't always see you, so if you like do
Speaker 1: this during the podcast, I won't know.
Speaker 2: Oh, I just know I'm here, Rachel, I got your bet.
Speaker 1: Okay, appreciate that I can see you some of the time.
Speaker 1: It's good. It's good. I want to start with Draymond
Speaker 1: Green because you know you dropped your own news on
Speaker 1: this podcast. A couple of weeks ago. Draymond dropped his
Speaker 1: own news on his podcast just this morning, which is
Speaker 1: pretty awesome. You know, he's back from suspension. The NBA
Speaker 1: reinstated him over the weekend, and he came out this
Speaker 1: morning on his pod and he talked about a really
Speaker 1: crazy conversation he had with Adam Silver right after the
Speaker 1: decision to suspend him came down. He said quote that
Speaker 1: he told Adam it's just too much for me. It's
Speaker 1: all becoming too much. I'm going to retire, so that's crazy,
Speaker 1: And then dre said that Adam's response was, you're making
Speaker 1: a rash decision. I'm not going to let you do that.
Speaker 1: So but first of all, what do you just think
Speaker 1: of that conversation at all? That that's the point where
Speaker 1: dray was at, and the fact that Adam stepped in
Speaker 1: and said what he said.
Speaker 3: As an over overall, I think it's really dope from
Speaker 3: both for both people. And the reason I could say
Speaker 3: that is I agree with Adam when when he said
Speaker 3: that was you know, he's being a rational He's making
Speaker 3: you know, the dramatic decision, and I agree with that,
Speaker 3: but it also shows that And the reason I say
Speaker 3: this is because Anybody that genuinely cares for Draymond, has
Speaker 3: genuine love for him, would have told him the same thing. Draymond,
Speaker 3: you know, you wild and you're tripping right now. You're
Speaker 3: overthinking this.
Speaker 1: Saying you're tripping, hey, and.
Speaker 3: And I hope the conversation went that way, because that
Speaker 3: would be the absolute truth. Anyone that really cares for
Speaker 3: Draymond would have told him the same thing. So just
Speaker 3: seeing that response from Adam Silver or hearing about that response,
Speaker 3: obviously you know he cares, and I can only imagine
Speaker 3: the state of mind that Draymond is in. Obviously he
Speaker 3: did some you know, some wild bullshit that you know,
Speaker 3: these are the consequences of his actions. But with that
Speaker 3: being said, I've spoke on the time and time again,
Speaker 3: like I can understand why he got to that point. Mentally, Yeah,
Speaker 3: this whole narrative has been spun out of control. The
Speaker 3: you know, the attack of his character, the attack of
Speaker 3: him as a human being, a person, you know, taking
Speaker 3: him outside of a basketball court, and it's just completely unfair.
Speaker 3: Did he do some things that you know, whut that
Speaker 3: that crossed the line when it comes to the game
Speaker 3: of basketball. Absolutely, but it shouldn't determine who he is
Speaker 3: as a person off the court, and that's where you know,
Speaker 3: my whole issue comes in with it. So to hear
Speaker 3: where Draymond is mentally about it, it's understandable. It can
Speaker 3: become a lot and you know, people say, you know,
Speaker 3: well he makes millions of dollars, Well, that doesn't Money
Speaker 3: doesn't take away your emotions. Money doesn't take away your feelings.
Speaker 3: Money doesn't stop you from bleeding, crying, being sad, depressed,
Speaker 3: any of those things. So you know, for that to
Speaker 3: be the number one excuse, well that comes with the
Speaker 3: money that it doesn't excuse anything. So you know, I'm
Speaker 3: glad that mine could come back with a clear mind
Speaker 3: and get back to where he is with you know,
Speaker 3: going to continue and finish out his career and you know,
Speaker 3: hopefully he's in a better place and he can just
Speaker 3: move on from this. We can all move on from it,
Speaker 3: and we can get back to Dreymond playing a high
Speaker 3: level of basketball, you know, and hopefully helping the Warriors
Speaker 3: turning season around. So you know, I'm happy that he's
Speaker 3: back on the floor, and like I said, I hope
Speaker 3: everything works out in his favor to where he's able
Speaker 3: to move on and get back to the more positive
Speaker 3: things in his career.
Speaker 1: I thought the point you made right when he was
Speaker 1: suspended about how we're in this culture where where it's
Speaker 1: all one or the other. Right, So, you know, when
Speaker 1: he was winning, when they were winning titles, you know,
Speaker 1: he was the glue. He was this he was that
Speaker 1: those emotions were so important to the team. But then
Speaker 1: after especially this last suspension, and look, because it came
Speaker 1: so quickly on the heels of the one before it,
Speaker 1: there was all this chatter about, oh, Draymond has deep
Speaker 1: emotional problems and easy going to be able to even
Speaker 1: get back to being a teammate, a good teammate, that
Speaker 1: kind of thing. Your point that it's just was swing,
Speaker 1: there's no middle ground, I thought was so astute. And
Speaker 1: the fact that now that conversation, that national conversation has
Speaker 1: like tampered down a little bit. I mean, we're so
Speaker 1: rash now as Americans and American culture. It's like either
Speaker 1: all one way, all the other. It's huge for forty
Speaker 1: eight hours, but then it kind of dissipates, and I
Speaker 1: think that's where the national conversation on Draymond is now
Speaker 1: is people are like, oh, they're a little calmer about it,
Speaker 1: and that maybe he can get back to being who
Speaker 1: he is publicly in addition to just himself. He was
Speaker 1: on the bench last night, so that was a step
Speaker 1: in the right direction. He's supposed to come back later
Speaker 1: this week. What effect do you think it'll have on
Speaker 1: the Warriors on the court to have him just back
Speaker 1: and being that stabilizing force.
Speaker 2: I'm not really sure.
Speaker 3: And the reason I say that is the Warriors have
Speaker 3: so many problems outside of Draymond. Like Draymond coming back
Speaker 3: or Draymond not being there doesn't change the fact that
Speaker 3: the Warriors have.
Speaker 2: Issues they have.
Speaker 3: It's so many things that need to be fixed with
Speaker 3: the Warriors, So you know, the addition or subtraction of Draymond,
Speaker 3: I don't really feel changes anything. I think this is
Speaker 3: a management problem, an ownership problem where you know, obviously
Speaker 3: they're they put so much money into this team throughout
Speaker 3: the years, and now there at this point where you know,
Speaker 3: the money and the uh and the production aren't really
Speaker 3: matching up. So this is more of an organization problem
Speaker 3: and they have to figure out, you know, which path
Speaker 3: they want to take. Do they want to continue to
Speaker 3: try to you know, squeeze this limit and get the
Speaker 3: best out of these three Hall of famers, or are
Speaker 3: they ready to you know, move on and blow this
Speaker 3: thing up and start to rebuild a process. So I
Speaker 3: kind of think that's where they are when it comes
Speaker 3: to this team, And like I said, it's on management
Speaker 3: to figure out which route they want to take.
Speaker 1: Well, look, you're the one who played on this team.
Speaker 1: You know all the people involved. So closely to me,
Speaker 1: Draymond Green is what helps Steph Curry be Steph. And
Speaker 1: I think we've seen that when Draymond's off the court.
Speaker 1: Steph has had some great games, but he also has
Speaker 1: had some not so great shooting games. And I think, honestly,
Speaker 1: I think that they need Draymond. There is talk though
Speaker 1: of and look, we talked last week about should they
Speaker 1: trade Klay Thompson or not? Where is he and his
Speaker 1: relationship with the Warriors. He'll be a free agent this
Speaker 1: coming summer. Draymond Green just signed that huge contract. But
Speaker 1: now that he is back and eligible and going to
Speaker 1: be playing again and the trade deadline is just about
Speaker 1: a month away, do you believe any of this talk,
Speaker 1: Boogie that the Warriors should look to trade Draymond do
Speaker 1: you think he even has any value right now? What
Speaker 1: do you think?
Speaker 3: My good is telling me. I don't see this team
Speaker 3: making a drastic move mid season. I think they'll ride
Speaker 3: this out and the decisions to be made in the offseason.
Speaker 3: But as far as the trade value with Draymond, this
Speaker 3: is a league that flourish is on you know, defenders
Speaker 3: because you know the scoring is locked up in this league.
Speaker 3: They need as many defenders as they as they can get,
Speaker 3: and elite defenders at that. So I feel like the
Speaker 3: value for Draymond will always be there with what he's with,
Speaker 3: what he's great at doing. I feel like he could
Speaker 3: fit into any team. Obviously, personality comes into play with
Speaker 3: the narratives that's been put on his name, but you know,
Speaker 3: Draymond's a winner, He's been a winner since he stepped in,
Speaker 3: and like I said, I feel like he could fit
Speaker 3: into any team. So my personal opinion, I feel like
Speaker 3: his value is still where it is. Obviously age comes
Speaker 3: into play things of that nature, but what he brings
Speaker 3: to the court on a nine the basis doesn't really change.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I agree that there is a market for him
Speaker 1: if they wanted to deal him. I mean, look, you're
Speaker 1: telling me Detroit wouldn't want to bring him back to
Speaker 1: Michigan no matter how big his contract is or how
Speaker 1: old he is. Like, I can see all kinds of
Speaker 1: teams that might want to just have that sort of
Speaker 1: presence around the team for their younger players, or want
Speaker 1: the kind of publicity frankly, and the energy that Draymond
Speaker 1: would bring. But I don't think they're going to deal him.
Speaker 1: You know, We'll have to see. We talked a little
Speaker 1: bit about the West and their trade parameters with all
Speaker 1: the different teams last week. I want to get to
Speaker 1: the E this week. But before we talk trade deadline,
Speaker 1: we got to talk about the Celtics and Jason Tatum book,
Speaker 1: because it is crazy what Boston is doing and it's
Speaker 1: been so quiet. But as we sit here today, they
Speaker 1: are number one in record in the entire league, number
Speaker 1: one in net rating, number two in offensive rating, they
Speaker 1: have the number two defense in the league, and yet
Speaker 1: Jason Tatum not really being included in this MVP discussion
Speaker 1: at all. In fact, the NBA's own website has sort
Speaker 1: of a weekly ranking where they rank the top five
Speaker 1: MVP candidates, like sort of as it stands for that week,
Speaker 1: Jason Tatum's not even on that top five list. I mean,
Speaker 1: it's kind of crazy. He's having one of the better
Speaker 1: all around seasons of his already impressive career. His all
Speaker 1: round game has really just this flourished and then if
Speaker 1: you like scoring, he's hitting threes at thirty seven percent.
Speaker 1: He's hit over thirty points in three of his last
Speaker 1: four games. I think, why do you think some of
Speaker 1: that stuff isn't translating him into even being in that
Speaker 1: quote the conversation that we always talk about.
Speaker 2: What's the nicest way I could put.
Speaker 1: This, Rachel, You've never been that nice, boggy.
Speaker 2: Come on, well, I'm gonna say this.
Speaker 3: The last five years, it's been Europeans to win MVP. Yes,
Speaker 3: every season we start, who do you think will win
Speaker 3: MVP this year? You kind of come out with the
Speaker 3: rankings every year it's Europeans. On the league website list
Speaker 3: right now, number one is Joel l Mb, Number two
Speaker 3: is Nicole Jokic, Number three is Shak Alexander, number four
Speaker 3: is Gianni's.
Speaker 2: Number five is Luca mm hmm.
Speaker 1: She's Canadian. I'm just gonna throw that out there.
Speaker 2: Just read between the lines a little bit.
Speaker 1: There's a bias against American players.
Speaker 3: Who doesn't want you got to put the basketball part aside.
Speaker 1: Who doesn't want American players to be good in the NBA?
Speaker 1: American players still sell the best Nike. You can still
Speaker 1: market an American player more than they can anyone else.
Speaker 1: I don't I don't know who's who have a business.
Speaker 2: And we want to be global. We want to be global. Okay,
Speaker 2: the NBA wants to be global.
Speaker 3: It wants to It wants it to be a global game,
Speaker 3: which is is becoming every day. And you know when
Speaker 3: your top five MVP candidates are all from everywhere but America,
Speaker 3: that definitely.
Speaker 2: Helps the case.
Speaker 1: So okay, well you don't make any money, you book
Speaker 1: cousins do not make any money in Greece. All right,
Speaker 1: well you booky cousins do not make any money in Greece,
Speaker 1: if you honest is hyped up. So in your rankings,
Speaker 1: you look at those five guys, right, would you kick
Speaker 1: any of those five guys you just mentioned out to
Speaker 1: put Jason Tatum in?
Speaker 3: I would, And I value winning like I think when
Speaker 3: when it comes to MVP, I think when it has
Speaker 3: to play a part in that And my only issue
Speaker 3: what it is it kind of it's no standard. There's
Speaker 3: no standard for what it takes to be an MVP.
Speaker 3: You know, be about numbers the next case. Yeah, one case,
Speaker 3: it'd be about numbers the next time, and to be
Speaker 3: about wins and who's dominating you know what teams dominating
Speaker 3: the league. We can take it back to the Steve
Speaker 3: Nash and Kobe years, Steve Nash winning because his team
Speaker 3: was winning, Kobe was putting up unreal numbers. Still to
Speaker 3: this day, we can't find a standard to what it
Speaker 3: takes to you know, what are the criteria is to
Speaker 3: win MVP. We still don't know. All I know is
Speaker 3: Jason Tatum is having an unbelievable year. He has a
Speaker 3: number one team in the East. He's averaging twenty eight
Speaker 3: with nine and five like mm hmm.
Speaker 2: He has to be top three. He has to be.
Speaker 1: I think the the number one team over to we
Speaker 1: take out. That's not my job to decide correctly. Oh
Speaker 1: that's a cop out, you know my thing. If you're
Speaker 1: gonna say he's got to be top five, you got
Speaker 1: to tell me who's coming out. Ah, man, I don't
Speaker 1: know where the Mavericks are right now in the rank
Speaker 1: in the standings. They were in the top three for
Speaker 1: a while, then they dropped all the way down to
Speaker 1: seven or eight. I don't know where they are right now.
Speaker 1: Maybe one of the producers can jump in.
Speaker 3: But and I feel like you have to take out
Speaker 3: I feel like Shade, Jannis or Luca could be taken out.
Speaker 1: Not because you can't take out if you're talking about record,
Speaker 1: you can't take out Shaye. They're the thunder of the
Speaker 1: number two team in the West, but.
Speaker 2: The Celtics on the number one team in the East.
Speaker 1: I think has had I think Luca's had a season
Speaker 1: that is worth being quote in the conversation as we say.
Speaker 1: But if we do have to take someone out, I
Speaker 1: think because the Mavericks are six in the standings, as
Speaker 1: great as Luca has been so far the season, and
Speaker 1: he has been great, that maybe you put Jason Tatum
Speaker 1: in that spot by just because I think, you know,
Speaker 1: the winning makes a big difference, and he's playing so well.
Speaker 1: That team does not move, does not go anywhere without
Speaker 1: Jason Tatum. So I don't know, we'll see, We'll watch
Speaker 1: that as the season goes on. I do want to
Speaker 1: talk trades, though, Boog, because the Celtics are one of
Speaker 1: the teams. We're just going to go through the top
Speaker 1: teams in the East because you know, we see these
Speaker 1: teams they want to make the tweak, right, they want
Speaker 1: to be the one to sort of get clear of
Speaker 1: everyone else, and that thick kind of group of contenders
Speaker 1: at the top of the East we saw a couple
Speaker 1: of years ago. Do you remember that, like all three
Speaker 1: top East teams like made a trade one after the
Speaker 1: other on the deadline day, within an hour of each other,
Speaker 1: trying to one up each other. And so let's take
Speaker 1: a look at these teams and what they might do
Speaker 1: this year if we keep with the Celtics just for
Speaker 1: a minute, especially since they're at the top of that bunch.
Speaker 1: Brad Stevens spoke to the media the other day and
Speaker 1: he talked about the fact that he doesn't expect them
Speaker 1: to make some big move. In fact, he was asked
Speaker 1: about the center spot two times, which of course that's
Speaker 1: been our topic conversation in terms of what the Celtics
Speaker 1: might need more of since the summertime, and both times
Speaker 1: he either avoided the question or he said, oh, I
Speaker 1: think that you know, between Porzingis and al Horford were
Speaker 1: good and he kept answering instead by saying that they
Speaker 1: needed a big wing player instead, So that was interesting.
Speaker 1: Also interesting that he made the point that, look, they
Speaker 1: have the six point two million dollar trade exception. That's
Speaker 1: kind of it. That's all they have to kind of
Speaker 1: play with right now without giving away one of the
Speaker 1: pieces that's working so well for them and making them
Speaker 1: number one in the East. So someone would have to
Speaker 1: fit into their be likely a more veteran player, you know,
Speaker 1: someone who's on a minimum. What do you think, what
Speaker 1: do you think if they are looking for a big
Speaker 1: wing do you think they need anything. Brad also pointed
Speaker 1: out it might just be someone in the organization they
Speaker 1: need to develop more and not mess with it.
Speaker 2: I don't see this team needing too much.
Speaker 3: I'm not even really understanding the big wing that that's
Speaker 3: needed to be feel yeah that yeah, I feel like
Speaker 3: this team is complete. I think I think they did
Speaker 3: a great job of constructing his team, filling out every
Speaker 3: need in the off season to the point where this is,
Speaker 3: you know, one of the favorites to win it this year.
Speaker 3: So as far as finding the wing that they are
Speaker 3: talking about, I could see that being like a Royce
Speaker 3: O'Neill from Brooklyn, something of that nature. Yeah, obviously it's
Speaker 3: got to be, you know, a more veteran wing, but
Speaker 3: also a guy that's you know, kind of in a
Speaker 3: bench role. I can't really see it being a starter
Speaker 3: type player. So I can see a Royce O'Neill fitting that,
Speaker 3: you know that that criteria, But as far as this
Speaker 3: team needs, I don't really see much. Their stacked This
Speaker 3: is a stacked team.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and look, Raise O'Neil might be wanted by one
Speaker 1: of these other teams because if you go right down
Speaker 1: the standings to the Bucks, look, they need defense and
Speaker 1: they I think they have unlike Boston. I think they
Speaker 1: have to make a move. You know, they made this
Speaker 1: huge investment in Damian Alert. They shook up the whole team.
Speaker 1: You can't go into the playoffs like this without having
Speaker 1: a defensive end. And they knew it. They knew when
Speaker 1: they were getting rid of Drew Holliday what was going on.
Speaker 1: But now it's time. Now it's time to pay that
Speaker 1: Piper Royce O'Neill has been talked about it being a
Speaker 1: good fit for them. You know, some bigger names that
Speaker 1: might cost more, and we'll see what the you know,
Speaker 1: bidding ends. Up being for them would be Alex Caruso
Speaker 1: Drian Finney Smith. But then also you've got Royce, You've
Speaker 1: got Delon Wright in Washington. You know what, do you
Speaker 1: think who do you think would be a good fit
Speaker 1: for that team?
Speaker 3: I mean the two most obvious choices are as Caruso
Speaker 3: and Fanny Smith.
Speaker 2: Drian Finney Smith.
Speaker 3: I think they come in and fit that defensive wing
Speaker 3: row perfectly for this team. This is a team that
Speaker 3: we've spoken with their defensive struggles throughout the season. So
Speaker 3: you know, honestly, any of these names fit that fit
Speaker 3: that bial of what they're trying to do. But the
Speaker 3: two names that I feel take them over to hunt
Speaker 3: put push this team over the hump, or Cruso on
Speaker 3: Phinney Smith. Obviously, Cruso is a championship you know player,
Speaker 3: He's played at that level. This is a team with
Speaker 3: aspirations of being the championship team, so obviously you want
Speaker 3: to go with that experience as the first option. And
Speaker 3: just Drian Phinney Smith in general, just his intangibles, his athleticism,
Speaker 3: his length, the height, with being a versatile wing defender,
Speaker 3: he can guard you know the post song. So those
Speaker 3: two names obviously jump out and could fit that team perfectly.
Speaker 3: So if I'm the Bucks, I'm I'm definitely trying to
Speaker 3: go all in on those two guys.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think you just have to you have to
Speaker 1: figure it out because they need that. And you know,
Speaker 1: Damian Lillard, he's not old. I mean, his game is
Speaker 1: one of the kind of game that's gonna last long
Speaker 1: in the NBA. You know, shooters obviously can play late
Speaker 1: into their careers, but he is getting older, and every
Speaker 1: year that passes, every year that Giannis gets, you know,
Speaker 1: a little frustrated. Obviously, he hinted the summer about maybe
Speaker 1: wanted to leave. Then they got name, he signed that
Speaker 1: big contract. But as we know, contracts in the NBA
Speaker 1: don't mean that you necessarily stay in that team, just
Speaker 1: asked James Harden, So you know, they need to keep
Speaker 1: him happy, they need to keep the bus moving. So
Speaker 1: I totally agree with you. And then you get to
Speaker 1: the sixers underneath them in the standings, and look, they
Speaker 1: made the hardened deal and we were all like, great, wonderful.
Speaker 1: Now let's see who their next move is. Who are
Speaker 1: they going to bring in to replace him? And Tyres
Speaker 1: MAXI just exploded and he's been so good for them
Speaker 1: that now it's a question of do they need to
Speaker 1: make a deal before the deadline? Do they stam pat
Speaker 1: They've got a ton of cap room opening up this summer.
Speaker 1: They have really kept their options open. Even with the
Speaker 1: hard and trade. They got guys back who are on
Speaker 1: expiring contracts, and the idea was they would have enough
Speaker 1: money either to take on a big salary, you know
Speaker 1: when if they got a big player at the deadline,
Speaker 1: or go out the summer in free agency and get
Speaker 1: an a huge star if there is another huge star available.
Speaker 1: I mean, that has to happen, that has to shake out.
Speaker 1: But what do you think do you think that Joel Embiid,
Speaker 1: who has sort of been a little impatient and they
Speaker 1: haven't advanced, you know, even even past the second round
Speaker 1: in a long time, do you need to make a
Speaker 1: move now to kind of tweak that and get them
Speaker 1: into those Eastern Conference finals or do you feel fine
Speaker 1: standing patent waiting.
Speaker 3: Honestly, I think this sixty teen waits to see they're
Speaker 3: playing at a high level with you know what's in
Speaker 3: place right now. I think their main focus is, you know,
Speaker 3: continuing to let Joel have the year that he's having,
Speaker 3: possibly winning another MVP this year, it only increases their
Speaker 3: chances of landing another star who wouldn't want to come
Speaker 3: play with a two time MVB. So I think that's
Speaker 3: something that you know, they're pushing to make happen. And
Speaker 3: you know, I don't think this team is in a
Speaker 3: bad place. Like I said, I've said before, they have
Speaker 3: their two core guys and you know MAXI and MB now,
Speaker 3: so now it's just about filling out the rest of
Speaker 3: the roster. They have a great coaching, Nick Nurse championship coach,
Speaker 3: incredible IQ when it comes to the notepad. So I
Speaker 3: think a lot of things are in place for them.
Speaker 3: I don't think it's really a rush. I don't think
Speaker 3: they make this season championship or bus season. So I
Speaker 3: think they you know, sit still with what they got
Speaker 3: kind of monitored, uh, monitor the horizon and figure out,
Speaker 3: you know, the exact pieces they want to fill out
Speaker 3: this team with in the off season and going into
Speaker 3: the next season.
Speaker 2: So I don't really see them making a move right now.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean they are going to have to figure
Speaker 1: it out because they were really hot on og A Nanobi.
Speaker 1: Obviously he goes to the next his contracts expiring. But
Speaker 1: again let's not kid ourselves. Og Ananoby's agent is the
Speaker 1: son of Leon Ross, So you gotta think that the
Speaker 1: Knicks are aware family Christmas table conversation that if they
Speaker 1: traded for og they can keep og recent him and
Speaker 1: you know he will not be on the market for Philadelphia.
Speaker 1: Then you look at Pascal Siakam. That was another big
Speaker 1: rumored piece that Philadelphia was going to go after. But
Speaker 1: all the reporting around Philadelphia and Toronto is that the
Speaker 1: Sixers have not aggressively tried to get Siakam at all.
Speaker 1: In fact, that the idea is that. I mean, look,
Speaker 1: I don't know. Maybe Nick Nurse and Siakam did not
Speaker 1: leave on good terms when Nick left the organization, I
Speaker 1: don't know. Maybe it's just they don't think is on
Speaker 1: court fit with Embido Maxie is quite right. But they,
Speaker 1: you know, reportedly or just not really involved in those discussions.
Speaker 1: And there are so many teams that really want Siakam
Speaker 1: that you know, it doesn't seem like at this point
Speaker 1: they're going to jump in and try to get him.
Speaker 1: So it'll be interesting to see if they try to
Speaker 1: get again a player more around the edges if they
Speaker 1: just stamp pat if they feel that pressure from EMBIID.
Speaker 1: I think you talk to Joel right and you say, okay,
Speaker 1: where are you If we don't do anything, is this
Speaker 1: going to come back to bite us? And you're going
Speaker 1: to you know, make waves this summer. So I think, well,
Speaker 1: they'll have to see what they do they are But
Speaker 1: that big move that we were expecting at the beginning
Speaker 1: of the season, after the hard and trade, I don't
Speaker 1: think that's coming. And that's that's very interesting, which brings
Speaker 1: us to the heat because they need a point guard
Speaker 1: book and look, we all know that they turn it
Speaker 1: on in the playoffs. They're fourth in the East. You
Speaker 1: know they could obviously, you know, even drop down to
Speaker 1: fifth or sixth, seventh, and they're still dangerous once we
Speaker 1: get into April. But that being said, they need a
Speaker 1: point guard. And it's just interesting. We thought they were
Speaker 1: going to top target Donovan, Mitchell donovand Mitchell Cleveland's saying
Speaker 1: they're not gonna put them on the trading block. I
Speaker 1: don't know if bog everyone has a price, I don't know.
Speaker 1: What do you think? What do you think should go
Speaker 1: on there in Miami? Right? No, No, we're not trading
Speaker 1: you book Nore.
Speaker 3: Yeah, any team tells you to start packing your ship.
Speaker 3: But uh, but when it comes to Donovan Mitchell, I
Speaker 3: think he's He's the part perfect piece for Miami. Obviously,
Speaker 3: they need the offense, they have the defense in place.
Speaker 3: I think Donovan Mitchell just makes that team so much better,
Speaker 3: a huge threat in the league. But as far as
Speaker 3: the Heat just needed a point guard in general, I
Speaker 3: feel like it's a lot of targets out there. I
Speaker 3: can see a special then with he coming in and
Speaker 3: filling in that role. Obviously, the team needs the offense
Speaker 3: that I was speaking about. I think he fits fits
Speaker 3: that bill for them.
Speaker 2: Malcolm Brocklon is another option.
Speaker 3: That you know, fist, that mold fist that you know,
Speaker 3: the the standard of that team, the toughness and you know,
Speaker 3: defensive minded team, team first guy. So I and everywhere
Speaker 3: Malcolm's being he's been a winner, So I think he
Speaker 3: fits that criteria as well. And for some reason, this
Speaker 3: name just came up in my head. I think he
Speaker 3: could help a lot of teams this year. He's very
Speaker 3: experienced point guard. John Wallas just sitting at home, I
Speaker 3: think he fished. He why he hasn't gotten another chance.
Speaker 3: I'm not really sure, but John Waller's perfect for that role.
Speaker 3: He could come in as a starter. He can come
Speaker 3: in off the bench and really help that team get
Speaker 3: to another level.
Speaker 2: So that's another name that's just out there.
Speaker 1: So I love you.
Speaker 2: Yeah, But.
Speaker 3: I mean they have some great options with you know,
Speaker 3: filling out this team and actually making them a contender
Speaker 3: this year because you know, their foundation is Jimmy and Bam,
Speaker 3: so anything you feel around that only increases the team.
Speaker 3: Obviously you're not getting the production you want from Kyle Lars,
Speaker 3: so that's a contract that can be sent out, and
Speaker 3: I mean it's just so many options for this Heat team.
Speaker 3: They have some draft capital, they have Tyler Hiro as
Speaker 3: a big trade that's it. So they could definitely make
Speaker 3: some moves and feel this roster out to be a
Speaker 3: team that you know, challenges the league.
Speaker 2: So we'll see what happens.
Speaker 1: I love the John wall idea. He had a workout
Speaker 1: I would say maybe a month ago, and a bunch
Speaker 1: of teams, more than a dozen teams I think attended.
Speaker 1: So we'll see if he jumps back in there before
Speaker 1: the deadline or maybe in the buyout market. Malcolm Brogden
Speaker 1: is hungry to get back to a contending team. Watch
Speaker 1: for Tyas Jones too. I think he's an interesting name
Speaker 1: around the heat, but very good, all right. I love
Speaker 1: our East. Look at the trade deadline and we'll see
Speaker 1: what happens over the next week. Now we're getting into
Speaker 1: one of my favorite segments, my window into the deep
Speaker 1: dark successful gambling mind of Boogey Cousins. I love this.
Speaker 1: I love getting a window into your soul, my friend.
Speaker 1: The bet on the board for I'll take that bet,
Speaker 1: presented by DraftKings is the Houston Rockets. This is a
Speaker 1: really fun bet they have up right now. It's whether
Speaker 1: the Rockets are going to make the playoffs. And this
Speaker 1: is why it's interesting. The Rockets are sitting in ninth
Speaker 1: place right now, but it is just a bumble cluster
Speaker 1: in the West. These standings are crazy. You have the
Speaker 1: top seeded Wolves and then you have all the way
Speaker 1: down to the Rockets in ninth place, and they're only
Speaker 1: separated by seven games. You have. It's just it's crazy.
Speaker 1: Anybody could be in there. You get the Lakers and
Speaker 1: the Warriors underneath the Rockets in tenth and eleventh, and
Speaker 1: we certainly expect them to make some moves. Lakers just
Speaker 1: beat the Clippers, look like maybe they're waking up from
Speaker 1: their slump that they've been in over the last month
Speaker 1: or so. What do you think, boogie? The odds are
Speaker 1: the Rockets would make the playoffs. They're plus one ninety
Speaker 1: five miss the playoffs two fifty, which minus two fifty.
Speaker 1: Of course, which beat are you taking? Are you going
Speaker 1: to take that they're going to make the playoffs or
Speaker 1: will you take that bet that they're going to lose
Speaker 1: the playoffs? Lose the playoffs, not make the playoffs.
Speaker 2: Yeah, they're not making.
Speaker 1: The playoffs and they're not.
Speaker 3: The reason I say that is this Rockets team. No,
Speaker 3: this Rockets team isn't That's not their goal right now.
Speaker 3: Their goal has developed these young players that they've you know,
Speaker 3: drafted over the years. I think there'll be a tough
Speaker 3: team to beat this year. They're well coached, they're defensive minded,
Speaker 3: so any team like that is always going to be
Speaker 3: tough to beat. They're one of those teams that aren't
Speaker 3: good enough, you know, to you know, make the playoffs,
Speaker 3: but they're good enough to ruin another team season. I
Speaker 3: think there'll be a challenge every night of whatever team
Speaker 3: you know they face. But as far as making the
Speaker 3: playoffs or even making a push to make the playoffs,
Speaker 3: I don't think this team or organization is ready to
Speaker 3: make the move. Like I said, it's just about developing
Speaker 3: the young pieces and just being competitive this year, and
Speaker 3: I think they're doing a great job of that. I
Speaker 3: think their goal will be next year to kind of,
Speaker 3: you know, figure out exactly what they're gonna keep, you know,
Speaker 3: the exact you know pieces they're gonna move forward with
Speaker 3: this young team, and then you know, we'll start seeing
Speaker 3: them make a push to be you know, a playoff
Speaker 3: slash contender. So and on top of that, the teams
Speaker 3: beneath them, the Lakers, Sons, these teams are gonna make
Speaker 3: moves to improve. These were built this season to compete
Speaker 3: for a championship, so they'll definitely be making moves to improve.
Speaker 3: They will only get better throughout the season. So that's
Speaker 3: the reason I kind of say this Rockets team it's
Speaker 3: not I just don't see that this season. So definitely
Speaker 3: bad against them making the playoffs if you want to
Speaker 3: keep some money.
Speaker 1: I really like watching them. They're fun. It's so nice
Speaker 1: to have them have like that fun energy after some
Speaker 1: really tough years down there. Ima Aduka is going back
Speaker 1: to Boston. I think the Rockets play in Boston sometime
Speaker 1: in the next week or so, so that will be interesting.
Speaker 1: But he's certainly done great things with that team. Shangun
Speaker 1: has been incredible, what a find like they just have
Speaker 1: a lot of fun energy around them. But I have
Speaker 1: to agree with you, I'm not sure they're making the
Speaker 1: playoffs given who's under them. I mean, that's really the
Speaker 1: thing is that I expect the Lakers to make a move,
Speaker 1: and also a team with Lebron and ad I just
Speaker 1: don't see them seeing the playoffs. I don't see it.
Speaker 1: And the Warriors, I think are going to make a move,
Speaker 1: So we'll see what happens there. The Suns finally have
Speaker 1: Bradley Beal back, I hope for good, and we'll see
Speaker 1: what they do. They're actually in Los Angeles this week,
Speaker 1: so I'm gonna go out and see them a couple
Speaker 1: of the games. But tough bet for the Houston Rockets.
Speaker 1: We'll see, we'll see. But I now I get a
Speaker 1: little insight into you know, what Boogie thinks America. So
Speaker 1: there you go. Follow his advice. He's strongly right time
Speaker 1: for set a reminder. These are the games that you're
Speaker 1: gonna want to make sure you put on your calendar
Speaker 1: for this week, Boogie. I want to know which of
Speaker 1: these games you are most interested in. Let me read
Speaker 1: them off for you. On Wednesday, we have the Wolves
Speaker 1: at the Celtics. That will be interesting, number one team
Speaker 1: in the West versus number one team in the East.
Speaker 1: On Thursday, you've got Celtics at Bucks that will of
Speaker 1: course be a huge matchup with implications going forward into
Speaker 1: the playoffs. You also have Sons at Lakers. That'll be
Speaker 1: a great game. That will be I think the Sons
Speaker 1: are playing the Clippers tonight, so it's gonna be very
Speaker 1: interesting to see the Suns after four days in Los Angeles.
Speaker 1: I don't know, although they live in Phoenix, so maybe
Speaker 1: not quite going as wild as some of the other
Speaker 1: teams that come in here. Friday, we've got Kings at
Speaker 1: Sixers and Pelicans at Nuggets. So which of those games
Speaker 1: is most interesting to you.
Speaker 3: I'm excited for Wednesday's game Wolves and Celtics. You get
Speaker 3: the best two teams in the league from both conferences.
Speaker 3: I think it's just going to be a good basketball game,
Speaker 3: good competitive game. You get the best at the best
Speaker 3: from both sides. So I'm interested in now I think
Speaker 3: that would be a great show.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think so too. And look, you know these teams,
Speaker 1: they know what they're fighting for and they know how
Speaker 1: important it is going to become late playoff time. So
Speaker 1: I'm very interested to see how that all works out.
Speaker 1: And speaking of the Bucks, we got to get to
Speaker 1: our doom scroll our social media segment. We look around
Speaker 1: all the socials, so you can we just give you
Speaker 1: the best at the best. You don't have to And
Speaker 1: I love this from Malik Beasley showing some confidence here.
Speaker 1: But the Bucks are one and four against the Pacers
Speaker 1: this season. This has exploded out of nowhere into this
Speaker 1: incredibly like grudge match rivalry between these two teams. You know,
Speaker 1: it is spicy in the Midwest America. But Beasley went
Speaker 1: out on a limb here. He said, quote, I'm not
Speaker 1: it's not going to be pretty for them if the
Speaker 1: teams match up in the playoffs. That is a lot.
Speaker 1: If you're a role player and you are one and
Speaker 1: four on the season already, what do you think of
Speaker 1: a role player speaking out like that? And putting everyone
Speaker 1: else on blast.
Speaker 3: Man, got to play your role man, sit back, play cool,
Speaker 3: like we don't need this.
Speaker 2: For me, not from you.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'm pretty sure you know Jannis or Dane pulled
Speaker 3: into the side of you know.
Speaker 2: Young fella, you know you should sip it, you know
Speaker 2: what I mean?
Speaker 3: But uh, that's that's not his place. That's not his place.
Speaker 3: I don't think. I don't know. They've lost one out
Speaker 3: of four against his team, and I don't think I
Speaker 3: think they only won.
Speaker 1: They're one and four.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, but him specifically, Elik Beasley has only scored
Speaker 3: double digits one time out of all of those meetings.
Speaker 3: I just don't think he's the right guy to be
Speaker 3: pushing this message like let's leave that today or Jannis
Speaker 3: or let's just go and play. The talking isn't necessary,
Speaker 3: especially from a role player like sit back, play cool
Speaker 3: and everything on go smooth.
Speaker 1: Well, look, I give Chris Haynes he was doing that
Speaker 1: interview credit. He always gets guys going, but maybe maybe
Speaker 1: a little quieter on this one. Jiannis did in fact
Speaker 1: speak on the rivalry, but he had a very different take.
Speaker 1: This quote was amazing. He was basically asked, you know
Speaker 1: how much do you think about the Pacers? You know,
Speaker 1: how much is Indiana in your head? And you know
Speaker 1: a lot of players, especially elite players like Giannis, would
Speaker 1: be like, oh, I don't think about them. I think
Speaker 1: about the game in front of me. You know, don't
Speaker 1: want to give anyone anything extra. Yanna's totally the opposite.
Speaker 1: Apparently the Pacers are not just renting space in his
Speaker 1: head for free. They've moved in, They've built an addition,
Speaker 1: they brought some extra family. This is what he said. Quote.
Speaker 1: You think about it when you go home and sleep
Speaker 1: and wake up, you think about it, when you go
Speaker 1: back and work out, you think about it. And my
Speaker 1: favorite part, when you're getting freaky at night, you think
Speaker 1: about it. So yeah, there you go. That's more information
Speaker 1: than I needed personally. Yeah, that's a lot. What do
Speaker 1: you think about the Pacers having this much of a
Speaker 1: stake in Yeah, this is mental state.
Speaker 2: Man obviously is on his mind for it.
Speaker 1: You think.
Speaker 2: So for that last.
Speaker 3: Part, man, for you to be in the middle of,
Speaker 3: you know, the extra curricular and it's still on your mind,
Speaker 3: that says a lot. So man, Yannis, you got some
Speaker 3: thing is to figure out.
Speaker 2: Brother. I'm sure the wife he isn't happy about.
Speaker 1: It, but she's lovely by the way.
Speaker 2: Obvious, this is the big task for this this Bucks team.
Speaker 1: Yep. Obviously they've got three kids, so he can't be
Speaker 1: thinking about it that much because he's still pumping them out.
Speaker 3: But I see, But man, that's that's a that's a
Speaker 3: crazy statement. That's a crazy statement.
Speaker 1: Yeah, so there you go. We'll have to see how
Speaker 1: that rivalry goes.
Speaker 3: Yes, I think obviously it's it's it's something that's on
Speaker 3: this Bucks team's mind. This this team has has had
Speaker 3: their number for the for the year so far. So
Speaker 3: this is just a sign of you know, self improvement,
Speaker 3: the team being aware of you know, they struggled with
Speaker 3: this team all year. They want to become better. They
Speaker 3: want to compete for a championship this year, so them
Speaker 3: better in this situation against this one team that they
Speaker 3: feel has kind of been in their wordy season. It
Speaker 3: only it only reaches their chances and helps the same
Speaker 3: improve So the fact that they are realizing that they've
Speaker 3: struggled against them, they know they have something to improve
Speaker 3: on this year and this is one of their challenges.
Speaker 1: So you know, well, apparently everyone except Malik Beasley realizes
Speaker 1: they've struggled against them. But yes, everyone else, definitely, everyone
Speaker 1: else realizes that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, the league, you got to sit this one out, brother,
Speaker 2: this this.
Speaker 1: Is exactly.
Speaker 2: All right.
Speaker 1: We're gonna move on to Merk Cuban because he did
Speaker 1: something pretty amazing this week. You know, he recently sold
Speaker 1: a big chunk of his steak and the team he
Speaker 1: is still, of course going to be in charge of basketball,
Speaker 1: which is a crazy arrangement. Only Mark Cuban, the Shark
Speaker 1: of Sharks deal maker, could pull that off. But anyway,
Speaker 1: because he made so much money, he announced to his
Speaker 1: employees that he's going to give out thirty five million
Speaker 1: dollars combined in bonuses. And he said the bonus structure
Speaker 1: will be based largely in part of how much you're
Speaker 1: of service they've given to the team. So it is
Speaker 1: about loyalty. It includes everyone in the organization, not just
Speaker 1: the top brass. I just wanted to know what you
Speaker 1: think about that, and especially since you've been in organizations
Speaker 1: that have been good or bad to the people that
Speaker 1: they employ. Sort of how common is this in the NBA?
Speaker 3: Definitely not a common thing. But you know, speaking on
Speaker 3: Mark Cuban's behalf he's this, He's shown time and time again.
Speaker 3: You know, he cares about the people that you know,
Speaker 3: work for him, work around him, and et cetera, et cetera. Obviously,
Speaker 3: you want to treat the people that help push your brand,
Speaker 3: treat the people good that help push your brand. Any
Speaker 3: boss of any you know situation would want, you know,
Speaker 3: the people that work for him or anything of that
Speaker 3: nature to feel comfortable, to feel you know, appreciated, to
Speaker 3: you know, all of those things to help this company
Speaker 3: continue to be great. So, uh, you know, kudos to Mark.
Speaker 3: You shit, I wish I was one of those guys
Speaker 3: getting a free check from I wouldn't mind that at all. So,
Speaker 3: you know, that's him doing these type of things makes
Speaker 3: more people you know, want to work for him or
Speaker 3: or want to work next to him or for that organization.
Speaker 3: And it definitely shines a light on you know, just
Speaker 3: him as a person, how he treats the people around.
Speaker 3: So I'm sure the players appreciate I'm sure those staff
Speaker 3: members appreciate it. And you know, like I said, kudos Mark.
Speaker 3: That's dope. That's a dope thing.
Speaker 1: I remember when he first came in as an owner
Speaker 1: and he was the first I mean, we don't remember
Speaker 1: it now because now every team has a crazy locker
Speaker 1: room and crazy facilities. But he was the first one
Speaker 1: to make his locker room this like sort of plush
Speaker 1: luxury dead for the players, put flat screens in their lockers.
Speaker 1: He did these crazy chairs, you know, all the stuff,
Speaker 1: and and that was the time, you know, when Dallas
Speaker 1: was not considered a destination for a lot of free agents.
Speaker 1: And his big thing was, you know, we want to
Speaker 1: be the team that treats our employees, our players the
Speaker 1: best of anyone in the league. And people are going
Speaker 1: to notice that. And you know, from that, I see
Speaker 1: a connectivity all the way through what he's done over
Speaker 1: the championship year and then all throughout the years with
Speaker 1: going out and getting guys and not being afraid of
Speaker 1: salary the way some organizations are, and now doing this,
Speaker 1: I do think it speaks a lot to him. You know,
Speaker 1: there are rumors he will want to run for president
Speaker 1: at some time in the next eight years so or
Speaker 1: maybe governor of Texas at some time. So again, as
Speaker 1: you say it's good for the pr you know, this
Speaker 1: definitely makes him look good. But I will say that
Speaker 1: it's not an empty sort of political gesture that we've
Speaker 1: seen this kind of stuff from Mark. You know, his
Speaker 1: biggest off the court project up until now has been
Speaker 1: this this drug company that he has really worked on
Speaker 1: over the last few years, which has really worked on
Speaker 1: bringing affordable drug and pharmacy care to all sorts of
Speaker 1: people who are getting gouged, especially insulin and other stuff
Speaker 1: like that. People need to live, and he has brought
Speaker 1: the price way down for stuff like that. It's been
Speaker 1: super impressive what he's done for people around him. So
Speaker 1: I do just want to give him credit for sort
Speaker 1: of all the things he's done to care about other people.
Speaker 1: He also, of course cares about making money. There's a
Speaker 1: lot of reporting about him going into gambling after this
Speaker 1: opening casinos. So you know, no one's a true no
Speaker 1: one's a complete philanthropist. But obviously this move makes a
Speaker 1: big deal, and I think it's really in line with
Speaker 1: how he's been since he took over the team. So
Speaker 1: there you go. All right, that's gonna be it for
Speaker 1: us this week, Bogie, Thank you so much. You can
Speaker 1: catch us on the DraftKings Network now we're very excited
Speaker 1: about that. You can catch us on the All the
Speaker 1: Smoke Productions YouTube channel and go over and watch us there.
Speaker 1: I can't see Boogie, but you can over there and
Speaker 1: also anywhere you get your podcast, So listen to us
Speaker 1: in your car while you're cooking. But just be sure
Speaker 1: to give us those five star reviews. Rate us review us.
Speaker 1: We need those to get up in the algorithm because
Speaker 1: we are a new baby podcast. But we'll get get there.
Speaker 1: We'll get there a bug. Thank you to everyone out there,
Speaker 1: Thank you to you DeMarcus Cousins. I'll see you next week.