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Speaker 1: The volume. It's Hoops Tonight presented by FanDuel. The NBA

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Speaker 1: All right, Welcome to Hoops Tonight, presented by Fandel here

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Speaker 1: at the volume. Happy Monday, everybody. I hope all of

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Speaker 1: you guys had an incredible weekend. My wife and I

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Speaker 1: spent the weekend moving. We are veterans of the moving game.

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Speaker 1: We've done it nine times since her and I met

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Speaker 1: back in two thousand fourteen, including across the country twice. Um.

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Speaker 1: What's funny is, no matter how many times I do it,

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Speaker 1: it literally never gets any easier. It's a complete, in

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Speaker 1: total pain in the ass every single time. But there's

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Speaker 1: a light at the end of the tunnel. On Friday,

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Speaker 1: We're going on our first ski trip of the season.

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Speaker 1: Skiing is my second favorite thing to do in the world,

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Speaker 1: behind basketball, so I'm very excited for this time of year,

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Speaker 1: finally going to get the skis on snow for the

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Speaker 1: first time. This weekend. We are halfway through the NBA season.

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Speaker 1: Most teams have played around games. Um, I love doing

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Speaker 1: the game breakdowns. I love that cadence that we normally

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Speaker 1: have during the week, but we're gonna take a break

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Speaker 1: from that this week. We will do an instant reaction

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Speaker 1: video on Thursday night when Boston plays Brooklyn. At least

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Speaker 1: that's the plan as of right now. We'll see when

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Speaker 1: we get closer, because I know that Kevin Durant injury

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Speaker 1: is a little bit of a factor there. But the

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Speaker 1: rest of this week, we're gonna be focused on mid season,

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Speaker 1: kind of like zooming out and taking a look at

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Speaker 1: the league. So today we're gonna do all NBA teams.

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Speaker 1: Tomorrow we're gonna do the other awards, so like m VP, Defense,

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Speaker 1: Player of the Year, Rookie of the the Year, most Improved,

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Speaker 1: things along those lines. Wednesday, we're gonna do, uh, look

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Speaker 1: at just how I would rank the contenders at this

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Speaker 1: point in the season, kind of like a power ranking slash,

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Speaker 1: putting the teams into tears based on the new information

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Speaker 1: we have, now that we have a half season's worth

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Speaker 1: of games under our belt. And then later this weekend

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Speaker 1: I'll have it recorded before I go out of town.

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Speaker 1: But later this weekend we're gonna have a video where

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Speaker 1: we go over the five biggest questions going into the

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Speaker 1: second half of the season. So this is a good

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Speaker 1: week to zoom out and get a feel for what's

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Speaker 1: going on throughout one half of the NBA season. You

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Speaker 1: guys know the drill before we get started. Subscribed to

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Speaker 1: the Volumes YouTube channel so you don't miss any more

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Speaker 1: of our videos. Follow me on Twitter at Underscore Jason

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Speaker 1: lt so you guys don't miss any show announcements. And

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Speaker 1: then last but not Leasta, For whatever reason, you guys

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Speaker 1: miss one of these videos and you can't get back

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Speaker 1: over to YouTube to finish, you can find them wherever

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Speaker 1: you get your podcasts. Under Hoops tonight. All right, So

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Speaker 1: here's how I'm gonna do this. I'm gonna go from

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Speaker 1: the first team to the third team, and then at

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Speaker 1: the end, I'm gonna list for you guys the guys

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Speaker 1: that I considered for the teams that didn't actually make it.

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Speaker 1: And there are three specific picks that I've viewed to

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Speaker 1: be very difficult decisions, and we'll do a little bit

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Speaker 1: deeper dives when we get to those specific players. So

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Speaker 1: the way I organized it because I thought we had

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Speaker 1: three really solid center prospects this year. In terms of

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Speaker 1: options for the All NBA Team, typically the All NBA

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Speaker 1: Team gets convoluted because we have forwards that clearly played guard, like,

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Speaker 1: for instance, Lucas kind of a forward, but for all

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Speaker 1: intents and purposes, he's an NBA guard. They usually UM

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Speaker 1: are are functionally using him the way that any other

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Speaker 1: team would use a point guard. So I'm gonna consider

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Speaker 1: him a guard. But we're not gonna put any forwards

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Speaker 1: in the center position because I think we have three

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Speaker 1: legit centers that are clearly playing like top fifteen players

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Speaker 1: in the league this year, and they deserve consideration at

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Speaker 1: that center spot. So we're not gonna do any jankie

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Speaker 1: stuff with this centers um in this particular list. So

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Speaker 1: it's gonna be guard, guard, forward, forward, center for all

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Speaker 1: three teams uniquely this season. I think that makes sense.

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Speaker 1: So first team at guard, I have Luca don Chees.

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Speaker 1: This year, He's averaging thirty four nine and nine on shooting,

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Speaker 1: having a bad defensive season, but his offensive workload is

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Speaker 1: so huge that you know, honestly, it's hard to expect

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Speaker 1: him to devote any resources there. And then honestly, like

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Speaker 1: they need him to play that style for this team

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Speaker 1: to have any chance to win. And what's crazy is

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Speaker 1: there's like a tone and tenor surrounding the Mavericks and

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Speaker 1: Luca this year that's kind of negative. Like they're twenty

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Speaker 1: three and eighteen, which is actually pretty solid, but we

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Speaker 1: talk about them like they're a team that hovers around

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Speaker 1: five hundred. We're critical of Luca because we don't like

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Speaker 1: the way he is. He in a helio centric style.

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Speaker 1: Not me, but a lot of people around the league

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Speaker 1: have been critical of his play style this season. I

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Speaker 1: tend to think that it's literally their best chance to

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Speaker 1: win games because of the way the roster is put together.

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Speaker 1: And I also strongly believe that Luca would cater his

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Speaker 1: game to acquiesce to another star should that situation and

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Speaker 1: ever rise. And really, when you look close, guys, the

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Speaker 1: Mavericks are twenty three and fourteen when Luca plays, because

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Speaker 1: they're oh and four when he doesn't play, three and fourteen.

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Speaker 1: In this NBA, with all the talent there is around

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Speaker 1: the league, with the talent limitations that that Mavericks roster has,

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Speaker 1: that's truly remarkable stuff from Luca this year. He's shooting

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Speaker 1: thirty eight percent on seven hundred and nine pull up

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Speaker 1: jumpers because he's taken so many jumpers in that short

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Speaker 1: to mid range. He's also up to up over one

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Speaker 1: point zero five points per possession on post ups, ices

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Speaker 1: and pick and rolls. He is a one man offense.

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Speaker 1: It's not pretty, it can be stagnant, it can be

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Speaker 1: ugly sometimes, but it's damned effective. And in a stacked NBA,

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Speaker 1: they're strongly over five hundred when he plays, clear cut

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Speaker 1: first team All NBA guy to me, alright, second guard

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Speaker 1: on the first team, I put Donovan Mitchell averaging four

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Speaker 1: and five on sixty three true shooting on dribble jumpers.

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Speaker 1: That's the large part of what's working with that offense,

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Speaker 1: and it's something that is perfectly complimentary to what Cleveland

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Speaker 1: does because they have Jared Allen and Evan Mobile in

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Speaker 1: the front court. Evan Mobile is still not a consistent shooter,

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Speaker 1: so they don't really have a ton of spacing, so

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Speaker 1: it's steady pick and roll and they desperately need somebody

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Speaker 1: that can knock down pull up jumpers at a high rate.

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Speaker 1: That's what Donovan Mitchell gives them, particularly from three, which

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Speaker 1: is something like it's but from an effective field goal

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Speaker 1: percentage it's drastically higher than that because of how good

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Speaker 1: he is at pull up three point shots, and so

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Speaker 1: that that complimentary fit has actually made him a legit

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Speaker 1: MVP candidate this year. The calves are twenty four and

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Speaker 1: twelve when he plays, and they're thriving on offense despite

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Speaker 1: that lack of spacing. And he's not a great defensive player,

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Speaker 1: but he has enough physical tools as an athlete to

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Speaker 1: help with contested rebounds or two an easier defensive responsibilities,

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Speaker 1: like on ball responsibilities, he can do enough to at

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Speaker 1: least not be detrimental to a great extent to that defense.

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Speaker 1: Um he's been an outsid any offensive engine all season.

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Speaker 1: They're averaging one point one three points per possession out

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Speaker 1: of Donovan Mitchell pick and rolls including passes, and one

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Speaker 1: point zero six points per possession in ISO clear cut

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Speaker 1: first team All NBA guard. Obviously, in a perfect world,

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Speaker 1: you put another guard, another forward up there, Like if

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Speaker 1: we're being Jankie and I can do three guards on

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Speaker 1: the second team and three forwards on the first team,

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Speaker 1: then I'd move Jayson Tatum up. But if we're sticking

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Speaker 1: true to positions. You gotta go with Donovan Mitchell there

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Speaker 1: at guard. Alright, the first team All NBA fowards first,

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Speaker 1: I have Kevin Durant thirty points, seven rebounds, five assist,

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Speaker 1: sixty true shooting, driven by an astonishing fift on pull

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Speaker 1: up jump shots. You know that is you know, pull

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Speaker 1: up jump shooting is the most difficult shot in basketball. Um,

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Speaker 1: it's the shot that all defenses forced you to take

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Speaker 1: because they want to take away the easier shots, right,

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Speaker 1: driving kicks too easy, three point shots, shots at the

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Speaker 1: rim easier, you know, uh, catch and shoot opportunities. They're

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Speaker 1: trying to avoid that as much as possible. So the

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Speaker 1: coverage is dictated towards allowing pull up jump shots to

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Speaker 1: take away that those other things away. That's the trade off.

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Speaker 1: And so when you have a guy that can be

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Speaker 1: knocked down in those in those specific shooting situations, it's

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Speaker 1: immensely valuable in the m b A. What's crazy with

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Speaker 1: Kevin Durant is he's hitting those at in efficiency. That

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Speaker 1: literally doesn't make any sense. He's hitting him more efficiently

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Speaker 1: than a lot of guards do at the rim. He's

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Speaker 1: shooting fifty this year on pull up jump shots and

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Speaker 1: then we're gonna talk about this, talk about this a

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Speaker 1: lot more when we get to Kyrie. But that's specifically

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Speaker 1: ultra valuable to Brooklyn because they have to play a

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Speaker 1: couple of non shooters often, like they're playing Ben Simmons

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Speaker 1: and Nick Claxton, both just under thirty minutes a game,

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Speaker 1: so there's a lot of overlap when those guys are

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Speaker 1: on the court together. And if you're gonna thrive with

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Speaker 1: two non shooters on the court or one non shooter

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Speaker 1: at the court at all times, you're gonna need guys

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Speaker 1: that can comfortably shoot over the top of defense. And

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Speaker 1: Kevin Durant is the best in the world at hitting

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Speaker 1: those jump shots uh off the Drew Bill over defensive players.

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Speaker 1: He's also gonna make an All Defense team this year.

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Speaker 1: I watched a lot of film this morning on on

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Speaker 1: Brooklyn's defense, because you know, I'm so intrigued by how

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Speaker 1: they've been so dominant after such a bad start to

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Speaker 1: the season, And it really comes down to this a

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Speaker 1: ton of switching, but not in an unnecessary way, like

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Speaker 1: when teams set got screens or sloppy screens, they'll stay home,

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Speaker 1: they'll chase over the top um when they get a

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Speaker 1: switch onto a guard in the post. They always pre

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Speaker 1: help with shell drill. So like let's say, for instance,

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Speaker 1: that Kyrie Irving switches out to a player on the

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Speaker 1: perimeter and they immediately walk him down to the post.

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Speaker 1: Nick Claxton's probably gonna be guarding a player on the

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Speaker 1: week side of the floor. He will be in help side,

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Speaker 1: almost directly under the rim. Then as the post entry

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Speaker 1: is happening, he'll run and guard the post player, and

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Speaker 1: as the post entry is happening, Kyrie will sprint out

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Speaker 1: to guarden at Claxton's guy. So it's a really smart

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Speaker 1: switching scheme that doesn't switch when they have to saves

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Speaker 1: their switched defenders out of post mismatches that they don't like.

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Speaker 1: In a huge heavy part of what makes this all

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Speaker 1: work is when they stagnate teams and force them to

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Speaker 1: ice so they don't want to iso Kevin Durant because

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Speaker 1: he's so long. They don't want to isso Nick Lackson.

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Speaker 1: Sometimes they do, but he does pretty well on the perimeter.

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Speaker 1: So those guys are in help all the time. And

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Speaker 1: Kevin Durant in particular has done an outstanding job helping

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Speaker 1: at the rim with his length in athleticism. He will

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Speaker 1: make an All Defense team this year if he stays healthy. Obviously,

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Speaker 1: he's been ruled out with this MCL sprain, but the

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Speaker 1: intel this morning was that it's not very severe and

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Speaker 1: they're expecting him back in less than a month, so

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Speaker 1: it should not impact his defense, his All Defense voting,

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Speaker 1: it should not impact his m v P voting all

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Speaker 1: that much. He's also been the best pick and roll

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Speaker 1: ball handler in the league this year, and in my opinion,

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Speaker 1: if the season stopped today and we were just focused

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Speaker 1: on the basketball that was played by the basketball players

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Speaker 1: in this season, not counting the playoffs, he's been the

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Speaker 1: best player that I've seen on both ends of the

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Speaker 1: floor this year in terms of total impact on winning.

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Speaker 1: The other first team forward to have is Jana Santana Compo.

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Speaker 1: This was my first really tough call of these All

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Speaker 1: MBA teams. It was either him or Jayson Tatum Um.

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Speaker 1: And again, as I said earlier, if we're fudging the positions,

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Speaker 1: then I'd put Tatum in over Mitchell, and I'd go

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Speaker 1: with three guards on the second team. But at that

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Speaker 1: forward position, I had to choose between Janice and Tatum,

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Speaker 1: and there's some weird metrics with your honest that don't

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Speaker 1: look good, Like, for instance, the Bucks have only a

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Speaker 1: plus three point to net rating, uh so they're outscoring

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Speaker 1: teams by only three point two points per one hundred

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Speaker 1: possessions when Janice is on the floor this year. That's

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Speaker 1: not very good compared to a lot of the other

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Speaker 1: best players in the league, especially the ones that are

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Speaker 1: on good teams. UM below six true shooting for the

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Speaker 1: first time since two thousand eighteen, that's really weird. For

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Speaker 1: your honest, he's just eighty four for three D and

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Speaker 1: thirteen outside of the restricted area, which is just twenty percent.

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Speaker 1: So even though he's having an other worldly season at

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Speaker 1: the rim, everything away from the rim, he's missing basically

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Speaker 1: three out of four times, which is kind of problematic

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Speaker 1: at this point, but I keep coming back to the

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Speaker 1: supporting cast, like with Drew Holiday missing as much time

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Speaker 1: as he's missed, with Chris Middleton missing basically being entirely

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Speaker 1: unavailable this entire season. As a result, this team is

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Speaker 1: extremely weak in spot up shooting. The Bucks score less

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Speaker 1: than one point per possession on spot up possessions, which

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Speaker 1: is twenty two in the n b A, so teams

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Speaker 1: are really loading up on Jannice, so he's having to

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Speaker 1: take more perimeter jump shots than ever. His individual defender

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Speaker 1: has more leeway to press up into his airspace, which

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Speaker 1: makes those into tougher shots. It's just an extremely high

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Speaker 1: degree of difficulty for Johannice, and in spite of all

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Speaker 1: of that, he's still producing at an extremely high level.

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Speaker 1: And the Bucks are only two point five games back

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Speaker 1: of Boston, so Janice has had a better I think

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Speaker 1: he's a better player overall. He has that championship resume

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Speaker 1: that adds legitimacy. He's working with less talent because I

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Speaker 1: think Boston has the best roster in the league, and

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Speaker 1: yet the Bucks are just two and a half games

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Speaker 1: back of the Celtics. So I ended up giving the

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Speaker 1: nod to Janice for that first team forward. But like

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Speaker 1: I said, Jayson Tatum has been one of the five

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Speaker 1: best players in the league this year, and he would

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Speaker 1: have that guard spot if we were fudging the positions.

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Speaker 1: Um At center, Nicola Yoki legit m VP candidate for

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Speaker 1: the third year in a row, eleven and ten on

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Speaker 1: six true shooting. The Nuggets are twenty five and eleven

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Speaker 1: when he plays, He's only missed three games, so he's

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Speaker 1: been very available, and the Nuggets are twenty six points

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Speaker 1: per one possessions better when Yoki is on the floor

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Speaker 1: versus when he's off. And the big thing with Yokich

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Speaker 1: and you know, Yoki is one of the most polarizing

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Speaker 1: players in the NBA. Like, I feel like I'm pretty

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Speaker 1: in the middle. There's a lot of people that think

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Speaker 1: he's worse than I think he is, and there's a

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Speaker 1: lot of people who think he's better than I think

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Speaker 1: he is. There's kind of a pretty heavy Yoki is

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Speaker 1: the best player in the world crowd, and then there's

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Speaker 1: a pretty heavy like Yokich is such a bad defensive

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Speaker 1: player that he's actually, you know, nowhere near to the

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Speaker 1: level of the top players in the league. There's those

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Speaker 1: kinds of guys that are, uh that on the other

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Speaker 1: side of the spectrum, I'm pretty much in the middle.

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Speaker 1: I think he's, you know, top five or six player

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Speaker 1: in the league. I think he's probably the best offensive

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Speaker 1: player in the league, if not in that conversation with

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Speaker 1: Steph and defensively, I don't think he's very good and

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Speaker 1: I think he can be targeted. I think that's a differentiator.

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Speaker 1: But I do think that that gets overplayed when people

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Speaker 1: are ranking him compared to some of his peers around

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Speaker 1: the league. And I think the reason why he's so

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Speaker 1: polarizing is how easy he makes the game. Look. We've

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Speaker 1: talked about this a lot on the show, but Nicola

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Speaker 1: Yoka just constantly targeting the easy opportunities that present themselves

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Speaker 1: on the basketball court. And he's not a guy that

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Speaker 1: will put up six or seven highlight level shots to

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Speaker 1: rescue possessions over the course of the game. He does

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Speaker 1: have rescue possessions. He can hit nifty one like fade

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Speaker 1: aways or crazy high difficulty hook shots over great defense.

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Speaker 1: He can do that stuff, and he doesn't get enough

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Speaker 1: credit for that stuff that he deserves more credit. But overall,

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Speaker 1: he does have a very easy and simplistic approach to

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Speaker 1: the game, which I think is smart and it's what

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Speaker 1: makes him so damned defective, and that kind of thing

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Speaker 1: I think goes over a lot of basketball fans heads,

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Speaker 1: and so as a result, I don't think he gets

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Speaker 1: the appropriate credit that he deserves. But he clearly is

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Speaker 1: the first team All NBA center through half the season,

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Speaker 1: all right. Moving on to the second team guard f Curry,

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Speaker 1: I think he's been the second best player that I've

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Speaker 1: seen this year overall. If you if you just took

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Speaker 1: the minutes that they've played during this season, Kevin Durant

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Speaker 1: has been the best player I've seen this year. Steph

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Speaker 1: Curry has been the second best player that I've seen

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Speaker 1: this year. He probably would be first team All NBA

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Speaker 1: right now if it wasn't for the injury in that

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Speaker 1: Donovan Mitchell spot. He is having a bit of a

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Speaker 1: down defensive season. He's had some bad defensive games in

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Speaker 1: a way that I think Kevin Durant has been better

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Speaker 1: on that end of the floor this year, and obviously

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Speaker 1: he just has the physical tools to have more impact there.

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Speaker 1: So that was why I'm giving Katie the nod in

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Speaker 1: terms of who's the best player I've seen this year.

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Speaker 1: But Steff is having an all time great offensive season

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Speaker 1: thirty points, seven rebounds, seven assists, sixty seven percentury shooting,

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Speaker 1: which is just amazing. He's the second best pick and

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Speaker 1: roll ball handler in the league to run at least

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Speaker 1: two hundred behind Kevin Durant, and the Warriors offense scores

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Speaker 1: hundred and twenty one points per one hundre possessions when

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Speaker 1: he's on the floor, just one oh eight when he's

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Speaker 1: off the floor, So still one of the best offensive

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Speaker 1: engines in the NBA. Alright, So the second guard for

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Speaker 1: the second team for all NBA. This was my second

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Speaker 1: really tough call. I had to choose between Kyrie Irving

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Speaker 1: or Shay gil Just Alexander. I went with Kyrie Irving,

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Speaker 1: but I want to explain because I do think s

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Speaker 1: g A right now is a better basketball player overall. However,

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Speaker 1: Kyrie I think is providing more winning impact, more value

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Speaker 1: to his team right now. Like we talked about earlier,

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Speaker 1: the Nets are playing Nick Claxton and Ben Simmons big minutes.

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Speaker 1: They're both playing almost thirty minutes a game. They've been

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Speaker 1: on the floor together this season for seven hundred and

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Speaker 1: fifty four possessions, and the Nets are plus four net

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Speaker 1: in those possessions four points positive per one possessions. That's

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Speaker 1: really solid when you factor in severe spacing concerns with

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Speaker 1: those types of lineups. At any given moment, they either

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Speaker 1: have two or one of those guys on the floor

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Speaker 1: that teams are able to help off of, right, and

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Speaker 1: so this team is not a good spacing team. They

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Speaker 1: do have a lot of shooting in the perimeter, but

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Speaker 1: interior wise, there's always help defenders around the rim. So

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Speaker 1: have guys that can consistently rise up and hit pull

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Speaker 1: up jump shots over the top of defense is vitally important.

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Speaker 1: That also gives them the flexibility to play like a

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Speaker 1: defensive minded guard like Edmund Sumner, even though he can't shoot,

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Speaker 1: you can put him out there for you know whatever

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Speaker 1: it is, seventeen twenty minutes a night. Because of all

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Speaker 1: the pull up shooting you have with Kevin Durant and

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Speaker 1: Kyrie Irving, that whole roster construct fundamentally works with Kyrie

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Speaker 1: in a way that I don't think it necessarily would

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Speaker 1: with Shakils Alexander. Shay is a solid pull up jump shooter,

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Speaker 1: but Kyrie is eight per cent better in effective field

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Speaker 1: goal percentage on pull up jump shots because he's a

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Speaker 1: bit better from two, but he's much much better on

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Speaker 1: pull up three point shots, which obviously brings a ton

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Speaker 1: of efficiency. It's actually become one of Kyrie's go to

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Speaker 1: shots of late, especially in uh in clutch situations. And

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Speaker 1: so you know, in Shakils Alexander, he's making five shots

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Speaker 1: a game in the restricted area. So like he is

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Speaker 1: very reliant on spacing and those pick and pop bigs

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Speaker 1: like MIKEA Mscala and shape in Alexei Pokachevski to play

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Speaker 1: for okay, see, those are vitally important to opening up

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Speaker 1: the paint for Shade to get where he needs to

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Speaker 1: go on the floor. Kyrie and Uh and Uh Kevin

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Speaker 1: Durant in their ability to consistently shoot over the top

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Speaker 1: allows them to play non shooters in the in the

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Speaker 1: front court. So as I'm zooming out, Shea is a

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Speaker 1: little better player in terms of overall impact on a

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Speaker 1: winning team. I mean, we're talking about the second best

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Speaker 1: player on the second best team in the league. I

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Speaker 1: think he pretty clearly is Uh is good enough to

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Speaker 1: be that second team All NBA guard twenty five and

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Speaker 1: five on six true shooting. I also think he's having

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Speaker 1: a much better defensive season than say John marae itt

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Speaker 1: Um and again, like I said, uniquely makes the nets

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Speaker 1: roster more functional. So I've got Kyrie Irving as the

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Speaker 1: second team second guard alright, first forward on the second team,

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Speaker 1: Jayson Tatum. I talked to you guys earlier about why

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Speaker 1: I had you Honese over him, so I won't go

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Speaker 1: any further into thatt eight and four this year on

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Speaker 1: true shooting. Still an outstanding defender, but he has had

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Speaker 1: some bad games, like I like that Denver game was

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Speaker 1: a really annoying one for me because it was another

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Speaker 1: opportunity for the Celtics to send a message, and Justin

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Speaker 1: Tatum just mailed that game in defensively, especially in his

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Speaker 1: off ball possessions. Yokis caught him sleeping a bunch of times.

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Speaker 1: It's kind of disappointed in him there. Um that said,

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Speaker 1: still a bona fide m VP candidate. Just Johannest and

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Speaker 1: Katie are better right now and I think they deserve

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Speaker 1: those two spots second forward on the second team Lebron

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Speaker 1: James So Anthony Davis went down on December six, and

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Speaker 1: since then, Lebron has been playing arguably like the best

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Speaker 1: player in the world. It's either him or Yokis. Over

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Speaker 1: the course of the last month or so, Lebron and

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Speaker 1: Yokis have been a step above everyone else in the league. Uh.

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Speaker 1: Since Anthony Davis went down, Lebron's averaging thirty four points

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Speaker 1: per game, eight rebounds, seven assists, fifty from the field,

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Speaker 1: true shooting, and the Lakers managed somehow over that span

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Speaker 1: to go eight and five despite severe personnel limitations. They

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Speaker 1: do not have a backup center that they trust that

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Speaker 1: they can play. They do not have any perimeters or shooting.

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Speaker 1: It's basically Lebron, Thomas Bryant in a bunch of guards,

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Speaker 1: and they are winning games. Now they're getting contributions. Dennis

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Speaker 1: Schroeder is playing really well, Thomas Bryant's playing really well.

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Speaker 1: Russell Westbrook is having his second significant good stretch of

429
00:21:13,400 --> 00:21:16,639
Speaker 1: basketball u uh in this season. All those guys are

430
00:21:16,640 --> 00:21:19,439
Speaker 1: playing well, but Lebron is the guy functionally makes it

431
00:21:19,480 --> 00:21:21,560
Speaker 1: work on the defensive end of the floor. He makes

432
00:21:21,640 --> 00:21:24,399
Speaker 1: up for so many size related issues because of his

433
00:21:24,440 --> 00:21:27,840
Speaker 1: ability to guard, contest, grab contested rebounds. Again, I encourage you.

434
00:21:28,119 --> 00:21:30,280
Speaker 1: One of my favorite Lebron things that you guys have

435
00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:32,600
Speaker 1: to start paying attention to when he's playing that a

436
00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:35,720
Speaker 1: lot of people miss is the contested rebounds. Watch a

437
00:21:35,840 --> 00:21:39,200
Speaker 1: three ball goes high in the air, There's two centers

438
00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:43,640
Speaker 1: down there jumping, and here comes Lebron towering over everybody

439
00:21:43,680 --> 00:21:46,760
Speaker 1: to tap the ball to Dennis Schroeder. Something along those lines.

440
00:21:46,840 --> 00:21:50,360
Speaker 1: Watch Lebron in contested rebound situations. That is how he

441
00:21:50,960 --> 00:21:54,800
Speaker 1: as basically a wing can functionally replace a good percentage

442
00:21:54,800 --> 00:21:59,119
Speaker 1: of front court athleticism in size in those defensive rebounding situations.

443
00:21:59,160 --> 00:22:01,679
Speaker 1: He's also been playing really good help defense over the

444
00:22:01,720 --> 00:22:06,400
Speaker 1: course of this recent stretch. Lebron, it's it's it's truly bizarre,

445
00:22:06,760 --> 00:22:09,760
Speaker 1: how reliably great he's been on a night and night

446
00:22:09,760 --> 00:22:13,240
Speaker 1: out basis in his twenty season. I did have a

447
00:22:13,240 --> 00:22:15,720
Speaker 1: little bit of a run in with uh Cuffs, the

448
00:22:15,800 --> 00:22:20,480
Speaker 1: legend Lebron's friend on Twitter on Saturday night. He got

449
00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:22,919
Speaker 1: after me because I was critical of Lebron earlier in

450
00:22:22,920 --> 00:22:25,200
Speaker 1: the season. And I have to say this every year

451
00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:27,840
Speaker 1: to Lebron fans because they can't handle it. To make

452
00:22:27,880 --> 00:22:31,600
Speaker 1: it simple, I am a big Lebron fan. He's my

453
00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:34,919
Speaker 1: favorite player. He's the reason why I got into the league.

454
00:22:35,200 --> 00:22:37,000
Speaker 1: Why the reason why I got into basketball. I was

455
00:22:37,119 --> 00:22:41,800
Speaker 1: raised on football and baseball, and watching Lebron got me

456
00:22:41,840 --> 00:22:43,800
Speaker 1: to fall in love with this game, which in turn

457
00:22:43,840 --> 00:22:45,960
Speaker 1: has paid for my schooling and become my career. I

458
00:22:46,000 --> 00:22:49,960
Speaker 1: owe everything to Lebron getting me to fall in love

459
00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:53,679
Speaker 1: with basketball. So yes, I have a great deal of

460
00:22:53,720 --> 00:22:56,840
Speaker 1: attachment there. That's why I decided to cover the Lakers

461
00:22:57,080 --> 00:22:58,920
Speaker 1: when I got into this industry. It's why we talked

462
00:22:58,920 --> 00:23:00,480
Speaker 1: about a lot of Lakers on this Know I'm a

463
00:23:00,480 --> 00:23:04,000
Speaker 1: fan of Lebron, but I at least try, even though

464
00:23:04,000 --> 00:23:06,440
Speaker 1: I do have my biases, I at least try my

465
00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:10,680
Speaker 1: best to be as objective as possible. So I'm not

466
00:23:10,800 --> 00:23:13,720
Speaker 1: going to analyze based on what I feel about a

467
00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:16,879
Speaker 1: player in the grand scheme of things. I'm gonna analyze

468
00:23:16,920 --> 00:23:19,360
Speaker 1: based on the way they're playing in the actual basketball

469
00:23:19,359 --> 00:23:22,640
Speaker 1: games that are actually taking place. So early in the season,

470
00:23:22,960 --> 00:23:28,040
Speaker 1: Lebron wasn't good, not compared to his standard. He's been

471
00:23:28,119 --> 00:23:31,000
Speaker 1: much better as of late. So how has this show

472
00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:33,520
Speaker 1: looked When I've talked about Lebron? What was it like

473
00:23:33,600 --> 00:23:35,880
Speaker 1: early in the season when he was struggling. I'd point

474
00:23:35,880 --> 00:23:38,639
Speaker 1: out that he was struggling. I'd also point out he's sick,

475
00:23:39,080 --> 00:23:41,400
Speaker 1: he's dealing with the foot injury. I would point those

476
00:23:41,440 --> 00:23:43,919
Speaker 1: things out, but I would also say, he's just not

477
00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:46,879
Speaker 1: playing well. Now, what's happening. He's healthy? What did I

478
00:23:46,920 --> 00:23:48,360
Speaker 1: tell you guys earlier in the season. I'm like, if

479
00:23:48,359 --> 00:23:50,360
Speaker 1: he can get his rhythm, if he can play fifteen

480
00:23:50,359 --> 00:23:53,520
Speaker 1: games in a row and not get hurt, I believe

481
00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:55,600
Speaker 1: his legs will get underneath them and he'll take off.

482
00:23:55,680 --> 00:23:58,520
Speaker 1: That's exactly what happened. So even when he was struggling,

483
00:23:58,560 --> 00:24:01,080
Speaker 1: I predicted that he would get better. I just was

484
00:24:01,160 --> 00:24:03,879
Speaker 1: pointing out the simple fact that he was struggling. And

485
00:24:03,920 --> 00:24:06,119
Speaker 1: I will continue to do that with every single player.

486
00:24:06,400 --> 00:24:08,800
Speaker 1: You guys know, Russell Westbrook is probably my least favorite

487
00:24:08,800 --> 00:24:12,080
Speaker 1: player in the entire NBA, and and rooting for a

488
00:24:12,160 --> 00:24:15,280
Speaker 1: Lebron James team is extremely frustrating. With Russell Westbrook on

489
00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:17,440
Speaker 1: the roster. What have I done when Russ has played

490
00:24:17,440 --> 00:24:20,160
Speaker 1: well this year? I've pointed it out because it's just true.

491
00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:24,080
Speaker 1: I'm about at the core. I love basketball, and and

492
00:24:24,240 --> 00:24:27,240
Speaker 1: when I see Russ do good basketball things that lead

493
00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:29,960
Speaker 1: to a team that I root for to win games,

494
00:24:30,240 --> 00:24:32,520
Speaker 1: of course I'm going to acknowledge that. And so I

495
00:24:32,560 --> 00:24:35,159
Speaker 1: always think that's funny and it and I get it.

496
00:24:35,160 --> 00:24:37,159
Speaker 1: It's Lebron's friend. He's got to come to his defense.

497
00:24:37,240 --> 00:24:39,040
Speaker 1: But like, if you were a Lakers fan and you

498
00:24:39,080 --> 00:24:41,440
Speaker 1: were critical of Lebron early in the season, you were right.

499
00:24:41,680 --> 00:24:45,120
Speaker 1: You weren't wrong, you weren't being you weren't being dishonest,

500
00:24:45,520 --> 00:24:48,040
Speaker 1: you weren't hating, you were simply pointing out what was

501
00:24:48,080 --> 00:24:52,320
Speaker 1: happening on the basketball court. UM. On the season, Lebron

502
00:24:52,520 --> 00:24:56,240
Speaker 1: eight and seven true shooting since the groin injury, which

503
00:24:56,280 --> 00:24:58,560
Speaker 1: is now a twenty one game sample size, so over

504
00:24:58,640 --> 00:25:01,639
Speaker 1: a fourth of the season, Lebron is averaging eight and

505
00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:07,399
Speaker 1: seven on shooting. Just unbelievably ridiculous stuff. And for the

506
00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:09,719
Speaker 1: season the right around five hundred when he plays despite

507
00:25:09,720 --> 00:25:12,159
Speaker 1: a d missing a ton of games, and all the

508
00:25:12,160 --> 00:25:15,680
Speaker 1: general roster issues which we've talked to death on this show. UM,

509
00:25:15,720 --> 00:25:17,959
Speaker 1: I think he's a clear cut second team forward and

510
00:25:18,040 --> 00:25:19,840
Speaker 1: as of this exact moment in time, he's playing like

511
00:25:19,840 --> 00:25:22,240
Speaker 1: a top three player in the world. Center for the

512
00:25:22,280 --> 00:25:25,040
Speaker 1: second team. Joe l em bat ten and five career

513
00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:28,320
Speaker 1: high sixty true shooting. Talked about Janice and his shooting

514
00:25:28,320 --> 00:25:32,439
Speaker 1: outside the restricted area earlier. Check this out. Joel Embiad

515
00:25:32,520 --> 00:25:36,320
Speaker 1: is one seventy three for three outside of the restricted

516
00:25:36,359 --> 00:25:40,439
Speaker 1: area this season. That's now we talked a lot about

517
00:25:40,680 --> 00:25:44,280
Speaker 1: how important that is as it pertains to his playoffs success.

518
00:25:44,359 --> 00:25:46,639
Speaker 1: Joe Embiad is not a great passer, so as teams

519
00:25:46,680 --> 00:25:49,920
Speaker 1: packed the paint on him in his especially his face

520
00:25:50,000 --> 00:25:52,880
Speaker 1: up ISOs in terms of backside help, it's more important

521
00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:55,240
Speaker 1: than ever for him to be able to knock down

522
00:25:55,400 --> 00:25:58,439
Speaker 1: those perimeter jump shots, especially when he gets into the postseason.

523
00:25:58,480 --> 00:26:01,399
Speaker 1: And this is his best perimeter sho eating season, and

524
00:26:01,400 --> 00:26:03,480
Speaker 1: I'm really curious to see if that translates. So I'm

525
00:26:03,560 --> 00:26:06,600
Speaker 1: very excited for this playoff run for Joel Embiid because

526
00:26:06,640 --> 00:26:09,200
Speaker 1: if he shoots this well from the perimeter, they are

527
00:26:09,240 --> 00:26:12,040
Speaker 1: going to be extremely difficult to beat, Like they are

528
00:26:12,080 --> 00:26:13,919
Speaker 1: going to be every bit as talented and have a

529
00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:20,959
Speaker 1: legit chance to beat Milwaukee, Boston, Miami, Cleveland, Brooklyn, anybody

530
00:26:21,320 --> 00:26:23,520
Speaker 1: Phil He's got a chance if Joel embid is gonna

531
00:26:23,520 --> 00:26:26,560
Speaker 1: shoot that well. He's been the fourth best isolation player

532
00:26:26,560 --> 00:26:27,960
Speaker 1: in the league this year to run at least a

533
00:26:28,000 --> 00:26:30,520
Speaker 1: hundred possessions at one point one six points per possession.

534
00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:33,240
Speaker 1: He's been the third best post player in the league

535
00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:35,480
Speaker 1: to run at least a hundred postops at one point

536
00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:37,760
Speaker 1: one eight points per possession, and he's been the fifth

537
00:26:37,840 --> 00:26:40,600
Speaker 1: best roleman in the league to run at least one

538
00:26:41,600 --> 00:26:45,560
Speaker 1: roman possessions at one point one five points per possession.

539
00:26:45,560 --> 00:26:46,760
Speaker 1: And then on the other end of the floor, he's

540
00:26:46,800 --> 00:26:49,119
Speaker 1: completely anchoring the fourth best defense in the league, and

541
00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:51,600
Speaker 1: if you really look close, they're playing batist thigh bowl

542
00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:54,200
Speaker 1: a little bit more frequently. Now, he's a very good

543
00:26:54,200 --> 00:26:57,880
Speaker 1: defensive player. Tobias Harris is underrated, but there's a lot

544
00:26:57,920 --> 00:27:01,560
Speaker 1: of minutes being played by you know, Tyrese Maxie, who's

545
00:27:01,840 --> 00:27:04,560
Speaker 1: having a better defensive season but still is not very good.

546
00:27:04,760 --> 00:27:07,400
Speaker 1: James Harden better defensive season, is still not very good.

547
00:27:07,600 --> 00:27:09,560
Speaker 1: You know, Shake Milton's out. There's a lot of guys

548
00:27:09,600 --> 00:27:12,240
Speaker 1: that are playing. George's neeting is another one. There's a

549
00:27:12,280 --> 00:27:14,880
Speaker 1: lot of guys that are bought leeway on the defensive

550
00:27:14,960 --> 00:27:17,359
Speaker 1: end of the floor because of what Joel emb Joel

551
00:27:17,359 --> 00:27:21,399
Speaker 1: Embi does as a back line rim protector. He's our

552
00:27:21,440 --> 00:27:24,440
Speaker 1: second team center all right, third team guard. Shake Gildas

553
00:27:24,440 --> 00:27:27,119
Speaker 1: Alexander best combination of rim scoring and pull up shooting

554
00:27:27,200 --> 00:27:29,800
Speaker 1: in the NBA. He's tent and pull up shooting percentage

555
00:27:30,000 --> 00:27:31,920
Speaker 1: among players who take at least five pull up jump

556
00:27:31,960 --> 00:27:37,240
Speaker 1: shots per game. He's also twelve and restricted area makes

557
00:27:37,280 --> 00:27:39,280
Speaker 1: per game at four point five that is the most

558
00:27:39,359 --> 00:27:41,960
Speaker 1: among all the guards in the league, including John Morand.

559
00:27:42,280 --> 00:27:44,480
Speaker 1: So he's finishing at the rim more frequently in the

560
00:27:44,560 --> 00:27:47,600
Speaker 1: NBA games than John morant Is. That's how crazy is

561
00:27:47,680 --> 00:27:50,280
Speaker 1: is a downhill threat. The only players that are ahead

562
00:27:50,280 --> 00:27:52,560
Speaker 1: of him, the eleven players that are ahead of him

563
00:27:52,560 --> 00:27:55,679
Speaker 1: and restricted area makes are all centers, guys who basically

564
00:27:55,720 --> 00:27:57,840
Speaker 1: function as centers, like Aaron Gordon. We've talked about how

565
00:27:57,840 --> 00:28:00,919
Speaker 1: he basically functionally runs the center in their offense as

566
00:28:00,960 --> 00:28:03,639
Speaker 1: like a dunker spot guy. And then the Aliens lebron

567
00:28:03,720 --> 00:28:06,040
Speaker 1: Zion and Janice those are the only guys that are

568
00:28:06,080 --> 00:28:08,919
Speaker 1: ahead of Shake Gils Alexander at the guard position in

569
00:28:09,040 --> 00:28:13,280
Speaker 1: rim finishing for the season thirty five and six. On shooting,

570
00:28:13,480 --> 00:28:16,360
Speaker 1: He's a solid defensive player with good length to bother shooters.

571
00:28:16,359 --> 00:28:18,720
Speaker 1: He's a little fin that's his big weakness on defense

572
00:28:18,800 --> 00:28:21,280
Speaker 1: right now and for the season. The thunder are basically

573
00:28:21,320 --> 00:28:24,520
Speaker 1: even when he plays, and then they lose big time

574
00:28:24,520 --> 00:28:26,920
Speaker 1: in all the minutes when he's off the floor. Definitely

575
00:28:26,920 --> 00:28:28,480
Speaker 1: been one of the top six cards in the league

576
00:28:28,520 --> 00:28:32,240
Speaker 1: this year. Second guard for the third team All NBA.

577
00:28:32,359 --> 00:28:36,280
Speaker 1: This was my third and final super tough call. It's

578
00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:40,440
Speaker 1: either gonna be Devin Booker or John Morant and it

579
00:28:40,480 --> 00:28:43,040
Speaker 1: will probably be job by the end of the season

580
00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:45,440
Speaker 1: because Devin Booker is dealing with this growing injuries, probably

581
00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:47,520
Speaker 1: gonna miss at least another few weeks, maybe even more.

582
00:28:48,560 --> 00:28:52,040
Speaker 1: But at this point in time, Jah has only played

583
00:28:52,040 --> 00:28:55,080
Speaker 1: four more games. And I'd like to give book Or

584
00:28:55,200 --> 00:28:57,160
Speaker 1: some love here because I don't think he's going to

585
00:28:57,240 --> 00:28:58,760
Speaker 1: get the love at the end of the season. So

586
00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:01,160
Speaker 1: at this point, halfway through this season, let's take some

587
00:29:01,200 --> 00:29:04,400
Speaker 1: time to appreciate Devin Booker. He I actually think he's

588
00:29:04,440 --> 00:29:07,560
Speaker 1: been a better offensive engine when you actually factor it.

589
00:29:07,600 --> 00:29:08,880
Speaker 1: Like I used to think the Sons had the most

590
00:29:08,880 --> 00:29:11,760
Speaker 1: talented roster in the league after the Stars, but injuries

591
00:29:11,760 --> 00:29:15,160
Speaker 1: have really piled up. Chris Paul has completely declined and

592
00:29:15,200 --> 00:29:17,240
Speaker 1: he's no longer the same player that he was in

593
00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:22,960
Speaker 1: the playoffs before the Dallas Maverick series. Um Cam Johnson

594
00:29:23,040 --> 00:29:26,480
Speaker 1: obviously huge loss in perimeter shooting at that forward position.

595
00:29:26,720 --> 00:29:29,960
Speaker 1: Jay Crowder obviously with the trade request, has taken himself

596
00:29:30,000 --> 00:29:33,680
Speaker 1: out of the lineup. In totality, the team's roster has

597
00:29:33,720 --> 00:29:36,680
Speaker 1: lost a good amount of talent through injuries and age

598
00:29:36,920 --> 00:29:39,440
Speaker 1: with Chris Paul, and despite that, the Sons have a

599
00:29:39,480 --> 00:29:43,000
Speaker 1: one two offensive rating with Devin Booker on the floor

600
00:29:43,040 --> 00:29:45,240
Speaker 1: and a one oh seven offensive rating when he's off

601
00:29:45,240 --> 00:29:47,200
Speaker 1: the floor. That's the same type of split we were

602
00:29:47,200 --> 00:29:50,280
Speaker 1: seeing with Steph Curry. That's the type of impact he

603
00:29:50,360 --> 00:29:52,719
Speaker 1: has on that Son's offense. I also think he has

604
00:29:52,760 --> 00:29:55,280
Speaker 1: more variety. I think John can get a little repetitive

605
00:29:55,280 --> 00:29:57,160
Speaker 1: with his high I so high pick and roll attack.

606
00:29:57,480 --> 00:29:59,680
Speaker 1: Devin Booker is a lot more versatile and the spots

607
00:29:59,680 --> 00:30:02,000
Speaker 1: in the where he can attack, he's a little more patient.

608
00:30:02,320 --> 00:30:06,400
Speaker 1: I actually John Morant is a more productive passer in

609
00:30:06,480 --> 00:30:10,000
Speaker 1: the way that his downhill presence creates tons of opportunities

610
00:30:10,160 --> 00:30:13,640
Speaker 1: and with his heliocentric style to rack up assists. But

611
00:30:13,720 --> 00:30:16,080
Speaker 1: in terms of really high level reads, I think Devin

612
00:30:16,080 --> 00:30:19,120
Speaker 1: Booker is pretty close to where John Morant is, and

613
00:30:19,160 --> 00:30:22,480
Speaker 1: so I do think he gets nowhere near enough credit

614
00:30:22,480 --> 00:30:25,480
Speaker 1: for what he does as a passer in this league.

615
00:30:25,480 --> 00:30:27,680
Speaker 1: And then honestly, Devin Booker is just a much much

616
00:30:27,680 --> 00:30:30,560
Speaker 1: better defensive player right now. It will eventually, like I

617
00:30:30,600 --> 00:30:32,920
Speaker 1: said b Jaws spot as we get towards the end

618
00:30:32,920 --> 00:30:35,720
Speaker 1: of the season and games played becomes a bigger factor.

619
00:30:35,720 --> 00:30:38,800
Speaker 1: But I want to show love to Booker here five

620
00:30:38,840 --> 00:30:41,800
Speaker 1: and six for the season on fifty nine percent try shooting,

621
00:30:42,200 --> 00:30:45,800
Speaker 1: eighteen and eleven are the Sons when Devin Booker plays

622
00:30:45,840 --> 00:30:49,680
Speaker 1: just two and ten when he doesn't alright first forward

623
00:30:49,680 --> 00:30:53,440
Speaker 1: position on the third team. Jalen Brown seven and three

624
00:30:53,440 --> 00:30:56,240
Speaker 1: on fifty percent true shooting, very good pull up shooting

625
00:30:56,280 --> 00:30:59,600
Speaker 1: season on six attempts per game. That's eighth in the

626
00:30:59,680 --> 00:31:02,240
Speaker 1: league among players who take at least five per game.

627
00:31:02,320 --> 00:31:04,480
Speaker 1: To give you an idea, Jayson Tatum is making just

628
00:31:04,600 --> 00:31:07,080
Speaker 1: thirty two percent of his pull up jump shots, so

629
00:31:07,200 --> 00:31:09,400
Speaker 1: Jalen Brown is literally fourteen percent better on pull up

630
00:31:09,480 --> 00:31:11,360
Speaker 1: jump shots this year. In the Jayson Tatum He's also

631
00:31:11,400 --> 00:31:14,200
Speaker 1: having an underrated playmaking season compared to what you'd expect

632
00:31:14,280 --> 00:31:17,760
Speaker 1: from Jalen Brown inn pick and rolls this year, where

633
00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:21,200
Speaker 1: Jalen Brown has passed out of it, the Celtics have

634
00:31:21,200 --> 00:31:24,800
Speaker 1: scored ninety eight points, which is that overall is contributing

635
00:31:24,800 --> 00:31:26,560
Speaker 1: to him in pick and roll to the tune of

636
00:31:26,600 --> 00:31:29,680
Speaker 1: one point one points per possession, which is sixteenth in

637
00:31:29,720 --> 00:31:31,880
Speaker 1: the league out of a hundred and twenty six players

638
00:31:31,920 --> 00:31:33,920
Speaker 1: that have run at least one hundred pick and rolls.

639
00:31:33,920 --> 00:31:36,640
Speaker 1: So better pick and roll passing has led to him

640
00:31:36,680 --> 00:31:38,440
Speaker 1: being one of the best pick and roll ball handlers

641
00:31:38,480 --> 00:31:40,760
Speaker 1: in the league, and he's still a very good defensive player.

642
00:31:40,760 --> 00:31:42,600
Speaker 1: It's a similar type of season to Jayson Tatum, like

643
00:31:42,640 --> 00:31:44,840
Speaker 1: when he's locked in, he's very good, but he's just

644
00:31:44,920 --> 00:31:46,640
Speaker 1: having too many nights where he mails it in. That's

645
00:31:46,640 --> 00:31:48,880
Speaker 1: been an issue with the Celtics and their arrogance all season.

646
00:31:49,160 --> 00:31:50,960
Speaker 1: But he's the second best player on the best team

647
00:31:50,960 --> 00:31:53,960
Speaker 1: in the league, absolutely deserving and of an All NBA

648
00:31:54,040 --> 00:31:59,120
Speaker 1: selection to this point, Sorry, I've been dealing with allergies

649
00:31:59,120 --> 00:32:01,040
Speaker 1: the last like four or five days. It's driving me

650
00:32:01,040 --> 00:32:05,160
Speaker 1: and saying somebody somehow identified it and our Saturday morning video,

651
00:32:05,560 --> 00:32:07,800
Speaker 1: but it's just been the sniffles in congestion NonStop, which

652
00:32:07,800 --> 00:32:09,600
Speaker 1: has been so much fun with me trying to move

653
00:32:09,920 --> 00:32:13,480
Speaker 1: my entire life again. Alright. Second forward on the third

654
00:32:13,480 --> 00:32:17,680
Speaker 1: team Zion Williamson seven and five on six century shooting

655
00:32:17,680 --> 00:32:19,920
Speaker 1: eight point two restricted area makes per game, which is

656
00:32:19,960 --> 00:32:22,880
Speaker 1: second in the league behind Just Nice. Having a very

657
00:32:22,920 --> 00:32:25,680
Speaker 1: good passing season. Teams are really loading up in the

658
00:32:25,680 --> 00:32:27,720
Speaker 1: paint when Zion is getting ready to ISO or post

659
00:32:27,840 --> 00:32:30,680
Speaker 1: up um, and he's particularly doing a great job of

660
00:32:30,720 --> 00:32:33,520
Speaker 1: finding three point shooters in those sets. He's passed out

661
00:32:33,520 --> 00:32:35,760
Speaker 1: of postops and ISOs a hundred and fifty seven times

662
00:32:35,800 --> 00:32:37,960
Speaker 1: this year for a hundred and sixty two points, which

663
00:32:38,000 --> 00:32:40,880
Speaker 1: is very good, up over a point per possession. And

664
00:32:40,920 --> 00:32:43,640
Speaker 1: he's made significant improvements as a defensive playmaker. Now he's

665
00:32:43,640 --> 00:32:45,520
Speaker 1: got a long way to go on a possession by

666
00:32:45,520 --> 00:32:48,640
Speaker 1: possession basis and his ability to uphold a defensive scheme

667
00:32:48,880 --> 00:32:51,840
Speaker 1: by being reliable and always in the right spot. However,

668
00:32:52,200 --> 00:32:55,520
Speaker 1: he's starting to make more defensive plays jumping into passing lanes,

669
00:32:55,760 --> 00:32:58,480
Speaker 1: blocking shots at the rammer on the perimeter. Those are

670
00:32:58,560 --> 00:33:02,760
Speaker 1: like impact momentum types plays. They are valuable. It's more

671
00:33:02,840 --> 00:33:05,240
Speaker 1: valuable to be consistent on a possession by possession basis.

672
00:33:05,280 --> 00:33:08,280
Speaker 1: That's why he's still a below average defensive player in totality,

673
00:33:08,560 --> 00:33:11,000
Speaker 1: but those improvements as a playmaker are a good start

674
00:33:11,040 --> 00:33:12,640
Speaker 1: and it goes to show you what he can be

675
00:33:12,680 --> 00:33:16,920
Speaker 1: capable of when he mixes those two aspects together. The

676
00:33:16,920 --> 00:33:19,280
Speaker 1: Pelicans are seventeen and two when Zion plays, and there

677
00:33:19,320 --> 00:33:21,680
Speaker 1: are seven points per one hund possessions better when he

678
00:33:21,720 --> 00:33:24,280
Speaker 1: plays than when he's off the floor. Will be fun

679
00:33:24,320 --> 00:33:26,240
Speaker 1: to see Zion Williams and make an All NBA team,

680
00:33:26,320 --> 00:33:28,720
Speaker 1: which just needs to rest up this hamstring and get

681
00:33:28,760 --> 00:33:31,840
Speaker 1: healthy alright. Center for third team ll NBA. Bam at

682
00:33:31,840 --> 00:33:34,400
Speaker 1: a Bio had a rough shooting night against Broken last night.

683
00:33:34,440 --> 00:33:36,160
Speaker 1: I think he was just five for fifteen from the field.

684
00:33:36,360 --> 00:33:38,360
Speaker 1: But he's having the best scoring season of his career.

685
00:33:38,360 --> 00:33:40,520
Speaker 1: He's averaging a career high twenty one point four points

686
00:33:40,520 --> 00:33:44,520
Speaker 1: per game on fift t shooting, shooting in the short

687
00:33:44,600 --> 00:33:47,120
Speaker 1: midrange that's from ten to sixteen feet. Those are those

688
00:33:47,160 --> 00:33:49,800
Speaker 1: little shots he's like I said in our breakdown of

689
00:33:49,840 --> 00:33:51,840
Speaker 1: the heat the other day, he's always trying to get

690
00:33:51,840 --> 00:33:54,280
Speaker 1: to the middle of the floor, regardless of which block

691
00:33:54,360 --> 00:33:56,840
Speaker 1: he's on or which elbow he's facing up from. But

692
00:33:56,880 --> 00:33:59,120
Speaker 1: when he gets to the middle, he's so good shooting

693
00:33:59,120 --> 00:34:03,680
Speaker 1: those fadeaway jumps shots over both shoulders extremely accurately, and

694
00:34:03,720 --> 00:34:05,480
Speaker 1: that's turned him into a score in a way that

695
00:34:05,480 --> 00:34:08,040
Speaker 1: he's never been in his career. This is the most

696
00:34:08,040 --> 00:34:11,720
Speaker 1: important development with Bam two and sixteen points on Twitter

697
00:34:11,760 --> 00:34:14,799
Speaker 1: and twelve postops and ISOs. So when you ask Bam

698
00:34:14,880 --> 00:34:18,040
Speaker 1: in a set defense environment in the half court, with

699
00:34:18,120 --> 00:34:21,040
Speaker 1: no advantage to create his own shot for himself or

700
00:34:21,120 --> 00:34:23,800
Speaker 1: for his teammates, he's getting over a point per possession.

701
00:34:24,920 --> 00:34:28,000
Speaker 1: That's huge, and that's a vital contribution to an offense

702
00:34:28,040 --> 00:34:33,480
Speaker 1: that desperately needs someone to specifically provide that service. And

703
00:34:33,520 --> 00:34:34,799
Speaker 1: then on the other end, he's still one of the

704
00:34:34,800 --> 00:34:36,920
Speaker 1: better defensive anchors in the league because of his ability

705
00:34:36,960 --> 00:34:38,879
Speaker 1: to protect the rim and help or pick and roll,

706
00:34:39,160 --> 00:34:42,440
Speaker 1: and also his ability to switch out onto perimeter guards

707
00:34:42,440 --> 00:34:44,319
Speaker 1: and wings, which he's one of the best bigs in

708
00:34:44,320 --> 00:34:47,040
Speaker 1: the league at that specific skill. Uh, the heat in

709
00:34:47,080 --> 00:34:49,160
Speaker 1: general for the season are six points better per one

710
00:34:49,239 --> 00:34:52,359
Speaker 1: Hunter possessions offensively when he's on versus when he's off,

711
00:34:52,640 --> 00:34:55,560
Speaker 1: and three points better defensively when he's on versus when

712
00:34:55,600 --> 00:34:57,720
Speaker 1: he's off. So that's a nine point swing in total

713
00:34:57,800 --> 00:35:00,719
Speaker 1: value when Bam at a bios on versus when he's off,

714
00:35:00,760 --> 00:35:03,600
Speaker 1: which is m VP level stuff. I think he's clearly

715
00:35:03,640 --> 00:35:05,720
Speaker 1: the best center in the league that's not named Joel

716
00:35:05,719 --> 00:35:10,399
Speaker 1: Embiid or Nickela Yokis so in summation really quickly. First

717
00:35:10,400 --> 00:35:13,759
Speaker 1: team guards Luca and Donovan Mitchell, first team forwards, Kevin

718
00:35:13,840 --> 00:35:18,680
Speaker 1: Durant Janice, first team center, Nicola Yokich, Second team guards

719
00:35:18,800 --> 00:35:22,560
Speaker 1: Steph Curry and Kyrie Irving. Second team forwards Jayson Tatum

720
00:35:22,600 --> 00:35:27,040
Speaker 1: and Lebron Second team center Joel Embiad, Third team guards

721
00:35:27,040 --> 00:35:30,080
Speaker 1: Shade gil Just Alexander and Devin Booker. It's like a

722
00:35:30,160 --> 00:35:32,879
Speaker 1: third team forwards Jalen Brown and Zion Williamson. Third team

723
00:35:32,920 --> 00:35:35,880
Speaker 1: center Bam at a Bio. These were the eight players

724
00:35:35,880 --> 00:35:38,880
Speaker 1: that did not make my cut. So these were players

725
00:35:38,880 --> 00:35:40,680
Speaker 1: that were in consideration that did not make the list.

726
00:35:40,719 --> 00:35:43,120
Speaker 1: At the guard Damian Lillard, John Morant, de Mar de

727
00:35:43,280 --> 00:35:47,360
Speaker 1: Rose and Deer and Fox forwards Pascal Siakum, Laurie markin

728
00:35:47,480 --> 00:35:50,680
Speaker 1: In and Jimmy Butler. And then the center, it was

729
00:35:50,719 --> 00:35:52,520
Speaker 1: a toss up for me between a D and BAM.

730
00:35:52,520 --> 00:35:54,359
Speaker 1: But AD has just missed too much time and BAM

731
00:35:54,400 --> 00:35:56,279
Speaker 1: has been too good. I do think it has been

732
00:35:56,320 --> 00:35:58,239
Speaker 1: better when he's been healthy. But a D has been

733
00:35:58,280 --> 00:36:00,320
Speaker 1: the fourth best center in the league this year in

734
00:36:00,400 --> 00:36:02,759
Speaker 1: total contribution. Al Right, guys, that is all I have

735
00:36:02,840 --> 00:36:05,240
Speaker 1: for today. We'll be back tomorrow with the other awards

736
00:36:05,280 --> 00:36:07,160
Speaker 1: like MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Rookie the Year

737
00:36:07,200 --> 00:36:09,600
Speaker 1: Most Improved. Wednesday, we're gonna be doing like a power

738
00:36:09,680 --> 00:36:14,400
Speaker 1: ranking style Tier of Contender tears uh Thursday instant reaction

739
00:36:14,480 --> 00:36:16,480
Speaker 1: to net Celtics as of right now that that might

740
00:36:16,520 --> 00:36:18,480
Speaker 1: get canceled because of Kevin Durant. I'll let you guys know,

741
00:36:18,840 --> 00:36:20,319
Speaker 1: and then later in the week we're gonna be doing

742
00:36:20,360 --> 00:36:23,239
Speaker 1: our five biggest burning questions of the second half of

743
00:36:23,239 --> 00:36:25,360
Speaker 1: the season. As always, I appreciate you guys support and

744
00:36:25,400 --> 00:36:46,000
Speaker 1: I will see you tomorrow. Volume