WEBVTT - Hot and Cold. Real Threats & Paper Tigers

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<v Speaker 1>Come Home, Come Home, Come Home.

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<v Speaker 2>On this episode of the Heat Check, I guess we

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<v Speaker 2>can call it hot and Cold. That's today's episode Hot

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<v Speaker 2>and Cold. We break down some of the hottest teams

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<v Speaker 2>in the NBA right now and talk about teams who

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<v Speaker 2>either are going cold or going to stay cold, the

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<v Speaker 2>Paper Tigers that are going to flame out, most likely

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<v Speaker 2>in the playoffs. And yes, you know who we're talking about.

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<v Speaker 2>Most likely the Utah Jazz is in that mix. So

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<v Speaker 2>go ahead, rock and drop that beat Sunday by perfect Good.

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<v Speaker 1>Rays.

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<v Speaker 2>Like. Somebody recently asked me who are my sleepers? Who

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<v Speaker 2>is my West Coast sleeper for the NBA playoffs? And

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<v Speaker 2>the first team that shockingly came to my mind not

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<v Speaker 2>a team I talk about a ton, Not a team

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<v Speaker 2>that has historically gone very deep into the playoffs, not

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<v Speaker 2>a team that has attracted a ton of free agents.

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<v Speaker 2>But a team that's playing really well right now, and

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<v Speaker 2>a team that is doing all the right things at

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<v Speaker 2>the right time of the year. Dallas Mavericks. The Dallas Mavericks.

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<v Speaker 2>It sickens me to even say that, but it's true.

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<v Speaker 2>What a crazy year. If you're a MAVs fan. He

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<v Speaker 2>hasn't gone quite the way that you were hoping when

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<v Speaker 2>you saw Luca play for Team Slovenia, you were hoping

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<v Speaker 2>that maybe this would get him in shape faster, and

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<v Speaker 2>in fact it actually got him out of shape faster

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<v Speaker 2>because he chilled all the way out after the Olympics

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<v Speaker 2>were over, said I ate too much. I hung around

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<v Speaker 2>on the beach too much, and then he was basically

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<v Speaker 2>fat and injured for the majority of the beginning of

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<v Speaker 2>the season. And as Luca goes, the MAVs go. Last

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<v Speaker 2>year ended, of course disastrously. The MAVs should have beaten

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<v Speaker 2>the Clippers, but Kawhi was the robot, so like Fine right,

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<v Speaker 2>they led to the exit of the only coach to

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<v Speaker 2>ever win a championship in Dallas. There was tons of drama.

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<v Speaker 2>Luca hated Rick Carlisle. Luca hated the fact that kristavs

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<v Speaker 2>Porzingis was still a Maverick. Luca hated the fact that

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<v Speaker 2>they got rid of Dennis Smith Junior. There was just

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<v Speaker 2>hit piece after hit piece after hit peace accusations about

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<v Speaker 2>the front office. There was scandals, There was finger pointing.

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<v Speaker 2>There was Luca saying nothing, chirp, chirp, And of course

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<v Speaker 2>that led to Rick Carlisle being offered a one year deal,

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<v Speaker 2>which was pretty much like a prove it deal. He

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<v Speaker 2>said no, Now he's in Indiana. Now we've got Jason Kidd.

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<v Speaker 2>Fast forward and all all of this was then dumped

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<v Speaker 2>into the lap of Jason Kidd, who will, let's face it,

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<v Speaker 2>has had his own share of off the court controversy,

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<v Speaker 2>I might say. So things were starting off a little rocky,

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<v Speaker 2>a little rocky from a reputational standpoint, like, hey, do

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<v Speaker 2>we even want to hire Jason Kidd? You hire a

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<v Speaker 2>first time GM who came from the brand side in

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<v Speaker 2>Nico Harrison. Good dude, but unprecedented. Does he even have

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<v Speaker 2>relationships with the rest of the league. He's been slanging

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<v Speaker 2>shoes for athletes for twenty years. So let's just say

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<v Speaker 2>the expectations were sort of tepid. Right fast forward to today.

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<v Speaker 2>Not only has the team been restructured by shipping out

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<v Speaker 2>Porzingis to Washington for Breton's and Dinwittie, but the entire

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<v Speaker 2>nature of this team has been transformed. So let's get

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<v Speaker 2>into it, because there's a few major things that the

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<v Speaker 2>Maps have done to put themselves into a position to

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<v Speaker 2>do what I would consider to be damage they could

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<v Speaker 2>knock off a really good team in the first round. First,

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<v Speaker 2>Luca is back in shape, Luca's not fat anymore. Luca

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<v Speaker 2>has been able to finish out games strong. He said,

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<v Speaker 2>he's not winded in fourth quarters anymore. That's huge. I

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<v Speaker 2>would say you're superstar, not being winded in fourth quarters,

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<v Speaker 2>completely out of breath, needing the oxygen mask. I would

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<v Speaker 2>say that's huge. Also, the MAVs are the hottest team

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<v Speaker 2>in the West right now. Momentum is big. It has

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<v Speaker 2>everything to do with that defensive intensity. And of course

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<v Speaker 2>Luca's health and we'll call it wellness fat fatness. And

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<v Speaker 2>because he's not fluffy anymore, he's able to defend well,

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<v Speaker 2>he's still kind of fluffy. He's defending at a career

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<v Speaker 2>high point. He even told people, I think it was

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<v Speaker 2>la He yelled at the crowd, I fucking play defense now,

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<v Speaker 2>what's up? Like, okay, Luca. He went from Eliya bil

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<v Speaker 2>where everybody was making fun of him because he was

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<v Speaker 2>slow and like able to get cooked. Even KD said,

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<v Speaker 2>like he kind of plays possum with how quick he is.

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<v Speaker 2>He tries to be slow on purpose. And now he's

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<v Speaker 2>a plus defender right now, since December thirty first, when

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<v Speaker 2>the MAVs started their tear Luca has a defensive rating

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<v Speaker 2>of one hundred and four point five and an offensive

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<v Speaker 2>rating of one hundred and twelve. That is an eight

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<v Speaker 2>and a half net rating, and he was a negative

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<v Speaker 2>fourteen when he was fat. That's a big turnaround, I'd say,

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<v Speaker 2>And because he's not a defensive liability anymore, the team

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<v Speaker 2>defense is all the way up, as they say. A

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<v Speaker 2>lot of this, though, falls on a couple of players,

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<v Speaker 2>Reggie Bullock, who they poached from the Knicks, and Maxi Kleba.

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<v Speaker 2>Reggie Bullock has a defensive rating of one hundred and

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<v Speaker 2>eight point six and Maxi Kleiba has a defensive rating

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<v Speaker 2>of one hundred and six as well. But the team

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<v Speaker 2>defense is the reason to me that the Dallas is

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<v Speaker 2>so dangerous. Mavericks, by the numbers will get into some

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<v Speaker 2>nerd shit really fast. Number two in NBA in opponents

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<v Speaker 2>points per game one hundred and three point seven. Number

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<v Speaker 2>one in the NBA right now in opponents points in

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<v Speaker 2>the fourth quarter, twenty four points they're allowing in the

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<v Speaker 2>fourth quarter. That's ridiculous. That is absolutely absurd. Number two

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<v Speaker 2>in defending the three they're only giving up just shy

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<v Speaker 2>of eleven threes per game. They're number six in opponent

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<v Speaker 2>free throws per game at fifteen point one. They don't

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<v Speaker 2>foul a lot, and that is because they're able to

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<v Speaker 2>play defense and stay out of the bonus in a

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<v Speaker 2>place where that leads to less fourth quarter points per game.

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<v Speaker 2>Number two in opponents offensive rebounds per game at nine

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<v Speaker 2>point four. They're number one in the NBA in blocks

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<v Speaker 2>per game at just SHIA four. They're number three in

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<v Speaker 2>the NBA it steals per game at just shia seven.

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<v Speaker 2>So what does this all mean to me? It means

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<v Speaker 2>that Jason Kidd has installed not only an incredibly active

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<v Speaker 2>defense that challenges a lot of shots hence the blocks,

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<v Speaker 2>presses the ball beyond the three point line, hence the

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<v Speaker 2>three point defense blocking out like a stone wall, which

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<v Speaker 2>is why the other teams aren't getting any rebounds and

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<v Speaker 2>doing it all while not fouling, which means that fourth

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<v Speaker 2>quarter points come at a premium. Given the fact, like

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<v Speaker 2>I said, that they're not in the bonus these opposing teams,

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<v Speaker 2>they're basically able to have greater cushion in the fourth

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<v Speaker 2>quarter to amp out the amp up the defensive intensity

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<v Speaker 2>while not worrying about teams going to the free throw line. Shesh.

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<v Speaker 2>Second thing about the MAVs is that they have decided

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<v Speaker 2>we're building around Luca and we're okay with just one star.

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<v Speaker 2>We're okay with just one star. Probably the only team

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<v Speaker 2>with one star that could actually contend right now is

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<v Speaker 2>the MAVs. And that meant get rid of the unicorn,

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<v Speaker 2>give up that experiment. He is no star and not

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<v Speaker 2>going to be a star here, so ship them all

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<v Speaker 2>the way out. Here's what became apparent to Jason Kidd.

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<v Speaker 2>He felt that Kevin kristavs Porzingis was in the way,

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<v Speaker 2>and then the opportunity arose to get two contracts that

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<v Speaker 2>are movable for one big inflative contract. So they pulled

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<v Speaker 2>the trigger and he did that knowing full well what

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<v Speaker 2>the ceiling could be on a one star team. The

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<v Speaker 2>MAVs did it with Dirk Noavisky. They won it with

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<v Speaker 2>one star and a bunch of role players like himself.

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<v Speaker 2>They brought in Davis Breton's and Spencer Dinwiddie. They got

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<v Speaker 2>a system that works for both players, and it shows

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<v Speaker 2>the new starting lineup of Luca, Dorian Finney, Smith, Reggie Bullock,

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<v Speaker 2>Jalen Brunston, and Dwight Poweller checked this number NERD shit

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<v Speaker 2>nerdshit Alert Alert, open your eyes. Plus fifty one in

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<v Speaker 2>one hundred and seventy three minutes. That starting lineup is

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<v Speaker 2>a plus fifty one in a hun in seventy three minutes,

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<v Speaker 2>And of course that means that they are winning a

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<v Speaker 2>lot of basketball games. Dimwitty said recently on a quote

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<v Speaker 2>that this team knows what they need to do. Brunston

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<v Speaker 2>knows how he fits with Luca on the court and

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<v Speaker 2>knows how to lead when Luca is resting. They both

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<v Speaker 2>know how to work together synergistically to be able to

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<v Speaker 2>lift up that superstar a single superstar and a bunch

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<v Speaker 2>of really good role players. And although they don't have

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<v Speaker 2>a super high race, super highly rated offense, they are

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<v Speaker 2>number three in the NBA in the least amount of turnovers,

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<v Speaker 2>they're number seven in the league and assist the turnover ratio,

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<v Speaker 2>So they're super efficient on offense because Jalen Brunston is

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<v Speaker 2>one of the best point guards in the league. And

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<v Speaker 2>we've talked about this before at not turning the ball

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<v Speaker 2>over and being able to assist at a high rate

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<v Speaker 2>he's only at He's averaging only one point seventy three

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<v Speaker 2>turnovers per game on set on thirty two minutes a game.

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<v Speaker 2>Luca averaged like five turnovers a game, So if they

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<v Speaker 2>didn't have Luke on the team, they would be probably

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<v Speaker 2>number one in the league at assist the turnover ratio period.

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<v Speaker 2>And of course, another big turning point for this team

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<v Speaker 2>is getting Spencer Dinwitty, who the Wizards did not want,

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<v Speaker 2>who the Wizard's thought was a cultural issue. Who the

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<v Speaker 2>Wizard's thought was clashing with the rest of the squad

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<v Speaker 2>and Bradbeiale in particular, because he wanted to be a star.

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<v Speaker 2>But listen, Dinwitty on a good team understands he is

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<v Speaker 2>no star. He understands he's a good off the bench guy,

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<v Speaker 2>and he's fitting in perfectly eighteen two and six in

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<v Speaker 2>his first few weeks. But what's even more important is

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<v Speaker 2>how he functions when Lucas off the floor, which we've

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<v Speaker 2>seen as well. We'll get to that in a second,

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<v Speaker 2>and that is shocking. The whole fit with Dallas is

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<v Speaker 2>probably shocking to a lot of Wizards fans. Dinwitty I

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<v Speaker 2>thought he was a cancer. A lot of people in

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<v Speaker 2>Washington thought he was the locker room problem. But now

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<v Speaker 2>that he's out in Dallas. By the way, Dinwitty had

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<v Speaker 2>thirty six two and seven leading a Lucalis MAVs team

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<v Speaker 2>thirty six two and seven. Wow to come from. That's

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<v Speaker 2>a low assist number, though, isn't it. He was be

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<v Speaker 2>was hoopin'. He let the world know after the fact

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<v Speaker 2>after they played the Kings how he was feeling about

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<v Speaker 2>playing in Washington. This is what Dinwoodie said. When the

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<v Speaker 2>road changed in Washington and they wanted me to pass more.

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<v Speaker 2>They felt like I was scoring a lot, and I

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<v Speaker 2>did that. I took my foot off the gas scoring

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<v Speaker 2>scoring wise, because that's what they felt. Well, the team

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<v Speaker 2>needed to get Kuzma and KCP involved and those guy shots.

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<v Speaker 2>I said, look, I already got paid. I don't care

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<v Speaker 2>if this is about y'all trying to get the shots

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<v Speaker 2>y'all need whatever, But to be bashed on the way

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<v Speaker 2>out of the door hurt my feelings. For sure. I

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<v Speaker 2>think I'm human. Of course, the I think I'm human

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<v Speaker 2>part just solidifies to me who Dinwoody is. But that

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<v Speaker 2>is another story and another topic for another day. Because

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<v Speaker 2>when someone says I think I'm human, he's he's questioning

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<v Speaker 2>all of his reality at all times. It's something that's

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<v Speaker 2>definitely get off the weed. Spencer. Anyway, when asked about

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<v Speaker 2>the different the biggest difference between the two teams, Spencer said,

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<v Speaker 2>not to be the dead horse, but Dallas's commitment to

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<v Speaker 2>the collective and of the winning games is all that

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<v Speaker 2>matters to them. Yikes, that is damning. That is damning

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<v Speaker 2>in terms of how the Wizards were operating while he

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<v Speaker 2>was there in his opinion, and of course the NBA

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<v Speaker 2>being the NBA. The Wizards responded and wes Unseld Junior

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<v Speaker 2>decided I'm going to go into deflection mode and said, well,

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<v Speaker 2>we're not gonna get into the accuracy of that statement. Okay,

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<v Speaker 2>that's one of those classic coach speak where it's like

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<v Speaker 2>he's definitely calling Spencer Dinwiddie a liar without saying he's

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<v Speaker 2>a liar, because it's like, well, I'm just not gonna

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<v Speaker 2>get into the accuracy or by the way, Spencer Dinwiddy

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<v Speaker 2>could be totally telling the truth, and that's like the

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<v Speaker 2>biggest deflection because he doesn't even want to say whether

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<v Speaker 2>he's gonna question the validity or not, because if he did,

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<v Speaker 2>he might have to lie on the record. Classic stuff.

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<v Speaker 2>Then we have Kyle Kuzma, who then was also asked

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<v Speaker 2>about Spencer Dinwiddie's comments NBA dramas my favorite thing in

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<v Speaker 2>the world, and he goes, I'm sure if you go

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<v Speaker 2>back to tidbits, I know I always said I wanted

0:13:14.960 --> 0:13:18.959
<v Speaker 2>him to be aggressive. I know Beale always said he

0:13:19.040 --> 0:13:22.199
<v Speaker 2>wanted Spence to be aggressive. So I'm just gonna leave

0:13:22.240 --> 0:13:25.960
<v Speaker 2>it at that. We're past that, honestly, We're focused on

0:13:26.000 --> 0:13:31.200
<v Speaker 2>the guys that are here. If you go back to tidbits,

0:13:31.400 --> 0:13:36.920
<v Speaker 2>that's such a funny word, tidbits. Here's the thing that's true.

0:13:37.200 --> 0:13:42.960
<v Speaker 2>Spencer was pissed because he was getting buckets, his role

0:13:43.080 --> 0:13:45.840
<v Speaker 2>was asked to change. He didn't want to be a

0:13:45.880 --> 0:13:48.000
<v Speaker 2>six man when he was being paid to be a starter.

0:13:48.200 --> 0:13:51.520
<v Speaker 2>That was pretty evident and said multiple times around the team.

0:13:51.640 --> 0:13:54.760
<v Speaker 2>Because Spencer Dinwiddie believes that his skill set is on

0:13:54.840 --> 0:14:00.080
<v Speaker 2>the same level as Kyrie Irving, he didn't want to

0:14:00.160 --> 0:14:03.560
<v Speaker 2>be relegated on a team like the Wizards, which frankly

0:14:03.640 --> 0:14:06.280
<v Speaker 2>makes a lot of sense given when he was scoring

0:14:06.320 --> 0:14:08.040
<v Speaker 2>a lot the Wizards were winning, and when he was

0:14:08.080 --> 0:14:10.240
<v Speaker 2>not scoring a lot. The Wizards were losing, so I

0:14:10.280 --> 0:14:12.920
<v Speaker 2>get all that probably a better scorer than the rest

0:14:12.920 --> 0:14:17.320
<v Speaker 2>of the Wizard's roster outside of maybe maybe Coups, maybe Beale,

0:14:17.520 --> 0:14:19.560
<v Speaker 2>probably Beale, but not in the fourth quarter for sure

0:14:19.600 --> 0:14:22.600
<v Speaker 2>or not. He's not a point guard, but he's not

0:14:22.640 --> 0:14:24.920
<v Speaker 2>quite as shooting guard. So the fit was weird. The

0:14:25.040 --> 0:14:28.120
<v Speaker 2>role was strange, and truthfully, the biggest criticism that I've

0:14:28.160 --> 0:14:30.960
<v Speaker 2>heard about the Wizards is all about Wes Unsell Junior.

0:14:31.320 --> 0:14:34.520
<v Speaker 2>A lot of players I heard find his offense to

0:14:34.560 --> 0:14:37.960
<v Speaker 2>be quite confusing, and they are what was it, what

0:14:38.000 --> 0:14:39.720
<v Speaker 2>did he say? I'm not going to get into and

0:14:39.760 --> 0:14:42.440
<v Speaker 2>they're not going to get into the accuracy of whether

0:14:42.440 --> 0:14:44.600
<v Speaker 2>he can coach or not. They're not going to get

0:14:44.600 --> 0:14:47.120
<v Speaker 2>into the accuracy of whether his shit makes any damn

0:14:47.120 --> 0:14:49.800
<v Speaker 2>sense at all, but they're questioning whether it is the case.

0:14:50.560 --> 0:14:54.040
<v Speaker 2>Jason kidd though, who has done this a time or two,

0:14:54.360 --> 0:14:57.280
<v Speaker 2>is making shit very simple in Dallas, and that's how

0:14:57.280 --> 0:15:00.280
<v Speaker 2>you get guys like Spencer Dinwiddie to not worry about

0:15:00.280 --> 0:15:02.600
<v Speaker 2>all the noise and focus on like six plays, which

0:15:02.640 --> 0:15:05.440
<v Speaker 2>is what happened when Spencer Dinwood he ended up leading

0:15:05.480 --> 0:15:08.520
<v Speaker 2>the ship when Luca was out, they gave him six

0:15:08.560 --> 0:15:13.080
<v Speaker 2>plays to run and they kept it super duper simple.

0:15:13.480 --> 0:15:16.520
<v Speaker 2>And this is what Spencer told the Dallas Morning News

0:15:16.680 --> 0:15:19.200
<v Speaker 2>coach Kid one of the greatest point guards of all time.

0:15:19.360 --> 0:15:23.520
<v Speaker 2>He simplifies everything and make sure it's streamlined and what

0:15:23.600 --> 0:15:26.280
<v Speaker 2>it needs to be. Processing information and a lot of

0:15:26.320 --> 0:15:30.320
<v Speaker 2>information is hard. Making it more complex than it needs

0:15:30.360 --> 0:15:34.320
<v Speaker 2>to be makes it even worse, like it makes the

0:15:34.800 --> 0:15:38.880
<v Speaker 2>goal almost unachievable and unattainable. That's what we strive to

0:15:38.920 --> 0:15:41.200
<v Speaker 2>do here is make complex shit sound as simple as

0:15:41.240 --> 0:15:45.320
<v Speaker 2>it possibly can. And sometimes it takes a very high

0:15:45.400 --> 0:15:49.000
<v Speaker 2>brain processor in order to make things that are complex simple.

0:15:49.720 --> 0:15:51.880
<v Speaker 2>I'm not going to get into the accuracy of the

0:15:51.920 --> 0:15:55.800
<v Speaker 2>processing speed of west Unseld Junior at this time. He

0:15:55.920 --> 0:15:58.400
<v Speaker 2>probably summed up what's happening in Washington as well as

0:15:58.440 --> 0:16:02.080
<v Speaker 2>anyone when Spencer didn when he said this, I think, well,

0:16:02.120 --> 0:16:04.520
<v Speaker 2>Washington's kind of in flux. You're looking at their roster.

0:16:04.640 --> 0:16:06.760
<v Speaker 2>They were trying to get Beal to sign the Supermax.

0:16:06.840 --> 0:16:09.240
<v Speaker 2>They still are. They've got a bunch of young guys

0:16:09.280 --> 0:16:12.120
<v Speaker 2>like Denny Ruey that they need to develop. Then you've

0:16:12.120 --> 0:16:15.240
<v Speaker 2>got guys that came from the Lakers that wanted expanded roles.

0:16:15.240 --> 0:16:17.480
<v Speaker 2>They all all wanted to be the guy. You got

0:16:17.480 --> 0:16:19.480
<v Speaker 2>a first time head coach. So you've got all these

0:16:19.480 --> 0:16:22.000
<v Speaker 2>different dynamics going on where people are trying to establish

0:16:22.080 --> 0:16:24.600
<v Speaker 2>themselves in whatever roles or positions they may want to

0:16:24.600 --> 0:16:26.480
<v Speaker 2>be in the league for the next five to ten years.

0:16:26.760 --> 0:16:28.840
<v Speaker 2>With that being said, all those balls in the air,

0:16:28.920 --> 0:16:32.680
<v Speaker 2>hard juggling process, tough to do for any coach, any organization.

0:16:33.040 --> 0:16:36.200
<v Speaker 2>The amount of ricochet shots being said in that paragraph.

0:16:36.680 --> 0:16:41.400
<v Speaker 2>Everyone is powermongering, everyone is fighting for an expanded role.

0:16:41.760 --> 0:16:43.880
<v Speaker 2>No one was willing to sacrifice. And you have a

0:16:43.920 --> 0:16:46.400
<v Speaker 2>new head coach who doesn't know how to manage egos

0:16:46.560 --> 0:16:49.880
<v Speaker 2>and that shit is disastrous. Then you've got Bradley Beale

0:16:49.920 --> 0:16:54.280
<v Speaker 2>that goes down with the season ending injury, has surgery

0:16:54.560 --> 0:16:59.600
<v Speaker 2>and it's night Night sleep mask. But I'm looking forward

0:16:59.600 --> 0:17:02.080
<v Speaker 2>to see what then, what he does. I'm looking forward

0:17:02.120 --> 0:17:05.280
<v Speaker 2>to being on the lookout for the MAVs and if

0:17:05.320 --> 0:17:07.240
<v Speaker 2>you're a MAVs fan, there's a lot to be excited about.

0:17:08.000 --> 0:17:11.440
<v Speaker 2>And on top of that, the schedule. Let's talk about

0:17:11.440 --> 0:17:15.520
<v Speaker 2>the schedule here for another second. Very favorable power rankings

0:17:15.520 --> 0:17:17.760
<v Speaker 2>show that there are only four teams that the MAVs

0:17:17.760 --> 0:17:21.040
<v Speaker 2>are not favored against for the remainder of the schedule.

0:17:21.520 --> 0:17:23.600
<v Speaker 2>They might even progress to a four seed and get

0:17:23.600 --> 0:17:26.359
<v Speaker 2>home court against the Jazz. There's a possibility that's going

0:17:26.440 --> 0:17:28.919
<v Speaker 2>to be four or five Jazz and MAVs. It just

0:17:28.960 --> 0:17:31.879
<v Speaker 2>depends on who's going to get home court advantage. MAVs

0:17:31.880 --> 0:17:34.399
<v Speaker 2>have won seven of nine clutch games, defined as a

0:17:34.440 --> 0:17:37.840
<v Speaker 2>game within five points within five minutes, and the big

0:17:37.880 --> 0:17:40.920
<v Speaker 2>criticism of Luca over the course of his tenure has

0:17:40.960 --> 0:17:43.720
<v Speaker 2>been that the MAVs have sucked in the clutch. But

0:17:44.119 --> 0:17:47.080
<v Speaker 2>since he returned January first, the Mavericks are eleven to

0:17:47.119 --> 0:17:49.520
<v Speaker 2>five and clutch games with a net rating of plus

0:17:49.560 --> 0:17:52.439
<v Speaker 2>four point three. Nerd shit. The Mavericks are twelve and

0:17:52.480 --> 0:17:55.680
<v Speaker 2>both offensive and defensive rating during that time span during

0:17:55.720 --> 0:17:59.320
<v Speaker 2>those critical clutch moments, and the numbers have only improved

0:17:59.320 --> 0:18:02.720
<v Speaker 2>with Spence, Sir Dinwitty and Davis Burton's Mavericks are now

0:18:03.000 --> 0:18:06.040
<v Speaker 2>five and one since they've acquired those two in clutch

0:18:06.119 --> 0:18:08.840
<v Speaker 2>games and they have a net rating during that time

0:18:08.880 --> 0:18:13.399
<v Speaker 2>period of plus seventy two point seven. Small sample size,

0:18:13.440 --> 0:18:17.720
<v Speaker 2>but pretty incredible. And now that Rick Carlisle is gone

0:18:17.840 --> 0:18:20.440
<v Speaker 2>and the stench of him is gone. Lucas actually dunking

0:18:20.520 --> 0:18:24.679
<v Speaker 2>on people, Lucas happy, he's smiling, he's laughing and joking

0:18:24.720 --> 0:18:28.320
<v Speaker 2>in his postgame pressers. He likes this team even more

0:18:28.359 --> 0:18:31.159
<v Speaker 2>so now that christavs Porzingis is fucking gone. All the

0:18:31.200 --> 0:18:33.720
<v Speaker 2>shit he didn't want on the team gone, all the

0:18:33.720 --> 0:18:37.600
<v Speaker 2>players that help him become better here. Does that mean

0:18:37.640 --> 0:18:40.159
<v Speaker 2>they're going to make it to the finals. Probably not,

0:18:41.040 --> 0:18:44.359
<v Speaker 2>but they could upset somebody. And it shows Luca, like

0:18:44.400 --> 0:18:47.359
<v Speaker 2>I said, skying for dunks, brunts and shooting seventy percent

0:18:47.400 --> 0:18:50.200
<v Speaker 2>from the field, and Dinwitty might have just found himself

0:18:50.320 --> 0:19:01.840
<v Speaker 2>a long term home. Man I promise, come on and

0:19:01.920 --> 0:19:05.720
<v Speaker 2>when it all falls down, man I promise, I'm so

0:19:05.800 --> 0:19:07.960
<v Speaker 2>self conscious, that's why you aren't. We see me with

0:19:08.040 --> 0:19:11.720
<v Speaker 2>at least one of our time. Man I promise. These

0:19:11.720 --> 0:19:15.840
<v Speaker 2>teams right now are so self conscious they have no

0:19:15.960 --> 0:19:19.359
<v Speaker 2>idea why they're at the top of the standing. Oh boy,

0:19:19.440 --> 0:19:23.040
<v Speaker 2>when the playoffs are coming six weeks away, it is

0:19:23.160 --> 0:19:25.120
<v Speaker 2>not too early to point out that there are some

0:19:25.160 --> 0:19:28.080
<v Speaker 2>fan bases that feel good, some fan bases that feel

0:19:28.400 --> 0:19:32.480
<v Speaker 2>kind of shook. But there are teams that are paper

0:19:32.520 --> 0:19:34.760
<v Speaker 2>tigers right now. And if you're a fan of any

0:19:34.800 --> 0:19:39.560
<v Speaker 2>of those four teams, you got real reasons to stress.

0:19:40.160 --> 0:19:44.160
<v Speaker 2>Let's start with Chicago. The Bulls have relied on Demorrow

0:19:44.400 --> 0:19:46.840
<v Speaker 2>time and time and time again to bail them out.

0:19:47.200 --> 0:19:49.960
<v Speaker 2>And the world might think, is that a good thing?

0:19:50.320 --> 0:19:52.960
<v Speaker 2>Don't you have a fourth quarter scoring option? When Zach

0:19:53.040 --> 0:19:55.680
<v Speaker 2>Lavine and all these boys get back healthy, they're gonna

0:19:55.720 --> 0:19:59.240
<v Speaker 2>be a force. This has happened thirty times a year.

0:20:00.600 --> 0:20:05.000
<v Speaker 2>But it appears that this team has real trouble against

0:20:05.000 --> 0:20:08.120
<v Speaker 2>good teams. The Bulls allow more shots at the room

0:20:08.200 --> 0:20:10.200
<v Speaker 2>than any other team in the league, according to Cleaning

0:20:10.280 --> 0:20:13.920
<v Speaker 2>the Glass. More concerning, though, the Bulls are three to

0:20:13.960 --> 0:20:17.680
<v Speaker 2>ten this season against the top five East contenders. Worse,

0:20:18.040 --> 0:20:22.040
<v Speaker 2>they are not only winless against Miami, Philly and Milwaukee,

0:20:22.400 --> 0:20:25.720
<v Speaker 2>they haven't even beaten any of the top three teams

0:20:25.720 --> 0:20:30.480
<v Speaker 2>in the West either. They are ah win thirteen against

0:20:30.480 --> 0:20:37.119
<v Speaker 2>the top six teams in the league, the Sixers, Bucks, Heat, Grizzlies, Warriors, Suns.

0:20:37.359 --> 0:20:41.119
<v Speaker 2>And if you're saying, well, these are tight contested battles,

0:20:41.359 --> 0:20:44.840
<v Speaker 2>you know it's a chess match, it's a boxing meat ring. No,

0:20:45.200 --> 0:20:47.560
<v Speaker 2>they've lost these games by an average of twelve point

0:20:47.560 --> 0:20:51.760
<v Speaker 2>eight points. They're getting absolutely stomped by the good teams

0:20:52.000 --> 0:20:54.119
<v Speaker 2>in the West and the good teams in the East.

0:20:54.640 --> 0:20:57.880
<v Speaker 2>So if you're a Bulls fan and if you're lucky

0:20:57.960 --> 0:21:00.320
<v Speaker 2>enough to get out of the second round, is going

0:21:00.400 --> 0:21:01.920
<v Speaker 2>to be a beast for you. I don't I think this.

0:21:02.040 --> 0:21:04.560
<v Speaker 2>They're upset city. They are one of the teams you

0:21:04.600 --> 0:21:07.200
<v Speaker 2>should be absolutely scared about. Will they be better with

0:21:07.280 --> 0:21:11.040
<v Speaker 2>Patrick Williams? Fuck it, I don't know, Alex Cruso. You know,

0:21:11.640 --> 0:21:15.240
<v Speaker 2>Zach Lavine is his knee right, he keeps getting platelet

0:21:15.320 --> 0:21:20.199
<v Speaker 2>replacement therapy, which is literally spinning his plasma inside of

0:21:20.240 --> 0:21:23.399
<v Speaker 2>his knee and reinjecting it. That shit hurts. That's not

0:21:23.440 --> 0:21:27.920
<v Speaker 2>a healthy knee. That's not a healthy knee. So Bulls

0:21:28.200 --> 0:21:33.920
<v Speaker 2>Paper Tiger won everyone's darling Number two Paper Tiger Cleveland Cavaliers.

0:21:34.440 --> 0:21:37.639
<v Speaker 2>And it's not because they're like they have organizational issues

0:21:38.240 --> 0:21:40.760
<v Speaker 2>besides just the fact that they're owner's a piece of shit.

0:21:40.960 --> 0:21:48.160
<v Speaker 2>But like, outside of that awesome, they've been in insanely

0:21:48.200 --> 0:21:52.640
<v Speaker 2>exciting and having the talent all over the roster organically

0:21:52.720 --> 0:21:55.399
<v Speaker 2>that you could only dream of. Their win total was

0:21:55.440 --> 0:21:58.040
<v Speaker 2>like twenty seven and a half, and they blew past

0:21:58.080 --> 0:22:00.480
<v Speaker 2>it by the All Star break. So they're pretty steadily

0:22:00.520 --> 0:22:03.320
<v Speaker 2>in the top four until the East. In the East,

0:22:03.400 --> 0:22:07.280
<v Speaker 2>until a recent run of really injuries. Every team has

0:22:07.320 --> 0:22:10.240
<v Speaker 2>bad stretches. I mean someone like the Trailblazers stretched that

0:22:10.320 --> 0:22:13.440
<v Speaker 2>over an entire season. So like, we've been this way

0:22:13.640 --> 0:22:16.520
<v Speaker 2>all year, but this is like the thing that's been

0:22:16.640 --> 0:22:21.000
<v Speaker 2>very troubling. The Calves are in the last three weeks

0:22:21.160 --> 0:22:23.879
<v Speaker 2>suddenly gone from number one defense in the league or

0:22:23.920 --> 0:22:26.040
<v Speaker 2>number two defense, depending on what metric you're using and

0:22:26.080 --> 0:22:28.600
<v Speaker 2>what time premi you're using. But they've gone from being

0:22:28.640 --> 0:22:31.160
<v Speaker 2>one of the toughest defenses in the league to suddenly

0:22:31.200 --> 0:22:34.080
<v Speaker 2>allowing one hundred and fifteen point eight points per one

0:22:34.119 --> 0:22:36.520
<v Speaker 2>hundred possessions, which is now twenty ninth in league, which

0:22:36.560 --> 0:22:40.440
<v Speaker 2>is Trailblazer's territory before that stretch started. They're the number

0:22:40.440 --> 0:22:45.600
<v Speaker 2>three d ranked in the entire NBA. Yuck. Why has

0:22:45.640 --> 0:22:50.680
<v Speaker 2>this happened? Well, besides injuries. JB. Bickerstaff, the coach, thinks

0:22:50.680 --> 0:22:53.240
<v Speaker 2>it's because they just got too comfortable, But I think

0:22:53.320 --> 0:22:55.560
<v Speaker 2>the truth is much harder to fix. This team is

0:22:55.600 --> 0:22:58.359
<v Speaker 2>just way too banged up. They just are and that

0:22:58.480 --> 0:23:01.520
<v Speaker 2>sucks because that monster line that they've been running out

0:23:01.720 --> 0:23:05.800
<v Speaker 2>has been super fun. But the injuries have been way

0:23:05.800 --> 0:23:07.320
<v Speaker 2>too hard to deal with. I'm not talking about just

0:23:07.320 --> 0:23:10.679
<v Speaker 2>Sexton and Rubio. This team was twenty and fourteen with

0:23:10.760 --> 0:23:14.399
<v Speaker 2>Rubio and sixteen and fifteen without them. Markanen has missed

0:23:14.400 --> 0:23:18.800
<v Speaker 2>twenty one games. Garlands missed thirteen games, Cheddy Osmond has

0:23:18.840 --> 0:23:22.000
<v Speaker 2>missed twelve games. Kevin Love, Jared Allen, and Evan Mobley

0:23:22.040 --> 0:23:26.040
<v Speaker 2>have all missed eight games. Karris Lavert has missed six

0:23:26.119 --> 0:23:29.520
<v Speaker 2>out of a possible ten games since being traded, and

0:23:29.600 --> 0:23:32.760
<v Speaker 2>now the latest, the worst blow all star Jared Allen

0:23:32.800 --> 0:23:35.920
<v Speaker 2>has now a fractured finger and it's down indefinitely. This

0:23:36.000 --> 0:23:39.359
<v Speaker 2>is rot roll land, this is paper tiger land. The

0:23:39.440 --> 0:23:43.000
<v Speaker 2>Cavs now face a very hard, very long stretch without him,

0:23:44.000 --> 0:23:47.080
<v Speaker 2>and they are not the same team without either of them.

0:23:47.119 --> 0:23:52.359
<v Speaker 2>They're five and twelve when either Evan or Jared Allen

0:23:52.520 --> 0:23:56.080
<v Speaker 2>are not playing. They're thirty two and fifteen when they

0:23:56.080 --> 0:23:59.439
<v Speaker 2>both play, which would put them as that percentage of

0:23:59.440 --> 0:24:02.080
<v Speaker 2>when percentage would put them as the number one seed

0:24:02.080 --> 0:24:06.960
<v Speaker 2>in the East. Just terrible, terrible luck all around, and

0:24:07.040 --> 0:24:10.040
<v Speaker 2>I was super stoked to see this team maybe like

0:24:10.800 --> 0:24:14.600
<v Speaker 2>knock off somebody, they get all the home court advantage,

0:24:14.640 --> 0:24:16.720
<v Speaker 2>they get an eight seed, like that would be cool.

0:24:16.800 --> 0:24:19.080
<v Speaker 2>I'd like to see that, you know, like take out

0:24:19.080 --> 0:24:21.600
<v Speaker 2>a power I don't know, maybe like face the Nets

0:24:21.600 --> 0:24:25.160
<v Speaker 2>in the first round. It's like Kyrie goes back to Cleveland,

0:24:25.320 --> 0:24:27.840
<v Speaker 2>burning stage. We'd love to see that. But I don't

0:24:27.840 --> 0:24:29.720
<v Speaker 2>think that that's happening. I think that they are going

0:24:29.760 --> 0:24:33.480
<v Speaker 2>to end up in the playoffs and probably be barbecue chicken,

0:24:33.640 --> 0:24:36.240
<v Speaker 2>like very easy meat to feast off of for whoever

0:24:36.320 --> 0:24:39.639
<v Speaker 2>ends up getting them in the first round. Third paper

0:24:39.680 --> 0:24:43.600
<v Speaker 2>tiger team, the Utah Jazz. Yeah, of course, they're just

0:24:43.600 --> 0:24:46.160
<v Speaker 2>like paper Tiger all year, every year, like pretty much,

0:24:46.200 --> 0:24:48.560
<v Speaker 2>that's what they do. They just throw water on them.

0:24:48.600 --> 0:24:52.400
<v Speaker 2>They just just collapse. As Nate Robinson said to me once,

0:24:52.560 --> 0:24:58.199
<v Speaker 2>trash trash utah, trash utah. I've been predicting their playoff

0:24:58.200 --> 0:25:01.640
<v Speaker 2>failures for a very long time. I said that they

0:25:01.720 --> 0:25:04.840
<v Speaker 2>were the most overrated team in the NBA going into

0:25:04.840 --> 0:25:06.919
<v Speaker 2>the playoffs last year. That happened to be the case.

0:25:07.280 --> 0:25:10.480
<v Speaker 2>I also predicted it preseason. This year. They've had some

0:25:10.520 --> 0:25:13.720
<v Speaker 2>good runs. They looked exciting for the first twenty games

0:25:13.760 --> 0:25:15.920
<v Speaker 2>they saw maybe they were gonna be the number one seed.

0:25:15.920 --> 0:25:17.600
<v Speaker 2>Now they're not even able to get the one seed.

0:25:17.640 --> 0:25:19.680
<v Speaker 2>They're not even able to do what they did last

0:25:19.720 --> 0:25:22.200
<v Speaker 2>year in the regular season, be a regular season team.

0:25:22.480 --> 0:25:25.240
<v Speaker 2>Zach Low just broke down the Jazz on his pod

0:25:25.240 --> 0:25:27.160
<v Speaker 2>and said pretty much what I've been saying. They've done

0:25:27.200 --> 0:25:31.760
<v Speaker 2>nothing to address the issues systemically on the roster. They

0:25:31.800 --> 0:25:36.560
<v Speaker 2>cannot defend on the perimeter. We've discussed this millions of times.

0:25:37.119 --> 0:25:40.160
<v Speaker 2>They are too slow and too old and not athletic

0:25:40.280 --> 0:25:43.600
<v Speaker 2>enough on the wing to basically be able to handle

0:25:43.640 --> 0:25:46.240
<v Speaker 2>these guys like the Clippers, right, And you might be

0:25:46.240 --> 0:25:48.679
<v Speaker 2>saying Trista, but they're saying playing so much better now

0:25:48.920 --> 0:25:51.639
<v Speaker 2>Spider's back. They went one and seven when he was

0:25:51.680 --> 0:25:54.200
<v Speaker 2>out and Rudy was hurt too. An know, they're eight

0:25:54.200 --> 0:25:57.840
<v Speaker 2>and two in their last ten. And to that, I say,

0:25:58.600 --> 0:26:01.840
<v Speaker 2>it's the two losses, those two losses that you look

0:26:01.880 --> 0:26:04.639
<v Speaker 2>in and you say, well, that's troubling. They lost to

0:26:04.720 --> 0:26:08.000
<v Speaker 2>the Clippers by five, a team that one hundred percent

0:26:08.080 --> 0:26:11.520
<v Speaker 2>has their number. They got their doors blown off by

0:26:11.520 --> 0:26:17.200
<v Speaker 2>the Pelicans this weekend by thirty what thirty four points

0:26:17.320 --> 0:26:20.280
<v Speaker 2>in a game where Donovan Mitchell praised Herb Jones as

0:26:20.320 --> 0:26:24.520
<v Speaker 2>an absolute problem walking him down, and Herb only had

0:26:24.560 --> 0:26:28.560
<v Speaker 2>two points. Spider told Pell's coach Willie Green that Herbs

0:26:28.600 --> 0:26:31.760
<v Speaker 2>herbs instincts are incredible, said he's one of the very

0:26:31.760 --> 0:26:34.600
<v Speaker 2>few rookies that he has to plan for, like Davion

0:26:34.680 --> 0:26:40.800
<v Speaker 2>Mitchell and Sacramento. So losses like these underscore how unsettled

0:26:40.920 --> 0:26:43.639
<v Speaker 2>the Jazz can get against teams that are very athletic,

0:26:44.080 --> 0:26:48.800
<v Speaker 2>can run their small and they're able to move, switch everything,

0:26:49.000 --> 0:26:51.360
<v Speaker 2>be able to pass the ball around. The Pelicans blow

0:26:51.359 --> 0:26:53.360
<v Speaker 2>out was their second loss to New Orleans this year,

0:26:53.640 --> 0:26:57.159
<v Speaker 2>so this is not an anomaly. They've lost to Memphis twice,

0:26:57.240 --> 0:27:01.440
<v Speaker 2>another young athletic team. They've lost Minnesota on their own

0:27:01.440 --> 0:27:04.560
<v Speaker 2>home floor this year, after Minnesota beat them twice last year.

0:27:04.800 --> 0:27:08.920
<v Speaker 2>The blueprint for the Jazz to the blueprint to beat

0:27:08.960 --> 0:27:11.480
<v Speaker 2>the Jazz is just be more athletic and skilled in

0:27:11.560 --> 0:27:16.159
<v Speaker 2>them like Donovan Mitchell, Mike Conley, Rudy Gobert all very

0:27:16.200 --> 0:27:20.359
<v Speaker 2>good pieces, but they just can't athletically hang. The question

0:27:20.400 --> 0:27:23.280
<v Speaker 2>that I have for Jazz fans is this, if they

0:27:23.320 --> 0:27:27.400
<v Speaker 2>couldn't hang last year with these athletic teams. What exactly

0:27:27.560 --> 0:27:29.719
<v Speaker 2>has changed this year that makes you think that they

0:27:29.760 --> 0:27:32.719
<v Speaker 2>can go to the finals, Because I just heard today

0:27:32.760 --> 0:27:35.560
<v Speaker 2>on some NBA show that like maybe it was a podcast,

0:27:35.720 --> 0:27:38.959
<v Speaker 2>that they might blow up the entire roster if they

0:27:38.960 --> 0:27:42.080
<v Speaker 2>don't go to the Western Conference finals this year or

0:27:42.119 --> 0:27:44.960
<v Speaker 2>to the finals like alert alert. Let me just say

0:27:44.960 --> 0:27:47.159
<v Speaker 2>this very very clearly, like Steven, they would say, we

0:27:47.240 --> 0:27:50.040
<v Speaker 2>get all that, like we get all that, they're not

0:27:50.280 --> 0:27:53.439
<v Speaker 2>going to the finals this year. They're not. There is

0:27:53.520 --> 0:27:56.199
<v Speaker 2>going to be organizational change. They are going to have

0:27:56.280 --> 0:27:59.080
<v Speaker 2>to blow everything up. They tried to get Nikile Alexander

0:27:59.160 --> 0:28:02.119
<v Speaker 2>Walker from the Portland thought that would be some rotation player.

0:28:02.160 --> 0:28:05.119
<v Speaker 2>He hasn't even played, like, he has not sniffed any minutes.

0:28:05.280 --> 0:28:08.600
<v Speaker 2>This team is not good. Joe Ingles tore his ACL

0:28:08.640 --> 0:28:12.080
<v Speaker 2>he's out. You don't even have that shooter anymore. The

0:28:12.119 --> 0:28:14.960
<v Speaker 2>team without Joe Ingles is not even as good as

0:28:15.080 --> 0:28:18.000
<v Speaker 2>last year's disappointment. Right now, they're staring a four or

0:28:18.080 --> 0:28:21.639
<v Speaker 2>five matchup with the Mavericks. They might get bounced out

0:28:21.680 --> 0:28:23.600
<v Speaker 2>of the first round. And I tell you what, even

0:28:23.600 --> 0:28:26.040
<v Speaker 2>if they go up up three to one, I don't

0:28:26.040 --> 0:28:28.639
<v Speaker 2>put it past the MAVs because it's happened twice before.

0:28:29.800 --> 0:28:32.600
<v Speaker 2>Utah lost to the Nuggets. Utah lost to the Clippers

0:28:32.640 --> 0:28:35.439
<v Speaker 2>when it looked like they had the series in hand.

0:28:36.080 --> 0:28:39.600
<v Speaker 2>Anyone who thinks that the Jazz can survive a seven

0:28:39.640 --> 0:28:42.480
<v Speaker 2>game series or a game seven against the best defense

0:28:42.520 --> 0:28:45.240
<v Speaker 2>in the league. In twenty twenty two, they hold a

0:28:45.600 --> 0:28:47.360
<v Speaker 2>one and a half point game one and a half

0:28:47.440 --> 0:28:50.960
<v Speaker 2>game lead for home court. Gross can you imagine Dallas

0:28:51.240 --> 0:28:57.840
<v Speaker 2>Game seven in Dallas fast long? At what? No? Come on? Now?

0:28:57.880 --> 0:28:59.920
<v Speaker 2>They could be a five seed when the playoffs come around,

0:29:01.600 --> 0:29:03.720
<v Speaker 2>and that is a big yikes. I mean, let's just

0:29:03.760 --> 0:29:05.959
<v Speaker 2>say this, like, the Jazz are cooked. The Jazz are

0:29:05.960 --> 0:29:08.560
<v Speaker 2>the team that's been cooked for a long time now.

0:29:08.640 --> 0:29:10.840
<v Speaker 2>They're not even a paper tiger. They're just like paper.

0:29:11.280 --> 0:29:15.640
<v Speaker 2>They're just paper. Finally filed under things that you hate

0:29:15.680 --> 0:29:19.160
<v Speaker 2>to see Trista Creek being right, just only in March

0:29:19.200 --> 0:29:22.280
<v Speaker 2>instead of in October. The team that I thought could

0:29:22.320 --> 0:29:25.080
<v Speaker 2>definitely disappoint ended up going nine to one their first

0:29:25.120 --> 0:29:29.160
<v Speaker 2>ten games. The things, though, that I said could happen,

0:29:29.360 --> 0:29:34.280
<v Speaker 2>are now happening. Yes, folks, could the Golden State Warriors

0:29:34.280 --> 0:29:36.360
<v Speaker 2>and number two seed in the West actually be a

0:29:36.400 --> 0:29:41.080
<v Speaker 2>potential paper tiger. Yes, because things have gone off the

0:29:41.160 --> 0:29:44.320
<v Speaker 2>rails in the Bay in a way that not anybody,

0:29:44.960 --> 0:29:48.440
<v Speaker 2>not just anybody, could predict, only me, only me. Following

0:29:48.440 --> 0:29:51.000
<v Speaker 2>their stellar start to the season, they went twenty six

0:29:51.080 --> 0:29:53.320
<v Speaker 2>and six out of the blocks. People were talking about

0:29:53.320 --> 0:29:57.000
<v Speaker 2>seventy wins, myself included, even I became prisoner of the moment.

0:29:57.240 --> 0:30:02.280
<v Speaker 2>Stay firm, Little Trista, stay firm, Stand tall in your beliefs.

0:30:02.320 --> 0:30:06.000
<v Speaker 2>Don't let them bully you online. But listen. They have

0:30:06.120 --> 0:30:09.240
<v Speaker 2>only won two of their last ten games, in their

0:30:09.280 --> 0:30:12.160
<v Speaker 2>last twenty seven, They're just fourteen and thirteen. This is

0:30:12.200 --> 0:30:15.360
<v Speaker 2>not a good team right now. All Star quote unquote

0:30:15.360 --> 0:30:18.320
<v Speaker 2>All Star forward Andrew Wiggins is averaging fourteen four and

0:30:18.360 --> 0:30:20.560
<v Speaker 2>three in the last ten, down from seventeen a game

0:30:20.600 --> 0:30:25.080
<v Speaker 2>before this. Jordan Poole fourteen four and three as well,

0:30:25.120 --> 0:30:29.640
<v Speaker 2>down from eighteen a game before this. Steph Curry is

0:30:29.680 --> 0:30:33.440
<v Speaker 2>in the worst shooting slump of his entire career. Draymond Green,

0:30:34.000 --> 0:30:36.480
<v Speaker 2>his return still up in the air, has a bulging

0:30:36.520 --> 0:30:38.680
<v Speaker 2>disc in his back. That shit does not just go away.

0:30:39.000 --> 0:30:42.200
<v Speaker 2>James Wiseman, where is he? He's a ghost somehow, traveling

0:30:42.200 --> 0:30:45.600
<v Speaker 2>with the team not seeing him. His return probably not imminent.

0:30:46.400 --> 0:30:49.280
<v Speaker 2>Jordan Poole looks like a little deer in headlights right now.

0:30:49.480 --> 0:30:52.400
<v Speaker 2>His ego and his confidence is shot. Now with the

0:30:52.440 --> 0:30:56.360
<v Speaker 2>return of Klay Thompson, He's basically getting benched for Moses Moody.

0:30:56.480 --> 0:31:00.800
<v Speaker 2>Moses Mody, the guy Otto Porter, the guy that looks

0:31:00.840 --> 0:31:04.560
<v Speaker 2>like well the still he's disappeared. All those players we

0:31:04.560 --> 0:31:07.760
<v Speaker 2>thought were giving the Warrior significant benefits like be a,

0:31:07.920 --> 0:31:10.920
<v Speaker 2>be a Why you acting like a He's now out

0:31:10.920 --> 0:31:15.400
<v Speaker 2>of the picture. Come on now, Iguidala nowhere to be found.

0:31:15.480 --> 0:31:21.720
<v Speaker 2>Klay Thompson still struggling, he's rusty, shooting forty one percent

0:31:21.720 --> 0:31:25.080
<v Speaker 2>from the field in his return. And here is the

0:31:25.120 --> 0:31:31.320
<v Speaker 2>real problem. Without Draymond, their defensive rating has fallen from

0:31:31.760 --> 0:31:35.160
<v Speaker 2>one oh one point nine top five in the NBA

0:31:36.240 --> 0:31:38.760
<v Speaker 2>with drey on the floor, to one hundred and eleven

0:31:38.800 --> 0:31:43.600
<v Speaker 2>point seven without him nineteenth in the NBA. The defensive

0:31:43.760 --> 0:31:47.440
<v Speaker 2>raiding has fallen from top five to nineteenth in the

0:31:47.480 --> 0:31:50.600
<v Speaker 2>time period that Draymond has been gone, and Draymond has

0:31:50.600 --> 0:31:55.480
<v Speaker 2>missed twenty six consecutive games. Not only has the defense collapsed,

0:31:55.520 --> 0:31:58.080
<v Speaker 2>but the offense was twenty second in the league in

0:31:58.160 --> 0:32:01.160
<v Speaker 2>January after being number one. They're keeph in February in

0:32:01.200 --> 0:32:03.840
<v Speaker 2>the offense with no dre to be the playmaker in

0:32:03.880 --> 0:32:07.480
<v Speaker 2>the middle, and NBC Moni Pool summed it up best.

0:32:07.880 --> 0:32:10.960
<v Speaker 2>Despite their impressive record, the Warriors are vulnerable to most.

0:32:11.000 --> 0:32:13.720
<v Speaker 2>Any team that competes hard enough and long enough to

0:32:13.800 --> 0:32:17.080
<v Speaker 2>expose the worst of the Warriors, wait for them to

0:32:17.120 --> 0:32:21.240
<v Speaker 2>anesthetize date, particularly at home, as the Mavericks did on Sunday,

0:32:21.280 --> 0:32:24.760
<v Speaker 2>and then go take what you want. The word is out.

0:32:25.040 --> 0:32:27.440
<v Speaker 2>Jump The Warriors jump them hard, push them to the

0:32:27.520 --> 0:32:29.920
<v Speaker 2>kind of anxious moments that lead to mental errors, which

0:32:29.960 --> 0:32:33.240
<v Speaker 2>are more likely with experimental rotations in play. With Green

0:32:33.280 --> 0:32:37.440
<v Speaker 2>and Iguidala out of the picture. They are fresh meat

0:32:38.000 --> 0:32:44.120
<v Speaker 2>in prison. Hey girl, what's your names? Come over here,

0:32:44.200 --> 0:32:47.680
<v Speaker 2>Come over here. They got their fresh They got their

0:32:47.720 --> 0:32:52.600
<v Speaker 2>fresh prison prison Guarbond and everybody in prison looks around

0:32:52.640 --> 0:32:55.840
<v Speaker 2>like this person is easy work. They don't even know

0:32:55.920 --> 0:33:00.480
<v Speaker 2>what's coming. Jason Kid even talked about this same exact

0:33:00.480 --> 0:33:03.480
<v Speaker 2>thing after a huge comeback win against Golden State. He

0:33:03.600 --> 0:33:06.720
<v Speaker 2>said this, the guys just kept believing that if we

0:33:06.760 --> 0:33:10.040
<v Speaker 2>could get three stops, we felt that the crowd kind

0:33:10.040 --> 0:33:12.760
<v Speaker 2>of gets out of the game. The energy wasn't there,

0:33:12.960 --> 0:33:16.160
<v Speaker 2>so we just slowly felt if we just stayed around

0:33:16.480 --> 0:33:19.240
<v Speaker 2>watching the last game that they played in Denver when

0:33:19.240 --> 0:33:21.160
<v Speaker 2>they gave up a huge lead as well, it was

0:33:21.440 --> 0:33:25.720
<v Speaker 2>very similar double team. Curry pressure the Warriors to make

0:33:25.800 --> 0:33:29.000
<v Speaker 2>bad shots and wait for them to fold, like the

0:33:29.160 --> 0:33:36.320
<v Speaker 2>cheap suit to suit right folding chair, cheap cheap suit.

0:33:36.720 --> 0:33:40.880
<v Speaker 2>And you know what that sounds like an early exit.

0:33:41.400 --> 0:33:45.520
<v Speaker 2>It sounds like me shooting out crow. Other people eating

0:33:45.600 --> 0:33:49.800
<v Speaker 2>said crow. Tell me I'm wrong. The Warriors. We gotta

0:33:49.840 --> 0:33:51.720
<v Speaker 2>get back to this brock. We gotta get back to

0:33:51.760 --> 0:33:54.320
<v Speaker 2>my prediction when I said that they would be potentially

0:33:54.400 --> 0:33:56.880
<v Speaker 2>very vulnerable with all these little role players and Steph

0:33:56.960 --> 0:33:59.320
<v Speaker 2>Curry having his shoulder all the burden. Who knows what

0:33:59.400 --> 0:34:02.120
<v Speaker 2>plays really going to look like. Listen, if Jaymond comes

0:34:02.160 --> 0:34:04.240
<v Speaker 2>back fully, fully, fully, fully healthy, he looks like the

0:34:04.280 --> 0:34:06.479
<v Speaker 2>player that he was. All bets off the table. But

0:34:06.560 --> 0:34:09.440
<v Speaker 2>I am not banking on that, and neither should you.

0:34:11.080 --> 0:34:13.799
<v Speaker 2>This is exactly how the Memphis Grizzlies beat Golden State

0:34:13.880 --> 0:34:17.959
<v Speaker 2>last year. Blitz Steph forced him to turn the ball

0:34:18.000 --> 0:34:20.160
<v Speaker 2>over with his loose ass handle in the playoffs, which

0:34:20.160 --> 0:34:24.720
<v Speaker 2>he has force other guys like Wiggins in high pressure

0:34:24.760 --> 0:34:27.399
<v Speaker 2>moments to shoot the ball, and they and he will

0:34:27.440 --> 0:34:30.200
<v Speaker 2>never make those fourth quarter playoff. Wiggins is maybe the

0:34:30.239 --> 0:34:34.360
<v Speaker 2>worst basketball player I've ever seen. He's I think I

0:34:34.440 --> 0:34:38.000
<v Speaker 2>tweeted about it endlessly during that game and the play

0:34:38.040 --> 0:34:40.640
<v Speaker 2>in against the Warriors or against the Memphis Grizzlies when

0:34:40.640 --> 0:34:42.680
<v Speaker 2>they bounced them out. They didn't even make the playoffs.

0:34:43.400 --> 0:34:45.879
<v Speaker 2>They gave up a huge lead to the Lakers because

0:34:45.880 --> 0:34:47.839
<v Speaker 2>the Lakers did the exact same thing to Steph as

0:34:47.880 --> 0:34:52.600
<v Speaker 2>I'm giving you the blueprint for now, and the Grizzlies

0:34:52.640 --> 0:34:55.600
<v Speaker 2>would almost certainly see the Warriors in the second how

0:34:55.840 --> 0:34:58.680
<v Speaker 2>second round if somehow they managed to win, they could

0:34:58.719 --> 0:35:00.600
<v Speaker 2>probably get bounced in the first round, depending on who

0:35:00.680 --> 0:35:04.640
<v Speaker 2>they end up facing. If that doesn't make Golden State

0:35:04.680 --> 0:35:09.160
<v Speaker 2>fans nervous, I don't know what will, except for the

0:35:09.160 --> 0:35:11.480
<v Speaker 2>fact that I'm going to be annoying as fucks when

0:35:11.480 --> 0:35:13.880
<v Speaker 2>I'm right. That's all the time that we have for

0:35:13.920 --> 0:35:16.160
<v Speaker 2>the heat Check. We'll be back Wednesday with a new

0:35:16.200 --> 0:35:20.680
<v Speaker 2>episode Wednesday and night, most likely. Do not forget to download, subscribe,

0:35:20.719 --> 0:35:23.440
<v Speaker 2>Please tell your friends, follow us on social at this

0:35:23.520 --> 0:35:26.320
<v Speaker 2>heat Check and Tristan Criek on TikTok. We will sleep