NBA Cup Preview & Most Surprising Teams So Far

Summary

Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective

Episode: NBA Cup Preview & Most Surprising Teams So Far
Release Date: October 31, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Brian Windhorst (“Wendy”) and ESPN insiders Tim Bontemps and Brian McMahon deliver a lively NBA roundtable as the new season tips off and the NBA Cup returns. The trio breakdown opening week surprises, dive into the hot new faces (and storylines) around the league, reevaluate bold team starts, and preview the Cup’s group play. The conversation is packed with stats, insider observations, and the usual banter and jabs fans know and love.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The NBA Cup Returns — Court Chaos & Group Play

• NBA Cup excitement: The new Cup season begins Friday, introducing flashy courts and renewed energy (“Love those courts, baby.” – Wendy, 04:44).
• Early Cup group previews: Bulls, Knicks, Hawks, Pacers, Celtics, Sixers, Pelicans, Clippers, Grizzlies, and more get Cup context.
  • Key Upcoming Fixtures: Friday’s Bulls vs. Knicks (in Chicago) is a potential early Cup decider.
    “Friday's game is in the Cup in Chicago. I know who I picked… the Bulls.” (Brian McMahon, 05:39)

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2. Surprising Starts: Chicago Bulls, Philadelphia 76ers, and the East

• Bulls' Hot Start:

  • Bulls are 4–0, riding high with Josh Giddey posting near all-star numbers:
    • “Josh Giddey is averaging 19.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 7.8 assists, shooting 45% from the field and 43% on threes.” – McMahon, 06:39
  • Acknowledgement that some statistics likely aren’t sustainable (Vucevic, Dosunmu, Williams all shooting 50%+ from three).
  • Notable emergence: “Mattis Bozealis, the second year forward… has sort of become the focal point of what they're doing going forward.” – Bontemps, 08:08

• Rising Questions: Will the Bulls’ pace and shooting hold? How does Giddey’s contract shape the future?

  • “The question with Giddey is not can he put up numbers but can he drive winning? … He's playing at a potential all-star level.” – Wendy, 06:14
  • “If the Bulls get to the end of the season and Mattis Bozealis has taken a big step forward…their season is a success almost regardless of record.” – Bontemps, 09:06

• Kobe White’s Contract Situation:

  • Out with injury, unrestricted free agent next summer, possible valuable trade piece.
  • “If Kobe White does become a trade piece at that number, he's a guy that a lot of teams … can actually go get in a deal” – Bontemps, 11:01

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3. Other Surprising Early Teams & Performers

• Sixers’ New Identity:

  • Rookies VG Edgecombe, Cooper Flagg, McCain, and Paul George (injury updates) fueling a fast, guard-centered team.
  • “To your point, McBan, it centers around these two guards and they're going to be playing fast and flying up and down.” – Bontemps, 23:23
  • Tyrese Maxey is especially hot: “How about Tyrese Maxey with 19 made three pointers in four games? … He's leading the league in scoring.” – McMahon, 25:06
  • “That might be the most fun to watch backcourt in the NBA.” – Wendy, 25:12

• Magic’s Disappointing Start:

  • Despite adding Desmond Bain, Magic are 1–4: “Desmond Bain, who they spent a lot of its assets on, is only shooting 27% on three.” – McMahon, 18:19
  • Defensive and offensive woes noted, with losses to teams missing key players.

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4. Western Conference: Early Trends & Rookies on Display

• Lakers Find a New Star: Austin Reaves Ascends

  • Austin Reaves, thrust into the lead guard role after Luka and LeBron injuries, is putting up historic numbers:
    • “Reeves is the second player to average 40 points and 10 assists on 50-40-90 shooting over a three-game stretch since the three-point line was instituted.” – McMahon, 31:37
    • “Austin Reaves is the sixth guy in NBA history to average at least 30 points and 10 assists in the first five games…the others: Joker, MVP Russ, Harden, Tiny Archibald, and Oscar Robertson.” – Wendy, 32:01
  • Big contract offseason looms—debate on whether Lakers can build around Luca and Reaves at max salaries, if cap space this summer is enough.

• Grizzlies’ Cedric Coward Rises Fast

  • 11th overall rookie, Coward is shooting 65% from three and having an immediate impact; compared favorably to previous attempts at finding a wing (Ziaire Williams).
  • “When you watch him play, it's easy to see why he rocketed up draft boards—he looks like the prototypical, out of central casting big NBA wing.” – Bontemps, 41:00

• Pelicans Plummet

  • Back-to-back 30+ point losses (franchise first); Zion still not rebounding.
  • “They've lost consecutive games by 30+ for the first time in that franchise's history.” – Wendy, 45:23
  • Willie Green's job security under scrutiny.

• Nuggets' Smooth Start — Jokic in Control

  • Jokic leads the league in rebounds and assists, while lowering his scoring/usage.
  • “He's playing fewer minutes. He's taking six fewer shots…averaging nine fewer points. But how about this: leading the league so far in rebounds and assists.” – McMahon, 51:47
  • Nuggets emphasizing depth and efficiency rather than Jokic carrying the full load.

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5. Injuries & Off-court Developments

• Trae Young’s Scare: Knee injury, but avoided major damage; Hawks will need defensive intensity with scoring challenge ahead. (15:56)
• OKC’s Nikola Topic: Undergoing treatment for testicular cancer; out indefinitely, but optimism for recovery (39:05).
• Lakers Ownership Change: Mark Walter and Todd Boehly buy controlling interest; Jeanie Buss remains team governor (36:10).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You can't spell Wendy without win.” – Wendy, 06:01
• “The question with Giddey is not can he put up numbers but can he drive winning? Small sample size…he is, you know, he's playing at a potential all star level.” – Wendy, 06:14
• “The shooting, like, if he can be in the mid to high 30s or anywhere higher on real volume, like that's going to be a real difference maker for him. And then it’s can he guard at all?” – Bontemps on Giddey, 09:54
• “Reeves is the second player to average 40 points and 10 assists on 50-40-90 shooting over a three-game stretch since the three-point line was instituted.” – McMahon, 31:37
• “If Austin Reeves is doing this, wait until he gets a supporting cast…wait until Luke and LeBron are back.” – Wendy, 32:37
• “They've lost consecutive games by 30+ for the first time in that franchise's history.” – Wendy on the Pelicans, 45:23
• “Jokic…leading the league so far in rebounds and assists.” – McMahon, 51:47

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [04:44] — NBA Cup courts and early group play
• [06:39] — Bulls early dominance & Giddey’s stats
• [09:06] — Discussion on Bulls’ sustainability/Bozealis emergence
• [11:01] — Kobe White’s contract future/trade value
• [18:19] — Magic’s struggles and Desmond Bain’s fit
• [23:23] — Sixers’ new backcourt & rookie impact
• [25:06] — Tyrese Maxey’s scorching start
• [28:09] — Austin Reaves: historical numbers, future questions
• [39:05] — Nikola Topic’s health news (OKC Thunder)
• [41:00] — Cedric Coward’s rookie rise on the Grizzlies
• [45:09] — Pelicans’ poor start & franchise history
• [51:47] — Nuggets’ early approach, Jokic’s leadership

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Conclusion

This episode offers essential insights into early NBA storylines—surging (and slumping) teams, rookie revelations, contract drama, and strategic pivots—with the added spice of the NBA Cup’s group stage. The hosts keep the tone witty, frequently self-deprecating, and squarely focused on substance. Listeners come away better prepared for the new NBA season and more aware of the league’s emerging stars, unexpected twists, and looming dilemmas.

Transcript

[Tim Bontemps]

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[Brian McMahon]

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[Wendy]

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[Brian McMahon]

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[Wendy]

Level up.

[Brian McMahon]

For More on the ESPN app or at stream.espn.com Sign up now. Foreign welcome to the Hoop Collective podcast. We talk about the NBA which we're doing on Thursday afternoon, the day before Halloween. Joining us from New York City. Like to know what you're going as for Halloween, Tim Bontemps.

[Tim Bontemps]

K. Bond really loves Halloween. The cinder block's got a costume for Halloween.

[Brian McMahon]

Will be a long guy.

[Tim Bontemps]

He's going to be a small chicken.

[Brian McMahon]

Oh, he's not small, baby.

[Wendy]

Not that small.

[Tim Bontemps]

He's still not big, but he's got a baby chicken costume.

[Brian McMahon]

That voice is coming from Dallas, Texas. Are your boys too old? Too cool for school for Halloween? Band McMahon.

[Wendy]

There are definitely some trick or treating going on still. I'll be honest with you, I have not been involved in the costume process. So I'll be. I will.

[Brian McMahon]

You'll be as surprised as everybody else.

[Wendy]

I will find out tomorrow night.

[Brian McMahon]

But.

[Wendy]

Howdy partners. Howdy partners. Listen, you guys took some pretty cheap shots at me going in the last podcast. So I came up with a solution. Got me a side piece. Michael country, right? And I launched Howdy Partners again, folks on those Texas teams. It's on YouTube now. And oh, did we take a cheap shot at Bond Temps? You damn straight.

[Tim Bontemps]

I'm sure we didn't take much of a cheap shot at me. I'll just put it that way.

[Wendy]

He co signed.

[Brian McMahon]

All right, what do you got, Bontemps?

[Tim Bontemps]

So it's a nice little surprise for the two of you, but yesterday afternoon I was sitting here in New York doing some work and I got a text message from a friend of mine who has contributed some things to the pod in the past, had something he wanted to share, which I think in our new technology world that we're in, I believe Jax could play for you right now.

[Wendy]

Hoop fans, it's now time for the latest edition of where in the World is Windy? Is he at a Eurosport event in London? Playing golf in Abu Dhabi? In Turkey this time trying to top.

[Tim Bontemps]

His discovery of Wemby?

[Wendy]

Or in a cornfield in Nebraska? Vote now and vote often. Looks like a cornfield to me.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, our guy, Mike Wachuski, the legendary announcer for the Knicks, just out of the blue Sent me that yesterday and I laughed quite a bit and I sent it to Jackson. And Jackson, our industrious producer, has set up a phone number that you can call listeners to the Hoop Collective. I'm going to give you the number now. Number is 646-598-4056.

[Brian McMahon]

Oh, my God, that's Bontemp's number.

[Tim Bontemps]

646-598-4056. You can call in and guess where Wendy is going to be for the next episode of the pod. And we will see if we get some answers good enough to get.

[Brian McMahon]

There's this young player from Philly, from Turkey, a who's contributing to their hot start.

[Wendy]

A Dembona dude, big time finish the other night, that's for sure. And swatting everything in sight.

[Brian McMahon]

I will have you know that I interviewed a Dembonor recently for an upcoming story and I'm just. I'm not going to tell you what it is, but I'm just going to tell you that it involves NBA Youngboy.

[Wendy]

Apparently, the. The Heat keep on ending up at arenas after NBA Youngboy. And according to your old pal Ira Winderman, there's a very distinct odor that tends to linger after his.

[Brian McMahon]

Is it possible that the Miami Heat's hot start is related to the fact that they can keep playing teams who just attended NBA Youngboy concerts the night before?

[Tim Bontemps]

Hot box start, perhaps.

[Brian McMahon]

All right, well, thank you to Mr. Walczewski for his vocal talents. You know, there's a pretty good. Well, I'm all right, sounds good. Can they leave any other. Can they leave any other messages on there?

[Tim Bontemps]

I mean, they can. I don't know if Jackson, I mean, Jackson has control of his phone number, so I don't know what he could get on the show. So, you know, the idea is to call in and leave, leave your guesses. But if you want to call in with other things, who knows, maybe Jackson will be kind to you. We'll see.

[Wendy]

There might be a separate pod just of feedback left on that.

[Brian McMahon]

So Friday, I'll have you know, this is big. Jackson says, hey, you guys know that Friday is the start of the NBA Cup.

[Wendy]

Love those courts, baby.

[Brian McMahon]

McMahon goes the what?

[Wendy]

That's not true. Listen, hey, I've been to Vegas for both of the, you know, of the Cup. What do you want to call those? Quarterfinal, semifinals and finals? I've been there for all of it. You know, I'm a cup aficionado. I've been a supporter of the court as long as like, you know, remember the first year the Mavericks Couldn't get the paint to stick so they had to scrap it.

[Brian McMahon]

But.

[Wendy]

And the Nuggets have the three point line painted wrong. But ever since those two little snafu.

[Tim Bontemps]

Since then it's been great.

[Brian McMahon]

A an unexpected key game in the NBA cup is Friday night right there in New York. Bon Thames.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, I hope you not in New York. In Chicago. In Chicago.

[Brian McMahon]

In Chicago. Oh, they play in New York on Sunday.

[Tim Bontemps]

But not right home and home not in the Cup.

[Brian McMahon]

That's right. But Friday's game is in the cup in Chicago. I know who I picked. I know which one of us picked the Bulls in the winds draft. That was because they were down in the 20s. I was like these.

[Tim Bontemps]

By the way, I believe you picked the Bulls and the Sixers, the two teams that are 4no atop the East. Well, I picked rampaging through in the wins draft.

[Wendy]

You can't spell Wendy without win.

[Brian McMahon]

I picked Eastern Conference teams. That's what I did. Chicago Bulls now four and oh, should I pull up Josh Giddy stats or do you have them memorized?

[Wendy]

I mean go ahead and pull them up. And I'm just going to say I can't believe Sam Press. He didn't get a pick in that deal. My goodness. Josh Giddy superstar. Seriously though, like hey, the question with Giddy is not can he put up numbers but can he drive winning? Small sample size indeed, but you got to give the man credit. He is, you know, he's playing at a potential all star level.

[Brian McMahon]

A week into the season, Bulls are 4 0. Josh Giddey is averaging 19.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 7.8 assists, shooting 45% from the field and 43% on threes.

[Wendy]

Yeah, the three point stuff probably won't.

[Brian McMahon]

Keep up.

[Wendy]

But you know, the rebounding, the assistant and you know they're playing a style that he is driving, a style that suits him well. But they're, you know, they've put ball in his hands and he's making a go.

[Brian McMahon]

Well, here are the next six games, seven games for the Bulls. I think we should talk about them right now because it's either going to continue on this merry go round or they're going to come back to earth. So the home and home with the Knicks Friday and Sunday again Friday in the Cup, Sunday, not then Philly, then a two game road trip to Milwaukee and Cleveland and then they play the Spurs. So after those six games, where will the Bulls be? Will they be on path to 39 and 43? Will they be on path to 43 and 39.

[Tim Bontemps]

Wow.

[Wendy]

Come on, man. They're 40 now. They're on path to 820 as far as my math goes.

[Brian McMahon]

That's true. Listen, 43 and 39 would be great. It would be their best record in five years. So I'm not, I do not mention mean that to. That would be terrific for them. I think they've got six or seven guys averaging 10 points a game.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, yeah, they're playing, they're playing fast, they're playing hard. And the guy you haven't mentioned that, that has been playing well is Mattis Bozealis, the second year forward who has sort of become the focal point of what they're doing going forward. He's a, you know, six, 10 guys, very athletic, you know, and, and like you said, we'll see how much of this is really transferable long term. You know, they, they've. But at the same time, early on in the year, it's not like they've played, you know, the, a weak schedule. I mean, they've played. Orlando is supposed to be a good team who we'll talk about. They've played Detroit, who they beat pretty soundly in opening night. They beat Atlanta at home on Monday in a game the Hawks, you know, were up for large chunks of and then let get away. But you know, in some of these shooting numbers, you know, vucevich is shooting 50% from three, that's probably not going to last. Getty's probably not going to shoot 40% from three. I had assume we're shooting over 50% from three. Patrick Williams shooting 50% from three. So, like, some of that is going to come down.

[Brian McMahon]

But Trey Jones is shooting 59%. You don't.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, like that's probably not going to last. Right. But if the Bulls get to the end of the season and modest Pizzealous has taken a big step forward and looks like a guy who can be a foundational piece for them on the wing. Their season is a success almost regardless of what the record is.

[Brian McMahon]

Well, look, this is $100 million production from Josh Giddey too.

[Wendy]

Oh, for sure. Like, like that contract can age well because to their credit, you know, they could have said, oh my gosh, you know, we didn't get any picks in that deal for him. We've been killed for. We've got to lock him up. And you know, they waited it out. They waited it out. They were patient in the negotiations. They didn't extend them. They played it out this summer and they got him at a number. They got him at a quality starter number. He, you know, I think there's a pretty good chance he outplays this contract.

[Tim Bontemps]

I mean there's never really been a doubt about Josh's ability to put numbers up like he's going to produce box score stats. The question is, the two questions are a, the shooting which like, you know, he shot the ball better last year. If he can be in the mid to high 30s or anywhere higher on real volume, like that's going to be a real difference maker for him. And then it's Kenny guard at all, right. Because he's not a physical player. He's not a good defensive player. He gets rebounds, but he's never played with a lot of force, particularly at that end of the court. And like if those two things come together in some form then that he's going to way outplay that contract. But he's got to put up numbers and he has so far like as.

[Wendy]

Much as like we're talking about shooting stats that are very small sample size as we speak. The Bulls are the third ranked defense in the NBA with Josh Giddy at point guard. With Nicole Bitch at center. They were the 19th ranked defense last year. You know, call me a hater. I don't think the Bulls are going to be the third ranked defense.

[Tim Bontemps]

No, no.

[Wendy]

For very long.

[Brian McMahon]

Hater.

[Tim Bontemps]

The other interesting thing with the Bulls too is they've gotten off to this very good start and Kobe White hasn't played at all. And I think the Kobe White story this season will be a very interesting one to follow because he's going to be a free agent next summer. There is no way for the Bulls to extend him during the season. It's a very similar situation to the one that Austin Reeves is in. I'm sure we're going to talk about Austin later in the pod, but you know, Kobe's making in the low the low teams this year. He can get a big raise next summer. And you know, if you're the Bulls, like that kind of salary can fit on a lot of different teams. And if you've got Modest Pizzealous and you've got Josh Giddy and you've got these other guys like do you really want to commit to a big number for Kobe White next summer or do you take the opportunity to cash him in to get a bunch of assets to kind of spin forward and move forward with the group that you have now? I think Kobe's a very good player, but I think that's going to be an interesting question to watch with this Bulls team throughout the year as to what direction they go. Because if Kobe White does become a trade piece at that number, he's a guy that a lot of teams even dealing with the aprons can actually go get in a deal which, you know, could make the market for him pretty interesting if that were to happen.

[Brian McMahon]

I want to point out something on Kobe White. So, you know, he had the. Was it before training camp he had the calf injury, right? It was before they even started.

[Tim Bontemps]

I believe so, yeah.

[Brian McMahon]

And it looked like there was a sort of a belief that he might even be ready for opening night. And I think there was like the whole, like he was ramping up and then it was like actually not only is he not going to be ready for opening night, he's not going to be ready for at least a couple of weeks. And nobody used the word setback, but you know, those two things happen. And then Billy Donovan this week was saying that when they started having him play, you know, I don't know if it was five on five, might have been three on three, but he said when they were playing competitively in practice, basically, you know, in a scrimmage format, he, he said that the quick explosiveness kind of wasn't there. That sounds like it might have been a setback. Again, nobody used that word, but that is something else. The other thing I'll point out is Kevin, AKA Kavon Herter, which is one of the great nicknames in the NBA.

[Tim Bontemps]

Fan of the pod.

[Brian McMahon]

Is he? I didn't know that.

[Tim Bontemps]

Shout out to Kevin Herder. Yeah, no, he came up to me last year in Philly. Said he's a big fan of the pod and listens.

[Brian McMahon]

He. His teammates in Atlanta started calling him.

[Wendy]

I think John Collins coined that one.

[Brian McMahon]

John Collins said that. I don't know if he coined it, but he was the guy who made it known to everybody. But he's off to a terrific start. Really is one of the top scoring guys off the bench so far in the, in the season.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, I mean he was in a weird spot in Sacramento and he was a, he was ended up being a throw in, in that Zach Levine de' Aaron Fox deal last year and looks like he's got his confidence back and playing well. And again, another guy that, you know, depending on what the Bulls decide to do, like, you know, another mid tier salary guy that, you know, would potentially be interesting as a guy who's proven to be a, you know, very good shooter in the league if they decide to go different directions with their roster. This Season.

[Brian McMahon]

Well, the Bulls and the Knicks are in east group C. Do you know your. Your. Your NBA cup groups?

[Wendy]

No, but I. But I have a smartphone and I looked it up.

[Brian McMahon]

So I'm not in the east group. In east group A. A. The Hawks and Pacers are playing on Friday. I bring up the Hawks.

[Wendy]

Oh, don't bring up Pacers. I just saw them. That's a. That's a tough situation, boy.

[Brian McMahon]

You saw the Pacers last night. Their injury report is.

[Tim Bontemps]

I saw brutal.

[Wendy]

Pascal Siakam, Aaron Neesmith and the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

[Brian McMahon]

They're not in Fort Wayne anymore, by the way.

[Tim Bontemps]

They're called the Noblesville Boom now. Right.

[Wendy]

Oh, I like that name. That's nice. All right, go on.

[Tim Bontemps]

Maybe that's a Slick Leonard reference, I believe.

[Brian McMahon]

Yes. Slick Leonard, the late. You saw the Hawks last night beat the Nets. Trey Young suffered a knee injury in that game. Bon Temps. But I don't know what you thought about the Hawks. They've been a little underwhelming so far.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, it's been a disjointed start, I would say, to the season for Atlanta. It does sound like Trae Young avoided the worst outcomes with this knee injury, which is good for people that didn't see it. It was a very classic, scary case where Noah Clowney pushes Mo Gay and he falls back and lands in the side of Trey's leg. When Trey wasn't like, didn't have any reason to think somebody was going to crash into him. Leg gets bent inside. Didn't look good. Trey always wants to play. I saw he gets up and he eventually jogs back to the bench. I was like, okay, hopefully it's all right. Plays for about 15 seconds. Quinn Snyder takes him out, immediately goes to the locker room. He's like, this could not be very good. But they say after the game, his ACL's all right. He's going to get more tests. Going to miss. I would assume a few weeks at least. But the catastrophic outcomes seem out of the mix, which are good.

[Brian McMahon]

Yeah, we've seen this type of injury before. I know this has happened to Kevin Durant a couple of times.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah.

[Brian McMahon]

And it's definitely a missed time injury, but hopefully it is similar to those injuries where it's weeks, not months.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, that's the hope.

[Brian McMahon]

But I know Jalen Johnson had a big game last night.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah. I mean, they've just had a weird start. Like, obviously they have massive expectations coming into the season. Right. They get Dyson Daniels done right before the season starts with that five or four year, $100 million extension. The exact same terms as this countryman Josh Giddey we were just talking about. And then, you know, they get into the season, their guys have barely played together in training camp and it's looked like it. They've been very up and down. You know, Porzingis is over his health issues with the, with the Celtics and is feeling good. I saw him after the game last night, but he misses a couple of games with a separate issue. Jalen Johnson had an ankle sprain. He missed some time. Now Trey is out. So, you know, they're sitting at 2 and 3. They're playing Indiana on Friday. They get that game, they're back to.500. But it is going to be interesting to see what the Hawks do with Trey out for a while. Because coming into the season, the question was, all right, Atlanta's got all these talented pieces, but Jalen Johnson has not proven to be able to stay healthy. Can he stay healthy? Chris Tasporzingis has not been able to consistently be on the court. Can he stay on the court? Like, you know, they've had different guys in the lineup with injuries. The one guy who does always play, though is Trey, and now they don't have Trey, who they can't really replace. And so, you know, they start the second half of that game with Akil Alexander Walker at the point and with Nikhil, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Porzingis, they can have some really. And Rishi presumably starting. They can have some really devastating long defensive groups. But they're going to have to be awesome on defense because scoring is going to be a problem without Trey for a while. So it'll be interesting to see what that looks like.

[Wendy]

Been pretty bad on defense. They are bottom three in the league in points allowed in the paint and in second chance points. So, yep, yeah, and it started like small sample size, etc. It started off with a complete abomination when they gave up 86 points in the paint to the now one in four Toronto Raptors. By the way, bon temps. You want to tell us how great Toronto is still, my goodness.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, it hasn't been a good start for Toronto. It hasn't been a good start for Atlanta. Even though they escaped, they almost blew this game against Brooklyn on Wednesday night. And it certainly has not been a good start for one of the couple teams Atlanta beat, which is the Orlando Magic, the other Southeast Division team with some real expectations. That is not off to a very good start.

[Brian McMahon]

The Magic are not opening the NBA cup on Friday. But they are one in four and Desmond Bain, who they spent a lot of its assets on, is only shooting 27% on three. Not that Desmond Bain's three point shooting is the all end, all of why the Magic are struggling, but that the, you know, he just hasn't got off to a great start. But the Magic have expectations for the first time in more than a decade and they are now being judged on those expectations. And they invested heavily in this team, both with how much they're paying this roster and with the trade for Bain. And you know, one and four is not what they're looking for.

[Tim Bontemps]

It's one in four too, with a loss to the Bulls at home, a loss to a Hawks team without Jalen Johnson and Chris Porzingis at home, and then losing. I was at the Sixers Magic game on Monday. Sixers have had a great start. Obviously they're 4 0, but Joel Embiid doesn't play. They're playing all these Lilliputian guards running around. BJ Edgecomb, who's had a terrific start to the season, is guarding Paolo Banchero for decent chunks of the game. Quentin Grimes is guarding them for decent chunks of the game. These are guys that are half his size and the Magic just looked like they were stuck in mud the entire game and completely disjointed. They end up making a run. It looked like they were going to win and they give it up at the end. But they, they have just been all over the place to start this season and it has not at all been an encouraging start.

[Brian McMahon]

The last two games they've given up 136 and 135, which can be hard.

[Wendy]

To win that way.

[Brian McMahon]

Their next two games team that's been.

[Tim Bontemps]

A tremendous defensive team for the last few years.

[Brian McMahon]

Again, we're all in super duper small sample size here, but the Pistons came into the game on Wednesday 27th in the league in offense. They were not exactly flying high and they put up 135 on them. Their next the Magic's next two games are Charlotte and Washington.

[Wendy]

So not a bad little game.

[Tim Bontemps]

Charlotte Thursday night, second night of a back to back, right?

[Brian McMahon]

That's tonight. So we'll see how you know. For all we know, the win by 40, although the Hornets are off to a decent start. So. But you know, for all we'll know by the time you hear this pod though, Bane will hit, you know, nine of 12 threes and everything will be fine. But that's worth pointing out, as you mentioned, just keep an eye on that.

[Wendy]

More Hoop Collective podcast after this.

[Brian McMahon]

The latest NBA Topps collection is now available at Lids Storage, your new home for all things Topps Trading cards. Releasing their first licensed NBA collection since 2009. The latest Topps basketball collection features one of one autographs from LeBron James, Victor Wembanyama and the first ever professional autograph cards from rookies Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey. Text NBA to 29017 to sign up for text messaging and your chance to win an NBA Topps Hobby box. All entries will also receive a coupon for 20% off your next in store headwear or apparel purchase. Some exclusions do apply. See a Lids teammate for details.

[Tim Bontemps]

Eight years ago I blew my football career.

[Brian McMahon]

He dropped it at the one yard line.

[Wendy]

Chad Powers has arrived on Hulu. If I can't play as Russ, I'll play as someone else.

[Tim Bontemps]

My name's Chad and last name Lidde.

[Wendy]

From executive producers Eli and Peyton Manning.

[Tim Bontemps]

Remember, you're wearing a prosthetic mask.

[Wendy]

This is acting and starring Glen Powell.

[Brian McMahon]

He thinks you're a rubber chew toy.

[Tim Bontemps]

Not rubber. I'm a man made of flesh.

[Wendy]

The Hulu Original Series Chad Powers is now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on.

[Tim Bontemps]

Disney plus for bundled subscribers.

[Wendy]

Terms apply. New episodes Tuesdays.

[Brian McMahon]

However. East Group B Bon Temps.

[Wendy]

Ooh, love a B.

[Brian McMahon]

You better be all over East Group B. I'm assigning you to your east group B.

[Tim Bontemps]

Okay.

[Brian McMahon]

Celtic 76ers oh, 76ers home to open the cup at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

[Wendy]

One of your favorite True Hey True. Hey listen. Cooper Flag was winning in the season as like the far away front runner for Rookie of the Year. There's going to be a real deal fight. Those those odds have shrunk and VG Edgecomb is flying up the board early in the season. And you know Cooper Flags had a kind of a kind of start you expect from an 18 year old.

[Brian McMahon]

The Mavericks are 29th in offense right now.

[Wendy]

Yes. Trust me, I've watched and they're, they're significantly worse. Like their offensive rating with him on the floor is I think 95.6.

[Brian McMahon]

That's not good. But you can't have a, you can't have a rookie point guard and think everything's going to go great, especially out of the gate.

[Wendy]

A rookie who's never played point guardless.

[Tim Bontemps]

Life before and is 18.

[Wendy]

On the other hand, right, VG Edgecom doesn't have to play point guard. He gets to play next to Tyrese Maxey. Which also means he doesn't have the best defender on him, but man, he has hit the ground running and like, you knew the athleticism was going to pop. Like, you knew this guy was going to have some spectacular highlight type of of finishes and drives. He is shooting the ball awfully well.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, he's been great. And you know, look like even in the game on Tuesday when they end up going to overtime, have to make a huge comeback in the fourth quarter from down 16 to beat the Wizards to go to four. No, like they've all four of their wins have been in clutch time. They obviously are a flawed team. They're an incredibly small team across the board. But again, to go back to our conversation about Embiid the other day, you know, he plays 23 minutes. He had 25, 7 and 5. Like, you know, even if he's not going to be competing with Nicole Jokic for MVPs anymore, like, they are demonstrably better by a long shot when he's available. And the most important number there was the minutes going up to 23, which might not seem like that much, but they can get him consistently being able to play 27, 28, 30 minutes a game. Like the two young guards, this Frenetics pace they're playing with them, being able to give them, you know, 22 to 25 a game and even if a somewhat limited role. Jared McCain and Paul George both practice on Thursday. I don't know if they're playing Friday, but I don't think they're both super far away. Like, they at least have developed an identity and a style that they're going to play going forward whether these guys are healthy or not. And to your point, McBan, it centers around these two guards and they're going to be playing fast and flying up and down and it's not like, well, we got to figure out what the best way to maximize Joel is now. It's okay. We're going to play this way and build around these guards and everybody else is going to kind of conform to that and that's the way it, I think it's going to be going forward.

[Brian McMahon]

How about, how about Tyrese Maxey with 19, made three pointers in four games?

[Tim Bontemps]

He's been awesome.

[Brian McMahon]

Wow.

[Tim Bontemps]

He's been awesome.

[Brian McMahon]

He's leading the league in scoring. I know. All early, all early, blah, blah, blah.

[Wendy]

It's early, early. But dude, like, that is. It might be the most fun to watch backcourt in the NBA.

[Tim Bontemps]

And Grimes has been awesome, too. I mean, he's throwing in 20 points a night just about. And McCain isn't even back yet.

[Wendy]

Yeah, the other one that I would throw into the. The conversation in terms of fun to watch right now, one guy you can't watch but the Lakers. One of the Kobe Price quoted an anonymous Lakers player that said we got the coldest white boys in the league and it's difficult.

[Brian McMahon]

There was. There was an amazing video clip. So wasn't ready to go to the Lakers yet. But. Okay. Wednesday night, Jake LaRavia went 10 of 11 for the Lakers. Any win the Lakers can get on the road against a Western Conference playoff team without Luka and LeBron. That's a good night. Okay. Like, you've done well. I don't care what the circumstances are. So. So Austin reaves, he has 16 assists in that game. And I think something interesting about that is that the, the wolves assigned Jaden McDaniels, their number one defender to Austin Reeves. Now, it's because Luka and LeBron were out, but Austin Reaves is now getting top, you know, of the. Of the defensive game plan treatment. And McDaniels forced him into. He was 9 of 24 shooting. It was not a. You know, he hit the game when he had a buzzer beater and he split Rudy Gobert and McDaniels on that shot. Yeah, it was an awesome shot and you can't let him get to his spot on that. But he was 9 of 24 in the game. It was not a good. A good game by Austin Reef standards shooting partially because again, McDaniels was on him. He's 610, but he generated 24 assist opportunities. So he was terrific in operating the offense, giving the Lakers a chance. And he was hitting Jake Laravia, his buddy, his golfing buddy. And LaRavia goes 10 of 11 shooting in this game. I would also say if you are the Lakers, I don't care who you're playing. When Jake LaRavia goes 10 of 11, I think he was five to six on threes. You need to win that one.

[Wendy]

Well, and ant knows who he is now.

[Brian McMahon]

Okay, so what number is he? Is he number 12?

[Wendy]

Who is. Yeah, fan yelled who is number 12? And you loud enough where like during a quiet moment, the whole arena hears it. You can hear it on the TV and aunt sitting on the bench, you know, nursing that hammy. And there's never a filter with aunt and goes. I know, that's what I was asking.

[Brian McMahon]

No, he goes. He goes. He goes. That's what I've been saying. I don't know. That was like. That was like the Shaq meme. I was not familiar with your game to Jake Laravia. Look, they're two and one since Luca went out. Like, I don't even care what the circumstances are.

[Wendy]

And your guy, Austin Rees, all star in the making. Cojones factor. Player of the month, front runner, potential MVP. Austin Reeves has a 50 point game, has a buzzer beater and has got 50, 41.

[Tim Bontemps]

You know, 41 against a good Portland. 41 against a good Portland team on Monday. I mean, look, this goes back to the conversation we had after the Kings game on Sunday. Like, this is a huge week for Austin Reeves, right? This is a huge opportunity for him to show what he can do with the ball in his hands all the time. Forget about what it means for the Lakers. Obviously the Lakers, like you said, Brian, the Kings stink. But that's still a huge win. Any win without these guys is massive. Yes. Anthony Edwards didn't play on Wednesday. Still, massive wins. Like, you got to be able to stack up wins, right? It's a road game in the Western.

[Brian McMahon]

Julius Randle and Jade McDaniels both scored over 30 in that game. Like, you know, if you're for sure, if you're in Minnesota, you need to win a game where Jaden McDaniel scores 30.

[Tim Bontemps]

No, 100% like that for both teams. Like having those guys out, like getting, getting W's in these situations is huge. But for, for Austin Reeves, this isn't about W's right now. Obviously he's trying to win games for the Lakers, but this is about what the number is going to be next summer. And he and his representation, well, that's the thing. He and his representation are going to be able to go to anybody they meet with next summer. However long the stretches with Luke and LeBron out, let's say it's another two weeks if he continues to put up 25, 30, 35 points on either efficient shooting or to your point, being able to generate that kind of number of assists and potential assists while not turning the ball over and getting to the foul line and being efficient. Like you're. They're going to be able to go to teams and say, look, I can drive winning. I'm 27, 28 years old. I'm a big six, five guard. I, you know, you can give me the ball, I can shoot it, I can make plays. Like, I deserve a huge number. And when we talked about this the other day, I said that the Lakers can't build around Luca and Austin if they just give Austin a max, he has A low cap hold this summer. So yes, they would have 40 to 50 million dollars to fill in the roster around him. I didn't mean they couldn't sign other players, but the, the math, even at that rate, if you're going to add to this team to get enough good players to be in the mix with Oklahoma City and the other teams around the west, 40 to $50 million, I don't think is going to be enough to get enough pieces around Austin and Luca to be good enough to go toe to toe with the elite teams in the west, was my point. However, if Reeves keeps doing this, hey, there's going to be a bunch of teams that have cap space next summer and he's going to be sitting there as an unrestricted free agent and you're going to be going, hey, like that. You could make real hay getting this guy to have him run your offense.

[Wendy]

Like Bon Tips is trying to break the Lakers up while they're not trying.

[Tim Bontemps]

To break the Lakers up. But if, what are they calling if you're Austin Reeves. But listen, Austin Reese had a terrible playoffs, okay? Like he, he had a really bad series against Minnesota. Ty Jerome had an incredible season last year, way different level. He had a terrible playoffs and his market dried up, right? He ends up signing for the buy for the biannual exception with Memphis. Like Austin Reeves coming into this season had a big opportunity to prove what he can do. And now early on with Luke and LeBron out, he's getting the highway opened up for him and he's taken gigantic advantage of it. Like hitting game winner, scoring 50, scoring 40. Like Jackson couldn't have drawn it up.

[Brian McMahon]

Better if you're him, Jackson has this stat. Reeves is the second player to average 40 points and 10 assists on 50, 40, 90 shooting over a three game stretch since the three point line was instituted.

[Wendy]

Here's another one from our ESP.

[Tim Bontemps]

I mean who is the other player? Luke, Dane, Willard and Dane, sure, let me think about that. 40 and 10 for 50, 49 even in three games is wild.

[Brian McMahon]

I agree.

[Wendy]

Hey, I got two gems from our ESPN research group. Austin Reeves is the sixth guy in NBA history to average at least 30 points and 10 assists in the first five games of the season. The others, Joker, MVP Russ, James Harden that same season, Tiny Archibald and Oscar Robertson.

[Tim Bontemps]

Twice it's five hall of Famers.

[Wendy]

Hey, 25 points, 15 assists in a game winning buzzer beater. It's Austin Reeves, LeBron James and Magic Johnson. And if Austin Reeves is doing just.

[Tim Bontemps]

With the Lakers or with any team Any team.

[Wendy]

If Austin Reeves is doing this, wait until he gets a supporting cast hole. Wait until Luke and LeBron are back, baby. Hey, but in all seriousness, no, like I hear what you're saying. Bond temps, but you're talking this summer, I'm talking this season. And the thought about the Lakers going this season was, oh my gosh, Luke is just gonna have to be a superhero every night. He's gonna have to do everything. And he came in the season, you know, unfortunately got dinged up early, but first couple games like, wow, yeah, that's that dude. This is an indication of, hey, you've got a co star. Like we'll see what happens with, with LeBron. But like Austin Reeves is basically telling the world, hey, I'm a legitimate co star. And this idea that Luca can't coexist. Yeah, he can. He thrived with Jalen Brunson, he thrived with Kyrie Irving, and he can thrive with Austin Reed.

[Brian McMahon]

Well, and look, I don't know whether this is gonna really manifest itself, but because LeBron's summer was completely disjointed with his knee injury and then the sciatica. But he, you know, came in to the season with the concept that he was going to be playing off the ball and like being a spot up shooter.

[Wendy]

Yeah.

[Brian McMahon]

So they can't come back in here and just take the ball totally away from Austin, you know. Okay. He's not going to have it like this. He's not going to generate 24 assist opportunities a night. But if you're going to make a case, why that's an issue, is it? You know, Austin thrives with the ball and so does Luca and so that's.

[Wendy]

Well, so does Kyrie and so does Jalen Brunson. And again, Luca went to the Western Conference finals with Jalen and went to the re.

[Tim Bontemps]

Though Kyrie though is a two guard. Like he, he is a point guard sized two guard who has always been at his best when he can play off a ball dominant player and he can just go get buckets.

[Brian McMahon]

He's learned that. But at one point he didn't believe that.

[Tim Bontemps]

I understand, but I'm saying if you look at the, the track record of his career, the greatest success he has had has played and been playing next to Luca and playing next to LeBron. Obviously those are two all time great players, but it's because of the role that Kyrie was in. To your point, I'm not, I'm also not saying and saying what I said before about Reeves that he has to Leave this summer to go sign a deal somewhere else either. I agree with you, McMahon. Like, he's showing he could be this kind of player to me, that's why it's massively important for him, because this is his audition to be that kind of guy next summer. It's just. It is going to be fascinating to see what that balance is when Luca gets back and what this looks like. Because if he does just level up to being a all Star and can be remotely like he was even the first couple games with Luca out there, it does make the. The calculus for the Lakers look different.

[Brian McMahon]

I don't want to re litigate this from the. Nico Harrison.

[Wendy]

Oh, boy.

[Tim Bontemps]

Oh, it's insane. He wasn't in the trade.

[Brian McMahon]

It's absolutely the Lakers Luca trade. Keeping Austin Reeves is just.

[Tim Bontemps]

Especially because they had no guards the second the trade was over. What did we say? Okay, yes, they got Anthony Davis, but they have Kyrie Irving and no other guys who could dribble the ball.

[Brian McMahon]

But they didn't know he's going to tear his acl.

[Tim Bontemps]

But that doesn't matter, though. They only had one guy who could triple the ball.

[Brian McMahon]

I know.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, you've got to get Austin Reeves in that trade.

[Wendy]

And the simple fact is, when you trade a talent like Luka Doncic, a lot of people would say you don't, but if you do, you better get it all. And they're right.

[Tim Bontemps]

You look at the list of assets and you say, okay, there's 10 things on the list. We get the 10 things on the list. Oh, you don't want to do that. Okay, cool. We. We'll call you back later.

[Brian McMahon]

That's what. That's the way I felt the day of the trade. Okay, so, by the way, the Lakers have been sold to Mark Walter and Todd Bailey and their partners, Todd Bowley. What did I say?

[Tim Bontemps]

Bailey.

[Brian McMahon]

Sorry. That's okay.

[Wendy]

Just another rich guy.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, another rich guy. He owns the other London soccer team, McMahon, so he doesn't care.

[Brian McMahon]

The other. There's like seven, bro.

[Tim Bontemps]

I was making a joke that he's not the.

[Brian McMahon]

From what I hear, each of the six bus children cleared about 900 million.

[Tim Bontemps]

Pretty good deal.

[Wendy]

Hey, and Jeannie Buss in the announcement is very specific. At least five years as the governor. Very specific.

[Brian McMahon]

So the bus family had 66%. They sold about 50%. So they go down to about 15%, which is the bottom. That a governor must control. At least 15% was not the case for. For Wick Groobzbach when he sold. When his Family sold. So Jeanne, this is a, this is Mark Walter is the controlling owner, but Jeannie Buss is the governor. This is something that is against NBA protocol, but obviously Mark Walters signed off on it. That's interesting.

[Wendy]

More Hoop Collective podcast after this.

[Brian McMahon]

The team that the Lakers are playing Friday night in the NBA cup are the Grizzlies. John Moran hit a game winner over the Suns on Wednesday night. Defense on that possession.

[Wendy]

I mean, listen. Oh boy.

[Brian McMahon]

The Suns are bottom three in the league in defense so far. Despite their belief that they were going to be better defensively, that has not been the case. Jaw is shooting 19% on threes so far this year. McMahon. That said, he's been out there for all five games. The Grizzlies have needed it.

[Wendy]

Hey, I will say this like Jaws game has flaws in it, obviously. And you mentioned the three point shooting, but he's pretty damn good when the ball in his hands in the game on the line. The guy's got a honey's factor track record. Some more ESPN research stuff. Seven of 13 on. Go ahead. Shots in the final 10 seconds of the fourth or OT in his career. That's the best field goal percentage on those shots by any player with more than 10 attempts since play by play tracking started happening.

[Brian McMahon]

Can I take a diversion about clutch time? May I take a diversion?

[Wendy]

It's your podcast. You, you can.

[Brian McMahon]

Do you see, The Thunder played 67 minutes of clutch time all of last season because they just kicked everyone's ass and They've already played 35 minutes of clutch time this season.

[Wendy]

They played four freaking overtime periods in the first games.

[Brian McMahon]

I know, by the way, thoughts and everything. And we hope for the best for Nikola Topich of the, of the Thunder, who Sam Presti announced today has been diagnosed with testicular cancer. You know, when he had that injury and then this and then the surgery last week, or was that in the preseason?

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, it wasn't an injury.

[Wendy]

He, he, well, that's the thing.

[Brian McMahon]

Like, they were all like, we didn't, we didn't know where the injury, like, they didn't know where the injury came from.

[Wendy]

It was a procedure to get a biopsy because obviously they, you know, discovered something. He got the biopsy, got the results back. And then he asked, he asked the Thunder, hey, let's not say anything until I've started the treatment, which is chemotherapy. So he has started that treatment. You know, they're, in Sam Presti's words, extremely optimistic. The oncologist working with, you know, Presti noted that it is the most Cured form of cancer in males. You know, they're very optimistic he's going to beat this, make a full recovery. But obviously basketball's on the back burner. There's not a timetable for him there. He's just going to hopefully get well soon and be able to start his NBA career that, you know, is unfortunately delayed again. Whenever he's ready.

[Brian McMahon]

Yeah.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah. Jeff Stotts from in street Closed had reminded me in his tweet earlier that Danae also went through this close to 20 years ago and he came back and had basically his whole career afterward. Played a very long career in the NBA. Had no setbacks or issues at all. So certainly hoping for the best for topic like you said. I mean, guy was maybe going to be a top 5 pick in the draft. Tears his ACL misses all last year when he falls to Oklahoma City at 12. And then obviously he has, you know, the second year of his career gets, you know, derailed this way. But hopefully before too long he's back out there playing again.

[Brian McMahon]

All right, get out your west groups card.

[Tim Bontemps]

Can we, can we go back to Memphis for one second?

[Brian McMahon]

No. Yes.

[Tim Bontemps]

I just wanted to bring up, we talked about rookies earlier.

[Wendy]

Oh, yeah.

[Tim Bontemps]

Cedric Coward, the 11th overall pick, pretty remarkable. Traded up use one of the picks they got in the Desmond brain trade to go up and get the 11th pick to get him. A guy who was not Even playing in D1 all that long ago, only played a few games before he got hurt at Washington State last year. Rocketed up draft boards. And when you watch him play, it's easy to see why he rocketed up draft boards because he looks like the prototypical out of central casting big NBA wing. I mean, he, he's a big physical guy and he looks like he's a guy who's going to put on a bunch of muscle over time too. And he is already having a real impact for Memphis already. He's shooting 60% from three. He's hitting a bunch of threes. He can guard. He, he is a fun, exciting piece. And the irony is this is the guy that Memphis has been trying to get basically the entire time. Zach Kliman has been the general manager of the team. They've been rumored to go after all sorts of big wings and they, you know, they may have him finally in this guy. And Cedric Coward, who has been off.

[Brian McMahon]

To a tremendous start, he's shooting 65% on threes. That's pretty good. So he had a terrible shoulder injury at Washington State and it was even worse than was Known like once the NBA folks got their hands on all the information, I'm pretty sure, like the damage was worse than was even announced. The Grizzlies did their work there and decided that not only was he going to be good, but that he was potentially undervalued because of that. And did the Desmond Bain deal probably with the.

[Wendy]

I mean, they clearly were talking intent. Yeah.

[Brian McMahon]

Yes, probably with the intent they were going to trade up and get him. You know, I don't know.

[Tim Bontemps]

By the way, they did that a couple years ago. They traded up to get Zaire Williams with the 10th pick in a similar move. Obviously that didn't work out.

[Brian McMahon]

But like Desmond Bain too. But.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, well, but that was at 30. My point is Zach Kleiman has been trying to get this kind of player who had the 11 in for Mikhail Bridges, in for OGN and OBI.

[Wendy]

Remember Portland. Portland wanted.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah.

[Wendy]

And then so.

[Brian McMahon]

So Portland moved back and got young Hanson.

[Wendy]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Brian McMahon]

Okay.

[Wendy]

They both got the players they were targeting. Yeah, you know, we'll see. You know, Portland got a project. The Grizzlies clearly got a guy who despite playing only six games of Division 1 basketball, was ready to step. Right.

[Brian McMahon]

Well known, well detailed. Many documentaries have been done. The Washington State to Memphis. Pipeline. Pipeline.

[Wendy]

Hey, they might. They might be because they got him one in Jalen Wells last year too, dude. This rookie class, though, Cooper Flag loaded the huge favorite for rookie of the year going in. And now it's like neck and neck with him and VG Edgecombe. But Cedric Howard is hooping. Dylan Harper has been great in the six man role for the Spurs. Trey Johnson's been really good.

[Tim Bontemps]

So really good in Charlotte.

[Wendy]

Yeah, like there's this rookie class is making an impact early.

[Brian McMahon]

All right. Also on your west group B scorecard, Pelicans and Clippers. Pelicans are winless. Brother lost their last couple by.

[Tim Bontemps]

So no joke.

[Wendy]

We ain't no joke.

[Tim Bontemps]

Wednesday night. On Wednesday night, talking to the Hawks after the game. Go and see Chris Esports and see some of their personnel after the game. And I saw the halftime score. Now the Hawks obviously are very interested in Pelican scores this year because they have either the Pelicans or Bucks pick, whichever is is better. Certainly looking right now like it's going to be the better.

[Wendy]

Yes.

[Tim Bontemps]

So at halftime the score is 53 to 47. All right. You know, they're hanging around. Zion's playing. You know, Joker will probably take care of business, but we'll see Zion 6 at home.

[Wendy]

Didn't grab A rebound, but he's playing.

[Tim Bontemps]

Maybe 15 minutes later. I sit down at my computer to rewrite my Trey Young injury newser, and I just glance at the box score and I see the score 82 to 49. And I thought my computer was glitching, was like, there's no way this is right. It was just 53, 47. No, it. They went on a 29 to 2 run to open the third quarter of the game. I mean, fellas. Oh, my God.

[Wendy]

I wouldn't say that the Pelicans have, like some sort of glorious history. I'd say it's been pretty rough going. For the majority of the time they've.

[Tim Bontemps]

Been a franchise, despite having, by the way, Chris Paul, Anthony Davis and Zion Williamson.

[Brian McMahon]

Okay.

[Wendy]

They've lost consecutive games by 30 plus for the first time in that franchise's history.

[Tim Bontemps]

Not great.

[Brian McMahon]

Yeah, they are winless. They had a couple of games before they went on this road trip that were winnable. They lost to the spurs in overtime and they lost on opening night in Memphis. Close. So they had those kind of two close losses. And now they're on this road trip where they're at Denver, at the Clippers, and then guess where they're at on Sunday.

[Tim Bontemps]

Oklahoma City.

[Brian McMahon]

Okay, see, so this is a tough weekend. And there's already rumbling about Willie Green seat. So he was already, you know, they, they. You know, they obviously fired David Griffin in the offseason. The guy who hired him, Joe Dumars came in, and one of the first things Joe Dumars did was embrace Willie, make it clear he wasn't going to let him go. But whenever this situation happens where the executive is not the guy who hired you, you already come in under. You know, it's already a little bit unsettling. And so now, you know, they're. They're with where their team is in the West. It was going to be hard to be super competitive. But then they do the trade, you know, and, you know, the other thing is Kevin o'. Connor. Yahoo. Pointed this out. And I didn't make this connection, you know, before Joe Dumars was there last year. Or maybe Dumars made this trade because it was around the draft, but they traded.

[Tim Bontemps]

Oh, no, it was, it was. It was during the NBA Finals. It was after they were there.

[Brian McMahon]

Right. So they traded the Pacers their pick back during the NBA Finals. The Pacers got out of last year's draft and got into, you know, they swapped the picks. They. As soon as Joe Dumars and Troy Weaver got there, they immediately Began trying to get picks in this draft, which is not necessarily a bad strategy. We just talked about how good this draft is.

[Tim Bontemps]

The really quick backstory on that is the Pacers had traded their pick, I believe top four protected, as part of the trade to get Pascal Siakam to Toronto. And then when the Raptors traded for Brandon ingram, that the 2026 Pacers pick went to the Pelicans. And then during the Finals, the Pelicans trade the tour. They get the 22nd pick in the draft. Again, not a lottery pick, like a low 20s pick, you know.

[Wendy]

Yeah.

[Tim Bontemps]

And they give away this top four protected Pacers pick, which obviously doesn't have the ultimate upside, but you look at it go, well, like, what if somebody gets hurt? What if something happens to the Pacers? Obviously, no, they didn't want well to get hurt. But a week later, Tyrese Halberton gets hurt.

[Brian McMahon]

Right. 48 hours after game seven, the Pacers people, as they're picking themselves up, they're like, my God, the only thing we can say is that at least we got our 26 pick back. Well, now their entire team is going through an injury tsunami, and they lost.

[Wendy]

Miles Turner in the summer.

[Brian McMahon]

And lost Miles Turner. So the point is, as Kevin o' Connor points out aptly and scarily, right now, Indiana's pick and the Pelicans pick are two very attractive picks, and the Pelicans have traded them.

[Wendy]

Both could have had. Both have neither not.

[Tim Bontemps]

And by the way, the pick they got, the pick they got in the. The Pacers trade is the pick, the 23rd pick in the draft that they used to trade up and didn't even keep to get their queen. So really what it turned into was a trade of the Pacers 2026 pick and their 2026 pick for. And. And the 23rd pick for the 13th pick in the draft, which that's not. Again, to go back to the ongoing discussion we've had about this, the process of all of those transactions, regardless of the result, was terrible. Well, that's why Pelicans, I received a.

[Brian McMahon]

Lot of blowback from my. Even though I've been defending the Pelicans against. Against you guys attacks, I got a lot of blowback from. For me, being hesitant on King Cake. Got a lot of blowback.

[Wendy]

Well, again, if we.

[Tim Bontemps]

We ain't eating any King Cake, it'll.

[Wendy]

Be completely voluntary because they ain't gonna be a postseason.

[Brian McMahon]

I'm just gonna tell you that bakeries now sell the little baby outside of the. Of the cake for liability reasons. Thank you.

[Tim Bontemps]

That's all well and good. I just know that I was. I was more than happy to make the bet about eating the King cake because I wasn't going to be eating any and we're not.

[Brian McMahon]

Before we go West Group C in the NBA Cup Friday night groups now. No.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah.

[Brian McMahon]

We left out west group A.

[Wendy]

We didn't know why.

[Tim Bontemps]

Why did we do that?

[Brian McMahon]

Because it's Jazz Suns. Sorry. We also didn't talk about Jazz had a nice start.

[Wendy]

The Jazz are playing a lineup that has Walker Kessler, Kyle Filipowski and. And Larry Markkanen. I hereby proclaim that that lineup should be dubbed the Wasatch Front Line.

[Brian McMahon]

Noted. Yeah, we didn't mention the Raptors cast.

[Wendy]

I might be botching the pronunciation, but that you get the point.

[Tim Bontemps]

That wouldn't be the first time we're.

[Brian McMahon]

Doing this at, you know, in the mid afternoon on Thursday. We're specifically not talking about the calves and it's not because it's calves corner but there might be some injury information. We're hoping to not have to update the spot. Hopefully that will not be the case. All right, but before we go, I do want to mention the Nuggets. In the first four games of the season I was going to talk to you a little bit about Nikola Jokic. He's had. He's had triple doubles in all four games last year Jokic had his highest ever minutes, shots and scoring and the Nuggets thought that was great but didn't like that. They want those numbers down because when those numbers go down their winning percentage goes up. And four games in David Adelman and the roster changes and because Jamal Murray came in in good shape, Aaron Gordon came in healthy. It's beyond just that. He's playing fewer minutes. He's taking six fewer shots. Small sample size, et cetera. Six fewer shots they did a year ago averaging nine fewer points. But how about this? Leading the league so far in rebounds and assists.

[Wendy]

Yeah, dude, he had the game. I'm blanking on who was against. But he didn't take a shot from the floor until there was like two minutes and change left in the first half. He already had double figure assists by that point.

[Brian McMahon]

That's the game plane. That's extreme. But I think that was against Phoenix.

[Wendy]

Yeah, that's right.

[Brian McMahon]

They put. They put up 133 in that game. So he took eight shots. They put up.

[Wendy]

I think there's a very real chance that Joker does end up leading the league in assists. It wasn't too far away Last year.

[Tim Bontemps]

You'Re second to Trey, right?

[Wendy]

Yeah, and I believe so. And, and as you pointed out, like, listen, Jamal Murray ended up having a solid season by his standards, but he got off to a sluggish start. He didn't come in in great shape he has this year. Aaron Gordon, you know, there were some real challenges for Aaron Gordon, you know, coming off, unfortunately, just a tragic summer with the death of his brother. Wasn't able to train the way he usually does. Had a ton of health issues last year. Aaron Gordon is healthy and is just flying around and looking like, you know, the elite complimentary player that he's proven to be throughout the course of his time in Denver. Cam Johnson hasn't been scorching, but, you know, that's a solid player. And then, you know, they've upgraded the bench and, you know, a guy like Tim Hardaway Jr. He's gonna love playing with Joker. Love it like, that's a man who likes getting open three spoon fed to him, and Joker will do that for you. Also, Christian Brown, 125 million dollar man. I picked him fourth in our redraft to that draft, and I stand by that. And he, He's. He's making it look smart right now.

[Brian McMahon]

That's hard to do, but he's doing.

[Tim Bontemps]

Wow.

[Brian McMahon]

How do you feel about that, Christian Brown beard?

[Wendy]

I don't mind it, you know, the beard buzz cut. I can, I can respect a beard buzz cut.

[Brian McMahon]

Well, I don't. Yeah, yeah, you. You pull it off, that's for sure.

[Wendy]

Yeah, no, I, I think.

[Brian McMahon]

I think.

[Wendy]

Oh, Christian can pull it off himself. And especially when he's, you know, dunking everything in the world and in transition and on cuts the basket and all those kind of things knocking down, I think you can get away with it.

[Brian McMahon]

Fair enough. All right, thank you very much to Mike Walczewski for his special appearance on this podcast. Thank you to Jackson, who's. Who's playing hurt. He had a computer malfunction. He's playing hurt. So we appreciate you there, Jax. Thank you to McMahon. Thank you to Bontemps. Thank you for watching and listening this week to the Hoop Collective. We're back with you next week.

[Wendy]

Adios, amigos.

[Brian McMahon]

Sam.