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- [00:01]
Narrator/Advertiser
Living with schizophrenia isn't easy, especially when you're not getting relief from some of your symptoms. It can be hard when you're still dealing with symptoms like hearing voices or seeing things that aren't there, and negative symptoms like feeling unmotivated or avoiding social situations. If this sounds familiar, it might be time to talk to your healthcare provider and explore a different kind of schizophrenia treatment. Discover your possibilities@treatingscz.com this is a real good story about Bronx and his dad, Ryan. Real United Airlines customers.
- [00:36]
Adam Kaufman
We were returning home and one of the flight attendants asked Bronx if he wanted to see the flight deck and meet Kath and Andrew.
- [00:41]
Narrator/Advertiser
I got to sit in the driver's seat.
- [00:43]
Evan Valenti
I grew up in an aviation family, and seeing Bronx kind of reminded me of myself when I was that age.
- [00:48]
Narrator/Advertiser
That's Andrew, a real United pilot.
- [00:51]
Evan Valenti
These small interactions can shape a kid's future. It felt like I was the captain.
- [00:56]
Adam Kaufman
Allowing my son to see the flight deck will stick with us forever.
- [00:59]
Dan Greenberg
That's how good leads the way.
- [01:00]
Adam Kaufman
Today is Saturday, October 11th, and this is Celtics beat on the CLNS Media Network, the leading online provider of audio. Sorry, Bailey, we're at it again. 3, 2, 1. Today is Saturday, October 11th, and this is Celtics feat on the CLNS Media Network, the leading online provider of audio video coverage of the Boston Celtics. I'm adam Kaufman. Episode 645 features Barstool Sports. Dan Greenberg.
- [01:28]
Evan Valenti
And I'm Evan Valenti. And today's show is powered by Prize Picks and Raycon Price Picks is the official daily fantasy partner of CLNS Media. Download the app today, use the promo code CLNS and get $50 in lineups when you play, $5 and go to buyraycon.compcs to get $20 off the everyday earbuds classic.
- [02:00]
Adam Kaufman
Hey, everybody, welcome in. Guess what? For the very first time at least since summer league. And honestly, who other than our guest really cares about summer league? We get to talk about real games, almost real games. They're fake games. They're not real games. But I tried. I tried, guys, because at least they are games that mean more than summer league, less than the regular season. And the regular season's coming. Because we are now, as we sit here, halfway through the preseason, the Celtics, they have split. Who gives a the outcome doesn't matter. The players, the rotation. Not even Dan Greenberg actually cares. You even tweeted as much. You don't care if they win or lose these games, but you do care about rotations and development and what we see and who's going to Have a role who. Who plays well, who looks like crap. All this stuff with Evan Valenti. I'm Adam Kaufman. Greeny. Welcome. It's just nice to have Celtics basketball.
- [02:52]
Dan Greenberg
Isn't that the truth? You know, I'll take. I mean, I'm gonna push back. I thoroughly enjoy summer league. I think there's value in every dribble of an NBA season. But it was a long 80 days between the end of July and the beginning of October, so I just. Life is better when they're playing. You know, coffee tastes better. The air is crisper. I tweeted that out on there, their opener. It's just. It feels nice to be able to have games, to look forward to, sit down for two and a half hours, experience every emotion under the sun like the good old days, and, you know, hopefully see some things that, you know, will translate over into the year that we can, you know, focus on when the games actually count.
- [03:33]
Adam Kaufman
A lot of fun stuff that we'll have an opportunity to get into. Of course, these preseason games, some of the individual performances, things that we would like to see. I don't think we're quite ready for the bold prediction set of shows. We. We'll get to that as we get closer to the regular season. Of course. Jason Tatum, as he went vertical for that dunk he sent us Celtics fans six to midnight. Who is excited about Jason Tatum returning by, I don't know, Thanksgiving, probably Halloween.
- [04:02]
Dan Greenberg
Like Halloween. What do we.
- [04:04]
Adam Kaufman
Halloween, opening night, even. I. I wonder if he's going to get any preseason reps in. We'll. We'll explore all of that as well.
- [04:11]
Dan Greenberg
The preseason's.
- [04:12]
Adam Kaufman
The preseason, guys. I actually do want to get to Tatum later and start with the preseason here. The Celtics, they handle the. The G League Grizzlies, who had almost nobody on the floor in their first game. Boston was sitting a few of its rotational players. No Pritchard, no Simons, no Kada. Last time out. And as we sit here, this game was yesterday. The Celtics fall by two points to the Raptors. Again, it doesn't matter, but I'll just bring it up. But again, there was no Jaylen Brown. There was no Derrick White, there was no Sam Houser. Jordan Walsh, if you'd like to include him, obviously was not a part of that game as well. And Toronto didn't have anybody out there. The horrific thing was the 29 turnovers, but I guess I will also mention that most of those came from guys that are going to be in Maine, not in Boston.
- [04:59]
Dan Greenberg
So I'm not even Baylor Y. Baylor.
- [05:03]
Adam Kaufman
Fair. Yeah.
- [05:06]
Dan Greenberg
I think you had five, right. For the whole game. I think that's what it was.
- [05:09]
Adam Kaufman
Not great. So, you know what? I'll take it back. Kada had five. Pritchard, Pritchard and Simons each had three. Baylor had five. Amari Williams, who I would like to be this team starting center, had three.
- [05:21]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah, but he's the main. He's the main guy.
- [05:23]
Adam Kaufman
Yeah, yeah, I know, I know. So you tell me through two games, what are the major takeaways?
- [05:32]
Dan Greenberg
For me, it's a couple things. First, in terms of the regular rotation guys, the championship core, they all look great. You know, Derek looked great. Jalen looked great. Hower looked great. You know, like, that's all, I think what we wanted to see from them. The things that I think are surprises and that matter for me at least, are how Josh Minot has looked specifically for this backup wing role that I always looked at that as there's a couple of rotational battles up for grabs. I always felt that backup three, backup four between Walsh and Minot was one of those battles. It's unfortunate that Walsh got hurt, but through two games, the sheer fact that Josh Minot just seems like a guy who makes shit happen as a high energy, has great length. He looks like a player that, when I see and think of what I want the Celtics to look like and to play like, he looks like a guy who I would feel totally comfortable giving 15 to 20 minutes to. And that's one of the unproven minimum young players that we need to be hits on this roster. He's off to a fantastic start, and I think he's the leader in the clubhouse for that battle.
- [06:49]
Evan Valenti
Oh, yeah. I mean, the. The new guys that they brought in to kind of fill in some. Some holes. Chris Buet.
- [06:55]
Dan Greenberg
Oh, yeah, him too. Him too.
- [06:56]
Evan Valenti
Yeah. You know, Minot. And I'll throw Luca Garza in there, too. Like those guys, you know, it's. It's going to be varying levels of this, but I can see roles for all three guys. Right. Which is really important because again, at this point, as. As Greeny just mentioned, like, Brad is trying to plug the holes on the ship and see if. If any of these guys can really stick between now them and then you have the Baylor Shiremans, who had five, again, we talked about five turnovers. Hasn't looked great since summer league. You have Jordan Walsh getting hurt. We don't know with Hugo Gonzalez what he's going to really look like. Obviously, the bl. The blah, the tip, and then the the yam on the other end. That was really great the other night. That was fun. But he's just a baby deer. We have no idea what to expect. They're need adults to like come out and do stuff. Is Luca Garza gonna be amazing? Probably not, but is he gonna be able to do stuff like as an offensive rebounder, as a floor spacer, as a guy that kind of, you know, is a pesky, pesky guy around the rim that could make a couple things happen on offense? Yeah. Is Mina, if he plays and I think he's going to. Is he going to be an defensively, like. Yeah, absolutely. Boucher with 19 the other night, I think that's partially just because he was comfortable being in Toronto again and to be on the floor, but he was doing some stuff like as one on one score. I was like, I don't know if this is what we're looking for, but it's good to know that he's got this in the bag. So it's. You can see that there's, there's a plan there with those three guys. Whether it's going to be this high end thing. Probably not, but I can see roles for all three guys and that makes me breathe. It's a little easier at night. Grady?
- [08:25]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah, it's. It's one of those things where we're all just looking for confirmation of skill sets, right? Like that's what this is all about. Can you prove that to be good at one thing or one or two things that can lead you to being in the rotation for when the games matter? Let me throw a comparison to you. When I watch Luca Garza play, it reminds me of pre leap Luke Cornett. So the early Celtic year, Luke Cornett, the one that like literally couldn't catch a pass and you're like, how is this guy in the NBA? And then five seconds later he does something so incredible. Like, I watched Luca Garza in the pick and roll as a Roman and it is the slowest, like most brutal offensive possession that you could imagine. But then now I'm seeing him be a dog on the offensive glass, earn extra possessions, get put backs. That is a role that I think he can thrive in. With Minot, it's. I need to see who is going to elevate themselves as that defensive dog, high energy player that has great length and is super athletic. They don't really have that on the roster. With Tatum injured in that wing 3, 4 hybrid kind of role, he's showing that he can do that. Boucher. Name me Another center that you feel comfortable putting the ball on the floor and attacking the ball, attacking the rim from the perimeter. We don't have it. So if he's going to be able to provide that, I'm totally fine playing him as a double big floor spacer next to Keita or maybe using him as a floor spacing five. You know, he has played his way. If you want to tell me that they should start Boucher over Keda, I don't think that we can say through two games that that's a crazy, you know, proclamation.
- [10:12]
Adam Kaufman
No Boucher. 19 points, nine rebounds, two assists, a steal, a block, only two turnovers, just one foul to 23 minutes of plus 22 in a game the Celtics lost by two because, as we know, gave it away in the second half. You know, at halftime they were up in that game by what, 21? I think 21, 22 points. Yeah. Along those lines, Cook somebody.
- [10:34]
Evan Valenti
It was awesome.
- [10:35]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah.
- [10:36]
Adam Kaufman
Fun highlight if anybody missed it. So let's keep going with the front court here because as we know from Al Horford moving on to Golden State, which we all hate, but was inevitable. Luke Cornett getting the bag in San Antonio. Good for him. Christ Porzingis. I don't think people are heartbroken just because of, again, the lack of dependability to stay on the floor. He gets dealt away to Atlanta in a cost cutting move and, you know, you lose essentially your entire front court. And so you now bring in Boucher and Garza. Kate is a holdover. Tillman, obviously, if we want to include him. And we spent the last, I don't know, several weeks anyway, months maybe, talking about how this is on paper the worst front court in the NBA. It's maybe a G league front court. You've seen a couple of games now not at full strength, obviously, for one reason or another, and certainly not playing against full strength competition. But nevertheless, you've started to see how it kind of goes together. Not reliable rotations, you know, Joe Missoula is not showing us his cards yet, but we're getting a sense of. A sense of what this is going to look like. Are you encouraged by the front court play?
- [11:44]
Dan Greenberg
I look at it as mostly just confirmed of every worry that I had about it when they first put it together. You know, the rebounding is still atrocious. That's going to be a legitimate concern and that's. It's that way against backups. You know, what is it going to be when Giannis is on the floor? What's it going to be when you Play a team like he Houston in the first week of the season, that's super long Cleveland, that has double seven footers. So I'm very concerned about their defensive rebounding. I'm still very concerned with how slow footed they are.
- [12:17]
Adam Kaufman
Real quick, sorry to cut you off, I want you to keep going. But just to respond to that, I think there will be some people out there that listen and say, I mean they've out rebounded their opponents in both games. What is it about the rebounding that has you panicked that you think is going to be so awful? Shed some light on that one real quick.
- [12:32]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah, I just think that especially when they're only playing, if they're only going to be playing one big, like let's say it's Keita and then Hauser or Minot at the, at the 4, I just think they just are giving up too many. I think they're probably giving up around 15 or 16 offensive rebounds a game. Like they won the rebounding battle yesterday because I think they dominated, you know, defensively enforcing tough shots. But in the, in the Memphis game it was still, I mean Joe was calling angry early timeouts. I just, I have very big concerns against starter level competition that it's just going to be an Achilles heel. And if you're giving up extra possessions and you're always taking the ball out of the basket, I think that allows your opponent to go back and set their defense. So now your half court offense is even harder because you're not generating these fast break, you know, get a rebound and go opportunities. So I just, I'm just not sold on it yet. I do have concerns also. I don't trust anybody to switch in this, on this roster in this front court as of now. Like I don't want Luca Garza in space. Even though Tillman looks thinner, I don't want him in space. Cato, we know is going to struggle. So I just have questions of if they can't switch to the level that we're used to, not even factoring in the point of attack downgrades, just from switching the bigs. If we can't switch, are we just going to be playing heavy drop like this entire season? So I don't know, I just think there's a big difference in going from switching into Al Horford to switching into, you know, Luca Garza is just, that's just such a heavy, heavy drop off. And I also don't know where the shooting is going to come from the front court. We say Luca Garza is a floor Spacer, but he's a career 31% shooter. Tillman I think is one for five to start the preseason and his have all been primarily wide open looks. So, you know, I'm not ready to say he's going to be a serviceable, consistent three point shooter. So I wonder if they're not going to be able to space the floor. If Boucher is their only floor spacing big, what are you going to do to create driving lanes for your best players? So I just think that when it comes to the front court, while Boucher and them have shown signs that certain skill sets, it has not answered any of my concerns that, you know, we had growing into it when they put the roster together.
- [15:07]
Evan Valenti
Yeah, it's got to be fundamentally really different on offense and on defense of what they have to do. And the problem is we really haven't seen in two games like enough data to suggest what this can look like concretely. Like, I think, you know, if you, if you look at both games, you're trying to pick like some things out. Yeah, it's very obvious they're trying to play a little bit faster. I think it's obvious that they're trying to ramp up their defensive, defensive pressure on the ball. And again with the guys that they got in the draft or have already on this team or they picked up in free agency, like you look at a guy like Peyton Pritchard or you Gonzalez or Dosh Minor like those guys are, those guys are pests as an on ball defender. So that's all going to translate well like Derrick White, Jalen Brown, that stuff. Like you can, you can see that already happening, which is encouraging, right? Because Greeny Remy, if I'm wrong, I believe this team was very, very close to the bottom of the league, if not the bottom of the league and generating turnovers as a half court defense. I think they were more of a, you know, protect with Chris AB Sports. I guess they're more of protect the rim, rebound the basketball, get it and get out on the break. That way this team's going to have to apply way more ball pressure and we've seen it a little bit which will help them again with their pace on the offensive end and try and get things going. But again, in two games with not a full roster for each game playing, not a full roster on their side, like it's hard to take any general things away about the way they're going to play because we just haven't seen it yet. So we still have these concerns that again because we Just haven't seen any of these guys do these things. Like you're going to ask K to do some things that he's never done before and you can go point to FIBA basketball this, this, this past offseason where he's doing stuff for Portugal, but like, that's just not enough of a sample size with the guys that he plays with right now. Like, sure, he can maybe do that for Portugal, but we don't know what he looks like now with this group of Celtics players.
- [16:56]
Dan Greenberg
And I just want to remind you guys, the first seven games of the Celtics season, Philadelphia, Knicks, Detroit, a healthy Pelicans, they're not all injured yet. So Pelicans, Cleveland.
- [17:08]
Adam Kaufman
Yeah, but the Sixers are all injured.
- [17:10]
Dan Greenberg
I know, but indeed if he's there, you know, like they still have size. So you play the Sixers again and then Houston. So right away we're gonna know how this front court stacks up against elite size and good teams in playoff caliber teams in the NBA. And I just, I just don't know if we've seen anything that makes you think that, you know, it's going to be, you know, smooth sailing against better competition.
- [17:37]
Adam Kaufman
Let's take a quick break, tell you about our good friends over at Prize Picks. Prize Picks is the best place to get real money sports action. With over 10 million members and billions of dollars in awarded winnings, Prize Fix has made daily fantasy sports accessible to all. You just pick more or less on at least two players who for a shot to win up to 2,000 times your cash. You heard that right? 2,000 times your cash. Ev run your game all season long on Prize Picks.
- [18:06]
Dan Greenberg
Cough.
- [18:07]
Evan Valenti
Last week we went 3 for 3. We hit all three. We 3x. Nice, right? So to give just a little tally so everybody understands, so far this year we've won X. So we've gotten our money back three times. We missed one week and we 3x1 week. So we're up, we're up. Cough. We're up. We can't go broke making a profit. So that's been, it's been a good year so far. So that in mind, we got our, we got our flex play of the week this week we're gonna go over across the pond for our first part of our lineup. Cortland Sutton, more than four and a half receptions. Jets. The jets are terrible. I don't really have to explain myself. This one I'm a little dicey on, but I think we're going to be all right. Rico Dowdle, running back for the Carolina Panthers. No Chuba Hubard. This week Cowboys are a bad defense. Rico doddle, more than 0.5 touchdowns.
- [19:04]
Adam Kaufman
This revenge narrative, I love it.
- [19:06]
Evan Valenti
Little scary there but again you, you and I in the revenge game we hit last week with with Stefan Diggs, that was easy. And then we're gonna go back to Steph Diggs, our buddy for the last leg of this lineup. Stefan Diggs, more than 61 and a half receiving yards against the Saints. I just think that's Drake May's favorite guy now. I think they have great chemistry. Last week against Buffalo they were spectacular and I think Steph Diggs is going for his third straight 100 yard game. I think you can get it against the Saint in New Orleans, no problem. Flex Play. We get 3 out of 3. That's a 3x2 out of 3 which I think we can do 1x we get our money back which is great. Again we don't can't go broke making a profit. And when you win, getting your money out of the into your account, out of your your price books account couldn't be any easier. Little as 15 minutes. I use Venmo. It's easiest thing humanly possible. Your bank account, debit card, whatever, it all works. Price picks makes that part of the easiest.
- [20:00]
Adam Kaufman
Golf couldn't be simpler. So download the app today, use the code CLNS. Get $50 in lineups and after playing your first for $5 again download the prize picks app. Go do it right after listening to this show, the promo code CLNS, you get 50 bucks in lineups after playing your first for only $5 prize picks run your game back with Greeny. So as we're trying to figure out what this Celtics team is going to look like again, as you just put it before our break there against, you know, elite size and maybe some better front loaded competition before some of those injuries do start to set in. That applies to Boston as well to some degree anyway. Not going to have a healthy Jason Tatum obviously. And we'll get to that. And you know when or if we expect to see that throughout this year, I think that when or if is becoming a win for a lot of people, including here on this show. But as it exists right now, in no particular order, what is your rotation for this team? Let's say 1 through 8. And then I want you to also add in 9 and 10, but do the 8 first.
- [21:07]
Dan Greenberg
All right. No particular order.
- [21:09]
Adam Kaufman
Yeah, so I don't care if you say brown or white first, for instance.
- [21:12]
Dan Greenberg
Okay, we'll do white. Pritchard, Jalen, Hauser, Keita, Boucher, Minot.
- [21:24]
Adam Kaufman
Who am I?
- [21:25]
Dan Greenberg
Simons. That's your eight. Okay, nine. I think you're gonna see Garza and I want to say Ugo, but I'm almost like that might go to one of Walsh or Baylor just for seniority and then whoever go to Baylor. That's what I'm saying. Baylor might be out. So that's what I mean, not going.
- [21:52]
Evan Valenti
To Baylor right now.
- [21:54]
Dan Greenberg
Like nine is I think up for grab. I think anything past eight is to be determined based on who looks the best at any, any given moment. So it's like I'd say eight certain in the rotation and then a couple of spots where you could say there may be a month where this person gets 10 to 20 minutes and then another month where their DNP coaches decision. We just, nobody has separated themselves. I want to say Ugo, but like he's the 19 year old rookie and I just don't know if he's going to be thrown to the wolves like that right away. But he may just play his way into it given, you know, how he looks so far.
- [22:33]
Adam Kaufman
Well, that's what I was going to say and that's exactly who I wanted to focus on. Ugo is, you know, 18 minutes per game in these first two games. Again, he's certainly not playing even the caliber of competition probably that he was playing overseas. I mean he's been playing against men for many years, which is why I'm not surprised. This has been, you know, a fairly, I don't want to use the term simple. But not, not a crazy adjustment for him. You know, we'll, we'll see what he looks like as, as a score, as a shooter. But the thing that's really getting people's attention is his ability to fill out the box score. The energy, the speed, the hands. I mean we're seeing rebounds, we're seeing blocks, we're seeing steals, we're seeing, you know, some highlight reel plays. That chase down block, you know, I think the dunk kind of got a little magnified. But yeah, that's just, that's just preseason excitement. But I don't know, he's, he's looking like a kid that is going to fit in. And when I say fit in, I don't mean all of a sudden he's you know, your six man coming off the bench or he's starting games or something like that. But he does look like a guy that's going to be in Boston more than he's going to be in Maine. And he Looks like someone that I think could play some real rotational minutes for this team, you know, even as soon as, let's say three, four weeks into the season.
- [23:50]
Dan Greenberg
I don't even want him to go to Maine, to be honest. I want him even if it's only for five or so minutes a game at the NBA level. I just, he, because he's played professionally, he just feels different to me watching him. He, like you said, looks like he belongs and he competes like he belongs and he has a skill set. I think it was Evan, you mentioned it. He's an unbelievable offensive rebounder. And this preseason as a team, the Celtics have a team offensive rebound percentage of 38% which would have led the entire NBA last year. That is going to be a weapon of how they generate offense is crashing the offensive glass because they don't have the shooting. So there's going to be a lot of misses and opportunities. He is instinctually one of the best crashers on the roster. So I think the fact that they probably realize that they need that chaos and skill set to score. I just think that he's going to play more than some may be expecting just, just for that. And he's a tremendous off ball cutter. So it's like the two things that we're going to need to generate offense. He gives you and those are things that it's okay if his shot is broken. It's okay if he can't beat anybody at the NBA level off the dribble so far because those are energy and effort plays. And we know that an NBA vet over the course of 82 games is going to coast but a hard a try, hard as shit rookie who's looking to make a name for himself. That's how you can make an impact and have a role even as a 19 year old. Yeah.
- [25:28]
Evan Valenti
If you go back and I watched way too much Hugo tape when, when he was drafted just to get a feel for him. And the funniest thing is just to watch him crash them all over the court and just do unbelievable stuff to get a rebound and then get it back up there and. And score two points. Like he's just. It's hilarious to watch. The one thing I also like about Hugo so far, and you're seeing some people write about it recently, is like how coachable he is. It seems like him and him and Joe have a real kind of interesting like bond. So so far in the, you know, little that we've seen.
- [26:00]
Adam Kaufman
Spanish right. Didn't Joe say that he yells at him?
- [26:06]
Evan Valenti
Good. I hope so that'd be really awesome. But it's like just one of these things where you get a baby deer and you have no idea to expect. And, you know, he just, again, as Green said, feels like professional. I love the fact that he's always looking to Joe for just a little bit guidance or, you know, just to talk out what he's seeing, how he can, you know, take what he's seeing and apply it in real time. Like, I love hearing that stuff. My only big issue with him is, and it's going to take time, but he had like, he. When he goes to drive against somebody.
- [26:36]
Dan Greenberg
Everybody name hero, it's a crime every single time.
- [26:41]
Evan Valenti
He just needs to learn how to not do that. And he'll be fine. I think he'll be able to draw files into the free throw line. Whether we'll hit him or not. We'll see. But it's like, there's just. That's the only annoying thing that I see. That's like, oh, like, this is a. I've seen it in both games. I've seen it several times.
- [26:56]
Dan Greenberg
It's like, this is in summer league. It was a crutch in summer league. You could tell that's just. It's just what he feels comfortable doing. But the speed and the strength of the NBA level, even with the lower level end of bench NBA, like the better than summer league, but not normal rotation NBA talent, they can still sniff it out. So I'm with you. That's like his. They just have to coach that out of him and maybe like, teach him a different move or just not be so predictable with it. But I also get back. I also can't get past the idea that, like, this is a developmental season. So when I'm thinking, like, why send him to Maine? Give him those developmental minutes in the NBA. And if it's a disaster and you lose games, who gives a shit, you know, because that helps you. So if this was a. Nor if Tatum was back and this was a normal season and it was a championship, you know, competitive season, yeah, send him to Maine. Give him spot minutes. Let him grow that way. But in this unique opportunity, you really could, you know, fast forward his development by throwing him to the NBA level wolves and just seeing if he can sink or swim. You know, it's almost like when. When. When Gordon Hayward got hurt, it was like a blessing in disguise that it then forced Jayson Tatum to grow up sooner and Jaylen Brown to grow up sooner and take on that challenge. Why can't that be true? For whatever role Hugo might have as a rookie, right. Like you, you've played professionally, you're used to playing against grown men. We believe in your skill set. Like this is the year of any year in the Jays era to try crazy shit like that. See if he can sink or swim and get your take your lumps early in a throwaway year. Then we have a sort of May half in Maine, half in Boston. Doesn't really play now it's next season, Tatum's back and it's time to contention. We won't know if we can rely on Ugo in those situations. I would rather get through those growing pains now so that when we get to next season, now we're talking about maybe 25, 30 minutes a game for him as your sixth man. If Pritchard is going to be starting and Simons isn't, you know, extended, I just, I don't want them to waste this unique opportunity. And I would even say the same thing with Amari Williams, like give all of your young picks that need to play or need to be hits. Give them their minutes at the NBA level. Use their two day duration or their two way day durations and see if they can hang.
- [29:35]
Adam Kaufman
So in terms of style of play, we've spent a lot of time and I do want to get to Pritchard, I do want to get to Simons and they sort of factor into this conversation too. But we've spent a lot of time on this podcast, including with you, talking about expectations for Joe Mazzulla and again, unique opportunities, what this looks like with Notatum for now and obviously all the guys, Holiday, Horford, Cornett guy, I mean Cornet doesn't really factor into the three point conversation. But all these guys that have departed Porzingis and you know, what would it look like this is Joe's opportunity to, you know, rack that mastermind that he has there of, you know, playing into the strengths of the guys that he has and trying to maybe get away from the, the Killer Whale offense and, and approach this thing differently. And obviously we're. There are aspects of that that are happening. For instance, the pace, you know, all the guys Jalen especially has talked about, you know, I don't feel like I'm on a basketball team, feel like I'm on a track team. And they had that pace of, what was it, 106, that absurd pace in, in that first game against the Grizzlies, you know, but we also saw 53 three point dries. They set the NBA record last year averaging 48 and change. They had 53 in game one, only 38 in game two. But there was no Brown, there was no white, there was no hower. It would have been upwards of 50 if those guys were out there. So it doesn't seem like the three point chucking is not going to be a part of Missoula ball. It's, it's, it's here to stay with, I would argue, substantially less three point shooting ability than what you had last year. Do you like what you're seeing in terms of, I don't know, philosophically?
- [31:26]
Dan Greenberg
I mean, I don't know why anybody would want them to play any differently. They've been the most dominant team in the NBA since Joe Missoula has taken over. They have the most wins in the regular season, they have the most playoff wins.
- [31:37]
Adam Kaufman
A lot of that have to do with personnel.
- [31:40]
Dan Greenberg
Why can't it be both? We've seen plenty of stacked Celtics teams not win 60 games in the NBA championship. What happened in 2018-19 when they had the deepest, one of the deepest Celtics rosters of my lifetime? That team won 49 games and lost in the second round. So I think success in the NBA in my opinion is a combination of a variety of factors. Your front office, your ownership's commitment to spending and winning, your coach's ability to create buy in with his roster, the system in which you play, the talent in which you have. It's never one thing that says you're only winning because of talent or you're only winning because of the system. What works is how everything blends together.
- [32:23]
Adam Kaufman
But do you think they're stylistically playing the best system for their personnel?
- [32:28]
Dan Greenberg
Absolutely. Why wouldn't they be? The people who are taking the threes are your best shooters. We're not seeing, you know, Minot throw up seven threes a game. We're not seeing it took five.
- [32:41]
Adam Kaufman
I don't need my not shooting five threes.
- [32:43]
Dan Greenberg
True. Okay, that's fair. I think in the real games, like Joe brought this up, I think it was with, with Beetle and Zoe. You know, they're missing around 8 to 10 threes from their front court. So somewhere in there there's going to be different approaches and different, you know, shots in their shot profile. But when I think of like the main foundation of how they should play, I never want them losing the shot margin. I never want them losing the three point. Like the reason they lost to Toronto last night is because Toronto took 46 threes to your 38. They were plus 18 in the three point margin. You did not play Missoula ball last night with who you had and you played a team that was pressing the three point volume in 2025. You have to do that. Look around the league and the other contenders. Look at someone like Denver, a team that never shoots threes. What did they go out and do this summer? They brought in outside shooting, they traded for Cam Johnson, they brought in Bruce Brown, they brought In Tim Hardaway Jr. They know they have to up their three point volume. So this idea that people think, okay, we just trade all of our threes for twos and we'll be in better offense. Well, let's think about it. Do you want to run Xavier Tillman post ups? Do you want to run Luca Garza post ups? Like, what are these adjustments in different shots that you're taking that are a better offense than creating a two on one advantage, generating an open catch and shoot three for your best 40% three point shooters? I will go to my grave believing that, that that is how the Celtics reach their steel line.
- [34:23]
Evan Valenti
I'll tell you what I did like is I like Jalen just killing everybody in the first game. I thought that was amazing to watch, just the stuff that he was able to do. And again, you're talking about the Memphis Grizzlies like Z league team. But I loved aggressive Jalen. I've noted that this off season there are videos that have popped out. The Celtics have leaked out of Jalen working with Sam Cassell. I think that's absolutely wonderful. I'm really into that. Have Jalen kind of get a little bit more of a bully ball style back game a little bit. He was. I go back to the finals and whenever he plays Luka Doncic where he just like wants to roast Luca over and over and over again, it feels like he takes it personally. I like to see more of that stuff. He looked a little bit more athletic, a little bit more spry. He was a little bit quicker off the dribble, all that good stuff. And the other thing I do like is just letting Derrick White have the car keys for most of the game when he's on the floor. Like just what do you have? 9 assists in game one, 10 assists in game one.
- [35:14]
Dan Greenberg
And I think 17. I think he took like 17 or 18 shots too, right? Something crazy like that, if not more.
- [35:20]
Evan Valenti
He's gonna take 10 threes a game. Like I'm fully on board with the Derrick White's gonna take 10 threes. He's probably gonna shoot like 37, 38, 39 on those because he's just a great shooter. But I really, I've been, you know, we've all kind of been begging for it. It goes all the way back to when they had Marcus, smart, Derek at the same time. And it was that weird time where it's like, I know they love having Marcus on the floor because he's been there throughout the thick and the thin. But like, Derek is clearly better as a point guard. And then they got Drew Holiday and I was like, well, don't worry about that anymore because Drew Holiday is a great point guard and, and Derek will just kind of be the guy over here as a two guard and they can sub in as a point guard every once in a while. But now it's like fully Derek White. Here are the keys. Let's go. And I'm into that and I think he does a great job controlling the pace of the game. Again, one game that we saw. But if you go back to the grit, the Memphis game and kind of bridge that in, I mean, the two guys that need to be the best players on the team, Jalen and Derek White, it looked pretty good. They look great.
- [36:17]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah. When I think of stylistic changes, it's just more along lines of what you mentioned. Play faster, don't walk the ball up, stop starting your offensive possessions with 8, 9 seconds on the shot clock. You know, that type of stuff. When I think of the foundation of how they play, I never want them to change. Drive and kick, create advantage and make a defense pay for going in rotation. That is, that is basketball in 2025. And nobody again, I'm going to say it again, nobody in the NBA has done it better than the Joe Missoula Celtics since he took over. And I just think we maybe all as a fan base are upset with how they lost to the Knicks and, and how games one and two went over. But you forget they missed a shit ton of layups in that game. In the fourth quarter of game two, six of their 11 shots down the stretch were all in the paint. They went like one of six. So it's like people like to focus on the three point shooting and the volume because that's like the hot talking point. But you need that to be successful in today's NBA. What you don't need is playing slow, careless turnovers, you know, lack of defense, not getting stops, not rebounding, the defensive glass. Those are things that contribute to losing just as much as their three point approach. And I think Joe says it all the time. There's no mandate that you have And I even asked Derek White this on his podcast. There's no mandate that says we have to shoot nothing but threes. The mandate is create a two on one advantage and find the best shot possible. Why anyone would ever want that, that idea and that philosophy to change? I just. You're going to have to convince me because I just don't understand the, the thinking behind that.
- [38:07]
Adam Kaufman
Tell you one thing I really like, and maybe it is fluky based on the games, the competition, what have you, maybe it's a sign of things to come. I hope it is a guy we talked about. Luca Garza, six of nine. I mean, I don't like the efficiency, but six of nine. Nine attempts from the free throw line in 16 minutes in the first game and in the second game, seven one. Six of seven for the kids this time in 17 minutes. So. Yeah, you like that, Ev. That's just in case my kids are watching so they can hear 17 times on the show. We're gonna step aside. When we come back, we will get into Simon's and we'll Pritchard, maybe obviously Tatum in his future as the Celtics are halfway through this preseason. But a quick break from some new friends here at Celtics speed. One more quick break and we want to tell you this message is sponsored by Raycon. It's Raycon's anniversary and what better way to celebrate than with a deal on the Everyday Earbuds Classic. They are now 20% off. So it's the perfect time to get your hands on these. Right? Reliable, super super comfy and easy to take anywhere. You'll see why they have been a fan favorite since day one.
- [39:19]
Evan Valenti
Yeah, I mean, look, I use earbuds for everything in my life, everyday life. No matter what I'm doing, I gotta have some stuff in. And look, when you have earbuds, they gotta come with certain things. I need active noise cancellation. I need multi point connectivity so you can pair two devices at once. I can tell you right now that helps so much when you have a partner and you're trying to show things back and forth. Trust me. And then the worst part is when you have these things, they don't actually stay in your ear.
- [39:47]
Dan Greenberg
That bothers me.
- [39:47]
Evan Valenti
So that's a big thing. They have to be able to stay in your ear. And Kaufman, the Everyday Earbuds classics, they come and they check all three of those boxes, buddy.
- [39:59]
Adam Kaufman
Yeah, I mean, quick charge 10 minutes, gives you 90 minutes of playtime, up to 30, 32 hours of battery life. With the case awareness mode, perfect. When you're walking the dog, running errands, whatever it may be, you can be tuned in to everything happening around you without missing a single beat. Seriously, Everyday Features they live up to the name. So whether it's mowing the lawn, cleaning the house, working out in the gym, you name it. The Everyday Earbuds Classics are the best for every occasion. I use them for all those things and more. And you should too. Go to buyraycon.com PCs to get 20 off the everyday Earbuds Classic. All right, Green, so we got the I was going to use the phrase long awaited. We had to wait one game, the debut for Anthony Simons in a Celtics uniform in this loss in Toronto, which I'm not putting on him or anything like that. It's not like he was on the floor when that even happened. But, but 18 minutes, 2 of 7 from 36 of 13 overall, made all four of his free throws and a few assists, couple rebounds, did turn the ball over a few times. Four fouls in his 26 minutes and he was plus one. He was a plus player in a two point loss. Just want to, you know, give him that credit. But this is a guy who I I'm just, I'm excited to see in real games against real competition as a real rotational member. I think most of us expect Peyton Pritchard is going to start more than he is not and Simons is going to be the sixth man more than he is not. That's what I'm rooting for because I I like the idea of him out there leading the second unit and being relied upon offensively. I think in, you know, we had bullpet on the show, however long ago over the summer, summer, excuse me, he had written an article about this talking to, you know, one of his sources, Ev and you remember there, there was the whole focus on Simons, you know could could potentially lead the team in scoring. You know, based on what the shot volume is going to be in this offense in Missoula ball and all the three pointers and how he just plays so perfectly into what Joe Missoula wants to do now. I don't think he's going to lead the team in scoring. I do think it's not outrageous to think that simons could average 20 points in this offense coming off the bench leading that unit. Especially when you consider that they are absent tatum replacing what 80 points of offense or something like that from last year's team. It's got to come from somewhere. So I think Simon's is going to be involved in that that mix. I think that, you know, if he plays even respectable defense, which even he acknowledged comes down to effort, if he decides to show that this year, I mean if this team is better, and I don't even mean great, but better playoff team, top six, a better team than a lot of people think they'll be. They'll, they'll wind up being. And by the way, Vegas essentially has them as that. If they are a top six team and Simons is leading your second unit. I mean, I, I don't think it's, it's a bold prediction, but I don't think it's like the boldest prediction that.
- [43:10]
Dan Greenberg
We could be looking at.
- [43:10]
Adam Kaufman
Three, six man of the year out of four years. I think Simons could be in the conversation on this team depending on how he is used and how efficient he is in his role.
- [43:20]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah, I mean, to me he's the biggest wild card of the entire season. Not just for what it could look like now, but also what it could mean next year and moving forward if he proves that he's worth keeping and extending at a, at a good team friendly number. I just think his skill set and his age lines up with what the roster needs in this next iteration of the team when Tatum is back. And I think it all just comes down to how he defends. If he can be neutral or even just slightly below neutral given what he does offensively, if that improves with better talent around him and better spacing like I think it will, especially when it comes to his paint production and you know how he's able to score outside of space in the floor, I think he's a piece that you should keep. I think you're going to need primary shot creators. I don't hate the idea of lessening Tatum's load right away in terms of scoring and shot creation and responsibility. And they need to add elite talent for the next wave. And it's very hard to find that as a first apron, maybe second apron team like you don't have a lot of ways to bring in the type of player that he could potentially develop and turn into be. So I cannot wait to see what he does with his opportunity. And I hope they don't flip him by the deadline. But if it's clear that he's not going to be a piece of it, then I think you should flip him and you should get what you can and go for the tank at that point. But if he proves to be serviceable, I think they should hold on to him and try to extend him at A team friendly number.
- [44:56]
Adam Kaufman
I'm not sure you're able to flip him unless he's serviceable.
- [45:02]
Evan Valenti
Yeah, I would, I would.
- [45:03]
Dan Greenberg
People might want the expiring or like to go on like for. Maybe someone has an injury, like a playoff team has an injury that needs to replace it. I mean you never know. I just, I just think that you may have to take 60 cents on the dollar for him, but you can't let the asset leave for nothing. If you don't plan on extending him, that's just. You lose the salary slot, you lose the asset. I just, I can't imagine Brad would make that decision if they don't plan on keeping him post this year.
- [45:34]
Adam Kaufman
When, when it comes to Tatum, anytime we get any sort of update, obviously we're going to react to it. And an update, a real update versus a fake update. A real update is when Jason Tatum in promoting his sneakers, Jordan, you know, Tatum, whatever number he's up to. The dunks on video for the first time off that ruptured Achilles got a lot of people excited, rightfully so that he's doing this five months removed from this injury. A fake update. And I love him. I think he does great work. But sometimes it's just clickbaity BS. When Shams goes on McAfee and says Jason Tatum has told people he'd like.
- [46:14]
Dan Greenberg
To, you know, there's whatever I bought it. I bit.
- [46:17]
Evan Valenti
No, but.
- [46:17]
Adam Kaufman
No but there's nothing to buy with. With the whole like t guess what guys? Tatum's thinking about playing this year.
- [46:23]
Dan Greenberg
No kidding.
- [46:25]
Adam Kaufman
Like that's all he's been talking about for two weeks. In every, every effing interview that Tatum has done, he has said he's got a date circled on the calendar. And you know, he's, he's not saying that he's not playing this year nor is he saying he is playing this year. But anybody with a brain knows that Tatum wants to play this year. That's why he hasn't been ruled out for the season. Like Hal Burton, like Lillard. He's working towards that. It's what we're hoping for. So that in mind, Greening, is it going to happen? I like I, I open the show saying like, yeah, Tatum's gonna play this year because I believe Tatum's gonna play this year and F here believes that Tatum is going to play this year. Now the when and how good is he? Like these are very valid questions but in terms of the, yeah, we're going to see Jason Tatum in a Celtics uniform in 2020. 5, 26. Have you bought in?
- [47:17]
Dan Greenberg
I change my mind on what I want maybe every 15 seconds.
- [47:21]
Adam Kaufman
I didn't ask what you want, I asked what you think.
- [47:25]
Dan Greenberg
I think it's not health dependent because I personally believe he won't be cleared until he's a bajillion percent healthy. Right. I think it's ultimately just going to come down to where they are in the context of, of the seating. Again, I keep going back to this being their one unique opportunity season. If they are on the play in bubble, if they're like you know, floating around a game and a half of missing the play in altogether or you know, could potentially make the play in but lose, I do not think you can bring. I think it does more harm than good for you long term in terms.
- [48:07]
Adam Kaufman
Of the, you don't want to screw up the asset.
- [48:09]
Dan Greenberg
The asset, whether that's to keep it or to flip it because again, you have an expensive roster, you have one shot to obtain the highest pick that Brad Stevens has ever had in his entire existence. I don't think it's going to be top five. I don't think they're going to be that bad to where you're at the top of the lottery. But if you're the Mavericks, right, that could happen. But even if it falls to like eight to nine, seven to eight, you know, can you package a couple second round picks and move up a spot or two to get into the top five, can you flip that pick for a more proven, ready, younger player that's ready to contribute to your next version of the roster? The second you play Jayson Tatum, you're making the playoffs. If you have Jason Tatum for a play in game, he's winning you that playing game. So you would then go through this whole season of a gap year floating around seeing what sticks, whatever, and you've ruined it and potentially set yourself back in terms of short arming Brad Stevens and the type of assets you can give him and the ammo to go out and build your next title contender. If like you said the Celtics are comfortably in the top six, the play in is just, it's out of their, their cards. Bring him back and play him. So like, because at that point you're going to be in the playoffs, your assets going to be in the low 20s. I'd rather see him play. So it's really just going to come down to in my opinion, where they are when he's medically cleared. If they're in, if they're in the playing contention, tell them, see you in 2026 or if you bring Tatum back, shut Jalen down for the. You know what I mean? Like you have to recalibrate it because you can't think of it like the 96, 97 spurs who had their one down year when David Robinson got hurt. They got Tim Duncan. Yeah, Golden State. Right, Golden State. Steph Curry got hurt five games into the season. They still had their whole championship core around them. They won like 10 games and got the second pick. They whiffed on it. But it's just about getting that asset. So there's a blueprint in NBA history of title contending. Teams are suffering these catastrophic injuries to their best player that forces them to have a one year reset. They do the one year reset and it then set off their franchise for the next however many years. The Celtics have never been in the lottery in the Jays era. This is their one chance to arm themselves with something that could bring in a player. And I think they'll flip it. I don't even think they'll pick from it. I think they'll use that pick to trade for a win now player. And that is what I want for Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown moving forward.
- [51:08]
Adam Kaufman
I just like have the, the. I was smirking here the whole time because of the other leap that Greenie took. It wasn't the when's he going to come back and all of that. It was, Jason Tatum will win you a play in game. So Greenie has moved already to when we see Tatum, if it's this year, like as soon as Tatum steps back on the floor, he is unchanged.
- [51:29]
Evan Valenti
He is, he is.
- [51:31]
Adam Kaufman
He is Jason Tatum pre injury, immediately following injury, which I think a lot of other people out there would say, I mean, maybe at the start of next year and knock some rust off and that, like, how can we be so sure that this guy's going to look the same right away after a ruptured Achilles? But so he's. We've bought in on timeline and Greenie has bought in on performance.
- [51:51]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah, I, I mean, you just put.
- [51:53]
Evan Valenti
That ad out, the Nike ad, where it's like he'll never be the same and that should terrify him. Like he's not gonna be the same because the ad said so.
- [52:01]
Dan Greenberg
I mean, it has. Have neither of you watched him, you know, shuffle his feet in sprint full court four months after? I mean, I, I believe the second he is medically cleared, he is Jason Tatum as we know him, I think he's that special of a unique dream. I think that's and if it is a decline, it's like 99.8% Jason Tatum. It's. No, how about this? If there is a decline, it's the same sort of mental block that we needed Gordon Hayward to get over from his injury. Not that his skill set and his physical limitations have regressed. It will be. Does he trust his body and his ankle to play the same way if he does?
- [52:47]
Adam Kaufman
Never returning to. You know, there were flashes, but in general, never becoming the guy he was in Utah ever again was more mental than it was physical.
- [52:55]
Dan Greenberg
I think it was. I think he just didn't trust. And he kept getting hurt, kept spraining his ankle. I just think, especially that first year, that was what, the. The 1819 underachieving season from hell. Like, I just don't think he ever allowed he got past that mental. Whatever it was. Every time he jumped, it felt like he was thinking about his injury. And I just think that snowballed. So when I think of Tatum's return, I have zero. I mean, I'm not a doctor. What do I know? I just base this off Twitter videos. But I just think the second he's allowed to play, I will not worry about his physical limitations. I will worry to see if he can mentally be the same player. And chances are he will because he's a generational talent. Yeah, I'm.
- [53:43]
Evan Valenti
I'm more convinced with each video, he's coming back sooner and sooner and sooner. Like, when you talk about, yeah, he's gonna come back in the preseason. I'm almost there. I'm almost there. He's. I just. Like, I. I was so anti. Not anti this, but I wasn't allowing myself to think of it this way just because I was a guy snapped his Achilles in half. And I just know what that. How long the timetable is. But I. I have reconfigured everything, and I fully believe he's back in, like, February. And we're gonna sit here and we're gonna say, you know, should they do this? Should they not do this? And it's gonna be one of these things where Jason's gonna tell everybody I'm playing right now, and that's the way.
- [54:18]
Adam Kaufman
It'S going to be.
- [54:19]
Evan Valenti
Like, he's going to get medically cleared to do stuff, and by the time he gets to that point, he'll be. He'll be, you know, 100 and whatever percent and he's going to come back out there, like, late February, early March, and just pick it right back up where he left off. And I'm the more that, the longer we go and the more that he reveals, the more convinced I am that it's, like, it's not a matter of if. It's a matter of when. And, and maybe, maybe coffee. Maybe Grandy didn't know something. Maybe that March 4th date is the date. You know, he didn't. I know he said he put it out there to kind of ruffle some feathers and rile people up, but maybe, maybe he knew something, because every other video you see, like, in, in, you know, him dunking was amazing. Off two feet. That was. That was ridiculous. The next one.
- [54:58]
Adam Kaufman
What's it doing? Look, I, I said this to Grandy's face, Ev, when he was on with us. Yeah. That dude never says or tweets anything by accident, and he never suggests anything that is uninformed. So if he's putting out March 4th, I don't think it's just a random date on the calendar that he has circled. Now, we've talked about the birthday connection. You know, it's a day after his birthday. It's a home game, it's Charlotte, all that fun stuff.
- [55:26]
Evan Valenti
But, like, Monday.
- [55:27]
Adam Kaufman
I, I, I, I don't, I don't think this is just from Brandy's imagination.
- [55:32]
Evan Valenti
No, I don't think so either. Absolutely not. And, and, you know, the next video, what is he, like, windmill dunk from the free throw line? Like, I'm not quite sure what's next, but I will get. I will. I will get so jacked up, I'll get riled up over it. I will watch it 14,000 times, and with each time, I'll convince myself it's an hour sooner. It's an hour sooner. It's an hour sooner than I thought the previous time that I watched it. I just, I can't believe what he's doing. And I, and, you know, maybe it's because we never had access before to some of this stuff that we don't get to see. Like, the daily life of somebody like this recovering from an injury like this. Or we don't. We don't see it often with, with guys that they say, like, it just feels foreign. So every update you get, you're like, I'm frothing at the mouth. Like, it all, they usually come out on Sundays. Like, tomorrow is Sunday. What's he gonna do tomorrow? We gonna get another video tomorrow? Is he gonna be dribbling through his legs? Is he gonna be doing fadeaways? Like, what. What's next? I just can't. I, I need more content. I Need more content.
- [56:28]
Adam Kaufman
I'm just.
- [56:29]
Evan Valenti
I'm starving for it.
- [56:31]
Dan Greenberg
Greeny, what do you think?
- [56:33]
Adam Kaufman
What's the next video here? I mean, we're. We're a ways away from, like, clip.
- [56:37]
Dan Greenberg
Well, I tweeted it out. I already know what it is. I already know what it is. I tweeted it out. If you go and you search. It was Dejante Murray. Six months after his Achilles, he put out a video where he catches, like, a reverse lob and lands. That is the next dunk that I think we see. Something like that.
- [56:58]
Adam Kaufman
Okay.
- [56:58]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah, it was like. I think it was like six months to the day of his injury. And you can see him. He gets a running start. He does like a little 360 lob and. And dunks it like a reverse lob. That is. That is the one we're gonna see like a live action alley oop dunk.
- [57:17]
Evan Valenti
I'm ready. I'm born ready.
- [57:20]
Dan Greenberg
And I think we're gonna get that in like three weeks.
- [57:25]
Evan Valenti
I mean, it might be sooner than that.
- [57:27]
Dan Greenberg
He's already standstill dunking. Like, how is that even possible?
- [57:31]
Evan Valenti
Wild.
- [57:35]
Adam Kaufman
Also one of the Tatum thing before we wrap up, so Noah here at the network tweeted something out. She was at his shoe launch, I guess, earlier today. And someone asked Tatum about his favorite moments, his last five years in Boston. So it's not even question. I got two kids, I got drafted, and the parade was the best day of my life. I'm just a little surprised that the parade.
- [57:59]
Evan Valenti
You're missing the second part of that where he says it's not the first. It won't be the last one that we have, which.
- [58:04]
Adam Kaufman
Right. Yes. No, I did. You're right. And I promise you that we're gonna have another one. Yeah. I open up the rest of the tweet.
- [58:10]
Evan Valenti
Thank you.
- [58:12]
Adam Kaufman
You know, I. I don't. I. I'm just surprised that he thought the parade was the best day. And I'm not even, like, I'm taking the personal, like, the kids out of it, because most people would say, like, the brain worth my kids, but, you know, that sort of thing. I'm just talking professionally. I would have thought he'd say, like.
- [58:27]
Evan Valenti
I don't know, the.
- [58:28]
Adam Kaufman
Like the day he won it, like, you know, lifted the trophy above his head or celebrated under the confetti or. I mean, I get it. Speaks to, I guess, how impactful the parade was on him.
- [58:40]
Evan Valenti
Well, it's 2 million people, you know.
- [58:42]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah. Yeah.
- [58:44]
Evan Valenti
That's a pretty big party.
- [58:47]
Adam Kaufman
It's a Big party. We need you.
- [58:49]
Evan Valenti
Get a peritatum force.
- [58:51]
Dan Greenberg
I must have not been on that PR list. I don't know. In fact, what's funny about that is the only shoe that I've ever. I've been given. I've been sent two shoes in my entire life. Okay. First were the Kawhi New Balances when he. Because I am. Yeah, yeah. So his first edition New Balances. And Tim Timberland sent me a bright green Tims that I gave to my brother because, like, they're so ridiculous. Other than that, if.
- [59:22]
Evan Valenti
If they.
- [59:22]
Dan Greenberg
If the Jordan Brand team wants to send me some, I will. I will gladly wear them, but I was not part of that PR push, unfortunately.
- [59:30]
Adam Kaufman
Yeah, likewise. How do we get on the. Yeah, how do we get on the Tatum colorways list there? Jordan Brand. We're out here.
- [59:38]
Dan Greenberg
We cover this team, too.
- [59:39]
Adam Kaufman
Let's go.
- [59:41]
Evan Valenti
I'm. And I want to get a pair of Tatums because they have been told they're like the lightest weight basketball shoe you can possibly imagine. And they're awesome. Buddy of mine plays with them. He said they're great.
- [59:50]
Adam Kaufman
There you go.
- [59:52]
Evan Valenti
I need them.
- [59:53]
Adam Kaufman
All right.
- [59:54]
Evan Valenti
I might. I might have to take basketball again just so I can play with him.
- [59:57]
Adam Kaufman
Ev's gonna start playing basketball so that he can. Beautiful. All right. Well, Greeny, we look forward to your hijinks on Twitter. Continue to cover this team as you do.
- [60:09]
Dan Greenberg
Yeah. Now, can I react? Can I make a confession first? Yes, please. Anyone who comes across that timeline understand that I'm going to freak out over fake preseason games. I just don't know how not to. But I promise you, I promise you it's not serious. I just. I have to remind myself. I could feel myself getting my blood boiling watching them not even able to dribble over half court last night. And I just. My brain doesn't know how not to care. So just a warning. I'm sorry for spamming your feeds. If you follow me, I'm going to crash out over terrible basketball.
- [60:45]
Adam Kaufman
Listen, we are. We. We love Greeny for a number of reasons. We love the enthusiasm and kind of the voice of the fan and the irrational behavior that exists on Twitter, where you can find him, by the way, at Stool Greeny. But we also like to bring him on the show, as we do regularly, at least monthly, to have maybe a more rational conversation around some of these things that don't necessarily come across on Twitter.
- [61:10]
Dan Greenberg
Thank you. It's good to have live context, because I can sometimes the next day I go back, I'm like, God damn, what was I. What was I going through? It was like, this is a fake game. But in the moment, like, they all matter to me because I think every dribble is important. And if you're going to not even be able to dribble over half court, I can't sit here and pretend like that doesn't bother me because I enjoy and expect the Celtics to play well when they play any type of basketball game.
- [61:39]
Adam Kaufman
Listen, you could be watching a movie, a TV show. You like, you know, like there are other ways to spend time than watching preseason basketball.
- [61:45]
Dan Greenberg
Not for me. I know.
- [61:48]
Adam Kaufman
What? I'm not saying you should be doing those things. I'm saying if you're going to devote your energy to it, you want to at least see functional basketball.
- [61:54]
Dan Greenberg
True. Okay. But I think where I knew I was maybe headed in for a little bit of an issue was before preseason I watched like four full time games from the 24, 25 or the 1415 season pre Isaiah, when they were like 22 and 45. I was like, I need to. I need to go through this again so I can train my body not to be upset if they start the season like two and nine.
- [62:22]
Evan Valenti
Jesus.
- [62:23]
Adam Kaufman
All right, Celtics back at it. Preseason game number three. It is Sunday night. Good news is a lot of the football will be over by that point and you can enjoy some preseason action against the Cavaliers. Maybe a playoff preview of what's to come months down the line. This game at the Garden too. For Greenie on Twitter at Stool Greeny. For Evan Valenti on Twitter at that very name, I am Adam Kaufman. Adam M. Kaufman on Twitter. We appreciate you hanging out here with us again. We always like to remind you, Celtics beat it is available to you on, well, all across, wherever you get your podcast. If you want just the audio version. Apple, Pandora, Spotify. Is stitcher still a thing? I don't know. But you can find us, you can rate, review, you can subscribe, and of course the video where you can see our smiling faces and whatever else we got going on. You can check out the CLNS YouTube page, the CLNS Media YouTube page, the specifically Celtics all access page. We are right there for you along with other great Celtics content across the network. Make sure you check it out, boys. Thank you so much. It's good to have basketball back. Ev. Greeny. Sure, everyone. See ya.