Nightcap - Hour 1: Warriors take Game 1 over Timberwolves + Haliburton Game-Winner deflates Cavaliers

Summary

Detailed Summary of Club Shay Shay Podcast Episode: Nightcap - Hour 1

Release Date: May 7, 2025
Host: Shannon Sharpe
Co-Host: Chad Ochocinco Johnson
Special Guest: Ryan Hollins

---

Introduction

In this episode of Club Shay Shay titled "Nightcap - Hour 1: Warriors take Game 1 over Timberwolves + Haliburton Game-Winner deflates Cavaliers," NFL legend Shannon Sharpe, alongside co-host Chad Ochocinco Johnson and special guest Ryan Hollins, delves into the latest NBA playoff actions. The discussion centers around the Golden State Warriors' unexpected victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves without their star player, Steph Curry, and the Indiana Pacers' dramatic win against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

---

Warriors vs. Timberwolves Game 1 Analysis

Shannon Sharpe opens the discussion by highlighting the unprecedented outcome of all road teams winning Game 1 in the NBA playoffs, a first in league history. The focus quickly shifts to the Warriors' victory over the Timberwolves, emphasizing the absence of Steph Curry due to a hamstring injury.

Shannon Sharpe [02:24]: "Tonight the Warriors beat the Wolves, a large part without Steph. Steph left the game early in the second quarter with a hamstring injury, did not return."

Ryan Hollins commends the Warriors' defensive prowess, praising coach Steve Kerr's ability to adapt defensive strategies effectively even without Curry on the court.

Ryan Hollins [06:20]: "Man, the first thing they could have did. He could have pulled that hamstring on Sunday..."

Shash Sharpe and Hollins dissect the Timberwolves' offensive struggles, particularly focusing on Anthony Edwards' inefficiency from the field.

Shannon Sharpe [08:07]: "Ocho, what do you think about what you saw? Because like he said, I don't think Ant man hit a jump shot all night long..."

Defensive Strategies and Team Performance

The hosts delve deeper into the Warriors' defensive strategies, noting Steve Kerr's innovative approaches such as switching defenses and challenging key Timberwolves players like Rudy Gobert.

Ryan Hollins [06:20]: "He really challenging Gobert to score the ball inside the paint."

Sharpe emphasizes the importance of Anthony Edwards to the Timberwolves, highlighting his below-average shooting performance and the team's collective inefficiency.

Shannon Sharpe [09:06]: "He, he just took him 22 shots to get those 23 points. And that's not nearly good enough..."

Indiana Pacers vs. Cavaliers Game 2 Recap

Transitioning to the Eastern Conference, Shannon Sharpe and Ryan Hollins analyze the Indiana Pacers' compelling victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Pacers showcased a balanced team effort, with six players scoring in double figures, leading to a decisive win.

Shannon Sharpe [25:39]: "Pacers Steel Game 2 in Cleveland. Only three teams have come back down, seven in the last minute of a playoff game since 1997."

Ryan Hollins lauds Tyrese Haliburton's clutch performance, particularly his game-winning shot that sealed the victory for the Pacers.

Ryan Hollins [38:16]: "What's it gonna take for Tyrese Haliburton to get that respect?"

Tyrese Haliburton and Pacers' Strategy

The discussion shifts to Haliburton's impact, with Hollins comparing him to legendary NBA point guards like Chris Paul and LeBron James in terms of playmaking and game manipulation.

Ryan Hollins [43:32]: "He's the guy that can beat you with the pass and he can beat you with the shot."

Shannon Sharpe echoes this sentiment, noting Haliburton's efficiency and his ability to maintain composure under pressure.

Shannon Sharpe [44:56]: "But you know what, Ryan, and you could attest to this. You saw Ocho and Ryan, you remember in the fourth quarter..."

MVP Discussion: Nikola Jokic

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to discussing Nikola Jokic's extraordinary performance and his place among NBA greats. Sharpe and Hollins debate Jokic's versatility, stellar statistics, and his potential as one of the most impactful centers in NBA history.

Shannon Sharpe [56:21]: "But I like Halle's game. And you look, okay, you say, well, he sought the bench..."

Ryan Hollins [65:52]: "He's so much stronger than he gets credit for. That's a strong boy right there."

The conversation touches upon Jokic's unique skill set, including his ability to score, rebound, and assist, positioning him as a versatile and indispensable player.

Shannon Sharpe [62:24]: "You got to give him more. He's doing everything."

Team Performance and Future Predictions

The hosts analyze the overall team performances, highlighting key players like Aaron Gordon for the Pacers and the resilience of the Warriors despite missing Curry. They discuss potential strategies for upcoming games and make predictions about series outcomes.

Shannon Sharpe [73:26]: "With AMEX Platinum, you're already planning the next one because you earn five times membership rewards points on prepaid hotels and more booked through amextravel.com so every trip."

Ryan Hollins [73:47]: "I'm giving you a guy who scored the ball and turned his... became a different player."

Conclusion

Shannon Sharpe wraps up the episode by reiterating the impressive performances of both teams and the critical roles played by standout individuals like Haliburton and Jokic. The hosts express optimism for the continuation of the playoffs, emphasizing the competitive nature of the series and the potential for more thrilling basketball action.

Shannon Sharpe [77:28]: "The best moments happen when you're with your people, laughing, vibing and just enjoying life. Coke is making those moments even sweeter."

---

Notable Quotes

• Shannon Sharpe [02:24]: "Tonight the Warriors beat the Wolves, a large part without Steph..."

• Ryan Hollins [06:20]: "Man, the first thing they could have did. He could have pulled that hamstring on Sunday..."

• Shannon Sharpe [08:07]: "Ocho, what do you think about what you saw? Because like he said, I don't think Ant man hit a jump shot all night long..."

• Ryan Hollins [38:16]: "What's it gonna take for Tyrese Haliburton to get that respect?"

• Shannon Sharpe [56:21]: "But I like Halle's game. And you look, okay, you say, well, he sought the bench..."

• Ryan Hollins [65:52]: "He's so much stronger than he gets credit for. That's a strong boy right there."

---

Final Thoughts

This episode of Club Shay Shay provides an in-depth analysis of pivotal NBA playoff games, focusing on team strategies, player performances, and the intricate dynamics that define high-stakes basketball. Shannon Sharpe, Chad Ochocinco Johnson, and Ryan Hollins offer insightful commentary, backed by real-time game analysis and strategic breakdowns, making this summary a comprehensive guide for both avid listeners and newcomers alike.

Transcript

[Shannon Sharpe]

You're listening to an iHeart podcast. Okay, have you heard about this? Last year, Degree changed the formula for their Cool Rush deodorant. Their fans rebelled and wanted the old scent back and Degree listened. That doesn't happen often. They admitted that they effed up and are bringing the original Cool Rush scent back. And it's exactly how you remember it. Cool, crisp and fresh. There's a reason it's the number one men's antiperspirant and it's back in Walmart, Target and and other stores for under $4. So try it and see what the fuss is about. Head to your local stores to try the OG Cool Rush for yourself.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

T Mobile's stats are as impressive as your favorite athlete's highlight reel because T Mobile helps keep you connected from the heart of Portland to right where you are on America's largest 5G network. Switch now keep your phone and T Mobile will pay it off at the $800 per line via prepaid card. Visit your local T Mobile location or learn more@t mobile.com KeepAndSwitch up to four lines of a virtual prepaid card. Allow 15 days qualified unlocked device, credit service port in 90 plus days device and eligible carrier and timely redemption required card is no cash access and expires in six months. Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted? If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide. And and every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn [e-mail] credit card Based on the February 2024 Nielsen report, Amazon Pharmacy presents.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Painful Thoughts 20 more minutes to kill in the pharmacy before my prescription is ready. Maybe I'll grab some deeply discounted out of season Halloween candy.

[Ryan Hollins]

Hmm.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I never had a chocolate pumpkin with raisins before. Those were raisins, right?

[Ryan Hollins]

Next time use Amazon Pharmacy. We deliver. And no, those were not raisins. Amazon Pharmacy Healthcare just got less painful. The volume.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hello ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for joining us for another episode of Nightcap. For the first time in NBA history, all the road teams won game one. We've had two or four. We've had three or four. We've never had all four win. And that's what happened. And a couple of them won in dramatic fashion. We're going to get to that in just a moment. Thank you guys for Joining us again, I am your favorite unc, Shannon Sharpe, my partner and co host, the Liberty City legend, the bingo ring of fame honoree, the pro Bowler all pro, that's Chad Ochocinko Johnson. And our special guest tonight to talk about basketball is a ten year NBA vet, Pasadena native, UCLA alum, a seven foot plus high jumper. Yes, there he is, Mr. Ryan Hollis. Ryan, thank you. And he calls games for the Houston Rockets. Ryan, thank you for joining us tonight. We can't wait to get your input on a lot of these games. Please make sure you hit that subscribe button. Please make sure you hit the like button and go subscribe to the Nightcap podcast feed wherever you get your podcast from. Thank you guys for supporting Nightcap. Thank you for your continued support because thanks to you we get to do OO and I get to do what we do. And all the awards that are behind us, Ocho have them in his place. I have them in mind was because of you, because you believe in us. So thank you very much from the bottom of our heart. Make sure you check out Shave by La Portier. We do have it in stock now. If you cannot find Shave by laportier it's a premium vsop, the best VSOP on the market. If you cannot find it in a city or a state near you, order it online. We'll ship it directly to your door. Please drink responsibly and stay safe. Go follow my media company page on all of its platforms. Shay Shay Media and my clothing company 84 with 84 being spelled out, that link is pinned in the chat. Supplies are limited and once they're gone, they're gone. So please get yours while supplies last. Tickets for our Not Safe for Work tour are on sale eight stops. Baltimore, Philly, Charlotte, Los Angeles, Miami, NYC, Chicago and Detroit. Tickets can be found at shayshaymedia.com tour that's Shay Shay media.com tour go get your tickets now. Right, we're going to get right into it. Tonight the warriors beat the Wolves, a large part without Steph. Steph left the game early in the second quarter with a hamstring injury, did not return. The Timberwolves tonight Naz Reed nas Reed was 3 of 7 from 3. Everybody else was 2 of 22 and they did not get off to the the best start shooting the basketball and as Chris Fitch said, our transition decisions making was diabolical. He said the poor shooting affected their confidence and overall play. It starts with Anthony Edwards. You can see the light go out and for a little while now he did get it going. In the second half, he had 23 points, 14 rebounds. It just took him 22 shots to get those 23 points. And that's not nearly good enough because outside of Ant man, Julius Randall was 4 of 11. Jaden Daniel was 6 or 12. Rudy Gobert was 4 of 7. Mike Conley got some great cardio in tonight, but DiVincenzo 311. Nikhil Walker Alexander had 4. Was had 14 minutes. He got some great cardio in. And even Shannon Jr. He got cardio in. Only got two minutes on the bike. Ocho, but he got a little cardio in. So he only have to do 18 minutes on the bike after the game because he did get two minutes of cardio. Ryan, I'm gonna start with you on this. You watched this game and you was like, okay, the warriors might be in trouble. Steph going out and looked like he had it going. Looked like he was headed to the monster night. He had 13 points in about 13 minutes. So it looked like it was going to be one of those night. Draymond got off, hit four of his five first threes. But you know what? I'll let Draymond have that. I just don't want Steph, buddy. He'll get going. What did you like about what you saw from the warriors tonight?

[Ryan Hollins]

Man, the F. First thing they could have did. He could have pulled that hamstring on Sunday. Last Sunday, he could have pulled that hamstring. We'd be having a whole different conversation now. Okay, let's get that out there right now, first and foremost, but, man, I don't think people understand and give Golden State the credit. Defensively, they are sound, they're smart. Steve Kerr will get out there and switch defenses. I saw stuff I've never seen in the series against Houston, against our guys, he ran three, two zone. He ran one, three, one. In the NBA, that's something you never see to take away the elbows. And he doesn't mind switching stuff. He'll go play big, he'll go small. And right now, one thing he's doing, he's daring Rudy Gobert. He's saying, I'm going to put Jimmy Butler, I'm going to put Draymond. We're not putting a guy above 6, 8 on you. And he's really challenging Gobert to score the ball inside the paint. Now, against Shindun and Stephen Adams, he went big. You saw a lot of Quinton Post. You didn't see Quinton Post tonight. You saw Pavon Looney and Draymond. You Know you saw both those guys in the lineup. I'mma make this very clear. They're not going to win this series without Steph Curry. He's going to have to get back depending how bad that hamstring is. And I've never seen Steph go down. And it's funny, man. We were talking about this the other day with Steph. If you watch him play, I don't know, he must win, run three to four to five miles every possession he's running. So finally that hamstring, you know what went out. Yeah. But at the end of the day, Chad.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

I don't see a reality where Anthony Edwards struggles that bad offensively. They got to find ways to get him going. And ultimately in game one, it was a lot of rust. The positive, when you play seven game series, you're fresh, you're ready, the juices are going. But I saw Russ from Minnesota.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Ocho, what do you think about what you saw? Because like he said, I don't think Ant man hit a jump shot all night long. Everything that he got was going to the basket or it was from the free throw line. He was terrible from the three point line. What was he from the three point line? Oh, he did make one. He was one or five. From the three, he was four or five from the free throw line. Nine of 22 from the floor. Overall, he, he did have 14 rebounds. But the thing that they didn't allow him to do, they made him incredibly inefficient and they didn't let you look at his assist total 2. Remember when he played the Lakers? 11 assists, 8, 9 assists. So not only is he getting his points, he's allowing everybody else to get involved. Tonight. Golden State did a great job of limiting him, making it hard for him to get anything. He couldn't get anything from the jump shot, the three point line. He got some driving baskets in the second half, but it wasn't nearly, nearly enough. What did you. What so Timberwood, you like Ant Man. What is it that you didn't see that you want to see? In order for them to win this series moving forward, I mean actually going.

[Unknown Speaker]

Forward, the Wolves, the Wolves are going to have to have. Ant man has to be on. He has to be on fire. He has to be the leader and get. Go out there and not only facilitate, but take a game over. You know, it is only game one and honest, honestly, from what I saw, I knew Steph was getting hot when he, when he was playing, but when he went out and he twi. He Tweaked that hamstring a little bit. I'm like, okay, this is the perfect opportunity for the Wolves to get back in the game or at least make it a close game. And that's what I thought it would be. You know, towards the end I thought that we have opportunity to come back. But obviously Jimmy, Jimmy Butler and, and Draymond Green kind of, kind of led the way. You know, Buddy Hill helped as well and, and making sure that didn't happen.

[Shannon Sharpe]

But, but he got going in that second half.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah, he got. Yeah, he got going in the second half. It's, it's only game one. It's only game one. So I'm, I'm expecting, you know, Anthony Edwards and the rest of rest of that crew collectively to have to have a better game. Especially Ant. Ant, I think everybody gonna feed off his energy and how he plays. So everything starts with him.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I mean, you think about it. Minnesota scored 11 points in the second quarter. Warriors almost outscored them in the second quarter. The warriors scored 26 points in the second quarter. They had 31 points at the half. Minnesota did. I don't know if I've ever seen a team be this, this poor in an entire quarter. 12 minute quarter, Ryan, I don't know when's the last time you see Somebody score just 11 points in a quarter in today's game. Now maybe when the game was physical, hell, I mean, I remember games being 73, 68, 70 to 65. But in today's game, when it's up and down, I don't know if I've seen this anemic of a quarter from a team.

[Ryan Hollins]

Well, this is the thing that you gotta understand. You must have missed our series, man, they defend and in Golden State more than anybody, they don't funnel you into a big. Because the biggest, Draymond, they just square you off and they keep you in front is old school basketball and they force a contest. And then you bring Jimmy Butler in. Jimmy can play both ways. So they got size and they're switchable and then, you know, coming with guys off the bench. But they're elite because it's a different style than you're used to seeing. And even when Curry's out there, her put on so much muscle, he's stronger. They're deep into that scatterport. If there's a weakness that you have, you can argue they may be the smartest team in the NBA defensively. So it's not a surprise. And on the other end, this is my, my challenge to Anthony Edwards, now he's going to shoot the ball better just by his God given ability. When he learns how to truly play the game and manipulate defenses, he is going to be, he's going to be unstoppable. And what do I mean by that? Luka Doncic can't jump over a phone book, but he can manipulate defenses. You know what I'm saying?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yes.

[Ryan Hollins]

Like Luka Doncic is going to find a bad matchup. He gonna pull you into a pick and roll, use the angle and get it. Antman playing on all heart right now, it's all hard. But when he learns how to run the pick and roll, find the poor matchup, see how they're playing him, you can't guard him, you know, so he's made strides and the game is going to come so much more easier to him. But again, that was Russ and, and it's, and like Chad said, Chad, it's almost impossible we gonna expect him to go into the next game and play that bad. And, and you gonna have to see, you know, here's the problem, Chad. I, I don't know how y'all, both, y'all feel about this. Now. You gonna have to ask Jimmy Butler to do a lot more than he's been doing. Jimmy Butler's been playing heavy minutes, but he's been saving himself.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He had 11 rebounds tonight. He had eight assists tonight, as you mentioned, because he, first of all, Draymond is, is a point, whatever you call him. He's a point center, point forward, whatever you want to call it, because he initiates a lot of their offense. That's not what Curry does. Curry spends his time being in perpetual motion, running from side to side, coming off picks, coming off spin downs and things of that nature. He's not really initiating their offense. That role goes to Jimmy Butler and, and Draymond Green. So now with Curry being out, you're probably going to ask Jimmy to do a little bit more of the scoring. He can't be as much as a facilitator because he had Curry taking a lot of that scoring role. Now if Curry's going to be out, you're going to ask him to do more. He's more than capable of doing that because we saw him for a number of years in Miami do some of everything, go get you 50. If you need 6, 15, 16 rebounds, go get you that. You need double digit assists, he can get you that. And so I agree with you, Ryan. I think he's going to have to be, he's going to have to Be more of everything. He's going to have to be that guy. What we saw LeBron be for a lot of those years, maybe lead the team in points, rebounds, assists. Hell, maybe steal block shots because he has that ability. Right. It's going to be very interesting to see how the Wolves respond to this because they had it fairly easy for the most part. Look, the Lakers would always choke it off and they, you know, they would get some confidence going and the next thing you know, Ant man get hot. Everybody catch fire shooting your three. They was 5 and 29 tonight. Now they're not. They made the fifth most threes, but they're not. They weren't a great three point shooting team against the Lakers. They just got hot in spells and that was good enough to carry them over. Ant man did what he did, but you got Jane Daniels averaging 22, 23 points a game. And you see tonight, he had 12. You had Julius Randle giving you 22 and 6 and 5. He had 18 tonight. So everybody played below their average against the Lakers. And I don't know if that. This effort tonight, they're gonna have to find something because I like what you said, Ryan. The warriors are a team. They don't beat themselves. They make you beat them. So if you think they're gonna make silly mistakes, Ocho, by turning the ball over, being caught out of position, you don't see them pointing like, bro, I thought you had that. I thought you was supposed to show. I thought you was gonna hedge. I thought we was gonna switch this. You don't see them doing a lot of that. They know exactly what they're gonna do according to what you're going to do. And if you beat them, you beat them. Yeah, but they're not going to make those silly ticky tack mistakes that you're like, damn. Well, you know, we made a lot of mistakes out there. That's not what they do.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah, well, one thing also I want to touch on is you say, you say when you beat the warriors, you got to beat them. They're not going to beat themselves. And we talk about Anthony Edwards in that cast collectively having a better shooting game and shooting above. Above what their percentage is to even have a chance to win. But are we even worried a little bit about the. About the warriors, you know, with Curry's hamstring being out going in the game too? Or do you think Jimmy Butler, Buddy Hill and Draymond carried it?

[Ryan Hollins]

Hey, Chad, I'm going to tell you one thing.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

As. As fatigued as he is at his age, he might be back game three or four. Now the gold right now, if you're Golden State and Steve Per, you know this Hunt, you stole that game. Yes. So now you can rest.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I can feel I can steal a rest game.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yes.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Okay.

[Ryan Hollins]

When Jimmy Butler went out against Houston, they were able to rest because they won. They won a game and they were able to get him back. So if you're Golden State, you're saying if we can get him back by game three or four and not rush it because we stole a game, which means even we just need to get one at home. And now we still got a series. That's the biggest thing. I want to touch on something. You said Anthony Edwards wasn't pressured against the Lakers. They literally. It was man and man let him.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Play one on one.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yeah, he played one on one, but he pretty much zoned the weak side because they don't have the ability to pressure the basketball. Golden State got up and pressured Anthony Edwards. Okay. Gary Payton II is a dog, okay? He can argue, Draymond can argue. So they showed bodies and they're saying sticker to somebody else. You know, Nas Reed was wide open. McDaniels was wide open for three. Because I can help a recovery to those guys. They don't have a knockdown shooter if it's not Mike Conley in that situation.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, because you look at Julius Randle 0 for 3, Jaden McDaniels 0 for 3, Mike Conley 0 for 2, Anthony Edwards 1 for 5, Dante DiVincenzo 1 for 7, Alexander Walker 0 for 2. So at that point in time, Golden State says, you know what, hey guys, let's not chase him off the line, let's leave him at the line. Cuz they ain't going to be able to throw it in the ocean anyway. So we running out of there, getting out of position and, and this is what was surprising. A lot of people might not realize to be a small, small team. Golden State is a great rebounding team. They out rebounded. They out rebounded Minnesota by 10 with Rudy Gobert, with Julius Randle, with Nas Reed, with Ant man with Jaden McDaniels. Let that sink in. Because if you look at them side by side, you're like, damn, Rudy Gobert looked like Goliath, Julius Randle, 6, 9. So I mean, the tallest, the tallest player in the starting lineup is probably Draymond and Jimmy Butler at 67, you got Steph Curry, six, two, six, three, maybe Buddy Hill. But they get a, they get a, they get you out of position because you're scrambling, trying to run guys off the three point line. They miss and they know what about the car is and they get the ball.

[Ryan Hollins]

But that's.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Go ahead.

[Ryan Hollins]

No, Chad, the reason they don't give those rebounds, and we talked about it earlier, they stay on the body.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

It's hard to beat them off the bounce. And even when you beat them, they stay in the play. So now your bodies on bodies. When I can get bodies on bodies and box you out. It's old school basketball. Steve Curry approaching old school basketball. So that's why they're so dominant on the glass and then on the other end. Here's my fear, Chad, and I don't know how you feel about this. When Curry's running around, you got to give attention. You got to give two to the ball. That opens up Buddy Hill, that opens up the other guys, it opens up Jimmy. But even though Jimmy Butler, he doesn't want to shoot. He got, he got free space. That free space is going to go away. And my key, this is my key going forward. The Timberwolves are excellent when they can turn you over. They're young, they're athletic, they play off energy. And Golden State is doing what, Chad? They holding the back, Chad. You watch them, they hold the basketball. You're going to see them shoot by design. And normally in basketball, Chad, you wouldn't want to see this. It's almost like a football. Y'all don't want to play that team that's going to defend and just hold the ball. They hike in the ball at the left. That's Golden State. They shooting the ball at five seconds, eight to five seconds every possession. So they, they push the game out in time.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, that's the thing. I mean, they're the total. They're the total opposite of Indiana. If you look at Indiana, they're looking to push tempo maker or we get off the rim. But you look at it in four dribbles, they got somebody, if you're not careful, they got somebody laying the ball up in the basket. You look at Steve Curry, he says, steph Curry is day to day. And we'll get an MRI tomorrow. Obviously, he's crushed. Buddy Hill, game one, 24 points, five made threes. He's hit 143 in his previous two games. And he won him game seven because he caught fire and they didn't have an answer for him. And tonight, the second half, when you saw Minnesota started to make a run, it was him. Boom, boom, boom in the third quarter. And when they Cut it. Ryan and Ocho, you remember in the fourth quarter, I think they had got it down to eight. Yeah, he made a two pointer and then he came right back down and made a three and pushed it right back to 13. And they really never challenged after that. But Buddy is playing. I mean, look, he could always shoot the ball. If you look at him where he is now as far as three pointers, he's heading where Curry was at the same point in time in their careers. Now, I'm not saying he's going to catch Curry, I'm not saying he's a better shooter, but I'm saying Steph came in and started this revolution or this evolution, whatever term you want to use. And so now guys are coming in and they're getting up more threes. And so now you, I mean, you might have. When it's all said and done, Ryan, you might have three guys that made 10 guys that made 3,000 threes in a career.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

I'm going to give you this about Buddy Hill and here's the challenge. Chad, I don't know if you. You, I don't know if you were this type of guy, Chad, in your career, but Buddy Hill is not great at being the second and third option. He's the guy that has to get his touches right. And Steve her made a genius plan because what he did in that game seven against Houston, he said, we need a third option, right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

And it wasn't going to be Kaminga, it wasn't Pajewski, and Pajimski's a dog. I like him, man. He got an old school style of play, but he said, buddy Hill, play what fits you best. And it paid off. Chad, do you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Were you one of those guys?

[Ryan Hollins]

Could you be second? I know you and TJ were talking. You know what I'm saying?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Matter of fact, Ocho, he might could play second, but you had to get OO is like most number one receivers. Get him the ball early, you can have him late. You can't dilly dally around with him and wait till the second quarter or the third quarter to try to beat him the ball. Give him a smoke, give him a quick out, give him a slant, let him touch the ball. If you let him touch the ball early, you can have him late. But you're probably going to lose him if you don't give the ball to late the second quarter, right before the half or the third.

[Ryan Hollins]

Chad, I'm not calling you. Matter of fact, he needs his touches and you can speak to that a guy who wants to early.

[Unknown Speaker]

Like a small example I could think about when I stood on the table when Tio had the opportunity to come to Cincinnati, I told Marvin, I told Mike Brown, I said, listen, we got to get him. We got to get him in here. I have no problem taking a backseat. I have no problem being number two, understanding the greatness that's getting ready to come into the receiver room now at that point. Common goddamn sense. This is one of the best of all time. I don't care how good I am right now in Cincinnati, I'm going to take a backseat to you. I'm taking a backseat and I had no problem with it. So at some point, obviously, just like you said it, Burkowski and Carson, they knew to give me my touches early. And the offense, the offense ran really well. Hell, but just that year we went 4 and 12. So we still were sorry, but Chad.

[Ryan Hollins]

I'm still mad at y'all over that. Yo, both y'all my friend. I'm still mad at y'all over that. Okay? I'm still mad at y'all over that team.

[Unknown Speaker]

I don't know what happened. I don't know what happened that year.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

T Mobile's stats are as impressive as your favorite athlete's highlight reel. Because T Mobile helps keep you connected from the heart of Portland to right where you are on America's largest 5G network switch. Now keep your phone and T Mobile will pay it off up to $800 per line via prepaid card. Visit your local T Mobile location or learn more@t mobile.com KeepAndSwitch up to four lines via virtual prepaid card. Allow 15 days qualified unlocked device credit service port in 90 plus days device and eligible carrier and timely redemption required card has no cash access and expires in six months. Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted? If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide. And every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn [e-mail] credit card based on the February 2024 Nielsen report.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hey, so we all make mistakes but owning up is the right thing to do, you know. Degree Cool Rush deodorant. Well, last year they changed the formula and it did not go well with their fans. Degree's whole thing is it turns up the sweat and odor protection when you turn up the effort. And good thing it does because Cool Rush fans really turned up the effort to bring back the original Formula. One guy even started an online petition and degree Listen. They admitted they effed up and are bringing the original Cool Ru scent back. And it's exactly how you remember it. Cool, crisp and fresh. It's back in Walmart, Target and other stores now for under $4. There's a reason why it's been the number one men's Annie purse print for the last decade. It's the same reason why people were not happy when it changed. So if you never tried it, it might be a good time to see what the fuss is about. Head to your local Walmart or Target to try the OG degree Cool Rush for yourself.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile with.

[Ryan Hollins]

A message for everyone paying Big Wireless way too much.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Please, for the love of everything good.

[Ryan Hollins]

In this world, stop with Mint.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You can get premium wireless for just $15 a month. Of course, if you enjoy overpaying.

[Shannon Sharpe]

No judgments.

[Ryan Hollins]

But that's weird. Okay, one judgment anyway.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Give it a [e-mail] Switch upfront payment of 45 for 3 month plan equivalent to 15 per month required intro rate first 3 months only, then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra. See full [e-mail].

[Shannon Sharpe]

Pacers Steel Game 2 in Cleveland. Only three teams have come back down, seven in the last minute of a playoff game since 1997. The Thunder did it on May 13, 2014. The Pacers did it April 29, 2025, which was seven days ago. The Pacers also did it May 6, 2025, which was up tonight. Ocho, remember we talked about it? Yep. Another six. Another six guys in double figures. You got Siaka 12, Niecemith 23, Turner 23, Nemhard 13, Halliburton 19, Mathurin 19. You see, you don't know. You just know. It's a committee now. You don't know who's going to be the lead, who's going to be the president, who's going to join the meeting. But you know these guys are going to. And they did an unbelievable job. I believe in a situation like this. Ryan, correct me if I'm wrong. Look, yeah, the other team has to make. Has to make a lot of mistakes. But in order for you to steal a game with 50 seconds left and you're down by seven, you gotta make everything right. You gotta miss a free throw and get a rebound and get an A and 1. I mean, you see Matheran, they missed a free Throw. He dunk it home. Okay, now Halliburton make one. He missed the next one. He get it. Boo, boo, boo.

[Ryan Hollins]

Out.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Four, three. Everything that could have gone wrong for the Cavs. The Cavs struggled all night getting the ball in. There were a couple of times they could have got some violations, but. And then I don't know what happened. He just threw the ball right to Nemar. I mean, like, thank you very much, but they're in trouble. I don't. I think this series is over and it's going to be the most epic because a team that won this many games to possibly get swept. I can see them getting swept. Ryan. I don't know if you see that. You got some glasses on. Put them glasses on so you can see. If you can see what I see, because I damn sure feel getting swept. Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

Hey, Chad. Yeah, Chad. I called this before I seen it. And this is what's crazy. The Indiana Pacers are the most underrated team in the NBA right now. They're a team. Last year they went to the Eastern Conference finals and everybody said it was for injuries. Listen, man, Rick Carlisle, Nivhart McConnell, they got some dogs over there. It's not the sexiest, okay? They don't got the 40 inch burp. Mastering is athletic, Siakam's athletic, but other than that, they just are tough, hard nosed players. And the way that the NBA is played now, that is shifting to. It was a game of athletes a bunch of three times shooting. Now it's a game of toughness and skill. Indiana has toughness and skill. They move the basketball like you talked about in Halliburton. Hey, man, hold on, man. They need to put some respect on Halliburton's name.

[Shannon Sharpe]

They call him the most overrated player in the NBA.

[Ryan Hollins]

Let me tell you something from schematically. There's only a handful of guys that can manipulate the game. Chris Paul, I played with Chris. Chris was one of those guys that can do it in the NBA. Now it's LeBron, it's Luka Doncic and James Harden. When he's on his A game, Tyrese Halliburton could manipulate the game. What do I mean by that? He's the guy that can beat you with the pass and he can beat you with the shot. And when you take one away, he's gonna make the correct play. So we looking at the stat sheet, he got 19 points, four assists in the game winning. And he's got the clutch Dean. He finds a way. It's not the prettiest game. It's not. It's not the prettiest. He's the guy. It's the Kevin Martin. He got a little Kevin Martin in him, right? But he's a dog and he finds a way. But Chad, am I crazy to where I called this before it happened? I got him record. I called it. Am I crazy to say that still is going to outweigh the athletes and inside and obviously give credit to the cavalry as they choked the game up, but they had injuries, they had guys missing. Donovan Mitchell drops 48 points in a game. And at the end of the day, if I'm Donovan Mitchell, I say I dropped 48. That's all I can do to will my team to win. And we couldn't win. We sit.

[Shannon Sharpe]

It's a ride. Yeah, yeah. For me. Oto, I thought the game could have been even closer. I mean, think about it. Siakam had eight shots. He's one of you. He's your all star. Calibur had 11 shots. Think about how many of those shots came in the fourth quarter. Yeah, I'm like, bro, what's he. What are y'all doing? I mean, nobody took more. Miles Turner had the most shots. He had 17. They only had 85. They shot almost 52% from the floor. If they take better care of the the basketball, I mean, Nemhard had eight turnovers, so he had almost half of the turnovers. If they do a better job taking care of the basketball, I'm not so sure Cleveland get out to that lead, but Cleveland, as the game got close, I mean, they would look up big and every time. Here come Indiana. Here come Indiana. They go up by 18, 19. Here come Indiana. Will it down to nine. They go back up by 13. They cut it back down to seven. I was like, okay, now y'all mess around, y'all. Hey, you playing with fire because y'all letting them guys, they like, hey, man, we right here, we make a couple of plays, we get a couple of stops. You know how you getting that huddle? Hey, we make a stop right here. Get a ball oo get a ball back to our offense. Hey, who knows what could happen? And that's what happened. They messed around and let him get close a. And you hit that three point shot. It's like, oh, it's a one point game.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, and Halberton got the rebound. Hey, he dribbled out. He got the matchup that he wanted. Guy was wor. Hey, I ain't giving you the three. If you go to the basket and lay it up. You're tied up.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I'm not giving you that. I'm not. I'm not. Yeah, but look, like I said, Neesmith had 23. He played really well. 4 rebounds, 3 blocks. Miles Turner, 23 points, 8 rebounds, 5 blocks. Tyrese Halliburton, 19 points, 9 rebounds. The game winner, the sh. The series shift to Indy on Friday. You talking about a team that won, what, 64 games and could possibly get swept? Have we ever had a team win so many games to get swept? Maybe that. That 94 supersonics team, they got. They didn't get swept, but they got beat by the eight seed, the Denver Nuggets. But to get swept.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

At 64 wins.

[Unknown Speaker]

But honestly, listen, when you talk about him having 64 wins, you got to remember. You got to remember tonight, they were. They. They didn't have key contributors. Darius. Darius Garland's out. Evan Mobley, DeAndre Hunter's out. So those 64, when they had that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

20 point lead or they just went out, once they got the lead, just.

[Ryan Hollins]

Say they came in injured. They came. They came in injured.

[Shannon Sharpe]

They came in. And so they had 20 point lead with those guys on the bench, Right?

[Ryan Hollins]

Yeah, that's what. That's why. But that's why Donovan had 48. Because he had to do more.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, I give him that. But see, are we surprised that Donovan. We. Donovan's had 57 in the playoff game. Him and Jamar Murray both had 50 in the playoff game. We don't think about how many times he scored 30 in a playoff game. I think five of his seven games with the Cavs, he's had at least 30. We know he's a scoring machine, but as long as he got how many. Hold up. He had.

[Unknown Speaker]

He was 15 for 30. 15 for 30.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah. I can live with the a. That's. That's efficient. That's 15. He didn't shoot the three ball well, and he had nine assists. Yeah. So he did all he could do. But you can't turn the ball over in situations like that. You can't leave guys open. You just can't make the mistakes.

[Ryan Hollins]

Right.

[Shannon Sharpe]

In a situation. You got. Listen, you got to win that game. You can't play. I don't believe they can play any better, Ryan, with the guys that they have missing, they can't play any better than what they played tonight. And they don't have anything to show for that performance.

[Ryan Hollins]

100%. And this was Indiana's mindset. Let me speak to something that you two can't Speak to. Okay, Y'all was first option hall of Fame. I was a role player. Okay, so let me speak to the role players. You can give energy, you can bring life. They, they played like their backs were against the wall. But as things get tighter, you need your stars. Now Donovan did his job, but Darius Garland is the other closer on that team. He's the guy you put the ball in his hands and he's the playmaker. Things get, happen, happen on the backside. So the role players, the heart was there. But as things got tighter, where were they going to go with the basketball? And Donovan didn't do too much. So for Indiana, they were patient. They just said, where's your offense going to keep coming from? The energy, the excitement, you know, and when you have go a guy go out and you saw this with Bowling State, you, you galvanize behind it. I think when Steph Curry went out, you know, Draymond Green is for known as a non shooter, future hall of Famer, by the way. I think Draymond hit three or four straight three pointers in a row. You saw the energy from the role players. But as a role player, when the game is getting tight, I'm looking at Chris Paul, okay, I'm looking at Paul Pierce, I'm looking to those guys and they not on the floor. We going, fellas, we can only run so much offense. And it's funny, there's a saying, it's not about the X's and O's, it's about the Jimmies and Joes. You have to have players in those situations. So no disrespect to the guys on the floor for Cleveland, but Donovan Mitchell alone wasn't enough. And the thing is, you got a well oiled machine over there with the Pacers and they just let it get tighter, let it get tighter. And then they accept their moment.

[Shannon Sharpe]

And because they're at home and the fans look, when a game, when you've had, when you have a lead and all of a sudden it starts to dissipate, the fans can feel that too because everything is ooh, ah, ah, no. And all of a sudden it seemed like the basket had a lid on it. Max Strus played unbelievable tonight. Five or 12 from the three he ended up taking out from outside the lane and flushing it home. He was hyped. I thought Ty Jerome played well. Merrill hit a couple of big threes. Allen had 2212 with what, three blocks. But at the end of the day as that game, you look you up 20 and all of a sudden you look up and there's like 15 seconds and you only got a three point lead. You don't feel as good as you once did. Nah, you don't feel as good as you once did. You're like, damn, we about to let this ish slip away.

[Ryan Hollins]

Check this out, Chad. When I played in, in Dallas, so derp Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, a team would have a lead on us and we would go on the road and we would live for these moments almost.

[Unknown Speaker]

You know what I'm saying?

[Ryan Hollins]

Insert myself as a role player into these situations. Now we're going to do this, but the one thing you would say is, oh, they getting tight. I'm not going to say the words we were saying on the ground. We were saying they getting tired and trying to watch and get tight. Those arms, the T. Rex arms come out the fresher mouth and you just looking for one quack. Heck, man, I'm gonna call it for what it is. The reason I'm so passionate about giving LeBron the respect I give him is because we had been down 3:1. LeBron was not LeBron at that point. He wasn't King James. He was calling himself King James, but he wasn't King James yet. And what he did, coming into Boston with our team and our guys and we kept waiting for that moment, for LeBron to shrink. We kept, we had ways figured out. With all due respect to Dwyane Wade, we had great. Avery was doing an excellent job. We had him figured out and LeBron took over in that game and he willed his team to victory on the championships and the rest is, the rest is history from there. But Chad, have you been in a situation where, you know, you're saying, give us the ball back, it's game, give us the ball back, it's game.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You know what, make a play, you.

[Unknown Speaker]

Know, if, if, if anything, especially a situation like that where it's, where it's a pressure situation and it gets tight, Unk would be, would be better suited to say that because he's been, he's been in bigger games, he's been in.

[Ryan Hollins]

Big, you know, play.

[Shannon Sharpe]

We had one of the best, we had one of the best pressure packed quarterbacks in NFL history.

[Unknown Speaker]

Absolutely.

[Shannon Sharpe]

That's what he was known for. So we knew if the defense could get a stop, it didn't matter. If we're down 14 with 5 minutes to go and they had the ball, we got a stop, we gonna go down and score quickly. Defense get us one more stop, get us off the field, we get that ball back oh, we gonna get. We gonna get a touchdown to beat you. We're gonna find a way to beat you. Cause I've been in that moment too many times, and they know it. See, here's the thing is, is that when you have somebody and they know it, they know what you know. God damn.

[Ryan Hollins]

Did you hear what Atlanta.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Even when Atlanta had that 23 point lead, I think it was Sunu was on the sideline like, hey, man, that's Brady over there. They know what's over there. You up 23 to 8 and you still worried about the man.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

Because you let me ask both of y'all this. What's it gonna take for Tyrese Halliburton to get that respect? Because he just did it to Giannis. He didn't come out that east, but he got like, what's it gonna take for Howard Burton? And this was league wide fan, they chanting overrated the game. He addressed it in the press and said, overrate that. What's it gonna take for him, in your mind, Chad, to get that respect? And is there anybody that you knew that was getting that overrated tag and what they do to get over it?

[Unknown Speaker]

You know, that's crazy. I think it might be. It might actually be where he's playing. I really think it might be where he's playing, you know, and, and, and outside of that, that. That's it. And obviously he's. He's an all star. And then the group of players that he's combined with when it comes to all Star, his game isn't pretty. Isn't pretty like everyone else's.

[Ryan Hollins]

It's, It's.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He don't play above the rim like Ja.

[Ryan Hollins]

No. Yeah. No.

[Shannon Sharpe]

So you know what I'm saying? So he, he's not going to be, what? All the guys that I mentioned, James Harden, like you said, James can go give you 50, Steph can give you 50. Luca, you know Luka, you seen Luka give you a 60, 20 triple double. Yeah. Ja can play elevate above the rim. So you look at the guy that's it that played the position. I don't know how many guys he was taking. I mean, you might take him over Ja, but are you taking him over Steph? No. You're not taking him over Luka? Oh, are you taking over Shay?

[Ryan Hollins]

Well, I gotta hear that. You said you're taking him over Ja. Halliburton and Ja.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You said you take a Halliburton. No, but that's what I'm saying. I'm saying of the Guys that I mentioned, you're not taking them over Shay, you're not taking them over Luka, you're not taking them over Steph. So I'm not. The only reason I would say you probably take him over Ja is because of Ja's injury history. Because I can't count on Ja.

[Ryan Hollins]

If you take injury history out, I can't look at half the time similar teams though, right? Can you say that? He got Ascal Siakam, you know, Memphis.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He got Triple J.

[Ryan Hollins]

Triple J. Pretty similar.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

So I know you can't take out injury history, right? Taking away the flashy play. Chad Jon has the flashy plays. I'm not trying to disrespect that way, but are you taking Halliburton? Are you taking Halliburton over Ja?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Absolutely not.

[Unknown Speaker]

Listen, I like Halliburton. I think one of the reasons why he got that underrated label is simply for one, with a team he plays on and two, even though he's efficient and he gets the job done at a high level and just something about his game, it's not pretty. You know, it's not as pretty, it's not as aesthetically as pleasing as everybody else's. When you watch a job, when you watch a James Harden or Steph Curry.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Or Luca, all the guys, point guards, Ocho, what you're saying is all the guys that we mentioned can go get you 50? Yeah, I mean, Luka can get you 50.

[Ryan Hollins]

Huh?

[Unknown Speaker]

You don't think Halliburton will give you 50?

[Ryan Hollins]

40?

[Shannon Sharpe]

No. Have you ever. What's the most points Halliburton scored in the game?

[Ryan Hollins]

Hey, he gets you 40.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He gets you.

[Ryan Hollins]

He gets you. I think he gets you 40. He gets you 40. He gets you forty.

[Unknown Speaker]

You heard me. He gets you a quiet 40. And it's going to be ugly, too.

[Ryan Hollins]

It's going to be ugly.

[Shannon Sharpe]

But think about Shades. Look out, look out, Shade. How many times did Shay. Shay had the most? 20, 30.

[Ryan Hollins]

40.

[Shannon Sharpe]

50 point games. We've seen Luka. We seen Luka drop 70 plus, so we know he could go get 50. We seen Steph do it. We seen Steph do it in the game. 7. We've seen Steph do it at 30, at 36, 37 years of age.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

The most points he's had. How many times have he scored 40 in the game? He got three 40 point games. Shay had what, 10 of those this year?

[Ryan Hollins]

Okay, here's the thing too, Chad. And I don't know if you know a quarterback like this or a Wide receiver, he plays the right way. So here's the Chad, here's the reality when he has the ball. This is not a sexy play for a star point guard. Pick the ball ahead, floor. Pick the ball ahead of the floor. Jason Kidd was similar to that. He's a different build, but you can say you might not get the assist, but it's the right play. Oliver Bird is going to make the right play. And he just showed you tonight he's clutch. So. And I feel like, oh, insert LeBron. And let's be honest, LeBron don't get a lot of the praise from the people. Obviously he may not be a cup of tease, not what we grew up seeing as the goat, but LeBron will make the correct play. Kyler Burton is a guy who will always make the correct play. Obviously he sat the bench for Team usa. Obviously during the regular season they look pedestrian. They couldn't guard the seat we sitting in. The Indiana pace is abysmal in moment. Okay, but they're in the Eastern Conference, right? But he's going to make the right play. Chad, are we faulting him for making the right play? Is there anybody that you can think of, even on the NFL side that makes the correct play and they don't get the respect because they make the right play?

[Shannon Sharpe]

You know, we like somebody ball hogging the ball. And the thing is with Halliburton, he doesn't turn the ball over. How many times have we seen him have 15 assists and no turnovers? How many times have we seen him have double digit assists in one or few two or fewer turnovers? So he, I mean as much as he handles the ball, yeah, he's very efficient at not turning it over. My point is I would like to see him be more aggressive sometimes. I'm like, bro, you had 11 shots and for the longest time you had six. And I'm like, bro, come on now. Come bro, you got to do. You've got to give them more. And then you see that fourth quarter, he gave them more. He gave them an opportunity. Guys may play. Mason and Neesmith made some big threes that put back dunk that Matthew Burton had on that missed free throw. But look, I ain't got no problem with Halliburton, but I understand we like Flash, we like Magic Johnson. Ain't nobody can think about it how many people they got right now. John Stockton, he got more. Since his record is never gonna be broken. Ain't nobody probably don't got John Stockton top five of point guards. Cause everybody, they like Okay. I got Magic, I got Steph Curry, I got Isaiah Thomas. They got so many guys in front of him because he wasn't flashing. All he did was pick and roll your ass to death.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yep. Hey, he was fundamentally sound. Another thing.

[Shannon Sharpe]

But I like Halle's game. And you look, okay, you say, well, he sought the bench. Okay. I mean, you go, who. Who is he gonna play in front of? He got a gold medal, though.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Unknown Speaker]

And, you know, also, you say about Halliburton really not being aggressive, only having 11 shots, you got to think everybody else in double figures, too. So he really got to do much because everybody else collectively is also being efficient and scoring and contributing. Honestly, I don't even know how the hell they won that game. If you, if you told me the score was. I think at one point, I. I can't. I feel I can't.

[Shannon Sharpe]

It was 119. It was 119 to 112.

[Ryan Hollins]

All right.

[Unknown Speaker]

No, I mean, what's the biggest, Biggest deficit? They were down.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, they was down. I think they was down by like 20.

[Ryan Hollins]

Something like 20, 27.

[Unknown Speaker]

Listen, I'm gonna be honest with you. I thought the game was over. I thought the game was over at that point. I said, there's no way they're coming. There's no way they're coming back. You know, even with the injuries, even with, you know, Hunter and Garland being out.

[Ryan Hollins]

Now, Chad, how about this? They just did that to Milwaukee, Chad. They had a crazy game like that again when they ended Milwaukee. It's a crazy. Chad. They, they. They kind of did the same. Now, 20 points. You right, though, Chad. But they did similar with Milwaukee.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah, you right.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You're right.

[Unknown Speaker]

Listen, I understand the game of basketball is. It's a game of runs most of the time, especially when you, when you make substitutes and, and things change once, you know, your second level, your second tier guys come in the game. But 20 points, you're.

[Ryan Hollins]

I'm.

[Unknown Speaker]

I'm thinking you're supposed to find a way to keep that lead. You already. Or you already gave up one game. They already stole one game from you. You gotta find a way to be like that. And then they come back and he allowed the one person, the one person that you don't want shooting the ball.

[Ryan Hollins]

The ball bounced on.

[Shannon Sharpe]

But you know what, Ryan, and you could attest to this. It used to be like that. When you got these big leads, for the most part, the game was over. But with that three point shot, and there's so many guys that can shoot it now, you really never out of a ball game. Ocho. We see teams be down 25, 26 points in the first half and lose a team that's down 26, 20 points in the third quarter and lose a ball game because that three point shot is an equalizer. So if I hit a couple of those and you go, you have a couple of bad possessions, a 20 point lead. I make three threes and two layups. Guess what?

[Unknown Speaker]

You back in.

[Shannon Sharpe]

That's nine plus four. That's 13. I cut the lead in three minutes, down to seven.

[Unknown Speaker]

Hey, listen, we just saw. We just saw a team. We didn't get to it yet. We just saw a team that lives by the three, die by a two by not being able to hit it.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yep.

[Ryan Hollins]

I'm gonna give you guys the goal real quick for one. And I don't know how you feel about this, this generation, this decade. San Antonio spurs is the Golden State Warriors.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yep.

[Ryan Hollins]

Steve Purr will adapt to who he plays with. He wins with who's on the floor. And y'all just talked about not choking away a lead. They got the lead on the road. Steph Curry's in the back icing up. Yeah, they held the ball that watch Golden State. Cause y'all say, how did they hold them to 16 points in a second? They hold the ball and they shoot with eight to five seconds on the clock. Now, I'm gonna give you some credit, Chad, for something you gave earlier. I'm gonna give you some credit where you are. I'm gonna give you some credit. You said he needs to score, Halliburton needs to score. I think you said it, too. He needs a score to get that type of credit. I'm gonna give you a guy who scored the ball and turned his. I don't wanna say turned his career around, but became a different player. Mike Malone challenged Nikola Jokic to score. He was a right play type of guy. And when he was challenged, go give Rudy Gobert A 50 ball, a 40 ball, or whatever it may be, that changed Nikola Jokic. But Jokic was similar to Halliburton in the sense that he was just going to make the right play, make the right play, make the right play so he could be a guy. And I hear you, y'all, right, Is saying that for you to get that attention, for you to speak of you with. With the job and the staff and the. You, you know, the. The Tatums and everybody, you're gonna have to go give us that consistent 40 ball, that 50 ball. When that game is on the line. So you're right. Because Jokic, Jokic, I'm telling you, man, when he got aggressive and that was always my thing with him, didn't feel like he could score enough. Because when we game plan for Jokic, you come out and say you can't give them both. Either you make him a passer, we blitz him out his hands, or you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Make him a score.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yeah, or you make him a score.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You can't let it. You can't let him. You can't let him be 30, 20 and 15 because not so he got 30 points and he dished out 15 assists. You know, about five or about five to seven of those gonna be three pointers. So now you're at his mercy.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

T Mobile stats are as impressive as your favorite athlete's highlight reel because T Mobile helps keep you connected from the heart of Portland to right where you are on America's largest 5G network switch. Now keep your phone and T Mobile will pay it off up to $800 per line via prepaid card. Visit your local T Mobile location or learn more@t mobile.com keepandswitch up to four lines via virtual prepaid card last 15 days qualify and unlock device credit service port in 90 plus days device and eligible carrier and timely redemption Required card is no cash access and expires in.

[Ryan Hollins]

Six months.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted? If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide and every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn [e-mail] credit card based on the February 2024 Nielsen report so we all made mistakes, right?

[Ryan Hollins]

But owning up to them is the right thing to do. But we all know degree Cool Rush deodorant well last year they changed the formula and it did not go over well with the fans. The grease, whole thing. It turns up sweating other protection when you turn up the effort. And good thing it does because Cool Rush fans really turned up the effort to bring back the OG formula. One guy even started online petition and degree listen they admitted they effed up and are bringing back that OG Cool Rush sent back and it's exactly how you remember it. Cool, crisp and fresh. It's back at Walmart, Target and other stores for under $4. There's a reason why it's been the number one men's antiperspirant for the last decade. It's the same reason why people are not happy when the recipe was changed. So listen, if you've never tried, it might be a good time to try. See what the fuss is about. Head to your local Walmart or Target and try the OG degree. Cool rush for yourself. Hi, this is Jevon, your blinds.com design consultant.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, wow, a real person.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yep.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I'm here to help with everything from.

[Ryan Hollins]

Selecting the perfect window treatments to.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Well, I've got a complicated project. No problem. We make the complex simple.

[Ryan Hollins]

I can even help schedule a professional measuring install.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I didn't realize you did that. We can also send you samples fast and free. Wow. I mean, I always thought I needed a designer to come to my home, but scheduling is always a nightmare.

[Ryan Hollins]

Notwithblinds.com, we're on your schedule. And there's no haggling pressure or hidden fees either. Hmm.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I just might have to do more. Whatever you need.

[Ryan Hollins]

How about you tell me what you had in mind?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Okay then. So the first room we're looking at is for guests coming over and I'm thinking of something. Blinds.com is covered over 25 million windows, all backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Shopblinds.com now. And get up to 50% off with minimum purchase rules and restrictions may apply. Aaron Gordon hit a game winning three against the Thunder. There's been a lot of discussion about this today, Ryan. Do you think that's the Thunder strategy of filing up three with Jokic on the bench? That's what I didn't get. Nicola Jokic, game one, 42 points. He had 26 in the second half. 22 rebounds, six assists, two blocks. He became only the fourth player in NBA history to have. No, he's the fifth. Well, the fourth player because Wilt did it twice. 40, 20 and five. Wilt did it twice. Shaq did it, Giannis did it. Now Nicola Jokic has done it. Do you like the strategy? I get the premise, but why would you file in the backcourt? Why would you file in the backcount? Right.

[Ryan Hollins]

It was fairly. Because you allowed Jokic to get back in. It's another play that happened that I don't think we talked enough about. Shane Joseph Alexander cut to the basket. He's wide open. He dunks the ball. Yeah, you can get those two.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Dribble the clothes, take some more. Tan's time off.

[Ryan Hollins]

They're not talking about that. Enough with Shay. Chet Holmgren misses two free throws. Okay, here's the Reality. And we just saw this with Golden State. The teams that got pressed, the teams that played game sevens, Chad, they came in sharp. When you get battle tested, you came in sharp. Okay? See, they had a cakewalk. They walked. Memphis. Memphis just shut it down. Especially when John went down. They weren't challenged. So you're going to expect Oklahoma City is going to play better. Dagno definitely made some mistakes, and it's tough because I don't want to talk about it, but Rockets didn't have the experience, and you're looking at okc and it was an experience loss.

[Unknown Speaker]

And you can check.

[Ryan Hollins]

I don't want to say anything bad because Mark has been unbelievable this season. This season. Series about him this season. But you do have to challenge them and say, man, yeah, you. You could have played that different. And they. And we're going to see everything we need to know about them boys in game two.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, you look at. I mean, the thing is. And they had two big guys and Yolk went to work on them. Both of them had at least five fouls. Hey, look, you can't stop him. You just hope you. You hope you can make it beneficial. Isaiah Hardenstein in chat.

[Ryan Hollins]

Who's this? Chess and darn bro. We're not gonna call. We're gonna call him a guard. Listen, I love Chad. Yeah, I'm a skinny boy, too, okay?

[Unknown Speaker]

I'm a skinny boy.

[Ryan Hollins]

Chad's a bar bro. He's tall, but he a guard. He's not big.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He ain't trying to bang.

[Unknown Speaker]

He too small to be down there in the block or in the paint anyway.

[Shannon Sharpe]

No, he need to go to. He need to go to some fast food restaurant and get him a couple of burgers and some fries and a shake. You look at Jokic, he's second in points, first in rebounds, first in assists, first in steals. What's up? He's. Look, I mean, what do you say? And I said this before, I believe Shay should win the mvp. But if you say you get one player in the NBA, I'm taking Nicola Jokic. I'm taking him over Giannis, I'm taking him over Luka. I'm taking him over Shai. I'm taking him over anybody because there's nothing that he can't do. If you need a score, he can go give you. He averages 30. You need somebody to rebound. He was 30, rebounding. You need somebody to facilitate assist. He's second and third of assist. What can he do that all these other guys can do? Nothing. And he's efficient. Don't look at his shooting. Don't look at his shooting percentage. He can shoot the three. He got the mid range. I don't know if I've ever seen a big guy with. I've not seen a guy forget big, medium, small, with that kind of touch around the basket. I mean, with either hand. I mean, it's. I mean, what are we watching? What are we saying here?

[Unknown Speaker]

Nice.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I mean, people try to down, try to discredit him. Well, he don't play no defense. I don't care. Cause I guarantee you the guy that he playing, I guarantee he ain't putting up those numbers. So unless he putting up those numbers and canceling it out on Cho.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Don't talk to me about no defense. Right?

[Ryan Hollins]

Damn. Chad. I'm. Chad, I'm going to give you both sides to this. I'm gonna get. I'm gonna give you both sides. Let's play devil's advocate for a moment, okay? If he gets another championship, which is very realistic, if he gets another championship, as thick as the NBA is, right. We're gonna. We're gonna. He's gonna be knocking on that dope conversation. And we just want to say, whoa, Chad, go.

[Unknown Speaker]

Wait, go to what position? At center.

[Ryan Hollins]

At center. The greatest of all time already. You can argue. You can argue with his numbers and his impact on the game. He may be the greatest center that we've ever seen play the game, Chad, because he doesn't like. You don't like the way you talk about Hollywood. You don't like the way he does. You're not used to a guy who can't jump over a phone book. You're not used to that guy. But if you look at his impact, you look at his numbers, you can argue he's the greatest senator that we've ever seen right now. Now his story is yet to be told. And in this generation, the way he manipulates the game, forgive me, I talked about Lupa and LeBron, and he impacts the game like they do. He's the point, Chad. He's the point guard. Yeah, he is in every way the point guard, the influence on his game. Now, I talk Pac when they say he had to play with an all Star because he earned Jamal Murray into an all Star at the end of the day. And I want a challenge because if he gets a championship, he knocking on the door. And if he gets another person who gets bold enough to say, I want to go to Denver and play with him, it's a different conversation. Now here's the Devil's advocate side of it, he's doing that in this era. If he did that in my era and before we played with two bigs, we had four power forwards on the floor. On your roster, we have three to four centers on roster. You didn't have the same type of spacing. We would have been physical with him. He would have been back putting in to help. They wouldn't have had the three point shooting of the pace, which helps him out. Guys can lean on him. I don't think he would have been that effective. We don't think it was a game of power and not necessarily finesse. Now, he's the closest thing we have to Arbitus Sabonis. But I can argue and understand both ways. But from a numbers standpoint or when we argue for Michael Jordan, right, you argue that Michael dominated his era. The closest thing is Joel Embiid. He did. Rudy Gobert was a 3, 4 time defensive. He drops 50 balls on Gobert, right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

He told Rudy, Rudy said, I got it. They put the pig. And Rudy said, I got it. He said, brother, I got 47. What you got? You talking about you got me and I don't drive? Oh, Joe, that's like the DB said, hey, I got. Hey, I don't know if I got it, bro. I got 10 for a buck 75 and two tubs. What you talking about, you got me? You better get some help over here. Here's the thing, and this is very, very likely. It's not out of the realm of possibility. Ocho, he gets two more regular season MVPs. So now he get two more. That makes it five, as Ryan says, he gets another Finals MVP in the regular season. In the ring, two finals. With the numbers that he's putting up now, he just became the first center to average a triple double. Let that sink in. Now we're gonna have to aim.

[Unknown Speaker]

Hold on, hold on. Y'all slow down a little bit now. Let's think about this a little bit now. Ryan and Unc, what you think?

[Ryan Hollins]

Talk to me, Chad.

[Unknown Speaker]

Let's say he does get another ring. Let's say he does win another two MVPs. Are we sure we're talking about him being the best big man and center of all time? Even with the sinners that we've had, even the greatest. Now, the Kareem, the Wilt, the Shaqs.

[Shannon Sharpe]

It's so hard to compare errors this. You know, so. It's so hard to compare errors. But you have to say, okay, Kareem dominated the 70s. Moses Malone dominated the 80s. I don't know who was the big. I mean, Shaq for Olajuwon or Robinson in the 90s. But Wilt dominated. Wilt dominated the 60s here, Russell's. And so it's hard, but it's hard for us to put the goat, say a center is the goat. For the simple fact is he needs a guard to get him the ball. So that's why we kind of. We don't give Kareem the credit. Kareem is the only guy that don't get credit for what he's done.

[Ryan Hollins]

He got 600%, 100%.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He got six regular season MVPs. He had the most unstoppable shot. You could talk about Kobe, fade away. You could have dirt, one leg, step back. He and kd. You could talk about Kobe. Many but the most unstoppable shot in basketball history was one Kareem Abdul Jabbar. The sky hook. Now he won six MVPs. Now think about what was amazing back then. The players voted on the mvp. The players determined who was the mvp. Yeah. You didn't know that, did you, Ryan? The players voted for the mvp.

[Ryan Hollins]

Did you really got it? When you had a respect of your peers, you really got. Yeah, you was that boy he wanted.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Think about it. Magic. Magic's rookie year, Kareem was mvp. So how is that possible? The mvp and you won. You win the finals, you win the championship. Magic's rookie year, Magic is finals mvp. Kareem is regular season mvp. But here's the thing. Had Kareem not got hurt, Kareem would have been the finals MVP. Kareem was averaging 33 and 12. Go look it up. He was giving work to Caldwell Jones and Daryl Dawkins. And they had no answer for Kareem. But Kareem ended up. Go look it up. See, I'm old enough to remember that.

[Ryan Hollins]

Ocho.

[Shannon Sharpe]

People try to try to run, run game on. You try to put the wool over your eyes. But you can't fool on. Because I'm old enough to remember it. Because I had to watch the game the next day. Because back then the game was tape delayed. Ocho. You couldn't watch it live, right? So the game come on one day.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Why you watching like that? You already know who won the game, but I'm gonna watch it anyway. Maybe something happened and they didn't tell me about.

[Ryan Hollins]

And forgive everyone as we had this conversation. Shout out to the. Because we know them. There's us. We're doing this for this simple Fact that sports debate. Okay, so let's fancy me. I think Kareem was athletic enough to guard him, but he had put Kareem in pick and roll. And he sure. He sure as hell can guard Kareem. There's no question. But he'd have moved. He'd have got assists. He'd have, you know, and Kareem was. Kareem was an athlete. You know, when we look at Giannis, if you said, Kareem, bring the ball up the floor and go through the leg, he could have done that, right? He was that. Still, if we're looking at Bill Russell, I think the errors are so far away. I don't even want to disrespect the game and try to compare. But in terms of Shaq, we can give this a Shaq Dominy and Shaq gave this. But here's the thing. Shaq would have been physical, right? But Shaq wouldn't have guarded him. Robert Hori would have guarded Jokic, and Jokic would have wore. I love big shot, bro. Hold on. Htown Legend would have had to hold his ground, but Rob would have had to chase him, and he'd have got his numbers, and Shaq maybe would have had to slide over late.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Right?

[Ryan Hollins]

And here's the reality. Arvida Sabonis with deportment treble.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He. Listen, he was Jokic before Jokic.

[Ryan Hollins]

He wore the Lakers out. You remember that scene? He wore the Lakers out.

[Unknown Speaker]

Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

So if that's the indicator of him. And no disrespect to the big fella. No, none at all. I love Shaq. Shaq was on my wall. You know what I'm saying? No question there. He would have wore that team out. Now, he couldn't guard Shaq, but you look at the numbers, you look at the impact, and you looked at what he did. Now, Shaq is the most dominant. We don't take that away. But as far as the impact, what he would have had, he's a younger Arbitus now. Arbitus was more athletic. He was a couple inches taller.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Look, 7:3. People don't realize how tall he was. He was 7:3. But by the time he got to the Lakers, he had spent much of his time with the unified team. And so by the time he got to the Lakers, his knees were bad. He wasn't that. Could he pass the ball? Yeah. Proud of Jokic. He was the best passing big man that we had ever seen. But by the time he got here, he had spent damn near over a decade just playing with the unified team. So his knee, his body had started to break down on him. Ocho. But he was a tremendous passer. Now, he couldn't score the ball like Yolk. He could not score the ball like Yoke, but he could pass the ball like yoke. He'd have the ball out here, and the next day, you know, the guy coming, and he would dump it down to him. He was a phenomenal player. But the thing that separates yoke is that from any other big center is that he could do it from three levels. Most of the guys, Elijah1 had the mid range. He had played back to the basket. He could play around the rim. Shaq was around the rim. Okay. Kareem could throw the sky hook. But we've never seen a guy that could shoot the three. He had the mid range, and he could put the ball on the floor and finish at the rim. Not above the rim, at the rim. We haven't seen a guy. We've never seen a big that could do that. And I don't know if we'll ever see one that can do that, that is skilled as he is right now.

[Ryan Hollins]

Chad, I want to give you this. And when you see Jokic, you know, you see him in person, he's about 6, 11, 7ft, but he's wallowed. Whoa, whoa, whoa.

[Unknown Speaker]

He's 7, what?

[Ryan Hollins]

About 6, 11, 7? He's huge. And his shoulders are wide, so when he spins off you when he makes a move, his shoulder, he's huge. He's huge, bro. And his arms are long, so he can't jump high. But when he putting the ball above his head, when he's making a move, he's effective. And if you watch him, he's a lot stronger. He plays a finesse game, but he's so much stronger than he gets credit for. That's a strong boy right there. So when he's hitting the guards, he's not overpowering him. He's an unbelievable coordination. And he's just backing you under the rim, and he's looking out and he's watching you. You know, the wildest thing he'll do, he'll watch the help. You get a great player who can pass. He'll sit there and he'll watch the help. And as soon as you call, he's throwing that backdoor lob to Eric Gordon, Aaron Gordon, he's making those type of plays. So I think even from a physical standpoint, he's just uniquely built with his coordination and size. And then you think how long, how much he plays no, he's not a great defender. He's a wall up def. He's played more at the level in pick and rolls this year under Mike Malone that I've seen him play. And he will do it in spurts, but it's not something you want to rely upon.

[Unknown Speaker]

Wait, I didn't.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hold on.

[Unknown Speaker]

I didn't know he was that goddamn tall. Because if you look at his footwork. You look at his footwork when he's in the hell.

[Ryan Hollins]

When.

[Unknown Speaker]

Even when he's out in goddamn space and he put the ball on the floor, I'm like, what the hell?

[Ryan Hollins]

He.

[Unknown Speaker]

I'm thinking he about six, five, six, seven.

[Shannon Sharpe]

No, no, he's. He's tall.

[Ryan Hollins]

He's 6 11.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He at least 6 11.

[Unknown Speaker]

But you see his package, though. To be that big. You see his footwork.

[Ryan Hollins]

To be that big, moving like that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah. What?

[Ryan Hollins]

Soccer.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He loves soccer. You look at guys, you look at Luca. Love soccer.

[Unknown Speaker]

Okay, okay, okay.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Look at Elijah Juwan. Elijah Juwan grew up playing soccer. That's why he had the footwork that he had. That's why he doing all this. The up and under, drop step. Right. He's phenomenal.

[Ryan Hollins]

Hold on.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Go ahead.

[Unknown Speaker]

I got one for you. Ryan and Uncle. Now, I know Joker is that boy. I have a question. Now y'all chat. Don't jump on me. I'm asking a question. If Boogie cousins hadn't got hurt, how close would Boogie Cousins have been to, like, Joker?

[Ryan Hollins]

It's funny you say that. I played with Boogie. I played with Boogie, and they have a very similar skill set because they have the wide. The wide shoulders. Now, Boogie wasn't the passer like him, but as far as Boogie would feel, a double team spin off baseline, Euro 7. Bookie could play the 3. He could run the ring if he wanted to.

[Unknown Speaker]

Bro.

[Ryan Hollins]

Everything. Absolutely. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Unknown Speaker]

Boogie was good.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He was Boogie. I think Boogie is more athletic. Boogie can run.

[Ryan Hollins]

Yes.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I mean. But it was not uncommon for boogie to have 50, 20 games had he not gotten injured, had he not Achilles and his ACL and all those injuries. He was special. Boogie was on his way to.

[Ryan Hollins]

Okay, I'll give you this. I think the tough thing with DeMarcus and I played with Boogie. That's one of my favorite teammates ever. You know, it's Chad. Boogie's a guy that. You see some of the things he does on the court with his energy that he would bring and some of the stuff he said. Honestly, he'd tell you himself, he'd have liked to reel some of that stuff. But like off the court, the softest spoken, coolest dude ever.

[Unknown Speaker]

You know what I'm saying?

[Ryan Hollins]

Did he have some moments in practice where we heated or getting into it? Absolutely. But he's a good dude at heart. Love that dude. And I will say, you know the thing with DeMarcus, the difference between him and the European game, what they teach here, you know, when Boogie played his best, he had to be angry. He had to be mad. And his emotion got him to that place. And Jokic early in his career was quiet, calm. He wasn't that. I'm not gonna ever say he wasn't that good, but he wasn't. He didn't have rah rah like Mike Malone put that dog in him. And for Boogie, before he was able to slow the game down mentally for himself, he ended up injured, as Unk said. And what's funny, that when you see guys get to the, into the 30s, get to the age, you know, Halliburton has an old soul. He got an old game. His daddy taught him very well about playing the game, or whoever coached him, coached him very well. But I remember when I played with kg, Chad, I don't know if you remember, KG would take Shout out. Kg, KG would hit his head off. And I thought he was crazy. Everybody thought he was crazy. And then we said, and I remember going up to Ticket and I said, ticket, remember asking him and he instantly put years on my career. I said, how you pumped up every game? How are you so pumped up every game? Because, you know, as a young guy, we play on emotion. Boogie played on emotion definitely at a much higher level than I did. And KG said, young, what you mean? I said, I see you do this, you're in the full sweat, the yelling and all that. He said, I'm as calm as can be. He said, watch me before the game. I'm taking breaths, I'm breathing, I'm calm. He said, look at me during the timeouts. He said, are you watching me, young nigga? I said, no, you turned out right. He said, I'm sitting there breathing. I'm thinking about the game plan. I'm thinking about the things that we need to go through to get to. So if Boogie had got to that point, if he had got that veteran maturity, we would be bringing his name to these conversations. He just didn't get to that point. But when you're young, us American born players, we play from a place of pain and hurt and passion. And then you get older and you learn how to refine it. Some of the guys never get to that point in their careers where they refine it and play off their mental, their mental stability. But a guy like Jokic, he was turned up. He has it. He knows the game, man. So it's, it's fun to watch.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Aaron Gordon has been phenomenal these playoffs. He's averaging 19 points a game, seven rebounds a game, shooting 51% from the floor, and he has two game winners. He had 22 points last night, and Yolk obviously had that monster game. 15 or 29, he was at 42 point. He had 42 points, 22 rebounds, six assistants, a steal, two blocks. He did have the five. He did have the seven turnovers, but Murray got it going late in the ball game had 21, Kristen Brown had 11. Russ, the Russ experience. You know what you're going to get? You're gonna get all our effort. You're gonna get some turnovers, but you're gonna get some steals. You're gonna get a block, you're gonna get some great finishes, you're gonna get some air balls, you're gonna get some big made threes. They needed all of that to offset what they didn't get from Michael Porter Jr. He gave him two points on 1 of 8 shooting. And I understand the shoulder, but, bro, you got. You can't give them two. Can't give them two because the Thunder had 20. They had six guys in double figures. Shay was 33. Caruso had 20. Off the bench, you had Lou Dorch four of nine from three. He had 14. Isaiah Hartenstein had 12. Jalen Williams had 16. He was five or 20. He hadn't shot the ball particularly well. Chad Holgren had 12. But it was those two missed free throws. You. And you could tell, you know, it. It normally happens like that. Ryan, you know a guy, he, he, he. You know how you smoke a layup on one end and they go back down on the other end and get a three? You like. Damn, that's a five point swing. Yeah.

[Ryan Hollins]

I love Chet. So I don't want to do this, but the key. I don't want to do this, but I'm gonna do it. The key to beating Oklahoma City is attacking. Check. He, he got no. I'm not going to say he's the winged link, but he hasn't put on the strength. He doesn't have the experience in the playoffs yet.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He gets a credit.

[Ryan Hollins]

There's a playbook for those miss free throws. And Gordon, and Gordon running the wing, they hit him ahead. He goes face to face. With Chad and he dunked him. He monkey and oh, show you know, when you get leveled. Yeah, it's an old. Now you. Now Chad, you crazy. So you. You got knocked out by Ray Lewis. You got to talk about how he hit me. You're gonna keep playing. You're gonna keep playing. Yeah, but when you get done. And that check was messed up since. So for him, you can be skinny. I was skinny, but I was. I don't want to call him soft. I think that's disrespectful to a professional athlete. You gotta know how to hold your ground, right? If Gordon's going up for a dunk, you take that joker out the air. You take that joke. He might get an and one, but he ain't dunking it. Okay? So he is gonna have to make those plays. But when you beat Oklahoma City and why the Houston Rockets had success against them, they were physical and they attacked Chad. If he was guarding big Steve O underneath, Steve O hit the boards, walked him underneath, got a rebound. If he guarded Shingon, Shingun was right through his chest. He didn't even make moves on. He was right through his chest. So what you're seeing with Oklahoma City and Denver, whether it's Gordon, whether it was Jokic, they're making it so you can't hide Chet. Chet is an unbelievable weak side shot blocker. And if you don't put your hands on him, he can play in space. In football, it's like a team. Remember the Colts? The Colts had a small secondary. They had small linemen up front. If they got. If you were down and they were rushing you, you couldn't stop them. Matt, Duff, Frenny and them boys, you couldn't stop them. They were checked. But if you could run the ball and manage the game and attack Mathis and Freeny and those guys, you had a shot because they were small. Oklahoma City is small. So that's something similar that you're seeing right there. So as I look for it, Denver found something that Kristoff are playing at game seven and they had the experience. And I said this before, I said, whoever wins that Clippers Nugget series might be coming out the West. Wow, the volume. You don't want vacation to end, but.

[Shannon Sharpe]

With AMEX Platinum, you're already planning the next one because you earn five times membership rewards points on prepaid hotels and more booked through amextravel.com so every trip.

[Ryan Hollins]

To the beach and the city and the country and back home again leads to another destination.

[Shannon Sharpe]

That's the powerful backing of American Express terms apply. Learn [e-mail] withamex okay, have you heard about this? Last year, Degree changed the formula for their Cool Rush deodorant. Their fans rebelled and wanted the old scent back and Degree listen, that doesn't happen often. They admitted that they effed up and are bringing the original Cool Rush scent back. And it's exactly how you remember it. Cool, crisp and fresh. There's a reason it's the number one men's antiperspirant and is back in Walmart, Target and other stores for under $4. So try it and see what the fuss is about. Head to your local stores to try the OG Cool Rush for yourself. Did you know women are more likely than men to develop dry eyes, which may be due to hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle or after menopause and the use of oral contraceptives.

[Ryan Hollins]

Give your dry burning or irritated eyes a daily refresh with refresh Optiv Mega.

[Shannon Sharpe]

3 Lubricant Eye Drops, a preservative free formula that provides fast acting, lasting relief. Refresh Optif Mega 3 is safe to use as often as needed. Find refresh online or in the eyedrop aisle at all major retailers. The best moments happen when you're with your people, laughing, vibing and just enjoying life. Coke is making those moments even sweeter. Shara Coke is back and it's all about sharing with the whole crew. Doesn't matter if it's your bestie or bro, they're a can with their name on it. So grab one for the squad and make some memories. But hurry because these Coca Cola limited edition bottles and cans won't be here forever. Don't miss your chance to share a Coke with all your favorite people. You're listening to an iHeart podcast.