← Mind the Game
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- [00:00]
Steve Nash
Coming up on this episode of Mind the Game. Can I just take a moment to talk about Nikola Jokic making a joke out of the NBA every night? Let me ask you this, is he the best offensive player you've ever played against?
- [00:12]
Antawn Jamison
Wow, that's a tough question right there. Steve.
- [00:15]
Steve Nash
How do you feel about fitting back into this Lakers offense when you got.
- [00:18]
Antawn Jamison
A great point guard like Luka who creates so many eyes around him? You know, one of the best things I can do is, you know, slash in from that 45 degree.
- [00:26]
Steve Nash
And what about Bronny?
- [00:27]
Antawn Jamison
I was just super proud of him, of the maturation process.
- [00:30]
Steve Nash
What can you tell me about JJ's culture?
- [00:33]
Antawn Jamison
He's gonna tell you exactly how he feel if you're not doing it right. But it's gonna be in a very stern but loving way.
- [00:39]
Steve Nash
Let's take a look at this Miami Heat offense. Yeah, basically they're creating a funnel. So the guy comes down, they're keeping the elbows wide open, and he's got the first opportunity to attack a defender who's retreating and help that's running back. And just to go one on one.
- [00:53]
Antawn Jamison
Without a screen, I got to see it firsthand of how fast that they're playing and the pick a roll, less, you know, style of basketball that they're playing. And it takes a while for you to kind of get adjusted to it.
- [01:05]
Steve Nash
Usually it's like a really good team tries something, it works. Cause they're a really good team.
- [01:09]
Antawn Jamison
Oh yeah.
- [01:10]
Steve Nash
Everyone else, I mean, I remember back in the day, like late 90s, everyone trying, people trying. Triangle. Yeah, and it's like, well, it's, you know, you know, they do have M.J. pippen, Dennis, you know what I. This episode is presented by the all new Alexa. Your smart, proactive assistant now understands your style and anticipates what's next. Whether you need help finding a meaningful gift or planning a fun night out, you can enjoy a personalized experience based on your preferences. Say the word and Alexa delivers across Echo, Fire, TV and more. Learn more at Amazon.com newalexa how we doing?
- [02:07]
Antawn Jamison
Oh, we back.
- [02:08]
Steve Nash
We back.
- [02:09]
Antawn Jamison
Yes, sir.
- [02:09]
Steve Nash
We gotta talk about this for a minute. Like playing, practicing with the South Bay Lakers, like, I think that's so cool. And I don't know who I'm speaking to, but having coached, having played, like there are two way guys and there are rookies or second year guys that are like scared of playing in the G league because like, I don't know, like the reputation or something. Like, I think it's so Cool that one of the very, very, very, very best players ever played our game went to the South Bay Lakers to get workouts. Like, can you just talk a little bit about your feeling and approach about doing that?
- [02:43]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, I mean, it's part of my buildup and it's part of my love of the game. Like literally it could have been the South Bay Lakers or it could have been, you know, going to a recreation center and playing five on five versus guys. I just love the hoop and to finally be cleared to actually go out for live action. I've kind of been building up over the last few weeks and to finally get the clearance this week to go and play some 5 on 5 action. I had the luxury to have the South Bay Lakers here in town while our big guys are out on the road right now. So I was able to take advantage of it and just be super humbled about it. Just going there and going out there with those guys, going through the drills, offensive drills, defensive drills, shell drill, you shooting drills, all type of things. So just like a regular practice with the, with the South Bay guys. And like I said, I'm super appreciative and humbled to be able to go out there and then they'll, you know, kind of change their practice a little bit to kind of fit me as well. So. Just super cool.
- [03:45]
Steve Nash
I think it's important to know like a part of having a G league is for this very purpose.
- [03:48]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, for sure.
- [03:49]
Steve Nash
It's not all about like, right. It's not all about like developing players. It's about having a place like the, like, like baseball. A guy gets hurt, he goes down to AAA to get some innings, you.
- [04:00]
Antawn Jamison
Know what I mean?
- [04:01]
Steve Nash
Get some at bats, get some pitches. So having that place for you to go is important. I think it's. I respected that you went down there and showed like, I don't have an ego about this at all. I just love to hoop. I want to get ready, I want to play. But I think there's a message here for everybody, you know, whether you're a two way, you're a first round pick, you're a player in the league, like this is what it's there for. Like there shouldn't be any. Like you shouldn't feel away about going down to play on the G league team, practice with the G league team, get reps. Like, I just think that's really important for young players to hear. Like it's about the game. And if you're putting ego or perception in the way of getting better, it's at a disservice to yourself.
- [04:38]
Antawn Jamison
No, absolutely, it's a complete disservice to yourself. And you gotta realize like, you know, the season, when it comes to the NBA season is so long and there's so many games and played throughout the course of the week and months and things of that nature, you're not gonna be able to get the live reps that you would like to get, you know, and you know, for me to understand that and just have humility about that. But to have, you know, basically our farm system here, to be able to do that and have those live reps with those guys and, you know, not feel away about going down there, you know, it's, you know, it was, it was pretty easy for me just because of, you know, how I feel about the game, how I could give back to the game. I can. Hopefully the time that I spent with these guys the last couple of days, that they learned something from me, I learned something from them and I think it was just super cool, super dope.
- [05:23]
Steve Nash
It makes me think about like, it feels like there was a lot more one on one 20, 15, 20, 25 years ago after practice. You think that's a fair statement?
- [05:34]
Antawn Jamison
No, that's a very fair statement.
- [05:37]
Steve Nash
Do you think that's. Cause the social media era, like these kids, they come in the league, like almost everything they do has been put on camera. Do you think like that's a part of it? Was it in our day, you could go play one on one, you could get your head kicked in every day, all year and no one's ever going to.
- [05:50]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, no one's ever going to see it, you know. Yeah, because I mean, now you got to think that as soon practice is over, you know, especially in our league, that the doors open and now the media's in there and every media person has a camera. They all have phones that can record it. Leaves it to the interpretation and into the narrative of, you know, obviously people that some of them, they really don't matter what they say. But a lot of the young guys, they're, they play video games and then they read columns and they read comments, unfortunately, you know, so, you know, they don't want to feel embarrassed or someone says something about them. And you know, the more stuff that you read that's negative, the more it creeps into your mind and you don't know what it could do to a young player. So, you know, it's a lot less of that. It's just more like individual shooting now, you know, getting shots up after practice, you know, you know, with coaches or whatever the case may be. Not much one on one, you know, activity going on.
- [06:44]
Steve Nash
Yeah, it's a good point about the camera phone because I think, like, back in the day, they would still have media come down to practice, there'd be like two, three, four cameramen, you know what I mean? And they might get a clip of one on one, but they're not out there. Like, let me get this. Whereas someone with a phone, like, zooming in, getting this game and can turn that narrative into anything they want. I mean, I kind of honestly, social media has a lot of good, it has a lot of bad. And that's one thing I hate for our young players, like, that they have to avoid competition sometimes because they're not sure, like, who's filming. And anyways, I just wish our kids could, like. Because what a tool, like to get beat every day by somebody and try to chase them down.
- [07:25]
Antawn Jamison
For sure.
- [07:26]
Steve Nash
I come in the league, you play a vet, and it's like, maybe I play a vet who's 6, 8 and he's a starter. And you're a young guy trying to plow your training. He can bully you, but you have to figure stuff out, right? And like, having that journey with that guy over the course of a year or more is super valuable to like, you know, your indoctrination into this game. And so kind of a bummer for me that that's not so much a part of the culture because of technology.
- [07:52]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, yeah, for sure. For sure. And, you know, I got an opportunity last summer being on an Olympic team to watch a lot of our guys play ones. You know, I watched KD and Book and Ant, you know, you know, play ones. And, you know, there's one practice where literally Steph just went out there and just played all defense. You know, he was guarding kd, who's, you know, who hates to say he's seven foot tall, but, sorry, kd, you are a footer. And Steph was just out there just guarding the whole time. It didn't matter who it was. He didn't want to play offense. He just was guarding. I thought that was just super cool to witness that. And, you know, the greatest players in the world. That was super cool. And it was cameras in there, obviously, you know, and nobody felt the way. Nobody felt away.
- [08:35]
Steve Nash
That's cool. Very cool. Well, shifting gears, how do you feel about fitting back into this Lakers offense and what you've seen so far?
- [08:41]
Antawn Jamison
I mean, yeah, it goes what I was saying. I'm a Swiss army knife. So that's spotting up, you know, waiting for the, you know, getting the ball from Luka or ar, if that's setting pick and rolls in transition, if that's slip and pick and rolls in transition, if that's, you know, if we want to slow the game down in a half court, we want to get some post up action and be able to create triggers, whatever, whatever the case may be. You know, I think, you know, what JJ and the coaches have done, you know, so far. We're playing exceptional basketball with so many injuries so far, obviously me being, you know, one of the injuries that we have. But whatever demographic, however the pie, you know, shapes itself on offensively, how we want to play and how they want me to implement myself into the role of the team. Listen, all I care about is winning. I've done everything in my career and including winning, and I want to continue that. So I will very easily just fit myself right on in and whatever capacity the team needs me to be in.
- [09:36]
Steve Nash
That's the beauty of, of your game and your longevity. You can be on the ball, off the ball in the post, pick and roll, the screener, the handler, the cutter. Like with your iq, you know how to play off it. A lot of guys who are primary ball handlers have a hard time playing off the ball. You're able to use your feel and IQ off the ball to be a cutter.
- [09:55]
Antawn Jamison
Listen, when you got a, you got a great, obviously, I'm sorry to cut you off. When you got a great point guard like Luka, who creates so many eyes around him, you know, one of the best things I can do is, you know, slash in from that 45 degree, you know, or, you know, waiting, you know, if a guy is tagging high on Da or tagging high on Jackson, you know, to be able to roam behind the defense, you know, and catch lobs behind the defense or just spotting up and just getting ready to shoot. I've worked a lot on my shooting when I wasn't allowed to do a lot of physical, you know, pounding and running and jumping and things of that nature. So I worked on a lot of that too. So, you know, just being, you know, having that growth mindset throughout my career to whatever position I would ever be able to be put put in, you know, no matter if it's Olympic team or Lakers or Heat or Cavs or whatever, to be dynamic, you know, how can I always be a threat on the floor with or without the ball? And that's something I've kind of prided myself Over.
- [10:49]
Steve Nash
That's great. What have you liked? What have you seen? You got new additions. Ayton, Marcus, Smart, laravia. What have you seen? How do they fit? Any wrinkles? Things you've liked?
- [10:59]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, I mean, listen, we can sit here and talk about how unbelievable Luka and AR has been so far. Not surprising me. Those guys are just super, ultra talented. What they bring to the game, we already know. But what I love is what Da and Jake and Marcus have brought to the team. You know, another level of toughness, another level of playmaking. You know, the other night, you know, Marcus having seven steals in a game, you know, Da being dominant on the glass and being very efficient offensively. And also, you know, one of the. I think before last night's game, I think he was in the top 10 in like defensive percentages, you know, contested at the rim, you know. And Jake, who is number 12 is what they were saying, I think in the Minnesota game, the crowd was like, who was number 12? And Ant was like, I don't know. And I mean, guys know him now, you know, and, you know, I'm just, I'm just proud of what the team has been doing, man, and being able to watch from afar, just like, it's just. It's great. I think we have something really good going and it's gonna be. It's a long season. Obviously we want to continue to play good basketball and that's the most important. But I like the pieces that we added.
- [12:07]
Steve Nash
And what about Bronny? It looks like he's made a jump. He feels more comfortable getting a little more opportunity and taking it. How's that been?
- [12:15]
Antawn Jamison
No, it's been great. You know, not only as a father, but just as a, you know, a student of the game. To see someone kind of use what he was able to do last year in the G League, you know, use that, get more comfortable, then go into summer league and be even more comfortable. And when his time has been called this year, just continue to feel good about it. I think, you know, for a young player, the more and more time that you get, the better, you know, you get, the more and more of the nuances you get. You get better with the speed, you get better with the strength, you get better with everything. And I think, you know, in those games where Luca was out or AR was out or Marcus was out, you know, I think we had back to back games at home game. I forgot who we played at home. And then we had a back to back game in Portland. I was just super proud of him. Of the maturation process of him being to. To not only play well at home and then have a back to back in a tough environment in Portland and then do it again. That's what the NBA is all about. Not only which. What have you done for me lately? Can you do it back to back? So that was pretty cool.
- [13:20]
Steve Nash
How do you walk that line between father and leader? Like, it's your job to lead the basketball team, be a mentor to all these guys, and at the same time, your dad, like, how. I mean, that's a. I'm fascinated by that.
- [13:33]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah. I mean, I think for me, it's definitely, like you said, it is a fine line, but, you know, when we're in practice and in games and things of that nature, you know, it's. It's the leadership. It's, you know, me being. I'm one of the guys, I'm one of the leaders of the team. But I have. We have our side time where I can, you know, tell him about what I've seen, what I saw, whatever, but I just want him to, you know, he has to walk his own journey, you know, and I can give him, you know, the blueprint and I can give him some of the things that I've seen, but I want him to walk through the fire as well, you know, and that's the. I think that's gonna be the best teacher for him, for him to be able to go through these experiences and come out, you know, the best way he knows how. So, I mean, he loves the game, and that's what's most important. And he loves the work, you know, and there's no substitution for hard work. So, you know, that's what it comes down to.
- [14:21]
Steve Nash
That's beautiful. It's great. Amazing to watch this kind of journey and this, you know, this happens.
- [14:29]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, for sure.
- [14:30]
Steve Nash
Super cool.
- [14:31]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, super cool.
- [14:31]
Steve Nash
And he's got a lot of eyeballs on him, you know, A lot of eyeballs. A lot of credits.
- [14:35]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, for sure.
- [14:35]
Steve Nash
The class and the humility, the way he works, like, always rooting for him. So it's fantastic.
- [14:41]
Antawn Jamison
Appreciate it.
- [14:42]
Steve Nash
Tell me what can you. Yeah, of course. What can you tell me about JJ's culture? Like, what he's. What him and the coaches are trying to build. Because it's cool. Sometimes watching, like, just some. With, like, the sideline stuff, the team, like, I get a feeling, like, while JJ is a passionate, you know, coach on the sideline, he gets, you know, he goes off sometimes. We all know how much he loves the game and how thoughtful he is around it, but like, what's it like culturally? What are the, like, tools and you know, the what's, you know, tell us, give us a little insight on what he's building there.
- [15:15]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, I think with J. Listen, I mean, when you look at JJ's career as a basketball player all the way from high school, you know, and he's been a winner his whole life, you know, and he's been taught the game the right way and it's been no sugarcoating with the coaches that's put him in the position that he is in today, you know, and I had an opportunity to play for Coach K a couple times and Coach K, there's no sugarcoating. He's going to tell you exactly how he feel if you're not doing it right. But it's going to be in a very stern but loving way, like it's nothing. It's not how you, how he says it, it's about how you accept it, you know, and if you, and if you take what he says, you know, or how he says it personal, then you're going to lose sight of the messaging, you know. And I think with jj, he's kind of the same way, you know, he's right to the point. No sugarcoating it. Listen, this is how we want to play. This is how we want to play. And if I, if I'm seeing possessions or I'm seeing things not up to our standard and what the coaching staff is putting out there, I'm going to show you my reaction. And it's not, and it's not to down you. It's about you to understand what we're trying to build long term. And I can respect that. I mean, I love that. I come from, you know, the old school, you know, guy and Keith Danbrot, who was my first high school coach, who shit, like, if you was doing the three man weave wrong, he'd kick your ass out of practice. Like, you know, and then you get ready for tomorrow, like, or he invites you back in and talk you through why or whatever, like. And I've learned that, you know, that way of kind of like understanding not how they say it, it's how you receive it. So, you know, JJ is in his coaching staff. They listen, they give us the answers to the test and we just got to go out there and execute it, you know, and that's what it's all about.
- [17:09]
Steve Nash
That's great. That honesty, you know, it helps build clarity.
- [17:12]
Antawn Jamison
Right? Yeah, for sure.
- [17:13]
Steve Nash
We often like. Right. You often, you have a game plan, and the game plan's not always going to work. But what's not going to work is trying to leave the game plan without trying to make the game plan work. There's a line there. As a player, we have an obligation to try to make this work rather than this isn't going to work.
- [17:33]
Antawn Jamison
Right, Exactly.
- [17:34]
Steve Nash
So I think building that culture of like, no excuses, we'll tell you how it is. There's a clarity. This is how we're moving forward. Definitely helps a team build principles and habits that are going to make you guys as strong.
- [17:44]
Antawn Jamison
Exactly, Exactly.
- [17:54]
Steve Nash
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- [20:22]
Antawn Jamison
Oh, my goodness. Oh, my God. I was literally just talking to my good friend Jared Dudley right before we jumped on here. I was just like, this guy is ridiculous. He was like, yeah, he's ridiculous. You know, he's been in Dallas the last few years and you know, he's seen. Been around some great players, obviously, but this goddamn joker guy, man, what he's shooting like. Did they say in like the last five or six games he's shooting like 77% from the field?
- [20:48]
Steve Nash
Yeah. This season, in three weeks, I think he's at 67% off from the field.
- [20:53]
Antawn Jamison
Oh, my good. And by the way, and this is not like, this is not like one of those guys back in the day, like all dunks, you know, or all layups. No, this is. This is everything.
- [21:04]
Steve Nash
All three levels.
- [21:04]
Antawn Jamison
All three levels. All three levels. All three levels.
- [21:07]
Sponsor/Ad Voice
Wow.
- [21:07]
Steve Nash
Yeah, it's remarkable how he makes the game. Let me ask you this, is he the best offensive player you've ever played against?
- [21:15]
Antawn Jamison
Wow, that's a tough question right there, Steve. Oh, my good.
- [21:19]
Steve Nash
When you think about the totality of what he does, the pressure he puts on the defense, the assists, the. The playmaking, the initiating the offense, the threes, the mid range, the putting people in the basket, like, it's a lot of stuff.
- [21:34]
Antawn Jamison
No, it's a lot. It's a lot. Yeah, it's a lot. There has. I will say this. There has not been a more dominant, complete player that I've played against in a sense. Of all the attributes that you just mentioned, from the passing to the shooting, to the rebounding, to the attention, I mean, there's nothing he cannot do on the offensive end. Like nothing at all. Nothing. You know, you try to double him, he's going to make you pay. You try to play him single coverage, he's going to make you pay. Sometimes he even brings the ball up the floor. They outlet the ball to him. There's, there's. Can we, I don't know, off the top of my head, there's been a couple. But guys that a point guard will rebound the ball and outlet it to their center to push the break. That's weird. In a sense. That's already weird. Like that lets you know how amazing this guy is.
- [22:34]
Steve Nash
Yeah, I'm sure it's happened, but not like, not like the point guard to the center.
- [22:39]
Antawn Jamison
Right?
- [22:39]
Steve Nash
Like, happy for you to take it up. You initiate you to make plays. I mean he, obviously, we know he makes every pass in the book, but he's like, I mean he's basically a 3 to 1 assist to turnover guy, which is outrageous with his usage. You know, there's some crazy numbers the first three weeks of the season. Their offensive rating when he's on the court is almost 1.30, so league average is 1.5. 1.15.
- [23:06]
Antawn Jamison
Sorry.
- [23:07]
Steve Nash
1.1. 6.3. Something. Right? Like it's crazy. So. And then, and then in this short season, he's got a 28 differential when he's on the court, so plus 22 per 100 possessions when he's on the court, minus 6 per 100 when he's off the court. A differential of 28. Like, you know, I think you were, you were. You crept over 15 on a five year period, which is like the third highest all time. I think him and Steph had a 5 year period at one point. Sorry. At 18 differential. Like these are like, there's almost no one in the game's ever done these things. And let alone, you know, I know it's only three weeks, but that 28 differential, 1.3 almost. I mean, offensive rating, like this guy.
- [23:55]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, yeah, I know we know it's only three weeks, but three weeks is a lot of basketball. Like, we're not talking three games. You know, we're not talking, you know, three, four nights or we're talking three weeks of just complete, flawless dominance. That no matter if that's three weeks or not, and it's not a big part of. That's a lot of games and that's a lot of great basketball. Like stuff like you just said we haven't seen before.
- [24:25]
Steve Nash
Yeah, it's crazy. It just looks too easy.
- [24:27]
Antawn Jamison
And he's so damn good that day. He does. He's so good that people, they, people barely talk about it, right? It's like, oh, well, you know, like it's just normal. Like it's normal. This shit is not normal. It's not normal what he's doing. Guys, I'm sorry. It's not, it's not, it's not normal.
- [24:46]
Steve Nash
Yeah. And it's not, it's, it's. I mean, honestly, I just, I, I said it's. He's making a joke of the best in the world. It's like he's mastered the puzzle. Do you think a part of it is because he's not the fastest, he's not flying into dunks. It's kind of like everyone's kind of got this little bit of a distance from his actual brilliance or the critical mass. Like, I could watch him all day long, but I wonder if, like, he doesn't lead every segment on your morning shows just because he didn't jump over anyone and dunk. I don't know. But, like, if you watch him play in person, especially, but if you really watch on any format, he. I mean, he's kind of mastering the game of basketball before our eyes.
- [25:27]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah. Yep. You said it. You said it. I mean, as a true basketball fan, as a true, you know, I love the game and everything that comes with it. I mean, and if people sit here and say they love the game and they love watching greatness, then tune in, Tune in. Tune in to a Nuggets game. And if you didn't tune in last night, you know, with him versus the Clippers, you missed the dandy Clippers decided.
- [25:56]
Steve Nash
To stay at home, not double him. He had. What do you have, 55, I think something like that. He still had six assists. I mean, I mean, it's torture chamber if you don't come and help or you don't double. Like, he doesn't miss. He's. If you, you know, you play off him, he shoots. You play too tight, he finds a way to get to your body, takes you to the basket. I mean, it's just a total clinic. Unbelievable to watch. So.
- [26:19]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah.
- [26:21]
Steve Nash
Before it's too late.
- [26:22]
Antawn Jamison
Right? Right.
- [26:23]
Steve Nash
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- [28:01]
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- [29:29]
Steve Nash
Our main segment today is about experimentation in basketball and let's take a look at this Miami Heat offense. You know, we have to give we have to give some nods historically one to Memphis last year who ran this screenless offense. You know, Memphis last year was setting 42 screens per 100 possessions. Miami is only setting 17. I mean 42 was by far the lowest. 17 is is exceptionally low for amount of screens in a league that is pick and roll heavy. Right? Like almost every possession has a pick and roll or a dho, which we consider a screen. So it's Fascinating. So, for some context, this offense started at St. Joseph's of Maine, D3 School, where the coach had got a former player to give him some advice. And I think with the seeds from the old read and react offense and some things that they had spoken about and put together, they created this offense where basically a player drives the ball. If they drive the ball right, everyone shifts and cuts, right? So if you drive the ball to the right side of the lane and there's two guys on the right side, the corner guy cuts the baseline and the high quad guy cuts, slides down to the corner, which in itself is, I think, great movement because the help can get comfortable. So you move the help, you ask questions. And when a guy drives, everyone's first inclination is to move towards the ball and support, if not with their feet, with their eyes. So if guys are relocating behind you and asking the help questions, that can become very difficult for a defense. The second part of that is take the other side. When that guy drives right and the guy on the left side comes in behind him, his defender's first reaction is try to sink and help the helper. But that guy's filling in way behind him. So you're kind of putting the defense in these really difficult positions. But the number one thing I think Miami's doing that's interesting is playing quicker in the league analytically. Your points per possession, league wide, go down every six seconds on the clock, so they're the highest in the first six seconds before the defense is settled. That's the cornerstone of the pace in Space era. And then every six seconds, it goes down again. So Miami's trying to play quick. They're trying to get to their first action as quick as possible, and by doing so, they're creating a funnel. So the guy comes down, they're keeping the elbows wide open, and he's got the first opportunity to attack a defender who's retreating and help. That's running back. And just to go one on one without a screen. What are your early thoughts on. You faced Memphis last year. You've seen Miami, I'm sure, a little bit this year.
- [32:04]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, yeah. Like you just said, experimentation. We faced Memphis and we face it a lot, obviously, not only in the regular season, but we played them in the postseason when they was kind of doing this type of action. And it takes a while for you to kind of get adjusted to it. And right now with Miami doing it, and we've played Miami this year, and I got to see it firsthand of how fast that they're playing and the pick a roll list, you know, style of basketball that they're playing, you know, to try to scout that for one game, you know, or they come into your building, you got one game to scout for, maybe not even a full day, you got to scout for. It's. It's hard to catch up to, you know, it's hard to catch up to. And I think it's working in their favor. I think without Tyler Herro, who is a very good pick and roll player, you know, they've, you know, kind of switched off of it, you know, and allowed not kind of just more freedom of movement, freedom of, you know, get off the ball, you know, if you don't have it, drive, get everything. The wheel, you know, kind of call it the wheel, you know, to get to this wheel action, you know. And yes, I think, you know, that Bam. Bam has had a couple games this year. I know he's injured right now while we're, you know, right now at the point of us taping this, but he's had a few games where he's had multiple three pointers made, and that is helping. That helping him as well, you know, to. They don't have to have anybody in the paint, you know, and when you have a lob threat like the Kid Ware, you got those guys, you got Jaime Jacques, who's very fast with the ball, you know, Wiggins, very good downhill, you know, Davion Mitchell, very good downhill, you know, Norman Powell, very good downhill. You know, it fits their demographic, it fits their personnel. And that's why SPO literally is one of the greatest coaches, will be one of the greatest coaches ever, because he can continue to have growth mindset and continue to change offensive things to fit his scheme and fit his personnel. And they've been playing good ball to start this first three weeks off.
- [34:08]
Steve Nash
Yeah, mentioning Bam, I think he's doubled his three point attempts from like three to six. So he's stretching the floor more, just catching and shooting, which adds a new dimension to them having a stretch five or stretch four on the floor. But I think it's also cool how they play with quick decisions, you know, they. Because here's the thing. If a guy comes down full court and you have the funnel where a guy can attack that elbow in a full court situation, you have to come in and support. So then one pass goes. You've created like a small closeout, and then the next guy's downhill, right? Then the wheel moves. Okay? So if you want to load up on that first action, you're opening up the second one. So I think for SPO, it's probably interesting. He probably thought with or without Hero, we maybe don't have a lot of pick and roll creators. Guys that are going to make slick passes to the guy rolling or out of a show or whatever it is. So how can I open things up? First thing is by playing fast. Second thing is then let's move the help. Let's play early. Let's see how much people come off, if not guys like Jaime. Jaquez is cooking people. He's getting downhill, he's creating, he's making plays. And that's the first domino. Now teams are in blender as we talk about. I think they also, it's interesting how they use the slot cut or if two are stacked on one side and the ball's moving, the first guy cuts. That makes the bottom defender just pause for a second on the cut. The guy slides out of the corner. Now they've created another small closeout. So you're asking the guys that maybe aren't the slickest pick and roll players. They're NBA players. They can either shoot the three or attack. This guy that's trying to close that separation now he's in the guts and the wheel starts again. So to your point, like, you know, brilliant of SPO to look at his roster, look at his team and say, how can we score more points? How can we be more efficient? And so far he's nailed it.
- [35:52]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah, he's nailed it.
- [35:53]
Steve Nash
You played against Memphis. What was the game plan? What did you have success with trying to slow that down?
- [36:01]
Antawn Jamison
Well, obviously when you play in Memphis, the number one thing is the point of attack, and that's getting back and getting loaded to Ja. You allow Ja to play in the paint and break down your defense, it's going to be a long. It's going to be a long night, you know, so the point of attack is always, it's always been ja, you know, and then finding, you know, Jaren Jackson Jr. You know, in trail spots, you know. You know, because he loves to shoot the Trail 3 and, you know, play off the closeout game, you know, when you're not in position. So, you know, they did a good job with that wheel action on keeping you off balance, you know, obviously, you know, Desmond Bane has moved on to Orlando, but he was there as well. And it created a lot of, you know, stress on your defense because of his ability to shoot the ball as well. And he was really good, you know, being a downhill right hand driver as well, you know, so, you know, you just try to get a feel, you know, especially in the playoff series. That's the best thing about a playoff series. You know, if you've built something all year, you can't change. You can't just all of a sudden just scrap your whole offense and your demographic and things of that nature. So, you know, you do get an opportunity to kind of find a rhythm to it. Doesn't mean it's easy to guard because it's not. But you get a little rhythm to it and you're able to make some adjustments on, you know, how can we, you know, set up a points per possession or, you know, being, you know, 1.1? How do we get it down to 9 point, you know, it's a 0.95, you know, how do we continue to crack down on it? Where now it's, you know, game three, now it's, you know, instead of 1.3, what it was game one, you know, so, you know, you're just always trying to find nuances defensively on how you can, you know, get better with it.
- [37:49]
Steve Nash
Interesting to see if SPO puts Hero in pick and rolls when he comes back. You know, he's obviously a gifted pick and roll scorer. At the same time, I could see him be amazing, you know, like, if he's the first pass on either side of this guy coming down the funnel and you got to close out to him, I mean, I mean, that's dead meat, right? So it'd be interesting to see, like, is it just set plays? Is it just dead balls where they get to pick and roll, or do they add that element back in? Because right now, I mean, they're scoring the ball at a huge rate.
- [38:16]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah. And if they're scoring the ball at a huge rate, you know, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. With Tyler Herro's ability to shoot the ball, his ability to play off closeouts, his ability to handle the ball, I don't see him not being able to fit into exactly what they're already doing. And, you know, SPO is smart enough and the coach staff is smart enough to know if there's ATOs, dead ball situations and he wants to to a little rub action with him and Bam and create that two on one, because Bam's very good in the two on one game. You know, he can always get to that. That's something he knows he has in his back pocket. But let's continue to build this, you know, let's build this system of how we Want to play. And then we can have this in the back pocket if we need it.
- [38:55]
Steve Nash
Yeah, it's fascinating to see. I love, I love experimentation. I love people that try new things or adapt. You know, some of these great coaches have adapted their teams over the, the course of their career. You know, pop did it, spo's doing it and done it. Why do you think there's not more experimentation in the NBA?
- [39:15]
Antawn Jamison
Because our league is a copycat league, Steve. You know that. You know, our league is a. I.
- [39:20]
Steve Nash
Was just waiting for it.
- [39:21]
Antawn Jamison
Our league is a copycat league, man. It's like, you know, almost. I treat our league exactly at the dinner table with all your, like your friends and family. In order for everybody to leave and go home, it's always gotta be one person that gotta stand up first, you know, and that's what our league is. Our league is a copycat league. It's a copycat lead. And that's why so many people are afraid to do certain different things. And then they see somebody do it and then it works. They're like, oh, let us try that. So that's always been our league. That's been our league forever.
- [39:56]
Steve Nash
Yeah. And unfortunately. Well, not unfortunately, but usually it's like a really good team tries something, right. It works because they're a really good team.
- [40:03]
Antawn Jamison
Oh, yeah.
- [40:04]
Steve Nash
Everyone else, I mean, I remember back in the day, like late 90s, everyone trying that. People trying triangle.
- [40:09]
Antawn Jamison
Yeah.
- [40:11]
Steve Nash
It's like, well, it's, you know. Yeah. You know, they do have mj, Pippen, Dennis, you know what I mean? Like, same with the Shaq, Kobe, Lakers, you know, like, it's not as easy to replicate.
- [40:22]
Antawn Jamison
This ain't for everybody.
- [40:23]
Steve Nash
It does. You can't just trot them out there anyways. It was obviously failed experiments across the league trying to be like the Lakers. But it is like, it is interesting because what is a copycat league? I mean, an element of that has to be job security. Like maybe coaches are fearful. If I try something wild and it doesn't work, that could be the end of my job. Like groupthink. Like you said, everyone knows each other, Everyone sees everyone watches everything they do. There's a comfort relating to what everyone does instead of going against it, you know. One of the other factors I think is that we play and this goes in and out of experimentation. This also is just for like everyone in the league. You play 80 to 100 games in our league, you build habits. You build habits and a way of playing. So I think it's also, it's A stretch. You don't have a lot of time. Like, we've talked about this before, once the season starts, you get four or five days of camp and you're playing an exhibition game and you got a performance team saying, like, hey, we can't really practice much. And, you know, so for a coach to then say, like, I'm going to have my star player, have to build new habits that are outside of what they're used to doing, that takes guts. Like, you know, like you want to. You know, that's my bread and butter right there. So changing things extremely. I think that's another thing that prevents people from trying new things. I just think that there's. There is still ways that we could experiment in our league, but it's difficult. Would you agree with that?
- [41:47]
Antawn Jamison
No. Absolutely. 1,000%. You know, and, you know, like you said, coaches come in, especially if it's their first job or they're just getting another job. They have their system. They have their system. They've been talking with the coaches, you know, about, you know, the system or if they haven't even hired their assistants or whatever the case may be, but they have a system they want to put in place both offensively and defensively. And, you know, like you said, it takes guts to be able to just change it completely, but also takes security. You know, with a guy like spo, he's secure, he's good. He's not worried about, you know, if he doesn't win this year, then, you know, somebody's looking over his job. You know, you look at Pop, and Pop was doing what he's doing.
- [42:28]
Steve Nash
He's going in the hall of fame, right?
- [42:29]
Antawn Jamison
Pop didn't have, you know, anybody looking down on him or wondering if, you know, if this doesn't work with Timmy D or now Tony's here, if it doesn't work, oh, we gotta go look for somebody else. Nah, never was the case. So, you know, it definitely helps when, you know, you have great job security. Before we finish, we got one question on here, and a guy by the name on X, his name is trickyleg234. I'm not gonna ask him how the hell he.
- [43:01]
Steve Nash
Trickyleg.
- [43:02]
Antawn Jamison
Don't know how the hell he came up with that name, but. Okay, he asks, what is the best way to get the game to slow down? For me, when I have the ball, I always feel rushed and sped up when I get it. I'm gonna let you take that, Steve.
- [43:16]
Steve Nash
All right, well, I'm definitely gonna want to hear your thoughts on that, because My initial answer is it takes time. Yep, it takes time. Like the game, the more you play, the more reps, the more scenarios you see, the more it slows down. But what can you do to speed that up? I think to increase that development, like, first of all, skill development. So how great is your handle? If your handle's better, your vision is going to be better. How great is your physicality? Fitness, quickness, sharp acceleration, deceleration? If you're on balance all the time, Lot harder to get sped up. If you're not sped up, your eyes aren't sped up. So I think there are things you can control. But I think one thing that I would say for a player, other than stick with it, it takes time, is try to be really conscious whether it's on the floor, in practice, in film sessions, like, really be conscious of the positions you get in. Because there's only so many positions and things that happen in a game of basketball, especially considering each of our games predicates on where those spots on the floor and what those scenarios are. So being aware when you're watching film, when you're practicing, where do I suffer and why? How can I get ahead of that? How can I have better recognition, Recognition in those scenarios, Breaking it down in practice, getting little two and three man games going in some of those scenarios can help too, before or after practice, even with coaches. But look, there's a lot of things you can do that might help you in little ways, but you have to stick with it. Because I think time is the greatest teacher in that respect.
- [44:48]
Antawn Jamison
I could piggyback everything that you just said, Steve. I think time, you know, and also, you know, actually putting yourself in those situations either. Like you said, if it's five on five, four on four, three on three, two on two, you know, and then skill development just continue to, if it's something that you're uncomfortable with, you know, develop those skills. You know, you gotta put that work in to where you feel more and more comfortable. If it's you handing the ball pick and rolls and you, you know, you get sped up because, you know, a lot of teams may blitz you and you don't know how to handle the blitz or, you know, or guys picking you up full court and you don't quite know how to, you know, handle that type of ball pressure. So, you know, it's about skill development. It's also about just letting the game continue to grow as you grow. And then like you said, it takes time. It takes time of actually being in those situations, understanding those situations, you know, failing in those situations, which is, okay, we all fail. There's nothing wrong with that. But it's not about the failure. Point to how do you come back from that? How do you come back? How do you take that adversity? So, yeah, tricky leg, two, three, four. That's our advice. We can give you, champ. We hope you. We hope you get. You'd be great.
- [46:03]
Steve Nash
And the last thing for tricky leg is simplify when you're overwhelmed and you're sped up. Simplify like 12 reads 12 concepts. Like, that's so important, I think, for you to be able to slow down and just focus on one two things that maybe give you a chance at the start of a situation. So lots of work to do. Lots of young players go through that. Unless your name's LeBron James. Nikola Jokic. It's always a tough part of the of at some level.
- [46:33]
Antawn Jamison
Sped up, tricky leg. Listen to some Sade. That'll help too. No matter how old you are or young you are, listen to some Sade. That'll slow you down, too.
- [46:40]
Steve Nash
He's probably like, who he like, who.
- [46:42]
Antawn Jamison
Shot a. Yeah, Sade. Ask your parents.
- [46:52]
Steve Nash
Thanks for watching Mind the game. New episodes drop every other Tuesday. Remember to, like, subscribe or follow wherever you're watching.