Summer League Standouts, Furphy's Poster, Amazon's Stacked NBA Broadcast Roster

Summary

No Dunks Podcast Summary

Episode Title: Summer League Standouts, Furphy's Poster, Amazon's Stacked NBA Broadcast Roster
Release Date: July 15, 2025
Hosts: Skeets, Tas Melas, Trey, and JD
Description: No Dunks is a daily NBA podcast by The Athletic, delving into the league's biggest games and headlines, answering listener questions, and featuring interviews with guests.

---

1. Introduction and Live Show Highlights [02:17 – 04:35]

The episode kicks off with J. Skeets and Tas Melas welcoming listeners to the No Dunks podcast, highlighting their recent live show at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas. Tas extends a shout-out to fans who attended and mentions a special "squad episode" now available on YouTube and the podcast feed. Additionally, they discuss a creative "walk and talk" video filmed at the Thomas and Mack Center, involving fans and featuring interactive elements like random jerseys and arcade games.

Quote:

Tas Melas: "We did a squad episode that's up on YouTube and obviously in the podcast feed."

---

2. Backstreet Boys at the Sphere [05:34 – 07:45]

The hosts pivot to discuss the Backstreet Boys' inaugural show at the Sphere. J. Skeets expresses regret over their initial critique of the performance, acknowledging Tas's perspective on the impressive visual aspects despite earlier reservations.

Quote:

J. Skeets: "I think it's cool... you get right into space, you get on a rocket, you Go directly into space, baby."

---

3. Summer League Standouts [08:17 – 16:04]

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to analyzing standout performances in the NBA Summer League.

• Johnny Furfy (Indiana Pacers): Tas highlights Furfy's sensational dunk against Bulls rookie Noah Essingly, describing it as "ridiculously beautiful" and noting its potential to become iconic.

  Quote:

  Tas Melas: "He grabbed the board, he put it behind his back around the three-point line... and threw it down over Bulls rookie Noah Essingly."

• Cooper Flag (Dallas Mavericks): Discussed for shutting down early Summer League action after two games. J. Skeets praises Flag's resilience, comparing his early performance favorably to historical benchmarks like John Wall.

  Quote:

  J. Skeets: "He's a good player, period."

• Johan Beringer (Minnesota Timberwolves): J. Skeets commends Beringer's defensive prowess, likening him to Rudy Gobert and emphasizing his shot-blocking abilities despite limited experience.

  Quote:

  J. Skeets: "He's a monster center who's only played basketball for four years."

• Kobe Bufkin (Atlanta Hawks): Tas shares admiration for Bufkin's improved shooting and free-throw efficiency, highlighting his potential to contribute significantly despite limited minutes.

  Quote:

  Tas Melas: "He's a guy that we've like. He's shown promise."

---

4. Additional Summer League Highlights [16:04 – 35:50]

The discussion broadens to include performances from other teams and players:

• Kyle Filipowski (Utah Jazz): Recognized as a potential Summer League MVP, Tas details Filipowski's impressive scoring and rebounding stats, despite his team's 0-3 record.

  Quote:

  Tas Melas: "He hit like a game-winning turnaround jumper... he's been really, really good."

• Elijah Martin (Toronto Raptors): J. Skeets lauds Martin's versatile playmaking and dunking skills, drawing comparisons to legendary players for his basketball IQ.

  Quote:

  Tas Melas: "The basketball IQ like does jump off the screen."

• Nick Clifford (Sacramento Kings): Praised for his efficient scoring and defensive contributions, J. Skeets and Tas discuss Clifford's immediate impact and potential role in the Kings' rotation.

  Quote:

  Tas Melas: "He's pretty crafty, I think around the rim."

---

5. Offseason News: Grizzlies and Cole Anthony [52:55 – 56:44]

The hosts shift focus to offseason movements, specifically the Memphis Grizzlies' decision to buy out point guard Cole Anthony's contract. They speculate on Anthony's potential signing with the Milwaukee Bucks, emphasizing his role as a valuable backup guard capable of lighting up the scoreboard when needed.

Quote:

J. Skeets: "He's insurance. We've got Kevin Porter Jr. There that could be a starter, but could also implode."

---

6. Contract Extensions and Team Strategies [57:09 – 61:22]

Tas and J. Skeets delve into recent contract extensions within the NBA:

• Jalen Williams (Thunder): Discussed for his impressive rookie season performance, warranting a max extension despite some skepticism. J. Skeets defends the decision, highlighting Williams' potential and grounded nature.

  Quote:

  J. Skeets: "I think Jalen Williams is a rock. He's only getting better."

• Devin Booker (Suns): Acknowledged for securing a lucrative two-year, $145 million max extension, reinforcing his status as a cornerstone for the franchise.

• Herb Jones (Pelicans) and Isaiah Jackson (Pacers): Mentioned for their respective three-year extensions, with Tas expressing excitement about their developmental trajectories.

---

7. NBA Cup and Broadcast Innovations [61:22 – 75:39]

The conversation transitions to the upcoming NBA Cup, detailing the group stages and innovative court designs. Tas shares the groups arranged for the event, identifying the West Group C as particularly competitive, featuring teams like the Nuggets, Warriors, and Rockets.

• Amazon Prime's Broadcast Partnership: Significant emphasis is placed on Amazon Prime’s new comprehensive broadcast team, including legends like Kevin Harlan, Blake Griffin, and Steve Nash. The hosts express excitement over the “stacked” roster, anticipating dynamic and flexible coverage.

  Quote:

  Tas Melas: "Amazon Prime... play by play announcers, Harlan, Ian Eagle, Michael Grady. Three bangers for play by play announcers."

• Court Design: The hosts humorously discuss potential court designs, referencing Matt Austin and creative director Victor Solomon to speculate on innovative layouts incorporating shapes like triangles and incorporating Halloween themes due to the Cup's October launch.

---

8. Player Health Update: Paul George [75:14 – 80:11]

In a brief segment, Tas informs listeners about Paul George undergoing successful knee surgery to address an injury sustained during a workout. The hosts express concern over his rehabilitation timeline and the implications for his season start.

Quote:

Tas Melas: "Paul George underwent a successful arthroscopic procedure on his left knee... he’s gone to rehab and will be re-evaluated before training camp."

---

9. Closing Remarks and Upcoming Attractions [78:25 – 80:11]

The episode winds down with the hosts sharing personal anecdotes about recent movie outings, teasing discussions about Superman, and encouraging listener engagement through questions submitted via email, YouTube comments, and social media.

Quote:

Tas Melas: "Have a great time. Turn up. Love you guys."

---

Key Takeaways:

• Summer League Excitement: Numerous young talents like Johnny Furfy, Cooper Flag, and Johan Beringer are making significant impacts, suggesting promising NBA futures.

• Strategic Offseason Moves: Teams like the Grizzlies and Kings are active in shaping their rosters through buyouts and draft picks to enhance competitiveness.

• Innovative Broadcasting: Amazon Prime's entry into NBA broadcasting with a star-studded team promises fresh and dynamic coverage of the league.

• Player Health Concerns: Injuries remain a critical factor, with star players like Paul George facing rehabilitation challenges that could affect their seasons.

• Engaged Community: The hosts emphasize the importance of listener interaction and feedback, maintaining a strong connection with their audience through multiple platforms.

---

This comprehensive summary encapsulates the essential discussions and highlights from the No Dunks podcast episode, providing both context and specific insights for listeners and fans alike.

Transcript

[Ad]

Do you own a business that's ready to thrive? It's time to let Intuit QuickBooks take things like unpaid invoices and tracking expenses off your plate so you can take things to the next level. Intuit QuickBooks is a powerful AI driven all in one business solution that can help with day to day tasks like invoicing expenses and taxes. QuickBooks can help you unlock the growth in your business so you can get back to enjoying your business. Manage and grow your business all in one place. Intuit QuickBooks your way to money get 90% off for 3 months. Limited time only Terms and conditions supply money Movement services are provided by Intuit Payments, Inc. Licensed as a money transmitter by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

[Instacart Announcer]

This summer, Instacart is bringing back your favorites from 1999 with prices from 1999. That means 90s prices on juice pouches that ought to be respected, 90s prices on box Mac and cheese and 90s prices on ham, cheese and cracker lunches. Enjoy all those throwbacks and more at throwback prices. Prices only through Instacart. $4.72 maximum discount per $10 of eligible items. Limit one offer per order. Expires September 5 while supplies last Discount based on CPI comparison.

[Alltrails Announcer]

Out here, it's not only the amazing views, but the way time stretches out a little longer, how laughter bellows louder among friends and how the breeze hits just right at the summit. With Alltrails, you can discover and experience the best of nature with over 450,000 trails worldwide and navigation right at your fingertips. Find your outside with Alltrails. Download the free app today and find your next outdoor adventure.

[J. Skeets]

At night when you turn down all.

[Tas Melas]

The lights when you've tucked your dogs in tight oh yeah.

[J. Skeets]

Sleep apnea's gonna get you Sleep apnea's.

[Tas Melas]

Gonna get you Sleep apnea's gonna get you Sleep apnea's gonna get you Sleep.

[J. Skeets]

Apnea'S gonna get you Breathe right.

[Tas Melas]

Sleep tight. Da da da. Good morning, sweet world world, and welcome to the no Dunks Podcast on the Athletic Network. It's Tuesday, July 15, 2025. I'm J. Skeets, back in the Atlanta Classic Factory and alongside me as always, Tas Melas.

[J. Skeets]

Basketball lovers.

[Tas Melas]

This is for you over yonder, making the magic happen. Super producer JD Hello. There he is. Here we are, just the three of us in the factory. Trey back in Illinois with the family and eventually the friends. For this week, he's going to be doing a golf trip with the bros. A bunch of six, five Giants out on the golf course, just smashing away.

[J. Skeets]

Ripping up the course in a matter of 18 hours or something.

[Tas Melas]

Is that what he said? Yeah, you're right.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. Oh, no. Sorry. 54 holes, 36 holes first day back to back, and then 18 the next day. So. Wow, that's impressive.

[Tas Melas]

Good luck.

[J. Skeets]

That's hard.

[Tas Melas]

We did ask him to get a hole in one for us. Make sure you're filming when you get a tk. Yeah. We're back here though, from Vegas. Chris got back on what, Sunday. You took off what, 45 minutes before us?

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Had a nice meal at Chili's. Tess was getting on the flight ahead.

[J. Skeets]

Of us at Starbucks.

[Tas Melas]

You had Starbucks but joined us at Chili's.

[J. Skeets]

They probably took just as long to serve at Starbucks. Yeah, exactly the same.

[Tas Melas]

Our food came way quicker. I know.

[J. Skeets]

Starbucks took forever.

[Tas Melas]

Anyway, we got back, we had some fun shout out to everybody that came out to our live show on Friday, Friday night or Friday at the Mandalay Bay Resort in the sportsbook. Great turnout. We did a squad episode that's up on YouTube and obviously in the podcast feed. And then on Saturday we tried something different. We went to the Thomas and Mack center, we did a walk and talk. We just walked around the concourse, did a full lap, took in the sights and sounds, talked to some fans, found some random jerseys, saw all the things and we made that into a fun, very fun 20 minute video that's just up on YouTube. So I say to the podcast listener to come on over to no dunks on YouTube and check out this vid that JD, his son Jackson and Ash helped all put together because ended up being a blast. People are getting a kick out of this. So maybe we got something here.

[J. Skeets]

Das. It was fun. Yeah. They have done a better job of putting things in the concourse. That really helped because it used to just. It used to be a naked concourse. There used to be not a lot. I thought it was going to be a lot more talking between us, but there was more things to do out there.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, like Papa Shot and we played like arcade game. Other arcade games.

[J. Skeets]

Furious game.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, just like of trophies.

[J. Skeets]

We saw. We saw Valer o' Brien was there being guarded by a person on a two and a half hour shift. That was weird.

[Tas Melas]

The quietest talker of all time.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. We didn't do a very good job of getting the microphone in his mouth.

[Tas Melas]

Our mic was bad. But even when it was in front of his mouth, that man was a quiet guy.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. I wanted to know about him having to stand there for two and A half hours without going to pee.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

Although somebody did say who watched the video that they did think that they saw him go to the bathroom like seconds after we passed him.

[Tas Melas]

Just been holding it in until the cameras came and then he felt good to go.

[JD]

I just mentioning it made him want to go, right?

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Oh yeah, I think so.

[J. Skeets]

I think it's good point. He's like, I got. I do, I do want to say one quick thing. I do regret what we said about the Backstreet Boys at the Sphere. Not that we saw them, but we said it wasn't that good.

[Tas Melas]

I don't, I. I know you saw clips and you were convinced it's amazing looking.

[J. Skeets]

Well, the show, more so the video show. You go pay 2 to 3, $400 basically for a video show.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

And to remember some songs specifically from the Backstreet Boys.

[Tas Melas]

Oh, the crowd is. I mean, I assume it was. Well, it was their opening weekend in the Sphere, was it not?

[J. Skeets]

It was their opening weekend, 100%. Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

You're gonna get obviously the most die hard Backstreet Boys fans of all time. So, yeah, crowd's gonna be hyped. They've got bangers, they got sing along songs. But I just thought it looked like complete shit.

[J. Skeets]

Which part?

[Tas Melas]

I didn't think the video looked all that amazing either.

[J. Skeets]

I think it. I think it's cool.

[Tas Melas]

It just looks so bootleg to me. It's like they put it into AI and it spit out all these graphics to me.

[J. Skeets]

Oh, I hear what you're saying.

[Tas Melas]

And then, yeah, the dancing, like I.

[J. Skeets]

Said, I was like, well, yeah, yeah, dancing aside, it's like, oh, my. Singing aside, the Backstreet Boys, they're. That part aside the dancing and the singing, if you expected, if you expected to have great Backstreet Boys dancing here in the year 2025 when they couldn't do it in 1995, then what do you think this is their AI? A second coming of the Backstreet Boys?

[Tas Melas]

I mean, yeah, they might as well Rebirth.

[J. Skeets]

I just thought the videos were gonna.

[Tas Melas]

The street and the Boys aside, the Backstreet Boys were a hell of a show.

[J. Skeets]

I think they've done a good job of putting videos together. Maybe the videos that you saw of the videos. Because you probably saw people filming the actual videos coming up over the dome over top. Maybe they weren't good quality. But listen, you're paying 2, 300, 400 bucks for a cool video. I think, I think it was pretty cool. You go right into space, you get on a rocket, you Go directly into space, baby. Yeah, it was pretty neat. I would pay, do you think, for that.

[Tas Melas]

Do you think how he did it or AJ the graphics?

[J. Skeets]

James Dolan, I think James Dolan, wow.

[Tas Melas]

He's in control. Owning the Sphere. Yeah.

[JD]

There's a 45 minute movie you can watch or, or film that you can watch at the Sphere. It's $120. So when you put it in that perspective for like an extra 200 bucks.

[Tas Melas]

Deal.

[JD]

It's a bargain.

[J. Skeets]

What do you. What video are you watching?

[JD]

It's like Postcards from Earth or something like that.

[Tas Melas]

It'd be amazing.

[J. Skeets]

Oh, oh. So you literally. You go in to watch that?

[JD]

Yeah, I think. I think Ash went to see it. So we'll follow up with him.

[J. Skeets]

That's way cheaper. I would do that.

[Tas Melas]

Lots of thoughts here on the Backstreet Boys on a Tuesday. But yeah, go check out the no dunks, walk and talk video again up on YouTube. Go hit it with a like button. Make sure you subscribe if you're on YouTube. Podcast listeners, we love you five star ratings and reviews. Okay, what are we doing today? We're gonna talk a little summer league.

[J. Skeets]

Reminisce of some summer league stuff.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I do want to ask you before we get into the hoops of it all, did you watch the Big Dumper smash any taters last night?

[J. Skeets]

I did. I just want to say that it's fine. Yeah. Cal Raleigh is hitting home runs. We call it a big Dumper. What? I was surprised by. In the player intros, they use the word ass. They use the word damn. I was surprised by that. Met Pat McAfee and Coast. I forget his name.

[Tas Melas]

Okay. I didn't watch a single second of this.

[J. Skeets]

But to use those words. Yeah. The Home Run Derby here in Atlanta and to hear those guys go on. We're in the Bible belt. I was just surprised to hear the word ass and dam in the intro. Although it was fun and the home runs were very fun. Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

I only saw the one highlight. So he won. The Big Dumper is his nickname. Who's like on fire, right. He's at 38 home runs at the All Star.

[J. Skeets]

He's beating everybody.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah. So he wins this and he's a.

[J. Skeets]

Catcher and he's a switch hitter. That's pretty cool.

[Tas Melas]

That's pretty amazing.

[J. Skeets]

First catcher to win a home run derby.

[Tas Melas]

But somebody got robbed of a home run last night. You see this? One of the. One of the kids or one of the fielders literally took away a home run.

[J. Skeets]

Oh, that's amazing. No, I didn't.

[Tas Melas]

I don't know who it was. I don't know who the batter was. Climbed the fence and snagged it.

[J. Skeets]

Oh, I missed that.

[Tas Melas]

It's amazing.

[J. Skeets]

That is amazing.

[Tas Melas]

Well, anyway, go check out the home run highlights if you're a fan of the baseball. But no, let's talk a little summer league, because I want to start with a dunk that we saw yesterday. So this was Monday. Pacers sophomore wing Johnny Furfy with, look, let's be honest, the dunk of summer league so far.

[J. Skeets]

Yes, there's.

[Tas Melas]

There's a lot of basketball still to go in the desert. But look at this, man. He grabbed the board, he put it behind his back around the three point line. Then he got into the lane, cocked it back almost to his hip, and threw it down over Bulls rookie Noah Essingly and just Dirty test.

[J. Skeets]

Yes. If you're not watching this on YouTube, come on by. It is ridiculously beautiful. I thought Elijah Martin of the Toronto Raptors had the dunk of summer league and it couldn't be topped. But then Johnny Fury comes out with.

[Tas Melas]

This 10 times better.

[J. Skeets]

It is especially because you've got no Noah Senge, who's a monster trying to block that thing. And then a photo here on YouTube where you. It looks like Noah Senge is possessed a little bit. Kind of like Chad Holmgren when Aaron Nesmith went over him in the finals. It's just so good. It was, it was awesome.

[Tas Melas]

Look at that photo. I mean, he, he was just challenging way too late to have any chance of this. You know, he's a shot blocker. He's a skinny guy, but he's going to be a guy that's going to deter shots in the rim. You got to go for these. You're going to get on posters. But that one, you know, was maybe the wrong business decision. I just think he, like, he had zero chance and then suddenly was just in the poster having to like, sort of duck out of the way and made that face.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. I love the fact that he tried. You got to try. But who, if you're watching, did you know Johnny Furfee was going to cock it back like that? Like he gave himself an extra second. Right. Because Noah Senge is coming by.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

If he's just trying to dunk it, then maybe he's got a bit of a shot.

[Tas Melas]

That's a good point.

[J. Skeets]

That's a cockback.

[Tas Melas]

You did not think he was gonna add the flair that he did. Putting it down like that again, almost to his waist as he flies through the rim. And it's so pretty with like the wraparound, you know, dribble to set it up. That's sort of like his becoming his go to move. He had another dunk earlier in summer league where he did the exact same thing. Got the defender with that back around the back dribble and then he just threw down like a two hand dunk. If I remember correctly. It wasn't on somebody, but he's an athlete.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

And Halliburton was tweeting about it. My God, Johnny MF Murphy.

[J. Skeets]

I'm starting to feel maybe it's this time of year where you get super optimistic about every team but the isa. The Indiana Pacers were able to just make so many guys into great players. Now we got a Johnny Furfy who was there last year, didn't do a lot for himself. Jairus Walker, also in his second year last year. Now going to year third into year three. Isaiah Jackson, who's taken over for Miles Turner in a lot of ways. I don't know, maybe the Pacers are going to be great. All of a sudden. They got a lot of good players.

[Tas Melas]

Unbelievable dunk. We'll see if anybody can top that one. I would guess no. Yeah, no guess no.

[J. Skeets]

But I thought Elijah Martin had it and we'll talk about that a little bit. That was a beauty. It was a cop. It was monsters. But not that big.

[Tas Melas]

Wasn't Ferf Dog. Some news we had on Sunday, I guess this was right. The Mavericks have decided to shut down Cooper Flag for the remainder of NBA Summer league action. Ending his Vegas stint there after just two games. Had the rough first game. You know, the jumper wasn't falling. Just couldn't score all that well. 5 of 21 in game one. Followed it up with 31 points in a loss in game two. That was the most by a number one pick in Vegas summer league since John Wall, which we learned at the live show there on Friday in Vegas. And he just looked incredible. But no surprise. I don't think tasks that, you know, we see a lot of teams do this now. They play like these high rookies, these high draft picks. Like two games sort of like kick things off for summer league and then one more on the weekend and then that's usually it.

[J. Skeets]

If they look okay, this is the new official cutoff for number one or number two picks. Two games. But now it's a little bit different because they have pushed it forward a little bit and I think that's a good sign. They pushed the first date for summer league earlier, it's Thursday now. So the games are Thursday and Saturday. It's a Thursday primetime game everybody can watch. And then a Saturday first game afternoon.

[Tas Melas]

Right.

[J. Skeets]

So it's more of a prime arena.

[Tas Melas]

And stuff like that.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. And instead of doing it on Friday and Sunday like they did last year, a lot of people have to leave on Sunday. So you get less, you get fewer people there. You, you kind of. We all know that these guys are going to play two games. And then the second week of summer league is for the hardcores. This is the first two days now are Thursday and Saturday and they're more featured games because of the time that they put them at and because there's more people around in Las Vegas. I will say I'm in love with Cooper Flag, though. I was just excited to see him that first day. I don't care if he was 5 for 21. I loved how he saw Bronnie and say, I'm going at this guy and call for it and give me the get clear out is what he called for. And to go to his own shot multiple times. He can pass. And he was so mad at himself, saying it was his worst game ever. Come on. I just like the effort. Game one and then you said the highest point total for a number one pick since John Wall in game number two. I mean he recovered pretty quickly. He's a good player, period.

[Tas Melas]

31 points in a 40 minute summer league game is actually a lot.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

You know, I know 31 in today's NBA is like we can just roll our eyes at it. We barely talk about it on a daily show because you got to get into like the 50s and 60s to get like that sort of note. But out there in summer league that is a lot. As he's just proved there being the number one pick to score the most in his wall. But defensively too, guys like you're going to be in a league with wembanyama, so you're probably not winning a lot of defensive player of the year trophies. But he's going to be in these conversations with your Chet and Wemby's and all these good great perimeter defenders. Like he just is that good immediately. So that jumped out and it was like this idea of like, hey, Cooper flag, you're basically our, you're sort of our point guard here. Like this guy was operating all the time. Yeah, there was like, we are going to give him the ball, let him go through like the ups and downs of an NBA game. Getting doubled Having to make quick reads and stuff like that. I thought he got better as in these two games as they went on. And I mean, that's sort of scary too. This guy's a monster and he looks like it out there against these other guys. So great, great showing and they shut him down and not a surprise.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. And there he won't be doubled as much when it comes to the actual play with other guys on the basketball floor that are NBA players. So that's a great sign. But I just liked how he's getting into his shots. Yeah, he looks super confident and he's just this guy's focus on basketball and that's it. He's a basketball geek, so I'm sure he would have even wanted to play the second week a little bit.

[Tas Melas]

Wow. He likes basketball for the sickos, for sure. Let's talk about some other summer league standouts. We can pick, bounce back and forth. Why don't you get us started? Who's had your eye here through. You know, I mean, I was going to say a week of summer league. It sort of is if we count the other leagues for some of the teams. But a couple days here in Vegas, who jumps off the page to you?

[J. Skeets]

Let's go to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Start with a young guy, get to an old guy. Johan Beringer, their draft pick. Looks fricking good. He is a monster center who's only played basketball for four years. He's 18 years old, but he can block shots. And his first game there in Vegas, he had five blocks in the first eight minutes. And he's playing against an NBA player. He was playing against Eve Mece, who played for the Pelicans last year as a starting center. So this isn't just playing against anybody, but he's just got great timing. And the comparison to Rudy Gobert, who's going to be teammates with. They're both French. That makes sense. Also makes sense from the fact that he won't be asked to do anything offensively. Rudy gets. Gets asked to do a little bit more. Like Rob Dillingham, his teammate said no, he doesn't care about the basketball, which is a great sign, I do think, for the Minnesota Timberwolves going forward. And I am looking into their rotation a little bit because they did lose Nikhil Alexander Walker this past offseason. So who's going to take over for him? Well, TJ Shannon, Terrence Shannon Jr. I think we're all going to go with TJ Shannon instead. He looks like he is very, very capable. Of being a ball handler, passing the ball. And we know he can score. We saw him in the playoffs do that. But the number of assists, I think he had nine assists the first game. He just looks like he's doing more of that and they said that he's been working on that the last couple of months. So Nikhil Alexander Walker wasn't really an assist guy, but he could do everything and they're asking a lot of TJ Shannon to just fill in. And so Rob Dillingham is also going to have to be a part of that. Three headed point guard. Rob Dillingham looked decent and then you've got Jalen Clark who can come in and play defense. So whoever has to do something, it feels like this team that went to the conference final two years in a row has some options for sure. And TJ Shannon, I say old because he's freaking really old. I think he's turning 25 soon. It's kind of surprising.

[Tas Melas]

But he's think he was that old.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, I know he's been really focused on. On being more of a playmaker because we know the guy is super athletic and. And score. Rob Dillingham is the really super young guy. Hopefully they have somebody that can help replace Nikhil Alexander Walker, who. You know, I'm here in Atlanta, maybe a little overrated right now with the. I love Nikila Rocker, obviously, so do the Hawks. It's a smart signing, but he's almost been put on this pedestal as an amazing player who.

[Tas Melas]

Well, it probably part of it is like free agency sort of being not a lot of guys moving. So he's like. He's one of the names on the short list of names that actually move teams.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. And he's a good player, obviously. But the Wolves I think have some options here to try and replace them. Will they replace his defense? No, no one can ever replace his defense. They're going to try Jalen Clark at times, but he doesn't have the offensive game. So Kelly's outer very good player. Hopefully the Wolves can find a way here. Right?

[Tas Melas]

Well, they made. They basically were making that decision. We're like, we can only pay sort of two or three of these guys and he got maybe squeezed Nikhil Alexander Walker and what he got, they did.

[J. Skeets]

They would have kept him if it was cheaper.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, right, right. But obviously Nasrid and Julius Randall, the extensions, the contracts and stuff like that. So that's a part of it. But you're right about Tarant Shannon Jr. Slotting in there. That's the hope for them and then these young guards to like sop up more minutes from the aging Mike Conley in the backcourt there with Anthony Edwards.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, that part's the bad part.

[Tas Melas]

That part too. I've been pretty impressed with Hawks guard Kobe Bufkin. Now he hasn't shot the ball all that well. That needs to tick up. The percentages are not pretty here in summer league. I think he's shooting 6 of 22 from deep, but he's living at the free throw line. The playmaking is there and it's just fun to see him because, you know, in two seasons he's been on the Hawks roster, but he's played 27 of a potential 164 games. Yeah, like he played a little bit more in the G league but like barely saw much action here in the actual league. We saw him, we called one of his best games in the G League. We were on the call there and he was amazing to see in person. And I think he's been really good here in Vegas. He had a good game on Monday. 25 points, 815 shooting, 4 of 8 from 3. So much better than those two games prior shooting the three ball. He's averaging 21, 5 and 5. And again, like I said, he's damn near automatic at the free throw line. 24 for 25. He's only missed one and getting there a lot, so that's good. I don't know. You know, there's not going to be a ton of minutes for this guy. Obviously. Trae Young takes a lot of them and they've got a lot of guards there, but he's a guy that we've like. He's shown promise. There were flashes. You understood it. You could reason why he was the pick. He was. But he's just been injured for so much, so it's just to see him.

[J. Skeets]

Play basketball right now, yeah, it is astonishing. He's kind of flown under the radar league wide because he hasn't played enough. He just hasn't. And he gets after it defensively. He's obviously a super talented offensive player. He just has the handles. He can do a lot of things. I'm surprised that he's shot that poorly. I thought he'd be better.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, he's like shooting like 36%. I mean, the numbers are there, but yeah, again, percentages are low right now.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, I wonder what the Hawks long term plan is. But yeah, he's not going to find a lot of minutes. No, he's not.

[Tas Melas]

But then again, guys go out with injuries and then you got to step up and you got like control that, you know, take that opportunity.

[J. Skeets]

There's other guys, there's a Keaton Wallace out there that he, he played really well for the Hawks. But now with Nikhil Alexander Walker plus Trey Young plus Dyson Daniels as ball handlers, that's going to be tough.

[Tas Melas]

Hawks are three and oh here in summer league too. One of the teams with three wins and zero losses. Funny ending. Did you see the ending of this Hawks Rockets game?

[J. Skeets]

No.

[Tas Melas]

It was one of these incidences where the guy, I forget who the player was on the Rockets. You know, it's like sort of last couple seconds they got a go for the tie or whatever it was and the guy chucked it in like it went into the basket. On the sidelines, out of bounds play around half court, you gotta wonder should it count? Oh, it's sort of cool if like you get like a, like he'd. Could get like, like it'd be a special player that only can do that. Like can just hit these out out of bounds shots from like I don't know how far that is. Like 40, 45ft it feels like.

[J. Skeets]

So did he do like a soccer throw?

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, two handed? Yeah, yeah, a little bit and then, but then I was like, it was like oh, did it get to reflected in. Because that would count. But it didn't in the replay. But anyway, it's funny and some great names in this Hawks Rockets game. Let me just give you three. Nelly Jr. Joseph Adonis arms. That's his name. And great. Auror, his name is great. But Adonis Arms, I mean that sounds like a, that sounds like a wrestler. Yeah, like Vince McMahon would have come up with Adonis Arms back in the day. Some jack dude on steroids coming to the ring.

[J. Skeets]

No, they're great names. I thought Carter Bryant was a great name because it's like two first names, two last names.

[Tas Melas]

Which one is cool name. But these cool names, these are unique. Nelly Jr. Joseph.

[J. Skeets]

I know.

[Tas Melas]

So just that's a fun part of summer league. Looking at the box score going like what the hell? Who is that?

[J. Skeets]

Johnny Furfy is a pretty cool name.

[Tas Melas]

Of course. Of course.

[Ad]

Are you a business owner looking to grow your business? You did what most dream of doing, starting your own business. Now you're faced with the reality of how to make your small business run smoothly. Intuit QuickBooks can help. QuickBooks is a powerful AI driven all in one business solution. That means those day to day tasks, invoicing expenses and taxes can be done effortlessly. But here's where it gets really good. You don't need to hire a team of analysts to find growth opportunities hiding in your business data. QuickBooks can help with cash flow optimization, profit and loss analysis. It helps you see how your business is doing and uncover new ways to be more profitable. QuickBooks can help you unlock the growth in your business so you can get back to enjoying your business. Manage and grow your business all in one place. Intuit QuickBooks your way to money get 90% off 3 months limited time only Terms and conditions applied. Money movement services are provided by Intuit Payments, Inc. Licensed as a money transmitter by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

[Tas Melas]

This show is sponsored by Liquid IV. It's hot in Atlanta right now. 95 plus sunny, matte, humid. But ball is life. So you know I still gotta get my shots up at the local outdoor basketball park. Thank goodness for my Liquid iv. No matter how hot your summer gets, Liquid IV helps keep you hydrated. Helps keep me hydrated whether I'm shooting hoops or I'm out on an adventure. And the summer heat means it's the perfect time to try their new Arctic Raspberry flavor, which has jumped to the top of my power rankings. Plus, Liquid IV has sugar free solutions powered by Liv Hydra Science for smart hydration. And I got the hookup for you. Visit liquidiv.com and use the code no Dunks at checkout for 20% off your first order. I've recently started throwing a packet or two in my suitcase when I travel and I'm going to Vegas where it's even hotter because not only does it hit after a workout, I like the boost Liquid IV gives you after a long night out or after a long flight. White, peach, green grape, lemon, lime. This new one, Arctic Raspberry. They're all great flavors and I'm always switching them up. Just one stick and 16 ounces of water hydrates better than water alone. Powered by Liv Hydra Science, you're getting an optimized ratio of electrolytes, essential vitamins, and clinically tested nutrients that turn ordinary water into extraordinary hydration. We're talking three times the electrolytes of the leading sports drink. Come on. So squeeze the most out of your summer with Liquid IV. Tear pour live more bars. Go to LiquidIV.com and get 20% off your first order with code no Dunks at checkout. Thank goodness for my Liquid IV. LiquidIV.com and get 20% off your first order with code no Dunks at checkout. Listen up. You can get the new iPhone 16e with Apple Intelligence for just $49.99 when you switch to Boost Mobile. We pulled so many all nighters to give you this deal. And hey, stop messing with the mic. I'm just helping this catch people's attention.

[Ad]

This is a great deal.

[Tas Melas]

Exactly. So it doesn't need all that. Fine. Get the new iPhone 16e available at.

[Alltrails Announcer]

Apple Store locations and the Apple Store online.

[Tas Melas]

Visit your nearest Boost Mobile store for full offer details. Apple Intelligence requires iOS 18.1 or later. Restrictions apply. Let's keep it going another round. Who's impressed you?

[J. Skeets]

Well, the Blazers. Young Hansen has been fun to watch. I just love how in control of the offense he is. First possession of his first game in Vegas, he called for that backdoor. He's calling the plays out there while he's playing. So he's very capable of running an offense, having the offense go through him and the passes were there. Five assists for a big center, it's a little surprising.

[Tas Melas]

And he is a big center. He's like seven two big.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. So is he too slow out there? Is a fair question. Defensively, specifically, he blocked shots and I think he's very capable of moving out there. And him and Donovan Clingan are going to battle. I think this guy, I think young Hansen is going to be part of the rotation. Offensively, I would say he's a superior player to Donovan Klingon.

[Tas Melas]

Right.

[J. Skeets]

Defensively, Clingan's the guy.

[Tas Melas]

Right.

[J. Skeets]

But they picked this guy at number 16. He was up in the second deck of the Barclays center because they didn't think he would be picked. So the Blazers and Joe Cronin, who's often criticized for what he's doing there, heck of a job here. And the fact that not only did he pass, he drove at one point where he spun around his defender at the three point line or, sorry, he started at three point line, drove past his defender, did a spin, and who knew that this guy could do it and scored. So he's very, very capable. I didn't know that we'd see this right away.

[Tas Melas]

The basketball IQ like does jump off the screen. That's why you're getting the Jokic comparisons. The Chinese Jokic, which is. We could probably, you know, slow down on that. I think a lot of people, when they're saying it, a little tongue in cheek. But the passing, yes. The ability to see the floor like that, as if he's like a soccer player. Sure. Like seeing those angles and obviously all these slick bounce passes he's been throwing. He's like, he's done it a couple times in these couple games. Not just like that one off the top.

[J. Skeets]

But no, he's got hands.

[Tas Melas]

He's got a shot too. I mean he's, he was never a good three point shooter in the Chinese Basketball association and I think he's 1 for 5 from deep so far. And the one he hit was like a banker. It was a lucky banked in shot.

[J. Skeets]

So the shot needs work.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. But you're right about the being the offensive hub there, operating up top and just move off him. And he's so big. I mean he can sort of make any of these passes. That's a good point. Slipping it inside or underneath.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. And you have all these young athletic guys around him. So you can just keep cutting with this guy if you're willing to run for Jong Hansen. So that makes a heck of a lot of sense. He's not the Chinese joke. It. Maybe Jokic is the Serbian young Hansen.

[Tas Melas]

Oh, wow.

[J. Skeets]

Flip it.

[Tas Melas]

Oh my God.

[J. Skeets]

Somebody, somebody said that out there and I thought, okay, it's ridiculous, but it's funny.

[Tas Melas]

Okay, so Hansen's going to be what.

[J. Skeets]

A four or five time at number 16. Just looks great right now.

[Tas Melas]

Definitely like you said, it had a lot of people going, what, like, who is this guy? You know, he was like, it wasn't even in like some people like draft experts, like top hundred or like maybe like just cracking top 50, if that. So it came out of nowhere with the 16th pick when he got selected. But yeah, I mean to show up in summer league, to obviously have the highlights. He also seems like just a great, you know, character, like a great dude. Like all the comments he's had about like, oh, people are asking him like, what's. What are you going to do when you meet Jokic? He's like, I'm gonna ask for his autograph. His signature. Yeah, got some zings. You know, he's like pretty comfortable guy. So he's look good. He's look good. It just, it's just so funny. Like, like 10 minutes of summer league action and where we can go with like our projections of eating. Yeah, it's great. That's summer league, honestly.

[J. Skeets]

So they have the two centers in him and Klingon and Robert Williams is the third center now that they released DeAndre Ayton. I don't know why he wouldn't be part of the rotation. You know, it's deep. He's not starting. He's not starting for the Portland Trailblazers. But as I said if Scoot's cutting for him off the bench, like if they're. If they're both playing off the bench together and Shane Sharp's coming cutting for him off the bench. We'll see who starts with Anthony Simonskung. There just seems like a lot of guys to work around this hub.

[Tas Melas]

It will just be. Will he be absolutely exposed defensively? Will he just be put in so much action and not being able to keep up, you know, maybe, maybe not. But like he is the type of guy, like, I mean anyone that plays pickup hoops, he's like type of guy like everybody wants to play with. Just like Jokic, you move, you're getting the ball.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

He's looking to pass even before he scores. So that, that can be like, you know, contagious. Right. For a team and the vibes can be good. So maybe just one of those type of guys to come in and sort of change the game. He's obviously a type of different player than Cling and so. Yeah, yeah, they reached. But so far so good with Yang. Not Yang.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Kevin Pelton at the live show, the Hoop Collective live show, which we checked out. Awesome job by the two Tims and Brian Windhorse. But Pelton, one of the guests. Didn't he say that correct way to say it? Young Hanson. He even said young Hunson, I thought. Or something like that.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. They're not the Hanson brothers.

[Tas Melas]

Would you see the Hanson brothers in the sphere?

[J. Skeets]

No. Oh, I see. If it, if it's. If it's about just reminiscing, the Hanson brothers haven't cut it.

[Tas Melas]

But imagine the bops on the big screen.

[J. Skeets]

Of course, that's all I do. There's a red. There's a restaurant here in. In Georgia. It's em Space Bop. And all I do is are we going to bop?

[Tas Melas]

Nice.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, it wasn't that nice, but whatever. I. Would you go see the Hanson brothers?

[Tas Melas]

No, I'm sure they put on a great show. A little love for Jazz forward Kyle Filipowski.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

You can make the case that he's like Vegas summer league MVP right now. Even though his team is not winning. That's going to hurt his chances, I think. I think The Jazz are 0 and 3. But he is averaging 29 points per game out there in Vegas. He had an awesome game yesterday. 35 points, 11, 19 from the floor, 5 of 8 from deep. He had 11 boards which included one offensive rebound that he grabbed that then set up the game tying dunk in traffic that could have easily been called An. An one. There was a lot of contact, but he threw it down. Tied up at 91, unfortunately for him. And the Jazz, the Spurs, Riley Minix, I don't know if I'm saying that correctly. He hit like a game winning turnaround jumper. That was tough in the corner. Jameer Nelson Jr. Draped all over him and he. And he hit it and then everybody went nuts in Wembanyama celebrating. It was like they won the title. But point is, Filipowski has been really, really good here, putting up just big numbers and shooting the three with confidence.

[J. Skeets]

I don't think there's a national podcast that's talked more about Kyle Filipowski than this show. We referenced him during his rookie season. Well, no, I would say the bar is pretty low in terms of national podcasts. There's jazz podcasts that talk about Kyle Filipowski, but we've mentioned him multiple times because he had a 30 point game in his rookie season. I was a little surprised he didn't get one rookie of the year vote considering how splintered it was and in terms of players. But he showed the ability, what you just said. He can shoot it, there's no doubt. And he can defend at times. You could watch him guard from the three point line all the way to the rim. This is a big man who can move his feet. And so I can understand why at some point they were always going to trade John Collins or let him move. But at some point this guy's got to play and see how many minutes he can play.

[Tas Melas]

See you later. Walker Kessler.

[J. Skeets]

Well, that's a, that's a great question. With Walker Kessler, we'll see what Ace Bailey can do. I know where he's obviously more of a wing, but they have a lot of bigs. There's no, there's no doubt. Along with Larry Markkanen.

[Tas Melas]

And there are reports that they're not trading Larry Markkanen. I just saw that, you know, because everybody was like, yeah, they were shipping out any sort of vet or any sort of talented player this summer and they maybe are going to just lean into playing the young guys and probably be bad again and have another, you know, crack at a, at a high pick. But they say he's not one of those guys. They're moving now. They may say that they may want to just drive up his, you know, his trade value. Didn't have the greatest season last year and some of it was injury related and all that like he did the year prior. But yeah, I mean, this guy flip as they Call him. He's been amazing. He can really, really shoot it. So he should have an opportunity. But they're owing three. I think he would win MVP right now, but he's not going to. I know they don't care about the record that much, but it's got to play a part. As you sort of go on in this thing and advance right to the later rounds.

[J. Skeets]

We've got a lot of bigs. Is Kevin Love going to play for them?

[Tas Melas]

No, I highly doubt it.

[J. Skeets]

I would.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

They got to find somebody. Yeah. They got Taylor Hendricks. They have Kyle Henderson as part of that deal, so.

[Tas Melas]

Kyle Anderson.

[J. Skeets]

Yes, Kyle Anderson.

[Tas Melas]

Henderson.

[J. Skeets]

Wow.

[Tas Melas]

That's what you were thinking.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. Yeah. I love Henderson, Nevada. Yeah. I don't know why Henderson came out. I wasn't thinking of Henderson, Nevada, but it is that place. People come into the. Onto the Strip and they're from Henderson. They. They're like, I gotta get out of here. Gotta go back to Henderson. Gotta go back home.

[Tas Melas]

Are you talking about some of the no Dunks fans that came out?

[J. Skeets]

Some, Anybody.

[Tas Melas]

And then you're like, like, oh, where are you from? Yeah, I'm from Vegas. And you're like, oh, wow. Where do you live? Where do you live? In the Cosmo? No, we don't do that. But they're like, it's obviously a suburb or another city outside. And they're like, you like Vegas? Like, oh, God, I hate coming in here.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. You know, generally, yeah, to us, Vegas feels like the Strip, but there are other parts around Vegas. Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

And then my just final note on that, that game which was really entertaining, again, this is an overtime game. The Jazz and Spurs. A guy that's impressed me, just to slip it in here quickly, David Jones. Garcia. That guy belongs on an NBA floor, man. He's good. He's good enough to play in this league. We've talked about him before. I remember in the past, maybe it was. Maybe it was last summer league for all I remember. But he's been really well, playing really well for the spurs as well. I don't know if it'll be on that team, but somebody should give this guy a look here and have him on either a two way or something like that because he's been. He's been filling up the box score so far. But let's do another round or two. Who you got?

[J. Skeets]

Here's a guy who has a two way. The Toronto Raptors. Elijah Martin, second round pick, already signing this guy because he's got good vibes. He also had the biggest Dunk of summer league until Furphy came along. That was a beautiful back shop lockers coming there. So you think, well, maybe the 6162 guard as he's listed. Well, not dunk. Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Laid up floater, something. That's what it looked like in the play when it was developing.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, exactly.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

He doesn't care. Yeah. Because he goes at it. And that's exactly why the Raptors are banking on this guy and they want him to be part of the locker room. Him and Jamal Shed coming off the bench. Now maybe there's a little duplication there because they're similar players, but I think they're going to play together at times and to. To get this guy two way contract immediately. There's a reason for that. It's because he goes extremely hard. He's very good. Surprisingly to me offensively he had a nice step back. The threes are there. So he's got that part of him. He is undersized. There's no doubt. But him and Jamal Shed, who I saw Jamal Shed given a stare down to our man Boyles who just played his first game like immediately gave Boyles a stare down. What are you doing, man? So there's good vibes there. That's what they want. They want guys holding each other accountable. It feels good. It feels like Elijah Martin can be one of the guys coming off the bench along. Yeah. With Jamal Shed primarily. But you start to see the photos of all those guys at summer league. The Tron Raptors, entire rosters, they got their. All five of their starters are there. Plus these bench guys are coming in as well. It's not. It's like their whole freaking roster is there. Plus I heard our guys at hello and welcome say how many assistant coaches they have.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, I heard that too. It's like 20 plus.

[J. Skeets]

I couldn't believe that. I couldn't. I couldn't believe that rolling deep out there can't play blackjack because they would literally bust. It's. They have more than 21 coaches. They have more than 21 coach. Is. How is that possible? I still, I still almost don't believe it. Does that mean there's 21 employees at summer league? They can't have 22 coaches. That was nuts.

[Tas Melas]

Anyway, well, the Vegas Raptors out here have four. 63 turnovers through two games. 63 turnovers in 80 minutes of action. Because these are 40 minute games.

[J. Skeets]

And how do they do that?

[Tas Melas]

On one hand you're like, well, who cares? I mean, yes, it is Summerly. Who cares? But I Saw our guy s at the Athletic wisely point out a lot of these guys on the Raptors summer league roster are going to be on the main Raptors, not the starters. Like you were saying, like being out there and around the team and that's good for vibes. But like maybe seven or eight of the players on the summer league team are going to be actually on the Raptors. So this is cool if all these guys are just like defensive dogs because that's what they've been winning these games so far. And like if that's going to be like the bench unit sort of vibe where Shed and Jacoby Walter and like.

[J. Skeets]

Said Martin, Colin Mary Boyle's gotta be.

[Tas Melas]

The rookie for sure. Yeah, there's Mobo, there's Shamshay, like, like. And that's why these guys can be so aggressive on the perimeter, these little guys, because you have Mobo and all Shea and CMB helping out defensively. Like you got some confidence behind you that you can be a little more aggressive out there. So be cool if this can translate into the actual Raptors roster in the season. And again there's an identity. People are trying to come up with like a nickname for this squad already. Like this defensive minded team. Now again like they're playing the Bulls summer league roster and then they were playing the Magic summer league roster. So it's like okay, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. But if that's the identity, that's great because you know that's not going to be the like that's not really what your Ingrams and your quicklies and most of your starters are really going to be about. And you do need to score in this league. But holy man, these guys are aggressive. Like they are picking up teams like full court and have forced a lot of these turnover. It's like 32 seals, 10 blocks. Like yeah, they're pretty wild numbers for short games.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, The Bulls had 33 turnovers playing these Toronto Raptors in game number one. A lot of it is because of these defensive dogs. So the starting lineup you have quickly, RJ Barrett, Scotty Barnes is the defensive one. But Brandon Ingram and Yaka Purdle, they can just play offense and you bring in, you bring in your dogs. They do have an attitude which Darko Reakovich is wanted. So right now they look fantastic because of that.

[Tas Melas]

The nickname I saw was Border Patrol. Didn't love it. You know, this exact, this idea like people coming into Canada and they're like the customs officers, they're the agents shutting things down. I Get the thinking. But I'm with you. We can do better also. Let's see if they can do it in the actual NBA.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, that's probably.

[Tas Melas]

It's probably. Probably a little different against actual NBA competition.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. Well, their nickname a few years ago when it was Yakapur, Pascal Siakam, the Bench.

[Tas Melas]

That was a bench mob.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, bench mob.

[Tas Melas]

I think it was bench mob. I have a sweater or I had a shirt that had it on. Or maybe you did too at one point.

[J. Skeets]

Didn't feel like it said bench mob on my shirt, but it's probably right.

[Tas Melas]

But you're right. It was the Van Vliet and Siakams and like that sort of weight.

[J. Skeets]

Guys, congratulations. Fred VanVleet, the new national Basketball Association Player association president.

[Tas Melas]

Yes. That's pretty cool. How much do you think he gets paid for that?

[J. Skeets]

I don't know.

[Tas Melas]

Okay.

[J. Skeets]

I have, I have no idea.

[Tas Melas]

I know.

[J. Skeets]

Anyway, we'll see how those, those bench players, if, if they are a part of this. We'll see if they can be that same, same type of team. But I, again, I. Jamal Shed is playing. He's like the Davion Mitchell that they traded away. Like what Damian Mitchell is doing in Miami. Like that type of defensive attitude he's playing. That guy is going to play again. He looked at Colin Mary Boyles and gave him a stare after he didn't get out to a three point shooter. And this is Colin Mary Boyle's like first like few minutes on a floor.

[Tas Melas]

You get, you get the comparisons of like to Van Vliet in all honesty, like that sort of just. He's a leader and it just sort of is a winner in that regards and people respect him and stuff like that. So. Okay, two, two more guys to talk about. Kingsguard Nick Clifford, sort of a guy. Again, I'm not like a draft expert, so I didn't know a lot about him coming into the draft. He, I guess the Kings sort of, they traded like a future pick to get this pick later in the first round to take Nate Clifford. And he's looked Good Monday at 19 points, 7 of 8 shooting. Hit all his threes, three boards, three assists, three steals and a block. In limited time, the Kings are winning here in Vegas. Through three games, Clifford is averaging 18, 6, 4, 2 steals per game, shooting 60% from the field. The highlights that I've watched of him, he's scoring in a number of ways. Turnaround jumpers, catch and shoot threes. I love the pump fake parties he throws inside. Like three guys draped around him, doesn't panic, uses the pump, fake bodies, guys out of the way. He's pretty crafty, I think around the rim. And he's old. And this is the thing, the Kings drafted this guy. I think they got up there to get that pick to take him because they're like, he's 23 years old. He might actually be able to contribute from day one. And I know they have a lot of guards and wings on that team and some of them are much, much older, obviously when we're talking Levine and Dorozin. But this guy should, I think they, they hope contribute right away because he's not going to. He's not one of these like 19 year old. He's got to learn the game, learn the ropes. Like, no, he can play right now. So Clifford is impressed.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, him along with Devin Carter, who had a rookie year last year where he, he was injured the entire season. Basically he came back really super late as a dog to go along with Keon Ellis as a dog. Those guys really get after it. Now Devin Carter's shown that he can score. So I am interested to see, as much as we all ridicule the Sacramento Kings, who they are, what they are with this team, that's what are they really. They struggle to find an identity. There's been talk about moving Malik Monk. It's logical, I think, I think, I think that sort of makes sense. If they're going to buy into alongside your DeRozan and your Levine, you throw out Keon Ellis, who's going to play, and Devin Carter. More of those than just keeping Malik Monk, who's a great score, obviously. But yeah, that would make more sense. At least there would be more of an identity. And maybe I'm just relying on all the defensive guys. We've gone with the, the Toronto Raptors defense. We've seen a lot of dogs creating. The Charlotte Hornets have got after it defensively. Maybe I'm just banking on that in summer league, maybe I'm just saying now these guys aren't great offensive players, but they can play defense. So I'm starting to, you know, reconstruct some rosters out there.

[Tas Melas]

Well, it helps you get on the floor in the NBA though. Yeah, you can defend now. You have to do more. You can't be a joke offensively, especially in today's game because people are just going to like leave you alone and then suddenly four on five. But yes, that's at least how you like get a coach's attention. Carter, that you compete on that end.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, there's a lot of spurs.

[Tas Melas]

I've been impressed with Clifford. And he wears number five. Just took Fox's number just like that, huh? And there were some people like, oh, I don't know, that feels weird. But then other people like, what do you mean? We're not retiring, dear. And Fox's number in Sacramento, which, I mean, I don't want to speak for Sacramento Kings fans, but I don't think you would be that he had a decent career there, but. Right. You know, hanging number five in the. In the rafters. So go ahead, Clifford, wear it proudly.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Who else? You got one more round.

[J. Skeets]

I want to go to the Miami Heat because there was the California Classic. Kasparis Yakoshonas wasn't playing all that well. He's drafted extremely high by the Miami Heat. But he had a bad California Classic first game. He comes into Vegas, bang, bang, bang, bang. Home five threes. He looked like that offensive player that they drafted. He just looks so comfortable with the ball. And you start to get a good feel that this guy could be coming off the bench along with Davion Mitchell. They lack depth on their team and they let go of Duncan Robinson. So they need some three point shooters and he looks like he can do that. He was comfortable doing that. So kudos to him. I will say the Miami Heater are very interesting team. You saw Eric Spoelstra here at summer league call out Khalil Ware. He basically said his professionalism, his accountability. Let me, let me quote him. His professionalism and consistency has to improve after Khalil Ware's first game at summer league. That's a call out. Why would a coach do that? And then Khalil Ware came out of the second game. Oh, he played. Dennis Scott interviewed.

[Tas Melas]

That's why he did it.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, he had a great game. Dennis Scott interviewed him during the game. He said my effort wasn't there his first game. And then post games asked about it again. He said Spoelstra called me to step up and I think it was Ira Winderman who asked him again, well, are you going to be more consistency? Are we going to see more of the. The what Eric sponsor was asking you of? He said, yeah, you will. And so after a bad game, he had a good one and they're calling him up because they don't have a lot of depth clue where I think we'll start beside Bam in a bio. But if he's not being professional, you know.

[Tas Melas]

Right. Is the call out like, hey man, you're not better than summer league Yet.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

You know what I mean? Like he was good as a rookie.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

But you're like hey, you're not. You're not too cool for summer league.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Like go out there and use this seriously to work on your game and to try and lead this team.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

It feels like to me after that first game performance like you're going through the motions.

[J. Skeets]

Maybe you got to do that every single night.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

Every single night of your life.

[Tas Melas]

Sounds like you're preaching Heat culture there.

[J. Skeets]

I guess. I mean it makes sense again I'm starting to buy in a little bit after the Norman Powell edition. Put him beside Tyler Hero and Andrew Wiggins, Khalil Ware and Bam Adebayo. And if Yakishonis and Davion Mitchell can come off the bench to be their primary bench players. Hey, everybody's picking the Hawks as the team and the. Why can't the Miami Heat be that. Wow, they're a top.

[Tas Melas]

They're a top 10 spicy take.

[J. Skeets]

They're a top 10 defense last year. Why can't they be better than this team? Look, they got bombed by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoffs. They got destroyed because they couldn't score. There's some scores on this team, Norm pal can friggin score. So yeah, I'm starting to buy it. There's.

[Tas Melas]

There's the buy in season though, baby. Yeah, talk yourself in every team right now.

[J. Skeets]

Well, at least they were in the playing, you know so. Yeah, the Hawks. He. I could be bought into the Charlotte Hornets. That's deep.

[Tas Melas]

I thought you were going to say the Pacers still.

[J. Skeets]

Oh yeah, yeah. I said that earlier.

[Tas Melas]

I know.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. I'm buying then. Yes. Give me the firf.

[Tas Melas]

The Hornets.

[J. Skeets]

Isaiah Jackson. Yeah. Well there's. There, I think they're on.

[Tas Melas]

I'll stop there.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, you can stop there. I think they're on a better route than last year. Better path, a better roster construction.

[Tas Melas]

Okay.

[J. Skeets]

For who they can be. I was excited about Ryan Kalkbrenner off this because he was defensive player of the year. Was the coaches defensive player of the year whatever it was called the NA. Anyways, he was great but he's a second round pick. I think him, Liam McNeely they have better guys. Are they NBA? Hey, we're making the playoffs in the Eastern Conference. Nah dog, I doubt that but they are far better.

[Tas Melas]

And what about Khan Knipple?

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, the Knipple.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, he was there in high pick.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, I don't know how that's gonna work with Lamelo. That's questioned me it's nice to see Lamello out there, but who's gonna score? Who's gonna do other things? And that starting lineup, that's. I don't know if that's all gonna mesh. I just like a little bit more of the construction, a little bit more of, hey, we're gonna play some defense. We'll see if that actually translates to the starters. We'll see.

[Tas Melas]

Fair enough. Maybe a direction for sure.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Trey Kirby]

Are you a business owner looking to grow your business? You did what most dream of doing, starting your own business. Now you're faced with the reality of how to make the small business run smoothly. Intuit QuickBooks can help. QuickBooks is a powerful AI driven all in one business solution. That means those day to day tasks, invoicing, expenses, taxes, can be done effortlessly. But here's where it really gets good. You don't need to hire a team of analysts to find growth opportunities hiding in your business data. QuickBooks can help with cash flow optimization, profit and loss analysis. It helps you see how your business is doing and uncover new ways to be more profitable. QuickBooks can help you unlock the growth in your business so you can get back to enjoying your business. Manage and grow your business all in one place. Intuit QuickBooks your way to money. Get 90 off for 3 months limited time only. Only terms and conditions apply. Money movement services are provided by Intuit Payments Inc. Licensed as a money transmitter by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

[Tas Melas]

Now at Verizon, we have some big news for your peace of mind. For all our customers existing and new, we're locking in low prices for three years guaranteed on my plan and my home. That's future you peace of mind and everyone can save on a brand new phone on MyPlan. When you trade in any phone from one of our top brands, that's new phone peace of mind. Because at Verizon, whether you're already a customer or you're just joining us, we got you. Visit Verizon today. Price guarantee applies to then current base monthly rate. Additional terms and conditions apply for all offers.

[Instacart Announcer]

Did you know adults 60 plus lose more than $60 billion each year to financial exploitation. Greenlight's new Family Shield plan empowers you to monitor your accounts for suspicious activity, protect yourself with up to $1 million identity theft coverage and reassure loved ones that you're safe with location and place alerts. Get peace of mind [e-mail] protect that's greenlight.com protect.

[Tas Melas]

Offseason news. That's enough summer league talk. We Fallen in love with 20 guys. But offseason news, the Grizzlies agreed to a contract buyout with point guard Cole Anthony. So when that process is completed and he does clear waivers, the assumption is he's going to sign with the Milwaukee Bucks. For those that don't know or remember, he was on the Orlando Magic last season. He averaged nine, three and three and pretty limited minutes. Cole Anthony did had some big sort of moments like he can catch fire. He's one of those guys. But then he got traded to the Grizzlies in the Desmond Bain trade that brought him to Orlando, and so that's why he's on the Grizzlies. That may have, like, really confused you, but that's why the buyout's happening. And yeah, he might join the Bucks here. I think, you know, our guys at the Athletic are reporting that. I think Shams is saying that he's going to Milwaukee. What's your takeaway?

[J. Skeets]

Well, he's insurance. We've got Kevin Porter Jr. There that could be a starter, but could also implode. That's not a lock. Ryan Rollins is there. Other guard who can play defense, but not a great offensive player. So Cole Anthony can come in and, yeah, light it up. He can. And so they have a balance there. But again, if something happens with Kempo junior Cole Anthony can be out there. He's their third guard we saw with the Orlando Magic who needed a guard. They didn't go to him a ton. And so they went to other options, so.

[Tas Melas]

And then the Grizzlies felt like they didn't need him either.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, so he's insurance. I don't, I don't see him running this team. He's a great locker room guy. You always watch Orlando Magic, whether it's post game, press conferences. I mean, he does a good job of, of supporting other players. So I think he's good at that. And so that's what he's there for, really, in Milwaukee. I think they need better vibes. I mean, who doesn't? I think that just goes without saying. He's only 25. He's not old. It feels like he's been around.

[Tas Melas]

Feels like he's been around way longer than to be 25. That's exactly what I thought. I was like, what is that, a typo? Nope, he's 25. Yeah, I agree with all that insurance for if Kevin Porter Jr. Slash Ryan Rollins doesn't work, you know, as these young guys maybe have showed promising, you know, flashes of point guard play, but maybe they're not the answer. So you can turn to him in case of emergency and like, yeah, he's not gonna. Like, I don't think he's gonna be a sour note in your locker room. He seems to be the exact opposite.

[J. Skeets]

You're right.

[Tas Melas]

People, like, rave about this guy on and off the court with teammates and the community and the media and stuff like that. So that's what they're getting here.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

You know, so what happens. This is what you got to do when you don't have a lot of options because of your cap situation and with the Damian Lillard injury, and so they go out and call Anthony. A lot of people think they've done pretty well here in with, again, limited options to try and keep this team competitive and try and keep Giannis happy. Is the other part which, you know, that's died down to some extent, the idea, trade rumors, stuff like that. It's quiet right now.

[J. Skeets]

Janice doesn't like taxes. He was on that boat. He was doing a. I guess it was a twitch. I don't know, something. Some sort of video with somebody else, and somebody had to ask him, and he didn't seem super excited about him leaving. New York was mentioned some other big city. I don't know if it was la. He goes, oh, they have. They have high taxes. He just kind of want to brush off the question because I don't think he's leaving. You're right.

[Tas Melas]

I've always said that.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, I don't think so. But as you said, what John Horst has done here with front offices for the Bucks has done here is they're trying their hardest.

[Tas Melas]

Yes.

[J. Skeets]

They've. They've done everything they could possibly do to stretch and wave Lillard, to do everything they can with the rest of their money. The question is, these next few years, they got nothing else. Right. So they got to hope for a Kuzma little. Little improvement with Kyle Kuzma to help out.

[Tas Melas]

And then these guys gotta come internally, run the show here in Porter and Rollin. I mean, like, Giannis is sort of your point guard anyway, but. But still, they need to contribute. And, like, yeah, maybe the honest trade rumors are quiet right now, but, you know, when they get very loud, if they come out of the gate and they're three and 15 or whatever, you know, something brutal, I don't think they'll be that because you got Giannis on your team, but you get my point here.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

If the record starts to be like, okay, well, this didn't work, then maybe that just ramps all back up again because, you know, that's what it would do.

[J. Skeets]

There is pressure on those other guys. Janice can't carry your team for 82 games. So when you. When you say they can start 5, 15, or if they do start 5 and 15, yeah, there is some pressure, and I think it is on Kuzma. I think it is. Right now. I know Kevin Porter Jr. Can score. There's no doubt. But Kuzma's got to be a ball. He's got to be score. They need somebody.

[Tas Melas]

We had some extensions over the last week or so. I'm going to chuck them all at you here. Jalen Williams and the Thunder agreed to a rookie max extension that could get very, very pricey, but has seemed to be deserving of such a contract extension. Devin Booker agreed to a two year, 145 million max extension with the Suns. That's a lot of money per year once those kick in. And then Herb Jones and the Pelicans agreed to a three year, $68 million extension, and Isaiah Jackson and the Pacers agreed to a three year, $21 million deal. Any of those four you want to really dig your teeth into?

[J. Skeets]

Well, Jalen Williams, I know some wondering, why do you got to give this guy a max? I guess. I mean, him alongside Chad Holmgren, I guess they kind of are tandem. Like, are we overpaying for guys? I will say Jalen Williams is a rock. He's only getting better. I think he's. He's. He's young. You know, he hasn't reached his peak. I think it's totally fine. Obviously, it starts with Shea, but if you sign Jalen Williams to a max deal when she's already being great, then you're all right. Jalen Williams at 24, just had his first alcoholic drink after winning the trophy. I mean, we saw him in the Cosmo food court after his rookie year. So that was 20, 23, and he didn't even have a drink then in Vegas.

[Tas Melas]

The discipline.

[J. Skeets]

The discipline, yeah. His parents are part of both. Part of the Air Force.

[Tas Melas]

So you're saying when he was 23, now 24. That's different to you and me, when we were 23. 24.

[J. Skeets]

God, yeah. Yeah. I think he's a little more grown.

[Tas Melas]

Up because of the damage we had done already.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Yes, I agree. I just wanted to clarify.

[J. Skeets]

Oh, yeah, yeah. He's just. He's grounded. Way more grounded than we are or were, period.

[Tas Melas]

I can't believe there are people actually questioning whether he's deserving of this, But I guess they say, well, yeah, sga. Max. Max guy. And then you're going to do it for this guy too. And then Chad Holgren, now that one, it's like, well, the guy's been injured a lot, has barely played. I'm talking about Chevy. We're like, okay, maybe that one. You pumped the brakes a little bit. They just won the title though. And they're like, let's just lock them all up. Let's go from there. We'll figure it out. And they've done good work around the fringes and all their other contracts. So it's like, yeah, it gets crazy expensive when you're at up to three quarters of a billion dollars plus for three guys. But you know, they are doing other things around with the rest of their roster and eventually guys will get squeezed like at some point, you know, it's either Caruso or adored or something like that where it's like these embarrassment of riches that they've set themselves up with because of all their young guys on young deals. Until the extensions start kicking in, you can't have it all. But they're like, who cares? Let's go win a couple championships. Or try to. But Jalen Williams is already an all NBA all star player.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. Just won a trophy. Getting better in the playoffs when he had an injured wrist. He literally got better. He had some bad games offensively, but he kept with it. Game six against the Nuggets in round two, didn't have a good night scoring the ball. Game seven, he comes back. So I think he's just well grounded. And listen.

[Tas Melas]

And they're two way players too, is the other part. Oh yeah, him and chat like they're defensive. All NBA defense guys type of guys.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah. I might just be manufacturing a little bit of storyline here to say, well, should this guy be a Max Just to have something to talk about here. But you can see that. Oh well, look what the Boston Celtics did. Paying everybody. Maybe they should slow it down a little bit. But as you said, they've done so well at accumulating draft picks and the young contracts. They're going to get better in other ways. And so it's fine to pay these max guys besides Shea in Jalen Williams and Chad.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

Because Jaylen is just. Yeah. And fantastic.

[Tas Melas]

Your window. But the window in today's NBA with the second apron stuff might just be like, it's not these, you know, long dynasties. I just don't think that's going to be possible with what you got to pay. Like your top End talent. So. But you can get it for a couple of years. But the Celtic comparison is maybe fair in like, you know, and eventually you're like, well, okay, well now we're not. A guy's injured. Yes, the Tatum part of this equation changes things. But we're not there now on that level. So we can't afford these type of contracts. So we have to start moving off. But. But for this next year or two. And again, extensions kicking in later, it will get more expensive. But you got them and you just came off a title and they're deserving for the most part. I mean, I guess you could push back on the Chad Hunger. Is he really deserving? I think he's an incredible player. That's the weird thing to me, it's like I'm like. As much as I love Jalen Williams, I sometimes like is check going to be better than him though? Like the potential with his size, his ability on both ends. I don't know.

[J. Skeets]

Just overall.

[Tas Melas]

Just overall. I'm just saying he's a great defensive player. Pecking order, are you going to have this right now it's sga, J Dub and Chet. I don't think anyone's going to argue with that. But would you be all that surprised if Chet jumped him in the pecking order of importance? I guess.

[J. Skeets]

Good question. Will his offensive game grow enough? Because we know he's a fantastic defensive player and stuck with it every single possession out there. Will his ball handling increase? Especially because he hasn't played a lot of games. Super duper Young hasn't played enough. I wouldn't be surprised because we. I think we know what Jalen Williams ceiling is. I guess I think he will grow as well offensively. But the comparison to the Boston Celtics and to this new era of the NBA, I guess that's why Adam Silver came out at the NBA draft and said, welcome to a new era in the NBA because of all the parody that's happening. And the difference is, is between the Celtics and the Thunder. The Celtics went out and paid jrue Holiday a ton, you know, as your. Your fourth or fifth guy for the long term. And that. That butted heads with Jalen Brown, Jason Tatum's contracts. Right? That hurts Max. So the Thunder haven't done that. You know, Isaiah Harding signs contract will end in a few years. Caruso is way shorter than that. So those big ones, they just. They timed it well. They timed out Shay, Jalen and Chet well. So they don't pay those other guys monster deals at the same time.

[Tas Melas]

It's an interesting. What if they don't win the title? Then what are these guys looking at? Like, is it just still an absolute no brainer? Here's the max for like basically all three of these guys.

[J. Skeets]

That's an interesting one.

[Tas Melas]

Or is it? You feel like, okay, we did win the title. They came through in big moments, all three of them. Of course, with SGA as the leader, it's like, all right, they're only going to get better with their age, grow together, and we feel good about the rest of our roster. As for Isaiah Jackson, you know, they lose Miles Turner, the Pacers do in free agency and here's what they've done. Resigned big man James Wiseman, traded for Jay Huff, and now get a contract extension for isaiah Jackson. The three years, 21 million. And they're pretty excited about his development because this was a guy that was injured too.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, he could easily be their number one guy at center.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

If he's healthy. That's a huge question. You mentioned those other guys in Huff, James Wiseman, but well, I think we'll see some small ball. Jairus Walker out there, a small ball center again, this is only year number three for Jerus Walker. He's barely played in his first couple years, played more in year number two, but the guy can shoot it. So they're just. If we give the Thunder credit, we got to give these guys some credit for how they've grown players internally. That's where it's going to have to come if the Pacers are going to be able to hang with the Eastern Conference.

[Tas Melas]

The groups are set for the NBA cup in 2025. All 30 teams have been randomly drawn into groups of five within their conference based on win loss records from the 2425 regular season. So here's a look for everyone on YouTube. I'm not going to go through these groups because come on, what am I sicko? No, just too boring. But any groups that jump out to you task like what's the group of deaths? If you had to pick from these.

[J. Skeets]

Results, everyone was saying, I guess it's West Sea.

[Tas Melas]

That's what I think it makes sense. You got the Nuggets, the Warriors, the Rockets, like just end there. And it's like, whoa, those are three really good teams. And then you got the Blazers, who are, you know, should be better, I think. And then the spurs, oh my God, like with women. Yama, who's been cleared, good to go. The monks did their work at the Shaolin Temple and this guy's back. So that's exciting. And obviously, you know, the high draft pick and stuff. So that, that to me is the most impressive or toughest group, I think. West group C. Yes.

[J. Skeets]

Are you going to be able to track. I guess. I guess I'm going to say what I was going to say. Are you going to be able to track the groups? Like, is it just going to. Is it going to be a little difficult? Obviously you can go to a website and look.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, yeah, but.

[J. Skeets]

But should they just replicate divisions in them? I don't know.

[Tas Melas]

That's fair, I guess.

[J. Skeets]

I guess not as fair. And I guess it doesn't emulate exactly copy exactly what they're doing in soccer, I guess.

[Tas Melas]

Right.

[J. Skeets]

To make it more of a different event, you change the group up, the groups up. So that's fine. I'm cool.

[Tas Melas]

So these games begin October 31st. Cup night games. Right. And they're going to run through the end of November, basically. Each team playing four group play games on these designated cup nights. And then we get into the knockout stage. So we'll have eight teams. You'll have the winners of each of those groups. That's six right there. And then the one each in east and west. The next best record point differential, as we've seen, comes into play here. And who knows what the courts are going to look like. That's the other part.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

What are they doing? We've done the Runway sort of the. That. That strip down the middle. We've done now the circles. Triangles don't go triangles. We've done rectangles and circles. Matt Austin could design the courts. It's a very deep pull. That pull might be so deep task doesn't even get the reference.

[J. Skeets]

Triangles.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah. Matt Austin, when he would doodle, he would just always draw triangles, like connecting triangles.

[J. Skeets]

Oh, yeah.

[Tas Melas]

JD confirm the triangle band. Matt Austin.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, yeah, Confirm on the doodles.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, he's the doodle. If he's. When he's not eating his pen lid, he's doodling triangles one or the other.

[J. Skeets]

Gotta ask Victor Solomon what he's gonna be up to.

[Tas Melas]

Oh, you think Solomon has a play in these courts?

[J. Skeets]

He did last year.

[Tas Melas]

I thought the guy does everything for the NBA, so. Yeah, you must be right. It's him or Jeff Hamilton. If it's wardrobe related, it's Jeff Hamilton. If it's anything else, it's Victor Solomon.

[J. Skeets]

We're going to start a group with Victor Solomon. Got to get his number. And Matt Austin. So Matt Austin will cons. Yeah, consult at least.

[Tas Melas]

Oh, I know Matt does Listen to our show or watch the show. So maybe we could have him do a mock for a potential NBA cup court.

[J. Skeets]

Great idea.

[Tas Melas]

Let's just give like. Yeah, give them, you know, get him a template. Have him go nuts. Yeah, that's a great idea.

[JD]

Hell yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Honestly, it's a great idea. We should open up to the no dunks universe to the fans.

[JD]

But doodles are back, baby.

[Tas Melas]

Well, yeah, just doodle an NBA cup court. Let's see what we can get. Let's get the ideas going for the Solomons.

[J. Skeets]

The circles last year, did you like them? And they went super bright with the.

[Tas Melas]

Colors just like the year before. Some courts worked better than others and usually had to do with their color scheme.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

And the, the brightness of it or so stuff like, I guess overall I liked them more last year than maybe the year before. But then again I'm always like, yeah, but did you. Or you just were then now used to like this very flamboyant, over the top design, you know, I mean. Yeah, we sort of gotten used to it.

[J. Skeets]

I'm more of a Runway man myself.

[Tas Melas]

Runway man.

[JD]

I'm a run rate Runway man.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, well, some of those colors were too bright, but yeah, I wonder, I wonder if they'll be open to triangles. I mean, Phil Jackson, triangle offense. I don't know, just saying stuff. The biggest thing for me is that they're starting on October 31st. There's a reason for that. The game intensity starts early. Yeah, I guess it could go, you.

[Tas Melas]

Know, just like spooky courts, cobwebs, more of a moody tone, you know, tone.

[J. Skeets]

Just October 31st.

[Tas Melas]

Just that one. Yeah, yeah.

[J. Skeets]

You need Victor Solomon. Come on, you're going to get to work. Every single game is going to be different. We know somebody that can help out. But I do think M. Silver is looking at the calendar, the NBA calendar in general overall throughout the years. Huh? Maybe the NBA season starts on December 25th. That starts on Christmas. Now they're pushing this alternate term, this alternate tournament that has definitely increased intensity earlier and earlier and earlier to have other options to make it look like guys are trying harder.

[Tas Melas]

Is it starting just a week earlier to last year? Must be. Must have started early November, right?

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, I think it was mid November. But anyways, it says October now.

[Tas Melas]

No, I know, I know.

[J. Skeets]

Sounds early.

[Tas Melas]

I think a big part of it too is. And it sort of goes nicely into our final topic. Amazon prime, one of the new broadcast partners. They're going to be leaning heavily on NBA cup action as sort of like they're like, hello, we're here. You know what I mean? Because they don't have conference finals early on. It's like a couple years out for at least Amazon prime. So maybe that's part of it too. You know, got new broadcaster here, all this new talent. Let's see what they can do. Here's an NBA cup game.

[J. Skeets]

Well, they have other.

[Tas Melas]

I know they have other games, but I think that's like their big sort of launch off. Oh, you know, I mean.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, yeah.

[Tas Melas]

And we now know that Kevin Harlan has signed with Amazon Prime Video to call NBA games beginning later this year when we get the season started. The Athletic says the deal was signed in May, believed to be three years. And in addition, Amazon has added our guy, Brent Berry. There's a court idea, the Bone Zone. So he's coming on as a game analyst. So Kevin Harland and Bones.

[J. Skeets]

Well, you got a Halloween idea. I think with Bones.

[Tas Melas]

Damn.

[J. Skeets]

Could be wearing a skeleton costume at game number one.

[Tas Melas]

This is good.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, let's, let's get going.

[Tas Melas]

You need to be in a Halloween costume as a skeleton on night one here for Amazon Prime. Prime Video also have said that they're not going to like have set announcing pairings or like an A and a B team, but Ian Eagle is likely to be the voice for the top games. So that sounds like an A team broadcaster. But anyway, you got Harlan as your B team. I mean, Jesus. And again, they don't get the conference finals till 27. That is confirmed. But man, Tas, they are stacked here. Let me give you Amazon prime right now. Play by play announcers, Harlan, Ian Eagle, Michael Grady. Three bangers for play by play announcers. Their analysts include Blake Griffin, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Candace Parker, Stan Van Gundy and Dwyane Wade. And apparently more analysts are going to be hired. Cassidy Hubbarth is going to be their number one sideline reporter. And then Taylor Rooks is going to be hosting the studio show. That's pretty damn good.

[J. Skeets]

It's very, very, very full of talent.

[Tas Melas]

That is a lot of talent here to start year one again and maybe more names to come. But, but gotta love, gotta love Bones being back on tv. I'm excited about that after being, I guess with the spurs front office for a little bit. And then he was on the, he was a son's assistant for a hot minute, but he's back. And. Come on, Eagle and Harlan and Grady, wow, they're stacked. And then, hold on, who's got, who's got Collins and, and Curry? They've joined one of these. Maybe they're NBC. I saw, like, something going around.

[J. Skeets]

Eric Collins and Del Curry. Yeah, okay. Yeah, yeah, I'm interested. We have with Amazon. I was interested to hear them say, we are fluid. There's not a hierarchy here. We could say we got our games. I forget what night their games are. I haven't looked. But if we got our games on Wednesday night and we want to have this guy and this team out there, then we'll do that and we'll just flip it around.

[Tas Melas]

That's interesting because, like, a lot of time we're like, you got to build the chemistry up. You know, you gotta get your reps in as a squad, like a crew. But they're like, sort of coming out of like, do you maybe. Maybe it works. It can work. Like swapping guys in and out. Because they're also saying some of these guys, like the athletes, like former athletes, might be. They might be in the studio one night and then on the call, like, the next night. So that's sort of interesting, too. Bouncing back and forth, no pressure.

[J. Skeets]

Well, it does seem like they've modernized a little bit by saying, we're fluid. We'll change things up. Maybe we don't have to have the same guys go out there and do the same broadcast over and over. I understand you want chemistry, but just to switch it up, just see what we got.

[Tas Melas]

Well, that's the thing. Maybe you do that to find out which pairs, which teams start to click.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Which ones work, which ones don't.

[J. Skeets]

That's what you got to do.

[Tas Melas]

So you try it out. Give it a go. Anyway, it looks like a stacked roster.

[J. Skeets]

Very stacked.

[Tas Melas]

And NBC is doing some, you know, pretty great hirings as well. So it's sort of excited. Just like, I'm gonna miss. I was gonna say I'm gonna miss TNT inside, but it's gonna be on espn. Like, that will be weird, the studio show with. With Ernie and the boys. But I'm excited just to see what production ideas, these two big players in NBC and Amazon, like, unveil new things. I mean, I assume NBC is going to lead into the nostalgia of it all, but what will Amazon sort of vibe be?

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, yeah.

[Tas Melas]

I'm just like, it makes it a little more exciting for us.

[J. Skeets]

And that's why this whole we're fluid is a good idea. Just because this is a modern situation here. I'm excited just because I don't have to watch TV anymore. You know, I'm using apps.

[Tas Melas]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[J. Skeets]

You're an app because I was always an app man. I was using the NBA app. But anyways, that's.

[Tas Melas]

He's an atman. That's a short right there.

[J. Skeets]

That's a great tune.

[Tas Melas]

Just you opening apps to. To a statman remix. He's an at man.

[J. Skeets]

Stat man.

[Tas Melas]

Hey, J.D. get your son in here. We got a short idea for him to work on. All right. We'll call it there on news though. I will just slip this in. We learned yesterday. Yesterday Paul George underwent a successful arthroscopic procedure on his left knee on Monday to treat an injury suffered during a recent workout. Paul George, wow. This news to you? Am I breaking news to you?

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, I wasn't checking.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, he's gonna begin a rehab program. He's gonna be re evaluated prior to the start of training camp. So he suffered this during a recent workout and just had surgery on it. Oh, not a great start for the surgery.

[J. Skeets]

That sounds very unfortunate.

[Tas Melas]

Not good.

[J. Skeets]

It wasn't one of those lingering. No injuries? No, no.

[Tas Melas]

That is sort of a new one. Or at least I mean re aggravated something to the point where you had to get a procedure on his left knee.

[J. Skeets]

Yikes.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

You know, you just almost have to laugh if you're a Sixers fan at this point. Maybe. Right.

[J. Skeets]

Spooky. Yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Maybe there'll be the first cup night game on October 31st. Anything else? What are you doing for the next couple days? As we. You know, obviously the shows are not going to go daily right now. We'll be back on probably Thursday with any new NBA news. Maybe some more summer league thoughts. Maybe something else. Got an idea. Maybe we'll hit the beach. Get your questions in no dunks@the athletic.com. leave them in the YouTube comments. Tweet @ us at no Dunks Inc.

[J. Skeets]

Nothing really planned for me. Just surviving. Kids have been off kids. This is week seven of the kids being off school, but who's counting? Me every day.

[Tas Melas]

When do they go back? Early August.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah, they always do. Any plans?

[Tas Melas]

Were you. No, no, no, no.

[JD]

You're recording a new episode of Thumb. More tomorrow. Today after this, actually.

[Tas Melas]

And what.

[JD]

What is the movie Superman saw yesterday?

[Tas Melas]

Okay, come on, tease us a little bit.

[JD]

Loved it. Loved it, loved it.

[Tas Melas]

D.C. is back.

[JD]

D.C. has arrived. In my opinion. Never been a D.C. that came out wrong. D semen a D.C. man. Yeah.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[JD]

I loved it. I loved it.

[Tas Melas]

I heard there was too much dog.

[J. Skeets]

I.

[JD]

You know what? I saw the dog in the trailer and I was like, I'm out. Immediately out. Man. I have A dog. I have two dogs. One of them I like. The other one is a dog, and I'm all in on the dog.

[Tas Melas]

You know what it is? What is it? Crypto.

[JD]

Crypto dog is a bit of a dick and I think I like that.

[J. Skeets]

Oh.

[JD]

Like kind of out of control. A little like Hazel, my. My favorite.

[Tas Melas]

Okay.

[JD]

So, you know, I was in a completely CGI too, but I was still like, this dog is pretty cool.

[Tas Melas]

Couldn't use a real dog. Well, I guess the dog's. What is the dog flying?

[JD]

Yeah, that's got super.

[Tas Melas]

Super dog.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[JD]

Wears a cape the entire time. I don't know about that.

[Tas Melas]

Yeah, that's interesting. So you like that? You. You really like this movie, though?

[JD]

I surprised myself.

[Tas Melas]

All right.

[JD]

But I. Yeah, I loved it.

[Tas Melas]

I got some movies to go see in the. In the movie.

[JD]

Yeah, it's worth it.

[Tas Melas]

I want to see F1, which is also. Which people are saying is fine, but I like to see it on the big screen. Okay, you saw it. I want to see Superman.

[J. Skeets]

Yeah.

[JD]

I feel like there's one more 28 years later. If you can catch it in the.

[Tas Melas]

Theater, we'll not be watching that.

[JD]

Okay.

[Tas Melas]

I just don't care. And fair enough. I was gonna say Jurassic park, but people are saying, do not do that.

[JD]

I wouldn't. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Tas Melas]

Okay. I guess I got two.

[JD]

Go see Superman.

[Tas Melas]

Okay. All right. I can't wait. Let's call it there again. We'll be back later this week with thoughts on Superman. I guess. Until then, Cobra Bros. You heard it here first. Have a great time. Turn up. Love you guys.

[Ad]

Awesome.

[J. Skeets]

Thanks for joining us. And remember Eric Collins? Apparently, according to our Trey Kirby who's chiming in here, he's on Amazon. Wow.

[Tas Melas]

They have him too.

[J. Skeets]

They got them all, I guess.

[Tas Melas]

Slow down, Amazon. Holy crap. Yeah, it's a lot of packages being delivered. I don't know. It doesn't actually make sense. Yeah, because they would be delivering them. Amazon would be delivering packages to themselves.

[JD]

Right? Well, if Jonas Valentun has got a job at like later on or he.

[Tas Melas]

Gets a job with Amazon and they're gonna say, your package. Perfect. That's incredible. Okay. They got a stack Stack team. We'll see you later this week. Brace the day, people.

[Alltrails Announcer]

Hi. Brooke Devart here, host of Naked Beauty. Every week I talk to my audience about beauty and self care. I'm someone who spends a lot of time in the bathroom. It is truly my sanctuary. So investing in a smart toilet from Kohler has been life changing. The Kohler Vail Smart Toilet has a heated seat, hands free opening of the lid and customizable bidet functionality. It is incredible, but beyond the technology, the design is just stunning. The veil's curved silhouette in honed black actually inspired creative director and fashion designer Laura Kim to create a stunning black chiffon dress that debuted on the Runway at New York Fashion Week. The creative partnership between Kohler and Laura Kim is changing how we think about everyday objects like a toilet. Transform your routine into something extraordinary. With the Kohler Vail Smart Toilet ready.

[Instacart Announcer]

To elevate your everyday, Quince has the luxe staples insiders swear by, minus the markup. From 100% European linen styles and 14 karat gold jewelry to gorgeous leather bags and elevated home finds, Quince has it all. And by partnering directly with top artisans and ethical factories, Quince delivers premium quality at half the cost of similar brands. Discover everyday luxury without the markup at quint. Go to quint.com styleupgrade for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com styleupgrade trying to plan a trip.

[Alltrails Announcer]

And already need a vacation from it? EF Ultimate Break makes group travel easy and affordable for anyone 18 to 35. Everything's handled from accommodation to daily breakfasts.

[Tas Melas]

To an expert tour director.

[Alltrails Announcer]

We'll show you the local secrets. Go island hopping in Greece, eat your.

[Tas Melas]

Way through Tokyo or take your pick.

[Alltrails Announcer]

From over 120 trips. Perfectly planned for your kind of adventure and with flexible interest free payments, you can book now and pay over time. Just head to EFUB Co Travel, fill out your info and get $100 off your first trip.