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- [00:00]
J. Skeets
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- [01:20]
Tas Melas
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Trey Kirby
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Tas Melas
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Tas Melas
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- [01:42]
Tas Melas
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- [01:44]
J. Skeets
Visit your nearby Lowe's.
- [01:49]
JD (Super Producer)
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- [02:51]
Trey Kirby
Support from this show comes from Quince I'm way overdue for a wardrobe refresh. I'm a podcast host that is very important. I drive a Chevy Trax. I'm a man. I'm 45. Clothes shopping in person is simply not a priority for me, so I usually wear the same stuff till my wife calls me out. For these reasons, I'm pumped to say that Quints has been my new go to. I asked Nora to help me pick out a couple of items and it turns out she already had a cart ready of things she was planning on getting me from Quints. So I picked up two of the 100% European linen shirts, one striped, one solid. The material feels light and breathable and the stitching looks really well done. They're the perfect type of pieces that feel easy and comfortable but still look put together. And the best part is I didn't break the bank. In fact, everything I purchased was priced 50 to 80% less than what you'd find at similar brands. Why? Because Quint's works directly with the ethical factories and cuts out the middlemen. So you're getting premium materials without the markup. Refresh your everyday with luxury you'll actually use. Head to quince.com nodunks for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada too. That's Q U I n c-e.com nodunks for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quints.com nodunks. Good morning sweet world and welcome to the no Dunks podcast presented by FanDuel. It's Tuesday, May 5, 2026. Happy Cinco de Mayo. I'm J. Skeets here on the Classic Factory and alongside me as always, Tas Melas.
- [04:41]
J. Skeets
Podcast listeners, this is for you.
- [04:43]
Trey Kirby
Next to him is my top shot hot boy Trey Kirby Ayo Ayo. And over yonder making the magic happen, super producer JD Hello. There he is. Here we are. Hello to everybody on YouTub. Smash that like button. Subscribe if you haven't comment away in the Stream team Podcast listeners. Five star ratings and reviews for your boys. We will get to the two other conference semifinals that tip tonight. We're talking Pistons, Cavs. We're talking Thunder, Lakers. We're going to Break down those series. We're going to predict them, but we had two game ones of the semifinals last night. Let's start with the nightcap of the two. Anthony Edwards scoring 18 points.
- [05:20]
J. Skeets
That's awesome.
- [05:21]
Trey Kirby
In an unexpected sort of return this quickly, at least he comes back from injury. Wolves hold on to beat the Spurs 104, 102 in a very entertaining game. So they take game one, the Wolves do of the Western Conference semifinals. Where do you want to start with this one here, TK I just enjoyed this. Yeah, this is good.
- [05:38]
Tas Melas
I was watching this the whole time. Like that referee watching guys go blow for blow. Like, this is so good. This is so good. It just feels like it's going to be a great series. The teams feel very well matched from like a talent standpoint, an athleticism standpoint, an effort standpoint, a know how standpoint. Everything last night seems sustainable to me. It also feels like there's a lot of room for improvement on both sides. A lot of room for adjustments on both sides. That was just really exciting to watch and awesome that it came down to a game winning shot at the buzzer. You know, Champagne had a really, really good look. We could talk about if Harper should have went to the hoop. I don't know. Definitely feels like a different series for both of these teams though, on the Wolf side of things. Credit to them. They're trying Wemby, they're trying to score inside on him, but he went for 12 blocks last night, a playoff record. He was blocking so many shots, they were just like, you know what, if you go 10, that's fine.
- [06:32]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, it looks cool. There's a couple of them for sure.
- [06:34]
Tas Melas
I mean, the second one was pretty obvious. Taran Shannon Jr. Hit the backboard before Wemby got it. But in all the hype of the three blocks on the first three possessions, even the referees were referees watching a boxing fight. Wemby, I thought also this is like the first time he's faced real playoff defense. No offense to the Blazers. Great defensive team. That was their first time through. They've got a lot of young guys. This Wolves team is much more experienced. They've been going up against Nicola Jokic. So they are at playoff intensity. And Wemby was having to deal with the physicality they were bringing, the schemes that Chris Finch was throwing out there. It was just a lot of cool stuff happening for a game one and I enjoyed it.
- [07:13]
Trey Kirby
Did you enjoy it just as much as this guy?
- [07:15]
J. Skeets
Absolutely. I enjoyed watching those Timberwolves on the road buy into everything. Chris Finch told them, hey, Anthony Edwards, you're coming off the bench will save you for the fourth quarter, and you will come out and shine, my friend. T.J. shannon, you're in the starting lineup. Also Rudy Gobert, you move those French feet as fast as you possibly can in front of Victor Weyama for three quarters. And then the fourth quarter, you're going to sit so we can move Wemby as much as possible around. It worked perfectly, both situations. Anthony Edwards comes out in the fourth quarter, first possession, gets that off the ball, screen flares for a beautiful three. And then Jaden McDaniels gets in the paint, gets Wemby moving so he can fire it out to Nas Reed, who splashed the three from the corner. I mean, this is just perfect Finchy stuff. Then Ant over Wemby for three, then Ant versus whoever it was against Champagne, then against Keldon Johnson the first time, then against Kelton Johnson the second time. And then we're going to rest. Anthony Edwards, you've been working your butt off. So TJ Shannon comes in after the timeout play. You just drive, my friend. And it worked perfectly. He absolutely listened to Chris Finch and he scores. Edwards, you come on in, come back, he blocks Dylan Harper. That rest obviously helped. What a beautiful block hanging with him. And then TJ Shannon, one more time after the timeout, got fouled, went to the rim. Wemby missed a box out on Nas Reed because he was flying all around. And so they get an extra bucket and everybody else on. The Timberwolves came through a big Julius Randall quarter. He was scoring against whoever he wanted. That's the big matchup. We're watching the. The Randall, the McDaniels against all these wings who are undersized, let's be honest. And then we got a Wemby block turned into a Mike Conley three in the corner. So what a fourth. What a fourth. And it did come down to Champagne, them deciding, nah, no, time out. We're just going for it. Man got a great look. Obviously good.
- [09:09]
Trey Kirby
Yep. But party located.
- [09:11]
J. Skeets
But he had a good day, so we all thought, okay, that could go down.
- [09:14]
Tas Melas
It just made those two great plays, grabbing offensive rebounds for putbacks. I think he actually had three because, like, he grabbed the one, dished it to Wemby, he missed, and then grabbed another one, put it in. But you know, Champagne is a better catch and shoot player than a dribble player.
- [09:27]
Trey Kirby
True.
- [09:27]
Tas Melas
40% on catch and shoots 30% as soon as he dribbles one time.
- [09:31]
J. Skeets
It's different for sure.
- [09:32]
Tas Melas
Exactly I mean, Harper had a look. McDaniels was like lurking in the paint. Harper was probably like two steps outside of the three point line, two seconds to go. That would have been a tough shot, but he was playing great as well nonetheless. A really, really good look for champagne. And the dude was awesome last night. So I don't mind him taking the shot, but I really thought Randall was the key in the fourth quarter. Scored nine points, hit that crazy. I mean, he is a lefty, but that like falling down towards the baseline, gentle off the glass.
- [10:00]
Trey Kirby
That was the bucket of the game.
- [10:01]
Tas Melas
That was, that was the dagger sort of. I mean, they, you know, the Wolves tried to throw it away, they're right at the end of it, but that was the bucket of the game. And Randall being able to hit tough shots in the mid range was why the Wolves were able to pull this one off. Going small was a great move, but it doesn't work if Randle's not able to shoot over the top of whatever defender, Wemby included. Not to mention like the little gore tot screens he was setting. Wemby was a little bit neutralized in the fourth quarter. Whether it was because Reed was spaced to the corner. So Wemby's got to be like towards the weak side, not really involved in the play, or Wendy was closer to the play. Randle just putting his booty into his knees, not letting him really get any sort of Runway to challenge at the rim. So I thought Randle really brought it in the fourth quarter and he kind of like struggled through the first half of the game, but he really turned it on and came up in the clutch.
- [10:45]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, again to go to that Julius Randle bucket. The spurs are down 4. There's like a minute and change to go. They need to stop, of course. So Randle sort of reluctantly gets the ball to bring it up the court because there was some pressure from the Spurs. So it goes to Julius Randle and this turns into, by my count, a zero pass, 22 dribble, eight foot kiss off the glass over Devon Masel. That was Julius Randle. Not the greatest possession you've ever seen in the world, but when it goes, it goes. And man, it was just dribble, dribble, dribble, crossover, crossover, then the spin. Vassell just trying to stay with him, but he's a big boy and obviously got to his spot. That was a huge, huge bucket. And I just liked all the little things the Wolves did to win this playoff game on the road. And Taz, you went Through a couple of them. But I thought Finch was calling timely timeouts just to stop any sort of run, any sort of momentum in that building. Did great job. And then they would score most of the times out of the timeout. Some great design plays. When they came back out on the floor, they collected a few offensive rebounds. That Nas Reed, one huge down the stretch. Taron Shannon Jr. He slid over and drew the charge on Wemby. Another little thing there. They got the call, you move it and all that, whatever. It's a bang bang call. They got the charge and then just sticking with plays. 50, 50 balls. And you already said the one where yeah, when he gets the block, he smashes that thing so far off the glass. It goes back to McDaniels at the three point line. But he gets to it, you know, Johnny on the spot and then gets into the lane, kicks to Mike Conley in the corner for three. So like outside of like Anthony Edwards lazy pass on the side, out of bounds play there that led to the fast break. There weren't many boneheaded mistakes. Now Ant said after the game, well, you know, I let Julian Champagne get two offensive rebounds too, so that is included. But otherwise I thought like every guy was making these tiny little plays in the margins that add up to the two point victory.
- [12:35]
J. Skeets
And it felt like, it almost felt like they were up double digits late because they were executing absolutely everything. And I was surprised after watching Keldon Johnson finished the third quarter with that beautiful shot. And so they're up one. But yeah, they responded in every single play. And they went to what got them a win earlier on in this season against the Spurs. And that was Rudy sitting on the bench. January 11th, they did that fourth quarter. Rudy, you're sitting. And what was surprising was Wemby really got to Rudy in that game, scored 16 first half points. But in this game, Rudy was staying in front of him the entire first half. He was moving those feet really quickly. That's why I thought Wemby would have the advantage. Just too fast for Wemby, but he looked super fast guarding Wemby in this game. So that was just a, a ho hum first half in this game for Wemby. And then in, in the fourth quarter, which is what turned their January 11 game around, it was all the smalls against Wemby. And in this one it was a very similar scenario. That one was a big comeback. The spurs had a 14 point lead. The Wolves won that one and this one it just seemed like the Wolves almost blew him out. It Got, you know, it came down to. To a shot there, but it was like it was nine with three minutes left. Or is it eight with three minutes left. I'm not looking at the boxer, but something like that. So to get that spread was everybody executing everybody.
- [13:57]
Trey Kirby
It was fun as hell. Mike Conley to give him some more love. 12 points for this guy. Four made three. So it was all on three pointers. He's a plus 13 in half the game. Six assists, zero turnovers. Classic Mike Conley. And like I said, he hit that one corner three, which was Hughes. Gave gave them some breathing room there as the spurs tried to come back. But Guy's 38 years old, and here he is contributing in a huge win. This was like one where. For the series, for the longevity of the series. It does feel like the wolves needed this one to pull it out at the end, man. Because if that shot goes down and champagne hits it and they win, and it's like, oh, you know, you already played the ant card and you played really well in a game where Wemby struggled to shoot at all, like 0 for 8 from deep and 5 for 17 overall. And like, a couple other things. Fox, a brutal game. It's like, again, for the idea that this goes long and for the wolves to pull off the upset. Had to. Had to escape with that one. T.K. you're nodding away.
- [14:49]
Tas Melas
Absolutely. Like, Mike Conley outplayed Dear and Fox, right. Nobody expected Ant to come back. Like, these are things that are going in favor of the Timberwolves. Like you're saying Wemby struggled through this game. He did not have a good offensive game, 5 for 17. So you got to win this one. Especially, like, the opportunity is there on the road. And now you have home court advantage. You have experience. You have to think that Ant's going to get better as the series went on. Because I thought he was basically a decoy last night. An 18 point per game decoy, which is pretty awesome. But, like, he's not bringing the ball up the court. He doesn't look quite the same driving to the hoop. Like, he got his shot blocked by a guard at the rim. That was very odd to see. He didn't even go up for the dunk. But you have to just think that as the series goes on, he's going to get more comfortable playing on his knee. Though he did have that moment where he landed weird and was kind of like limping around and then it wasn't a big deal afterwards. But yeah, it was encouraging to see this dude in pre game, Absolutely. Dripp dripping in sweat. I've never seen a wetter person than him. During pregame. I was like, oh, he is giving it his all just to be back on the court here. And he definitely lifted their spirits. And once he hit his first couple of jumpers, you're like, okay. The Wolves believe they can win. And that just kind of filtered on down to everybody. Like, I don't know if you can rely on 12 points per game for Mike Conley, but When he hits four threes, you better win the game. When T.J. shannon's having an impact like he had yesterday, you got to win that kind of game.
- [16:06]
J. Skeets
Yeah, I'd call him a three quarter decoy, but in the fourth quarter it was him that started that thing off and then it trickled down to everybody else and this guy came out and was obviously ready to play. Nine days after. And we talked about it yesterday, they dropped the video that he had to be coming back soonish. But for him to come off the bench just bought into everything Finchy was doing and everything was buying. That's what this team has bought in these last few years. They are a tough out and Anthony Edwards is absolutely the leader. Simple as that. So they all had to buy in. They all had to work their butts off, but everybody contributed.
- [16:40]
Trey Kirby
And so what did you think about the WEMBY 12 blocks there, setting the all time record in a playoff game? Previous Mark was 10 blocks by Mark Eaton. Keem Olajuwon. Andrew Bynum is a surprising name on that list. But now it's Wemby's though, like Trey was saying, a few we got away with on the old goal tens and maybe a foul or two here as well. But that shouldn't be surprising when you're trying to block every single shot.
- [17:05]
J. Skeets
I think that number can go up.
- [17:08]
Tas Melas
He's gonna block more than 12.
- [17:09]
J. Skeets
I think there's a possibility. Yeah.
- [17:12]
Trey Kirby
I mean, on one hand I roll my eyes at it, but like, I don't think the Wolves should or will stop attacking and, and continue to put the pressure on, but my God, that's a lot of blocks, man.
- [17:23]
J. Skeets
Yeah.
- [17:24]
Trey Kirby
And some of those goaltens that he did may get actually called this time if the Finch and the Wolves are like getting on the officials like, hey man, at least call it so you can go look at it type of variety because otherwise you just keep playing.
- [17:36]
J. Skeets
But I think he can play smarter even in the fourth quarter and not have a guy like Randall absolutely box him out on drives by other guys. I think he can just anticipate that a little bit more guys were doing. Randall's doing a really good job of just, hey, I'm screening you, dude. And. And Wemby not able to get around that. We could definitely see more and he's got to stay more in the paint and guys have to cover the three point shooters more if they're going to do the Rudy sitting in the fourth quarter. Yeah, those three point shooters have to be covered and Wemby could be blocking more. I think there is literally a good possibility that it happens.
- [18:13]
Trey Kirby
What would be on, you know, the bulletin board as like must fixes for game two. If you're the spurs now down, want
- [18:20]
Tas Melas
to win the series, make a shot.
- [18:22]
Trey Kirby
That would help.
- [18:22]
Tas Melas
Yeah, Wemby in particular, he was pretty out of sorts on offense. I thought Rudy was giving him a ton of problems when they were going big versus big. And then the physicality that the rest of the Wolves brought when Wemby was sitting or when Rudy was sitting made it pretty tough on Wemby and like clearly they've scouted. When he dribbles the ball, keep your hands low and try and strip it. They were very active just deflecting and making it awkward for Wemby. I think it'll start with him hitting some three pointers. Like that loosens things up inside. Spurs need to figure out a way to get him the ball on the move a lot more with Go Bears feet kind of flailing. He doesn't want to change direction all that often. You saw a couple of times when they get Wemby like rumbling down the court. It was tough for Gobert to back up and get a content contest on him. So I think that's a huge thing. I have to think that the spurs will do a better job of figuring out a way to get him the ball inside when it's a small lineup. Like they just could not get him the ball when he had position in the paint. Credit to the Timberwolves defenders giving ball pressure, which makes it hard to throw the passes, but they need to be able to get him the ball in scoring positions. There were no easy baskets for Wemby last night. There was no alley oops for Wemby last night. I'd like to see either one of those.
- [19:28]
Trey Kirby
Barely any free throws.
- [19:29]
Tas Melas
Exactly. If I'm San Antonio. He was taken out of the game from an offensive standpoint and he said I was given too much energy on the offensive end and it just wasn't making sense. He had a hilarious quote at the end of his press conference where he said, basically, if everything was different, it would have been different. So I would change a lot of things if I'm the Spurs, but mostly like make some shots you got to make. If you're taking eight threes, you got to make more than zero.
- [19:51]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, you're too. You're two All Stars in WEMBY. And Fox didn't hit a three and only hit 10 field goals in total. And Fox, you know, like a lot of credit to the defense from the Wolves. They're making it difficult. But even when McDaniels was in foul trouble and Fox knew that McDaniels had to play, how he approached defensively had to change a little bit, Fox did blow a few that he should have hit and has hit many times.
- [20:12]
J. Skeets
Absolutely.
- [20:13]
Trey Kirby
I don't think I have a feeling he's not going to be this bad again in the series because this was a really bad deer and Fox game, quiet all game, blowing layups. Like, even if he scored the majority of his points in the fourth quarter, he still left a lot on the table.
- [20:26]
J. Skeets
Yeah, it was. I don't know how he could be worse. In all honesty, missing layups, the turnovers. So overall, yeah, the whole team has to find Wemby on cuts. Wemby has to just get quicker on turning around and shooting over the big guys who are guarding him and, and hammering him as much as possible. Your Julius Randalls or Jane McDaniels to stop. Yeah, the, the, the dribbling, a lot of it. But also, yeah, just find the dude on cut and more alley oops. But yeah, Fox, I, we all know can't turn it over six times, even though, you know, a lot of those are bad catches and passes at the same time. So you could have gave other guys turnovers in this game, but Wemby, yeah, as soon as he gets into a flow, you know one of those threes is going to go down. You can't be this bad.
- [21:17]
Trey Kirby
Yeah. Any other notes from game one here?
- [21:20]
Tas Melas
We saw a legitimate rebound highlight from Wemby. They ran it back when he just grabbed that one handed rebound. That was pretty sweet.
- [21:28]
J. Skeets
Yeah. And there was that one that he. He did like a waving with both arms kind of thing. Like that was a block with. Had it with his right hand and then swung it around with his left hand. He did a lot of cool stuff and just one dunk. What did. He literally had just have one dunk
- [21:43]
Trey Kirby
last night right at the end. Two hand dunk.
- [21:45]
Tas Melas
Yeah.
- [21:47]
Trey Kirby
Fourth quarter.
- [21:48]
J. Skeets
I do like how NBC has Chosen the stat lines with two pointers and three pointers on there. You don't see that very often. Let us know what's going on in the game. Two pointers matter to the NBC production crew. I like that. Sometimes like you'll get a Dylan Harper at half, he'll show you, you'll get your two pointers, your three pointers. Anthony Edwards again, two pointers, three point. I think he had. It was a fourth quarter line that they show. Sometimes it'll be fourth quarter line. Anthony Edwards one for one from two pointer, one for one from three pointer. I love, I love just letting us know exactly what's happening. Even, even Wemby third quarter, it was two points, two rebounds, one block, one assist. You know, they give us, give us everything that we need. I appreciated that.
- [22:35]
Trey Kirby
Well, there was also in the box score a lot of fouls. There's a lot of guys were getting into foul trouble here. My favorite part of the game, officiating part. Six minutes left in the fourth. Refs called Castle for his fifth foul. He was trying to front Julius Randall. He's fighting his ass off against a guy like twice his size. And he got the foul despite Randall being the one probably pushed him way more. I would have loved to see him just a play on in that scenario. But anyway they called him for his fifth. I bring it up because I think the rest were like. That was a bit of a dumb one right away called a moving screen which you can call anytime you want as the makeup call. It was on McDaniels. There was some movement, sure. But you know it's happening like 100 times in a game. So bank fifth for the castle. He comes out, that was the fifth for Big Daniels, but Finchy stuck with him. And again he did change how he had to play defense. Maybe not like going for full blown blocks on Fox, but still I guess in his head deterring it enough where Fox didn't miss a couple. But you know, again that was another thing where Finchy did right. He's like, nah, we'll just stick with him. He's by far our best defensive player and they have a lot of guards and we'll put him on it. We'll live with it. If he obviously picks up his six here, but he's smart enough to try and avoid it. And he did. Yeah.
- [23:43]
Tas Melas
On the other side, as soon as Castle checked back in with five fouls, they put him in a screen and roll action right away and drew his six foul. So he was subbed out immediately. I thought that was pretty wise as well.
- [23:53]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Jeremy Daniels. I know it was a sort of a quiet game because we're talking about everything else, but ridiculously solid, too.
- [23:58]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [23:59]
J. Skeets
Throughout the game.
- [24:00]
Tas Melas
All right, I got more stuff. You hear this. Every game that Jamal Crawford is on the broadcast, he's always trying to talk up Terry Gannon's basketball skills. He's like, that's not how you play. Right, Terry? That's how you do a tg. That's your footwork. I know. You're a shooter out there. He's always talking him up. Also, NBC Scorebug updates instantly.
- [24:19]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Sometimes too fast, Sometimes too fast.
- [24:21]
Tas Melas
I've seen him put points on the board before the ball goes in.
- [24:23]
J. Skeets
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't know how they do it.
- [24:25]
Tas Melas
I don't know how they do it either. They were calling Wemby and Gobert the French Connection a lot. Do you like that movie
- [24:34]
J. Skeets
French Connection?
- [24:36]
Trey Kirby
Remind me again.
- [24:37]
Tas Melas
It's a Gene Hackman movie. Roy Scheider, like old, old great car chase. J.D. you're a French Connection guy.
- [24:43]
Trey Kirby
He must be.
- [24:45]
J. Skeets
I mean, the. The main character's name is Doyle. Whoops. Yep.
- [24:50]
Tas Melas
Popeye.
- [24:51]
J. Skeets
Yeah, Popeye Doyle. Yeah. Yeah. I'm a big French Connection guy.
- [24:55]
Tas Melas
I'm a big French Connection guy.
- [24:56]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Gene Hackman.
- [24:57]
Trey Kirby
Come on.
- [24:57]
Tas Melas
Yeah, Jeannie. I watched it when he passed away. That's a banger. Still good. My last question was Fiesta shirt setup for the spurs again last night wearing their city edition. If you were going to a San Antonio playoff game, which section would you want to be in? The teal, the pink or the Orangish? Yellow.
- [25:17]
Trey Kirby
Well, it's funny. There's a couple stray teals in the crowd.
- [25:22]
Tas Melas
You notice that sometimes people.
- [25:23]
Trey Kirby
There's always a teal.
- [25:24]
Tas Melas
Yeah.
- [25:24]
Trey Kirby
That was one of the other color block sections, and they really pop in the. Yeah. The yellow or the pink or stuff like that. Which one would I want the most? Which one I would I wear the most after is the real question. I think the blue one. Yeah. The teal one.
- [25:40]
Tas Melas
Teal.
- [25:40]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [25:40]
J. Skeets
I guess I was blessed with a teal giveaway when we did our Ledger promo. So I've got a teal. So I'd go a pink. Just something totally different.
- [25:50]
Trey Kirby
You can collect them all.
- [25:51]
J. Skeets
I would say, though, I think it was the pink section on camera at the beginning of the third quarter. Was not full at all. They missed the first few minutes.
- [26:01]
Trey Kirby
Start of the second half. Man, I say this all the time. Yeah, that's what it is.
- [26:04]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Well, for sure.
- [26:05]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [26:06]
J. Skeets
I Just never thought of it in San Antonio. I just thought they'd be ready.
- [26:09]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [26:09]
J. Skeets
Yeah, they're doing.
- [26:10]
Trey Kirby
Everybody's got to take a pee break. Everybody wants some food and drinks, but too long.
- [26:13]
J. Skeets
Too long. It didn't factor into anything.
- [26:16]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [26:16]
J. Skeets
I. I am interested to see fourth quarters, though. We're talking about off ball screens. If. If those click tick up a little bit or guys try and sell more, essentially, because you see the randos, the random off the ball screens when nothing is happening, not even a pick and roll, but a standard. I'm driving. And again, I mentioned Julius Randall doing a. Hey, I'm blocking you out, Wemby. If those pick up a little bit, we'll see. We'll see. You know, what they're selling there in the fourth quarter. But those were important.
- [26:44]
Trey Kirby
It was shocking to go from the lighting of Madison Square Garden with the Sixers next game, then suddenly to this game, which is like the brightest game you've ever seen. Like both in just being in terms of brightness, but then of course, all the colors and the court and all that was like, very shocking change. Yeah. Anything else? Anything else? We got a fun series here. This is going to go. Yeah, this is going long.
- [27:07]
Tas Melas
It feels great.
- [27:09]
Trey Kirby
Especially with the ant man back. Hell, yeah. Support from this show comes from Quince. I'm way overdue for a wardrobe refresher. I'm a podcast host. That is very important. I drive a Chevy Trax. I'm a man. I'm 45. Clothes shopping in person is simply not a priority for me. So I usually wear the same stuff till my wife calls me out. For these reasons, I'm pumped to say that Quints has been my new go to. I asked Nora to help me pick out a couple of items, and it turns out she already had a cart ready of things she was planning on getting me for from Quince. So I picked up two of the 100% European linen shirts. One striped, one solid. The material feels light and breathable, and the stitching looks really well done. They're the perfect type of pieces that feel easy and comfortable, but still look put together. And the best part is I didn't break the bank. In fact, everything I purchased was priced 50 to 80% less than what you'd find at similar brands. Why? Because Quints works directly with the ethical factories and cuts out the middlemen. So you're getting premium materials without the markup. Refresh your everyday with luxury you'll actually use. Head to quince.com nodunks for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada too. That's Quash N c-e.com no dunks for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quint.com nodunks support for the show comes
- [28:45]
JD (Super Producer)
from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete Disclosures available at public.comDisclosures Amazon Health
- [29:45]
J. Skeets
AI Presents Painful Thoughts why did I search the Internet for answers to my cold sore problem?
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Tas Melas
Now I'm stuck down a rabbit hole
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J. Skeets
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- [31:29]
Trey Kirby
All right, let's talk about the first game last night. A little different. Jalen Brunson scored 27 of his 35 in the first half as the Knicks rolled the 76ers 137.98. In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Knicks shot a playoff franchise record 63.1% from the field and became the first team in an NBA playoff history to win three straight playoff games by 25 or more tasks. Their last three first halves for the Knicks go 64 points, 73 points and 74 points last night. And then they put it away in the third, and then it was garbage time for the fourth.
- [32:05]
J. Skeets
A lot of garbage time.
- [32:06]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [32:06]
J. Skeets
While watching this, I was thinking, do we have to like the New York Knicks now? It's just so many likable players. It's, it's obviously such a historic arena. They'll most likely be the underdogs when it comes to the finals. So, you know, ride them now and cheer for an underdog in the finals. It sounds gross to say you'd like the New York Knicks, but it's kind of hard not to like them, especially the way they're moving the ball. And what the Philadelphia 76ers were relying on too much, I think, was Joel Embiid. And Joel Embiid only offense in the first half. And that allowed the. The Knicks to keep on moving so. Well, the assists are obviously really, really important how they're moving the ball, the fast break points. I mean, the, the fast break. This. They had eight buckets while the Knicks only had one. They had 29 points in the paint or baskets in the paint, I should say, while the knicks only had 16 because they're moving that thing and I know, John, six was just. Yeah, 16. Excuse me.
- [33:07]
Tas Melas
Yeah, all the low numbers are going to be on the Sixers here.
- [33:09]
J. Skeets
Yes, yes, yes, That's. That's right, Trey. But when they're. You're going to Joel Embiid over and over and over again. It allowed the Knicks just to get out, run, and they start moving the ball through. Karl Anthony Towns, obviously, who kept on Doing his thing, man, he had an assist to every other starter on this team. And Chandler Brunson was, yes, super spectacular. And when you're going to Joel Embiid over and over, you can just hang out in the corner on Kelly Oubre or Vijay Edgecombe and save that energy for kicking ass 27 points in the first half. So I thought the doubles of Embiid occasionally helped out, getting everybody moving. But just to see this Knicks team be able to run, I mean they just put the Sixers to bed so early while the Sixers weren't moving it around enough.
- [33:56]
Trey Kirby
And of course there's the whole schedule part of this. You know, 76ers are coming off a game seven in Boston on Saturday. Pretty quick turnaround. Knicks have rested for a little bit here, sure. So there's that. But. Well, you say sure, but also the Knicks did a great job. Just put in beat in every action, every pick and roll action there early on too. Which we kept saying in the last series, like, yeah, Boston, you should be doing that as much as possible because he's just limited mobility wise. And there was a stretch there where like Brunson and Mitchell Robinson had Embiid in pick and roll action early in the game and they scored like six straight times off it. It was either Brunson scoring or setting up other guys in the odd instance. So to the point where Nickner's like, well, let's go zone at some point in this game. And that didn't really work either because the Knicks can shoot so well. So this was a great, great performance here. But I don't know how much of it was a schedule loss. In a weird way for the, for
- [34:47]
Tas Melas
the Sixers, one team looked like they played a seven game series and one team looked like they've been rested and are playing their best basketball of the entire year. You add it up and it's another. What would it end up being? 39 point victory for the Knicks. I was thankful for two things that have been called out on this here channel. Number one, I was thankful for the staggered start because this game was over right when the Spurs Wolves was tipping. And then I was thankful that they had the score up there in the top right corner so I knew I didn't have to tune back in to a complete blowout. It never got close. In the second half, Knicks dominated. Brunson was just awesome in this game. 35 points on 18 shots. That's a true shooting percentage of 8, 13, which seems awesome until you see right below him is OGN and Obi's true shooting percentage, 1 0, 1.4. I didn't know you could go over a hundred. It's like the dunk score. But it didn't matter who was playing defense for the Sixers last night. They tried, um, Paul George Quentin Grimes on Jalen Brunson and they all got buckets on their head. He's getting more and more off ball opportunities with Karl Anthony Towns playing out of the high post. Basically they're running the warriors offense. Carl Anthony Towns is Draymond Green. Jalen Brunson is Steph Curry. Split cuts, Chicago action. The blind pig. All of these crazy plays that they're running and it's getting him really, really good looks. It's like, what were we waiting for, Mike Brown? Because now Brunson is getting easier shots than he has gotten for the entire year rather than having to dribble 15 times before hitting a mid Ranger. Like he's getting open looks. Cats doing a great job of distributing the ball. And Mikhail Bridges played really, really well last night. I thought his length was great. Getting over screens against Tyrese Maxey. And then he's creating his own looks in pick and roll. He's creating looks for shooters in the bottom left corner with a one hand whip pass. Like Bridges looked really good. He looked like he looked against the Hawks in Game six. And this was a step up in competition. So. Only thing I can say for the Sixers is the silver lining of a blood is your guys didn't play that many minutes. Yeah, right. Like all the starters are under 30 minutes. Quentin Grimes under 30 minutes. That's awesome because Nurse isn't going to play anybody more than six and a little bit of Drummond.
- [36:54]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [36:54]
Tas Melas
So at least you got to rest those guys.
- [36:56]
Trey Kirby
And look, and if you're a Sixers fan, it's like, well, we already did this in the first round too. We got absolutely hammered by the Celtics early and came back to win the series. So we got to flush this one. And the big part is they're going to have to limit these turnovers that you brought up, tess. I mean 19, I think turnovers in game one for Philadelphia. A lot of live ball turnovers that the Knicks are turning into easy points in transition. And this team is humming offensively. It's one thing to stop them in the half court setting right now with how they're playing through Cat, the way Brunson is lighting up Philadelphia. If we go back to the last time they played in the postseason, you got to take away the easy ones. The Transition ones like, you got to cut those out. So I think they're going to be better and there's going to be more of a fight here in game two and more of a game. But this one was, this one got out of hand in a hurry.
- [37:40]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Yeah. And where are the Sixers going to beat the Knicks offense now? That's the, that's the question where. Anybody have an answer for that? As far as, is there a strategy? I mean, slow them down? Sure. They should be scoring way more in the paint. And that's why I brought up the points in the paint, because if you're going to Embiid over and over and over, that's, that's your answer. But the other guys have to get more involved. I thought early, you know, Maxi has been feeling it out and waiting for the games to go on that are somewhat close, but the Knicks are just absolutely clicking. So nothing was close. Nothing has.
- [38:19]
Trey Kirby
I mean, there was a stretch where Philadelphia was only scoring at the free throw line. Like they were not scoring, period. It was either in B or Maxi just like doing everything they could to at least draw a foul and try
- [38:28]
J. Skeets
and get to the free throw line. So here Max has got to turn it on.
- [38:31]
Tas Melas
He went 8 for 20 in Game 1 against the Celtics and then had a pretty solid game two against the Celtics. The drop shots are there, like the mid range is there, the pull up threes are there. He's got to take them and make them. Taking the ball out of the net slows down the Knicks offense as well. Gives him at least a chance to try and set up on defense. But you know, Brunson's going to be able to score. The team doesn't have a defender that's going to be able to hang with him, so they're just going to have to get a little bit more physical. And I think some of their best defense will be having a coherent offense because last night they did not.
- [39:03]
Trey Kirby
No. And I mean, I know you moved on to the Spurs Wolves game when it started up. Couldn't blame you. I did stick with this in the third quarter, but that started with Jalen Brunson picking Uber's pocket. That led to an easy bucket for Josh Hart. Then Embiid threw the ball to Brunson. I mean, that was just. He just gave it to him, oh gee, dunk on the other end. And then Maxi coughed it up too and OG that resulted in a three and then that was game. And that's when I was about wrapping it up as they extended the Lead there, moving over to Minnesota and San Antonio. But look, this is going to be tough. This is a different team, obviously than Celtics and how they play and just like bomb away and hope the threes go. They got a bunch of guys contributing for New York right now and it's led by Brunson, who again, after starting slow in that postseason series two years ago, like, went on to score like 40 plus every game. He would have had 40 easy last night. If this is a competitive game and everybody got a chance at him and there is no answer and it's. He's helped out by just not having to do anything on the other end. So maybe that's a small part of the equation here. Try and get Jalen Brunson involved defensively because he didn't have to last night.
- [40:08]
J. Skeets
Everybody, everybody should be running around screens more. Nick Nurse has got to make these guys work every single minute that they're on the floor for him, you know, 40, 41, 42 minutes. Yeah, just to make him move at the very least. But he's still going to be super efficient, especially with guys moving around Cat as he passes to them. But I thought those other guys did a great job. Bridges and Obn Hart just did a good job of moving as well. So, you know, I don't buy this whole schedule loss thing, but those guys were definitely moving more. I didn't check the miles run in the advanced box score, but felt like they were moving way more. So, yeah, Brunson's just going to be able to score when guys are flying around like that. They're too talented.
- [40:48]
Trey Kirby
Nick Nurse tried to bring the game to a crawl. Went to the old hack A Mitch and it was working. It was working. He was bricking him even harder than normal to the point where. Okay, Mitch, get off. We'll bring you back in when we get under the two minute mark. Yes. Yeah, Porty. You get in there, you can hit a free throw if they follow you. So I don't know, you know, you implement it at the right time. It's smart. Especially I think on the road is always a great time to do it too. Sort of takes the crowd out of it a little bit because the thing just comes to a crawl. It's not entertaining, but it's a strategy you have. And he cannot hit a free throw to save his life. So maybe we see more of that. We also had Embiid taking a. It was Bridges, right? Like an elbow sort of shoulder, you know, screaming around a pick there that Embiid was setting. Took it right in the stomach and beat. Kept grabbing his stomach, kept doing that.
- [41:33]
J. Skeets
I just had surgery there, man.
- [41:35]
Trey Kirby
Yeah. But, you know, nothing. Nothing dirty, I don't think from Bridges, but it did make you go, oh, yeah, like, Celtics probably could have played with a little more force against this guy when he returned. I'm not saying hurt him. I'm not saying any of that, but make him feel it a little bit. Guy did come back from surgery and they sort of didn't. And so maybe the Knicks play a little more physicality. Of course.
- [41:55]
J. Skeets
Yeah.
- [41:56]
Tas Melas
It just makes you honestly respect and beat the guy had his stomach cut open.
- [41:59]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [42:00]
Tas Melas
Two weeks ago, and he's playing in the playoffs.
- [42:03]
Trey Kirby
We had a funny moment in this one. Well, I don't know. Is it funny? You tell me. Josh Hart. You know, they're up so big. He's like, yeah, I'm going to do some pranks on the sidelines here as he's checking out Jimmy Fallon sitting court side, and Josh Hart goes down and unties Jimmy Fallon's shoelace. You know, the camera didn't pan down far enough, but we did get a shot of Jimmy having to retie his shoelace here. You'll see it in a second. Yep, there it is. Josh Hart.
- [42:30]
Tas Melas
Got him.
- [42:31]
Trey Kirby
Yeah. What a. What a joke.
- [42:32]
Tas Melas
I didn't know Jimmy Fallon was a Knicks fan.
- [42:36]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, I mean, guess.
- [42:37]
Tas Melas
Yeah, I mean, I thought he was a Boston guy through and through. Guess not.
- [42:41]
J. Skeets
He's been at several games, that's for sure.
- [42:43]
Trey Kirby
Okay. He's rocking the very bright orange there. No Ben Stiller.
- [42:48]
J. Skeets
Last night, Jimmy tied his own shoe.
- [42:50]
Trey Kirby
That's good.
- [42:51]
J. Skeets
He didn't get an assistant come over and tie this. That made me feel. Feel like he's one of us.
- [42:57]
Trey Kirby
What else do you have? Any random notes from the Knicks big win?
- [43:00]
Tas Melas
I loved when Kelly Oubrey had to guard Carl Anthony Towns, and he came in and checked up and was, like, measuring his height against him. That was pretty funny. Led to Noah Eagle quoting Fletch, which Grant Hill could not believe. He's like, that's before your day, Noah. Noah's like, nothing's before my time. I'm an old soul. It doesn't surprise me that Noah Eagle would know about Fletch. I bet that's one of Ian Eagle's favorite movies.
- [43:22]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, it feels like. It feels like. Yeah, we had Eagle, Grand Hill, and Robbie Hummel. Yeah. Yeah. I don't. I don't remember that combo. We had that combo before.
- [43:30]
Tas Melas
No, it's because it's usually Austin Rivers With Robbie Hummel. And is it Noah? Because I feel like Grant usually calls games with I an Eagle, but I have heard him say baby bird.
- [43:40]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, he's been with Eagles. Yeah, he flies with both Eagles.
- [43:43]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Yeah. I think this is the second time those three have done it together.
- [43:47]
Trey Kirby
Oh, okay.
- [43:47]
J. Skeets
Just recently. But yeah, it's. It's a new trio. Other than that, I again, I like the Jalen Brunson. End of game. See the stats on the bottom. Two pointers, three pointers. I want it all, man.
- [44:00]
Trey Kirby
You know who does that a lot? That's the international game. That's FIBA for you right there. FIBA loves them. Some two pointers.
- [44:06]
J. Skeets
NBC International, they're going worldwide with these broadcasts.
- [44:11]
Trey Kirby
I don't have a lot else, but I do love when the Associated Press report gets all bitchy. Quote. Game two is Wednesday night before the series shifts to Philadelphia, with Joel Embiid already pleading with 76ers fans not to sell their tickets to Knicks fans when it does. But the 76ers didn't exactly give their fans much reason to want to keep them Monday. That's just a bitchy AP report right there. That's a little low blow there.
- [44:34]
J. Skeets
How dare you.
- [44:35]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, it's like, whoa, come on, ap. But, you know, after that performance. Yeah, tough, tough. Maybe, maybe if you're a 76ers fan, you're like, ah, I could get some good money for these. Selling them to Knicks fans. It's not over. It's not over. I think the Knicks are winning the series, but it's not over. It's one game only. Anything else?
- [44:54]
Tas Melas
That's it for me.
- [44:55]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, yeah, it was. That was a beat down. That was a pretty impressive performance on the Knicks because right now, Cat's awesome. Facilitating Brunson can't be stopped against the Sixers.
- [45:04]
Tas Melas
At least OG Anunoby doesn't miss shots.
- [45:07]
Trey Kirby
No, he doesn't miss shots. Mikhail Bridges has figured out you can drive to the rim. Like, early in the game, he had a three. He passed open a three in the corner that he would have normally taken. He's like, oh, I can just drive to the rim dunk. Yeah, yeah, you can. And, you know, obviously Mike Brown's getting little contributions from everybody else. Mitch Robinson had a big alley oop dunk there from Brunson. When that stretch, when they just kept doing pick and rolls, that was a crazy catch. Yeah. At first I was like, did Brunson throw that in? Like, it was really weird looking. You saw the replay. It was an unbelievable grab from Robinson.
- [45:38]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Mitchie threw it in. Does anybody feel good about the Sixers? Trey, you're the only one who took them. I think, I think who took them. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [45:47]
Tas Melas
A discouraging first game, but they lost game one against the Celtics in the exact same way.
- [45:53]
Trey Kirby
You want to change? You took Nixon 7.
- [45:56]
J. Skeets
Yeah, I would shorten it to 6, bro, but, you know, these are the Knicks. They're just, they're playing their best ball.
- [46:02]
Tas Melas
They are playing their best basketball.
- [46:03]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, they are very happy. It's every other night right now, the way they are rolling offensively and defensively. Great on both ends. Okay, let's take a break and when we come back, we'll start previewing and predicting the final two semifinal conference matchups.
- [46:16]
J. Skeets
Viori makes soft, and I'm talking extremely soft clothing. I should know. I bought some before this ad came our way. I was wearing my Viori's and my wife said, what are those? I haven't seen them. I told her, my silky soft Viori shorts. Of course, they look super comfortable and they are, but I can go out in these anywhere. They're designed to look great beyond the gym. Whether you're running errands, heading to the office, or meeting up with friends, it works for everything. She felt them and she said, oh, they're like the PJs we buy for our kids. So Viori got my partner's approval just like that. I also told her that viori is a Finnish word meaning mountain. So I felt as big as a mountain. She didn't really like that, but you'll like this. For our listeners, Viori is offering 20% off your first purchase. Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet@vuori.com nodunks that's V U O-R-I.com nodunks. The offer is for new customers only. Exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions.
- [47:30]
JD (Super Producer)
Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On public, you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index. With AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities. Complete, completely customizable, and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors, llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete Disclosures available at public.comDisclosures Foreign
- [48:35]
J. Skeets
this show is brought to you by FanDuel where the line for game one of the Spurs Timberwolves was? Spurs by 11 and a half. Yikes. Timberwolves took care of business there. Trey, how did your parlay go Yesterday, which was MB towns Wemby plus 20, Rudy plus 10.
- [48:53]
Tas Melas
All of them under?
- [48:54]
J. Skeets
All of them under.
- [48:55]
Tas Melas
Wow. All of them didn't hit a single one. That's right, Tess.
- [49:01]
J. Skeets
That's amazing. The meat parlays are tough, man. They're tough. I don't think I've hit one of my parlays since I started throwing them together either. Now I had some of them, but I didn't do a classic parlay parlay. So they're tough. But right now new customers can bet $5 and get 150 in bonus bets if your first bet wins. From player props to game lines, it's all up to you. Everything you need, all in one app, so don't miss your shot. Head to the FanDuel sportsbook app to get started. FanDuel play your game.
- [49:34]
Trey Kirby
Okay, we got a couple of 14 series here to break down to preview and then ultimately predict the two conference semifinals. Let's start in the east here. Let's go Pistons, Cavs. Both teams surviving a seven game series in the first round. Pistons having to come back from 3:1 against the Orlando Magic, down 24 in game six, survive and then win game seven and the Cavs against a very, you know, pesky Frisky. Pesky Frisky Raptors team can be both. I guess you can be both. I meant Frisky to win in 7:2. You know, they did not look maybe as dominant as some thought heading into that series, but here they go. 00 pistons Cavs what's one thing you're watching for in in a series? I'll say right now I find difficult to wrap my head around and try and talk out and predict. I don't know if you had the
- [50:24]
J. Skeets
same experience a little bit you can't. I guess. You don't think that one team is really cooking, I guess.
- [50:29]
Trey Kirby
No.
- [50:30]
J. Skeets
Is that. That's the.
- [50:31]
Trey Kirby
I just don't know which team is going to show up from night to night.
- [50:34]
J. Skeets
Yeah.
- [50:35]
Trey Kirby
With both of them, if I'm being.
- [50:36]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Well, I'm interested to watch Donovan Mitchell, who started the series against the Toronto raptors cooking. He had 30 and 32 in his first two games. But then those pesky Raptors were really good at throwing bodies at him. And he just didn't look like Donovan Mitchell at all. They just got bodies in his way. And so he only averaged 20 for the next five games. And Asar Thompson is going to be that one pesky guy following him around. But you're going to see a bunch of guys. Ron Holland might come alive, Javante Green to just try and get in front of him like Barnes and Jacoby Walter did, just not allowing him to get into his shot. So that game, that series started that way and. But at the same time, the Detroit Pistons are good at taking away the lane. They're so good at taking away the lane. And that's where Mitchell can thrive. The Magic only shot 45.6% in the paint against Detroit, the worst shooting of any series in seven years according to John Schumann. So that's where the Cavs can. Can do well. But I, I do think Evan Mobley, Jared Allen can be overplayed in the paint too. I think the Pistons, I know it's kind of hard to envision or feel that they're working or that they're clicking, but the Jalen Duran combos with the Sar Thompson mainly can overplay them. So, I mean, that's what it's going to come down to. To me, it's. It's in the paint and that's where Donovan Mitchell wants to get.
- [52:01]
Tas Melas
Yeah, the Pistons are pretty well equipped to be able to deal with the backcourt from the Cavs. Cause I assume Thompson can guard either of them. Right. Like he can guard Harden, he can guard Mitchell, depending on who they decide to go with. And I think Cade at least has the size to keep up with the Harden. I think maybe the quickness of Mitchell could give him problems. So I would probably go Thompson on Mitchell like you're saying, which then to me means the front court is really important in this series. So I got two of my disappointing dudes going head to head.
- [52:28]
Trey Kirby
Here we go.
- [52:29]
Tas Melas
Jared Allen vs. Jalen Duran. Both played their best in the series in Game seven. Allen basically saved the season for the Cavs in the second half. Duran had his best game in game seven as well. But a down series for both of those guys, and I think they both have a chance to make up for it because their strengths really play well against each other. Like, Duran has to be a force in the middle in this series. He got a chance to make up for whatever happened in series one where he was just completely lost his confidence, wasn't looking like the same guy. We know that force can give a finesse team like the Cavs problems when they look bad, it's because they're getting out physical. And that's definitely a place where Durin can outplay Jared Allen. But Allen does have some skill. Like he looked awesome in that second half against the Raptors in Game 7. He looked like a ferocious player as well, so you know he can get to that level. I think this has to be a big series for Evan Mobley as well because he should have a size advantage. I think it would be great for the Cavs if they're able to have some success with their two big lineup because once you go to one big, the Cavs offense looks a lot better and it makes a lot more sense. But I think their defense falters then. So I it Mobley has to show up. Jared Allen has to at least match Duran from an intensity standpoint. And Duran really needs to bring it. Like, this was a bummer first round series for him and he to me was the biggest reason. It even went to seven games. If he steps it up here in round two, you forget about all that.
- [53:56]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, it's a good point. It is wild to look back at the series and like, guys like Duncan Robinson, you know, Asar Thompson even, for crying out loud, Dennis Jenkins, they basically had more or if not equivalent shots as Jalen Duran like in the totality of the series. That. That's pretty wild. So he, he needs to have more of an impact. I think he will too. I, I feel like there's going to be a bit of a bounce back here in a series where he's needed, obviously against these, the big Cavaliers in that front court. I'll just like continue with the theme of like, who's going to help out Kate here. One thing to watch is can Tobias Harris keep this up because he was the second best player for the Pistons when they came back there. He was great all series. He still really can't hit a three. I think a couple more of those corner threes need to drop Duncan Robinson. Be nice if he hits some more threes. For Detroit to, to win this series. But you know Cade's. Kate, we're convinced, you know Cade's getting his. He's going to have an impact on the game. Who's there along for the ride be it during inside or these shooters outside. Because to keep up with the. The Cavs who yeah, they got bogged down against a really good Raptors defense and the Pistons are good defensively. They'll have some breakout moments here. I think as we've get into further into the playoffs here. So can Detroit keep up with them offensively. X factors either side.
- [55:08]
J. Skeets
I'll stick with those guys that you just mentioned. Tobias Harris I don't think is going to be able to go off against Evan Mobley who's going to be matched up with him primarily. That's a lot of length, great defensive player even though he was questionable through the first five games of that Toronto Raptor series, just wasn't playing like himself. His defense was there and he's still going to be really good against Tobias here. So the question of who's going to help the Pistons, I mean it could be Jalen Duran literally overcoming Jared Allen. Understandable, that could be it. But they just literally have to run a lot. I mean to have a steady dose to go along with Cade Cunningham and win four games, it literally has to be fast break it. It has to be a Sar Thompson mainly running that thing, just leading it. So I had hope that there would be a bunch of secondary guys in for the business to come through. I'm not sure it can happen. So I think the fast breakpoints is going to be really, really key to go along with Durin who I think I know it's. It's sort of difficult to say which team is clicking. I think Duran can look at Jared Allen and say Jared Allen has not come through in a lot of playoff series in his career. I can beat him. Kenny. I don't know who that secondary guy is. It might just have to be fast break points.
- [56:23]
Tas Melas
Yeah, if you're talking fast breakpoints, it means the Pistons have to force turnovers. That's how the Raptors were able to win their games against Cleveland was ball insecurity from the Cavs and going the other way because in the second half of Game 7, only three turnovers for the Cavs and that's when they really stretched out the lead and took control. A half court game definitely favors Cleveland. So we can't have a James Harden 8 turnover game. You can't have 20 turnovers per game. If you're Cleveland. So I think that is a huge factor. For me, a single player is an X factor. He has an X in his name and it's Max Streuss. He's going to be the number one guy in my opinion to guard Cade Cunningham. It's going to be tough. Cade's going to get his for sure. But I thought Streuss did a really good job against Scotty Barnes in game seven of round one. Barnes, Cade, different players. But the way to succeed against them is kind of similar. You got to have quickness and you got to have strength. And Streuss I thought kind of demonstrated that against the Raptors. So maybe he's the guy who can do it against Cade and the Pistons. So I wonder if he actually starts like people talk up Dean Wade, his switchability, the fact that even though he's a tall, skinny guy, like he guards smaller players better than he guards a big player. So maybe that means he has some success on Cade. He'll have the length factor on him. He's a little hesitant to shoot, whereas Stre, he just lets it fly immediately. So I personally am going Streuss over Wade. But you know, Wade is kind of the guy that they turn to at least to start things off in Cleveland. But I can see both of those guys having an impact and to me, Streuss as the series goes on becomes more and more important because I think three point shooting is huge here. The Cavs have it and the Pistons don't.
- [57:58]
J. Skeets
Yeah, and Kenny Atkinson as their head coach showed he can switch it up. He started Max shrews two games and he threw in Jaylen Tyson in there as well. So I think you're going to see a bunch of Jalen Tyson guarding Cade Cunningham too.
- [58:10]
Trey Kirby
Okay, and what about on the Pistons? Like we started to see B ball Paul a little bit more as the series went on. Some less beef stew as the series went on. I mean he was great early on though. They were getting in holes, but he was blocking shots left and right. But his minutes dwindled. I wonder if we'll see more. With all of the bigs the Cavs have, there's an opportunity for obviously Paul Reed to play and maybe gets out there. We also have the storyline here of I guess Bickerstaff revenge is a possibility. Look, you laugh but by all accounts they're talking it up. Like let's sort of do this for JB as they let him go in Cleveland and then Kenny Atkinson comes in and we're now the number one seed and let's prove it. I'm just saying. Can't wait to see how that plays out.
- [58:53]
J. Skeets
Charis Levert against his old team.
- [58:56]
Tas Melas
True.
- [58:57]
J. Skeets
Yeah. Those guys are a tandem.
- [58:59]
Trey Kirby
Dennis Schroeder against this old team. Okay, let's get to predictions here. Cavs, Pistons task. Sounds like you're leaning towards Cleveland, but.
- [59:10]
J. Skeets
Yeah, I think so. Yeah. I'm taking the Cavs in six. I'm buying it. The way they ended the series, I don't know if they're slow playing round number two because we still haven't seen a steady, consistent Donovan Mitchell like we have in the past, and I think he'll just be ready a little bit more. So after seeing an incredible perimeter defense from the Toronto Raptors, so I expect them to ride Mitchell a little bit more. I got Cavs in six, Trey.
- [59:39]
Tas Melas
That makes me a little nervous because the Pistons defense is better than the Raptors. The Raptors are a good defense and they made Cleveland look like they were stuck in the mud for basically all the road games. And unfortunately for the Cavs, they don't have home court advantage this one. Cleveland went 40% from three in their wins, 28% in their losses. So I think three point shooting is kind of the. The key factor here. Like, who else on Detroit can even hit a three? Can Duncan Robinson get open like Max Stru or like literally whoever's guarding Duncan Robinson, don't let him shoot. I think he's gonna be taken out of this series. I'm going Cavs in six as well.
- [60:11]
Trey Kirby
Wow. I mean, that, that game seven, I know it turned into a blowout. It should have been a blowout earlier. If Duncan Robinson could have hit a three, he was getting a lot of looks in that game. Seven years since the Magic, there was a lot above the rank three. So you just cannot hit them right now. It's very weird. All right, well, I'm going to take the Pistons. I'm going to take the Pistons with the home court team. I'll say Pistons in seven, but I am coming in, as I admitted, not a great feel on this one. I don't know what we're taking from those last series where like two teams involved that they're both playing were pretty bad offenses. Some because of missing guys or both teams really because of missing guys. Once Franz Wagner left and then obviously no, quickly and Brandon Ingram. So it's weird. It's weird. But I like, you know, Detroit, there's. They're. They're playing for that Bickerstaff factor. They have home court advantage. They have Cade who I think they have the best player in the series at least what we've seen so far and I do expect a bounce back from their bigs and at least sir of trying to counter out the Cavs bigs there, especially Jalen Duran thing. So I'll go Pistons in seven. What are the people leaning here?
- [61:16]
Tas Melas
Did we have a poll 63% for the Pistons.
- [61:18]
Trey Kirby
Oh okay, okay. So they're backing with me here. Detroit in seven. These guys got calves in six.
- [61:25]
J. Skeets
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- [62:39]
JD (Super Producer)
Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type any prompt prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Members FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors, llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete Disclosures available at public.comDisclosures Amazon Health
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J. Skeets
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Tas Melas
Now I'm stuck down a rabbit hole
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J. Skeets
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- [64:11]
Trey Kirby
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- [66:10]
Tas Melas
It does feel like a lopsided series because my one thing to watch for is where can the Lakers actually win? Because you look at defending and it seems pretty tough. Reeves and LeBron are going to have to guard somebody. Like it could be A.J. mitchell. A.J. mitchell could have a huge series because I think Marcus Smart probably starts on sga. You know, I think that means Reeves ends up on Mitchell because LeBron probably hides on Dort. Like otherwise you're putting LeBron on Chet. That doesn't make any sense to me either. Either. And that unfortunately is probably the easier side of the ball for the Lakers because I don't know necessarily how they're going to score enough to keep up with the Thunder. They were under a hundred in their last three games against Houston. Houston is not on OKC's level defensively. LA also averaged the most turnovers per game of any team in the first round, and Oklahoma City pretty good at forcing turnovers. So I think this one's going to be tough for the Lakers without Luka and it doesn't feel like he's coming back anytime soon. You got Shams and Windhorse saying it's a slow process and he's not even to the contact stage of getting back. So without him to control the tempo, I think this could be a problem for the Los Angeles Lakers.
- [67:20]
J. Skeets
Yeah, to keep up scoring wise, Austin Reeves, I think, has to just go off. I mean, he has to be efficient and he has to score a lot because the Thunder defense is going to be good enough to wash away a fantastic Marcus Smart or Jake Laravia or those type of games. Deandre Ayton included, I think Austin Reeves can create. He has to be good enough at that to do it efficiently because as you said, the Thunder are going to create turnovers and they're going to take care of the ball and they're going to get more shots. I saw this stat from John Schumer where they averaged five more shot opportunities than the Phoenix Suns while the Lakers had nine fewer shot opportunities against the Rockets. Those are shots and free throws because the Rockets grab a lot of offensive rebounds. But OKC is just so good at taking care of the ball and they've got that size, they're going to get more shots. So I think Austin Reeves is kind of the important part here. Against a really good defense, the guy can create, can he do it, you know, even better than he did at the end of round one. Assume he, he's more healthy and ready to do that if you're up an optimistic Lakers.
- [68:24]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, I'm with you guys. My one thing to watch is just can the Lakers generate enough points? This is all the things you guys are saying here. They need a lot of things to go their way. Austin Reaves needs to regain his scoring touch very quickly here in this series as he comes back from injury. I think Rui needs to continue to stay on fire from, from deep. And you probably need another like they had last series, a Marcus Smart game or a Luke Canard game or maybe a Jake Laravia game where one random guy hits a bunch of threes to like try and keep it close.
- [68:56]
J. Skeets
I guess Rui was hot. Now you mentioned the guy.
- [68:58]
Trey Kirby
Rui's been good pretty well.
- [68:59]
J. Skeets
Yeah his three point shooting, that guy,
- [69:01]
Trey Kirby
he needs to continue. I mean all the. The thing is for the Lakers to pull off this upset, so many things need to go their way. And yeah, you brought up the possession game too. It is pretty crazy that the like the Lakers won three of those first four games versus the Rockets despite having way less possessions because of turnovers and offensive rebounds. And it's like these are things OKC just does even better than Houston. And oh yeah, they have the MVP probably back to back MVP in SGA who's you know an easy 30 to 35 points every night. So you gotta obviously just keep up here. A part of that too is like will they like do the old LeBron getting sort of the posts and operate there slow mo. Yeah, it might be a tactic to try but obviously this is against a very good talented OKC defense. And how will LeBron's body hold up here in the playoffs too as this goes on and every other night and stuff like that. Anything else to watch that you're watching for? Do you want to go right to X factors?
- [69:58]
Tas Melas
I mean you think Luka is going to play at all in this series? No, he's been ruled out for game one. They say it's week to week and like I said, ESPN is reporting a slow path to recovery.
- [70:10]
Trey Kirby
I don't, I don't, I don't see him coming back. I also don't think it's going to be a long series so obviously the longer it goes the better chance maybe returns. But I'm not thinking that way to tip my hand.
- [70:21]
J. Skeets
Yeah and there's not many days off like the first round so he has to come back you know, even faster. You don't, you don't have those two days off in between games. It's just every second day in this series.
- [70:32]
Trey Kirby
What X factors do you have in this?
- [70:34]
J. Skeets
I'll go with A.J. mitchell.
- [70:36]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [70:36]
J. Skeets
Of Belgian Waffle University. After Jalen Williams went out, they threw in A.J. mitchell into the starting line. First game as a starter, not so good. 5 of 20, second game cooking. So he shot, you know, 63, his true shooting percentage in that second start. If he's going, it's over. Shea's gonna get his. And if A.J. mitchell's getting his, then it's going to be hard for the Lakers just to overcome that. You know, Reeves is sort of my guy. I'll be watching as the guy who can overcome that if he does score along with, you know, everybody else. You mentioned shooting threes, your Ruiz, your smarts and all that. But yeah, if AJ Mitchell does what he did to end the series in games four. I was going to say games three and four. Games three was the struggle bus. But he started cooking. So scary times for the Lakers if this guy's going off.
- [71:28]
Tas Melas
Yeah, I think this is a big spot for AJ Mitchell because you could consider JJ Redick an X factor. Dude's a good coach. He's going to make it weird. At the very least for Shea, Gilgis Alexander. If the Lakers are somehow able to turn him into a playmaker or just he's trying to get the ball out of his hands, that means Mitchell has a lot more chances to be a creator wave, bigger opportunity. And like you're saying he didn't play all that great as a starter. One good game, one bad game, shot 36% for the series. We don't really know about Jalen Williams. He's still considered week to week at this point. No sort of updates on him. So opportunity certainly for A.J. mitchell. On the Lakers side of things. I think Rui is a big time X factor here because either he or LeBron is going to have a size advantage against the Thunders starting lineup. I don't know if LeBron has ever been picked as an X factor in any playoff series, but so I couldn't go for him. So like it's got to be really
- [72:22]
Trey Kirby
sort of is though. He kind of is like he's. LeBron's got to be incredible. Like the, the three has to fall. That jumper's got to be feeling good because they do drop coverage too. They're going to drop and he's like, they're going to like go ahead.
- [72:33]
Tas Melas
LeBron shots are going to be there. Yeah, for LeBron and for Rui. They both have to shoot like 40% from three. But yeah, I think the, the forwards, I guess, for the Lakers can theoretically be an advantage if Jalen Williams sits for the majority of this series.
- [72:47]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, an X factor for me. I'll go with the big matchup here. Deandre Ayton versus Let's go, Chad Holmgren. Obviously Hartenstein is there too, but I'll bring up both these guys because Holmgren was pretty damn good versus the Suns. Like, he only had to score 18 points per game, but his efficiency was off the charts. He was flirting with a 60, 40, 90 shooting splits in that sun series. Now, the Suns didn't have a lot of big guys, so that makes some sense. But then he had his rim protection. He's nearly flirting with the two blocks per game. He was really good. He sort of has sort of quietly almost like slid into maybe the second best player on OKC even when J Dub is out there. So he's fine. And you're going to think he's going to continue to grow. But deandre Ayton, when he was playing against the Thunder in the regular season, he was garbage, like, to the point where like, Reddick was like, Jackson Hayes, you're in now. Ayton was much better in the first round. He's been better as the season went on down the stretch. He just has to be solid, right? You know, you're not, you're not getting huge scoring games from Ayton, but he's got to be solid. He has to catch these balls. He's got to obviously hit the glass. He can't be pulled for way too much small ball, which they'll try. I get that. Or obviously Jackson Hayes. My God. No, no, no. I think a big X factor for the Lakers to pull off any sort of upset here to even stretch the series out. Prediction time. And before I get your prediction, I want to tell you that I saw the Thunder Open as 16 point favorites to win game one. I'm sure it's changed maybe a little bit as the money comes in, but LeBron has never been a bigger underdog in any playoff game ever.
- [74:20]
Tas Melas
Really?
- [74:20]
Trey Kirby
I guess the closest was against the 18 warriors in the finals. Yeah. So with all that said, where are you going in Thunder Lakers as your prediction for the series?
- [74:32]
J. Skeets
Yeah, I can't get too cute here. I think the Lakers will take one.
- [74:35]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [74:36]
J. Skeets
But that's where it ends. You know, the Thunder will be playing for a sweep, but the Lakers get one. Simple as that. Unfortunately.
- [74:44]
Trey Kirby
Gentleman sweep. Or does this get interesting right away with the Lakers taking a game in OkC?
- [74:52]
J. Skeets
Or. Or. Yeah, Bloody unlikely. It doesn't feel right. It doesn't feel right saying that at this time.
- [74:58]
Trey Kirby
So maybe suddenly, maybe a Game 3
- [74:59]
J. Skeets
win somewhere in Los Angeles. It Can OKC lose one of those first two games? It's hard to believe.
- [75:07]
Trey Kirby
Yeah. Crazy things have happened. Okay, but you're going Thunder and five. Yeah, I think that's a pretty common pick here. No doubt. Where are you going?
- [75:13]
Tas Melas
TK lines already shrinking tonight down to 15 and a half.
- [75:16]
Trey Kirby
Oh, geez.
- [75:17]
Tas Melas
Yeah, a minuscule 15 and a half. I do think the Lakers will cover the spread tonight.
- [75:22]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [75:23]
Tas Melas
They're gonna lose by 14.
- [75:25]
Trey Kirby
Okay. Okay. Backdoor cover, baby.
- [75:29]
J. Skeets
Backdoor cover.
- [75:30]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [75:30]
Tas Melas
Three from Jake Laravia goes crazy. Fanduel money shooting out of your computers.
- [75:37]
J. Skeets
Yeah. The line has been inspired by the Wolves winning in San Antonio, I think.
- [75:41]
Tas Melas
Absolutely feels disrespectful. Thunder and four, though.
- [75:47]
Trey Kirby
Whoa. Okay.
- [75:48]
Tas Melas
Sweepsy.
- [75:49]
Trey Kirby
Yeah. Look, we just went through the regular season matchup and how well they play them and how well they match up and everything. They do great. I'm with Tesla. I got Thunder in five. The Thunder, Their defense is too good. Their depth is too reliable. There's this part, too. I mean, they still play like 10 guys over, like 12 minutes per game. Home court advantage does matter here, and we barely talked about them, but shake elders. Alexander is playing the best basketball of his life right now. At least he was in the first round. He has complete control over these games. I don't see why that's going to change against the Lakers all that much. So there's that part of the equation, too. So I'm Thunder and five. But there'll be a weird. The world. There'll be a weird canard game. Nerd dog or smart, something like that. I got. I got hope in a huge shooting performance. Like a variance game for the Lakers.
- [76:37]
Tas Melas
How many times LeBron been swept?
- [76:41]
Trey Kirby
Once. Just once.
- [76:42]
Tas Melas
Three times.
- [76:43]
Trey Kirby
Has he been. Three times? Yeah, obviously in the finals.
- [76:46]
Tas Melas
Twice in the finals.
- [76:46]
Trey Kirby
Oh, twice in the finals. Yeah. Wait, wait. What's the other one?
- [76:50]
Tas Melas
Denver Nuggets. 2023. The most competitive sweep in NBA history, I believe it was called at the time.
- [76:56]
J. Skeets
Oh, yeah.
- [76:56]
Trey Kirby
Okay, so you're calling for the fourth sweep in LeBron's career here. Okay, who gets.
- [77:01]
Tas Melas
Who gets in trouble with the refs in one way or another? First, Marcus Smarter. Lou Dort.
- [77:07]
Trey Kirby
It's a great question.
- [77:09]
Tas Melas
I'm talking flagrants or Technicals in some sort of form.
- [77:14]
Trey Kirby
Give me, I guess Smart. Actually, I agree. More out of frustration. I'll go Smart.
- [77:20]
Tas Melas
Like he's got a bigger spotlight on him. Like they need more from him since he'll probably be the Shay Gil, just Alexander guy. And the more you ask for Marcus Smart, the more chance you have of something.
- [77:30]
Trey Kirby
Yeah. As he gets closer, closer to the edge. Dort of is just gonna inadvertently or not, trip somebody, bump somebody. And we'll have spotlight on that. No doubt. But the going overboard feels more like
- [77:42]
J. Skeets
a Smart to me than totally. We'll see like a Dys Daniels karate chop to Mitchell Robinson. You know, that kind of thing. Getting blown out. Yeah. You'll see something weird. You'll see something weird. The spotlight. Now you're saying that I could see that in the crypto arena. They love putting the spotlights on the fans. Just pan over to Marcus Smart. It's on him.
- [78:03]
Trey Kirby
Yeah. Who gets injured first in this series? That's the real question. First man. Yeah. Like, probably happening. Probably door. Marcus Smart will be involved in said injury to the other player.
- [78:17]
Tas Melas
Give me dark horse chat Holmgren.
- [78:19]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [78:19]
Tas Melas
Taking a big body.
- [78:21]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [78:21]
Tas Melas
Falling on his butt.
- [78:23]
J. Skeets
All right, I go Alex Caruso, he gets injured a lot.
- [78:26]
Tas Melas
He does.
- [78:28]
Trey Kirby
I'll go. Well, I'll go LeBron, but he'll be fine two minutes later.
- [78:32]
Tas Melas
But tied up tighter.
- [78:34]
Trey Kirby
It will look very bad for a second. And we'll go. Oh, no. Serious. Really? Over. LeBron's limping, but he'll be fine. Let's hear from you guys. Predictions for both of those series. Pistons, Cavs, who you got? Thunder, Lakers, who you got? How many games? Who are your X factors? All that fun stuff.
- [78:48]
Tas Melas
Stream team. 80% for the Thunder.
- [78:50]
Trey Kirby
Okay. Sure. I'm surprised that's as low. I'm surprised it's lower. Yeah, yeah, Yeah. I would think it would be higher. It's tough to pick against the defending champs.
- [78:59]
J. Skeets
Yeah.
- [78:59]
Trey Kirby
Against the Lakers team, obviously.
- [79:01]
J. Skeets
Luca, that's higher than some of our other series, like our first round series. 20%.
- [79:06]
Trey Kirby
Oh, I think the Lakers high on that side. Yes. Yes.
- [79:08]
J. Skeets
Higher.
- [79:08]
Trey Kirby
Yep.
- [79:09]
Tas Melas
I think we only had. I think it was like 84% for the Thunder in round one against the Suns.
- [79:14]
Trey Kirby
Weird.
- [79:15]
J. Skeets
Yeah.
- [79:16]
Trey Kirby
I mean, people hate the Thunder, though, too, so they're just like, picking against them. And spite. I think that part of the equation.
- [79:22]
Tas Melas
Spite, choice, lullaby.
- [79:24]
Trey Kirby
Lullaby of the night. Sponsored by Via Tiempo, a tea company. That's right. Tea from Via Tiempo is an S tier gift. Excellent quality. Quality traditional craft. Fun and informative labels. The two best selling teas are Honey Jean Jun Mei, which is a red tea, and Clouds and Mist, which is a green tea. But the absolute best gift is the seasonal tea journey, making the tea magic happen. Delivering classic after classic with each shifting season. Listen to this. Use the code no Dunks at checkout. Get out for 20% off your order. We'll get this link in the show notes and via Diempo ads. Big thank you to the no Dunks crew and the community for supporting small business.
- [80:10]
J. Skeets
Yeah, that's right.
- [80:11]
Trey Kirby
Love to see that.
- [80:12]
J. Skeets
Yeah, I messed up. We already have the website in there.
- [80:15]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [80:16]
J. Skeets
But not sure what's going on with Via. Oh, maybe I spelled it wrong. No, hold on a sec. Anyway, let me. Let me get this corrected. What are you trying to correct my. Via tiempo.com I messed up my letters from Michael Busby, a T peddler who's. Who's. Who's requesting your visit. That's a great copy. Probably one of our best copies.
- [80:39]
Trey Kirby
That was good copy.
- [80:39]
Tas Melas
Really good copy. I'm interested in these labels.
- [80:43]
Trey Kirby
I checked it out.
- [80:43]
Tas Melas
Yeah, I'm looking at their website right now. I'm eyeballing the old tree. Lapsang tea, of course, the peddler's note. My nickname for this tea is the cave of wonders. It just leads deeper and deeper.
- [80:54]
Trey Kirby
Oh, damn. I'm not. Are you a big tea guy? I. I am not.
- [80:58]
Tas Melas
I'm a medium tea guy.
- [80:59]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [80:59]
Tas Melas
Yeah.
- [80:59]
Trey Kirby
But I've had a lot of guests recently and, you know, I don't know why.
- [81:03]
J. Skeets
Gas?
- [81:03]
Trey Kirby
No, guess.
- [81:04]
J. Skeets
Oh, sorry.
- [81:05]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, all my guests are tea drinkers.
- [81:08]
J. Skeets
Yeah.
- [81:09]
Trey Kirby
So I wish I had some of this.
- [81:10]
J. Skeets
Yeah, I. I'm not either. I threw it out to jd. I'm sure our tea peddler will swing and swing your way if you want.
- [81:19]
Trey Kirby
Jd. You're a tea guy.
- [81:20]
J. Skeets
I love a tea.
- [81:21]
Trey Kirby
Okay.
- [81:21]
J. Skeets
For sure.
- [81:22]
Trey Kirby
Nighttime tea or what.
- [81:24]
J. Skeets
Okay.
- [81:25]
Trey Kirby
A bedtime, sort of soothing, sleepy time, whatever it's called.
- [81:30]
J. Skeets
Also enjoy, you know, just your standard British tea.
- [81:33]
Trey Kirby
And sure, nothing wrong with digestive cookie.
- [81:36]
JD (Super Producer)
With that, perhaps.
- [81:39]
Trey Kirby
Easy, grandpa, easy. Just kidding. Love that though. Support small businesses when you can. But Jalen Brunson, he was big business last night. Dropped a game high 35 points. Incredibly efficient. 12 of 18 from the field, 3 of 6 from deep eight. Eight at the line. Three assists, two steals. Just one turnover in 31 minutes. That's a pretty good stat line in 31 minutes of action as they all took a break there in the fourth and let the backups get some minutes, get some stats.
- [82:10]
J. Skeets
I like the Deuce in this game. Deuce McBride was feeling good. You know, the three ball. Mainly the two ball. Not so good.
- [82:20]
Trey Kirby
This guy loves two balls right now.
- [82:22]
J. Skeets
They're hot. They've been the breakdown of Jalen Brunson's stat line as he's doing the interview. I love. I love seeing it. I love to know. Maybe we would have known Tobias Harris was a bad three point shooter in that series if we broke it down between twos and threes. Okay, now I'm getting a little too far, but I guess I should have.
- [82:40]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, I should have told you. If my math is right, Jalen Brunson was 9 to 12 on two pointers.
- [82:45]
J. Skeets
Correct?
- [82:46]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, it's pretty good.
- [82:47]
J. Skeets
75%.
- [82:47]
Trey Kirby
Very good.
- [82:48]
Tas Melas
Nice.
- [82:49]
Trey Kirby
All right, that's it for today's show. Appreciate you joining us again. Let's hear your predictions for the two series that start tonight. Little earlier start, guys. Cass Pistons, 7 o'. Clock. Lakers Thunder, 8:30. That's right.
- [83:01]
Tas Melas
Oh, it's in Oklahoma City.
- [83:03]
Trey Kirby
We're first ones on Peacock or NBC Sports Network, which I do not have on my cable bundle. But the Lakers Thunder, it's on NBC. Slash Peacock. So you gotta. Unless you have NBC sn. Do you guys, either of you have that? No. Yeah, you do. Nice. Good for you.
- [83:23]
Tas Melas
Well, yeah, I gotta watch yesterday.
- [83:25]
J. Skeets
Oh, yeah, Yeah.
- [83:26]
Tas Melas
I was like when I flipped over at halftime and it was the end of small ball running into the beginning of the game.
- [83:32]
Trey Kirby
Oh, that's a nice lead in for him. Very good. So anyway, those are the games tonight. Enjoy them. We're here tomorrow. Break them all down and get into any other NBA news. You know what? We'll talk Messiah. Jiri, I'm sure tomorrow your bulls are making some front office decisions here, Bryson. Yeah, so we'll talk about that tomorrow because we'll have a whole block after the games now that we've done all our previews and predictions. Appreciate you joining us. Till then, Clipper Bros. You heard it here first.
- [83:56]
Tas Melas
Have a great time. Turn up.
- [83:58]
Trey Kirby
Love you guys.
- [83:58]
Tas Melas
Awesome.
- [83:59]
J. Skeets
Thanks for joining us. And remember the teacup emoji that we threw in the notes doesn't have a handle, just a teacup. You're just grabbing it.
- [84:09]
Tas Melas
Yeah, those are. They call those like latte bowls. Like those big bowls. Yeah, for like a big old drink.
- [84:16]
J. Skeets
Like a cup of green tea is what I'm seeing here. Minty colored, you know, Japanese matcha too.
- [84:22]
Tas Melas
You prefer the handle?
- [84:24]
Trey Kirby
Yeah, of course.
- [84:26]
J. Skeets
I mean, double hand, double double grab is all Right.
- [84:30]
Tas Melas
It feels very medieval to hold, like, a bowl and sip gruel out of
- [84:34]
Trey Kirby
it and drink your dragon blood.
- [84:36]
Tas Melas
Yeah, exactly.
- [84:37]
Trey Kirby
Yeah.
- [84:37]
J. Skeets
A miso soup. That's how I. That's how I drink a miso soup.
- [84:40]
Trey Kirby
True.
- [84:41]
J. Skeets
You know, yeah. Cool story, bro.
- [84:44]
Trey Kirby
Brace the day people.
- [84:48]
J. Skeets
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- [86:37]
Trey Kirby
I'm U.S. transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
- [86:41]
Tas Melas
The sound of a seatbelt.
- [86:43]
Trey Kirby
It's one of the most important sounds in our car.
- [86:46]
Tas Melas
It means everyone is ready and everyone is safe. The more our kids see us put
- [86:51]
Trey Kirby
on our seatbelts, the more natural it
- [86:54]
Tas Melas
is for them to put theirs on, too.
- [86:58]
Trey Kirby
Make it a priority.
- [86:59]
Tas Melas
Buckle up every time. Hear the sound make make it a habit.
- [87:04]
Trey Kirby
Paid for by nhtsa. Support from this show comes from Quince. I'm way overdue for a wardrobe refresh. I'm a podcast host. That is very important. I drive a Chevy Trax. I'm a man. I'm 45. Clothes shopping in person is simply not a priority for me, so I usually wear the same stuff till my wife calls me out. For these reasons, I'm pumped to say that Quints has been my new go to. I asked Nora to help me pick out a couple of items and it turns out she already had a cart ready of things she was planning on getting me from Quints. So I picked up two of the 100% European linen shirts, one striped, one solid. The material feels light and breathable and the stitching looks really well done. They're the perfect type of pieces that feel easy and comfortable but still look put together. And the best part is I didn't break the bank. In fact, everything I purchased was priced 50 to 80% less than what you'd find at similar brands. Why? Because Quince works directly with the ethical factories and cuts out the middlemen. So you're getting premium materials without the markup. Refresh your everyday with luxury you'll actually use. Head to Quince.com nodunks for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada too. That's Q-U I-N-C-E.com nodunks for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quints.com nodunks this is an iHeart podcast.
- [88:40]
J. Skeets
Guaranteed Human.