Nuggets Toast? + Which Tanking Team Deserves the first pick? | Slam N Jam

Summary

The Athletic NBA Daily — Slam N’ Jam

Episode: "Nuggets Toast? + Which Tanking Team Deserves the First Pick?"
Date: March 21, 2026
Hosts: Andrew Schlecht & Alex Spears
Special Guest: Steven Prajan Garner (PHNX)

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Episode Overview

This edition of Saturday Slam N’ Jam kicks off with the hosts reviewing the week’s biggest NBA stories, including possible league expansion, the Lakers’ clutch-time heroics, and the Hawks’ winning run. The “Good, Bad, What?” segment dissects the Lakers’ and Nuggets’ recent form and plunges into lottery team needs. The wheel lands on a team for a deep-dive: it’s “Suns Week,” so PHNX analyst Steven Prajan Garner joins to break down Phoenix’s struggles, rookie progress, and roster-building outlook. The episode wraps with Suns trivia and spins ahead for next week’s “Wheel of Fandom.”

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Main Topics & Insights

1. NBA Expansion & Weekly Headlines [02:29–07:07]

• Expansion News:
  • [02:30] Shams Charania reports the NBA will soon vote on adding teams in Las Vegas and Seattle.
  • New franchises could begin play as early as 2028. Expansion draft “dream of every NBA podcaster.”
  • Expansion team fee estimated: $7–$10 billion.
• Lakers & Luka’s Big Week:
  • [03:00] Lakers win four straight (eight in a row overall).
  • Notably, Austin Reaves forced OT vs Denver by tipping in his own missed free throw.
  • Luka Doncic: 60 points vs Miami, averages 33/9/7 with massive shooting stats.
  • Moves up to second-best MVP odds.
• Thunder & Hawks on a Streak:
  • [04:23] Thunder: 10 straight wins, "contesting shots with their shoes" to fend off San Antonio.
  • Hawks: Longest NBA winning streak at 11. Nikhil Alexander-Walker goes for 41 points (nine threes)—career high.
• Key Injuries:
  • Cade Cunningham (Pistons) out with collapsed lung—reevaluation in two weeks.
  • Anthony Edwards (Wolves) to miss 1–2 weeks, knee inflammation.
  • Giannis (Bucks) rehabbing, but wants to return despite potential trade implications. Ongoing tension with the Bucks.

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2. Good, Bad, What? [07:11–31:56]

The Good

• Rookie Class Impresses [07:34-11:00]

  • BJ Edgecombe: "35 points and 10 assists—only the second 76ers rookie to do that since AI.”
  • Twelve rookies average double digits—a standout year (second-best last 10 years).
  • “This class is going to impact the league at a really, really high level.”
  • No obvious busts in the top 8 picks; all teams can feel “really good about their guy.”
  • “Shout out to the 2016 class who only had two players average double digits.” [10:51]

• Lakers' Historic Clutch Performance [11:00–15:54]

  • Lakers: league-best +29.4 clutch net rating, 21-6 record.
  • “Over the last 30 years, they are one of the best clutch teams we’ve seen.” [13:14]
  • LeBron features on five of the top 16 clutch teams in this 30-year span.
  • “Could the Lakers be the next clutch team to ride their clutchness all the way to the Finals? It’s possible.” [14:23]

The Bad

• Denver Nuggets' Collapse [16:32–20:22]

  • Nuggets are 5-5 in their last 10, just lost to tanking Grizzlies (“a team that doesn’t want to win”).
  • “There’s a concerning lack of leadership from the roster and coaching staff during this.” [16:50]
  • Jokic’s turnovers up, health issues for Jamal Murray.
  • “I feel like they’re a team that gets a pass…and they deserve it—but they don’t look the part right now.” [17:50]

• The State of Tanking and Lottery Needs [20:40–27:28]

  • “Nobody deserves a top pick.”
  • Ranking teams by need—not who deserves, but who needs lottery luck the most:
    • #1 Brooklyn Nets (“What is this roster? They need an anchor, a foundation.” [27:26])
    • #2 Milwaukee (“If they move up, everything changes”).
    • #3 Sacramento, then Washington, Chicago, etc.

The What

• Epic Cold Shooting Streaks [27:35–29:13]

  • “Trendon Watford and Tari Eason have both missed their last 21 threes—the longest cold streaks of the year.”
  • “Houston plays Friday night—chance to end the cold streak or extend it!” [28:00]

• Accidental Tank-Busting: Kings Play DeRozan [29:27–31:56]

  • Kings play DeMar DeRozan big minutes, win 4 of 5, fall from first to fourth in reverse standings.
  • “Sacramento, the time for familiarity is over. Let’s get a look at some guys I’ll never think about again in my life.” [31:18]
  • “If I’m a Kings fan, when I turn on the game, I want to have a brief moment where I begin to lose my grip on reality because I don’t recognize anyone on the court.” [31:18]

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3. Wheel of Fandom: Phoenix Suns Week [34:52–64:35]

Suns Weekly Recap [34:52–36:13]

• Suns went 0-4 (losses to Toronto, Boston, Minnesota, San Antonio—Wemby game-winner).
• Slipped from 1 game out of 6th to 3 games back, now 39–31.

In-Depth Suns Analysis with Steven Prajan Garner (PHNX) [35:43–48:24]

What’s Wrong With the Suns? [36:13–37:45]

• Missing starters Dylan Brooks and Mark Williams.
• “Fourth quarter, that final frame, you can’t take your foot off the gas… It’s something that always comes back to haunt you.” [36:23]
• Lately, even with Booker and Jalen Green, late execution falters.

Jalen Green Integration [37:45–39:44]

• “He’s learning not to play 0 to 100, but with more purpose—using the extra space, manipulating defenses.”
• Shooting efficiency and rim pressure slowly improving.

If Suns Clinch Play-In and Face Spurs? [39:44–42:01]

• Physicality edge if healthy, especially with Brooks and Goodwin on defense.
• “Forcing turnovers, extended pick-up points—those could give the Suns a real shot.”
• Series could pivot on fourth quarter execution: “With the Suns, it always comes down to their late-game offense.” [41:55]

Suns’ Rookies & Player Development [42:01–45:27]

• “Suns have done a great job developing guys by giving them more freedom than other teams.”
• On Rasheed Fleming: “Be physical at the point of attack, use length as an advantage, offensive glass presence.”
• Kamal Malwotch: “Big rim protection strides—improving verticality, timing, and screening.”

Looking Ahead – Suns’ Summer Priorities [45:27–48:24]

• Re-sign key FAs: “Colin Gillespie is the proof-of-concept of Suns’ culture—have to bring him back.”
• Need more frontcourt size, reliable big-man shooting/stretch options.
• Rim pressure beyond Booker & Green: “You can't just have two creators—need more guys who can get to the rim.”

Memorable Quotes

• “With great spacing comes great responsibility. You can leverage things in a more manipulative fashion.”
  — Steven Prajan Garner [38:33]

• “The time for familiarity is over. Let’s see some guys I’ll never think about again.”
  — Alex Spears [31:18]

• “Four finger assassin. Shout out to Gerald Green. I hope he’s doing well in life, man.”
  — Steven Prajan Garner [53:02]

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4. Suns History & Trivia with Steven Prajan Garner [48:24–64:35]

Fun, competitive segment with Suns historical and roster questions:

• Kentucky alumni with most NBA points: Anthony Davis, Karl-Anthony Towns, Julius Randle, De’Aaron Fox, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, etc. [49:33]
• 2013–14 Suns’ top scorers: Goran Dragic, Gerald Green [52:05]
• Single-season Suns 3PT record: Quentin Richardson (2004–05) [55:40]
• Dunks in a season: Last to break 100—Deandre Ayton, and, unexpectedly, Marquese Chriss [58:01]
• Best two-man Suns lineups: Oso Ighodaro + Jordan Goodwin [61:40]
• Defensive impact leader: Oso Ighodaro

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5. Wheel of Fandom: Next Week Reveal [64:50–66:45]

• Next week’s focus: Detroit Pistons
  • “That is some kind of brutal,” says Alex on the spin result.
  • Jalen Duren highlighted; Cade Cunningham injury update incoming.

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Notable Moments & Quotes

• “Lakers' clutch-time stats place them among the top 5 teams of the last 30 years—LeBron keeps making history.” [13:15]
• “Nuggets fans keep hanging hopes on a return to full health, but we keep getting more and more evidence this team’s just off right now.” [20:40]
• “Sacramento, now is the time for tanking transparency. Don’t just play DeRozan—let’s see some guys whose names confuse the fans!” [31:18]
• “If the Nets don’t win the lottery, we can’t do another year in the abyss. They need a clarifying moment.” [27:26]
• “[Phoenix] may have just killed any hope the Suns had of getting out of the play-in…0-4 week, and Booker banged up.” [34:52]
• “With great spacing comes great responsibility.” — Steven Prajan Garner [38:33]

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Key Timestamps

• NBA Expansion & Weekly Roundup: 02:29–07:07
• Good, Bad, What?: 07:11–31:56
• Phoenix Suns Analysis (w/ Steven Garner): 35:43–48:24
• Suns Rookies/Development: 42:01–45:27
• Suns Summer Priorities: 45:27–48:24
• Suns Team Trivia: 48:24–64:35
• Wheel of Fandom (Pistons reveal): 64:50–66:45

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Summary

This episode delivers a lively and in-depth NBA week-in-review, with a strong focus on playoff race dynamics, clutch stats, rookie standouts, and the nuances of tanking. The “Suns Week” segment is especially rich, unpacking Phoenix’s recent form, challenges integrating Jalen Green, rookie progress, and medium-term roster plans.

The recurring Slam N’ Jam segments blend sharp analysis, banter, and trivia, making this essential listening for NBA fans keen to keep up with league trends and fun team histories. From powerful player stats (Lakers/Luka) and cold streak oddities to candid tanking debates and expansion excitement, it’s an energetic, info-packed ride.

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Transcript

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[A]

Andrew the top story this week is that we finally got some real news about possible expansion in the NBA. On Monday, Shamshirani reported the NBA will hold a vote at the Board of Governors meeting this upcoming week to explore adding two expansion teams, one in Las Vegas and one in Seattle. If approved, the new teams could start play as soon as the 202829 season, which means that we could get an expansion draft. The dream of every NBA podcaster. Something we have not experienced in almost a quarter century. Never experienced. The era of podcasts. Yeah. In the summer of 2021, Shams reported that industry executives expect the cost for each expansion team to fall in the 7 to $10 billion range. For context, just last year the Celtics sold for 6.1 billion, while the Lakers sold for 10 billion. Speaking of the Lakers, what a week it was for our friends in purple and gold. The Lakers won all four of their games and are currently on an eight game winning streak. The week started with a thrilling overtime win against Denver during which Austin Reese forced overtime by Rebo his own intentionally missed free throw, floating it back in with 1.9 seconds left in regulation. Then at overtime, Luka Doncic hit a game winner with 0.5 seconds left, one of many, many memorable moments for Luca this week. In the second of two games against the Rockets, Luca had 10 points and three assists just in the final five minutes of the game, almost single handedly ending what had been a very close game. Then in Miami on Thursday night, Luca dropped 60 in a win while LeBron tied Celtics legend Robert Parish for most regular season games played. Over this eight game stretch, Luka is averaging 33, 9 and 7 while shooting 42% on over 14 three point attempts per game. That's, that's crazy. Luka is now only 10 threes behind Con Caniple for most threes made this season.

[B]

That's crazy.

[A]

And he's moved into second best odds for MVP this week, jumping both Jokic and Wemby. Now, the Lakers eight game winning streak is certainly impressive, but is not currently the longest winning streak in the NBA. It's not the Thunder either, who have won 10 in a row and will do anything including contesting shots with their shoes to hold off San Antonio for the top spot in the West. No, the longest winning streak currently is the Atlanta Hawks.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Who continued winning this week, pushing their streak all the way to 11 games as they've marched up the east standings. Boyd buoyed. Yeah, when I wrote that word I was like I'm not going to be able to say that in the moment. I know I'm going to look at the way it's spelled and screw it up. Buoyed by three game losing streaks for both the Magic and the Heat, the Hawks have jumped all the way up to sixth in the east and are only a game and a half back in Toronto for the five seed. The Hawks most impressive win this week was over fellow east standings rival Orlando. Atlanta got up by as many as 29 in the game before winning 112 to 124 to 112, led by Nikhil Alexander Walker who had a career high 41 points that included nine three pointers. Now the schedule does pick up this next week with games against Houston and Detroit before two games against Boston. Now the game against Detroit scheduled for next Wednesday may not be as difficult as it would have been a week ago after it was announced this week that Cade Cunningham would miss an extended period of time with a collapsed lung. Cade will be reevaluated in two weeks and Shams reported that there was optimism Cade would be back in time for the playoffs. Regardless, it's a huge blow for the Pistons who now need to fight off any late season charge from the Celtics who sit four back of the one seed. If Cade doesn't return until the playoffs, he will also miss out on any end of season awards and all NBA as he has only played 61 games. Another star who could also miss out on end of season awards in all NBA due to the 65 game rule is Anthony Edwards who it was announced was going to be out for the next one to two weeks with knee inflammation. The Pistons and Wolves definitely want Cade and Ant to return from their injuries, but what about the Bucks and Giannis? Bucks beat writer and friend of the show Eric Dame reported that there is ongoing disagreement about that between the Bucks and Giannis who is currently at out with a left knee hyperextension despite the Bucs being 7 1/2 games out of the 10 seed. Giannis wants to return this season, while the Bucs understandably would rather he not do that, especially considering any further injury could impact a potential trade this summer. The Bucks currently sit at 10th in the reverse standings and could jump Chicago, who is only a half game ahead of them. As a reminder, the Bucs do get a pick this year, the lesser of their own in New Orleans, the better of which will of course be going to the league's hottest team, the Atlanta Hawks. And those are the top stories this week. Andrew what a week.

[B]

What a week. What a week.

[A]

What a week.

[B]

What a week.

[A]

All right Andrew, it's time to celebrate something good this week, something happened this week, something bad that happened this week and something that left us confused in a segment we call good bad. What good? So Andrew, what was you're good this week?

[B]

You know, I, I saw this game from BJ Edgecomb where he had 35 points and 10 assists. Only the second rookie in the history of the 76ers to accomplish that since Allen Iverson December 5th, 1996. And it just got me thinking about this rookie class because Edgecom has been way better than I thought he would be. I thought he'd be a good player. He's somebody that I like long term. I didn't know that he'd be this good this fast. And it got me thinking, okay, how good is this class in relation to other classes? And I'm, and I maybe do it in kind of a losery way by just looking at points per game. Right now there are, there's 12 rookies that are averaging double digits right now. Which I'm like, is that good, bad? I don't know. It's actually the second best in the last 10 years for a rookie class. So the only other year that the rookie class had more was the 2019 rookie class had 13 players that averaged 10 or more points per game. Which there's, there's definitely some players in that class. This is the Zion Jaw class. It was like Zion Jaw, RJ Barrett, Eric Pascal, average 14 points that year.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Rui Hero, Kobe White, DeAndre Hunter, Darius Garland, PJ Washington, Brandon Clark, Cam Reddish and KPJ. But I've just been so impressed with this rookie class. I just think it is full of guys that are going to contribute at a very high level. Will everybody that's a part of this group of 12 contribute at a high level throughout? I don't know. Probably not. Caleb Love is one of those guys who I kind of like for the Blazers, but I'm not sure that he's like some high level contributor. But you look at guys like Coop Con, Canipple, Vijay, Cedric Coward, I think Ace Bailey is like on his way. Like he's looking pretty good. Trey Johnson, Derek Queen, this is just a really good class. Dylan Harper, who is, has not been given the same chances that some of those other guys have, still averaging double digits and you know, one of the best defending guards as a rookie that I've ever seen. I just think this class is going to impact the league at a really, really high level. And like just seeing like some of these stats that like VJ and these guys are putting up Just gets me really excited for what these guys can do in the future. So I love this class. I'm excited for the next class as well. But like this one needs to be celebrated in a pretty big way because there's a lot of really like high level contributors.

[A]

Well and the thing that you know that double digit point stat, what's most amazing to me about that is that all of the top eight qualify. Like they're, they're. There isn't like an obvious bust at the top of the draft. You usually have one player where even though you like still believe in them because it's just the rookie season, you already start to have some like real fears about them. And I think any of these players like even after that top four, Ace Bailey, Trey Johnson, Jeremiah Fierce, Jaegor, Kalmuri, Boyles, like all those teams can feel really good about those players and talk themselves into their future even if maybe they all don't have like superstar ceilings. But there really hasn't been like a obvious bust. Like a player that you're really truly worried about.

[B]

Yeah, it's true. Shout out to the 2016 class who only had two people average double digit points.

[A]

So wow.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

My good this week, Andrew, if I can find it, is the Lakers specifically what they're doing in the clutch. Because in the clutch this season the Lakers are far and away the best team with a plus 26.2 net rating. They have a 20 and 6 record in those games. This has been one of the stories of this Lakers team all season. And early in the season when things weren't looking great, we were talking about their negative point differential. You know, the clutch play was like this nice little thing that Lakers fans could hold on to as everyone made fun of their team. It was like, hey, we're pretty good in the clutch though. But now that the Lakers are solidifying their position in the west with his eight game winning streak, their clutch play adds to what has become a much more dangerous looking team heading into the playoffs. And so as I like to do, I wanted to try and contextualize the Lakers clutch play historically. So I went on NBA.com where you can go all the way back to 96, 97. Okay, that means we got 30 years of clutch time data including this season. Where do the 2026 Lakers clutch time net rating rank in those three decades? In those 30 seasons there were 31 teams with a clutch time net rating above plus 20. Now the best clutch team in the last 30 seasons. You have any guess, Andrew? Any guess? You shouldn't it was the 2009 Cleveland Cavaliers. Good team, but I don't know if you would have guessed them. Yeah, no, they were plus 34.2 in the clutch. They won 66 games. That was a team that eventually lost to the Orlando Magic, as we all remember. Memorable series. And who was on the 2009 Cleveland Cavaliers?

[B]

Andrew, do you remember on the 2009 Cleveland Cavaliers? LeBron James.

[A]

That's right. That's correct, Andrew. LeBron James.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

Fact of all the teams I looked at, five of the top 16 in clutch time net rating had LeBron on their team now.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Yes. And by the way, I just realized this update. I did this before the Miami game. The Lakers clutch time. That rating is actually now plus 29.4 and they are 21. 6 in clutch games. So it's even better than I thought.

[B]

That's.

[A]

That's wild. Like that shoots them up to of this whole list that I'm talking about, they're now fourth in the last 30 years. And the three teams above them, 2009 Cleveland Cavaliers. 2016 Golden State Warriors. Makes sense. And the 2022 Phoenix Suns. Now I did want to name some of the other teams that are like in this top 10 because they're just like some memorable teams. 2013 Miami Heat, obviously champs. 2021 Trailblazers. What? 2018 Houston Rockets. That was the team. Chris Paul hamstring game seven.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

2014 Memphis Grizzlies. 2007, the we don't believe Dallas Mavericks. They were there. And then before last night it was the 2026 Lakers. But they have now jumped all the way to fourth, which is pretty crazy. So another interesting anecdote is just the recent success of good clutch teams. Last year, the best clutch team, the Indiana Pacers, made it all the way to the finals. The best clutch team two years ago. Well, that was the Dallas Mavericks featuring Luka Doncic, who made it all the way to the Finals. Could the Lakers be the next clutch team to ride their clutchness all the way to the Finals? It's possible. And while they didn't have the big mid season trade like the 24 Mavs did, this Lakers team has certainly been a different team post all star break, which was also the case with that 24 Mavs team. And one thing they have going for them is how good they are in isolation, which tends to matter in the clutch.

[B]

Yeah, it does.

[A]

The Lakers tied with the Nuggets for isolation points per possession. And when you look at players who use at least two ISOs per game. The Lakers have two of the top 11 players in the league as far as points per possession with Luca and Austin Reeves. Before I move on, just a few more notes. Most of these teams were very good on this list. These 31 teams average wins was 55 games. But they weren't all good. The worst team to make this list of 31 very good clutch teams was the 2021 Charlotte Hornets who went 33 and 39, missed the playoffs but were a plus 21.9 in the clutch. And another fun one, which I actually remember, this One is the 2024 Bulls who won 39 games, also missed the playoffs, but they had that insane clutch season from DeRozan, remember? Yeah, they had a plus 23.5 net rating in the clutch. Finally, Andrew, trivia question. Three OKC teams that made this list. One is this year's team, 2026 team. Who would be the other two teams? So this is OKC team with a clutch time net rating above plus 20. Who would you guess?

[B]

Chris Paul team?

[A]

Yes. Chris Paul Team 2020.

[B]

Russell Westbrook, MVP year.

[A]

Yes. 2017 Thunder. Which is just a good reminder that yes, largely like the triple doubles mattered a lot. But Russ was insanely good in the clutch that season. So yeah, this, this Lakers run what they're doing in the clutch and this week was like the best example of it ever because it was like game after game after game. It's really special. It's really special. Like over the last 30 years, they are one of the best clutch teams we've seen. So that is my good. Which brings us to our bad. Andrew, what is your bad this week?

[B]

My bad this week is the Denver Nuggets. And like what, what the heck is going on in Denver?

[A]

The heck.

[B]

What the heck is going on in Denver? They're five and five in their last 10. And the most concerning thing was this loss against the Grizzlies. Now they had a bad first half. They're tied 60 to 60 at halftime. You think you go in, you make some adjustments, you're going to play harder. You're just going to take this game. Because you look at the standings, Al, and they're right there with all these other teams. They need to level up here over the next several weeks and you get this gimme game against a Grizzlies team that doesn't want to win. They don't want to win basketball games. They would like to lose so they could have a better draft pick. But what happens the first play out of half is Omax Prosper Does a simple cut to the rim and he's wide open for a dunk, an uncontested dunk. And that was just showing you the effort level that was going to happen from the Dipper Nuggets for the rest of that game. It was not a close game. There were no clutch time, like true clutch time, minutes where this felt like it was hanging in the balance. They like just straight up lost a game to this team and it kind of comes on the heels of them losing a lot of big games. And part of the concern for me, and this is laid out by our friends over at DNVR who have joined this pod, you know, several times throughout the years, is like, there's just like kind of a concerning lack of leadership from the roster and from the coaching staff during this. You know, like, there's this kind of like, well, we're kind of winning. We're winning in places that we really like. We're. We're progressing all these like. But they're not winning the basketball games they need to. And so like the lack of leadership, just the fact that they're losing games like this, that they're not winning these games. Like, they've got beat by the Thunder the last two times. And like the Thunder just like decidedly look like the better team. Even though the Thunder had like a ton of players missing in one of those contests. I'm concerned about the Nuggets. I feel like they're a team that's kind of gets a pass and they deserve it because last year they fired their coach and their GM and then they showed up and they look like they the. The team that was best equipped to handle this Thunder team that ended up winning the championship. But I just wonder if they are that team, like if they are the team that can go and actually beat the Thunder, that can actually get to the Western Conference finals and potentially the NBA finals again. They don't look like it right now. Defensively, they don't compete. Jokic is like dangerously close to not only being the guy to average the most rebounds and assists in a season, but also turnovers to go with that. Like, he and Luca are like neck and neck for that right now. Yeah, his turnovers have been very concerning recently and his health, along with Jamal Murray who's like, obviously has something with his shoulder going on right now. Like, there's so many concerns that I have about Denver and like that Grizzlies loss just magnified things so much. Now they're going to have to get it together because you look Right now they sit at six. This is, we're recording this Friday morning, they sit at six in the Western Conference. And they are. That game could have like put them up in the four or five seed, but they have 28 losses to the 27 for Minnesota and Houston. And I just don't have a lot of faith in this Nuggets team getting it together now. They have a chance over this last stretch to figure it out, but, man, I feel pretty concerned about this iteration of the Nuggets, which was supposed to be like one of the best versions of them ever. And they've been riddled by injuries, which a ton of teams in the west have, and they still just haven't been able to get there. It seems like they're just a little bit full of excuses right now. So it's just, it's just bad. It's bad in Denver.

[A]

Yeah, their, their end of season schedule is pretty interesting because they got some games that like, they should win. They played Portland twice, they played Utah twice. They played Dallas. Like you should win those games.

[B]

They should.

[A]

But then the final two weeks of the season, they play San Antonio twice. Now who knows the last game of the season, San Antonio might know where they're seeing and not care.

[B]

Never know.

[A]

But they also play the Thunder the second to last game of the season. So, I mean, I would love for those games to matter. That would be fun at the end of the season. But yeah, I, I unfortunately am just one of those people. I'm just going to fall for it again with the Nuggets because I just can't. I can't give it up. I will say, like I did in my head, I was just like, oh, once Aaron Gordon comes back, everything will be fine. And he didn't play in that Memphis game, but no, he didn't. It hasn't been as perfect as I imagined in my head. And so now I'm sure Nuggets fans are saying, well, we'll just wait till Peyton Watson gets back. I understand why you would do that, and I kind of feel the same way. It's like, if this team is healthy in the playoffs, I'm still going to be terrified of them. Sure. But we keep getting more and more evidence week after week that like, this team's just off right now. Yeah, my bad. I want to talk about the tanking teams because I've been hearing a lot of talk recently about how this team or that team deserves a top pick. Oh, we deserve to move up. This is an ethical tank. This team isn't gaming the system like those other teams, they're just a genuinely incompetent group of losers. And I think that's good and should be rewarded.

[B]

For some reason, I hate that so much.

[A]

That too. Suffice to say, Andrew, I don't care who deserves a top pick. Nobody deserves it. However, I do believe that there are some teams that need a top pick more than others. So I would like to present my ranking of the lottery teams that need to move up the most. I'm going to focus on the 10 teams outside of the play and currently go from 10 to one. Okay. Number 10, New Orleans. Slash Atlanta. Atlanta's on an 11 game winning streak. All right, you got you. You got the six seed. You're going to get a decent lottery pick no matter what. They're probably going to fall in a range where all the point guards are, which I think is good. Like things are great in Atlanta. They don't need to jump up. Okay, you don't need it. You don't need it. Number nine, Indiana. They're likely going to be awesome regardless of what happens with this pick. They've done the best tank job they can. They've left it all out there, you know, left it all on the injury report. But I don't know if I can definitively say they need this pick. It'd obviously be great to have, but I don't think they need it the way some of these other teams do. Number eight, I've got Dallas. Now they've got Cooper flag. And while some might point to the fact that this is the last draft, Dallas controls their own pick for several years. The pick they do get is going to be good. And it again, it's likely going to fall in this group of point guards, which I think would be great for them. Like this could end up working out awesome for Dallas even if they stay right where they are. So it's hard for me to say that they need it like some of these other teams. Now this might be my first big surprise. Andrew. Number seven, Utah. Okay, now they. Listen, don't get me wrong, they need it. They clearly want it. But with the Triple J trade, the emergence of Keonte George, I feel way better about this Jazz team going into next season than I did in the preseason. They've put themselves in a position to weather the storm if the worst happens on lottery night a lot better than these teams ahead of them.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So, yes, they need it, but they've got a plan regardless.

[B]

We. We changed our tune on the Jazz as has almost Everybody this season because it was like, tune change, go. Going into the season, we thought, man, do they have anybody that we like?

[A]

I know. And now you feel much better. Yeah. For instance, compared to my number six team, this might be a surprise. Memphis, I struggled with where to put them the most out of any team because they've generally done well with drafting regardless of where they land. I would totally understand the argument they don't need it as bad as some of these other teams, but I think our memory of this team being a consistently good Western Conference team is so fresh in our minds that it's easy to overlook just how much this roster has changed. And when you really look at this roster, unless you believe in some kind of jaw resurgence next season, they need this pick to hit in a big way. They are so much further away compared to Utah, in my opinion. Like. Like a core of Triple J Markanen and Keonte George. Like, I just feel so much better about that compared to what Memphis has right now. And so I thought to rank them ahead of Utah in terms of the need. Okay, in terms of need.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Now we're in the top five. Chicago, they need it. Or at least need something. Maybe it's not this pick jumping up, but they need something.

[B]

They do need something.

[A]

This franchise being this irrelevant for so long now, it's a joke. It's an embarrassment. They have incredible fan base, the best mascot, the best logo. This franchise needs to matter again. They need this pick or something equivalently awesome to happen to them. And they're ahead of Utah and Memphis because I just think Utah's core is just significantly better. And I just kind of trust Memphis drafting a lot more than Chicago. So number four, Washington, kind of a similar thing to Utah in that, like, they need it, but the Trey and AD trades do make a fall on lottery night. Not nearly as devastating as it would be otherwise. But I still have them up here because I'm just less confident about the trey and 80s situation.

[B]

It's so weird. They're on the Wizards.

[A]

I know.

[B]

So weird.

[A]

So it definitely is a plan. But they. They could use. They could. They need the pick.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Number three, Sacramento. They need it. Yes. It's only year one of this rebuild, but you don't know how many times Vivek is going to let you hit the tank button like you have this season. And you also don't know how many times you'll have these kinds of odds in a draft like this. This is their clearest chance for a franchise reset in years. They have to Seize this opportunity. They desperately need this. Maybe they could be higher. My number two is Milwaukee. Oh, they need it. And it's even less likely of happening because they would actually need the Pelicans pick and their pick to jump up to make this work, but they still need it. The Giannis thing has put the entire franchise in this such a weird position. It doesn't feel like they're operating from as much of a position of strength as they should be, considering how good Giannis should be as a trade asset, you know? But if they move up in this draft, everything changes. All those terrible Giannis trades we keep hearing about that would likely cripple this franchise for the next decade. It all feels different. If they move up, if they get one of these top guys, it brings the franchise back to life in a way that nothing else really can in the foreseeable future. Which brings us to my number one team that needs to move up in this draft, the Brooklyn Nets. Yeah, they need this so bad. What is this roster? They need an anchor. They need a foundation. They need something to build around. We can't do another year in the abyss. They need a clarifying moment as a franchise to focus this rebuild around. And I think it needs to be this pick. Can't just rely on free agency. It needs to be this pick.

[B]

They need it more than anybody.

[A]

So they're my number one, there's no question. Which brings us finally to our What, Andrew? What is your what?

[B]

My what is we're in the midst of one of the more fun cold streaks happening in the NBA. The more cold streak, active cold streaks going on. These are the two longest cold streaks from three this season are happening right now. Who is it? They are tied. Both Trendon Watford and Tari Eason have both missed their last 21 threes.

[C]

Wow.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

That's the longest cold streak of the year. Shout out to Dyson Daniels, who missed 20 in a row from December 18 to January 23. Jeremy Sohan, who missed 16 straight threes from November 20, November 20 to January 6 took him a long time. Cody Williams missed 15 threes over the course of a month earlier, but 21 is the most. And listen, Houston plays on Friday night. Chance to end the cold streak or extend it. Trending Watford, I think plays Saturday, so something that I'm pretty sure that not many people are looking for this or tracking this right now, but these cold streaks are extremely cold. 21 for both these guys. Trinidad Watford has done it over the course of 19 games, so he's not taking that many. But you take a look. It was only taken Tari Easton seven games to amass this cold streak and so shout out to Tari Eason and Trend and Watford. We're all watching.

[A]

Andrew. Who's your pick? Who's your pick? Who's going to break it first?

[B]

I think Trendon's gonna break it. I think Trend is going to be done. I think Tari is going to continue this thing on.

[A]

Oh no.

[B]

So.

[A]

Well, you'll have to, you'll have to update us next week.

[B]

Hopefully it ends for I'll update you guys on the cold streak and I'd love for all the slammers and jammers out there to to check out the cold streak and let it let us know your thoughts.

[A]

My what this week? Was the King suddenly deciding that this week was going to be DeMar DeRozan appreciation week? Dude, in the previous 16 games coming into this week, DeRozan had played more than 30 minutes three times. Okay. In 16 games going back to last Wednesday's game, they played him 41 in a relatively close loss to the Hornets. What? Then they played him 37 minutes in a win over the Clippers. A win. What? And 38 minutes in a five point win over Utah.

[B]

What? What?

[A]

And DeRosen absolutely cooked in these games. He averaged 36, 3 and 8, shot 73% from two point range. If you are a big DeMar DeRozan fan like S who took him first in the NBA Daily's expansion draft this week.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

This this week must have been an absolute treat for you. But for Kings fans who are more worried about their draft position, this recent run where the Kings won four of five games was devastating. They went from the number one position in the reverse standings to the number four position. They went from a guaranteed top five pick if they had maintained their impressive losing ways to now having a small chance of falling all the way to eight. Come on Kings. Why are you playing all these guys whose names I know? In the win against the Jazz, Utah played a guy named Anderson Garcia Anderson with two S's, 43 minutes. They played a guy named Bez Mbang, 33 minutes. Sacramento, you have to step up your tanking game. If I am a Kings fan, when I turn on the game, I want to have a brief moment where I begin to lose my grip on reality because I don't recognize anyone on the court. I want to think that I'm losing my mind for a possession. I want to find out about a new person who plays basketball every night. I want to text my friend and say, hey, what did you think about Anderson Garcia's 48 minutes last night? Which is something that Jazz fans can actually do because Anderson Garcia played all 48 minutes in the Jazz game against the Bucks on Thursday. Now, the Jazz did easily win that game, and Anderson was a plus 32 in his 48 minutes, which does argue against the point I'm trying to make. But Sacramento, the time for familiarity is over. Okay, it's over. Let's get a look at some guys I will never think about again in my life. Let's take silly season seriously and go get ourselves a top pick. And that is my what this week.

[B]

Yeah, come on, play Chaney Johnson 30 minutes. Like yeah, do you Cowards.

[A]

Geez Louise.

[B]

Get it together. Another team that needs to get it together after losing four games this week is the Phoenix Suns. We're going to talk about them right after this. Quick break.

[A]

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[B]

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[A]

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[A]

All right, Andrew, it is time for the Wheel of Fandom, the weekly segment where we spin a wheel. It lands on a team and we become fans of that team for the next week. Last week the Wheel landed on the Phoenix Suns and the Wheel may have just killed any hope the Suns had of getting out of the play. And because it was a rough week, the Suns lost all four of their games, losing to Toronto, Boston, Minnesota and the spurs all on the road. The last one to the spurs was particularly painful as Wemby hit a game winner with 1.1 seconds left and then Booker appeared to turn his ankle on the ensuing desperation. Heaven. The Suns began the week one game out of the succeed but now sit three games back of Denver. They are 3931 with the 17th ranked offense and 10th ranked defense per Cleaning the glass. Andrew, if the Suns are a favorite team, who is our guest?

[B]

We've got Steven Prajan Garner here from phnx. Steven, thanks for joining the show.

[C]

I appreciate y' all tapping in with me. I'm looking forward to talking some ball.

[A]

Sorry it was such a rough week. Our bad.

[C]

As y' all know in the Western Conference and this feels like it's a tale as old as time. It gets wild come this time of year. So it does. It's not new, it's just another another Chronicle in it.

[B]

So it was not a great week for the Suns and obviously they're down two starters in Dylan Brooks and Mark Williams. But what are some of the other factors that led to them going on for this week?

[C]

Yeah, the fourth quarter, that final frame, you can't take your foot off the gas no matter how well you play through those first 36 minutes because those final 12 can always come back to haunt you and hurt you. And it Feels like it's been just like I was just talking about with the West. Multiple new chronicles of that. It's not necessarily new per se for the Suns, but I will say what is new about it is they've had Devin Booker and Jalen Green in the lineup together for all of these games, so usually it'll be okay. Then bookerless minutes hurt them early and then he has to put his Superman cape on to get the job done for them or to stave off an opponent in some capacity in this recent stretch. It's like, okay, you have Jalen to be your starter in the fourth quarter and then you have Devin Booker to be your. Your closer, your Mariano Rivera in the latter half of those quarters. The offense has to be better in terms of what the plan is, what the purpose is that you're getting to in every possession and then the execution within that, whether it's a shot that comes from one of those two or it's a shot that's created for someone else off of the attention that those two get. The first half of those quarters have been okay, but that bottom half, usually what gets into clutch time, they have to be significantly better. And I think there's some process things they can improve on with that.

[A]

I wanted to ask about Jalen Green because that's kind of been one of the stories in this post All Star break period, is trying to integrate this, this, you know, very important player, at least we thought going into the season he missed most of the season before returning February 7th. How do you feel like his integration into this team has gone so far and what are some of those issues that still need to be worked out? Sounds like clutch time offense might be one of those.

[C]

Yeah, I think finding his niche in that particular point of the game I think matters. I think there's ways that he can help unlock Devin Booker in ways that they haven't necessarily either explored or quite gotten to in a level of comfort and confidence yet. I think that remains to be seen. I imagine they get to those things soon because tick, tick, tick. The postseason is right around the corner. But on the positive side with Jalen, I think he's gone from kind of hitting the gas in his first opportunity to play as a member of the Suns, in his first game against the Clippers, where everything is zero to 100 and. And he's like, oh my God, I have so much space. I've never had this. I gotta go, I gotta go. And now I feel like with each game that's passed since he's gotten closer to full strength in terms of his health. He's starting to play with a little more purpose in terms of I might not necessarily go 0 to 100, I might go 75%, maybe go just my third gear or second gear here and kind of manipulate the defense and allow for the spacing to play into my favor rather than always being me going to go and get it on my own terms. And I think that understanding is important because a great with great spacing comes great responsibility. You can leverage things a little bit more manipulate in a little bit more manipulative of a fashion if you kind of dictate the terms appropriately. And I feel like he's getting to that point also knocking down shots. I don't think his shot making was quite there early on and now he's starting to get that two point percentage up over the last two weeks and I think that's a positive hit for a Suns team that needs somebody that can put pressure on the painted rim will also create from the mid range.

[B]

So let's be positive. Let's say the Suns win their first playing game and end up in the first round series with San Antonio. Outside of the one blowout where Booker only played eight minutes due to injury, the Suns have played really well against against the Spurs. If the Suns get to the playoffs healthy, what advantages do you think that they could have against this spurs team?

[C]

I think against a Spurs team that has a similar amount of playoff experience, if you're looking at their rosters in entirety, both of them have relatively new coaches. It would be their first playoff series as well if that was to happen. I think that the Suns an advantage they would have with Jordan Otten company is being able to focus on a specific opponent for a two week stretch. Potentially that game plan concision and being able to focus on tendencies and things like that for teams while also individual players, I think that's something the Suns could exploit. I think the Suns will have a physicality advantage in terms of if you're imagining Dillon Brooks as well as Jordan Goodwin being that full strength health wise and what they're able to do to the lineups the Suns can use, we can see a somewhat repeatable process to what we saw in that very first matchup with the with the spurs where Womenyama had his lowest scoring affair of the season in a stretch where he was off to an MVP start and they lost their very first game of the season against the Suns. Just being able to get physical with him early and often kind of fluster him, push him off his spots. And then the other advantage I think the Suns could have and they have to do this with intent but being able to force the spurs to turn the ball over. The spurs are relatively good with kind of taking care of the ball, getting to the things they want to with the tempo that they want. If the Suns are able to dictate the turns with their extended pickup points and being able to switch and be physical in a half court and kind of have that game plan nuance and versatility that's been a weapon for them, that's something that could give them a chance. And then it just comes down to what does your fourth quarter execution look like? Because dear Fox won the very first NBA player clutch player of the year for a reason. We saw examples of that last night when we hit the shot. But who set the table for him was de' Aaron Fox with everything that he did. So and then obviously when we can score in the fourth quarter. So if they can do those things pressure wise they give themselves a chance in that series.

[A]

So Stephen, you did a film breakdown of the Sun's two first rounders a few months ago. Was Rasheed filming a first rounder now? I can't remember.

[C]

Or was he very start of the second round? They were able to find their look into him. Yeah.

[A]

So you did a few months ago for Phnx when they were in the G League. Kind of looking at their games, how it been developing both of them, Malwatch and Fleming have been getting more consistent minutes post All Star break. What are your current thoughts about how both of those guys have progressed over the rookie season?

[C]

Yeah, I think and this is kind of a larger example, but I think with these two in mind, I think the Suns have done a great job with developing guys and some of the development is just giving guys more more green light than they've gotten from different iterations of teams that they've been on. So just briefly going away from those two, look at the development of Jordan Gowen and Colin Gillespie in particular. Yeah, it's not necessarily that they're doing things differently. I think they've been given a little bit more creative freedom to play to their strengths and that allows for them to have a better game rhythm which brings impact on return on investment for Jordan Odd and company. So looking at the two rookies, there's a little bit less leeway that they're given, but they're still being enabled to play to their strengths. So Richard fleming, you have a 7576 wingspan and you're 6 9. You can just Go and wreck things with your, with your physical, your God given physical attributes and then allow for the refinement of skill with your three point shot to kind of help be a cherry on top of those things. But set that tone for your matchups. Be physical at the point of attack as well. Use your length as an advantage. I think we've seen him grow with understanding distance of impact, knowing that you have a 76 wingspan and you have great feet. You don't have to be right on top of guys all the time. Your pickup points can be a little bit higher, but you don't have to be right on top of guys because you can make up for things in ways that 95% of the guys in the league just simply can't. And then to the offensive side for him, just understanding how you can impact the margins. You're an athletic behemoth in multiple respects. Go get after it on the offensive glass and they're tagging up rules, but also just see ball, go get ball. Sometimes you can kind of ignore those rules if you see opportunity to gain possessions. And then to Kamal Malawatch, his league ready skill, I feel like has been his rim protection. He's gotten significantly better with understanding what verticality is and how to use that verticality with kind of seeing things early in terms of rim protection, not being late but being early, not just being on time with that and then allowing for his length and activity around the basket to have that impact, but doing that without fouling, I think it's been as important as anything. And then to the other side, screening is probably the other thing that he needs to hit at a consistent level. He's a little raw on the edges and other areas, but I think if he can just set solid screens with good angles and get that screen contact percentage to be up on the higher end of things, creating opportunity for his guards. He'll get return on investment downhill once he turns and get into the role because he has good feet in that kind of transition point there. So I think that's it with those two. I think in tandem with those two on the floor, they can kind of get to some fun cross matching, do some switching and things like that defensively that make them unique, especially against reserve units. But they're both in a solid space and it kind of is an example of the development piece for the Suns and how far along they've kind of expedited that for guys across their roster.

[B]

Big picture, this season's already been a really big win for the organization. They've surpassed tons of expectation that surrounded them in the preseason, but this summer they don't have a first round pick. Colin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin are both free agents. What are their major priorities this summer, in your opinion?

[C]

Yeah, I think I start with Colin Gillespie. He got the contract that he did going into this new iteration of the Suns off of the work that he put in, but also just the way he kind of went about his day to day. I think those two things and just the person that he is is a direct example of everything that the Suns are wanting to establish with their culture in this change of general manager and head coach coming into this season and going forward. So I think being intentional about bringing guys in that kind of strike, that accord in alignment for what they're working towards matters as much as the talent that they're bringing in. So you start with Gillespie, you have to find a way to bring that guy back in. He's the most direct example of proof of concept that you have in terms of a guy developing under you and you seeing the benefits of. If guys buy into what Jordan Knott and company are preaching, you could potentially have a season similar to what Colin Gillespie is having in respect to what he showed to do prior to this season and the level he's sustained at now. I think Jordan Goodwin is another example in a different fashion but similar to Gillespie. And this is a guy that's shown to be able to do things to an elite level that he just never had the opportunity the Runway to show in other situations. So you have to find a way to bring a guy like that back into your room as well. But I think outside of those two, they need more size in the front court. And I start with Mark Williams. Now he has. He's going to be a restricted free agent. I wonder what the Sun's assessment of his season at this present moment is in terms of health as well as is a play on the court and how they think that factors into their big picture going forward. But independent of Mark, I think they need another center that can bring them what they need in terms of size and some floor spacing that could be in the form of Kamal Malawa and his skill development going forward. But the jury is out on that. That remains to be seen. He's just 19 years old, about five years playing basketball, so there's no telling if that's going to hit next season or if it's going to take a little longer. So now I'm looking at the four spot. If you can find a way to move Dillon Brooks down to the three instead of having him play the breadth of his minutes at the four. But have somebody like, let's say a Bobby Portis or somebody cut from that type of archetype that can give you a iteration of double big, allow for you to play big while you play small ball, but also just give you that versatility that you need. That's a plus on the margins for you. And then the other part, the rim pressure point, you need guys that can get to the rim. It can't just be Devin Booker and Jalen Green. You need more guys that can kind of give that to you as well.

[A]

Well, Stephen, thank you for answering all of our son's questions, but it is now time to play Andrew versus the Beat, our weekly trivia show where Andrew goes head to head against the NBA beatrider, In this case, Steven Prajan Garner from phnx. Now, Stephen, how this works. I've come up with eight questions about the Suns. You'll give me a number between 1 and 8. It will correspond to a question. If you get it right, you'll get at least two points. If you get it wrong, Andrew will have a chance to steal for one. And we'll go back and forth until all the questions have been asked and answered. So to start us off, Stephen, I just need a number between one and eight.

[C]

Oh, four.

[A]

Question number four. Oh, this is a fun one. In honor of March Madness, let's talk about some Kentucky Wildcats. Among active players who went to Kentucky, Devin Booker is second in career points. We're going to name the other nine players in the top 10. So how this will work? Stephen, you'll give me a name, then Andrew will give me a name. We'll go back and forth till one of you stumbles. So these are active players who went to Kentucky and top 10 in career points. So, Stephen, who would you like to start with?

[C]

Let's start with. Can we use Devin Booker?

[A]

You cannot.

[C]

Okay, then let's go. Let's go. Anthony Davis.

[A]

Anthony Davis. Great pick. Number one. Only Kentucky Wildcat who scored more than Denver Booker. Andrew.

[B]

Carl Anthony Towns.

[A]

Carl Anthony Towns is number three on the list.

[C]

Back to Steven de' Aaron Fox.

[A]

Darren Fox is number six on the list. Andrew.

[B]

Julius Randall.

[A]

Julius Randall. He is number four on the list. Back to Stephen.

[C]

Demarcus Boogie. Cousins.

[A]

Unfortunately, Stephen, this is only active players.

[C]

Ah, got you. Okay.

[A]

And it's very unfortunate that Boogie is still not in the league.

[C]

That is very unfortunate. Very unfortunate. I had a lot of stock put in the demarcus Cousins.

[A]

You had Boogie on the brain.

[C]

I had boogie on the brain. Indeed. Who else can we go with? I feel like makes sense for this

[A]

former Kentucky Wildcats scored a lot of points. Active players.

[C]

Can I pass?

[A]

Short term you can pass. But if Andrew gets one more. The question has been lost. So are you sure? Are you sure you're done?

[C]

Yeah, I'm done. I'm done.

[A]

Andrew Shay.

[C]

Oh my goodness.

[A]

Shay is number five now. Rounding up the top 10, we got Jamal Murray. Bam Adebayo.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

Tyrese Maxey and Tyler Hero.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

So many names.

[B]

So many names.

[A]

So many good players.

[B]

It's crazy.

[A]

Okay, Andrew. Oh, let me mark that off. No. 4. Okay, Andrew. Board of Shores.

[B]

Number one.

[A]

Question number one. The Suns have already smashed their preseason over under of 30 and a half wins. It's certainly been a surprise, but not quite as surprising as the 201314 Suns who had a preseason over under of 20 and a half games and then won 48 games. Who were the top two scorers for the 1314 Suns in terms of total points scored? You get one point per correct answer.

[B]

Gosh.

[A]

So 1314 Sons total points, number one and number two.

[B]

That magical team, number one has to be Goron Dragic.

[A]

It is Goran Dragic. He was number one. Do you remember number two?

[B]

Goodness gracious.

[A]

Number two,

[B]

Bledsoe.

[A]

It is not Eric Bledsoe. He did not play enough games. Andrew. Stephen, you have a chance to steal a point. You think back to the 1314 sons who might be number two for that team and total points scored.

[C]

I want to say the elephant in the room being number one. But I'm wondering if it's another guy who had a good season for the Suns that year. Was it Gerald Green?

[A]

It was Gerald Green.

[C]

Let's go, let's go, let's go.

[B]

Nice ball, Cheryl.

[A]

Isn't that wild?

[C]

I mean that was four finger assassin.

[A]

He was the second in total points scored for a 48 win team.

[B]

That's crazy.

[A]

Yeah, it is pretty.

[C]

He had a. Yeah. That was one hell of a season for. For G2 for sure, man.

[B]

Yeah. One of the biggest disappointments of my life was my freshman year of college. Gerald Green committed to Oklahoma State. That's where I went to college and then committed to. Then went to the draft. Like come on, Gerald.

[C]

I vividly remember and the people that love shot quality with probably yak looking at some of the shots that he took but the tough shot making for him. I vividly remember him coming off of stagger screen after stagger screen and being wide open. The guy's Two feet behind him, catches, looks, waits for him to get close and then takes one dribble to the left because he loves going left. And it's a step back and it's just cash. And then he's talking to the bench and the fans and everybody else on the sideline. Shout out to Gerald Green. I hope he's doing well in life, man.

[B]

Yeah, no kidding.

[A]

He also did the cupcake dunk.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Okay, Stephen, you have controlled the board.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

Where would you like to go Next?

[C]

Let's go. Three.

[A]

Question number three. Colin Gillespie has 210 three pointers made this season. That is only 16 threes behind the all time franchise single season record. Who holds that record?

[B]

Oh, my gosh.

[A]

Most threes by a son in a season. Who is the player which very likely is going to be broken this year?

[C]

Yeah, must be. Oh, man. Who hit the most threes in Sun's history in a season that's wild. I feel like the answer is on the tip of my tongue. Oh, man, I'm gonna be so mad if I can't connect the dots on this because this is something I looked at like a week or so ago. I'm glad I don't have a shot clock on me because I would be burned out. I can't believe I'm drawing the blank on this one right now. It's been a long O&4 week where I've been diving the other stuff. I've been closing tabs and reopening other ones. So I'm a little. I'm a little blank on names now. I'll pass. I'll pass on this one.

[A]

Andrew, you have any guesses?

[B]

I was going to guess Raja Bell.

[A]

So Raja Bell was fourth on the list. He was actually. I guess he's tied for three with Grayson Allen. Grayson Allen from two years ago. But number one, Q. Rich.

[B]

Wow.

[C]

Quinn Richardson. Yep.

[A]

Which is even more. More impressive because he did it in 0405.

[B]

Wow, that is impressive. Look at all these podcasters appear on this list.

[C]

That's impressive.

[A]

All right, Andrew, board is yours. Scores two to one.

[B]

Number two, question number two.

[A]

Mark Williams currently has 114 dunks this season. Who are the last two Suns players to have a hundred plus dunks in a season? You get one point per correct answer.

[B]

Wow. There's like some obvious dunkers, but maybe it wasn't that long ago that guys were dunking. How many did you say it was?

[A]

You got to get over a hundred in a season, so. And for reference, mark Williams has 114 this.

[B]

Okay. Did Ayton do it?

[A]

Ayton did do it. That is one point. Okay, what about the next Sons player? The next Sons next most recent Suns player who did that?

[B]

Most recent. Goodness.

[A]

Not necessarily more recent, just next recent.

[B]

Yeah, I don't know if I need to go back.

[A]

Yeah, just do it.

[B]

Is Amari. Like, that's how. Like I can't get his. I can't get him out of my brain.

[A]

He probably did do it, but not most recently or a second. Okay, Stephen, any guesses who it could be?

[C]

This is a. This is a great question. Hmm. A name I have in mind. The question is, did he play enough minutes to get to 100 dunks? He played with the right teammates to get him there if he played enough minutes. But Aiden was very healthy, so I don't think a reserve big could get to 100 dunks.

[A]

It is tough.

[C]

I'm gonna go. Aaron Baines.

[A]

Aaron Baines is incorrect. Now the one name I thought I was worried one of you would pick is Javale McGee because he actually had 98. Yeah. I would have felt bad if someone guessed that. You have to go all the way back too. Well, who are you gonna say?

[C]

Was it Tyson Chandler?

[A]

There's Marquis. Chris. Ah.

[C]

Okay. Okay, okay.

[A]

Chris.

[B]

Yo. I would not have ever got.

[A]

It would have been a very impressive pull if one of you have gotten that. Okay, Stephen, board is yours. Okay, we've got the last four questions to go.

[C]

Let's go eight.

[A]

Question number eight. Colin Gillespie currently leads the Suns in total assists and total steals. Who are the last two Suns players to lead the team in both assistance deals over a full season? And you get one point per correct answer.

[C]

Assistance deals. Okay, let's start with Chris Paul.

[A]

That is correct.

[B]

Yeah, that makes sense.

[A]

And can you name the other most recent player to lead the Suns in total steals and total assists?

[C]

Can it be Chris Paul Twice?

[B]

He.

[A]

He actually did do it. I think

[C]

I found the loophole.

[A]

But we're working. We're clumping those together.

[B]

Also be Chris Paul.

[C]

Hey. I mean, yeah, the. The track record speaks for itself there.

[A]

It is technically true. But other than Chris Paul, who was the other most recent Suns player to do that?

[C]

Jason Kidd.

[A]

Jason. Kid, you don't have to go back quite that far. Andrew.

[B]

Did Bledsoe do it?

[A]

Eric Bledsoe did it.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Eric Bledsoe. Impressive.

[C]

I'm surprised he led them in assist with. With jogging on some of those teams.

[A]

I know.

[C]

Okay, okay.

[A]

It was a little surprising. Yes. Andrew. Board of shores 5 Question number 5, when this player is on the court, the suns give up 5.2 fewer points per 100 possessions compared to when he's off the court. That's the best mark on the team among players who have played at least a thousand minutes for the Suns. So it's a big minute. Player has the biggest defensive on, off swing on the team. Who is the player?

[B]

Wow.

[A]

And this is on per cleaning the glass, of course. So no. Sure. No garbage time. A thousand minutes at least.

[B]

Is this Gillespie?

[A]

It is not Colin Gillespie. Stephen, you have a chance to steal.

[C]

That would be 1. Oso Iguidaro.

[A]

It is Oso Iguidaro. That is.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

And Steven, you have pulled within one with two questions remain. Six or seven.

[C]

Wow. Let's go. Go six.

[A]

Question number six. There are 13 two man lineups that have played at least 700 minutes together this season for the Suns. Which two players are in the best of those two man lineups with a plus 9.9 net rating. So you do get one point per correct answer. So whatever your strongest guess is, lead with that. This is the best high minute two man lineup for the Suns. Who is in that lineup?

[C]

That would be Colin Gillespie and Oso Iguidaro.

[A]

That is incorrect. Andrew, you have a chance to steal.

[B]

Oh, boy. I don't want to agonize over this too much, but I feel like I need to get this if I want to.

[A]

It sounds like you are agonizing.

[B]

I'm definitely agonizing over this. Without a doubt. I'm agonizing over this. What about. What about Iguidaro?

[A]

That is correct.

[B]

Okay. What about Jordan Goodwin?

[A]

That is correct.

[C]

Oh, wow. Okay.

[A]

Stephen, you were on the right track because Gillespie and Iguidaro, they were a plus 7.5 and actually I'm glad I, I checked it again because I forgot to check after the spurs game. Goodwin and Nigu Daro down to a plus 8.9. So it's actually closer than I thought.

[C]

I knew, I knew Oso was involved and I knew it was one of their, what should be their reserve guards. And I still look at Gillespie as a reserve even though he started because of injury. Those two players playing with Oso has been really good and naturally you put all three of them in the lineup and it's been a wrecking ball for the reserve units all season long. They've really dictated things to opponents. So no surprise it was between one of those two guards with Oso.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. Good, good one. Torch the Thunder. The last time they were in Phoenix Indeed.

[A]

Yeah, I'm looking. So that trio in 493 minutes is a plus 9.4.

[B]

Yeah. That's good.

[A]

That's great.

[B]

They.

[A]

They forced.

[C]

They forced turnovers like no other lineup in the league, and they get out in transition, and that's where they're at their best.

[A]

So final question. Andrew, you will have first dibs on this. If you added Dylan Brooks dunks this season and Common Mallow watches three pointers made, what number would you get? So Dylan Brooks dunks, Malawatch threes, add them together, and you get to choose who answers first. So you can answer first and then Stephen would go higher, lower. Or you can make Stephen answer first and you would go higher, lower.

[B]

This is such a. This is made threes or taken three Made threes. Says made threes and made. I mean, I guess it would only be made dunks.

[A]

It's not attempted dunks. Now, Andrew, if you're really brave.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And you let Steven guess, and Steven got exactly correct.

[B]

He could tie.

[A]

He could tie the game.

[B]

Yeah. I won't let him do that, which

[A]

would be very exciting for me.

[B]

Okay. What the heck?

[A]

All right.

[B]

I'm going to let him guess.

[A]

All right, Steven, Steven, if you get it exactly correct, you get a bonus point, which would give you three points, which would give you six points, and we'd go into overtime. So what is your guess? Where would you like to set the over under?

[C]

Let's set the over under at 7.

[A]

7. Andrew, would you like to go higher or lower?

[B]

I'll say lower.

[A]

The correct answer was six, which means Andrew wins.

[B]

Well, that was a little too close for comfort there, Stephen. Go check out Stephen's work at phnx. They do post game shows. He's doing analysis on the Suns like nobody else. So go check him out today. Thanks for coming on, Stephen.

[C]

I appreciate y'. All. That was fun. Y' all be blessed.

[A]

Thanks, Stephen. All right, Andrew. That was Suns week. I hope we get another good team, but I also hope we don't ruin that good team's playoff standing.

[B]

Who knows? Maybe it's a team we want to come on.

[A]

That's true. That's a good point. We still got a lot of good teams. We also have the Kings. We also have the Pacers.

[B]

We do.

[A]

We have landmines here. Let's see who we get true spinning the wheel this week. Our wheel of phantom team will be.

[B]

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no,

[C]

no.

[A]

We got the Pistons. Of course we get the Pistons.

[B]

Kidding me. Oh, my gosh. That is some Kind of brutal.

[A]

All right, well, we. Hey, Danish Jenkins week. Welcome to Danish Jenkins week. Let's go.

[B]

Oh, is this the week that Ron Holland improves his offensive game? Tune in.

[A]

I mean, it is kind of exciting because they are the number one seed. They have this four game lead which seemed insurmountable.

[B]

Yeah, it did.

[A]

They did win their first game postcade against the Wizards.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Let me, let me see what, who they're playing this week, if they got any.

[B]

This is the, the Jalen Duran all NBA team race.

[A]

That's right. Okay. They play Golden State.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Then they play the Lakers.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Game.

[B]

Yeah, that's tough.

[A]

And they play the Atlanta Hawks on espn. Currently on. Actually, wasn't that going to be the Magic City game? No, no, no, this is.

[B]

No, no, they already did that. Yeah.

[A]

Okay. Who are on 11 game winning streak.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And then they play the New Orleans Pelicans. Hey, at least it's a four game home stand. That's nice.

[B]

Hey, it is.

[A]

But that's, that's much tougher than the, the two games against Washington. They just got to play.

[B]

Yeah, no kidding.

[A]

Well, let's see if Jalen Dern can put up a 40 burger. He got 36 against the Wiz.

[B]

He did. He did. You know, it helps to play against the Wizards. That is, that's, that's something.

[A]

They're a really nice team.

[B]

Okay, I guess we'll learn some things about the Pistons next week. So buckle up everybody and maybe we'll learn how, how Cade is doing by then too, because they were going to reevaluate him after a week. Yeah, luckily I guess like he didn't break any ribs with the collapse lung, which would have been like he wouldn't play the rest of the year, basically. So there's a lot of hope there for, for Kate. Hey, leave us a five star review on Apple Podcasts. We'll read it on the show. Would appreciate you guys doing that. Hope everybody is doing well and we'll talk to you guys again next Saturday here. Foreign. Hi, this is Pablo Torre from Pablo Torre finds out.

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