Rockets Spurs Thriller + Kuminga’s return

Summary

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The Athletic NBA Daily

Episode: Rockets Spurs Thriller + Kuminga’s Return
Date: January 21, 2026
Hosts: Dave DuFour, Esperani, Will Guillory

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Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into a jam-packed night of NBA action, featuring a headline-grabbing comeback by the Houston Rockets against the San Antonio Spurs, Jonathan Kuminga’s notable return to the Warriors’ rotation after the Jimmy Butler injury, Keonte George's scoring explosion, and evolving playoff contenders in both conferences. The discussions are rich with game analysis, player development insights, and the behind-the-scenes team narratives that shape this NBA season.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Warriors News: Jimmy Butler’s Injury and Jonathan Kuminga’s Opportunity

[03:09]

• Jimmy Butler is out for the remainder of the season (and likely a chunk of next season) with a torn ACL.
• Kuminga stepped up, scoring 20 points off the bench in a blowout loss to the Raptors (145-127).
• The hosts question organizational messaging around Kuminga, referencing recent public comments by GM Mike Dunleavy about trade demands and Kuminga’s role.

Quotes:

• “This is sort of what you thought Jonathan Kaminga could always provide for the Warriors, right? ... As advertised, he's this hired gun, right?” – Esperani [04:14]
• “If anything, I would argue some of the stuff that Steve Kerr has said and now this statement from Mike Dunleavy is a little bit disrespectful.” – Dave DuFour [05:26]

Key Takeaways:

• Kuminga’s physicality and offensive repertoire brings much-needed versatility to the Warriors’ rotation as they adapt to playing without Butler.
• There is tension behind the scenes regarding Kuminga’s status, but on-court results show his value, possibly ahead of the trade deadline.

2. Raptors’ Upswing: Emmanuel Quickley Breaks Out

[06:53]

• Emmanuel Quickley had his best game as a Raptor, tying his career-high with 40 points on just 13 shots.
• The new guard rotation with Jamal Shed allowed Quickley to thrive off the ball, echoing his successful Knicks role.

Quotes:

• “This was very easily Emmanuel Quickley's best game as a Raptor … it feels like the role that is best suited for him in his career is for him to be this off ball scoring weapon.” – Esperani [07:19]

Key Takeaways:

• The Raptors are experimenting and optimizing guard pairings, leaning into Quickley’s strengths.
• Off-ball utilization and spacing are at the center of Toronto’s offensive adjustments.

3. Utah Jazz: Keonte George’s All-Star Leap

[08:23]

• Keonte George erupted for 43 points with Markkanen out, emerging as a Most Improved Player frontrunner.
• Jazz management faces questions on how to build around a George/Markkanen core.

Quotes:

• “He is shooting 37% from three. He is a marksman as a shooter now… Making better decisions with the ball, working in the pick and roll more often.” – Esperani [09:02]

Key Takeaways:

• George is accelerating the Jazz’s timeline with massive scoring improvements.
• Utah’s strategy of mixing veterans with young talent is credited for their development success.

4. Timberwolves: Inconsistencies Linger

[11:24]

• The Wolves lose a “bad one” to the Jazz despite being full strength.
• This fits a historical trend where Minnesota plays down to competition but rises in playoffs.

Quotes:

• “They'll have games where you're like, wait, what, how did they lose this game? And it's just what the Timberwolves do.” – Esperani [12:17]

Key Takeaways:

• Maintaining nightly intensity and consistency is still an issue for Minnesota’s core, especially Anthony Edwards.

5. Phoenix Suns: Surprising Depth & Playoff Potential

[13:21]

• The Suns defeat the 76ers (27-17 record), sparked by contributions from returning Jalen Green and their bench.
• Suns have defied expectations this season despite a new coach, GM, and a major roster turnover (Durant departure).

Quotes:

• “What Jalen Green provides is a good overall ingredient … like he can't be the main thing for them. Like, he's like parsley.” – Esperani [14:24]
• “If he can come off the bench, that's exactly what they've needed. They needed a guy you can put the ball in his hands and have him create.” – Dave DuFour [15:32]

Key Takeaways:

• The Suns’ strong, defense-minded supporting cast has exceeded expectations, with Green now providing a valuable offensive spark off the bench.
• Despite regular season success, the hosts are skeptical of Phoenix's ability to hang with top West contenders in a playoff series.

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Spotlight Segment: Rockets’ Thrilling Comeback vs Spurs

[19:45] – [31:40]
Will Guillory guest segment

• Rockets come back from 16 down to beat the Spurs 111-106.
  • Major loss of key big man Stephen Adams (out around 2 months with a grade 3 ankle sprain).
  • Rookie Reed Sheppard stepped up in the fourth: shotmaking, a huge block on Julian Champagnie, and poise under pressure.

Quotes & Moments:

• “There was no life on the Rockets bench and then Reed Sheppard happened and it completely flipped the game.” – Will Guillory [20:26]
• “Before the game, Udoka announced that Stephen [Adams] suffered a grade three ankle sprain ... He’s such a huge part of this team’s identity, not just with the offensive rebounding but his overall toughness.” – Will Guillory [21:15]
• “Reed Sheppard is a guy who, who provides a very nice change up for them with his ability to make shots, to be able to play on the ball, take the ball away from KD and Sengun. I thought he did a little bit of everything...” – Will Guillory [21:41]
• “Reed [Sheppard] talked about after the game... he shot it from damn near half court and air balled it. And then Eme Udoka told him, hey, I like that shot. Keep playing aggressive, keep shooting.” – Will Guillory [24:14]
• “Kevin Durant was guarding Wemby a lot tonight. I think they did a great job of really getting underneath Wemby. He really didn’t look comfortable for much of the game.” – Will Guillory [26:03]

Notable Game Flow Points:

• The absence of Adams forced Houston to diversify offensively and rely less on pure physicality.
• Coach Udoka’s encouragement of aggression in young players like Sheppard was highlighted as a key unlock.
• Rockets’ late-game defense and willingness to let non-KD players close proved pivotal.
• Spurs struggled in the clutch; Wembanyama was held in check by physical defenders like Dorian Finney-Smith and Tari Eason.
• Hosts discuss Houston’s new best closing lineup options, emphasizing Reed Sheppard’s importance and the dynamic return of Tari Eason.
• Will Guillory projects a quiet trade deadline for Houston, as they prefer to see their current squad healthy and in rhythm.

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Notable Quotes

• On Kuminga’s emergence:
  “He’s this hired gun, right. Like he’s an Assassin. Go get buckets.”
  – Esperani [04:14]

• On Keonte George:
  “This is a guy who’s now averaging 23 points per game...he is a marksman as a shooter now, which is a big part of the scoring output.”
  – Esperani [09:02]

• On Jalen Green’s role:
  “He can’t be the whole ingredient. He can’t be the main thing for them – he’s like parsley.”
  – Esperani [14:24]

• On Eme Udoka’s coaching:
  “Eme Udoka told [Reed Sheppard], hey, I like that shot. Keep playing aggressive, keep shooting. That’s really important for a young player…”
  – Will Guillory [24:14]

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Important Timestamps

• 03:09 – Butler injury fallout and Kuminga’s game
• 06:53 – Emmanuel Quickley’s career night
• 08:23 – Keonte George’s ascension and Jazz’s future
• 11:24 – Minnesota’s loss, team profile
• 13:21 – Suns’ depth and playoff outlook
• 19:45 – Rockets-Spurs recap, Sheppard’s impact, and Adams’ injury
• 24:14 – Udoka’s player development mindset
• 26:03 – Defensive strategy against Wemby
• 29:04 – Rockets’ closing lineup and Eason’s fit
• 31:07 – Trade deadline expectations for Houston

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Episode Tone and Style

• The tone is lively and conversational, with a blend of analytical deep-dives, offbeat analogies, and a sense of camaraderie among the hosts.
• Insights are delivered with both candor and humor, particularly regarding player roles (“parsley” and “rosemary” analogies), and franchise quirks.

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Perfect for fans seeking:

• Up-to-date recaps on critical NBA matchups and league news
• Thoughtful player development discussion
• Honest, unscripted team analysis with the flavor of real locker-room debate
• Firsthand reporting from The Athletic’s plugged-in NBA team

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Transcript

[Esperani]

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[Dave Deford]

Good morning and welcome to the NBA Daily presented by Amazon prime for January 21, 2026. I'm Dave Dufour here with Esperahenney. Coming up, Jonathan Kaminga played because Jimmy Butler's out. We're going to get to that. KEONTE George had 43 points. We're going to talk about him. And Will Gillery is here to talk about the Rockets big comeback to beat the Spurs. Good morning everybody. What's going on night for the Raptors, man? Yeah, Raptors on the west coast. Basically playing at midnight Eastern.

[Esperani]

Dave, you know me, I'm basically always on the west coast. Cause I'm with you guys.

[Dave Deford]

That's true.

[Esperani]

This is my regular schedule. Raptors are just adjusting to me.

[Dave Deford]

Really. My favorite thing is pretending like I work late when S is up. And Adam three hours. Definitely later than me.

[Esperani]

Do you know how cold it is in Toronto right now, by the way?

[Dave Deford]

I'm not sure. It was 74. I walked home from the gym with no shirt on today. I'm just gonna.

[Esperani]

I actually found out today that that Fahrenheit ends up getting closer to celsius once it zero. So right now it's. It's minus 30 Celsius.

[Dave Deford]

The quick and the quick and dirty translation is double it and add 30, right?

[Esperani]

Sure. So, yeah. But anyway, double the Celsius, add 30.

[Dave Deford]

That gives you Fahrenheit. It also works, you know, when you get down around zero. Yeah. Yeah, it's pretty cold up there. A lot of snow. Yeah.

[Esperani]

But look, the Raptors were heating up tonight.

[Dave Deford]

How about that? Let's talk about it. Okay. So we got the bad news. Yes. That we feared the Jimmy Butler. He's going to miss the rest of this year and probably a good chunk of next season with a torn acl. So the warriors are going to have to scramble and try to figure things out. You know, on yesterday's show, Xena kind of called this, but she said maybe they got to go to Jonathan Kaminga. They did.

[Esperani]

They did. Yeah.

[Dave Deford]

Listen, the warriors did get blown out by. By the. The raptors. It was 145, 127. But the one bright spot, I would say for the warriors was Jonathan Kaminga coming off the bench. Gave him 20 points.

[Esperani]

Yeah. Look, they were down 30 in this game at one point. And they cut the lead in that fourth quarter. Made it interesting. I think they eventually cut it to about 12 or 13 points. And the big catalyst was Jonathan Kaminga. In this game, the Raptors just were so much more aggressive. They were the bigger team in this game overall. We'll talk about Emmanuel quickly in a second, but Kaminga came in and physically imposed himself. Right. Battering his way to the basket.

[Dave Deford]

Who's.

[Esperani]

He was 7 of 10 from the field. And this is sort of what you thought Jonathan Kaminga could always provide for the warriors, right? Yeah. This is exactly what he is. As advertised, he's this hired gun, Right. Like he's an Assassin. Go get bucks.

[Dave Deford]

I wouldn't even say that. I mean, listen, he also got to the free throw line eight times. Yeah. Tell me, what is the difference offensively here between what Kaminga did and.

[Esperani]

And what Jimmy Butler usually Butler.

[Dave Deford]

Yeah, that's. And we've had this conversation all season long about how Jimmy Butler opened the door for them to play two different ways, because he could play with Steph and he could play without Steph. And so maybe you have a situation where, you know, you have to lean on Kuminga. He just plays all of the non Steph minutes. Yeah. And you try to find a way to make him fit with the Steph minutes, but it's clear to me that he has a role on this team that needs another guy.

[Esperani]

It's score. It's funny because this, this comes on the heels of Mike Dunleavy saying, you know, there's a trade demand and if there were demand for the player, then we would oblige that trade demand. Yeah. But it's become nonsensical because it seems like the relationship is untenable at this.

[Dave Deford]

Point, which to me doesn't make a lot of sense because, listen, I haven't heard anything and you haven't seen anything reported and you don't see anything when you're watching these games to make you think, like, Jonathan Kaminga is some kind of a headache for them. I mean, maybe he is and they're just. Everyone's really good at hiding it, but it hasn't come across that way. If anything, I would. I would argue some of the stuff that Steve Kerr has said and now this statement from Mike D. Dunleavy. A little bit disrespectful.

[Will Guillory]

Yeah.

[Esperani]

And then. And on top of that, like, they could use him. You know, you're not doing yourself. And if we're talking about trade demand and all of the things about trading a player, you're not doing yourselves any favors by not playing him. You know, that's.

[Dave Deford]

I mean, he look pretty good. Maybe they're just going to showcase him for the next couple weeks. S. And they ship him off the trade deadline. Join us for our live stream. The day of the trade deadline. We're going to be in Chicago.

[Esperani]

Yep.

[Dave Deford]

Together. Streaming all day on YouTube. We'll have more details on that. Oh, yeah. I'm not sure where they're going to go, but more to come on that. Join us shortly over on our YouTube channel. We got Marcus Thompson coming for the morning shoot around. I'm sure that a big topic of conversation is going to be. Oh, yeah, the entire Kaminga thing. I'm very interested to get Zena's take later on after she kind of called this. She said they're going to have to play Kaminga. They played him. He looked good. Now, all right, let's talk about the Raptors, because they did. They did pick up the win.

[Esperani]

Yeah.

[Dave Deford]

Emanuel Quickley has to be incredibly frustrating to cover. And S. I don't know if you guys are familiar, but S. Really does he covers. Not only does he work here at the Daily, but he also covers the Raptors and Man, Emmanuel Quickley is such an up and down player. You know, he. Even in one game, you know, he had this awful game hits the game winner and then he was just ridiculous. Against the warriors last night, 40 points.

[Esperani]

On 13 shots tied his career high. This was, you know, from covering the Raptors over the last couple of years. This was very easily Emmanuel Quickley's best game as a Raptor wasn't even close. And I think part of that is just you see him playing alongside Jamal Shed in this game. The Raptors started two guards together and so you see Emmanuel Quickley working off ball more. Most of his threes tonight were off of the catch. He was scoring and attacking the basket off of closeouts. And what does that remind you of? It reminds you of the role he had for the New York Knicks. And I think as the team has shifted to more Brandon Ingram, more Scotty Barnes, it feels like the role that is best suited for him in his career is for him to be this off ball scoring weapon. And I, I mean we saw that at full fledged tonight. 40 points is just the best version of that. But he was really poised. He created. He kind of staved off the comeback from the warriors too with his shot creation. So yeah, it's, it's been up and down, no doubt. But when you have a game like this, you kind of see what the potential is for what he.

[Dave Deford]

If it wasn't for that contract, he'd be a six man. Okay. The Jazz pick up their biggest win of the season. Also their first win without Lowry Markkanen. So you can't look, the Jazz are too good to tank. They're going to have to compete next year. And a large part of that s the guy I was dead wrong about Keonte George, 43 points in the game down the stretch. I just trust him to take big shots because he keeps hitting them.

[Esperani]

He's the most improved player right now, I don't think. I mean there are obviously other guys who have a conversation for it. We've talked about a few guys that are in the conversation for it.

[Dave Deford]

Every night we have a new.

[Esperani]

We have a most improve.

[Dave Deford]

That just tells you we're in a good place.

[Esperani]

Yeah, absolutely. But to your point, I would argue, you know, making that all star leap is the most important. And the Jazz have been able to accelerate their timeline a little bit because they've developed Keante George. This is a guy who's now averaging 23 points per game. 24. It'll probably go up after tonight's 43 point performance. He is shooting 37% from the field from three. He is a marksman as a shooter now, which is a big part of the scoring output. Making better decisions with the ball, working in the pick and roll more often. And I remember asking you earlier in the season, like, hey, which way do you go with Keonte? Is he going to be the next Damian Lillard or is he Cam Thomas? And it's, it's hard to sift through that when you're, you're thinking of the Jazz, who are obviously having a losing season and this is their first win without Larry Markin in this year. How do they, how do they build around a Keonte George Lowry market in future? Right. That's my next thing. It's like, how do you move forward next summer and move and beyond to build around the score?

[Will Guillory]

I don't know.

[Esperani]

It's an interesting.

[Dave Deford]

Maybe Yousef Nurkic is just back and maybe they bring him back. He had a triple double, 16 points, 18 rebounds, 10 assists. Also had a steal and a block for good measure.

[Esperani]

The playmaking from Nurkic, it's been great this season.

[Dave Deford]

It has been really good for that. Well, they're, they've done a good job and this is, it's similar to okc. You gotta have some veterans around with these young tanking teams.

[Esperani]

Yeah.

[Dave Deford]

Because at the end of the day like they, like there is an importance to knowing how to win. And I think that the veterans can teach you how to at least have good habits that contribute to winning. It's tough if you just have a. I mean the Charlotte Hornets are an example of how not to do it the last few years. I think Utah is doing a pretty good job right now, although I still wish that they weren't tanking. Speaking of Will Hardy, this was his 100th career victory as a head coach. Only took him three and a half years to get there as which. Wow. I mean, again, like there must be some kind. I'm not sure if there's a behind the scenes commitment, but it does feel.

[Esperani]

A little bit like there must be a sign up to tank commitment.

[Dave Deford]

Right. They got to say, hey Coach, we're going to make sure you get those wins back on the other side, I'm not sure.

[Esperani]

He's got exclusive access to the ski resort in the Utah and Salt Lake City.

[Dave Deford]

Oh, the private plane is always fueled up for Will Hardy. I hope on the other side of this for, for the Minnesota Timberwolves, this is a, this was a not a good loss. Right. Like this was an unacceptable loss. Completely full health. You've got your full starting lineup out there and you blow a game to a team that doesn't actually want to win. Right now, Anthony Edwards tried to pull him back and just didn't have enough at the end. I don't know. I mean, they've, they've been so good since Thanksgiving. Yeah, I'm willing to kind of throw this out. They also, it seems like every other game for them is one of these big step up games, you know, whether it's the spurs or the Nuggets or the Rockets. I wonder if this is just maybe like a little bit of a letdown.

[Esperani]

I've kind of just assumed that the Wolves are like this. They've been like this for three years.

[Dave Deford]

Play down to their competition.

[Esperani]

Play down to their competition. They'll have games where you're like, wait, what, how did they. What, how did they lose this game? And it's just what the Timberwolves do. It's actually been a calling card of theirs for the last three seasons. And yet when the playoffs come around, they're a completely different team. They execute in the clutch. They head on to the Western Conference finals. They beat these Giants. Right. I just, I think it's a quality of can you be the best version of yourself every single night? And that relates to Anthony Edwards, who's figuring out what it means to be a number one guy. It relates to Julius Randle, who has had an incredible year, but can have moments where like that consistency isn't there for him. I think that applies to Jada McDaniels to a certain extent too. So their whole core has this air of like, do we have it tonight? And that's always exist for Anthony Edwards.

[Dave Deford]

I will tell you right now, at the end of this game, I mean, he got that big dunk and one. Yeah, I felt like he was going to bring them back in. I mean, and believe in.

[Esperani]

And by the way, should have been an all star starter. I'll just throw that in there.

[Dave Deford]

But you, you want to put him over Steph Curry, but yeah, I just think that that's just being a hater. That's just being a hater on the goat. Look, we got to talk. The Phoenix Suns, who would be the 2 seed if they were in the Eastern Conference, they get a big win over the 76ers. They're now 27 and 17 on the season and they just got Jalen Green back, who led the bench unit to win this game. The, the bench for the Phoenix Suns won this game showing off Their depth quite a bit. I mean, again, shocking season from the Suns who we did not expect anything out of. You know, first time head coach, first time gm. The. The team had TR traded away Kevin Durant. People are so low on Jalen Green.

[Will Guillory]

I don't know.

[Dave Deford]

I mean, I think that this team, especially the way that they compete, you add a guy like Jalen Green who is this effective as an offensive player, just good at getting two feet in the paint. I mean, he's just so fast. I just think that they have enough guys around him that they can maximize what he's good at. What'd you think about him last night?

[Esperani]

Yeah, I think what Jalen Green provides is a good overall ingredient for the sun's system. And like he can't be the whole ingredient. He can't be the main thing for them. Like, he's like parsley.

[Dave Deford]

He's not the chicken, he's the Rosemary on.

[Will Guillory]

Sure.

[Esperani]

Yeah. He's the Rosemary on top. There we go. That's a better analogy than what I had cooking up. But like he's, he's parsley, you know, and if we're talking about Emmanuel Quickley, you just mentioned he, if it wasn't for his contract, he would be a six man of the year type of guy. I think the same thing kind of applies to Jalen Green, but that's good for this Suns team, like, right. They are a very good defensive group. They've bought in on the defensive end. Mark Williams, Dylan Brooks, Jordan Goodwin, by the way, very, very important player for them. All of those guys playing well defensively, they have this identity on that end. Where they need a little bit of help is their half court offense and their transition offense. And if there are two places that Jalen Green can come in and help, it is immediately in those two areas. So yeah, I don't know. I think, I think it's like he, he just makes so much sense for what they need without taking away too much of what they already have.

[Dave Deford]

If, if he can come off the bench, that's exactly what they've needed. They needed a guy you can put the ball in his hands.

[Esperani]

Yeah.

[Dave Deford]

And have him create some looks for himself. I mean, everyone else I think can, can play off of him, but that's what they're missing. Also, Colin Gillespie has been good. You can't take him out of the starting lineup. I just think as a two way guy, right. Like this is in like offense and defense, he's just been super important to what they do, but I don't know man, how do you feel about the Suns? Like, can they break into that top six and stay there?

[Esperani]

It's, it's so interesting.

[Dave Deford]

Do you take them seriously, like when we get playoff time at all?

[Esperani]

Yeah, they like, obviously. I, I think Devin Booker is a certified playoff guy.

[Dave Deford]

Well, sure, yeah.

[Esperani]

And so when you. That type of talent, I think he's one of those guys that can go toe to toe against basically anybody in a series. But how do you, how do you look at the rest of the roster and say that they have a chance against the. You know, we just talked about the Timberwolves or we talked about spurs and we're going to talk about San Antonio in a little bit with Will. Like there's, there's kind of levels to what you trust in in a playoff series and clearly the Suns are a tier below that. It's great that they're having the season that they're having. There's no question about that and it deserves to be acknowledged. And ultimately I just question if they have the, the, I don't know, the guns.

[Dave Deford]

They might not have the horses.

[Esperani]

Right.

[Dave Deford]

Like, because when it comes to especially playoff time, man, the fastest horses win the race. Yeah, we'll see though.

[Esperani]

They've been proving us wrong all season.

[Dave Deford]

So maybe they really good. And, and look, Jordan Knott, I, I think we've got to throw his hat in the ring. We've got I think a bevy of coach of the year candidates because of how many teams have surprised us. We almost need like an anti coach of the year. Like, okay, why have you been so dis.

[Esperani]

Coach of the year?

[Dave Deford]

Yeah, like how doesn't run plays in the fourth quarter. What, what's up with that unnamed squad anyway? Guys, stick around after the break. We got Will Gillery here to talk about the Rockets big comeback over the Spurs. This was shocking. Great game. Prime Monday delivery is fast. How fast are we talking? We're talking game night delivered by tomorrow night fast.

[Esperani]

So we can win fast.

[Dave Deford]

Cards fast. Puzzles fast. Team games at your door in a day fast.

[Will Guillory]

Doesn't matter what the game is.

[Esperani]

We will dominate fast. We're talking game over. You win fast.

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[Dave Deford]

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[Will Guillory]

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[Dave Deford]

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[Dave Deford]

Feels like we have a pretty big game in the Western Conference. Just about every single night last night, no difference. The Houston Rockets and the spurs met up and the you know as I thought this was going to be a blowout. I thought the NBA Daily Curse had a mistake. Will Guillory again. But the Rockets pull off a 16 point comeback to win 111106 in spite of missing Stephen Adams, who's going to be out for quite a while. I'm guessing thanks to Reed shepherd and his fourth quarter heroics. Will Guillory covers the Rockets for us amongst other teams. Will, how about that game man? Pretty good showing from the Rockets. Who I thought I said to s put them on Rice, they're done.

[Will Guillory]

Nah, I was gonna say if the NBA Daily Curse is trying to get me, you got to get in line because there's a few different curses following me around during my career. But nah. This. This turned out to be a really good game and I was with y'. All. I thought in the third quarter it was over. The there was no life in this building. There was no life on the Rockets bench and then Reed shepherd happened and it completely flipped the game.

[Esperani]

What I mean like obviously big picture with Stephen Adams being out and you look at sort of the, the changing of the deck. You know, they got to kind of shuffle their rotation a little bit with Adams out of the picture. Now, obviously they have to change their style a little bit because they rely so much on the offensive rebounding. Adams is a massive part of that picture. How does a guy like Reed shepherd figure into what the Rockets need to be over the, you know, second half of the season?

[Will Guillory]

Yeah, I noticed this at halftime. I think they had two offensive rebounds at halftime. They ended up with six for the game. Very unlike the Rockets. I mean, this is a team that has been putting up historic offensive rebounding numbers all year, and Stephen Adams was a huge part of that. You know, before the game, Udoka announced that Stephen suffered a grade three ankle sprain, which is a big one. That means he's going to be sidelined for a very long time. And he's such a huge part of this team's identity, not just with the offensive rebounder, just his overall toughness. The way this team prioritizes physicality, playing big all the time. And you guys mentioned, I think Reed Shepard is going to be huge for this team to kind of not shift away because they still want to be an offensive rebounding team. They still want to play big, but they got to be able to do other things. They can't just rely on their size and their physicality. And Reed shepherd is a guy who, who provides a very nice change up for them with his ability to make shots, to be able to play on the ball, take the ball away from KD and Shangoon. I thought he did a little bit of everything, and he even had a huge block on Champagne in the corner. I mean, he was just making plays all over the place. And I think it was really important for him to be in this type of environment. I mean, I don't know how much it kind of came through on tv. This felt like a playoff game environment, the physicality. These two teams took this game very seriously. And to see Reed shepherd come up big in a game where both teams were all the way in and both teams really wanted this game, I think it was a huge moment for him. And it was a huge moment for the Rockets because they know how important he's going to be down the line, especially if Stephen Adams won't be around.

[Dave Deford]

One of the big criticisms of Reed is his size. You know, like, I mean, he can't control that, right? Like, he can't really get much bigger. But this spurs guard rotation, they're so physical and then big and to Watch him do some of the stuff that he was able to do. I thought that drive to the basket where he had the nice reverse layup, you know, right after the, the step back three. I think in the previous possession he really like controlled the pace of that game. And I think that there's even more to the Reed Shepherd KD two man game. You know, like Reed, they like to get Reed, it come up and set the screen for KD a little bit. Seems like every single time Reed slips that screen, he gets a wide open look. And this is a team that's got to find a way to shoot more threes anyway. So, I mean there's a, there's a little bit of all right, Stephen Adams likely to be out, let's say two months. Jeff Stotts in street clothes, who, who does NBA injury stuff, he's put the average at about 62 days, which would mean like 28, 29 games. That's a long time. But if he's back in time for the playoffs, maybe this just gives you another wrinkle when you've gotta be, you know, you've gotta get that three point volume up. This was a game that the math problem almost came back to bite him. I, I think it could be a little bit of a blessing. It's in disguise where they're forced to figure out a different identity.

[Will Guillory]

And let's just be real, like even with the healthy Steven Adams, this team still needs Reed shepherd for all the reasons you said. They need that extra three point shooter. They need that guy who can space the floor when teams are really trying to take the ball away from kd. A guy who can kind of, you know, allow Amen Thompson to do Amen Thompson things around the corner, not have to be the true point guard. He was going to be an important piece for this team regardless of what was going on with Steven Adams. But I think without Stephen Adams now is going to put even more pressure on him to step up, you know, really be aggressive. I thought a really important moment as well was something that Reed talked about after the game was what they called it, a five point shot where he shot it for damn near half court and air balled it. And then he mentioned that he went to the bench and Eme Udoka told him, hey, I like that shot. Keep playing aggressive, keep shooting. And I think that's a really important for a young player where you feel like you made a bad played late in a really important game. Everybody's kind of looking at you and everybody's like, oh, and then the coaches comes, no, you're playing well. Keep doing what you're doing. I think that's important to build up your young guys and really empower. And I think that's something they've been trying to do all season, really instilling that confidence. And re, keep on telling them, hey, keep shooting. Don't worry about passing it to kd. Don't worry about passing it to Shangoon. We want you to be aggressive because they know how important he is. And I think you steady seeing that confidence grow. Of course, there are times where his defense could be an issue or where his shots aren't going and his confidence kind of waivers. But nights like this where he's making shots, it makes a massive difference for this team.

[Esperani]

Well, a lot of the fourth quarter issues for the Rockets have been like tough shots and tough shot making. And obviously you got Kevin Durant, you've got Sengun, two guys who, who can make tough shots with the best of them, including kd. But it felt like on the other side, the spurs really struggled on the offensive end. And that's, that's a credit to the Rockets defense and what they did against Wemb. Wimby struggled tonight immensely. He was trying to get into his mid range bag similar to Kevin Durant. He just, he didn't have the facilities for that. What did you think about the, the difference in the clutch execution between the spurs and Rockets tonight?

[Will Guillory]

Yeah, I think you got to give Dorian Finney Smith a lot of credit for the, the physicality he played against Wimy with. You got to throw Atari Eason in that mix as well. Kevin Durant was guarding Wimy a lot tonight. I think they did a great job of really getting underneath Wimy. He wasn't, he really didn't look comfortable for much of the game. And I think some of that was, you know, Wimy kind of bailed them out a lot in the fourth quarter, taking those tough fadeaways rather than trying to get to the basket. Take advantage of some of the smaller guys that were on them. But I think, you know, a lot of that you, you got to give the credit to the Rockets where they, they were consistent throughout the game, putting hands on him, forcing him out of the paint and making him take tough shots. And of course Wemby's capable of making those shots, but when he's not, I, I think you saw that the, the spurs offense kind of stalled a little bit and I think, you know, they were so dependent on, as funny as it sounds, Julian Champagne and they just Kept feeding them. And then once his shot stopped going, they really couldn't figure out where else to go. And I think Fox kind of had a little spurt where he got hot, but then he stopped shooting after a while. And I think, you know, they really wanted Wimpy to hit some shots there late, but he just couldn't. And then, you know, on the other side, like you said, re shepherd was making so many big shots. And I think another important thing we got to mention as well, you know, with this Rockets team, late in games, they talked about all year about teams sending multiple bodies at Kevin Durant. Yeah, anybody but Kevin Durant's going to beat us. And the spurs did that tonight. Keldon Johnson was basically hugging Kevin Durant at half court every single time he walked up the court. And the Rockets weren't. They didn't falter where, you know, early in the season we saw Kevin Durant be taken away and they were all kind of just standing around shocked, like, not really knowing what to do. And tonight you saw Reed shepherd was aggressive getting the spots, you know, regardless of what was going on with Katie. Jabari Smith, I thought, made some big plays late. So I think that's going to be really important for the Rockets because that's going to be the game plan going forward. Team's going to say anybody's going to beat us but Kevin Durant, we're going to throw multiple bodies at him, we're going to hug them at half court, play physical, and these other guys are going to have to step up and make shots. And that's what they did tonight.

[Dave Deford]

Back to this blessing in disguise thing, how much of the closing lineup do you think we're going to see from this game where it was Tari Eason out there, Shingoon, Jabari Smith, Reed Shepherd, Kevin Durant, you have all this spacing that this team has, has really been lacking. You've got adequate ball handling at least I think with. With Reed shepherd and KD and Shingoon, which this team, you know, often struggles to find. I mean, is this their best closing lineup right now?

[Will Guillory]

It sounds like you've been kind of strolling through rock it's Rocket switter lately. Because I've been seeing a lot of this talk on Rocket's Twitter about them wanting Reed Shepher game late, them wanting more floor spacers, less double big, less Josh Aogi. And I think you've seen some of that when they've stalled out late in games where, you know, they, like I said, they're forcing the Ball away from kd and they can't find those other shooters on the court where it's, you know, it's Stephen Adams and Shangon out there in the paint. Teams are saying, hey, Joshua Kogi, have at it. Take as many corner threes as you want. And I think you're not, as, you know, you're not as open to Reed shepherd taking those shots or even Atari Eason taking.

[Dave Deford]

Might be the nice middle ground guy, right? Like, because he stretches the floor, he can rebound, right? Like, I think that he's a guy. Some of the injury stuff with him might have slowed him to start the year, but seems like the opportunity. It's not Reed. Reed is in the rotation. It seems like the guy who has a real opportunity might be Tari Eason, right?

[Will Guillory]

No, and you mentioned that. It's the injuries. I mean, tonight was Tari's first game back. He's been dealing with an ankle issue lately. And that's kind of been a story throughout his career. Right. Is him fighting through these injuries when he's healthy. He's a big impact player. He makes plays on defense, he rebounds, he's versatile on offense. But just having that consistency, being on the floor is the most important thing with him. And I think the more he's able to establish that consistency, the more you're going to see him in those late game lineups. Because we mentioned it earlier, he was able to, you know, defend Wimby in certain situations, or you can even switch him out on the Fox in certain situations. He's such a wild card on defense because he has such great hands, plays with such great physicality. He adds a. A real dynamic to the scene that they don't really have with some of these other guys. So you're right. I think you want to see more Tar Eason, you want to see more re shepherd in these big moments because it's going to be huge for them to step up come the playoffs because all of the stuff the teams are doing to take away KD and Shangun, they're going to double down come playoff time when you're able to see the Rockets over and over again. And you can kind of figure out where some of these offensive rebounds are coming from. We say it all the time in the playoffs, you got to make shots. Kevin Durant says it all the time. You know, we can talk about scheme, we could talk about rotations, but at the end of the day, you got to make shots in the playoffs. And those guys are going to have to be a big part of that.

[Dave Deford]

You got to take shots, too. They got they were outshot from behind the three point line by 23 attempts and if the spurs had made some.

[Esperani]

Shots, the game got some music in the background.

[Dave Deford]

Music in the background.

[Will Guillory]

Hopefully YouTube doesn't play in Houston.

[Esperani]

Look like Will, I have to ask you about the trade deadline because I feel like the Rockets could be a an interesting team here. Obviously with the Stephen Adams situation. We've got some trade deadline music in the background too. What do you think the Rockets might do in the next couple weeks, trade deadline wise?

[Will Guillory]

I honestly don't think they're going to be that active. I mean, you know, the Rafael Stone is always a wild card. He's going to be making phone calls. They've got some contracts that are movable with Clint Capella or some of these other guys, but I think they really like this team. I think the Steven Adams thing kind of takes away an element that they were hoping to have. But I think they, they really like this group. They want to see them healthy and together. They want to see Tari Easton playing a bigger role. And I think the more they can have these guys out there, I think they feel really good about what they have. It's just about having Tari and all of these guys out there consistently and then you're going to see some results.

[Dave Deford]

All right, thank you, Will Guillory, for hanging out with us guys over at the Athletic. Will's gonna samba out the door.

[Esperani]

That's right.

[Dave Deford]

That's gonna do it for the show, folks. For Will Guillory and Esperani, I'm Dave Deford and this has been the NBA Daily. I don't know if they can play us out, but maybe we can get some of this audio. Let's get it.

[Will Guillory]

Come on, fellas. Foreign.

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