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Zena Kada
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Dave Duor
Good morning and welcome to the NBA Daily for May 7, 2026. I'm Dave Defor here with Zena Keda. Coming up, the Knicks take a 20 lead in their series against the Sixers. And the spurs blew out the Wolves in game two. Jared Weiss is here to talk about that. Good morning everybody. What is up? Xena, how are you? It's good to see you. Good to have you back. Thank you. We missed.
Zena Kada
Yeah, it's. It's been good. I've. We had a great pod. Talking about what the players think about some folks around the association and some folks showed up. You could tell.
Dave Duor
Maybe they.
Zena Kada
Maybe they heard the pod. It was good games last night.
Dave Duor
Yeah, it was pretty good, you know. Hey, do you watch baseball, Xena?
Zena Kada
Oh, I wear this hat for fashion.
Dave Duor
Okay. All right. Well, look, there's a weird thing happening and this is unrelated to anything else we're going to talk about. But we talk so much about load management in the NBA. There's this guy, Paul Skeens. He pitches for the.
Zena Kada
Paul Skins.
Dave Duor
Okay. Pitches for the Pirates. Guy is great. All time. Like he might be an all time pitcher one day.
Zena Kada
Yep.
Dave Duor
He pitched eight shutout innings, had 98 pitches, struck out the last three batters, and they didn't throw him out there for the complete game. And man, my sports sensibilities. I read this and I was like, this can't be real. I. I was not watching the game obviously, but I read this.
Zena Kada
Yeah.
Dave Duor
I was like, this can't be real. Load management is infecting everything. We gotta, we gotta get this out of sports. Come on. It's just bad, awful sports rant.
Zena Kada
You said you didn't watch it. I, I imagine he fought that because my goodness, like at this, at that point, for the last. You said which. He came out in the last inning.
Dave Duor
Yeah, last inning.
Zena Kada
Wow. Yeah. That's sad. I'm sure he was pissed about it.
Dave Duor
Yeah. I mean, yeah, it's. That's not, that's not fun sports anyway. We need fun sports. The game itself, if you're the Wolves, not a lot of fun. The spurs just completely blew them out. And it started, you know, the game was just, it was a rock fight at first, like no one could hit a shot. And then the spurs just turned it on. And Zena, look, we. We felt as if the Wolves really figured something out in game one. You know, they were attacking Wimby and it just. Those shots weren't following the same way. They just didn't have the same amount of juice, I imagine. I think that if you're the Wolves, you probably look, you're. You're not going to win them all.
Zena Kada
Yeah.
Dave Duor
But going back to Minnesota, split one one, get to still feel pretty good.
Zena Kada
That ain't too bad. That ain't too bad. That's exactly. They always say a series doesn't start until one team wins on the road. And Minnesota started this with a win on the road. So I wasn't too mad as, you know, as they went down pretty bad, ended up 133 to 95. I still, I'm not worried for them. I'm like, you already got a win on San Antonio. You did it on the road in a tough environment. I was looking at the face paint. Usually it's up in the, like the fan section. It was down by the court. Yeah. It's a tough arena to play in against the spurs, but Minnesota got what we all expected out of the Spurs. A team that was probably embarrassed by the first game and frustrated by the way it came out and away focused. Wyama a focus Darren Fox and a very physical spurs team overall, they came out hot and heavy come into game two. And ultimately, when you're making these better soctions, which we saw women Yama and Fox go for, they were way more efficient from the floor. They were attacking the basket more successfully. Their defense was tenacious. Julius Randle was just Rendo. I mean, he ends up with 12 points, 4 of 10 from the floor. The turnovers, though, you know, Minnesota ends up with 22 turnovers, allowing for 19 points. It was a sloppy game. And it did start with San Antonio's defense.
Dave Duor
Yeah, Timberwolves, they didn't have the same amount of energy. Ant didn't have the same amount of force. Still came off the bench. Anthony Edwards IO Dasumu did leave the game. That being said, it was a blowout at halftime, so who knows if he would have played through this heel soreness. But, you know, look, you got a guy with right calf now, right heel kind of hurting. We've. We know this story. I think you just got to be safe there. Think about the guy's career a little bit also. That being said, look, game three, this series, I think is. It's going to wind up going seven. It's going to be great. This is. This is the sort of series that we were hoping to get, you know, if. If Minnesota could get healthy. And I. I think the spurs, you know, again, it's going to be about shooting for them. We'll see if it holds up. But I'm going to talk to Jared after the break about that game. Go behind the scenes a little bit and see what happened after the game, because I feel like the spurs probably had some stuff to say about.
Zena Kada
It was getting a little chippy out there.
Dave Duor
It definitely was getting a little chippy.
Zena Kada
Even with a blowout. Yeah.
Dave Duor
Yeah. Let's see. Sixers, Knicks, game two. The Knicks win 108. 102. No Joel Embiid. He was a pretty late scratch in the afternoon. Looks like he's got an ankle issue now that he's gonna have to work back from. Hopefully he's available for game three. That being said, Xena, I do believe that it gave the Sixers a little bit of speed advantage on the Knicks. They were playing a Dembona more. They were. And they got off to this hot start in the first quarter. They started out six of nine from three, but they were only up two after first quarter. So that, to me, that was. It was like good on the court, but bad sign that you're not able to pull away in spite of the hot shooting 1,000%.
Zena Kada
I mean, I, I credit the Sixers. They showed up without Embiid. They played incredibly tough for the entirety of the game, but they lost because at the end of the game when people needed to make shots, it felt like Jalen Brunson on the opposite side of the ball. He's the only person that really knew how to do that. You, you talk about the fact that the Sixers are playing fast. The very first play of the game, Andre Drummond gets a rebound off of a missed New York shot and tosses it up for a transition pass, gets first two points. You know, I think it was Kelly Oubre and I can't remember who was on the other side, but two Sixers players already down on the other side covered so much ground. And it felt as if this was an intentional direction from Nick Nurse to say, we need to run without Joel Embiid. And that's what they were doing all night. But ultimately it was an almost similar story, but different result in the sense that Karl Anthony Towns gets in foul trouble. If we remember from game one, he got in foul trouble. He came back and was like, let me take over, let me handle some of this. He kept dealing with physicality, he kept dealing with getting in foul trouble. And ultimately it was Jalen Brunson that had to come up big in the last parts of the game in the clutch. And this is what we've seen him do all season long. He hits a really great mid range jumper over Barlow, gives them the lead with about five minutes left. And then that was the last time that they had a lead change. There was 25 lead changes in this game, which was the most in a playoff game since 2015. So just to give you an idea of how tight this matchup was and this game was, but ultimately how crucial Jalen Brunson was in solidifying the win at the end of the game.
Dave Duor
There were some really interesting things that happened in this game. You mentioned the foul trouble for Carl Anthony Towns. They also were without Mitchell Robinson, the Knicks, he was out with an illness also. And Andre Drummond and Adem Bona were in foul trouble. Yeah, it forced some interesting things. Number one, we got to see the Knicks play a few different variations of their small ball lineup with Og Anunoby at center. And they were great. And so I think about that potentially being something they can go to to supercharge the offense. Like, maybe you don't need Mitchell Robinson as the backup five because you need just more shooting. Well, you've got og, who to me is their best, maybe their best rim protector on the team. And especially with the way that, that with Deuce McBride out there, you have so much offensive firepower. So that's something to watch as we, you know, move on in the playoffs. But also the Sixers, they, they tried Dominic Barlow at center, and listen, that guy's six, nine. And it's easy to forget because he moves so fast, he has so much energy. But I look, I don't know how many Sixers games I watched this year. 50, maybe. I don't know. I don't remember seeing this at all in the regular season. And just again, another tip of the cap. Nick Nurse when it comes to the playoffs. And again, it becomes a kitchen sink situation, especially when you're down your best player. He does always seem to find something that they can learn from. I feel like in, in even a loss like this. And I think Dominic Barlow at the five is very interesting. The defense was interesting. You know, you had Paul George actually sometimes guarding Carl Anthony Towns because Barlow and PG were able to switch. And I did feel like it threw off the Knicks a little bit. That being said, look, Jalen Brunson down the stretch, there's just. The guy is unstoppable. Xena. Like, at some point we've just got to. They, you've got to throw two at him, get the ball out of his hands and just hope that someone else doesn't beat you.
Zena Kada
26 points. And, and it's kind of crazy. Like he had a slow start right. The last game, uh, it was all about Tyrese Maxey. He needs to step up for the Sixers. He's got to start faster. He was phenomenal in this first quarter. It starting out for, you know, the Sixers, he was attacking, he was getting up and down the floor really well. And so you kind of looked and said, oh, maybe Jalen and Tyrese are going to switch a little bit. Brunson didn't score his first basket until it was two free throws at like towards the end of the first quarter. And so you're kind of like, okay, maybe he's going to slow burn. And that's exactly what he did incrementally just getting better over the course of the game. But to your point about Dominique Barlow, I like, we've seen him and if S was here, he'd be like, yeah, we love Dominique he's athletic, he plays tough around the rim. He moves really well as you mentioned on ball screens. But I really struggled with the possessions towards the end of the game when they couldn't score through Paul George, they couldn't find buckets out of Maxi. You saw Quentin Grimes, you saw Dominique Barlow holding the ball a little bit and that's where you saw a lot of the turnovers start to happen and them trying to find force things. Even, you know, even Paul George had some four shots that were, were strange. They're, you know, their first half percentage of field goal percentage, 49% almost in the first half. Then they fell to 41% in the second and it was because it stagnated with folks that weren't necessarily used to being out there. And Dominic Barlow is one of them. So I do think this game gives him confidence. And as you mentioned, Nick Nurse is going to learn something. I think Dominic Barlow is going to have a conversation with Nick Nurse and it's probably going to be expect to play more minutes, especially with these hips and these hips and ankle injuries with Joel Embiid. But I still don't know if that's going to cut it against the Knicks. The Knicks big.
Dave Duor
No, probably not. This is more about next year, right? I think like, you know, if Nick Nurse is coaching this team next year, hey, this is something you've got in your back pocket. Oh, also, if Joel Embiid makes it back, I, I think that Don Barlow at center as a backup is not a bad option because of the way they were able to trap and the way that they were able to move defensively.
Zena Kada
It gives you another look, a faster look. Yeah, Agreed. Agreed.
Dave Duor
Also, I, I will point out that Tyrese Maxi has committed more turnovers in the first two games of this series than he did in all of the last series that went seven games. So he's turned the ball over. Yeah. In this game. He turned this game, turned it over 10 total.
Jared Weiss
It's.
Dave Duor
The Knicks have done a good job of, of actually putting pressure on the ball and forcing him to, to turn the ball over. Tyrus Maxi doesn't do that very often. Credit the Knicks. The Knicks defense has looked pretty good, I think in the first two games. OG Anunoby left the game late with the injury. We're still waiting an update on that. So something to pay attention to if he's going to miss time. Like, obviously this may allow the Sixers to get back into it because he's hugely important. He's had a great offensive series so far. He had 24 points in this game, was 9 of 17 from the field. So obviously he's important. Zena, I guess I got to ask the question that we always ask when it's 2 0. Is it over for the Sixers? Is this it?
Zena Kada
Oh, we are so the media, aren't we? Of course we have to pontificate about this. And I don't know that it's over. I definitely don't know that's over for the Sixers, especially if Joel Embi comes back. Because this is the exact same question, right. Let's be real, that we had about whether the Sixers were a real scare in the east, and it was all about what Joel Embiid's health. No one anticipated them coming out in the first round the way that they did with Joel Embiid playing in the way that he did, especially those last three games. Then you see them, you know, we know that Joel Embiid can come back, but the question now is, will he slow them down? I don't think it's over. I definitely think that. I don't. I don't believe a sweep is going to happen, but I think we picked the Knicks in five.
Dave Duor
I still believe that might have said six.
Zena Kada
Okay. Okay.
Dave Duor
It's feeling more like five.
Zena Kada
Yeah, I would say five at this point. Yeah.
Dave Duor
Yeah. Again, everything, once again, in Philadelphia depends on Joel Embiid.
Zena Kada
I wanted you to just give a little credit to Mikhail Bridges.
Dave Duor
Hey, he locked in for you. He's been okay. Yeah, Mikhail's been okay. He's. He started making shots, which I think helps on the other end quite a bit. And not that his defense has been bad, but it's just like, you know, you. You just think that a guy who has this sort of reputation would, Would create more of an impact on the defensive end. But that being said, he's been really good in this series. And I think that when OG has been at. Was at the five last, I liked what, what he was able to do with Mikhail Bridges as the four man, like I thought he was. Again, what the Knicks are doing defensively, pretty impressive right now. We'll see if it holds up and if Embiid comes back, if they can do the same stuff that they were able to do in Game one, which was largely, I think, about the Knicks offense getting out and running, which we didn't see as much in this game. But, you know, again, it's. It's still a seven game series, and we've, We've seen teams come back from. From 2, 0 before, but again, need Joel out there.
Zena Kada
Agreed.
Dave Duor
Yeah.
Jared Weiss
All right, guys.
Zena Kada
Some fun stuff.
Dave Duor
Yeah. Stick around after the break. Got Jared Weiss here to talk about the spurs blowing out the wolves.
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And we trust you to make smart decisions. After all, you listen to this show see terms@discover.com credit card. The San Antonio spurs just absolutely manhandled the Minnesota Timberwolves last night. 133 95. Our spurs beat writer Jared Weiss was there.
Jared Weiss
That's me now.
Dave Duor
He's here. How's it going, man?
Jared Weiss
I mean, I just watched a blowout after watching a thriller. So I guess it's good that we know the series is going long, but I'm hoping it's going to going to be at least a little bit closer for the rest of the series.
Dave Duor
How do you feel after the first two games of this series? You know, I think a lot of the questions about Minnesota really centered on health and if these two teams were fully healthy. Game one maybe isn't as big of a shock, you know, that Minnesota being able to walk in there and get a win. I think this is more what people were expecting. This Game two result was more what we expected out of game one. Spurs had time off. Timberwolves didn't really have as much time off. They were Banged up. But they came out with so much juice in game one. Feels like maybe they used up all their mojo or whatever we're going to call that in game one because they had nothing in game two.
Jared Weiss
Well, they had the worst shooting performance I've seen also. I think it was their worst shooting performance they had. The first half was the worst half of the season for the Minnesota. I mean, the big thing with this was the ball pressure on defense from San Antonio was just way better. They just were more connected on what they wanted to do. They were standing up ball handlers better. And they trapped Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle at the right spots, like Julius Randall, ball baseline, trap him. Anthony Edwards, ball near the sideline, push him into the sideline. And just Minnesota couldn't escape those traps quickly because, you know, when you do the invisible third man in the trap, when you use the sideline, the baseline, the players basically falling out of bounds and you gotta hope that they can find an outlet. And so because of that, usually the outlets are not very good, and that allows your defense to recover and you're not giving up open shots. And then they were able, the spurs were able to make sure that the guys that were taking the shots were the ones they wanted taking those shots. And they missed those shots like the Wolves just missed everything. And so the games will probably, probably be closer down the road here. Just because Minnesota can't shoot worse than this, because they wouldn't be allowed to play in the NBA. I assume Adam Silver would just be like, all right, you guys are out. We're putting, we're putting Denver back in. You can't shoot 5% from 3 in a game. Like, you're disqualified. So, yeah, I'm sure Minnesota will shoot better and I'm sure at some point in the series, Jada McDaniels will not be in foul trouble.
Dave Duor
Right. Yeah, this was a lot of. A lot of this was shooting variance game. But I want to go back to your point about the point of attack defense for the spurs, because I actually thought that the 12 blocks, or, you know, eight if you're Chris Finch, counting at home the 12 blocks. A little bit of an indictment on that perimeter defense by the spurs because they weren't doing a good enough job of stopping the penetration by the Wolves. Way better in this game. And again, throw in the double teams at Anthony Edwards, just more aggressive in the trap, forcing him to give the ball up. Make other people make decisions. Yeah, night and day. Difference in, in the defense, the offense, though, the big question for the spurs coming into the playoffs, are they going to be able to shoot game one shots? Weren't there game two, they shoot 41% from three. They win running away. Are they just going to be another one of these teams where if they don't shoot above 35%, it's going to be hard for them to win?
Jared Weiss
Yeah, well, they were shooting like 30ish percent up until Julian Shimpani going on that crazy tear in the third quarter that blew the game open. So yeah, they were probably going to win this game with mediocre shooting because not only did Minnesota shoot terribly, but they also shoot, they shot a lot fewer threes. Like Minnesota was at like 25 three point attempts before the garbage time started in the fourth quarter. So Minnesota's three point rate was bad. And I think a big part of it is like ant's not taking 10 threes a game right now. Like he only played 24 in this game. I mean, I guess he probably would have played 30 if there was or maybe he would have been capped at 25 again, who knows? But like he probably would have played more if it wasn't garbage time. But like Ant is not chucking up the shots that get them through games. Like Ant has these moments where he's like taking a three over Wemby, you know, and he's just coming down, cooking guys, hitting the step back, he's flying in transition and pulling up. They're not getting that from him right now. And so that's why Randall is so crucial and McDaniels is so crucial. And they got, I mean they got, what was it, 10 for.
Dave Duor
For 12 points from Randall.
Jared Weiss
Yeah, so it's like both those guys were like efficient, but they weren't, they weren't aggressive and they didn't get segments of this game where they're just making like putting their foot on the gas and pushing through the spurs defense. That part of the game never happens. And I'd have to go back and dissect exactly why that never happened. But I think a big part of it was just that they were missing. Like everybody was missing their shots from Minnesota. And the spurs did a great job of running off of those misses and they were scoring on it. I mean, fast break points, 29 to
Dave Duor
5 for the Spurs, 22 turnovers for the Wolves. Like you're just not. The spurs are, are actually causing him to turn it over. Spurs were winning the rebound battle. I mean it just, There's a, there's a lot of stuff that we call hustle stats. I Guess, you know, and the spurs just again they felt like they just had more energy. Their legs looked younger in the game.
Jared Weiss
I mean they are younger.
Dave Duor
That's so it makes.
Jared Weiss
The thing is, let's, let's see what happens over the course of the series. As you know, the Wolves defense is probably the most impressive defense in this series as far as like being able to just completely take away players. While the Spurs I think have a more aggressive group defense that's better at like just like overall we're going to press the entire system and then we also have Victor as our fail safe. So yeah, I don't know which defense is better, but it's two different types of defenses that I think depending on the tempo of the game, like half court versus transition, one of those is going to win out. And so these games where it's up tempo spurs are going to win them. The games where things really, really slow down, that's where Randall has his advantage and he can really make ways. But you know what, Carter Bryant came in and this was the interesting thing. Mitch Johnson almost said Robinson. Mitch Johnson played 10 guys in his rotation tonight. Carter Bryant was out game one. Harrison Barnes played in that game. This game, both those guys played and I think split, you know, spreading out the minutes, spreading out the fouls for one. That was probably helpful for just like making sure they had enough bodies so they could play more aggressive defense throughout the night. And that seemed to work pretty well.
Dave Duor
Did you get a chance to talk to Devin Vassell about that crazy shot that he hit from the corner?
Jared Weiss
He just kind of laughed. We were like alley oop3. He was shooting the 3 before it even started. All that. That was, I mean that was crazy. Like he was in his shooting motion before the ball was in his hands. It was so cool.
Dave Duor
Honestly I, you know, you think about short shot clock situations. A lot of times guys do catch a grenade. How about the situational awareness that it took for Vsel? He literally jumps and catches the ball in the shooting motion. It's a, it's a shot clock beating three. I've never seen someone do that and had it like look like his shot. I mean it wasn't just like he was putting up a heave at the last second. Thought that was incredible. That was the kind of night that the spurs were having. It just felt like their number was coming up every single time they needed it to. Looking ahead in this series, we're going to go to Minnesota. I'm assuming you're going to Minnesota pretty
Jared Weiss
soon or flying Out Thursday.
Dave Duor
There you go.
Jared Weiss
Sure. What day it is right now.
Dave Duor
My understanding is the weather's finally pretty good up there, that you know the streets so you're good to go. Right. Like you can go walk outside, get some sun. What are you looking for in game three? That's going to let us know that this series is going long.
Jared Weiss
Yeah. For one, I've never been to Minneapolis when it was above freezing, when there was less than a foot of snow on the ground. So I'm looking forward to that. Game three. I mean, I'm waiting for McDaniels to go crazy. Like I'm expecting that to happen soon. He has an advantage in the series. The spurs do not have a guy that matches up well against him as they don't against Randall as well. At least Randall had a very potent game. Game one, the officiating is one I'm going to be interested in tonight. In this game. Scott Foster had a really, really tight whistle. There was a stretch where there were like six offensive fouls called away from the ball. Like moving screens, like all sorts of weird little ticky tack things like that was really interesting. I'm really curious to see how that game is officiated because I think a factor in both these games has been like McDaniels and Castle, who are the two guys that kind of drive the tension and aggressiveness of their team, have both had five fouls in the series and it's almost a little bit of like survivor of like which one of those guys stay on the floor all the way through the game and because they both make such a huge impact on both sides of the floor, maybe Castle a little bit more two way but McDaniels has really good offense offensive nights as well. But like is the, is the officiating going to allow Minnesota to beat up on Victor and beat up on the spurs more to get like super aggressive on the offensive glass and push people around or is it going to get called tight again, which it seemed to be in this game and that seemed to favor San Antonio getting some protection on the defensive glass and you know, things of that nature. So I'm really interested to see how that gets called. You know, Minnesota is going to be. They're very intense crowd, the theater lighting and everything. Like it's. That is an intense, a hard place to win and the Wolves have beaten the spurs there this year. So I do think that this game is probably going to be tight and who knows, maybe the rest of the series, whoever wins that they kind of run away with it from there. I'd expect the series to go six or seven, but I feel like this one's going to be a bloodbath. Coming up.
Dave Duor
Do you know if they're going to wear the Prince jerseys or not?
Jared Weiss
I have no idea, but they better listen.
Dave Duor
They got to break it out. Secret weapon, break out some of the best jerseys in the business.
Jared Weiss
I think you get one city edition wear per series and I think it even ends in the second round. So I assume they're going to wear them in game three and definitely if not in game four, because that's their chance to wear them. There you go.
Dave Duor
All right, Jared, just need a report on those those jerseys as soon as you can get it. Break that news for us. Everybody go and read Jared over at the Athletic. One of my favorite stories here in the playoffs so far is the story that you wrote about Victor Womenyama and Rudy Gobert and how Rudy Gobert was a mentor for young Wemby guys. If you haven't had a chance to read it, go to the Athletic. Very much worth your time. Very much up my alley. Jared, I appreciate you writing that story just for me. You knew I would love it.
Jared Weiss
Everybody had to write it for you.
Dave Duor
That's right. Look, Jared, you're doing a great job first first year on the job in San Antonio. You've done a really great job down there. Looking forward to reading your stuff the rest of the playoffs. Everybody else go and do the same for Jared Weiss and Zena Kada. I'm Dave Duor and this has been the NBA Daily. Thanks for waking up with us. Thanks for listening. Make sure you hit the subscribe or follow button so you never miss an episode. If you enjoyed it, drop a like leave a rating or let us know in the comments. Thank you guys for waking up with us.
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This episode of The Athletic NBA Daily focuses on the San Antonio Spurs’ commanding Game 2 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, evening their series at 1-1, and breaks down the Knicks’ tight win to go up 2-0 against the Sixers. With expert insight from Spurs beat writer Jared Weiss, the hosts explore tactical shifts, standout performances, and what to expect moving forward in both series.
Changing Momentum:
The Spurs responded to a disappointing Game 1 loss by dominating Game 2, winning 133–95 and tying the series (01:41, 17:57).
Game Flow & Defensive Turnaround:
Wolves’ Struggles & Concerns
Spurs’ Offensive Surge
Memorable Moment
Jared Weiss [19:11]:
“The big thing with this was the ball pressure on defense from San Antonio was just way better... Minnesota couldn’t escape those traps quickly.”
Dave DuFour [20:34]:
“This was a lot of shooting variance, but night and day difference in defense.”
Jared Weiss [22:39]:
"Both those guys [Randle, McDaniels] were like efficient, but they weren't aggressive...they didn't get segments of this game where they're just making—putting their foot on the gas and pushing through the Spurs defense."
Jared Weiss [23:29]:
"The Wolves defense is probably the most impressive defense in this series as far as being able to just completely take away players, while the Spurs, I think, have a more aggressive group defense that's better at like, just like overall, we're going to press the entire system and then we also have Victor as our fail-safe.”
Rotational Tweaks:
Spurs used a deeper rotation (“Mitch Johnson played 10 guys in his rotation tonight. Carter Bryant was out game one...Both those guys played” [23:30]), helping to keep energy and fouls manageable.
Game 3 Preview:
Jerseys Banter:
No Embiid, New Look Sixers:
Clutch Factor: Jalen Brunson
Lineup Creativity & Defensive Chess Match
Turnovers & Pressure
Injury Watch:
Zena Kada [07:20]:
“They lost because at the end of the game...Jalen Brunson on the opposite side of the ball, he’s the only person that really knew how to do that.”
Dave DuFour [09:06]:
“You’ve got OG, who to me is maybe their best rim protector on the team.”
Dave DuFour [13:17]:
“Tyrese Maxey has committed more turnovers in the first two games of this series than he did in all of the last series…”
Zena Kada [14:16]:
“I don’t know that it’s over. I definitely don’t know that it’s over for the Sixers, especially if Joel Embiid comes back. Because this is the exact same question, right?...it was all about Joel Embiid’s health.”
Devin Vassell’s Circus 3:
Vassell’s pre-catch shooting motion three, described by Weiss as, “He was in his shooting motion before the ball was in his hands. It was so cool.” (24:50)
Jerseys Shtick:
Lighthearted speculation on whether the Wolves will wear the Prince jerseys for extra luck in Game 3 (27:56).
Spurs-Wolves:
Sixers-Knicks:
| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | Speaker(s) | Highlight | |-----------|------------------------------------------------------|------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------| | 01:41 | Opening Spurs-Wolves analysis | Dave, Zena | Split series context, Wolves' road win | | 04:14 | Wolves’ outlook post-blowout | Zena | "That ain't too bad...they always say a series..." | | 17:57 | Spurs' blowout intro | Dave | "Just absolutely manhandled..." | | 18:21 | On-the-ground Spurs analysis | Jared | "I just watched a blowout after watching a thriller." | | 19:11 | Spurs’ defensive game plan | Jared, Dave | Trap schemes, Wolves’ awful shooting | | 21:31 | Spurs’ offense & variance discussion | Dave, Jared | Shooting as success barometer | | 23:07 | Fast break points, energy | Dave | Spurs' hustle, youth, and legs advantage | | 24:50 | Vassell’s wild 3-pointer | Dave, Jared | Memorable highlight described | | 26:00 | Game 3 preview & officiating impact | Jared | Crowd, McDaniels primed to break out | | 27:56 | Prince jerseys banter | Dave, Jared | Lighthearted moment | | 06:37 | Knicks-Sixers Game 2 details | Dave, Zena | Philly’s hot start sans Embiid, Knicks grind it out | | 07:20 | Brunson’s late-game heroics | Zena | “He’s the only person that really knew how…” | | 09:06 | Knicks’ small-ball lineup, creativity | Dave | OG at center, Barlow at center for Philly | | 13:17 | Maxey’s turnover trend | Dave | Pressure by Knicks defense | | 14:16 | Is the series over for the Sixers? | Zena | "I don’t know that it’s over…” |
This episode blends tactical basketball analysis with a breezy conversational tone. The consensus: San Antonio righted the ship with defense, hustle, and timely offense, while Minnesota fans should expect a feisty response at home. In the East, the Knicks are in control, but everything could change if Embiid (and OG Anunoby) return healthy. Keep an eye on matchup shifts and the energy swings that playoff basketball always delivers.
"At some point, we've just got to...they, you've got to throw two at [Jalen Brunson], get the ball out of his hands and just hope that someone else doesn't beat you."
— Dave DuFour [10:58]
Read further coverage at The Athletic, especially Jared Weiss’s feature on Wemby and Rudy Gobert’s mentor-mentee relationship.
End of summary.