The Kevin Durant Rockets, Austin Reaves, Ryan Rollins

Summary

The Athletic NBA Daily — Saturday Slam n’ Jam

Episode: The Kevin Durant Rockets, Austin Reaves, Ryan Rollins
Date: November 1, 2025
Hosts: Andrew Schlecht, Alex Spears
Special Guest: Will Guillory (The Athletic, Rockets beat writer)

---

Overview

This weekend’s episode of Saturday Slam n’ Jam delivers a dynamic, stat-crunching, and opinion-laden recap of a wild NBA week—headlined by the unexpected phenom performances of Austin Reaves, the meteoric rise of Ryan Rollins in Milwaukee, and a deep dive on the new-look Houston Rockets featuring Kevin Durant, with insider insights from Will Guillory. The crew also discusses struggling teams, surprising early-season success stories, fresh statistical oddities, and wraps up with their trademark trivia showdown.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

NBA Week in Review (02:32–09:17)

• Austin Reaves’ Monster Week (02:32):

  • With Luka Doncic sidelined, Reaves exploded for 51/11/9, followed by a 41-point game and a buzzer-beater against Minnesota (28/16).
  • Reaves took a career-high 22 free throws in the Kings game.
  • “He started his Luka-less week by putting up 51, 11 and 9 in a win over the Kings in Sacramento.” — Andrew (02:36)

• Laurie Markkanen’s 51-Point Outburst: Matched Reaves’ mark in a Suns win.

• Undefeated Teams:

  • Thunder (6-0, SGA averaging 34+ PPG, but benefited from a soft schedule)
  • Spurs (5-0, surprising start sans De’Aaron Fox)
  • Sixers (4-0, led by Tyrese Maxey’s 37.5 PPG and rookie BJ Edgecomb)
  • Bulls (4-0, highlighted by rookie Mattis Bouzelis’ 27-5 with 4 threes)

• Winless Teams (05:52):

  • Brooklyn (0-5, Cam Thomas’s boom-or-bust scoring)
  • Pacers (0-4, ravaged by injuries)
  • Pelicans (started 37-year-old DeAndre Jordan: “A team that started 37 year old DeAndre Jordan at center in a game in the year 2025.” — Andrew, 06:50)
  • Joking about if the Pelicans had done “nothing” at GM, their draft pick situation would be better.

• Nicola Topic Health Update (08:32):

  • Thunder guard diagnosed with testicular cancer; expected full recovery.
  • Emphasis on monthly self-exams for men in 20–34 age group.

---

Good, Bad, What?! (09:49–26:27)

“Good” of the Week

• Austin Reaves, Continued (10:07):

  • Leads NBA in assists (50 as of Friday morning), 2nd in drives (93) shooting 70% on those (only matched by Giannis).
  • “It’s Austin Reaves and it’s Giannis. Similar players.” — Andrew & Alex, joking (10:52)
  • Leads the league in charges drawn (3).

• Ryan Rollins’ Breakout for Milwaukee (11:30–15:04):

  • Second-rounder, floated team-to-team before catching on with the Bucks.
  • Averaging 18.6/3.6/5.0/2.5 stl, shooting splits of 52/44/88.
  • Best game: 32 points, 8 assists, 5 threes vs. Warriors (without Giannis).
  • “I just can’t remember the last time the Bucks had a young player this exciting.” — Alex (14:03)

“Bad” of the Week

• Toronto Raptors’ Disarray (16:03–18:38):

  • After a promising opener, have lost 4 straight; now 29th in defense.
  • High payroll, unclear identity after high-profile acquisitions.
  • “I don’t know what the vision is for them.”

• Sacramento Kings’ Stagnant Offense (19:12–21:44):

  • Offense ranked 27th, Sabonis underutilized compared to his “hub” role in 2022–23.
  • “You are voluntarily sapping so much of the value he brings to a team.” — Alex (20:50)

“What?!” of the Week

• Big Men Finishing Poorly at the Rim (22:09–23:30):

  • Early numbers: Zion (53% at rim), Cooper Flagg (50%), Miles Bridges (45%), Towns (41%).

• Heat’s New Up-Tempo Offense (24:08–26:27):

  • Going from one of the league’s slowest, most pick-and-roll-heavy teams to fastest pace and heavy transition focus.
  • “This is like a complete 180 for this team.” — Alex (25:58)

---

In-Depth: The Kevin Durant Rockets (32:04–45:39)

With Will Guillory, The Athletic’s Rockets Beat Writer

Kevin Durant’s Integration (32:14)

• KD and Alperen Sengun have stepped up, even as Fred VanVleet’s injury forced early adaptation.
• “The early returns have been pretty good with this group so far.” — Will Guillory (32:56)

Sengun’s Expanded Role and Shooting (33:08)

• Added 3-point range, higher FT% (a team weakness last year now improved).
• “I think, maybe even bigger than the three point percentage going up, you see his free throw percentage going up and I think that’s a big story with this team.” — Will (34:14)

Reed Shepherd’s Growth & Limitations (34:42–37:02)

• The former #3 pick’s defense needs work, especially keeping quicker guards in front.
• Offensively aggressive, no hesitation, but shot isn’t falling yet.
• “He’s done a decent job… he’s had more trouble dealing with the small, quick guys and keeping them out of the paint.” — Will (37:31)

DFS Injury Update (38:47)

• Expecting Dorian Finney-Smith back soon; he would add versatility to lineups.

Amen Thompson’s Development (40:08–42:23)

• Adjustment period as primary ballhandler—finding lanes for his athleticism while expanding his 3-point shot (still 0 made so far).
• “He’s showing more confidence with that shot…. I think, you know, Amen, he’ll be fine.” — Will (41:30)

Jabari Smith’s Leap (43:25)

• More confident, added muscle, exploiting mismatches and a steady corner-3 shooter.
• “Teams are really trying their hardest to get the ball away from KD… when I’m bringing two defenders over, it’s y’all’s time to shine.” — Will (44:20, paraphrasing Durant)

---

NBA Trivia Showdown: Andrew vs. The Beat (Will Guillory) (45:39–61:29)

Highlights:

• Absurdly low-scoring contest (final: Will 3, Andrew 2).
• Mind-bending questions:
  • Jeff Green’s most prolific dunking season came at age 35 with Denver, not Boston or Cleveland. (47:35)
  • Only active players with 30-pt games for five teams: Chris Paul, Westbrook, Jimmy Butler, Dennis Schroeder (50:01)
  • Last Rockets (not Harden) to average 27+ PPG: Russell Westbrook (2019–20)
  • Alperen Sengun and Christian Wood were last to average 10+ reb for Rockets.
  • Kevin Durant's biggest scoring average is vs. Detroit.
  • Wild “name Rockets to score 37+ in a game” stumps Andrew, who bizarrely skips James Harden.

---

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Austin Reaves’ surprisingly elite categories:
  “Austin Reaves leads the league in charges taken in the NBA. …It’s only three, but he leads the league.” — Alex (11:06)

• On the Raptors’ defensive self-delusion:
  “Darko said before the season started that he doesn’t see a weak link on defense for us this year.” — Alex (16:18)

• On the Pelicans’ front office move:
  “If they had hired an inanimate object as GM this summer, let’s say a really nice chair that cannot use a phone, they would be in such a better position...” — Andrew (06:52)

• On the Rockets’ big, positionless lineups:
  “When they’re playing big, it really puts teams in a bind.” — Will Guillory (44:54)

• On the Heat suddenly leading the league in pace:
  “For decades. Decades. Plural. Miami’s offense has been as consistently slow as you can be… This is like a complete 180.” — Alex (25:58)

---

Notable Timestamps

• NBA Week in Review & Standouts: 02:32–09:17
• Nicola Topic Health Update: 08:32–09:17
• Good/Bad/What? Segment: 09:49–26:27
• Houston Rockets Deep-Dive (with Will Guillory): 32:04–45:39
• Trivia (Andrew vs. The Beat): 45:39–61:29

---

Tone and Style

The episode is rapid-fire, stat-laden, irreverent, and analytical, blending deep dives on advanced stats with sardonic jokes, self-deprecating banter, and ongoing inside references (e.g., Andrew’s odd trivia guesses, the “inanimate object as GM” Pelicans joke).

---

For Those Who Haven’t Listened: Key Takeaways

• Austin Reaves had a historic statistical week and is producing elite playmaking metrics while stepping in for Luka Doncic.
• Ryan Rollins’ breakout as a legitimate scoring and playmaking threat is a seismic development for Milwaukee.
• The revamped Rockets are adapting quickly to injuries, with KD and Sengun forming a potent, creative partnership and young players like Jabari Smith and Reed Shepherd in evolving roles.
• The NBA landscape is topsy-turvy: surprise undefeateds and winless teams, weird stat anomalies, and long-standing identities (Heat’s pace, Raptors’ supposed defense) being upended.
• The trivia segment is a fun, brain-breaking ordeal with obscure stats and historical nuggets for the NBA diehard.

---

Closing Thoughts

This episode is an essential rapid-catchup for anyone who wants a whirlwind tour of the NBA headline stories, emerging player arcs, front-office follies, and the stats shaping early-season narratives—delivered with both insight and comic relief.

Transcript

[A]

This podcast is brought to you by T. Rowe Price. Join me as I chat with Chris Murphy, their head of ETF Specialists, to unpack what ETFs are, how they work, and how T. Rowe Price is helping investors make more informed decisions. So as a pure investment tool, as an ETF versus let's just say a mutual fund, what are the advantages and disadvantages between those two?

[B]

The ETF structure itself allows for the costs to really be materially lower and so on average, an ETF is going.

[A]

To be a lot less expensive.

[B]

Expensive from an expense ratio perspective.

[A]

Let's talk about the philosophy that differentiates T. Rowe Price from other organizations that are in the ETF space. What's that secret sauce that you guys have?

[B]

It comes back to kind of the core principles of our firm, which is curiosity around what can we do to find an edge or where can we innovate?

[A]

Listen in to discover how T. Rowe Price's active ETFs can help you add an edge to outperform the index. Learn [e-mail].

[B]

Why choose a sleep Number Smart Bed? Can I make my site softer?

[A]

Can I make my site firmer? Can we sleep cooler?

[B]

Sleep number does that cools up to eight times faster and lets you choose your ideal comfort on either side your Sleep number setting. Enjoy personalized comfort for better sleep night after night and now max out your savings. The more you buy, the more you save on beds, bases and more. Plus get free home delivery on any smart bed with base limited time. Check it out at a Sleep Number store near you [e-mail] today.

[A]

Tonight's meal tilapia surprise with boiled cabbage. Begin cooking steps one through 50 now.

[B]

Are you kidding me? Making dinner shouldn't feel like doing a thousand piece puzzle with Blue Apron's new one Pan Assemble and Bake meals. The hard part's already done. Pre chopped ingredients, zero stress. Just assemble, bake and enjoy. No complicated steps, no mountain of dishes. Try Assemble and bake today. Get 20% off your first two orders with code APRON20 Terms and conditions apply. Visit blueapron.com terms for more foreign welcome to the Saturday Slammin Jam here on the Athletic NBA Daily presented by Ebay. On today's show, we're discussing our good, bad and what of the week and Will Guillory stops by to talk about the Rockets. And then we finish with some trivia. But before we get to all of that, Alex, tell me what happened in the NBA this week. This week?

[A]

Andrew the top story this week was Austin Reeves, who took the league by storm after Luca was ruled out for the week's games with a finger sprain and a leg bruise. Reeves started his Luca less week by putting up 51, 11 and nine in a win over the Kings in Sacramento. Reeves took 22 free throws in the game which was a career high. That was actually the first of two 50 point games this week. Laurie Markkanet also had 51 in a win over the Suns. The night after Reaves scored 51 against the Kings, it was a back to back at home. He scores 41 in a loss to the Blazers. Then two nights later against Minnesota who are dealing with an extended injury absence of their own with Anthony Edwards. Reaves had 28:16 including a game winning floater as time expired. Now while Reaves was clearly able to step up to the challenge this week, it would be nice to have Luka back who is questionable as of right now for Friday night's game. So we are a week and a half into the season and four undefeated teams remain. Let's go through them. First, the least surprising one, the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder are 60 despite not having Jalen Williams, J Dub and while missing key contributors nightly. But they have taken advantage of a mostly cake schedule to start the season and SGA once again is leading the way, averaging over 34 points per game. Joining OKC at the top of the west standings are the San Antonio spurs, who are 50 for the first time in franchise history. What doesn't make sense and they're doing it all without Dear and Fox. Now, like the Thunder, the Spurs have taken advantage of a cake schedule, but they did get a nice win this week against Miami at home, closing the game out late in the fourth after letting the heat come back from down 15. The spurs start is certainly surprising, but probably not as surprising as our two undefeated teams in the East. First we have the Philadelphia 76ers who are 40 after an overtime win against the Wizards. These Sixers have been led by their dynamic backcourt of Tyrese Maxey and rookie BJ Edgecomb. Maxey is averaging 37 1/2 points per game, getting to the line 11 1/2 times per game. VJ continues to play well. He scored 26 in a game this week against Orlando. And as if the Sixers needed any more backcourt firepower, Jared McCain practiced in full Thursday as he recovers from his thumb injury. Finally, the fourth undefeated team is none other than then our pick for surprise team this season, the Chicago Bulls. The bulls are also 40 as of Friday Morning. But they face their biggest test on Halloween night when the Knicks come to town. Mattis Bouzelis had one of his best games in his career this week, putting up 275 with four three pointers in a win over the Kings. I'm just realizing I've mentioned the Kings a lot in response to big statistical outputs this week. Okay, looking at the surprise which you can [e-mail] surpriseteam the Bulls are currently on pace to beat their over under by 39 games going 82. 0. Get this. To be this year's surprise team, the Bulls only have to be 500 the rest of the week.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

29 and 39. We're already there.

[B]

Feeling so good. Feeling so good.

[A]

We believe in you Bulls.

[B]

Let's go Bulls.

[A]

Now, at the other end of the spectrum, we should also check in on the all defeated teams. The teams who have yet to get a one in the win. The Thunder equivalent here where there's no real surprise, the Brooklyn Nets, they are 0 5. They do have Cam Thomas who can be entertaining like when he scored 41 in a game against San Antonio this week. He can also sometimes be not entertaining like when he scored nine in the very next game. The Pacers also haven't won a game. They are 0 4. And Port Indiana, they're in rough shape. Now obviously we know Halliburton's out, but this week we learned that Bennett Matheran is week to week with a foot injury. Obi Toppins gonna miss at least a month with a foot injury of his own. TJ McConnell, Andrew Nemhard, still day to day. This team doesn't have a lot left and yet they're still in these games. They lost their last two games this week by a combined six points. Finally, the New Orleans Pelicans. A team that started 37 year old DeAndre Jordan at center in a game in the year 2025.

[B]

Unreal.

[A]

Do you ever think about the fact that if someone had just disconnected Joe Dumar's phone this summer, the Pelicans would currently be holding their own unprotected first and a top four protected first from the Pacers, that team I just mentioned, who are 03 and have no players. If they had hired an inanimate object as GM this summer, let's say a really nice chair that cannot use a phone, they would be in such a better position for the future and they could still have Jeremiah Fears in that scenario. Yeah. Who did have his best game of his young career in that previously mentioned DeAndre Jordan game? He went 10, 15 from the field for 21 points. All right, Andrew, who's going to get their first win of the season? First. So I'll tell you who they're playing their next three games. The Pelicans at Clippers at Thunder, Charlotte at home.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Brooklyn, Philly at home, Minnesota at home at Indiana. So we're guaranteed one by next Wednesday.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And then Indiana's got Atlanta at home, the warriors at home, Milwaukee at home, and then they play Brooklyn.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Who do you think. Who do you think's gonna break out first?

[B]

Well, we do know that the warriors, whenever there is no star on the other end, just refuses to play real basketball. So Indy against the warriors is. Is a good one. I think Brooklyn against in against Indy is also a good one.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

Those would be my like, top two picks. The Pelicans just feel like we're gonna lose until Willie Green's fired, so it does feel rough. So I. But I will say Brooklyn beating the Pacers is our first one out of this group.

[A]

And then finally on a. On a much more serious note, it was announced this week that Thunder second year guard Nicola Topic was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He'll be undergoing chemotherapy and is expected to make full recovery. For the younger guys out there, it's good to be aware that half of all new cases of testicular cancer are diagnosed in the 20 to 34 age group. Very curable cancer. It's really easy to do a monthly self exam checking for any lumps or any other changes. We wish Topic the best as he goes through treatment and look forward to see him eventually playing his first NBA game. This guy has had incredibly bad luck.

[B]

He really has.

[A]

He obviously misled his rookie season with an ACL and now he's going through cancer treatment. He is going to play eventually and we're excited to see it, so. But just real bummer how much he's had to go through.

[B]

It is. It is. Yeah. Presti talked a lot about his and. And Mark Dal talked a lot about his maturity yesterday when I was around the team and just how he's handling it. And like I, I feel for him because not only is he going through this, but like he's in not even the. The country that he was born in. Like he's not. Yeah, like it's just, it's just a really. Been a really tough transition. But the Thunder are, it's. It's a great organization, a lot of great people around him, so. But yeah, prayers up for Topich.

[A]

All right, so Andrew is Now time to share something good, share something bad, and share something that confused us this week in a segment we like to call good, bad. What now, Andrew? What is your good this week? We always like to start off on the positive.

[B]

Yeah, I. Austin Reeves has had a ridiculous week. We've all. We've heard about the scoring, we've seen the game winner. It's been very fun. But I found these other stats that I thought this is. This is really good for Austin Reeves. He has the most assists in the NBA as of Friday morning on Halloween day. Has the most assists in the NBA at 50. I was like, that's cool. He also is second in total drives in the NBA with 93. And he's shooting a blistering 70% on shots when he's driving. The only other player in the top 20 in drives that's shooting 70% or above is Giannis. It's Austin Reeves and it's Giannis.

[A]

Similar players.

[B]

Those are the two. And then my last good Austin Reeves stat that doesn't involve his crazy scoring is that Austin Reeves leads the league in charges taken in the NBA.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

It's only three, but he leads the league.

[A]

Okay, well, if you hadn't revealed that last part, it would. I think my wow would have been justified now that I know it's three. Yeah, he. He's been incredible, and I'm so interested to see what happens next summer.

[B]

Yeah, he. He is.

[A]

He is going to get.

[B]

He's going to get paid a lot of money.

[A]

My good this week is about a guy who was originally drafted with the 44th place pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Sandwiched between. I meant to write this down. It was Musa Diabate and. Damn it, I'm gonna have to restart this.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Why did I say that?

[B]

It must be good.

[A]

Well, okay, let's see here.

[B]

Diabate and Josh Minot.

[A]

Josh Minot, Yeah. I was just like, wow, that's a pretty good run. Okay, here we go. All right, My good this week is about a player who's originally drafted with the 44th pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, sandwiched between Musa Diabate and Josh Minot. Pretty good run. Yeah, for the second round, middle of the second round.

[B]

Not bad.

[A]

I'm talking about Ryan Rollins, who, coming into last season, his third season in the league, he had appeared in only 25 NBA games. Now, last year, he found, you know, a role with the Bucks, but he had become a trade throw in, you know, he's waived by the Wizards. He was originally sent over there in the Jordan pool for Chris Paul, swap with the Warriors. He ends up getting waived by the Wizards, picks up, picked up by Milwaukee on a two way, and then last season, he finds this role. He plays 56 games for him, had a really nice run to close the season, 12, three and four in his final 10. It was a nice surprise. But I'll be honest, Andrew, I wasn't coming in the season with a ton of Ryan Rollins thoughts beyond, hey, seems like a rotation player. That's a really nice find for the Bucks. Yeah, I certainly wasn't thinking, hey, this guy could be good enough to potentially swing Giannis's future in Milwaukee. And maybe it's too early to say that, but what he's done through the first week and a half the season is kind of stunning for a guy who averaged six points a game in his first chance at regular NBA minutes last season, and for a team that historically has not been good at drafting, rarely has any young players that really get you excited. This is a massive development for the Bucks. Through five games, Ryan Rollins is averaging 18.6 points per game, 3.6 rebounds, five assists to go along with two and a half steals. And he's doing that on 52, 44, 88 shooting splits. Yeah, this week, just this week, he had a 25 point game against the Knicks. But then on Thursday night, he had the best game of his young career in a game against the warriors, against Steph, against Jimmy. No, Giannis. Giannis was out with an injury. Ryan Rollins was the best player on the court. He scored 32 points on 13 of 21 shooting, eight assists, five made threes. Ryan Rollins dominated the Warriors. And the thing that jumps out to me when you watch him is how he moves. Go watch his highlights against the Warriors. The way he got to the rim early in that game against guys like Draymond, Taking Jimmy off the dribble, bumped him, pump fake, up and under, finger roll. Pulling up in the mid range against Al Horford in the clutch. He's got a really good handle. And I'm telling you, he moves like a star. I'm not saying he is a star. It's five games. But he moves like one. He takes shots like one. And I just can't remember the last time the Bucks had a young player this exciting like AJ Green. Nice player. That's like the normal type of young guy a team like the Bucs might get lucky with. Maybe you find the overlooked shooter. This is something very different. And there's few teams in the league who need an Upside young player like this more than the Milwaukee Bucks. So this is just a massive development, I feel like in the league for Ryan Rollins to suddenly be a very good like starter on a good team.

[B]

Shout out.

[A]

The Bucs. They're 4 and 1.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So yeah, that was, that was my good for this week.

[B]

Yeah, I, I also love the moment that he had. So the warriors closed it to two, like down the stretch of the game and you kind of felt like, okay, the warriors are finally going to like in this thing, like they're going to put it together. This team knows how to close games. They've got all these vets. And then Ryan Rollins immediately answers with a step back three. It was like, oh yeah, this is not over. And the Bucks ended up winning. It was, it was a really impressive performance from him and I hope, I hope he can continue because it, you.

[A]

Know, I went back and read the draft night blog from 2022 and I gotta say, our guy Sam Vicini looking really good. He was like, I think this Guy can be a three level scorer. You know, being taken at the 44th pick. And like that's what he is when you watch him. Like he's scoring all over the court. Very exciting. So Andrew, what is your bad this week?

[B]

Listen, the Toronto Raptors had us so.

[A]

So mad at them, Andrew.

[B]

They had us, they had us completely tricked on night one of of the NBA. They beat the Hawks, a team that we thought was an east contender. And we're like, wait a minute, big win. Are the Raptors, are the Raptors a surprise team? Are the Raptors like really going to do this this year? People are saying all kinds of crazy things about the Raptors after they won that game. It completely just flipped our world upside down. We're having all these thoughts about like, what can this like positionless Raptors team do? And since then they've lost four in a row to the Bucks, Cavs, Spurs, Rockets. And the thing that's most frustrating about them and the thing that they talked about so much in the preseason and at training camp was the defense. Like Darko said before the season started that he doesn't see a weak link on defense for us this year. He said that at media day. He said everything for us starts on the defensive end and we want to dominate that end. Well, they're not. They're 29th of defense according to NBA.com and this just like the way that they made this team has got to be a little bit. Recording this on Halloween. A little bit spooky. Watch out Raptors fans, because I don't. They. You will go, go, go to the Spotrack page.

[A]

It.

[B]

It's not great because like, this year they're obviously locked into this team. Next year it's pretty much the same team coming back. And you might, if you like, go Chai Abaji, you might have to pay him too. This is a really expensive basketball team and a lot of guys that are overpaid. And I just don't really know what like the future of the Raptors looks like. You know, they have these guys like, I like some of their young guys, like Colin Murray Boyles. I like his future. I think Grady Dick is a nice player. Scotty Barnes is obviously a guy that I think has a really bright future in the NBA. But they kind of just muddied up their roster with bringing, like paying Emmanuel Quickley what they did, bringing in RJ Barrett, bringing in Brandon Ingram. And then like, there's expectations when you bring in three players like that and you pay three players like that. And so I just don't really know what the vision is for them. And if it's not a defensive identity, which they clearly have the pieces for, I don't know where this goes. It's still early. They can still put their defense together and, you know, write the ship to a degree. But I just don't quite get the vision of like, where the Raptors are going from here.

[A]

A Raptor's adjacent stat. Just because as you're talking out, I went to look up their defense on Cleaning the Glass. So as you mentioned, they are second worst in the league. Defensive rating 121.6. On clean the Glass last. The worst offensive team in the league is Brooklyn. Yeah. Now I just said that. The defensive rating for Toronto was 121.6. The defensive rating for the Brooklyn Nets is 130.

[B]

It's bad.

[A]

It's like that's a 8.4 gap between the worst and the second worst.

[B]

At least it's no mystery as to what they're trying to do.

[A]

Yeah. But I feel like they're doing too good. That is wild. Okay, my bad. This week is the King's offense. You already know their defense is bad. I already brought up some guys who did really well against them this week. How about their offense and specifically how they're using demonic Sabonis now? The Kings offense currently ranks 27th in the league per Clean the Glass and I get it. Lol. Kangs. No one was expecting much from this team this season. This roster is a mess. They're building a 2k team that nobody asked for. But should the offense really be this bad? And because I can't help myself, I've somehow watched three Kings games this season and the thing I can't get over is how they're using demonic Sabonis. Do they not remember what it used to like? That 22, 23 season? That was only four seasons ago. Number one offense in the league and Sabonis was a freaking hub. Like, they were spamming dhos with them. He was orchestrating so much. And I get that the roster has changed. There's new pieces on. You don't have Darren Fox anymore, but can we not go back to some of that? Like, just to give you an idea of how much things have changed, I'm going to read off his touches per game by season, Starting with that 22, 23 season, 83.5. Next season, 91.5, third most in the league. Last season, 75.5. And now this season, 68.3. He's getting the same amount of touches per game currently as guys like Mikhail Bridges, Quentin Grimes, if you compare his front court touches from a couple seasons ago to now, 54.3 per game versus 36.8 through four games this season. Here's another one. Passes per game a couple seasons ago, 71.3 per game this season, 52.5. I just don't get what they're doing. Like, if you're not going to place a bonus in that offensive hub role, you are voluntarily sapping so much of the value he brings to a team. It's not like he's some crazy defender, a rim protector, where it's like, you don't really need him on offense. Like, that is what he brings to a team. He's also not like sinking a ton of threes for you. Like, why are they using him this way? I just feel like this season was going to be challenging regardless for the Kings because of that roster construction, but it feels like they're trying to make it even more challenging by not playing to their star strengths. So I'm feeling bad about that. On top of everything else.

[B]

I'm not sure there's a lot to feel good about the Sacramento Kings today.

[A]

Hey, maybe. I mean, Keegan Murray coming back will at least give them an option to have, like some normal rotations.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Just some normal lineups.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Honestly, beyond that, I don't have a lot.

[B]

Yeah, I don't either. I've got.

[A]

All right, what was your what this week?

[B]

My what Is. I was. I was looking. I always like to look at just the. I separate out on NBA.com shooting areas and just like to look at like, where are the. Where the leaders. Where. Where's everybody at? And I found some. Some stats that were just plain weird. I was like, what? Okay, four guys at the rim that we all kind of expect them to be pretty good at the rim. Zion Williamson, he's 5 or 15 of 28 at the rim for 53%. That's pretty bad. But it gets worse. Cooper, flag 13 of 26 at the rim so far this season. That's 50%, but it gets worse. Miles Bridges, three out of 12 at the rim. That's 45%, but it gets even worse. Carl Anthony Towns, have you seen this? He's 10 of 24 for 41% at the rim so far this season. Very strange. I know Towns is dealing with some injuries, but all guys that should be and. And will finish better than this. But just like early on in the season, like, these are supposed to be the easy buckets for these guys for all four of them, but the. None of them are making their shots around the rim right now at a reasonable clip. So I thought that was pretty weird. Pretty weird.

[A]

Yeah. And you wonder how much schedules play into that with different guys. We're not going to do it yet, but like in two weeks we're going to revisit some of my predictions I made right before the season solely based on team schedules. And I'm letting you know I did incredibly well. And I just like, I. I really want to just take a moment to say, please look at who these teams are playing good and bad.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Because skews so much of the early season.

[B]

It matters so much. Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. Just. Just spoiler. I predicted that the Sixers were going to be a top four seed and everyone was going to be excited about them.

[B]

Here we are solely.

[A]

Solely based on their schedule. Okay, Andrew. My what this week is the Heat's new offense. Now, they're currently ranked 9th in offensive rating after the loss to San Antonio Thursday night. I can't remember an offense changing this much from season to season without a significant roster change. The last time, the Heat were not a bottom five team in pace. So we're not one of the slowest teams in the league. 2018-19. And they were 23rd that season. Still very slow. To find a season when the Heat were just top 15 in pace, you have to go all the way back to the 0506 season for decades. Decades. Plural. Miami's offense has been as consistently slow as you can be this season, though. Through five games, the Heat are playing at the fastest pace in the league. Yeah, fastest. They have basically done away with the pick and roll. They're barely running it. That it's, it's. They have the lowest percentage of their plays in pick and roll by a mile. There's suddenly a huge transition team. They're getting into transition on 23.4% of their possessions. Leads the league, or I think it's second now in the league. 8% jump compared to where they were last season. Now, you did see some of the limitations in that loss to San Antonio. They weren't able to get into transition as often. They only finished with nine fast break points. The half court offense really struggled for large stretches of that game, but it was the spurs defense and they were without Norm Powell and Tyler Hero, who should help, especially as shot makers at the end of the game when it slows down, which did happen in that spurs game. But overall, I'm just so much more. Well, first of all, entertained.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But intrigued by this Heat team than I've been in the past. And I'm just. I'm fascinated to watch how this new offense evolved. It's not like, you know, they're a perfect team. They're three and two right now. They've had these two blowout wins where the offense just clicked to an insane degree. And then they've had some games like that spurs game, where it's like, okay, maybe this isn't like this magic elixir and everything is fixed for the offense, but I'm just fascinated to see how this develops because I can't emphasize enough. This is like a complete 180 for this team.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Without really adding, like, major new pieces other than Norm Pal.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, it just shows, like, how much coaching really does matter in the NBA. Like, how you can scheme things. Like, you look at, like, what's going on in Orlando right now, and it's like, is it roster construction issues? Like, probably probably not. Like, they. Like, they should have had something better put together than what we're seeing right now on the offensive end in Orlando. So, yeah, coaching matters a lot. And Spoiler has been consistently one of the best coaches in the history of the league, and he's showing again, like, just being innovative, like, being willing to kind of change things up, which they needed to. Like, you trade Jimmy Butler and you change the, like, the complexion of the team. Like, yeah, you need to figure something else out. And they have. Yeah, it's pretty cool. It's pretty cool. Something else that's cool is talking to Will Guillory about the Rockets and we're going to do that right after this quick break. Foreign As a small business owner, you don't have the luxury of clocking out early. Your business is on your mind 24 7. So when you're hiring, you need a partner that works just as hard as you do. That hiring partner is LinkedIn Jobs. When you clock out, LinkedIn clocks in. LinkedIn makes it easy to post your job for free, share it with your network and get qualified candidates that can manage all in one place. I've been in a position where I need to hire many times and I never had the luxury of having LinkedIn jobs help me. As a user of LinkedIn jobs now I find it incredibly easy to find the most qualified candidates. Here's how LinkedIn Jobs works. Number one, post your job. LinkedIn's new feature can help you write job descriptions and then quickly get your job in front of the right people, people with deep candidate insights. You can post your job for free or you can pay to promote promoter jobs. Get three times more qualified applicants. Number two, get qualified candidates. And at the end of the day, the most important thing to your small business is the quality of candidates. And with LinkedIn you can feel confident that you're getting the best. Based on LinkedIn data, 72% of small businesses using LinkedIn say that LinkedIn helps them find high quality, quality candidates. And finally, share it with your network. You can let your network know that you're hiring. You can even add the hashtag hiring frame to your personal profile and get two times more qualified candidates. Find out why more than two and a half million small businesses use LinkedIn for hiring today. Find your next great hire on LinkedIn. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com Athletic MBA that's LinkedIn.com AthleticMBA to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply. Your ambition just met its match with Robinhood. You play for the win. Not just on game day. Every day, locking in on every opening, beating your pr, beating it again. Channel that drive into your money. Robinhood puts you in control of your money. Trade stocks and ETFs, options, futures and crypto all on one platform. You can now build and execute your own trades from a desktop with the Robinhood Legends advanced tools or take advantage of the new Robinhood strategies with the tailored portfolio managed by a team of experts. You expect more from yourself. Expect more from your money. Get started [e-mail] yourmoney again, that's robinhood.com yourmoney your money, your move. All investments involve risk, including loss of principal options. Futures and crypto trading carry significant risks and may not suit all investors. Security is offered through Robinhood Financial llc. Member SIPC Futures Trading is offered by Robinhood Derivatives LLC and Not SPIC or FDIC. Protected Crypto offered through Robinhood Crypto LLC. NMLS. ID 1702840Not FDIC or SIPC. Protected Portfolio Management offered by Robinhood Strategies and SEC Registered Advisor.

[C]

Morning Zoe. Got donuts.

[B]

Jeff Bridges why are you still living above our garage?

[C]

Well, I dig the mattress and I want to be in a T Mobile commercial like you teach me.

[B]

So Dana oh no, I'm not really prepared. I couldn't possibly AT T Mobile get the new iPhone 17 Pro on them. It's designed to be the most powerful iPhone yet and has the ultimate pro camera system. Wow.

[C]

Impressive. Let me try. T Mobile is the best place to get iPhone 17 Pro because they've got the best network.

[A]

Nice.

[B]

Jeffrey, you heard them. T Mobile is the best place to.

[A]

Get the new iPhone 17 Pro on us with eligible traded in any condition.

[C]

So what are we having for launch?

[A]

Dude, my work here is done. The 24 month credits on experience beyond.

[C]

For well qualified customers plus tax and.

[B]

35 device connection charge credit sending balance.

[A]

Due if you pay off earlier. Cancel Finance agreement. IPhone 17 Pro 256 gigs $1099.99 and new line minimum $100 plus a month plan with auto pay plus taxes and fees required. Best mobile network in the US based on analysis by Oaklove Speed Test Intelligence data 1x2025 visit t mobile.com 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 Houston Rockets. Now the Rockets lost their first game on Friday against the Pistons, but followed that up with two easy ones against the Nets and Raptors, two teams who are a combined one and nine. The winds get the Rockets back to 500 per cleaning the glass. The Rockets have the third ranked offense and the 17th ranked defense. Andrew, if the Rockets are a favorite team, who is our guest?

[B]

Ah, it's my guy, Will Guillory from the Athletic. Will, what's up man?

[C]

I'm doing well fellas. How are y'? All? How are y'?

[B]

All?

[A]

So good.

[B]

Oh so good. So good. After watching Some Rockets and in kd. So we're four games into the Kevin Durant experience in Houston. What are your early impressions of his fit with this team on both ends of the court?

[C]

Man, it's funny because we already knew there was going to be an adjustment, but there was an adjustment on top of the adjustment with Fred Van Vliet getting injured. And I'm having to figure that whole situation out and knowing they were basically stuck with this team until December. So like they can want to change it, but they basically don't have a choice because of financial reasons. And I think it's been really impressive the way they've adjusted, the way KD and Shangun have really stepped up their game. I think they're playing well now. Obviously, like y' all said, the two wins were basically against two opponents that they should have beat. And you know, we saw them on the first night against OKC go through some struggles, but I think, you know, the early returns have been pretty good with this group so far.

[A]

So I want to ask you about Shingoon because he took eight threes in Houston's first game and then the three games since he's taken a total of six combined looking more like how he played last year. Has he talked about his approach to shooting threes? Do you think we will eventually see higher 3 point volume from him more regularly?

[C]

No, I think that's the goal for sure. He's talked about, you know, it's something he was doing with Turkey and Eurobasket over the summer. Wanting to have more of a perimeter oriented game. Game, know it, that, you know, they're, they're rolling out some of these jumbo lineups with Stephen Adams and Clint Capella. So he's going to have to play more on the perimeter. He's going to have to be a floor spacer, especially when teams are forcing the ball away from Kevin Durant. So you, you see him having some early success with that and I think maybe even, you know, bigger than the three point percentage going up. You see his free throw percentage going up and I think that's a big story with this team. Alper and Shangun being a better free throw shooter right now, I think, I believe they're number one in free throw attempts this year and Shangun's a big part of that. He's actually making them this year. Last year they were dead last in free throw percentage and Shangun played a big part in that as well. So I think just him being more confident with his shot all over the floor and being able to space. I think that's going to be a huge thing for them throughout the season. Finding that right space and finding ways just to give KD and Shangun enough freedom to operate within the offense. And I think a big part of that is, is, you know, Alpie being comfortable taking those shots. I don't know if he's gonna put up eight like he did against the Thunder all the time, but I think just, just being comfortable stepping into it and taking it when it is open going to be important for him.

[B]

Yeah. So after the Van Vliet injury, everyone's attention turned to Reed shepherd, number three pick two years ago. Reed's minutes have been hovering around 20 minutes per game this week and it's been an up and down experience so far. What are the areas of his game that need to improve the quickest for him to have like a positive impact more consistently?

[C]

I think defensively, I think is the biggest thing, just keeping guys in front of him. You know, with any young guard, I think that's one of the toughest jobs in this league is dealing with some of the talent at the guard position in the NBA and the way the ball flies around. I mean, some of the scoring numbers have been crazy early this season with the amount of 40 point, 50 point, 60 point games we've been seeing, guys are just so difficult to defend and stay in front of and keep off of the free throw line. So I think that's the big thing. And we know Ime Udoka is a defensive first coach, so he wants you to be able to hold it down and, and guard your yard as certain coach loves to say. So I think that's the big thing for him. But what I've been, you know, really optimistic about with Reed shepherd is that just the confidence he's playing with our offense. I think you see him just putting up shots, not being scared. There's very little hesitation in his game. He's not shooting it as well as you would hope. But I think that's the, the most important thing is just him not being a guy who's hesitating out there, who's, who's scared to shoot the ball, who's scared to get involved. I think when you see him from the moment he's stepping on the floor, he's finding ways to get involved, get it to his shots. And not just three pointers either. He's getting to the basket, getting up some mid range. So I think he's doing some, some of the things they want to see on offense. But defensively, he's got to be more solid. He's got to keep guys in front of them because, you know, this is a big, big starting lineup for the Rockets, but they don't necessarily have a lot of rim protection outside of KD and Clint Capella. So you want to keep guys in front you. You want to do a better job of guarding the ball, especially when Amen Thompson is off the. And I think that's where he needs to improve the most.

[B]

What are the conversations about Reid and just his physical limitations been like, around the Rockets? Because to me, some of this stuff is certainly like, he needs more reps, he needs to. He needs to be in the lineup more. But also, like, I don't know how he is going to get himself to like, a. A good enough status defensively with just his size and like, speed limitations.

[C]

Yeah, we know in today's NBA teams like to find smaller guards and force switches and make them, you know, defend bigger guys in the post. And I think that's something that Reed's gonna have to deal with basically his entire career. And that goes for all guards who are like six, two and under. But, you know, we know him coming into the league. He was a guy with really good hands. He knows how to, you know, get quick steals. He'll get a block every now and then, so he knows how to fight against some of that stuff. But it's something, you know, that he's just going to have to deal with. And I think, you know, one of the benefits of the. The Rockets playing some of these jumbo lineups as they don't have a guy to target on defense. When you're playing, ah, man at the Thompson at the 1, and you got Jabari Smith at the 2, they don't really have to deal with those problems. So I think it stands out even more when Reed shepherd comes in and teams are like, okay, we can finally attack somebody and get some. Some easy shots. But I think he's. He's done a decent job in those situations. You know, frankly, I think he's had more trouble dealing with the smaller, quicker guys and keeping them out of the pain. I think you saw that a lot in the OKC game where AJ Mitchell was just blowing by him consistently and getting to the pa. So I think that's where some of the, the real issues have come with him early on, but I think he's progressing relatively well. Like you said, his minutes have been limited. Some of it has been dictated by if he's not making shots, then email probably go away. From him. They've been playing Joshua Kogi a lot more than we expected early on just because he's a really solid defender. But you know, he's a young guy, still learning, so there's going to be some ups and downs. But I think IME Udoka has pretty much made it clear that he wants to stay committed to Reed. He wants to give Reed those opportunities to grow and learn. Because they need shot making out there. You know, they need somebody out there who, like we said before, who can space the floor, who can create more driving lanes for KD and Shangoon when teams are really trying to box it in around those guys.

[A]

Have there been any updates on dfs? I know he's been day to day with an ankle, hasn't played yet. Are they expecting him back pretty soon?

[C]

Yeah, well, the last time I was out there in Houston, he was already, you know, getting shots up before practice. He's, he's doing some condition and stuff. I still don't think he's been cleared for contact as of yet. But yeah, you already see him, him moving around. You know, he, he's starting to get more acclimated with the team. So I think it's going to be relatively close. And that's, you know, like one more big body out there for them, one more guy who can play, who can defend multiple positions, who can shoot threes. So yeah, this team is going to be really interesting when DFS gets into the mix just because they have so many guys who are around that 6, 8, 69 range and just figuring out one how to, you know, make sure everybody is in the right spots defensively, but also just getting everybody, you know, acclimated offensively and how we're going space the floor, how we're going to have the right amount of ball handling on the floor to create shots and you know, that's gonna, that's one of the most interesting things to me. Early on it's just Alper and Shangun just out there looking like a big old 611 point guard, you know, dribbling the ball out on a key, running, picking rolls and it's been working really well. But I, I'm be interested to see how much teams will, will try to fight against that to, to make life more difficult on LP and how much that'll put pressure on, on guys like dfs, Jabari Smith, Tari Eason to do more ball handling.

[A]

So a lot of people, including me and Andrew, are expecting a big leap from Amin Thompson this season. So far it's been A little underwhelming, at least compared to where people's sky high expectations were. He was great in his last game, put up 18, nine and seven. What do you feel like needs to happen for Amend to take that next step like so many are expecting?

[C]

Yeah, I think for Amen. He's just trying to strike that balance right now between being the quote unquote point Gu, being that guy who gets the team in the sets, make sure guys are in the right spots, while also just being the rest. The aggressive Amen Thompson that we saw last year. And I think a lot of his success last year was playing in that dunker spot off of Alper and Shangoon, and he just can't do that as much if he's the guy handling the ball at the top of the key. So I think just figuring out where he can find those driving lanes where he can get some easy shots. Some of the struggle he's having right now, but I think it's just him adjusting to his new new role and new responsibilities and knowing how much it's important for him to be that guy who can be the. The, you know, the release valve for when teams are pressuring KD or pressuring Shangon. And, you know, I think he'll be fine. We know he's so dangerous in transition situations and he plays off of Shangun so well. I think he'll be fine. I think one of the things he's also trying to incorporate is shooting more threes this year where, you know, that was kind of the, hey, just leave him open type of thing last year. And I think he really wants to fight against that, especially when he's shooting corner threes, he's starting to take those confidently. But with any guy like him, it's going to take time for him to really start knocking those down consistently. But you see him just. Just being more confident in taking those shots. Even, you know, he'll come down and take a pull up three. If a guy goes under a screen, he'll let it fly. So he. He's showing more confidence with that shot. And some of that with that comes, you know, maybe your percentage is going down, maybe you're getting less shots in the paint, but I think, you know, amen, he'll be fine. I feel really good about where he is, and when you see him in the open court with Tyrese and with some of these guys, it just looks extremely dangerous. And then when you throw Kevin Durant in the mix, it just takes it to a different level.

[B]

Yeah, I just feel like they, they've got to get more shooting around him. Like he's just, he's just the kind of guy that just demands that and they just don't really have it. And like yeah, he, he's taken threes. I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think he's made one yet. Is that right?

[C]

Oh God. I gotta look that up. I don't know.

[A]

That means yeah, right. His basketball reference says zero.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Like that's typically a sign that you haven't made one.

[B]

So he did make a shot with his toe on the line in okc. That was like a step back. That did not count. But like technically a three, he's hit a perimeter shot this season.

[C]

Baby steps. That's what we call that.

[B]

Baby steps. Baby steps for him. And like we, I don't know, we, we expect a lot out of young guys typically and it's just going to take time and it's just harder to develop when like there's just not a lot of like high volume guys on this team anyways. Like there's guys that will take threes, but there's just not a ton of high volume guys. One of those guys that, that is progressing as a young player is Jabari Smith. Yes. I feel like he's had a really nice start to the season. He's their third leading scorer currently at 15.8 points per game. Tell me what you've seen from, from Jabari and like how that's being received in Houston.

[C]

Just, just confidence I think you really see. I think Jabari Smith is a great example of a young guy who got that extension coming off of his rookie deal and just feels very comfortable with where he is, the situation he's in and what the team is asking him to do. He added some muscle in the offseason which I think is really important for him. Driving the lane, attacking mismatches. You see him a lot, you know, when teams are trying to hide smaller guards to him, he's im immediately going down to the post, attacking them from down low. I think he feels very comfortable in his offensive game right now. You mentioned, you know, them needing more three pointer shooters. I think he's been one of the more confident three point shooters for them, especially from the corners. And I think you just see him just feeling very good of being that guy who can play off of kd, off of Shangun. When they're kind of playing in swing swing situations. It feels like Jabari Smith is the guy benefiting from those a lot of times. And I think you just see him understanding situations a lot better there when you, like I said, when, when teams are trying to hide some of their worst defenders on him, he's immediately attacking. It's not like, hey, Jabari, we need you to go get this shot. He's immediately just going and getting to his shot. So I think he's been a really valuable asset in that way because teams are really trying their hardest to get the ball away from KD. And KD's really been trying to stress to these guys, hey, y' all got to be aggressive. When, when I'm eating, when I'm bringing two defenders over, it's y' all time to shine. And I think think we're seeing more of that with guys that they're feeling more comfortable in those situations. And I think the sky's the limit for Jabari. I think he's been really good so far and I think he's going to be even better once the three Pointers start going down more consistently. I, I think he's going to be a great asset for this team. And I think just having him out there as another big body that makes it difficult for teams. I think you talked about having smaller guards and, and teams having a hard time hiding them when they put those jumbo lineups out there. I don't know what you do if you have a six three guard, what you do, whether you put them on. Amen Thompson, he can bully him and get to the paint. Jabari Smart can go down to the Jabari Smith can go down to the low post. When they're playing big, it really puts teams in a bind. And I think Jabari Smith being able to knock down those jumpers is going to be a big part of them being able to stick to those lineups as much as they want to.

[A]

All right, Will, thank you for answering all of our Rockets related questions, but it is not now time to play Andrew versus the Beat, our weekly trivia show where Andrew goes head to head against the NBA beat writer this week, Will Gill from the Athletic. Now, Will, you're. You're a veteran at this point of Andrew versus The Beat. You've played so many times, so you know how it works. Eight questions, all about the Rockets. Some are easy, some are hard. You'll give me a number between 1 and 8. It'll correspond a question. If you get it right, you'll get at least two points. If you get it wrong, Andrew have a chance. Steal for one. We'll go back and forth till all the questions have been asked and answered. So to start us off, I just need a number between one and eight.

[C]

As always, we start off with number seven. Shout out to the seven.

[A]

War. Let's go. Question number seven. Jeff Green has played for eight NBA franchises. With which franchise did Green have his career high in total dunks for a season?

[B]

Oh, wow.

[A]

Wow. Total D. So when, when did Jeff Green. When was he at his dunking peak? What franchise was he playing with?

[C]

I was. I thought you were going to say when did he have his career high in points? And I believe that was with Boston. So I'm going to go ahead and stick with Boston and say that's when he had the most dunks.

[A]

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

[B]

I mean, you'd think this would be earlier on in his career, but also you wouldn't ask a question like this if it was. It's kind of my thought. Okay, so it's got to be something weird. It's got to be like, I don't know, maybe when he played for Cleveland or something. I don't know. Cleveland.

[A]

Cleveland actually was number two. He had his most dunks. Was it Brooklyn for the Denver Nuggets?

[B]

Wow.

[C]

Shout out to Nicole.

[A]

33 year old.

[B]

What?

[A]

Yeah, I know.

[C]

That's the Jokic effect, man.

[B]

He had to have been older than 33, I think too.

[A]

Well, maybe 35. I don't know. How old do you want him to be?

[B]

I don't know. That is weird though. I mean, I guess it makes sense with Jokic is just gonna find you, but still, what's going on there?

[A]

Let's see. That was.

[B]

He was.

[A]

Well, yeah, he was 35 or 36. It would have been his 35 year old season.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah. That makes no sense.

[C]

That's crazy.

[A]

And that's why you got it wrong. Okay, Andrew, Jeff, board is yours.

[B]

Number one question.

[A]

Number one, the question that maybe took me the longest to figure out in slam and jam history.

[C]

History.

[A]

History. This is a historical question.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

This season Kevin Durant became the the fifth active player to score 30 plus points for five different NBA franchises. Can you name two of the other four active players that have done it? One point per correct answer.

[B]

That have averaged 30 points.

[A]

No, no, not average. Just had a 30 point game.

[B]

Had a 30 point game for five.

[A]

Five different NBA franchises. There is four answers. You just have to name two of them.

[B]

Them. Oh my gosh.

[C]

Wow. That's a tough one.

[A]

Every team's basketball reference page.

[B]

Shaq.

[A]

That was one of the worst guesses we've ever had in slamming J. Because it is active players, but you've always got Shaq on the mind. You just gave that one away. Will. This is big.

[C]

Oh, my gosh. This is. This is one of your best ones yet. What's crazy, when you. Before you said active, I would have guessed Jamal Crawford. That was one of my first ones. I think that might be wrong, too. I'm over here just killing time, trying to. Trying to guess. I don't. I. I really have no idea. Let's go. Geez. I really can't think of anybody. I don't know. This is wrong. C.J. mcCollum.

[A]

You know what? That's actually a pretty good guess because he did do it for the Blazers Pelicans, and I think he's done it for the Wizards. Actually, I don't know that for sure.

[C]

Yeah, he's been pretty bad with the.

[A]

Wizards, so maybe not a good guess. I take that back. The names now. You guys are gonna be like, oh, duh. Chris Paul. Yeah. Russell Westbrook.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

Jimmy Butler. And now all those guys have done it for five different franchises. There's only one active player who's done it with six NBA franchises. I don't think you would have ever guessed it. Dennis Schroeder.

[B]

Oh, wow.

[A]

It does make sense. Okay, so the score is tied. Zero, zero.

[C]

Let's go. Four.

[A]

Question number four. Kevin Durant is currently averaging over 27 points per game. Who was the last Houston Rocket other than James Harden to average 27 points per game over a season? So. Over an entire season. So the last Rocket other than James Harden to average 27 points per game over a season.

[C]

I feel like. I feel like Hakeem is too easy. And I know in these situations to not go with the easy route with Alex.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

One week. I should just do all obvious answers.

[C]

Let's go. Steve Francis.

[A]

Stevie. Franchise. That is incorrect. Andrew.

[B]

Wow. 27 is a lot of points.

[A]

A lot.

[B]

That's a lot of points. I think about, like, Kevin Martin think about God. Did yao ever average 277 a game? I don't feel like he did. That's a lot. It's just a lot of points. Especially back in, like, the. That era where nobody scored a lot of points.

[A]

Tough question.

[B]

Just stalling. I'm gonna. I guess I'll say TMAC.

[A]

The correct answer is Russell Westbrook. He averaged 27.2 in his lone season with the Rockets.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

27.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Shout out. It kind. It kind of is crazy because he. The year before, he averaged 22.9. Then he goes to Houston. Averages 27. Then he went to Washington. Back at 22 too.

[B]

Yeah. And then gets traded to the Lakers. Ruins the Lakers.

[A]

Did not score 27.

[B]

Did not do that. Then.

[A]

Okay, Andrew, board is yours. Score 00.

[C]

First to one wins a defensive struggle.

[B]

Playing by golf score today. All right, two question two.

[A]

Stephen Adams is currently averaging 10.8 rebounds per game. Who are the last two Rockets to average 10 plus rebounds per game for an entire season? You do get one point per correct answer.

[B]

Wow. The last Rocket to average last two rockets. Last two rockets to average 10 plus.

[A]

Rebounds per game for an entire season.

[B]

Golly. Maybe I'm going back too far. What about Omi or Asic?

[A]

No, that's a crazy answer. A crazy answer that you'd even be able to pull that name.

[B]

Is that too far back?

[A]

Let me see what Omer did.

[B]

I feel like he was awesome.

[C]

I'm very familiar with Omare in New Orleans.

[A]

Oh yeah. His first season he did average 11.7 rebounds.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

So. So great job, Andrew. It's not right, but it at least he. It made sense for the question. Better than your Shaq answer. Okay, Will, can you name the last two Rockets?

[C]

I'm gonna go Clint Capella as he won.

[A]

Also wrong.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

The correct answers. Alperin Shen Goon did it last year. And Christian Wood to wow. Wood.

[B]

That's. That's wild.

[A]

I feel like a lot of us blocked out that year from our memory.

[C]

Yeah, that was.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

KPJ year.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Store 00. Will board. We've never had a. A game end zero. I don't even know what happens.

[B]

But to find out.

[C]

I go number six.

[A]

Question number six. Well, there are some questions like this one. Somebody's gonna get right. Joshua Kogi has been getting regular minutes for the Rockets this season. What is a Kogi's career high in points? Now you get to choose who answers first. You can make Andrew answer first and then you go higher, lower or you answer first. Will is already gesturing to Andrew. You want Andrew to answer?

[C]

Please, Andrew, I'll be a gentleman. The floor is yours.

[A]

All right, Andrew, so where are you going to set the over under for Joshua Kogi's career high in points.

[B]

27 points.

[A]

All right, Will, would you like to go higher or lower than 27?

[C]

Well, it's funny. I was going to say 26, so I guess I'm going lower.

[A]

So Andrew guess 27. That is within 1 of the correct answer.

[B]

No.

[A]

And the answer is 28. Which means Andrew gets the point. Andrew is on the board. Wow. Thrilling game. Andrew, the board is yours. Three questions remain.

[B]

The only way we're getting points is by force points. In this one someone had to score. Okay, okay, I'll go with number three.

[A]

Question number three. Kevin. Nope. In which of these categories is Houston currently ranked highest according to cleaning the glass? Half court offense, transition offense, half court defense. Transition defense. Which of those categories are they currently ranked highest in the league according to cleaning the glass?

[B]

Half court offense?

[A]

No. Will steal. You have a chance to steal for one.

[C]

I'm gonna go. Transition offense.

[A]

It is transition offense. Nah, I think they're like sixth maybe.

[B]

Was it like three possessions? What is it? All right.

[C]

Shut up, Andrew.

[B]

It's got to be like none.

[A]

They're doing great. It's gotta be like you're just mad because you. You're tied now. One, one.

[B]

I just, I thought it might be half court offense because they get so many offensive rebounds. Like that's how they score the ball and is through offensive rebounds. Does it count? Does that not count?

[A]

That I don't. Yeah, because it does. Split it up into half court offense and then like put backs.

[B]

Oh, that's probably where you got screwed. Okay.

[A]

Yeah, Memphis was always like that where their half court offense wasn't great but put back offense was the best in the league.

[B]

Yeah, that's. I mean it's how they are surviving right now.

[C]

Yeah, it's called the Stephen Adams stat is what it's called.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly. Exactly.

[A]

Okay, Will, two questions left. Two questions to get a couple more points.

[C]

Let's go eight please.

[A]

Question number eight. Somebody's gonna get this one. Kevin Durant scored 37 points against Detroit this week. We're going to name the last nine Houston Rockets to score at least 37 points in a game. So how this works is will give me a name, then Andrew will give me a name. We'll go back and forth. Fourth to what have you stumble. So you just have to name one of the last nine Houston Rockets to score 37 points in a game. So just think of big scores.

[C]

I was actually in the building for one of those 37 point games and so was Andrew Schleck. It was Alperin Shangun on opening night.

[A]

That is true. Alperin Shangoon did it most recently. All right. Andrew.

[B]

Amin Thompson, did he do it? Is this a bad guess? That's a bad guess.

[A]

Okay, I thought this shack guess was bad. Andrew. They got freaking James Harden.

[B]

See, now I can get. My brain is just not working today. Oh, I'M thinking back.

[C]

Damn it.

[B]

I thought back too far with Omiros. Like I thought too recent with. Okay, never mind.

[A]

No, it's not him. Here's some names. You could have said one. I just told you that Russell Westbrook averaged 27, so he probably did it. Yeah, he did. James harden. Ken Porter Jr. Had that 50 point triple double.

[B]

Remember that DJ? Yeah.

[A]

Jalen Green. Obviously, he did it. Fred Van Vliet. Christian Wood, who I just mentioned.

[C]

Why don't.

[B]

I guess I'm in Thompson.

[A]

And then the two that I thought it was gonna get to where it was going to be. Be really exciting. Andrew.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Eric Gordon.

[B]

Huh?

[A]

And then Austin Rivers. Oh, Rivers did it.

[B]

Weird.

[A]

In that wild.

[B]

Weird.

[A]

Isn't that one. All right, well, after that last answer, Andrew, you have fallen into a deep, deep hole. Now, down three to one with only one question remaining. Now, you do get first dibs on this question.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

But you have to get both points in order to tie this up. Up.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Are you ready?

[B]

No. Yes.

[A]

Kevin Durant scored 37 points against Detroit this week. Did you know that for Katie's career, his highest scoring average has been against the Detroit Pistons?

[B]

No.

[A]

His best game against the pistons came in December 2021, when he scored 51 against Detroit as a member of the Brooklyn Nets, who were the second and third leading scorers for the Nets that night. Now, as a hint, James Harden sat out this game due to health and safety protocols. So take your. Do a little doodle.

[B]

Wait, what year was this?

[A]

I'm about to tell you again. December 2021. Second and third leading scores for the Brooklyn Nets that night. And I gave you a hint, which was that James Harden sat out due to health and safety protocols.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I won't guess him.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

It's a good start.

[B]

Part. Thank you.

[C]

No Shack.

[B]

Was it? Chat. Al. What about lamarcus Aldridge?

[A]

He's on the board with another point. All right, Andrew, if you can get this last question right, he'll tie the gate.

[B]

Okay. Cam Thomas.

[A]

Oh, you are so close. It unfortunately was Patty Mills, and that means that Andrew has lost. Andrew beat. Congratulations, will. Final score, 3 to 2.

[C]

I feel like it's been a long time since I got a win.

[B]

To be clear. Will. Will, you didn't win. I lost. Said by the game master. Okay. Which I will take. Take all of that today. I was horrible today. Something that's not horrible is reading Will Guillory at the Athletic. Go read Will. He's going to have stuff about the Houston Rockets. Also, the New Orleans Pelicans. Will, anything that we should be watching out for?

[C]

Yeah, more Houston Rockets and less New Orleans Pelicans.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Anything to say about it?

[B]

The.

[C]

The Rockets are really interesting. The Pelicans, not so much.

[B]

Yep.

[C]

So, yeah, I'm looking forward to covering more Rockets this year and. And, you know, picking up them, you know, as my primary team eventually. So it's going to be a lot of fun this year.

[B]

Okay, go check out Will. Will, thanks so much for coming on.

[C]

Appreciate you guys.

[A]

All right, Andrew, that was Rockets week. Houston Rockets week on Wheel of fandom. But it's now time once again to spin the wheel of fandom and choose a new team that we'll become fans of for the next week. 29 teams remain. It could be any of them. Let's spin the wheel and see who we get. So the Wheel of Phantom team for this week will be.

[B]

Listen, we get the Nets out of the way. We get them out of the way. Listen, it would be. I think. I think this is best case scenario for the Brooklyn Nets at this point because we're at least. It's at least still fresh. We're at least still fresh, but they are unequivocally the least interesting team in the NBA right now.

[A]

I don't know. Is that true?

[B]

Who is. Who's least. Who's. Who's less interesting than the Nets? Can you name somebody that you're like, Like, I just.

[A]

I mean, honestly, the Pacers right now, just because, like. Yeah.

[B]

Due to injury. Okay, that's fair. That's fair.

[A]

Okay. All right. So we're making progress.

[B]

We got one. We got one team. You got another one? No, I mean, that's the one.

[A]

Yeah. I mean, at least. At least there's a bunch of the. Tons of rookies to watch with. Brooklyn Nets.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Cam Thomas.

[B]

All right.

[A]

I don't need to name off all the guys on the team. You know who they are. All right. They're playing the Sixers this week. Okay.

[B]

Yeah, that's at least.

[A]

Maybe Jared McCain will be back.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And they play the. Oh, man. They play the Wolves on Peacock on Monday.

[B]

Peacock.

[A]

Yeah. And then now, this is exciting. Next Wednesday, as I mentioned, at the Indiana pace. So if they do lose the next two games.

[B]

Oh, yeah. Because we mentioned it earlier.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. We'll get to see who gets in the wincon first. Assuming they lose these next two, which maybe they won't.

[B]

Wow. I feel like we should, like, get on a live stream for that one, you know?

[A]

Oh, yeah, yeah. Got to.

[B]

Got to oh man. Something that that you should do is leave us a five star review on Apple podcast will read it on the show. So next week we'll start reading those five star reviews on Apple podcasts. Make sure you me mention slam and jam. We will read it on the show. Hope you guys have an awesome weekend and we will talk to you guys again next week.

[C]

Morning Zoe Got donuts Jeff Bridges why.

[B]

Are you still living above our garage?

[C]

Well I dig the mattress and I want to be in a T mobile commercial like you teach me so Dana.

[B]

Oh no, I'm not really prepared. I couldn't possibly at t mobile get the new iPhone 17 Pro on them. It's designed to be the most powerful iPhone yet and has the ultimate pro camera system.

[A]

Wow.

[C]

Impressive. Let me try T Mobile is the best place to get iPhone 17 Pro because they've got the best network.

[B]

Nice. Jeffrey, you heard them. T Mobile is the best place to.

[A]

Get the new iPhone 17 Pro on us with eligible traded in any condition.

[C]

So what are we having for lunch?

[A]

Dude, my work here is done. The 24 month credit is on experience.

[C]

Beyond for well qualified customers.

[A]

Press tax and 35 device connection charge credit send and balance due if you pay off earlier Cancel Finance agreement. IPhone 17 Pro 256 gigs $1099 99.

[C]

And new line minimum 100 plus a.

[A]

Month plan with auto pay plus taxes and fees required Best Mobile Network Network in the US based on analysis by Ooklev Speed Test Intelligence Data 1H 2025 Visit t mobile.com Parlo tu Francais hablas espanol Parliamento if you've used Babbel, you.

[B]

Would Babbel's conversation based technique teaches you useful words and phrases to get you.

[A]

Speaking quickly about the things you actually talk about in the real world. With lessons handcrafted by over 200 language.

[B]

Experts and voiced by real native speakers, Babbel is like having a private tutor in in your pocket.

[A]

Start speaking with Babel today. Get up to 55% off your Babel subscription right now at babel.com acast spelled.

[B]

B-A B B E L.com acast rules and restrictions may apply if you're a.

[A]

Maintenance supervisor at a manufacturing facility and your machinery isn't working right, Grainger knows.

[B]

You need to understand what's wrong as soon as possible. So when a conveyor motor falters, Grainger.

[C]

Offers diagnostic tools like calibration kits and.

[A]

Multimeters to help you identify and fix the problem. With Grainger, you can be confident you.

[B]

Have everything you need to keep your.

[A]

Facility Running smoothly, call 1-800-GRAINGER clickgrainger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done.