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Next question. In the west, seeds two through four are separated by two losses and five through eight are all separated by one loss. So matchups are very up in the air currently. What's the best case scenario? First round matchup for the Clippers. And how far do you think they could go with how Kawhi and Zhu are playing at the moment? If I was the Clippers, I'd want Houston. There's a couple of specific reasons why Shangun kicks ass against the opposing centers in the league at large. For the same reason that Jokic kicks ass against the centers in the league at large. Except for Sengun is not as big as Jokic. So every time I see Shangun run into other really big centers that can hold up on in the ground battle against Shangun, as long as they're not so damn slow that they have no chance to guard him. And Zubac is much more mobile and a much better rim protector than people give him credit for. I think Zubac can guard Sengun and it hold up better in a playoff series there than a lot of the centers in the Western Conference. And then Houston has a certain amount of physical size on the perimeter. We're going to talk about this in juxtaposed with OKC soon in another question. But they have so much perimeter size that having a guy like Kawhi, who is kind of a unique case in in in the modern NBA is a guy who kind of holds up super well in those sorts of situations. I think they just match up pretty well. They're oh and three against Houston this year, but Kawhi didn't play in any of the games, so obviously that fundamentally changes it. I, I just look at it as a, as a type of matchup where they hold up well physically. And I think Houston in general is a high risk for an upset in the first round regardless of who they play, just because of how playoff basketball changes. Houston is a we're going to dominate the margins type of team. It's all defense, transition, offensive rebounding, physical dominance. And the Clippers should be able to hold up under that. And every team in the NBA holds up better under that when they get into the postseason as they start to leverage their athletic tools more. So I would want Houston if I was the Clippers. Why do you think the media coverage of the NBA has changed so much over the last 40 years? Looking at old 90s Bulls broadcast, they're almost always speaking glowingly about the players and coaches and X's and O's now it seems way more negative driven, way more narrative driven and negative. Thanks. Love your show. The best NBA commenter in the media. Thank you so much for the kind words and for supporting the show. So I think it's a combination of a couple things. I think a big part of it is, I would say, like the vast majority of it comes down to jealousy. It's really easy to be supportive and appreciative when you look at the, the, the people that you're praising as experiencing more or less the same thing that you experience. But if you were a professional player and you had a certain experience as an NBA player, you made some good money, you had some cool experiences, but nothing extravagant. And then you see guys like Jalen Brown signing a $70 million a year deal. There's a certain amount of like, I think these guys look at the younger generation and they just get jealous and they're like, these guys don't work as hard as us. And I think there's a certain amount of that like get off my lawn type of attitude that we all have from every gener towards the younger generation. I think that's just a fundamental part of the human experience. But like I think they look at those guys and they go, they're not doing as much as we did and they're flying fancy and getting all this high tech equipment and care and making all this money and we didn't get any of those opportunities. And I think it just breeds bitterness, and I think it just manifests in the way that they talk about the game. I think the second part of it is, is that, like, in general, our players are just so much better now, and the skill development is so much better. I was talking about this with Colin the other day, but like, you. You notice when you go back and you look like at a 1960s or 1970s NBA game, even into the 80s, all the jump shots looked weird. And part of the reason for that is, is that, like, everyone kind of had to teach themselves how to shoot a jump shot based on, you know, whatever they perceived at the time to be the best way to get the ball in the hoop. We've optimized that. Now you can go on YouTube and watch footage of, you know, five of the greatest shooters in NBA history and. And everybody's jump shot looks more or less the same now because of the fact that we just have better, you know, sample data to look at and sample information, sample examples of jump shots. And we're able to convert that into a pretty well proven form. You know, where you put your guide hand and how you follow through and how to limit motion and unnecessary motion and all that kind of stuff. It's all kind of streamlined at this point. And so I think there's a certain amount of. When they watch guys shooting lots of threes and the skill development piece, I think there's just a general amount of jealousy that we see from the older generation. I also think it's worth mentioning this is a weird industry in the sense that you are incentivized to generate traction. And I don't ever judge for that because at the end of the day, we're paying our bills like it's a job. And so I think there's a certain amount of, like, if you're not playing the game a little bit, then you're, you know, doing a disservice to your family, who you're financially responsible for. But at the same time, like, there's a certain amount of negativity sells and negativity gets clicks. And I think that there's some of that that you'll see from parts of media that lean exclusively into that. And it's a bad product, in my opinion. But at the same time, like, that's just a pathway towards some amount of success in the media. So I think all of that comes together into making a uneven NBA media experience. That said, I don't get anywhere near as negative about it as everyone else does because I Think the reality is, is if you go back 10, 15 years and you look at the amount of NBA coverage that was out there, there's a, there was very little in the form of like detailed quality analysis. And what has happened is the sheer amount of content has skyrocketed and now there's thousands of options. And yeah, that means there's a lot more dog shit out there, but that also means there's a lot more quality content out there. And the truth is, is that there's half dozen dozen guys nationally who do a great job covering the league and focus on the basketball and stay away from the junk and just do an excellent job. There are probably somewhere between 60 and 90 team specific pods of guys that focus on their favorite NBA team and do incredible work covering the league, getting in the weeds, helping educate their fans on what their team does on both ends of the floor. And so I look at it as like there's never been a better time to be an NBA fan and there's never been a better time for you to find NBA content for your team or for the league at large. There's more of it than ever. It's better than ever. We're all smarter about it than ever. The video elements of it are better than ever. I'm generally bullish on the NBA media. Who would be the perfect starting caliber center for the Lakers in the off season as well as how much would Nikhil Alexander Walker improve the Lakers this summer if they were able to get him on a taxpayer mid level exception. Nikhil Alexander Walker would be an amazing get at the MLE because he can guard. He's specifically good at guarding guards and he's really turned himself into a good spot up shooter which is obviously very valuable in the context of Luka Doncic. I think he's a decent driving kick player too. I, I think Nikhil would be perfect. It's just kind of a pipe dream at this point. There's also the question of whether or not they should use that MLE on a center or if they should target it through the trade market. The guys that I've looked at as starting caliber centers, what I'm looking at there is like reasonably affordable. You don't want to have to give up depth on a team that doesn't have a ton of depth but also needs to have some scheme versatility, need to have the size and athleticism piece. But JJ Redick likes to switch, so there's a certain amount of like this has got to be a guy who can guard on the Perimeter a little bit. I really like the idea of like a Nick Claxton. I think he would be just a dream fit lob threat guy that can be that vertical spacer next to Luca, scheme versatility, can switch and can run drop coverage. Not the best rebounder at his position, but again he's a center. He gives you some more athletic in position at that, at that spot. Nick. Nick Claxton would be a dream yaka. Purdel is a guy that I've always liked a good amount, although I don't think he's as good of a fit as Nick Claxton. There's also a version of this where like if the Lakers look at it and they're like, man, would we rather have a mediocre center at an MLE or in the trade market or do we really lean into player development and bet on a guy like Christian Coloco alongside Jackson Hayes and use the MLE or a trade to bring in a higher level perimeter option, like just a really good 3&D player. What would be better, a really good 3&D player or a mediocre center? That. That's where it gets tricky. And so like a lot of it is like I, I'd almost come down to it where it's like, if I could get Nick Claxton at a reasonable price, like let's do it. But if it's expensive or if it's a lesser player, I think you can make a strong case that the Lakers would be better off making a talent play versus a position specific play. A lot of it will depend on, you know, Christian Coloco has a lot of room to improve and he had that. That. I think, I think it was a blood clot issue if I remember correctly. But he, you know, has been away from basketball for a while. It's the Bronny James thing. So like even what you've seen from Christian this year is not close to what his ultimate potential is. And so there is some player development opportunity there. I couldn't help but watch a game against Houston and feel like the Lakers have zero chance against okc. Imagine that level of defense against the Lakers with a top three player and a high level offense. First of all, I said last night that the Lakers would have to play better if they were to be able to handle this type of matchup in the postseason. And I specifically called the Rockets a better version of Houston, or excuse me, the. The Thunder a better version of Houston. There is a big difference though. Houston is bigger on the perimeter. They have a lot More of that, like strength and size guarding Luka and LeBron than OKC can put on them. With OKC, there's Lou Dort, who is shorter than a Dylan Brooks and has caused Luca some problems. And I think there's some reality there. But once you get past Dort, like your next biggest guy is J Dub as a perimeter athlete type of player or an Aaron Wiggins. And I just. There's a lot of like Kayson Wallace and Alex Crusoe is like six. Six has some size. But like there's considerable size advantages down the board on the perimeter. For the Lakers, there's going to be like a LeBron. Luca and Rui are out there and you're going to put a. A Dort on Luca and you're going to put a J Dub on. On to LeBron. But after that it's like, okay, is. Is. Is Chet guarding Rui? Because now we're pulling Chet out of rim protection. Okay, is Isaiah Hardenstein guarding Rui? Because Rui can put the ball on the floor a little bit. There's a certain amount of like, I think the Lakers have some advantages on the perimeter in that matchup. I want to be clear about this because I had someone say something to me on Twitter about it this morning. I don't know who I'm going to pick in a Thunder Lakers series. I am inclined as an older veteran team against a very young team and a team that has some, you know, some. There's some concern with them in their young players knocking down open catch and shoot jump shots in the postseason. We saw that last year versus this older team and those specific size advantages. I haven't. I am tempted to pick the Lakers to beat OKC if they should play in a series. That said, I have a very healthy fear of okc. I am firmly aware of what they are capable of and I absolutely think they can beat everybody and potentially hoist the trophy. So we'll see how I feel when we get closer to the postseason. The Lakers are still a work in progress in a lot of ways. They've. What have they played four games with LeBron back in the lineup or five games, whatever it is, the Lakers could potentially be much better on May 1st than they are on April 1st. And so I'm not going to make a pick between the Lakers in the Thunder until we get to a series between the Lakers and the Thunder. And we'll see how I feel at that point if we get there and LeBron still doesn't trust his jump shot and the Defense has been bad for a month and they, you know, just haven't looked as imposing, then I'm, I'm going to probably pick okc. But if it comes together and they're defending really well and LeBron and Luka and Austin are all clicking at the same time and they kick the shit out of somebody in the first round and, and it turns into an OKC Lakers second round or third round series, like I might be more tempted to pick the Lakers. And so a lot of it depends on like, here's where the Thunder are now, here's where the Lakers are. There's a theoretical range for the Lakers that potentially extends above the Thunder depending on how this goes over the course of the next couple weeks. And we'll see how we feel when we get there. Love the show. But Houston not playing their second best player, Jalen Green at the end of the Lakers Rockets game is inexcusable. How can you agree to that saying that's the right move. That's like the Lakers not playing Austin or Luka at the end of games. So I just disagree with this. There's a certain thing with Jalen Green where there's a higher upside in terms of, you know, like he was able to get to the rim in a way last night that Fred Van Vliet couldn't. He was able to hit some pull up jump shots last night in a way that Fred Van Vliet couldn't. But I thought it really came down to Ime Udoka. Didn't trust Jalen Green to take good shots down the stretch. There were a couple of ugly possessions towards the end of that game before he got benched, including that one where he randomly tried to ISO Austin and got stripped. And I think the way IME Udoka looked at it was pretty simple. Gotta have Shangun out there. He's the biggest matchup problem. He's the guy who's consistently bringing two to the ball. Okay, gotta have Dylan Brooks out there. He's the guy who's making LeBron and Luka uncomfortable. Jabari Smith was hitting threes and playing defense functionally in the, in the, in the offense and on defense he's playing well, he's rebound, he's getting offensive rebounds. Jabari Smith was playing super well. Hit a huge shot in the lane, that little elbow jumper on the left elbow, that three along the right wing. Jabari Smith is, I, I think Jabari Smith was the right call there. And then you're looking at it as Amend Thompson who's torching the Lakers all over the floor, on the glass and along the baseline. And so then you need one guard. And so I think the way that Ime Udoka looked at it was we're going to be playing through Shangun and I trust Fred Van Vliet to make the right reads in these situations. And Fred Van Vliet is a better defensive player than Jalen Green. And so I think the way Ime Udoka looked at it was like, if I put Jalen out there, yeah, he might take a bunch of stupid shots and they might go in, but if he goes out there, he could also co op the offense, shoot us out of the game and not be as good defensively. And so I think he just made a call right there in that moment. I think if Jabari Smith wasn't having as good of a game, he sits Jabari Smith and Jalen Green ends up getting those minutes. But in that situation, with the way that Jabari Smith was playing, with how good Dylan Brooks was defensively, with how Amen Thompson was wrecking them on both ends of the floor, and Shangun consistently bringing two to the ball, I think he just looked at Fred Van Vliet as the higher floor option for him on both, for Eme Udoka on both ends of the floor to give them the best chance to win that game. Hey, Jason. Love the show as always, been following for years. In the interest of spreading more positivity in the NBA media, what do you think would be the most fun finals to watch? For me, it would be either the warriors vs Warriors or Lakers vs either the Cavs or the Celtics. I think the storylines would be really fun. LeBron facing the Cavs in the finals would be crazy. Lakers vs. The Celtics is an obvious one. A Warrior Celtics rematch or a Cavs warriors finals for old time sakes. Yeah, LeBron versus the Cavs would be really fun. A Warrior Celtics rematch would be really fun. It would kind of remind me of the dynamic between the Lakers and Nuggets, of when Anthony Davis was there where it's like when LeBron was younger, you know, he was best player in the world. He beats the nuggets. But then LeBron ages out, here comes Jokic and Murray getting revenge. Similar kind of thing can happen there where it's like Steph is the elder statesman at peak of his powers in 2022. Beats him. Tatum's not quite ready yet. But then suddenly Tatum shows that he's ready. I would be really, really excited to see OKC verse Boston. I've talked a lot about How I think the Lakers can beat okc that is based on matchups. I have a equal and opposite fear of Boston as a terrible matchup for the Lakers. So okc, to me, is the team that I think has the real potential to make Boston uncomfortable on offense for the entirety of the series. And so there's a. I think there's a certain element, like basketball fans at large should be very excited about a potential OKC versus Boston series just because there'd be an absurd amount of talent on the floor, and it'd be a really, really interesting matchup. I would like to see Lakers versus Boston. As a Lakers fan also, I think there are some fun storylines there with LeBron playing in the Finals again at age 40, that you can't beat something like that. Luca getting a redemption opportunity after he was kind of embarrassed by Boston last year. You know, Boston having an opportunity to get another, like, win against the Lakers in this historic rivalry, I think that'd be fun. But ultimately, I think OKC versus Boston would be the most competitive finals. I think right now I'm still leaning towards Boston would beat the Lakers if they faced him in a series. Love the show and thank you for the time you put into it. I have a fun hypothetical for you. If you could pick one team to replace any starting player with yourself, which team from this year would you pick and why? So on a. On a really basic level, if I wanted. For any of us, if we wanted our best opportunity to have any success in the NBA, I think it would be playing alongside, like, a Luca or a Jokic, because there's a certain. I talked about the concept of king of the court and like, offensive success when a defender sprinting at you versus when you have a defender squared up in front of you. I like my chances to score at the NBA level playing with a huge advantage more than I view any sort of potential without that sort of advantage. And like. Like. Like Luca, last night, I was watching him because, like, there. I like the pick and pop is a. A basically an unguardable action. If you have a big. That stays on the ball and there's a certain amount of, like, you can just dribble off the screen and just throw behind the back pass, and the guy's going to be open every single time. But one of the things that Luca does that's so insane is like. And it's a thing that we as coaches literally coach every kid to not do is he over penetrates, like, the guy will be open, but instead of throwing the pass right away. He'll like take two or three extra dribbles into the lane and like really collapse the defense before he somehow finds some absurd passing angle. That's why you don't over penetrate is the passing angles are so difficult. That's where guys turn the bottom turn the ball over. But Luka just has this superpower where he can find these bizarre passing angles and all this traffic and throw these kick out passes. And he'll do that specifically so that instead of Dorian Finney Smith having to hit a shot against a 10 foot closeout, now Dorian Finney Smith is hitting a shot against like a 17 or 18 foot closeout. He's buying him an extra second to really stare down the shot. And so like I like my chances to hit wide open, catch and shoot threes playing alongside Luka dodgy. So I think, I think that that would be the type of role that if I had to put myself into the NBA, that's where I would go. Obviously though, the obligatory I'm not an NBA player, I have too much respect for NBA players. We don't get to just say that we'd go in the league and have success. I was wondering what your thoughts are on Bay Metabayo to the Chicago Bulls this offseason. Vuch needs to go and we need to capitalize on Kobe Mattis and Josh Giddey seemingly clicking and cooking. I think he'd be the clear cut top dog and would anchor the defense as well. He's not a player that needs the ball in his hands so he won't hinder our young players development. However, you can get his and brings winning experience or is a better spacer slash shooter needed instead? Thanks for all the hard work you guys put in. It's the best show around. Thanks for supporting us. So there's a let's as I said last night, we should be allowed to have some fun, right? So do I think Miami is just going to dump Bam Adebayo without taking back someone like Modest or Kobe White? No, I don't think they would. But let's set that aside for a second and just imagine Bam Adebayo as a option alongside those three guys. As Jackson and I were talking about in the Late show mailbag yesterday, the ultimate defensive floor for your team is a guy that can both protect the rim in a drop coverage but also can defend in a switching scheme. That scheme versatility is what gives you the best opportunity to win from matchup to matchup and so that type of player would be the dream. Especially a guy Like Bam, who's demonstrated a little bit more of ability to shoot from the perimeter as of late. And I do think that he'll continue to trend towards being a little bit better as a shooter each year. That said, it's like one of those things where that's that type of player acquiring that type of player. Given that the type of talent on the roster right now and keeping all of that talent just seems like a little bit of a pipe dream. So I think it's worth at least acknowledging that part. All right, three more. Since you always talk about energy transfer in jump shots, does the type of jump shot matter? For example, Karl Anthony Towns has a quick set shot versus someone like Tatum. And is there a type of jump shot that's more immune to disruption? So set shots have less motion in the first two phases of the shot. So like, as we always talk about, there's the, the base, there's the gather, and then there's the release. A set shot takes less off the base in the gather and puts most of the power of the shot on the release. And what that make, what that does is it makes it so that the energy transfer process is very simple. And a lot of the set shooters in the league are very good when they're wide open, not just Cat. Tyrese Halliburton is an example of a guy like that where when he's open, it just feels like it's going in every single time. But those are the types of jump shots that are easiest to disrupt because there is so much on the upper part of the shot. And that means that. Think of it like this. If I jump into a three point shot, get good lift, the top of the shot is a very light flip of the wrist versus if I shoot a set shot, there's much more power that I'm trying to drive out of that, out of that follow through at the very top of the shot, right? So if I'm disrupted and I'm leaning, fading my bases off, whatever it is, there's just so much on the top of the shot that all of a sudden there's just so much more likelihood for error. You know, one of your fingers being in the wrong spot, your follow through not being as crisp, just so much opportunity for that to get messed up. When you're a shooter that shoots with a lot of work from your base, that's what allows you to shoot on the move, shoot in traffic, shoot on step backs, shoot on spins, whatever it is, because you're doing so much work with your lower body that the top of the shot is just this light and easy breezy flip of the wrist. So what's so amazing when you watch like a. When you watch like old Michael Jordan fadeaway jump shots over his left and right shoulder. Any of you guys who have ever played and have relied on a turnaround fade away from about 15ft knows that that's a tough shot to get to the rim. You need to get a lot of lift and it feels like you're shooting a 25 footer when you're fading away from the basket from, you know, 16, 17ft. And that was what was so amazing about watching MJ's. He was just so incredibly like spry off the ground when he would make those turnaround fade moves that he just get fantastic lift and you just see this light, easy breezy flip of the wrist at the top and it would go in. What's going on in Memphis? Why would they fire their coach with two weeks left in the season when they could have waited to the off season? I get that it could be a locker room issue or a rotation issue, but they are the five seed in a tough Western Conference. I do not see a championship in this team, probably a first or second round exit. So why not just fire him at the end of the season? Love the show. Keep up the good work, Jason. I did some digging behind the scenes, couldn't get any real answers. Nobody really understands why specifically it happened when it happened. I mean, there is truth. I talked about this with Frank Vogel when he got fired from the Lakers. There's truth to the idea that like, sometimes a team just tunes a guy out and when he, when the team tunes the guy out, you got to make a change. Like, it's just what you have to do, even if the guy's a good coach. And all indications are that Taylor Jenkins is going to get another opportunity. I've never been a big Taylor Jenkins guy because I think his defensive strategy is foolish. It like, is way too aggressive on the ball, way too aggressive packing the paint. I just don't think it works in the modern NBA. That said, like, they're under, under no circumstances for a team that's above the play in, in the Western Conference should you be making this dramatic of a coaching change this close to the end of the season. So I don't know what's going on behind the scenes, but it doesn't make a ton of sense to me as far as the team and the way they're spiraling. I think injuries have played a role. Their defense and Them conceding all these open shots has burned them. Their defense has fallen apart in the seven game span. I think there is a little bit of a lack of belief. Some of this is schedule. They've run into a bunch of really tough teams in a row. It's like, okay, you got to play the Lakers. Okay, you got to play Boston. Here comes Golden State to town next. The NBA schedule is brutal and it can beat the shit out of you and and wipe away your confidence. And I think in a lot of ways that's what's happened. Memphis does not seem to have that just like attitude that they used to have. Last question. There's a lot of rumors about Booker to the Pistons recently and this has quietly been a thing on Pistons Twitter for like three or four years now. My first question would be do you think the trade is possible and how would he fit next to Cade? Second, if that isn't possible, what superstar do you think fits best with Cade to maximize his skills moving forward? Look, I the Pistons have plenty of draft compensation. They could include a guy like Jaden Ivey in that type of deal. And if I'm Phoenix and I'm getting Jaden Ivey in a but bunch of draft picks, I'm going to seriously consider that type of deal for Devin Booker. So that's absolutely a possibility. Do I think he's a good fit next to Cade? You bet your ass. He's like perfect fit next to Cade. A decent point of attack defender who next to Sar Thompson can guard the second best perimeter player is just basically like imagine what Malik Beasley's done this year which is not just aggressive spot up shooting but really aggressive scoring. Malik Beasley's been a bucket getter for the Pistons this year. Devin Booker brings all of that at a higher, more resilient rate while also being a guy. Although Devin struggled to shoot the three this year. But I think there's a little bit of an aberration there and all of that alongside the the ability as well to bring two to the ball and be a playmaker like a real second side shot creator, a guy who can take a load off of Cade. So like I think that'd be an amazing fit. I think it's also fits that concept we talked about with Wemby where it's like the timeline and whether or not it actually makes sense to wait for Jaden Ivey's development or wait for Stefan Castle or Devin Vassell's development to match with a Wemby or a Cade. Like there's a certain amount of like, Cade's ready now. The Pistons are ready now. You got to do something. The question is, do you feel like cashing that in? Do you feel like cashing that in all those draft picks on a guy like Booker, or do you want to take it as a more patient approach? And I think, I think this year's playoff run will give us some data on just how far or close they are to where they want to get. And if they're close, you can advocate for Booker. If they're not close, you can advocate for patience. All right, guys, that's all I have for today. As always, I sincerely appreciate you guys for supporting me and supporting the show. We'll be back tomorrow morning, breaking down the packed Wednesday night slate. I'll see you guys then. What's up, guys? As always, I appreciate you for listening to and supporting supporting Hoops tonight. It would actually be really helpful for us if you guys would take a second and leave a rating and a review. As always, I appreciate you guys supporting us, but if you could take a minute to do that, I'd really appreciate it.
