The Zach Lowe Show: Playoff Preview, Awards Picks, and Tanking Fixes With Stan Van Gundy
Date: April 9, 2026
Host: Zach Lowe
Guest: Stan Van Gundy (Amazon Prime Video, former NBA head coach)
Podcast Network: The Ringer
Episode Overview
In this loaded episode, Zach Lowe is joined by Stan Van Gundy to preview the upcoming NBA playoffs, dissect the chaotic playoff races, break down Van Gundy’s personal awards ballot, and dive deep into perennial league issues like tanking and player health. Stan also shares insights from his coaching career and gives unfiltered takes on hot-button debates, including James Harden vs. Dwyane Wade and radical ideas to fix tanking.
Main Discussion Points & Insights
1. NBA Playoff Races and Late-Season Storylines
Eastern Conference: Anyone’s Game
- Stan emphasizes the wide-open nature of the East, where every first-round series could be close. “I just don’t see anything easy there in the east and then the West, I mean, we see a collision course between Oklahoma City and San Antonio...” (04:16)
- Full-strength Philly, Orlando, and Miami are all lurking dangers.
- Charlotte, with the best East record since January 22, is viewed as a formidable sleeper—nobody wants them as a first-round foe. (West 3, 4, 5; East 5-10; and West 8-9 are all still unsettled.)
Western Conference: 3-4-5 Chaos
- Denver, Lakers, and Rockets are in a deadlock for seeds 3-5; Houston can’t win tiebreakers and is likely stuck at 5.
- Stan highlights the drama of a possible San Antonio-Denver series (“we deserve seven games of that series and we deserve it to go like four of them to go to overtime”—08:08).
Critical Personal Stake
- “I have the most interest in the Clippers in Portland because my brother’s an assistant with the Clippers...” (08:08)
2. Playoff Matchups: Contenders, Upsets & Roadblocks
Minnesota’s Chances Against Denver
- Zach: “Would you give them a realistic chance at an upset in that series?”
- Stan: “I’d make Denver a pretty heavy favorite, but certainly not impossible… [The Lakers are] not going to have, there’s no possible way they're going to have Reeves and Doncic for that entire first-round series. ... It takes a miracle for LA to win.” (11:18)
The Art & Ethics of Seeding Manipulation
- Stan warns against manipulating matchups: “When you try to manipulate that stuff, you’re sending the wrong message to your team... If you want to win a championship, you got to win four series and you don’t get to pick your opponents along the way.” (13:05)
Denver’s X-Factors
- Both discuss the importance of Peyton Watson as a perimeter defender, especially against teams loaded with quick guards (e.g., San Antonio, Oklahoma City). If Denver’s defense is merely competent, they’re in the top tier: “They get very, very scary.” (14:13)
3. Tactical Deep Dive: Denver v. San Antonio
How Do You Game Plan for Wembanyama?
- Stan’s top lesson: “You cannot go small against Womenyama. ... That will not work against Wimby.” (16:34)
- Denver used an interesting zone with Gordon at the 5 and Jokic on the wing to “change the tempo.”
- Zach is fascinated by Denver attacking Wemby in inverted pick-and-rolls with Jokic as the ball handler. Stan: “I thought it worked well and as a matter of fact, I didn’t think they ran it enough. ... Screening him up there is the only way you at least temporarily take him out of the possession defensively...” (20:03)
The Wemby Difference
- “I don’t think we’ve ever had a guy in this league who is as impactful defensively... he’s so far from a rim protector.” (22:48)
- San Antonio tries to hide and roam Wemby by guarding Jokic with Keldon Johnson, daring Christian Braun to shoot repeatedly from the corner.
4. Individual Awards: Stan’s Ballot
Defensive Player of the Year
- “The only easy one to me is Defensive Player of the Year. ... I don’t know how you vote for anybody other than Wimby.” (25:27)
Most Valuable Player
- Stan: “Same guy I’ve had for every year I’ve been a voter. Jokic.” (27:00)
- On Jokic v. SGA: “Jokic... lifts his teammates a little bit more... all of the passing. Everything runs through him. I think Shea’s a one-on-one guy... I think Jokic’s defensive challenges are overrated.” (27:30)
- Wemby gets Stan’s 3rd-place vote because “that team is so deep and they’ve gotten production from so many guys.” (29:31)
- On Luka’s 1-game shortfall for eligibility: “If you’re going to do it for him... then what about 63 games? What about 62? ... Somewhere you draw the line.” (32:24)
Rookie of the Year
- Stan goes with Cooper Flag over Kan Knipple: “Flag’s a far more versatile and better player... at the defensive end of the floor. ... Knipple is better than people think... but I don’t think he’s close to Flag as a defender either.” (38:39)
- Zach is more 50/50, noting Kan’s three-point shooting and value to a winning team. (39:46)
Sixth Man of the Year
- Keldon Johnson narrowly edges Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Reed Sheppard for Stan. Nas Reed and Cornett round out five and six. “Particularly early in the year, San Antonio played their best basketball when Keldon Johnson came on the floor…” (41:23)
- Detailed discussion includes notable mention of Dylan Harper, Isaiah Stewart, AJ Mitchell, and Tim Hardaway Jr.
Most Improved Player
- Both agree: Nikhil Alexander-Walker.
5. Tanking, the Draft, and Radical Change
- Stan: “I don’t like anything that incentivizes losing... And to me, it’s simple... you get rid of the draft...” (46:43)
- He proposes eliminating the rookie salary scale and individual max, allowing teams to chase rookies in free agency and pay actual market value. “Pay the stars, spread them out around the league... get rid of the draft. What possible—no other plan gets rid of the incentive to lose.” (49:51)
- Zach reports on current GM meeting buzz: flattening lottery odds, potential for sunset clauses on quick-fix proposals, “draft credits” as a possible experiment, and greater penalties for tanking. “The two years combined record has kind of gone out of favor…” (52:48)
- Both agree it's a thorny problem and that fixing tanking will take radical, likely CBA-level action.
6. Notable Debates & NBA Soapboxes
James Harden vs. Dwyane Wade
- Stan, acknowledging personal bias: “I’ll take Dwyane. ... Defensive end of the floor, better than Harden. ... There’s no one in the history of the league I would rather have with the ball late in the game.” (61:50)
- Zach’s research notes Harden’s regular season statistical dominance, MVP, All-NBA nods, but weighs Wade’s defensive and playoff credentials higher. “Their stats are very much more similar in the playoffs. And just defensively it’s no competition.” (63:12)
7. Finals Picks: Preseason and Now
- Stan’s preseason: Oklahoma City over New York.
- His current picks: Still OKC—and Boston now in the East, but warns Cleveland is a sleeper. (66:40)
- Zach agrees and offers in-depth analysis of Cleveland, Atlanta, and the crowded, unpredictable East.
- Both heap praise on Jalen Johnson (Zach: “Jalen Johnson... to me is an all NBA guy. I have him on my second team.”) (70:41)
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
“You can’t go small against Wembanyama. ... That’s a whole nother level.”
Stan Van Gundy, 16:34
“When you try to manipulate that stuff, you’re sending the wrong message to your team.”
Stan Van Gundy, 13:05
“I don’t like anything that incentivizes losing... get rid of the draft. What possible—no other plan gets rid of the incentive to lose.”
Stan Van Gundy, 49:51
“Defensive end... there’s no one in the history of the league I would rather have with the ball late in the game, last shot of the game than Dwyane Wade.”
Stan Van Gundy, 62:02
“Anybody would be pretty happy to have either one of their careers. ... When we get to the all-time greats I will say to people, you pick, I’ll happily take second pick.”
Stan Van Gundy, 65:39
Key Timestamps
- 02:53 — Stan joins the show, East/West playoff overview
- 08:08 — Most interesting playoff race? Stan’s answer and brother’s Clippers connection
- 11:18 — Minnesota’s upset chances, seeding ethics, Denver’s matchup calculus
- 16:34 — Nuggets-Spurs game tactical takeaways; Wemby’s defensive impact
- 22:48 — Who’s hardest to game plan for? Gobert, Artest, and the Wemby comparison
- 25:27 — Stan’s Defensive Player of the Year: Wemby
- 27:00–29:31 — MVP: Stan’s Jokic case, SGA, and Wemby factors
- 32:24 — Stan on 65-game minimum, player durability, and NBA conditioning culture
- 38:39 — Rookie of the Year: Flag vs. Knipple debate
- 41:23 — Sixth Man: Keldon Johnson, Jaquez Jr., and more
- 46:43–49:51 — Tanking solution: abolish the draft, rookie salary, and max contracts
- 61:50 — Harden vs. Wade career legacy debate
- 66:40 — Finals picks: preseason and now
- 70:41 — Atlanta/Cleveland analysis, Jalen Johnson praise
Tone and Energy
The conversation is lively, unfiltered, and deeply nerdy—true to Zach Lowe’s style—with Stan Van Gundy delivering candor, sharp analysis, and old-school stories. The episode mixes serious big-picture debates with tactical playoff breakdowns and personal anecdotes, much to the delight of NBA diehards.
For Further Listening
Look for Zach’s deep-dive on all-time shooting guards and Stan’s ongoing Amazon Prime commentary, plus playoff coverage coming up on The Lowe Show and The Bill Simmons Podcast.