Timberwolves Steal Game 2, and CJ McCollum’s Heel Turn

Oh boy, the playoffs have officially arrived.

Nick's Hawks, the Hawks with an improbable comfort behind win, CJ McCollum. Holy smokes. Hello to the newest New York City postseason villain. What happened? Why did the Nick's have no timeouts?

“What are the adjustments going to be in that series?”

And in Denver, Minnesota, the same thing. Minnesota with a really strong win and a super high level game down to the wire. In Denver, we had misfree throws in both games. It's interesting coaching decisions in both games. You had clutch baskets, galore in both of those games.

Mode to kill is here to help us break down. Wait, how do we get here? And now more importantly with a couple of days off. What comes next? What adjustments need to happen?

What adjustments to be expect to happen?

What are the adjustments to the adjustments? Then we get into Raptors' calves, which is a little less interesting too. Not a great start for the Raptors. And then lots of news in the NBA. We talk about Billy Donovan leaving the bulls and the coaching dominoes, the future of the Warriors.

The future of the heat, which I feel like we've fast forwarded a little bit too quickly on. And then also Detroit Orlando are the pistons and trouble a deep dive on that. And a, not even a dive. We just sort of wait into the zero entry pool of suns thunder. Is there any hope for Phoenix TV to make that competitive?

So tons of stuff. And a brief look ahead. It's a nice three games too, Philly Boston. Houston Lakeers, boys, this is a showman game for the rockets and spurs. Blazers all coming up on the Zack low show with Mode to kill.

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The playoffs have officially begun. After a whole home opening weekend of mostly chalk and a little bit of Orlando magic magic. Last night, Monday night, we got roll and forget rap scabs. We'll get to that. The next a thrilling fall from a head loss at home and game 2-1-1.

Go! Go! Go! And nuggets wolves just exceeding the hype. An awesome well played tense super high level game between two legitimate finals level teams. Yes, I'm calling the wolves the finals level team. Sue me if you disagree. That series is one one.

We had missed three throws. We had clutch plays. We had clutch mistakes. We had coaching mistakes. We had everything going on.

Most of the kids were going to break it all down. How are you doing bud? I'm doing great man. It's playoff time. This is what we live for.

A series doesn't start until the road team wins. Two road teams, one last night, one candidate is team did not. Before we go on to those games, we should quickly acknowledge our three game teams tonight. Typically, I don't talk too much about tonight's games. Because by the time this comes out, there's not a lot of lead time.

Filly Boston, Portland, San Antonio, Lakers, Houston.

“What's the one of those that you are watching most closely tonight or the one thing you are watching most closely tonight?”

Portland, San Antonio. I think it's the most interesting of the three for me. And it's not just because I'm enamored by Wemby. I want to see what Portland does defensively. They threw everything at him in game one.

And I want to know if they have more. Are we going to see something zones? Are they going to press full court? They had started out with clinging on Castle. They had Kamara on Wemby, then they switched eventually to the bigs on Wemby.

And I just want to see how they kind of figure this stuff out. And what do they have in the bag left? Because and to their credit, we're throwing it all out in game one and seeing what we can do and what's going to work. And to Wemby's credit, none of it worked. Yeah, I think that's the most interesting of the three series tonight.

And I said this will be on Sunday. I just want to debut for Wemby. Obviously, the numbers were sensational. But the how he got there was unbelievable just in the sense of what you're talking about. Portland just went right away, like we have nothing to save for game two.

We're throwing every every gambit we have at you right away in game one. And they problem solved all of them. I think we might see more zone. That's one adjustment. Portland played a good deal of zone this year.

We might see more. But they're just such a talent deficit and a scoring deficit. Filly Boston tough hill decline for the sixers thought they did some good things against Boston's defense.

Where the guy guarding the ball handler will go over the screen and then peel out to a shooter. And that shooters guy will peel in to the ball handler. Filly knew that was coming scouted it pretty well, prepare for it pretty well. Just missed a bunch of shots. But the one to watch tonight to me is Lake or Houston.

This is a must show up game for the Houston rockets who laid a disastrous egg in game one.

No offense, no structure, no plan, no second idea on any possession yet.

Durant was out so we're Luca and Reeves. Yeah, Van Vleek was out so we're Luca and Reeves. You've got to have a better showing than that. I know that Finny Smith is giving you nothing. The bench is thin, Steven Adams assert.

That was a disgusting performance by a rocket steam who should beat the lakers without Luca and Reeves. And instead looked like they kind of got outclassed and outsmarted.

“Any other thoughts on that game tonight before we move on to the fun stuff?”

Yeah, I want to see how they use shengun offensively. If KD's not able to go, how are we going to work that through? And is DeAndre ain't going to show up again defensively. Oh, yeah, I think that's the battle. I'm trying to kind of figure out when I'm watching that game tonight.

I'm going to be looking at how are the rockets going to use shengun with the lack of space that they have to give him some sort of room to operate.

And I think that's the big problem for them.

We shall see I expect Celtics win spurs, win opic rockets win tonight. Okay, let's go on to the two games of last night. And then look forward to adjustments to come as these series move to the other arenas in game three. Denver, Minnesota, an absolute thriller in Denver where the nuggets get off to a scorching start. The timber woes are making all kinds of mistakes on defense and transition.

I have to make sure you're taking all my God, maybe you know, Anthony is bulky. He doesn't look like he's moving well. It's just been sort of a weird year from the timber woes. Maybe we're just not going to have the series we'll hope for. And then ant shows up and shows out.

This timber woes just across the board.

“Randall played with the level of physicality and aggression they need.”

I thought it was just a super high level game on both ends of the floor. Like both teams played super hard, super smart.

And then down the stretch, what a stretch one.

Do you want to go through the last couple minutes? Yes, yes. Well, he's a minute 30 left and Stephen Shenzow left side of the floor. Pick and roll their hunt in Jamal Murray. Ants on Jamal Murray.

I think you should do more of that. Ants on everybody and he's he's pushing a lot of the right buttons. Like these teams are not messing around. They're pushing the right buttons. They get to switch.

Minnesota overloads that side of the floor. Kind of doubles and to get the ball of his hands. He kicks it to Dante, Stephen Shenzow on the right side. Tim Hardaway Jr. who's playing an enormous amount of minutes with the other starters. Partly because Cam John's was in foul trouble and paid in Watson's alley.

And that looms large. There's a lot of Tim Hardaway Jr. happening. This might be the single best defensive possession of Tim Hardaway Jr's life. He runs Stephen Shenzow off the arc. He rotates over runs them off the arc.

Stephen Shenzow drives kicks it to jade and McDaniels. Hardaway peels out of the middle of the floor off Stephen Shenzow on to McDaniels. Forces a a crazy twisting fadeaway jumper missed by McDaniels. Who otherwise had a pretty nice game. Denver runs it up. Aaron Gordon hits a three at that point.

What's the score at that point?

“I remember it's a one point game at that point.”

It's one. One 12 11 11. Stephen Shenzow then hits a three off the same kind of action. It's it's one 15 11 11. Nicole Yokech runs an inverted pick and roll with Jamal Murray, which is something I talked about going into the series.

I think they should run it even more. It puts go bare who's been awesome defensively. Stone Yokech in the post multiple times last night got a massive offensive rebound put back dunk over Yokech laid in the game he's just been awesome. Kind of got stuck under the screen and Yokech starts rumbling toward the rim. And I swear to God mo when he went up not with two hands with one hand and dunked it.

I literally screamed holy shit in my office. You just don't expect him to dunk the ball like that then ant travels and the door is open for Denver is a two point game ant travels. It's like oh my god. Okay. It's nervous time.

Christian Brown is fouled under the rim for Denver on another inverted pick and roll. No, it was a Murray Yokech pick and roll straight up. Yeah. One out of two nervous time to one point game Julius Randall gets fouled on the other end. They take the foul.

He makes two of two kudos to Julius Randall. And then Jumal Murray takes bottom five all-time worst quick to in the history of the NBA with this team down three. Not that quick and not close to the rim. No chance of drawing a foul miss game over. Steven Chenzel run out just an awesome game.

I thought both I just thought it was such a well played game. And I think it highlights like how difficult this road is going to be for whoever wins this series.

The playoffs are just so hard that I think if you're going to win a title.

“I think somewhere along the way you got to have a four or five game series.”

You just can't load up on six and seven game series. And I'm going to get into this with the next. I was joking before Nick socks with our buddy Sam Moral. Great stand up comedian huge Nick's fan was court side. Tony CJ McCollum last night.

I said I picked up the Nixon six and he's like I would love it if it was four or five. And I just said I just don't think the nicks are built to play short series either way. Like I don't think they're going to ever get swept or lose in five games. I don't think they're ever going to win in four or five games.

They're just not built to play that kind of series.

And I think you just need one. And now Denver had a chance to make this one. And they didn't make this one short series. So okay. After two games, Denver's offensive rating is 112 points per hundred possessions.

That's nine points below their season leading average. What are you seeing from Minnesota? How did they dig back into this series last night?

“Yeah, I think it started first off really on the offensive end for them.”

They crush them on the boards. And that allowed them to play slower basketball, right? Allow them to play set defense because they get the ball on the hoop more.

When they're getting those second chance points,

they're able to set their defense on the other end of the court. And you mentioned it. But go bear has been absolutely phenomenal on Yokech for two games now, like in the post. And they've kind of taken that away. And something that was key to me in this one was they didn't really double Yokech all that much in the game.

And that's their way of saying, hey, we'll let Yokech score. But we're not going to let them get four or five assists in a quarter. And hurt us with the way he kicks the ball around and has his flying and in rotation and in tough spots. I felt like that was the first thing I kind of noticed right away. It was just saying, we trust Rudy to stand him up, play him well in the post.

We're not going to send help. And when they did that, it made it harder for everybody else to get those things. You know, the cuts from Aaron Gordon or or finding Murray open for three or all that Christian Brown and that stuff. I think it kind of slowed them down offensively. And had them playing later into the shot clock than they wanted to.

And I think that put a lot of pressure on the nuggets on the offensive. I think they should post Yokech more even if it's against go bare and especially like going into the series. I wonder, they're just going to have to attach go bare to Yokech and just play him every minute that Yokech plays. And obviously the nuggets are very smartly staggering. Murray and Yokech, perhaps Mike Brown should watch that series a little bit.

I'll talk about that. The wolves on the other hand are resting and Randall at the same time is they have done throughout the season. And one of the sort of pushing polls for them and they won those minutes last night. But I think they should post Yokech more even when go Bears in the game and especially when he's not in the game. I think there are some places they can poke at Minnesota's defense a little bit more now as read.

I think is another guy that like Jamal Murray should hunt him a little bit and try to attack his feet. But I don't think they're posting Yokech enough. The other thing is like the Murray Yokech pick and roll. I you can count on one hand, I think the number of pocket passes Yokech is caught in the floater range. They are just committed to taking those away by either just letting Murray drive and staying attached to Yokech by having go Bears.

They just close enough when he drops back that Murray's like, I don't know if that pocket passes there and then they late switch or and Yokech is popping a lot for threes and they're just psyched if Yokech is taking threes. How are they taking like what do you seeing from that in terms of the two man game and how they're taking that away. Yeah, I think you you've touched on it. I think they're focused more on the fact that there's a there focused on taking that specific pocket pass away. Like that's or at least make them hesitant a little bit and it's everything that you said we're going to stick with Murray.

We're going to fight over the top of it. We're going to show a little bit but still stay attached we're not going to get too over extended and then we're also going to have a little bit of help from the other side. Right, we're the side Murray's coming towards you know just a little bit of just how I'm going to show a little bit and then get back to my guy and kind of it dig excuse me. It took me a minute to find the word just dig a little bit or stunt and then get back to my guy. Let's let the other guys shoot threes let Christian Brown shoot threes let live with those guys.

“If you have to if you have to swarm the middle of the floor to keep the ball out of Yokech's hands or to just stop Murray at the rim when you just sort of let him go and let him drive to the rim let the other guys shoot.”

Yeah and I think that's sort of the way they're doing it's not just two guys defend in the big and roll it's really kind of the whole team. And then to your point too, Yokech is popping a lot and he's I mean his three ball has been gone like I don't know where like. It's it's definitely you know missing on a milk cart and somewhere he hasn't had that thing since post all star break and it's really a thing where they will happily live with him settling for that. Then then then him roll into the rim and then even the times when he did get get it late in that game the player talking about where Christian Brown got fouled and missed the free throws.

It encapsulation of this is how they're defending it. It's basically all alert by the wolves were going to pull in completely on that.

“He had another turnover Yokech did on a on a Murray Yokech pick and roll where he got the ball in the middle of the floor and had a decent look at a floater and also a Christian Brown wide open in the left corner.”

It's just weirdly tried to pass the ball back to Murray from like two feet away when Murray was not open and go bare knocked it away and stole it and like Yokech only had three turnovers in this game and they get five in game one.

It's just some of them are just not characteristic of him and this has been a theme since he came back from knee injury.

I mean Randall Randall for the most win this series the most obvious thing was they need Julius Randall to be the guy who was in all NBA level player twice in his career and he was not that in game one and in game two he just came out and was like.

“I'm just going to be to shut out of everybody like if there's a if there's any moment when Aaron Gordon is not on me.”

I don't know which on defense and I have a cross match on offense if I just the random flow of the game all of a sudden Christian rounds on beer cam Johnson on me.

I'm just going to bull those bull those guys and go to the basket and he made his free throws defensively I thought he played pretty well like they're going to need that kind of Julius Randall three more times to win this series and and playing on a knee that's clearly bothering him. He only had two assists I thought he played an awesome floor game like when they're putting two on him in the pick and roll he's getting off the ball he's making the right pass and that's when the wolves are at their best the ball starts moving and here comes now is read driving from the corner here comes J to McDonald's driving from the corner here comes the blender I think he can do even more.

Particularly in the moments when go bears not on the floor and the spacings a little better just pick your match up and attack and he did this with Aaron Gordon a couple times Aaron Gordon cannot stay in front of him and there were two drives in this game where you got Aaron Gordon was Aunt Julius Randall pick and roll Aaron Gordon switches he didn't bring the ball out he didn't dance with it it was just one continuous drive blow by Aaron Gordon he drew a fall at the rim on one lay up I think on another he had unbelievable instances of rim protection on defense.

Like really really gutty performance from him and I just thought again super high level game on both ends. Yeah, and I think talking about this ants knee there is one possession I think it was early in the first quarter where he actually even grabbed at it you know like bringing the ball to pass it and then stop for a second then that's where I was just like wow we're in trouble. And defensively too like the way he was getting some blocks him he had a late chase down block on Tim hardware junior in a big possession all those things but when you're talking about what he's doing offensively he's really kind of orchestrating it's a conductor almost at at the symphony excuse me and just sort of just getting everybody in the right spots and he's getting it out so quickly off of the double teams every time they send the double it's out quickly that.

That they'd even chance of three is because of that right and it caught the the nuggets off guard Tim hardware junior wasn't in position to rotate over and help clean three and that opportunity there and I think the thing we're seeing more importantly is this is where they miss Peyton Watson if you're the nuggets like this is this is where it like that was the matchup for the nuggets was we're going to put Peyton on it and we're going to be able to help from behind there and then Aaron Gordon can rotate over.

“Be the second guy and meet him at the rim and be more more of a rim protecting threat and I think that's been the big thing that they're missing right there because.”

Gordon can't stay with him he's going to overpower Christian Brown like there's not really a lot of you know Bruce Brown doesn't have enough size to really take ant like there's going to be a lot of problems cam Johnson's not. Good enough defensively as I want on one defender to take on ant like there there was a lot of holes there when they don't have Watson that's a missing piece for them on that end. Totally agree and by the way, you know who else who else pointed out the nuggets defense limitations jayna McDaniels after the end did you do you see this yeah you know you know what's not miss Peyton Watson's missing from the series you know what's not missing is spice and this is why the playoffs are awesome and this is why rival ways are awesome this is 30 times these teams have played now in four years replay out series in four years it's 15 a piece and jayna McDaniels after the game what are we going to do what's the game plan.

Go after yo kich Jamal all the bad defenders said McDaniels Tim hardaway junior cam Johnson Aaron Gordon hey the whole team just go at him question so they're all bad defenders yeah they're all bad defenders okay we're not even being careful anymore we're just just say the whole team sucks at this one element of the game we also had at least the third high profile incident of yo kich trying to imbound the ball in a playoff team and getting it.

jayna McDaniel shoved a dish of yo kich from behind in game one I think it was it was yo kich. Yeah started to unravel like this is I mean I don't these teams seem too much sure and too much aware of what's at stake for any sort of like conflagration to happen where people would risk suspension but my god jay to make the end okay I mean you better you you I mean you better back it up I you better put like 140 points up on him next year

“Well, I mean I think that's the I think that's the fun stuff right like we've talked about it all the times and everybody's been complaining for years like where are the rivalries rivalries are built in the playoffs and”

I didn't even realize it's been 30 games over the last four years and it's been a ton and it's been a yo Minnesota winning a game seven in Denver is always gonna be a big thing

Right, and I think that's a huge thing. They kind of look at it the rivalry is awesome and I love it when they jump into this a little bit like let's have some of that spice Like I appreciate it jayton McDaniels I don't agree necessarily with everything he said, but I appreciate that he's putting that out there putting his name on it and it's just hey Yeah, I said it. Let's go with it and see what happens and I hope the nugget responding game three to give us another one of these wild battles I hope Aaron Gordon looks at him going like yeah, I'm a bad defender me. Okay, let me show you you're like one step away from just being like his mom's ugly

He's got his face is ugly. He's dog stinks like every way. How far is this gonna go like he drives a shitty car Have you seen his car? He goes out of dress like let's get let's get real person on here

“What else? I just think these teams are pushing each other to the limit like and that and that's what's fun about this is you see how”

I think defend Denver has largely defended pretty well in this series for a team of allegedly

And I think Minnesota has defended pretty well in this series for a team that's largely comprised of good defenders Minnesota's top seven is just a plus plus and then whatever they get from bones and slow-mo beyond that is is gravy Denver we know they have a great starting fight, but you see like The amount of the lengths that these two teams have to go to to just get good looks in the half court I think you're seeing both teams try to get like get ant moving off the ball on an empty side of the floor

Get in my head start you saw the wolves doing that You saw the nuggets doing that with there guys, too. Just like how can we you like a yo-kitch Murray yo-kitch picking roll on the left side with no shooter there is that a place That we can poke and and the and the wolves are doing that with even chenzo coming off pin downs and ant coming off of pin downs And if you watch them they are sprinting into the ball like sprinting into the ball getting the defense to commit

“Getting it to the second side. I think both teams need to deep dig even deeper into those kind of bags”

Offensively and trying to look at my other notes to see what else I have here. I just love this series I did think it was interesting. I'm interested in Denver's defensively Do they do they try to mix it up a little bit more in other words like Minnesota understood by the end of that game All right, they're hunting I'm sorry, they're we're hunting Jamal Murray. They're going to give us that switch and then they're going to double

Well, we see sort of more random blitzes by Denver. Well, we see a little bit more zone defense not like surrendering the switch quite as easily And I think on the other end this the kind of same thing like Kyle Anderson unleashed a random blitz out of nowhere that caught him off guard and and we saw glimpses Of Yoka chiding on McDaniels and even the sumo which did not work out. I'll blue by him, but just the chess match of like where's Yoka? It's going to be defensively is interesting, too. Yeah, just finding moments where you can at least give him a break defensively

You know like when he's there with Rudy. He's still banging with Rudy He battling for boards, you know on the on the offensive glass, you know and everything like there's a lot You want to find a way to give him a little bit of rest. The the conceding of switches

And this has always been a problem for me, and this is going to drives me insane

But like we know Murray shouldn't switch on the ant like and I know the plan is okay Then we're going to go double and that puts us in a tough situation We've been through this enough where at least like can Murray have learned by now the Steph Curry dark arts of let me show really hard and and slow you up and then You know we we chase underneath and get back to ant and then I go back to my like I'm at What point are we just going to stop conceding switches? And it's not just the nuggets

We're going to talk about it when we get to the next game like it's just constantly at what point or teams going to start looking at it going like We're going to give you the matchup you constantly want and then we're going to put ourselves in rotation to cover for that like at some point

It's you're you're you're allowing these switches and it drives me insane when they can see these switches so easily and sometimes they're bad screens

It's like it's not a good enough screen to force the switch and it's that's the stuff that just drives me nuts when I'm watching these games Well, I think I think part of it is that these offenses are so good that you just can't do the same thing over and over So if you did try to blitz them or trap them and if you do that every time All right, you know that's coming We're going to work around that. We're going to put you in the blender. We're going to get open three years

“We're going to get dunks. I think the key is you just have to mix it up a little bit”

So they just can't walk into a comfort zone and know what's coming similarly like ant My favorite thing that ant does against you okay, I call it no pun intended from where I work putting them through the ringer On the pick and roll, which is like all right, and they had one where he missed a great three out of it last night where one pick Ant go bare going to ants left Yoke it shows up pretty high on the screen ant pulls up and

And kicks it to maybe it was ant Randall actually I can't remember, but anyway, it was ant Randall ant kicks it to Yoke to Randall Randall It takes like once hard step in and Yoke is like all right. I'm going back into the paint Randall pitches it back to ant and now Yoke is you can't show high because he's taking a step back to protect against Randall's drive When they make Yokeage defend two or three actions in a rapid fire sequence like that It's it's hard for him and they get good looks fascinating series. I picked Denver in six

Before the series. I guess I'll stick with that. Did you make a pick or no? I did. I had I also had Denver in six You know, I'm hoping for a seven game series just more fireworks. Okay, Nick's Hawks one one just an incredible weird come from behind game by the Hawks where the Nick's ran out of time out

CJ McCollum missed two free throws in a row with the Hawks up one and the Nick said to sprint up Got a decent look at a McHale bridges game winning two point jump shot from the left side Would have probably gotten a better look or certainly the that's a reasonable look even if you're advanced to ball and take it out of bounds Cause you have a time out of that's that's still reasonable look But your your universe of possible outcomes is still much better

Including fouls drives all that stuff if you have a timeout and you advanced to ball the Nick's ran out of timeouts We had OG and it'll be missing a couple of clutch threes. We had Bronson missing a great runner, but then a good runner and then baking a three We just like a lot of stuff going out in this game and the Nick's fall from ahead and lose I thought frankly like Mike Brown and his coaching Seth coach the bad game running out of timeouts is one thing

I just could not believe after the first half

When they sat Bronson and cat together and I know I watched the next I know they've been doing this for two three weeks

“Last two three weeks for the regular season and I think the intent is good”

The intent is we have to get the Bronson cat two man game going together Let's maximize their minutes together and hope we can survive offensively with You know multiple point guards on the floor and do so no Jose or do so and you know a hybrid guard like Clarkson and Robinson's offensive rebounding Hope we can survive and they get them back on the floor together Well, they didn't survive in the second quarter and then they did it again to open the fourth quarter and in all

They were minus seven in 12 minutes with cat and Bronson on the floor I just couldn't believe they risked it again I thought it was a huge mistake and not only that you're only a one starter on the floor It's all bunch of bench guys. It's either an and Obi or hard It's just not it's not reliable enough offensively and before I let you go what you saw from the Hawks

I will say The moment I saw Steve Cohen the owner of the mess sitting courtside at the game. I thought well the next you're gonna lose Like this is all this guy does right now is loose and then tweet about I'm sure I'm surprised you haven't seen a tweet from him about how you saw some green shoots

From the nicks in the fourth quarter just like when the metzluster first gave to the Dodgers

He tweeted the most tone-deft tweet of all time. Oh, sorry nobody likes losing I saw some green shoots wind or it has a hard-home run and blah, but you know How many games the meta one since the green shoots came out and none Somebody must have cut the freaking grass or the green shoots got too much sun and turn brown Mo we had a big comming a game less dice and Daniels

“The cat match up on both ends of the floor super interesting. He was invisible mostly in the fourth what what what happened?”

What's going on can can I just want to go back to the Mike Brown timeouts cuz this drove me nuts and it's I guess playoff strives me nuts the first off going into the Possession with three minutes 16 seconds left. They still had three timeouts. You had the use it or lose it timeout Doesn't use that timeout there and they get a missed Josh Hart three

then

Brunson looks like he has a driving lane

“Would 243 left he calls the timeout and I'm like wow you used your your first of”

Two-time your your first of two timeouts

Like way too early and gave up an opportunity where Brunson looked like he had maybe not an advantage But had a chance to put the hox in a situation where they got a rotate and it was so bad actually Everybody was so shocked by the timeout. They thought the rest were calling a foul if you look at it You go back and watch the heat all Alexander Walker's like I didn't touch him and it's like no, there's a timeout and everybody's like oh, okay Fine, and then what do you run out of the timeout just a Josh Hart Jalen Brunson inverted pick and roll

You got nothing out of the play. I thought the hox by the way I thought that the reason and we'll talk about the lack of Brunson cat two-man game down the stretch I thought the the reason why they went to Brunson Hart was because the Congo was on Josh Hart and so they thought let's bring their big man Into the two-man game and see if they switch and Brunson can attack that if they blitz we can attack that

“I thought Atlanta to credit them did a fantastic job covering that play starting with Alexander Walker on the ball”

but when they blitzed it And they would double Brunson temporarily and Hart would slip that's when the nicks normally hit their platonic Ideal where they start swinging the ball the way around the hox by just little stunts here and there Including by Alexander Walker sometimes retreating half a step toward Josh Hart with this hands-up Made Brunson's decision making a little cloudy and sort of covered that play without surrounding much

I thought they did a nice job defending it continue But so you blow that time out though, and they didn't give the hox credit great job defensively But you didn't it wasn't like you couldn't have called that on the fly like that needed a timeout and for me

Those last two timeouts in the last three minutes are so critical for exactly what you talked about

Zack if they got the CJ mist rituals and we're able to call a timeout and then run an act of play right after They just ran a great 80 oh and got jail and Brunson a clean look at a three You have another opportunity to really improve your Situation in your chance to win this game like I was just blown away by that you already mentioned the Line up to start the fourth quarter, which just like

Completely drove me insane with how they did this was a coaching loss at the end of the day and that's gonna be a thing They blew it especially in the fourth quarter with how they how he kind of coach that game and And my hox fan friends could call on around are gonna say well, why are you giving all the all the blame to the nicks and undercredits of the hox number one I just told you how well they played defensively number two CJ McCallum just huh, I mean talk about spice This dude wants like he's getting booed for kicking people in the balls and like calling jail and Brunson a flopper

Basically made one big shot after another

I frankly embarrassed jail and Brunson late in the game they wanted that switch every time The next game at every time as you alluded to before I expect the nicks to provide a little bit more Riety and resistance to just leaving jail and Brunson out on an island and and that doesn't mean you switch in and you double and CJ McCallum can see it all coming

“I think it means you mix in blitzes you mix in different kinds of defenses and by the way on his jumper which put the”

I believe I'll put the hox up by two with 33 seconds left in the game He kind of kicked Ocheon and open it Like there was kind of another OG didn't react like maybe he's just got a lot of protection down there was a light hit But it was the same motion, and I thought oh my god, are we gonna get another thing CJ is the most unlikely New York City playoff villain that I can think of in recent vintage because he's just such a nice guy

And people are like wow CJ McCallum, what a playoff moment don't act like this guy hasn't done this before 2019 with the blazers that dude closed out Denver on the road in game seven and the second round of the playoffs This dude is clutch fearless and has a deep deep bag of tricks and he unleashed all of it against the next last night But to your point It did feel like everything was pointing the next way

They're up double figures the Bronson cat pick and roll has been really effective particularly in game one You've got a congo guarding cat for a lot of the game. They started with Daniels on cat in this game after mostly a congo in game one They wanted Dyson on on cat to switch to take away his threes. They gave up on that in part because they kind of gave up on Daniels for a bit And put a congo back on them. They're gifting you the matchup that you want that has worked so well You're up by double figures you have the Hawks confused about who to play like can we even play

Daniels and Jalen Johnson in coming good together They answer they concluded was no and that trio is minus six in 20 minutes just not enough shooting You have the offense successfully directed away from Atlanta's best player Jalen Johnson just had two okay games But doesn't feel is involved as you should feel because of how you've sprinkled your defensive assignments around

Bronson and cat which is all well and good for the Hawks, but if you're the next you're like, hey, that's takes you out of what you want to do Everything is pointing to two oh and we're on the road to a four one win We're gonna split in Atlanta come back here get the job done get a short series and now now it's anybody series But it didn't feel going into the fourth quarter like everything was pointing to a road map to a short series for the next and the Hawks took it away from them Yeah, and it was really impressive also like Jonathan Kaminga played it

One of his best games as a hawk like in in a big moment I thought he was good defensively for the most part I thought that he started the 11 overrun by getting out in transition after so I got to stop

I want to ask you this point blank. Let's clarify it because he basically became Dyson Daniels like the he was

You it was the starting five with Kaminga in Dyson Daniels place and you want to say well

“What's the difference like they're both people that are not gonna get guarded from three?”

They're both often like Kaminga guarded cat down the stretch just like Dyson Daniels did But I'm asking you like what was the difference? Why did it work better with him in Dyson Daniels place? I think one he just has a little bit more size Right, and I like and seen like a kind of a cop out answer, but he just had a little bit more size and Daniels So it's a little harder for cat, but then also he can he had a big time block on OG down the stretch and that you know

That's something like Daniels can do, but I feel a little bit more Confident with Kaminga coming in from behind and getting that big time block and doing all that I thought he was just all and all every which way He switched with his size and physicality like OG can't really bully him just on the physical side of it Whereas Daniels is a little bit thinner in that area

I think is a bit more of an issue for them and I thought ultimately this is this is the Kaminga you want the problem with Kaminga

“This is not consistently what we get right like that's why he's not you know in the starting lineup, and it is Dyson Daniels”

And they do trust him to start the game some more, but I think ultimately you can get a lot of the stuff not the steals that Daniels does So the great barrier thief is you know is he is what he is and it's gonna be that, but I think with Kaminga you get a little bit more Like physicality and and and can stand up guys a bit more and I think that's the big difference and he guarded cat A lot down the stretch cat guard and him a lot down the stretch and you know I still think like like just because the opposing center is not guarding cat

Doesn't mean if you're the next you go away from the Bronson cat to man game because you still have Nikhil Alexander Walker and and Kaminga involved let's see what they do if they switch that now you have Nikhil Alexander Walker on Carl Anthony Towns that's a friendly post up for him much more so than him On Kaminga. I also think to your point about Kaminga's size he got a monster contested rebound down the stretch and he's just more forceful If you're gonna use him as a roller which they can when a Congo is spacing the floor

He's more forceful going to the rim and dunking he had a pretty hard dunk in that game I also think the next like you're letting CJ McCollum off the hook

He's over here on Josh Hart and he's over here pointedly on Mikhail Bridges for a lot of the fourth quarter in the second half

You traded five first round picks from Mikhail Bridges fucking use him use him as a ball handler Use him with cat in the pick and roll either way I don't care if CJ McCollum's on him have him screen for jail and Bronson you are letting CJ McCollum off the hook Defensively allowing him to just exist out there and save all his energy to cook your ass down the stretch of the game Yeah, and that that's been one of my frustrations with the next usage of

Bridges overall, but I think also at the end of the day two, it's like this is a match of waiting for you to take it event. Oh, okay. He put him on Mikhail. We don't we don't we don't run that. So we're we're we're fine

“We're not gonna kind of attack that like you need to go at this”

Constantly and really like when we're talking about staggering lineups put bridges with cat When you want to rest jail and Bronson and let Bridges run some pick and roll with cat and then you know You're able to attack more and and get bridges a little bit more involved as well because yeah, you've given up a ton of form I want to go back a little bit. There was a big moment to me that kind of it was subtle Well, not so subtle, but that CJ

Jose Alvarado moment well, they were kind of chirping at each other and love and all respect between those two I'm sure yeah, yeah, yeah, it was and you know former teammates in New Orleans and all that I'm sure they were saying isn't it great? We're both in the playoffs. Look at us now But I felt like that moment was a situation where it was a big moment for the hox It was CJ kind of signaling to the dude the hox

Yo, we're not taking this bullshit anymore Like let's go, you know and and there was a timeout there talking about one of the reports

I felt like when CJ did that I felt like it was a slight little turn for the hox where they were like yeah

Like let's go. Let's go to work now. Like let's let's put up a fight there and I think that was it was a small moment that will go under the radar But I thought it was a bigger moment than people realized. I like it

“Obviously despise factor high in this series two, and that's what that just you want in the playoffs”

A couple of things that other things that I would look for in game three I do think the hox will make a point at effort to get jail in Johnson going some some some on offense The nicks have been very smart going way under on picking rules when they do put use him as the ball handler and Have a guard screen for him. It's so the nicks have been on that I do wonder

Didn't feel like Mitchell Robbins and played enough in this game for how impact we could be obviously some of that is the hack a Mitch that Queen Snyder is clearly going to use

They pulled them for that reason. I also wonder if like will we see the sort of five out spacing lineups that the nicks don't play much with cat at the five and and Josh Hart not on the floor and a guard in his Place where we see that a little bit like I just think they're a little tweaks here and there For both teams obviously no research a tiny bit of Pittsburgh Hawks just cinching that rotation even tighter I was hoping for a long series and that looks like we're gonna long series any other closing thoughts about what to look for in

Game three

“No, I think this was pretty impressive with the way the hox kind of battled back and this is what the hox do, right?”

They just stay in these games and and then find a way to pull it out and I think that was a big one and But as Madison Square guard and gonna learn like you started taunting CJ CJ started taunting you back and then they they go nuts You know, and CJ goes off like it's it's pretty fun. It's just fun overall They're not gonna learn and I don't want them to learn I actually thought you know they got the crowd got some eye rolling flag for the F tray young chance in game one

I just like it's like an interesting hat to history like it's like I feel in the same way when the wizards are Buying Kelly Olenic every time he touches the ball and the crowd and have people when the crowd and even the announcer's like wait Why are they blowing Kelly Olenic and you have to go back and explain like well like nine years ago and a play-off series There was this thing that happened. It's just a delight that I even had to even the even the mayor blame tray young for high ticket prices Like we're getting it all all around I love it and I love what these two teams me. We're just we're gonna have fun

All right, let's take a break and we'll talk about the return of Labrato in Cleveland Toronto This act low show is brought to you by fan duel the NBA playoffs are here and everything's on the line Every possession matters every bucket swings the game and tonight is your shot to boost your bet That's right all customers get a profit boost tonight Swing the moment hits your win hits bigger lock in your bets boost your odds and make the playoffs pay off with fan duel official sports betting partner

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“Diled in to track all that guy's guarding that guy now. Why are they doing that how is the other team going to counter that?”

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Mikkelob ultra superior is worth playing for enter now and Mikkelob ultra dot com slash court side Mikkelob ultra court side 25 to 26 no purchase. That's a very open U.S. residence 21 plus Begins on October 1st 2025 and ends on June 30th 2026 multiple entry periods see official rules at Mikkelob ultra dot com slash court side for free entry entry deadlines prizes and details Okay, the other game from last night that did not result in a road one or a one one series Raptors calves just a sort of general

Pullaway for Cleveland like didn't felt mildly threatened here and there

Never really felt like Toronto is going to get over the home get within two take a lead or anything like that

Just a very disparating start to the series for the Raptors number one as much of it feels like the Raptors have a hard time generating good shots and they do

That's Denver basically offense

“They're lighting up the number five defense in the league and they're doing it in the easiest way possible”

Which is just like we're just gonna like you got all these good big defenders bring us brand an ing room bring us RJ bear it like bring us Mamu But really like Mitchell and harden are going app brand an ingroman RJ bear and just saying you guys can't stay in front of us one-on-one Let's keep this as simple as possible both the guards are playing great and For Toronto the other disparating thing is and I said this in bills podcasts on Sunday I said I'm waiting for the moment where they start calling Murray

Boyle's over hurdle it already happened at halftime. They completely bench hurdle just decided He is too much of an offensive zero doesn't bring it and he we lose some rebounding and some shop locking

But we gain some switchability and a little bit more offensive punch and look I

I feel bad saying it over and over again. It's the single most it's the single most inexplicable contract in the entire NBA From the last 24 months is their decision to make a big money extension deocca portal a year and change before they even had to begin thinking about it

“And now we can't even play in this playoff series and it doesn't even matter who they play cuz to Cleveland just like if Scotty Barnes's in the game”

We'll put mobile on him and we'll hide our weaker defenders on Mamu or even Murray Boyle's our portal And maybe we'll actually put Evan Mobileye somewhere else and put Jail and Tyson on Scotty Barnes and have Evan Mobileye as a helper Like they just feel comfortable putting their best defenders wherever and just daring Toronto with out Emmanuel quickly to create any kind of offense against their guards and they can't do it Yeah, I mean they can't create any sort of real

Crucible penetration like they're just not getting into the pain enough with with their actions in the way that they're going about it one note I kind of had like on my podcast with Jared Dubin the double dribble podcast after game one I said you you got to start calling Mark Murray Boyle's like right off the bat like this is over. It's not gonna have it

I amended it halfway through this the first half and I said you know what I'd actually do and this is a little bit crazy

I would start him with hurdle and Ben Sheet shed and just go from there and just see if we can get more physical

“Can we just be physical and bump and just bump the hell out of these guys constantly through the course of the game?”

Because nothing else they have really works When you talk about it work we saw that line up a little bit in the first half before they bench hurdle like this super big CMB Partle group and just switch everything and create havoc and I agree with you like it's it's hard to play against that group Yeah, it's it's physical and I think the problem that they have ultimately is even when they put Barnes on on hard and or Mitchell

They still were getting by it like there's an element of you know like they can't stay in front of James Harden Like or Donovan Mitchell and Mitchell's phenomenal with how quick he is and his attack. It's explosiveness I think is is the thing that's really a big problem and even if they get quickly back that doesn't fix it. It gets worse You know you're in a worse position off defensively in that situation their problems besides getting anger. I'm going offensively They can't get any stops

Mobileies kill in them. Struce killed them in game one. You're getting crushed in every aspect And it's it's really the the thing that's so disheartening for this team because I look at it going like I don't know what answers you have Well, and they're trying to move the chess pieces around defensively like, you know You mentioned Scotty Barnes often he's on mobile, but he and then they'll be like, you know what we're going to put They they started putting RJ Barrett on the cab centers to switch everything and and allow Scotty Barnes to guard James Harden or even Donovan Mitchell

But it's like one screen and he's not and he's his Baldwin. I was going to ask him to be blew up a couple of possessions where they couldn't even get the ball to Donovan Mitchell or James Harden But one screen two screens. He's off and they have the matchup that they want and you also lose his room protection a little bit if he's out there guarding Harden or Mitchell And it's just like they're just able to manipulate the matchups on both ends of the floor without any real concern Like there was one stretch of the game where they had Allen on Ingram and mobile on Barnes because they just don't care like if you're playing mom who at center

We'll put anybody on mom who for playing current columnary boils at center. We'll put anybody on him We can put anyone we want wherever you want and you don't have to guard played or hurt us So you want to run a Scotty Barnes Jamal Shed picking roll to go at Donovan Mitchell We're just not going to care about Jamal Shed rolling to the rim or flaring out for three is the way we would for quickly so you can pin this on Quickly's out

And they're offence would be better with him because their defense would probably be a little worse and their defense is just getting lit up and into your we say this about everything Every series so far They just can't leave ingram and bear it like they're okay defenders They're just a quickness to nacity disadvantage craft disadvantage against Harden and Mitchell and if you leave those guys on an island against the Cleveland guards

And drives and kicks and all that it's another it's another instance, or I'm like you just got to mix up Different tactics you got to trap them and live with them passing it around a little bit Trust the fact that you're one of the most frenetic biggest fastest rotating teams you just can't let Donovan Mitchell be like Oh, it's just me and RJ Barrett like you're you're not going to win that way You can't leave these guys on islands. They're not good enough defensively and I think that's kind of the ultimate problem there

And then with fertile who's you know been banged up. You're not really getting a lot of room protection like there's It's you've said it there's nothing the cabs fear about the raptors right now

“Oh, it ends of the floor if you want to play two bigs we're comfortable with places to put our two bigs on either end of the floor”

We're mostly playing one big because we don't think you can score on us anyway and we're comfortable Putting the matchups anyway that we want and I do think the good sign for Cleveland other than the fact that they're beating a worse team than they are is They to despite not having a ton of time with their main guys together They have a good sense of like who they are and who should play with who so hard in an Allen are mostly attached Mitchell and Moby are mostly attached

Shooter and Mitchell are mostly attached because they've the concluded shooter and hardened is a little bit redundant Therefore hard and and Kian Ellis when he plays are mostly attached Tyson is back in the rotation and if you have two or at least one of Tyson, Struce and Wade on the floor you've got some decent size and Wade has been a really good guarding brand in ingrown Who was three of 15 last night in this series like Cleveland has kind of found Now it'll be tested if they assume when they win the series and face a better opponent

“They'll be tested, but they have I think they have a good sense of who they are and the raptors are kind of searching for”

Like who they're even even putting Barrett on Jared Allen to start the second half or Barrett on mobile

Belie when he's the only big man and saying well, we're gonna switch with our on your screen and rules The cabs are like oh, you're gonna switch RJ Barrett on door of all hand. There's awesome It's been a it's been a not the prettiest series either. I would say no and I don't think it's going to be I think it's going to get a little ugly, but it's again for the calves. This is great Cool, we we figured out we've kind of

Worked our way into these lineups and the rotations and who plays with who and now they get to kind of sort of test all of these things through the series And I think that's kind of a big point there and then when you look at the defense Not just wait, but everybody's kind of playing on ingrown It's pretty impressive and you could feel him kind of disheartened That block Bob Lee had on him when he went all signed for the dunk or

Like his I mean like to like first off holy cow like unbelievable play

You know and and I know he's I'm glad he won defense a player of the year last year because he ain't ever went in to get with with as long as one bees are around and play 65

“But I think the the ultimate thing is you could feel ingrown kind of get to flate it on that and”

Part of me too when I watched it back was You know like you could have gone a little harder like you needed to go into that need to be a forceful drive He thought he just didn't think Bob Lee was gonna get to it and then he did but again It just goes back to they're not afraid of this team So there's not too they're too close B. I had I think it was in game one

Where he ran some kind of two-man action and had Sam Merrill on him and Sam Merrill's actually guarded him in the regular season As the primary guy at times to test out he's and he's decent at it But he got him at the nail and he didn't settle for a jump shot He boldled those through him and got a layup or a neural like just sort of took a big hard step to the rim and that's The force he needs to play with and I actually thought Scotty Barnes brought all the force less

Like when he's got to dominate the matchups when moldly is not on him when it's true or Tyson And I think he did that even when at moldly for a big, you know, and one layup at one point in transition when he's got a cross match He's just putting his head down and trying to score I think he brought the requisite for less force less on you was really good. Inglomerate was not good enough and they just 22 turnovers last night and it felt like 15 of them were

Just keystone cops blow like live ball. Where did you think you were passing it to? What happened there short-circiting their good possessions and then giving the calves? Steeles to work with and you just can't get the turnovers were I mean just laugh out loud bad By triple off your leg like all sorts of kind of things where you're looking at it

Going like they had a chance to keep this really kind of tight especially in the first half

It's a different ball game if they have eight less turnovers. They finished with 28 22 and that gave it 22 points You know for the calves like I think if they can kind of if they're at like 15 Maybe even up to like 17 they probably are the tighter ball game and are able to press the calves a little bit more

You can't win you can't win a regular season game with 20 something turnovers How are you gonna win playoff games with that number so I picked calves and seven I thought the Raptors would be able to give them a series with their size I also thought quickly with play sooner than this and that turned out to be wrong I and I wondered how the calves would react if they got punch a little bit early

It doesn't look like they're gonna punch in this series this again looks like a calves in five series You go up to Toronto you go up to La Brano excuse me and you split and you come back home and finish the job and if that's the case

“I think this becomes I think Toronto joins Miami who we're gonna talk about later and maybe golden state as sort of a”

Very interesting offseason team because they came into this playoff thinking I'm sure they came in and I thought about this with Jack Armstrong Like this might be kind of all this group is like they just don't add up to much more than the sum of the parts are good We've maximized it good defense decent enough offense Can we we didn't beat any good teams to share our record against above 500 teams and elite teams is a trotace

If they go into the playoffs and they lose four one and the games are like this They have all their picks they have all their swaps. They have a bunch now. They have a dead money contract in portal that no one's gonna want

But I think they become I mean they've always been like a sneaky honest team to me

I think they'd become in play for a lot of stuff, but that's for another day Caves in five looks like the outcome. I overestimated the raptors. Okay, let's move on to the number one versus number eight series Both of which resume tomorrow night Wednesday and the headline here is obviously Orlando Detroit Okay, welcome to the NBA season Orlando that it's great to see you. It took

“84 games. I think for us to see your full team play hard and play together”

But boy did they do that into Detroit in game one and kind of shocking the pistons Part of it is their healthy now fron's his back black is back. They have their top seven top eight intact and they've been missing that all year Sugs is just shot out of a cannon healthy and playing with reckless abandon in the playoffs with with like if I get hurt I get hurt, but like this is how he has to play and they kind of took it to Detroit in the first game and it was If you're a piston fan, this was everything you worried about already happened in the first game of the playoffs

Which maybe is good um Kate had an amazing game and nobody came along with them

JB Bicker staff couldn't decide who to play down the stretch of the game a start Thompson only played 25 minutes because of the shooting issues and it's like all right. I guess we're gonna play Dennis Jenkins and Kate a lot. We want to please Stewart and Durn together a lot on Kevin Hurd or we need a little bit more of you as Sarthons and Ron Holland a little bit less of you Javante Green almost none of you because of the shooting issues. It was everything kind of encapsulated In one game and maybe that's almost a relief for Detroit to just see it all happen

Game two at home for a number one seed that tends that loses at home is usually an easy win I don't think it's gonna be an easy win. I am expecting Detroit to bounce back and win this game because they're the number one seed and they should But what what are you looking for from the pistons and terms of if you're if you're a Bicker staff and his coaching staff?

Here's what I saw in game one from the magic

Here's what I'm anticipating in game two and here's what I'm doing to counter all this stuff. What are where's your head at? I think starting point is like how do I get Jalen Durn going? I need to run my stuff. My first five possessions should be scripted We're going to run our favorite plays for Jalen Durn and they did and get credit the magic Who Zack you know I've been They've been the team. I've been the hardest on all season

They did a great job defensively and they decided something that was most important We're gonna let Kade cook. We're not gonna let the other guys go off. We're gonna switch Carter We're gonna switch our pigs on to on to Kade and whatever happens happens But we're gonna stay attached to Durn. Durn only got like it was like four or five shots in the game like it wasn't even like he was that in the game

Like you almost forget about him offensively and if you're the pistons, you can't allow that Your first point has to be we're going to get Durn going. Maybe it's more double ball double high ball screens Maybe it's more putting them in situations where like hey, we're gonna cool. We're gonna send multiple screens at you It's screen re-screen then you know or conflict and fuse you yeah flip flip the screens at the last

“Second do everything you possibly can but you need to get Durn going in all this because”

As great as a Kade's been phenomenal, but even when he was out it was during that really helped kind of Hold them up him and Jenkins and I think it's it's important that they don't lose that and that's got to be the first few plays Right off the bat my focus if I'm the pistons is we're gonna go it. We're gonna get Durn involved right away And that has to be the number one thing that to be the thing we walked into the the the film room session

That had to be the thing that kept you up all night last night if you were part of the coaching staff you got to get him going

I got it you got to praise Jamal emotionally and his staff Who's taking a lot of deserve flat this year for me from you from everybody probably coaching for their jobs It was a really smart game planning game one and the game plan was not just switch Kade and Durn to take Durn out of the game you're not getting the labs to Durn We're not putting ourselves in rotation. It was the way they did it you set the ball screen high enough

Not only are we gonna switch we're gonna go under the screen for Kade and switch at the same time

“Which is unusual and the reason that's important is because if you go under the Durn screen for him and you switch that guy on to Durn”

You're taking away the rule to the rim too. You don't have the thing where you're on top of him and he can slip to the rim You're and now you're putting yourself into a mismatch on both sides Carter was okay on Kade Kade started to burn him a little bit late in the game But here's a thing if you're kid cutting him even beat Wendell Carter off the dribble if a Sard Thompson and Jalen Durn or Jamantick Rene and Jalen Durn Isaiah Stewart and Jay if two of the like shaky shooters or non shooters on the floor

You can't get all the way to the rim. You can't you're gonna have to just make mid-range jumpers and that's tough sweating Now the other mismatch is why don't you give the ball to Jalen Durn in the post against a small guy on that switch whoever it is Sugs whatever and the reason is because A they're fronting and B they're just not gonna guard any of the above mentioned non shooters They tried it two or three times at the beginning of the game and they couldn't get them the ball

Lobs weren't deflected entry passes weren't made whatever and to your point I would expect this again in game two because it worked and you've just got to be ready with the entry pass angles Have to be better and more decisive you've got a slip screen You've got to set multiple you've got to run different you just can't run this predictable high-pick and roll every single time To your point run a dunk at Robinson Jalen Durn stagger screen where one guy flares out one guy slips

Run empty side-pick and rolls with dandest Jenkins and K waiting to catch it on the weak side. You got a cut hard You got a slip hard. That's the way you beat switches you slip them you run different kinds of actions and I would expect to

Troit to just be a lot more unpredictable and that helps offset the shooting issues which are always gonna be there

So that that would just be counter number one to me Maybe it doesn't get Jalen Durn 25 points. It probably gets some 18, but he can't have what did you have nine a yeah eight points You can't have eight he's got to be more involved. He's just you've got to feel him in the game like I just didn't feel him

“Offensively on us watching that game and I think that's the important thing there and then it goes back to what you're saying just”

Change it up if you become too predictable it's easy for a defense Then you know we we know we're gonna see this multiple times cool this is how we're gonna defend it We know what we're gonna do and then that allows you guys instinctively to make plays and then that opens up opportunities for Steals and things like that you know there was some smart plays defensively a lot of it from the sugs just flying all over the court Place on the defense aside of the floor like it was an impressive

Game plan and again coaching staff I've killed all year that was impressive defensively and this is the magic defense We've kind of been expecting all year that we just didn't really get welcome to the season I mean like I sidejoked about this with a bill. I was like They won 45 games this year They're over under was 50 and a half. I took the over now

You could explain it away with Franz missed a bunch of time

Sugs missed a bunch of time they always have guides that missed a bunch of time their young guys haven't really progressed

Like we see no jet no Jace Richardson some of the silver who's been fun They just didn't play with this level of ferocity in the regular season and it wasn't just on defense It was on offense too like they were running their shit hard. It would be like Franz picking roll at the top swing it to bane coming off the pin down on the left side empty side and he's full Blast full speed ahead

There was a split action they ran with Franz and I might have been Palo, but I don't think was Palo It was a split action off the ball two guys Franz and another guy Coming together and breaking apart the action that the Warriors made a famous and it was switchable like the defenders

“And ball were Tobias Harris and his sword Thompson. I think easily switchable and they didn't switch to actually read it well”

Franz slipped to the rim Tobias Harris was on Franz and stuck with him But Franz cut with such force and had enough space to go full speed at the rim that he got to lay up out of it anyway We just didn't see this team and I was like Is this this team is not what a playoff series together? Are they the first team?

Are they the least accomplished flip to switch team in the history of the NBA is this like what we're seeing? I don't understand where was this team all year it's unbelievable there offense like I Part of my my morning regimen this this morning was get up and watch their offense Just to go through their offense. I could I don't didn't believe all those things that I saw and it was Impressive across the board they ran all sorts of actions they stayed with their actions all game

It's out of an action that gets the defense moving Maybe we get a switch and then we're gonna ISO and then what would happen is the pistons would load up overload too much on on Palo and then with his vision I mean he had the pet the skip past of the corner where two guys rotated to I think it was Sugs in the corner then they kicks it automatically to black and it was a clean three we had the same play

I should have mentioned ABC healthy too. He's a big part of their team

Yeah, I mean and that happened earlier in the game in the first quarter except they missed the three

But the way the ball was moving and hopping even when it looked like it was a Palo ISO He was still finding guys there was a baseline cut from Anthony Black he had one from he found to silver early on Like there's so many different little things that they did offense. This was the team I've been waiting for like thank you This is what I thought we were gonna get at the start of the season offensively everybody was involved Frans is start of the fourth quarter part of that that

Screening action you talked about where he got the layup. He had a bunch of little play little runs in that fourth quarter That got them going and open things up for them like If they can consistently do this like this is gonna be a real tough series for the pistons

“Normally you have to like win a championship or get to the finals or in the worst case the conference finals before you”

Become a flip to switch team before you can even say to yourself. I was flip to switch them together The magic haven't won a playoff series since 2010 The Orlando magic have not won a playoff series in 16 years and it's like did they Did it take them like Were they this confident they were gonna be Charlotte in the eight seed that they just went waiting playing possum this entire time that doesn't make any sense

The one exception to your point about the offense if you watched the last two minutes of the first half and I thought so So it's telling in an encouraging way for Orlando fans They began to lose the plot on offense a little bit and there was one possession with two minutes left somebody took a bad shot And Palo reacted with like anger he's in the left corner

You can see him be like oh come on guys got to do better and then there was another possession after that We're a bane and sogs ran a pick and roll and you're like well, that's a weird pick and roll combination

We're a Palo and France the answer is not involved and

Bane took like a 20 footer from the right corner over No no switch like regular matchup and Frans crashing the glass at the same time is Cleaning and out it's in audible what he says, but he's clearly angry about the shot selection And if that if I'm a mad you fan I'm like they're dialed in enough to realize one or two possessions like that is worth being pissed about now

If I wear a pistons fan I'd be optimistic for all the reasons I said before about what happens number one seeds number two Palo made more than his usual share of contested two point jump shots and number three I thought they played a bad defensive game in a lot of fundamental ways like you overload on Palo's isos from 25 feet away

“First of all, I don't think you need to do that second of all two or three different occasions”

They just lost sight of the very first layer of cutters underneath that during a

Window carded junior got a dunk and the blackout a backdoor cut just very basic mistake There were misreads in pick and roll coverage now. This is where drones in experience shows like there was one Frons pick and roll where he thought they were going to switch I think and and the defender Set up to send them to his weekend or 10 and send them to his left hand actually as we can and There was nobody there. He just had a clear

Lane to the rim and there was a dunk like that in the fourth quarter. It's like guys they looked a little frazzled to me by the moment I expect him to play much better defensively in game two, but this is going to be I picked Detroit in five because I thought I cades back this team's so eager for this The magic of better mess all season if I had to re-pick it now I I feel sick with the choice. I'm gonna imprison myself to my pick but I would I would say this is a seven game series

I had I had Detroit in six just because I thought Orlando's physicality was still Something the size of it was was Gonna be something at least can cause problems for them But I want to go back to the cutter because you were talking about there's one is playing in particular that that stuck out to me

“It was I think late in the or it middle of the fourth quarter”

But Anthony black cuts Jenkins has no idea he cut from the the slot right to the block And that pulled Jalen Durin and then That led to from the weak side when Durin got pulled first Dunkin Robinson slid over to take Wendell Carter and this is the play you're talking about where I think he got the dunk And then immediately switched out with Jenkins taking him over and the ball hits Carter and goes you can't have those mistakes

Those are fixable as stuff you're gonna sit in film going like come on, man, you know better than this you know this stuff There there mistakes were fixable I I am excited to see how they respond, but it's the way and the pressure

When they're going into this how are they gonna handle hey we blew game one where the one seed?

We're not supposed to do this like we got to be better than this they didn't win a series last year This is a new experience for them as well and they got a lock in and the how they're gonna kind of Figure this stuff out as they go through it and then the other things like I totally for it They haven't won a home playoff game in years That's an unbelievable stat that I forgot to say lost all of them against the next last year

And beyond that I'm just interested in who plays and for how long like to me the other interesting wrinkle in all the minutes and Trying to balance the shooter the non shooters with the the weaker defenders and all that carouselvert did not have a very good year this year for them Four minutes is just like wow for a team that needs secondary ball handling like they only could find four minutes for carouselvert

“That's I mean and it's not like I'm sitting here being like a carouselvert's awesome. You should play 30 minutes”

It's I understand it. He's gonna happen good. I think they need to at least let him stretch out a little bit more than that, but Okay, let's move on quickly to Phoenix Oklahoma City a series that I do not think will go seven games And I would not think it would go seven games even if Mark Williams Grayson Allen and Jordan Goodwin we're all healthy Just a textbook Oklahoma City. Oh, you thought our defense was awesome watch our playoff defense You won't get a clean shot the entire goddamn game and we're gonna outturn over you by 10 and run it down your throat

And I don't even know like what there is really to say about about that game and about this matchup It's just Phoenix just doesn't have enough. We knew they didn't have enough and it was an avalanche of defense in game one Well, I mean, I it was so clear at evident like

Half-time I did a video for off-side and basically it's all life ball turnovers that killed them, right the

The sons would have been that's every team every team every team everything but when particular against O. K. C You want to get them going Just turn them in that every team against Oklahoma City. We can we can sit here and say don't turn the ball against over against Oklahoma City They are incredible at

“At getting their hands on the ball. They get a little bit of leeway from the raps. I think to play physically because they are so physical and like”

If you can solve that mystery of like how to turn the ball over 10 times a game 12 times a game Someone do it because no one can do it But even if you're if you're trapped in the corner just chuck the damn thing out of balance and go set your defense Like you're better off almost in that situation than trying to find a way out of it

But the swarming aspect of that team is just too much and then it's just the other things that kill you

You know The free throws at at the end of the half that lead it J will drop in a gorgeous past to check for the the three going into half time No pressure on the ball on the passer at all on the embouter and things like that all the small things that you're trying to figure out At the end of the day this sun seems just kind of drawing dead. There are offensive style. It's very iso heavy

And I think that's a problem against a ton like the thunder defense want that Right they when they have a hard time with teams it seems that move cut get the blender going get the ball flying around the court That then you could put their defense in tougher spots But when you're playing you're playing right into their hands when it's screen and roll Devon booker iso screen and roll doing brooks iso screen and roll jalen green iso like that those are problems for you

And they just don't have enough and they don't have the front court death at all even with Mark Williams They just don't have anything. I do think at least Mark Williams. They'd have to be nominally concerned about him Rolling to the rim for lodges for decality It could borrow is a very good player. They're not concerned about him at all They'll switch on him and they don't care

Malawatch was in the rotation that now the rotation they're playing haywood highs with its center. That's not gonna work I just there's just there was just no airspace anywhere and you're through Devon bookers I got a loot door it's guarding me. Well, he'll come out of the game at some point or maybe I can get a switch and it's like I don't know It's Coruso Case in Wallace sage and Mitchell guys kind of annoying and this is really just not great

I thought they actually had it as good a defensive game plan as you can which is we're just gonna Load everything towards shay and make him pass the ball and make him take tough shots and he took tough shots

“I think he was one was five of eighteen or something good and”

Make the shooters who are okay shoot threes and like it was an okay Game plan like with with a good doro I think they could try to switch everything and stay out of rotation completely They're not a team that plays a lot of zone. I don't they just don't have any answers and That's fine. It's they're the eight seed in their playing Oklahoma city. It's still a win of a season for them

Right like they made the playoffs which is something a lot of us didn't have and I think that's a that's a big win for them Yeah, I have no other notes other well my other notes would be jail and Williams looked awesome

The lineup I keep waiting for the thunder to use and maybe they just don't want to use it because they just have too many options is Shay Mitchell Coruso J. Dub

Chet And they had four of those five guys on the floor and different accommodations alive But obviously you have no Wallace no door. They have a plethora of options, but I'm just keep in my eye out And it's a little it played that lineup plays a little smaller with Mitchell and in in place of one of those guys But I just just something I'm waiting on but like whether they play one big two bigs

They just looked unbelievable all three other bigs are I mean Chet's gonna make all NBA heart and seems awesome big jail and Williams is awesome No notes. All right. Let's take one more break. We'll do a little news All right big coaching news this morning Billy Donovan is stepping down as the bulls had coach the bulls announced it today

“He had at least one more year left on his deal. I think Sean's reported that it was an option that he's turning down”

This is really interesting because I don't know where he's gonna go I do know that coaches typically don't just walk away from money without money waiting for them on the other end I think Billy Donovan's a really good coach. I think he's his best quality has been his adaptability to all sorts of different rosters from Oklahoma City with Durant to Oklahoma City with three guards of

Shruter and Chris Paul and Shay back in the day to the bulls whatever the hell this is and now we just finally reached one where they're like

I just can't adapt to this whatever this is my adaptability powers have run out and I just think there's gonna be a lot of Interesting coaching dominoes coming Portland that job is is I think they're being disrespectful to Teago Twitter right now sniff it around all these coaches, but whatever Orlando is now up one oh people Coaching agents have been sort of waiting for that job to open we'll see Milwaukee is open

Dallas like the Jason kid stuff to see want to be there like what's gonna happen there Taylor Jenkins is the biggest I think most sought after name on the market he's already interviewed in Milwaukee according to the athletic Eric name had that yesterday Who's willing to wait around to see what jobs open up? I didn't really don't have been's a really good coach This didn't surprise me, but it just the dominoes starting to fall and where they fall and maybe he doesn't even want to Coaching the baby. Maybe we want to coach in college or with UNC stuff that jobs been fooled filled by Michael Malone

And now it's just full on reset I guess for the bulls who have Josh Giddy and Amatus Mouselas in a bunch of cap space and they have they have Portland's pick coming up in the straft along with their own pick and Noah Sengay who didn't play it all really this year with injury like okay well good luck to everybody in Chicago It's gonna be a long haul for you. I the situation in Chicago it's gonna be a young assisting up and coming assisting coach type situation open to find like some of that Charles Lee magic with that stuff

The roster doesn't have the same magic fit capable capabilities one name you forgot to mention to us

We don't know what's gonna happen with Steve Kerr and what yes, he's we're gonna talk about the words in a second

but yeah, he had you know pretty like emotional Good season yeah almost like a Even dream bond felt like it was a little bit of a good buy from the stuff I've read I have a wild conspiracy theory that I saw kind of floating around

Um, the rumor was that the lake of family is pretty close to the Florida coach because he used to coach at University of Florida University of San Francisco He gets the job and then Billy Dottovan goes back to Florida Well, that's interesting mo certainly

“The only thing is if Steve Kerr were to leave and Bill and I have been talking about this for I don't know five months now”

It's been obvious he didn't have a contracting sentient that this was in play You'd you'd have to imagine that and it's I do you really go bridge to the next year With a new college coach or do you're like well, Steph Kerr is still here Dream on green has a player option. He might still be here Jimmy Butler is recovering from a torn ACL He might still be here probably will still be here. Christophe's posing is we might be able to be sign him on the cheap because

He's not been available enough and it looks like he'd be a good fit with us. He might be here As long as Steph Kerr is there They're going to try to win and they're going to try to win with experience guys Like I expect them again to go all in for Janice If that fails I expect them again to call on coli Leonard

If that fails or maybe if it doesn't I expect them to try to get LeBron James and You can laugh at that all you want because they're not going to win a championship with those players

“I don't think they think they will I think their whole dream in golden state is”

Can we get to a point where it's two two in the second round us in San Antonio because San Antonio Oklahoma City

Are going to be so god damn good for so many more years that it's just not realistic that like yeah

They've got some cap issues obviously, but for the Warriors just like can we just catch lightning in a bottle and give the Steph era like a true not wearing the plan and we're scrounging to get up into the AC

But it true like hey, we won around like we have before like we did last year and we're it's two two in the second round against a powerhouse

“And we're just we're in it and I that's what I would expect and I don't know if you hire a college coach to do that”

But maybe you do have no I've no idea what's going to happen. I hope Steve car stays They seem to all hope Steve cars stays to yeah, I want Steve Curtis today I'm just a bite my antenna one up when the Billy don't have a news broke going like a seed because it was right after I had just saw The report it was from Kevin O'Connor talking about Todd golden the the coach of Florida and I just thought like oh well Maybe he's gonna go back home to Florida and maybe he knows something we don't ultimately I think curse days

I think this is too fun of an opportunity to finish it out with curry. I I actually had a conspiracy theorist in the I don't know let's say the agent ranks speculating with me a month or so ago that may be if Steve car actually stepped down That this is gonna blow you away that tibs would be the answer in golden state because he is a veteran when now coach He knows to be bothered really well as like that doesn't seem

Boy, what a change that would be from like we're playing music and practice we're all Lucy Goosey and here comes tibs I don't I don't see that when happening, but there's going to be a lot of dominoes to fall and I just would be surprised that Billy Donovan didn't have an inkling of something that was gonna come up And Taylor Jenkins is certainly gonna have his pickest stuff So we'll see

The other coaching news Jordy Fernanda has gotten an extension and so did his entire staff and Brooklyn and you know what

“Good job nets. That's what you do when you give a coach a shit situation”

Jordy Fernanda is probably never be over 500 in his entire career as long as he coaches because he had this

hung on him for two seasons and he's done well the next were two competitive for their own good last year They were on course three maybe two competitive for own good this year. So then start sitting veterans with fake injuries and playing all the young guys and all this None of their five first round picks will make an all rookie team this year be that as it may this is what you do you say here this is what you taught did with will hearty if we think you're good Here's job security and here's years of job security and the next thing that you do and this is what where the rubber always meets the

Is when the team actually gets good assuming it happens at some point you give this guy a chance to coach the good version of the team and not just hey Thanks for coaching these young guys up here comes a 65 year old who's won in the league before so good on the nets And can we talk one last bit of offseason news yes

“The team that I don't I think we said goodbye to a little too quickly is my amy”

I think just a really strange end to their season in a lot of different ways and a team that just if there was any sort of You know, hey, we've come out of the plane to make the finals to make long playoff runs before Maybe this team can do that. I mean that was wishful thinking to begin with now even the most cock eyed optimist has to just understand This is just who we are this is what the Tyler hero Bamm out of bio and an okay supporting cast team is and yeah

We've got some upside like hello where I'm behind on callout where the consensus I the hot guys had a great year You might win six man in the year. Yeah, could you honest the young point guard? I think looks like he's gonna be a good player But like there's just this team is not there's no finals upside anywhere on this team and I think this is to come to Jesus moment for the heat to know that I also was shocked That they just gave up playing hero and power together completely

One made the all-star team this year one is a franchise mainstay who made the all-star team last year I just I understand the defensive limitations the overlap in skills to some degree I don't they'd actually don't play very similar on offense at all but whatever To just decide we can't play them together for six minutes a game When they're two of the foremost talented players on your team is really shocking to me and

hints at just something under the hood there wasn't right I would beat I don't think both of those guys are gonna be on the team next year I think there's a chance that neither of them are on the team next year and all of this is to say the way that ended for my amy I just wonder this is a team that missed on damn that missed on Durant and that is so far missed on Janice

They have up to four first round picks a trader. They can get four first round picks a trade with some finagling of protections and all that

I just wonder if this is the year Pat Riley is like we're just doing it guys like we're throwing everything

I'm tired of being mediocre and at least

Janice makes us interesting the question I would have for them is like let's just say they trade there's a world where they can trade hero where Maybe they have to put in haka's maybe not all the picks all the swaps for Janice and then they use bird rights to re-sign Powell so they keep

Wiggins and Powell. So I've got Wiggins, Powell, Bam, Davian, Mitchell, Janice, Yachtachonis is still around, Yovitch, who again like talk about strange things we extend it for 16 million dollars a year. We don't play them at all. Like that's a pretty good team. There's also world in which you lose Wiggins and Hero and Powell somewhere along the way to free agency Powell's a free agent. You got to trade one or both whatever happens and you're left with a team

that's like bam and Janice which is not an awesome fit like talent can beat fit but the side great fit

“you have to work at it and not quite enough else to make you think like yeah we can beat”

Boston and you know Detroit and Cleveland. I will say the east is maybe a little bit more is definitely a little bit more in flux than the west. Like if there's a conference where you're looking at the top and being like well maybe one of those teams makes a salary move you know the

Phillies never healthy is hard in a long-term fit for a little blah blah blah. It's the east versus

Oklahoma City in San Antonio in the west but I do think if you do that for Miami you risk having traded your entire medium-term future for a team that's good and certainly exciting and certainly will play Kate a fan base to Hungary for a superstar to actually get like for your to actually get a superstar but probably not good enough and also the superstar you trade anything for is 31 and injured all the time and about to sign a gigantic contract extension like that's a dangerous proposition

for Miami is exciting as it is and I wonder if there would ever be like a Pat Riley wants to do it because he's old and he's sick of this versus look we're actually kind of in a good spot asset wise right now we're re-couping our draft fix we know we know we're not good enough but can we just sort of keep making little moves and then instead of everything for Janice maybe we can like pick off a really good player I'm just making this up from the nicks it as part of a Janice trade

for them maybe we can pick off another disgruntled star who's a little bit younger maybe everything goes haywire in Houston and we can revisit Durant again for like a much cheaper price there's other things we can do maybe like Julius Randall or someone I'm just making a Nas Reed like somebody from Minnesota because they break up in certain ways like but I do find them to be a really even more so than golden state because I just I know what I'm pretty confident what golden

states going to do I find Miami the most fascinating maybe offseason team yeah I mean because they're at the crossroads and it's trying to figure out if we're going to throw everything in to get Janice and I agree with you like making that trade for Janice there's still not going to be a championship caliber team I still think they need a lot of work and everything that they would give up in the process to get Janice puts you in a bad position going forward and then

the massive contract that you're going to sign him to now you're just in a tough position I understand

“Pat wants to win right now with everything but I think ultimately you got to stay the course I think”

I would go along the route you're talking about let me see where I can pick and choose and start to find the right moves and and make the smart deals here at this point instead of just going for the big fish because they've chased a big fish hasn't worked out I don't even know if they would have well it wasn't but I guess it hasn't worked out because they haven't gotten any the one they did get was Jimmy Butler and they got it in such a sort of distressed and manipulated scenario

that they didn't have to give up much to get him and it's been hard that's a that's a very hard situation replicate as evidence by the fact that they haven't been able to replicate it yeah and I think that's the thing it's like when I say get in the big fish it's given up your entire asset covered to go get him and I think that's kind of the the problem where they're at whereas I'd want to see them stay the see if you can find a way to pick off trimmer fear or to

great you know or or just where can you start picking around the margins you're not ready enough your roster's not built enough where when I get this guy we're going to be a championship contender in the eastern conference you know Boston's still going to be Boston next year most likely

“you know Detroit who knows what happens but still up and coming team I think across the board”

with everything you have you're not ready to be a championship team that's an all-in-move

for a team that maybe gets you to the second round I mean what you have this is not what

a portion of heat fans are just they're just tired of this and they want to take a moonshot

and maybe they'd take the moonshot I don't know a couple other things need to be said number one

bill pitched the bam to Charlotte trade on Sunday I just don't think my amy is in that kind of headspace that's a full-on rebuild trade and it's trading a guy who they've been very up front about like this guy is what we represent and we're like he is heat culture he is us and looming over all of these decisions for every team are the lottery rules and if the lottery and when

are they going to be implemented are they actually going to take a vote next month to change

rules for the 2027 lottery if so if you're a team like my amy and you're in the middle the

“middle becomes profitable enough relative to tanking that I think you're okay if you're like”

just a good team that's tweaking on the fringes and you're definitely not going to bottom out if the odds are against it you don't want to do that anyway I think it makes you a little bit more likely to say well if our choices are bottom out moon shot or stick in the middle and try to tweak I think if though if you're confident the lottery odds are going to change I think it for my amy and some other teams it mitigates toward you know let's just say the quite me forget the

clippers they don't even control their picks but I so I think that is an interesting thing that's kind of hovering over all of these big picture decisions but yeah the heat that was a I mean Charlotte

“we said goodbye to them I think they're just in a great spot I don't expect much much significant”

action for them in either direction I think you let this marinade a little bit my amy is the one that's along with we mentioned Toronto golden state is is super interesting all right well we got three more playoff games tonight man I'm excited that's the best time of year man this is when we get like Zack I watch the Denver Minnesota game again right after the Denver Minnesota game like it was so exciting and fun to watch like I wanted to watch it again this is the fun time right

now it is it is the fun time it's just so much basketball just mainlining all the basketball

“multi-keel if you want to know what happened in the game listen to his podcast with Jared Dubin”

offside mo you're the best thank you for coming on buddy thank you for having all right that's it for today's episode of the Zack low show will be back on Thursday with more playoff banana basketball who knows what other offseason storylines will have emerged by

then thank you to mode to keel thank you as always to Mike Billy and Jonathan on production

thanks to you all for listening to and our watching the Zack low show we will see you again on Thursday buckle up the first round is in full swing 21 over in president select states for Kansas and affiliation with Kansas star casino or 18 and over in president and DC you can tuck your Wyoming gambling problem call 1 800 gambler or 1 800 my reset call 1 888 789 777 777 or visit ccpg.org/chat and Connecticut or is it md gambling help.org and Maryland hope is here visit gambling help line m8.org or call 800 327 505o

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