NBA Media Day, Translated: Kawhi, Luka, Giannis & The Luther Filter

Welcome To FRPC

So on today's podcast, we will be discussing and taking a page from the Key and Peel show, and we're gonna rebrand Luther and talk about Media Day. What could go wrong with that? Also, we are going to be discussing Jalen Doran and his curious case on his free agency, what's going on with it, what's the latest, and we take a peek behind the curtain with that. As well as we have ten storylines that we want to talk about in this particular podcast, and we are going to break them down and give you our thoughts on the teams and the individuals involved, and it is a time of that year where media day has come upon us, and we are close to actual games, preseason games, say least, but we are close to actual NBA basketball. I'm your host Vince. Welcome to Frontrunner Podcast Collective. Let's go. What's good everybody? Welcome to Frontrunner Podcast Collective. This is where we talk like friends, we argue like cousins, and still walk out smarter than we came in. I am Vince, I am your host, your occasional hoops therapist, your absolute favorite bad influence when it comes to completely reckless NBA overreactions that low-key make perfect sense, and we are set in the table. We get into the film room, you know how we do it. We have grown conversations about players, coaches, front offices, and the actual moving of the blank checks, the contracts, and the rock, the locker room rumors that the PR spin, you know, continues to go round and round. You know, I live in the city where the clickers play, so you know what that spin is like. We are also going to go ahead and bring the jokes. We're gonna bring the advanced math and the exact barbershop ammo you need to take straight back to your group chat and completely nuke the argument. If you're an MVA sicko like myself, who wants more than just highlight talk, you want something with some context, numbers, and a point of view, you have found the right spot. This is FRPC, and let's go.

Why Media Day Feels Fake

So the first thing that we're gonna talk about today, and I thought we'd put a different spin on it. NBA Media Day is one of the weirdest and coolest things on the face of the planet because if you are if you ever been, sorry about that, I hit the mute button for a second. I am rusty, give me a second. But if you've ever been to or had the pleasure or the opportunity to go to one of these, is that it's it's a it's a car wash, basically. You got a bunch of media there from different like local locations. You might have the NBA TV there, you might have ESPN there, whatever the case may be, right? And you know, you have your basic like interview session, then you go to all the affiliates, you know. So here in Los Angeles, you go to Sports Spectrum LA, talk to basically who do the pregame show there, you would talk to ESPN Los Angeles 710, you talk to what is it, 570 has their own deal. Um, and you know, if you know, if you're big enough, you know, since we got Luca, ESPN will be there and and what have you. So it's a complete car wash. The other thing that goes along with this is they have the media session, and they get about eight to twelve questions, depending on how the uh you know how long people are gonna talk, and you kind of get those questions out there. Hopefully somebody asks more general general questions to the superstars, and then you know, you go from there. So, what we thought we would do with this concept is that if you ever watch the Key and Peel show, um they had a uh a sketch where Obama was the president at the point in time, and they would have Luther who would end up being his uh his inner thoughts. So Obama would say something very PC, and then Luther would come out and with energy, just bring heat and bring all kinds of chaos that would go along with it. So that is how we're going to look at Media Day. We took the top 20 quotes, we have a couple honorable mentions that we need to get into, and the energy that we're going to be bringing today is that. So, because here's the thing every single guy who is sat behind the table today gave you some safe answers, the PR-approved answers, you know, the PR the PR person was standing like right there. Again, we are going to go through the lens of Luther and go from there. So buckle up, it's gonna be fun. I can't wait to get into it, and let's go here.

Clippers Punishment And Immediate Bad Luck

We're just gonna start with one of the biggest stories in the offseason, and that was the Los Angeles Clippers and going through their uh punishment through the commissioner's office, and so the one thing that we're gonna first talk about is the amount of picks in what have you for the CAP circumvention uh investigation over Kawhi Leonard. The deal strips the clickers of five first-round picks. You guys all know about this from 2029 to 2033. The fine of the team, well, actually, fine of Steve Walmer was $30 million. They suspend him for a year. They also ship Kawhi off to Toronto for Brandon Ingram, who was the centerpiece of that particular deal, along with two first-round picks coming back to the Clippers. What did we find out on Media Day, folks? This is just pure Clipper Chaos wrapped up in a nutshell. Brandon Ingram has a partially torn Achilles. He will not be starting the season playing basketball for the Los Angeles Clippers. We can't make this stuff up, man. We just we really can't. So here's Lawrence Frank talking about the er actually here is their person that was talking about what what was going on, and we'll we'll get into it. We're in glad we're glad that the investigation, we welcomed it, what have you. Um This is when they thought they were going to be free and clear. Because remember, this investigation broke last year, around this time. Lawrence Frank said, We are glad that the investigation, we welcome it, we expect the investigation will show these allegations are wrong. And what he actually meant is this is Lauren Frank. Confident we're betting against the outcome, he did not get get it. He did not get what he wanted. Because the five first round picks are very punitive, it was very costly, and it also cost you in a sense that this team is older. Now you got rid of Kawhi Leonard, you you know, you also have traded for um Waggler through the Zubosh trade. So you're getting younger, but you still have to win games because if I'm not mistaken, the 2027 belongs to OKC. So that's great. This is what my guy T. Lou had to say. My loyalty to him is to the end. So this is Ty Lu talking about Steve Walmer. Now, what he actually meant by that is I'm being paid a great deal of money to say something admirable right now. I also generally mean it, both these things can be true at the same time, but this shit is exhausting. Right. He goes on to say, it's been this is his statement, it's been difficult, but I give our players a lot of credit. The leadership is great, the morale is great, and even those these tough situations. Oh man, he put a great face on what he actually meant was this we lost five first-round draft picks, man. Our franchise player and half our depth are injured, and I'm contractually obligated to sound optimistic because we haven't even tipped off a preseason game yet. Now, the face of the franchise at this point in time is Trent Redden. He is the interim president of basketball operations taking over for Launch Frank. He says, our fans deserve to hear from us before this, and we and for that, we're sorry. What he actually meant is Legal wrote this sentence, and I'm reading it as it was written. Cause there's nothing to say. You lost five first-round draft picks. The second statement that he made was the franchise often has done its best to work with uh work its way. Actually, let me read that again. The franchise has often done its best work with its back against the wall. Nobody works that way. Nobody works that way. What he actually meant is I need you to believe the five-pick penalty and the ownership suspension as our origin story and not just an absolute unmitigated disaster. Now, the person that we definitely wanted to hear from was our guy Brandon Ingram, who's coming back to Los Angeles. Remember, Brandon Ingram was the second overall pick for the Los Angeles Lakers. Remember when we had all the baby Lakers? Brandon was one of those cats, so he's back in the la la now. So this is what Brandon Ingram said when he hit the podium. He said, I know there is little to no expectations for us this year. We have enough in this building to compete. And what he actually meant was, I have a partially torn Achilles man. I haven't played a single game for this team yet, and I'm still showing up to defend a locker room that got handed a got handed to me mid-collapse. Now the guy who will actually be on court is well, we don't know how long he's gonna be on the court because Darren Gar Darius Garland has had his injury history as well. So it's worth double-checking his exact arrival before airing this one. Roster movement, he here has been dizzying. I think we are able to surprise a lot of people. I think I believe in this team. What he actually meant was look, man, it's gonna be tough. It's gonna be real tough out there in these streets. You know we're the second franchise in Los Angeles, we're kind of where the Chargers are, but in the basketball capacity, and we're just trying to carve out our little niche in Los Angeles at this point in time. Listen, the Clippers, we told you several, several times, and people can look at this as Laker love and Clipper hate if they want to, but the Clippers are the Brooklyn Nets to the New York Knicks here in Los Angeles. It has always been that way, it will continue to be that way, and you know that's all there is to it. I never understood why the Clippers built their arena in Englewood. Um I know that it's the second largest media market, and that definitely has something to do with it, but as far as gaining traction against the Lakers, I just don't see it. I don't see it at all. And we're gonna watch this team kind of ebb and flow through these rough waters as this season unfolds. Now, to a little bit more of a happier time, we're gonna kind of do a couple honorable mentions. My

Lakers Honorable Mentions And Role Talk

guy, of course, the Lakers, you know how I get it done. Austin Reed said this. I'm not going to lead the same way Braun does. I'm not going to lead the same way Luca does. You have to be true to yourself and do what's comfortable for you. What he actually meant right there is LeBron is gone. Lucas the guy now, and I am very carefully explaining that I know my role without ever saying the words, I know my role. And also, we are extremely white as a starting unit. This is true, Austin. You guys are very close to being very MAGA out here. Very MAGA. My guy Walker Kessler, the new center for the Los Angeles Lakers, he said this in his media availability through on Media Day. He says, If I know they have that belief in me, I'm going to run through a brick wall for them. What he actually meant was that, is that I got traded out of a rebuild situation in Utah where I couldn't get no burn because every time we started doing winning like one or two games, they would go ahead and put me on the shelf. Also, the Lakers paid me a boatload of money. I am the highest paid center that hasn't made an all-star game. And I'm going to do everything I can to ingratiate myself to Luka Doncic and Austin Reeves, who will be feeding me my lobs. So if I have to set hard screens, that's what I'm going to do. Because I am a corn fed white boy, strong from the south. I eat biscuits with gravy, you know, talking about chicken fry steaks and all that type of stuff. So, Walker Kessler is ready to run through a break wall for Luca. That's very good. Now, we'll get to now our top 20 things that people said in Media Day. And

Top Media Day Quotes Reimagined

we are going to start off with the reigning MVP of the National Basketball Association, and that is Shea Gilges Alexander. And what my man said about the start of the season, he said, It's the business of the NBA, right? It sucks a little, but yeah, it is what it is. What he actually meant by that statement, I'm doing my best corporate speak impression right now because I actually feel about how I feel about losing my guys is not printable at this point in time. And somebody tell me who exactly replaces Lou Dort for me as my watchdog. Lou Dort, the physical enforcer, who currently resides in Atlanta. So good luck to my guy, Shea Gilges Alexander. We move on to Zion Williamson. In his immediate availability, he had this gem to say. Okay, so what he actually meant by that, y'all motherfuckers keep asking me about my weight, my commitment to staying healthy, and I'm walking out of this bleep for real for real. I'm sure he is very tired of hearing about his weight, his conditioning, and what have you. Now I will say that his his uh supposedly his weight is very good. They, you know, you know, they put the general managers and coaches up there um beforehand, and then you know, he gets up there and says what he says. Oh, wow, I can't believe it. We get to talk about Damian Lillard now of the Trailblazers, he is the returning son, so I I can't wait to see what he had to say in his media availability. He says, I feel so happy inside, and what he actually meant is getting traded away from here broke something in me. And I am one good practice away from actually crying about this situation. At least I'm healthy now, and I won't have to fight Denny Abdia to set a ball screen for me. Yo, I bet you he is real happy about that. Now, Giannis is not in Milwaukee anymore, but um, and remember Dame missed the whole year last year with an Achilles injury, so the last time he played was in Milwaukee, and he didn't have to go through that debacle that was last year in Milwaukee, which is great. But I am sure he is super excited about being in Portland, being some somewhere where he is truly comfortable and beloved there in the city of Portland. Now, only if their cheap ass owner could go ahead and uh pony up for the new stadium, or new arena, I should say, shouldn't say stadium, that's a football situation, new arena in Portland. Supposedly the motor center is run down, not not the case, but I understand you want the new fangled arena with all the accruants of everything. I get it, but uh Tom Condon needs to check himself a little bit. I mean, yo, you're not only cheap, like at this point, you're bordering on like you're a charlatan a little bit. I can only say that because you know, I'm not you know, I'm not real NBA media. I'm here to entertain y'all. Speaking of entertainment, James Harden had to say this in his media availability in Cleveland. I'm coming into my 18th year, don't have pride, I just want to win. What he actually meant is I'm getting too old for this. Asking about my playoff performances, failures, y'all heard what Atkinson said about analytics last last year in the playoffs.

Whew.

Remember when Akis Kenny Atkinson opened up his mouth and said that their uh their expected field goal percentage was really good, and basically they should have won the series because of their expected field goal percentage. Listen, I like using analytics here, but y'all know me, I'm old as far as that's concerned, and I will tell you this. There's a difference between using analytics and then living by analytics. And what Kenny Atkinson said last year as the Cleveland Cavaliers were about to get folded up and packed up away for the offseason was absolute I never thought I'd hear something like that from a coach. Never thought I'd hear something like that from a coach. But you live long enough, you see a lot of things, folks. You just see a lot. Speaking of seeing a lot of things, our boy Kay Cunningham is going through it. So obviously, you know what the topic of the day was, and we're gonna get more into it as we go along in this podcast. But Kay Cunningham said this about Jalen Dorn. He is still, that's still my brother. We're looking forward to welcoming him back with open arms. And what he what K Cunningham actually meant was bro, please just sign something. My own extension conversation is right behind right behind yours, and I don't need this energy in the building. Get your ass to camp. Respectfully, Kay Cunningham. I know that situation has just been frustrating, and I know they dreaded that day. Now, Jalen Dorton could not be in the building during media availability because of the fact that he wasn't signed. So technically, he's not on the Detroit Pistons, even though he's a restricted free agent. Our guy Victor Winbayama spun this one in San Antonio. I couldn't imagine better motivation. Speaking of the NBA finals that he lost last summer. What he actually meant in that statement is I haven't slept since the finals loss. I canceled all my Buddhist monk training for revenge on the entire NBA. And I want to tell everybody no one is safe. Shouts out to uh 946 WWE style. What's up, baby? What's up uh to my guys out there getting it done. If y'all saw Raw last night, Jada Carker is up in the big leagues, and we are better for it. Miss Carker is in the building. Hey, you know what? I did not have on my bingo card this summer Ben Simmons actually being on a basketball team. That's what I did not have on my bingo card when it came to what NBA media availability was going to be like. But this is what Ben Simmons had to say. To dominate. Every time I step on the floor to dominate, what he actually meant was, I know what you all say about me. I know. This is the sentence I am contractually required to say every media day now. I am going to keep saying it until it is embedded into your head. Will I shoot more than five shots a game? Probably not. Will they do Hacker Simmons on me? They probably will. Did I work on my game rigorously since I've been out of the league? No, I did not. But Hope Springs Eternal, because it is media day and the start to a new season is coming. You imagine Ben Simmons out here telling people that everything is peaches of cream, and we all know that this dude who is 6'10, 250 pounds, he's a brilliant ball handler and also an absolute wizard with passes, but can't shoot a lick, doesn't want to shoot, and has had the yips for years now. One of my favorite quotes of the day, even though it's it's now number 13 on our list, was said by Balal Kulabale of the Washington Wizards. Now, if you know, you know, right? The Wizards have gone gone through a uh a just a metamorphos, right? You got Anthony Davis on the team. You also have Trey Young who signed a new contract, and they have the number one overall draft pick, AJ DeBonsta, in the building, and we are ex we are so excited to see what Washington is going to look like. For the first time in a long time, Chocolate City is going to be hella lit. Hella lit. So this is what my guy Balagali had to say during his media uh session. When I get my championship ring, I'm gonna talk crazy. What he actually meant by that was no one is taking us seriously for a decade. And I'm gonna act a fool when we clinch a playoff berth. They thought Patrick Beverly was bad standing on the table for a play-in. Just wait. Just wait and see how I act when we go to the playoffs. I know my man did not say that he was gonna go ahead and act a fool when he gets to the championship round, and when he gets his championship ring. My man is claiming titles. Trey Young hasn't even stepped on the floor. By the way, is Kalal Kulubale gonna even start? I mean, that is a real question. With Kayontay George there, uh Trey Jones, and now AJ Dubanster. Where where is he gonna where is he gonna play? You're gonna play this bench role. That's what you're gonna play. You're gonna be a defensive bench wing. You're gonna provide depth to the Washington Wizards, Bilal. And it couldn't come at a worse time for Bilal Kulubale. And what I mean by that is that guess what? It is contract extension season. And no contract insight yet. So good luck to our guy. Dra Draymond Green chimes in at number 12 for the Warriors. I can't believe this. So this is gonna be great. He was speaking about the rookie that they got in the draft, um, Luxembourg. So Gaxel, as we like to call him, he's really good. I actually hate to say it. Michigat Michigan guys usually aren't that good. Draymond, you still doing it. So what he actually meant was That's me complimenting and insulting that that man all in the same sentence. Which is only s is which is only setting I have. Plus, I'll conch a Wolverine when they talk trash. See Jordan Poole. I can't wait. I can't wait till Draymond acts a fool. Cause he is he's due for a combustion this year. He kept it pretty much under wraps last year, so I don't know if with old age he's starting to mellow, or they told him he had to be on his best behavior. But you know what can all all cause this dude to turn into a grade A class clown again? Watch Yaxo Luxemburg Luxembourg take some of his time because he is a quicker defender than Draymond. He might not have the experience, he definitely can block more shots than Draymond, and he is a connector, so basically he's a bigger version of Draymond Green. Can't wait to see it. That might be the only thing that Golden State has going for him this year. That and seeing Steph try to get 30 every single night. Because that team is is is ass right now, unfortunately. What he actually said was Atlanta wanted a different version of me, and that was for four straight years. Washington can have the original, and I am still shooting logo threes whenever I want. So Trey is still gonna have really bad shot selection in the DMV. It is going to be pretty epic, I must say, but there will be some lobs. He got some horses on that team, and we'll see how it all plays out. I don't I don't know what to expect from the Wizards, but I am I just cannot wait to see it. From one wizard to another wizard trying to go coming in at 10, Anthony Davis had this to say says, I will have a Washington Wizards uniform on, and I will go out there and I will do everything I can to win basketball, to win a basketball game. And what he actually meant by that was don't even try to put me at center, I don't want to play it, and also to the brass in the front office, I want my money. Every word of that sentence uh was picked up by the PR team, and not one of them was mine, not one, not one of these, but I want my money, and we'll see how many games I play. I went through it for years with Anthony Davis. For some reason, uh the jump shot left after the bubble, and he just refused to want to play center until he absolutely had to. Coming in at number nine, Steph Curry signing his uh new extension for two years and 116 million. This is what he had to say. He said this is home, being able to finish the story the right way is a big part of what I think I can control. What he asked the man is do y'all n do y'all know how many tech billionaires live out here? Also, I can't unleash Draymond to another city. It's for public safety that I stay here. This is true. This is a true statement. Steph, I listen, it's gotta be hard for my man who is a competitive as all get out. I know he smiles real big and he's so gracious with his time and and and what have you, but this must suck that he's not really relevant when it comes to contendership talk, and he sees some of his um his peers like KD and LeBron play games that matter, even James Harden playing games that matter must be tough for my guy. Now, the Trailblazers also made a bunch of changes, and to tell you the truth, I still don't understand it. They got a lot of guards on that team, so but John Morant came in hot. He says, Somebody asked him about Memphis or what have you, and leaving it. He said, That's my family. Meaning Memphis. What he actually meant was that's where I got to live out my dream of being gangster. Popping bottles. I got a lot of love for Memphis. Let me do what I want to do there. Got to do whatever I wanted. Keep a super gangster, be real 110% of the time. I don't know how much trouble my man can get in in Portland, but we are going to see. There's a story about him riding his bike to the training facility when he m when he first got out there, so I can't wait to see what's what's gonna happen. You know, what is gonna happen. Kyrie comes in at number seven. He talks about his injury here. He says, My injury was what was probably for the best, was the best thing that ever happened to me with the action man is I needed the universe to sit me down for a minute, and now I have been blessed with the white LeBron, aka Cooper Flag. Speaking of white, you can't get much wider than TJ McConnell. He checks in with number six, and this is what he had to say. He said, from finals to one of the worst seasons in Pacers history, that's a quick drop. And what he meant by that was this I'm just saying, I'm just saying the quiet car out loud. We ain't shit without Tyrese Halliburton, and honestly, I can go back to my try-hard role immediately, and I am grateful. Because now y'all can expect hustle and be excited about my hustle while Tyrese leads the ship. That's what he was trying to say. Nikola Jokic comes in at number five, and listen, Nikola Jokic loves Media Day, absolutely loves it, loves it more than anything else on this planet. And this is what he had to say. I'm going to sign next year if they want me. And what he meant by that was I'm enjoying every single second of this leverage that I have. Also, I am here because I don't want to be fine. Because I do not like talking to you guys. I would rather be playing with horses, I would rather be chilling, I would rather be at home, and when I mean home, I'm not talking about my suburb home in Denver. I'm talking about uh being in Serbia, bro. That's what I'm talking about. Jokic during Media Day is like um Donald Trump on the witness stand or like in a s in a Senate committee where they're asking him questions. He's just like, I plead the fifth, bro. I'm not I'm not answering none of these questions. I'm the president of the United States. I'll answer to you. I'll answer to any of y'all. Why am I here? You know what I'm saying? I can see it right now. Just Jokic is up there, PR person says, hey, Nicole, it's time to go up for a media day. Give me a second, let me take a quick sip of water. And Jokic like a three-year-old kid goes, Do I have to? Acting like a kid that don't want to take a nap. It's just shit, do I really have to talk to these people? Number four is our guy Jalen Brown, who is now a 76er, and he is uh with a cavalcade of stars over there. And this is they were at they asked him about um being in Philadelphia and having all of these great players around him. So he was asked Point Blank uh about who the alpha was, and his his comment was this. No comment. That was his comment. He said, like, you know, I mean what is he gonna say? Our our roster is stacked. I thought I was coming here to be the man. Now I got LeBron, I got Joel and B who lost a ton of weight, Tyrese Maxie is young, but just a bucket. And then there's VJ Edgecomb. Brown's entire response was just next question. You know, just next question. There's no translation needed on that one. Luther had to retire when when he said that. Because he was just like, nah, dog, I I gotta be here. Like, I was literally the second option in Boston. Now I I have no idea what option I am. With all due respect, I think Jalen Brown, uh, all can decide. I think Jalen Brown will probably be the number one option in Philadelphia. Maxie will probably fall to like the number two role. What would be actually very interesting is will LeBron take a more of a um a facilitator role in Philadelphia? And is that the best use of LeBron? Because with VJ Edcombe, Tyrese Maxie, and Jalen Brown, I wonder if those guys want to get up and down the court. Now, LeBron is one of those guys that he does throw the thr the throw-ahead pass very well. So if you're out, if you leak out on the break, you know, you might get hit with one of be blessed with one of these passes. But LeBron also likes that that real half-court, slow it down, let's dissect the defense type of mentality now. And I don't blame him. Dude's 42 years old. I probably wouldn't want to be running up and down the court all the damn time either at 42. I'm 54 now, and I'm in no condition to be running up and down the court. Need to get my fat ass in the gym. That's what I need to do. And I will be doing that. Alright. Two number three. Giannis Ante Tacumpo with the heat now, and this is what he had to say during his uh media availability. He said, Yes, if not the best, I am one of the best players in the world. And what he actually meant, hey Miami, y'all rocking with the best to ever do it. You know what I'm saying? We are out here. Y'all haven't had anybody like me since LeBron. Okay? It was cute when you had Jimmy, and y'all were like the the little up-and-coming team, but I am Giannis Anti Tacumpo. I scored 51 points in a closeout game. Don't test me. Don't try me. And Bam Alabio would not be scoring 83 points ever again with me on this roster. For sure. Coming in at number two is our guy. Uh Kawhi Leonard. This is what he had to say. I think the best decision is to move forward and to focus my time on being a Toronto Raptor. And what he actually meant was, I'd rather run through a low management again for the rest of my career than to answer one more question about aspiration or Steve Balmer's finances. I got paid, uh, Dennis Robertson got paid, Uncle Dennis got paid. We all made money. I will take my little $70,000 fine and walk away clean from this situation. For sure. You don't have to listen. Don't be patting my pockets. Okay? Don't be patting my pockets at all. This is a G thing. This ain't a we thing. And finally, I leave the best for last. Luca Donc just got up on the media availability and said this. Realistically, I would say championship because if you're if if that's not the goal, I don't know what you're doing here. And what he actually meant by that is shit. LeBron is gone. I can finally take my place as the rightful leader of the Los Angeles Lakers. And we can get serious about building around a 35-point a game scorer. Oh, wait. That's me. Check my resume, fool. Luka Doncic during his media availability. And those were some of the gems that were dropped during our uh whip around media availability.

Jalen Duren Contract Standoff

Speaking of somebody who couldn't come to media availability, and that is Jalen Doran. So we're gonna kind of go through what he is going through right now, and we'll do it with this. Obviously, Jalen Dorn is still unsigned at this present moment. Now, I haven't checked my phone lately. Let me see. Let me make sure where I get over here. Nope. He's still not signed. So best of luck. I'm sure by the time we do another podcast, which will be Friday, hopefully we'll have some news. But uh right now, it's still they're still have have at an impasse. So we'll see. But we're gonna go through what we think he's worth. We'll tell you all the little breakdowns and what has been going on, and we will give you what we think should happen. Detroit has already paid one of their young cornerstones this offseason. As Thompson got his money first, and now the front office turns to their other half of that timeline, and that is Jalen Dorn. Now, a contract number of 200 million plus range, we're using our anonymous front office sources to kind of give you what they think he's worth, and do you want to give your money to a pretty limited big? And let me explain that. We'll explain that through the entirety of the segment. Listen, very day Jalen Dorn is very good. But is he max caliber money? Doran has a double-double resume and the highlight finishes that he makes. He usually ends up on Sports Center's top 10. The surface level case is easy. We're going deeper than the surface. We're finishing versus creating and the defensive numbers that are good but not great. And the 14-game 2025-2026 playoff sample that nobody wants to bring up in this negotiation when it comes to the Jalen Duran side. Then we flip it and show exactly how a front office sells this deal internally because the case you build for the fan base is never the same case you build for the front office and the boardroom. So let's get into it. Jalen Doran, there's no question. Dude is a beast, a double-double machine, and one of the most efficient high-volume finishers at the rim in the league. His true shooting percentage is well above positional average. That is 100% true. Set the stakes up front. Detroit already committed to Osur Thompson this offseason. Dorn is the second half of that situation of that young core that includes also Kay Cunningham. And he is searching for as close to the max as possible. Now, at the latest report, when we think about Jalen Dorn and what he wants as far as or what Detroit has offered him. Now they started off a little bit low. There are reports that they're getting closer and closer to that $200 million range for five years, and there's still been no movement when it comes to those two sides getting close to a deal. The elite one side test, let's get here. That's kind of hard if you if you're trying to pay that dude like close to max money. Now, his uh three-point attempt rate is point zero zero zero. Uh he had a career high of 53.5% free throw rate from crashing the glass and finishing roles and an assist rate of just 11%. Most of his offense is off live ball opportunities and gravity from Kay Cunningham. No shots he's creating for himself whatsoever. When the playoffs slowed the game down, this is where he falls way below. He actually shrank to 23.6% to 16.7% when you talk about his usage. And then his turnover rate nearly doubled. He went from 11.6% to 19.8% going from regular season to playoffs. Now he's a good defender, he's super athletic, but he's not a great defender. He only has a 3% block rate and a modest uh 0.5 defensive box plus minus. He's a solid defensive rebounding person, which he is at 26.4% as a define defensive rebounding percentage, and he has real switchability, but not defensive player of the year level. He finished 11th in the voting. Detroit defensively jump is a scheme uh and a roster story, much like Jalen Duran's story. The verdict on him is this. He clears the bar but barely. A max player on paper, but he's slightly below a max player in my honest gut read. And this came from a uh Eastern Conference uh scout when it comes to this. It's really hard to give somebody who can't create his own offense and he doesn't have one elite skill. You know what I mean? You know what I mean? It it just it's really hard to do this. And I'm listening I'm not saying hey, trade him for Nick Claxton, and you gate basically got the same thing. Let's not disrespect Jalen Brunson at I mean Jalen Brunson. I have New York Knicks on the mind, obviously. He hosted Saturday Night Live, by the way. But Jalen Doran is a very good player and he's still incredibly young. Could he grow into this position? 100%. But could you do you see enough growth in him to think that he we have some sort of self-creation when it comes to his his own offense? Or do you think there's a monumental leap on the defensive side where he will be able to be a top four, top three type of player when we talk about defensive player of the year? Keep in mind now listen, nobody is Wingbayama. Okay, I'm not even listening. Wimby is an alien. We're gonna take him out of the equation. But what makes Jalen Dorn not be Evan Mobley? Right? I mean, Rudy Gobert is a better defensive player than Jalen Dorn. And he's not nearly as athletic, he's not nearly as fast or quick, but his his anticipation, his his ability to kind of scheme out what the offense is trying to do, puts himself in the right positions most of the time, and he's just been a defensive star war for the Utah Jazz and now also for the Minnesota Timberwolves. And this is not Jalen Doran. So if you tell me there's an elite skill, I'll be more than happy to sit here and say, hey, yo, you can get all this money. But here's the other thing. Here's the uncomfortable data. Because it's cool to be able to put up good numbers in a in a regular season, but let's get to these playoff numbers real quick. Because these are the eye-opening numbers. The uncomfortable data point everybody avoids is the 14 playoff games that he played last year. And the numbers that cratered across the board were this.553. I don't really like this uh this advanced metric, but his PER went from 26.1 to 13.8. His overall box plus minus went from a plus five to a negative 1.7. And again, we talked about the turnover rate, so we don't need to get into that again. And against physical postseason coverage, he got hunted more in space than regular season defensive numbers suggest. Not disqualifying on its own, but plenty of young bigs have a rough uh playoff situation. But remember, even though the sample size is a little bit smaller, the year before he didn't have that great of a playoffs uh series at all. When they got bounced in the first round, guess Knicks. So, again, that's what you're paying him for. You're paying him for the opportunity to be able to contend. You would pay him $40 million because like you expect he and Kay Cunningham and Asor Thompson to get you late deep into playoff runs that would eventually land you in the NBA finals, that then will land you the Larry O'Brien trophy. You pay Jalen Dorn $40 million plus for a Larry O'Brien. You do not pay him for regular season stats, you do not pay him for a positive five positive 5.0 box plus minus, which by the way, not elite. Still not elite. When we talk about elite box plus minuses, we're talking about over nine. Over nine. Like Luca and uh Nicole Jokic are like 12. Shea Gilges Alexander, 12. Those are MVP type dudes. And listen, I'm not saying that Jalen Duran has to be an MVP. Kay Cunningham is the number one option. But what I do want to say is this is that his all NBA status has a lot to do with who did not make it because of the 65 game um plateau that some people had didn't reach last year. So Jalen Doran was an all-NBA player on paper, but he's probably still in that I would say anywhere between 27 to 35 as far as where he really is in the NBA as far as NBA players are concerned. To be all NBA, you have to be one of the top 15 players in in the league. And I don't see Jalen Doran as that. Now, comps and leverage. You refrain, you reframe the sort uh deal from and we already skipped money to the market already told us uh that the the this is part of the core that's worth paying. Doran is definitely a second domino, not a surprise. You know, we just laid out the the reasons why. Restricted free agency is a risk, way too long, and Detroit is negotiating against the offer sheet. Well, we're at the point now where we're negotiating negotiating against the qualifying offer. Because that's what's coming down the pike on the first of October. I just don't see you offering him anything close to 287 million. Our sources are saying that that his uh camp is looking for 205 to 215 million dollars on a five-year deal. The cheapest version of Jalen Dorne we will ever have to buy is that that's a lot of money. So where do I come down on this? Is this Jalen Dorn worth a significant pay raise? Yes. Is he young enough to think that there is something more inside of him? Yes. Would I want to pay Jalen Dorn over 35 million? No. Again, we talked about the numbers. We talked about what his numbers go from regular season to postseason. And then we also talked about the skill level and what we're going up against. And this is a tough situation. I just can't see giving him that kind of money. Now we're gonna take you around the league.

Ten Storylines Around The League

Um the Athletic did something where they kind of said 30 teams, what we're most excited about, and we took the top ten of that and we put it into the mix, and let's go ahead and get into that. So we're not doing a deep dive. What we're doing is kind of like giving you broad strokes of what's gonna be happening in the league and some of the things, storylines to look at up front, and when we get into the preseason and when we get into the early parts of the regular season. And we're gonna start in Philadelphia. Uh Joe Owen Bede's best ever roster that includes LeBron James, who signed for the veteran minimum, and they also traded for Jalen Brown. Uh now share a locker room with him. Not to in not to exclude our guy Tyrese Maxie and also VJ Edgecomb. So, listen, I'm not gonna glaze this this squad. All right, we are not glazing. The internet has already done the glazing for us about this is one of the best rosters and blah blah blah. My read on this basically is this to me, this is like putting some of the top streamers in a house together as some sort of multi-level collab situation, and then the numbers spike just from the announcement before a single frame drops. LeBron loading into a new season with Embiid is a full internet meltdown before pregame layups lines even start, no doubt. But is it is it quality content or is it is it just just big name after big name after big name overload? Cause here's the thing: they have a ton to work out. What's the shot distribution on that team? What type of offense are they gonna run? Are they gonna be a slow down team for Embiid and LeBron? Or are they going to be, hey, let's get out and run with our horses, Jalen Brown, VJ Ezcombe, and Tyrese uh Maxie? These are questions that I have. Let's move along to Boston. Yo, Jason Tatum has to carry the flag solo dolo style after Brown's mesy, messy, messy, messy exit. No built-in co-star to lean on anymore. Uh Tatum, Tatum's uh Tom Holland season is upon us. It is loading. Internet fully in his corner, and does he catch Florence Pugh and Zach Brath level pylon? The first time the a possession goes sideways. Listen, it's either Tom Holland or Florence Pugh. Which one is it gonna be? The analytics darlings in Boston said that I thought this was completely disrespectful, said that Jalen Brown was like the seventh best person on his squad. That's crazy work. That is nasty work. But life without Brown starts soon, and Jason Tatum, who swears up and down that he is has a mango mentality. Well, we're about to find out. Cause we saw what the Celtics were last year without Tatum for most of it. Now we're gonna see what it's like to not have Jalen Brown there. And by the way, are they gonna cultivate a number two or are they gonna have to trade for a number two down the road? These are all questions. Paul George, supposedly Paul George in a supporting role, fits better next to Jason Tatum than the guy who was the actual NBA finals MVP in Jalen Brown. Now you can tell me that it was the money, you can tell me that it was the salary cap. You can tell me all those things. And I'm not gonna sit here and disagree with you, not at all. But what I am saying is that we're gonna find out a lot about Jason Tatum when this happens. My squad, the Lakers, we have now entered the post-Lebron era and it starts for real now. Luka Doncic and Austin Reeves inherit the offense and per the numbers basically all free throws all the time. Now, kind of chic, kind of chic to lead the league in free throws. Lucas stepping out of LeBron Shadow reads uh like Pedro Pascal's jump from Prestige TV to leading man in the movies. The co star era is over. This is The this is his squad now. This is his franchise. And we are going to see what Luca Donche is all about. Now it's not like the first time he led a franchise, but this is the first time he's leading the Lakers, and that's a completely different story. Okay. Miami Heat, obviously, Giannis Antecumpo is a Heat. They traded 14,000 players for him in some draft picks. So he is the superstar swing. He's a superstar swing Miami's been chasing since the Butler split. And this is giving full euphoria energy. Glossy, chaotic, dialed up to 11. Impossible to look away from even when you're not sure if it's a good for anyone involved. Because that roster is still incomplete. If we if we have to be honest. Do they have enough shooting around Giannis and Bam? What does that look like? They gave up four real legit players in that deal, including Tyro ta Tyler Hero, uh Khalel Ware, Hami Haikes Jr. Could have been very useful to to uh to Miami at this point. But we shall see what this team is gonna look like and how they're gonna play. I have no doubts about what the defense is going to be. I just have a real problem with the offense and how much spacing there is. The the best duo that was put together during the offseason was Anthony Edwards and Lomelo Ball in Minnesota. They now share a backcourt, and the two of them online together might be the best content in the league that the league has produced in quite some time. Now, the the trending tag is 6'7, 6'7. This parent is a meme walking onto a court every single night. For sure. Ant is out here and Melo's out here unsupervised with the with the camera is appointment television. It's just gonna be great. Also, I don't know who's paying for it, but get LaMelo ball a driver in Minnesota. Listen, the roads are slick, there's a lot of snow on the ground. Come, you know, December, January, and February. He don't need to be out here in Lamborghinis trying to go 162 miles per hour on the streets of uh Minneapolis. Listen, let that not happen. I can't wait till a post-game interview with uh Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball. I can't wait. Can't wait till they're on a podium and then then the questions start from the uh media. And those two out there just the vibes are gonna be immaculate early, bro. I'm gonna tell you right now. It's gonna be great. We move along to San Antonio, the Spurs, a healthy Victor Wing Bayama, fresh off a finals run, chasing the MVP conversation instead. Um just a highlight real the best revenge season of the last five years for comparison. Simone Biles in 2024, Paris Olympics, redemption tour, the biggest, most covered cheese back and better social art of the decade. Four years removed from the Tokyo withdrawal. That this is gonna be this situation with Wingby is gonna be top tier because I'm gonna tell you right now, it hurt his soul to lose those finals. It hurt his soul. That dude was out here probably singing like early 90s RB songs for sure. Okay, there was a lot of um Tony Tony Terry songs, there was a lot of Tony Rich uh songs out here, there was probably some some Johnny Gill. There was some Keith Sweat songs out here. My man was in his feelings for sure. He might have even gone emo for a little while. He probably even listened to the cure. He went through it during the offseason. That that loss in the finals and a couple of those losses were so debilitating. I'm sure he had a lot of restless nights uh thinking about that in his uh villa in France, and now he's back in San Antonio, and that that revenge tour is on and popping. Let's get to our guys in Oklahoma City, Shea Gilgis Alexander, and a roster with something to prove after watching San Antonio just blow right past him, celebrate in their building. This is gonna be full on Doctor Doom in doomsday energy, quiet and controlled the whole time, and the league should be nervous about the moment this team actually decides to speak. Yo. Uh they got some work to do. We don't know who's taking the place or playing the role of Lou Dort anymore. Uh did sh did Chet Hongren learn anything from his battles with Victor Wingbayama? Now, is any of the bigs ready? Did did uh Thomas Sorber is he ready? We don't know. Can Jalen Williams, day dub, get back to two years ago, Jalen Williams? Cause last year he wasn't back. They had shut him down. The New York Knicks on the next team that we're gonna talk about, and you get to hear it on every broadcast all season long. Banner talk uh alone is a stare long, but you know what we're bringing back for the New York Knicks? Bing Bong! The Garden is Real, Rallying Cry born out of Brunson's rise, now doubling as a title defense, chest thumping all around. We got Timberlands in the sky, we got blue and orange skies everywhere. It's gonna be fantastic. The vibes are immaculate and gotham. The next team that we gotta talk about is the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cause this one is the one more time year. Donovan Mitchell got paid, Evan Mowgli is paid, James Harden is paid, Jared Allen out here making $30 million and shit like that. This is crazy. Okay. Now, Kobe Altman has already said the quiet part out loud, the clock is running out, and guess what? The trend tag is this spun bod handcuffs. The front office keeps insisting that the cap trap is escapable, but just like the cuff sliding off right off the uh Spongebob's wrist, I'm telling you right now. The This is gonna be one of those things. You got James Harden, whose playoff performance history is let's say dubious at best. You know who's not right behind him, you know, right behind him. Now listen, I'm not saying his performances is is trash, but his results are trash, and that's Donovan Mitchell. Donovan Mitchell went to the playoffs a lot in Utah, and he's gone to the playoffs a lot in Cleveland, but you know what he has not done? My man has not gotten to an NBA Finals yet. And yes, his time might not be running out, but that two big situation, and also uh James Harden, some of this is starting to come down the pike, and there is a receipt that's due. If you know what I mean. And now that leads us to the Indiana Pacers, and this is a feel-good story because one of my favorite players in the league is coming back this upcoming season, and that is Tyrese Halliburton. Remember game seven of the uh 2025 NBA finals, where you know he tears the Achilles. So he put that to bed at Media Day. He said he before the he even spoke, like, let the media ask him the question. He was like, I'm fine, I'm completely healed, I'm ready to go, uh, there's no restrictions, I feel great, and then he got into his questions. So, no issues there. So he's back. Now, him being back decides how far Indiana goes. Indiana is declaring we're back lands, like Drake insisting he is still on top after 2024. The conference, the confidence is loud, but the league is going, we want receipts before everybody buys in. If you notice when you look at or hear anybody talk about the the Eastern Conference contenders, this is a team that they don't bring up. We talk about Cleveland, we talk about Detroit, who doesn't have Jalen Dorn, we talk about Boston who lost Jalen Brown, and yes, they got Mitchell Robinson to kind of shrew up their their cent their big position, but Jalen Brown is a bucket. Like, that's 25 points per game out the door. So questions there. The Knicks are coming off the finals win, but we haven't had a repeat winner in more than you know, getting close to a decade now. So Indiana who pushed the OKC Thunder to a game seven, and we're leading in that game up until halftime, even with Tyrese Halliburton had already left. So I don't understand just the disrespect that we're getting about Indiana. I think Indiana deserves some love when it comes to an actual contender. They have uh Zubas there as well. You know, it's not like, oh, we got all these glaring holes on our squad. No, we got our dude back, and it puts everybody back in place of where they needed to be. So stop disrespecting Indiana out there. Indiana is one of these teams that should be looked upon as an actual contender in the East. Yes, I do know that they had where they were absolute trash last year, but guess what? They're whacking. So 10 teams, 10 storylines, and now everyone has a hook. Um, oh, you know, a hook as far as what we have trended them out to be. There's a lot of things that we need to look at, and I can't wait to get into it. It's going to be an incredible year. I'm lucky to be back with you. And uh, you know what I'm saying? This is family here. So, you know what

Share The Pod And Final Message

we talk about here, man. FRC, FRPC is your spot. Do us one favor. Share this episode with one person in your group chat who needs to hear it the most. Pull us up on X and Instagram and subscribe wherever you uh get our pod. Subscribe. So if you go to Spotify, subscribe, follow us, please do that. It helps the podcast, and we would be much appreciative if you did that. Let's build this thing together. Now, before we get out of here, I mean this every time I say it. The best part of you is still you. Not your win-loss record, not your timeline, not your algorithm, just you. Surround yourself with people who actually give you light, the ones who bring you insight, the joy, and the real accountability. That's your max deal. Appreciate them out loud and do not wait till later. That nobody's promised you. We're a who family here. We're here to get it. We get loud. We're going to be wrong sometimes, and we're going to come back and own it. But we're always going to respect your brain because anybody can yell a take. There's very few that can actually defend a thought. Until the next episode, keep your mind sharp, your heart open, and your circle tight. Protect your peace like cap space and never waste it on bad basketball or bad energy. I'm Vince. This is FRKC, and we're out.