Sometimes It's Bigger Than Basketball Part 2

[00:00:20] Welcome back to Part 2, its Monday Front Runner Podcast Collective. We will be discussing the NBA Northwest Division. We'll be giving that a look-see today as far as that's concerned. But before that, we're going to forego the pleasantries and we're going to talk a little bit about what's going on in our neck of the woods.

[00:00:45] As we said on Part 1, one of the reasons why we did not podcast on Friday. Frankly, there was just too much going on, either with friends or people associated with us or even just real close personal connections or whatever.

[00:01:05] And we just wanted to give this some time to be able to allow people to get their heads wrapped around it. Now, we talked about the Pacific Palisades a little bit in the first episode, but I wanted to talk about Altadena. And if you're not familiar with Altadena, you would be familiar with Pasadena.

[00:01:33] And Pasadena is basically just a little south of Altadena, but it's really connected, the two communities. So in Altadena, historically diverse middle class community has also suffered extensive damage. The Eden Fire alone has destroyed over 5,000 structures, including homes, local businesses, displacing thousands of residents.

[00:01:59] For those looking to support, and we'll get to some of those places in one second. You're going to hear a lot of the Pacific Palisades situation because of some of the names that have lost homes and what have you. Most notably, Paris Hilton, Mel Gibson, Sir Anthony Hopkins, they've all lost their homes.

[00:02:25] But in Altadena, historically, it's been a middle class community. And some people might have the ability to rebuild, but there will be a lot in that area. That those were family homes that were passed down and they might not have the capability of being able to rebuild. It's devastating and we're not out of the woods yet.

[00:02:53] They have discussed that the winds tomorrow will be robust. They will be dangerous. If today is any indication, because I was just outside moments ago, we are in for a really interesting Tuesday. Let's just say it that way. Keep Los Angeles in your prayers. If people that are in the area, call them.

[00:03:23] Send them a text. Ask them if they're okay. Even the people who maybe not are directly affected by this, they're watching this and they have friends and what have you. And there's probably a sense of just, I can't help. There's nothing I can do. But there's always something you can do. Reach out to people. If you can, I'm going to give you a list of places and we should have this in our description when we put up the podcast.

[00:03:52] So you will have this. But the California Fire Foundation provides financial assistance to families of fallen firefighters and supports communities affected by wildfires. There is a place called Direct Relief, which delivers medical supplies and personal protective equipment to healthcare agencies and first responders in wildfire affected areas.

[00:04:22] World Central Kitchen offers fresh meals to communities in need, including those impacted by the wildfires. The Los Angeles Regional Food Bank distributes food and other essentials to residents affected by the fires. We'll have all of those in the rundown in the pod. So in the description of the pod, when you start to go through at the bottom, it'll have this and we'll have links to it.

[00:04:52] And if you can, please support a dollar or whatever, whatever you got that you can afford to go ahead and send. There are countless stories for the ones that you hear about because they have the platform to tell you about it. There are countless nameless people that have lost everything and they will not have the insurance to rebuild or the financial means to rebuild.

[00:05:21] Our community is mourning. Our community is still scared. Our community is sending out positive vibes to those who are directly affected. And we are sending our support and our appreciation to those who are the first responders, who are putting in countless hours, putting themselves in harm's way. Shouts out.

[00:05:58] Shouts out. Shouts out.

[00:06:51] Shouts out.

[00:07:21] And not only is it up. For the most comprehensive NBA draft prospect scouting evaluations, visit our website at frpc.podcastpage.i. as in icicle, O as in Oscar. And that will bring you to us.

[00:07:46] And again, we are very proud of this NBA draft prospect scouting evaluations. It is robust. I don't think there's... I put my scouting evaluations up against anybody in the industry. No ceilings. All due respect. Love those guys. They do great video work, which that's something that we aspire to do down the road.

[00:08:15] As we try to get synergy. As we try to get synergy. Synergy. Synergy. Synergy. Synergy. Synergy. We are... Efforting... To bring you the best coverage when it comes to the prospects. It's not our complete focus, but we wanted to show off and flex to show you what we're actually capable of.

[00:08:38] And I think the NBA draft prospect scouting evaluation is a good step forward in showing you who and what we are and what we can do. And we're going to be adding to it. It's going to be a living document where we're going to be updating it. I will give you indications through Twitter. So follow us on Twitter. Follow us on Blue Sky.

[00:09:05] And we will be also increasing it. We have 45 prospects so far. And I... I guarantee you, once you go to frpc.podcastpage.io and you find us. And you go to the blog section and the evaluation. And every last one is as detailed as the Cougar flag one.

[00:09:33] So we're a real crowd of it. And it also brings everything together. It brings all the social media together. It's a place for us to blog. It's a place for us to have community. I would tell you guys to check it out. It gets you to the YouTube channel. It gets you to our links as far as our social medias. So if you go ahead and you save this as a favorite.

[00:10:02] In your URL. Y'all set. So that's what I expect from my collective revolutionaries. That's what I expect. Viva la revolucion. All right. Let's get into this podcast. We got a lot to get into. The first thing that we really need to talk about. And what is going to be our collective focus today. Is we're going to talk about the Boston Celtics.

[00:10:29] And we're going to talk about their championship malaise. And that's what it looks like to me. So the Celtics find themselves in a challenging stretch. Facing boos from their home crowds. And inconsistencies have disrupted their flow. In their latest game where they lost to the Sacramento Kings. 114 to 97 home loss. Okay. Glaring defensive lapses. Offensive efficiencies.

[00:10:59] Painted a picture of a team far from its usual dominance. Now here's the thing with this team. You can sit there and say. Because I heard Big Waz say this on group chat. And I respect his opinion. And there's some validity in what he said. And I want to give him credence. He said that. These. This particular group. And if you think about it. This particular group.

[00:11:30] You take Christoph Porzingis out. You take. Drew Holiday out. But this. That rest of that group. Had been together for a while. And they've gone through these playoff situations. And then they ultimately won the championship last year. He said. That they might feel a little. I know these are important. But. We'll flip the switch. And when we need to have it. We will have it.

[00:12:01] That's not enough in Boston right now. Because. Those people are really mad. Now. Christoph Porzingis. Acknowledged the fans. Dissatisfaction. Of what's going on. This is what he said. Honestly. I like it. It's kind of. Deserved. They expect high levels from us. And we. Were not giving our all. I think that the blues are most. Most deserved. I think. I think that's a.

[00:12:30] Open way of thinking about it. It's rare. It's a very refreshing outlook. Usually you see. Players deflect. Let. Players. Go on their own podcast. And talk about. The missed assignments of others. Or whatever the case may be. You'll see passive. Aggressive. Social media posts. But. To come out and say. Hey. We deserved it. And. Yeah.

[00:13:00] The lack of effort. Because. Here's the thing. We're going to get into a couple things. That have been going on. That I've noticed. Just. But. You can tell. When a team is. On cruise control. And. I think that. Boston thought they could just roll into the season. And just beat Boston. And people would just roll over. No. No. When you're on top of the mountain. Like. The Boston Celtics are right now. You're going to get everybody's best shot.

[00:13:30] I know that. Joe Mazzula talked about it. In the. Preseason. I know he. That was something that he harped on. And he wanted them to be. Ready for that. And be battle tested for that. But. It's hard to. Gather. To summon. That kind of intensity. It's funny. We spoke about the wildfires. And how. They affected us. And. I like to bring energy to this podcast. I like to.

[00:14:00] Emote. Energy. And positivity. And. Discuss these things. With passion. And. I didn't want to. Come on the pod. And be like. All right. This is what happened. With the. Oklahoma City Thunder. They won. And. Shea was. J-Dub. Was pretty good. He had a couple jumpers. That's not what you expect from us. You expect. Precise analysis. You expect me to tell a tale.

[00:14:30] Here and there. Spin. What? Spin a yarn. Spin a yarn. Is that what it said? What's another old thing. That old people do. Because I'm old. It's hard. For a team. That has been. Battle tested. That have been through. So many wars. Especially when you are talking about. Jason Tatum. And. Jalen Brown. They have been with the Celtics. Since. They came into the league. And literally. They were born.

[00:15:00] Into the playoffs. They were born into it. Played significant roles. Real minutes. From the get go. And now. Here we are. And yeah. They might have taken their foot. Off the gas. So to speak. So let's. Talk a couple of things. That have been going on. With them. Shall we? Now. What I noticed. Probably over the last couple weeks. Is this. There have been.

[00:15:30] Defensive breakdowns. Boston. Allowed. Two. Wide open. Three point. Three point. Attempts. During. Critical possessions. With Drew Holiday. And Jalen Brown. Visibly. Out of sync. And that was in the Sacramento game. Another thing that has popped up. Is. The. And you knew it was going to happen. Was the offensive stagnation. Jalen Brown. Also observed. This is something that he.

[00:15:59] Said to the media. I think we posted. A lot tonight. And it slowed. Things down. We got to keep the pace. And keep everybody engaged. So basically. He's saying. Sharing the sugar. He's saying. There was too many. Too much. Jason Tatum. JB. I get the ball. Okay. It's now. Your turn. That type of thing. He wants to see. He wants to see the ball. Pop. The. Top of the break. Three.

[00:16:29] To the corner. Inside. People moving. Movement. Creates energy. Ball movement. Creates energy. And then you get. The desired. Shot. That you want. And. Here's the other thing. Christoph Porzingis. Played in this game. And I understand that. Al Horford is not. Who. Al Horford. Used to be. But. DeMontis Savonis.

[00:16:58] Dominated the glass. He had. Twenty. Eight. Count them. Twenty. Eight. Rebounds. In one game. He had. Eight. Offensive. Rebounds. You can't win. If. You're going to let. A six foot eight. Power forward slash center. Bully you. In the paint. Now. Despite their top five.

[00:17:27] Ranking in both. Offense and defense. Efficiency. The Celtics have. Dropped to. Six and six. Since December 19th. I can tell you. Exactly why that has happened. The Joe Mazzola. Three point. Palooza. Is not working. We need to make a t-shirt on that. Joe Mazzola. Three point. Palooza. Somebody write that down. All right. That's my girl. Thanks. Raya.

[00:17:58] Their three point shooting. Since that time. Has plummeted to. Thirty five percent. Which is. Twenty second. In the NBA. This was a team. They were shooting around. Before this situation. In December. Everything was clicking. The ball was movement. And this is what. That's when they were. Sixteen and three. And everything. Was beautiful. In Boston. In the surrounding areas.

[00:18:28] Shouts out to Brookline. Shouts out to. Brighton. Shouts out to Cambridge. I see you. Faneuil Hall. What's up. Southie. Should I give love. To Braintree. Yes I should. I should give love. To Braintree. Should I also give love. To Canton. And Sharon. Yeah. For sure. West Roxbury. It's been a lot of time there. Got some good food. What's up.

[00:18:58] Dorchester. That used to be where. Get the haircut. The problem with the Celtics. Is this. Is that. They got to get back. To get that ball movement. The other thing. Is that. Your three point shooting. If you're going to shoot. 50. Attempts. It can't be. Like what. Jalen Brown talked about. It can't be. The stationary. I'm going to back you. Back into the basket. And then. Pull up for a 17 foot.

[00:19:27] Fall away jump shot. Tatum. Tatum. Don't fall back. Back. Don't fall back. I gave you love. Early in the season. I gave you a bunch of love. Early in the season. Because I gave you a ton of shit. Last year. I said. You were going to have to stop. The whole. Mongrel mentality situation. But you're falling back. Into them. Old Tatum ways. And I'm starting to see it. And I don't know.

[00:19:57] If I really like it. That's what's going on. The Celtics. Are talented. They're an experienced team. They are. Still. Without a doubt. The favorites to come out the east. But their bench depth. And. Their. Absence of somebody physical. In the middle. Is. Might be holding them back. For. Zingas noted. We don't need to peak right now. But we need to peak.

[00:20:27] At the right moment. Now. Here's my thing. Is. Can they. Recover. Before. Their team. Kind of. I don't. My whole thing is. I don't think they won't blow. But. Here's the thing. Do you think that the Cavs. Have caught it? Do you think the Knicks. Are on their heels? Because. If you do. This is a bad look. What's going on here. And I do want to take one moment. And talk about the Knicks.

[00:20:57] Because. Jalen Brunson. Had a. Absolutely. Incredible. Performance. The other night. And I want to give him some love. And I want to give the Knicks. Couple minutes of my time. Before we get into the. Around the arc. And get into the. Northwest division. That I am going to bring that to you. But. Before we get there. The Knicks had a game. Against the Milwaukee Bucks. Last night. And. When I say.

[00:21:27] They beat them. Like they. Really stole something from. That's exactly. What they did. They beat them. Like. I'll tell you exactly. How they did it. They John Wicked them. It was. Almost like. Giannis. Antetokounmpo. Had killed. Jalen Brunson's dog. And. The Knicks said. To the Milwaukee Bucks. You must pay.

[00:21:56] And you must pay. Dearly. For what you've done. Because. Because. 140. To 106. Was the score last night. The Knicks. Were. Awesome. Brunson. In particular. 44 points. Now. Here's the best part. 44 points. In 29 minutes. And you say. Oh. He took a bunch of shots. Okay. He did score. 44 points.

[00:22:28] Took 26 shots. Pretty efficient. He shot. 5 of 10. From 3 point land. He also hit. 7 of 8. Free throws. Belinda will love that. Shots out to my wife. Also. As we continue. To sing the praises. And we will start to. Probably have. Psalms. Of this man. Carl Anthony Towns. Is doing. Ridiculous things. He scored.

[00:22:57] 30 points. Again. He had. 18 rebounds. He had. 4 assists. Here's the thing. He's starting. To. Whatever. Whatever he was. In Minnesota. It's almost. Like a. Caterpillar. Turning into a. Butterfly. The. The aggressiveness. It was. He went. To play the power forward. Position. For. Minnesota. Because.

[00:23:27] He had to allow. Go bear to play. The center position. I believe. Overall. That has helped him. But his aggression. His. Like. Oh. I have a small on me. Oh. He's getting punished. Any switches. That are. Dudes. That are like. 6'6". He is killing them. Obviously. He's shooting it out. A high clip. From the three point land. What he's been. A perfect addition. To the. This next team.

[00:23:57] Now. Here are a couple. My questions. About the next. And we're going to get to the. Jalen Brunson thing. In one second. With. Boston. Being. What they're doing right now. With. Cleveland. Being who. They are. Right now. Are we. In a situation. Where we have to rethink. What. The east is going to look like. Or. Are the next. Still. A step down. From where.

[00:24:27] The Celtics. And the Cavaliers are. Because I understand. The Cavaliers fans. Right now. Are saying. This is so disrespectful. We should be in our own tier. Listen. I understand. That you are having. A phenomenal season. You're. 33 and 5. Okay. We sung your praises. I still have questions. In the playoffs. And I've voiced them. Kudos.

[00:24:57] To this. Impressive start. Your guys. Are. The maturity level. Of Donovan Mitchell. We talked about it. On last podcast. You cannot. Put a price tag. On what he. Has. Given that franchise. You also. Cannot. Even. Talk about. The Cleveland Cavaliers. Of. Improvement. Without talking about. Evan Mobley. But I still. Question. Does it all work. In the playoffs.

[00:25:26] When things. Slog down. Does it all work. I know. Cleveland fans. Will get on me. I get it. This is why. The Celtics. I still have them. With you. In that tier. Together. Because they have that. Pedigree. Long-term. Playoff. Battle-tested. Situation. The question. About the Knicks. Is this. Are they also. Part of that group. If you're telling me. That this car. Anthony Towns.

[00:25:56] Exists. And this is the guy. That we're going to get. That. Because. He's around. A different group of people. Like a. Soft-spoken. Jalen Brunson. Mikkel Bridges. Is a very. Kind of. Lunch Pell. Type guy. OG. Ananobi. Is more. Like. I'll let my. Play. Do my talking. He's not a big. Talkie. Type guy. But really. To tell you the truth. Their. Personality.

[00:26:26] On that team. Is. Probably. Deuce. McBride. Who's a bench guy. And coach. Tibbs. Coach Tibbs. Is the personality. Of the team. And it seems. There's a heartbeat there. That's just getting stronger. And stronger. And I do. Worry. My concern is. I don't like. The backup. Big situation. I do not. I am.

[00:26:57] Puzzled. By. By. We are in January. I was told that Mitchell Robinson. Will be back. Where is he? Where is Mitchell Robinson? Because I don't see him. And I don't think we're going to see him for a while. The backup big is still issue. I wish there was another scoring punch off the bench. Cameron Payne. Is filling that role right now. Cameron Payne has had. Some brilliant playoff.

[00:27:27] Exploits. But are we really trusting Cameron Payne to do this? I don't know. But I think that. If the Knicks solidify their backup big. And maybe in that you do a two for one special. Maybe you can get a big that's. Not as defensively gifted as Mitchell Robinson. But. Maybe you can get a big that's serviceable. Who maybe. Prioritizes defense.

[00:27:57] And can do that. Just rim roll. To the basket deal. And then. Maybe within the same deal. Because I think Mitchell Robinson is making a little bit over 20. So if you can get like a 10 and 10. Or 12 and 8. And you can get maybe a guy. Who can consistently give you. 10 to 13 off the bench. Every single night. Not going to be scared of the bright lights. Of the NBA playoffs.

[00:28:26] Or the crucible that is the playoffs. I think that would be a deal. That's something the Knicks should really. Look to endeavor. Other than that. I'm in love with this team. I never thought this Carl Anthony Towns existed. He is amazing. And Jalen Brunson. Is again. Showing us. Exactly who he is. Once given the tools. And the personnel.

[00:28:55] To be. To be. The guy. This guy does not care in the fourth quarter. He's getting his buckets. He believes that he can get. His shot. At any time. He is a. Master craftsman. With his footwork. And his dribble package game. His ability. Because he's a wider guy. Broad shoulder guy. Even though he's not. The tallest guy. In the whole wide world.

[00:29:24] He's able to get you into a pick and roll situation. And get you on his hip. And keep you there. Even though. You might have four. To five inches on. And the variety. Or the array. Of floaters. And layup. Packages. That he. Employs. Throughout a game. Is incredible. Obviously. Kyrie is one. Is the. Most gifted. Druggler. Of the basketball. That we have.

[00:29:54] In the NBA. But I will tell you. That Jalen Brunson. And his footwork. And the dribble package. Is a sight to see as well. And I don't want people. To sleep on that. If you are. A guy that. You're looking for things to do. As far as that's concerned. Sometimes. Just focus on one player. Just take the whole game. And focus on just one guy. And. Do yourself a favor. If you pick. If you start to do this exercise.

[00:30:24] Start with Jalen Brunson. We could start with Jokic. I think that's just. Master class. Situations right there. And that's. We're talking. Michael Angelo. Type things. But if you want to see. If you want to see. If you want to see. Like Jazz Fusion. If you want to see Miles Davis. If you want to see Bobby Blue Gland. If you want to see people like that. I'm telling you. Jalen Brunson.

[00:30:55] Is the truth. When it comes to that. He is absolutely amazing. So I want to go ahead. Take that little diatribe. Before we went into. Around the arc. So.

[00:31:33] Real. Real. Things going on here. Folks. We got some real. Situations here. We got. My guy. Anthony Edwards. Is. Hissed off. He's. Shooting jump shots. At an. Almost. Almost. Alarming rate. Even though. He's hitting them. And he's still awesome. He's frustrated. With the. I don't know. How can we put it.

[00:32:03] The puzzle pieces. Don't seem to fit. The way they should. There's been comments. On accountability. There's been comments. Of lack of energy. There's. Just. There's a lot going on. In Minnesota. Oh. By the way. Quick little update. We thought we were over. With the ownership situation. In November. Guess what? Still going on. Why? Glenn Taylor. Just.

[00:32:32] Mucking up. The whole deal. Glenn Taylor. Doing Glenn Taylor. Just. Glenn Taylor. The whole thing. And while all that's going on. He's still the owner. Carl Anthony Towns. The guy that gets. The guy that helps. Anthony Edwards. Along with that incredible defense. Last year. Get you to the Western Conference Finals. You stall out. Because. First of all.

[00:33:02] This is the. The most success. You ever had. For. Minnesota Timberwolves fans. You know what I'm talking about. This is. This was a lot of success. That you had last year. So you go. You have a. Long. Playoff run. Anthony Edwards. Even admits. Towards the end. He was gassed. He was like. Got to get better. Got to get stronger.

[00:33:31] Get my endurance. For these type of situations. Now. Carl Anthony Towns. Get traded. Because. The contract. The extension. Kicks in. The reality. The financial. Kicks in. And Glenn Taylor. Knows. That he is. Basically. At that second apron. I trade Carl Anthony Towns. And I get. A. Expiring. Contract. Back.

[00:34:01] Guess what. No more apron. For me. No more. Exorbitant. Tax bills. That I have to pay. Anthony Edwards. Is on an. Upward trajectory. We should be. Still getting into the playoffs. Making money. And all those. Sorts of things. Minnesota. Timberwolves fans. Does this sound. Like another. Midwest. Owner. That you might. Know. Of.

[00:34:31] I know you're up in Minnesota. And you don't concern yourself with. Especially the east. But. This kind of reminds me. A little bit of Jerry Reinsdorf. And. That's not a good place to be. That is not a good place to be. But you have a star. In Anthony Edwards. And he's vocal. He's frustrated again. Because. They lost. A game. To the Memphis Grizzlies.

[00:35:00] 127 to 125. Did you see the shot? Did everybody see the shot? Did Ja Morant fall away? Yeah. To ice that. That was ice cold. Shouts out to Ja. I give you a lot of help. For stuff you do. I think you reckless. With your body. On the court. You a warrior. But you a little reckless. I wish you. Take. Just slow it down. Just a beat. Just a beat. And less injury.

[00:35:30] This was a defining. Situation for them. By. Rebounding. Woes. Again. They got out rebound. We're going to talk about some of the numbers in a second. And their late game. Execution. Missteps. We're going to also hit on those as well. But these are all. Other things that are bubbling to the surface. With the Minnesota Timberwolves right now. It is. The vibes are way off. There are. It's not as.

[00:36:00] Last year. There was a joy. In that locker room. And. Whatever you want to call. Carl Anthony Town. He's a goofball. He fouls people. Like way out. 37. 38 feet away from the thing. I don't know. What he did. For that team. Last year. But there was a lightness. In that. There was a. Like an airiness. In that locker room. This year. Not great. People pointing fingers. Agendas.

[00:36:30] Stuck. And Julius Randle. Is there. And. I'm going to tell you right now. Julius Randle. For all you parents out there. Or all you. Are you. Winnie the Pooh fans out there. Julius Randle. Albeit very talented. Is the Eeyore. Of the NBA. Boy. If he.

[00:37:00] Doesn't get the ball. Like three times. Down the court. You're going to see it. On his face. And if things aren't going well. There is not. A worth. Like. Body language. Not in the NBA. I don't think. Oh. Landry. Landry. Shammett. Landry. Shammett. The Shammett face is. Is pretty bad. Pretty bad. LeBron.

[00:37:29] LeBron should get like. Some sort of. Golden Globe award. For his body language. Sometimes. But Julius Randle. Is. You know what Julius Randle. Body language. Reminds me of. If you. Ever seen the meme. Cam Newton. Is playing for the Patriots. And I think. Somebody comes over. And says something to him. And slides down. Off the bench. That. Is the. Intentities. Of.

[00:37:58] Julius Randle's. Body language. So. Just saying. All right. Let's get into this game. Let's crack open this game. A little bit. The Grizzlies. Grabbed 21. Offensive. Rebounds. That's compete level. Right there. They grabbed. 21. Offensive. They had 25. Second hand. Second hand. Second chance. Points. Off. Those. Rebounds. Zach. Eady. The mountain. Of a man.

[00:38:28] The rookie. Out of production. Do. The John Wooden. Award winner. He pulled down. Seven. Offensive. Rebounds. By himself. He's also. Seven foot four. So. I expect him. To do things like. Now. Jaron Jackson Jr. 33 points. Four. Offensive. Rebounds. Another. Another. Brilliant game. By. Triple J. Doing his thing. There's some bright spots.

[00:38:58] For the Timberwolves. Because. Anthony Edwards. Had an off game. Dante DiVincenzo. Scored 27 points. He had. Ten rebounds. Seven assists. He made. Six. Three pointers. That's a good. Dante. DiVincenzo. Gang. He hadn't had a lot of those. Because he. He had. Gone through the whole. Trade situation. And he was super emotional. And I think it took him a while. To get his balance. And get. His sea legs.

[00:39:28] Underneath him. In Minnesota. But I think. You'll see the best. Of Dante DiVincenzo. Going forward. Now. Here is a guy. That the Minnesota Timberwolves. Absolutely. Need to get going. So this performance. We did recognize. Jaden McDaniels. 21 points. 9 of 12. Shooting from the field. And being the defensive. Long winged. Menace. That he is. This.

[00:39:58] Is the Jaden McDaniels. That needs to show up. Every. Single game. But we know. That does not happen. And Nas Reed. Still being Nas Reed. Nas Reed. Is out here. Hitting five. Or seven. From three point land. In a game. Now. I'm not going to tell. Anybody. To do anything. Or whatever. Case may be. But if the Lakers. Are looking. To. Get rid of some.

[00:40:28] First round draft picks. And you talking about. You want to make. Some sort of. Significant. Change. Might want to go look at. Nas Reed. Hey. Don't shoot the messenger. I'm not trying to take. Your guys away from you. I'm just. I'm a Laker fan. I gotta say it. All right. Let's get to this. Late game. Execution. Struggle. Situation. The Wolves. Committed. Three turnovers. In the.

[00:40:58] Final five minutes. Now. They did a great job. Holding. John Moran. To three. Of 17. Shooting. For most of the game. But that. Floater late. Was there a miscommunication. Somewhere. I don't know. Looked like it. Looked like there was a hesitation. There. And. It's hard. To. Especially as. Fast. And as. Quick. Twitch. As Jha is. You can't be late.

[00:41:28] You can't be hesitant. You gotta just. Be decisive. And go. If you guess wrong. But at least you go. Despite the loss. Office. Performance shows. Promise. McDaniels. Big performance. We need more. We need more. Now. He didn't know. If we play. This way. Offensively. Every game. I feel. Will be. Hard. To stop. However. They must clean up. Their off. Their rebounding. And late game. Execution.

[00:41:59] And. Here's the other thing. With the Minnesota Timberwolves. You gotta clean up. These things. Right? You. Have to do these things. There's things. That you have to do. You are now. In January. The Minnesota Timberwolves. Are 20 and 18. It's a congested west. You have kind of a. The four at the top. Are kind of like. Your. Those are your big dogs. Right? The Thunder Rockets. And Grizzlies. And Nuggets.

[00:42:29] And then. There's this group. In the middle. And that. That includes. The Mavericks. The Lakers. The Clippers. The Timberwolves. The Sacramento Kings. Who have come on strong. Doug Christie. Has got him playing some ball out there. The Phoenix Suns. Who have been disappointing. And it looks like. They're trying to trade people. And trying to get Jimmy Butler. Butler. They. I think they actually called on. The. They brought in.

[00:42:59] A consultant. And you might remember him. From the blacklist. Red. Redding. Red Reddington. Raymond Reddington. What is it? Raymond Reddington. So they called in. Raymond Reddington. To get Jimmy Butler. From Miami. To Phoenix. So I don't know. How that's going to happen. I don't know. If. His muscle. That was on the show. Is going to. Put Jimmy. In a box. And then ship him. To Haiti. And then there's going to be. Some sort of cargo plane.

[00:43:29] That goes through. Argentina. And up through. The Amazon. Jungle. Or whatever. But. They think they're going to get Jimmy Butler. But they're. 19 and 19. And also. 10th. In the west. But we're not. We're not done. This is why. The Timberwolves. Really needed to get together. Because you also have. The Warriors. At 19 and 19. They're at 11th. Right now. And the Spurs. Are. In 12th. But they're 18 and 19.

[00:44:00] And we'll talk about Victor. We will talk about. But what I'm getting to. Is that the Timberwolves. Whatever. They need to figure out. They need to. Get that. Fixed. There need to be some. Video sessions. There need to be some. Accountability. Sessions. Some. Some people. Who are there. Who might be on.

[00:44:29] An inspiring contract. They might. Need to look. Themselves. In the mirror. And. Maybe. Adjust the attitude. And also. Understand that. Maybe you should take. Only 15 shots a game. And let. The true. Explosive. Players like. Anthony Edwards. Get those buckets. Maybe. Just maybe. I don't know.

[00:44:59] I'm not there. All the time. But. From what I get to see. Is that. As soon as. Julius Randle. Gets the ball. Everything. Comes to a complete. Halt. Keep in mind. This team. Has Rudy. Go bear. Who. Is a. Ball stopper. The. Highest. Level. So. Now. You got. Julius Randle. So. You got. Eeyore.

[00:45:28] And a ball stopper. And then. You got. The ultimate. Ball stopper. And Rudy. Go bear. So. How is my man. Anthony Edwards. Supposed to. Electrify us. With. Earth shattering. Dunks. If he can't get into the lane. Because of these two. Just questions that I ask myself. In times. In times when I go into my darkness retreat. Shout out to. Aaron Rodgers. Hooking a brother up.

[00:45:58] Letting us know about the darkness retreats. Letting us understand that self assessment is a big part of the situation. Be better. Can't believe he did a documentary on himself. I just. Why would you do that? Why would you do that Aaron? Why would you do a documentary on yourself? I'm telling you fame. Fame might be up there with cocaine. Fame is a bad drug. It's bad. All right.

[00:46:28] We're going to move along to the OKC Thunder. Shea Gilgis Alexander. Is just killing the game right now. He's really probably the leading candidate for MVP. I still yet think Jokic is awesome. But. He had 31 points. In the loss to Cleveland. And now. January 16th is that rematch. That's going to be appointment viewing team. If the first game was as good.

[00:46:57] As the. Oh my God. The second game should be awesome. And there's going to be scores to settle. There's going to be scores settled in that one. But she's commitment to OKC. People talk about. That he's exploded onto the scene. When will he start asking out? Nope. He said. I love Oklahoma City. I can't. I can't see a world where I'm not in Oklahoma City.

[00:47:25] OKC's model of draft and developed success makes them a small market powerhouse. With depth. Versatility. And a star. And I mean a star. And. I don't. I think. Yeah. We want him to prove it in the playoffs. But the one thing that we understand about last year. Is SGA. I'm going to tell you right now. And if this makes the clip. This makes the clip. The YouTube clip. You did your thing.

[00:47:54] In the playoffs last year. I don't have any questions. About you. You are not the one. I'm worried about. In OKC. I might. Think about the other guy. Jalen Williams. And it's not because I don't think he's good enough. It's just. Youth. Like Jalen Williams is like 22, 23 years old. Remember. Jason Tatum. And Jalen Brown.

[00:48:24] Won that championship last year. And they are a respective. 26 and 27 years of age. When they won that championship. So. Even as impressive. As OKC is. Their team is really young. Still. But they did add. Some veteran depth. And I like it. But. The Thunder are not just contenders. They are now the blueprint.

[00:48:53] For the post super team. NBA era. Everybody's trying to follow. What they got going. But here's the thing. It's hard to do what they got doing. Because. They made shrewd trades. They took in money. To get. To acquire more first round capital. They. They did this for a couple years. They flushed out some people. They took on people who. Knew. That. That. OKC wasn't going to be. They. Their final resting place. Chris Paul.

[00:49:23] Paul George. They saw the writing on the wall. With Westbrook. And they capitalized. On every opportunity. Sam Presti is good at this. He also gets himself. Involved in three team trades. Where he'll take on money. Now this is previous to. Before they got good. But this is how they built. What you see now. They got into situations. Where they were the third team involved. They would say. What do we get.

[00:49:53] For our taking on. Said bad player. And they would say. We will give you a. First round pick. And Sam Presti would go. Well thank you. And. Keep it moving. This is why this man still has. What is it. Is it. 13. Picks. In the next six years. As far as first rounders. So he's more than.

[00:50:22] Two picks a year. For the next six. He did it last year. By the way. I don't know. Because everybody was talking about. How boring the. The trade deadline. Was. He did it last year again. He traded back. His. Future pick. From a team. Who was it. Was it Washington. It was someone. It was somebody. Well.

[00:50:51] We might have to get that on the next pod. I will make a note of this. And on the next pod. We will. Revisit. This situation. With St. Cresti. And. What he did. But last year. He. Took a pick. That was like. In the 2026 draft. And moved it back. And I think he actually. Picked up like. Second rounders for it. That's a great GM. That is a great GM. Now. Speaking of.

[00:51:20] GMs. Who have had. A lot of. Notoriety. We move along. To the Utah Jazz. And the Utah Jazz. Are balancing. Development. And competitiveness. Walker Kessler. Anchors their defense. With 2.6 blocks. Per game. And he's also averaging. 11. Rebounds. Per game. Now. Walker Kessler. As you might know.

[00:51:50] Is in. Trade rumor. After trade rumor. After trade rumor. I don't know. Where all this came from. It was like. His name. It was. Because last year. He got benched. And. They said. His confidence. Dwindled. Or whatever. This year. He looks like. He's back. It looks like. He. Either rejoined. Whatever the program was. He just had. Just. Just a down year. Last year. But. I didn't know. Where.

[00:52:20] All this situation. Where he. The. The. Utah. Had soured. On him. That soured. On him. To a point. Where they're just. Willing to trade him. He's. 23. He. Can't. Probably win. Defensive play of the year. Because. Victor. Win by Yama. Exists. This is a guy. Who's a. Really good. Defensive player. Really good. Rim protector. He is a. Physical force. He is going to. Double digit.

[00:52:50] Rebound you to death. Death. He's not an. Absolute zero. On the offensive end. He will set. Crushing picks. And he will roll. To the rim. Hard. So I don't. Understand. Where this narrative. Came from. That. He's just. Out here. He like. Just became. Miles Turner. 2.0. For some reason. But his name is out there.

[00:53:20] Another guy. That I want to talk about. Because. We tell you about. Our wins in the draft. I'm going to tell you. About a loss. While Bryce. Sensua. Has emerged. As a key. Offensive contributor. Scoring 34 points. And 27 points. In back-to-back games. Coach Will Hardy. Emphasizes. The results. Matter. In order. To process. Belief. In your process. So the results. Matter. In order. To keep. Belief. In your process.

[00:53:50] So the jazz. A. Aim. To create. A stable culture. For future. Stars. Cougar flag. Because. Everybody wants. Cougar flag. But here's the thing. With Bryce. Sensua. When he came. Out of Ohio State. I was out. It was 6'6". It was 230. It was. Not as physical. As I thought it. Could be. He was. An outside shooter. I didn't. Like. The.

[00:54:20] I didn't like his. Ball awareness. He looked to be. Like a black hole. And. Credit to Will Hardy. He has. Made this guy. A player. He is. Getting. Something. On the defensive end. Something. It's not a lot. But he's getting something. Which is more. Than what we saw. At Ohio State. But I was completely out. On Bryce. I was like. I don't know. How this works. Tell me how it works. I know. I see all the physical tools.

[00:54:50] But I don't see any desire. Or intentionality. But the shot was sweet. There was no. There was never any shade. On his shot. I was like. That will always work. But is there anything else? And a credit. To Will Hardy. And his staff. Utah Jazz. Have brought it out. In him. Which then. Springs. Me. To. Eternal. Hope. Because. Utah has. Two.

[00:55:19] Of my favorite dudes. Keontae George. Shouts out to Keontae George. And. The. The injured. Taylor Hendricks. Obviously. Taylor Hendricks. Had a horrific. Injury. We hope that his rehab. Is going well. We hope that he's. Convalescing well. As far as that's concerned. But. I was so excited. About him coming out. Of the draft. And. To see. This year. Get that break.

[00:55:48] Get that whole situation. Going on. And then. To see it all. Just come crumbling down. Man. Moments. Are moments. Man. They are. And you need to embrace. The present. While you have it. Because you never know. When it can just go away. Like that. But I like. What Utah is building there. I don't understand. All the buzz around. Walker Kessler. But. Danny Ains. Likes to keep it spicy.

[00:56:18] And he likes to keep it interesting. So we'll see. What. He has in store. For us. During. The trade deadline season. Now. The last team. That I want to get to. Is the Portland Trailblazers. And. I have been making comments. In regards to. Their. Playing. Veterans. In minutes. And things of that nature. And. I have made. Comments. In regards to. Allowing. Shaden Sharp.

[00:56:48] To develop. And. What's going on with Donovan Klingon. And. What are we doing with Anthony Simons. Are we keeping him. Are we moving him. Is he a trade asset. Said. And. None of those. Do we have answers to. None of them. But. Veterans like Jeremy Grant. And DeAndre. Aiton. Are. Sitting in a situation. Right now. Where. They're seeing a bunch of losses. And. Actually.

[00:57:18] Anthony Simons. Admitted that. This is probably the hardest. Mental battle. I've ever had. In my career. Portland's focus on. Lottery odds. Has normalized. Losing. Creating a murky future. Without a clear direction. Their path forward. Depends on. Committing to a rebuild. That they have not. Fully committed to. They have not embraced. This rebuild. Now. Joe Cronin is. The GM there.

[00:57:48] I am. I was. Bewildered. Why Jeremy Grant. Did not leave. The Trailblazers. Last year. I was. Doubly. Bewildered. When. This summer. Passed. And he was still on the team. And now. I'm just at a loss of words. Your team. Is not great. He. Is shooting. This is his. Worst. Shooting. Season. Of his entire career. He's shooting.

[00:58:17] 38% from three. Great. That's fantastic. Six foot eight wing. Shooting 38% from three. Is awesome. But if you're shooting. 38% total. From the field. That's bad. That's terrible. Why is he playing? Don't we have young people? Tosami. Kamara. I love that guy. More minutes.

[00:58:46] We're starting to see him play. This is better for me. My mental health will be better. But. DeAndre Ayton. Doesn't have a trade market. Jeremy Grant. Is killing his trade market. And the only one left. Is Anthony Simons. And he said. This is probably. The hardest mental battle. I've ever had to face. In my entire. Professional career. So not going well. In Portland.

[00:59:17] Not going well. At all. And I just. Would love. To understand. What the point is. I would just. Love. To get it. But. Maybe we'll have. Some kind of clarification. During the trade deadline. Line. Keep it locked here. February 6th. We talked about it. Before. We are going to do. A February 6th. Trade deadline. But it's going to be. After everything is done.

[00:59:46] Then we're going to. Look at everything. And then that night. We're going to drop you a pod. It's going to be awesome. Trust me. And then next year. We. Hope. To do a live. Live. Like on YouTube. Or on the FanDuel Network. FanDuel. If you. If you love your boy. Come get your boy. We want to do a live. NBA. Trade deadline. Special. Have a couple people on.

[01:00:16] Be able to talk about. Some of the things. That are going on. In the NBA. While we wait. For trades. To come down. And then be able. To assess. In real time. That is the hope. That is the dream. That is the focus. And collectively. As we are. The collective revolution. That is what. Everybody should. Aspire for us to get to. So. You be a friend. Tell a friend. About the podcast.

[01:00:46] That's how we get the word out. Let us know. How we can get better. The socials. And. As for always. The best part of you. Is you. Surround yourself. With people. Who are going to. Brighten your light. And provide. Positive support. To you. And then go out. And do some good. In this world. Join us back. On the podcast. On Wednesday. Where we are going. In depth. Into the. West division. Who hangs out. In the southwest division.

[01:01:15] Our guy. Wendy. And it's a happy day. When Vince. Gets to talk about. Victor Wynn Bayama. So it all goes down. On Wednesday. So be back with us. On Wednesday. And. As always. Keep yourself. Out there. Keep yourself safe. Southern California. We are praying for you. Our thoughts are with you. We were able. To give our humble. Relief package. To. Those who need it.

[01:01:45] From. Frontrunner Podcast Collective. Thanks to. Our CFO. Belinda Carter. Also. Wife. Of the podcast. Shout out. And with that being said. I'm going to get up out of here. Y'all have a good one. See you. Hump day. Deuce. I'm going to get up.