Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers - NBA Squad Show: Can Late Season PUSH Alter Playoff Expectations?

Episode Date: March 26, 2025

The Locked On NBA Squad Show brings together hosts from various NBA team podcasts to discuss the latest league happenings. In this episode, the panel debates the relevance of March basketball, analyzes playoff positioning, and evaluates recent team performances. They focus on the Denver Nuggets' struggles, the Houston Rockets' surprising success, and potential playoff matchups. The hosts also engage in playful banter about team rivalries and discuss which NBA franchises should be "relegated" for poor performance or tanking. Throughout the conversation, the panel offers insights on player impacts, team strategies, and the unpredictable nature of the upcoming playoffs. 0:00 Intro: March basketball and NBA discussions5:02 Lakers' defense and playoff potential10:37 Nuggets' playoff chances and matchups16:08 Houston Rockets' strengths and weaknesses21:53 Mavericks' playoff push and Anthony Davis26:26 Relegating NBA teams to G League  Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!PrizepicksNow’s the perfect time to join.Download the app today and use code LOCKEDONNBA to get $50 instantly when you play your first $5 lineup! That’s right—no need to win to get the bonus, it’s guaranteed. PrizePicks—Run Your Game! TALKSPACETherapy is a game-changer. To match with a licensed therapist today, go to Talkspace.com/LOCKEDONNBA and enter promo code SPACE80 to get $80 off your first month and show your support for the show.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNBA for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelFrom the first whistle to the final drive, FanDuel makes the NFL Playoffs even more exciting! Right now, new customers can bet FIVE DOLLARS and get THREE HUNDRED BUCKS in BONUS BETS – if you win your first bet! Visit FANDUEL.COM to get started. Make this playoff season unforgettable with FanDuel, an official sportsbook partner of the NFL.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On today's Lockdown NBA squad show, it's March basketball. We all agree it's ridiculous, but what else do we need to see in the NBA? We'll talk about that and more. Today's Lockedon, NBA Squad Show. Welcome, Lockedon NBA Squad Show. My name is Nick Engstead, host of the Lockdown Mavericks podcast. This is the squad show. We take over the feed of your favorite lockdown show.

It's an open invite for any host across the entire NBA today to talk about anything you want in the NBA. Today's episode is brought to you by GameTime, download the game time app, create an account. Use the code Lockdown NBA for $20 off your first purchase. joining me all in black shirts today. We all got the memo from Lockdown Thunder, Rylent Stiles, locked on Nuggets, Ryan Blackbird, Lockdown Caves, Danny Cunningham, Lockdown Heat, West Goldberg,

and the enemy of the pod, Mike Richmond. Your pass first point guard. I'm back. Heat culture, you're in hell. You should have taken the trade, cowards. Look where we are now. The worst you've been in 15 years. Wait, what trade should they have taken?

Look where the Blazers are. are one of the proudest 11 seeds, excuse me, 12 seeds in the history of the league. One of the proudest 12 seeds you've ever seen. Have you ever seen a more triumphant 12th seed? That's right. I'm here. It's Tuesday afternoon. I'm the enemy of pod.

He's coming and swinging, Mike Richmond from Lockdown Blazers. Gentlemen, we may go somewhere completely different, but let's start with this. It's March basketball. Random things are happening all the time everywhere. What else do we need to see? Could be from your team. could be from something else in the NBA. What else do you need to see before we start these playoffs?

Or are we just like running out the clock right now? We're running out the clock. Ain't no way any of this matters ever at all at this point. We got to for, I'm pulling the map more of this podcast. We are eliminating March basketball. Apparently, Danny, the calves are now like panicking because they had a four game losing streak. There are cabs fans panicking. I don't think the calves themselves are actually panicking.

I think the calves themselves are fine. I remember, you know, Cavs fans are panicking. I remember all the way back like, what, two years ago when the Nuggets won a championship, when they went on a four-game losing streak in March, and everybody's just losing their minds. And it was not a big deal because Denver was 16 and four in the playoffs. You guys are going to be fine.

Cavs, Thunder, you're going to be good. Yeah, I'm still watching for, we don't have a representative, but John Morant in the month of March, Mickey Mouse March, he's played in only six games, but he's averaging 34 points. 31 points, I should say. 31 points. If he can continue this trend into the playoffs,

it makes Memphis a bit more feisty. That could have implications. Yeah, if we can just stick in the West, I think there's some teams right now in the playing mix that could creep up into that sixth seed. Steph Curry questionable for Tuesday night, when is he going to come back for the Warriors? But they're kind of barely hanging on to the sixth seed.

I think if you're looking for something from Golden State, it's like, okay, can you beat it? Good team? Like, not trying to take away from the wins that they have, since getting Jimmy Butler, but like they might be the most matchup dependent team in the Western Conference playoffs here. And to see them kind of put

some good wins together could be helpful, but that's kind of just based on their schedule more than anything. But then you look behind them. Minnesota, the Clippers, for the Clippers, can Kauai Leonard finish out the season healthy? And is he going to be available for the playoffs? Because if that's the case, the way that Kauai has been playing lately, the way that Zubach has been playing lately,

this is a team that could potentially upset somebody or make some noise or make some team uncomfortable depending on how these seeds break out. So I think there's plenty of things still to watch when you kind of get into that mix in the Western Conference. So for me, I think it's the Lakers because I think really in both conferences,

like I know who just about every team is, except for Los Angeles, because we've not seen enough of what LeBron and Luca look like next to each other on the floor. I've seen enough. We don't know. You have, but the best world is not. Personally, me as a person, I have seen enough. But they're kind of the only team for me that's like, okay, could they pull an upset of a higher-seated team?

Could they beat OKC? I don't know. Could they lose to a team in the playing right now? I don't know. Like, that's the only team. I think every other team out West, I have my list. It's just like, I trust them or I don't trust them. They could pull an upset.

They're going to get upset. And then it's the Lakers just floating around in Nowhereville because I still need to see more from that duo. What would you need to see from them to make you feel better? the regular season about what it would look like in the playoffs. I need to see them have more time on the floor together. I need to see what it looks like when they're in a lot in close games, high leverage situations. And maybe you're not going to see that in the regular season with one guy in LeBron

who has been there and done that and the guy in Luca who, you know, we know what he is individually. So maybe you don't get that until the postseason. But I need to see how they close out games. What does that dynamic look like when a game is on the line? You've got two of the however many you want, wherever you want to put Luca, they're just like two of the name your number best offensive players in the history of the sport. What does that look like? That's the thing I don't have the answer to right now.

That defense, too. They've been the seventh defense since the trade. Like, I just don't know if I believe in that defense to hold that up. Maybe it's a rejuvenated LeBron who decided to play defense again because he's excited about the team. And then you got Vando and Dorian Finney Smith. Like that combo of wings like that can make you a really good defense. But is that going to hold up? They can do it for a month. But can they do it for. a couple months, a season. That's the thing for the Lakers I'm looking at. And against the best offensive teams in the league,

you know, four times out of seven, right? It's like the, there are some teams they can meet for sure, but can they guard at the highest levels in the playoffs. The thing I'm watching in March is that one team in the Northwest still cares. You guys think March basketball doesn't matter,

but tonight, the Phoenix Sons, the desperate Phoenix Sons, are going to play, I guess this has already happened. when this comes out. But the Sons and Bucks played, the Bucks without Damien Lillard, very familiar to the Miami Heat.

And they, you know, like this is a meaningful game for Portland. They will watch two teams that kind of need to win. Milwaukee kind of needs to win. Phoenix definitely needs to win. It's a meaningful game.

If you just get farther enough down the standings, I know some of you all worried about championships, but you just look farther enough down the standings. There's meaningful games. You look too far down to standing. There's a bunch of BS. But if you get, if you can get right,

into the middle. You can get right into the middle. I think there are meaningful games in March. Like, Sacramento needs to hang on and not get, and like they want to host the play-in games as opposed to be on the road for those playing games. Like, there are meaningful games in the middle of the standings, I think, and you get that. I probably think there's less prove-it stuff for the really good teams or even the kind of good teams. The Mads would be hosting a, they'd be hosting a play-in game in the Eastern Conference right now. I just want to want to make sure to point that out there. I'm sure it's never been pointing that before. They're famously better than the Miami Heat. What is going on?

What's the show? Yeah, it's just attack. They kick them while they're down. They win one game against the hornets and suddenly we can attack them again. We should. We should attack Miami whenever, whenever possible. That's fine. We're used to it down.

The maps are still trying to. The maps are technically as a team still fighting for that 10th seed too. And they're still going for it. I mean, I guess the maps still have, if they have enough players and if they don't have to forfeit any of these games, the rest of the season. They could. But I think the point that we've all kind of made

and we've all kind of like skirted around it is for the teams that have made trades. It's March basketball is to try and figure out if that team is viable. What those teams are, you have an Anthony Davis returning for the Mavericks,

you have a Lucca on the Lakers, you have a Jimmy Butler on the Warriors. Did any of those teams move enough to you guys to change how you felt about them? I think the Lakers, of course. Like that's one where I've seen them up close and personal. personal three times since that trade and Luca and Austin Reeves surprisingly are just just tremendous

this season and that that dude's really figuring some stuff out. I think that they have enough personally. I don't know if they are like it does remind me of the Mavericks last year where you trade you make some seismic trades to sort of change the foundation and the belief of your squad and kind of fill in some gaps. I think they're going to be a challenge for any team that they play. I think I would pick the Lakers over the Nuggets right now, fundamentally, which sucks because that's a really, really painful thing to have to admit after owning the Lakers in each of the previous couple of years. So it's going to be fascinating to see how they continue to break down. I think standings-wise, the standings and the ultimate playoff brackets will shape a lot of how the Western Conference plays out. Everyone on the same page with Ryan, they pick the Lakers over the Nuggets.

Yeah, and that's, I mean, I'm looking at the West and there's quite a few teams I might pick over the nuggets at this point. I just, I can't, I don't, I'm usually not like the math guy on these things. I usually leave that to John Corrales on the East Squad show, who only likes to talk about three point shooting. But like, Denver's three point shooting is a major issue. And if they just catch the wrong matchup, as great as Yokic is and as much as everybody believes in them, it's like, okay, what if Golden State just goes nuts from three point range in that series? like they're one of those really scary variance teams and they're so like behind on the math problem of it. I know that they lead the league in points in the paint and every Nuggets fan likes to point that out. But it's like, yeah, well, you know.

That's what we got. Yeah, exactly, for sure. It gets a little scary in some of these matchups here. They've just been bad on defense for so long. Like they're just, that's my biggest concern with them is like when they were championship good, they could like put together stretches where it's like, oh yeah, that team rocks on defense. It's like their, Yokic is out guarding at 35 feet and being insane. And like, they have enough athletes flying around behind him to like make it work.

They just been bad on defense for a long enough stretch. It's like, yeah, I don't know that they ever get there with this particular group. They may not. That's certainly an issue. But Jamal Murray just had 39 points against the Houston Rockets on the road. And if he is playing that way and if Yokic is playing that way, everybody, like, they're going to, like, it's really going to be defined by the defense and whether they can just, just find a way to do it's right now they haven't really proven that they can but we've seen this team kind of

turned some things around before and go from not trying to trying really hard and find finding some things and figuring some stuff out i mean riland knows firsthand on that the second night of back to back they uh like the nuggets can pull some things together yeah i mean the nuggets i think should still be taken a bit seriously just because like if you're going to discount the thunder for not having experience i think you then have to grant the nuggets for having experience and having players who have stepped up in the big moments and having players who've performed at their best on the biggest stage at times.

So the nuggets can still find things. There's just no reason to believe that they will right now on paper. That doesn't mean that it can't happen though. And I mean that the best player in the world. So anytime you have the best player in the world, you're going to have success in a playoff series. Ryan, who would you pick Denver to beat in the playoffs that they could conceivably face?

I know that the bracket out West can change a lot between now when the postseason or when the playoffs start on April 19th, but who would you pick them to beat and who would you pick to beat them if you had to pick today? He's gonna answer that question. Come on. Lockton, Mia Squad Show.

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We talk about anything in the NBA. We're talking about the Denver Nuggets right now and their experience. Ryan, which teams are you feeling comfortable that the Nuggets would beat? You don't think the Lakers are a team. I don't think, well, they can beat the Lakers. Will they beat the Lakers?

Is the big question, whether they could solve the problems that the Lakers prevent or actually present to them. So I think O KC is a team that they probably can't beat. I think the Lakers are a team that they probably won't beat. I think the Timberwolves are a team that they can't beat. The other ones they can.

I think they should be favored versus Houston. They should be favored versus Memphis. They should be favored versus Golden State and the Clippers and the Kings and the Sons and the Mavericks if we're talking about them. Oh, and the Blazers, if we could, we get them in there as well. But it's just a, like, that's just an unfortunate reality is that you have to be able to beat the best. And right now I think OKC and the Lakers are the two top teams in the conference.

and then Minnesota is just the problem child for them. Can Houston beat anyone? Would you pick Houston to beat any of the teams? Obviously they might like if they play the Kings or whatever. But like, what all due respect? But like, but I mean, if they were to play any of the other, say, above the line, top six teams in the West, can Houston beat any of those top six teams in the series? I think they could beat Memphis. I don't know that I would pick them.

But like I think that's probably the one opponent that's in the top six that's probably not going to fall in. the playing that I could say, you know what? If that's a three six matchup, could Houston win that series? Yes. If you look at any of the other four teams inside that top six, I'm picking the four teams. Like I'm picking obviously OKC, Denver, the Lakers, picking everybody. But Memphis is the one that I just look and say, you know what, I don't trust them in the postseason. I think that they're a regular season good team, but I just don't think that what they do is going to be all that good in the post season. Yeah, Memphis is the only thing that they have a shot against, I think, for for the Houston. And it's still a great season, even if they lose in the first round,

like we would expect. They've still made great improvements from where they've been. I just can't get over the fact that whether defense is really good, they don't have a go-to score. And in the playoffs, that's what really matters. And you can say in turn against Memphis, if John Morant doesn't continue this March stretch and he isn't, you know, what he has been of late, then Memphis is a team that's getable. Everyone else, though, I just don't see how they stop their guy down the stretch and how they match the other team's guy down the stretch. So I think that that Houston will have an uphill battle to even win one series. Can I take the devil's avidcate side of this and tell you why the Houston Rockets are going to win the championship?

I would love to hear this. Sit back, everybody. Okay. So to be clear, I'm not sure I believe this. Do you think he's going to say heart and culture in this at all? Not for Houston, no way. Dirtiest, nastiest. He's going to say mucket up at some point.

Has anybody been watching Jalen Green lately? I mean, I know it's March and it's his favorite month of the year. This is his month. This is his month. January, February, Jalen Green. Yeah, that's what I made the joke the other day. If every month were March, Jalen Green would be Michael Jordan. So it's absolutely crazy.

But he's averaging 25 points on, you know, a lot of shots. It's not like the efficiency is up. But when he's on, he has just this ability to create his shot one-on-one that does answer all those questions. That's the biggest thing with Houston is when they've been playing really well. It happens to coincide when Jalen Green is also playing really. well because they have that extra bit that they need. But what if he is playing really well throughout the playoffs? Like what if they catch lightning in a bottle

a little bit here with him? And they could do some stuff. They play the Thunder really close. Like those are tough games. And I think the reason for it is because they do play play playoff basketball. Like the Thunder are awesome at jumping passing lanes

and taking the ball away and creating turnovers that way. Houston doesn't pass the ball. They just throw the ball to a guy. And that kind of eliminates Oklahoma City. It kind of defangs the OKC defense a little bit in those matchups. But it's also how we've seen teams succeed in the playoffs, right? Just give it to a good player and let them sort of figure it out. They're also the best transition defense in the league or one of them last time I checked.

And Oklahoma City and there's a lot of the Lakers, Memphis, there's a lot of teams in the Western Conference who thrive and rely on transition buckets. And they just do the best job in the league at preventing those transition buckets. So I don't know. we keep trying to say that the Rockets aren't anything to be taken seriously, but they're still number two in the Western Conference standings. They win a ton of games. They have a lot of depth. I don't believe anything of what I'm saying.

I just wanted to point something out. They're half court and one. The Rockets half court offense is worse than the jazz. Yeah, I left that part. What? They're 25th and half court offense. But not when Jalen Green is playing like this.

It's almost exclusively propped up by offensive rebounds. They cannot score. They cannot. Stephen Adams is the greatest player I've watched in my entire one. like he's unbelievable. Mason Pumley would disagree. It was awesome to watch him last night. Yeah.

I mean, the reason they beat up OKC is because okay, they are the thing they're best at is OKC's weakness. Occc says we don't, we just don't get defensive rebounds at the level of other really great teams. And we, they kind of punted on it. And Houston is like,

that's the thing we do best. Give me Shea Gildas Alexander with 40 seconds left as a, as opposed to Fred Van Vleet or like Alpern Shangoon from 19 feet, you know, like it's just. their preference. I get it. Yeah. I thought this was rings culture. Fred's got a ring. That's what's spared out over this season. I mean, the Rockets won one game against OKC. Fred Van Bleet had 38 points in that game. Credit to him. If he does that one or two times in the playoffs,

they can win those two games, but they can't do it four times before OKC gets to four. And the shingoon stuff in the playoffs, we'll see how that looks, which could change the dynamics a bit. And the Thunder now being healthy with Chet and Hartenstein and now Jay Will play. his best basketball of his life. We'll see what that can translate. But, you know, the Thunder have secured some of their front court issues. I've shored them up a bit. And we'll just have to see.

I don't think that they have a chance to be okay. See, I don't need to have a chance to be to Memphis. So, but maybe, maybe if Jalen Green just thinks that April's March, things can turn around for them. Just never show them a calendar. Don't even change the calendar in the Rockets facility. Always show them the calendar. It is March 47.

March 40, March 4th. Hire that one dude from. CBS to just tweet this is March at them all the time. Do we have a, is there a Rockets in the East? And all of them? Like everyone like the series? I mean,

everyone but Boston is even? It's the Knicks. Technically, technically no, because the Knicks can beat anybody below Boston and Cleveland. They just can't beat Boston and Cleveland. Like, I think New York would probably be favored.

And of course, we need to see what Jalen Brunson looks like when he comes back from this ankle injury. If he ever does get back. at this point. But I think they'd be favored in any series that isn't against the Celtics or the Cavs. And they should be expecting to win those series. But then they're going to get into a two, three matchup against Boston in the second round.

And they're going to get their doors blown off because they're not on the same level as those teams. Yeah, that's interesting to frame it that way, Danny, because it's like, would Houston be favored in any series? And I think the answer is obviously no, even if they end up being the two seed. Like they would be maybe the underdogs in a series where they have home court advantage. not against the kings it depends who gets the seven sons yeah not again with listen

I know Matt George is here to defend himself but that team sucks they suck you don't think Bulls West has made a lot of sense they are so every time I watch them I feel so sad in my heart

and I remember that they were two years ago they were they were fun they were all right but really it's not going to be Sacramento or Phoenix it's going to be Golden State Minnesota or the clippers that are in that seven spot yeah yeah they I think all three of those teams will probably be favored no I agree I would agree with you guys are you guys are forgetting were to win that first plan if they win the playing game you know like if they're seven they have a path

to seven it's um famously reliable James Hardin in the playoffs there it is you guys are forgetting the first 10th seed to ever make it out of the play in your Dallas Mavericks with anthony Davis at the helm, lively coming back, Gafford coming back. Right. Against all odds. Against all odds and against and against every suggestion from inside the organization and out. The Mavs are going for this.

They can't get to seven. They can only be eight if they're going to finish 10th in the conference. They can only get to eight. They can't get to seven. Coming up, why are the Mavericks going for this? They have to catch the clipper's four back or whatever. Yeah. Why are they doing this?

And we're going to relegate some teams a little bit later. Let's talk about that and more coming up. Thanks for hanging out. This Lockdown to be a squad show. We've got a daily show that covers your favorite team. We mentioned Matt George, Lockdown Kings. Mike Richman locked on Blazers. A lot of those teams covered.

None of the national shows cover any of those teams. Well, we're doing it every day. Right, Mike? Yeah, I'm here. I've been here. I've made like a thousand shows before the Blazers have played a playoff game. So yeah, I've been around. What's 20?

what Mike, Mike saying that George is not here to defend himself. Matt has been on his podcast over and over again saying that the Kings are mid. So he'd only push back on them being terrible and then throw at you their mid actually. Well, actually they're mid. It's true. He asked. The team is 35 and 35. They are they are mid. It's just true. Mike's having no fun watching the Kings. I think Matt George may be having less fun watching the Kings. He's got to do it. Yeah. Although I'm reading for the Kings to get the eight. I bet you are. Mike asked me, Mike asked me why the Mavericks are doing this. It's the safe face, right?

It's because Anthony Davis wants to play in front of Mavs fans and prove that he's alive. Anthony Davis is pushing for it. I think Nico Harrison secretly is just like, oh my God, can he just play and show that this wasn't the worst trade of all time, which I mean, I guess it's going to be anyway. But they just need something, right? And like, the vibes are just so low right now.

Like, we're doing a live show on April 8th, the day before Luca comes back. And I have no idea what it's going to be like. Like, it could be a funeral. It could be fun if we could just all be together, but like we're just going to get a bunch of Mavs fans in a room, and I have no idea what's going to happen. Like, there could be fun.

I would dress, Nick, how we're all dressed today for that life. I'd also avoid an open bar. Four Corners Brewery here in town. Yeah, I mean, they're just going for it. And it is what it is. Everybody thinks that they should tank and just run it out. They own their pick. They should just run out the clock.

No Kyrie. There's just really no. The only thing that I've tried to make the case, I've tried to rationalize it. If they could be the first 10th seed to make it out of the play it, play the thunder. And if they win one game against the thunder,

you get that one precious moment. Is it worth it for average? I am. And then you just say, well, what if Kyrie was healthy? And what if, you're like, oh, we were just a Kyrie away

from maybe upsetting the insane team. I will tell you what happened in Miami. That literally happened last year where Jimmy Butler gets hurt in the playing tournament. They make it to the first round. They play the Boston Celtics in the,

in the first round. They win the second game of that because they made like 83-pointers in that game. And then every heat fan was like, oh my God, we did it. We won. We won. And then Pat Riley,

a month later, got asked, hey, what would have happened if Jimmy Butler would have been there? Jimmy Butler had said something. And then Pat Riley responded to Jimmy Butler, and now Jimmy Butler is no longer playing for the Miami Heat. So I will tell you that short moment of it being great doesn't always work out.

But you guys already trade your franchise players. Listen, it doesn't matter. The Dallas Mavericks as an organization would never, besmirch a player current or former in any way they would never say anything like that they're just perfect PR statements all the time from the Dallas man they respect their legends like shack and also he was almost a maverick Mark Cuban almost traded for him and Kobe and all the other ones and they almost hold on to Luca Donchich too oh it doesn't hurt me anymore doesn't hurt you

You can't hurt me anymore. It's going to hurt you when Dodo has a really nice game. That one. It's going to hurt when it's like when it's Dorian Finney Smith, just being a consummate role player on a team that makes the Western Congress files. Then I will listen to the show. There is. I guess there's still a scenario where the Lakers get to two.

I guess they can't play in the first round. There's no way that Mavs get to eight. I mean, James Hardin is hurt. Like he's hurt. He might miss some time. And they're going to be not very good without him. but they won't be awful because they just defend so well. Yeah.

Let's relegate some teams. Who are you done with in the NBA? They need to sit out and they need to go down to the championship. So we're going to do this for a year, right? They miss all of next season. Yeah, they're in the G League. The Sixers. That's a great one.

That's a great one. They absolutely deserve it, man. You deserve to be punished. Yes. Paul George podcasting from G League arenas next year. Oh my gosh. taking on the Birmingham squadron and he's out there doing a podcast on the floor.

Live from Sue Balls, whatever Dakota. When Tyrese maxi average like 45 points. More than that. If you want to see Quinn Grimes be really good. He would finally win a champion. Watch those games. And we would finally get his champion. Mike was about to say the jazz. That's my answer. The jazz. It's the jazz. Because the jazz has been a great.

Remember who we worked for a fellas? That's all I'm going to say. I'm going to say, David. You know what you watch. You know what you saw. You saw it in March. You're going to see it in April. You're going to see it all next year too, bud. You know what you saw?

Get them out of here. David, look into the whites of my eyes. To not give their picked O KC, so. Oh, my gosh. Walker Kessler is still sitting out games. Like, that dude is perfectly healthy. He's perfectly fine.

He played on Sunday against the Cavs, and he may as well have not have played against the Cavs. It was bad. Uh-oh. Walker Kessler has taken something like 303s over the last five games. Do we relegate a team that is choosing to be bad like the Jazz and doing the... What's Charlotte? Or should we choose a team that is just that bad with the Wizards?

Like, which one would you rather relegate? No, I think the Wizards are doing it the right way. They are in the bottom part. They're at the beginning stages of their NBA team building lifecycle. They are just supposed to be bad. I have no problem with the Wizards. It's just the way that things are. Teams like Toronto, Utah, like Philadelphia.

these teams that are shutting their players down. That's how we stop tanking guys. I can't believe an organization would stoop to that levels. It is disgusting. Yeah, I would never see something like that. Yeah, who would take even the last two games of a season ever? If I had a couple of three consecutive seasons? Of year two of their rebuild?

Like, how long have those Charlotte Hornets been a franchise? Well, okay, that's that's year 47 of their rebuild. Right. It's just sad to watch them. 47th day of March for jailing. actively watch them that often anymore because they like there's just too many of these situations the other one is like new orleans at this point yeah there's there's it's not necessarily their faults unless they're actually going to start paying for a training staff that

that keeps their players healthy uh they believe that their franchise is cursed that's that probably shouldn't be a jumping off point they have a training staff that group is just busy with the NFL team like they're just not available during a big chunk of the season I you can't blame them they're working hard worked out really well for the saints this year yeah it's tough seed they are that's i mean there's there's so many teams that we could be relegating at this point the other one is the phoenix sons like they're in the playing tournament right now and there's no they have no business being there have two all nba players yeah no business yeah i i hope i mean i i hope they get what they deserve which is not making the play and like i i hope freaking anthony davis comes back and plays eight glorious

games for the Mavs or whatever it is. I guess I should be saying. What podcast do I host? What I meant to say, can I take that one? What I meant to say was, here come the Blazers. They are committed. You've never seen a team more committed to finishing 10th than Portland. This is a group that has really come together to finish 10th.

The Mavs thought they were good. The Blazers didn't think they were good. And then they said, 10th, you say. 10th? If you've watched the last three weeks, I think you can say the Miami Heat had been committed to finishing 10th, too. Yeah, unfortunately, this was accidental. They really didn't.

I think that's actually worse. Yeah, the Blazers are noble bad. This is a noble bad team. I mean, they've been like, whatever, East playoff good for two months. If you guys want to relegate the heat, I'm fine with it. I'm good. I'll just do national shows five days a week. I'm good not having to talk about the team if I'm good. It does feel wrong though to relegate the heat whenever the Marlins also should be relegated. Then then you're left with like nothing but to us. Excuse me. The Marlins have already relegated themselves. Thank you very much. They are literally taking calls to just random people off the street. Do you want to play for our spring training team? There is an argument by the way to be renting out players for a playoff series like the heat are in the perfect spot. to start doing that they could it could be earning back some of the the cash that they've spent on a

on a pretty pricey team uh that that could be who do you want for bam out of bomb can a tyrese maxi be available oh yeah is he actually hurt would bam fundamentally change a playoff team like turn a playoff team into a contender if we just plop them onto a roster the lakers the nuggets the lakers love her love me some bam out of bio man that would be great it would it would probably make the lakers the though, right? Yeah. I mean, I think he would make Bam out a pile. Oh my God.

And he provides some semblance of interior defense. Not an entry pass. It's a gift at the basket. You tap it in. Like a Fisher Price for him. He made Jackson Hayes look like an all-star. Jackson-Aze is an all-star. Went to the West Finals with Dwight Powell.

That's right. The White Powell was the starting center in 2022. Mm-hmm. There you go. There you go. Lockdown NBA Squad Show. Check out the great shows from all these guys covering their show every day, five days a week, covering all the games all through March. We watch all the March basketball guys.

So you don't have to. The least you can do is watch all of our shows. Go check it out. Lockedon, NBA Squad show. Thanks much for hanging out with us.