Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers - NBA West Squad: Luka Doncic Shocking Trade and the look Spurs with De’Aaron Fox

Episode Date: February 5, 2025

NBA West Squad: Luka Doncic Shocking Trade and the look Spurs with De’Aaron Fox The NBA West Squad Show tackles the seismic trade of Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers. Hosts from various Western Conference teams discuss the fallout, including potential trade packages other teams could have offered for Doncic. The conversation explores how this move reshapes the Western Conference landscape, particularly impacting teams like the Thunder and Spurs. The hosts debate the Lakers' win-now prospects with Luka and LeBron, and whether trading LeBron should be considered. The show also covers the Kings' trade of De'Aaron Fox to the Spurs, analyzing its implications for both teams and the broader competitive balance in the West. 0:00 Intro5:23 Luka Doncic trade impact on teams11:55 Lakers' future after Luka trade19:55 Kings trade De'Aaron Fox to Spurs26:02 Spurs' playoff chances with Fox31:51 Rob Pelinka's role in Luka trade  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 show, Western Conference just got turned upside down by one man making one decision telling no one. Nico Harrison trades, Luca Dodgers to the Dallas Mavericks. What does the West look like now? I guess we'll figure it out. Today's Lockdown NBA Squad Show West. You are talking ball with the NBA West Squad Show, sponsored by game time. From the Warriors to the Lakers, the Mavericks to the Nuggets, and everyone else in the West. The local experts of the Locked On podcast network bring you all the key.

Breakdowns and the most comprehensive look at the Western Conference. Trash talk and big takes included. No holding back, we're giving the green light. It's time to talk NBA West. And welcome. You're locked into the NBA squad show West, and I will be sending a note to HR for that just, that intro with the Luca image with the Mavericks jersey.

It just, that's a salt right there. This is the squad show where we take over the feet of your favorite lockdown show. It's an open invite for any host to join. to talk about anything they want, no matter what it is in the NBA's Western Conference. Today's episode is sponsored by GameTime, download the GameTime app, create an account, use that code,

locked on NBA for $20 off your first purchase. Joining me, host from the NBA on the Western Conference. We got Matt Moore for Locked on Nuggets, Ryland Stiles, locked on Thunder, Jackson Gatlin, locked on Rockets, Brendan Cleen, locked on Sons, Matt George, locked on Kings, and Ryan Blackburn locked on Nuggets.

Gentlemen, anybody have any thoughts about what's happened? Matt Moore, I'll start with you. Thoughts on Luke Adich, the Dallas, Mavericks. Is this just going to be a let's pile on the Mavs show because I've been doing that for a week and I'm ready to do some more. Yeah, I'm just going to twist the dagger. That's all I want to do here. So I just want to ask questions. I don't want to talk. I just want to ask questions.

I'd like to go around the horn here and start with Ryan and work backwards of if the Mavericks called and offered you Luca Donchich, what would you think an appropriate offer from your team? This is so, this is so pain. Like what's good value? What's like good value? I mean, you can't give up Anthony Davis in a first who could don't tell anybody but like if they called and they were like hey I'll give you Luca donchich and a second rounder mind you and a second rounder what what would you give the offer in return Ryan what do you think is a good value from the nuggets uh you know what maybe we'll just we'll just throw in Jamal Murray for you maybe we'll throw in Michael Porter Jr. We'll see we'll see if those things are are perfectly reasonable. I can we get a Jamal Murray made a shot

just put into a t-shirt and maybe put that on anthony davis's face instead i mean no there's there's no fair trade from the nuggets perspective you're not getting yokech that's for sure jemal mpj patin watson and a first that's actually like that's a worse deal than probably the the mavericks guy absolutely i really want to before the fox trade what would you have given marvin bagley next question the baffling kings bagley but like would you give up would you give up we'll say Sabonis. Would you give up Sabonis,

Kagan and a first? For Luca Donchich? Yes. Okay. Would you give up Fox? Or would you give up Fox, Kegan, and two firsts? Probably.

Andy, they're just torturing me. Brendan, Brendan Clean from Lockdown Sons. You can't do anything. Some pennies under the couch cushion. But what it really is is six years of DeAndre Aten that I had to watch. That's the real answer. for what could have really, you know, in the real world.

On Saturday, would you have trade, would you trade KD for him? I mean, value-wise, you have to. Would you trade Devin Booker for him? Come on, come on, Brennan. The answer is yes. And it's like, value-wise, yes, but it's like that, that, does that type of trade happen? I don't know. I guess that's what AD sort of was, but they still have LeBron.

It's like you're just, you're just switching teams that, like, your whole team is just a different thing at that point. I don't know. Can't really fathom it. But yeah, I guess so. I guess you'd have to. He's better. Jackson from Lockedown Rockets. One of...

Stop. Both. No, no, hang on. One of a men Thompson or Alper in Shungoon. Then take your pick from whoever else is left. Like, you got to keep one of those two young guys. That's my only, like, caveat. One of them stays.

Pick whoever else you want from the young guys. Pile in a million draft picks to beat everybody else's offer. That's what you give for Luca. Okay. And this one's a really good one. Rylan style. Oh my God. From Locked on Thunder.

Well, I'd start the bidding with Usman Jang, a lottery pick. You know, someone has a lot of potential. But Niko would convince me that defense wins championships. So I'd probably just say nothing. I would not give up anything for Luca. But in reality, J-dub, and then you can just have whatever picks you want, don't really care. If they push for Chet Holmgren, would you do it? No.

Really? No, I would just hold on to him. I think that he has more upside on both ends of the court than J-Dub does. and the two injuries have been you know you're cautiously optimistic that they're just kind of flukes the one on the brown on the wet court and then falling on his hip this year

it's been bad like obviously he was out a whole season and half of one but they were really fluky it wasn't anything to do with his like frame or something like that Nick Angxat from Lock on Mavericks what would you give up for Luca Donchich my house

one of my legs probably an arm as well just the left arm probably though I need the right one So many things. And it's just, you just go back and you think there's only, the show we did today on Locked on Mavs. There's literally only one person that's happy about this or that it makes sense to. And that's Nico Harrison.

It's literally the only one. He didn't talk to anybody else. He went to ownership. And I think it's hilarious today that one of the talking points that people are saying is, what about Mab's ownership? Shouldn't Mav's ownership have said no to this? Shouldn't we hold them to blame to? How long did Mavs fans say that Mark Cuban should stay out of all trade stuff?

and let the GM do his job. And finally, the owner let the match GM do his job. And he did the worst thing that he could possibly do because this trade just means it's more than just what's on the court. I think it is worth at least acknowledging. Nico Harrison may have been allowed to do the thing that he thought was best or what he wants. He also may have been doing the thing that was the directive to do

from up top in terms of the financial piece of this. Like this may not have been Nico Harrison purely. being the smartest and only guy in the room. And he's just taking the slings and arrows from it. He's just the meat shield that the ownership is using because they didn't want to give him the money. The problem with the money thing is like, oh, we didn't want to give Luke of the money. It's not having a job.

The money goes, well, he said he was about to be buried in 10 years anyway. He wouldn't have a job at the press conference, though, was insane. The thing about the money is the money is going somewhere. It's a cap. The money is going to go somewhere. The thunder are going to have to pay SGA, but that money was going to go to. somebody you might as well go to top three player in the NBA it's not about the money it's about the 2028 Vegas Mavericks the Adelson's moving the team over to Las Vegas that I mean I mean here

we go we want to go you want to go full into it we can we can go full into it I really thought he said about the money and be like it's about sending a message oh I was so close so close to just like the Mavs so close to greatness they did this in the East squad show I'm curious if anybody in the West said anybody think it was a good move for the Mavs anyone I want to Zigg and only do the ultimate Zig and Zag It can't be considered a good move for the Mavericks. I will just say this caveat. If you were just hell-bent on trading Luca,

which they clearly were, and we just went around- He was. He was. We just went around the horn of what the packages would be. And you were still trying to win this year. I think that the AD package still is the only one that helps you win this year, even as much as we love J-D-N-O-K-C.

In terms of winning this title in 2025, AD helps you do that more than J-D-W-1-1-1. would in a one for one Lucas swap. Let me ask the Mavericks guy, Nick, if the Mavs win a title sometime in the next five years, just one title, they win one, do you look back at this move and say it was the right move? Well, Kyrie would be 38 and five years, so the window is maybe short of them that. The thing is, well, and what's that point of being competitive this year? What is that?

Like, they're not going to win the championship. So even saying it's like this year, who cares about this year? It's, and it's one of those things where Mavs fans have, the only thing the Mavs fans can compare it to, is the 2011 title, which is like one of the most special titles to a fan base ever. And so you saw the whole, you saw Dirk make his whole,

you know, redemption tour and all that and made that run. And you had Luca who now is out, or Luca was out of the playoffs a couple years ago, then made back to the finals. And like, all right, now we're going to see Luca make that same kind of run. And now you're just,

and now you got your heart completely ripped out because the guy that you've attached yourself to, you've defended, you've loved, you've thought every, if you ever think about the Dallas Mavericks as a Mavs fan, you think about Luca first, and now he's just gone. And it just is, it just ripped the heart out of so many people. I mean, did you guys see the stage at the American Airlines Center where there's a coffin literally brought in? There's a, there's like, you know, a shrine to Luca Dantitch. I think a title would, one title would make it worth it for Nico Harrison. I still think Niko Harrison's title

and what he's going to be known for for the rest of his life is the GM that traded Luca Anjic. Even if they win a title, he will be, first in his Wikipedia page will say the GM of the trade of Luca Donchich also the Mabbs won the 2020 whatever title I mean I think it's also reflective of where we're at with fandom like this is what's been I think amazing to me is like I do think that people have kind of shifted where you're people are such fans of a player that it really is more important to win with that guy like this isn't even dirk level like I honestly think this is beyond dirk level which is crazy because dirk was honestly just like a like dirt jerk jerk took his job seriously

He did. Dirk hit a point where he and Nash learned together that you got to take care of your body and all that. And Luka never hit that point at this point or hasn't hit that point at this point. And that's the biggest reason that Nico Harrison said that he wanted to trade Luca, which to me is still a couple days later, not good enough.

That's not a good enough reason to trade Luca Dantridge. But coming up, let's talk about how this changes the Western Conference. Who is affected the most by this besides the Dallas Mavericks? We'll talk about that and more coming up. Today's episode of Lockdown NBA Squad Show. oh my God, it's brought to you by BetterHelp. Go check out BetterHelp.

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Visit BetterHelp.com slash lockdown NBA today to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp. H-E-LB.com slash Lockdown NBA. Betterhelp.com slash Lockdown NBA. Oh, gentlemen. It's the Lockdown NBA Squad Show West where we talk about the teams in the Western Conference.

Which team? Let's say besides the Dallas Mavericks is affected the most by the the Luca Donchage trade. Andy Kamenetsky locked on Lakers. Can you think of our guys, can you think of a team that is affected the most by this besides the Dallas Mavericks?

It's got to be the Thunder, right? Could be. I mean, the Thunder are more ways than one. You have a pick swap from Dallas in 2028 because, of course, the Thunder do, where they project to be better than the Mavericks so that they're going to implement that swap. And then the Mavericks were the biggest threat, as we discussed on a previous Lockton NBA West Squad show to Oklahoma City.

and I think that the matchup is still very difficult. I think that they'd still be at or near the top of the list for this season in terms of matchups with the Thunder because of how AD can go defend Chet on the perimeter. But offensively for the Mavericks, they did take a step back. I mean, you no longer have the magician. You no longer have the musician whipping the ball around at PJ Washington and getting him clean looks. And AD pick and rolls with Kyrie are fun until you have Daniel Gafford camped in the paint

and cramming the spacing and you have two non-shooting. big's next to him for a guy who doesn't want to play the center position. So it's just also strange, but it does impact the thunder in a great way. Who's the next star that the Lakers were going to get that now they won't? That to me is like the big question here is like, is it was it Devin Booker? Was it going to be? And oh, that's it. The big winner is the Minnesota Timberwolves because it makes it less like

than Anthony Edwards goes to L.A. They're not going to get better in the West, though. It just means that Ant's going to go to the Clippers. man we know how the new stadium great stadium oh i'm just the mavericks just completely changed as as a team they're now like this defensive huge they're gonna play anthony davis at the four they'll probably play pj at the three they've got now one guard in kairi irving that now all the mav's trade targets are completely different than what they were before now all of a sudden you're looking at okay can they add another offensive creator can they add another initiator it's like that

we haven't really looked for that well we were talking about teams most impacted from this not the mavericks right well obviously let's talk a little bit about the lakers because i think the lakers are in a really interesting position as it currently stands right do they do they punt on the rest of this season or do they try to win with some version of lucca and lebron and this like fragmented roster because they don't have a like a functioning five-man lineup right now jackson is your starting center like that's problematic so do they do they make some moves and try to like maintain some semblance of being competitive this season with let's be honest luca LeBron is not a great fit. They're both all-time great players and they're going to find a way to

make it work. But if you're trying to put Luca and LeBron on the floor together, that defense is going to be abysmal. And then offensively, you're not getting the best version of either of those two guys since they're elite when they have the ball in their hands. Yes, LeBron can play off of Luca a little bit. Yes, Luca can try to play off of LeBron a little bit, but you're only going to get like 80 or 85% of the max, like potential of those two guys playing in that sort of a dynamic. I think the other shoot a drop is that LeBron needs to get traded. That's my bold take is trade LeBron. Figure out what you need.

Anything could happen now. Luca's been traded. Anything could happen. He's got the no trade clause, but I think you got to figure that out and jumpstart the the Luca era of Lakers basketball. Is this a win now season for the Lakers or are they just, are they resetting? Where do you stand on? Ask me on Thursday.

I mean, the truth is I can't answer the question until after the trade deadline to know truly how much of this is prioritizing this season versus clear. the big picture is the number one goal. I mean, obviously the Lakers between now and say 2035, that is the ultimate priority. But depending on what moves are made over the next 72 hours, the Lakers could be, if nothing else, a team that can go a couple rounds in the playoffs and hope that maybe some things break their way, which is essentially what their ceiling was pre-Luca trade anyway. As for the idea of me to trade LeBron,

unless you're going to make things exceptionally uncomfortable over the next 72 hours to make LeBron ask for a no trade clause, which you never know how someone reacts, but I'm not sure that's exactly the introduction that I want with Luca, trying to convince him to sign an extension, watch the way we ran out possible goat of NBA history. Watch the way we kicked his ass on the way. That's a bad way to get Luca.

Is that a bad thing? Like on the way out, just like pile on the guy that you traded without telling him. Is that that that's bad? I wouldn't think that would be the angle. I would think you sit down and have the discussion with LeBron. Do you want to stay in L.A. and do you want to try to play alongside?

I think they already have. I mean, reporting the Malta reports, LeBron's good with this. otherwise he would have said, find me a new home in 72 hours. Yeah, and if you trade him, he's like the one guy who actually would just bolt. He's not going to let a trade dictate his goodbye to the NBA, right? So I don't even know what a trade would look like. The Warriors are so obvious because they've been linked before, but you're not going to open

that up and send LeBron to some random place, even if you didn't have the no trade clause. Exactly. Exactly. That's why, to me, LeBron's no trade clause. like when the Lakers gave it to him, people were making a big deal out of it. I'm like, who cares? The Lakers would never side swipe LeBron. And like one day he wakes up this morning, he finds out he's going to Charlotte. Like the Lakers would not do that. Like as an organization, they would not do that to someone of LeBron's stature. It goes against their entire ethos.

Plus trading LeBron, what team has $50 million worth of parts that are expendable enough that you would trade them for LeBron, but also leaves you enough that LeBron would want to play for that team and would make it worth it for the Lakers. Like, good luck finding that. I didn't see this up properly. It's a Warriors trade or bust. Like, that's it, right?

They've been linked before you saw how happy LeBron was playing with Steph Curry in the Olympics. Like that would be his, I can't say his like one last, you know, one last rodeo or whatever because it would be this year and next year competing for a title with Steph, with Dre, with whatever, you know, pieces are left after a trade like that, but the Warriors have enough young parts, have enough aggregatable salary and have some future draft capital that they can throw in, that it kind of allows you to jumpstart the beginning of the Luca era. You punt on this season, but it puts you up,

it puts you in a position for better long-term success. And here's the really the big downside to the LeBron James situation. If last year, if next season is his final year, right, in the NBA, if that's going to be his farewell tour, how competitive are you really going to be in a farewell tour with LeBron James, where he wants all the glitz and glamour and focus on him during a goodbye tour for the entire 82 game season, right? He's not going to be focused and committed towards winning a title during his farewell tour. You don't think LeBron would want his final season to be with a championship?

Could be? Like, as far as the storybook endings go? I'm just trying to be realistic about it. That's all. But why wouldn't he want that? Like, this isn't Kobe's farewell tour where Kobe was a shell of himself physically. Like, LeBron may not be peak LeBron anymore. But he's still a pretty good player, and he's still playing where he's at a level that you could, at the very least, think about winning a championship with.

Like, the idea that they are mutually exclusive doesn't make sense to me. I don't watch them every night, but like the finals we just saw last year, if it's Boston again, him and Luca on the court together. Like, is that really like a rubric to beat the most specific? Swiss cheese defense is what it is. I mean, it depends. Like it is, I can make those jokes now. Yeah. Is Jackson Hayes my starting center or is it somebody else? You know, like, again, even if you're look at, look it took Dwight Powell to the Western Conference finals two years, three years ago. Yeah, I mean, like, I'm really not trying to punt. I'm not trying to sidestep this. I mean, but really the answer is I don't know because by all accounts, the Lakers are trying to do more.

And if the roster is different in 72 hours, the answer may be different. Coming up, Matt George, been Biden this time hanging out here, just chilling. They made a move. They sent Deeran Fox to the San Antonio Newsbursts. What do we think about that move in the Western Conference?

How does it shape things? Talk about that and more coming up. Today's episode of Lockdown NBA Squad Show West is brought to you by Fanduel, Fandole Sportsworkers, all kinds of props and odds, things that you can use to get in on the action. I don't think that they had odds for a Lugganandridge trade because I don't think that I think they would laugh at you

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All kinds of stuff. You can check out at Fandle right now. If you put down $5, you get $200 in bonus bets if that bet wins. So go check it out, fanduil.com, official partner of Super Bowl 59. Thanks for hanging out with us in Lockdown NBA Squad Show West. We've got your favorite host from the Lockdown NBA teams all over the place. We've got a great show for all of them five days a weekend. If you're a fan of the Dallas Mavericks, still multiple days, multiple episodes a day for the next foreseeable future to through the trade deadline.

Matt George, the Kings traded Deeran Fox. It finally happened. You had been sitting waiting for it for a long time. What's the response from the Kings on trading Deeran Fox and then we'll get into the Spurs part? Well, if you're wondering about my physical and emotional state, I'm eating Valentine's Day chalk hearts. So that should tell you everything you need to know about the state of my health or how much I care about my body at the moment. The Sacramento Kings traded their franchise player. If you are familiar with the Sacramento Kings, it's not too often that they get a franchise player.

In reality, is the trade horrible? No, a lot of people who want to say the Sacramento Kings got fleeced. I think the San Antonio Spurs made out like freaking baseball. And it's in the deal. But the Kings still did manage to get Zach Levine, who is definitely a downgrade, but offensively is more efficient of a score than Deerrin Fox is. He's not even close to the defender that Deeran Fox is. But the reality, guys, is I've been trying to follow and chase down all of the rumors

and all the speculation over the last week and some change. And there was a lot of it. This trade was close a couple of times, then quieted down. And it was close and then quieted it down. because the spurs were essentially playing hard ball with what they were willing to offer. The Sacramento Kings were looking elsewhere to try and get some win now talent because only the Kings can look to trade their franchise player and still try and win basketball games right away. And that's where Zach Levine came into play. You're hearing rumors of Kevin Durant is suddenly available.

I know the Sacramento Kings checked in on that. Not that there was any real realistic possibility, but the Kings were trying to do their due diligence. The reality is the Kings still know this roster needs work, especially defensively. that hasn't changed at all. So I expect still more between now and February 6th trade deadline. But hey, we'll see. The Kings are known for dragging their feet on trades and being close, but no cigar. Here we are.

Brennan Clean, lock on sons. Any interest? Any interest in who are we talking about? Matt, you brought up the Sons. No, it was the Kings were involving the Sons in conversations when talking about a Dierran Fox trade. Now that Fox is traded. Levina's gone. That was a potential son's backup plan with Beal.

Dearen Fox is clearly not on the market anymore. I was really liking the LeBron idea. That was nice. I was into that from a son standpoint until Andy said it had to be a package that the Lakers would like, which, you know, that whole part of it. The other team having to say yes, I kind of forgot about. So Beal for LeBron, not quite going to happen. I'm kind of, we're running out of options here in Phoenix unless Jimmy Butler gets his way.

Anybody feel like this is a good move for the Kings, or at least they did, did well enough in this? move? Yeah. Honestly, I thought they were fine. I think that if you know that it's going to fry up, if you know that the things are going to spiral, then you might as well get some assets out of it right now before you have to pivot ultimately. Like, I think Zach Levine's way underrated at this point in his career. Just everybody doesn't want to touch him with the 10 football for some reason for the last couple seasons. But he has been a very great score for a long time. And the Kings are still going to score. Like, that's, that's definitely going to happen. The question is whether they can defend. And if they

can't, then you've got opportunities to pivot at other times. But honestly, this, like, this feels to me like a move where the Kings then turns Zach Levine into assets down the road when the contract is a little bit less onerous to another team that then decides, hey, we need a score now. So, like, it could be the start of asset accumulation mode and then building another guy around to Monta-Sabonis and Kiggen-Murie. I can think of approximately 40 million some odd reasons why people have been very Zach Levine averse in recent years. Look,

if only we knew what Zach Levine and DeMarter Rosen looked like sharing a back court together. That's exciting. No, look, this is a very different version than like those Bulls teams that they were a part of together. I think it could work weirdly. Like, I think this is going to be like actually like the,

not like the maybe the best outcome for Sacramento, but if your goal was to stay like pseudo competitive in a Western conference, it's going to kind of be a bloodbath. well now the focal point of your entire team you know your new franchise guy is de monta sabonis right like all the spotlight is on him and how he can kind of elevate you know demar zach levine and all the pieces around him right and i guess they just lean fully into that identity and see what happens i don't know if i would well for the kings to be trying to be pseudo competitive that that's always been great for them i don't know if i would go as far as to say though that the king's view de monta sabonis is their

franchise player. I think DeMontesabonis is what he is, a really, really, really, really good player. But everybody knows the limitations that you have with DeMontasabonis, and especially if, like, and I'm the biggest Demandisabonis fan on the planet. He's extremely underrated, underappreciated by everybody in the league. And I'll continue to stand on that hill. But if DeMontasabonis is your number one, you're probably struggling to ultimately accomplish the grand prize, which is winning an NBA championship. But if you're not going for that, what the hell are you going for? The reality is Malik Monk is going to be primarily under the spotlight now for the Sacramento Kings as they're pretty much only facilitator, playmaker, and point guard at this point.

Devin Carter's backup and we'll see. I mean, you say yikes, but Malik Monk has been extremely underrated as a playmaker and a ball handler. And every single time a team plays the Sacramento Kings, I get the same questions or same responses from people. Oh my God, I didn't know Malik Monk was this good of a two man, a good of a facilitator. Yeah, he is. And the two-man game with Demandis is way better. than it ever was with Deerrin Fox.

So Malik Monk is going to be given the keys in a lot of ways. He has Levine. He has DeRosen to playoff of. But the question is how much more our defense is going to hyper-focus in on Malik now that Deeran Fox is out of the picture? So the Spurs are only a game and a half out of one loss out of the 10th seed. Like they very well could just be there. I see two people, three, maybe if we include Ryan,

whose teams could play Wembe and the Spurs in the first round. And this new look team with Fox, I mean, Jackson, I feel like I'd be pretty scared. No? First run for the Rockets and they have to go up against that guy and now a veteran point guard star that you weren't expecting? Yeah. Is it weird that like the Rockets are in this really interesting spot where I feel like you're kind of like you walk away with whatever the outcome is in the postseason.

It's going to be kind of a win because you wanted to get there and just get postseason experience. I think if they run into a veteran-laden team, like if you run into the Sons or this version of the Wolves, right? and you lose in the first round of them, like you don't necessarily feel bad about it. Like you're probably disappointed because you're like, okay, well,

this team was one of the best teams in the NBA for the regular season. Maybe they got some holes they need to fix for the postseason run. That would be maybe the one outcome where if you run into a San Antonio Spurs team that like won through the playing bracket, they finish, you know, and you line up like two seven in the West or whatever. And then it's two teams with zero playoff experience

or very little playoff experience between the two of them outside of like the couple of veteran pieces here and there. And then you get like the spurs. get the better of you. That I think would be a really disappointing into the rocket season. It's one thing if you lose to a veteran team in the first round of the playoffs, it'd be a completely different thing if you lost to another young team on the upswing. That would be, that would suck. How dare you disrespect Harrison Barnes that way? Yeah, that's Harrison Barnes right there. I will, I will say like one more thing to add in, and I've been kind of torn to

shreds in Sacramento for this comment. I believe the San Antonio Spurs are a better team than the Sacramento Kings right now. And I believe it because they have the two biggest names, if you compare the two rosters, the two best players are in San Antonio. That two-man game, I think, is going to be electric because it's not the same kind of two-man game as you would have in Sacramento with Fox and Sabonis. The fact that Fox is a number two, I think is perfect for him. It's fair to question whether he can be a number one. As a number two, it's perfection in San Antonio.

Is it a number one in a playoff situation yet? True. But also, like the San Antonio Spurs got this job done, guys. the best they gave up was like Zach Collins and City Susoko. Like they got this trade done without giving away any of their core rotation. It was basically a free agency signing in that case. So they are plugging in Deeran Fox into their best talent that they did not have to adjust. Speaking of which, I don't think it's a coincidence that the cowardly Matt Moore exited this show the minute I arrived

because some of you may recall last week, I said that we were not far off from San Antonio being a place that either free agents or star players. As long as their wives live there. Try to get themselves to that team because Wembe is so damn good and he's going to make your life so much easier. And Matt Moore shook his head, oh, I've been hearing that since Tim Duncan.

law. Dude is not showing his face. Did they just draft so well with the Duncan era that they didn't even have to ever dip into that stuff? So it didn't matter? I mean, or is it just that there's a difference never made a trade. The CBA now makes players move in a way it didn't use to.

I don't know. It's also we live in an era of the spurs landed Lamarcus Aldridge. How dare you? I remember. I remember social media and, you know, player branding and you don't need to be in L.A. or New York or Chicago or whatever to be seen.

And also helps if the place you're leaving is Sacramento, unfortunately. Well, I mean, there are limits to my theory. That was just unnecessary. I mean, we just kick them all this down. But I do think, though, that Fox going to San Antonio beyond like what does this do for San Antonio as a team, I think it's notable in the sense that you may have seen a sea change in terms of at minimum San Antonio is that type of destination, but also. You look at teams like OKC and some of these other small markets.

If they've got the talent and they can make it worth your while, there may be stars who just say, look, I'm getting paid stupid money anyway. I have plenty of opportunities to brand as it is. I'm going to go where I can win. Well, two things to that, Andy. Number one is the Spurs also don't have to be attractive to anybody necessarily because they still have all of their great picks too. The King's got all the worst picks that the Spurs had in this deal.

So they can just trade those picks and force somebody to come here in the short term. Number two is, I mean, to answer your question, I think Charles Barkley would choose to go to San Antonio at this point. And that's saying something if you follow Charles, Charles Barkley's comments on San Antonio and the ladies there in particular. I think San Antonio is 100% on the map after this move. Spurs are going to be really, really, really good for a, I think, very long time. They are going to be good for a long time.

They are going to be good for a long time. The Spurs? Yeah. Oh, he's back. Like Beetlejuice, Matt Moore returns. Matt Moore returns to the fray. Andy, let him have it. I thought it was a coincidence, Matt, that you ducked out.

The minute I showed up after last week mocking, mocking my idea that San Antonio could be a destination for star players because of Wemagnama, the skepticism that you threw out there, the shade. You treated me, frankly, Matt, like I was a simpleton. and look at where we are right now. Like a simpleton, like a dreamer. And now Daron Fox is a spur. By his own choice, his first choice.

I'm sorry. I'm confused. He said superstar. I don't, what, how does this have anything to do with that? Wow. I love Deer.

No, look, I love, look, I love, look, look, I love, look, I thought that was a very reasonable trade. I thought that if we were talking about that, I thought it was like a whole different thing. Right. I have a question for you, though.

Do you want to give Rob Polinka credit? I'm genuinely asking. You should he? Should he? You know, we're talking about this. I was sitting in on Travis and DeMarco on 710 ESPN. And like, to some degree how good of a GM you think Rob Polinkett is, is determined more by what he does now that you have Luca than getting Luca because, like,

it doesn't take a basketball genius to identify, hey, Luca Donchich is available. You might want to go get him. And this was even by all accounts initiated by Dallas. So it's not like Rob Polinka planted a seed. Like there was no inception involved to try to get Nico Harrison to do this. This was Nico's prompting. The one thing, though, that I will give credit to Rob Polinka, because this is very consistent. he is known as a guy that keeps things super, super tight for better or for worse,

depending on how you're looking at it. He is known as they keep their business really on the down low. And if you happen to be in a situation where the other GM is thinking about trading their transcendent superstar, not yet in his prime, but your main goal seems to be, even before what do you get in return, making it happen quickly and cleanly, that's a pretty good attribute, like in terms of something Rob Polinka, I mean, this is something even Polinkas detractors say about it. He is known for being able to keep a lid on things. And I do think that played a role in Rob's favor. Nico Harrison is known for the exact same thing, and I kind of wish that he wasn't.

We're going to give you a look at it. Don't tell anybody. Yeah, don't tell anybody. He literally told nobody. But he sat on this for like a month. Like that, that's not always easy to do, especially if, that is if you're going to get a top three player of the NBA. Look. I can be quiet for a long time.

Sure, sure. But I'm just saying that's something that I will, I will give him credit because that is his reputation. You know, how good of a GME is, again, ask me anywhere from three days from now to a year from now. You got to build a team around Luca now. Yeah. Matt, George, I have a question.

How do the Kings get? from here to like contender? Like what's the, is there, what's like the, I'm serious. Because like they have, they have really good players. So it feels like maybe they could make steps up, right? I'm not being facetious here. I'm being genuinely here. It's like for you, what is the direction that the franchise should take here?

Well, step one, in my opinion is, and this is, this is legitimate. This is not just sour grapes the day after trading Deer on Fox is fire your front office. I think this front office is bad. I think over the last two years. I did a whole podcast episode just laying out everything that they've done. wrong over the last two years to get us to this point. So you need new leadership in this front office number one and start there. I mean, you've got to find a star. Like you have to find a star. You have to find a franchise guy. And the reality is the Sacramento Kings have the most names that they've

had since the early 2000s. But none of them are guys that you feel great about carrying the mantle for you in a potential championship caliber window. It feels like the Kings have to kind of get lucky. I know they're trying to use these assets, draft assets that they got in this Fox trade to try and go out and get another piece to add to this team right now to win right now. But I don't think anybody is looking at this iteration of the Sacramento Kings right now and thinking legitimate championship contender. You have to find a star and identify a star and it starts there. And that's historically difficult to do in Sacramento. It might have to come in the draft. But guys, they still have their picks over the next two years as of right now tied up in.

Kevin Hutter Atlanta Hawks trade and Kevin Hurter is no longer on the team. So it's a mess. It's a mess. So we'll see what's next. But I think the Kings are going to be fun. I think they're going to be competitive. I think they might make the playoffs a time or two over the next five or six years, hopefully. But are they close to any legitimate contendorship?

No. And I don't see a path that leads there unless a complete curveball is thrown at them in terms of a name becoming available. or they hit the reset button. We'll see how we'll be available soon. That's it for us on the Lockdown NBA Squad Show West. Jackson ended it. He just ended it just there. Guys, thanks for hanging out.

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