Nightcap - Nightcap - Hour 1: Timberwolves BEAT the Lakers to win the series 4-1 & Rockets beat the Warriors to extend series!

Episode Date: May 1, 2025

Shannon Sharpe, Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson & Joe Johnson react to Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Los Angeles Lakers in LA to win the series 4-1, Rockets blow out Warriors to force a game 6 in the Bay Area & much more!01:47 - Intro04:08 - Timberwolves vs. Lakers42:15 - JJ Redick storms out of presser48:37 - Rockets vs. Warriors(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements.)#Volume #ClubSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Hey, it's going to be really, really fun. Make sure if we're sitting near you, come out and check out your favorite on NF Ocho. You won't miss it. You don't want to miss it. Go get your tickets now. The T-Wolves knock out the Lakers.

Guys, I was pressed for time. What I meant to say, Lakers going home in five. That's what I meant. But y'all, you know, y'all, y'all don't let me finish my thoughts. Don't let me finish my sentences. If somebody would have told me, Joe,

that Ant-Man was going to struggle shooting the ball tonight and they were going to win this game because Rudy Gobert was going to be one of the few guys in a playoff game to have a 20-20 game, I would have said, okay, I like that. Rudy Gobert was going to be one of the few guys in a playoff game to have a 20-20 game. I went down and said, okay, I like that. Rudy Gobert came into the game averaging three points

and six rebounds on the night. And he gave you 27 and 24. He gave you nine offensive rebounds. They had 18 offensive rebounds. They crushed the Lakers on the glass, 54 to 37. 18 to 8 on the offensive end, 36 to 29 on the glass. 54-37. 18-8 on the offensive end. 36-29 on the defensive end. For a total of 54 for the Wolves, 37 for the Lakers.

And you get Ant-Man shooting 5 of 19 for 15 points. You got Jaden Daniels that was in foul trouble. He ended up fouling out with only 8 points. Mike Conley did hit a big 3 down the stretch, but he only had 8 points. But again, it was the undoing of their bench. They got 22 points from their bench. The Lakers got four. I'm going to say this, and I'm going to

turn it over to you, Joe. J.J. Stubborn. For him not to play Jackson Hayes, to play Maxie Kleber, who hadn't played, I don't know the last time he played. And you play him. And a lot of these guys, like, and like I'm saying, I'm not saying it would have made a difference.

But it's like, you're not, don't play the guy at all after Rudy because you put LeBron into four, you're so small. Yeah. You're really, really small because LeBron is 6'9", so LeBron is the tallest guy you got. And Rudy just was playing tap, tap, tap, tap, tap. What did you like? How were the Wolves able to win this game

and on the road in a hostile environment? I think the T-Wolves really knew what was at stake tonight, you know, knowing that they wanted to try to go and get this over with. You know, the Lakers looked so lethargic to start the game. They did. No sense of urgency.

The T-Wolves had all the energy. They had the sense of urgency as if they was on the brink. You know what I mean? And they kind of controlled the whole entire game. It wasn't one time in the game where I thought the Lakers, you know, even though they made their little surge at the end. Yeah, got a one-point lead, yep. But I never felt threatened that they was going to win the game.

I'm going to be honest. They just had no fluidity offensively, no chemistry. It was just pick and roll, trying to exploit Braun in the post and, man, even though Ant-Man, he didn't shoot well, I thought he put a lot of pressure on those guys and Rudy won the game for you. This is why

you probably put Dorian Finney-Smith at the five because you really want to eliminate Rudy. You want to get him to where he can't play. He's bound to have a game like this to where he can win you a game. And tonight, I mean, man, everything was falling his way, from the lobs, the putbacks, just being aggressive. Randall, probably I'd give him the game, but I know Rudy was special tonight.

But Randall, they have no answer for him when they run the pick and roll and get a mismatch. Even if they play great defense, he's still banging them one time, getting to a great shot. You know what I mean? So their interior just has no presence and we knew this coming into the playoffs. We knew they had no interior

presence and tonight's show, man, they got one out in this series and the young T-Wolves took advantage, man, of a wounded animal. Because they didn't have it. Ocho, you and I talked about this, Ocho. I said, Ocho, they don't have a big.

Yeah. I said, if they run into somebody with a big that can punish them, we were looking at, I was looking at it from a standpoint, well, okay, if they run into a yokich. Yes. Or if they run into, and I'm trying to think of the bigs that was in there, maybe if they run into St. Shingun. Yeah. But I wasn't thinking about Rudy Gobert because I trying to think of the bigs that were in there, maybe if they run into Sink Shingun. Yeah.

But I wasn't thinking about Rudy Gobert because I don't think of Rudy Gobert as an offensive weapon. This was Rudy Gobert's 27 points, playoff career high, 24 rebounds, playoff career high. Ocho, I'm going to let you have it after this. Yes, sir. Players with at least 25 points and 20 rebounds on 75% field goal shooting. How do you like these names?

Shaquille O'Neal, Will Chamberlain, Moses Malone, Ho Grant, Wes Unsell, Rudy Gobert. Shaq, MVP. Will, four times MVP. Moses, three times MVP. Ho Grant was a very important card to a championship in Chicago and at the Lakers. Wes Unsell, he just happened to be Rookie of the Year

and MVP in the same season, but also in the Hall of Fame. Yeah, yeah. I thought it was great tonight. I thought Rudy was great. He's in there with some of the greatest now. And he gave the Lakers, he gave them problems tonight, Uncle Ocho. You know, they had no, but I thought he played great off of Randall and Edwards. You know what I mean?

Meaning by their aggression, getting to the basket, whether it's him getting put. That kind of got him going because he scored. It opened him up. Because now you come to help, you come, guy gets beat, you go to help. You see him lobbing. Because here's the thing. They didn't run that one play for Rudy. Nah.

All he did was get him. He called lobs. And he got it off the rim and dunked it home. Yeah. And he got some early. He got a couple easy layups and dunks early, which kind of got him going. And he kind of carried that throughout the whole night. And defensively, he was a monster.

Blocking shots. All-turn shots. And offensively, he was just a cleanup man. Yeah. What'd you think of Joe? Hey listen, not only was it a cleanup man, to piggyback on what Joe talked about, listen, when you get cut and they tell you not to get an ocean, they tell you not to get an ocean for a reason.

There's one shark smell blood in the water, well they coming to get you. And the Timberwolves smell, they smell blood at night. A game like this, 3-1, you know you got to put some type of effort, some type of intensity going forward. The Lakers came out. They came out flat.

They came out flat. The Wolves had already beat them at home before. So coming into, again, coming into the hostile environment, they already got confidence. Listen, we've already done it before. So what's the chance that we can do it again? The likelihood is probably good. Even with Anthony Edwards not having the type

of game he has to have, you have the unlikely person that comes out and wins a game for you. Rudy Gobert, he dominated both ends of the court, neutralized LA drives, he feasted on second chance points.

It's looking bad. Okay, looking bad. It's looking bad. It was bad. It looked bad. Listen, I don't know how you feel. I feel for you, even with Anthony really struggling from the field. Julius Randle, they had no answer for him. No.

They didn't have an answer for him, you know? He's a big body that loves to bang. It takes it out of you. Like I said, if you told me that Ant-Man is going to play 43 minutes, Joe, he's going to go 5 of 19 from the floor. He'll be 0 of 11 from 3. I said, oh, Joe, we got this one in the bag. I don't know.

Julius Randle is going to give you Julius Randle's number. Julius is going to be somewhere between 18 and 25. Okay, I'm not working so hard. But you're telling me Ant-Man is going to struggle? So I'm looking, okay, so who else can win a game? I saw Jaden Daniels play really well. Nas Reed is out of the game. Nas Reed played 21 minutes.

He gave you three points. Yeah. I mean, Devin Chenzo, he was 3 of 13, 2 of 12. He gave you nine points. Nikhil Alexander-Walker, he gave you 10 points. That was the bench production. But if you tell me they're going to, hey, the Lakers are going to hold the T-Wolves

40% from the floor, 15% from the three-point line. Oh, Joe, we going back to Minnesota. And I ain't talking about to the Mall of America. We going back to kick butt. Hey, it seemed like the Lakers had to exhaust almost every option just to get a bucket. It seems so hard for them to come across points. I'm like, man, why does it seem like it's so hard for them to score? And meanwhile, Minnesota just putting their head down, getting to the basket, fouls, layups.

At will. Shot 33 free throws. Gabe Vinson, the last two games, didn't give him no points. He played 26 minutes. He did get a couple of rebounds, a couple of assists, but you can't win like that. Jared Vanderbilt, he's a lot like Ben Simmons. He's not really looking to score unless he got an uncontested layup or dunk.

Right. So now that hurts you on the offensive end because they know that. So now his guys don't always look to help. Yeah. Uh, I, you know, give,

give the wolves, give the wolves credit. Um, they deserve, they, they earned this one. Man, Laker 16 points in the fourth quarter.

You're right there. You, you down 10, you claw back, you outscoring 31 to 22. So you down one and missed free throws. I don't think, like I said, Luka hurt that back, and I was surprised that he was able to come back in and give you what he had.

He did give you 16 points in the second half. LeBron didn't play well tonight. I thought Rui played really well tonight. Yeah, he gave him a great boost. Rui was out there hot by hitting threes. Austin Reed struggled again shooting the ball. Look, you got three guys. The Lakers are going to have to get some depth, though, Joe.

They're going to have to get somebody to come off the bench. They need a big bad. And I understand there's no bigs out there. Ocho, you and I was talking about this. They got Alex Lynn. All they got is a seven-foot coach. He's primed to go coach high school or be an assistant in college. He gave them nothing, and then he became unplayable.

Jackson Hayes, I just don't look. I don't think they were counting on him to give them much, but he really didn't give them anything. He became what I expected Rudy Gobert to become, which was unplayable. But here's the thing, though. You see, the regular season is so much different than the playoffs. You've seen how, right when they got Luka,

they had that surge to where they was playing well. Everybody was talking about, they're going to come out the West. And they were number one in defense. I don't know how, but they were number one in defense, and they was playing some extreme basketball. But when you get to the playoffs, you want to expose teams' weaknesses, right? Yes.

You want to try to eliminate their strengths and expose their weaknesses. Their weaknesses was the interior presence on offense and defense. They didn't have no answer for that. They explored it. The Timberwolves explored it. The Lakers all series. I told you from game one, I was like, man, the Timberwolves, they scared me. They came in, took the game one, had home court throughout,

and they, gentlemen, sweep, you know, closing the deal on the road. I got a question for y'all. Now, listen, you said you said J.J. Braddock was stubborn you know based on what he was able to

what he did with the bench but you think about the rotation you think about the bench for the lack of production that they already have would the rotation even matter

all you have is Luka and LeBron AR didn't show up Rui showed up tonight but they're so they're so All you have is Luka and LeBron. AR didn't show up. Rui showed up tonight. But they're so inconsistent game to game. Hell, it's confusing JJ on what he needs to be able to do to even give them a chance to win when everybody's playing so inconsistent.

Sometimes LeBron has nights off. Sometimes Luka has nights off. So he can't even find himself in the rhythm to get the right rotation in the game to even give the Lakers a chance to win. I said he's stubborn. What did he do? What did he do in game four? He played those starting five the entire second half. You see that's stubborn.

Right, yeah. You see, okay, Jackson Hayes, you're not going to, Jackson Hayes doesn't even take his warm-up off. That's stubborn because well, Jackson, you're not giving us anything anyway. But at some point in time, you're like, well, hey, we got to have somebody to try to keep Rudy. Hey, you got one job, Jackson. Keep Rudy off the glass.

Yeah, I don't know. That's the only job. But how are you going to keep Rudy at 7'2", and your tallest guy is six nine i mean he just i mean he's just reaching up getting the ball and dunking it back in they're doing dump off because like i said you got 40 years old lebron and lebron is not sitting in the chair anymore i'll buy he'll hey he could be he'll make a great chase down right he weak side and occasionally he can make a play but that's not his that's not where he's great at currently. Luka can't play defense. AR can't play defense. So you get guys getting beat up one to two dribbles.

So now your interior has to come. So even though they're not real protectors, they come, they drop off. Rudy, boop. Yeah. Rudy, boop. Hey, look. Or with the lob. JJ went to that zone.

Bruh, I say, come on. We got to go. Man, five. We got to get out of that zone. They're picking us apart. They try to get in, come on. We got to go. Man, five. We got to get out of this zone. They picking us apart. They try to get in your wrinkle and they try to switch it up. But anything that the Lakers did, it was wrong tonight, Uncle Ocho. The T-Wolves, when they went to their zone, what'd they do?

They hit the middle of the zone. Now we got to dump down the rooting. That's it. Three out for three. You're giving us too many options. This is too easy. Made for This Mountain is a podcast that exists to empower listeners to rise above their struggles, break free from the chains of trauma, and silence the negative voices that have kept them small.

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What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content. The term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Muhammad Ali was never afraid to express himself loudly and boldly and stays true to form in Ali and Me, an eight-part Audible original.

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credence to my audacity. There's no debate that this is the greatest global sports figure of our lifetime. Listen to Ali and Me, now on Audible. In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. Did you make a mistake in sending arms to Tehran, sir? No. No one was let go. It became known as the Iran-Contra affair. Did you make a mistake in sending arms to Tehran, sir? No. It became known as the Iran-Contra affair.

And I'm not taking any more questions in just a second. I'm going to ask... I'm Leon Nafok, co-creator of Slow Burn. In my podcast, Fiasco, Iran-Contra, you'll hear all the unbelievable details of a scandal that captivated the nation nearly 40 years ago, but which few of us still remember today. The things that happened were so bizarre and insane, I can't begin to tell you. Please do.

To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco, Iran Contra on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yeah, when you got guys, first of all, you got a presence inside. Yeah. 7-2, 7-3, Rudy Gobert. And you got guys and you're so afraid that they're going to make the three. So now you're scrambling to try to get out to the three. So if you miss because you got guys scrambling, that means somebody, that means a Gabe Vincent.

That means a Doe is trying to hold Rudy Gobert off from getting an offensive rebound. That's not going to work. Not happening. That's not going to work. But happening. That's not going to work. But you know what? Look, we can talk about this. This says more about the Wolves. We know the Lakers have some deficiencies.

It's going to be interesting to see how they repair those because they got problems. This ain't no situation where we can troubleshoot. You know what I'm saying? We go up on the A. We got problems. Yo, we got problems. This ain't no situation where we can troubleshoot. You know what I'm saying? We go up on the A. We got problems. Yo, we got problems. This ain't no troubleshoot.

This ain't no issue. This is a problem. See, we can troubleshoot. We can troubleshoot issues. Like, okay, I think, you know, okay, we'll try this. No, no, no, no, no, no. This is a major problem that we got right here. Hold on, hold on, hold on.

Let's talk about one thing about problems. There has to be a solution. When you say there's a problem problems there has to be a solution when you say this there's a problem there has to be a solution you say there's no troubleshooting and you say they need a big what would you like to see the lake and do going forward going into next season that will give them a chance because having a big is a good thing down the stretch in the playoffs so when you come to when you're playing games like this you can go big when you're not playing as small, when you're at a disadvantage, or do you go and get another superstar,

make it a big thing? No, you don't need another superstar. I don't know if you have the pieces to go get another superstar, because now that's going to even weaken more of your depth. Because you don't have depth to begin with. Remember, that's what killed Phoenix. They got no depth.

So yeah, you got three big guys, but when one of those guys go out or two of those guys go out, now what do you have? So, it's basically Luka and LeBron can never leave the court together. If you know that, they always got to be staggered.

So, normally, Luka plays the entire first quarter. LeBron plays about nine to ten minutes. Luka starts the game on the bench. LeBron comes back. And so, LeBron plays about 9 to 10 minutes. Lucas starts the game on the bench. LeBron comes back. And so LeBron normally goes out with about 6 minutes, 6 or 7 minutes in the second quarter. So they try to play LeBron somewhere between 16 to 18 minutes in the first half. Lucas is going to play somewhere between 18 and 20 minutes in the first half. They've got to look.

I would have liked to see them get Valanchunas. He's a guy that can rebound. He can give you... He's more of an offensive weapon than Jackson Hayes. He's more of a defensive presence. He can bang a little bit better. But that's what they need. Now, they're not going to get somebody that's an all-star B. That ain't happening.

So you would have to piece it together and make do. True. They ain't no piecing together. That's what they've been doing. They had duct tape tied to the goddamn season already. Well, you're going to have to piece this. You're going to still have to piece it together, Ocho, because

you got Luka. You're going to have to make Luka offer. LeBron, it all depends. LeBron can opt out. Does he opt out? Take less money so they can go get somebody that's better than a mid-level? Maybe you have to get somebody, Joe, that'll play for around $15 million.

You try to go get somebody on a mid-level, you try to get somebody on a mid-deal, I don't know if that's enough. Kyrie and AD, OKC is not going anywhere. The Timberwolves aren't going anywhere.

You see Houston, they're going to try to get a superstar. Houston's going to try to land Kevin Durant. And they might be willing to give up one or two of those young pieces in order to do it and some of those draft picks in order to do it. So Steph and Jimmy Butler, Draymond, they're not going anywhere. So, the Lakers, yeah, they got two superstars. But that's not enough anymore. You need auxiliary pieces, and those auxiliary pieces aren't good enough currently for what the Lakers have. Now, they're going to try to spin it.

Well, we didn't have time to play together. You had more than enough time. You're not good enough. I mean, they're not good enough right now, Joe. No, they're not. Not to win a championship, not to compete for one. They definitely got to improve their depth, their bench. They got to have some guarantee coming off their bench.

Okay, Ocho, somebody who can come into the game, change the game, change the dynamic of the game, maybe give you a spurt here and there. But having to put all this onus on Luka and Braun is just too much to carry, especially out in the West, man. They just too out. You know what I mean?

Especially with Braun at his age. So basically, what I'm hearing from y'all is I heard the report in pregame asked JJ a question about rotation then I'm thinking now we both both of you have shared your your your your expertise on the bench not being good so basically JJ's JJ's hands are tied so what he's doing with the rotation what he's doing with the bench in game and damn they're justified based on what we're all saying. Oh, Joe.

He had no choice. At some point in time, the job of a coach is to try something different. Just because it didn't work last game doesn't mean it won't work this game. You got to try. So you see a team gashing you. You're like, well, oh, well, babe. We're just going to stay in this coverage. Listen, you're talking about

try something different. They didn't play the whole season. We're in the playoffs. If it really gave us nothing during the season, now we get to the playoffs, what's the chance of it? I don't want the game to get away from us. I don't want the game to slip away. So what am I going to do? I'm going to keep the people in that give us

our best chance to win. But here's the thing. You've never gotten out-rebounded in the previous games. You didn't get out-rebounded by 17. Yeah, they— Rudy Gobert averaged three points and six rebounds. Now he's got 15 and 9, 15 and 12 in the first half. Wouldn't you want to try something different?

So all of a sudden, the guy that was averaging three, he has 15 at the half with 24 more minutes to go he normally gives you six rebounds he's three four five rebounds clear that already right so clearly what i anticipated you know what guys i was gonna go with this this small rotation yeah i've got to expand that right i'm saying guys got to be ready you know joe sometimes you, hey, you don't anticipate a guy getting in. He might not anticipate playing. And desperate time calls for desperate measures. Yeah.

And so you bring that to the table. Anthony Edwards, his last three series. This series, he knocked out Luka and LeBron. Last year, he knocked out Yoki Murray. And he also knocked out KD and Book. He's 23. He got some pills on his wall. Hey, guess what?

The man ain't done. No? No, he ain't done. He's 23. He got some peltz on his wall. Guess what? The man ain't done. No. No, he ain't done. He just getting started. He's 23. They take on the winner. He got a favorable bracket because they take on the winner of Golden State Houston. Yeah. So you avoid

potentially OKC. You avoid potentially Nuggets. You avoid potentially the Clippers until the Western Conference Finals. Right. Hey, look, if I'm the Wolves, that's the exact route I was looking to take. Right. Oh, yeah, for sure.

Yeah, because let's say they do pull the Warriors out and they got to play the Warriors in the second round. I think they can beat the Warriors. I do, too. With the size that they have,. I think they can beat the Warriors. I do too. With the size that they have, you see what they did to the Lakers throughout this series. I think they're well and capable of doing this exact same thing to the Warriors

because the Warriors are small too. Very small, very small. Because the question is, how do they play? Because Draymond, you like to play Draymond in the five. Draymond's got to deal with Drew you got to deal with June Randall. Now, okay, you put him on June Randall. Do that mean you play Kavon Looney? Or you take Jackson Davis?

So do you, because they don't like to play two Bs. They like to play, they like to play Draymond at the five. I tell you, I think, I don't know. I think maybe, maybe the Warriors stick to the guns, but I think the Wolves are definitely going to stick to what they've been doing because it's going to get them to the next round, obviously. And I think with them just coming in with the aggression, the confidence off of winning this series against the Lakers,

man, their swag is high. They're playing the right way at the right time. Everything is, you know, timing. You know what I mean? And right now, man, they look like a tough team to beat in a seven-game series, Arkin Ocho. They do. LeBron, in game five, he was 22 points,

seven rebounds, six assists, nine of 21, one of five from three, three of six from the free throw line. He had seven rebounds, six assists, two steals, three turnovers. I didn't think he played well. I mean, look, you talk about a guy that's going to probably be on the first or second team All-NBA at the age of 40 in year 22.

So 24, 8, and 8 is the first season in 20 years that he didn't have average at least 25 points. He's an all-star. Most 20-point games by 40-0, 30-point games, 40-point games. Most points, rebounds, three-point. Most points, rebounds, assists. I mean, as he goes on, he's always going to be. Guess what?

In year 23, he's going to have the most points, most 20 points, most 30 points, most 40 points. He's going to have the most points, most rebounds, most assists, most steals, most blocks. And if he plays 24 seasons, he's going to have the most points, the most rebounds, the most assists, the most steals, the most blocks. And if he plays 24 seasons, he's going to have the... Once you get to a certain level, Ocho, so

it's like Elon Musk. He's the world's richest man. Every dollar he gets, he adds to that. So LeBron, every year that he plays, he just adds to what somebody's... I mean, Vince Carter, year 22, I think he averaged what, five points a game. LeBron, every year that he plays, he just adds to what somebody's, I mean, Vince Carter, year 22, I think he averaged, what, five points a game. LeBron averaged 24 points a game, 24, 8, and 8.

Right. Special. Special. Luka Doncic, 28, 8, and 8, and 2. He led the Lakers in points, led the Lakers in assists, led the Lakers in steals, three-pointer maze, playoff series since the trade, Mavericks none, Lakers none. Does this trade change now?

Because Luka got bounced in the first round. Does it change your view on the trade? Are we still upset at Nico for making this move, Joe? Nah, I still like the trade for the Lakers. You know, I just want L the Lakers. You know, I just want Luka to really, you know, get in the gym

this summer. Okay, Ocho. Yeah. Really get his body right. So, he's able to go through a grueling, taxing NBA season

and come out and be ready for the postseason because the postseason is ultimately what we play for. And it just seems to me, he wears down every year. Every postseason,

man, he's bogged down with injuries and it just seems like every play it hurts him. It hurts him. Offensively, he can get to that step back still. I don't know how, but I think he just really got to take ownership, bro, and just get

his body right and come back ready to compete. I agree, Joe. I agree with everything you said. That's the biggest thing. It seems like every year once the playoffs after a couple of rounds, he's hobbling. It takes him forever to get up off the court.

Everything just is like he needs to be able to have his body to be able to go through the rigors of an entire season, not just the regular season. Yeah, look, in the regular season, he's going to put up 28-8. He put that up, go ahead and sleep. But it's the postseason where he starts to ball down, where the injury starts, you know, because, you know, it's a more physical game. And that's why you got to get a Wolves.

You got to get a Wolves credit too, Alcantara Ocho. This is what they plan to do. They plan to come out and to get a Wolves. You got to get a Wolves credit, too. Okay, Ocho, this is what they plan to do. They plan to come out and make it a physical series. Every game, physical. Pick your full court. Bump. Grind. And then by the time we get to game five, six,

we'll see who starts to wear down a little bit. I've seen a lot of short shots tonight. Airballs. That's fatigue, man. That's fatigue sitting in. Them guys playing a lot of minutes, night air balls that's fatigue man that's fatigue sitting in them guys playing a lot of minutes night in and night out just to have a day of rest and then jump right back out there playing at that high intensity you're just gonna keep up yeah consider lebron and luca played

46 minutes and he turned around and they had to play another 40 minutes lebron's 40 like i said you can talk about all you want to it's a mind thing no it's not the mind might be willing the body just ain't able anymore. There's a reason why as we start to age, we can't do what we once did. Don't think Usain Bolt didn't train, but as he aged, he couldn't run 9.58. He couldn't run 9.63.

He was still fast. Yeah. He still could run 9.8, and that would win him the gold medal. Yeah. But as he started to age, he couldn't turn those times that he once could. Nobody can.

So this notion where, hey, he spent all that money, it doesn't matter how much money you spend. Father's time, sometimes he'll tap you on the shoulder. Sometimes he just

pull your ass down. He's tapping Bron on the shoulder. He got a, damn, look at me. Yeah. I think, I think he, I think he, I think he I think he

I think he tapping on him but at the same time you gotta give my man some help you gotta give Bron some help you can't you can't put all that onus on him

to come out and try to lead your defense and offense no it's just too taxing on the body man it's way too taxing

on the body and it kind of shows throughout this series once upon a time like you said, like when he was in his late 20s and even to his mid 30s, like 35. But man, you start talking about it.

You think about it. LeBron still plays 70 games this season. He's playing 70 games. And you're asking him, he still gives you 24. He still gives you eight rebounds. He still gives you eight assists. He still gives you a blocker to a game. He still gives you a steal still give you eight rebounds he still give you eight assists he still give you a blocker to a game he still give you a stealer to a game you're asking him to constantly think

hey make the right play all the time and he's ed reed on your defense you're asking a 40 year old to do a lot yeah a really a lot and i understand you ask that. Excuse me. You ask those things from your great players, Joe. You know that the greater you are, the more they ask of you. But here's the thing I've always told people that I think I don't think people understand this. As you start to age, they don't compare you to anyone else. They compare you to your younger self. They compare LeBron to a 25, a 30, a 33-year-old LeBron. They're not comparing him to Jason Tatum. They're not comparing him to Ant-Man. They're comparing because they remember what they saw when he was their age.

Not factoring in, he's 40 now. He can't elevate like he once could. He can sum it up. He can give you a game or two here or there, but they have to be spread out. He can give you a corner where he goes off, but if he gives you a corner where he gives you somewhere between 16 and 20, you best believe that next quarter is going to probably be somewhere between

zero and four. I mean, it is what it is. I got to be honest, Joe. Yeah, yeah. You know how, like, when we're young, we're pulling testosterone. So, yeah, yeah. We got plenty of energy. We can go all day.

You know what I mean? Yeah. You start to lose some of that. And, you know, it shows. It shows. You ain't as cut up no more as you used to be. It's larger. You tell it.

When you were young, you used to be chill. I was about to be looking at myself, but I put my shirt on. Man, Joe, Joe, I done got so bad. I take a shot with my shirt on. Yeah. I don't want looking at myself that I put my shirt on. I don't got so bad. I take a shot with my shirt on. I don't want to see this. Let the steam go. I let the steam get good and hot.

All the meals foggy. I love this talk about Father Time and Father Time touching on the shoulder and at some point he is coming. I just have a question. I just have a question. I just have a question. Yes. And I sit back and I think about it.

At what point does Father Time catch up to me? He done caught up to you. That's why you sitting here talking to me. You ain't playing football. I mean...

See? You see how he caught up to you? He caught up to you and he caught up to you. He caught up to you 15 years ago. That's how he caught up. You think so? Yeah. You don't think Father Time to you? He caught up to you, and he caught up to you. He caught up to you 15 years ago. That's how he caught up. You think so?

Yeah. He don't think father time caught you? No. You might can run in a straight line, but your lateral quickness is not what it once was. And that's the thing that go with athletes is the lateral stuff. See, where you could win, Ocho, was that lateral. That's da-da.

Ah. Yeah. Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. So what you trying? Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. So what you trying... Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. Hold on. Trying to tell me I can't move laterally no more?

Nah, not like you used to. Not, not, not to the point where you can escape these young DBs. Yeah, if another 40-something-year-old going against you, yeah, you get by him. Hold on.

My pastor, Jaylen Ramsey, Stingley... Stingley... Huh? Well, everybody you. Yeah, you get by him. Hold on. My pastor, Jalen Ramsey, Stingley, Stingley, Stingley, huh? Well, everybody you just named, boy, I put them in a blender. Boy, don't ever,

don't disrespect me like that, man. These feet got a mind of their own, baby. I know. And they say, let's walk straight ahead. That's what they say. That's what they say,

don't you? They say, hey, we don't, hey, we don't serve, we don't get it. You know, you done get me right, but't you? Hey, we don't get it right, man. You know, you don't get me right, but listen, I would really love to put Father Time to a test.

I really would, especially during this time right now when I know some of the players. Let me ask you a question. What did you run the 4-D at coming out of college? Huh? What did you run the 4-D at coming out of college? 4-3 on pro day at USC. I had to run at USC. You think you can run 4.3 again? Right now, absolutely

not. Exactly. Do you think you could ever... Let me ask you a question. If I gave you a year to trade, you think you could run 4.3? Probably not. Maybe 4. Exactly. 4.5. 4.5, yeah. i don't believe you run four

five again oh shit shit me boy i run four five right now i tell you no lie i promise you and i can run four five with no training but listen when i think about it when i think about i'm thinking about my game in general my game is about finesse my game no your quickness it wasn't it wasn't really about running straight or being fast. That's my point. That's one of the first things to go when you get old is your lateral quickness. Stay with me a little bit, now. Now, look, I'm real quick because I be dodging them now.

You know, they be coming at me and I be like, uh-uh, no, I can't do that. You feel me? Yeah. But. You still can't dodge them like you once could. You right by that. Ocho, your game was predicated on

that one steal. See, now that thing's so slow, they're telegraphing it. Ocho, no good where that stab you going here. Hey, I want to put Father Time to the test. Jalen Ramsey, with all due respect.

Sauce Gardner, Derrick Stingley Jr., Pat Sertain. If at any point you young boys are training in the offseason, I'm in shape. I would love to put on my cleats and just test this. Don't do it. And I... Fourth quarter point. Go ahead.

Go ahead. Finish up your point. This would be great this would be great footage for us to be able to see where I'm at at 57 years old and if I

I know where you are and if I can hang with the young bulls Ocho don't go up there and mess up your Achilles mess up a hamstring or something

I ain't got hurt all my life the entire time and that's the thing you don't want to get hurt now and you don't want to get hurt as you get old. Because it sucks rehabbing as an old person.

Trust me. Joe, fourth quarter points this series. Nas Reed had 27 points in the fourth quarter. LeBron had 26. Luka had 23. So your first guy off the bench for the T-Wolves outscored your two stars

in the fourth quarter. That's how you lost. Hey, Nas is special, man. He was special throughout this series. They had no matchup for him. They actually had no matchup for none of they bigs. But then,

you know, Nas Reed and Julius Randle, they had no matchup for them dudes who can put it. Can we be honest? No. They didn't have a matchup for nobody. They didn't. They don't matchup with Ant-Man.

They don't matchup with Rudy Gobert. They don't matchup with Nas Reed. If you really think about it, the guys that they matchup with is that you're not really counting on those guys, but those guys played above what they normally play. Jaden Daniels played above what he normally plays at. So you got Ant-Man doing what Ant-Man does. You got Drew Ramble doing what Drew Ramble normally does. But now you get guys that you're not really counting on to give you that,

and you get Jaden McDaniels giving you extra. Yeah, yeah. Or you get a Nas Reed coming off the bench and in clutch time, he's, he's, he's only missed one shot at clutch time. So he's damn near perfect from in, in,

in the five minute clutch time, last five minutes of the game, the game within five points. So when you get one team and their guys are doing exactly what you hope they would be, it's kind of like when you go into a game, which is like, okay,

our, our Ocho in this game right here, Ocho should probably give us about probably 6 to 8 for 90 to 105. Damn. Two touchdowns. One touchdown. Let's get one touchdown. He'll get us inside the five. Okay, Hoosh going to do what he does, blah, blah.

It's just like that. In a basketball game, okay, I'm expecting Ant-Man to do what Ant-Man does. Give us his 27. That's what he averaged. Drew Randle, give us what he does. He's fully healthy. Anything that I get from anything I get from Gobert, because

Gobert, normally, he can't play extended minutes because he doesn't match up. They put him in the pick and roll. They get him away from the basket. Now, it's a bonus, whatever you get from him. Yeah. Now, there you go. It's more than a bonus. Yeah.

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Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, We'll be right back. Guided by his own words, this series explores Ali's life and legacy through never-before-heard audio recordings and discussions with those who knew him best. Muhammad had this real sense of his own personal values and principles, things he believed in, his own sense of conviction. Those convictions never wavered. Hosted by Muhammad's wife, Lani Ali, and his close friend, award-winning broadcaster, John Ramsey, Ali and Me goes beyond the boxing ring to delve deeply into Ali's extraordinary life through conversations with Billy Crystal, Mike Tyson, Rosie Perez, Common, Will Smith, and Bob Costas. It created a North Star for me of how I want to be in the world, you know. As a child, as a young person, he gave credence to my audacity.

There's no debate that this is the greatest global sports figure of our lifetime. Listen to Ali and Me, now on Audible. In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. Did you make a mistake in sending arms to Tehran, sir? No. It became known as the Iran-Contra affair. And I'm not taking any more questions in just a second. I'm going to ask Attorney General. I'm Leon Nafok, co-creator of Slow Burn.

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listen to Fiasco, Iran Contra, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Speaking of hard-headed before the game jj reddick you mean after the game before okay before the game jj reddick stormed out of the presser after a question about substitution he took offense to a question that basically asked if he will lean on his assistant coaches when it comes to helping with substitution. Are you saying that because I'm inexperienced and that it was an inexperienced decision that I made, you don't think I talk to my assistants about substitutions every single time out? That's a weird assumption. He stormed out. I would have stormed out too.

Yes, I have no choice. Yes, I talked to my assistants. Hell, my assistants know too. We don't have a choice. How many times, let me ask you a question, Ocho. Let me ask you a question, Ocho. How many times has J.J. Redick been a coach in the NBA? I think that's a very valid question because he is an experienced coach.

You know what? All he had to do because if he leaned on his coaches, yes, I lean on my coaches. That's a part of, like, when we have a timeout, we group together and say, what do you think? How does Rui look? How does Do look? How does LeBron look? First of all, LeBron and Luka, they already said LeBron.

At the six-minute mark, you're coming out to get a blow for two to three minutes. We're going to put you back in. Luka, if it's really good and we're up 10, 12, you might come out the last minute of the first quarter. So that way we can steal an extra minute or so because we get the TV timeout. So you get one minute there, you get another minute or two there, and then we're going to let you sit for four minutes. So we're going to steal some time.

Everybody else is on a rotation like, okay, hey, pull him, get in there. Yeah. But I don't think you can't get mad when people ask you questions, Ocho. That's a part about being a coach. I understand it, even though being a coach, but also being a reporter is about watching the game. Also being a reporter is about

understanding, well, hell, we are in a position, if I'm a Lakers reporter, damn, we do got to keep looking at them in there. We do got to have them play all four quarters because we're not getting enough. No, they don't look at the game like that, Ocho. My job is to ask you questions, what's going on. Okay, I understand.

I'm just seeing it from the lens on both sides. No, you see it from the lens of the player and you hear them say that somebody questioned the coach. Yeah, I mean, you're right. You've got to realize most of these reporters, Ocho, have never played. They've never been in the huddle. They've never had to sub. And so we look at, we athletes look at the game totally different

than the layperson or the casual fan, especially if we're professionals. We understand. Well, why'd you call that dumb play? You think I called it because I didn't want to get no yards? Right. Hey, what's the play we got that's going to lose us four yards? Yep, call that one. Hey, what's that play that we got that's going to call Joe the air ball

that shot, dribble the ball out of bounds? Yeah, that's the play I want to run out of this time. Right, right. Of course not. Right. the dribble the ball out of bounds. Yeah, that's the play I want to run out of this time. Of course not. Normally, your assistant coaches, and now it's a lot of them nowadays, but normally your assistant coaches stay in the head coach's ear. You have a head assistant, and he keeps coaching tech as far as,

okay, look, Ochoa done been out there 12 straight minutes. We might need to give him a blow. You know what I mean? Yep. Normally, your assistant is always an extension of the head, and he normally... Probably Scottie Brooks. I'm thinking Scottie Brooks is his lead,

and then Nate is number two. Yeah, so they may tell you, like, well, I've got four fouls. You know what I mean? And we might want to take him out, give him a break. Right. So for him to go with them guys for that extended period of time,

he probably was just like, forget it. Yeah, I don't think he had no trust in any of those guys coming off that bench. He felt he was going to go with his big guns, and he struggled. Yeah. Dang. But as a coach, you know this. When it goes well, you're a genius. When it doesn't go well, you're going to get second-guessed.

That's how it is. That's a part of it. You know, if somebody asks you, you play a quarterback, if somebody asks you what you saw, you can't say, I saw what you saw. I hope you didn't see what I see. Because I did. Look, in this down and distance, this area of the field, this is what they normally play. I see. Because I, I, look, in this,

in this down and distance, this area of the field, this is what they normally play. I thought I had this. God made a great play. You know, they study film too. They get paid.

Yeah. You do, you know, you know, they play other, they play other playoffs. I was quick to tell my coaches that. I tell Mike that all the time. I say,

hey, you know, that guy got paid too now, right? He picked up his check on Monday, just like I did. time. I say, hey, you know that guy got paid too now, right? He picked up his check on Monday just like I did. So don't think, hey, I'm the only one getting paid and they just found this guy. He jumped on the back of

a truck somewhere. Nah, bro, he in the NFL too. He here for a reason. Because sometimes I think coaches realize, hey, and I tell this all the time, Joe, anybody in a professional league has the ability, Joe, anybody in a professional league has the ability to make anybody else

in a professional league look bad. Yeah. I don't care if it's the best, best baseball, best basketball player against whatever somebody might think is the worst. He still can light his ass up. Absolutely. A receiver that you're like,

man, who is this kid? Hold on, what game was that? Oh, Lamb McConkie. Remember that playoff game? He was cooking. Don't you cook him, boy. Get everybody to business. You were cooking.

Yeah. See, that's what I tried to tell Joe. What? I tried to tell Joe. I tried to tell him, you know, you take one of the better athletes of all time. You know, I'm talking about me. Me playing you one-on-one. Oh, man. Hey, listen. I'm going to tell you.

When I go by you, it's the reason why they call you Ike's because you're going to be by your damn self trying to guard. I'm joking. Hey, this ain't what you want. You're going to need plenty of help, brother. Trust me. You're going to need plenty of help, brother. Trust me. You're going to need plenty of help.

You trust me. Once I get you out there in space, at the top of the key is a wrap. I put the ball on the floor. Listen, I'm going to give him a shot. I'm going to get to my spot. Me and Rain? I'm saying you play on this.

What you talk about? No, you ain't see me. When you saw me play, you know you can't do nothing with me. What you talk about? No, you ain't seen me. When you saw me play, you know you can't do nothing with me. What you talking about? Yeah. The Rockets blow out the Warriors. Steph Curry led the Warriors in scoring,

but he only finished with 13 points on 4-12 shooting. No other starters were in double figures. Jimmy Butler had eight. Draymond had seven. The Rockets starters, led by Arm. Jimmy Butler had eight. Draymond had seven. The Rocket starters, led by Armin Thompson, had 25. Dylan Brooke, 24. Fred Van Fleet

continued his hot shooting. He had 26. Alperin Shingun had 15. And Jalen Green had 11. Thompson was 25-6, rebounds,

five steals, three blocks, eight assists, eight of 12 field goals. He's the fifth player in NBA history with 25 points, five plus steals, three plus block

in a playoff game. Joining, oh, the Rockets, I mean, that's the Rockets players. Joining Hakeem Olajuwon did it twice,

Charles Barkley, Elvin Hayes, and Rick Barry. Or that, in NBA, Barry. In NBA history, 25-plus points, 5-plus steals, 3-plus blocks, and a playoff game. Olajuwon did it twice. Charles Barkley did it. Elvin Hayes did it. Rick Barry.

Thompson is also the youngest to do it. Shingun is averaging almost 21 points, 11 rebounds, 5.2 assists. The first center in NBA history to average those numbers through his first five-career playoff game. Look, I thought the Rockets let one get away the other

night, Joe. They really did. I thought the inexperience showed. They did a great job tonight, jumped on them. I'm sure Imeya Doka I thought the inexperience showed. They did a great job tonight. Jumped on them. I'm sure I'm a Yadoka. He's upset because he had to put his starters back in. You never want to get that.

Your starters down, they're cold, they're chilling. They ain't laughing, they're talking the next day. Hey, y'all back up. But they did a great job tonight. Steph didn't have it tonight. Steph didn't have it tonight Jimmy didn't have it tonight and it showed we got hey they going

they going back to Golden State I think they feel confident Joe I think they feel confident they can go to Golden State and get a victory and bring this thing back to Houston one more time I think Houston can

they are they were the aggressor of the night you know from start to finish aren't they aren't they also they controlled it from start to finish you could tell they were the aggressor of the night from start to finish. Anca Ocho, they controlled it from start to finish. You could tell they were the more desperate team, and they came out hungry.

They didn't want the season to end. You could tell. So, yes, I think they're very capable of going to go to stay winning the game and then bringing it back home for game seven. This has been a fun, grueling series, man. And it's like all these series in the West, even in the East, these first rounds are so tough and going to beat you up so bad that when the second round comes,

damn, you got to hope some of these guys stay healthy, man. Yeah. Right. We still got a lot of basketball left to play. That's why you try to finish as quick as you possibly can. If you can end the team in four, end them in four. If you can end them in five, end them in five. Because you need the rest.

Don't let this thing go six. Don't let this thing go seven when you could have ended it in five. And so you see what Boston did. You see what Minnesota did. You see what the Cavs did. You see these teams. They're like, look, man, we ain't finna deal with y'all. We ain't trying to get on no plane no more.

Hey, Kenny Atkinson said, look, we going down to Miami, take two sets of clothes because we're not coming back. So you're right. But, you know, watching this game, you can tell. Man, I like Thompson. I like him. He's great. Hey, he's a two-way player because he can do it all.

He and his brother. Yeah, he and his brother. They special. They special talent. They are the the like swish army knives of your team uh can explode for you know 30 points a night but gonna do the intangibles as far as steals play making defend pick up full court harass you and man i thought he plays a special defense on steph tonight i think he's okay oh joe i think he's, okay, Ojo, I think he's learning, too, you know, throughout this series how to guard Steph, knowing when to give him space,

knowing when to, you know, crowd him and make it tough for him. They've been kind of mixing it up a little bit. And he angular. Man. Yeah, I mean, how tall is he, like, what, 6'7", 6'8"? 6'7", 6'8". So even if Steph get by him, it's still challenging, you know, because he's going to steal all to your shot.

And ultimately, I think if you're the Rockets, the main thing you want to do is make Steph work. We know he like to play specifically. You got to keep him moving, make him work. Don't let him have no easy catches. And you can tell, they in the passing lane. Man, they out there playing four-on-four basketball because a lot of times they just in denial.

They ain't even looking at the ball. Longest steps don't get it. Right. What you think, Ochoa? I was just going to tell you, when them Rockets came out hard, it seemed like they wanted it more on both sides. They was aggressive on offense.

They was stifling on defense. They had the Warriors scrimming early. Houston came out firing. It was aggressive on offense. They was stifling on defense. They had the Warriors scramble early. Houston came out firing. It was 40-24. 40-24 lead they built in the first quarter. By the time they got to halftime, it was 76-49. So really from that point on, all it is is about controlling everything you do at that point. Controlling everything.

Well, considering that they shot 38 free throws, let me know they were extremely aggressive. Very. Yeah. I don't know if I've ever seen a stat like this, but Golden State had 25 offensive rebounds. You ever see the team get 25 offensive rebounds, Joe, and lose by 15? No, I ain't seen that.

Golden State, yeah, they had 25 offensive rebounds. They just couldn't. Man, offensively, you know, they seemed out of sorts from the jump. Yeah, and they seemed a step or two slower than the Rockets. The Rockets seemed like, you know, they had a boost as though, you know, like I said, they just played with that sense of fire, urgency, that, you know, that they weren't ready for the season to end. And it's like, I don't know, man.

It's like these, you know, the Warriors came out a little lethargic, and it cost them, man, because the Rockets controlled from the tilt. They controlled from the start to finish. They did. And that game took a lot out of the Warriors. Yeah. The other night, it took a lot out of them. Yeah.

And you look at Thompson, young. Dylan Brooks played that. Dylan Brooks has played really well in this series. He shot the ball well. You know he's going to play defense. He's going to fight you tooth and nail. Van Fleet, the last two games, Van Fleet has been on one. He understands the moment.

He's been there. He's won. He's a champion. He's won. He knows what it's like to play this level of basketball and compete at the highest form. So I think he definitely gave them life tonight, but he gives them a sense of confidence

probably going into every game. Yeah. Yeah, he's that special. He really is. But they got a young team, but I think the thing is they might look to give up. You know what? Other than Shingun and Thompson,

I'd be willing to part with anybody else to get Kevin Durant. What do you think about that, Joe? Yeah. To get KD? Yeah. Because you're going to have to give up at least one or two of them young boys. But look, if you want Jalen Green, if you want Dylan Brooks, if you want Jabari Smith, I'd be willing.

The only two people that are untouchable for me is Thompson and Shingun. Yeah. I agree. I think Green and Smith, they got enough talent to where wherever they go, they can change it. They can change a team, a franchise,

a program. I like both of them. But, yeah, I'll definitely make that trade if I was Houston. To get KD, man, please. To go with Shingun, Thompson, Van Fleet. Yeah. Because Shingun going to get you. I mean, you know, he's an all-star.

Yeah. Thompson can defend he's very aggressive he's active you bring in KD who can score you let Van Fleet run your offense I mean I would I don't know if it's going to happen but other than

Thompson and Shingun everybody else is in play if I'm to rock it. Yeah, because there's not many bigs in the NBA like Shingun who can score, pass, and rebound. He's going to make guys around him better. He ain't going to be out here just hoisting up no 20, 25 shots. He's going to always be high in assists because he's going to make the right play,

and he's very crafty, especially in posting up and hitting guys on cuts and wide open shots. So, Sangoon, I love. Man, you can play through him for sure. Yeah. And the thing is, like, them European players, those European bigs, they play this way. Look at Jokic.

Yeah, they grew up like this. They were taught this at a young age. You know why they play like this, Joe and Ocho, I believe? I do. It's because they don't have the athleticism. They can't elevate over nobody. So they're not relying on God-given ability. Right.

They're going to make the right pass. They're going to back cut. They're going to screen. If you look, they got all, most of the big, the European bigs, they got tremendous footwork. Yeah. They got tremendous footwork. Look at Shingun.

Look at Jokic. Look at the bigs that we fake up. Look at their footwork. Yeah. They got tremendous footwork. Look at Shingun. Look at Jokic. Look at the bigs that we fake up. Look at their footwork. Hey, because overseas, they practice way more than they play. Over here, we'll put together a tournament quick and go play. Yeah, we're going AAU. Hey, who are you? Hey, what you do?

What you doing tomorrow? Man, I ain't do nothing. Come on. Hey, Joe. We'll put together a with your mom? Man, I ain't do nothing. Come on. Hey, Joe. We'll put together a team quick. We'll go play in a tournament with no chemistry continuity, practice or nothing. Just feel like we can roll out this talent and win.

Right. Overseas, man, them dudes been practicing, playing against us. They 11, 12 years old, developing chemistry continuity, practicing, working on skill, a skill set. Right, right. People think jumping over somebody is a skill set. No, because what happens when you're athletic? See, that's why I think Jokic can play a long time.

I do too. Because he's not relying on athletic ability. Right. And a guy that doesn't rely on athletic ability, a la Tom Brady? Instinct. Now, if you got athleticism through the yin-yang and it slowly dissipates, you have to reinvent yourself. You see what LeBron did? When he realized that he couldn't continuously go to the basket, go to the basket, what did he do?

Develop that three-point shot. Develop that mid-range, that three-point shot, until it's deadly. Yeah, you have to evolve with the game, especially when you play a long time. You play 20 years, bro. The game is going to change a few times. And he's been smack dab in the middle of it. He's been smack dab in the middle of it.

The game evolved because think about it. The 2000s, the 2010s, now he's in the 2020s. There ain't very many guys that can say they played three decades. No, no. Now, Vince played four because Vince started in the late 90s. He went to 2000. He went to the 10s. And then he finished in the 2020s.

So there ain't very many guys that gets an opportunity to say they played two or maybe even two decades. Maybe two is decent doing it. But when you start talking about three, four decades, that's saying something. But I still think Houston is missing a closer. I think they need a guy that I can give him the ball and he can go get me a bucket. You see, this is by committee.

And there's nothing wrong with that. But when you get into the playoffs, you want to have that one person that I can put the ball in his hand and he can go get me a bucket, Joe. Yeah, a bucket or a foul. You need that. The playoffs slows down.

This ain't the regular season, preseason. We ain't just helter-skelter jacking up threes, none of that. Playoffs, we value every possession. We're going to come down, milk the mismatch, and try to get a great shot every time. That's what it's about.

So, yeah, you need guys who can get you the free throw line milk the mismatch and try to get a great shot every time. That's what it's about. So, yeah, you need guys who can get you the free throw line or get you a bucket or go make the right play and get us a great shot. Yeah. When we've been watching these playoffs, I'll get Ocho this first round. Yeah. Man, down the stretch, man, it's been a lot of careless turnovers, man. A lot of careless turnovers.

That's cost teams games, obviously. Sometimes I think guys are trying to do more than what they should. More than what your ability allows you to do. Right. Because sometimes I see guys try to be heroes. Yeah. Bro, you're not required to be the hero. They feel like they got to step up and make a play, make a shot.

You know, and sometimes you're just overdoing it. When you just make the simple right play, a lot of times that'll get you great results. And see, that's why people don't really gravitate towards Yoke, because it's not like he dunking. He's not letting threes go off balance. Like, he ain't shooting no three in tournament

walking away like Steph Curry. Hey, well, he'll bet. He ain't posterizing people like Ant-Man. Right. You know, he ain't like KD. All I know is that Juggler footwork is impeccable. And he averaged 29, 13, and 10. And Shingun averaged 21, 11, and 5.

And Zubox gave you 16 and 12. That boy is nice, man. And I guarantee you, I guarantee you, you'll get to have five dunks all year long. I guarantee you, you'll get to have five dunks. If he had, I think it was five total. He had the best. Yeah, I'm sure he had 10. He had the best output.

Hey, the game is 90% mental, 10% physical. Yeah. He understands the game. He's going to... And the thing is, he's not going to force it. He's not going to force a play. He's not going to force himself into the offense. He's going to let the offense come to him. Now, hey,

y'all out there horse jacking around with the ball. He's going to take the ball. He's going to demand that you give him the ball now. Oh, yeah. And rightfully so. Yeah. He's the engine. He's the engine for the Nuggets, man.

Everything runs through him because he's so unselfish. And just like last game, he seen Murray got off, he just kept feeding him. I'm going to play my over here. You want to be the lead dog? You going to care it's a victory? I'm going to do my job over here. Rebound, get you to rock, make the right plays. It's an awesome player, bro. The Made for This Mountain podcast exists to empower listeners to rise above their inner

struggles and face the mountain in front of them. So during Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast, focus on your emotional well-being, and then climb that mountain. You will never be able to change or grow through the thing that you refuse to identify, the thing that you refuse to say,

hey, this is my mountain, this is the struggle. Listen to Made for This Mountain on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on good company. The podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi. We dive into the competitive world of streaming.

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