Nightcap - Nightcap - Hour 1: Timberwolves beat the Warriors in G2 to even the series, & LeBron is still uncertain of his future!

Episode Date: May 9, 2025

Shannon Sharpe, Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson & Caron Butler react to the Minnesota Timberwolves evening the series 1-1 with the Golden State Warriors, Stephen Curry isn’t rushing back on his return, & LeBron is still unsure of his future in the NBA and much more!01:45 - Introduction04:00 - Warriors v T-Wolves16:49 - Steph won’t rush return24:45 - Haliburton celebration42:38 - Lebron still undecided on future53:00 - Jayson Tatum shoulders blame(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements.)#Volume #ClubSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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He's more than capable. I'll live with anything Draymond gets. If Draymond takes 10 threes, I'll live with that. I will. I'm not overreacting to Draymond hitting one or two threes. I can't. I'm not. Kaminga, you know, he came in and played really well tonight.

And you're probably going to see more of him. You might see a little bit of Moody because they got to try to get production from somewhere. GP the second, he had an okay game, but he didn't get your rhythm. I think the thing is what they did a great job of is not letting anybody get rhythm. And if you see it early, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang. Well, that's what I want to happen because as Karan said, they're going back home. They're very familiar with this building. They're comfortable shooting in this building.

And so my attention one-on-one, look, I'm not sending help with Jimmy. Yeah. Y'all got it. Hamlet. Yeah. What are they going to do on the defensive end of the floor? Like we saw more zone defense from the warriors in the series versus the rockets and yes green had a tough

time because there was no real estate for him so he was living with contested threes and long twos so now i think that they have to muck up the game more on the defensive end of the floor and they have one of the highest functioning brain speed guys with iq the game more on the defensive end of the floor. And they have one of the highest functioning brain speed guys with IQ on that team on the defensive end of the floor with Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler. So if they can anchor it in on that end of the floor, maybe they can raise some points and create some conversion offense. But I just don't see them scoring enough, you know, with Steph not being available. Listen, not only we don't see them scoring enough with Steph not being available. Hey, listen, not only we don't see them scoring enough

with Steph not being available, listen, the defensive pressure that the Wolves put on tonight, I mean, they recorded 10 steals, five blocks, they forced 17 goddamn turnovers, and that's because they were contesting everything and running all over the place. Correct me if I'm wrong, and let me know if my terminology is right, Karan.

Without Steph on the floor, there's really not that much space. It's not. Yeah, I'm incorrect, right? 100%. See, I promise you I could coach an NBA. You see that?

Now, I just noticed that tonight. Everything was, it seemed so cluttered and just out of whack and out of sort. Yeah, because I'm not worried about anybody really hitting ungodly shots. Because Steph can get his own shot.

Because if you try to run Steph off the three, he'll sidestep or he'll put the ball on the floor and get to his float game. So he's not like, that's not what Buddy, see Buddy is not going to really put the ball on the floor and try to get to the rim. He'll try to, he'll pump up Fakio and he still wants to shoot that's not what Buddy, see Buddy is not going to really put the ball on the floor and try to get to the rim. He'll try to,

he'll pump up Fakie and he still wants to shoot that three. Right. But with Steph in perpetual motion, you have to pay attention. You can't, because now Draymond, hey, they'll put you in the dribble,

the dribble handoff. And you think Draymond's going to hand the ball, you know, hand the ball off and he'll turn and go and lay it up or dunk it. So there's so much action going on when Steph is in the game. That's what made him so tough when they had Steph and Klay. And then you threw KD in the mix. So now what do you do?

You got three guys that can shoot the lights out of the building. As Karan said, Draymond Gurin is a very high IQ guy. They can run pin downs. They can run flares. They can do anything they want to do. You are at their mercy. You just hope they have an off-night shooting. Now, everybody ain't going to have no off-night shooting,

and that's why they were in the high 60s all three years that KD was there. But when you put Steph into the mix, he's still the best shooter in the game, and he's very difficult to defend, and he takes so much of your focus, so much of your attention, and now guys getting back, don't lay up on you and getting easy, easy, easy twos. Steph Curry isn't sure how long it would take for him to recover from the grade one left hamstring strain

because it's the first time he's ever had such an injury. Calling the situation a gut punch, Steph said he has to be careful and can't rush his comeback given the tricky nature of hamstring injuries. this is new from all that i'm hearing learning how quickly you can get back there's been some healing process you can't accelerate it more than it's than it's telling you so uh it'll be one after week after

week really reevaluating every day to understand when it's safe to just think about playing let alone how much i can push it steph is out through at least game four and will be evaluated after that. Game five is eight days after he suffered the injury. Then there's a three-day break between game five and game six, if necessary, which Steph would have 12 total days to recover. It's a two-week recovery. It's a two-week recovery. I told you exactly where it was when it happened

based on what I saw. Listen, I'm not saying I'm a doctor, but you can tell. You can tell the fact that you're able to catch it early and not able to tear it or have it pull on you as much as it did. He was able to control it. So normally with that kind of grade one injury,

especially a little twitch like that where it pulls real slightly, it's always two weeks. That first week is going to be sore. That second week, you get that dry needling, you get that cupping, you do your cold tub and whatever else you need to do outside of that, he'll be fine. He could even come back game four, but game five, he definitely going to play. I think a lot of those medical terms go for everyday people like when you when you do a diagnosis

and like okay yeah you'll be back walking and functioning at a high level again but to perform in the playoffs at this intensity i just think that's a different climate oh yeah right back into what i was expecting to be hampered i agree um but i also think the thing is that what's different than when an athlete gets injured versus, you know, normal people is that normal people have PT two to three times a week. A professional athlete getting perfect, getting PT five times a week around the clock. Around the clock. So they're having someone doing something with stuff around the clock. He's getting stem.

He's getting passive stretch. He's getting around the clock. He's getting STEM. He's getting passive stretch. He's getting all the ultrasound. He's getting a laser. He's getting all those things that normal people might get twice to three times a week. But they're not getting that extensive. They're not getting a laser. They're not getting, you know, they get some of the things.

But athletes, that's why they heal so quickly. First of all, they're a little younger. But Steph said, look, I've never had these injuries. And when I came back from those other things i was in my 20s i was in my prime i'm not there anymore now i'm 30 36 37 years of age yeah so it's probably going to take me a little longer to overcome something like this considering i don't have i don't have a gps so i don't know what it's like because i've never had this injury before. And it's late in his career. So things don't bounce back. Hey, when you were young, Karan, you might have something. One to two

days, hey, man, I'm good to go. Then all of a sudden, as you started getting older, three to four days, five to six days. Now all of a sudden, it's 10 to 15 days. I still got some shit that hurt on me right now. Hey, what was that what was that uh we used to do um and you know when you pull something you hurt something oh dms no no no when they they put

um the the uh you know you do akg and they pull oh yeah you put the stem on it but stem oh with the ice that's yeah yeah okay yeah yeah yeah put those palms in and you feel it pulsing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm telling you, he get that stem. He get that dry needling. Getting ultrasound. He getting all that. Man, he going to be good.

He going to be good. I guarantee you. If you want to, especially in Quran, when it's time to come back, game four or game five, put some pressure. Put that wrap. What's it called? Not the ace bandage. What's it called?

The thing. We got neoprene. Some people, they put neoprene. Some people are going to do Ace Bandage. But here's the thing with that stuff, Steph. Put that little pressure around the spot. He's going to be ready to go, boy. But because he runs so much, Ocho.

There you go. I mean, his whole game is predicated. I know. That's why you need that pressure. You need that pressure in that area, though. But that's why he needs to make sure that thing's healthy because he runs more than anybody else in the NBA. So he's not a guy that can just stand in the corner.

That's not his game. His game is predicated on movement. Certain bursts and sudden stops and cuts. And you know when you got soft tissue injury, man, they don't like all that starting and stopping. It ain't nothing to play with. I was watching the body language of the whole Warriors bench bench i always look at the bench when i'm watching games and he didn't get up much on that bench oh and and that was you know another sign too because

when guys not jumping up and down in the midst of runs like say it's going to run or something like that like he was clapping he was clapping. He was engaged. He was out there mentally, but he wasn't moving on that sideline. And that's one of those things like, oh yeah, he really nursing that thing. It's really, it's really so.

A hundred percent. Cause when you have a hammy injury, you ain't trying to do a whole lot of moving. You slow, you drag you cause they tell you, okay, try to walk as normal as you possibly can. Man,

I'm dragging his leg. Man, you, okay, try to walk as normal as you possibly can. Man, I'm dragging this leg. Man, that thing hurts. Trying to walk in a normal motion and crying. I don't know if you have a sprained ankle or not, but crying. I'm sure you have playing in the NBA. Man, you know, walk normal. Man, I'm walking like I'm a pirate. Man, I'm walking the whole foot.

I ain't getting up on, yeah, I'm walking, like I got a club foot. I ain't getting up on, yeah. I'm walking, I'm on club, like I got a club foot. I ain't getting up on no toe, no dorsiflexion. It's tough. It's a lot easier said than done. And the people like, well, you got to do this. People say that that haven't gone through that. So when you go through it, you know what it's like. Hey, hey, we counting on you.

I don't know what for. Hey, I get back what I get back, I get back what I get back. I get back what I get back. You try to push through it, but you know, I mean, and you try to do some stuff at home, and you see how it feel. I mean, it feel pretty good after you get all that treatment, but after about five,

ten minutes when that, hey, all of a sudden that blood ain't in there, that thing ain't warmed up, whoo, I don't know. I don't know if I'm going to be able to go this weekend. That's a different beast. Tyrese Halliburton was warned over his Game 2 celebration. Halliburton expected to be fined for his dancing celebration. The big balls?

The big balls? That was dope. Game two winner, but received only a warning from the league office instead. Hallie, I've been waiting for that. I've been waiting for that, man. It's just right in the moment. It was right in the moment. Yeah, man, I've been waiting like that.

I'll take that fine gladly. Halliburton fully expected a fine because the celebration is similar to the one he used, bleed. He had first brought to the league by Sam Cassell. Sam Cassell was the first one. I actually saw that when he was in Houston. Sam could long ago have drawn such feelings from the NBA. Others have done it.

LeBron James, Eddie Howes, Drew Randall, Fred Van Fleet. More have been fine for the league as described as obscene gesture. And that's, you know, it's not bad.

It's not bad. And listen, all athletes that happen to be watching, and I'm sure this is going to replay over and over and over and probably go viral, which most of our stuff does. If you play at the highest level, NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, whatever it may be, the one thing they love to do, they love to take what they think you value most. That's your money. How do we keep these people in line that we pay millions of dollars to? We take their money.

You know why they want to take your money? Because they think that's what you value most. Enjoy yourself. Continue to have fun. Celebrate. Listen, this is the entertainment business. Let me ask you a question. When he's doing that gesture, what is it?

Huh? When he's doing that gesture, yeah, what is that? It means I got cojones. I got cojones and I get a big shot. You know the kids watching, right? What? The kids watching? Yeah.

What? We talking about basketball. The kids are watching. I didn't have a problem with it personally, but I... Hey, man, forget all that. Hey, kids are watching Nightcap right now. What you talking about, man? Let's go. Hey, but you said he didn't

get fined. He did not get fined. Okay, I want my money because I got fined $15,000 for it. Yeah, a lot of guys have gotten fined for that. Yeah, okay. I want mine. I want mine back. I'm going to be waiting on my check in the mail. I think because Hallie said he's expecting to find this,

and now we're not going to give it to you. But don't do it again. I want reparations. I want my daddy's records. Look, I understand that that's a celebration because it was. I mean, Hallie's had – I mean, look, he had the game winner against Milwaukee. Remember, he had the game winner layup. Remember, he had the game-winning layup. Milwaukee had that big lead, and they came all the way back,

and he had the game-winning layup with, like,.6 seconds to go. And then, look, when Hallie is aggressive, they hard to beat because they're a committee. They're not going to have anybody that has 30 or 40 points. They're going to have maybe one or two guys in the 20s, and then they're going to have a bunch of teams. They're going to have maybe one or two guys in the 20s, and then they're going to have a bunch of teens. They're going to normally have six to seven guys in double figures, Karan. So, you know,

you have maybe two guys with 20 to 23, and then you have 19, 18, 17, 16, 2 at 14, and then you get an 8 and a 6. That's how they... And Hallie is the head of the snake because he's looking to push tempo every chance he gets.

Either he'll take it out of the net or they'll take it off the rim, but they're pushing tempo, and you've got to play like that. You've got to get back because you celebrate like, oh, yeah, you hold that three up there like that, and then they'll lay it up on the other end. And the coach looking at you like, bro, you've got to get back. All they're doing is looking to push, and they've got young athletic guys that can get up and down.

They can defend. Look, Neesmith and Nimhard. They got Siakam. They got guys that, you know, try to funnel you to a Miles Turner, but their thing is predicated on offense. They are predicated on offense, and they can go on a run at the blink of an eye. Pace and space, or they

can play in the half court, which you touched on. And I think Howley has really just elevated to a whole nother level. I think he used that as a fuel when everyone said that he was an overrated or whatever. And you know, you play for the respect of your peers.

And when people... Yeah, that's what they think of you. There ain't no fan, because normally that Ocho Ocho like to say, man, that's the fans. They don't know what they're talking about. Those were the players that said that.

I don't think that was real, Karan. Ain't no way in hell the goddamn players voted that. It couldn't have been. Yeah, exactly. I really think it's some, I think they just put the title of, oh, the players voted. That's why they don't put no player's name. Because you'd be surprised.

Karan, you know, you'd be surprised what players think of other players. What we think of somebody being good, Karan, you know, you'd be surprised what players think of other players. What we think of somebody being good, Ocho, we know because like, how he make the Pro Bowl? He's some good garbage. I mean,

I'm sure y'all say the same thing about, man, how does Joker make the All-Star game? Right. But that's just the way it is. Perception is a person's reality. And some people think,

look, because Hallie is really not a scoring point guard. We like scoring point guards now. We like Steph and James Harden and Shea and Luca. See, we like point guards that go get you 40-50. That's what we like, not Karan. We don't

like the old school Magic Johnson, Jason Kidd, John Stockton. We don't let no guy give you 15-10. 10 nah give me 35 and 10 how did y'all do the scouting thing in the nfl like per player or situation well what we did okay the offensive line coach would address the d-line so he said okay we say okay here's reggie reggie like the bull he likes to hunt well he'll start hump. He'll start you up and then use your momentum to club you. Here's a guy that's really good with his hands.

Hey, he likes to pose. He can turn, you know, he can turn speed. He can turn power to speed. He can bend the edges. Okay, now the tight ends will address the linebackers. The running back coach will address the inside linebackers. Wide receivers. There are times, hey, this guy right here, we're going to take advantage of him.

He likes to hold. This guy right here, he's nosy. He's going to bite. Hey, we're not going to do it early, but we're going to do it late because in situations, T-Buck was one of the notorious ones. T-Buck had a philosophy. He's going to jump something, boy.

You got more slams and stomps than you got go routes. So I'm going to take my chance. And you work. Hey, sometimes he's going to get you. Sometimes you're going to get him. But that's how we did it. We looked at it. But there have been times, Karan, that guys have made the pro bowl

that I thought other guys were better. Well, you know, the fans and so forth and so on because, you know, fans get a vote, the coaches get a vote, and the players get a vote. But there have been times that I'm like, mm-mm. Mm-mm. That ain't it. Especially when

you watch it on film and you see it in person, what the hell are you doing here? Yeah, I don't know. I don't know. Somebody, either you just had an What the hell are you doing here? Yeah, I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. Somebody. Either you just had an out-of-body experience or the other guy's some trash that you was playing against.

But one of the two. Yeah. Halliburton is one of those guys that I was getting to the point of if you had to do a pregame edit or a scout on him, he can take up the whole pregame edit because you you think about him in a blitz coverage he can make pretty much every pass out of it you think about him in an open side pick and roll he can sweep the defense he can play in the drop against the drop coverage he can play this own coverage uh he can get escape and reject uh he can draw files

so you got to go over all those boxes that you got to check. Coming off the pick and roll off a live dribble. And he got a pull-up game. He got a geezer. Even though it's a different looking shot, he's going to make you come out that hole. Kevin Martin. You look like Kevin Martin.

And it goes in. And it's efficient. And he's like, he wants the moments. You see? Big moment. You know, going around. could have got fined. Right. He deserved that moment.

You know what I mean? So, Wisconsin native, I salute him because, you know, I love all my Wisconsin natives and the brothers that's hooping at a high clip, and he's just representing well. He really is. He's taught, what, 6'5", 6'6"? He's a big guard. He is.

He's a big guard, so he can see over coverage. He's not no 6'1", 6'2", guard. He can see over a lot of that. And don't let his pops be in the arena. And don't let his pops be in the arena. He's putting on a show. And the thing is, you know what it is? I think in the system that they get up and down,

I think the system that Indiana implements is perfect for him because he wants to get up and down. They play up and down style. It's kind of like Magic Johnson. Magic could have been good in the half-court set because he's 6'9". We had never seen anything like Magic because normally 6'9 guys, they were centers and power forwards. We had never seen a 6'9 guard.

So he could see over the defense. But once they adopted Showtime, and there was Byron Scott and you had Jamal Wilson, you had Big Game James running the court, running the floor, it was over. It was over. We had never seen anything like it. Showtime. Yeah.

So he could throw the ball the length of the court, and then he could handle it. Hey, he coming down. Take that with you. And so now with the space that these guys play with, guys that have speed and are unselfish

like a Halliburton is because I believe he's the essence of a point guard. A lot of these guys are point guards masquerading. They're actually two guards masquerading as a point. James Harden is a two guard. I don't care what y'all say. Lading as a point. Jay Harden is a two guard. I don't care what y'all say. Luka is a two guard. Shea is a two guard.

They masquerading as points. Jason Kidd was a point. Magic. Pure point. Pure point. John Stock, the Magic, those were pure point guards. These guys today, the John Moran's, the Russell Westbrooks,

those guys were twos masquerading. Now, John Moran, because John's on the smaller side, he's not as tall as, say, Luca and Shea. Shea's bigger than people think. I don't know why people thought Shea was like 6'2", 6'3". Shea's 6'7".

I thought he was 6'3", at best. Nah. Hell nah. He got everything. Hold on, hold on. Hey, Karan, you surprised me the other night. We were talking about the Nuggets. He got everything. Hold on. Hold on. Karan, you surprised me the other night.

We were talking about the Nuggets. He talking about goddamn Joker 6-0. Yeah, he is. He legit is. Man, I'm talking about

boy, you see his footwork, yo. Hey, his footwork. The B-that-B. He got that bag. What the hell? Yeah, he has no weakness in his

offensive game. Yogi has no weakness in his offensive game. Yoki has no weakness in his offensive game. He can get to the mid. He can step out, shoot the three. He can put the ball on the floor. He got touch around the rim with either hand. His float game is impeccable. Offensively, he has no weakness in his game.

And I don't know how many guys, maybe, well, Elijah Juan had the footwork like that, and he was good around the basket. But Elijah Juan didn't have three-point. No big really shot the three like that. No big was really shooting the three until Dirk came into the NBA. And so now you had these stretches. But Jokic, offensively,

from the three-point line all the way in, he got the mid. Hey, he can finish at the realm. He ain't above the realm. He can finish at the realm. But he's got tremendous touch with either hand. For me, Karan, I don't know what you think, Karan. For me, look, Shea has earned the MVP this year. 100%.

Jokic is the best player in the NBA. I wouldn't argue that. And to your point about the bigs, you know, guys shooting from the perimeter like Dirk did, DeMarcus Cousins is a guy that always argue that. And, and to your point about the bigs of, you know, guys shooting from the perimeter, like, like dirt did, uh, the Marcus cousins is a guy that always gets, but we just talked about that.

I said, I said that last night. That was my comparison. He was a, that boy was a prop. He had a three year stretch where it wasn't winning basketball because it was still like in transition. And,

but man, I,'d never seen nobody be able to guard him no you couldn't possible before he had that Achilles injury and then he tore his knee they couldn't stop Boogie hey Karan we was actually having a conversation and there was a real conversation

Anthony Davis or Boogie Cousins that was a real conversation that wasn't no play play that was legit and a lot of people say give me Boogie Cousins. That was a real conversation. That wasn't no play play. That was legit. And a lot of people say, give me Boogie. Yes. Yeah, you were nice.

Hey, Karan, you just said something. You didn't want to challenge Unk when he said the best player in the NBA was Joker. Now, do you agree with that or do you have somebody else in mind when it comes to the best player in the NBA right now?

The best player in the NBA right now is... To you. The MVP of the league and who's going now is the MVP of the league and who's going to be the MVP of the league? SGA. Oh, okay. If I gave you a draft right now, I said, okay, I'm going to give you one player. You take it in? That's a different question.

I don't even want to cover with that. I give you one player. You get to draft one player. The starter team we're right now. I'm taking Bam. You get to draft one player to start a team with right now. I'm taking Bam. You're taking who? Bam. Okay.

We respect that. We respect that. We respect that. Hey, speaking of, listen, Karan worked with the Heat, and Karan don't even know what's about to happen. You know, he's in a position where he's a part of the organization, right? So he doesn't even know about the conversation and the sit-down. That you've been having behind the scenes? Yeah, that I had with Sposha, Mickey Harrison, and goddamn Pat Riley.

So he don't even know the surprise that's coming, you know, this season. Oh, you got something for us? You know, and he's not— You got something for us? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I got something. You know, I sat down with Pat. I'm telling Pat, listen, Pat, in order for us to go where we want to get to and to

get back to our winning ways, you got to loosen the reins a little bit, baby. You got to loosen the reins a little bit. So, Pat, he told me, listen, I'm going to do what I can, and I got some surprises and some moves I'm trying to make in the offseason. We're trying to get Giannis and John Marant down here in Miami. Now, I know you can't say

nothing because it's conduct detrimental to the team, so you just listen to me. It's called tampering. No, that's tampering. Yeah, he can't. Okay, you know what? Let me stop. Let me stop. Let go ahead and finish the show. My bad. My bad, Karan. My bad. Karan, when I

look at Shea, Shea got it all. Shea got a bag. He can shoot the three, that mid-range. Bro, that snatch, the way he gets you going and just pull back, that's automatic. That's damn near a free throw. And it doesn't matter if it's 10 feet, 15, or 18. He's perfected that shot.

Unstoppable. He can get all the way to the cup. And the thing is now, he's in that stretch like James Harden. With James Harden, we're getting to the free throw line 10, 11, 12 times a game. Plus, because he had most 20, 30, 40, 50-point games this season. Hey, you know what? When I think about it, you know Karan and Unk, you know who John remind me of? Who's that?

Like, you know who I'm talking about John Morant Yeah you know who Reminded me of Don't say you I mean Hold on now I'm talking about Shea

SGA Yeah who SGA Reminded you of Mojo Me I knew he was Don't say that Me Cause you should

Have saw me in high school We had the same moves Like identical Our movements Our mannerisms Our ability to stop and go. You know, it's unbelievable how much we have seen him.

No, you don't worry about it. He ain't got none. He ain't got no footage. He ain't got no footage. Oh, yeah. Well, hey, listen. Hey, Karan, at Miami Beach Senior High, I scored 56 a night. I'm in a situation from my freshman and senior year. I was 56, 12, and 10. Look at it. Look at, look at her.

Look at her. You tried it with a serious face, though. But I don't lie. I lied for you before I lied to you. This is what I do. That's the thing. You got to be serious because then,

if you weren't serious, what are you, a pathological liar? So you got to have some, you got to have, you got to have some discernment, like, oh man, Ocho might be,

that might be telling the truth. Yeah, every time I say something right people go back and look at it and google it or youtube it and it be right there it be right there in your face cause some of the stuff I say some of the stuff I say and some of the stuff I did in the past is not believable because

people think I be playing but then they go and do their homework and they be like, well, I be damn. This motherfucker really did that shit. It's not believable because it's not true. Nah, it's true. I mean, think about it. Think about some of the great players. LeBron didn't average 56. Ant-Man didn't average 56. Anthony Davis didn't. Luca,

you take some of the greatest. Kareem! Kareem, what people don't realize, Kareem was the greatest high school basketball player ever. Kareem lost one game in high school. He lost two games in college. So let that sink in. For eight years where he couldn't play his freshman year because freshmen couldn't play back then. But Kareem's

freshman team beat the varsity team that won the national championship. So for a seven year period, Kareem lost three games in college and in high school. So he's the greatest high school and college basketball player ever. And he never averaged 56. Who told you that?

His number. The numbers say that. I mean, well, my numbers say I'm better than him, so I'm trying to figure out where you got your information from. Were you Gatorade player of the year in Florida? Huh? Were you Gatorade player of the year? I played in high school.

Were you a Gatorade player of the year? We had no Gatorade back then. We had no Gatorade. They been had Gatorade. They been had Gatorade player of the year? I played in high school. Were you a Gatorade player of the year? We had no Gatorade back then. We had no Gatorade. They been had Gatorade. They been had Gatorade. But we had Czech soda. Okay. Were you Czech soda player of the year?

We couldn't afford Gatorade. We had Czech soda. Were you fair to a Czech soda player of the year? We had Czech soda. We couldn't afford Gatorade. I'll tell you no lie. I'll ask you. Were you Czech soda player of the year?

Yes, I was Czech soda player of the year. We looking for that right now. Google it. Google me. I'm going to have to ask you Don his hazel because he Hey, I dunked on UD when he was at Miami High. UD was scared of me out there on the court, man. They couldn't do nothing with me. I'm telling you, UD

I tell you, ask UD. I averaged 56, 56, 12, and 10 in high school. I'm telling you, we're going. I averaged 56, 56, 12, and 10 in high school. I'm telling you, I'm with that boy. We're going to get to this LeBron topic. LeBron still isn't ready to make a decision about his NBA future one week after the Lakers lost. I haven't had a conversation

with the family yet as far as me going forward or whatever the case may be, but we'll see what happens. LeBron has a $52.6 million player option for next season. Karan, do you think he'll pick it up? Does he opt out? Take less money to try to get more help?

What do you see LeBron doing? I think that he's going to do whatever's best for the organization because I think that they have a great collaboration over there. And they did go get Luka. And I think that he's in constant communication just from an observation standpoint with Wapolinka. And everyone's on the same page.

He's pretty much having his way, you know, with, you know, Bronny being over there in the roster that he's been wanting to build out ever since he's been in Los Angeles. And I think once you get Luka committed, then you can go down that pecking order and, you know, check the other boxes.

And if it is some space for flexibility and you might need him to opt out to take less or whatever for the better good of the team, then you do that. But I think the ball is in his court. Like, you know, LeBron, he's earned the right to do exactly what the hell he want to do. And I think they're going to work with him in every capacity to make sure everything work and they don't check those boxes. LeBron averaged 24.5 points a game, 8.2 assists, 7.8 rebounds per game in his 21st NBA season.

I think Vince Carter averaged the most points. I think he averaged like seven in his 21st season. With the addition of Luka, I can see LeBron playing another two years, Karan. Easy. I can see him actually playing with two of his sons on that roster. I wouldn't be surprised. You know, and a lot of people are like,

oh, damn, I totally forgot about Bryce. You know, but that makes the most sense to me in the world that he would wait to, you know, he only got one year probably that he's going to do at the university where he's going to Arizona or something. Yeah, so he do a year there. He jumped ship, and now he on the Laker or in the league and playing against his dad and brother. I mean, some more history to be made this following season. And then, obviously, they have a realistic shot at competing for a title,

being one of those top six or seven teams again going into next season. And then you can ride into the sunset however you feel like it. But LeBron is definitely capable of playing at least the way he's going now, at least another two to three years at a high level. Because I don't know how significant the knee injury is, but he's never had injuries, and he takes well good care of himself. And plus here, he's just ahead of everyone from a mental standpoint. I think them taking him off the ball, letting Luka be the primary ball handler,

letting AR be the primary ball handler, so that's less wear and tear to his body, so he can dive and cut. He's added a three-point shot to his bag. So now he's about to be top five in the NBA in three-point shots. And that's how you stay a long time. Because when you have a particular time... Think about it. LeBron has gone like two to three different eras of basketball.

Sure did. And he's evolved. The greatest key to survival is adaptability. His ability to adapt to the type... because this is what LeBron was a get to the basket guy. He still can

but not nearly as efficient or not nearly as much as he once did. If you notice now LeBron shoot the three. He still can play with his back to the post. He's still a turn over

that right shoulder and let the thing go. He's still top fast break points. Yes. And he led in fourth quarter scoring. Yeah, that's wild. And you're 22.

That's crazy. No, 22, yeah, because he's a 20, 21, what is it, 21-time All-Star? Mm-hmm. Yeah, 21-time. So you're right. But the question is, Karan, here's the question. In building this team out, LeBron and Luka, they're similar,

but Luka wants lob threats. LeBron wants spacing and three-point shooters. So how do you build a team? Because it seemed like Mark Williams would have been a great, because I knew they were in trouble. They really didn't have a big. Because now you're only playing Jackson Hayes 10, 10, 15 minutes. Now you go Rui and LeBron.

One's playing the four, the other's playing the five. You got no rim protection. You got no help side defense. And really, Luka, first dribble, that number goes. They're going to get by Luka either the first or the second dribble. AR isn't much better. LeBron is in year 22, so we can't expect him to sit in the chair. So they really,

I mean, Vanderbilt, when you got Vanderbilt, he's a good defender, but you're really playing four on five on the offensive end. Finney Smith, he can have some offense, but he's so inconsistent, so up and down. So how does Rob go about building this team to make everybody happy

and best put this team in position to compete for a championship? Well, I think that's the reason why he left Craig's dinner spot with all those sheets of paper in that folder. You know what I mean? Like, he's looking at every roster spot and looking at all the guys

that's possibly available in the market and someone that you can, you know, add on that could be an asset to that organization. You're going to have to have a lob threat, you know, for Luka. And when people say that, you know, a lob threat is going to take away the real estate, it's actually not because it's going to put a lot of pressure on the rim,

and that's going to put the weak side guy always tagging and trying to take away the dunk, and that's going to open up the two-on-one on the backside of the court. So that's exactly what they need. And then you talked about perimeter defense. I thought Hachimura did a great job, but there's exactly what they need. And then you talked about perimeter defense. I thought Hachimura did a great job, but there's always room for improvement. And

the challenge for Luka going into the summer, which it seems to be very potent, is just working on his conditioning, working on being the best possible version of himself and trying to move the needle on the defensive end of the floor so you're not responsible for so many advantage situations.

And I think he's going to take that challenge. You know, people hear the whispers. You know, as coaches, as a former player, it's true for every joke. When people tell you about, you know, some of the things you can do better on the defensive end of the floor or you're not sharing the ball. You're turnover prone. Whatever the case may be, you go back to the lab,

and when you're working on your craft with your player development people and your pods, you're like, all right, I got to sharpen the tools a little differently going into the season. So I think he's just going to be a lot better. And, you know, I think the team is going to be a force to be reckoned with. I'm looking forward to seeing them next year. Because I look at it, it seems like every year in the playoffs, Luke will wear down.

It seems like at each game, game one he's fresh, and then game two he starts to move old and old. It's like he's aging like he's Benjamin Button, but he's going the other way. Benjamin Button came down to a baby. It seems like he was a baby and going to an old-ass man. Because it seems like after game one, it seemed like he was a baby going to an old ass man because it seemed like after game one it's like game two game three they're like damn game four he could

barely walk i thought he's gonna break it right there i will say this too though and a lot of people you know you know no lack of empathy for anyone but it's like when trades happen i don't know if y'all ever been traded in the middle of a season or things no it takes a especially in the way that he was but yes it takes a a toll on you like no other and then the responsibility to immediately be at the forefront of everything you're the headline in the story across the association and all of a sudden you got to perform at this optimum level with you know arguably the greatest player of this generation and then all of a sudden it's just like the expectations is different. But I, you know, I don't I don't take that lightly because I see it from a different

lens being in the locker room and, you know, being an advocate for the players. So I do have empathy for him in that space, too, because I was traded, you know, before and I had to go through that shit. So it isn't easy and, you know, players not robots and there's a reason why it's, you know,

mental spaces for, you know, players to kind of, you know, get through. Decompressing. Talk about it. Yeah.

100%. Yeah, I totally get it because it's a situation. It's one thing to get traded if I request a trade. It's something entirely different when I'm thinking I'm going to spend my entire career request a trade. It's something entirely different when I'm thinking I'm going to spend my entire career

with one organization. He's a guy. He's a dirt guy. As long as he wants to stay in Dallas, he stays in Dallas. But I didn't want to get traded, and you traded me like two months before my 26th birthday, a five-time first-team All-NBA selection.

I just led a team to the NBA Finals. I've been a this-many-time All-Star. And you telling me what? Yeah. Oh, it's a shock. Yeah. It's a shock. Definitely.

Jason Tatum shouldered the blame for his struggles over the first two games versus the Knicks. I take full ownership of the way I've played in this series, and I can't sugarcoat anything. I need to be better. I expect to be a lot better. Guys work really hard on their game and their craft and prepare to be in those moments to hit open shots, and it just hasn't happened the last two games.

But you can't lose your confidence either. Tatum Jumper has abandoned him thus far. He's made just 12 of 42 shots. That's 29%. And he's frequently settled for three-pointers where he's shooting five of 20, 25%.

He has taken only nine free throws in two games. And he has eight turnovers. See, the free throw is telling me he's not being aggressive. It's telling me he's settling.

Okay. Nick said, we're going to live with that. Hey, he always say, you know, know one of his idols someone he admired and looked up to yeah i'm assuming he would love the modelers game after him that's kobe that jelly bean brian so the first thing for tatum where he got to go back and think well that's thoughts up here there's certain this is something that that Kobe got that you can't be taught it can't be coached

it's already in you that mentality I mean mamba mentality whatever you want to call it that ain't nothing but a dog that's all it is they just changed the name when it came to Kobe that's already in you so for when you're approached to the game of basketball in this series it has to change you got to go in there with that same mentality

he's settling though, Ocho. Stop putting up the threes. Put the ball in the flow. Call for ISO. Wait for the pick. I mean, do whatever you got to do to get yourself in rhythm to get the game going. You're supposed to be the face of the NBA or one of those type of guys,

but you're not playing like that guy. Ocho, let me ask you a question. Why didn't you stop eating McDonald's? Because you had success doing what you do. So why should he stop shooting threes? He's had success. He's won a championship. He's about to be a four-time first-team all-NBA selection.

He's won two gold medals. So tell me why he should stop. Well, I'm going to tell you this one. I had a lot of tools in my tool bag, right? So if at any point the McDonald's wasn't working with me, I had a plan B and I had something else I can go to just in case. You know what? I can't do this no more.

So, boy, I'm going to reverse this. Your whole thing was predicated on quickness. I'm going to tell you why. I'm going to tell you why it should have changed. I'm going to tell you why. Because right now you're down 0-2. And what you do on the past two games ain't motherfucking. My bad.

I'm sorry for the cursing. What you do the last two games ain't working. So what I'm going to do, I'm going to go on my toolbox. I know you got a toolbox that i see i seen him do it let me ask you a question your game was predicated on quickness yeah yeah yeah yeah did you play physical did you play through contact no that was your game i mean i could i could you saw what i did to ray lewis i could i swear everybody saw that that that grand stage still on your back. I think I ran into Ray. I think I hit Ray.

Karan, so tell me, if this is you, Karan, you are who you are. You're an all-star. You're an all-NBA selection. You've been, you're a champion. You've been your champion. You won gold medals.

And you're in a shooting slump like this. And it's come at the worst, at the most inopportune of times because it came when you were at home. You're down 0-2, and you're about to go on the road for the next two. And there's a chance when you come back to Boston, you're going to come back to clean out your locker. If you're in this situation, what's your mental approach? What is Karan Butler saying to Karan Butler? I'm going to leave an effort where

there is no regrets. Like, an effort that I can live with, an effort that I ain't tossing and turning, trying to sleep with. And I think that, you know, one of the things, before I get, like, dive into the mental aspect of it, I'm thinking about what is his health concerned,

because he did take the hit. Is he nicked or something? Is he nicked from why is he settling? But obviously when you're available, when you take whatever for your ailments and you get out there on that platform, all bets is off. So I think that he does have to play extremely aggressive. I think he knows who he is.

He don't need no one to remind him. And he just has to be confident, you know, in the moment and, you know, take on the Jason Tatum mentality. You know, you're your own man, you know, and go out there and do what you got to do and you're the leader of that ball club. And I think that, you know, Brown is going to step up in a major way too. You know, he's the guy that usually answers the bell

and takes a lot of pressure off Tatum in those moments. And I think they're going to do it by committee. They got a lot of guys that's battle-tested. Holiday as well, I think you're going to see a better version of him, you know, on the defensive end of the floor because the struggles is that they sent in a lot of bodies at Brunson. He is a guy, and he's been the guy on that floor for this series. And somehow, some way, one of the other faces of the league,

which is Jason Tatum and Brown, they're going to have to step up and say, hey, there's three guys on this floor. You know what I mean? And I think Catt is going to have a little up and say, hey, there's three guys on this floor. You know what I mean? And I think Cats is going to have a little say in this series, too, once they go back to New York. But it's really going to be on the shoulders of Brown and Tatum, you know, to take them and get them back in the series.

Hey, I got a question, right? So you think about it. The Celtics are down 0-2, right? Yeah. The Celtics in both games had a 20-point lead. The Knicks had a 20-point deficit. They were down, down by 20 in both games, and came back and won, right? Yeah.

So the Celtics haven't been playing well. Hell, the Knicks haven't been playing well yet either. But just so happened towards the end of the game, Jalen Brunson and collectively as a group, the Knicks found a way to win. The Knicks are playing exactly how they want to play, though, Ocho. This is the way the Knicks found a way to win. The Knicks are playing exactly how they want to play though, Ocho. This is the way the Knicks plays. Exactly. So you're thinking the Knicks

supposed to have like 120, 125 points. No, no, no. That's not them. They want to muck the game up. They want the game to be close in clutch situation. The last five minutes, just have a chance. That's all I want. Yeah, yeah.

But then I have a question though. So think about this. The fact that they haven't played well, the Sixers haven't played well, right? They had a 20-point lead in both games and still lost towards the end. Now you're going to the Garden, right? Yeah.

So let's say what happened if this time the Knicks do play better basketball as opposed to what they've been playing. Well, I told you the Celtics were going to go home anyway. I told you that. Those things are going to be a sweep. No, no, no. Ain't going to be no sweep. it's going to be a sweep. No, I'm saying...

It ain't going to be no sweep. It ain't going to be no sweep. The problem that I have, I really meet me of all the teams that play, and there are some teams that don't have very good records. The Celtics are the team that I least like to watch play

because all they do is chunk up threes. They chunk up threes. Now, they got that 20-point lead by running plays, getting to the rim, finishing, doing a lot of good stuff. And then all of a sudden it's like, you know what?

This is not who we are. I'd rather lose. I'd rather lose our way, jacking up threes than win by doing, by running plays and getting to the basket. The first half, Jason Tatum had two points. The second half,

Jalen Brown had three points. Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown are combined two of 19 shooting in the fourth quarter. The Knicks have come back from 20 down twice. I'll score the Celtics by 22 points in the final quarter thus far. See, that's your problem.

Your two big guns, the guys that you're counting on, are misfiring in the most important quarter of it all. That's the fourth quarter. And you see what happened? Jason Tatum got himself

in a pickle. Didn't know what to do. Got up in the air. Like, you see what happened? Jason Tatum got himself in a pickle. Didn't know what to do. Got up in the air like, oh, what? Oh, boom. And Mikael Bridges was right there. Mikael Bridges played sensational. He had zero points through the first three quarters. And then he pops out with 14.

14. But the biggest difference in this ballgame, Karan, was Cat. Cat shot one three-pointer. He got his butt down on the block. He got it on the move, and he punished Al Horford. That's Cat. See, Carl Anthony Towns shoot threes.

Cat punishes people. They're two different guys. They're the same person, but they're two different guys. He's so talented, man. He is, but see, remember last year when people said Cat, they ain't got nobody on the Gafford can't guard you

Likely can't guard you they don't have anybody that can guard you why are you settling they're applauding you they're bringing you cookies they're bringing you gifts for shooting those threes

get down on that block and punish him don't settle and he settled what you think game three you think the Celtics get this thing figured out

or did they keep jacking up threes? Matt at the guard. I think it all depends on how the Knicks were a success. You know, do you go back

and, you know, still have that same urgency and not pretend like you're playing with house money and, you know,

were a success well and still have that same dog and that tenacity because you have to understand that you're going to receive Boston's best, like... They got to win this game.

They're coming with everything. And they're going to throw everything at you in the first quarter, first half, basically. And if you can sustain it, this will be a game of runs. And if you can sustain it, if you can keep that energy electric in that arena, then you have a chance in the second half to, you know, make a game out of it. And if it comes down to a possession ball game, you know, you got Mr. Clutch, Mr. Fourth Quarter on your side, and he's been the best player in this series this far. He can get you over the hump. But I really do think that brown and tatum and also holiday is going to have a huge say so in this game because holiday has always been the guy that you can just put on the best offensive player and he can wipe them out and wash them out and then him and white take

turns on those big turns but brunson has been a little different he beat you up offensively uh he know how to he's so crafty He's so tough to officiate. And, you know, now he has a good feel of, you know, controlling this series. It's going to be interesting to see what it's going to be like going into game three. The problem that the Celtics have had is that they had a 20-point lead, and the Knicks don't feel that there is no lead save that the Celtics have.

So it doesn't matter if the Celtics jump out 10, 15, or even 20. The Knicks says, hey, we've been here. The first two games, that was in their building. I know we can feed off the energy in our building and chase them down if necessary. But what happens if they can't build that 20-point lead? See, the problem is that with the Celtics

is that most of the time this season, they were blowing teams out. So, you know, those guys getting rest. Now, all of a sudden, the Knicks got them out there in deep water

and they've had them out there for an extended period of time. See, everybody can swim to the shore. If you jump out the middle, hey, if you jump out the boat in the middle of a lake,

you can swim to shore because you're not tired. But let me see, after the fifth time, after the sixth time, I drive you back to the middle. Can you make can swim to shore because you're not tired. But let me see after the fifth time, after the sixth time, I drive you back to the middle. Can you make it back to shore? So that's how the Knicks, the Knicks say, you know what? Let's get them in the fourth quarter

again in clutch situation. The last five minutes of the ballgame, it's a nip and tuck ballgame. It's a basket of two one way or another. Let's see if they still feel like those shots gonna go in. Because boy, they were, hey, there some wide-open threes in the first two games. In the last five minutes of the game, looked like me. Me and Spice Adams was out there.

Boop. Oh, Joe, me and Spice Adams was out there. JB and JT looked like me and Spice Adams. Raindrops. Hey, that's a good one. All over the top of the backboard. Shout out to Paul Pierce making good on his bet. He walked from Encino to Century City today in a robe.

Did he really? No. I ain't buying that. No. No, I'm sure. He probably drove all but a mile and then he dropped him off and Harry did catch him walking through the city. Listen, I love Paul.

That's my dog. But you know how far Encino is? Hell yeah, I know how far it is. Hey, listen. If anything, for content purposes, he started off walking, drive a little bit, show another spot where I'm at, drive a little bit, show another spot where I'm at, drive a little bit, show another spot where I'm at. It didn't take Paul Pierce two days to walk from Encino to Citrus City.

Man, you know how far that is? Yes, I know how far Encino is from Citrus City. Hell yeah. Cam, we're going to get you out of here on this one. What was your reaction when you found out the Mavericks had traded Luka Doncic to the Lakers for Anthony Davis oh man I was I didn't think it was real I was actually

we was on a flight and we just got our wifi back on the plane and I saw it and I said oh shit like Sham said I was like oh they tripping. He got hacked or something that shit.

It was official. I actually reached out to a couple folks in the Mavericks organization just to confirm it. Still ain't heard back from them. So yeah, man, it was real. It's crazy. Wow. Karan,an man thanks for stopping by bro we really appreciate it we know you're busy tonight thank you for giving us some some of your time man stop back stop back by anytime you like bro congratulations good luck hey you next in line

to get one of them head coaching jobs bro thank you brother i appreciate it hey bring me bring me with you now because Don't do that. The longer you stay away from Ocho, the longer you stay in the coaching NBA. I'm about to go check that shit too and see if you haven't fit. Hey, you told me. You in Miami? Yeah, I'm in Miami. Hey, let's get a one-on-one tomorrow. Tell your ass up.

Hey, I give you. Okay. Put some money on it. What you want to do? You know I got it. What area you in? I come to you. What park near you? I'm out here in Southwest Ranch. Man, I'm right around the corner in Davie, boy. What you trying to do?

I'm trying to do whatever. Nothing here. Trying to do nothing. You see, I got my ball right here, too, man. That's what I do. That's my ball from high school. Show them who gave you that ball. Show them who gave you that ball.

Oh, hey, I got it. LeB who gave you that ball. Oh, um... Hey, I got a... LeBron gave me this. He gave you that 50K ball? Yeah, it is. I swear to God. Hey, this is a 50K ball. This is it, Karan. This is the real ball.

This is the real ball. I promise you. I wouldn't lie to you. Hey, youad, you got to get him, man. That's great. Gerard, man, thanks, man. Get on out of here, man. Thank you, man. I appreciate you, man.

Stop making my 80 times. Yo. Yo. I'm Michael Kasson, 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. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core.

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. Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. You're listening to an iHeart podcast