The Daily Zeitgeist - MJGMB #142: Cleveland Still Rocks with Justin Rowan

Episode Date: December 4, 2024

The guys were pleased to be joined by The Chasedown Pod host Justin Rowan for today's episode. The trio discussed just how sustainable this Cavs start remains and why this year's squad looks so different before broadening the conversation to the Magic, Grizzlies, Bucks and others!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey everyone, I'm Madison Packer, a pro hockey veteran going on my 10th season in New York. And I'm Anya Packer, a former pro hockey player and now a full Madison Packer stan. Anya and I met through hockey and now we're married and moms to two awesome toddlers, ages two and four. And we're excited about our new podcast, Moms Who Puck, which talks about everything from pro hockey to professional women's athletes to raising children and all the messiness in between. So listen to Mom's Who Pock on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your

podcasts. Happy holidays from me, Michael Rappaport. My gift to you is a free subscription to the I Am Rappaport Stereo Podcast where I discuss entertainment, sports, politics, and anything and everything that catches my attention. I am here to call it as I see it and there's a whole lot of things catching my eyes these days. Listen to the I Am Rappaport Stereo Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, and wherever you get your podcast. Hi, this is Alex Kanczewicz. I'm the host of Big Technology Podcast, a longtime reporter and an on-air contributor to CNBC. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out

how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech, asking where this is all going. They come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and plenty more. So if you wanna be smart with your wallet, your career choices, and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

He was the youngest undisputed heavyweight champion in boxing history, but his greatest fight was his addiction. I never knew what the spiral was coming up in my life. I never knew I was going that deep and just keep going and going and going and it just went out of whack. I just never knew that could happen in my life. It's hopelessness and how so many millions of people feel like that but have no help. Listen to this CINO show on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Well, well, well, look at us. We're just about a quarter of the way through the NBA season.

Some teams have fallen back at the back of the pack, while others like Milwaukee and Memphis are both on the move in the right direction. But don't look now Jack. I don't know if you saw, but the Philadelphia 76ers. Yes, they're on a one game winning hot streak, baby. We're going to discuss that and the latest trends and more with Cavs podcaster Justin Rowan on today's episode. I'm Miles Gray.

And I'm Jack O'Brien and this is Miles and Jack got mad boosties! Fainting, Fainting, Fainting! Banner number 18 has been secured. The Celtics are NBA champions. Over the double team. Oh! Night, night! Yannis with the take. Uh-oh, look out. Little show time. What you got, Yannis?

Justin Rowan, you host the Chasedown pod for the Cavs organization and I Heart Podcast. You are also, this is so serendipitous because last week's game of the week, the homework assignment we gave to listeners was we're watching one game next week and all eyes are on the Celtics at Cavs. I hope everyone watched because we felt this is a, aside from the other matchups, this felt like a, this was the test that we really wanted to see as Cleveland really got it. The Celtics continue to just keep having it,

but the game ended with a fantastic win for the Cavs, 115-111. I'm ecstatic. I thought that it's nice to see the Celtics be immortal and it was wonderful to see Darius Garland absolutely just shackle Jason Tatum in that fourth quarter. It was fantastic to see.

Yeah, and that's exactly what he's known for, right? Clamping down the larger wings. No, it was part of an interesting strategy and something that Carter and I have advocated for for a while. Because I think even dating back to the Knicks series, the Cavs would kind of overreact to primary initiators right like that you know they're throwing doubles they kind of get out of their set defense and they scramble too much and what we've just kind of been advocating for is you know stay home you trust trust the backline help that you have you have

Evan Mobley have Jared Allen there you, if they are able to force a switch, take that switch and, you know, just kind of play it straight up. And I think when it comes to the Boston Celtics, you know, despite the Cavs winning that game, I think it's still fair to say that they're in a tier of their own when it comes to both the East and the NBA overall. But I think the key to beating them is kind of baiting them into their worst habits. And if you can bait them into consistent ISO ball and trying to hunt those screens and just kind of count on your guys to hold up defensively, I think that that is a strategy that can bear some fruit

there. I probably wouldn't advocate for as much soft switching as they did in that game. I thought they led Jason Tatum get to Darius Garland a few too many times, but you know Tatum went six for 13 with Garland on him in that game. I think you live with that with the majority of those being two pointers. In the previous game when Darius Garland was defending those switches, I think it was like 0.7 points per possession that Boston scored on that, which is the same as like an Isaac Okoro spot-up shot in last year's playoffs, which everyone, you know, that got so much attention for him being left alone and him not shooting well. It's functionally the same thing. So I think when

you're dealing with a lot of bad options, which is what you have to do when you're talking about slowing down that Celtics offense, I think that that is a potential way that you can go. Yeah. My advice as a Sixers fan to my the players on my team is also to stay home. But literally, because I want to say show up, because that seems to be more of the problem and staying home. The problem is they are already staying home. Yeah. No, I think I think they can stay home and we can get Cooper flag. I'm just trusting the process. You know, a lot of people are freaking out

and I'm just like, guys, guys, guys, this is what we do, baby. Lose in bunches. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, they were really, I mean, they were hunting Garland and yeah, it was nice just to see him. Like I think after the game Kenny Atkins was like, dude, you can like, you can do this. Like, just step up and you got this.

And the Selvets were hunting Garland. Yeah, they got in the Christmas spirit. But like, yeah, Tatum had four points in the fourth quarter and was like, I think minus 13 basically It was not not a great moment, but also Donovan Mitchell Was it 20 in the fourth quarter? Yeah, which was big cuz he had you know, three consecutive terrible half Yeah, you know, I think he won five of 23 against the Atlanta Hawks and you know that post Thanksgiving afternoon game I think anytime you have one of those afternoon games,

especially right after a holiday, that can be a perfect recipe for some weird things to happen. But he had a very rough first half against Boston. And we kind of echoed what we saw in that first matchup where he didn't shoot well in the first half, but then had a strong second half in Boston. He had a strong second half in Cleveland. And he a strong second half in Cleveland and he joined Michael Jordan now as the only two players in NBA history to average over 30 points per game against the

Celtics. You know, as great as the Celtics perimeter defense is, Donovan Mitchell does seem to have success against them. Yeah. I was like, look at that. I'm like, for his career. Yeah. Wow. Michael had 30.7 Donovan Mitchell,.2 Luca 28.9 Kareem 28.9 LeBron 28.8 Wilt Chamberlain 28.7 and you're like, yeah, that's that's uh, it's rare air up there. Yeah, joellen You know that I always include them in that group. So it's fitting to see him there Also, george was playing against like 90 like ml car c ML car Celtics, you know, it wasn't, it wasn't the cream of the crop. Yeah, I would say like Kareem is probably more of like a better

comparison given, you know, that era of Celtics. And plus for Mike, you know, they, they moved the three point line closer so he could shoot them there. There was a lot of factors there. That's right. So I've watched the Cavs mostly play the Celtics. I've watched the two Celtics games that I've seen highlight their ranked number one in the league and offensive efficiency. What have they figured out this year offensively that, and like, did you see this coming? Um, this is your chance to just lie and say you did, um, because like,

I don't know. I thought they could be, like, better and maybe like a four seed this year. I didn't see this being like the team to beat other than the Celtics in the league this year. But yeah, so the great thing about podcasts is you can go back and listen to it. And I did say coming into this year that I did think that this was realistically the first season that the Cavs have had with this group that they had a chance to win a championship.

I said, you know, it might only be a 5% chance and, you know, a 2015 Warriors type situation where you play four rounds and the other team is missing their starting point guard in all four rounds and you get some lucky breaks or whatever to get there. But I did think that they were going to be a whole lot better. And a large part of that was I thought the leap that they were going to make this season wasn't actually reflective of where the team was at because I thought it was artificially deflated by last year where, you know, even in the games that they had everybody, they weren't healthy. Garland started the year with a hamstring injury and a shooting hand injury.

Mitchell had a hamstring injury. He missed the entire post all-star break stretch as well. Caris LeVert had injuries. Mobley missed time. They just were so banged up. And I really kept pointing people back to, well, look at 22, 23. When they were healthy, they had the seventh best offense in the league. They had an elite defense. It just didn't translate to the playoff and they were missing shooting. They brought that shooting in, but they had a ton of injuries. So I thought just getting back to where they were at in 22, 23 would have been, you know, would have been a big leap from last year. But I think the other factor is Darius Garland isn't just back to where he was in 22, 23. He's taken a step beyond that.

He's been a big time difference maker and kind of that tide that raises all boats on the offensive end. It was the same thing when you look two years ago in that first year with Donovan Mitchell, where when Garland was on the court, they had a top two offense in the league. When he was off the court,

they had a bottom two offense in the league. So I think it made sense that when he wasn't healthy for basically all of last year, the offense was going to struggle a lot. And I think the other difference is, Evan Mobley has taken a big step forward and they're running more offense through him. And, you know, I think they've been building off of foundational what was there. I don't think the sets are dramatically different,

but I think there's a different level of buy-in and the individual pieces are playing at a higher level than they were in the past. All right. Yeah. So maybe I'll maybe a three seed. I'll get, I'll give you guys a three seed. Yeah, sure. Why not? Mitchell. So one big question that I have, like, cause I, I root for the field against the Celtics. That's my main concern. I would rather the Celtics lose than I would want the Sixers to win. Um, is truly just a sick human being Mitchell. I feel like has had a couple playoffs in a row where he's like not consistently as dominant as you might expect. Was he injured in these past couple of playoff runs?

Because he has been like in his early like Utah playoff runs. He was really like awesome in the playoffs. Like, what how are you thinking about that heading into the playoffs? Yeah. So going into last year, definitely. You know, as I said, he missed basically the entire post-all-star break stretch. The Cavs went 18-2 into the all-star break, and unfortunately, that was the last time we saw Donovan Mitchell in the regular season. The knee injury that he had, the knee issue that he had, prevented his movement. And you know, honestly, like, going into the

contract talks, the fact that Mitchell was able to be still pretty effective as a scorer, with some limited athleticism was an encouraging sign. I didn't really know that he had that in him. And, you know, the year prior against New York, I think he was mostly healthy, you know, no one's 100% going into the playoffs. But I just thought, you know, the decision making wasn't particularly strong, the spacing wasn't great. And, you know, the decision making wasn't particularly strong. The spacing wasn't great And you know, it just kind of all fell apart and you were going against a very good defense in the New York Knicks

But I definitely think that getting him healthy and keeping him healthy at the right time of year has been a big focus I think that's why his minutes are weighed down and Kenny Atkinson is using a nine ten man rotation this year You know, even when you look from a touches standpoint, he's actually third on the team in touches, so it really is, uh, we're getting you to finish plays this year and we're, we're keeping your load lighter and hoping that that's going to bear fruit and that's going to allow you to be healthier cause you know, he was banged up for a few of those years in Utah too, where, you know, some years were on, some years was off. And I don't think that years in Utah too.

Yeah. And I don't think it was a coincidence that his best playoff run with Utah came in the bubble where, you know, they had time off and he could go into that fully healthy. So I think that has definitely been part of the mentality for the calves of, all right, we, we, we want Donovan Mitchell to be, you know, at his best when we need it the most. And the best way to do that is by, you know, empowering Evan Mobley, continuing to run offense through Darius Garland and get everybody else to the level where,

you know, he can kind of slot into his ideal role, come playoff time. All right. I mean, maybe, maybe a two seed, maybe, maybe I'll give you guys a two seed. That's uh, yeah, but we're, we're, we're pulling for you out here and, uh, anti Celtics land. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Like I said, it was a delight. I needed that to cap off my holiday weekend. Should we, uh, should we take a quick break and come back and talk about the rest of the league? Yeah. All right. We'll be right back. Should we take a quick break and come back and talk about the rest of the league? Yeah. All right. We'll be right back.

Hey everyone. I'm Madison Packer, a pro hockey veteran going on my 10th season in New York. And I'm Anya Packer, a former pro hockey player and now a full Madison Packer stan. Anya and I met through hockey and now we're married and moms to two awesome toddlers. And on our new podcast, Moms Who Puck, we're opening up about the chaos of our daily lives between the juggle of being athletes, raising children, and all the messiness in between. We're also turning to fellow athletes and beyond

to learn about their parenthood journeys and collect valuable advice, like FIFA World Cup winner Ashlyn Harris. I wish my village would have prepared me for how hard motherhood was going to be. And Peloton instructor and Ratchet Mom Club founder, Kirsten Ferguson. And I remember going in there hot mess. So listen to Moms Who Puck, a production of iHeart Women's Sports and Deep Blue Sports

and Entertainment on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports. Happy holidays from me, Michael Rapoport, and my gift to you is a free subscription to the I Am Rapoport Stereo Podcast, where I discuss entertainment, sports, politics, and anything and everything that catches my attention. I am here to call it as I see it and there's a whole lot of things catching my eyes these days. Here's a clip from one of my favorite episodes. You are not a real fighter. You will never be discussed anywhere in boxing history ever. Fake Paul. The movie is The Apprentice,

and the movie is about young Donald Trump and his apprentice, Roy Cohen. Real character, obviously, both are real characters. It kinda has a Scarface vibe to it, which I thought was very interesting. Listen to the I Am Rapaport Stereo podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, and wherever you get your podcast. Hi, this is Alex Kanczerowitz. I'm the host of Big

Technology Podcast, a longtime reporter and an on-air contributor to CNBC. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech and outsiders trying to influence it. Asking where this is all going, they come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon and plenty more. On Wednesdays, I feature interviews with top leaders like Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Well, I'm in the details.

Let me just say this. I actually stay in the details of the product. And on Fridays, analysts Ron John Roy and I recap the week's news looking at everything that's happened in the world of AI. That is an emoji red flag. I'm putting it up. Three emoji red flags. They told me they're going to fix Siri. I dreamed. I dreamed. So if you want to be smart with your wallet, your career choices, in meetings with your colleagues and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast choices, in meetings with your colleagues and at dinner parties. Listen to Big Technology Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your

podcasts. I'm Stephen McFarland, therapist, life coach, change agent, who helps everyone from celebrities, athletes to ex gang members through their addictions and help them wake up. Each episode by podcast podcast we hear inspirational stories withdrawal lessons from those who have made it through their addiction and recovery to a better place including legendary boxer heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson I feel like there's always been a calling for you something higher. I Don't know. I always feel that way as well. I guess everybody feels

they're here for a reason. Yeah. Okay. Even if they suffer to help other people understand suffering is not as bad as we believe it is. I believe everybody learns from each other. Why are you here you think? To show people that you know anything's possible, you don't give up. Anything's possible. Listen to the CINO show on iHeart, Radio App, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. And we're back. We're back. And there's been some movers, some would even say shakers, in the league over the past couple of weeks. Some of that a lot of people. This is my main theme.

I did not see this coming. Did I was asked about podcast who is dumb and doesn't know anything about basketball. I did not expect Orlando to be 15 and seven and winners of 12 of their last 13. That's wild with Palo out for the majority of the season so far. Yeah, but yeah, I mean, they're just like, it's kind of partially what we saw in the playoffs last year where it was like, there's, they are just a different thing like their defense is such a weapon like it feels like something you only see in like

football where it's like when they're on defense they're actually more dangerous than when they're on offense because they're gonna turn you over and then get a you know pick six the best version you know breakaway I was watching some of that Brooklyn game and then there's one player like Jalen Suggs just had such a great, like just all over, I forget who he was guarding, stole the ball and then just ended it with a 360 dunk. And I was like, oh, like you're really putting the cherry on top. You could, he kept looking around. He's like, oh yeah, I got enough time for a 360. I'm becoming such a Jalen Suggs fan. And it's not just because we both have similar male pattern baldness,

but it's because it's tenacity as a player. Although a shout out all my players out there with similar male pattern baldness, but maybe if he goes Derek White with it, then we'll know he means business. That's that's when we know. God, a great basketball player who goes full male pattern baldness and leaves the hair on the sides would be so dope. Like, oh, he's like 27 and just fully looks like a 45 year old in the Simpsons, you know, just like a shout out tray young.

But I feel like that would be so dope. Yeah. No, I mean, it is like one of those things, the same way, like Michael Jordan was like, nah, man, you got to pick your head at at that. Yeah, like it was like, yep. Those are the instructions I do want to see the guy who's like nah, man. Just let those Develop by your temples and that's what it's all about baby. It's that's that new swag you can't you're born with this But yeah, he's he is fantastic. And yeah, it's I Yeah, obviously, I think we were both like we'll see the magic could be great I mean they added pieces like KCP and you're like, okay, this could be something but now that's it's fully

I didn't think it was enough to be this good. But again, the funny thing is KCP hasn't been that great, right? Like he's been okay for them, but it's not like he's the one moving the needle and no I'll give a shout out to my co-host Carter Rodriguez, because he was saying after the the playoff series last year that, you know, the Cavs going seven games with Orlando is probably going to look a lot better when we look back at it in the future, because Orlando was right up there in the standings to it throughout like the first half of last year. And then injuries hit and they kind of slid back to the pack.

But that's an elite defense man like Jalen Suggss I think is the best point of attack defender in the league. And you're right like their defense really is their offense and I'm not surprised that they've been able to you know continue to tread water and move up the standings even without Palo because that defense is so elite right and when you're when you're making teams work that hard to score every single bucket it's going to wear them down. It's going to make their defense worse because they're so tired going up against your defense. So I think it just gives them a really high floor. There's a lot of talent there.

There's a lot of length. They beat the hell out of you. And like, you know, NBA seasons are so damn long. Nobody wants to play the Orlando Magic, like especially when it's a third game and four nights or Just gonna beat the hell out of you and it's no fun to play them and they're just you know They're bringing something to the table that you don't see most nights and it doesn't surprise me I think that's definitely one of those teams that's gonna be around for a while with that core. Yeah Well, I mean what happens when Paulo comes back? I know you're talking off Mike, they're like, well,

they're going to lose the game and everyone's going to be like, see, they're better without him. Move Paulo, maybe to my team. Yeah. Yeah. Come on by, come on by. But yeah, I mean, how do you see that like managing that? Do you think it's because is like sort of an addition by subtraction kind of thing, or do you think the, they'll be able to maintain this balance with his return? Oh do you think they'll be able to maintain this balance with his return?

Oh, I think they'll be able to maintain this balance. I mean, their offense is just abysmal with Frans off the court. And, you know, Paolo, let's not get twisted. He's still the best player on that team. You know, I he went down so early in the season and their schedule was a little tough at the beginning as well that, you know, sometimes we overreact to the start of the season. Like even looking at the Milwaukee Bucks, like they had such

a bad start to the year, but they played Boston twice and they played Cleveland twice. Like, you know, you lose those games. It is what it is. It's going to even out over 82. So I'm not worried about that. You know, Palo isn't why their defense is great. Like, you know, yeah, but he's going defense is great, like, you know, but he's going to elevate the offense. And I think he's going to make them a much better team. And someone's going to really hate playing them in the first round. So I'm happy to see them move up the standings because I do not want that to be the one eighth or the two seven. But I'm continuing to pencil in the cows in at number one, because I a homer. God, I love that. Yeah, I do that too. I love the confidence. Yeah, got it.

Also, we should clarify, first of all, because people are probably distracted by how cool the way you say against is, you say against. The Canadian Tourette's comes through every now and then. It's beautiful though. It's like the Canadian word that I feel like, if I could pronounce it that way, I would.

It's like the inglorious bastard bastards holding up three the wrong way. Yeah. I can probably pass and then I say against and then it's... Yeah, yeah. Can you order three whiskeys one more time? Hey, what's this knit hat I have on? It's a two... It's a winter hat.

A two winter hat. Two wong fu. Oh, it's a winter hat. To winter hat. To Wong Fu. Thanks to everything. Julie Newmar, a fantastic movie with John. But I do also want to just clarify that you're not from the city of Cleveland, so you don't have that defeatism. You know, you're a very confident Cavs fan. That's what drew me to them as a fan to begin with.

And you know, Winnipeg has its own Curse Sports history. We just lost, you know, for our football team just lost in the championship three years in a row. So we're already the Buffalo Bills of up north. So no, I'm very familiar with it. The Bills of the North? For the regular season. Yeah. The Bills of the North the bills of the further north right the North is to bills yeah yeah so I've got a healthy amount of that but for regular

season regular season I feel good about her our ability to weather the storm and you know Boston you get a little fat on your success sometimes and you know guys like poor Zingas They're gonna need time off and whatnot. So I think the calves can do a decent job of holding on to number one We're all rooting for you, baby It's okay if I call you baby, right? Harden as long as you do it softly like that. Yeah Harden put up 39 as the Clippers beat the Nuggets over the weekend. The Clippers are seven and three over the last 10 and they're in sixth in the West.

A lot of people were counting them out, I think heading into the season and they look like me aggressively as a Lakers fan. But then, oh man, Norm, Norm Powell came back. Shout out to my fellow Bruin. Norm Powell came back. He looked really great in that game. And I was like, man, I hate seeing the Clippers do good in their brand new stadium. Yeah, one keeps talking about how cool it would be. A good name for the male male pattern baldness guy.

You know, Norm Powell. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They're like, oh, you're rocking the norm. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah Division, the Milwaukee Bucks, who, similar to the 76ers, we're seeing a real resurgence. They've won six in a row, which is more than the one in a row that the 76ers have won. Only by five. Eight of ten. They are, yeah. Which, if you think about it, in like a lot of ways is close. If you. Certainly by five. Yeah.

Both teams are on a trend to never lose again. Thank you. Um, at a, at a certain point, our winning percentage is 1000%. So the bucks are in fifth place after a lot of people spent the early part of the season, uh, clowning them. And they're looking more like the team that I think a lot of people expected them to be coming into the season. And yeah, I don't know, eighth in offensive efficiency, 16th in defensive efficiency,

which they got some gaps there, but Gianis is still incredible. And yeah, it feels like early days was more of like, God, they're still feeling some things out. They'll be all right. Yeah. Well, and I think also there was a lot of, it was easy, especially from like my very narrow Lakers perspective, it was very easy for us to be like, say, I want to Darwin ham, see what you did over there. Look what you did. And then you're like, nah, you forget that they're actually pretty good I know Middleton being it's Milton still outright because he got he did the double dip double ankle Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So, I mean, there's still that like I feel like every season

It's like and then and then Chris Middleton will come back at some point and then they'll look even better. Yeah Yeah, right, right. But yeah, I mean, were you were you ever in I mean Justin You're so smart that you were even saying like I mean look it's 80. It's an 82 game season. We're like no I know how to count. It's a six game season and they're at the bottom Yeah, I man I I've been counting for as long as I can remember man. I don't remember how many years Maybe I'll get my mind around that but yeah No, like I I think they're gonna end up being a top five team in the East. I worry a little bit about the playoff upside.

Like I just think that the supporting cast isn't good enough and, you know, game gives you a little bit of a target to attack on the offensive end, right? Sure. Middleton will need to see how good he is. Giannis has taken a little bit of a step back defensively, but he's as awesome as ever offensively. So I don't trust them as much as I trust, like, you know, obviously Boston, Cleveland, the Knicks even, like I think that the Knicks

probably have a little more playoff offside, but the tricky thing is, it doesn't matter how your team's built, sometimes in a playoff series, it comes down to who has the best player and Giannis is still capable of being the best player in any given series. I just don't know if he can do it for straight at this point and overcome all of the roster issues. But that's also a team that I just wouldn't want to play because I absolutely think that

Giannis can win just about any series that he's in. We call that 2018 LeBron syndrome, right? Where the team is very flawed and sometimes the best player is what matters. Right. It's really like a shame. I feel like they could be near the top of the East if Janus and Damien just worked out together over the break. If they knew how many pushups the other one could do, we'd be good.

Who was faster on a dead sprint on the beach? Other than the Sixers, the other streak that I'm most excited about is the Grizzlies having won sixth in a row, three seed out west, sixth in offensive efficiency, fourth in defensive efficiency, second in point differential in the west. I just think the league is more exciting

when they're in the mix and near the West. I just think the league is more exciting when they're in the mix and near the top. And it hasn't even been like, Jaws been out for about half of these games, but Triple J has been leading the team in scoring and just a great defender. And yeah, they were a lot of people's sexy sleeper pick coming in for a reason. They've, you know, when they have Ja and everybody's playing, they're tough. Yeah. I think they're, you know, looking at Memphis as an example is probably what Orlando is hoping for.

Cause last year with Ja missing so much time, Jaren just got to like explore the space, right? Like we often don't have a full roster of NBA players. So we're just going to have you go out there and lead the team in scoring and make mistakes and kind of, you know, fool around. But now coming into this year, okay, we we've got, you know, Baines back jaw, you know, has been back at times. Uh, but it's a more complete roster.

And, you know, as you said, he's still leading the team in scoring, but he's not doing it on as many shots, right? Like it's more efficient and Orlando's probably hoping that a similar thing happens with Franz, right? Like that this time to kind of be that lead number one option is going to help them settle into a more complimentary role in the future and expand his game. Yeah. Any teams that we want to call out for being on a bit of a downward trend?

I guess the Phoenix Suns three and seven over the last 10 years. Yeah. I mean, the Lakers are five and five over the last 10. It's not like a. Well, I think it's more of a city. He's in a he's in a pretty bad cold snap right now. And I think that's kind of difficult. It's also wowed to be like the stats are like, he hasn't scored this little point since his rookie year. And he's like, averaging like 22 at 40. And you're like, yeah, it's just a, it's a shame, the position that we're

in with LeBron at the moment. I just didn't, I wish it didn't have to all center around him. Cause I feel like he's a competitor and want like relishes that. But also, you know, this is obviously a different era for him. So, yeah. And it never really that to your point, it never really shows up in the numbers because he's got the ball so much. He impacts the game at so many levels, right? Like the rebound and the assist, all that, even the scoring is going to be there. But it like there were even times where it felt like he was coasting

and not playing well with the Caz, especially in that last year. And you couldn't point to the box score because it's still, as you said, 22, seven and seven. And it's like, okay, well, how much can I really put on him? But there's just a different level when he has it rolling and he's making that impact. But I think you hit the nail on the head where the Lakers are still relying on him to be, like, a certain level.

And, you know, it's just unreasonable to expect to this point. It is. And I don't like getting, I don't wanna be like, what's wrong with LeBron? I'm like, he is, he's in the twilight of his career. Like, there's nothing wrong with him. He performs at a certain level and he performs well.

But I'm like, the front office is, it's malpractice. I would say even, I would just be constantly asking if he's mad at me, if I was a part of the organization, what's wrong with LeBron? Is he mad at me? What I do say something? I mean, looking on, I mean, like obviously, you know, like bronze here until I think 25, 26, uh, the end of that season. But what was life like in Cleveland both times he left? What were those in between years? Like how that, what was that effect? Oh, you mean like in the stretch warriors in Miami? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Just like, just seeing. What was it like Justin? And then what was it like when he went to the Lakers? I mean, it made me a better podcaster, I'll tell you that because you know because I never was sitting there being like, oh, this team's gonna make the playoffs even without LeBron, blah, blah, blah. I didn't put the blinders on to that extent, but in saying, oh yeah,

I think we're gonna win 22 games this year, but here's the reasons to care. Here are the reasons to be interested. Here are the player development stories. Here are the trends that might mean something in the future. You know, I think we were well ahead of the curve on Darius Garland or I should just say I was because Carter kept comparing him to DJ Augustine. Wow. You know, I was like, look at this post-all-star break stretch. Here's how you can scale it up.

Here's important things. The high water marks are there. Right. Like I just think that even with a lot of these rebuilding teams, there's a lot of interesting stuff to talk about. And I think I got a little bit lucky because in 2018 I was like, you know what? I'm kind of okay. If LeBron leaves, like let's just build something different. We, we don't have any assets left in the cupboard. We spent it all on this, you know, four year final run. It was great. I appreciate it. But at that time, um, I was like, I don't want the leading segment of the jump

every single day being the CAS are letting LeBron down, they are killing his legacy. Blah, blah, blah. They need to, they need to trade everyone. You know, the Lakers can do that and not have it be, you know, the leading subject. Like, you know, they're, they're not going to get slammed as an organization in the same way. But I was like, let's just try to build something different. Let's try to build something fun.

I was hoping for, you know, our version of the grid and grind Grizzlies. That's not going to be able to get over the top. I think that this core maybe has a little bit more potential than that, but I'm enjoying the hell out of this run. And I think it was a little bit of dumb luck that the cows were able to turn things around it as quickly as they did. Yeah. Have the Lakers ever had like a gritty grimy team?

It just feels like we, I can't picture it because it's been showtime since the eighties and then Kobe and Shaq and then like it's never been like a, the bad boy, Los Angeles, the years were not there. The Del Harris years were not like that. I mean, yeah, it was certainly like, kind of had to him for sure. Edge. But like, I don't think of the Lakers during that time as being like, hey, man, you don't want to be playing them.

They're going to, yeah, going to come away from there with bruises. On a windy Friday night. Yeah. All right. Should we take a break and come back and round things out with the past of segment of podcasting? Mm-hmm. Okay. Well, you asked for it, Justin.

We'll be right back. You did. Hey everyone. I'm Madison Packer, a pro hockey veteran going on my 10th season in New York. And I'm Anya Packer, a former pro hockey player and now a full Madison Packer stan. Anya and I met through hockey and now we're married and moms to two awesome toddlers. And on our new podcast, Moms Who Puck, we're opening up about the chaos of our daily lives between the juggle of being athletes, raising children,

and all the messiness in between. We're also turning to fellow athletes and beyond to learn about their parenthood journeys and collect valuable advice, like FIFA World Cup winner, Ashlyn Harris. I wish my village would have prepared me for how hard motherhood was going to be. And Peloton instructor and Ratchet Mom Club founder, Kirsten Ferguson.

And I remember going in there a hot mess. So listen to Moms Who Puck, a production of iHeart Women's Sports and Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Elf Beauty, founding partner of I Heart Women Sports. Happy holidays from me, Michael Rappaport. My gift to you is a free subscription to the I Am Rappaport Stereo podcast, where I discuss entertainment, sports, politics, and anything and everything that catches my attention. I am here to call it as I see it, and there's a whole lot of things

catching my eyes these days. Here's a clip from one of my favorite episodes. You are not a real fighter. You will never be discussed anywhere in boxing history. Ever, fake Paul. The movie is The Apprentice, and the movie is about young Donald Trump and his apprentice Roy Cohen, real character obviously both real

characters. It kind of has a Scarface vibe to it which I thought was very interesting. Listen to the I Am Rap Report Stereo podcast on the iHeart Radio app Apple podcast and wherever you get your podcast. Hi, this is Alex Kanczewicz. I'm the host of Big Technology Podcast, a longtime reporter and an on-air contributor to CNBC. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech and outsiders trying to influence it. Asking where this is all going, they come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon

and plenty more. On Wednesdays, I feature interviews with top leaders like Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Well, I'm in the details. Let me just say this. Yeah. I actually stay in the details of the product. And on Fridays, analysts Ron John Roy and I recap the week's news, looking at everything that's happened in the world of AI.

That is an emoji red flag for me. I'm putting it up, three emoji red flags. They told me they're gonna fix Siri. I dreamed, I dreamed. So if you wanna be smart with your wallet, your career choices, in meetings with your colleagues, and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology Podcast on the iHeartRadio app,

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I feel like there's always been a calling for you, something higher. I don't know. I always feel that way as well. But I guess everybody feels they're here for a reason. Yeah, okay. Even if it's to suffer to help other people understand suffering is not as bad as we believe it is. I believe everybody learns from each other.

Why are you here, you think? To show people that if you know anything's possible, you don't give up. Anything's possible. Listen to The C-No Show on iHeart, radio app, Apple podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. And we're back. Yeah, baby. Oh, you were just saying that? No, no, I'm just saying Jabari was saying in the text said the baby Lakers were scrappy

And I'm like, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, but not in the way of this. Come on, Jack Baby, was there like a muppet babies spin off of the Lakers? Anyways, it is time. That's right the fourth order rapid-fire round of questioning Justin Rowan But before we get to it or maybe this can be be one of the round rounds of one of the questions. We've got to come up with the game of the week. No, no, actually, I think maybe this is oh, yeah. Should we make that a question? Yeah. Make it high pressure.

Yeah, it's going to be high pressure. Oh, brother. Oh, my goodness, sir. Hold on to your toque because it might blow off from this high intensity speaking. We're about to hit you with. This is time for the fourth quarter wrap-up of our round of questioning. This is the fastest question and answer podcast segment in all of podcasting history. I and Jack, Jack and I will ask you a question.

You respond as quickly as possible, as quickly as humanly possible. If you do not, we will be that version of rudeness that only Americans can achieve to you. So I just want you to be forewarned. Are you ready? You accept? I'm ready. Fantastic. of rudeness that only Americans can achieve to you. So I just want you to be forewarned. Are you ready? You accept? I'm ready.

Fantastic. We'll like try out being rude and then we'll like apologize for it a little bit. Yeah. I was like, was that too hard? Sorry. Was that harsh? Sorry. Is he mad at me?

Okay. Oh my God. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Is Justin mad at me? Is he mad at me? Just ask him, dude. I don't want to ask. Jack, do you want to start?

Oh, I would love to start, Miles. Okay. Thank you so much for asking. Hey, Justin, Jack from the podcast we've just been recording together. Quick question. So the Cavs-Celdics game ended with a lot of free throws. 17 and 34 seconds, the final 34 seconds ended up taking close to a half hour and it raised this idea that's been tossed around,

the Elam ending, E-L-A-M, not Elam Musk, which eliminates the running clock of the four minute mark of the fourth quarter. From that point forward, the game is played to a target score of seven points greater than the leading team's total. So if team A is winning 104 to 100 with four minutes to play, the clock stops and the game becomes a race to 111 points. I think we tried something similar with the All-Star game not too long ago. Yeah. And it was fun. It was like intense when it got down to it. Like this would eliminate all the, you know,

fouling to try and get the ball back to hit a three. What are your thoughts on an idea like this? I love it, man. Um, I go to CBL games, uh, the Canada elite basketball league, uh, Winnipeg sea bears flag right behind me. Uh, they have been doing this target score ending what they do. As you said, at the four minute mark, they add nine points. So, uh so it does have to be a maximum of three possessions right where you could have the three threes to go win it but I love it I think it makes it so intense I think

it forces both teams to continue playing real basketball I've seen some wild comebacks I've seen some wild blown leads and it's a lot of fun and every game ends on a game winning shot. It's a little anticlimactic when there's fouls and you know, someone wins it at the free throw line, but it's also anticlimactic where 11 seconds takes a half hour. So I, I think that the, you know, there's strengths and weaknesses on both sides from a history of the game standpoint. I don't know if you can change it, but I do like the the yellow mending. Yeah, it does eliminate my favorite thing where teams winning by 20 and they have the ball and they're dribbling it out and then they pass it to the rookie. So he gets the turnover

when time expires. And the best part about that is it doesn't actually get attributed to either of them, right? Like it gets the team turnover. Yeah, Yeah. It's the funniest thing, but they, you know, they don't recognize that. Bad luck. Yeah. Yeah. You look like a loser holding the ball as things end. All right. Great. Great answer. Elimending is the way it's pronounced, I'm told. Okay. Miles, you're up. Justin, what is the best and the worst Cavs jersey from history? Okay, so my favorite Cavs jersey in history is the Warda in the first Lebron era. It's like the maroon one with the Cavs Hoop V logo. I am a firm believer that the Cavs Hoop V logo is their best look and it's the best logo. The new one's actually really grown on me. I like the updated hoop B but

that one with the gold trim and whatnot. I think that was my favorite one in history. The worst I will say is the gray like Goodyear one that they had in 2018 or maybe 20. Yeah, I think it was 2017, 2018 with the land on it. land. Yeah, I couldn't I hated that Jersey. I that one didn't land for me Didn't land for me And that is the Daily Double All right, we are doing a thing where we have a game of the week that we watch and evaluate and, you know, do really advanced analysis from you because I was like, seem like a Shala free throws Tatum soft dog.

All right. So our options, we've got four candidates that we'd love for you to pick from. So Thursday night, we got the nuggets at the Cavs on it and it is on NBA TV. Friday night, got the bucks at the Celtics on ESPN. Saturday, Grizzlies at Celtics on League Pass or locally. Sunday, Rockets at Clippers on League Pass or locally. What are we picking here? I have a feeling. I know it's got to be Celtics bucks on Friday. It's all about the cup, baby. And the cup action, you know, maybe Milwaukee keeps that winning streak going into that game. But Jack, we're rooting for Celtics losses here. Yeah. And I think it is only appropriate. That matter is more than some,

you know, as good as nuggets, gas is going to be on Thursday. That's cross conference play and all that stuff. We need to see Boston lose. So we need to lose. Yeah. Maybe we'll get a fun Dame game. Maybe we'll get to see Janis turn back the clock and shred him. Maybe we'll get to see Jason Tatum be a little bit soft in the fourth quarter. Who knows? Yeah, great. I'll go on this. Yeah, or I'll go. Janice on us.

Yeah, yeah, we'll see. Anyway, we'll see. Oh, last question. Justin, for those who never got to see him play in a Cavs uniform, just how out of this world and different was Robert Tractor trailer? Oh, maybe. I mean, Vancouver Grizzly's legend, right? Mm-hmm, yeah, yeah.

Yeah, out of this world, man. I don't have a lot to add. I don't have a lot to add there, but yeah. I just remember he would come in and just, like, LeBron would be out there and then Tractor trailer come in and then be like, okay, who's getting absolutely bulldozed? And that was always fun to see. rest in peace. Robert Tractor trailer.

We need more guys with that body type out there. And I think that's one of the things that the NBA is missing. You know, the ultimate player. Yeah. So that's so much and male pattern baldness. That is, that is the alpha and omega. Oh, it's just supreme athlete. And that's, that's's that's what we really need here You know too much conversation about too many threes and all that kind of stuff No, we need more big-bodied individuals preferably ones that are balding. Yes. Yeah, there it is Yeah Well, Justin Rowan, those were actually as we check you got that one, right? You got that one. You got all the right answers

Oh, yeah, that's you got all the right answers. Oh, yeah Oh sweet that was right. Yeah Yeah, and because I'm an expert at counting I know that that's four correct answers There you go for four. Can I see can I see you put four fingers up again? Oh He's Canadian dude, she's can he did I can eat you Who does it like this with their ring finger down? What? What is this?

I tried to do it with like my pinky finger down and I just like, my hand can't do that. Can yours? Just cramping? Yeah. Well, thank you so much for joining us on Miles and Jack. I'm Ed Boosties. Where do the people find you, follow you, support you, and listen to you? All that good stuff.

Yeah. You can find me on Twitter or at blue sky at calves, Canada Just slap the calves in Canada and you'll find me there You can listen to our podcast wherever you found this podcast We go live on the calves YouTube channel twice a week during the season and you know where to find podcasts That's where you find the chase down. So so do that there you're doing it right now What's the podcast on? To quote my parents. What time is it? And that's just on the internet?

Yeah. What channel is that? Does it come with my DirecTV? You still have DirecTV. So make sure you follow us at the hashtag madboosties, B-O-O-S-T-I-E-S. That's what you find. Show links, updates, and the ways

to get into our Discord server. Shout out to everybody into our Discord server. Shout out to everybody in the Discord. Make sure you follow us on Twitter and BlueSky. I'm at milesofgray on both. And me, I thought that was too easy. So on Twitter, I'm Jack underscore O'Brien, but on BlueSky, I'm jackob, the number one dot,

the sky dot social. And that's gonna do it. We nailed it again. I mean, what is happening? Swish. Perfect. That's a streak that the 76ers are hoping to live up to. One in a row, baby. We did it.

We did it. Thanks so much for listening to us. We'll be back next week with more of my Jack I Bad Boosties. See you then. Make sure you watch the game of the week. Bye. listening to us. We'll be back next week with more of my Jack got bad boosties. See you then make sure you watch the game of the week. Hey everyone, I'm Madison Packer, a pro hockey veteran going on my 10th season in New York. And I'm Anya Packer, a former pro hockey player and now a full Madison Packer stan.

Anya and I met through hockey and now we're married and moms to two awesome toddlers ages two and four. And we're excited about our new podcast, Moms Who Puck, which talks about everything from pro hockey to professional women's athletes to raising children and all the messiness in between. So listen to Moms Who Puck on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Happy holidays from me, Michael Rappaport, and my gift to you is a free subscription

to the I Am Rappaport Stereo Podcast, where I discuss entertainment, sports, politics, and anything and everything that catches my attention. I am here to call it as I see it, and there's a whole lot of things catching my eyes these days. Listen to the I Am R Rapaport Stereo podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast, and wherever you get your podcast. Hi, this is Alex Kansrowitz.

I'm the host of Big Technology podcast, a longtime reporter and an on-air contributor to CNBC. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech, asking where this is all going.

They come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and plenty more. So if you wanna be smart with your wallet, your career choices, and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. He was the youngest undisputed heavyweight champion in boxing history. But his greatest fight was his addiction.

I never knew what the spiral was coming up in my life. I never knew I was going that deep. And just keep going and going and going. And I just went out of whack. I just never knew that could happen in my life. Just hopelessness, and how so many millions of people feel like that but have no help.

Listen to The CINO Show on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.