The Daily Zeitgeist - Top 5 Under 25 with Justin Rowan

Episode Date: August 18, 2022

Miles and Jack were pleased to be joined by the host of The Chasedown Pod, Justin Rowan on the latest Mad Boosties. Beyond waxing poetic on his Cavaliers, Justin also gave his top-5 under 25, which might surprise you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I'm Keri Champion, and this is Season 4 of Naked Sports. Up first, I explore the making of a rivalry. Kaitlyn Clark versus Angel Reese. Every great player needs a foil. I know I'll go down in history. People are talking about women's basketball just because of one single game. Clark and Reese have changed the way we consume women's sports. Listen to the making of a rivalry.

Kaitlyn Clark versus Angel Reese on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports. I'm Keri Champion, and this is Season 4 of Naked Sports. Up first, I explore the making of a rivalry. Kaitlyn Clark vs. Angel Reese. People are talking about women's basketball just because of one single game. Clark and Reese have changed the way we consume women's basketball.

And on this new season, we'll cover all things sports and culture. Listen to Naked Sports on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio apps, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Black Effect Podcast Network is sponsored by Diet Coke. Señora Sex Ed is not your mommy's sex talk. This show is la platica like you've never heard it before. Diet Coke. You might recognize us from our first show, Locatora Radio. Listen to Señora Sex Ed on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Guess what? We're back and the NBA is almost back too. We're getting little tastes, little tastes.

Well, at least we know what the opening night games look like. Christmas Day games, looking at the schedule. We'll be discussing that. like christmas day games looking at the schedule we'll be discussing that and you know the official miles and jack got mad boosties top 5 under 25 with host of the chase down pod justin rowan i'm miles gray and i'm jack o'brien and this is my miles and jack got mad boosties yeah that was a little hezy a little hezy a little brown that was fantastic i love that yeah and then went up with it anyway uh yes welcome to the show we got justin rowan in the building the man with the cabs voice the chase down was i think it's with the cabs the cabs voice

isn't that what's the subtitle of the chase down? I don't think we have a sub. Oh, I think it's the voice of the Cavs. Yeah. As far as I know, Cav voice. Yes. Justin, you are. I think your handle is what Cavs Canada. That's correct.

And you are coming to us from Canada as well. Correct. That's correct. Winnipeg, Manitoba. And you are. Oh, okay. Okay. Okay.

Heard a lot of interesting stories about that place. We'll talk about that off air. Yeah, yeah, for sure, for sure. I have a Canadian friend who all the good stories about Canada seem to take place in Winnipeg. Oh, good. They were good stories. I was expecting it was bad. And I'm like, you know what? We don't need to expose a national audience.

People already make fun of us enough. But I'm happy to hear that they're good stories. Yeah. And so for you, uh wait you're a lifelong calves fan that's correct a lifelong calves fan uh growing up especially a little less so now because winnipeg has finally ended its championship curse but uh just by the mention of a championship curse i think you can see why there's some of the parallels between uh winnipeg and cleveland uh both cities with just very cursed sports history, very similar kind of fan mentality.

Things always seem to go wrong. The city everyone kind of makes fun of that, you know, had a bright past and people make fun of its presence, but both cities kind of on the come up. I like Carlos Boozer growing up and then obviously LeBron

getting drafted. Yeah, we're going all the way back to Carlos Boozer. I was wondering because everybody has those weird fandoms. When I was a kid, I loved Bill Cartwright because he shot weird and I shot weird. I love Dave Winfield. He's still my all-time favorite Major League Baseball player. And looking back at his stats, he struck not like... He struck out a lot, man. And I remember those

strikeouts, but Carlos Boozer is so funny. That is not who I was gonna guess. And it speaks to what high school basketball is in Canada where I was trying to find the big man with a bit of a jumper that I can model my game after even though I'm only

6'2". So it's Carlos Buzer, Rashid Wallace, who was one of my favorite players growing up. I've got the Portland Sheed jersey in my closet, not too far away from me. But yeah, and then LeBron getting drafted there obviously helped kind of move the needle. I wanted a central division team to root for because you kind of had those same parallels.

I was a Bears fan as well growing up, but I didn't want to go Chicago Bulls because that felt like, you know, bandwagon jumping. Let's go with the young up and coming guy in LeBron James. And after the decision, I wasn't sure which way the fandom was going to go, but I ended up doubling and tripling down on the Cavs. That's when I started blogging about the team and eventually podcasting, and here we are today. I'm a loyal guy. Yeah. Wow. Love that.

Love that. And how often do you get to go to Cleveland? I went twice last year. I think I've been about six times overall. First time back in 2014, I actually got to see LeBron's last game in Cleveland as a member of Miami. That was my first game I ever watched in Cleveland live,

which was kind of a cool experience. That was my recruiting trip to bring him back. Congratulations. Well done. Yeah, thank you. I deserve all the credit there. But yeah, I've been going a couple times or at least once a year

the past few years and have really, really enjoyed it the the city is become more and more enjoyable to go to and i i think it's uh it's an underrated gym for sure how does it so would you like are there similarities like even when you're in like coming from winnipeg to cleveland you're like i can feel the similarities or do you like when after physically going there you're like okay not quite the same vibe, but on paper, it's feeling the same. It's similar in like just being a really kind of friendly town, you know, like you go around. Everyone's very sports focused.

There's very good food scene in both cities, bars with where everyone's kind of friendly and you can just have a good time. And those are kind of the main similarities and the things that I really value in the city. Uh, but you know, that's, that's part of coming from a city of like 800,000 instead of a 5 million person metropolis. Right. Where I'm like, someone's being friendly. What do they want from me? Yeah, exactly.

You gotta be suspicious. Yeah, exactly. Huh. Wish I didn't have that guard up. And now you guys got a squad. I mean, the, the Cleveland Cavaliers are an exciting, young, up-and-coming team with a great core in place. So that's got to be exciting. Yeah.

It's really exciting. It's nice to have something that's organic. And by the end of 2018, I was pretty ready to kind of move on from the LeBron experience. Because you're not just dealing from the LeBron experience because you have you're not just dealing with the LeBron team you're also dealing with like the weight of the legacy and everything that's going on and I got made fun of on the podcast at the time for being like you know what I'm kind of

ready to move on the cupboards bare there's not really a lot of moves left to be made to make this relevant I'm interested in seeing if they can build something like a grid and grind type situation with the Cav calves and the fact that they managed to build something organic and, and you've got all these young players under 25 years old.

I know we're discussing top players under 25. Yeah. It's got a lot of them. They've got a lot of really promising players. I remember you said at the time, I've got my eye on this 12 year old named Darius Garland and this nine year old named Evan Mobley. And man, you were really-

Me and LeBron were in the gym just watching it, you know? Binoculars. Oh, yeah. Scotty Barnes, too. We were watching him back then as well. So, you know, considering that, you know, there's a little bit of added pressure now, expectations are rising.

What do you see as like a realistic next step? Or what do you see is like a a realistic next step or what do you see the next evolution being yeah i would say right now for the calves this season is about finding out how much they can win now with what they have because you look at it last year garland allen and mobley only got 40 games together and almost none after the trade or the All-Star break. And you look at that at the All-Star break, they were a half game out of the first one seed in the Eastern Conference. Obviously, weird things were happening with Brooklyn. Philly wasn't

the unit that they are today. Boston's a lot better now. So I don't necessarily expect them to be at that kind of a height. But, you know, you have something that works with the core three. And it's almost like in poker where you feel like you have height. But, you know, you have something that works with the core three. And it's almost like in poker where you feel like you have a good hand,

you like the flop, and you have a lot of outs. They just need like one or two of Isaac Okoro, Colin Sexton, Karis LeVert, Lowry Markin, and Ochai Abashi.

You need like one or two of those guys to show that they can become part of the core. And after you get a sense of how much you can win now with what you currently have, I think next offseason

is where you start asking the tough questions of, okay, what kind of win-now moves can we do? What type of consolidation moves can we do? The first-round pick to Indiana is likely to convert at that point, so they'll have all their future picks. Do you do what the Atlanta Hawks did with DeJounte

Murray, where you're leveraging all of your future first-round picks to make that kind of consolidation move. So I think that's what we're going to see next offseason. But this year is once again kind of about that internal growth and seeing how much better this group can get. You know, you brought up Colin Sexton and, you know, he was seeking an extension that would have been quite a fee. You see some fans being like, do we sit on this? You're saying, do we try and cash this in? Do we hope to see this thing develop? What's the sort of latest with that?

And is there any interest? Because it seemed like interest dwindled a bit. Yeah, I do think you look at some of the teams that have been reported to have interest. I know Chris Fedor at Cleveland.com said Dallas was interested, but the Cavs have no interest in anything that they can offer in a sign-and-trade. And I think that's the same case for a few of the teams that have interest in Collin Sexton. So I think the thing right now to keep in mind that people forget, the Cavs don't want to start that repeater tax right now.

You don't want to start that clock because all of a sudden it becomes a bigger and bigger penalty and you're in kind of the warrior shoes. And as much as I don't think they're going to be afraid to spend in the future, they're not a contender yet. And we're still talking about internal growth. So the offer that's out there right now, I know there's reporting saying that it's the most that can be offered between where the room that they have until the luxury tax. But the thing to keep in mind there as well, Cavs have 15 players on their roster.

Someone has to get moved. Even if Sexton's back on a qualifying offer, someone's going to have to be moved. So once that move occurs, I think you're going to then be looking at a situation where, okay, how much more room do we have between where we're at now and the luxury tax? And maybe there's going to be some flexibility. Maybe there's not. At this point, I think it's a realistic possibility that he's back on the qualifying offer. But it also wouldn't surprise me that if they make a move to clear up some space, let's find a multi-year deal. Even if it's similar to what Gary Trentary trent jr signed with toronto

where it's two years guaranteed and then a player option so you still kind of have that bet on yourself angle it wouldn't surprise me and that would probably be my guess uh but but again that's that's not based on any sourcing that's just based on kind of the reports that are out there now the colin sexson thing like jabari was pointing out so last year he only played 11 games due to injury the year before he averaged 24 points four assists and three rebounds in just his third season in the league like I I that totally missed me like that like those are good numbers and those are crazy good numbers and I think the thing people forget as well is the Darius Garland leap we saw last year started the year before. I think it was about 15 games in April.

He was averaging 22 and 7. And while he was doing that, Colin Sexton was putting up ridiculous numbers as well. Like the two of them were playing well off of one another. And Sexton was playing well off ball. I think there's always going to be concerns about having two guys that are 6'1", 6'2", kind of playing together. The only real situation that we've seen that work is Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet both at 5'11", winning a championship. But even then, you had Danny Green as an option. You had Kawhi.

You had Marc Gasol. You had Ibaka. You had Siakam. You had so much length around them. So I think there's reason to believe that might work because the Cavs aren't exactly short on length when it comes to the front court um but at the same time you do have to kind of weigh all these situations and if he wasn't coming off this meniscus injury my feelings about the situation might be a little bit different because even though guys do bounce back from that you also do have situations like Lonzo Ball right now

where, yeah, this should be good, but issues come up again in the future and you have trouble getting healthy. And I think teams have to be careful, right? Like you want to think the best and everything Kobe Altman and the team has said is, hey, Sexton started the turnaround of our culture. He's such a big part of what we do.

We want him back. Darius Garland has said he wants him back. But you have to kind of advocate for your side. And I would expect, you know, like it doesn't seem contentious at this point. And maybe it's just a matter of waiting out to see if there's a possibility to clear up a roster space and clear some cap room, even if it's as a third team and like a donovan mitchell or kevin durant trade or something along those lines right right the teams that are involved in those trades can can do pretty well even if they're not the recipient of donovan mitchell or kevin durant yeah i mean we got jared allen as proof for that yeah you guys are kind of the best best example

of that i'm speaking of which i mean that all the moves happening right now or potential moves and talk of there are no moves i feel like but i mean there's a lot of ones i'm sweating over i'm like katie will be on the celtics i don't want to hear that but we did get you know we start the the schedule came out and we see the opening night games the christmas day games and i wonder if there's anything to read into that. Jack, how are you feeling Sixers-Celtics opening night? I mean, alright, so a lot of people are like, well, they split last year,

but once the Celtics had it going, they beat the Sixers by, I think, 50 in one of the last games, and that was like once Harden was on the team, I believe. It was not, I don. It was not... I don't know.

Will you watch live is the question. No. Of course not. You're going to give yourself the DVR protective cone. That's right. Protective cone. But the Celtics are going to be really good again. I'll probably watch it live.

I don't know. I don't have that much tied up in the Sixers anymore. So I'll probably watch it live. And the first game of not i'm not i don't have that much tied up in the sixers anymore so i'll probably watch it live and the first game of the season you know what i mean if anything couldn't have too much weight unless it's setting you up energetically emotionally then maybe that's one thing but it feels like you could get through it meanwhile the warriors gonna be hosting the lakers so we will watch them get their fancy rings. I'm not mad at that. I'm not mad at that at all. I'm interested to see how LeBron plays

after looking at the Warriors receive their rings. That'll be fun because you know, like even last year where he turned it up for a game and beat the Warriors and you know that he's still capable of those one night performances. He hit 56 in that game.

It's gross. It's crazy. I love those ego response kind of performances. You're like, yes! That's what I love to see from these top athletes. You're not just here to make Space Jam movies. You've still got some fire in you. Speaking of that,

I wonder if he was sweating at Draymond's wedding because it was him, Draymond, and Steph all going like throwing fours up for their four rings. And I wonder if LeBron speaking of that, I wonder if he was sweating at Draymond's wedding because it was him, Draymond, and Steph all going, like, throwing fours up for their four rings. And I wonder if LeBron's like, that's right. That's right. You are also throwing four fingers up. But we'll see. Yeah, it'll be an interesting performance. I have a feeling the Warriors might prevail in that one.

Probably a safe bet. Yeah. veil in that one probably a safe bet yeah uh and then christmas day though bucks versus celtics sixers versus knicks sons versus nuggets lakers mavs grizzlies warriors an omission seems to be the nets we don't we're not getting nets basketball on christmas day now is that time to sound the conspiracy theory alarms and say what do they know that we don't? Honestly, I think the NFL is playing on Christmas Day, right? So you have to kind of go with your known commodities. You need to make sure that, I mean, the one exception would be the Knicks.

But the Knicks might have a better team then than they do now, right? They've been in plenty of trade rumors as well. than they do now, right? Like they've been in plenty of trade rumors as well. So I think it's just going with the known commodities because you don't know how it's going to go with the Brooklyn situation. So you want to put your best foot forward. You want to be competitive in the rating standpoint.

And who knows? I mean, Boston plays on Christmas Day, so maybe Kevin Durant will be playing on Christmas Day. Right. Exactly. Yeah. At first, I thought the Knicks were a typo. I thought that was supposed to be the Nets.

I thought it was Sixers-Nets. They're always there. They're always there. They are always there. I was saying it's a little bit like the Lions on Thanksgiving Day. The Lions and the Cowboys. They're just always there. And I'm sure it's in Madison Square Garden, right?

Yeah. The Knicks always draw. MSG always shows up well on TV. And it's also like, it's that nice kind of ease into the Christmas Day schedule too, right? Like you wake up, you're a little tired. Maybe you had a few libations the night before.

Oh, there's the Knicks playing in some game that does have a lot of consequences. This lets me get my feet wet and then I can watch these better matchups later in the day while maybe you're still doing some prep for whatever meals you're having throughout the day. It's just a

nice way to ease in. This is the nap game. This is the game where you just snooze. Which one are you looking forward to most of those Christmas Day matchups? Bucks, Celtics, Sixers, Knicks, Suns, Nuggets, Lakers, Mavs, Grizzlies, Warriors. I think I'm with you on that.

That got spicy. In the postseason, we learned that the Warriors have a Tostitos bag worth of chips on their shoulders still, and the Grizzlies aren't backing down from anybody.

Just like that playoff series, the Grizzlies aren't backing down from anybody. No, and just like that playoff series, the Grizzlies aren't going to be healthy for it. You know, the Warriors already are catching breaks, and there's my bitter Kaz fan coming through, but Jaron Jackson Jr. likely won't be in that game. So maybe Brandon Clark will step it up and rep for up north.

Yeah, that's a good point. Still time. Still time. Alright, should we take a break? Yeah, let's take a break. Let's do it. Alright, that's a good point. Still time. Still time. All right. Should we take a break? Yeah, let's take a break. Let's do it. All right, let's take a breather real quick. We'll be right back. Just 20-second timeout.

I'm Kerry Champion, and this is season four of Naked Sports, where we live at the intersection of sports and culture. Up first, I explore the making of a rivalry, Kaitlyn Clark versus Angel Reese. I know I'll go down in history.

People are talking about women's basketball just because of one single game. Every great player needs a foil. I ain't really near them. Why is that? I just come here to play basketball every single day, and that's what I focus on. From college to the pros,

Clark and Reese have changed the way we consume women's sports. Angel Reese is a joy to watch. She is unapologetically black. I love her. What exactly ignited this fire? Why has it been so good for the game? And can the fanfare surrounding these two supernovas be sustained? This game is only going to get better because the talent is getting better.

This new season will cover all things sports and culture. Listen to Naked Sports on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Black Effect Podcast Network is sponsored by Diet Coke. It was December 2019 when the story blew up. In Green Bay, Wisconsin, former Packers star Kabir Bajabiamila caught up in a bizarre situation. KGB explaining what he believes led to the arrest of his friends at a children's Christmas play. A family man, former NFL player, devout Christian, now cut off from his family and connected to a strange arrest. I am going to share my journey of how I went from Christianity to now a Hebrew Israelite. I got swept up in Kabir's journey.

But this was only the beginning. In a story about faith and football, the search for meaning away from the gridiron, and the consequences for everyone involved. You mix homesteading with guns and church, and a little bit of the spice of conspiracy theories that we liked. Voila! You got straight away. I felt like I was living in North Korea, but worse, if that's possible. Listen to Spiraled on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Señora Sex Ed is not your mommy sex talk. This show is la plática, like you've never heard it before. We're breaking the stigma and silence around sex and sexuality in Latinx communities. This podcast is an intergenerational conversation between Latinas from Gen X to Gen Z. We're covering everything from body image to representation in film and television. We even interview iconic Latinas like Puerto Rican actress Ana Ortiz. I felt in control of my own physical body and my own self. I was on birth control.

I had sort of had my first sexual experience. If you're in your señora era or know someone who is, then this is the show for you. We're your hosts, Diosa and Mala, and you might recognize us from our flagship podcast, Locatora Radio. We're so excited for you to hear our brand new podcast senora sex ed listen to senora sex ed on the iheart radio app apple podcast or wherever you get your podcast

and we're back uh and yes up top we're talking about the calves having a pretty pretty solid young core uh and you know plus we're we're in that point of the summer where people are starting to put lists together and compile things to be like hey we can still talk there's still some fun things to talk about so we decided hey why don't we add to the mix and discuss the official Mad Boosties top five under 25. I know you came in with a list of your own, Justin, but just, you know, for the listeners for this one, I think we're going to ask Justin for his top five players under 25. Now you can decide, Justin, whether you want to make it solely based on who is popping right now or whether you want to factor in you know someone's high ceiling potential etc

and we know you have that eye that you pick out like kids in middle school and stuff like that did you see the brawny dunk that's i do have to mention the brawny dunk yeah that is i that's probably the off-season basketball play uh that i've watched the most times in a 24-hour period that was that was really there's something about the physics of what he did there it's it for people who haven't seen it it's like a little inside out dribble and then he is like sort of gliding by the basket and dunks it with which is right yeah he's going left right on that he's on the left side of the basket and then like ducks under the backboard i was i don't know it was kind of cool like i don't it seems like he's uh operating with

different laws of physics it's not just a clever name that he has yeah it turns out turns out yeah and the fun part about it too was i actually thought like he was moving kind of like slow in the open court like it was like oh like, oh, he doesn't really have that acceleration. I started off the clip being like, oh, man, we're doing this LeBron-y stuff because he's LeBron's kid, blah, blah, blah. And then all of a sudden, he just kind of takes off out of nowhere and just yams on the guy. And that was so much fun.

That was really good. But for my top 5 under 25, I went with Where the Rat Now. It's so hard because situation can factor in. You're always doing a lot of projecting and stuff like that. Do you guys want me to just launch into this

or how do you want to do it? Let's do it. Start from the top. Obviously, I've got a very close focus on the Cavs. I watch them more than anyone else. I'm not going to sit here and act like I watch 82 games of every single team, but I do watch an unhealthy amount of NBA basketball. But when you guys asked me this, I thought, you know what? Even though I'm an eye test guy of my heart, a real hooper in the blood, I'm going to look at some stats just to kind of get an idea. And I think EPM does a

good job of kind of like capturing it. So I just looked at who they had as their top five under 25 and it was Tatum, Trey, Jared Allen, number three, which I thought was interesting. Luca, Garland, Desmond Bain, Jaw, Jaron Jackson Jr. and LaMelo. I looked at that and I said, that's interesting. I love three Cavs in the top five, but even I'm not that big of a homer. I'm not going to go that route. My top five under 25, I've got Luka number one,

Jason Tatum number two, Trey Young number three, John number four, and Darius Garland number five. And my bias here is really about offensive engines. With the exception of Jason Tatum, all of these other guys make other players better on their teams at a very high level.

You can basically have a functioning offense with those guys and very few options around them. I mean, Garland had awful spacing last year. Luka didn't have a lot of help. Trey Young has been making things work. And Ja is obviously, he's Ja. He's fantastic. So that is my top five.

So the Tatum shade is appreciated, and I love it. Boston last year was as good as a team can be without a single point guard or a single person that can dribble. That was the apex. If you play that series 100 times, they

probably win maybe 40-50% of the time against the Warriors, but that is absolute apex. I love the addition of adding Malcolm Brogdon because they needed someone that can set the table, but Tatum, as good as he is, he's not that guy. That's not his

particular strength. The fact that he is still on under 20, it's so wild to me and 19 and 19 he's still doing this like he has been here for so long yeah it really feels like the top four is kind of nailed on with luca jaw tatum trey are all like you know, that feels pretty easy. And then I didn't hear a lot of Maxie talk in your top five. And that is a mistake that you will live to regret. That's how I'm going to round out my top five with apologies to Anthony Edwards,

who, you know, if we were just going highest high point, like in the offseason, like he really seemed to be rounding into something. So I have high hopes. I feel like I might regret putting him out of my top five by the middle of this season. Yeah, I love Ant, and Maxie's a good shout as well. Although, like if we're comparing guards,

I think Sexton and Maxie is probably more of a conversation. Those fast guards that don't play defense and don't really get a lot of guys involved, but put up points in a fun way. I think the Cavs have their own Maxie and Sexton, but of course, that's just a little bit of shade. But Anthony Edwards is one of my favorite

players in the league. I have him really high, but when you look at it, Garland averaged more points, more assists after the All-Star break, even with all the injuries. I have them really high, but when you look at it, Garland averaged more points, more assists after the All-Star break, even with all the injuries. 25-10. An efficient 25-10. He's doing Steve Nash, Chris Paul of New Orleans

type stuff. For that reason, I give him a nod over some of these other guys. It's unbelievable. The list of snubs under 25 is extraordinary. I don't, I don't remember another time in league history where there's this many good players under 25.

Like we haven't even mentioned Lamello, right? Like there's a Kate Cunningham, Evan Mobley, Scotty Barnes, like Garland is on my list and he's probably not even the best under 25 prospect on the calves. Like that's

it's a really really exciting place to be if you're the nba as a whole i mean zion we haven't even mentioned zion but i mean he's that's just injuries you know yeah oh and obviously shay gill just alexander yeah we just yeah i'm a bad canadian for not mentioning i know i know there you go no it's and i and i like uh justin that you're like you're using you know reason and statistics to to bolsh this argument i just look at anthony edwards i'm like but what about his vibe score his vibe stats and like to me too good it's what it is too like i think those four those top four nailed on and then that fifth is like sort of like a rorschach test of like all right what are you seeing there i'm like i, I love Dr. Mark Green from ER,

Anthony Edwards. He will always be Dr. Mark Green. But speaking of international alliances, allegiances, this was kind of an interesting thing from stat muse. They said, who wins this series at one point as,

as hockey fans. No, as a former hockey player, myself, I know the NHL used to pit the international players versus North American players at its All-Star game. With the continued influx of international NBA players, would you be in favor of the NBA attempting that? And so the Team USA potentially look like Steph, Kawhi, LeBron, KD, and Anthony Davis. And also Team International could be Luka, Andrew Wiggins, Giannis, Embiid, Jokic.

That is, that's wild. I was trying to find a replacement for Wiggins and I couldn't, by the way. Rudy Gobert. Right, there's already three centers. All for Rudy Gobert. You know, I'm already biased at having three seven-footers on the floor at all times. Let's just get weird with it. Without remarking it, put them out there.

Let's do this. Right now. That team is so fun, though. Luka out there. Let's do this. That team is so fun, though. Luka, Wiggins, Giannis, Embiid, and Jokic. The who would win question is tough because it's like,

is this a seven-game series? If it's a one-off, the answer is either of those teams could win. It's going to come down to who makes the fewest mistakes and all that kind of stuff, is kind of like where the nba is at again like i i really feel like it's going to be tough to see like a super team really emerge in the nba right now because even the super teams that form they're like we kind of view them as that because it's the familiar names it's like these guys on their third contract right back in the day like charles barkley was 32 when he went to the rockets like now that you charles barkley

like with modern medicine and the way these guys age would still be a hell of a player for a few more years it's not a new trend the new trend is guys being productive this late into their careers whether it's chris paul Durant, LeBron James. So all these teams are so loaded. I don't think you're ever going to see, or at least not in the next few years, unless there's expansion or anything kind of crazy that changes the construction of the league. There's not going to be a one-sided balance of power in the same way that we've seen in the past. It really is back to the point where it comes down to matchups and execution and the best team might not always win but it's whichever team is playing the best

at that time and taking advantage of the scenario so i think it would be the same thing with the team usa versus the international squad it's also interesting that there's like a type of like all a lot of the best point guards are coming out of the U.S. Like you got your Steph, your Ja, your, you know. Again, hating on Shea. Like we already like corrected that and now you're running it back. Yeah, exactly. I don't even know who that is. And then you've got the super skilled seven footers coming from the international side.

I feel like big men are, you know, when you're 6'4", in eighth grade in the U.S., they're like, all right, get down there and start doing the layup drills for the rest of your life. It's funny. I think the best American bigs right now are both on the Cavs, probably. At least when you're talking about under 25 talent,

like Jared Allen and Evan Mobley. Jared Allen is probably going to be the starting center for team usa uh at some point in the future and i think evan mobley is going to be right there in the mix yeah man it's yeah it's so fun what's funny is like i look at team international i'm like in my mind i can picture all of them juggling a soccer ball too that's true like every single one and again i think like to your point too like i'll always say this the guys coming from europe especially soccer is the biggest sport out there and so like they're they're like sort of athletically coming from a like quick passing movement sort of mentality of sport and i see that all the time with like these players find the passing lanes

off yeah 100 or just just releasing it immediately, giving the defenders no chance. So, okay, in a soccer game, Team International definitely wins. But I guess as a proposition, would we be interested in seeing something like this? I think I would if it reaches a critical mass. I think it's absolutely interesting

to see how this stacks up because I think it also helps us realize how much international talent is actually in the league as well yeah I mean I hated it for the rising stars game because I yeah all of a sudden like you had guys that really deserved to be in the rising stars game not make it because an international player uh had to make it in uh that was the case for Darius Garland as an example he didn't make a rising stars game in either of his first two years. But obviously, when you're talking about the top level,

you're not going to have that issue where you're kind of scraping the fringes and adding someone like Boban or whatever just to fill out a roster. So I think it'd be a lot of fun to see, even if you want to try something out like this at All-Star. But again, you're then kind of getting into the, okay, who deserves it more? Are you going to make half the all-stars international or whatever the case may be?

So maybe this is one of those kind of in or out of season tournaments that the NBA can try. Yeah. Right. And then to give it stakes, like you know how the baseball gave their uh all-star game stakes by making it worth like home field advantage of the world series like maybe we do like some trade embargoes or something like that with with the international versus the u.s when or you get deported nuclear

secrets um yeah exactly pull something from the headlines yeah you're right all right well let's take another break we'll come back and we'll we'll close it out as we always do with the rapid fire round of questioning no buckle up after this i'm carrie champion and this is season four of Naked Sports, where we live at the intersection of sports and culture. Up first, I explore the making of a rivalry, Kaitlyn Clark versus Angel Reese. I know I'll go down in history. People are talking about women's basketball just because of one single game. Every great player needs a foil. I ain't really near them. Why is that? I just come here to play basketball every single day, and that's what I focus on.

From college to the pros, Clark and Reese have changed the way we consume women's sports. Angel Reese is a joy to watch. She is unapologetically Black. I love her. What exactly ignited this fire? Why has it been so good for the game? And can the fanfare surrounding these two supernovas be sustained? This game is only going to get better because the talent is getting better.

This new season will cover all things sports and culture. Listen to Naked Sports on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Black Effect Podcast Network is sponsored by Diet Coke. In a galaxy far, far away. No, babe, that's taken. We're in our own world, remember? Right, in our own world. We're two space cadets.

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Join us on In Our Own World for cosmic conversations, stellar laughs, and super corny dad jokes. Listen to In Our Own World as a part of the My Cultura podcast network available on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

And don't worry, we promise to avoid any black holes. Most of the time. Señora Sex Ed is not your mommy sex talk. This show is la plática like you've never heard it before. We're breaking the stigma and silence around sex and sexuality in Latinx communities. This podcast is an intergenerational conversation between Latinas from Gen X to Gen Z. We're covering everything from body image to representation in film and television. We even interview iconic Latinas like Puerto Rican actress Ana Ortiz.

I felt in control of my own physical body and my own self. I was on birth control. I had sort of had my first sexual experience. If you're in your señora era or know someone who is, then this is the show for you. We're your host, Diosa and Mala, and you might recognize us from our flagship podcast, Locatora Radio. We're so excited for you to hear our brand new podcast, Señora Sex Ed. Listen to Señora Sex Ed on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And we're back and just in to close the show out get ready prepare yourself for the miles and jack got mad boosties rapid fire round of questions um like again with this whole segment it's rapid

it's as fast as possible so just respond with the first answer that comes to mind reflexively no thinking no follow-up just keep it super efficient okay i don't know what that last sound effect was that i was doing i think i was trying to do like a bullet like kind of ricocheting around but it just sounded do it uh that's not that's not really doing anything for me i don't really know what that is you can workshop it look no one said you had to be michael winslow from police Academy on this podcast. Yeah. Anyway, start the clock. Here we go. Question number one.

Justin Rowan. All titles count exactly the same in the history books. Oh, you're going to take the first one. Okay. That's cool. All right, man. You can do it. Do you want to do it? We can do it.

You want to draw straws? Do you want to do rock, paper, scissors? We did rock, paper, scissors last time. We could draw straws. Draw straws. Do you have a straw ready? And like, how are we going to judge the length of the straws? I have two pens. And you tell me which one's longer

okay it's the one that's body is green and Justin guess what it's shorter oh damn I don't think those were lined up properly I think you were right Jack

we'll let it slide that's fine that's fine well here's a tough one for you justin here's a brain buster all titles count exactly the same in the history books but where does cleveland's 2016 title rank for you in your all-time sports memories oh um number one oh what really 2016 of all time oh man what because it was an impossible task i mean yeah i agree okay that might be my favorite sports memory i mean that's where i'm at it was pretty wild to see that's for sure as a lifelong lebron fan who's dealt with so much hate for that guy uh i've personally dealt with it the others in my top

three are like all cfl related too so like what and no one wants to hear about that when duane the rock johnson was playing for the argonauts yeah yeah exactly good time calgary stampede stampede oh ricky williams was argos great brass festival the calgary stampede for people who are in brass bands like i was back anyway rapid fire justin where does cleveland hosting the all-star game last year rank honestly very high like i'd say top five for me because that's my first time and only time going to an all-star weekend so that that was a lot of fun dennis rodman bought me a shot you know it was a good time. Unrelated. I'd ask more, but Justin, I got to ask you, man.

We got to really keep it brief here because this is a rapid-fire round of questioning. That's true, man. I thought you were going to be faster than this. Question number two. Giannis was recently asked about the possibility of playing for the Bulls one day and gave an honest answer and essentially saying, you just never know where life will take you. Could you see him playing for another team down the line yes but not chicago it's a weird so the context

for this one because i was like jabari this question that you wrote doesn't really make sense to me and the question was being asked by a local chicago reporter so i was like why why do the bulls get to ask if he's going to play for them? Why not any other team? Let's find them some first-round picks. Tampering. They're going down. Yeah, exactly. But yeah, I mean,

I feel like definitely not the Bulls because they're a fellow central division team. You never trade your globe and generation-defining talent to a fellow central division. And if they were, it'd obviously be Cleveland

because they can make three seven-footers work. Justin, please stay focused. Here's the next question. What's a silly NBA rule you would introduce if you had the power? Anything. I'm talking anything. You are not allowed to foul up three.

You got to play it straight. I know it's smart, but if you do, it's an automatic forfeit. An automatic forfeit. Wow. I like that. Now, where does that come from? Love of the game. Let them take that three.

You watch a lot of basketball. You said an unhealthy amount. We can look at your posture to tell. Like myself, I'm just a very hunched over sports watcher. But what about that rule? Is there something that you've seen time and again that just really irks you? I wish I could make this a rule. I think it just takes away from the fun of the game.

Especially if you're down three. I know it benefits me sometimes when I'm up three. But you want to have that suspense. I want to see the best player on the other team with the best three-point shooter, whatever the case may be. I want to have the dialogue about, oh, LeBron passed into the corner,

to a wide-open Kyle Korver for that three. I want that instead of the free-throw game, because the free-throw game is just not as entertaining. And at the end of the day, we like basketball because it's entertaining. I know we put so much stakes on all these results, but that's what drives me nuts. Yeah. And

you know, I appreciate your opinion on that. I am a fan above all of free throws. That's kind of why I watch the game. So I would just ask that you not state it so matter-of-factly. That's just your opinion, man. I love free throws. As a Sixers fan, that is what I'm in it.of-factly. That's just your opinion, man. I love free throws. As a Sixers fan, that is what I'm in it.

Justin, I'm sorry. I've got to cut you off, man. You've got to keep the answers short. Okay? This is a rapid-fire round of questioning. All right. Which team is poised to take a leap in the way teams like Atlanta the year before, Memphis last year, even Cleveland last year, have done in the past couple seasons. Cleveland again. Run it

back. 50 wins this year. Let's do this. Wow. Nice. Okay. That's a reasonable answer. Okay, I'm sorry. Here we go. Rapid fire. Justin, Embiid, or Jokic? Jokic. Okay.

Okay. Elo or Harper, who should have guarded jordan for that last shot harper miles or jack miles i like that answer all right that was great man one of the best guests we've had i've got one way hate for philly i i know philly never thinks about cleveland but i've got hate for the sixers. You know what? Even with Jared Allen beating out those two games, they still needed last two minute breaks to win

those games against the Cavs. And you know what? I don't need it to be reciprocated in any way. You don't have to ever think about me, but I'm up at night. You're rent-free in my head. I hate the Sixers. I love that. You don't have to think about me at all. Don't pay

me any mind, but I am obsessed. Dustin, man, thank you so much for coming on Miles and Jack. Whatever. Really fun time. Where can people find you and follow you and listen to you? You can find the

Chasedown podcast wherever you guys got this podcast. You can also find us on the Cavs YouTube channel. You can find me on Twitter at CavsAnada. Just slap the Cavs in Canada and you'll find me there. I apologize for everything you see after you found that, but you know, that's where you can find me.

You know, buyer beware. Well, you heard it there at CavsAnada. It's not just a clever name. He's living the life. Again, Justin, thank you so much for joining us. I'm Miles Jack. I'm at Boosties. Please make sure you subscribe, leave a review, wherever you can do that. Apple vodka.

Because we really appreciate it, listeners. And we'll see you next time. Because there's always an extra. Bye. Bye. Bye. Every great player needs a foil. I know I'll go down in history. People are talking about women's basketball just because of one single game. Clark and Reese have changed the way we consume women's sports. Listen to the making of a rivalry. Caitlin Clark versus Angel Reese on the iHeartRadio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Elf Beauty, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports. I'm Keri Champion, and this is season four of Naked Sports. Up first, I explore season four of naked sports. Up first. I explore the making of a rivalry. Caitlin Clark versus angel Reese. People are talking about women's basketball just because of one single game.

Clark and Reese have changed the way we consume women's basketball. And on this new season, we'll cover all things, sports and culture. Listen to naked sports on the black effect podcast network. I heart radio apps or wherever you get your podcasts. The Black Effect Podcast Network is sponsored by Diet Coke. Captain's Log, Stardate 2024.

We're floating somewhere in the cosmos, but we've lost our map. Yeah, because you refuse to ask for directions. It's Space Jam, there are no roads. Good point. So, where are we headed? Into the unknown, of course. Join us on In Our Own World as we uncover hidden truths, navigate the depths of culture, identity, and the human spirit. With a hint of mischief.

One episode at a time. Buckle up and listen to In Our Own World on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Trust us. It's out of this world.