The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Gottlieb – All Ball - Warriors won't overcome the injuries; Doug on R.J. Hampton's decision; NBA Draft Guru Rashad Phillips talks top prospects

Episode Date: June 7, 2019

Subscribe here to the All Ball with Doug Gottlieb Podcast https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/all-ball-with-doug-gottlieb/id1358843497?mt=2 This week, Gottlieb looks ahead to Game 4 of The Finals and explains why he thinks Golden State is done, why he thinks R.J. Hampton leading college teams on after already signing a contract in New Zealand is bad business, and talks Finals and NBA Draft with draft guru Rashad Phillips. Download, rate and subscribe here to get the latest All Ball Podcasts: Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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I'm Doug Gottlieb and you, well, you are listening to All Ball, all basketball, all the time. Every week, I have a guest with me. I give you my thoughts. I give you my dreams, my aspirations. And today we're coming to you on a Thursday. It's the day after the Toronto Raptors, whooped up on the Golden State Warriors.

They've taken a three games to two lead, and of course, as you probably already know, guessing, maybe. Kevin Durant is out for game four. Clay Thompson is supposed to be back for game four. My biggest concern, and maybe this is because when I got to be 30 years old, maybe it was like 32, 33, I remember playing and I had never been hurt. I have guys on my radio show which you can listen to daily

from 3 to 6 Eastern 12 to 3 Pacific I have guys on my radio show that I was like well you're an athlete you were hurt like literally knock wood I've never really been hurt with this is the exception

when I got to my mid maybe it's 35 when I got to my mid 30s I got to my mid 30s all of a sudden I pulled my hamstring and you know when you're not on a team

you don't have to be able to rehab you simply feel terrible for a day Like you come home and your kids are like, you hurt yourself. Yes, yes, I did. Anyway, so you limp on in, you ice, and then you lay off of it, you stretch it. I would do ice. The way I came back was by doing yoga.

You start to try and lift with it. And sometimes it takes like a month off. And I remember I would get hurt, would take time off, and then I would come back and I would do it again. And the thing about pulling a hamstring is, like, it feels at the time like you ripped it in half, even though all of a sudden, like, the strength returns to it and you're fine, like inexplicably. But there's usually like one move or two different bends or twist where it feels like you've had the back of your hamstring actually blown off by a shotgun. And it just comes back. And I can't think that five days later, Clay Thompson will be fine. If they don't have Alvey Clay Thompson, how can they possibly expect to beat the Toronto Raptors?

And eventually they think they'll get back Kevin Durant, but if he's not back yet, how can they expect to beat the Toronto Raptors? You know, three games to one seems to be the magic number. Oh, bring him back. But like, if your calf hurts that bad still, how do you expect to play? And how do you expect to play well when you haven't played in the game in like three weeks? And granted, we're looking at average guys. stuff and trying to measure it up against superstar athletes and how their bodies will respond.

But they're not matching up with average guys. They're superstar athletes matching up with superstar athletes. So I think I'm ready to call it. I don't think Toronto is better than the Golden State Warriors. I don't think he's better. But you know what I do think? I do think they're healthier. And because they're healthier, they're going to win this series.

Now, I've heard a couple of people say that there is something disappointing about Steph Curry. Like, if you're saying that, boy, you're just making arguments to make arguments. Maybe this is why I don't have, I haven't been a full-time guy on some of these debate shows. Because I listen to the argument of, well, you know, Steph Curry, he's not this, she's not that. because it's not just that he doesn't have Kevin Durant and Clay Thompson, Kvonne Looney. So that's three starters. There isn't a human being alive that could be competitive with a championship caliber team

if you're down three starters. Remember, this is essentially what happened to the Cleveland Cavaliers when they lost earlier in the playoffs. Kevin Love, and then they lost Kyrie Irving after game one, and that thing went to six games. And of course, LeBron James was peak LeBron James. But then factor in, what you would have to factor in is Tristan Thompson would have had to have been hurt and missed. And then whoever is the second best player in that, J.R. Smith, would have had to also been injured. And if that was the case, I don't, am playing injured.

I give no chance. None. So it's not just that you're losing your two best scores not named Steph Curry. It's the fact that you're essentially starting three bench players. Because then as these finals go on, you have to get deeper into your bench. And now you're really dealing with like Jacob Evans played last night. Like, damn, I forgot he was on the Warriors. They've been playing, they started Jordan Bell in game one.

He didn't even play in game two. He hadn't been playing until the end of the Rocket series. and that was only because of injuries he'd been so snuggled up with a bone in the doghouse. I take nothing away from Steph playing magnificently and the team not being good enough around him. What I do think is this really hurts anyone's argument about Draymond and Andre Godala being a Hall of Famers. They're great role players and love the roles and succeed in the roles in which they play with the Warriors. But they can't help carry a team when two starters are down or three starters are down. that's not the makings of a Hall of

Fever. Be sure to catch live editions of the Doug Dotleap show weekdays at noon Eastern 3 p.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeart Radio app. One other thought here on something happening in

college basketball. I love that they're moving the three-point line back. I love that there's a shortened shot clock on an offensive rebound. I think these things are fantastic for the betterment of the game. Fantastic. But these things,

The R.J. Hampton thing is weird. Look, we're going to talk about it here with Rashad Phillips, my guest this week. I just, I don't really understand why people are so. Do I think college coaches, all of them, prepare you perfectly for the NBA? Like, no. Different styles, different systems. But I also think that college coaches, by and large, have, helped raised, promote, nurtured 18 to 22 year olds.

Like, that's what they do. That's what they've done for their professional lives. And there's a different type of coaching and a different type of teaching. And there's little things that need to be refined. And I think so many players need this. Need it. Absolutely positively needed. And, but RJ Hampton choosing to do so,

choosing to forego it and go to New Zealand, like, all right, I think they thought out the decision. My issue is R.J. Hampton came out after announcing he was going to New Zealand and said, yeah, I actually signed the contract a month ago. What is with the Dog and Pony Show? And why? Jacob Kingston grew up in an isolated polygamous sect. We were God's chosen kingdom on earth. He felt destined for greatness.

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Listen to Hurtle with Emily Abadi on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsClice comes in. I'm Timbo.

Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athletes themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real.

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And I think those schools had a little bit of a heads up. that this might happen, but having signed a contract, you don't do that. You don't do that in any business. And if we're going to champion his family for helping him make this thoughtful decision, one that values education, how about one that values, it's just simple. You pick up the phone, you call Bill Self. You pick up the phone, you call Penny Hardaway. You pick up the phone, you call Chris Beard.

You go, hey, coach, it's been great getting to know you. I hope to continue to keep this relationship. I'm going to try something different. I'm going to go to New Zealand and play for a year and they get ready for the NBA. And they may try and talk to you out of it. They may offer up some perspective on why they think it's a good idea, why they think it's not a good idea. But they've been told no before.

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In high school, I never really was like dating around or anything like that. And then I got into a long-term relationship and was dating someone for a few years. And then after getting out of that relationship, I think this past year or so or whatever, whatever has been like actually living life as a single person. It's very hard. And I think it's not like not hard, I should say, but like it's very different knowing nothing but long-term relationships and then moving into like the single lifestyle that's like quote dating around and like feeling people out that's kind of been something interesting to navigate listen to the my culture

podcast network available on the iHeart radio app apple podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts let's welcome in rachad phillips course he has his own media company he also helps cover the uh orlando magic you can follow him on twitter he's got uh he's got his own YouTube channel. He was a great player at Detroit, played a ton professionally, and we're going to break down some of the players in this upcoming draft and the NBA finals. Without further ado, my man Rashad Phillips. Rashad, let's start with last night's game. Obviously, it's Steph against the world. He was, he's as good as he can be considering kind of a one-man band and you don't have a ton of space.

did we learn anything at all from last night? We actually got to see how good Steph Curry really is by himself. I think he reminded people that he is a dominant offensive force. I think we did see that. Last night, to me, Doug, reminded me of when Steph was at Davidson, and he had to kind of carry his team, that it was kind of reminiscent of his college days. I've heard people say,

well, this is what it was like for LeBron last year in the playoffs. It wasn't. No. No, 2015, some similarities, no Kyrie, no Kevin Love.

But again, then you factor, and then there would be no Tristan Thompson or no, you know, there's like no starting, like not have Looney. And then you also didn't have Andre Godala,

a healthy Andre Godala, like, right. And it wasn't as top-heavy a roster as this roster is. Correct. Okay, so let's assume Clay plays game four, but we don't know about Kevin Durant. How do you see the series in that situation?

I think Golden State wins that one. I just think that he did miss Clay Thompson more than he missed Kevin Durant, because I really believe that Steph is more accustomed to playing with somebody who's similar like him on the perimeter as of Kevin Durant. because more of an ISO guy. I don't want to get off subject, but I know Kevin Durant had a 45, 46-point game against Toronto in the regular season, and they lost two.

But back to your question, I think with Clay out there, and if he's healthy, if he's 90%, I think he gives him a better opportunity to win game four because you still got to honor him. He still shoots the ball well enough to, you have to switch the coverages a lot, and it opens it up for guys like Bogot and Cousins.

Cousins was asked to do too much yesterday, and he just kind of looks like he's not in game shape yet. So I think Clay on the floor gives Golden State a better opportunity to win game four. You're big on this, your narrative is that Steph's points are more impactful, right, than KD's points. Expound on that, if I would. Well, I just, I think Steph's points. points cut deeper is the term I use.

And because his ability to make shots at certain times where it's just demoralizing to the defense, I think when Kevin Durant scores, it's like, oh, okay, you know, seven-foot guy can't block his shot. I mean, he's an alien. But when you have a six-foot-three guy come down and dance on you and hit a three-pointer from 35 feet and turn away before it goes in, I think it just, it sinks deeper into the soul. of the opposing players. And that's why I think that his points are just, they're more impactful.

And his three-pointers are almost like dunks. When they go down, the crowd explodes. Even on the road, he even takes the air out of you, or he pumps the air in you, depending on where he at. Yeah. I mean, I kind of think you're hitting the point but missing the point at the same time.

Okay. I just think it's basic math. that three is more than two. And it's the calculation we're kind of, we struggle with for a long time as basketball guys, or especially coaches, you know, is the, hey,

it's actually better to shoot these threes than it is to shoot, you know, range twos. And I think they can be more impactful because you can make up points quicker. You just can. And when he hits two or three in a row and all of a sudden, you know, three trips equals nine points.

And then you foul. And the most devastating. sitting play, I think, in basketball is the foul on the three-point shot, right? Because because you feel like, you know, you did everything you could and you foul a guy. Now, you just, it's almost like you feel like an idiot when you're a player you're doing it. You're just trying to do what your coach told you, which is, you know, do not leave this guy, lock and trail or, you know, no airspace at all. So I, I think it's, I think it's the math to it. Because I would say there's a, I would play the other side in that KD can be ever bit as devastating,

because he's so good that you can do everything right and have a guy right there, and he's just bigger and better than you, and he just makes a shot over your best offender, and there's an inevitability with his scoring that can be equally devastating. The difference is the math of a guy who can hit you for seven or eight threes, as opposed to KD, who can make threes, but that's not necessarily what he does best. Right. I just think that it's the person as well.

Like, you know, Livingston point, if he hit three three-pointers, I think his three-three-pointers is not equivalent to three-three-pointers from Curry. It may sound strange. It may not make sense math-wise. But as a basketball player, if Sean Livingston hits three-threes on me and Steph Curry hits three-threes on me, it's a little different. It holds a different weight. Dude, if Sean Livingston hits three-threes on you, the season should be canceled.

I don't believe he's... I actually don't... I'm trying to remember when the last time he hit a three was. I got to look this thing up when we're talking. No, he's a mid-raised guy, but it's just the players, different people carry different weight with their points. Steph Curry's three-pointers are more devastating than anybody else three-pointers in the NBA, period. Now, there's other guys that have...

Oh, by the way, by the way, just to help my point, Sean Livingston has the most threes he hit an entire season, an entire season, was in his third year before he hurt his knee in the NBA. He had five threes in the entire season. That's kind of remarked. Like, here's a guy who, again, we're getting off on tangents. Sean Livingston is 33, right? He's played 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 13.

13, 14, 15, 16, 17 seasons in the NBA, which is crazy. That's crazy. And he came in as a point guard. He's hit 13 threes in his career. So to anybody who says, and this is, I want to get with you on this one, to anyone who says you have to shoot threes to play in the NBA today. That's not true. I give you Sean Livingston, who is 13 of 73.

that's a 0.1783 point percentage for his entire career and yet he's a three-time NBA champion. It has a chance to be a four-time NBA champion and has a magnificent career. What Sean Livingston signifies to me, and I think Steph does as well, and I talk about this on my radio show, the difference in those guys and a kairi is they actually know who they are, right? Yeah, I saw that. Yeah, you made a great point on your show. Yes, I watched that. You made a great point there.

And so, you can listen to my show daily on Fox Sports Radio from 3 to 6 Eastern, 12 to 3 Pacific. Foxportraitor.com. You can download the app. And the idea is just like, Kyrie spent this entire season trying to convince us he's a leader. He's not. Correct. He tries to convince us he's a point guard.

Correct. He's not. Correct. He tried to convince us, even in the playoffs, like, no, no, I can really play defense. I'm a great defensive player. like you're not a great defensive player like stop he kept switching and trying to guard uh yonis and tenacupo like whereas step curry like look step's not a great on ball defender so you know what he does he doesn't guard he doesn't he he he ain't switching off on these dudes

hell no you know step step is step is not a ball distributing you know point guard he's not setting dudes up like he's just gonna i'm just going to be the best step curry i can be and and john livingston's an example that like sean livingston's not a shooter you know he's not doing. He ain't shooting jump shots. He's shooting 15 and in. He is deadly. I can play 20 minutes. Give you everything I got. Move the ball. If I get my little push shot or my mid-range pull-up, I'm going to take it otherwise. I'm good. True pro. Right? Which is a true pro. Okay, so that brings me to, if I'm Brooklyn, do I actually want Kyrie Irving? I don't think that's a good one because you basically leaving a better team.

to go to a less qualified team that's up and coming. So it's like, what are you going to do with that? What are you going to do with that? And I don't think that Kyrie wanted to, I don't think he wants to be coached up. I don't think he wants to be coached. I just think Kyrie is a roll the balls out type of guy and let me dance, man.

I don't want you. Don't draw up no X's and O's for me. Just let me hoop. and I think Brad Stevens, I know Brad Stevens personally. He is a coach. He wants to coach players. Kyrie doesn't want to be coached. It was a bad, bad combination.

Doug Gottlie, Rashad Phillips here on the All Ball podcast. Okay, so I look, I've heard some crazy things. I've heard like the thing the Boston guys, a couple Boston guys have told me, is that, yes, he, he, he, He's constantly challenging authority, constantly challenging being coached. And he's also one of those guys that he's not, he's not an idiot, right? Like, let's not act like he has. No, he's smart dude.

No, he's smart dude. Well, I don't know if he's nearly as smart as he gets credit for, right? Like, he's one of those guys that, like, he's intelligent, right? But he thinks he's like, he thinks he's a Mensa member. And so he gets himself into conversations that he really doesn't know how to get out of. Yeah, that's above me. And it's one of those guys, it's like the, it's like the really, really attractive girl who's been told she's attractive. And so she walks around like she's a 10 and like, look, she's an 8 and she's not, she's an 8, but she's been told she's a 10.

Her whole life she's been told she's 10. Carrie's whole life he's been told that he's like a Mensa member. And so he really thinks it when the truth is like he's a smart guy, but. all those Celtics are smart, smart guys, right? Like, like, Brown is it?

Like, like that's kind of what they have. Like Al Hurford's smart guy. That's a rebel guy. It's a rebel guy. And so you're walking into a room of intelligent people who are sitting there going like,

this dude doesn't know what he's talking about. And I just, I, it's going to be fascinating to see if in his next landing spot, and it doesn't appear that he stays there if he actually makes the team better. And I'm a huge

Kyrie fan. I like him as a Hooper. Yes. He does things that... I like him as a Hooper. Rod Strickland's his godfather. That's the last guy I can remember of a point card who could finish like that.

He just... Yeah, Rod Strickland was amazing. Amazing. But I don't know if he makes you better. And it's weird that he's gotten to this place where coming into the year, I was told, no way he does the LeBron thing because he doesn't like the LeBron noise and nonsense.

I'm not going out like. But that might actually be the best thing for him. Yeah, but it goes back to your analogy. It's the, I'm a 10. And with LeBron, I'm an 8. So do you go to L.A. and be an 8 or do you go to Brooklyn and carry yourself like a 10? You know, so that's kind of the situation that he's in. You know, in this, I don't know if this term makes sense to a lot of people, but I'm going to

say this. Kyrie Urban to me, I think he's too talented. Does that make sense? Yep. Okay. All right. You know what he's...

This happens in football, especially in high school and college football, where you have the quarterback that is so talented that they don't... This is one of the reasons, I think, some athletic quarterbacks. Even the Johnny Manzelles of the world.

Like Johnny, obviously, the off the field stuff. but he was so physically gifted and so brazen that he didn't he never had to he never had to sit there watch film buy in and understand

going through progressions right and so also when you get to when you get to big boy football and everybody can run now you get exposed where that's the thing with Kyrie is as talented as he is there's a deficit there

in terms of he didn't play a whole year at Duke so he didn't really understand how to defend the ball. The concepts. The concepts, yes. Yes. And then, and then he never, he didn't understand how to lead because, though LeBron leads in a different way than other guys, like he never kind of got,

there was just all this kind of interrupted growth, right? Yeah. Yeah. Injury and college and, yeah, yeah, I see that. All right. Let's get to this, let's get to this year's NBA draft. This is where I love having you on. Do you take Zion number one without blinking?

Say that again. Do you take Zion number one where? Without blinking, because I know you're a huge John Morant guy. Are you so brazen? Like, it's not going to happen, but if, you know, just the dollars and cents of it with Zion Williamson filling seats and the, but if just from a, from a pure analysis standpoint, would you take Jha ahead of Zion? Yeah, just from basketball standpoint, not, not including.

including all ticket sales and marketability. I'm speaking from a basketball standpoint, from basketball eyes. I just think the point guard, I said this before, the point guards are like quarterbacks. You can't stabilize your franchise without a guy that throws touchdown passes.

John Morant throws touchdown passes. And I think Zion Williamson is more, I know we're talking football, we're both football guys. I think Zion is more like the Jadavian clowny, you know, like the Miles Gary, like the pass rusher, you know, the guy that can rush that can put his hand in the dirt and pass rush where he can stand up into three, four. I think that's what I think

Zion is. So it's basically, are you going to pick the pass rusher that may be capable of getting 18 sacks? Or do you draft a quarterback that's possible of being Peyton Manning? That's how I look at it in football terms. So I like John Morant better from a basketball standpoint in regards to the ball is going to be in his hands. Zion is more. or its success is going to be predicated on what other people do for him, the lobs he has to catch, putting him in position to score. John is going to create his own opportunities. He's going to make his own playground.

So maybe that's just a point guard in me, but that's just kind of how I see the game. I love the quarterback analogy. The one, the thing I do think Zion brings, and is a hard one. I think he's the... Everyone in the league has been looking for the next Dremont, right? Yes, you want the next Hardin and Curry and dominant ball handler.

But I do think those guys tend to come along more than another Dremon. And by Dremont, I mean... I understand. Can you guard... I know you do. But can you guard one through five. He can. Can you handle the ball and make plays and initiate an offense?

I think he can. can and then can you score down the post? And I think he's actually way further along, maybe even now than Draymond. Like, Draymond doesn't really score down there at all. No, he's not a old guy. Yeah, he's not a old guy.

No, but this guy, this guy is. Yeah, yeah. And, and I, so I get it. Like, I get it. In terms of, you know, the usage rate of John Morant and R.J. Barrett is going to be, if, if on a bad team, is going to be super high, and so their numbers should reflect not just scoring, but assist, and you're going to run your offense through them.

But I do think that Zion is, there's a little bit of unicorn to him in that you can help you at both ends, and with the right team, he may be, he may be as or more valuable piece, even if the numbers don't reflect as such. I understand that totally. And I like Zion. I do. I just think there's a magnetism about him. And he has some intangibles that you can't teach. He's a great teammate.

He's a great help defender. Obviously, he's a superb athlete. But, you know, with Draymond, you know, he doesn't have Draymond's IQ. You know, he doesn't have that feel for the game yet. But I think that's something that he can grow into if you put the right guys around them. All right. Let's start to work our way down the first round of the draft. Yeah.

We were all told RJ was the guy coming into the year. Yeah. And now we're all told, well, see, the problem was the spacing of college basketball. They didn't have enough shooting with Duke. And RJ's season didn't look as good as it could have because of the sport, because of the supporting cast. And everyone in New York is convinced you absolutely take RJ Barrett third. I see him as a bit mechanical. I also think, and here's my biggest issue with RJ,

and look, if they're not going to get Kyrie, I guess it doesn't matter, but if he's not, he doesn't have the ball in his hands playing downhill. What is he doing? And in order to do that, you got to be, you got to be Tray Young skill or as a rookie, or you,

you got to be, you know, are you eventually James Harden? Are you eventually Russell Westbrook? Are you eventually Steph Curry? And I'm not willing to put that stamp. You evaluate him a ton. Yeah. What do you think of RJ? I think the first of all, I want to talk about the mentality that he has.

I think he's the most competitive kid in the draft alongside Nassir Little. I just think that RJ possesses a dog in him. because usually guys, and Doug, we know this, we're Hoopers, but usually guys that have a lot of dog in them, Doug, don't have a lot of skill because they have to make up in those areas. You know, I play with a lot of guys. He can't really dribble that well, but he's a dog. He can't really run that fast, but he's a dog.

He doesn't really shoot it that well, but he's a dog. And I think RJ falls under that definition. I think he's a nosedive score. He's just straight down the line. He's great in transition. He's great initiating contact, but when the ball's not in his hands, I don't see enough skill level

where he can help a team in regards to can he's standing a corner and make some three-point shots because that's the way the game is. I see him more being a better defensive player than what we've given them credit for, and my NBA comparison, and a lot of people don't like this, and they've been mad at me.

but I said he reminds me of Kelly Ubre. And that wasn't a slight to him. It's just what I see him turning into in the NBA, a 3-and-D guy that can slash and get out in transition and be a 17-point score in the league. I don't see him average in 26. He's not dynamic enough for that. So if you don't do RJ Barrett,

what would you do? Um, if I'm the Knicks, I'm probably, I would try to trade that tick. Okay, so like, let's take the Knicks out of it. Okay. What prospect would you think is a better prospect? Cam Reddish. Cam Reddish. This is, let's get in this discussion because this hasn't been had by anybody else.

I know you, I know you, you see him, you see Tracy McGrady, right? I see some Tracy McGradie in him, Doug. I do. I personally, I personally came in and I was like, man, I love Cam Reddish. I've had people who talk to me say

don't, there's something about personality-wise. They say like, he plays basketball, but he ain't, he doesn't, I don't know if it's love the game, there's a, there's a, there's, again, these are reputations wise. There's a sense of a lack of

toughness. There's a, there's a, there's a bit of an entitled people think is a little bit entitled like he's a guy who when he pops out of the car and walks into the gym you're like damn you know right yeah yeah like who is that right 211 pounds

seven foot one wingspan 8 9 standing reach blah blah blah but but they don't they don't love him in the NBA they just think there's so many highs and so many lows, there's some pout to him, and that he's a guy who in an empty gym

looks a whole lot better than when there's nine guys on the floor. Now, you know who you just described to me. You just described Randy Moss to me. That's who you described in football terms. I believe Cam Reddish is the Randy Moss for this draft. A lot of his red flags are narrative-based. All the things that you said is the, it's the narrative that's been created around his kid.

But he has all the natural physical gifts to be really great. So as a GM of an organization, I can't pass on a guy like that. If I whiff on this one, Doug, I just whiff on it. Because what you said still makes me want to draft him. It still makes me want to draft him. Like this is a kid that could possibly be Tracy McGrady or he can be Joe Johnson. And I got a swing at that one. And if I whips, hey, man, look, the tape told me this.

This is what I saw. And this was his capabilities. All right, he turned into Joe Johnson. Okay, no problem. So that's kind of how I look at Cam Reddish. I just think that there's some prospects you have to swing the bat. and this is the prospect where you swing the bat, period. That's how I look at Cam Reddish.

You love Nasir Little, and I guess the problem with Nasir Little is there's just not that much there, right? I see what you're saying. I understand what you got. In terms of, like, I don't know what he trans, like, do I think he will, he's got dog in him and he'll compete? Yeah, of course. I do.

Of course. But I think he was able to get away with things at a lower level because he was just bigger, stronger, more athletic, and the skills not there, the basketball intellect's not there. And I mean, he's 6-4. And so I don't know what he is. Why do you have a greater affinity for Nassir little than some people? Well, he's bigger than 6'4. Let me tell you that. He's about 6-7, 6-5.

I watched Nassir in high school when he was here in Orlando, and I always liked his motor. I call him the engine because he never stops. I believe Nassir is one of those players that when he's put into the right situation, I think he flourishes. I don't think he's going to be a first option or second option guy. I think he falls under that like the Chris Middleton type role. I mean, and I know Chris Milton really stepped it up this year,

but the guy that the third options to teams that lockdown defender, that athlete that finishes plays, I think that's why I think the Atlanta Hawks is a perfect place for him at 10 because he won't be asked to do a lot, but he will contribute right away because of the engine that he has, the toughness that he has. He's a better three-point shooter than what people give him credit for.

And the workouts that he's had, he's already worked out for a few teams. The feedback that I've gotten from NBA teams is that he's a better

shooter than what they thought. And I've had NBA people call me and tell me shot, he really can shoot the boss, I told you. You know,

so I just think that he's going to be a contributor. You know, I don't see like, I think that's a great way to put, this is how the draft

has been told to me. Like, you have two dudes at the top who people think can be an all-star. you have a couple of guys in the middle and somebody is going to be a really good player. And then there's a bunch of guys that are to play a while in the NBA.

But that doesn't mean that they're going to be, they're not going to be great players, but they're not going to be bad players. You just have to change your perspective on it, right? Like the idea that you're going to get an all-star in the middle of the first round is highly unlikely this year. And instead, get a guy who fits, you know, who help.

And you know what he's going to be. Yes. Who helps. I think Nassie Little is a, he is a safe pick. Like when you draft Nassia Little, whatever team drafts him, sleep well, sleep well at night. Don't say, oh, I think we should have got this guy. Go to bed, get your eight hours of sleep. What, um, bowl bowl is interesting.

So, so here's the ball bowl thing, right? So he's seven, two and a quarter with shoes on. 7-7 wingspan, 9-7. and a half reach. But he doesn't totally... Jacob Kingston grew up in an isolated polygamous sect. We were God's chosen kingdom on earth.

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Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real.

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Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the hard way and listen now. He's not really a rim protector, but the one thing, and he's only 208 pounds. 7-7, 7-2-208. Okay, but he can really shoot. Like, he can dump it. He can really shoot. and you know whereas other guys get to the NBA and have to learn to shoot like this dude can actually really shoot the basketball.

Right. So what's he, what's his value in the, like can he be a starter in the NBA in your opinion? I don't think he start as a rookie, but I do think if he can stay healthy. See, I said this before. I think with Bobo, I think he may be, sometimes I think you're. too tall for the game the way he plays. Like he's 7-2 and he's trying to play like he's 6-1. That's taxing on your legs.

Porsing is Kevin Durant with the calf-strain. I just think when you're 17 and you play like your 6-1, you're susceptible to get injured more. And I think that's why he had the foot injury. But I do think that he has some marketable skills because the way the NBA is played with the spacing, I think he's going to be an asset to a team because he can knock down some shot.

I probably wouldn't take him with the top eight picks, but right after 10, 11, 12 is where I would definitely swing the back at a player like that because of his, you know, he's 7-2. You can't pass up a 7-2 guy that can actually put the ball on the floor, got a little flare to his game, and he can make shots. Brandon Clark's a freak athlete, you know, a guy who's older. he's older, transferred, and does,

he has that motor like you talked about in a Seer Little bit. He does. He's got a great motor. But he's a, he's a net zero with his, you know, with his wingspan to his height. Yeah, he got short arms. Yeah.

Yeah, he's got the T-Rex thing going. And he's only, again, he's only 207 pounds. And so look like, I loved him in college. I just don't know. Like, the thing about, Everybody talks about like this Draymond. Like, dude, Drayman's got crazy long arms.

He got long arms. And crazy basketball IQ. Crazy IQ. So what do you, does, is Brandon Clark an NBA player? That's a tough one for me. Because I don't really know what he is. You know, he's in my top 20 rankings because it's just such a good college player. He's such a freak athlete.

I think when you, I think as when, when, when, kids are great athletes, but you don't know what to do with them basketball-wise. The best thing you can do for them when they get to the NBA is make them defensive stoppers until you figure it out. Yeah, but can you be a defensive stop? Can you be a defensive stop when you don't have long arms? Like six, six eight and a quarter wingspan, six a eight and a quarter wingspan is not, is, is not going to, that's not going to scare people.

No, it's not. But I just think he has terrific, terrific lateral speed. He's a, he's a fantastic athlete. I think he doesn't get enough credit for his motor. He can beat you to spots. So like I said, when you can't figure out what to do with them, the best thing you can do is make them defensive stoppers until you figure it out. And I think that's his best suit is like, hey, you know what?

Come in here, I need you to guard the toughest guys. When you check into the game, I need you to guard Draymond Green. When you're checking the game, you know, I need you to guard, I need you to harass James Hardin. You're a little taller than him. You know, you give those type of guys' assignments until they figure out what they're going to be on the offensive side of the ball. And I think he's a question mark offensively, but I think defensively he's just a good rotation guy that can fit in. This clip is brought to you by State Farm.

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Yeah. I don't know if he's, I don't know if he's, right now he's not a true, you know, a three-point shooter. But yeah, I'm like, he's a rotation guy, maybe a starter on a good team in the NBA, right? Yeah, yeah, he doesn't pop. He doesn't, like, if you watch his tape, he's not going to pop. You know, it's just like, okay, good player, you know. Good player. makes the right decisions, knows what he's doing,

terrific defender. He kind of reminds me a little bit of Bruce Bowen, you know, kind of that type of guy that just, that's going to play hard, going to come to practice, going to be a great locker room guy. So he's a safe, I think he's a safe pick.

But I would be... That doesn't feel like he'll require a ton of maintenance, right? He'll just, you know, get better. It doesn't require the ball a bunch to be who he can be. Yeah, like, I'm not going to high... Like, we talked about R.J. Barrett, like, R. doesn't have the basketball, what is he?

You know, if you don't run any single play for DeAndre Hunter, he'll be fine. You know, he'll be fine. He'll shoot when he's open, and if not, he'll move it and he'll rebound it, but there's definitely a lower ceiling there than a bunch of these other guys we're talking about.

You're right, right. Like I said, DeAndre, like, if we're a GM, if I'm a GM, you're a GM of a team and we're working with the same NBA team, and I say, Doug, let's draft him. I'm not going to high five you once we draft them. You know, it's just like, we played a safe on that one,

Duff. I think that's the kind of prospect he is. Ty Jerome. Does he make in the league? I do. I think he finds a home. Great footwork.

So slow. I know, but he got great feet. He's slow, but he can get to a spot. He can get to spots in college. And kind of, Like everybody says grievous Vasquez. Like, okay.

Okay, maybe. And like, I did notice Grievous Vasquez had a, you know, he played in the NBA, but it's not like he was a long time NBA player. Yeah. He has a negative wingspan. You're a wingspan guy.

I'm not. I'm just telling you what, like, NBA guys, like, I call him up and I was like, Ty Jerome, like, what do you do with Ty Jerome? Like, man, I'd love to have a on my team, but dude has a negative wingspan, is slow and got away with, like, shot clock

heaves in college, because he just shot over smaller guys. Yeah, he can't tie his shoes. I get it, but I didn't think that he... Negative wingspan. I know. Negative wingspan. Yeah. I'm not a wingspan guy, but when you start

going T-Rex on me, I'm like, okay, that's a little different. Yeah, like, you need help tying your shoes, and yeah, yes, that's a problem. But, no, I just think that he, I just, I just think that, you know, I think he may go in and out the G League, but I just think that he has some, there's some skills there. Let's not, let's give the kids some credit. There's some skills there for Jerome.

There, there's a, a lot of people are going to, I want to talk to about R.J. Hampton in a second. Okay. But Darius Basley, you know, he did this thing when he was going to go to, first he was going to go to Ohio State, and he's going to go to Syracuse. And he's going to the G League. instead he sat out for a year. He's a great measurement guy. Great measurement guy.

Yep. Can he play? Yes, he is. I think he's going to have a little. I think that the transition to the NBA is going to be a tough one. I think training camp for him is going to be a wake-up call. You know, like, hey, man, these guys are faster and stronger in person. He kind of gives me that, he kind of gives me a fatty-ish.

young feel. A guy that can just kind of more of a utility athlete type dude. So another guy that can probably, you know, be a roster guy that I don't think he'll make an impact on the NBA right away. I think it's a guy, this is more of a like my DiAngelo Russell scale. I think he's a year three, year four guy. I don't think he comes into the NBA and he's just windmilling on people. And if I'm wrong, I'll totally admit it.

But I just don't see him going right into the NBA, and he's just catching windmills and, you know, doing it. I think it's going to be a learning curve for him. Okay, so give me a guy who people aren't talking enough about that you believe is going to be like, it's been established you're a Cam Reddish guy. Estabished.

Okay. Got it. Love it. Yeah. Hashtag talk soon. Okay. Give me somebody, give me somebody a little more off. the radar. Like that dude was all everything played at Duke, going to be a top 10 picker.

So give me somebody who you're going to, who, go ahead. Sure. Jalen hands, you, Jalen hands, the point guard out of UCLA, I think this kid has some dynamics. He has some NBA qualities about him that I believe that a team can use him and he'll be a good backup player. But I think eventually he can work himself into a starting line up down the line. I just like what the kid breaks to the table. He's fascinating because he is.

He went to, I don't want to sell out who told me this, but he went to an NBA workout last year. And excuse my French, but he was an asshole. He just, he had an arrogance to him. He actually talked back to the coaches

there, like they were just could not get him out of the building fast enough. And I don't know if that was the case other places, but he did, there were some people that were like, dude, I just, I'm not in jail. And I, and I would have, I thought, you know, look, anybody can be humbled. You have to go back to college. You know, if you have perspective and it's hard when you're in college to go like, hey,

my coach got fired. And we were told, like, look, UCLA, one of the reasons they were bad was they didn't have a point guard and he was their point guard, right? So, but, but I, I do kind of agree. I'm actually going to agree with you here. I don't think it'll ever be a starter. He might. I could be wrong.

But I think if put in the right set of circumstances where he's got a buy-in defensively. And then he just has to get into the mindset of like, I'm just going to come in and change the pace of a game. And whether it's, you know, whether there's a Patty Mills. And again, he's not as skilled as Patty. he was coming out. Right. He doesn't shoot it like that.

But he doesn't shoot it like that. But he has a Russell Westbrook type of athleticism. Like he has ridiculously athletic. He could be an outstanding defender. He can pass, but he's not a passer. He can score. He can shoot, but he's not a shooter. I mean, I think it just comes down to,

can he deal with less touches, less minutes, higher level of competition? and be more efficient if he does so, I think he could be an NBA player for a long time. I agree, yes. But there also is, like, he's got to have been humbled by, all right, now he's going to the NBA draft. He's probably going to be a second round pick.

Does he understand that the league is telling him what his role has to be, and does he buy into that? Because everyone thinks, like, yeah, I could do that. If you just tell me I'm going to play 20 minutes and I'm just going to go get buckets and defend my ass off, I could do that. Then all of a sudden you're sitting there for the first 30 minutes and then you come in and you're playing against better competition and you got like, but I think the spacing of the NBA should help him. And I think the fact that he doesn't have to truly be a leader because he's not a natural leader.

I think that I totally agree, Doug. I think that the humbling situation that he had last year, I think he came out better. And I think he's ready to embrace and kind of claw his. way into the NBA. So I think he's prepared himself mentally for that, and I think he's hungry. And he was a kid, and like I said, he has some dynamics about him that you can't teach. He has some speed. He's a good passer.

He's great in transition. And what I like about him, and he's terrific in passing lanes. So like you said, I think he can be a great defensive point guard. I think he's better than Chris Dunn. I think he's better than Chris Dunn. and Chris Dunn went He wasn't better than Chris Dunn in college Not in college

No no no But I think he's I think he's I think and this is no slight to Chris Dunn This is me A little bit Talking about how How, no

This is me talking about This is me talking about how good I think Jayland Hans could be I think he's a little better than Chris Dunn He's a little faster He's a better athlete I think Chris Dunn is obviously a better defender Because he's been in the league

But I just think he fits in that mode And Chris Dunn Guys were so high on him coming out of college. No doubt. Guys were high, I wasn't high on Chris Dunn coming out of college. I was like, oh, no. I was only from the perspective of, I do think that defending at the point-car position, like, it's just, you have to be so good to be hidden nowadays, right?

Correct, yeah, yeah. And he didn't have to be hidden. No, no, we can just be. And we hadn't necessarily seen the peak of Chris Dunn because the repeated shoulder injuries early on. Yep. You know. But you're right. Like I was higher on him than I should have been.

I wasn't. Yeah. Well, you nailed that one. Yeah, I wasn't. I liked them, but I was like, I didn't like the top team. I'm like, nah, I see him like late 20s. But everybody was like, oh, he's a lottery pick. I'm like, I don't see.

I watched the tape. It just didn't jump. but I think Jalen hands, I think Jalen Hans is a little better than Chris Dunn. And Chris Dunn was a lottery pick. That's just what I see. Yeah, I'm going to disagree with you there, but I, you know, I think, I think Hans and like, look, I'm a West Coast guy,

so the last thing I'm going to do is say kids from San Diego, you know. Yeah. But there was an intangible of leadership and toughness and lack of, a lack of ability to allow your team to lose, whereas, like, everybody points to the photo, the video of Jalen Hands, like picking, who was Moses Brown's chin up.

Yeah, Moses. Mm-hmm. Yep. But, like, that's one moment, right? Like, they, they lost so many games that they should have, and did not compete. Wasn't a good team, though, Doug. Wasn't a good team, wasn't well coached.

The locker room was a mess. Just a bad situation. But none of that falls on, like, would you allow your team's locker room to fall apart? No. No. Okay. No. I wouldn't know.

But I don't think that we're going to have, we should give all the claim to jail and hands. I just think that. No question. Listen. And it's really important that you point that out. It's a really good point. I'm not putting everything. But there is a, but I'm also not going to put nothing on jail and hands.

I get that. No. When you go, when I'm in Vegas and I'm watching them play, I'm like, man, what is missing with this team? team. And every text and every scout's like, they ain't got no point guard. I'm like, well, the guy bringing the ball up the court supposedly an NBA prospect, and he's their point guard.

Like, now they ain't got a point guard. They don't have leadership. And, and, you know, they had clearly tuned Alford out. Well, that's, you know, somebody's got to be the alpha in the room that says, like, hey, fellas, like, this is, and it never really turned. I would agree with you. Wasn't a good team, collection of parts of all guys that thought they were NBA players. and he's probably the only guy that gets drafted.

Correct. It was just a bad mix of it wasn't a good mix. That's all. No, no. He's the quarterback, so he's got to put his face. He gets the, you get to throw darts at his face. All right, last thing, R.J. Hampton, who, super skilled, again, kind of in the,

I'm not going to compare him to R.J. Barrett in terms of his body and his, but it's the idea that's how he plays, is the same way R.J. Barrett played. coming up with ball in his hands, dominant ball handler. What do you think of the decision to go to New Zealand? From the standpoint of, and I played in Australia, so I mean, it's to go to a country where they speak English, they're going to pay you good money, the season is short, the weather is nice, I think that, you know, it's a no-brainer in that regard.

I think he'll play well there, and I think that it won't be as strain for him to his body. They won't practice up for three hours a day. So I think that's a good decision on his part. The key is a top 10 player. I don't think he really wanted to do the NCAA, obviously, for whatever reasons he had. And I just think that that's just another avenue. I think he's exercising his rights at the end of the day. That's how I look at it.

No, no, I, nobody's disputing his, I just from, let's just take it from a basketball and lifestyle perspective. Like, I love the idea of New Zealand. Sounds like a great culture. It is. And I do like the idea of playing against older guys. And what no one's willing to say is like, look, he couldn't go to Spain or Italy or Turkey or Russia because those teams wouldn't play them. They want to win. And you're not going to win with an 18 year old kid.

So this is a level of competition, which is low enough. and a team that's not competing for a championship where he's going to, like he's only going to go there if he's promised he's going to play 30 minutes a game, which is great, playing against older guys. Right.

My issue with it, my view with it is like, I just don't see how that absolutely prepares you better for the NBA. And in addition to which, like, I understand that. I see what you, I see what you're saying.

Like he was, say he went to Kansas. Okay. Right. And we operate in, this, I think some of the media operates, huh? I said, use another school, but yeah, I know what you're saying. Why use another school?

I just, Kansas, I just think that that's just, they struggle with shooting guards. Quentin Grimes is already transferring out of there. He's supposed to be a top ten pick a year ago. But Quinn Gras wasn't any good. They don't struggle with shooting guards. They struggle with guys that aren't that good. He just wasn't that good. That's all, Quinn Grimes, like, if you asked those guys to be like, well, he didn't play well.

I agree. He just wasn't that good. They never, like, there was a kid, the, um, uh, Abaji was supposed to red shirt. He's a shooting guard. He was fine. He was just better. He just worked and was better and was tougher and was smarter and beat him out. That's really what happened.

Yeah. Yeah. How about if you're not that good, then if you're not that good in your heart, don't go to Kansas. That's what I. Okay. I got you. But, but my, the, we operate in this, this world, like, not you and I, but, uh, media, social media and fans especially.

where they're like, well, the coaches, and I do agree that coaches should get more time around their guys. But if you've ever been to Kansas, I want you to think about this. They have a dorm right next to their gym. And the dorm has a three-quarter court basketball court in it. So there is literally not a moment in the day you can't go get shots. They have a chef in the dorm.

When they're hungry, call them up, let's eat. Wow. Okay? Wow. They can walk over. They can walk over. And then they have a practice facility, which is as good as any NBA practice facility. They have a strength coach, and she's as good as anybody who does it.

Look at the bodies that they've produced. You know, the improvement of guys have gone there. And then you get a chance to play for a guy that's going to make you better, going to make you tougher. And, oh, yeah, by the way, he lets dudes. He lets dudes play. Like, he's not a role. He's not, right. He doesn't, they don't try and go get, you know, blood out of a rock.

I got it. Yeah. Yep. That's true. And you get a chance. And then there's the ancillary benefits of being a part of one of the great basketball cultures and histories and traditions and playing. How is playing 30 games, right? Like, okay, maybe 40 games against men, but missing out on the training aspect.

How, in your opinion, like if it's your son, what do you think is better? And look, you can even point out, if you want to point out that Kansas hasn't developed shooting guards. from your perspective. That's fine. Ben, what's, Ben McLemore, right? Yeah, Ben McLemore, yeah. He hasn't had a good NBA career,

but it wasn't like going to Kansas hurt his draft stock, but okay. True, true. So, even if you hold that, if you have a son, what's a better, what's a better option, in your opinion?

We'll send my son to college. I'm an NCAA guy. So I would send my son to college, Because I just think that there's things that outside of basketball that you get as a person in college that you can't get anywhere else. Agreed. So it's just the overall, let's just talk about, I don't want to sound corny here, but this is real because, I mean, my oldest daughter's going to college next year is I'm about education. So at the end of the day, you can't trade that education in for nothing. You have to be able to get your education.

And I'm big on that. So I would send my son to school and say, look, man, you're going to go, even if you're one and done, you're going to get this one year of education. You're going to take some good classes. And when you get drafted, you're still going to graduate college because you're always one play away from never playing again. So that's me the parent talking. Well, there's also the, it's interesting. You know, he said, he said, look, my parents both have college degrees. His mom has an advanced degree.

And he's an education is important. And I can always go back for that. Now, I would point out, and it's really important for people to understand, like, in college, you actually can go, when you go that one and done route, you can go back anytime you want. And you're on scholarship, anytime you want, whereas doing anything on your own is, is far more difficult in terms of just getting into school and what you can do. But whatever. But I thought the other parts that you were starting to point out, which are really, like, there is something to, you grow up in. Dallas and you go to Lawrence, Kansas. And so you're in the States and you're away from home, but you're not, you're not an adult

yet. You have this, you're around 18 to 22 year olds and like you kind of got to figure out socially how to get along, right? And I just, I think that's better and healthier. You do, it's not just like what you learn in class per se may not prepare you for your NBA future. and maybe that's another step that colleges should take is like, hey, should there be a pre-professional degree where you can learn about, you know, taxes and balancing your checkbook and investments and all the things it takes when you're basically, you are your own LLC. Yeah.

Correct. But there's the, there's a lot of education that goes on that's not inside of a book that you can only get when you're on a college campus. And anybody who's at college kind of knows this. And I actually think like the scholarship thing is kind of perfect because could you pay a kid more money? Like I guess you could. But what's the real, what's the point? Like there's no, if you give a kid $5,000, he's going to want $10,000, if you give a kid $10,000, $10,000, like there's no. And the point is now they have enough.

They never have, like you go to Kansas, you get a cost of attendance, you have money in your pocket. It's not like your parents don't have the ability to send you a hundred bucks or a couple hundred bucks. Like you're fine. You're fine. You get $5, $6,000 a year with the cost of attendance. the scholarship you already get. Yep. Right.

And you already, well, he wouldn't get a Pell, obviously, but anyway, the point is you have, you got a little money, but you also have to learn

to budget that, right? You have to learn like, all right, this is how much I got, this is how long I have it, and I got to figure out, how do I make this work? Like, that's, again,

another part of the education of being a way that we just, like, we just completely diminish. And I, I disagree with it, even though I've, and I've seen so many,

and yes, you are, it's not just your, you one play away, but like, all right, maybe he is a top 10 pick and maybe he has a bunch of money, but he gets done playing. And let's say he gets done playing at 30 years old. He doesn't have the NBA career he won it, we want to have, right? Yeah, you got 70 more years to live and you skipped over part of your life that's fun and also like an educational experience. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. So, I mean, there's,

There's different cases, but if it was me personally with my son, like, man, go to college, do you a year, get your education. It's going to be an experience that you're going to love. Trust me, dad's been there. You'll love it. And then we'll get to the NBA when it's our turn. That will be my, that will be my. But I don't not, RJ's, his family's decision, I support it because I kind of understand what they're doing.

I understand both sides. And I wish nothing but the best for him. and I think he's going to be terrific over there in Australia. They're going to love them in New Zealand. Look, I would agree with you in terms of, it seems like they put a lot of thought into it. And to that part, and they understand the pitfalls of it. They understand.

There's a reason they're doing it. I disagree with it, but my issue with it is, like, dude, don't string schools along when you signed a contract a month ago. Like, no one's going to, like, all these coaches, we make them out like they're these unreasonable dudes. Like, hey, you picked up the phone and called Penny or call Bill Self when you sign the contract and go, hey, I'm going to do this thing in New Zealand.

They'll be like, all right, good luck. Right. On to the next guy. But when you, you know, when we have to hold a scholarship for you, you know, have campus visits, continue to recruit you, put in that time and effort, I don't think that's a, and again, I don't necessarily put it on him. That's more on his parents.

Once you sign that contract, your parents need to go like, hey, pick the phone, call those coaches, thank them for what they've done and move on. Yeah. Yeah, I think you win some and you lose some. I think, yeah, from both sides. Hey, man, I appreciate your time. You know I love your work.

And for people who want to follow you, for people who want to follow you and get more stuff from Rashaa Phillips, how can they do so? You can reach me on Twitter, RP3 Natural, and you can subscribe to my YouTube channel, which is Sports Talk 2319. And you can find me on Instagram, Rashad Phillips, 2319. 2319 is the number of points that he scored as a star. at the University of Detroit, Mercy. Do I go Detroit, Mercy, or do I go Detroit? Either works. Either works.

Hey, man. Love your time. Thanks for joining us. I appreciate you, Doug. Talk soon. Be sure to catch live editions of the Doug. Dotleap show weekdays in noon Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeart radio app.

That's Rashad Phillips. And look, to echo his thoughts, and we don't agree on every player, obviously, But it's great for a guy who's so invested in the sport to discuss all the guys in the sport. My lasting thoughts on the NBA finals are this. I think Steph's amazing. Obviously, if they don't have Clay and they don't have KD, they're not winning this series. It would be incredibly competitive and compelling to watch them. to watch them compete the two of them without KD.

And remember, like this is a little bit like when they lost Andrew Bogot going back to when they lost to the cabs was in 2016. Like, let's not underestimate losing your best rim protecting big guy who is coming into his own and replacing him with DeMarcus cousins who, I don't know if I ever be back to what he was. And I don't even know if what he was fits in what the warriors are, but he's not even there yet. you know, and then you have a hobbled Andre Godala. Just the question to me is can they break out the ultimate weapon? And can KD come back and can he play? If he plays, they win. If he doesn't, oh, it's going to be a dog fight.

And then, you know, I thought the Raptors had to extend themselves a great deal in order to win that game, more so than they thought to win that game. But so too did Steph Curry. Like does Steph Curry when KD comes back? Is he out of gas? because to take on that burden for the last three games, frankly the last seven games, but the last three games, especially.

And yesterday, take on that burden, a double team everywhere you go, getting banged, getting battered. And I know the game is not as physical as it used to be, but that's a lot. Like, yes, to echo Rashad's points, and I think it's more because of the three-pointer, but his points do seem more devastating.

You come down, he got three guys on him and he goes through his legs behind his back and jumps up and makes a shot and like you're like oh god what happened what happened like all of that is great but it also there's a there's a lot of energy expended by him and that energy can can can wear thin like you can kind of run out of gas by doing it because you had to put so much into it And then I also pointed out, and this is kind of one of the lost discussions on analytics, is that so oftentimes we take the effective field goal percentage and we use that calculation and say, hey, look, if you make this number of threes, it actually drives up your fuel goal percentage.

Number of possessions for the other team on long caram rebounds. You know, you come down and you go one on three, you jump up, you miss that three point shot. And the team gets it. And because everybody else is hunting an offensive rebound, you give up an easy transition basket. One, they're, you know, that's an easy shot for them. They don't expend a ton of energy.

And there's a certain deflating aspect to it from your own team when your own star isn't hitting and he's casting up these big shots. So this is fun because it's almost, it feels like it's going to be three different series in one, right? There's the first part of the series. and potentially game four when you don't have KD, but you have Clay and you have Steph. Then you have the Steph kind of trying to do it on his own.

And then maybe you get all three back together for, if not four, five, six, and potentially seven. You know, now it's, you start to see kind of how it all, the reason that it's been relatively unbeatable. And then there's this last part of the discussion. And this part, I'm torn. Andre Godala, because he has played so well in so many big spots for the Warriors, has now entered this conversation of being a Hall of Famer.

And we've always operated in the media under the idea that Draymond Green is a Hall of Famer. And I guess my question is this. Like, if you're really a Hall of Famer in your Draymond Green and what should be the athletic prime of your career and you don't have Clay and you don't have KD and we're told by some, hey, the reason, he doesn't score as much is because those other, that's not what he has to do on their team.

But you're still a guy that no one guards. You're still a guy that they dare to shoot, right? So on one hand, I look at last night and I'm like, if they're Hall of Famers, shouldn't they have more impact, even with Andre Godala banged up at this age and his career? On the other hand, would I rather have Andre Godala on my team or Tracea McGradia on my team? I'd rather have Andre Godala.

Would I rather have Draymond Green or, I mean, in many ways, I guess I'd rather have him than Reggie Miller who made. It was only third team NBA once. So who would I rather have because one guy feels like helps me win more in Draymond and Iguodala. And even though another guy is a far more effective dominant score in Tracy McGrady. But he never won. didn't get out the first round of the playoffs until he's with the spurs late,

whatever, that doesn't really count. Or Reggie Miller. That's a hard one. But I tend to believe that if you are in fact a Hall of Famer and other guys go down and when called upon, you should be able to pick up the load

and last night was game three, those two were incapable of picking up the load and it was Steph versus the world. Right? So do I think they'll get in? Draymond will get into the Hall of Fame. Iguodala feels like prisoner of the moment, right? And I know that he was in, I think he was an All-Star once when he was with Philadelphia.

But like the point is, like when he was with Philadelphia, they were basically a 500 team when he scored all those points. As he evolved in his career and became more of a Swiss Army knife, now he was a lot more effective on better teams, but only a sudden now he's a, Hall of Famer? Like that feels like a definite leap. I think he's brilliant.

I think he's incredibly competitive. He has competitive greatness. I think he's a big part of why they've won championships. But that doesn't necessarily, like, what's the reward for that? Three championship brings, potentially four, maybe even more, and a lot of money. But Hall of Fame, I thought that was held for, you know, the five best guys in the sport over a couple. a couple of year period, you got in, you know? And over the lifetime of your career, if you're a perennial all-star, always in that

discussion of one of the best players of your position in the sport, that's the way you get in. So listen, you can listen to the Doug Gottlieb show every day, three to six Eastern time, 12 to 3 Pacific. You can download the podcast as well, wherever you download this podcast. In the meantime, appreciate you listening. I hope you enjoyed the prep for the NBA draft, the discussion on the NBA finals. Keep it tuned right here for the next edition of all. Ball Ball. I'm Doug Gottlie.

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