The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hoops Tonight - Draymond re-signs with Warriors, Kyrie stays in Dallas, Lakers land Gabe Vincent

Episode Date: July 1, 2023

Jason Timpf reacts to Day 1 of NBA free agency featuring Draymond Green returning to the Golden State Warriors on a 4-year, $100 million contract, Kyrie Irving returning to the Dallas Mavericks on a 3-year, 126 million contract, and Gabe Vincent heading to the Los Angeles Lakers. Jason discusses the Warriors' championship window with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, as well as the Lakers adding wing depth around LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Jason also reacts to the Indiana Pacers signing Bruce Brown and the Portland Trail Blazers retaining Jerami Grant. #volume #herdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win.

A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes,

creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. The Volume.

All right, welcome to Hoops Tonight here at The Volume. Happy Friday, everybody. Happy Free Agency Day. Obviously not the most exciting free agency in the world from the standpoint of superstars changing teams, but a lot of really high-level role players, either re-uping with teams, giving them a chance to run it,

or going to new teams with the opportunity to push them over the top. So for all you basketball nut jobs out there, still an entertaining free agency to say the least. We're going to hit on seven different teams today. The Gold State Warriors, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Phoenix Suns, the Dallas Mavericks, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Chicago Bulls, and the Portland Trailblazers. And then at the tail end of the show, I'm going to give my two cents on the James Hardin situation and his trade request. You guys know the drill before we get started. Subscribe to the volume's YouTube channel so you don't miss any more of our videos.

follow me on Twitter at underscore Jason LT so you guys don't miss any show announcements. And if for whatever reason you guys miss one of the shows and you can't get back over to YouTube to finish, don't forget you can find them wherever you get your podcasts under hoops tonight. All right, let's talk some basketball. So starting with the Golden State Warriors, they had to retain Draymond and they did so. Four years, $100 million. Shout out to Mike Dunleavy and the ownership group for recognizing the value that is with Ramon Green. It's really this simple to me.

I know there's a contingent of Warriors fans that looks. it as offensive limitations and some of his histrionics as something that's infuriating and that a lot of you guys wanted to get rid of them. But the reality was, is you had no chance to contend for an NBA championship without Draymond Green on your roster. He's the kind of player that I've always gravitated towards. Yes, he also works at the same company as I do, but that has nothing to do with it. As a basketball fan, those of you guys have been watching the show for a while, no, guys like this are guys that have always valued a great deal. The guys that do all of the little things that help teams win basketball games.

And make no mistake, as Steve Kerr has said many times, had the Warriors let go of Draymond Green, they would have immediately lost the ability to contend for NBA championships. Once again last year, as has been the case for the most part throughout this entire era, the Warriors were monumentally better with Draymond on the floor versus when he was off. The Warriors were 14 points better per 100 possessions with Draymond on the floor versus when he was off the floor, which was by far the best on the team among their core rotation players. You need Draymond Green on the Warriors to have a chance to win. End of story.

They paid what they needed to pay to keep him around. I'm happy for Draymond as a basketball fan. I want to see him retire there anyway. And this gives us a very interesting Warriors team to cover over the course of the next couple of years. He's the fulcrum of their defense. This is a team that's going to be leaning more heavily on pick and roll than ever with the addition of Chris Paul. Ramon Green's arguably the best short roll passer in the league. You needed him, you kept him.

Kudos to the Warriors. It had to be done. There's also some reports out there that Dario Sarage is likely, quote unquote, to select the Warriors. That signing is not official yet. But I like that as well. Once again, leaning more on pick and roll. He is a excellent short role player with OKC. He averaged 1.3, 2 points per possession in pick and pops and pick and rolls.

That was in the 82nd percentile around the league. he also shot a 57% effective field goal percentage on catch-and-shoot jump shots with OKC. So there's your stretch big that the Warriors had with Namanya B. Elisa, which worked really well. And this is kind of like a bigger, stronger version of that in Dario Sarge. I like that as a potential pickup. He also shot really well on floaters and hooks and at the rim. I think he's a good offensive big to kind of compliment what Kavan Looney and Draymond Green bring to the table in the front court. All right, moving on to the Los Angeles Lakers.

and their shocking signing of Gabe Vincent from the NBA finalist Miami Heat for three years in $33 million. This is definitely not the type of player I was expecting the Lakers to go after. I thought they'd go after a bigger athlete guard like Bruce Brown, which obviously they were priced out of, but I thought they'd be targeting a player in that kind of archetype or a legit backup center, someone like Brooke Lopez or of a similar mold. That said, backcourt skill we saw last year with DeAngela Russell and Austin Reeves, works really well with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. And Gabe Vincent was a better playoff player in this playoff run than DeAngelo Russell was as a two-way guard at the point of attack as well as on the offensive end running pick and rolls.

He was a very successful pick-and-roll ball handler this year in the postseason. The heat ran 213 Gabe Vincent pick-and-rolls that led to 225 points including passes. That's 1.06 points per possession, which is excellent. 1.26 points per possession and spot-up situation. So he's great knocking down catch-and-shoot jumpers and attacking closeouts. 65% effective field-go percentage on catch-and-shoot jumpers, 47% effective field-go percentage on pull-up jumpers, and 44% on floaters.

So not what I was expecting, but more offensive skill around LeBron James and Anthony Davis and a very good compliment to Austin Reeves. And so an interesting signing, to say the least. I wonder if it's going to give them a little bit more leverage to potentially get a discount on DeAngelo Russell. Because if you get Gabe Vincent at $11 million, which might seem like a little high, but you get DeAngel Russell for less because you're effectively demonstrating to him

that you don't need him, so to speak, that might end up working out in the long run. It's definitely a bigger number than I would like for a team like the Lakers to spend on a player like Gabe Vincent. That said, I'm very happy for Gabe Vincent. And for Bruce Brown, who signed for the Pacers at two years, $45 million. It's a great example of the fact. that doing things within a winning concept will always get you further than putting up numbers in a different type of situation. This goes beyond the NBA to all of you kids out there that are

playing in high school, playing in junior college, trying to get the right type of college scholarship, you will get more looks in a winning concept. So finding a way to help your team win basketball games, playing for a winner will always go a longer way towards getting you to the next level as a basketball player than doing things within a losing concept. Bruce Brown and Gabe Vincent, neither of them put up fantastic numbers in this postseason run, but they both played vital roles in the back court for teams that won three playoff series or four in the case of Denver. And as a result, they've amassed what's this,

$78 million worth in salaries that they've signed this summer. So it's a good lesson for young basketball players. Focus on winning first. Not your numbers. Focus on winning. That's how you're going to get that perfect college scholarship. That's how you're going to get to transfer to the school you want to go to. that's how you're going to get that good deal if you're playing overseas,

and that's how you're going to get more money when you're playing in the NBA. Another big signing for the Lakers, for the biannual exception, Tori and Prince. To me, just a textbook like league average wing, kind of like that like replacement player type level wing in the NBA. He's not a great athlete, but he has good measurable. He's 6'8 with a 611 and a half wing span. Shot 41% on catch-and-shoot jumpers last year, 61% effective field goal percentage when you wait that for three.

He was a very good catch and shoot shooter. A little bit of an in-between game. He's got a little bit of that extra scoring chops. Like I always talk about scoring ability is almost a natural ability. It's like a creativity mixed with audacity. Torium Prince has a good amount of that. It's why he was up over a point per possession in isolation situations last year, although in low volume.

So he definitely brings just a little bit more offensive punch for the position. Not a fantastic defender at the position like he used to be when he was younger. But he's a good piece for depth. And depth matters. in the NBA, especially for teams like the Lakers, because let's say LeBron or AD have to miss a game, and all of a sudden your aggregate size takes a nose dive, right? When you have guys like Austin Reeves and Gabe Vincent running pick and rolls all night, while guys like Tori and Prince and Rui Hachamura and Jared Vanderbilt are flying around on defense,

you give yourself a decent chance to compete, especially at home playing in front of the energy of your home crowd. So whereas when you're tiny and you lose guys like LeBron James and Anthony Davis, you're just completely hopeless. So definitely like the Torium Prince signing just for depth on the wing. The Lakers have a legit core of forwards now that they did not have in previous seasons. Moving on to the Suns. So they re-signed Josh Akoji and Damian Lee. Definitely a couple of decent backcourt pieces.

Lee's an outstanding shooter. Akoji is an outstanding point of attack defender. They get Yuna Wananavi. I'm guessing from his friendship with Kevin Durant from when they were teammates. 1.26 points per jump shot last year with the Brooklyn Nets. That was third out of 253 players to attempt at least 150 jump shots. So one of the best knockdown spot-up shooters in the league with outstanding length for his position. Loved that signing.

They also picked up Chimesey Metzu and Drew Eubanks, a couple of big athletic forwards at discounts. So again, this is what the Sons had to do. They had to find discounted talent, preferably guys that had motor and length. length and athleticism in the front court, and they did that. So kudos to the Phoenix Suns. Will it be enough to bang with Nicole Yokic and the rest of the Nuggets roster for a seven gamer? That remains to be seen.

But given the situation after they made the Bradley Beal trade, this is pretty well done at that point. The Mavs signed Kyrie Irving for three years and $126 million. So Kyrie gets his paycheck. Not completely surprising, especially when you consider the fact that Kyrie's really freaking good at basketball, you know, the talking point that gets a paycheck. most frequently overlooked when we talk about Kyrie Irving. Really take a deep look at the way the Mavericks played after the Kyrie Irving trade.

They were better with Kyrie on the floor than they were with Luca on the floor. He is still one of the most outstanding high pick and roll and isolation shot creators in the league. He brings a great deal of variety that makes him very difficult to guard. He's an underrated passer. When he competes defensively, he can be a good defender as well. I'm a huge Kyrie fan. I know the off-court stuff is an issue. don't get me wrong, I wouldn't be surprised if at some point in the next three years,

Kyrie tried to force his way out. Kyrie, generally speaking, is devoted when he's happy and looking to mess shit up, for lack of a better term, when he's unhappy. But the MAVs did what they had to do. They flipped a bunch of assets for Kyrie. They had to resign the asset. And here's the thing. If Kyrie is unhappy at the deadline and they flip him to some other team,

you're going to get assets back. And that's all that matters. They needed to resign him to maintain the asset. They did so. My guess is they give it a go, but if they're underwhelming around the deadline, don't be surprised if Kyrie tries to force his way out again. He really did this all for the payday. As we know, the Brooklyn Nets at the deadline last year were kicking everybody's ass. They were in great shape other than the Kevin Durant injury. Kyrie forced his way out strictly because the Brooklyn Nets would not re-sign him to the dollar amount he wanted. This was a purely financial move.

As long as the MAVs are viable on the court, I think he'll be fine and I think he'll be devoted. you know, this is the business. And don't be surprised if during that deal he's playing for another team. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all,

embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliford Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Cliverts Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations,

stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross

double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jek. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it.

Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes.

I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Cavaliers re-signed Karras Levert, but the interesting one is they signed George's Nia. From the Philadelphia 76ers for three years and 26 million. I love this signing, particularly because they are so damn athletic in the front court with Evan Mowgli and with

Jared Allen, and Evan Mowgli can guard three, so you don't need George Sniang to fly around on the perimeter guarding quicker players, but they desperately needed a reliable wing shooter to open things up and pick and roll so that teams could stop guarding the Cavs pick and rolls of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland three on two. And George's Kneeling is a deadly spot-up shooter in this league, so I love that signing for them as well. The Chicago Bowl signed Jivon Carter. Now they have a very interesting defensive back court between Alex Crusoe, Ayutasunmu, and Javon Carter. They are going to be a frightening ball pressure team, especially since Alex Cruzu and Ayur Dusunmo are both big, strong athletes for their position.

They can play three-guard lineups now. And don't be surprised if that team is devastating defensively in the regular season just because of their point of attack defense. And then again, like, you know, I always talk about rim protection as a product of two different things. Rim protection is a product of your size and athleticism around the rim. but it's also a product of your perimeter contain. If you can contain ball handlers on the perimeter,

you shut down driving lanes. If you shut down driving lanes, then they're not getting all the way to the rim anyway. And we saw kind of a version of this just before Lonzo Ball got injured when he first signed with the Bulls, when you saw Lonzo and Alex just picking up guards full court and just making life hell for them on the perimeter.

I really like that signing for the Bulls. They are going to be a frightening perimeter defense team, which is going to keep them in a lot of games over the course of the regular season. And last but not least, on the free agent front, the Portland Trailblazers resigning Jeremy Grant for $5 years and $160 million. Now, it seems like a lot of money, but I actually like this move. I think it's smart regardless of what the Blazers decide to do, whether they decide to get rid

of Damian Lillard and go full rebuild, or they decide to keep Dame and try to compete for a title within this window. That's a tradable contract. It's only $32 million per year. You've got a new TV deal coming in 2025 that's going to dramatically increase the salary cap, making that look a lot more like a $20 million deal or $15 million deal per year. That's going to be a deal they can move. And here's the thing with Jeremy Grant. He's a big, strong athlete with excellent physical tools. He's over a point per possession in pick and roll and in post-up situations. He can guard multiple decisions and he's an outstanding catch and shoot player. So guess what?

Like for the same reason that Andrew Wiggins is worth that much money, Jeremy Grant's worth that much money too. And whether he ends up helping the Blazers within this window or getting flipped for assets to help some other team down the line, just like we were talking about earlier, you've got to maintain the asset and the Blazers did so by resigning Jeremy Grant. All right, last but not least, before we get out of here, let's talk about this James Harden thing. So obviously I read the athletic report last night.

I believe it was Sam Amick. I'm not 100% sure who wrote it. But I also kind of texted some of the people that I know that are connected around the league and just tried to get a feel for the situation. And the best that I could figure out is that James Hardin wanted to go to Houston, but it was really a leverage play. And so he was putting out all these reports, leaking all this information to the media about how he was going to go to Houston.

He was going to go to Houston. It started as far back as Christmas Day. And all of these Easter eggs that he's dropping about how he's going to Houston, basically with the intention of trying to leverage Darry to give him the deal that he wanted, right? As it turns out from what I've heard from behind the scenes, I'm not sure Houston was really all that interested in him to begin with for obvious reasons. It didn't make a ton of sense even when it was originally getting reported, right? They had all this cap space, but they have all these young guards that they're trying to develop.

It didn't make a ton of sense. Well, it turns out that Darry basically called his bluff. and was like, okay, go out and get yourself a deal. And whatever it is, we'll discuss a deal for you at that point. And turned out Houston didn't want him. As was reported in the athletic report, it looks like he wanted to potentially be the guy that got traded to Phoenix instead of Bradley Beale. And then that didn't work out.

And then suddenly there were no suitors in his best situation was just to opt into the contract and to demand a trade. There was this interesting report that came out last night that James Harden was frustrated with the way that the Sixers' front office handled this whole situation. But again, from what I've heard about the situation, it feels more like it was James Harden who overplayed his hand. Now, on the trade front, here's the thing with James Hardin. I went back and looked, because, you know, I've been a big defender of James Hardin in this particular season, and he had some really good moments in this playoff run. Again, like, he hit two

game winners in the Celtics series. Like, he straight up won two of the games. But as you look a little bit closer, these are crazy stats. Six of the 11 playoff games that James Hardin played in, he shot below 30%. In four of those six games, he had five plus turnovers. And the Sixers went two and four in those six games. And that outweighs some of the top end that you saw in the better moments of James Hardin's playoff run.

So here's the thing. Do I think James Hardin is some sort of star player that can push your team to championship contention when you're at some tier below that? Probably not. His inconsistencies are just too much of a threat there. That said, James Hardin is still one of the very best advantage creators in our league. He's very good at warping the defense one way or another, getting multiple defenders to pay attention to him. That creates advantage situations for your spot-up players, for your role men, for all of your role players on the court that will struggle to attack a set defense. So there is still value in having James Hardin on a basketball team. The problem

is he cannot be the guy that's deciding every possession for you at the end of basketball games. And that kind of fundamentally was the issue for the Sixers is because James Hardin has his offensive limitations and inconsistencies. And Joel and Bede struggle so mightily to to handle double teams and to score in the physicality of the NBA playoffs where his efficiency takes, tanks, and his volume tanks every single season. That pairing doesn't work. work. But what if James Hardin was on like a team like the Miami Heat? Or suddenly he's playing Advantage creator for 45 minutes a game and then in comes Jimmy Butler to close the game at the end where he's going to be a more reliably great player in that setting. I'm not even saying

necessarily the heat, but there's got to be some team out there that sees value in James Hardin, especially if they have the ability to take the keys away from him in late game situations when he does not have it going, which is going to be about half the time when you get to the NBA playoffs. So, again, he overplayed his hand, but he's going to get a suit. There's going to be someone out there who trades for him. I've heard the Clippers are interested. I've heard that the Knicks are potentially interested. Don't hate any of those options.

For the Clippers in particular, here's what would concern me. Why are you giving up Terrence Mann? Terence Mann's a really, really good basketball player, like an outstanding basketball player. And it kind of fits into that like mold of the Bruce Brown type of stocky guard that succeeds so much in the NBA playoffs. And so it's not so much that I dislike the James Hardin fit with the Clippers because it makes a lot of sense. He's a game manager when Paul George and Kauai struggle with game management. He's a guy that you can take the ball out of his hands in late game situations and give it to Kauai, right? There's a lot of advantages there.

But if you're giving up Terrence Mann and Norman Powell, if you're giving up that kind of depth, I start to get a little worried about it. So again, for the right team, without having to give too much up, I think James Hardin can still help a team win and still even at a championship level. It just wasn't working in Philly. The dynamic between him and Joel and Bede was too inconsistent in the NBA playoffs, and he overplayed his hand.

And so he didn't get the deal he wanted, and now he's going to have to play one additional season. But here's the other thing, too, and this is the last thing I'll say about it, like if you're the team that gets James Hardin, you're getting him in a contract year, and you're getting him in a contract year, after an offseason where he disappointingly did not get the deal he wanted. So you might get the most motivated version of James Harden next season, and that is appealing on a bunch of different levels.

All right, guys, that is all I have for right now. As news continues to pour in over the next couple of days, I was supposed to fly out to Texas this morning. Long story, but Travel Snafu, I'm actually flying out this more, tomorrow morning. But I get back just about 3 p.m. Pacific time tomorrow. So, If anything goes down over the course of the next day or so, we'll have another video on Sunday evening. As always, I sincerely appreciate you guys, and I will see you at some point in the next couple of days. The volume. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and Friends.

Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games.

Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.