The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hoops Tonight - Reaction to Chris Paul trade to Warriors, Jordan Poole to Wizards

Episode Date: June 23, 2023

Jason Timpf reacts to Chris Paul being traded to the Golden State Warriors to team up with Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson, while Jordan Poole heads to the Washington Wizards in the blockbuster deal. Jason discusses how Chris Paul will fit on the Warriors, and what this trade does for their chances of winning another NBA title. #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 IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes.

Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of Tontons and Wampas on the Ice Planet Hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith Ruehull. of two. Listen to Stuff to Bole Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Volume. All right, welcome to Hoops Tonight here at The Volume. Happy Thursday, everybody. Well, the Golden State Warriors is traded for Chris Paul and suddenly we're going three times today.

So I'm going to be breaking down this trade from the perspective of the Warriors and then talk a little bit about Jordan Poole and what we should look for from him over the course of the next few years with the Washington Wizards. You guys know the Joe before we get started. to the volumes 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 these 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. Also, last but not least, don't forget earlier today, we did a breakdown of the Celtics trade that brought in

Chris Hopps Porzingis and sent Marcus Smart to the Boston Celtics. We also hit on Scoot Henderson versus Brandon Miller. We also hit on Damien Liller. with the Portland Trailblazers and a little bit on the John Moran suspension. And later tonight, don't forget, we're going live with the guys from NerdSession and Colin Coward to break down the NBA draft. So the deal, the machinations of the deal send Jordan Poole to the Washington Wizards as well as a heavily protected first round pick, top 20 protected, and a second round pick as well. Reports show that the Warriors intend to keep Chris Paul and use him on their basketball team, no intent to waive him, at least at this point.

I thought this was a truly bizarre trait from the standpoint of the Warriors. These are two big-time conflicting basketball identities that are going to have to fit together. So let's start there and kind of branch out. So Chris Paul is a very high-volume pick-and-roll ball handler. He only played 59 games this year and still amounted 1,134 pick-and-rolls. And he's still very good at it. By the way, he's one of only 15 players will run over 1,000 pick-and-roll. and rolls in the league this year, finished seventh in efficiency on pick and rolls on that list,

averaging 1.066 points per possession, which is very good. So Chris Paul is a extremely high-volume ball handler who is still very good at it. The problem is only the Nuggets and Kings run fewer pick-and-rolls than the Golden State Warriors do. They run a motion offense. What does that mean? So instead of dribbling about the floor, spacing the floor properly, and bringing up a ball screen to run or maybe running something that flows into a ball screen like a RAM screen where you screen down for the screener or some sort of off ball action.

The most teams in the NBA run that. They just bring the ball up the floor, they space. They might run something that flows into their pick and roll, but they're mostly running pick and roll, right? What makes the teams like the Warriors, Kings, and Nuggets very unique is they usually enter their offense in different ways. So the Nuggets do a lot of post-ups, right? Through Nicola Yokic, and they run a lot of dribble handoffs.

The Kings run just a ton of dribble handoffs because they want to weaponize DeMontas and his ability to playmate out of that triple threat and fake handoffs and things like that, right? Well, the Warriors, same sort of thing. They typically run multiple non-shooters on the floor at any given time, right? So they'll have Draymond Green out there, but they'll also have a guy like Gary Payton or a guy like Kavana, Looney on the floor at the same time. And so what they always try to do is invert their spacing. They don't want to space the floor with those guys because it's just difficult to do. The timing has to be perfect in that pick and roll situation. So typically they like to invert and bring the two non-shooters out to the perimeter.

and just run a ton of screening actions, usually five-man screening actions, full-blown plays. They will run down and run sets rather than just free-flowing basketball more than any team in the NBA by a significant margin. And so with the way that they like to play, Chris Paul's a very different type of player to try to cram into that spot. To give you an idea, Chris Paul took a shot coming off of a screen just three times all season. Okay, the Golden State Warriors run more off-screen plays than anybody in the league by a mile. They run 11.7 per game, and no one else in the league runs more than nine. So you're taking one of the guys that almost never runs an off-screen play and bringing them into a team that almost only runs off-screen plays relative to the rest of the league.

So it's definitely a very bizarre type of fit there. So the question is, what are they going to do to make Chris Paul fit offensively with this team? Pick and roll with the Warriors is more of a break glass in cases of emergency thing. In a late game situation, they might start running Steph pick and roll. In a playoff series, when teams start to scheme away their sets and ignore their non-shooters, they might start going to Steph pick and roll, but they don't run it very frequently. So the question is, what's going to happen? Are the Warriors going to change the way they run offense to allow Chris to fit,

or is Chris going to change the way that he plays to fit into what Golden State does? My guess is they'll meet in the middle. First of all, CP3 has a bad injury history. He has suffered an injury in the playoff run in four of the last six seasons. Two of them he played through and played very poorly compared to what he played like beforehand. And then in the two others, he straight up had to miss games. And so with his injury history, chances are they'll probably just cut his minutes way down. With the sons, he was still running like 32 minutes a game and still playing 60s.

65 games in the season. My guess is the Warriors cut them way down, bring him down to like 55 games, bring him down to like 28 minutes. And if you stagger him with Steph, like if Steph plays, if Steph is playing, you know, 35 minutes a game, then that means there's 13 minutes a game when Steph's off the floor. So if you run half of Chris Paul's minutes when Steph's off, then you only have to try to make it work for like seven minutes a half, right? That's what I expect them to do. So the question is when they're both on the floor, how will they play? Because my guess is when Steph's on and CB3's off, they'll just play Warriors basketball. And when CP3's on and steps off, my guess is they run a lot more pick and roll.

But when they're both on the floor, that'll be the interesting element. So like I said earlier, he did very rarely run off screen plays, very rarely run dribble handoffs. He only ran 33 dribble handoffs all year while the Warriors were third in DHO frequency. But he's a very good spot-up player. Chris was one of the best spot-up players in the league this year. He averaged 1.29 points per possession in spot-up situations. that ranked sixth out of 257 players to log at least 100 possessions. And Steph was second on that list, right?

Steph is obviously the best shooter of all time and was the second best spot-up player to log at least 100 possessions last year. So what I expect to happen is when they're both on the floor, they'll probably lean a little bit more into the pick and roll side of their offense. For starters, I think that's a direction the Warriors have needed to go for a while. I think they've leaned too heavily on their motion offense at times. running more pick and roll over the course of the season, even with Steph, will help them be better prepared when they have to lean heavily on pick and roll in the playoffs,

which they inevitably have to do. Also, Steph and Chris in their ability to play off the ball, at least in spot-up situations, will give them the ability to play pick and roll with each other on the floor. The question will primarily have to do with the defensive end, but we'll get to that in a minute. I do think offensively it will work. I just think the way they'll have to play,

we'll have to lean a little bit more towards the way Chris likes to play. play than the way the warriors like to play, which may end up being a good thing simply because of the direction the warriors need to go. The thing that's going to be tricky is like, I don't know if Chris can run that much. He's like Chris Paul has always been a player who strangles the pace of games, brings the ball up slowly, gets guys in their spots, and methodically runs pick and roll. Whereas the warriors are like a let's push in transition. If we don't get anything, we're going into our motion. And every one of those dudes is just running like figure eights, the whole damn game. just constantly running off the screens and running and running and running.

And again, with that inverted spacing, what they're hoping is by bringing the bigs out to run dribble handoffs and set wide pin downs, they're bringing the screen defenders out, right, because they have to show on players coming off of screens and shooting. And that's just an interesting situation to throw Chris in because he's never been the guy who flies off a screen and takes a shot. Jordan Poole would. Steph Curry would. Clay Thompson would.

And so that's why I think they'll probably lean more into pick and roll. when Chris is on the floor, even with Steph. But there is a lot of potential upside here. Like I mentioned before, the Warriors almost always have to default to Steph high pick and roll in the late playoff rounds. And CP3 just gives you a better opportunity to lessen Steph's workload, right?

You're taking some of those responsibilities off of his plate in allowing him to take more possessions off. That makes it so fatigue plays a lesser role so that maybe when he takes that tough step back, one-legged shot over Anthony Davis or that pull-up three over Anthony Davis, maybe he has a little more lift because he ran 10 fewer pick and rolls in the fourth quarter,

and that alleviates some of that fatigue and gives him a better chance. I think some of that sharing the load, so to speak, will really help. The tricky thing is going to be is that's kind of what Jordan Poole was doing. And so if you look at the Jordan Poole role, Chris Paul is probably a more consistent veteran in presence. Young players are more volatile. Older players are more consistent. The difference is I thought

Jordan Poole was a better fit in the warrior's offense. He was a good player in the motion offense. You could come off a dribble handoffs and get downhill really easily, and Chris Paul is just different. And Jordan Poole in particular was the only warrior who could consistently generate rim pressure because he's so damn fast. And so I would have rather personally used the Jordan Poole contract on a player that can bring real rim pressure. So in summation, it can work. And Chris Paul is a super smart player who can figure out how to fit in. My concerns are can he stay healthy? How will they fit with their different play styles, which we went over? And the big one for me is, does he make the Warriors too small? So we already figured out from the Jordan Poole experience. If you play Jordan Poole with

Steph and Clay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, and Jermann, they're too small, right? that the pool party lineup or whatever they call it, that lineup struggled a lot in large part because they were too small and they didn't defend well enough. Chris Paul at this phase of his career doesn't move well and is not a very good defensive player. And so it'll be really interesting to see if that becomes a problem. Also, just in general, Jordan Pool is a much better athlete than Chris Paul. So if you bring in Chris Paul and you're running, Jordan Pool or excuse me,

Staff Curry with Chris Paul and Clay Thompson in your back court, are you too small and too unathletic to compete in the physical areas of the game. That's going to be the interesting question that we're going to find out the answer to. And then lastly, was it the right use of Poole's contract? Like, I understand his values probably lower now than it was last year, coming off of a rough playoff run, but he's still a very interesting young player. And yeah, he's going to make a lot of money, but we're heading into a stretch where the NBA salary cap's going to go up significantly

in the next few years. So is it actually kind of a decent deal to have a player like that? and would it have been better off, you know, would the Warriors have been better off trying to, I don't know, you know, make a move for a forward, a bigger forward that can slot between Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green, give them a better chance to hang physically with teams, and give them a better opportunity to generate shots through something other than a primary ball handler from the perimeter. So a guy who could turn his back to the basket and back people down and get easy shots that way. That would have been the direction that I would have gone, as you guys remember me talking about,

this summer. I really wanted them to, even if it meant be patient, like wait till the deadline. Maybe you wait till the deadline and you can make this same deal for Kyle Kuzma, you know, or something along those lines. But this is the direction they went. And so we're going to have to see how it works. And again, really smart franchise, really smart player. They'll probably find a way to make it fit on offense. I'm more just concerned about their overall sizing athleticism issues, especially in a Western conference that's dominated by the Denver Nuggets. 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, 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 Clifford 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 Tickford. Talk Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped 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 J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a 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. Clearly, 84 was big to me not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, 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 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 Podcast.

or wherever you get your podcasts. Last but not least, the Jordan Poole to the wizard side of this trade. You guys know how I feel about young basketball players. They typically don't know how to win. It's rare to get a situation like 2022 where Jordan Poole plays well on a championship run, right? And obviously, Jordan Poole has demonstrated that he can succeed in a winning concept, but young players are inconsistent, you know? Like, doesn't surprise me really all that much, that one year after Jordan Poole plays well,

on his way to a championship, he struggles on his way to losing in the second round. It's because he's a young basketball player. They struggle to replicate success and to avoid failures. They're young, and over time, you get better at learning to avoid failures and learning to replicate your success. So it's better for players like him to be in low-stress situations on bad teams that have no expectations. And so he can go to the Wizards and he can run 1,000 pick and rolls next year, 1,500 pick-and-rolls.

and he can really learn how to manipulate NBA defenses through trial and error by making mistakes, by having awful games. And he can do that for a few years, and then the Wizards can find out at that point if he's capable of being a foundational star. It's just too hard to find out on a Warriors team that rightfully would bench him when he was struggling because they had championship aspirations. Most players are afforded the luxury of learning how to play basketball in a low-stress situation before they play in high-stretched situations.

Guys who get drafted by winning teams like that, they typically have a much different path. And Jordan Poole, credit to him, he's found a way to succeed with the Warriors for stretches, but this will be a nice little stretch for him where he can, for a couple years, just learn how to play the game at a professional level with no stress. He has one truly elite skill, and that's his ability to beat people off the dribble. I always like to look at a foundational skill with a player. If they're not great at anything, it's going to be harder for them to reach a really high ceiling.

And with Jordan Poole, he's just so damn fast that as he puts on a little bit more muscle mass, works on his rim finishing, learns how to make reeds at a higher level, improves his pull-up jump shooting. That will all supplement his ability to beat people off the dribble and make him better. And then obviously over the years,

he's just going to have to learn how to little by little become a better defensive player. But I actually really like this move for the Wizards. More details came out on the Bradley Bealt trade. It turns out they got four first round pick swaps out of the deal. So the asset return on that deal is a little better than it looked. I think they'll re-up on Kyle Kuzma. And you just run the team through Kuzma and pool for a few years and just see which one of those guys are worth building around in the future. All right, guys, that's all I have for right now. I'll see you later tonight for our live draft special. 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, S&L'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 I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot,

or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHeart podcast, guaranteed human.