The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Lakers Free Agency Qs: Will LA trade LeBron James, sign De'Andre Ayton, retain Dorian Finney-Smith?

Episode Date: July 1, 2025

Jason reacts to the weekend's NBA free agency and trade news including De'Andre Ayton getting bought out of his contract by the Portland Trail Blazers, LeBron James opting in for his player option for the Los Angeles Lakers, Rich Paul's interesting statement, Dorian Finney-Smith rumored to be a Houston Rockets target, Lonzo Ball getting traded from the Chicago Bulls to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Utah Jazz and Charlotte Hornets swapping Collin Sexton and Jusuf Nurkic, the Minnesota Timberwolves re-signing Julius Randle and Naz Reid, the Houston Rockets preparing for contention, James Harden re-signing with the Los Angeles Clippers, Bobby Portis re-signing with the Milwaukee Bucks, and more. #Volume See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey, guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas.

We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick. Tired and sick.

Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you. you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. 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 ice. Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Winning on Clay is an art. The rallies are relentless. And at the French Open, only the toughest survive. I'd know. I competed there for decades. Join me, Renee Stubbs, on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast for no-nonsense breakdowns of the

biggest matches, the toughest players, and the moments that define Roland Garris. She can win. She's an outsider to win the French fame. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lina Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now. And I actually can win on any service. Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports.

I'm Michelle McPhee, and I've been unraveling the strangest criminal alliance I've ever reported on, a Mormon polygamist and an Armenian businessman. Multi-million dollar house, Ferraris and Lamborghinis, private jets, a billion dollar fraud. But how long can this alliance last? Tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The volume. Nothing says summer like long days, clutch plays and firing off a few bets on the game, all with Drap King Sportsbook.

As the season heats up, so do the bats. And Draft King Sportsbook has you covered with live betting, home run props, odds boosts, and more. whether you're chasing dingers or jumping in midgame, there's always action to be had. Never bet on baseball before. It's easy. Just pick a guy to go yard. Hammer some live odds midgame or just ride with your squad and hope for the best. No spreadsheets, just vibes and dingers. It's been a fun major league season, Aaron Judge, hitting all sorts of home runs. We got Shohei Otani pitching again. My debacks are still kind of like struggling there in the NL West. It is what it is.

But here's something special for first timers. New draft Kings customers bet $5 and get a $150 in bonus bets instantly. Download the Draft King Sportsbook app and use code hoops. That's code hoops for new customers to get $150 in bonus bets instantly when you bet just five bucks. Only on draft kings, the crown is yours. Gambling problem, call 180-gambler. In New York, call 8778 Hope N.

or text Hope N-Y to 467-369. In Connecticut help is available for problem gambling. Call 888-78-7-77-7 or visit C-C-C-E. P-P-G.org. Please play responsibly on behalf of Boot Hill Casino and resort in Kansas. 21 plus age and eligibility varies by jurisdiction. Boyd in Ontario. New customers only.

Bonus bets expire 168 hours after issuance. For additional terms and responsible gaming resources, see dkng.c.c.com slash. Monday, everybody. Hope all you guys are having a great start to your week. Well, we had tons of free agency news from around the NBA last night. Headlined by DeAndre Aiton. working out a buyout with the Portland Trailblazers.

We're going to bounce around the league and hit all of the news from the last couple of days. We also had a bizarre report or bizarre quote, I should say, from Rich Paul about LeBron James and his future with the Lakers. Now, I think most of that is just noise and kind of classic LeBron manipulation. But for fun, we're going to talk through my top four LeBron James potential trade destinations this summer. You guys know the drill before we get started. Subscribe to the Hoops Tonight YouTube channels.

miss any more of our videos. Follow me on Twitter at underscore Jason LT, so you guys don't miss show announcements. Don't forget about our podcast fee wherever you get your podcast under hoops tonight. It's also super helpful if you leave a rating and a review on that front. Jackson's doing amazing work on our social media feeds, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Make sure you guys follow us there. And last but at least, keep dropping mailbag questions and the YouTube comments so we can keep hitting our mailbags throughout the remainder of the summer. All right, let's talk some basketball. So we're going to start with the DeAndre Aten by-bye. So Shams reported last night that DeAndre Aten is finalizing a buyout with the Portland Trailblazers

that would make him an unrestricted free agent. And now it feels like an inevitability when you kind of look at the landscape of the league that he's going to be a Los Angeles Laker. And this, of course, led to everyone pointing out the reality, fairly, that Aiton is a dude that comes with a lot of downsides. Remember that conversation that me and Sam Vassini had right at the beginning of our draft preview. We talked a lot about the idea of competitiveness as a trait that NBA teams are trying to hunt. We talked about how it was an important part of playoff translatability. You get into the playoffs and it's nasty, right?

Like you get on the, it's like a fight or flight response. The league is full of these competitive dudes, guys who will punch you in the mouth, figuratively, obviously, in a basketball sense. And there are guys that have the competitive fire to step to that type of confrontation. and then there are guys that will kind of wilt away from it. And, you know, I'd argue it's one of the most important traits for any basketball player to have. It's not something that can be developed.

It's intrinsic into who you are as a human being, right? And I want to be clear up front. The Andre Aiton is not that type of competitor. And he's basically openly admitted this. He said in his first press conference in the NBA, when he was asked what his goal was in the NBA, he said to get to his second on track. he's skipped work over icy road conditions he shows general apathy when he's on the court

much of the time d'andre aaton is not going to join a team and attack every day with a ton of intensity and a ton of you know give a shit that's not who he is but this is also the same reason why aton makes so much sense for the lakers in order for a team to make sense for diondra aton they basically have to be desperate and the Lakers are desperate. A disengaged, unfocused D'Andreighton is still several orders of magnitude better than any center the Lakers currently have in house. And when it comes to the options out in the open market, whether it be to free agency with, you know, potential free agent guys like Clint Capella or Brooke Lopez or having to ship out

assets for a guy like Nick Claxton, he still represents a much better option than any of those guys. there is also a natural basketball fit here that we'll discuss in a minute. But I want to focus on the desperation for both sides. The Lakers desperately need a starting caliber center that is a good athlete and that can score off of the attention drawn by Luca Donchich and pick and roll. DeAndreaten is a way, way, way better option on that front than any free agent option the Lakers have available to them or anybody they have in-house. right and aton would now be in a situation where he's on a mid-level exception type of contract

probably a one plus one with a player option where he's going to want to kick ass this year so that he can potentially secure another long-term deal in the NBA right lucca donchitz represents aton's best chance to have that type of season because of the advantages that he can set him up with so with that being the case let's talk about the basketball for a minute the optimism surrounding a potential D'Andre Aiton moved to the Lakers, centers around his ability to score and pick and roll. The last time D'Andraten played with real high-level ball handling was in Phoenix.

And he was consistently one of the best pick-and-roll scoring bigs in the league. In 2021, pretty low volume, but he shot over 70% on roll-man possessions, field goals. In 2022, he scored 316.1%. points on the role, which ranked fourth in the entire NBA, despite him only playing in 58 games that season. He shot 65% in those situations. And then in 2023, obviously with Kevin Durant mixed in there in the late portion of the season, 387 points on the role, which ranked third in the NBA, and he shot 62%. He is great at scoring off of the attention drawn by

ball handlers. How? He's just a really talented player. He brings a legitimate, spacing thread. He had multiple seasons where he had over 100 dunks. He's good at making layups, which is something that many big struggle with. He's got a good floater and a good hook shot in that 2023 season, the one where Kevin Durant participated with the team. The last season he played with high-level ball handling, he shot 55% on floaters and hooks. On super high volume, he made 119 of them in that season. Now, his percentages and his efficiency have dropped in the years since then, but again, role-man. men in pick and roll are very dependent on the ball handler setting them up with those types of

advantages in the middle of the floor and at the rip. There's no doubt that Luca is going to be able to make good use of DeAndre Aten there. On the defensive end of the floor, Aiton has been a very frustrating player in his career, right? There's been some super high highs. You had some moments in the 2021 finals where you were like, man, he's battling Janus on an island. similar moments against Nicole Yokic in the 2023 second round series. But none of it has amounted to the potential that he demonstrated coming into the draft. Pick and roll defense. Same sort of thing.

You'll have moments where he's moving around and he's active with his hands and he's successful and then moments where he's not. It just hasn't come to fruition in terms of his potential. All of that amounts to this. Would I want to trade legitimate assets for DeAndreighton if I was any team? No. would I want him occupying a real salary slot, like a big salary slot that affects my ability to surround him with additional talent? No, I don't want to do that.

But would I want DeAndreighton on a mid-level exception in a year where he's basically in a contract year where he's highly motivated to play at least as well as he can to try to secure that type of long-term deal? If I was also a team that is literally the most desperate team in the league with respect to the center position, you bet your ass I'd want him there. and hopefully a team led by Luca Donchrich and LeBron James keep him on the straight and narrow and help both sides reach their ultimate goals. DeAndreighton a big payday, LeBron and Luca a chance to win the title. To be clear, I also wouldn't put it past DeAndreighton to completely avoid the competitive spirit of LeBron and Luca

by choosing a different team because those guys would be all over him from day one about his commitment. But if he ends up in Los Angeles, It's just better than the available options, even though it's a flawed option. And if nothing else, it would be entertaining. For Lakers fans, if it goes down, be ready to be incredibly frustrated with the Andratan sometimes. But just remember, it could have been Jackson Hates.

It could have been substantially worse, right? Now, before we move on to some other free agency topics, we actually have another bit of Lakers news from yesterday involving LeBron James. We had a, first of all, he picks up his player option, just over 50 million. That was an interesting move there in the sense that he could have opted out and tried to sign another one plus one to protect him in case he wanted to play an additional season. We had a quote from Rich Paul, though, surrounding the picking up of the option that was really fascinating.

I'm going to read the quote first and then we'll go from there. LeBron wants to compete for a championship. He knows the Lakers are building for the future. He understands that, but he values a realistic chance of winning it all. We are very appreciative of the partnership that we've had for eight years with Genie and Rob, considering the Lakers as a critical part of his career. We understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the future. We do want to evaluate what's best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career.

He wants to make every season he has left count. And the Lakers understand that and are supportive and want what's best for him. So what the hell does all that move? First of all, LeBron is famous in his career for applying pressure on organizations, applying pressure on front offices to try to force them to be aggressive in the windows of time that he's with that particular franchise. I saw many folks yesterday interpreting that quote to basically be a soft trade request. I wouldn't go that far. This could just as easily be LeBron knowing full well that he has no trade clause and that he has no intention of leaving Los Angeles for his 23rd. season, and that he's just applying some token pressure to the team, try to get them to trade that

last first round pick, potentially spend additional money to make certain things happen, and to maximize this window. I think it's far more likely than not that LeBron is a Laker next year. I want to be very clear about that before we move forward. But just for fun today, let's have a serious talk about potential LeBron James trade destinations. What would the surrounding circumstances need to be for a team to make sense for LeBron? I think it would need to be a pretty unique set of circumstances for a 41-year-old, right? They need to have some urgency, like a shorter window to compete. Like we've got this year or two to try to jump on.

They need to have large expendable salaries to match LeBron's salary. If you're going to send out $50 million, it's got to be a lot of $1,000. it's got to be 50 million in guys that you can afford to lose. They need to be obviously not good enough to win the title right now, meaning they need to have a little bit of that desperation, right? So several recent examples of them just not being able to get over the hump with no obvious thing internally that can fix that problem. And a LeBron trade needs to feel like suddenly positions that team

right with the top contenders in the league. If you're going to send out $50 million in salary and potentially maybe a tiny bit of draft compensation for an asset that becomes worthless when he retires, then you need to feel really good about your chances to win the trophy in that short window. I looked over the NBA landscape and I came up with four teams that makes sense. Some sense, I should say. The Cleveland Cavaliers, the New York Knicks, the Denver Nuggets, and the Dallas Mavericks. Let's start with the Cavs. The case for a move with the Cavs would be self-awareness.

You just got your butts kicked by the Knicks, your first trip to the playoffs. Then you struggled with an Orlando team just to lose to Boston. Then you have the greatest season of the post-Lebron era, and you get your butt kicked by the Pacers in a series where you looked outclassed, and a lot of the same issues from previous years popped up. Dary Scarlane's health became an issue, his ability to perform in the playoffs, came to the surface again. Jared Allen suddenly becoming way less effective in the postseason,

role players suddenly not making shots they made in the regular season. The Cavs just aren't a championship team yet. And Donovan Mitchell is an athletic guard who turns 29 before the start of next season. There's a little bit of urgency there. LeBron also fits a very specific position of need. The Cavs did not have a reliable secondary shot creator after Donovan Mitchell because Darius Garland struggled throughout the series and was unhealthy. And Ty Jerome completely decomposed, like in kind of dramatic fashion, completely decomposed.

So LeBron is a reliable secondary shot creator. He's not a guy that I want to be leaning on at age 41 to be running my offense in super large doses, but that's a Cavs team that degraded down to Donovan Mitchell heliocentric ball over the course of that series. LeBron James can help you alleviate that specific problem. He's a big strong forward that complements Evan Mobley on the defensive end of the floor, and he's a proven postseason performer. They could pull off the deal by basically shipping out the guys who have been their weak points in previous seasons, guys like Darius Garland, guys like Jared Allen.

Again, I know it's difficult to wrap your brain around. those guys who have been such monsters over the years. Deris Garland, such an incredible player this season. Jared Allen really vaulted himself into that second tier of centers with the way that he played this season. There's a lot that goes into, you know, letting guys like that go. But it's about self-awareness. And looking at the situation and being like, we've done this three times now.

We just did it with the best version of this team that we've had in the post-Lebron era. And the same guys got their butt kicked. And we went out in the same disappointing fashion. And finally, the Eastern Conference is wide open. If LeBron went to a Cleveland, that team immediately feels like the runaway favorite to win the Eastern Conference. If they could get through the Knicks, if they could get through the Orlando Magic or whatever the Atlanta Hawks end up pulling off this summer,

they could be right there in the finals because of the Open Eastern Conference, because of the Achilles tear for Damien Lillard, the Achilles tear for Jason Tatum, and the Achilles tear for Tyre Salliburton. So Cleveland Cavaliers are the first team. Two, the New York Knicks. Now I'm going to go briefer on this one because the reporting says that they're waiting around for Janus. So I view this is particularly unlikely, but it's the same set of circumstances, right?

Obviously not good enough to win the title after a very disappointing year last year. Clear trade swap in terms of Carl Anthony Towns for salary who could come in and fit a specific need for the Lakers and need a starting center. LeBron fits a specific need, which is that reliable shot creation off of Jalen Brun. in a very similar kind of dynamic to what he would do in Cleveland, and substantially better front court defensive player than a Carl Anthony Towns, especially in the postseason context. But again, most likely going to wait for a better long-term option, so I view that one as relatively unlikely.

The Denver Nuggets, that's what I've been thinking about a lot over the last couple of days. It's a really interesting fit. They are also in this like super urgent short-term window, trying to capitalize on Nicole Yokic's prime. They're light on assets, so they can't ship out much. They have an aging group of role players. There is a real urgency. They're already staring down the barrel of potentially needing to trade Nicola Yochich in a couple of years if things don't turn around.

They have a big salary in Michael Porter, Jr., that they're looking to get rid of. And he also fits a position of need for the Lakers in terms of Michael Porter Jr. The Lakers don't have a starting caliber three, but they have another starting caliber four in Rui Hachamura that could step into the four spot. Michael Porter Jr. is a guy who could step in there. Aaron Gordon's shooting has unlocked the ability for them to space the floor in a LeBron James build. And I think LeBron would be a great fit with his ability to play in transition and off the ball as a putter and as a roller. I think they immediately become the most physically imposing team in the league with him next to Aaron Gordon and Nicole Yokic. that presents a very specific matchup problem for Oklahoma City

where you can talk yourself into Denver just mauling those guys underneath the basket. The only real hang-up is just the idea of LeBron leaving Los Angeles at age 41 to go to a smaller market like Denver. But that's an interesting one, a combination of Denver's desperation with kind of the natural basketball fit

and LeBron going into a situation where he could play for a legitimate championship threat. Lastly, the Dallas Mavericks. Similarly, due to that Anthony Davis contract and the Kyrie Irving contract that he just signed, they're in a weird situation where even though they have Cooper Flagg in house, they're facing some real urgency to compete right now. They're super light on ball handling and shot creation, which is something that LeBron could step right in and do.

And they can actually benefit, I think, from consolidating some of these salaries they have down the payroll, guys like Daniel Gafford, who it's hard to see how he's going to get minutes. Guys like PJ Washington, it's hard to see how he's. he's going to get minutes. You know, Clay Thompson, I think, is a, a player that has some utility for this team. But then with Max Christie in-house, you could see him potentially taking the starting spot. Now you're paying a considerable amount of money for a bench player in that regard. I think they could benefit from consolidating a little bit.

The hilarious thing, as I was reading this morning from Mark Stein in his reporting, that they're going to sign DeAngelo Russell today in all likelihood for two years at about $12 million. So they'd have DeLo and Max Christie and LeBron James and Anthony Davis. It'd basically be the Lakers from a few years ago just with better depth and the prospect of Kyrie Irving returning at some point in the year depending on how his ACL repair and rehab goes. Again, I think it's more likely than not that LeBron just stays in L.A. as a Laker this year. But these are the only LeBron destinations I see that make any sense. All right, we're going to start going rapid fire

through a bunch of small pieces of news from around the NBA over the week. First one. The Chicago Bulls traded Lanzo ball to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Isaac Acoro. I have no earthly idea what the Bulls are trying to accomplish at all, but I do love the theoretical Lanzo fit with the caps. The Cavs are preparing to lose Ty Jerome and free agency.

Probably not much in the way of hard feelings there, considering how bad he was in the pain. pacer series. But Lonzo is theoretically a fantastic fit with the Cavs. I say theoretically because he's had health issues over the course of the years, right? But he's a defensive playmaker that is coming off of a career best season in steel rate. He averaged three stocks per 36 minutes last year. And this is a Cavs team that thrives in transition that added this whole turnover to transition element under Kenny Atkinson last year. I think that's a fantastic fit. He's an excellent hit-ahead passer. It's what he was known for during the healthier phase of his career when he was on

ball more. He's an excellent hit-ahead passer and excellent connective playmaker. I think that makes him kind of a unique higher floor, lower ceiling option as that bench guard. And I think he has more utility playing alongside the starters when they need to. He had a rough shooting season last year, but he was 39% from three on seven attempts per game in the previous three seasons. So I do think he'll shoot better. And so you can see is like a almost like a three-and-d guard. option that they can go to in a universe where he's playing alongside the starters, but then he also brings you just kind of like a higher floor, lower ceiling option than Tid Jerome in the sense that he's not going to do the surgical pick and roll scoring that

Ty Jerome can do and, you know, hit five or six floaters in an early fourth quarter stretch that just drives a dagger into the heart of the opponent. He's not going to do that, but he is going to bring a higher floor, more defensive focus, more ball movement focused approach to that backup guard spot. And again, that hit ahead passing, this is a Cavs team that really changed into a transition monster last year. And Lonzo's just such a natural fit there.

I think it's a really nice pivot from the Cavs under the circumstances. Blending Vice's signature dynamic storytelling with the high-octane world of sports, Vice Sports brings an exciting and diverse range of programming that goes beyond the game. From action-packed live events to gripping behind-the-scenes documentaries

to hard-hitting investigative pieces, and in-depth profiles of athletes, coaches, teams. Vice Sports captures the raw energy, drama, and passion that makes sports truly unforgettable. Catch live events and other exclusive sports programs only on Vice TV. Go to viseTV.com to find your cable channel. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, new?

Huge news. We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to a... We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there. But this one's extra special.

So how do we actually come up with a name, Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. Well, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers. This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing.

a bit for the podcast for people could call in and say, Hey Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. 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 helped make you funny.

This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and headwriter, 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. The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis. And I know firsthand because I competed there myself. I'm Renee Stubbs.

And on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast, I'm Bray. breaking down everything happening at Roland Garris. Every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay. Jen she went. I mean, she went down at three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted. She's an outsider to win the French for me. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lina Rabakina is arguably the best player in the world right now,

and I actually can win on any surface. Because if she's serving, well, good luck. Consider this your court-side seat to the French Open. Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Jacob Kingston grew up in an isolated polygamous sect. We were God's chosen kingdom on earth. He felt destined for greatness.

So when a swaggering Armenian businessman catapults Jacob into an extraordinary world, he doesn't look back. Ferraris and Lamborghinis, private jets. meeting the president of Turkey. I'm Michelle McPhee, and this is one of the most shocking criminal conspiracies I've ever come across. When Jacob met Levan, this went to a billion-dollar fraud. But with two kings from entirely different worlds,

just how long can their empire survive? The largest tax investigation in American history. You need to tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Jacob told Levan, you're ruining my. my life. Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

The Jazz traded Colin Sexton and a second round pick to the Charlotte Hornets for Yusuf Nerkens. This is a weird one from yesterday. The first thing that stood out to me was the fact that Danny Aange actually had to attach draft compensation and not the other way around. Both of these guys are on very similar contracts, expiring after this season, this coming season at just under 20 million. That's what made it work in terms of a straight across swap. And I think Colin Sexton is just a better player than Yusuf Nerkich. That's not to say that Colin Sexton is a perfect player. He's got his issues and he's kind of a clunky fit where he goes,

but I think Colin Sexton still brings some pretty high-level NBA traits to the table, and Yusuf Nirch just doesn't. So I thought that that valuation was strange to have that second round pick attached. Take a step further, I don't understand the basketball fit, really. I would assume for the Hornets, he's going to be the Trey Man replacement. Trey man had a back issue. His agent came out and was like, Trey's good to go. I'm sure they're just looking for a free agent deal elsewhere.

But I don't love the fit there on that kind of weird Hornets team. And then for Nerkich, like in Utah, it doesn't make a ton of sense at all unless they're looking to trade Walker Kessler. Like, if, like, if Danny Aange was trying to trade Walker Kessler and he's trying to fleece a team like the Lakers or something like that, then it makes some sense. You're bringing in Yusuf Nerkich to get you a guy that can play some center minutes. But, I mean, at this point, like, now the D'Andre Aiton buyout becomes super interesting. Because if, like, let's say that Danny Ainsch, because all the intel was like, Danny Age is not looking to trade Walker Kessler.

Like, he's just not going to do it. It's like, okay, well, if that's the case and you got Kyle Philpowski, like, what is the purpose for going after a use of Nerkich, right? Well, let's just imagine for a second that Danny Aange is like, I'm eventually going to trade Walker Kessler to the Lakers, but I'm just going to string these dudes. along as long as I can and then jump in and get the best possible deal. Well, now DeAndre Aten's available potentially for a mid-level exception where they wouldn't have to include, you know, potentially a Dalton Connect or a first-round pick. And it's like, would you rather have connect a first-round pick you can trade later and DeAndre Aten? Or would you rather have Walker Kessler?

Like, that's going to get in the way of that sort of deal getting done. So I don't really know what the Jazz are trying to accomplish here either. The Timberwolves did some business yesterday. or over the weekend, I should say. Julius Randall re-signs on a three-year $100 million deal. I'm not a big Julius Randall fan, and I thought it was rather embarrassing some of the stuff that he did in the Oklahoma City series,

particularly when things weren't going his way. But one thing I'll say in his defense, Oklahoma City embarrassed a lot of guys in the postseason this year. And under any circumstances, a player with the ceiling that Julius Randall has, getting $33 million per year in this NBA is a massive discount under any circumstances for a player of his caliber. The salary cap is going to be undergoing massive jumps every year with the new TV deal. And that deal, that Julius Randall deal, is going to be very appealing as a trade asset in a year or two,

especially as the cap continues to go up. And I mean, like, in terms of the discount, like, look at James Hardin, another kind of middle-ing. underachieving star who, you know, is known for playoff flameouts. And he just got 40 million annual from the clipper. So to get Julius Randall at 33 million, I think is a very good deal for Minnesota. They also re-signed Nas Reid. Five years, 125 million, basically the same deal that Jabari Smith Jr. just got a little bit more, but mostly symbolically at that point, I would imagine.

I do think Nas is the better player. So to get him for three million total more over $5 million. five years feels like a great deal from a value standpoint. The wolves are betting on internal improvement and continuity, which I think is a completely reasonable direction for a team that has made the conference finals two years in a row and is led by a star that has struggled on that stage both times. Ant wasn't good against the Mavs.

It wasn't good against Oklahoma City. There's reason to believe that an improved Anthony Edwards could lead this team to a championship as currently constructed, the wolves are betting on him making that leap. They may have to make some pivots, but I think Nas read at that number, that's a tradable deal. Julius Randall on that number, that's a tradable deal. They won't be as deep. They're going to lose Nikiel Alexander Walker. Mike Conley is going to be a year older, but they're maintaining the core of what makes the wolves the wolves while maintaining some trade flexibility. Even that Gobert deal, I know he's older, but I mean that right around 30 million is kind of

just what a starting center, a good starting center goes for in the modern NBA. It just kind of is what it is at this point. Houston, a lot of interesting stuff from them. Retaining some of their lower level role players, they re-uped with Jabari Smith, like we mentioned, five years, 122 million. Dorian Finney Smith, they're trying to poach him away from the Lakers. Mark Stein reported that they're going to try to put together a four-year offer, that it might be around that like $60 million range. I really like the idea of Dorian Finney Smith in a Houston context where he's surrounded by just a ton of athleticism and physicality. That's a team that desperately needs shooting.

You bring in a Kevin Durant, a Dorian, Finney Smith. It just gives you so much more lineup flexibility with the way to, with the ability to put different types of shooters and different spots on the floor. Houston's going for it, man. And, you know, I am always going to,

I'm always going to advocate for teams that make these types of decisions, especially when you're self-aware. This was a Houston team that has an amend Thompson that is, a super exciting young player that I think has the potential to become an all-MBA level type of two-way talent, but his offensive development puts him in a situation where he's years away. He's years away from being that type of player.

And in the short term, he's still a super useful role player as this point of attack defender who is a vertical spacing threat who can, I think you're going to see a lot more four-on-three, like short-roll stuff from him this year playing off of Kevin Durant. Like you have a short-term utility with the men Thompson. But you look at it and it was like Jalen Green. wasn't a star level ball handler in any sort of like dependable sense neither was fred shangoon you know has his certain limitations this was a houston team that looked in the mirror and went we're not good enough but we have a really strong foundation in one specific weakness in terms of

a high level ball handling i'll give you two high level ball handling and off ball shooting they're making aggressive moves to try to address those specific needs they're shortening their window, obviously, but they still have tons of assets in terms of first round draft compensation for a pivot. So you go after Doreen Phine Smith, you get a Kevin Durant, you make an attempt to try to win the title over the next year or two, but then you still have Shangoon, you still have him in Thompson, you still have Reed Shepard and you, it came Whitmore and all these young athletes, you still have a future that you can pivot to while also having a short-term window try to make something happen. I think it makes a ton of sense. And, you know, Houston, I checked this

morning on draft kings, they have the second best championship odds at this point in the entire NBA. They're putting themselves in a really, really strong position on that front. James Hardin, New Deal, two years, 82 million. Now, do I think Clippers are going to go win the title next year? No. But I did find this to be really fascinating just in terms of a proof of concept of something I've believed for a long time surrounding James Harden. I've talked a lot about this concept when we were talking with Sam Vassini in that pre-draft episode, if you guys remember, the idea of like read and react talent being super important, guys that can catch and shoot threes, drive closeouts, make decisions when they're driving closeouts, basically play with an advantage. And if you remember,

there was another part of that conversation. And one of the things I talked about was like, most of the good teams in the NBA have a guy who specializes in generating advantages for his teammates. And James Hardin, still to this day, is one of the very best guys in the league at generating those advantages. His ability to play out a high pick and roll and score from all three levels and playmake out of pick and roll, generating guns of short roll opportunities and catch and shoot opportunities and close out attack opportunities. It makes it so that all of your players on the roster have advantages the majority of the time. I said before the season last year, even with the Paul George loss, I was like, this is an athletic team. It's got a lot of perimeter defenders. And James Hardin just gives you such a high floor on the defensive, on the offensive end of the floor, that it just gives you a very strong foundation for offense during the NBA regular season. And I think him getting a two-year, $82 million deal, even with his playoff shortcomings, even though he's not the same,

guy that he used to be is just a strong reminder that the ability to create open shots and closeouts and advantages. Four-year-old players is one of the most valuable things in the NBA and James is going to keep cashing out until he can't do that.

And another 80 million for James Hardin over the course of two years. Lastly, some Milwaukee bucks. Bobby Portis signs a three-year 44 million deal. This is a really favorable number for Milwaukee and opens up a lot more options for them this summer. I've been kind of a Bobby Portis defender for a while. There are a lot of Bucks fans that are not a big fan of his. I understand the shortcomings. I have seen some of the worst defensive tape that I

that I see around the NBA from a big when I'm watching Bobby Portis at times. He can be frustratingly inconsistent on that end of the floor. But he is a backup power forward center hybrid. And when it comes the backups, there's always going to be that level of inconsistency and, you know, just more of a, of a, like a up and down type of approach, right? Like, guys, if, if Bobby Portis was a good defender, he's a $35 million player, like, because he can shoot threes at a high rate, because he can beat switches on the block, because he's a pretty solid read and react player, Bobby is a, his defensive shortcomings are what allow you to get him at a number. number like three years and 44 million. Now the bucks need some perimeter athleticism. I'd be calling on

guys like Bruce Brown and Karas Levert and doing whatever I could to try to bring in some guys. I think Harris would be great for them as a guy who can handle the ball and can guard on the perimeter. Bruce, it's a little bit more clunky with the spacing fit, but they just need to bring in some guys that can really dribble shoot pass and defend on the perimeter, but actually run the floor and cover ground in transition, bring just more of that athletic pop on the perimeter. Bobby taking that discounted deal just gives them a little bit more flexibility on that front. All right, guys, that's all I have for today. As always, I sincerely appreciate you guys for supporting us and supporting the show. We will be back. I'm not sure if we're going to go tonight or tomorrow morning.

I'm on the road in Denver, how something I've mentioned this a couple weeks ago, but my wife and I are moving up here this summer. So kind of depending on just how shocking the news is, we'll either go tonight or we'll go tomorrow morning. I'll let you guys know just an eye on my Twitter feed, but we will have a video reacting to all of the free agency news from today, no later than tomorrow morning. Again, I appreciate you guys for rocking with me and from supporting the show, and I'll see you next time. What's up, guys? As always, I appreciate you for listening to and supporting hoops tonight. It would actually be really helpful for us if you guys would take a second and leave a rating and a review. As always, I appreciate you guys supporting us, but if you could take a minute to do that,

I'd really appreciate it. The volume. Hey guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what?

We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to our... We get to ask other people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick.

Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care. where you hear it. 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 I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Winning on Clay is an art. The rallies are relentless. And at the French Open, only the toughest survive. I'd know.

I competed there for decades. Join me, Renee Stubbs, on the Renee Stubbs' tennis podcast for no-nonsense breakdowns of the biggest matches, the toughest players, and the moments that define Roland Garris. Jench who win?

She's an outsider to win the French fame. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lena Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now and I actually can win on any surface. Listen to the Renee Stubbs' tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app. Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. I'm Michelle McPhee, and I've been unraveling the strangest criminal alliance I've ever reported on. A Mormon polygamist and an Armenian businessman. Multi-million dollar house, Ferraris and Lamborghinis, private jets, a billion dollar fraud. But how long can this alliance last? Tell me what you know. is somebody coming after me. Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.