The Ringer NBA Show - NBA Trade Deadline: Eastern Conference Power Shifts and Favorite Trades | The Ringer NBA Show (Ep. 383)

Episode Date: February 8, 2019

The trade deadline delivered on medium deals—including Marc Gasol to the Raptors, Tobias Harris to the Sixers, and Nikola Mirotic to the Bucks—but it was missing the Anthony Davis trade we were hoping for. What does this mean for the Eastern Conference Finals race, and does any of this matter with the Warriors hanging overhead? Hosts: Justin Verrier, Kevin O’Connor, Danny Chau, and Paolo Uggetti Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to The Ringer Podcast Network. I'm Liz Kelly. With the Super Bowl and the books, I wanted to let you know about all of our coverage across the site. We have Kevin Clark, Robert Mays, Roger Sherman, and more breaking down every aspect of the game, including winners and winners and losers and players from the game, including all over the game. Also, make sure to check out our YouTube.com and YouTube show performance.com. Basketball is very good. Jimmy Butler is actually a good teammate. Saabonis is the most important front court pacer. Deeran Fox is better than Donovan Mitchell. Basketball is very good. Hello and welcome to the Ringer NBA show. This is chatting in the corner.

It's not group chat. It's not the corner three. We are merging for this special deadline edition of the Ringer MBA show. joining me today to break down all the action from the past, God, month, two weeks, whatever you want to call it. Halu Getty. What's up? Danny Chow. Hello.

And Kevin O'Connor. What's going on? Gentlemen, a lot of activity leading into the noon Pacific deadline. I would say the biggest thing that happened today was just the flurry of activity in the Eastern Conference. We were waiting for the West teams to kind of make a move. It seemed like the Lakers were on the fringes of the AD trade for two weeks now. but the East are the teams that kind of really shook things up. The Toronto Raptors got a deal in place for Marcus Saul.

Milwaukee Bucks got Nicola Meritich, and obviously the Sixers swung that big deal for Tobias Harris the other night. Kevin, let's start with Gasol and the Raptors. What do you think about this deal? I think for Toronto, this continues their bet on contending for a championship this single season. Yeah. Where Kauai, Leonard, there's still a strong possibility that he leaves for the Los Angeles Clippers this summer. but by adding Gasol, that's an upgrade over Jonas Valentuna.

The interesting thing to me is despite that improvement, you know, as having a better shooter, a better defender in Gasol, you're losing Wright, who is a solid defender and, you know, a solid ball handler for that team. And then C.J. Miles, who has really struggled this season. But still, like last year, he can light up. Yeah, he can. He can stroke threes when he's on. And I do wonder for them, will the loss of depth be overcome by the improvement

having Gasol over Valen Tunis? Well, one of the kind of the frustrating things about watching the Raptors recently is just how in and out of the kind of rotation that Delon Wright has been. I'm a huge Delon Wright advocate. And just seeing him not play against the Rockets was just like, what are we doing here? Like this is a 6'5, you know, creative, secondary, possibly primary, you know, playmaker on a good night. And he's just like not in the lineup at all. But I think for a guy like Marcosal, you make that move. He is a guy who's actually like really good at guarding Joelle and Bede.

If you look at the metrics and you look at the matchup numbers, he is like I think he's held Joel and Bid to 33% shooting over like 108 possessions. Yeah, I mean, look at the rest of the East right now. Everybody is huge. And if you're saying these are going to be. three of the teams at the end of the road. And even the Celtics, let's say the fourth, who has Aaron Baines, has a couple other big bodies

that they could throw out there. Having a guy like Casal in there definitely is going to be a benefit. I wonder about the rotation in the front court now. That's what I was going to say. I'm really intrigued to see how Nick Ners uses Gasol, whether that's with, you know, Serge Baca or Pascal Seyakum.

Like, they clearly had a system that works that has worked until this point very well. And this is throwing a wrinkle in there that you expect it to raise their ceiling, but it is still first year head coach, and I'm just wondering how that's all going to go. I mean, I think with them, like, we talked about the loss of depth. When they're trimming their rotation to eight or nine, like, it's still pretty much locked in, I would think. They still have Siakum, Leonard, Ibaka, Lowry, Green, Annanobi, Powell, Van Vleet, and then Gasol. That's nine right there. Pretty much all you need. Exactly.

So it's like they did lose some additional depth, but I think, you know, the deal will still a no-brainer ultimately. Mark O'Sull, like these past couple weeks, he got off to a really slow start. He struggled in December, but he's been on a tear. He's been killing it. I think with him, it's like playoff situation. He'll be grinding

on defense. He's another playmaker. Another playmaker as well, yes. I think Gassol makes a significant difference for them. Yeah, and what's interesting is we've been talking about the Raptors being so consistent over these past couple of years, but we look at this team now, and I really don't even really

recognize it. And I think it's really exciting, especially with the biggest Raptor fan I know sitting to my left, to see this team kind of just not only just face-slip on the fly going into the season, but going past the deadline and coming away with almost a different look now. Right. Yeah. And this has kind of been Masai's entire agenda for the past couple years, right? Like he's really honed in on this idea that they have this mandate to win. They have to make the finals. Because if they don't make the finals, then, quote, I was leaving. That's pretty much the sense I get from the entire city of Toronto. Right. You just spent a bunch of time there. Like, have you talked to anybody since?

Have I talked to anyone outside of Toronto? No. No. I have just been talking to Toronto people my entire time here. Yeah. And just to give you a glimpse at our office a couple hours ago, Danny shrieked in joy when the news came down. Yeah. So this, this, this, Mark Assault trade has been something that's been floating in my mind for, I've About two weeks, and I've been basically sharing a trade machine proposal to every single, like, basketball fan I know. Yeah. And for the most part, everyone was like, oh, yeah. Yeah, that looks good. My proposal obviously had Conley as part of the package deal.

I really wanted the Raptors to get both of them, but settle with the Zollman. Would you have done that? Would you, like, what would you, more of you've given to flip Lowry for Conley? I'm curious. Like, how much draft picks, future depth, would you sacrifice Ananovi? when you give it up? If you were to put a gun to my head, and I've said this a bunch of times,

gets a little morbid, but if you put a gun to my head and the Raptors got the opportunity to get both Conley and Gasol, yeah, I think I might include Ananobe. Right, because how much does it come down to their fate in the playoffs, what they'll get out of Lowry?

Obviously, in the past couple of playoffs, he's been up and down. And this back issue, I am really concerned. Like, I really don't want my 30, what, three-year-old point guard to be dealing with injections or anything like that going forward where you don't know what you're going to get. Conley isn't exactly like the ultimate healthy guard though either. That's true. Right. But I just feel like when you look at playoff performances and you look at the kind of ceiling that Conley has, we're only two years removed from him dropping 38 in a very pivotal game four against the spurs in the first round of the playoffs.

And that was against Kauai. You pair them together. And you have, you have, like, legitimate upside in terms of, you know, shot creation. It seems like Toronto perhaps maybe hedged a little bit because, like, you still want to retain some youth and take a long-view. That's what Masay Ujuri has talked about all the time. It's like when we did, like, the Raptors should they blow it up article in 17, I think that I quoted Ujiri at the Sloan Sports Alliance Conference. And he talks so much about the importance of the Longview, having youth on your, team, and that's the way he's continued to build

his team. Like, even when they're in contention, you have to keep these young guys because if Kauai leaves and Lowry hits a wall and continues getting older, you need to have those young players to take you into the next era. And I would absolutely have so much regret, including

Ananobe. Yeah, he hasn't been playing particularly well this season, but like, I don't know, he just fits everything that they're trying to do there. And if teams are going to go small and them go the opposite way, you want to throw them out there with Kauai and Danny Green and be able to guard them. It is interesting not to switch over to another team in the east, but how they're still keeping, like Kevin said, that long view while very much going for it right now, whereas

the Sixers, I feel like the Longview is Ben and Embed, right? But they are, it feels like they're doubling down kind of harder than even the Raptors. Right. They've kind of, they've traded away some of their young guys. Let's, let's pivot to the Bucks really quick before we get into the Sixers. They traded for Nicola Mirage, a guy that I've always loved as a player. And, Last year, he kind of unlocked Anthony Davis when the Pelicans went fast, when they had Davis play a little bit more center. But now this season, he's going to be unlocking Janice and Teddacupo. They traded him to the Bucks for Stanley Johnson,

who the Bucs got from Detroit, Jason Smith, who will probably be waived, I presume. And for second round pick. So it's kind of a good deal for the Pelicans. The Bucks were already the best team in the Eastern Conference. Are they, like, did they cement that? Do you think, Kevin? Well, it depends on if Mirage grows his beard back.

This is a big point. Without the beard, Miratich is a insignificant player, but with the beard, he's a superstar. Right. He does have that Gillette money, though. For sure.

What are you talking about? He shaved his beard and they freaking destroyed the blazers. That's why they wouldn't let him grow it back. I remember last season when they were on that run in second half of the season, he said when they were here in L.A. that his teammates were telling him not to regrow the beard back

because they were playing so well. I have to say he looks terrible without it. It's a better look with the beard. Yes, I can attest to that, yes. In all seriousness, though, is like, Miritich is somebody who he's a streaky shooter, which is fine. Like, that's okay as a role player.

But, you know, I think ever since he really got traded from Chicago to New Orleans, it feels like he's taking a little bit of a leap. I think for Milwaukee, look, giving Janus another floor spacer, in addition to Brooke Lopez and Erasani Alyossova, who has size, because, like, the issue last year

with Milwaukee is they could only space the floor for Janus when they put Janus at the five, but that was unsustainable. You just couldn't do that because you're facing Big Man or an Embed or Horford or now we're talking about Kassol. You need size. And now they can space the floor with Lopez, Eliasova, and Meertich and still have size on their team for Anthony Acumpo. It's kind of just doubling down on their biggest strength of the season, which is having

shooting at every single position. And I think with Miratich, you kind of get a little bit of an insurance policy with, especially for the playoffs, with Brooke Lopez kind of, we all kind of imagine Brooke Lopez being kind of a defensive liability in the playoffs because of his inability to guard from outside. Mirich doesn't necessarily have that problem. I think Mirich can kind of be their Brooke Lopez type player for at least the first two rounds. Right. He's like a he's a mid-size Brooke Lopez. If Roque Lopez is your tank, like, Miratech is somewhere in between that. And if I have any sort of criticism of the deal

is that perhaps Miratech isn't as wingy as perhaps they need in order to kind of flex at that position because you are, if you want to go a little bit smaller, it's Miratech, not necessarily an Ananobi type who can kind of flex to the four there. So I wonder how the matchups will play in that regard. That's a good point. I think the interesting thing about the bucks

is that they have the best of both worlds in that they have a very specific system that works, but also they have a superstar on top of that in the honest. So it almost feels very much like a plug-in-play kind of situation with Miratich. And so I don't think they needed to go do something. I mean, this even feels drastic in a sense compared to like what I thought maybe they would do, something a little more minor. But it makes a lot of sense because of all the things you guys have said in terms of the shooting and the stretching the floor.

And they only had to give up fun maker to get it done. Right? Yeah, I mean, I still have some hope for Thon, and it's a lot of second round picks. One is coming from the Nuggets, two are coming from the Wizards. And only one is coming from the Bucks, so they did have a surplus to deal from. Those Wizards picks could be good. Could be really good. 20 and 21.

Yeah, 2020 and 2021, those Wizards picks when potentially, like, they'll be staring at John Wall and literally nothing else. I think it was just the aggressiveness that Milwaukee show. They could have just rested on their laurels, but they haven't. They made the deal for George Hill and to get off some money. And now they're kind of pushing forward yet. again and I love it because it doesn't really change what they do to Paul's point. It just kind of enhances what they've already built. So it's not like you're throwing someone in there, like a Gasol who maybe it will take a couple games, a couple weeks to kind of figure things out.

Yeah, definitely. And I think with Mirich, like there's, you mentioned like he might be a defensive liability. It's like that, that's true. I mean, like he's a weak defender. Like how does he defend, you know, Ben Simmons if he's on that, you know, how does he defend Jimmy Butler on a switch? Something like that. That's legitimate, fair questions. but what are your alternatives? Like, who else are you going to get? Merritt still gives them another body, another guy who can help in Space 4 on the offensive end.

It's a good addition for them. Yeah, and obviously the other one here. The Ringar NBA show talked about it with Bill and Chris the other day, but the Sixers getting Tobias Harris for those picks for Shaman and some of the other guys there. It's just an interesting move that, you know, all of the Eastern contenders outside of the Celtics are kind of going for. Any lingering thoughts to wrap up that?

sort of part of it. I just, yeah, I just think it's interesting that all of these teams are kind of matchup-proofing their rosters in order to kind of, all of these teams are basically playing chess simultaneously. You know, the Sixers have kind of doubled down on having basically five potential all-stars in their starting lineup, just all-out offense. The Bucks have kind of doubled down on their shooting, and the Raptors have kind of addressed maybe a few minor concerns about the way their system runs. You put that all together.

It's like, man, the second half of the season is going to be so exciting to watch. I love this trade for Philly, despite the risk. There's risk here. Tobias Harris could leave this offseason, and you could end up giving up two first-round draft picks for a couple-month rental. However, Tobias Harris, with his offensive versatility, he can run pick and roll, he can be used as a screener, He's a smart cutter.

He's a great shooter, not just on spot-ups, but off-screens as well. I think, you know, you're losing a good shooter in Shannon, but you can plug Harris into some of those situations. Yeah, he's huge. And now he's, you know, he's less of a defensive liability. Shannon, I think maybe, you know, some of us try to score on sham it. Right. Have a little bit over two of the, I mean, I'm not saying I could. I couldn't.

But I'm just saying, I think what Chamon is the defensive liability in a playoff situation. Harris is an average. defender at least. I think for Philadelphia, now they, like you said, they're matchup proof, Danny. That's a good way to put it where. And plus, if Jamie Butler were to walk, now you have Tobias Harris who could elevate into that third

star role. When he was here with the clippers, he always struck me as a guy who didn't need to be the main guy, even though he has been at every one of his other stops. So I think we've, I've heard mentioned, you know, like, okay, so he's been the guy at his other stops. Is that going to be of some concern with the

sixers who have so many guys? And I think it's actually going to be the opposite. I think he's going to be totally fine with like having a lower usage and just being kind of like a spot of shoot or just being a guy who helps the offense move along when, you know, things aren't working so well with Embed and Simmons or with Butler's having an off night. Yeah, my analysis of the trade is it's a good player, bad trait. I think that Tobias was the right player to go out and get. I think he fits for a lot of the same reasons you guys have mentioned. And I also think he's a clear upgrade over a guy like Nikola Meritich, a guy who I think a lot of people would have liked to see the Sixers go after as an upgrade to that four spot.

Upgrade, like pretty much an upgraded version of Mike Mascala in order to throw in there. You could probably get them for a couple seconds, as the Bucks clearly showed. But I really like that starting lineup. I just don't know about the cost. And not only the cost they paid immediately, but having to now max out essentially both Harris and Butler while also bringing back JJ Reddick. And on top of that, I think it's not just the money because if Josh Harris, their owner, wants to pay that. I also wonder what it's going to do to limit them on their fringes because of the

luxury tax implications, not only this summer, but when they get into the repeater tax. It's like, you know, that's the one concern is where is the point of diminishing returns for Tobias Harris? We're talking about all the nice things that he can do as an versatile offensive player, but if Ben Simmons is dominating the ball and Jimmy Butler's dominating the ball too and Joel Lombie as well, I mean, he's not the playmaker like those guys, but he's going to get a lot of half-court touches. What does Harris become in that fourth-star role? forward. I think from Philadelphia, even if you resign all those guys, having him on the roster,

I'm just saying you could trade Jimmy Butler in six months, Blake Griffin style. It's the bird in the hand. I mean, and as we've seen, it seems like teams that aren't in L.A., that aren't in New York, have to do their work early because there are only so many guys available on this market, and all of a sudden, if you're the Sixers and you have this window when Ben Simmons is on his rookie contract and you're left with nothing, if you're left not even with a Chris Middleton or some of these lower-level guys at Kemba Walker, then what are you going to do?

So it made sense in that regard. Yeah. I mean, for Tobias Harris, there was a report earlier about, I think a reporter asked him about, you know, what his priorities were heading in free agency. And he pretty much said the right things, I guess.

Like, you, he wanted, you know, a winning culture in the team. He wanted, you know, a good system and, like, you know, teamwork, you know. So if all things play out well with the Sixers, I can see him staying, definitely. I'm surprised he didn't say, who are you? Why don't want to talk to you? Sorry, I was going to say the thing is we were talking about the financial situation,

but they did also get off Fultz today, which helps them, I think, in terms of getting rid of that contract. Yeah, it definitely does ease their financial burden moving forward. It's kind of sad. Fultz got moved this quickly, number one pick, and 17, they get smooth for Jonathan Simmons. and a top 20 protected first round pick. Yeah. And an early second could be nice. Right.

They didn't even get like the wing that we all thought from Orlando. Right. They didn't get Terrence Ross. It seemed destined that they were going to find a way to get Terrence Ross. And it didn't happen. It was amazing. Yeah. They are getting a lot of these kind of like scrappy guys into that system.

Like I like James Dennis. I like kind of the toughness that Jonathan Simmons brings. It just feels like a meek mill team. Yeah. Do you think Jonathan Simmons, is the Sixers Kyrie stopper. Wow.

I mean, you hope. I'm not sure. I mean, that's like one of the points I think Bill brought up on yesterday's pod. Like, who guards Kyrie? I think they have some solid defenders. Jimmy Butler with his size. I think the inverse is who does

Kyrie guard? I have the inverted question with Philadelphia. Like the size they have on their team and the amount of versatility, Look, they increased their odds of getting the finals. Yeah. And that's the size that they showed when they beat the Warriors recently, too, which is that overwhelming size that can throw off a team with a little more talent, maybe.

Yeah. All right. So just to wrap this up here, among these three teams, which one is your favorite going forward in these? Danny, I know what you're going to say. Just say it. Just say it. The Raptors.

Yeah, that's right. Back. The Raptors are back. Paolo. I'm going to lean Sixers. just because of the starting lineup that they have, which is, I think, better than everybody else's. It's Milwaukee because they have the best player on all three teams.

Even though Kauai did, I mean, I'm happy for all these teams. Like, congrats on your new trades. But this is just like, hey, who's going to which one of us is going to give me by the words in the final? I also love Milwaukee system too. Yeah, I think with their, the, shot distribution, all, you know, at the rim, a lot of threes. Yeah.

And they're basically missing the one thing that kind of held the Hawks back, which is a transcendent superstar. This is basically the same team last year that was, what, seven, three, in the Eastern Conference? And, like, yeah, they hung with the Celtics in that first round. But, like, this is a completely different team. They really haven't done that much to it. Yeah, I mean, like, they made, like, the three or two until today,

additions with Lopez and Elie Sova and, like, some younger guys. like DJ Wilson is coming along. So it's like they made the right tweaks to their personnel, but the systematic change was the greatest one of all for them. Yeah. It's like they have like almost similar to the Houston Rockets shot distribution with threes and layups, but like with a completely different style, ball movement and everything else. It's not just all pick and roll like it is for Houston.

It's fun to watch. Yeah. I want to believe in the bucks, but ultimately I just think the Raptors just the collection of talent plus everything in that system works. They're kind of like the best. best of both one. Nobody believes in the Sixers. Nope.

I believe, I believe him. I do. All right. We're going to take a quick break and we're going to come back and talk about Anthony Davis, a guy you may have heard before. Basketball is very good. We're back and we just wrapped up the East. So let's turn to the Western Conference.

Not as much happening there. Probably the biggest thing that did happen was the fact that Anthony Davis did not get traded. It seems like when it all came down to it, the Pelicans were just trolling Lakers? I don't know how much truth that is, but Brian Winhorst dropped that at ESPN the other day that they were kind of just giving it back to L.A. for kind of all the turmoil they put them through over the past couple weeks. I definitely believe it. That seems like a Dell

Dems move to make. And if you're kind of on your last leg there, you might get let go before the summer, like, why not just fuck with some people? So I appreciate that despite all the bad that Dell has incurred on that franchise. I don't know. I guess the Lakers would be the best place to start here. It just seems like they had the most writing on this trade happening, and they have the most to lose now that it's going to leak into the draft and this summer into free agency. Kevin, what do you think it means for the Lakers going forward? Well, they're under a lot of pressure. That's for sure. I mean, I think

Boston immediately vaults the top of teams most likely to make a trade for Anthony Davis this summer with the amount of assets that they can offer. I mean, the fact is that teams besides the Lakers are calling the Pelicans making offers and the fact they said no to all of those, I think at least indicates that there's something out there for them that they're waiting for in June or July and that's probably from Boston. So for the Lakers, it's like,

well, what's your alternative here? Now you at least have a chance to sign a max free agent. You can at least try to make a pitch to Kauai and Kadi and Kui and Kari and odds are you won't get them. So maybe you're down to like the Jimmy Butler's and DeMarcus cousins types of the world or even a Tobias Harris.

Or like, you know, fingers cross Clay Thompson Yeah I mean this what you're hoping for So it's like you hope you sign one of these guys You hope you can still trade for AD But if you can't You're turning your attention to somebody else That you don't have to give up all your assets for

So it's not like it's the end of the world for the Lakers If they don't get AD They still can get two good players this summer But the fact is that Their chances of getting AD are severely severely diminished So do we think Reggie Bulk is the answer Here going forward? Because that's all they came away

the deadline. It's Mike Muscal. Yes, Mike Muscal was another deal with baseball with the clippers. Get some floor spacing for him at least. Oh, yeah. I mean, I've somebody pointed this out, but it's funny how, like,

in the off season when they got LeBron, he's like, oh, we're going to surround him with playmakers. And now the two trades they've made is to surround him with actual spaces, which are going to help. Yeah, because LeBron says the same thing at the start of every year. And then eventually it just, it all warps back to what he's good at. And it's like, well, you just need to surround him by, surround him with a bunch of floor spacing and just let him do his work.

Yeah, they're 27 and 27 right now, even 500, which feels appropriate, given how good they looked at times earlier in the season and how bad they've looked, especially without LeBron on the floor. They're two and a half games back of the Clippers and one game back of the Kings, the Clippers, we expect to not be there, unfortunately, despite, I thought they had one of the better deadlines. I know Paulo does too. The Kings also swung some trades. They got Harrison Barnes in there. What else did they do? Oh, they got Alec Berks. Sure, why not?

Kings fans, then I love that. Really? Who cares? Eamont Shumpert was energetic for chemistry. It was a weird thing where like Eamon Shumbert kind of truly embraced the community. Yes, he did seem to be like their avatar, their mascot, and he was the veteran

in the locker kind of rallying some of those young guys. He was very loud in the locker. That's all I remember from... Which is important for a young team. I think they literally benefited from that, which is crazy. You mentioned those teams that are ahead of the Lakers and the standings, do you think with all this turmoil

and players being unhappy, like Rajan Rondo, I think summed it up well the other day. He mentioned how like just because the deadline passes doesn't mean this goes away. It's still on your mind. Like, do you think with everything that's happened in this team over the past couple, 10 days or so since 80s trade a man, does this diminish their chances,

even if LeBron plays out the rest of the season fully healthy of actually making the playoffs over the Kings or the Clippers? I would still bet on them making the play. because they have Brom. But at the same time, like, if you watch that Pacers game from the other night, it was sad. It was just like 42 point loss? Yeah, exactly.

Like, these guys are so not in the right headspace to play a basketball game. And I don't know how that. I'm very interested to see how that goes, how that changes or how that doesn't change going forward. Like, yo, they're chanting at them. Like, LeBron wants you trade it, whatever. I would watch an entire, like, redub of that game except Bill doing its, body language doctor.

Oh, yeah. Right. Yeah, it was bad. I guess the counter to that would be that's as bad as it could possibly get. Because LeBron is going to get healthy, presumably. I mean, a groin issue is the type of thing

that can tend to linger into a season. It does feel like Rajan Rondo, while he's back in the lineup, is a guy who could easily go out. Lanzo Ball, you know, who knows when they'll get him back, but they will get him back. And Ingram will probably fall in line

at some point. He's been down most of the season, but he is prone to turn it on later in a season, so maybe it's just happening later than usual. So I don't know. I just, I can't bet against LeBron right now. I mean, how surprising would it be if LeBron did the LeBron thing again and got this exact roster to at least the Western Conference Finals?

Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, he's been dragging the Cavs roster for the last few years to the finals. Yeah. I don't even think that would surprise me that much. Right. I mean, who is the biggest competition to the Warriors right now? This is going to open up a new Pandora's box. but like, is it the Thunder?

Houston, still, I think. Yeah, Houston. I would go Thunder because of the defense. Yeah, I bet you Houston when Compella gets back is going to look pretty good. I'd pick Houston and Denver. But I would... Ahead of O KC. Sure, but what I'm saying is I would pick a LeBron the team probably over all those teams.

I do think... Fair. I mean, you can't bet against LeBron, right? And not only does, do they have like this core for this season and like maybe things will get better, but I do wonder if like, now that these guys, know that AD isn't a realistic option, or I don't know how much they believe that, but like, maybe they do kind of buy into what's going on under LeBron. Things get a little bit better. And all you need is maybe a guy like a Bradley Beale, maybe like these B-level stars that they can go

out and sign or swing a trade for. Beale is my new pet project for this team. I would love it. Let's just to presume that Anthony Davis is off the table. He's going to go to Boston. He's going to go to New York, wherever he's going to go. I just think it makes a lot of sense to almost like operate like you're the clippers and not like reach for the the era defining center but get guys who are kind of those an all-star to augment lebron like almost yeah it's basically like what the box are doing around yon it's you want shooters around lebron as we just said maybe the wizards are more likely to deal beel and then you sign someone like i don't know chris milton as your next guy that's a pretty damn good team and that's why they're

suppose plan b is to go after clay thompson because he would fit that bill perfectly sure. But I don't know what the chances of that. Might have to go to like your plan F or something. Because Clay does like that he would need to take a discount, which is awful. I think, you know, for the Lakers, like I said earlier, it's not the end of the world for them. I think the warriors have distorted our

view of what is required to win a championship. Like you could, if you add a middle 10 and then trade for, let's just say, Beal, just let's take a conversation. That's a good team around LeBron James. Like that's in a normal world, that's the championship contender. So I think for them,

it's not the end of the world here. I just think it might be the end of your chances of getting AD until the 2020 offseason. But are you really going to punt cap space this year? That's the question. For the chance of AD next summer, I don't think so. And also another year of LeBron aging. Yes. That's the thing. Like, how many good, like,

prime years does LeBron have left? He's 34 right now. And that's why, like, it was so, it felt so like weighty that they had to get this done at the deadline. You know what I'm saying? Like, in retrospect, it looks like the pelicans were never even going to engage. But this is exactly the thing they needed to do go all in because it's wasting another half season of LeBron's career. And yet, you know, obviously the kind of window closed with AD very quickly.

But I feel like the window for all of these other guys is opening up quite a bit because we're looking at a Washington team that, you know, we had floated the kind of like Brandon Ingram for Bradley Beal type thing for most of the season. but now that DC is kind of burning down they might not have the leverage to really ask for all of that they could just be trying to rebuild this as quickly as they can did the Lakers set a baseline for how far they're willing to go when they're desperate when it comes to negotiate

if you're the Lakers is it like oh Brandon Ingram huh ha ha ha ha like we actually need two first round picks of that too you know what I'm saying it's like I wonder if that happens that's a good point that it feels like the Pelicans did, maybe inadvertently, maybe personally, is like they showed everybody what the Lakers, how far the Lakers would go,

which is pretty far, and yet they still wanted something more. Like they were offering five young players, two first round draft picks. That's a lot. That's acceptable. That was the biggest takeaway from this whole ordeal. It's just like, man, you can really, like, Magic Johnson is a pretty

earnest person, and you could really drag that out and like kind of show the kind of dark side of things there. Well, we saw, like, Like every part of the quote-unquote negotiations we heard about. Like, yeah. Like, the Lakers point out. Well, until we learned all those were not actually.

Sure, yeah. But the fact that it was out there, it made, it created its sort of discourse around those players. For sure. And the good news is tonight we have the juicy matchup of the Lakers and the Boston Celtics. It just, this is the perfect. Yeah, this is the perfect game I want to watch after the trade deadline. Unfortunately, nothing happens. happened with either team. I don't think, well, you

could maybe get to see an early glimpse of Mike Mascala or Mike Mascala on the bench. But that's tonight at 5 p.m. Pacific on TNT. I think the Lakers just need something. This is actually maybe even the perfect situation where they can kind of dig themselves out of a hole here. Like, you've had

that 42 point loss in Indiana. You kind of want to set the tone. It feels like a LeBron statement game. Yeah, and LeBron loves the lights. Rondo loves the limelight. Unless they just get pounded tonight. I'm saying, I mean, the Celtics

statistically are one of the best teams in basketball since they inserted the Marcus's, Marcus Morris and Marcus Martin up to the starting lineup. They've won, I think, 10 out of their last 11 games. Top 5 in net rating. Yep, they have been really spectacular as of late, and they're going as a Lakers team

that is reeling. It could be either a defining win for the Lakers or, oh, geez, what do we do here? I think LeBron goes for 40. It is funny, how we're a lot. we talk about the Celtics as if they're in dire need for Anthony Davis. They're literally one of the best teams in the NBA.

Although Anthony Davis is pretty good as well. So, and remember, if you want to watch every NBA game, subscribe to NBA League Pass or NBA.com or your local cable or satellite provider. All right, let's talk about the other parts of this kind of, I don't even know what you would call it. Saga fiasco. What did you call it, Anthony Davis Super Bowl? The Ghost of AD Bowl.

The ghost of EAD Bowl. let's talk about it from the Pelicans perspective. Ultimately, this might come down to one of the best troll jobs in NBA history, where it seems like Del Dems might have strung them along. But I will say the repercussions will be felt immediately because right now they are sitting on a very big, disgruntled superstar who just got picked for the All-Star game next week, but might not even play a single regular season game for the Pelicans from here on now.

Like, what do you do, Danny? with Anthony Davis right now. Do you sit him and just move along or do you just try to put him back on the court? Well, he wants to play, right? So he said that, yeah. He wants to play. And the thing with Anthony Davis is

he has an injury scare almost every single game. And so just blow out one of those injury scares. He's a nice young fella. No, no, I mean, he's literally just coming off of finger sprain. It wouldn't take much. It wouldn't have to me. A shin injury.

Does AD get disgruntled? He doesn't strike me as a guy. who would get disgruntled. Perchard? Perhaps. I guess like if he wants to play and they're not letting him play, then it's like, okay, there's some tension there. But I don't know, he just doesn't strike me as a guy

who would get like disgruntled about that. Much like the great two came before him this season, J.R. Smith and Carmelo Anthony, I would send his ass home. There you go. Because if AD gets a major injury, there goes all your leverage. So for New Orleans,

there's everything to lose by playing him in games because not only could he get hurt and therefore you're not going to get this massive trade package or this explosive package, as Adam Himmelsbock called it on the Boston Globe. You're not going to get that if he gets a major injury. But also, he helps you win games. Do you really want to be in the playoffs right now

or do you want to have higher lottery odds at getting Zion Williamson with the number one pick? I think that's what you want. So send him home. Yeah, I don't know. I think it's particularly cruel because this entire fiasco was driven by AD's presumed, like, bid to, like, help his legacy to want to be the best player in the NBA,

to compete for titles, not just for playoff spots. And now he might not even get a chance to play for the back end of the season. I remember when he got shut down when I was in New Orleans at the end of the 2015-16th season, he literally started to, like, get teary-eyed because he could not play in the Olympics. Like, I honestly think this guy is just fueled by wanting to win games and to be out on the court. And, like, I guess this is the downside. If you want to make these power plays, if you want to for, your way into a situation,

they're going to rob you of the one thing that kind of defines you as a person. It's really kind of sad. That will to win is also exactly why I think other teams should feel confident if they can keep him. Like, everything, like, I'm sure you know this better than anybody here. Like, he's kind of a quiet kind of non-confrontational person. Everything I've heard about him, is that true?

You know, in your experience? So it's like, if you're a team assessing him as a person, if you're bringing him into a team that can make a run at either the conference finals or even the NBA finals and maybe even win it. I think based off his character and things that we know about him, you can feel confident that he'll probably stay instead of going to join a soon-to-be 36-year-old LeBron James with

the Lakers in 2020. Like, why would he leave Boston or Denver or Toronto if one of those teams were to trade for him this summer when they could win a finals and not just won finals but multiple finals. That's what he's wanted this entire time. So I think for these teams this summer, I mean, the Lakers can still get him. still put together a fair package, but I think any of these other teams, even if they're not on his list, should feel confident that they could be able to keep him. But I think he would also have a really great shot in winning a finals with LeBron.

Oh, yeah, for sure. You know, like, I don't, I get that that, yes, there may be, like, better future basketball situations, but in, but in the sense of, you know, whether he's already been vocal, or at least it's been very publicized after how he doesn't want to end up in Boston. So, I mean, like. Is that him or clutch? I mean, that's the thing. That's the question.

That's the question, looming over everything. I just, it feels like it's inevitable that he ends up in a lot of time. I'm of the belief that if AD went to Boston and Kyrie stayed and now there's obviously Scuttlebutt that like Kyrie might look elsewhere, but I think if AD were there, Kyrie would probably look to stay because they are friends and they presumably want to play together. I think AD would be fine there. That's the big variable.

It's like if Kyrie this summer, you know, July 1st rolls around, he's like, you know, I want to go to New York and join with KD or go back, join the Clippers, who knows? If he leaves, then suddenly Boston, I think they're in a position where they're not giving up Tatum, right? The Celtics fatal flaw was making an incredible trade for Kyrie Irving and not being able to pair these guys together before this summer. Before they don't have a half season to play Kyrie and 80 together so they can know how good it can be together. Isn't that kind of a weird rule when you really think about it? It's ridiculous. It makes no sense.

It's like I wonder like when they're designing that rule, I wonder where it comes from to say, we're not going to allow a team to trade for, two rookies who were signed as designated players, but like it's allowed to trade for like, say, to all NBA players or something like that. It's probably Dan Gilbert, because he does all the bad things in the league. It's not a bad rule. Yeah, but like, yeah, exactly.

What was the origin point? What was the, what was the person? I love to know. I guess if the idea is to like keep your own players and if the previous CBA negotiations were defined by guys teaming up together, this is a way to keep the Wade, Bosch, LeBron, situation from happening on another team.

No doubt. It's an extra hurdle. It's smart rule for that way. And yet it's the super teams are still going to happen and keep happening. Yeah. The one little wrinkle that I'm looking out for here is just like when does the league get involved here if Anthony Davis is a healthy scratch and I can't imagine that clutch is going to be quiet now about the fact that Anthony Davis is healthy and ready and able to play, does the league start to worry more about the rest games? because this was a thing, what, two years ago

where they made this big kerfuffle over guys can't rest, especially for national games, you have to have an actual injury, yada, yada, yada, and then all of a sudden a few things happened and then we just all stopped talking about it. I do think it's incumbent upon the league if they want to enforce these rules to enforce them now again

when a similar situation is coming up. And I also wonder, like, in New Orleans, like, how are other players going to perceive them shutting down Anthony Davis? Like, do you think that this is to have a ripple effect to other star players where New Orleans wasn't much of a destination before, but like maybe even some of these kind of lower level of free agents aren't going to want to play there if they're just going to hijack the second half of your season.

The thing about that though is that much like we talk about how like not unfortunately, but just the reality of the fact that is a business, it is a business. Like that also fits into that. It's a business for the Pelicans and they can't afford to have Davis injure himself and thus, you know, mess up the trade that's going to happen in the future. But on that point, like, the Pelicans removed Davis from the injury report for tonight's game.

Oh, really? There you go. I don't know what that means, but he's not on the injury report anymore. We'll keep an eye on that one. I think it's interesting. Just some of the other move that they made on the fringes while they were waiting for the AD thing to happen. We talked about the merit tissue trade. They also picked up a second from Washington

when they tried to dump Marquis P. Morse's contract. I wonder if Marquis P. Morris will even give him a look, or even a roster spot there or he'll just get let go because he is, as we know, a clutch client. So that definitely makes things particularly interesting. But like going forward here,

what do you think is the best like approach with the Pelicans? Like, do they keep a Julius Randall? Do they build their team around, Drew Holiday? Do they just pack it in, get the pick and go from there? I don't know. What's the move? I think it should go for the pick.

I mean, I think there's a way that this could reboot pretty quickly here. Yeah. Especially depending on the hall that they get in the eventual trade. No doubt about it. They could be good pretty soon. I think they have, you know, Drew Hollidays are really, really good player. Julius Randall has developed along really nicely for them.

So it's not like they don't have any talent on the team. If you get that explosive package from Boston or another team for Anthony Davis, well, you're setting yourself up pretty nicely if on top of that you're getting, even besides Zion Williamson. there's a couple nice prospects in this drafts. You know, RJ Barrett, John Morant, if you're getting one of these guys or someone else pops.

Well, you're set up pretty nicely with a nice young core for the next, you know, hopefully seven, eight, ten years. Yeah. And one thing we were just talking about in the office earlier is if there is a big contract that let's say the Celtics have to move,

is it Gordon Hayward or is it a guy like an Al Horford who has a player option for next season? And while he probably wouldn't opt in just to get traded to some far off destination, like Drew Holiday and Horford share the same agent. I think they have the same kind of disposition. And I wonder if they would want to team up. If only for like maybe one season, make a go of it.

You bring back Julius Randall. You have this draft pick. You have maybe like a Tatum. That's a pretty good team. I think that's a playoff team. And if I'm Del Demps, that's definitely what I'm selling to my ownership in the meantime. Hey, don't get rid of me because I'm going to get this Celtics package. And we're going to reboot this really quickly.

I think that trade package for Boston, And Keith Smith from Yahoo brought up earlier today with the Celtics opening a roster spot with the Jabari bird trade. Now they're in a position to sign a player for the rest of the season with a two-year deal non-guaranteed for the second season. And that would be useful for them to use as that salary matching player in an AD trade. Because if you're packaging, Marcus Smart, Jason Tatum, I don't know, Robert Williams, you need more money in there to make the deal work. So that's something to watch for the rest of the season that the player. they sign could end up being the guy that's utilized in a trade the

summer for Anthony Davis. So they don't have to give Horford or Gordon Hayward in a trade. So do you think that they would still put, it sounds like they would, but I'm just wondering like they would still put Tatum on the table even though they have no assurances from Anthony Davis that he's going to stay there? I think they would put Tatum up there.

Yeah, I do. I mean, and if you're the Pelicans, and if you're the Pelicans, and if you're the penalty on stats, the trade, you do. If Kyrie stays. If Kyrie stays and also like look around the landscape, I mean, the Lakers package, as we just mentioned, isn't that bad. I don't think we're high on a lot of those guys,

but there are still some talent in there, plus some picks, and then the Knicks. You always have to worry about the Knicks here, even if they don't land number one overall. If it's number two and you have a B-line to RJ Barrett or someone like that, that's also pretty good. That will allow the Pelicans to kind of reboot here even quicker. So I don't know.

It seems unlikely they'll be able to do it without Tatum, I think. Oh, yeah, I think Tatum needs to be in there, ultimately. I don't know if you can build a better package. with Jalen Brown as the centerpiece. The one interesting thing with Boston is like this deadline, you know, it's kind of good for them in a way. I think with the Clippers pick potentially rolling over to next season, the Grizzlies trading Markersoll and being worse,

that pick is top eight protected this year. It's beneficial for Boston to have that future pick, I think, from the Clippers and that future pick from the Grizzlies in a trade for Anthony Davis rather than picks in this year. I mean, I'm sure we're going to talk about this in the coming. weeks on the corner three, Danny. But like this draft class is really, really weak, especially like towards the middle of the middle of the first round and beyond. So I think for Boston, their draft picks are a bit stronger now. Granted, that Sacramento pick still isn't going to

be what anybody would have expected it to be entering the season. Yeah. I wonder the Celtics, if they're not the biggest winner, they're among them just for the fact that AD is going to be in play now. Yeah, I mean, that's the thing they were hoping on, right? If the Pelicans somehow gave into the Lakers, it spells disaster for them because then Kyrie feels like all but gone in a lot of sense, in a lot of senses. So yeah, I don't know. I think

they didn't make a move unlike the rest of the East, but they have sort of like bigger plans ahead. So it's almost like there's a balancing there. Right. They're the team probably for next year, whereas a lot of these other teams are trying to take advantage of the window now. I think it's a good question considering

that we just talked about how well the Celtics have been playing of late. Like where do they stack in comparison to these three other East Goliaths that have just been formed on the trade department. I honestly still think they're right there. Like you look at their team and we've seen from last year

that they are, like I was talking about matchup-proofing, you know, these rosters. The Celtics are kind of the forerunners of that. You know, they matchaproved before anyone else needed to, you know? They have a lineup for every single situation still. And Brad Stevens with a couple days the game plan, as we saw can take LeBron James out of a game to a certain extent and take away some of these other guys. I still think that in a playoff series, that's not a team you want to say.

I think ultimately it comes down to where will Gordon Hayward be in April, May, and they would hope June, right? If Hayward is the same inconsistent guy that can't really get to the rim or finish around the rim, well, that's going to hurt them, obviously. But he's shown flashes of being that guy he was in Utah, and if he's able to work his way back by the playoffs, that puts them right on par with those teams and if not maybe above them if Hayward's back to form but I think that's a lot to ask for for this season with an injury he had.

I think next year you can maybe hope for that for him, whether it's in Boston somewhere else but this season that seems like a bit optimistic to hope for. Right and that's why again back to the AD point it feels like they're trying to win now but also playing for the long run and having those bigger plans. This has been reported I think but like Boston

someone mentioned Boston's ownership like mandated like going for the chance championship this season. And that's one of the reasons why Boston didn't trade Terry Roseer, but they had opportunities to. I know Phoenix was interested earlier in the season, but Rosier is a-Kyrie insurance in case he walks. But also like a good backup point card. You might have done more damage than this season. But he's good to have him, especially given Kyrie's injury concerns. All right, we're going to take one more quick break. And then we're going to talk about some of our favorite traits.

Basketball is very good. All right, we're back. We're going to wrap up the trade deadline here, talk about some of the more fringy moves, some of our favorites. Paulo, you probably have the more high profile one of the group here, so let's hear it. Yeah, I love the Fultz to the Magic trade

because it feels right. Like, it's something that has been... Because he's so magical? Yeah, exactly. There's still some magic left. I'd like to believe there's still some magic left in the Fultz experience, you know? And it's just a right spot for him

to work out whatever he needs to. to work at, whether it's mental, whether it's physical. It's a team that is kind of just there in the Eastern Conference. Still trying to make the playoffs, apparently, but also just doesn't have a lot of attention to them. They need point guard figure going forward. He makes a lot of sense in that. And in just a place where he can do things without it being on a national, like, platform.

And I think the Sixers got back, you know, they didn't get back Terence Ross, but they got back a piece in Jonathan Simmons and picks and freeing up cap space to it. So I just like that because I want Foltz to throw out. at some point of his career. How do we feel about Jonathan Simmons? Do we have any opinion on Jonathan? Look, if he can, he was actually a pretty big difference maker

in the playoffs, what, like two or three years ago? Spurs, right? So, like, look, if he can regain some of that and maybe shoot back to his career average from three, which is like 35%, then he can be a useful piece, I guess, but it's just like not, it's not a sexy. You talk about false regaining magic with the magic. It's like every player that leaves the Spurs

loses everything. Yeah. Except for Aaron beans. I like the idea of Fultz just retreating to obscurity. And I hope for the best for him. It's hard to have any, like, ill will toward that guy considering everything he does,

although maybe like chill it on like some of the snack foods. I am kind of confused why they gave up a first and a second in this deal. It seems like a lot for a guy that we don't even know could like make it on to an NBA court. I think I would have given it more. I would have been willing to. I think, I mean, look, one of those picks is top 20 protected and a garbage draft. And the other one is a second round pick and also in a garbage draft.

So I think, you know, Jonathan Simmons is not part of their future. Markle Fultz, I look at it this way. In this week draft, Fultz is a lottery pick. He's still a lottery pick. Even after this issue that he's had and all, you know, the doubt that his shot ever returns, I still think in his time of Philadelphia, and this is why Sixers fans are a little bit disappointed about it, is because the fact he showed everything else except for the shot,

he still showed the athleticism and the ability to drive to the rim, the ability to pass. You know, as a young player, his defense was shaky, like it is for any young point card, but he's still at solid moments. I just think the team moved too fast in one direction for him to even have a shot of catching up. That's just what it comes down to, which is like they have just sped up.

their process to where they are now, which Tobias Harris Strait being the latest example. And there was no place for him anymore. I just wish the Hawks were more interested. Because they had pieces that the six years could definitely have used. Right. And as we talked about before, Lloyd Pierce is the coach down in Atlanta. He used to be a coach in Philly.

Apparently he and Fultz got along. I'm at the NBA's version of Occam's Razor with Fultz, which I guess would be Anthony Bennett's razor. It's just, if you're not good, you're not good. He's killing it for the Alwood Caliente Clippers. That's true. I just, I mean, yes, I get it that he still has a lottery prospect in there somewhere.

I just like, man, if the tape we're working off of it is his free throw form, like, I want nothing to do with that guy. I mean, I would give him a chance if he was just on the street and, like, you could put him into your G-League system or you could put him on your NBA team and kind of stash him away for a little bit. I just, I have no hope left. But fear of the magic. Yeah, no, I get it. I just wouldn't have given up any picks for him. That's fair.

Part of me is really just hoping for a happy ending to this story. 100%? I do. Yeah. I think giving up those picks, like, yeah, you'd love to have whoever you're going to take at the end of the 25th pick with that OKC pick if it even conveys. Because if it doesn't, it turns into a 22 second rounder and a 2023 second rounder if it even conveys. So it might end up being no first round picks if OKC dropped to like 18th in the NBA standings. And then it would be two seconds.

three seconds total on the trade. Yeah. All right, Danny. What's your favorite deal? So I've always kind of dreamt of being an accountant. Okay. It's just I was never really good at numbers. And so I could never crunch them.

So I really respected that Tyler Johnson, Ryan Anderson trade. It was an incredible move. Shouts out to Albert Ahmad, who really broke it down and really gave some context into why it was so good. like the Miami Heat were pretty much hamstrung like because of all of the deals that they made in 2016. And the fact that they were able to get under the luxury tax, that's amazing. Albert is incredible. Yeah. He is one of the best Twitter follows.

I mean, I think I'd probably, if I could like keep 10 people to follow on Twitter, he's probably one of them. He's very important. He's the Twitter follow you'd keep on a desert island. Very important to have for salary cap knowledge. Albert's great. And he just does this for fun. my understanding. Yeah, I don't have any

interesting thoughts about this trade. Like, I just think the heater boring as hell and they've gotten more boring as a result of this. Tyler Johnson, this is my only thought. I mean, it's like everybody's talking about Phoenix needs a point card. Phoenix needs a point card. Well, Booker's your primary ball handler. Now you have another

combo guard and Johnson who can also share those reps and maybe you can test out Booker a little bit more off ball with a not a primary guy in Johnson, but a secondary guy. Yeah. Yeah, no, I think that Johnson gets unnecessarily knocked because of his contract because he took a favorable deal for himself. And he's obviously never going to live up to whatever it is.

Is it 19 million? Is it up there? Yeah. I believe the story was that he almost threw up or did throw up when he found out how much he was getting. I would chew if I was talking. But I think there's a fine player in there. And so like, why not take a little bit of a risk if you're the sons? All right, Kevin, what is your favorite deal of our deadline here?

My favorite deal is Otto Porter. Oh, wow. Being traded from the Washington Wizards to the Chicago Bulls for Jabari Parker, Bobby Portis, and a 2023 second round pick. The reason why is because I'm just intrigued to see Porter in this new environment. How will they try to Harrison Barnes him by giving him more on-ball opportunities? Because, I mean, it's true. He's been very efficient across the board and different play types, including pick and roll last season

and into this season as well. I want to see if there's more to his game within that gym-boiling offense. We'll see. High-octane. I mean, the odds are he's going to lose some of it is really high efficiency that he had in Washington as a secondary player.

But I hope we get to see him with the ball. ball more. And then the inverse, for Bobby Portis, I really like him. I really like Bobby Portis. And I think there will be an opportunity for more heavier minutes, more consistent heavy minutes with the Washington Wizards entering his restricted free agency this summer. I'm excited to see how Portis develops. He's still young. The Bulls love him. I mean, Zach Levine was talking about how he was basically his best friend on the team and how he basically kept the team together, which is saying a lot. This year has been awful in so many different ways. He's also the guy who punch the Colomeritage.

Yeah, if you're worried. You know, that's a bonding experience, what you say? Yeah. Bonding his hand to someone's face. Yeah. No, I think Kevin has more bold optimism from like

any money in the world. You were all in on the parker. I would be very, not very, but I would be quite high on the bulls if they didn't have boiling. Because if you think about it, they have marketing.

What? Zechlevene sucks. No, they have Lori marketing and Wendelleynne and Wendellonleckon who are both good. And Windows hurt. I'm just talking about this season I'm just talking about going forward

That's the thing, Paulo. I'm high on them because they have boiling Because they're talking That's how he makes the team worse Yes, in that sense yes But I'm just talking about okay Now you had auto Porter to marketing And when the Carter

Impossed be another pick It's kind of interesting I just wish they were not coached by him They have some interesting guys My issue with the trade from Chicago side is that they're basically sucking up their cap And bringing in Porter rather than trying to

chase some of these free agents that they could. But would they get anybody? Well, here's the thing. Like, probably not. But, like, I don't feel like this is like a Charlotte or a Memphis situation where you need to do that. Like, you're Chicago. Act like you're Chicago.

Nobody's going to want to run wind sprints. That's all I'm going to say. It's hard to argue. I think if you're Chicago, tank the hell out of the season, tank the hell out of next season. And then in 2021, when Porter's contract is up, maybe at that point you can start making some moves. That's two years for now.

This is like, it's already been two years. There sucks for so long. Time moves by so quickly. This is a theme in the corner three two years is not a long time. It's not. It is for me, man.

I'm fucking 31. I only have so many good years left. Jesse wants a very competitive bull team before he's 40. We need to get this going. I'm about to die. All right. On that note,

my favorite deal was one for a team that is going forward now the Sacramento Kings. Yes. They got Harrison Barnes. And not only do they got, did they get a guy that I think can help them immediately who slides into that three, four spot that they've kind of been shaky at right now.

They did it for relatively pennies. Justin Jackson, bad player. I do not want him on my team. Zach Randolph wasn't playing. I don't think he logged a single minute in this season. He's been inactive the entire time. And so he's just kind of hanging out. In Memphis, I think.

Still. Really? Seriously. At home. Wow. Well, they have good barbecue. I don't blame him. I think I saw a report that they are going to buy him out from Dallas, which if I was him, like, just give me all the money.

I'm just going to hang out for the rest of the season. But for the Kings, I don't know, it just makes a lot of sense. I love their young core. I think there's a lot of good numbers floating around about their star kind of three-guard lineup there with Fox, McDonovic, and Buddy Healed. I've definitely come around him, but he was drafted in New Orleans, and I said many a bad things about him. I just think Barnes is the type of guy.

You could slide him in at the four. You can play a little bit bigger. You can move, or excuse me, you play him at the three and play a little bit bigger. You can put him at the four and match up that way. I think if you put in Harry Giles or Bagley and at the five next to him, that's a team that could score 200 points a game and maybe give up 300 points a game, which won't be good for their playoff push, but...

Entertaining. This is still the most entertaining team in the league, and I think they got even more entertaining today. Well, and it also helps that the clip. seem to be not going for that playoff spot that they didn't currently hold and the Lakers didn't get any deep. So, you know, there's a better chance.

The windows freaking open. For a first round sweep. Yeah, to be clear. But they don't have their pick so it doesn't matter. Yeah, exactly. They should be pushing for the playoffs. I think for Dallas, it's like now their playoff hopes are gone.

They were pretty much gone as is already. Now for them, it's like about looking forward. Now they can open up max cap space this summer. I don't know who would go to Dallas necessarily. does it seem like it projects favorably for them unless, unless DeMarcus cousins.

There you go. With Chris Cops? I'm just saying that's interesting. That's a weird fit. It's a weird fit, but, you know, if you're going to spend this summer, I wonder who you go for. There was rumblings years ago before,

you know, before Boogie got traded to New Orleans that they hit interest. They had Jaliele cousins on their G-League team. Wow. I'm just saying. Yeah. We'll see. I mean, they're really, they're really gunning for, for Yonis.

in 20-21. All right. Two years will be here before we know it, Danny. I'll say this. If teams are still in the AD Derby would make some sense if you start angling toward Drew Holiday and Drew Holiday is a guy

that they definitely talked about before he decided to re-up in New Orleans for all that money. I think he would be a really good fit next to Luca Donchich and kind of augment what they already have there. So they have some options. Can I add one deal to the favorite?

Oh, deal with Powell Ogeddy. It's a future deal. It has not happened yet. I'd love it already. Go for it. When the Lakers signed Carmelo, it will become my favorite transaction with that line. Yeah, we should talk about that deal

where you click-lut though. They basically, the Clippers rerouted Mike Muscala and picked up Ivakizubach, a guy who was in the 80 package reportedly just a couple days ago. Yeah. As well as Michael Beasley,

who's going to get away. But they did so, in part, to open up a roster spot in order to sign somebody. Somebody. Someone who may be a little bit of a doughy 3-4 type who can take a lot of shots for that. Maybe close to LeBron and have a relationship with that.

Maybe. Maybe that's the type of move where you don't get Anthony Davis and you kind of appease your best player by getting, you know, just a good guy for it. That's a straight up rooting for content situation. Are we done here? What are we talking about here? Yep. It may be.

Instead of boogie, you try to throw a lot of money at DeAngelo Russell. A guy you can play on ball and off all. Are you talking with the Mavericks? Yes. When you said we're done here, I was like, one more thought. All right, that's it for us. For Paulo, for Danny, for Kevin O'Connor, for Bobby Wagner on the boards. This has been chatting in the corner.

We'll see you next time. Basketball is very good. Basketball is very good.