Everything That’s Right With the Jazz and Wrong With the Hawks | The Dunker Spot

Nekias Duncan and Steve Jones Jr. react to the latest (W)NBA news, break down the Wizards-Pistons trade from the weekend, check in on All-Star voting, then bounce around the league with observations.

If you have NBA or WNBA questions for us, email them to dunkerspot@yahoo.com.

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0:00 Intro
1:15 Where could Elena Delle Donne go if she doesn’t return to the Mystics?
8:45 A silver lining in Memphis
11:35 Breaking down the Wizards-Pistons trade
21:45 A check-in on All-Star voting
26:25 How the Thunder confuse and manipulate defenses
33:25 A quick hat-tip to Minnesota
35:17 It’s time to take note of the Utah Jazz
50:30 Nekias takes an L on his Hawks-themed bold prediction
1:00:15 Player shoutouts, featuring Domantas Sabonis, Pascal Siakam, Nikola Jovic (and Jokic) and more
1:08:15 Would you want to sit on a flight next to someone who hooped in the Indy airport?

Subscribe to The Old Man and The Three podcast w/ JJ Redick (ESPN / First Take) and Tommy Alter YouTube channel today for more NBA analysis, player interviews and highlights.

Hi hello and welcome to another episode of the dunker spot we are part of 342 Productions I am your host nikay Duncan and joining me as always is my co-host Steve Jones Jr Steve how are you doing sir ah feeling good feeling great happy to be here excited to be here thank you

Dunkers for once again embracing your bounce uh dunker Nation let’s ride YouTubers hi hello shout out to the cut Cutters and the rummers and the listeners just want to make sure I get everyone involved uh very happy nikayas looking great nice haircut I like the black shirt it’s going be really

Appropriate uh depending on how this Eagles game goes you can flip it either way so you you know a joke so nice I had to use it twice uh it’s time to hoop it up it is indeed time to hoop it up before we get into H basketball things

I’ll just very quickly note Philly I hope that I am in good Grace I’m hope I’m in a good mood on Thursday when we record the Pod because buddy the way that this path is now opened up because the the Dallas Cowboys just made a mess

In their own bed and also their house and also their cars etc etc get it done Philly get it done you got to get it done it it’s you have a chance to renew things anyway we’re not a football pod we’re going to talk about some basketball let’s get into some news

Items before we dig on in on the W Front since teams are able to talk to fre agents on January 21st we are right around the corner for WNBA free agency very quick note uh got a couple of core designations which for those who aren’t familiar it’s basically the NBA’s

Version of the franchise tag exclusive negotiating rights it’s a one-year supermax uh you can negotiate a different deal from there but the main thing here is you are not going anywhere if you are negotiating with anyone it is with us or at the very least it’s collaboration if we’re going to trade

You so um as noted after you know postseason pressers with the New York Liberty Brianna Stewart getting the core designation she’s not going anywhere she is going to be a member of the New York Liberty we’re going to see where the actual contract figure lands um once R

Toy officially starts but she’s not going anywhere what’s interesting is what’s happening in Washington Elena deaon also getting the core designation from the mystics but we did get some reporting from Jen Hatfield of the nexts that a pair of League Executives told her they do not expect Elena delodon to

Be back in Washington so again she got the core designation but that does not prevent her from being traded or you know for her and Washington working together to get her where she wants to go if that is the thing Steve if Elena is not back in Washington if she doesn’t

Just sign that oneyear super mat offer and stays put what are some Landing spots for her that you see ah well it’s weird to talk about this because Ed’s been such a staple for the mystics even with the injuries I think she still has a chip on her

Shoulder looking to prove something I believe she wants to win so Nikas are you ready for Ed Las Vegas Ace not really I guess is the thing like I I would imagine as we’re still waiting to hear about what Candace Parker actually plans to do I think the most we’ve

Gotten is she wants to play if she’s healthy enough and now it’s just waiting on the if she’s healthy part and so we’re going to be we’re going to be waiting on that answer for a little bit but the aces do they would literally have cap space but now with the core

Designation I just wonder like what kind of trade would even be worked out to get that done if that was going to be the landing spot for her cuz now naturally they’re not trading Asia they’re not trading Jackie they’re not trading Kelsey they’re not trading um Chelsea so

Like I don’t think Alicia Clark and Kirsten Bale if she gets the restricted free agents offered I would have imine she does like I don’t think that does it um the aces don’t have their first round pick this year because of the dear kambi investigation so I don’t even see what’s

Workable to make that happen now if she didn’t get the core designation from Washington that would probably be more of a possibility in which you would just continue to laugh at me for long-term listeners and also watch party hang outters you would know why that would be

Funny but with the core designation like at now I definitely don’t see Vegas as like a viable option this this man was crunching numbers this man was do a math to make sure this couldn’t happen now there’s no way there’s absolutely no way well well let me annoy you some more

Okay the Phoenix Mercury I guess my question would be why have you not seen the mindset coming out of Phoenix I mean yes they they very much want to turn things around new coach new ownership like I get it when they announced that practice facility Matt ishbia said he wanted to

Have it ready to start the 2024 season because he doesn’t like things that take two years just keep that in mind it’s not going to surprise me if the Mercury try to make a splash I just don’t know if Ed is it and then just trying to Envision that core of I guess

Diana for another year plus Sophie plus Ed plus Britney Grinder like they would still need a point guard and even then if you get those four together like that’s that’s good do you feel better about that group or Connecticut I feel good about that group that group compete now here the the

Question is who who do you think should go get Ed that’s now my question considering I’ve offered two and you threw them over the top rope and you spent two years saying Ed is not a top 25 player in the W that is you tell me oh my bad what was it very

Quickly because we’re not going to spread lies to the to our Youtubers of people that are new to us not going to let you push that propaganda Bud quick background we’re not going to hang here too much longer quick background Steve and I as we do it on

The NBA side on W side we do Awards things Allstar all W etc etc and much like the NBA I have like a general gains play at minimum that I want players to hit before they hit either of my teams Etc Ed because she’s missed a bunch of

Time and over the past three seasons I think it’s 51 regular season games over the last three years for Ed last season or the year before last rather she was very good however she missed a bunch of time and so she didn’t end up making one

Of my fake ballots for like the all W teams because she didn’t play enough for me I never I I was very intentional about saying it’s not a talent deal it is very much an availability deal Steve just wanted to get this ran out of me it

Worked well done well done anyway as far as actual suitors for Ed I mean first team that pops to mind honestly Chicago where Ed has played before they’re gonna have a bunch of cap space if we’re talking about new you know new staff new coaching staff new leadership up top Chicago also counts

They’re going to have Max space they also have if you want to go if it’s gonna it’s going to end up being a trade so like they would still have like the Isabelle Harrison salary who’s a very versatile big didn’t get to play much last year because of injury but like

They have that salary slot they want to move that uh they could have more picks at their disposal but we’re not going to go down that road again today um but they can do something workable there they want to get Ed in the room start her in the front Court like that would

Make sense for me but to your point it says she wants to win so if it’s not there does Connecticut have the pieces to make something work there Olivia Nelson adod naticia heiderman pick Prosper is that the bit I feel like that just winds up being

Too much in the not too much because a lot of talent but if you’re planning on bringing back danana boner if you’re planning on bringing back Bri Jones trying to work in Bri Jones danana Alysa Thomas and Elena delodon like it takes pressure off of Ed if you want to bring

Her along slowly in the regular season but does that put Bri Jones back in that six-woman role that she graduated out of as she made an All-Star team from the bench not too long ago like that might get a little dicey but Chicago and Connecticut are probably the two teams

That come to mind for me that’s fair I I like the Chicago fit my wild card if you didn’t say Connecticut I was gonna ask does Minnesota move you or is it that feels very much like we have to sell Ed on we we have fee in the room obviously

But plan on bringing you in and we feel really good about this other free agent too and it just becomes like a coup in free AG in free agency that’ be my guess with Minnesota but we shall see man things really going to heat up next week

I’m excited to see what happens on the W Front to the NBA side the bad news for the Memphis Grizzlies is that they continue to deal with a whole lot of injuries and I really feel bad for them this tweet from the lead listing all the injuries that the Grizz are dealing with

Right now John Mor out for the year Desmond Bane out for at least six weeks because ankle injury Marcus Smart out at least six weeks with a finger injury jiren Jackson is dayto day Stephen Adams is out for the year Brandon Clark is still out from last year’s injury

Derrick Rose is week to week and Jake laravia is also out a minimum of three weeks that is insane I I don’t have much more to add to that outside of that is insane I hope everyone heals properly Silver Lining if we’re trying to find some in this grizzly season

Shout out to Vince Williams for landing a three-year 7 $9 million deal most guaranteed money ever to a player that was on a two-way contract averag about six points five boards and two assists fun connector offensively defensively that dude is incredibly fun he’s very good already and I would imagine there’s

Even more upside on the defensive end as he continues to get playing time I’ve had a lot of fun in uh I’ve had a lot of fun watching him I know Steve has as well any quick thoughts on Vince Williams getting the deal uh just great find for Memphis

Obviously injury ridle campaign as you talked talk about but one of the Hallmarks for them has been finding guys that step up and fit what they want to do on both ends Vince Williams he just keeps working he just gets after it he keeps working like two possessions that

Stand out in my mind where I was all the way in uh they play Phoenix he Sprints the floor hard in transition misses a layup gets his own rebound kicks it out they missed the three he Taps it back out again despite being in a sea of

Purple in the paint and they end up making a three and the way he started the game against the the other night gets a back door cut Nas scores the layup right into full court pressure navigates the screen then helps and gets a steal on the weak side in the first 30

Seconds of the game he did that yeah he’s a tone so I I he does the little things you mentioned the connection he just plays hard Cuts hard gets off of it we’ll see if the three-point shot develops but that’s that’s kind of what Memphis is going to

Have to do for this season figure out who’s going to be there for the next step obviously you want to get healthy but guys are gonna have some opportunities and Vince Williams is cashed in on his there you go props to Vince Williams indeed you mentioned the

Shooting 34% from three this year you want to see that Trend upwards with how people defend him but he does just about everything else averaging seven rebounds per game as a starter which is not something you typically hear from a wing just kind of speaks to the nose for the

Ball that he has all right we had a trade over the weekend a fun one between the Detroit Pistons and the Washington Wizards who as we record on this Monday afternoon I think the first MLK Day game is happening right now but the Pistons and wizards do face off today so that’s

Going to be fun to dig into whenever I get into that one but the Washington Wizards acquiring Marvin baggley Isaiah livers and two conditional second round picks in 2025 and 2026 the Detroit Pistons getting Danilo galinari and Mike muscala initial thoughts on that one were you I’m not sure who was

Anticipating that one or those two teams talking period I feel like at least for me I’ve kind of viewed Washington as the contender goes to the Wizards and say hey what can we get for at tias Jones or Delon wri etc etc and for Detroit hey we will take this contract

If you want some of our vets or a similar deal we’re a contender what can we get for insert betet here I didn’t anticipate a Pistons wizard swap of talent and so this one initially caught me off guard but beyond the offg guardedness I guess if I can speak uh

What were some of your initial thoughts on this trade well it’s probably just trading picks for expiring contracts for Detroit and opening up space to be a part of a trade later but I like the move for a couple reasons one you made a decision you finally made a decision you’re moving in

A Direction that’s different than the one that you’re in I think that’s important now you can argue Nikas that the idea of trading picks to get Marvin baggley and then having to trade picks to get off of Marvin Bagley is not ideal but that’s neither here nor there you

You get rid of the LW jam oh I was just gonna say it’s actually here I I am not a fan of how Detroit handled that but continue it’s like the 55th pick wasn’t it anyways uh you got rid of the Log Jam of bigs who can play at the five and are

All in like each other’s way and you feel like you need to play them all so you’re trying to do two big lineups or you’re playing short stance and no one develops and gets better and every summer is a challenge to see which big has figured out how to shoot three no

More of that it’s over I think overall you get reputation shooting just from a pure basketball perspective Detroit’s 29th and three-pointers attempted T night at 30.7 they’re 28th and 3point percentage 34.4 galinari and mcal a as a base are going to be people that defenses at least consider or think

About or can make a defense pay and the the real big part of it of that is that should open up the Playbook more for you and boost some of those movement sets that you’re trying to run so you should have you know muscala can pick and roll

Pick and pop he could be a hub Gallow can space uh you know he’s going to get into his old man game uh so I think that’s probably the biggest bonus and I think you probably clear a pathway to play smaller lineups and get some of these lineups where we mentioned it in

The last rookie report go ahead and click the link you can use thear Thompson as a screener now m a little bit more naturally than than you had before because you have a little bit more flexibility wisman has a clear path as far as okay what are you

Going to do for us every single night so I I think that just kind of helped shake things up for the Pistons what did you think um I think for me I’m with you and that’s a really good point about going being able to Trent go smaller now and

Unlock some of the Rolling things with assar Thompson as mentioned on the last rookie report the screening usage for him on ball has been up and they’ve gotten some fruitful things at least statistically they’ve gotten some good things out of it and so now did you have

A true spacing five and Mike muscala who neither him or Gallow have shot well from three this season on low valume but historically they have been very good Shooters and you hope that with some of the Guard play as you get Cade back with Jay NY being able to get downhill the

Way he does you have more natural pick and pop opportunities or more natural catch and shoot opportunities maybe you see that bounce back and you just make it easier easier on your young guys like I think ultimately we’ve been talking about C for the last three years he

Needs space he needs room to operate with before even digging into what his you know strengths or weaknesses may be as a basketball player give him room to either prove those weaknesses wrong or whatever the case may be getting an actual stretch big in the room is

Exciting to me it might be Mike bucala for 14 minutes a game like I remember how excited I was because I’ve been on the Mike bucala plus minus monster train and everything he was doing in OKC he goes to Boston plays a little bit and he’s just not playing anymore it’s like

Well guess I was loud about that one but he may have more room and opportunity in Detroit like I’m not sure how fruitful this portion of it will be but like you do even if you want to stay big like you can play wisman and muscala together offensively and keep those role

Opportunities available for James wisman use Mike muscal as a spacer like that option exists for me it’s been kind of hard to Peg Gallo’s portion in this because I agree just from an own Court perspective he is a guy that has proven he can shoot not shooting well this year but he can

Knock down shots he can get into some of those ice ations can post up mismatches he just feels like we’re trading you here but we’re going to work out a buyout very quickly just because of like what his salary number is think it’s a shade under seven mil so if he

Does get to buy out like he any playoff team can sign him versus if he had a bigger contract number and some of those like second apron teams wouldn’t be able to pick him up so like that feels more like Gallow probably won’t be there I’ll

Be surprised if Gallow plays often if at all in Detroit Mike muscala even if he ends up being traded before the deadline it feel like he’ll actually get some runway in Detroit so I’m more excited about the muscala portion than the Gallow portion for Washington it’s an interesting

Bet I do think I do think Marvin Bagley is talented like very quietly career high inside the yard in terms of efficiency he is a really good roller he is a vertical threat and so now between him and Daniel Gafford you should have 48 minutes of I

Will threaten to run with my roles I am a lob Target I can take some pressure off of some of my guards especially if we set up some empty Corner stuff like what unel J likes to do at some point you got to commit to the defense though I think is kind of

Where I land with that portion so like I don’t want to get too excited about it because I do still worry about that portion but even that’s kind of muted because who was Washington’s trustworthy backup center before the Bagley acquisition it was G it wasn’t like but

It wasn’t like muscala was playing a ton so even then like it feels like he’s going to get more burned than muscala did and Gallow eventually found him way his way out of the rotation so like they are replacing more of those minutes with Bagley so like he

Should be a slight plus there just in terms of what they’re sending out versus what they’re getting but like looking at the vision I guess next year is really going to be the flyer for him he’ll be the expiring next season 12 and a half mil

We’ll see if if he solidifies himself in Washington’s front Court rotation or if he just becomes a trade piece again next year we see where we go from there going back to Detroit though because this was very much let’s clear the bagley’s second year money off the books uh from

Keith Smith they can get up to I think between 50 and $66 million in cap space this offseason which is a lot I do wonder what pathway they’re going to take with that money if they’re actually going to try to make a big splash as Detroit has been rumored with guys like

Zack LaVine has been rumored with guys like Pascal in the trade market which I have my thoughts about that but it’s notable that their names are with these big talents is this actually going to be a hey we got to do something offseason for Detroit or are they going to

Continue to be more conservative just try to you know serve as a Dumping Ground get more picks in the building etc etc so I just want to keep an eye on that part for Detroit I think they’ll they’ll make a move and I think these days movement is

More geared towards trade than just pure cap space we signed a free agent so I think they’re trying to position themselves to be in that game which I understand give themselves some flexibility that way back to Bagley and Washington that was the weird part of the trade for me Nikas where it felt

Like I was just copy and pasting what I thought about Detroit getting him in the first place it’s low risk you got some picks to get him there should be a much clearer path for him to get minutes and produce and we know when Bagley gets minutes he usually

Produces hopefully the defense can grow and he has enough time to be able to grow that part of his game so he can just really enhance and continue his career let me ask you a question real quick okay whose ceiling do you believe in more right now Christian Woods or Marvin Bagley oh

Oh oh I don’t like that uh I I mean I guess his would by the Fall just like he hasn’t really proven to be the really impactful player on good team yet but like we’ve at least seen the self-creation chops from him in addition to the pick and roll stuff and

Like we haven’t really gotten that from baggley to a large degree that I don’t really love either of them defensively though Christian Wood has had some fun flashes in La I don’t want to take that away from him but I I guess would I don’t love that though that’s a devious

Question tough question I know uh for me I just think can he enhance that pick and roll game can we show a little bit more versatility can we defend if he does that I think a he probably helps Washington B he probably becomes someone they could trade if they feel like they

Need to improve or add something to their room but that’s the key to me I did find a little funny it’s pull kozma and Bagley together all at the same time but Washington can score and he can score so fit should work yeah we shall see we shall see uh let’s very quickly

Since we didn’t get to do so we recorded on Wednesday so we missed the allstar update on Thursday going do that very quickly right now the starters are static in the west is still steep Luca in the back court LeBron KD and yic in the front Court though if you care about

This portion joic passing Kaden votes is interesting I didn’t anticipate like the fan vote going that way even though I think objectively Yu just had a better year so that part was interesting um also notable Deon Booker entered the top 10 in West guards he’s now ninth Austin

Reed falling out there on the east four of the five starters staying the same Tyrese halberton still your leading backourt vote getter Jason Tatum Giannis Joel and be in the front Court Trey young passing Damen Lillard had a 35 plus thousand vote lead on the second return so Trey currently is an All-Star

Starter we will see if that holds I have more thoughts on Atlanta a little bit later in the Pod but uh Julius Randle entering the top 10 in East Front Court voting with Kyle kman falling out pal B Carroll now at nine Mel Bridges slipped down to 10 there is still no

Scotty Barnes so my please rant on Toronto and Canada as as a whole I guess it did not work um maybe Darko calling Scotty the face of the league may help maybe that will invigorate the fan base it’s something I don’t I don’t know we shall see uh Derek white passing lamelo

For seventh Drew pass dear Rosen for ninth um any Allstar thoughts or any updates to your personal uh teams uh I outside of the East back court it all feels locked in if Trey gets voted in like it’s gonna be very interesting to see how the players in

Media handle the East back court because if Trey gets voted in I think that the numbers get pretty tight the numbers get pretty tight if you’re Derek white because you got Donovan Mitchell got Maxi you got Dame you got Brunson although side note Dame hitting a game winner the day before uh

The votes count three for one kind of funny well timed it may indeed be Dame time I must say that’s uh that’s how you do it that’s how you do it I just and again I want to say my deeper Atlanta thoughts related in pod but like I would be

Surprised if Trey’s able to hold on to the starting spot one because as you mentioned like Dame getting that like Milwaukee just B be invigorated after that one and so like today might be enough to move Dame back past Trey for just a fan vote and again it’s 50% fan

Vote 25% for the players 25% for the media but then you just kind of zoom out to what the Atlanta season has been I would be surprised if Trey gets in even though I feel like he’s had a tremendous season overall I I would I was pleasantly surprised to see

Him get into the All-Star starters but I don’t know if that’s going to hold once you factor in everybody else coming in but we shall see on that front um I guess the only other thing I will ask you just going back to the West considering Golden State slide

Considering Shay continued to be ridiculous this year any chance at all do you think like the fan boat gets to Shay over St if I had to guess like I think I think the media is gonna get sha Ste I’m I feel pretty I think the media

Will vote I think Luca and Shay is GNA be your back cour for the media I don’t know where the players go with Shay versus Steph and there is still a little bit of a gap between the fan vote but I do Wonder like will there be a last second push

Here with what OKC’s doing and just the general golden state is not very Golden State fans are not very happy with their team right now that’s so I wonder if there’s any kind of let down that maybe opens the door for like the fan vote to

Also go to Shay but you say no on that front no and well I mean the the thing I was going to have I had in my notes like there’s a CH a chance sham not get voted in but those are some mighty big numbers he’s putting up next to Luca and Steph

So I was impressed by that I don’t know if it’s able to flip just because Luca is Luca Steph is Steph fans are the fans I mean that with no disrespect I I just think Steph will gather those votes just naturally because of what he does now

Where it’s interesting is what do the players do with Shay and Steph and Luca and what does that word look like I’m very intrigued to see how that goes down I think the media is going to have Shay in with Luka but yeah I still would be shocked if Steph wasn’t the

Starter we shall see and like even if again if Shay isn’t a starter he’s absolutely making a team if Steph isn’t a starter he’s absolutely making a team and Luca just doesn’t have anything to worry about so he’s just kind of entrenched in this for the starting back

Gton so Props to him okay let’s go back to one of our regular segments since it feels like it’s just been like theme City for us as of late teams that impressed Steve who’s the team that’s caught your eye as a play well I wanted to talk about Oklahoma City real quick

Just a couple things on the Thunder and just wanted to point out how much pressure they keep on defenses and when you watch the Thunder I want y’all to watch the spacing I want you to watch their cutting I want you to see how they’re consistently working to relocate

And keep pressure on defenses watch the timing of their cuts to clear space if it’s a pick and pop all of a sudden you see a wing clear if you see them stay flat I want you to notice that because that’s one of the biggest parts of why

OKC is still up and making this push they’re very good they’re going to drive the ball all the time Shay’s been tremendous Chad has been really good and a great fit for them and elevated them jayen Williams we know their lineups they have two-way versatility they like

They can play smaller if they need to they can go big if they need to it’s fantastic but the little things as teams try to figure out how to put OKC in a box and the counters that they’re working to find have been the most fun for me so when you watch

Them look at the angles of their screens and look how much pressure they put on teams in that way it’s not just the amount of guard guard screens that they run or that they set it’s how they do it as well they love brush screens they love slipping out of screens they also

Love to come out and set them flat so I’m not I’m not picking a side I’m just going to come up here I’m right here I’m stepping up it’s a quick decision for the defender on both ends if you’re guarding the ball you don’t know which way

They’re going unless you know you can dictate terms early but that’s why the speed of their offense works because I don’t have a chance to really know this is coming so I’m just defending one-on-one if I’m guarding the screener I don’t know which way it’s going either and I don’t have enough

Time to tell you first left left left left left they slip out and now you see what happens especially as a ball handler you can go the way where the space is and attack that way look at how if they have someone set up in the corner whoever’s

In the corner will just come fly up instead of screen randomly and so as you’re trying to like just figure things out defensively they keep changing it in my mind I’m always like okay Switching can hurt them you show help you help recover you give yourself a chance they just keep finding

Counters nikayas so as soon as you think you’ve handled one portion of of it you feel comfortable it’s something else you feel good about how you’re handling the drives here come the cuts you feel good about how you’re handling pick and roll here comes a guard guard screen or

Here’s Chad reminding you that hey I can pick and pop or if you switch I can punish your guard in the post you feel good about your early helping it Shay fantastic here’s a post up it’s tough It’s such a moving Target and just to quickly bounce off of what

You said I wanted to want to supply some numbers to kind of supplement the analysis that you brought there is you mentioned how they clear the wings and just in general what OKC does in an effort to clear space and make their drives even more forceful put your

Defensive even more Provine so second Spectrum tracks what percentage of possessions that help Defenders are present on drives lowest Mark in the league the OKC Thunder second lowest the team that we’re going to talk about the Utah Jazz third lowest a team that we have talked about this year the Boston

Celtics between the personnel and where they spaced them and to your point the way that they cut and move they put you in such a you come into a game I want to load up because they are going to do this this and this and because of where

They space and the angles of the pcks that they set and the way that they Ed their Cuts you can’t load up the way that you want to and as you were talking about how flat you know when they’re setting those flat screens for the guards you think about the guards who

Are receiving those screens it’s Shay who has like the Herky jerkiness to his game anyway you already can’t get a beat on and he’s already really good at decelerating and accelerating and going getting to different angles now you throwing the fact that okay I don’t even

Know where I want to shift my body in an effort to stay attached to this dude I Am Naturally off balance and now Shak can further lead the dance and if you send help from anywhere it’s either going to be a cut or a wide open shot or it’s just a kick

And it’s a Swing Swing or it’s a kick and it’s another drive and now we are even further off balance it’s really like it’s simple in a way but it’s also just masterful stuff and I really love watching them play and then even quickly on that note Shay again remains in my

Opinion just the best driver in basketball right now in terms of volume he’s certainly up there and teams just haven’t been able to find a good answer jayen Williams has been losing his mind like we’ve talked so much about Shay and the MVP push which your bold prediction

Isn’t looking so bold at this rate Shay is absolutely hooping but we’ve talked so much about Shay we’ve talked so much about Chad hen who should be if not heavy favorite at the very least like the slight front runner for rookie of the year right now

Depending on how you feel about wimy and the numbers he’s putting up in San Antonio check out the old man the three things we talked about it but Chad’s at minimum he’s top two in Rookie of the Year Jaylen Williams just quietly since Christmas averaging 20 points per game

While converting over 60% of his shots period int and has been one of the most effective drivers in basketball this year and especially since Christmas like a nine 10 game sample over 1.2 points per possession on trips featuring a Jaylen Williams Drive he’s nasty in his own right you have the schematic fund

That makes it difficult to load up and difficult to get a beat and then you just think about the fact that we can’t put our best defender on Jaylen Williams and if we do want to get fun with our personnel and we want to put a

Big guy on Shay we want to put a wing on Chad so we can try to neutralize those two you’re talking about your third guy at best on Jaylen Williams who is now a tank like driving style he’s always been like a strength based driver has some craft

To him but the strength based stuff stands out that P’s rookie year now he’s even stronger and bigger than he was last year and you’re putting at best your third best guy on him he is just pummeling dudes when he drives to the basket ah this Thunder team is just a

Whole lot of fun man it’s just a lot of fun I’m with you on Jaylen Williams can’t wait for you to push him in the most improved conversation I’ll be keeping an eye on that putting that in my docket I also thought when you talked about uh when you talked about Shay I

Thought you were gonna say Shin angle for a second there I’m glad you did not uh so we’re good there want to throw some clips in post edit I can okay okay all right so uh one two other things in the Western Conference before we get to Utah Denver’s coming don’t forget about

Denver and two Minnesota I have a fun fat for you okay 14 times this season Minnesota has held their opponent to 40% shooting or Worse most by any team in the league this season I believe OKC is second with nine the wolves are 13 and one when that

Happens yeah like I I’m just just saying it’s one of those things where we might just be taking the Minnesota run for granted because at least a lot of people are just kind of waiting on the inevitable fall off or whatever the case may be like you’re seeing the grow from

Ant still and when he decides he wants to take over on either end he more often canot can just do that I’ve again I’ve really enjoyed Rudy goar defensively this year Carl Anthony towns is working his tail off defensively in addition to the drive is getting better still made able to knock

Down shots why we’re on Minnesota like I don’t I don’t want to pour too much water I’m just keeping my eye on Jaden mcds as you know firsthand I am a very big fan of Jaden it has been an uneven year for him as he been trying to get

His feet under him he didn’t start didn’t technically didn’t start the season he was out first couple games I would love for him to find his footing on both ends obviously you kind of point to the shot that’s gonna be a swing thing in the playoffs but even

Defensively like some of the foul trouble that’s kind of pered up for him at Full Tilt like he is just one of like the five or six best peret defenders in basketball and that’s conservative what Jaden can do like go watch film of that Orlando game from not too long ago

Jaden V DS can be legitimately locked down and I think if Minnesota gets a more consistent version of him on both ends there’s another level that this wolves team can hit and they’re already top seat in the west so I want to keep an eye on Jadon but this has been a

Really fun season also I guess I’m G to shoot myself in the foot here I was going to say like I didn’t mention him or talk about him enough when we did our initial Awards checkin for six man of the year with NZ Reed I have him on the short list he’s

Really good he is really good like we’re going to end up doing like a wolves Deep dive at some point this season but like I I I I want to like legitimately devote some time to what Nas re has done this year I feel like I’ve sold him short and

I’m a fan of his he’s been really good Off the Bench for them and he’s helped make those two big lineups work when he Subs in for either Rudy or cat I the drives the shooting he he’s just Nas is a freaking Beast man I I just wanted to put that on on

Video did you want did you want to play us some music Nik yeah let’s get into some sweet sweet Jazz uh to the Utah Jazz uh who on the season 21 and 20 they’re now ninth in the west they’ve won their last five per clean the glass they’re 19th in offense

22nd in defense 24 for net rating not that great since December 13th aka the game that Colin SE entered the starting lineup they are 14 and four they are eighth in offense they are 12th in defense they are 10th in net rating eighth and half court offense

Fifth and half court defense and Fifth and half court defense really stands out both in terms of just the overall Personnel Walker Kesler incredible interior Defender would he make an all defense team for you this year like it feels like he like a like a line below that group overall even

Though he’s been really good so it’s not like Walker been bad like would you say he’s been a top 10 Defender this year like I probably can’t get there this year uh he’d be up there for me yeah I think the the positionist nature is going to

Make it interesting but he’d be up there yeah so Le at least worthy of discussion but you wouldn’t say firmly he’s top five etc etc but like have top my head now yeah so like they don’t have the elite of the elite defensive personnel and then on

Top of that Walker hasn’t been starting as a lite and so the fact that you could have this stretch and still end up a top five half court defense is pretty impressive in the offense like I remember shouting them out a while ago while they were like in the low 20s in

Offensive rating I was like hey just a quick hat tip after I did whoever my initial team was was like 10 12 minutes of that team and then like hey before we move on just wanted to say quickly I really enjoyed watching Utah on offense like the results aren’t there right now

But I love the process of what they’re doing how they’re using their bigs etc etc we’re now seeing the full breath of that and I kind of want to start with the offense with Utah because it has been a ton of fun especially since Lori markting has just been back in in Full

Tilt but just very quickly on the way that they’re using their players like the commitment to space just watching Walker K on the wing it’s like he can’t shoot why is he out there and it’s not even cuz like you’ll see a nons spacer in the corner it’s like all right quick

Pass we’re going to do like the Draymond like handoff you get that stuff but like they trigger so much of their offense through him on the wing and it feels unconventional but they do a really good job of doing that and then spacing beyond that and between Walker’s usage when he’s in

With John Collins now starting the pick and roll pick and pop usage that he can have there Lor Markin and you can move him all around the chess board kollin ston to fund with his drives to pull up returning back to form Jordan clarson can get busy whenever he wants to Kelly

O lenck incredibly creative offensively shooting 39% from three over the stretch while also being a fun handoff Hub you use him as a pick and roll guy pick and pop threat you can’t really get a beat on Utah and that’s probably the most fun that’s probably the most fun part of

Utah for me me commitment of space the temple they play with and just how random complimentary that they are offensively you can’t really load up against them I mentioned the the help defend the president stat with their drives and then you go to the guard room and something that we talked about

Before the season was I’m not sure where how I feel about the guard room like I feel like colins’s a solid player but like there’s no true traditional table setter and like what is that going to mean for like the John Collins acquisition etc etc but the one

Thing noted was that they do have a guard room that can get downhill and with the way that that Spa the way that they space the floor that’s kind of all they need to puncture the defense and get you in rotation you don’t need a traditional like top 10 point guard you

Got guys that get downhill and threat your defense with the way they already spread you thin you can create advantages and then they have smart enough players to maintain those advantages and that’s where it’s been fun where Colin seon is averaging nearly 22 points and five assists since

December 13 Jordan Clarks has averaging 20 points and six assists since then and so like you add all that together teams can’t really get a beat on them then defensively it’s what Walker’s been able to do Off the Bench Chris Dunn continues to be nasty at the point

Of attack very much having fun with the Chris Dunn season Simone fonio is defending his tail off at the wing and he’s taking on some incredibly tough assignments and holding his own there and then schematically there are so many different types of zones that the Utah Jazz are throwing out at people like

Imagine my glee SL surprise turning on a jazz game that I might have missed the night before and genuinely seeing a boxing one it’s like okay well this is different this is interesting it’s a boxing one with Chris Dunn defending like a big wing and it’s like okay this

Is weird fine let’s see how this goes and it works and so like they have really just found their stride on both ends of the floor just the general creativity I think for Utah is what’s made this a fun stretch for me like I don’t know if they

Are 14 and four good like just overall are they like a 70 plus win rate team but they have certainly found their stride and they are firmly into the think of this play in and soon to be play off race if they keep playing like

This so I just want to give Utah their flowers for what they’ve been able to do well flowers indeed you did give I think the one thing with Utah you have to notice 14- five at home still if I remember my research correctly it’s been 10 seasons since Utah has had a losing

Record at home so they have that going for them I thought that road trip they just came off was going to be the end or not the end but it was going to be a you know a nice little step back go to Boston go to Philly go to Milwaukee they

Went two out of three now have a six-game home stand the biggest thing for me starting lineup of Colin ston Chris Dunn Simone fonio Lori Markin and John Collins eight- one since they made that lineup change they’re averaging 30 30.7 assists per game their last last five games n kayas

At Philly 46 made field goals 30 assists at Milwaukee 47 made field goals 33 assists against Denver 46 made field goals 34 assists against Toronto 52 made field goals 34 assists against the Lakers 42 made field goals 28 assists that’s 68.2% of their field goals assisted now that’s not always a sign of

Good things because the Spurs do lead the league but they’re moving the ball and I think what you what you touched on with their personnel and how they use it that lineup in specific has helped open Utah back up to what they like to do what

They like to be what will hardy likes to do as far as we have guys who can do different things let’s flip it on you you know it’s not just the spacing Point even though it’s it’s delightful to see they keep their zones clear but look at how they use different

Guys you can really now unlock the versatility of lry marketing you mentioned they run them off handoffs off screens off pin Downs operate in pick and roll but now you can use fonio as a screener or you can use Chris Dunn as a screener or a hub you can run a stagger

For fono yeah you can run a stagger for fono with Colin space on the other side and now not only is this left side clear the only low help is The Bigs on the other side of the Court dun and seon aren’t traditional point guards but they can initiate

Offense or be used off ball in different ways uh I think they’re willing an aggressive drivers which fits with that lineup and for me it’s just about it’s about the fit it’s it’s about understanding what the strengths of your players are and using that to your advantage like quiet is kept we’ve

Talked a lot about John Collins over his career what’s his best position how do we unlock him can he play the five M defense might not be good enough at the five well can he space he can space but now all he’s doing is spacing very sneaky they just pivoted to John Collins

At the five and all of a sudden oh yeah he’s a roller yeah he could do that yeah oh oh dribble handoffs and he’s rolling he’s not just in the corner look at this um that’s fun but for me my mind just goes to like the roster

Construction and I go back to like last year with Utah where they found a lot more than they expected to at the beginning and then were’re like hey hey hey hey easy easy but that was on yeah that was key on Jared Vanderbilt and his usage and

How they could use him in different ways and then hey they’re using all these bigs together they’re getting back to more of that and I just like the way that the lineups balance each other out because now you mentioned Walker Kessler’s defense he comes in helps the defense

Out you can still get some of the usage of lri if he’s still in the game now you have your bench his defense helps out Jordan Clarkson keonte Jordan Kelly oen and you still have some of that same offensive versatility in the second unit although you probably feel I guess quote

Unquote better about the scoring from the guards to a degree but you got Olen Nick you can use in a bunch of different ways you kind of keep that same lineup Integrity our our identity what we want to do every night you take some pressure

Off of keontay George so he can just go out there and play free as opposed to feeling like I have to do X Y and Z yeah it’s it’s a different vibe and to your Walker kler space point they not only get a lot of action

Out of him when he’s spaced look at the timing of when he does it he’s looking for someone to screen almost at all times like all right well I’m not doing anything so hey you want to come up I’ll screen for you do you need a screen I’ll flash right here you

Want to cut I’m good to go but having those kind of multiple actions on each side just helps that impact so I think that’s probably been the uh the most fun part of watching Utah is just like okay I see what they’re trying to get to and they’re

Trying to balance it out throughout their whole roster yeah and then just very quickly on that point something that you’ve brought up with other teams and other players like even just the value of Walker being you the fact that you even have to think about Walker on

The perimeter he’s not a shooter even if he’s just stationed on the wing you have in the back of your mind crap they may flu to handle he may scream for somebody etc etc you’re also just lengthening what that rotation may be for the center that’s guarding him still it’s something

That you’ve hammered home in my brain and now and now when I see it it’s like ah that makes sense that’s why they have that got station here so even you have that element of the offense working for you for Utah and as I said a little bit

Earlier like I don’t know if they’re 14 and four good or 70 win rate good or whatever case may be that’s also been kind of the wild part of like watching like watching Utah play like this then also digging into some of the numbers it’s not like Utah’s blowing teams away

Because they’re shooting 42% from three over the last three weeks they’re 15th in three-point percentage since December 13th they are not blowing teams out of the water like you mentioned the assist that their Fifth and assist rate during this stretch their 20th and turnover rate they’re not particularly taking care of

The ball at a super high level right now and the offense has still been good you know where Utah ranks in transition offense during this stretch fourth 30th oh they are dead last in transition points per possession since December the 13th and they have still been on balance

A top 10 offense over the last 18 games that’s scar there is lwh hanging fruit for this team to grab and this is in the midst of like you mentioned up top like the schedule coming up like huh they playing well but they about to go through this now they’re about to go

Into the home stand with low hanging fruit to grab like Jordan Clarkson hooping he’s not shooting well from three right now I mentioned the 39% clip for Kelly oen like he’s taking like two attempts right now yeah there probably going to be some games where he can get four five five

Six up and shoot well like Lori has been very very very good this year like have we gotten the Lor’s averaging 30 points per game for two week stretch yet no we have it I love Keon going to the bench and taking some of the pressure off of him uh we

Didn’t mention him in the rookie report well this rookie report mention him in the first one but like keeping an eye on his drives he seems to be getting a little bit more comfortable I I still have my brow raised what some of the drives look like when he gets deep into

The paint but like what happens if things start to slow down for him like they tend to do with rookie guards what if the pull-up as he was a dangerous scorer in college what if the pullup bounces back to what a lot of people expected it to be while he’s playing

With the second unit would surpris me at all if we check in in two weeks and the best offense over the last two weeks have been the Utah Jazz because now shots are falling at a higher clip it’s not like they’re doing anything like super unsustainable from like a number standpoint so like

That’s encouraging to me again I have a lot of fun but you put Chris dun on the basketball court I’m just gonna have fun defensively but you add that plus Walker kast on the interior plus Simone fio having some fun from the wing room plus we will throw out different coverages on

Top of that and they’re doing so with Personnel that you may not think is Elite sign me up for what Utah is doing right now they are playing some really good basketball uh any closing thoughts on can I no closing thoughts there before we get to your long anticipated Hawks ring

Uh I want to break in not with news but I’m going to continue the segment of Steve tells Naya things while we’re recording uh the Philadelphia 76ers are beating Houston 47 to 25 with seven minutes in the second quarter right now Joel embiid with 13 points in 12 minutes

It appears the Rockets attempted to go small Dylan Brooks and J Shan T both have two fouls ah well uh feeling better about our answer on the old man the three things about teams that may two gravy hey one more is Tic Tac Toe but wow thank you for the cut in appreciate

You set up top we probably gonna be recording during the first game they’re GNA be done before the second game starts so that’s fine so normally when we do the second if you’ve been here for if you’ve been a long time dunker even if you’re joining us this season With You YouTube thank

You it’s typically teams that impress teams that make us think then we get into player shout outs I have one team on the mine right now that is indeed the Atlanta Hawks so some a little bit of background since we’re late to the Pod December 26th I think was the

Recording date when we did the Bold predictions pod with JJ yes we recorded that the day after Christmas uh Steve had the Sha for MVP I had the Bold prediction kick off the PO and said you know it is again it’s a bold prediction pod so supposed to be

Something unlikely but I called my shot I was like you know what I feel good about this I think Jaylen Johnson’s goingon to save Atlanta season had this whole argument how well Trey and Jaylen have played together what the Hawks have looked like when Trey and jayen on the floor together the

Top five offense defending at like I think the 15th best rate in the league with those two on the floor together it’s like okay if they get Elite offense average defense with these two they get the 500 or finish a game or two above 500 they save the season they push all

Of the let’s make major moves conversations into the offes recorded on December 26 pod released on January 1st it is January 15th I am already ready to press the eject button on that tap I am so annoyed and saddened by watching the Atlanta hwks play basketball right

Now this defense Steve I understand that like in a literal sense is not the worst defense in the league think they are 27th overall in defensive rating for clean the glass that filters out garbage time and even since that pod or since December 26 I think they’re

27th in defense already so they’re not literally the worst defense in basketball but watching them it feels like the worst defense in basketball this is not a team I feel at all outside of the Stray Trent Forest picks up a guy full court possessions this isn’t a physical

Defense they don’t Blitz as aggressively as they were earlier the year in pick and roll but they’ll still bring Clint up to the level poor Clint he just isn’t moving super well and then you think about how offenses are now spacing their guys against Atlanta it’s like oh well

If they’re going to put two to the ball let’s just make sure our small guys are in the corners and let’s see how well they affect things at The Rim or if they even rotate down on time and God bless you if you say you know what let’s get even more creative

How about we come up to set this screen let’s flip this angle at at the last second and go to the other side let’s see who if they can figure out who’s the low man now possession after possession after possession in that Washington game in particular to where both guys from the

Corners are sinking in to see who’s picking up the role and it’s just wide open shot after wide open shot the transition defense is an Abomination I’m just like it can’t it can’t be this it can’t be this we can’t have a lack of pressure teams can just jog up the floor and

Don’t worry about anything run a pin down whoever is defending the guy coming off the pin down is just a beat late because they’re staring at the ball being walked up the floor so now they’re late they get screen now you commit to to the ball now it’s a pass now it’s

Another swing it’s an open shot and it’s just like dude at a certain like I foul someone foul someone like a a s not we not going to the 80s 90s put somebody on the dirt on the dirt like nothing like that but like make contact with someone you can’t be this late

Consistently defensively you can’t just let people Walt up the court on you you can’t let people manipulate your defense as easily as they are and it just stinks because now this is coincided with now the offense has fallen off a cliff over the last couple of weeks and like I expect that the

Bounce back but it further emphasized to me like oh this offense has to be elite for this to be a functional basketball team because if this offense slides at all it’s a whole bunch of bad Trey started the year shooting poorly but playing generally well then

The shot came back this is while jayen was out shot came back while he was still playing well and I was like hey we should probably give more respect to Trey young what he’s doing and now he’s still playing hard like I still want to give him the fact that he is competing

Defensively but like even that praise can only go so far because again I think it is objectively true I think Trey young is having the best defensive season of his career I do not feel like Trey young is dogging on defense this year I on video

You call me dumb if you want I don’t feel like that has been Trey young this year it has now just gone into okay he’s trying but the reality is reality he is still small and so when he is in the weak side corner he has to be

The tag guy it’s still just tough because he’s 5116 but there’s only so much he can do and when he’s involved in picking roles like you kind of have to come up to the level if not higher because asking him to he tries to navigate he’s not good at

It which I guess backhanded compliment I’m glad that I can just get to tra is not good at it versus is Trey gonna try or not that that’s a positive but like because of who he is and the way they have to protect him they kind of they’re in a box

Schematically which isn’t great and then the Personnel isn’t good enough to compensate for that and then on top of that there’s a lack of physicality and there’s just a general learning period with some of these younger guys like am I supposed to help do I need to be peeled in I’m looking at

The ball oh snap my guy’s lifting up to the wing I need to catch up someone else is like oh snap he lost his guy let me help over here and now it’s a full breakdown I don’t know what you do to fix all of that and like again a

Core point of my argument for Jaylen come back was like at least with some of the backline stuff or even he’s directly involved defending a pick and roll he’s really good at anticipating when that pass is coming if he’s directly involved he can get some deflections if he’s on

The back end he is big he does have good week out Rim protection chops he helps your defense it’s also an indictment in and of itself that he’s that important to their defense and he’s just now starting this is year one of the Jaylen Johnson Starts era and I feel good about him

He’s having what 16 and 10 since he been back or 16 to 10 since December 26 rather and like he’s been awful but it’s like the fact that so much of their success relies on him it led to be making the argument but that’s an indictment it shouldn’t be that

Way and to tie it all back in because I’m just I’m just talking rambling at this point but like you give up 125 or 126 to the Indiana Pacers without Tyrese halberton and they’re driving all over the place at home like okay you lost liquor chops

Here come the Wizards you didn’t give up 126 to the Washington Wizards the next day at home I just I I don’t know what to do with that like I I I haven’t LED what I’ve seen from Clint he trying but he doesn’t move the same way trade the

Limitations are there you’re putting a lot on Jaylen Johnson sadique B bless his heart as he’s now had to take on tougher Wing assignments because DeAndre Hunter hasn’t been there and maybe this part perks up when he’s inevitably traded cuz I just think at this point

Something going to get done in the next month or so if I see de jante Murray fall asleep one more time defensively off the ball dude I can’t I can’t do it I can’t do it I I have I get a headache watching this Hawks team play

Defense I am I gave the Bold prediction I’m I’ll take the L hand hand me the hands are here that put you can Photoshop the L in I can’t do uh lots of process here so I’ll be brief uh so which game broke you the Wizards or the

Pacers I mean the answer is yes but like Wizards game do first possession of the Wizards game was a Miss Washington wins the I don’t even know why this is in my head Washington wins the jump ball just walks up Court no pressure whatsoever for Jaylen

Johnson in the right corner KY kosma I don’t even want to call it a meetti cut K kosma just cuts in front of his face Jay’s like oh snap there’s my guy deep post catch good on jayen for getting vertical doesn’t leave his feet K put

Toss up a little hook shoty misses I’m just like this is the this is the attention to detail we are getting 12 seconds into a basketball game and which you just gave up 120 plus to an offense without their best player I’m sorry continue so was this in was this

Inspired by Jimmy Johnson at halftime of the Cowboys game or or was it like Michael Irving post game like which which oh geez I don’t I want them to be inspired by something okay uh that that’s it’s uh if you’re if you’re watching on YouTube go

Ahead and uh click a like hit subscribe comment with your team that you’re done with as Nikas is ejected from a take in record time uh a lot of bits have been broken right now the hashtag is Big Mad uh no longer Atlanta’s very own um yeah

So I’m going to talk about the players that have impressed me as Nikas uh gathers himself after those bars um Carl Anthony towns yeah month of January 237 and three 50490 splits uh he’s almost at 50490 for the season I think he deserves some credit for continuing to work to find it this

Was a big year for him I’ve liked the aggression the drives starting to feel even more comfortable facing switches dealing with wings for me the key is just where he catches the ball if he catches it closer to the rim it’s less of the turbo button it’s more of I

I can take my time I can hit you I could score so it’s been fun uh damont sabonis Nik against the Bucks a a game that the Kings lost 21 points 15 assists 13 rebounds nine of 10 shooting seems good that was his that was his 22nd straight game with a double double

Oh so there’s there there’s five players yeah right there’s five players averaging 20 points 10 rebounds or four more assists can you name them real quick uh sabonis yage Giannis embiid there’s one more Shay I lowered this one just for you oh sorry oh I said Shay you said rebounds

Um Luka didn’t have the rebounds wait with is this are we in the BAM Zone on this one yes bam ah yeah yes yes now there there are only two players averaging 20 points 10 rebounds 5.9 or more assists and shooting 60% from the field that’s sabonis and Giannis and I

Filtered that so I could have two people because if you just raise the assist up it’s just sabonis uh this man is is absolutely hooping you could see the aggression a little bit more on those drives looking to hit people uh it’s been fun to watch him play and I I think

He’s got an All-Star campaign that’s getting slept on a little bit uh Jared Allen yes 19 points a game 15 rebounds 4.9 assists over his last eight games eight straight double doubles he’s finding a way to impact the game not just defensively but offensively I’ve like the aggression that’s a key for

Cleveland during this stretch as they trying to continue to find their way through injuries but for some reason they just gain 10 XP whenever everyone’s out so salute to him uh and then uh Tobias Harris yes back to back 30 point back toback 30 point games for the first time

In his career just want to give him a quick hat tip there uh before you give me yours can I ask one quick question yeah what’s up so we record on Monday are you prepared for Tryon to have like 40 and 10 and beat the Spurs on MLK day because Atlanta’s won three

Straight I I’d love to see it I would love to see it I’d love to see it try try’s been great man like I think Trey should be an Allstar still like again this is more this is hk’s commentary not trade commentary not that he’s been perfect during the stretch again he

Hasn’t shot well over the last recent bit but I’d love to see it now this is a Hawks win the Spurs dropped like 128 or something we don’t have to have another discussion but yeah I’d love to see it okay all right well very quickly uh

On my shout out since we we running low on time Pascal seaka averaging 26 five and five since Christmas he is shooting nearly 61% from three during that stretch uh shooting about 60% from the field overall slow start kind of a wonky start as we’re talking about Toronto’s offense schematically and how he’s

Fitting in Raptors prioritizing Scotty Barnes Etc he has very firmly found his groove it felt like the worst three-point shooting season of his career until this recent stretch and now he I guess everything’s just normalizing now because he’s been on an absolute heater um I would like for the defense

To bounce back a little bit more than what I’ve seen as of late but I feel like that’s just a Toronto issue period had to to Steve on that one but just wanted to give Pascal a hat tip for finding his way within the new offense uh talked about jayen Williams a little

Bit earlier for OKC the wing 25- six since Christmas shooting nearly 62% from three on low volume about three attempts 63% from the field overall the actual number that I cited well I want to cite the actual number on the drive thing 1.21 points per possession on trips

Featuring a Jaylen Williams Drive since Christmas that is fourth among 42 players with at least 100 drives the top three since Christmas Colin ston from the Utah Jazz seems fitting with the drives hitting there in Utah Shay gild just Alexander I wonder why he’s up there Kade Cunningham please come back

Kate like to see you play basketball once again since I mentioned the Pacers derogatory I should compliment T.J McConnell for filling in admirably eight points n assists over his last three games without Tyrese halberton still kinding Off the Bench but the drives have been very important for him uh the

Patriot have won his minutes over these last three games by 29 Points also just a very quick note uh not going to go like on this one since we’re getting close to the end here the Pacers are 9 and two since Christmas like that should probably get a little bit

More pub especially in light of tyres being out like they have been winning games and are firmly in the playoff hunt right now it’s like that whole like with like four through seven Thicket of teams Indiana’s right there want to give them props uh Trey Jones averaging 125

And five shooting nearly 57% from the field overall since Christmas um on the season as a whole the have a plus seven net rating in nearly 400 minutes with Trey Jones and wimy on the floor together um and as I mentioned on the old man the three things 1.07 points for

Possession on trips featuring a Trey Jones Victor wi Bama pick and roll as one of the better marks in the NBA among uh Duos with the least 100 Trey Jones is steady man some may call him a top 25 point guard um that’s neither here nor

There uh want to give two more to close this thing out uh Nia yovic who has started the last six games for Miami I’ve been intrigued by a skill set my big thing with him was one what kind of burn SL usage would he actually get with

This veteran group and two what position does he guard he has been competing Miami is sloted him around a lot of different places while also playing him in some Zone over this recent stretch he’s holding up admirably I still have like the Shay possessions burned in my head where it’s

Like oh that’s a nice contest oh wait there’s another mid-range Bucket from Shay gild Alexander that’s just tough but Shay does that to everyone but he’s really working defensively and then offensively shooting nearly 42 % from three averaging 86 and three overall not Gody numbers but the processing speed on

That dude he moves the ball he moves it well you get to him from the perimeter again the shooting has been there but also very comfortable pumping and driving and making quick and sound decisions on the drive as a passer as well he’s been really solid and then very quickly

Steve what do you think nicoa yic just shooting from the field over his last nine games n 87% close he is shooting 81% from the field over his last nine games he’s a he’s basically averaging 231 and 10 what the heck what the heck are we supposed to do with that I enjoy

It yeah 25 12 of n against Indy 12 13 from the field like it just it just I don’t know man he always has the efficiency stuff earlier this year he had what the two the two game stretcher like the worst shooting of his career he just missed every floater and layup

Known to man it’s like since then he’s like ah yeah we’re not g to do that whole missing thing anymore actually let me just just put the ball in hoop while also passing and rebounding and racking up over two stops a game and just just what he as you mentioned earlier Denver’s

Coming uh did you have any free throws uh yes before I get to it I will inform you of some news Okay per Shams San Antonio’s Victor wanyama plans to commit to participate in the skills challenge at NBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis oh so I start with this better better

Meme potential whama at the skills challenge or Rudy goar at the free throw line hey do related note why Clippers bench did him like that Rudy hit some big ones late so he he got his get back but like also big dog mean potential is probably

Gonna be I think that’s just gon You’re gonna laugh at Rudy but like mean potential probably wimy because like even if he does well we’re gonna get like a Ste a steel shot of him doing like the bounce pass and his arms are going to be like three inches away from

The D thing he just Dro ball in that so I think it’s going to be WI for me potential okay I was just going to say hey Rudy got his got some blocks hit some big free throws he’s here this year I I we’ll give you credit

There uh who did it better Darko with bars or Mike Brown with film Steve I dog I promise you I was so close I have my laptop right here I was so close to just bringing up that freaking Washington Atlanta possession like you see

Here I I almost did it and I was like I don’t I don’t want to put I don’t want to put our dear producer through that I don’t know if that’s gonna show well if it’s gonna be all pixelated and stuff so I ain’t want to do that but Mike Brown

My brother and hoop well done well done because I didn’t see that portion of it live I was able to catch some of the end of that game but then someone tagged me in the Tweet or tagged me in the tweet and it’s like man he went full in the KA

NBA dar’s film I was like oh no what happened that was so much better than anything I had in mind when I saw that tweet this man actually brought the laptop to the postgame presser with pressed play like you see here you see the hand you see the fox’s hand on the

HP Etc that’s tremendous I want to go ahead and end the Pod shortly just before we miss the the fine announcement he’s absolutely gonna get fin for that but oh man that was funny that was so funny uh so better Defender Simone fanto or boan banovich uh it is Simone for

Me okay all right so one of these is a violation I guess I understand we’ll get the meme together don’t worry about it uh what’s funnier Giannis working to credit Chris Middleton before saying he’d never seen anyone make a shot like Dame’s gamewinner or thanasis on the bench literally holding his shooting

Form as Dame shot it Denis is a treasure man what a guy uh does that does that replace Andre Drummond now why he no I’m kind of I’m here for like it’s funny but I’m I’m genuinely here for bench Antics though like I much rather see that than guy staring off

Into distance wanting to get into the game like that that’s that’s cool I don’t think it replaces Andre Drummond like that’s that man was in character it’s even funnier when you think about like the actual under Drumm and post up stats but like yeah like that was a

Whole that that was a Vibe I got give it to him okay uh when are we hooping in the Indianapolis International Airport okay so as respectfully as I I know how right because I’ve seen I’ve seen the announcement seen the pictures I’ve seen the tweets and thus I’ve seen now the jokes and

Like there’s a particular brand of joke I understand why it’s funny can we just leave that one alone in this country in particular let’s just let’s just drop that one Beyond that though no we should not be trying to play full games of basketball before a flight and now we

Just got a whole bunch of stank on the flight we don’t need that that’s not what we need that’s not what we need let’s not do that let’s not do that take your pictures and let’s let’s no don’t do that okay so would you rather sit

Next to someone who just played five on five at the airport or sit in the middle seat and sit next to someone who didn’t that’s nasty work that’s real nasty I hate every bit of what you just did there um so I guess like I’m trying to

Visualize this so is this like me in my typical AIS seat and then someone sweaty in the middle seat yeah no yeah yeah someone somebody’s right next to you just about four for 20 and got hungry br br some BR some piece on the plane too BR some p n dog that’s diabolical

Can I be honest with you can I be 100% honest with you at that rate I’m probably making up something to get them off the plane all you can’t you can’t do that that is that is not of Christ you can’t do that um no the answer is

No absolutely not pering my my last one before you get us out here is Baker Mayfield about to hurt your feelings man I hope not I hope not we can we closing the football no you know how annoyed I was waking up this morning to two different Philly

Pieces Tim mcmanis is like well let’s get let’s get the the inside look at all of the dysfunction in this locker room and then I think Jeff mlan and the inquir like well you know some Philly people on the inside wish that Jaylen was more outspoken let’s talk about his

Leadership style I’m was like why are we doing this on game day anyway go Birds perfect Baker Mayfield may may uh hurt my feelings he won’t hurt my feelings more than my own team has this year thank you for listening to and or watching this episode of the dunker spot

If you haven’t already please subscribe to us we are on Apple Spotify Google Stitcher pot Bean wherever you get your podcast you can find us uh naturally if you’re watching us on YouTube we thank you but also if you’re not subscribed to JJ reck’s YouTube channel you should

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There it’s easy you come rock with us we’re watching games live we’re breaking things down live if we have end of game overtime stuff Steve is going through Clips telling you why this play did or didn’t work we had a lot of fun at the end of that Lakers Raptors game that

Turned into not a lot of fun but also a whole lot of fun getting into uh some of the stuff that happened at the end of that one but in general if you want to have if you want to watch basketball with us learn some stuff and also just

Let your hair down and talk about life we do that too we invite people up on stage we just chop it up it’s a real it’s a real laid-back Vibe so come rock with us if you want to do that but with that we will catch y’all later in the

Week great show n get ready to learn Teach Me How to Dougie Buddy