Break was breaking down all the biggest NBA storylines to the Heat Check.
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Let's move forward to the LA Lakers win total sitting there at forty seven and a half. They re signed Austin Reeves, which was highway robbery. I'm not sure how they were able to sign him at that low of a deal, but he wanted to stay in LA to.
Play with Lebron and I don't blame him.
They re signed D'Angelo Russell to a team friendly deal. They re signed Jared Vanderbilt, and they drafted Hood Schafino over there from Indiana. They drafted somebody else who's not as important to this list. They added gave Vincent, Christian Wood, gave Vincent from Miami, Christian Wood from the Mavericks. Cam Reddish, who was on a bunch of teams. I think Portland was his last team. Jackson Hayes and Torrean prints. They lost Mobile and the Lakers they lay Oh.
It's been woh, it's been a roller coaster of a year.
They've remade their entire roster over the course of the trade deadline. They took momentum from that move to the Western Conference Finals. They didn't get swept, but it was competitive all four games. That's like what me, as a Portland Trailblazer fan tells myself and others when I talk about how we competed against the Warriors in twenty nineteen. So I get it. It's like totally fair.
They went from oh, boy is Rob plink.
Of the worst GM in the league to like, wow, he made some fucking money moves. He I gotta give some a little bit of shine to Jesse Buss. I've been told I don't give enough shine to him. So they finished forty three and thirty nine seventh place, won the play in balled out before getting into the buzz saw that was Jokic and Jamal Mury Jamal.
Nba as they call him. They put an end to a very.
We'll call it a quick run in an emphatic fashion. That Lebron James pretended he was going to retire after that was how bad the demoralization was. He said at the post game conference, I'm not sure if I'm ever gonna play basketball game. That's where we're at this year, I think they're better. They did lose Lonnie Walker, Tristan Thompson, and like I said, Mobamba.
Adding gave Vincent I think is interesting.
Although Miami Heat fans are already saying that Laker fans are gonna hate him, so I don't know about that. Cam Reddish was supposed to be the most talented duke player in the class of Zion and RJ. Barrett, but he just hurt his ankle. He's a lot of upside and I don't know if he's going to be able to ever live up to that. Pelican Center and Jack ex and Hayes has a ton of potential, very long, very athletic, can do a bunch of different things. One
of those I would call it modern centers. And Tourian Prince, who I love. Torrian Prince is a dog. He is going to be an integral part of whatever the Lakers do. And then you add Christian Wood and they stole them. They stole them, stole them. Vet Minimum that is some nice depth. Team was very very thin last year. They only played eight guys in their close out game against Denver and only one of them, one of them got six minutes. So the Lakers have an insane amount of length, athleticism,
a lot of versatile pieces. If they can get something out of Ruey Hachi Mura, who played really well in the playoffs. By the way, Ruey Hachimura worked out with Lebron and Phil Handy, strength and conditioning coach, skills coach for the Lakers. But Phil Handy's been working out with Lebron for a very long time, and what do they do. They tried to teach Ruey how to be Lebron James.
Woo wooh. That's exciting.
Lakers won sixty six percent of their games after the trade deadline last year. If that carries over to this year, they'll win fifty four games. They're gonna be able, I think, to hum on all cylinders like they did after the trade deadline last year, except for now there's more depth, so you don't have to worry as much about your star players being healthy the entire season. Of course, you still have to all of it hinges on Anthony day to day, Davis and Lebron James playing a bunch of games.
But Christian Wood, who averaged eighteen and ten last year, and Jackson haz are very very serviceable. Backups who have a ton of potential, a ton of upside, and now they basically have baby Lebron. Right, basically have Baby Lebron. This is a very dangerous team. They can very very easily make the Western Conference Finals.
Again. I am bullish yet hoping for their demise.
As a Portland Trailblazer fan and obviously a lifelong Dubs fan, let's move forward of Phoenix Suns. Fifty four and a half games is their win total by Vegas. They add buw Bull Love bu Bull from the Orlando Magic. They add Utah Watt Nabe aka Johnny Utah from the Brooklyn Nets. They add Eric Gordon from the Clippers. Ooh, that's a sneaky pickup. Nas Little and Keon Johnson come over in
their trade. Grayson Allen comes over from the trade, Yusuf Nurkic comes over from the trade to Portland, and of course Bradley Beal has been stolen from the Washington Wizards for I think a dirty muffin a couple second round picks, they lose Domin ayton a Ton, they lose DeAndre Aton, they lose campaign to Moni Kamara, and of course Chris paul I am very surprised by what the Phoenix Suns have been able to do.
I'm not gonna lie to you.
I thought they were barbecue chicken on a habachi. After the Bradley Beal trade, I was like, ooh, three guards and like, well, that's I think eighty five percent.
On your salary cap. What are you gonna do now?
I think they have four guys on their roster at that point, I was like, Okay, you guys all need the ball, and you have no depth and you have no money, so what you're about to do? Then they went out and signed a bunch of guys on very low contracts who want to get a ring and love playing with Kevin Durant. They went out and made some judicious trades and all of a sudden, they got very solid. It's very important because at the top of the roster are some players they get hurt all the time, all
the time. So let's start with a detailed look at the losses. Three major pieces from the twenty twenty one finals run Chris Paul DeAndre Aiden campaign all have taken their talent somewhere else. Right huge part of what made that team so special, So they had to get some return. The return was massive Bradley for starters, Bradley Beal, let's be real. He is not a closer. He's never gonna do shit for you in a fourth quarter, even in January.
But I tell you what, when you need some buckets, like midway through the second quarter, Bradley Beal can do that for you.
Oh boy.
Bradley Beal was a scoring leader in the NBA a couple of years ago. He is an absolute bucket, a pure sweat guy, true and true. Cannot play defense worth a lick.
But I don't know if it matters. I don't know if it matters. He is a bucket.
The issue with Beal is the same as the issue with Kevin Durant. Durant hasn't played more than forty seven games in three of the last four seasons. Bradley Beal hasn't played a full season since twenty eighteen. Fifty seven games, sixty games, forty games and fifty games. Maybe you could say he was loafing maybe one of those seasons, maybe two, but come on now, not all four. He's been hurt.
They traded DeAndre Ayton, who was a number one overall p for Yusuf Nurkic, who was discarded from Denver because they had a guy named Jokic and then he became the primary center for Portland. Broke his leg and it's never been the same really since doesn't really play deepense.
Great guy in the locker room, I hear.
I don't know how that helps you win a championship in terms of defending, but hopefully Frank Vogel will figure it out because that's his.
Specialty with big men.
They wanted to get rid of the locker room problem and that was DeAndre Ayton, so they discarded him, and they said, and they sold it to the world that Nurkic was a better fit, even though we know he's not as good. But also, to be fair to new owner Matt Isshpia, they have spent a lot of money and they had to give DeAndre ad In a MAX because they had to pick up that restricted free agency contract when he got offered.
The MAX from Indiana.
So they said, let's shed some salary cap and let's get on with our lives. Ishpi and crew have worked overtime to surround a starting five of Nurkic, kd Okog, Booker, and Beale with some firepower off the bench. They bring in Grayson Allen, a certified pest and a three point sniper, Eric Gordon kind of the same. Certified pest, three point sniper Utah watt Nabe can do so many damn things, but also really good three point shooter. NOAs little athletic can defend a lot of upside was buried on the
bench in Portland. Bull Bull You've seen him be able to do some things as well from the perimeter. He's one of those unicorn seven footers. Keon Johnson can jump out of the gym. He's still very young, very raw, but ultimately you need bodies. When you have guys who consistently go out with injury. It is shocking, shocking in some ways because I thought the bench absolutely sucked for Phoenix, and now it might be one of their more strong points.
The Suns, like the Lakers and the Clippers, are gonna be pretty much a slave to their injured list. If they stay healthy, awesome, If they don't, not so awesome, Red Alert WI bad shit.
Even if one of the Big.
Three has injury issues, it's gonna be tough to beat them anyway. You need multiple guys to go down in order for them to be kind of fucked. I do think though, there's a real shot that the Suns could be if people get injured, a playing team, But that's a bold prediction that we'll talk about another time. The Sun's finished fourth last year with a forty five and thirty seven record, But let's be real, there was a huge storm cloud looming over the team because Robert Sarver,
their owner. He was removed for all the isms misogyny, racism, probably plagiarism, sexism, homo eroticism, I don't.
Know, out of all the isms. He gotta let go.
They said, you gotta sell a team. Boy, this is a team to watch, though, team to watch.
And then finally is it a finally? It is the final?
Isn't it?
Yes? Is the finally? I can't even get them all straight.
There's so many damn good teams on this division. We got to talk about the Sacramento Kings. Their win total fucking shady forty four and a half.
That is a shady ass win total.
This was a team that was third in the West last year.
Were they not?
They were additions? Sasha Vizenkov, euro League MVP Neurlans, Noel Big man JaVale McGee, big man Jalen Noel played really well for the Minnesota Timberwolves as a bench piece. Went from a ten day guy, two way guy to a real rotation dude. Jeremy Lamb I think he's washed. And Chris Warte who I think there's a lot of potential around. They lose Rashaun Holmes, but let's be real, Rashan.
Wanted out of there.
They lose to me as Kta, who they didn't have a spot for. They sadly lose Terence Davis who's still a free agent, Matthew Dilodova, and some other scrubs. The Kings, of course, were the the surprise team last year. They won the Pacific Division. What was it forty four to one? That was a nice little ticket, forty eight and thirty four, forty a and thirty four. They get better this year, and what the fuck does Vegas do? They say, we don't believe, we don't believe forty four and.
A half wins we're gonna give you. That's some bullshit.
Anyway, back to the Kings. They were so much fun to watch. They took the Warriors to the brink. They were Harrison Barnes opened three away from moving on in the playoffs. They do lose a little bit of minor pieces, nothing too great of importance. We talked about the losses Delavdova's losses a clubhouse leader, of course, will be felt, but they do add Sasha for Zenkoff first basket in the preseason game, dribble handoff off the screen from Alex lenn three splash.
Get used to it.
Daron Fox just did an interview the other day and he said, if Zenkoff made one hundred and forty three out of one hundred and fifty shots in one drill and practice, the dude six' nine beast to. Guard gonna take him some time to move up in the, ROTATION i. Think but when he, does he has the ability to hit some big shots in big.
MOMENTS i think a lot.
Of kings, FANS i think a lot Of kings fans are expecting, things hoping things will work out with. Him but to, me the THING i like about This kings team is that they know how to. Win we cannot neglect the fact That sabonis had a torn ligament in his thumb the entire. Year did not shut it, down did not get. Surgery he continued to. Play he looks much better, already AND i think that's only going to get.
Better so, far he's very. Underrated Darren fox very focused on HIS mvp campaign that he's telling, everyone Fuck TEAM. USA i don't care about. Them Keegan, MURRAY i think is gonna take another. Step he's gonna be better following his rookie. Year you watched him in the playoffs last year and he got really. Good come Like game, Three game, four he made a RECORD nba number of threes for a first year. Player Malik monk turned into a player that we always hoped he would. Be six man off the.
Bench Davion mitchell was Strapping steph in games one and. Two he's joined By Chris duarte And Jalen, noel which means more. Defense one of the weak up week spots in this team last year was a backup.
Center so what do they.
Do they Add JaVale, McGee three TIMES nba champion for multiple, teams badly needed, experience and then they Add Neirleans, noel who also has a lot of. Talent if those guys, contribute woo, wooh this is a fifty win. Team it's a fifty one, team, folks maybe even, more maybe a fifty fifty two win.
TEAM i think this team could be number one in The. WEST i.
DO i think this will be the top team in The Western. CONFERENCE a lot of people are saying The kings are going to take step back this.
Year not. Me i'm ten toes. DOWN i think it's the.
Opposite this is a fifty two to four win team and once again one of the most fun teams to watch in the. League that is it for our division. Preview preseason games have just, started so we'll get into a full overview of what's popping around the league in the next. Episode but the big news since the latest episode is That Joel embiid has declared that he will play For TEAM.
Usa WHICH i think is.
Garbage not me as The.
Patriot and me as AN nba. Fan why because that's just too.
Stacked put him On Team. France see what they figure out Is Rudy gobert.
Gonna get kicked off the? Team are they gonna try to play the two center?
Thing what's gonna happen With victory? One But yama or Maybe. Cameroon i'd be fine with that. Too, france where he has. Citizenship there was lots of speculation when he played For.
France there was a lot of. Friction, Ooh, rudy what do you?
Think who oh gil bin Oh, Rudy oh bonjous auvoi and they're, like, no he's. Coming SO i think it's. Fascinating THE us needs a center. Badly but let's see if If Joel embiid isn't healthy In, april do you think he's healthy In?
August he's healthy In?
August, no, Dog maybe if he gets bounced in Early, april then he will be because he'll have four months to. Prepare he will be a big boost to THE us if they want to get the gold next, year Which i'm sure they.
Do as for the rest of.
The, league it's, chirp, chirp, quiet, Quiet.
Nothing new on The harden.
Front Somehow Peyton, pritchard who was asking for a, trade gets a fucking extension four, years thirty, million and they're.
Like he's, like fuck, you fuck, you fuck. YOU i went, OUT i went out All.
They're, like, hey how about seven and a half Millionaire and he's, like, okay sign on the dotted. Line Evan fournier is still pissed that The knicks haven't traded, him so they'll probably give him. Extension, right and Sniper Reggie bullock signed a one year deal.
In houston for what.
Reason who, knows but with the preseason, underway shit's gonna change in a. Heartbeat