You're tuned into Heat Check with Trista Quick.
On this episode of The Heat Check, We've got a special bonus episode of The Heat Check featuring Bill Ryder, friend of show NBA Insider as a CBS sports radio show as well on honesty. The interview was conducted on my other show bet MGM tonight, So thank you to my co host Ryan Horvat and Nick Ashew for playing along.
So let's get right into it and drop that beat.
I asked Bill if the Lakers adjustments in the second half gave.
The Lakers hope in the future. His answer to me was fascinating.
I mean, my takeaway is I wish I had a yokicch Finals MVP. Do you want to sell them pennies on the dollars? Look, I thought, it just continues this incredibly interesting and in some ways at least half the teams that are left unpredictable NBA playoff run And for me, guys, is the main thing is what you said Jokic amazing. But also we'll see what the adjustments are, we'll see
sort of what other players step up. But if you can't win a basketball game, if you're the Lakers, when Anthony Davis has that kind of a night, And despite the numbers that Yogic put up, it's not like ad was playing lacks of daisical defense on Nikola. For me, the takeaway is Denver is so good and it's going to take a whole lot from La to win this thing.
Bill, do you feel like what we're seeing with Boston with Denver that we are getting into a new era where teams are going to just stop with the idea, especially considering how Phoenix flamed out and basically had to fire their coach.
Like, do you feel like.
We're in a place where, you know, gms and roster builders are going to be thinking about slow, organic builds versus you know, gutting their team for stars.
It's such a great question, and they should be. But I still have buddies who think they're gonna find you know, happy marriages, happily ever after at the bar after midnight, right, So there's always gonna be a few out there who are going to try to speed up the process. But I think you're onto something. I think the inside is really smart because the way the CBA was supposed to work last time around, but because of all the money
that flooded in from TV rights going up. It allowed the Warriors to get durant, and that it really sort of confused how the process is supposed to work. If that's all corrected itself, they're gonna level in the money now. So yes, there's gonna be huge advantages for teams that
draft properly, that developed talent properly. We've seen superstars willing to stay in places more than they used to, like Giannis for one of the many examples of Milwaukee, if the situation's pretty good or if they have some success. I think you're absolutely right there will be some super teams that chase sort of that approach. You're gonna have certain players who are going to force their way out
like they always have. But I think you're right that the new era is going to lean itself and lend itself toward really well run organizations, drafting right players and building a team in a very different way.
Next up, with James Harden officially declining his player option, the big question is where Harden will end up next season. We also then get into some draft talk. Bill had some fascinating thoughts on both subjects.
Yeah, I mean, look, so I I think I'm right what I'm about to say, but full disclosure, I say it a lot, and so not everyone agrees. I think Doc Rivers is one of the most overrated basketball coaches in the NBA, and I think that the numbers have proven out for a long long time. I mean I wrote something when he got hired in twenty twenty that said Philly had just condemned themselves to mediocrity in the postseason until they fired him. So I think it's a
big step forward, I really do. I know it sounds like it's like low hanging through it's I think it's I think it's the right sort of beginning point for the conversation, hardened by all indications. I'm in Chicago at the combine, it was at the lottery the other day. The GM's everywhere, so you know, everyone sort of believes that Harden's going to be in Houston. That's been the perspective even before, really even before they got they got blown out of the postseason and beat it'll be there.
I think Darryl Morey's a pretty good GM. You know, there are I would hire Monty Williams for that job, but Nick Nurse is an excellent coach and Mike Budenholder it is probably not the right fit for me, but as an excellent coach, and you've got a bunch of great assistants. So I think Philly is gonna be really competitive. I think the difficult question is going to be and I guess it depends how you view Tyrese Maxie In terms of Kenny step up and fill that void offensively.
I don't know that he can. How did Philly get creative in replacing Harden's at least regular season production? Darryl Morey's pretty aggressive in that respect, But I'm pretty I'm pretty optimistic about Philly for a lot of reasons, the main one being I think they got rid of the head coach I know people really like, But I don't think he was ever going to have the kind of success that they're crazing with m beat on the roster.
Everything that I have heard, and we don't know, right because I could never have predicted that Harden, nor I think did anyone else. Certainly the poor folks in Brooklyn would force his way to the nets and then force his way to Philly and then you know, obviously not stay in Philadelphia. I mean, this guy has been on the move, and I like James, but they answer the question.
Everybody thinks he's going to Houston, which is a lot less ap only place now that they're obviously not going to be able to draft Victor webin Yama, they did not get the number one overall pick. I don't I think he's either gonna go to Houston out of the sort of love for it, or he's going to take the bag right because he's older and if he wants to get paid, this is the time basically get a
contract from somebody to me. And I could be wrong, and this is sort of influenced by the view of people around the league, but I think what he's saying is his way of trying to set the narrative to why he's gonna leave Philadelphia. They weren't happy at the end. We saw NB throw guys under the bus. I mean, it did not end the way they wanted. I think he's just gonna go to Houston, and I think what
he's saying is probably not his actual heart's desire. I think he just wants to leave Philly and he's set in the stage for then.
Yeah, it's gonna be really interesting too, because I think nothing stunts the growth of young developing talent like James Harden on the roster, especially.
With you Mayu Doka.
So that's gonna be a wild one to watch. You mentioned that you were at the combine. I think what's fascinating for us outside of the Victor Wambia and now to the Spurs, which in time is a flat circle and they just get a transcendent generational big Man after big Man? Is this difference between Scoot Henderson and Brandon Miller and the needs of Charlotte and Portland trading that pick.
What do you think happens with Charlotte.
Would you take Brandon Miller to go second overall, which is like plus one twenty five, would you take Scoot Henderson to go third, which is you know, plus one sixty five, or would you think that maybe there's going to be a shake up because of all the teams trying to trade up into getting into the top three pick.
Yeah, that's a good question. So for people that are trying to figure out where they're well out their money to go right in that respect, I'll give this information and may be had influences to we're taking some more chances. I talked to a couple executives and a couple gms who in a very candid sort of background conversation where they said some other things that were off the record but pretty startling, right like just gods if I can't say,
but there's a lot of trust in this conversation. And when we got to the draft, they're view and these are people I really respect for their ability to analyze talent, was that one is obviously set, but they thought even two to five, while it's probably a three person drafts, they thought certainly at two and even at three and four that they think there could be room for a lot of things to change, and that there will actually be in Charlotte a pretty aggressive debate between those two
guys and maybe other people. Portland's absolutely going to trade out of that position. They're going to move on from that spot. Someone's going to trade up. It'll probably depend when we sort of know where Charlotte's going. Who values the guy of those two that you mentioned that has left. But if there are pretty good odds on somebody right now and maybe Tenderson, it may not be the worst bet. Because my understanding talking to the experts here is that
it's not a lock. It may not be Brandon Miller. It very well could change, and so there might be some opportunity today for some value if that perspective is correct, that the conventional wisdom now is not going to hold whatever it is a month from now.
Meaning like maybe one of the Thompson twins could go second.
Maybe or third, right, depending where you think it. Yeah, where it's going to be. And obviously there are some personal issues that you have to weigh with one of the people you mentioned, and that really comes down to every individual executive in front office assessing that young man and where he's at, and you know all that stuff. So yeah, I mean the general view of the experts, which is different by the way than the people that
are my media colleagues. But the actual gms in the room, they think it's they think there's the possibility of it being pretty surprising. After we get past number one.
That's all the time that we have for the eat check.
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