And here it's Yong that shack spy. It's just Young flex It Come.
Yo, Hi go.
Welcome into NBA Pulster production of iHeartRadio in the NBA. I'm Sarahcustack, NBA analyst for the Yes Network, and today is Wednesday, April twenty six. From our extraordinary core group of NBA journalists, We're joined now by NBA dot Com senior writer Steve Ashburner. Steve, I'm excited for you. We got a big slate of game four, Game fives, four of them here tonight. You're headed to Memphis pretty soon, correct, But before we get to that game and preview the
other four games, let's talk about last night. What a win by the Atlanta Hawks, led by Trey Young thirty eight points, thirteen assists. They continue to give Boston a little bit of a push here. Boston still leads the series three to two, but it also extends this series of which the Philadelphia seventy six ers Joel Embiid as he was hobbled a little bit in their sweep of the Nets, get some more time to rest. That series won't start until Monday, May first. But what did you
see out of Trey Young? In particular one nineteen one seventeen Hawks win at Boston without Dejonte Murray and what he's done for this Hawks group to uh, to give the Celtics more than maybe a lot of us expected.
Well, I think a lot of people will remember, you know, how Trey Young went into Madison Square Garden and you know, silenced the crowd and became a new century Reggie Miller in a sense in terms of taking on that what seemed would seem like an insurmountable disadvantage, and he did
the same thing. He didn't have Jihntay Murray at his side, and he went into you know, Tea Garden and you know, took it to Celtics fans who had every right, I think, to expect that their team would end this series, and you know, it would move up the the East Semifinal series with Philadelphia a couple of day games, but it would certainly ease things for the Celtics had they taken
care of business last night. You know, Trey Young, I threw him an All NBA vote, And he's got as many critics as he has supporters, it seems, and people don't, you know, like his game. They Siddenly don't like his defense. They feel that he's not necessarily a great team player, but you know, the guy puts up the numbers. He's not an off court issue at all. And for him with Murray out to do what he did and that
shot was unbelievable. I mean I scared. I scared the people in my house because I let out such a yell when it happened. Now, I will admit that had Boston won that game, I would have had to go to work immediately write a series preview story about six or Celtics. So I was able to kick that can down the road a couple of days at least before I have to preview that that e semifinal.
So you're screaming for multiple reasons.
I was screaming for a much easier night and morning today, But mostly I was I was screaming for the drama of Trey Young just sort of sticking it in people's faces and pushing this thing.
Young that's a come.
Go unreal how good he has been just willing this team. I do wonder whether and I know you know, on paper and by most measures, Atlanta's a better team with John D. Murray. There's no doubt about it. He's a good player. But you know, does Trey Young get in as comfortable a rhythm if you know he's sharing opportunities with Murray, you know, the ball it doesn't end up
in his hands quite as much. I think it's been interesting to sort of see how teams respond when they've been without a key player, whether it's Golden State without Draymond, whether it's Memphis without Jah. I mean, that's the one game they've won in that series. Now the Clippers. You know, it's one thing to do things without Paul George or Kawhi Leonard, but when you don't have either. But I
just think it's an interesting dynamic. I don't know, maybe you can speak to that, but when you're down a key guy, what goes on with whoever's left standing standing?
Yeah? Well, and I think we saw that to your point. The big question coming into that season when the Hawks acquired de Jonte Murray was how those two not only were going to play alongside one another, but the opportunity to stagger them a little bit. And I think the Murray component was also a defensive component. But those two players getting used to playing off the ball, and I think that's something that was still a work in progress.
Obviously the change with Quin Sny coming over as a head coach, how he had tried to kind of mix and match those players, but that it was a big night from John Collins, and that I think is something else we were waiting on. Twenty three points bogdan Bogdanovic came in. He's always been solid. I also think with Boston and off night, you don't see this often from Jason Tatum, the fact he was nineteen eight and eight, but he went eight to twenty one from the field,
one to ten from the three point line. So it's going to be interesting to see. But I think the key part of that, as you said, and we talk about just Philadelphia waiting in the wings there knowing they have a little bit more time to rest up, something that Dac Rivers and Joel Embiid, James Harden, I'm sure they're very pleased about. There was some clarity and some of the other series last night. Denver closed out the series against the Timberwolves, and the Suns closed out the
series against the Clippers. As you mentioned, the team playing without Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, so Phoenix, Denver. No, they're going to play one another, but we're still waiting to hear what's going to happen with some of the others, and maybe we will see opportunities to close out series here tonight, Not sure if will happen. Let's start with the seven pm game on NBA TV, the New York Knicks at the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Knicks with a three
to one series lead. The Cavs did win Game two at home, but the Knicks have taken care of business and all the others. This has been a series that has been predicated on defense, rebounding. We haven't seen a lot of high scoring games when you look at this game at Cleveland, but with the Knicks a chance to close it out, what are your expectations for what will happen this evening?
Well, like you just said, another low scoring game. I think I think Tom Thibodeau is in his glory with these defensive tussles' that's you know, old school TIBs, and I just think New York has played harder. I think they have a little bit more versatile attack. I mean, you know, Julius Randall is not himself, but I just think, you know, with with the way they play, Jalen Brunson, you know, so far being the better offseason pickup judged
by the postseason compared to Donovan Mitchell. You know you're gonna go with Brunson to this point in this series, Cleveland, to me, has I think they've been caught on their heels. I don't think they expected the Knicks to be as difficult a matchup. I didn't think, you know, they probably
didn't expect to have as much pushback. They're very proud of their talent in Cleveland, their talent level, and they're very backcourt dominated, and so you know, if they don't get more from the front line, I think they're going to continue to get you know, out toughed and and ultimately outscored by by the Knicks. And you know, I don't know that that makes the Knicks a, you know, any sort of a great threat to keep advance. But
I do expect bulldprick bold pick here. When the team's up three to one, I do expect them to get things done, and I think it could be as soon as tonight. I think that Cleveland is, you know, they're playing on eggshells in a sense and their crowd would deserve to be highly disappointed if they go out in five games, So it could be a funky atmosphere.
Yeah, and considering they did lose game one at home to this next team who's playing confident, playing well, and playing with the character that, as you know very well, Chicago blood Tom Thibodeau likes, likes to employ and he's got a lot of guys that fit the mold of how he wants to play. They will await. We will get to some interesting things that happened in the East between that matchup.
What it will be.
We will get to that Milwaukee Miami game in just a minute, But first at seven thirty PM on T and T, another incredibly intriguing series, one that has had a lot of storylines both on and off the floor of the Los Angeles Lakers visit the Memphis Grizzlies and
the Lakers have that three to one series lead. As you mentioned, you will be making the drive down to cover that game one which has had a lot of highlight plays, a lot of fireworks, and a lot that have come down to the the end of games, close games, six seconds left. Le Bron's got it till them and autumn Lakers down too, Chains off the window, run up, basket by chains, tied on Memphis.
We're tied in one oh four.
Can the Lakers close it out in Memphis tonight?
Oh? Absolutely. I think when you're you're a team as hobbled as Memphis is, you've already dug down once too, you know, to show your resiliency. So that's on the record. You know, we give them all due for that, but to know that, you know, in the back of their minds, you know, we've got to push this thing back to La. The Lakers are going home to Los Angeles regardless, because there would be time before the next round. And you know,
it's just it's can you do it again? I mean jam Rand, every time he goes to the floor, you're wondering how much pain is he feeling. I mean, maybe he's not reinjuring, but he's clearly got discomfort in that hand, and it's it's kind of painful to watch him play. Yeah, And I think I think the Lakers on our old are the Lakers team that we saw down the stretch. Lebron would be happy to stick it to Dylan Brooks
and the Grizzlies crowd as an extension of him. So yeah, I think I think the Lakers are you know, not just by numbers in games one so far, but I think I've considered them favorites in this series because of no Brandon Clark, no Steven Adams, you know, a half capable John Morant. It's just too much to ask.
Yeah, and we talk a lot about lebron Ja deservedly so, but to play from Austin Reeves, Ruy Hachimura, Dangel Russell, wiss some big play, I mean Jared Vanderbilt, right, some of those trade deadline pickups, moves that have been made for that team have paid dividends here early on in this series. We are going to get to the other two games on the slate tonight, including waiting to see kind of how these series plays out. Who opponents may
be Miami at Milwaukee, Golden State at Sacramento. That's coming up next. Welcome back to NBA Pulse, Sarah Coustak joined by Steve Ashburner and Ash. We got a great slate tonight. As we said, four game fives, we already went through the first two. Let's look at the latter ones at nine thirty pm on NBA TV, Miami Heat at the Milwaukee Bucks. Who would have thought Miami with a three
to one series lead. Jannis did come back to play in Game four and Biolic I think we thought that's when the Bucks would start to turn things on, but Jimmy Butler had other ideas. Coming off of an extraordinary game playoff. Jimmy is a real thing, Butler one.
Jimmy Butler has done it again. We talked about the big first half.
He had twenty four points twenty two in the first quarter alone, but when the.
Heat needed him the most, he is absolutely delivered.
What is your expectation? I will say for tonight, but also in the big picture of this series, the number one seed playing a Miami Heat team that had lost their first playing game, had to win another against the Chicago Bulls just to get into that eight seed, and now this commanding lead against a Buck team that we assumed would roll.
Let's let's give you know, credit to Eric's bolster, very crafty maneuvering to get down to the eighth seed from seven, right, lose to Atlanta, then get in his eighth so you get to face Milwaukee rather than Boston. I never would have thought, you know, I joke like that up until the other night. But this Bucks team has has been
a big disappointment. Now look, I get it, you don't have Giannas for two and two thirds games of the first of four, you know, but Miami has not had Tyler Ira, a guy they rely on for you know, a significant part of their offense. Once again, as we spoke about with Trey Young and Jent Murray, sometimes it's streamlines things when when a guy is out and you know Tyler Hero, you know his usageer eight the time
he takes up in possessions. Miami hasn't had that. They've just been able to boom, give the ball to Jimmy and count on that. Now, if if the Bucks are is good at defense, team, as the numbers during the regular season showed, if their individuals are as good as the attention that they get. With Brooks Lopez the second in the Defensive Player of the Year voting this year, Giannis has won that award. Drew Holliday was named recently by in a survey of NBA players by The Athletic
as the league's best defender. They got to figure out a way to throttle down Jimmy Butler, So I'll be curious, and then what what does that allowed to pop up from other guys? I mean, if Duncan Robinson beats you at this point after the year he had, you know, I don't know how you deal with that. You can say, oh, well that's fine, but not when you're the number one seed like the Milwaukee Bucks. Chris Middleton has a lot of Buck sands as upset with him, nearly as much
as they're upset with Mike Buttenholtzer. You know, to not call the time out during the thirteen oh run is for a guy who uses every timeout he has at his disposal, you know, the the infant miss use it or lose it with just over three minutes left in games when he has three for him not to somehow break the momentum. Get Giannis a breather. I didn't understand that at all. The Milwaukee Bucks look very soft right now physically and mentally in terms of what Miami has
been doing to them. And I would normally say, well, they're going to blow out Miami. They're not going to take three defeats in a row. Now, you know, in game in Game five, but I can't say that with any confidence based on the Milwaukee team I saw in Game four. So you know, we may end up with the Miami Heat upsetting the number one seed and facing the New York Knicks in any semifinal series, which would be you know, back to the future.
Back to the future, and man, would that be interesting with those coaches going at one another in the characteristic of these teams and these players. But as we know, can't the Bucks out yet with the talent that they have on the roster with Giannis though, it is very, very challenging to say the least, to come back from a three to one series deficit. The series that is tied up here in our Game fives is the Golden State Warriors at the Sacramento Kings. That will be a
ten pm Eastern on TNT. Deerren Fox is listed technically doubtful, yes, with a fractured finger, but there has been a lot of scuffle and a lot of speculation that he still may try to make a go of it, So that will obviously be a major factor and significance in what happens, and even if he does go how that may affect his play. But these games have been extraordinarily close. The Golden State Warriors took care of home, as did the Sacramento Kings back in Sacramento here for Game five, Ash,
what do you make of this series? And I guess the expectations with the uncertainty whether Fox will play in what he may look like.
Well, I'll be amazed if he doesn't try to play at least. I mean, this is this is home court advantage at State Care. I mean, they need to defend it. If if I feel like if Golden State they're gonna have to win one game on the road, if they're going to advance, they wait till game seven. You may come to that. But if they win it tonight, I don't think this goes back to Sacramento. I think I think the Warriors would close this thing out in six.
I mean, once they know they can win on the road and get it done at that building they got to, they go home and they don't want to take another bus ride. So I think the uh, you know, I think there Darren Fox, he's just been you know, magnificent, and he will try. He's a young guy. I have no idea what the discomfort is that he's feeling. Or the limitations of you know, having that, you know, finger
taped and what that would do. He's a left handed shooter, so it's it's something I think, if anything, his being less than one hundred percent or maybe even at a being able to complete the game directly is a challenge to demonte Sabonis and he needs to pick it up.
He needs to sort of just streamline everything, as I talked about earlier when he got a key teammate out and you just do your thing, and I and I think he has a decided advantage in height and in skill over you know, Draymond Green certainly the height and and Kavan Looney and I just think Sibonis is due to to break out. He's had good numbers, but not the kind of numbers that will that I gave got him a lot of fifth place votes in the m v P balloting. I'm predicting I voted for him fifth
and he hasn't been that player so great series. I hate when I have to cover a game on nights like this because I really don't get to pay attention to the other game the regular It's hard because I'm yeah and your your uh, you know, before the game he got things to mess with. You can't watch yearly games, and after the game, I'm doing my writing and I can't watch the late game, and h by the time I finish my story, the next game is pretty much over.
So the viewers, the listeners are in a much better position than me tonight.
Ash. That's why we appreciate you, because you should do the you do. You do the sacrificing and the tough work for us so we can have the joy of reading all your amazing work on NBA dot com. But meanwhile, I will be posted up on my couch with the TV, the iPad, the laptop, all the games and all all the coverage going because it is it should be, especially for the first round, a tremendous, tremendous night of playoff basketball, and we appreciate you previewing all of it for us.
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