Welcome into NBA Pulse production of iHeart Rating in the NBA. I'm Sarahustak, NBA analyst for the Yes Network, and today is Tuesday, June eleventh. From our extraordinary core group of NBA journalists, were joined now by NBA dot Com Senior writer Steve Ashburner. Ash, you've been on planes. I don't know if you've been on trains, but you have been covering this final series going from Boston. Now you're in Dallas getting set for Game three that will take place
on Wednesday at eight thirty pm Eastern on ABC. ASH Boston with this two oh series lead, they have been. They were dominant in Game one and pretty much the same there despite a little bit of a run towards the end by Dallas, but overall they have very much looked like the better team right away. Let's get to it. There's been a lot of talk. We know about Boston, how good they been in the regular season, what they've done in rolling through the postseason, about the completeness of
their team. They are a complete team, but do it on both ends of the floor. We're seeing it offensively, we're seeing it defensively, We're seeing it from multiple players, everyone contributing in a way that it's not just about star power, it's about balance. So who is your MVP? I know we're only two games in, but Boston two games away from closing this thing out. Who is your MVP at this point of the finals?
Yeah, Hi, Sarah, you know it's it's not too soon because this is a constant topic, whether it's a finals MVP or a Larry Bird Eastern Conference Finals MVP, or just over the course of the season, which is who is the most valuable Celtic. It seems like it's a big deal. There is, And maybe that's a byproduct of a really deep, talented team, is that people want a pecking order. And you know, Tata and Jason Tatum and
Jaylen Brown have been together for so long. I mean they are, in essence the pillars of that team, and people have always measured one against the other. And so I mean even Jason Kidd just did that, and I look at it. You know, sometimes the media tries to be too clever by half. I'm the kind of guy who looks at sort of the inner game and the impact of a of a player more than just his stance. And if I were casting a vote at this point, I would vote for Drew Holliday. I think that in.
Both those games, as I was hoping, we maybe had different answers.
Oh well, maybe we should just for the dynamic here. But you know, great mind stake alike. I just think that you know, when you when you drill down and you look at what they needed in any given moment. In Game two, particularly, it was the scoring and Tatum shooting was off again. Drew Holliday makes, you know, very clutch baskets. He can bail out possessions. There was a stretch in the third quarter where I wrote about it on our site as the turning point of the game.
Jason Kitty called the time out with about five minutes left in the third quarter. His team had gone from down two to down six, and then over the next two minutes out of that timeout, Dallas went down from down six to down twelve. And you know, Drew Holliday
scored two of the buckets during that stretch. He got it on a break after Jaln Brown steel And then to finish that stretch, Jason Tatum was doubled and sort of in no man's land, and all of a sudden Drew Holliday cuts to the basket, Tatum shovels the ball over and it's a layup, and Jason Kidd is calling a second time out in a matter of two minutes, and it just seemed like the lead went to double digits.
That gave the Celtics control enough that they could weather that fourth quarter run and still be five points up. So Drew Holliday knows what it takes. He won with Milwaukee back in twenty twenty one. He's he's important at both ends. I mean he started out, you know, on well defensively, I mean they can put him on anybody, frankly. So to me, he's my he's my MVP because he's a role player, because he willingly sacrifices. He calls himself
a utility man. If you're if you're going to look at the so called stars, I think Jaylen Brown probably would would would win that award if he came down to him and Tatum right now. But I really think the criticism of Tatum has gotten rather silly. You know, he's playing a well rounded game, he seems willing to sacrifice. Yes, he's shooting has been very bad, but you know, Kobe missed a lot of shots too. I'm not comparing him. I'm just saying that a guy can can achieve a
lot even as he misses shots. And so I just think the you know, there's still opportunity obviously in this thing. The Celtics have to win too. It could go five more games for Tatum to straighten out a shot. But yeah, that's how I would rank them. I guess right now is Holiday Brown. And you know you can't ignore a guy that has the ball in his hands as much as Tatum.
I'm one hundred percent with you on the rankings. And I can't say enough about Drew Holliday. Have always been a huge fan of his, the disposition he brings to the floor, how he obviously competes not only defensively, but we're seeing it offensively. And you look at the fact in game two, twenty six points, eleven rebounds, had zero turnovers, he was highly efficient from the field. I think there's so many aspects of his game that he has impacted why they're up to oh so, without a doubt he
at this point would get my vote. But to make a little bit of a case to your point about Jalen Brown in Jason Tatum. A lot of what they're doing is opening up the floor for teammates. You know that so much of the defense is predicated on trying to slow them down, in particular Jason Tatum, And I agree with you on the Tatum dialogue and kind of
dissection of how he's been playing. Has shot then off. Absolutely, Is this a time when your best players and one that you think is all NBA should be on the biggest stage at their best. Yes. However, you look at Dallas has been double teaming him, you know, Jason Kidd and the coach is tossing doubles on him, blitzing him, trying to get the ball out of his hands. If that doesn't tell you just the respect they have for
what he can do offensively. And Jalen Brown his ability to get downhill, get to the front of the rim, open up the floor. I think there's so many things that he obviously is contributing and orchestrating in why Boston is playing the way that they are and also defensively, same type of deal. But I am with you at this point. It'll be interesting to see how things play out in this next game, Game three, and also just
as a series continues. But with that being said, there's another piece to the starting lineup, ash that we know has been hugely important, and we saw it in Game one. Kristaps Porzingis, after missing ten games in the postseason with a calf injury, made his return. He put on a show quick. He has twenty points in twenty minutes in that game one. Game two comes away with twelve points. He did play twenty three minutes, but it appeared that he reaggravated his calf after the game. Joe Missoula, as
you would anticipate, said he has zero concerns. He'll be fine. I think Kristap said something about the effective He'll die on the court and they'll take a look at it. But he'll be playing in game three. But that is still something and whether he is available to play he's been coming off the bench or otherwise. A lot of it, too, is just how he looks, how he's moving when he is out there, if he is out there. So do
you have any one perspective on his impact? But two just an in general, if you have any updates or information on how he will be and what the prognosis looks like.
Yeah, no updates you know, there was no media availability. The teams weren't available to us yesterday. On a travel day, we will head over there, you know, you go over there this morning and then find out what the latest is. And even that, I mean you're talking thirty hours until the game, however long it is, and you know, a
lot of healing can go on or therapy whatever. Now, obviously the reason they kept them out as long as they did is because it's a serious injury, that initial CAF strain, and if this is an aggravation of that, it could reset the clock. That would be sort of the worst case scenario for the Celtics if it's the kind of thing that he can get back to where he was for the start of Game one, if not
by Wednesday night, maybe by Friday night. I mean, they have a two game cushion right now, and if you were going to air on the side of caution, you know, maybe you don't use him in Game three. They went nine to one without him in the postseason while he was out in the in the previous rounds. I mean,
the hand people talk about. You know, Boston had a little bit of an easy road right as they missed Jimmy Butler in the first round, Donovan Mitchell was hurt, he got hurt for a couple of games in the second. Then it was Tyre's Halliburton well. Throughout a lot of that, Boston was playing without Christoppas presented, So if you want to downgrade what they accomplished, you have to factor in that they were missing a key part of their team, and we saw in game one what a difference he
can make. He's particularly important against Dallas because of their bigs and the ability to clock things up in the in the paint. Certainly, Derek White had a nice block at the rim late in game two of PJ. Washington, But if you have Prezingas on the floor, he's a natural rim protector, So that matter is there as well. You look at Dallas's lob dunks way down from what they're accustomed to winning with, and when they don't have that going, when they don't have the corner threes, you know,
it makes a big difference in their office. So we'll see. I mean, you know, these calf strains have become sort of the the second most important or concerning injury because we've seen we saw with Kevin Durant that the calf strain led to the Achilles tear. That was the concern with Giannis when he didn't participate at the very end of the season and in the in the books first round is that you know he had a calf strain and they weren't going to risk the Achilles. So same
thing with porzingis. I mean, if they think that it could be a domino from calf to Achilles, I'd hate to think we've seen the last of them. Obviously, the rhetoric after game was that, like you said, he said he would die on the court. Achilles doesn't kill you, So I think could kill the Achilles, but it would be okay, I guess if he's willing to take that chance.
But I'm sure they don't want to do it. And if it's a different numerically, you know, being up to zero versus being down oh two, So we'll see.
Yeah, And that's the question. And I think to the point about that there's different injuries that playing through is one thing, pain tolerance is another thing, but actually putting yourself in harm's way of a very severe injury that not only can I pact you right now in this series, but you think about even next season and just big picture looking at it. I'm sure that's something that obviously they will be taking into consideration. But you said it game,
this is a big game. This isn't a game that, yeah, Boston is sitting here with a two to zero lead, but the tenor of those series shifts in the final shifts very quickly if this becomes three to zero as opposed to two to one in Dallas getting an opportunity to come back home. They have not shot the ball well short of Luka Doncic and Dancic has had a lot of seemingly uncharacteristic turnovers. His numbers have looked good,
but overall he just needs help. And the guy that you anticipate, you hope, you expect to help him will be Kyrie Irving a huge part of why they got here, and he has struggled and whether you want to look at the history between him and the Boston Celtics organization and if any of that played a factor in the environment in TD Garden, but it's it's been a tough sledding for Kyrie. In Game one he had twelve points, twelve to twenty six. He was zero five from three.
Game two, sixteen points, didn't hit a three point shot as well, seven of eighteen from the field. You can probably say that about both teams though struggling from the three point line. But it's looked at he has not
looked like himself. He has not looked like how he has looked throughout the course of the postseason, in particular for a player who has talked about a lot of having been here, having done that, having that experience, needing to help the others along the way, what do you think the biggest concern should be and has been about the play of Kyrie And how do you think that changes here for Game three?
Well, I'll tell you I want to almost cut him a little slack because, you know, for everything we heard about Luca and Kyrie being the best offensive backcourt in NBA history, right now they're making Boston look like it has the best defensive backcourt in NBA history with Holliday and Derek White. Now, those guys did finish on the second team All Defensive Honors, and they could have been first team. You know, the way voters voter could have
easily flipped that makes a difference. But yeah, I mean this is this is Kyrie's time he has said it essentially, and it makes total sense. They would not be here without the symbiosis of Kyrie and Luca and how they learned to play off each other, and how what a lot of us thought was going to be a battle for the ball and a my turn year turn situation has become much more cooperative and room for each Luca being willing to indulge Kyrie's hot streaks and get the
most out of those guys. They wouldn't be here now if that wasn't the formula, and if that's not going to be the formula now, they're not going to win a championship or even extended, you know, to six or seven games. Kyrie, I thought for sure, would bounce back better in Game two. He's he seems to have a knack for not stacking up bad games. He can have one, but then he's he's pretty much on point. Didn't happen.
He got a credit Boston's defense for that. I think the switching coverage and everything else they're they're throwing at those guys has has taken away some of what Kyrie does. He's still a great finisher. He still can make plays that that dazzle you. Know, creative shot maker, but he hasn't hit a three pointer yet in the series, and so you know the pressure is going to grow on him. Being home will help until it hurts, because at some point the fans are going to get a little bit antsy.
If this becomes three games that Kyrie's off, it's going to be off the hard to turn it around then if Dallas obviously, if they go down three, nobody's won yet. And while that is going to happen one of these years, I don't see this Dallas team as being the team that's going to dig out of an O three hole. So it puts so much pressure, so much attention on the Wednesday night game.
With that being said, Ash, what are your predictions for the outcome of Game three.
I actually think Dallas will win Game three. I think they will get a bump from being home. I think Kyrie will play better. Uh you know, we saw we saw Luca walking around pre game two like a mummy. I mean he had re wrapped, he had his torso wrapped. You know, if two days uh two off days by
Wednesday night, that should help. There's only one day in between Games three and four, so better to use the rehab time now, and I think I think the role players, guys like Derek Jones Jr. And And Derek Lively, Daniel Gafford, those guys will be much more comfortable at home and and two one series. I mean, it's it's so important, you just you can't dig into that O three hole. And I think the urgency for Dallas will will mean a lot. Now that said, I would expect if that
happens for Boston to Game four. Boston hasn't lost on the road in these playoffs. Uh, They're able to handle that stuff very very well well, and you know that that might be enough if they come in that they you go and expecting a split, they could they could
go for the sweep. But if they do that and drag Dallas back to Boston for game five minutes three to one, Like I said, I don't think this Manvericks team is capable of flipping the script to that degree now, not based on what we've seen so far.
As I'm with you, I would go with Dallas. I don't think this will be a sweep. I think they end up getting this one, but I do think Boston will ultimately close it out. However, I think this is going to be big games on the side of both Kyrie and Jason Tatum. I think those are two players who historically, and you look at how they play, have not stacked together as many games of shooting inefficiently and poorly.
I mean, you could even say that about Boston for as much as we're talking about Dallas, and I do believe this is going back home, especially some of the complimentary players, role players, bench players coming in and being a little bit better. I do think that will happen, and shooting better and all that. Game two, Boston shot just under twenty six percent from three. They're not a team that ten to thirty nine from the three point line.
I anticipate that will be better. But I do think that Dallas will ultimately find a way behind Luca and behind Kyrie to pull off Game three. But I think also you're going to see I think it's going to be a tight one, and I think that's where it goes back to us talking about closers and having closers and what Luca and Kyrie can do. I think we'll see more of a closely played game and Dallas just pulling it off at the end, being there at home. But I do think this is where we've talked about.
Tatum does so many things on the floor, and despite not shooting the ball well, I think this is a game that he will come back to knocking down shots in the way that we are accustomed to seeing him.
It's a great point, serily, because I think the conventional wisdom on this series going in was, you want, if Boston is going to win, they're gonna need a bigger cushion late in games. If the game is close, then you know you're gonna fear what Don't and Irving can do. And while Game two got down to five, there wasn't much time left at that point, it was just about a minute.
Don't as Dallas fans talking about that that push from behind Jaylen Brown, Derek White on PJ. Washington But no, but I feel you, and I.
I think Boston has had enough of a lead that they haven't had to worry so much about those late game heroics, and just a closer game would bring out the best I think in the Mavericks.
Yeah. I think we may see that in Game three. Some other news, we've had some other news happening about the NBA in regards to a team not still playing in the playoffs. The Los Angeles Lakers were going to get to their coaching search and the latest right after this welcome back to NBA Cal Sarakustak joined by the great Steve Ashburger and Ooh ash Oh Lakers trying to put it together get a head coach. We've seen reports,
We've heard reports. This has been ongoing since their season ended and they decided to part ways with Darvin Ham and the latest was that Danny Hurley was their guy. They had been targeting him. He flew out to Los Angeles over the weekend and made a decision on Monday, and his decision was to stay at Yukon to go for that third straight national championship. He's built just an
extraordinary legacy already, it feels like with the Huskies. But that leaves the Los Angeles Lakers back to the drawing board and been some names that have still been out there. We've heard about James Rego, We've of course heard a lot about JJ Reddick, some others that they will bring in. What's your What was your reaction I should say to Hurley deciding to stay at Yukon and more so on the side of rejecting the Lakers offer and what's next for the Lakers.
Yeah, it was interesting, Sara, because I was on a flight with a lot of NBA media people yesterday and while there was a lot of sleeping going on, initially, once somebody, i mean there was Wi Fi available, So once somebody saw that news of Hurley's decision, all of a sudden, the laptops are coming out. People are firing up, you know, their ex app and and trying to figure this out. And then of course a lot of chatter too, because let's face it, there was skepticism about the whole
thing from the get go. The fact Adrian Wojnarowski who broke that story of Hurley being a candidate and breaks all kinds of stories which are you know, very much legitimate, but he has a particular relationship with the Hurley family.
He had written a book about Bobby and Danny Hurley's dad, you know, a renowned coach, high school coach out in Jersey, And so it seemed like, wow, almost like an almost like an inside job, and you wondered whether this was and coming on the heels of Gino Arama getting a contract extension, it seemed like maybe this is a little bit of leverage for Danny Hurley to make sure he
gets the deal he's seeking from Yukon. So a lot of skepticism, and yet I mean, the pieces all seemed to have proven out that the Lakers did look at Hurley, they interviewed Hurley, they apparently offered him a job. I mean, if they hadn't, and this was that part was bogus. I mean, they would be out there right now saying no, no, no, this is absurd. You know. So those pieces, all you know, proved to be true. That doesn't mean that Danny Hurley
had genuine interest in going to Los Angeles. It could mean that, like any of us might might you know, if we had marketability, might try to do It's like, oh wait, somebody might want to interview me for a job. Well, I want to make sure my current employer knows that, because it's a good way to get a raise. So it could be you know, even that simple. I I wasn't surprised when I heard the news he was staying at Yukon. I guess, you know, to get to the to the bottom line, it just it seemed like it's
a tough job with the Lakers. I mean they change coaches. They're not patient. They've got a roster that has you know, serious issues, if not right now, but coming up because of lebron James's future and you know where they're going to backfill in terms of young talent and the whole Ronnie James potential pressure on that team. There's just there are better situations that could open up in the next few years that you know. Any Hurley, he's the only
young enough guy. He could wait and dip his towe in the NBA waters a little bit down the road. So we'll see what happens now. I mean I heard people making a case that this was a ploy of some sort that benefits everybody. Right, Oh well, well woes he has another scoop, Danny Hurley, you know, becomes this this coaching darling and ends up with you know, I can't lose decision, you know, take seventy million dollars from the Lakers or get a better deal to stay where
you love and where you've won. And that the Lakers somehow benefited by showing that they were really searching for the best possible coach. You know, it wasn't just say well, we're going to take lebron suggestion and hire JJ Reddick without without considering other candidates. Now I look at that and I say, well, yeah, but the message there is that JJ Reddick is not your first pick then right, he's at best your second choice. And is that a
good thing? But yeah, I guess that can be debated in terms of the the credibility that would be stole upon upon Reddick that he uh, you know, he finished second for a you know, a high profile job, and there were other candidates as well, and it was a real search. So I don't know that. That's a lot of inside basketball management stuff. I think Reddick looks like
he's going to be the Lakers next coach. Never say never, but you know, eventually, all the parts will fall into place, and we'll see a similar league in preseason and next season, and we'll find out if if both these guys or all these people made the right decisions.
It's gonna be interesting. That's that's what we come to you for. Ash is all the inside. You give us all the inside, the NBA charter, all of those things. So we'll have to circle back with you with all the good stuff, and uh wait to see what does happen. The Lakers have said that they, as you would expect, want to have a coach in place, a head coach in place by the draft, which is a little over
two weeks. So you continue to monitor all those things and what is happening with the Finals as you continue to cover it and watching you and reading on NBA TV and NBA dot com. And until then, Ash, enjoy yourself in Dallas and we will talk with you soon.
Thanks Sarah.
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