Well, well, well.
We are okay crowing back crow stot quitten.
Din't National Basketball Association while you're back, and we couldn't be more excited.
They're so thirsty, I'm crazy. They need attention.
It's good that Gatorade is a sponsor because the thirst is extreme over here and we can't wait to kick things off this season, especially with the state of the Phoenix Suns. We definitely have our eyes on that team. And talk more with the GM of p h n X Sports Saul Bookman on today's episode, I'm Miles Break and I'm O'Brien and this.
Is my.
Yeah, Spinny Corry a three punter, stop Curry from down, tell again, be honest, look.
Out ship time. Oh.
I held my breath for too long this summer and now we're back and I can't wait to see the season start. I've just been hallucinating NonStop the last couple weeks. I think Victor webban Yama is some kind of uh don't.
Dream that what he did in the preseason was that a dream.
I don't know a lot of people. A lot of people would have you thinking it's.
Just all happening. It's an interesting wrinkle. According to one NBA commentator comment sator whose name I will not mention. It's an interesting wrinkle. The second coming is a Pawna Miles. It's all I'm freaking out. I'm freaking out. I'm letting myself get over hyped because I am not a professional basketball commentator and that is fun.
But guess who is? We got one right here, Saul Bookman. Welcome to the show. How are you, Saul?
What else?
Fellas? How are we doing today?
Doing great? We're doing great.
I mean, we're you having me on the show despite the fact that I'm a Suns fan.
No, of course, I'm a Suns fan myself as yeah.
Oh yeah, that's true. Jack is a Suns fan now, and I appreciate you coming on the show despite me being not pethered to reality Lakers fan.
I mean, how many Lakers fans are? Yeah, truly, we're still looking for the first one.
These guys, I'll tell you.
Tell you, these guys they think they got a load on the strings. But yeah, so, I mean, you know, I'm guessing you are just as excited as anybody else for the season to start, especially with the Suns looking the way they do, or at least that roster looking the way it does.
I mean, everybody in Phoenix is certainly everybody here at phn X, like, I mean, this is probably the most anticipated season starts with a seasons since Charles Barkley. I mean, it's gotta be that far back. I mean the seven seconds or Less Sons were fun, Chris Paul was fun. But we've never started off the season with this much star studded talent on one roster ever. And this is man, I can't wait to see it for real.
Right because we were gonna ask like, how do you think? Like you I think you already said, were like, how does this compare to ninety three oh five or even seventy six? And you're saying, this is here, we are, this is the excitement right here.
I think, so yeah, yeah, this is I mean listen, like I think in the middle of I think the closest thing you could say is probably seven seconds or less Sons. In terms of Hall of Fame talent, you can make an argument that Mariy Stademeier, Sean Marion, and Steve Nash obviously are all Hall of Fame worthy, whether they get in or not, you know whatever at that but at the time you didn't know which way that was gonna go or if they would have a chance
to be that caliber right now. You know, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal all have Hall of Fame talent. They could all be there someday, you know, provided they stay healthy. And I mean, that's it's pretty remarkable. I also like, listen, I love Charles Barkley, but he's never won a championship. I love Steve Nash, he never won a championship. Kevin Durant has, He's won two of them.
And let's just say, what what they know? That's not what I'm saying. I am they did about the n b AU media.
I am.
They did. They did win m v P S, So that's that's their credibility.
That's something.
But as a team, I'm I'm really excited for these three to see how they work together.
Yeah. So again, expectations for for the new guys coming in are how we're what level are you at and what what is your expectation in terms of what the contribution is going to be and how that ends up when we get to you know, the business end of the season.
You know, what's so funny is you.
You were just talking about you know, Lakers fans and their rational you know, feelings about how good their team should be or old championships.
Actually you're old them.
Yeah, you always old, right, And I think that's part of the Yeah, that's definitely been part of the the learning process out here, is that I'm sick and tired of always feeling like, you know, we just hope this is gonna happen. We just hope that things are going to go our way. Like we've actually started on our shows being like it's time to start expecting this to happen.
Like we we are owed championships? Are you kidding me?
Like, I don't think there's a franchise out there that's owed more championships than the Phoenix Suns. So my expectations are extraordinarily high. It's championship or bust.
In my opinion.
We've gotten to the finals multiple times, three times in the franchise's history. We've never gotten it done. We've come close. We should have done it in twenty one, but then we lost four straight. This is it, this is the year. I don't care about the Nuggets, I don't care about the Lakers. I don't care about the Bucks of the Celtics. We control our own destiny. These three are plenty good enough to get it done, so they need to make it happen.
By the way, super producer Jabbari is his mic is muted so the listener can't hear him, but he is steepling his fingers and laughing and saying yes, yes, like the Emperor and the let it course between Darth Vader and to you exactly exactly.
Other teams don't matter, no matter what they look like. It's all about us exactly. So welcome, welcome, But it's true. But I know, like, yeah, that meant I think that's important, and I think that's obviously exciting for a fan base when you do kind of turn that corner and it goes from like, well we might we might have something here to be like you, no, we have like we have something here, now let's see it through.
So yeah, I'm excited, Aliston.
The hardest part about this is always going to be kind of similar. It's kind of funny that Kevin Durant was kind of in this situation before, but in Golden State, where you had two premier shooters and then you had Draymond Green as well. Now you have the same thing, and Bradley Beal, who's an efficient score at every single level. Devin Booker is probably one of the most efficient scores
of the mid range we've ever seen. Kevin Durant right there with him obviously, and Katie being able to play and off the ball, on the ball like he could do everything, and those literally literally you have three guys that can play at every single level. And then the evolution of Devin Booker, I feel like, is what's going
to change this a little bit. I really I hope for his sake, and I really hope for Sun's fan's sake, that he starts to get the national love from the beginning of the season that he has deserved basically the last three in terms of how great a player he really is. And people sleep on him. They talk about, oh, he's not a top five or ten player. No, he absolutely is, Like you just haven't watched him a lot. And his growth and development, I think is what's finally
going to get the attention this season. And I really do believe that they're gonna win their first championship this year. That's just how I feel.
I like to hear it I'd like to hear that I.
Love the optimism for the players. I root for KD. I am very I feel like this this season could be What was exciting to me about those NETS teams, Like you know, it's something that we've talked about since the first episode of this show, is that we love how much KD is a fan of the NBA and has a good eye for like players and like Booker was one of the first people. He was one of the first people to call out Booker, like his rookie year.
He was like, he's actually gonna be incredibly good, and so like a team that's kind of put together in his image, like kind of he's taken another swing at the NETS thing. And I don't know, the NETS thing should have worked out better than it did, Like it was that that's it, like when they had it going, and I think I talked about this last week, but like I think we just all remember it badly going
badly because of how it ended. But like at the peak when they actually played together for like five games, like that was an incredible experiment that was unbelievable to watch, And so I don't know, it's like better.
I think I think the problem there was. I love KD. I think he's he's pretty level headed in my opinion, but I don't. I don't know if he's necessarily the stabilizing force in a locker room or an organization, if that makes sense. Yeah, and so then you're relying on Kyrie and James Harden.
Right, Yeah, there's the problem. Like, and I don't.
This is Devin Booker's team, Like Kevin Durant is these these superstar and one of the two biggest names in the game. But this is Devin Booker's team. Kevin Durant said it. Bradley Beal said it, like Devin Booker's been here in the valley. He's established himself in the valley. They came to his organization. He wants to be here
for the duration of his career. Like, this is his team and he's the stabilizing force even with all the drama off the court, the DeAndre Aiden saga for the last five years, Like, Devin Booker has been that stabilizing force across the board. And I think Chris Paul helped teach him how to get there. But once he got there, which is basically year two of Chris Paul, he never let it go and that was it and now it's just Devin Booker's franchise.
Yeah, how are you looking at? Oh? Just I mean, and like, one thing I think we've always kept talking about, especially when we talk about the Suns, are like, Okay, I'm gonna score a lot of points defensively, Well, it does it even matter because the scoring is going to be so off the charts or you know, Jack, you were spending time with Vogues as you call him, Frank Vogel. Yeah, with Vogues and saying, you know, like Vogues knows how to get teams to defend though too, so it might
not it's not that big of a deal. How are you looking at you know, that experience with the coaching staff and everything, and how that's going to factor into perceived you know, weaknesses of the team.
Yeah, I actually don't think that it's gonna be much of a weakness by the end of the season at all.
I like what they have defensively.
Now you can look at Nurkitchen, You're probably gonna have some deficiencies on the perimeter, you know, in the pick a roll and matchups from time to time, for sure. And but Bogel will try to scheme them out of that as much as possible. You're not gonna be able to hide him completely. I mean, let's be honest. I mean,
he's he's a little slow footed. So when you have those bigs like Anthony Davis who gave him fits the other night, and a preseason game like that's when it's really gonna you know that ugliness is going to come through. But at the same time, when you when you got a matchup against the guy like Joki, Jokich is still going to get his triple double. He's probably still gonna get thirty, twenty and ten, but he's gonna have to work a little hard for it, which I'm okay with.
And you're hoping that that's going to pay dividends in other areas. And honestly, the length of this team is insane. I like their athleticism across the board. They added Grayson Allen, they add a KBD, they added a bunch of guys, And then the biggest thing for me is really when you're talking about guard play in the NBA playoffs, we have two guys that everybody in the league is sleeping on.
They don't understand them and Joshua Kogie and Jordan Goodwin, who I really believe are going to be the biggest pains in the asses for any backcourt in the league. They get their hands on just about every pass, every ball, They die for loose balls. They're gritty, they're grimy, and I think they're gonna set the tone a lot of times on the defensive end. And then you talk about the length. We're not even going to bring up both b because I don't think he should play ever. But you know, it's just.
My opinionally not even an NBA game. You just don't think you should play pick up Yeah, like ever, No, I don't.
I don't have real interest in watching him play pick up basketball anywhere. Yeah, you know, like listen, he's just he's all right, he's all right, but he's not alright for the NBA. He's not alright for the Suns right now and what they're trying to get accomplished. So I just think the standards, they have a lot of flexibility across the board that I just don't think a lot of people are really giving a lot of respect to.
Yeah, we had the question, are these the highest expectations the heading into a sun season. Ever. Are these the highest expectations heading into any NBA season ever? That that's the question on my mind hearing you talk, you are.
You are like, no, No, I don't think so. Like I want them to win the championship. If they get to the finals, then they lose, It's not going to be the end of the world. You look at teams like the Bulls, you know, or or even the Warriors when they first got KD, You're like, if they don't win a championship, that's an epic failure, right. I think that was the bar was set because they had already won a championship before KD showed up.
Then you had KD to the piece like championship, right right? Yeah?
Anyways, wait, what would what would you consider a quote unquote failure?
You get bounced in the second round by thirty points at home again, Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah, MAVs Nuggets back to back years. You're losing, you know, big time on home and elimination games. That can't happen. That's just not going to happen. So that would be a big epic failure. Obviously, Listen, we we already know the injury history of these guys too. You know, it would be sad if if you know, one of them missed out a duration of the season
or all of the season for injury. But I wouldn't even consider that an epic failure because you can't really control that.
Yeah, I think it would be an epic failure for the Philadelphia seventy six ers if they didn't get bounced in the second round. I think they have equilibrium that they're fans expect from them, and if they don't live up to it, we're going to be disappointed, confused, confusion.
The conference finals is wrong with y'all?
Yeah, I don't think in the game, I don't think we have to worry about that. All right? Should we take a break, come back and talk about some milestones this season and just how we're feeling heading in It is? Uh where we are recording this on Christmas Eve of the NBA season. The first game hasn't been played yet, but uh, you know, y'all have seen a couple of days. But I'm I am giddy. Like the video of Wemby stretching got me excited, Like that's where I'm at. I'm like,
look at that flexibility? What Yeah, get his shoulder.
Look at the mobility.
Look at the mobility.
It's not about strength. It's all about mobility now, and he's got it.
But yeah, let's take a quick break.
We'll come back, and we're back.
We are back. We are back in so many ways, man.
Beyond our respective teams, What are you guys most looking for in the first couple of weeks here? I want to see Boston. You want to see Boston. I want to see Boston, Yeah, I want to I want to see Drew.
I want to see uh, you know, Tatum and Brown and and and how they're gonna you know, mixing uh przingis Like, I'm interested to see what that's gonna look like because I love me some Holiday brothers. I don't care if it's Aaron, I don't care if it's Drew, I don't care if it's Justin.
I love them all. I think they're all ballers. Man. So I want to see Boston.
I'm interested in Boston, but not for the same reason. It's more like you got to keep an eye on that neighbor. Just be like, oh know what they're doing now? Oh okay, okay, Well I saw him practicing with his left didn't look that great. So I'm still feeling okay, but they've added some pieces that definitely has me snooping and being like, what are they working? Because I I feel I see the potential for something to just go off over there. But yeah, I think I'm I have
a more fear based interest. If I'm mean transparent, you.
Stay off, do you mean like off, like off kilter or like off like they're like.
Like they're gonna is about to go if they're gonna set it set it off like the fantastic crime heist film starring Queen Latifah. Like in that sense, they will set it off for Verbian speaking, I.
Feel the off kilter part for the Bucks, Okay, I am. I don't know.
There's something about I love Dame, I love Giannis, I love Middleton, but there is something about that team that I'm like, I don't know if this is gonna work. I it sounds stupid, I know, but I just I don't know. I'm just something aboutically, I don't think that Dame is going to be the Dame that we all know with those other two star players as prevalent as they are, like especially Giannis, like Dame has never played with a guy like that ever, right, No, I mean,
not a lot of players have. But like Giannis commands the ball, he's a demanding player. Middleton needs his touches too, like and so Dame is gonna have to figure that part out. The closest he's ever come is, you know, having CJ. McCollum as his number two, Like, that's not the same as what he's getting into. So I do wonder about that flexibility, him being able to play off the ball as well, a little bit more than he's
probably accustomed to. I think there's just gonna be a nice little mix there that they're gonna have to learn now by the end of the season. I could probably be wrong, and they could be one of the best teams in the East. I expect him to still be one of the best teams in the East. I just don't think it's gonna be as easy as people are making it out to be.
Right, Yeah, yeah, I don't think it's gonna be easy. I'm definitely intrigued. I'm checking for them. I'm not checking for Boston because I think they're just going to be very good, and it bums me out. I love Holiday and man, don't don't love seeing him in the Celtic green. But okay, see I'm checking for Wemby. I'm gonna I'm gonna be watching his games. I'm checking for Okay, See, I love Okac. They're they're gonna be fun. That's gonna be is definitely my NBA side piece for sure. Love.
I can't wait to watch them play.
Yeah, I mean it's a man between. Okay, so I'm thinking Celtic is the other one I've actually I've been also excited about the Bucks, but I'm definitely looking at it like n B A two K Well, I'm like, yeah, yeah, put put Dame on there. Okay, Yeah, I'm gonna pick this team every time. But you bring up a good
point of like what it's gonna look like in action. Also, part of me just I just want to see how Portland gets along, you know, like what this next step is gonna look like a lot of their fans will like get ready for some grotesque stuff. But part of me like wants to believe in like be impossible and be like, hey, maybe you'll do a little bit better than you know, bracing yourself for rble impact. But I just you know, I'm either way, I'm gonna either be being like.
Or like, Okay, I'm interested to hear what you think about da oh man.
I mean that, just just off the tattoo alone, I don't know how I feel. I gotta say I don't when people have those kinds of like self referential tattoos, that always gives me a bit of a bit of pause. I'm like, I get that you've boughten. I love that you believe in yourself, but that's just only one dimension of it all. But yeah, yeah, we will see yeah, especially in guess.
You know back in the day, Saturday Night Live used to have those skits with I think it's Stuart Smiley or whatever where and he had Michael Jordan on the show and he was looking into Marry. He's like, I want you to repeat after me. I'm good enough, I'm smart enough and doggone at people like me. And I feel like that that's DeAndre Aiden, Like, I feel like he's constantly having to tell himself that because he doesn't have a lot of believers.
In his game.
Now yeah, and now he's trying to convince himself that he is that superstar and he's trying to play like it. But it just hasn't come. He has shown up on the floor as much as he'd like.
You know, I think he needs to embrace, like, you know what he said about the environment. I think, like I could that resonated a bit with me, and it's like I just okay, I feel like I'm in a place that that feels good that I've wanted. I think he needs to just like reset with that energy first before he can really have any expectations of himself here, Like try and shed any baggage you may have had and just try and start overclean rather than like immediately
coming in. I'm like, it's dominating time.
Let's go like.
Okay, no, no, no, we get it, but give give yourself a moment.
I think the minute he realizes he's number two, I think the better he'll be. But I think he forever thinks that he should be a primary option no matter what, and that's just never going to happen in the NBA.
Now.
With his skill set, he listened, the guy struggles when it comes to dribbling the ball in the first place. He can shoot the mid range as good as any big man. He's got a nice touch around the rim, shoots a high percentage. But the problem is is getting
him set up for those opportunities. Is it's been a little cumbersome for a lot for a large period of time, especially with the Suns, and you surround him with superstars and he thinks he's equal to those said superstars, and it just isn't the case if he just came with like that, you know, Al Horford mentality, where he's just gonna do the dirty work. He's gonna hit the open bucket when you need it, he's gonna play, he's gonna be a you know, the smartest player out there, and
he can last another twenty years in this league. But I just don't know if in his head he's ever going to get there.
Yeah. Yeah, I'm rather than dominating, I'm DomU waiting to see what happens.
Wow.
Yeah, Yeah, that's that's a trademark too. We're gonna brand that. Thank you.
It is a little hurtful for you to to hear you talk that way about his tattoo, because I did show Miles that I have the jackknife in that exact same fun.
Crowsy it's weird and I didn't and I'm like, how come it looks like a big wheeler, like an eighteen wheeler, got in a car accident, and you're jack knife. It's a jackknife, man, a big rig jackknife. And I'm like, oh, I didn't know that's what it was. And then you ran out with tears in your eyes and I was like, oh, are we recording today?
Yeah? Also, the tattoo hurts really bad. So we've got some potential NBA milestones this season. Uh Lebron h closing on on forty thousand career points. KD needs five hundred and eighteen points to pass a keem Elvin Hayes Moses Malone to move in tenth all time in scoring, which yeah, I mean he feels like one of the best scorers to ever play the game, so that that feels appropriate. Yeah. And Russell Westbrook two triple doubles away from being the
only player with two hundred career triple doubles. Wow, he's already the leader. Yeah, just two away.
I was like, how many does magic on one thirty eight? Oh? Wow? Okay, so he's gone. And Oscar Robinson has or had one hundred and eighty one.
Yeah.
Yeah, that's uh, that's that's what you know. He's he's also feeling good about himself, so we'll see, you know. He's definitely the Clippers version is better than the Lakers version from what I've seen.
So much better. Yeah, so much better. I don't know if there's ever been a superstar like him before. That's somebody that, Yeah, it's very strange.
He gets he he he wins an MVP, but also like the amount of disrespect for a guy of his caliber, like I just I don't know if it's just uh, you know, sometimes people just look at somebody and they just immediately decide that they don't like him. That's what I That's what I feel like with Russell Westbrook. A lot of people just they just look at him and they're like, he just looks mean, so I don't like him, and they just buried him because of it, and it's
just been really unfortunate. I think Russell Westbrook's an amazing basketball player. He's obviously triple doubles. Tell you that the only guy to average or one of the one of the few guys that ever averaged a triple double. I don't understand why he doesn't get as much is all the other guys. And to be honest, like the Lebron storing stuff like I don't care about that anymore. He's already broken the record. He's gonna set that bar so high that I don't know if any other player will
ever be able to match it again. And so I'm I'm looking forward to the KD stuff because yeah, he's here and that's what I'm gonna be watching.
So yeah, yeah, with Russ it is like one of those I think part of it is again coming to one of the most grounded fan base of all time. And yeah, yeah, yeah those expect I mean, because man that there was some just some indefensible stuff coming out of some of the fans, uh during that Laker era.
But yeah, I mean, yeah, yeah, yeah, Like I said, it's indefensible, like to the point where you're like, that's not even how you shouldn't treat anybody like this, like we're talking about basketball, Like, let's let's take a second for a moment.
Sam.
You know, bruin love too, So I always got love for us.
Here here in Phoenix when they were playing the Stuns, he was behind the scene, he was coming out of the locker room and he got into it with a fan and that fan was allegedly the same guy that during the NBA Finals was counting the dollars.
Uh.
Yeah, allegedly it's the same guy. And it was so funny to see everybody in Phoenix kind of come to Russell's defense, like, dude, sit down, guy, Like right, Russell Westbrook, because he came out like early in the early part of that second half and was like balling, and We're like greats awesome. Yeah, they just set off Russell, you
know what I mean. So I've always loved rus Westbrook's game. Man, I really wish that he would get the respect that he deserves because he's definitely one of the best players in the NBA all the time, to be honest.
And he's and like behind the scenes, everyone consistently says how like he's a really sweet kind guy too, Like I've only heard good things. Like a friend of mine works for the Lakers, and I was always asking, like, what's up, well, Russ. He's like, man, I'll tell you this. He's the nicest guy. He's like one of the nicest dudes. He's like, so I'm always rooting for him, and I'm like, wow, okay, well that that changes things a bit.
But yeah, all right, but let's talk first NBA Orsu, Tyler Herro This was the thing that was going around right people were talking about Yeah, yeah, yeah, first first jersey they evergot. Yeah, mine was Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Wow. It was like because I did a school project as a I think second grader, third grader did wrote an autobiography of Kareem and wars jersey, which one Lakers.
Sure if you had like a throwback or something, Yeah, this cinder Bruin's throwback.
Completely shaved my head.
Yeah.
They're like, oh it is Jack sick. They're like, he's Kareem just method with it. Yeah. Well so Tyler Heroes was Ai Jamal Murray's was Vince LaMelo, Al Horford. They all had their picks. But yeah, okay, so yours was that's the first one that you got. What was the first one you bought with your money? Jack? When was the first jersey he said, here's my money, I'm buying I'm buying this.
Jersey, Now take my money please. Probably that's a good question. Probably either Paul Pierce or Antoine Walker like that era of Okay, Numero Ocho didn't wear employ number eight.
Yeah, expright, exactly. Okay, mine was the first one was obviously a Laker jersey was surgically attached to me at birth, so I don't consider that my first. The first one I ever bought, and I told you this off Mike, the first jersey I ever bought with my own money.
This is coming, I know, but I have to remind people that it was the year two thousand and two or three, and the style back then was to wear a very baggy basketball jersey with a big white tea and a fitted hat and had to match the team. So I was, I remember, I was. I was beholden to what they had a chance that day, and I bought a Michael Finley Dallas Mavericks.
Wow wow. Because it was blue.
I was like, I can't wear red. I like blue, and that was the only thing that fell in and I was like, and I've My mom still asked why I have it. She's like, I thought you always liked Laker once and I'm like, yeah, I clicked, mom, it was a different time. Wow hoo boo dooo rag Underneath it was whole thing. What about you, Saul?
I actually, man, so I've never bought an NBA jersey ever, I know, kind of crazy.
I do have NBA.
Jerseys, and the first one I was ever given was Kevin johnson Son's jersey the Old Western font in eighty eight eighty nine.
The first two jersey I did.
Now, I have bought basketball jerseys before, and the first basketball jersey I ever bought. This is going to take you way back if you can even remember this. This guy Joey Browner Joey Brown from Georgetown way back in the day we played with I think he played with Alonso Morning back in those Georgetown teams.
Yeah.
I don't know why he was my favorite player, he just was. And I saw his jersey in the store and I bought it, So I did.
That was that?
And then I'm like Bibie jersey, oh when he was at the University of Arizona, because that's my that's my school. So uh yeah, I never bought an NBA jersey.
What about Mike Bibby, Now, would you work out with him?
Uh?
He would put me to shame, But yeah, I would totally work out with Mike Bibby.
When I when I.
See pictures of him, I feel like I don't even know if I can move my limbs don't wa Yeah, because he's he looks like a funny work now.
Yeah, dude, he's massive. And it's funny because I played against him in high school and like he wasn't big, obviously he was. He was cut though he was cut back then, but he was like strunning cut and so you can kind of move him around a little bit.
But now like there's not a chance. Yeah, he's top heavy.
Yeah, I wonder was was Henry Bibby just ripped like that underneath his clothes?
Yeah, yeah, he was ripped too. I don't know about underneath his clothes, but I do know he was ripped.
Okay. I could see it in his arms, in his chest, you know.
I mean allowed to see them both shirtless. They're both just as defined. You're like, oh he my seventy three year old dad, Henry Mike.
Mike exists for a reason. Yeah, right, exactly. I had a weird like I was obsessed with Bill Cartwright in the eighties for like, even though he was I think it was when when I found out about him. He was the backup center to Patrick Ewing, and I was like, man, love the way that guy's shot looks like if I tried to make up how to shoot a basketball. So yeah, I did weird obsession with Xavier McDaniel. Yeah, okay, I don't know why.
I just loved x I liked his bald head. Then he got the Suns for a short a little bit of time, and then he went to the Knicks.
Yeah, my weirder ones too, I would say. Man, I was really into Mack mood abdul Rahof. I think because at the time I was like, why are they why are they messing with this guy? And I'm like, I'm kind of liked. I like, I think I liked this young man. And then another uh uh Wayman Tisdale because when I found out he could play bass, it blew my mind that. I was like, hold on, you played, you're you're you're crushing the base too, And I was like,
this is so interesting to me. And that was like one of the first times I realized you can be good at more than one thing as a child. But I will always think about I was like, man, Wayman Tisdale, Man.
Wow, it's just a nice litt lefty jump or two. It was so nice. Yeah, peace, Now.
Should we take one more break and come back and do the fastest segment in all of podcasting.
I think it's time.
It is time. We'll be right back, and we're back, We're back. During the break, we were talking about a little college basketball, some college basketball reminiscences of when your Arizona Wildcats surgically removed my heart as a I think it was a sixteen the Cats. Yeah, yeah, while when they defeated the Kentucky Wildcats in the finals. My dad was an assistant for the Kentucky at that time, and uh yeah, man, that was well, what a what a win.
I got to go to the Sun's training camp and meet Miles Simon for the first time, see him in person for the first time since he was removing my heart with a dull instrument, and I smiled, but man, on the inside, I was like, right, okay, okay, But.
We were talking about we were talking about how like I was like, I was trying to remember that final four and I thought Providence was in the final four, but Sauw corrected me that that was on the way to the final four. It was a grade eight. And I was like, why did prop like, how did Providence go that deep? And it was god.
Sham, goddam. We saw this week holding down the role for the He is an assistant for the Dallas Mavericks. Yeah, and he was holding down the role of Victor Wembinyama holding up two like giant broomsticks, huge foam hands on them. Good thing, everybody.
I thought, you guys are gonna give me like some juicy up date, like he's something he's like he's involved in some.
Like scheme or something like that. Noicks, he's involved in a scheme of uh, you know, pretending to be in somebody with an eight foot wingspan when he's not. Actually, but do.
You think Wemby will hit the sham God?
I mean kind of.
I think the ball would move way too much, but I would love to. I mean, we've already seen him do his little in and outs and stuff.
But when he does the in and outs, the thing I'm think of is like, have you ever heard the like that that those big windmills, when they're moving like and a bird flies into them, they just get vaporized because even though it looks like they're moving slow at the very tip, they're moving like four hundred miles per hour because the wingspan is so wide on those things that it's it's flying out there, and that's his like dribble moves remind me of is like man like he's
crossing from one baseline to the other baseline when he crosses somebody up.
True, he reminds me of those uh those blow in the air things.
Oh yeah, like for like a youth with the in and out. It just looks like he's just you're blowing through it.
Right, But he got right right by me, aren't you.
All Right?
Well, I think it's time now enough reminiscing and it's time to get into the real, the real heart stuff. So it's time for the fourth quarter rapid fire round of questioning. This is the fastest question answered segment in all of podcasting history and all sports podcasting hip history, I guess to be specific, not. I don't want to take I don't want to speak for the whole genre.
Yeah, yeah, there's still some you know, historians are debating whether we're the fastest segment and podcast history. Right, So these are all yes or no answers.
No, no, But here's this is where it gets tricky. So we're gonna ask you a question. You answer as quickly as you can, okay, because you have to get like the whole Like, our record depends on the guests getting these answers out quick and also keeping us on task because sometimes Jack and I are very unprofessional. We like to start, you know, expanding on some topics and stuff.
You got to keep us focused because I'm sure in your role, you know, as a GM of p H n X, you can probably help us, you know.
Get Yeah, whatever the record is, let's let's let's break it.
I'm ready. I like that.
I like this. See this is this is you know what the phoenix if this is how the fans are thinking, something are going somewhere. I like this. Okay, ready, let's.
Go to it. Ryan, start the clock.
All right, this is who This is gonna be a fast one. Jack, you want to go first? Or should I go first?
I don't know. Why don't you kick us off my house?
You sure?
Yeah?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, all right, I.
Guess I can. All right, then the clock starting. Now here we go, Saul, give us your three best scorching hot taps for the upcoming NBA season.
Three of them, three of them? Okay.
Number one, the Dallas Mavericks will not They will be in a play in if they make the playoffs at all.
That's number one.
Number two, the Stuns will beat the Denver Nuggets to get to the to the finals. And not only will they beat the Nuggets, but they will hold Jamal Murray's under twenty points a game. And then my third one is, oh, the Sacramento Kings might not even make the playoffs.
Wow?
Wow, Okay, now what is it?
Why?
Why the lack of belief in the Kings?
I just am not a believer. I didn't feel like they really added enough in the off season compared to the rest of the powers in the West. I think everybody else got significantly better as opposed to the Kings. And yeah, and I don't think so. Bonus is a is a bona fide big, big enough to create havoc in the order that they're going to need to be effective down the stretch of these games, right right, He's not, He's not subonified.
Okay, cool, and just one day, make sure that I had you on the reecond now, bonus, Okay, Up next, you can take two players from all of history to create your Matt Boosti's edition NBA JAM team. Which two players you taking Michael Michael, Jordan Kreman Jabar. Great answer.
Okay, now what is it about. I'm familiar with kreamat Jabbar? Who was the first name?
What's the first guy's name? Oh? You know the greatest of all time? Oh?
Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
There's like a Twitter thread that went viral of like, all right, who are you sitting on the bench out of these six And a lot of people were answering. It was like, you know, the six best players of all time and a lot of people were like, oh, I'd sit Jordans and like play Kobe in the two in the two spot. I just think a lot of people forget Kobe wouldn't have done that. No, Kobe would have for sure.
So I'm sorry, we have to keep this segment moving, you know.
Yeah, And I know, yeah, it's up to you. I'm I'm just I'm in your lead, I.
Know, but hey, I need you to yell at us man, you know what I mean, because this is gone, you know what I mean? I need to run. Thanks, Okay, next up, Next up? Saw who is the best player that you've ever witnessed in person? And what did they do?
Like?
What were they doing? You're like, Oh, I can't believe I'm seeing this with my bare naked eye.
Damn, that is good one. Uh. Yannis.
I was there in the building when he caught the alley up after they ripped Devin Booker at the end of game five, and that was the most amazing player I've ever seen in person, from thinking we were going to win that game to utter despair. Uh and the just the Greek freak coming up big in that moment. That was just amazing. That would you say?
Yannis is also again this is kind of a follow up, but who's a player that you feel like you kind of have to see in person to fully appreciate a million?
A million? Honest he is.
He's just unbelievable and then his measurables take him to a whole other level, like and and he's honestly like he's just a phenomenal dude too, Like he's one of the nicest guys you could ever meet.
So yeah, that would be why. All right, next question, let's go. I don't know if you heard me say you honestly, it was another word play. Honestly. Bona Fides and Honesty is.
A new podcast with his brother.
You could have any player's skill set for a day, whose skill set are you choosing? And which of their skill sets? Like, I don't want to I don't want to have you on records, say I'm like Steph and then it's actually like Steph's rapping skills or you know.
Uh, if I could have anybody's skill set to me, I would take in does it have to be current player or former? No, you can go you can go deep into his Dennis Dennis Robins rebounding ability. Wow, this way, that way, this way, that way, whatever doesn't matter, Like that would be phenomenal. Now if we're talking about on or off the court. I mean, I'll be honest, I love to have Magic Johnson's charisma because I'm not a people person very much. I don't like to talk to
people too much. Uh, and Magic Johnson just seems like he would talk to anybody.
Yeah yeah, And I was going to say his tweeting ability, tweeter power. Yeah, you know, I don't want that. I don't want ro rob rebounding is uh is really incredible. It's like, you know, his ability to just like and I guess it was not it was hard one. As we learned in the last dance right that like he studied with the direction that the ball came off when
when certain people missed. But yeah, it is like a skill that I wasn't even really aware of, Like when I was playing basketball, I wasn't like, oh, I can always predict twitch direction. This person miss tore.
Now I kind of feel like you're you're delaying us by getting to the next topic. So I'm not so sure if I'm supposed to step in you're purposely trying to slow this down.
No, no, no no, But I do want to add I feel rebounding is one of those underrated skill sets as a kid. You don't really appreciate it at the time. Yeah, kids are.
Funny, aren't they.
So you gotta keep us, you gotta keep us moving.
Man.
I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.
I'm so sorry. Next question, next question, next question. You can go back in time. You're gonna hop in the Dolorean. You know you're gonna put the banana peel in the misterfusion and get this thing to whatever many jiggawats you needed to go back in time, and you could permit either Charles Barkley or Steve Nash to make a run with this current Sun squad. Which one are you choosing to take that ride in the Delorian.
That's a great question.
Everybody would crucify me if I did not say Steve Nash because we don't have a point guard and Steve Nash will be phenomenal, and I think he would. He would ultimately win us the championship. So I'm gonna go with Steve Nash. But Charles Barkley down low would be just so beautiful. I'm gonna go Steve Nash.
Had of luck once again, Chuck, Sorry, Buddy, Yeah, sorry, John.
Yeah, here's a fishing pole. Though.
We'd be putting up like one hundred and seventy five points a game with Steve Nash, right now.
Yeah, right, right right, that's true.
That's true.
Finally, the final question, the ultimate question. Yeah, for sure, most important question. Yep, Jack or Miles. Wow. I like that he's taking it seriously.
Yeah, yeah, he's taking this very seriously. The whole process.
I you know, I don't have enough information to decide, so I'm just gonna ride the fence on that one. I like you both, man, you guys have both been pretty dope. Do I have to pick one or the other?
Well?
I mean, well, because I feel like Miles and I kind of connected a little bit during the break and you went to the bathroom. Jack, I'm gonna say, I'm gonna say, Miles, Miles, Yeah, Yeah. It's also the interracial, the interracial connection that we both like.
Yeah, I mean, it's just it's natural. Jack.
I'm sorry. You never had a chance, man, so you should. I never had a chance.
Between the second and third act of this show, I was I was absent for like forty five minutes in the bathroom, guys, absolute paint.
Job, googling stuff like what does solve? Bookman like.
Get to win this one?
Oh, sault Man? So I heard you were a character and breaking bad. You're like, what are you saying right now?
That's the wrong sow Man.
What are you doing?
Bro?
Well, Saal Bookman, thank you so much for joining us on Miles and Jack Got Mad Boosties. It has been a pleasure and an honor having you here. Where can people find you, follow you and experience the work that you do with phn.
X, Yeah for sure, Man. They can follow me at Saul Underscore Bookman, on Twitter, on Instagram. They can follow us on pH and X Underscore suns and then also at pH and x Underscore Sports across Twitter, h and also Instagram and then also YouTube.
Subscribe to our YouTube. We're listening.
You know.
One of the cool things about what we do is we do a lot of things from a fan perspective. We we like to say we speak from the crowd, not the stage, and we want people to be engaged with us on our on our channels, and a lot of times, especially in the last couple of years, when we've faced the MAVs or the Lakers or whoever, we've had people from those fan bases come and see our show and they've actually had fun and they've stuck around
and they've they've they've liked our shows. So yeah, come have fun with us no matter what, even if it's not your team.
I love that. Love that uh. And also yeah, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter uh and follow the hashtag hashtag mad Boosties for show links. But you can follow me specifically at Miles of Gray Jack.
I'm at Jack Underscore O'Brien.
Yeah, and shout out to listener the week at Anthony Davis Inc. Said right on, I'm going to follow and listen Anthony Davis.
Yeah. Wow, he said, I'm going to follow rate and listen. Wow, three the Holy Trinity.
Yeah, and that's Anthony Davis, even though the Twitter avatar is of a completely different person. I'm gonna go ahead and take that as a.
You can't really see that it's not him, So I don't know that that blue hat maybe as much as.
I wanted to be an if you do one of those things where he's got you know, like how Chet Holmgren has, you know, his teammate is his avatar, you know what I mean, So you never know. All right, Well, thank you so much for listening. We are going to be back next week to talk about all the goings on as the official start of the season begins, and we're gonna go try and catch our games right now because that's what's happening as we record this. So we'll talk to you later.
Bye bye,