Here I go again. Girls. What's my weakness? Man d NBA No men?
Oh okay, well, what do you know?
We're bad?
The Cats still h O double t hot with it okay, and the Nuggets Thunder Clippers they're each tied, and the lost column behind the Timberwolves, and.
Huge displays of scoring aptitude continue around the league, and we'll get into some defensive Player of the Year candidates and the state of the Clippers and more with NBA analysts and writer Mode.
Dek Heel on today's episode.
I am Miles.
Gray and I'm Jack O'Brien and this is dot Srey. Got it looka do hits ta Okay, there you go and be driving spinning.
From botch.
Got it with five?
Is gonna try another three? Mister, look on James, be honest with.
The look on you.
Modek Ghil, thank you so much for joining us on this wonderful, legendary podcast. Oh yeah, obviously gotta give you get a breakdown of Modork Hill's CV. Here form a video coordinator for the Clippers, the Spurs, and Assie men's basketball team. UH currently writer for Bleacher Report and podcast for the Athletic Modoric Hill.
Welcome to the show.
Miles. That is impressive.
The thing is I'm doing an American accent when I podcast this is this.
Is like whenever I watched those shows and then I hear the guy in real life, I'm like, oh he's British.
This guy is Ozzy. He was Ozzy whole. Yeah, dude, don't get it twisted.
Wait, so I from successions from Iowa?
No way? Yeah exactly or even what's her face ship? Yeah? Like shit, no really.
But anyway, your career is very interesting, like what's how did it could help us plot the course here?
To how you go from all these teams and then writing and all that.
Yeah, it's to really start out, was like I never thought I'd be in any of this, you know when I went in college, Like I went to junior college, I thought I was just gonna be like whatever, steady, computer science or business or something, trying to find find who I am. I always loved basketball, but never thought
career ended up as a hobby. Being a student manager from there, got bit by the bug in terms of coaching, ended up transferring to UC Irvine and to USC working for basketball those basketball teams all the way through, then eventually getting lucky and getting an internship with the Clippers. From the Clippers, I end up an opportunity to go to San Antonio for a couple of years, go back to the Clippers again right after the lockout. Uh then
Doc fires me, and he should have. I wasn't very good my last year his first year with the Clippers, I was pretty bad, and you know, he let me go and I was kind of burnt out. So I joined regular job life, you know, with nine to five. Hated every second of it. And then I have all this basketball knowledge, like, surely somebody can use it. So slowly but surely, began uh writing very poorly on my own website, and you know, shout out to all my editors.
I know they they make me look smarter than I am.
Yet out all the editors.
Yeah yes, and then yeah, and that's how I ended up in sports media.
Amazing. Oh man, I wish she had. I should have followed my dreams and I could have. I guess I.
Dream right now.
Yeah, it's happening right now. And I get to do Australian accents on a podcast.
That's all I want to.
Still think I might get drafted, Well we'll see.
But I.
Draft every year. I just keep submitting my name. It just never did way to do that.
I declare my draft eligibility for the next NBA draft. I hear it's a down draft, and I have been working on my left handed layups.
Yeah for so long.
I mean backs it in right like it was like letter of intent. I mean, I don't know what the process is now.
But yeah, exactly.
I'm trying to be like that Mark Wahlberg movie where he became the quarterback of the Eagles.
Was it the Eagles?
Right?
Eagles was a receiver, it was Vince Papoli.
Yeah, exactly exactly. But the NBA anyway, that's a story we're going to work on.
NBA. Calves beat the Clippers. So matchup of two of the hottest teams in the league. Calves clips Calves one, which I was not not thrilled with because they are surging. They're about to catch the sixers of left three in a row. As Joel Embiid has been hurt, the Calves are Mobiley finally came back in this game, contributed a
near double double in twenty one minutes. So anyway, I don't know, like so and Garland's not back yet no, I was trying to google around to be like, is anybody saying maybe they shouldn't take a look at what they could get for Garland because they're playing so well without him. I feel like that would be deemed like
a bad, shortsighted move. But at the same time, like sometimes I don't know, the obvious move like the one that like a dumb fan would make might like make sense, Like I guess it would be selling low right now, that would be the argument against it. But when you have somebody who has a lot of value and you're better without him, I don't know. I don't know why you wouldn't be like we we could use like a wing you know.
Well, I think I think the first starting point of that is you have to know what Donovan Mitchell is going to do after this, you know, when his contract and that's the that's the whole, Like they can't make a single traite till they get clarity on that situation. Yeah, what do you think that for them? Because you okay, you trade Garland and then Mitchell walks for nothing. You know,
you're like, yeah, we kind of played ourselves. And I think that's one of those things there and I think, you know, look, I mean, they got to find a way to make it work between Mitchell and Garland the next year and a half, and I think that's that's, you know, figure and then figure it out from there. But I think that's the most important thing for the Calves and the organization in terms of moving forward. So I'd be shocked if there were anybody any whispers of Darius Garland trade.
Yeah, I mean I just said it out loud. I didn't even whisper it. But that's because I'm a dumb person.
So should they trade Darius Garland?
People are saying, notably me, just now I screamed it. Yeah. The Heat have lost seven straight, so they're kind of falling in the Eastern standings.
Uh.
I feel like the big story of this week was that Lakers Warriors double ot game.
Game was absurd, just unbelieve.
It's rare for an NBA game involving two teams that are like not currently uh situated to be tenders.
It's too much.
But like you know what I mean, Like this is the this is the most attention I've seen a game get where like the none of the teams were in the top eight and.
There nothing matters.
Yeah, it doesn't matter.
It doesn't matter. These teams are struggling.
It was more partly it was fun as hell, the more challenging old rivals. Think of that. Uh, I have a lot of like bad old movie references. But the movie The Grudge, it was like the Nero. It was was getting into fighting shape to fight another old guy. I can't remember who.
Uh, old movies like The Grudge and Space Cowboys, that's your probably references.
So it's not so I have a long.
Grudge match that Yeah. Yeah, I was like, wait, the Japanese Ghost movie.
No, the Nero was in that one, right, No, But like, yeah, that's what that was. That was too old. You know, Kurry and Lebron, the old heads in the NBA dueling on prime time like it was amazing basketball. Yeah.
Reminds me of a quote from Bad Grandpa, which.
The Universal Motion Pictures Classic Bad Grandpa.
Yeah.
I like when I saw this, we're gonna tell you about the dog.
Marky was like, just move on with it, Okay, there's nothing to say about that. I mean that match, I mean the whole match. The matchups were great, the game was highly entertaining. I was very I was on the edge of my seat. But in the end, I was like, gosh.
Can we can we just get a little more consistency.
I can't just hold on to being like, well, we did have the most exciting game during the regular season, and I put that feather in my cap.
Because I kind of need something a little bit more. Yeah.
One of the things listening to Doc Rivers talk on like other podcasts this year, that was like hearing him talk about what it's like to be a player who's aging in the NBA. He talked about that, like you'll have really good nights, you just can't do it every night. Yeah, and like that that just feels like what we're seeing from Steph and Lebron. It's like their highs are still
as high. Like that was Lebron's career high in rebounds, Like he brought up thirty six twenty rebounds, twelve assists, which is the first thirty twenty ten games since Kareem did it back in seventy six for the Lakers.
Yeah.
And I gotta say, also, a vintage Draymond game, like really like had had a record plus minus, but like you could you know, I'm not like the most advanced like basketball mind, but so like I don't always notice defense, but like he was making hid himself known all over the defensive end, and then you know, offensively, like his plus minus was wild.
It's crazy.
It's what he does. It's what Draymond does. But to kind of go back to the Dock point about guys, you know, not being able to do it every game, I don't even know if Lebron can do it for all the entire games all the time. It's like you can get like a quarter burst from him where he's just absolutely phenomenal, and then you see him the rest of the game and he just looks gassed. And I think that's part of the the aging stuff that Doc's talking about, Like I don't even know if you can
count on him for entire games. Like you almost be like, hey man, I just need to keep it close till Lebron goes off in the second half, right, And I think that's the hope for the Lakers unfortunately. Yeah, and I think that's the tough one for them.
Yeah.
Just for some background, are you a fan or are you one of these people who has transcended fandom because of your proximity to the game.
Oh, transcended fandom. I grew up a Laker fan, but the once you start working for the Clippers, you're not allowed to root for the Lakers, that right, And then when you go to the Spurs, it's even more less of a fan. And then you know, most of the time when I was working in the NBA, it was whoever's cutting my checks. Yeah, the more we won, the more the bigger the check's got. So yeah, yeah, the
fun stuff with that. So then once I got out, I was like, ah, I'm not going to go back through and for the Lakers just right.
Yeah, I get that. I get that. Yeah, Well I don't know.
I mean, where do I from your perspective, how do you see what's the best US.
Laker fans can can hope for?
Just based on what you're saying now, Because I'm as much as I like to say, my head's in the sky sometimes it's so high.
I don't know if I don't.
Know where I am and if what I'm seeing is real or if anything's possible.
But do you have any optimism?
I mean I just in the sense of like, they're in a better position than they were last year this time and they went to the conference finals. I just think the West is a little better.
Yeah.
You know, look, I think I think they're playing team, you know, at the very bottom. You know, maybe they get lucky and they sneak into six or five seed, but I don't see that happening, right. But you know, they're listen as long as Lebron and ad are healthy, and those two guys have been phenomenal this season. It's, you know, like you're gonna have a chance. You know. Do I think you're a championship team. No, I think you're a conference finals team.
No.
But I think you can scare the hell out of some teams in the playoffs.
Can you beat the Rockets?
No?
Just yesterday with Dylan Brooks flapping people in the face.
Dude, that's I couldn't.
I was like, this guy was eaten yesterday and I was like staring this anyway.
As a fan of the game, who are you most excited about right now? Is it the Calves, the Clippers? Who's who of the hot teams are you excited about?
I mean it's it's the Clippers, It's the Thunder Like those are the two teams that I'm most intrigued by. You know, we know what Denver is. We know what Boston is. But like it's just fun watching Shay, you know, just go nuts and and and do all his uh wizardry. And then the Clippers just because like hey man, they care about the regular season again, and look what happens. You know, like Kawhi's playing at an MVP level, Like we're talking about him in that way, but we should be.
You know, I've seen Knicks fans trying to pump up Jalen Brunson. I'm like, Yo, Kawhi is a bigger MVP than Brunson. I don't even think that's a contest. And I think that's been a big part of it. And you just saw the difference, Like he didn't play in the game against Boston when they came to LA they got smoked. He played in the game when they went to Boston and they smoked him. Like he's a big
difference maker in that sense. So I think, you know, the Clippers are just really a fun group to watch now that they finally kind of figured out how to play with James.
Yeah, it was such a weird thing when last year in the playoffs, I think there was so much disappointment that he got hurt. But before he got hurt, he was I think the best player in the playoffs. It was only two games, but he played the best at like he was unbelievable. Then he got hurt and everyone was like, this guy's cooked, and it was just everybody just stopped paying attention to him or the giving him a fair shake. Yeah he's he's still so freaking good.
Unbelievable, and he was even great and that the loss to the Cavs like everything else, I was like, man, he's man is perpolation, he's simmering.
Yeah, it's a freak. No, He's unbelievable in that sense. And I think this is I actually think all the load management that they tried to do with him, or whether his team or whether it was the Clippers, I think actually hurt him. I think now he's conditioning his body to play on a regular basis, on a night to night basis, and you're seeing it kind of play out like this is the healthiest he's been since. I mean,
he wasn't even that healthy in the Toronto year. You know, he barely made it through the finish line at the finals. Like if that goes to game seven, I think Golden State beats him because I think Kawhi's leg literally falls off. It will be like the Simpsons episode when they try to kick the field goal and the guy's leg flies off.
This.
Yeah, it's I really think that so like this has been the healthiest he's been in so long that I think it's kind of like it's fun to watch Man Jack.
What about on that that same night with the double overtime?
Right, okay, okay, take a break. I don't want to talk about that, just I do. Okay, Okay, we'll be right after the break and we're back. We're back, and okay, yes, the seventy six ers played before the all time classic game.
That should just be should determine who wins the championship. Yeah, if you if you have the most exciting double o tea in the regular season, just give us number eighteen.
I mean, you want to stop the tournament two like that stop you stop the count mode.
That's when I stopped the count.
You are saying that in the fourth quarter they got to lead, stop the stop the count.
If you want a funny story, like one time I was playing DeAndre Jordan was a rookie when I was with the Clippers one time and I was like we had screwing around on the court or something and playing one on one, but he couldn't shoot from the paint. As soon as I took the lead, I was like, I'm done, I gotta go stop the paint and just ran off the court like I would too. That was
my version to stop the count back that. It's like every time he would talking to me, I beat you in one on one, yeah, and he's like he'd be like running back. I'm like, ah, my knee, though, little we should we should have.
We should have introduced you as somebody who just destroyed DeAndre and one on one and he hasn't been the same since. But yeah, that night, Jack, I was you know, people are.
Coming against Denver. Joel was a late scratch, uh, and the memes were coming for my man. Joel embiid Man talking about how he's scared of Jokic. I just want to set the records. Okay, he has dominated Jokic in the last few matchups. He's not afraid of Jokic. He's afraid of the altitude. And have you tried to exercise that altitude? It's so hard. Yeah, Like he's just being smart.
He also has to be played in Utah right in a while.
Yeah, man, it's hard altitude.
Yeah, because I think Jabari was saying he hasn't played in Denver since twenty nineteen.
I think, yeah, I.
Haven't played in Denver either. I don't want I don't want to do that.
Yeah, where are you out?
Man?
See?
I was, I was like, I think I'm off this embiid guy for the Lakers, you know, because like we kind of got to go there to make stuff happen.
So a couple of times, a couple of times a year.
Yeah, Yeah, So people.
Are looking for an excuse to be out on him like that. That was what that whole thing taught me is people were just ready to be like, I'm tired of this guy.
He's so many people.
Yeah, like Bill Simmons especially, He's like, yeah, well you know you'll get is always doing it.
Just may wing you win an NBA title with Larry bird on your team. What would what does this have to do with Larry bird Man?
Yeah, roads are back to Bird.
Bill Simmons is tough to I listened to his show. He is both dismissive of the seventy six ers, but then like also secretly like fears that he's he's like the seventy six ers, Like, don't they stink?
Like that?
I'm not worried about them. But then like when he's talking about potential trades, he's like, my absolute nightmare is that? Like Bruce Brown goes to the seventies and I'm like, which one is it?
Man? Is it one? Mic?
But yeah, that's it. That's the game though, Like everybody's kind of counting out the six until they do it in the playoffs. It's not that different than what we did with Denver, whether it was fair or not, like we counted them out until they went and won the finals like it was along those years. So it's just along those lines in that sense. So like you you understand it from them, and.
Look, it's a bad look.
It's a bad look you know that he play Yeah, yeah, I mean he's genuinely hurt, totally get it respected all that stuff. He hurt. Don't play it. We know his knee injuries and stuff like that. But man, it's kind of suspicious, you know. And it sucks because literally the week before I had just gone on a podcast defending EMBIID and then you know, I'm like, don't worry, He'll like he'll play in that game. And then of course he scratches, and I'm like, all right, I can't. I
can't defend him anymore. I'm not going to go out on a limb.
Yeah.
I mean, it's also just one of those things as fans you want to see too, you know, like you want to see that like MVP race play out on the court and just be able to be like, oh great, we got to see them go up against each other, and now we have a little more data to begin you get the take machine going.
And when the.
People were like, where's Embiid and he was like pointing to himself, I was like, this is not good. To just go go back to the locker room. Was like, this is embarrassing for all of us.
Hey man.
But I always I give him respect as a as a fellow Arsenal fan.
You know, I'll be in a corner, Joelle, you know, be in your corner.
So you said that you're no longer interested in signing Joel Embiid to the Lake end.
Yeah, I mean, you know, like I said, my my fantasy is just go wherever the wind blows me.
So right now.
I'm like, I don't know.
Maybe Luker, you know, yeah, maybe this Luker Doncic guy, he might be he might he might have.
A case due It might not be a bad deal.
I mean yeah, I mean, think of seventy three points.
It's uh yeah, I mean, so the scoring has been out of control. Luca dropped seventy three and a win versus the Hawks. Some of the wildest shots I've ever seen made in an NBA game. I mean, he just anytime I watch him, I'm just like that, he like has a superpower of just like making some of the wildest shots. Also, that same night, Booker put in sixty two. So again we have a a night with a seventy point scorer and a sixty in a loss. Yeah, this is the guy also lost. So you got in the NBA.
If you get you're gonna lose and be a loser. You're a loser. Should have tried harder, should have gotten into seventy Yeah exactly. But I don't know. It feels like we're gonna see somebody top eighty one in the in the coming years. Maybe year, Yeah, I can see it in the next year.
It's no, I think it's on. I think it's on its way, might even be this season. I think with the way guys are scoring and all of those things there, and that's gonna be cool. Like I I know a lot of people have gone completely nuts about the scoring in the NBA and all this stuff and seem to be upset by it. I'm like, Yo, these guys are amazing, right, you know, it's not. This isn't like the time when Tony Delk got fifty or you're like Tony, They're like CORYO,
like wow they got fifty, Like what what's happening? You know, like these are the stars of the league. And it's like all right, man, like I'm gonna go off. And you know, Joel's was against Victor Webman Yama, who's averaging like three and a half blocks a game, Like it's not you know, he ran through them a lot. Yeah, and then of course then he destroyed Zach Collins. But like, I get it, Like I just think it's funny to me where people get so upset about it. I'm like, man, like,
these dudes are unbelievable. The skillmaking, the shot making we're seeing in all these games is absurd, right, So like, yeah, we're gonna get eighty pretty soon. We're gonna it's coming.
Yeah.
If you saw like Luca playing at the time when Kobe was playing, you would be like, that guy is making like the craziest shots I've ever seen somebody make. If you saw it Embiid playing at the time Kobe was playing, you'd be like, that is shack, except he can make free throws and shoot threes, like that's wild like that. Yeah, to your point, it's like these guys both look amazing and are amazing and the stats are backing it up, and everyone's like, yeah, I'd like to
see him do it with defense. Like even Paul Pierce I think, was like, whoa I missed when they played defense in the NBA.
When did he play defense? Just out of curiosity?
That was really my.
You know, even the year they won the championship, it was KG on defense. It wasn't him, Yeah, I just the other thing, like, you guys hit the nerves. So it's like this is the stuff that drives me DUTs. But the stuff people are going, man, they don't play defense more in the NBA, Like no, it's just impossible to play defense. You have to cover as soon as the ball crosses half court, you have to defend from
that line all the way to the baseline. Yeah. Right, these guys are too good now at this point, we've spent the past fifteen years telling every player coming into the NBA, you have to learn how to shoot. So when they all learned how to shoot, or pissed off that they make shots, that's not there, Like it's just yeah, what the hell you should do that?
You can't do that.
It's impossible to cover all the ground you have to cover defensively. And then the referees don't help because you know, they call the lightest fouls on the perimeter. You can murder a dude in the paint, like God forbid, Trey Young bumps into your chest. It's aoul, like you know, as a foul on you like it's it's yeah, it's it's the That's that's where I think the real problem is is how the officials are reft of the game.
I don't think we need massive rule changes, just need to lighten up on the perimeter in terms of the fouls. But like when people say defense isn't being played, I said, no, it's just hard, just freally freaking hard.
Because the guys are so good at making shots from long from far away.
It's just a three point It's just too many threes, man, that's what it is.
But I fix it.
Let's just take get rid of the three point line. Yeah, well everything, don let's.
Go so fun. It would be so fun to see that. And it's like they just invented the three point line. It's not like it's been around. Oh wait, it's been around, my bad.
Yeah.
So, if we had to handicap who is most likely to pass eighty one in the next season, I feel like Luca. Like, even before Luca did it, I thought I think we said Luca would probably be very likely. I think Booker like people who are can both you know, have incredible mid range games and also get really hot from downtown. So those would kind of be my two.
You have to be a three level scorer and get to the free throw line. Yeah, those are the three things. You have to be able to score for three mid range and get to the cup and make your free throws. And I think that's how you end up getting somebody that's gonna go over eighty.
Yeah. So who are you picking? Oh who do you got? Like, if you got who you Luca Luca for you to.
I mean, Luca lucas the easy answer for everybody, right, Like, I think that's the most obvious guy in terms of scoring. It won't shock me if it's one of these big guys, you know, if it's a if it's an embid or even I mean, I don't think he'll be cat, but like, the ability to step out and shoot threes is a big man in terms of like that the other big man does not want to rotate to you and whatnot. Like, I think that opens up a lot of that possibility.
So I think, I mean, yeah, I'm picking the dudes that just went for seventy going like, yeah, they can get eighty if they made a few more shots.
I mean, I don't know what team Kat's gonna do it on because his coach was not happy. Even though I'm sixty.
That's so bad. It was a bad six.
It's weird to say it was a bad six, sloppy.
Just it was all selfish.
Yeah, And then I mean, you've got we Binyama if like, as his game progresses, like when he's really locked in, first of all, he's much better in the fourth quarter when it seems like he's trying if if his body progresses and his game progresses, Like I could definitely see him doing some doing some damage on that front at
some point. And then to your point, like a cat or a Donovan Mitchell, Like I could see people who, you know, like a Roger Marris breaking the home run record and everyone being like no.
Not, like you know, we have to celebrate.
It, right Yeah, Yeah, Like I could.
See don Mitchell, really Mitchell really end up in that conversation.
As somebody who people don't I just like the last time he didn't he score seventy fairly recently, Yeah, the people were just kind of like, Okay, I mean, I probably because he's small, you know, but it just feels like of the people who've done it, like he's not one of the more celebrated.
One dark horse guy would be Dame Dad drops that way already.
One of the scariest human.
Yeah, he's a dude. When he crosses half court, if like he might just pull yeah, like if he feels it, and and that's the thing that's like, Okay, now I have to cover him the whole length of the court.
I hope they do in the All Star Game this year, there was that one year where him and uh Steph were like pulling from half court and like draining it. I hope I want to see a little bit of that. That's always fun.
Yeah, a little more gun slinging, yeah for sure.
Yeah, because you know, the the All Star Game is way too competitive these days.
All right, let's take a quick break and we'll be back for the rapid Fire Round a question.
And we're back.
We're back, and and.
It's time mo. It is oh mo, mo, you really stepped in at this time past.
Oh buddy, ready for all challenges.
Let's go. Okay, okay, let's that's good. You need confidence because this is.
By his confidence.
Yeah, yeah, it happens.
I literally dropped a movie reference from like I don't even know what, like early two thousands. I'm ready to roll.
Yeah, grug match actually from twenty thirteen. Oh yeah, pretty recent, pretty.
Recent, but you know, so it's hard to know when it's from.
You know, I'm glad you're confident, because pride does come before the fall, and you are in the hot seat for the Rapid Fire Round of Questionings as Jack has rebranded.
It, and all our fans are just looking for you to fall. On your face.
Yeah, they can't wait. They pray for your downfall.
MO.
But guess what, you can prove all the doubters wrong, because like we're about to hit you with a question. Do not think, Just demonstrate your mass of the topic, the subject matter by just reflectively answering.
Do not think. Just give it to us so we can keep the questions coming just.
So quick that we're setting records, because this is the fastest question answering segment in podcasting history.
So I hope you're ready, Mo, deck heel. Are we ready? Jack?
Yeah?
Yeah?
Man?
How about this?
Yeah?
Man, let's go start the clock.
This is quick, man, we're going.
Get ready.
Man, this is gonna be so unquick.
Your head's gonna spin. Man. You better put a neck brace on. Gonna let's go. You're gonna be in an immobilizer.
You'll be wearing a halo after this that they give you at the doctor's office, because you're gonna be so spun around by the speed of these questions that we think of on the spot maybe or have pre written MO.
Rapid fire round of MO questionings.
Exactly are you who should go first?
Why don't you go first? Miles?
Okay, I like this. With All Star Weekend coming up in just a few.
Weeks, give me your all time Fantasy dunk contest lineup four dunkers of your choice. Goal.
Current dunkers are currently in the NBA current Shaden Sharp, Anthony Edwards. Uh, who else is a good dunker? Good question here? Uh? Who's creative? Donovan Mitchell had some good stuff there and Aaron Gordon.
Bank Skunk Contest performance of all time.
Vince Carter won? Yeah, right answer?
All right, the Pro Bowl does dodgeball? I think I saw a clip that looked like the Pro Bowl does dodgeball. What school yard game do you want to see added to the NBA All Star Weekend?
Knockout?
Oh, knockout will be fun?
Is that the one we throw it against the ball against the wall? No basketball? The basketball knockout where you knock your ball out.
Sometimes knockout is like the shooters are too good, you know, and so but yeah, like when somebody misses.
But you're allowed to bump the ball, you're alone.
Yeah, let's have some and someone with like NBA athlete strength who just sees it come off the heel and they're.
Like, oh, you messed up so bad? And they're just like send it into the like like the Blox seats.
I mean, Webby would miss and tip dunk his own three before the next one gets off, like.
Right, yeah, because he could literally just sort of like lightly just from the free throw line just kind of be like, oh yeah, I can get off the heel immediately.
He's just alley looping to himself pretty much the whole time. Yeah. Not fair to be the top of the key though.
Right the top of the key. Wow, nobody would ever miss, not.
The free throw line, top of the three point line. Three point yeah, yeah, excuse me, Yeah, I should top of the key, and I meant the top.
Of the should just be half court, you know what I mean to at least make it something so then even when people make it your oh nod.
That'd be a good one too.
Logo. Maybe each round it goes from three point and then like a step.
Back it up and yeah, yeah, Adam, these are free ideas from your own show. Please integrate them into All Star Weekend. That was a great answer. Now here's the next question. If you can have any player's skill set for a day and one day only, whose skill set is it and what skill I mean, what specific skill do you want.
It'd be Kauhi and just the ability to rip the ball out of people's hands. I feel like that's the most demoralizing thing that he does. Puts his hand out there and it's it's it's mine, right, you know, and feel it from like the other guy. You can just feel like it's like that character from Mortal Kombat where he just takes their soul, Like, yeah, that's what that That's what I equate equated all too. Yeah, behind it might have been Shakan. I can't remember the names. I don't want.
Yeah, I think it was Shao Kan, who was like the boss towards the end. Yeah you couldn't you, Yeah yeah yah yeah with the skull helmet. Yeah yeah yeah we all know that anyway. So you want to shouc on the ball out of people's I like that.
Okay, Okay, that's valid.
Hitch me a trade. What's the what's the trade of the trade deadline you think makes the most noise, makes the biggest difference in terms of adding wins to the win column for an NBA team.
I'm gonna try to make Miles happy here and get him to Jonte Murray and Bogdan Bogdanovitch from the Hawks, and you gotta throw in de lo Rury and just part my piss off and Austin Reeves.
Honestly like, as.
Wow, you think that would make them better?
They would add offense to them massively. I just think Bugdanovich coming off the bench would add scoring for them, a scoring punch that they don't have. Murray pretty it won't hurt their defense. I think he's solid defensively, and I think, you know, just another ball handler to kind of give Lebron a little little uh less pressure, I think would help them a lot.
Yeah, as a as a as a black and Knees fan, I just I can't let Rui go yet.
I cannot buy another Rui Hachi mergers. They already had to buy a wizard's jersey, you know what I mean. I don't know what other I can't keep buying them just to hold it down for my man.
But it's all conspiracy to get you to spend money.
Yeah, exactly.
They know Adam and I spoke. They know.
There's just like, I don't know, man, we could this guy buys them all. He'll buy anything. Ah, Okay, how about this you're a so caw so cow guy.
You can recommend one southern California restaurant to someone who's visiting. Tell them, see where are you sending them and what are you telling them to order when they go.
We got a whole bunch of great restaurants and different types of cuisine. But my favorite place right now is in Echo Park. It's called Donna's. It's a red sauce joint. They have the best chicken palm that you can I'll be asked for. The garlic bread is unbelievable, and then you have, you know, the facili pasta, all that stuff. It's amazing.
Okay, all right, Donna the silliest of all. Yeah, I love it. Amazing. I'm ready that down actually right now.
I know now where's it? Wait?
Where's it out on?
Oh?
It's on Sunset? Been open?
How do I see? It's probably been open up almost a year now, or probably about eight eight months.
Okay, that makes sense, that makes sense.
I was like, I know him a lot of things on the East Side, But now you got You've piqued my interest and for that we are forever grateful. Mo dak Heel, thank you so much for joining us got mad boostie. Those were all correct answers. They were fantastic answers, except for really going anywhere except to hang out with me at my house?
Where can people?
So just real quick, are you guys out on reads? Like would you be okay trading?
I love no? No, I love I love Austin too.
I mean he's like, because here you could care less about the team struggling?
You hear that?
Oh yeah, that's but see that's where I'm That's where I'm ill in my mind, and I go, Okay, y'all can have d Loo and Jalen Husha Fino and that just make that work for all those players that Moses and Luca.
That's that's you're actually over paid.
You get a Luker thank you, and Joel they.
Have to send you a pick too, Like that's too much to give up?
Oh absolute future considerations.
Yeah see, you should be working in the front office. Man, These are these are good ideas you got there we go. This is the kind of this kind of moxie we need at the Lakers organization. Where do the people find you? Follow you read you absorb all of your fantastic work.
Easiest thing is follow me on Twitter or threads. It's Mode the Kiel Underscore NBA. You can find my articles on the Athletic and Bleacher Report podcast on the Athletic once a week on Wednesdays. Is nerd Or, She wrote with Dave do four and Seth part now and then I just tweet basketball clips over and over again.
Love Seth, Love South.
Nerd Or, she wrote, is that your theme song?
She no, but that's actually probably like we're not We're three dudes that are not clever enough to come up with a theme song, and that's probably right up there. That's that's probably the best we've come up with, right there and stealing it.
I got a basketball about it with nerds Speak anyway, Thanks, thank you so much. Find me at Miles of Gray wherever they got at symbols.
I'm at Jack Underscore Obrian on Twitter.
Yeah, and follow hashtag mad Boosty's b st I e s for show links and updates and holler at us, you know, let us know.
Do you have some better ideas to turn up the All Star weekend?
We would love to hear them and share them with the other listeners, So make sure you holler at.
Us on the social media.
That's gonna do it for us this week another banger, and guess what.
We're two episodes away from one hundred. Just so y'all know. Next one is the Gretzky episode. It's the warrent SAP because we keep two nine on us. Okay, yeah, you already know. We'll see you next time. Bye bye,