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Chris Hans. It's time, works time, it's some time. This League Uncut is underway in on fire.
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Welcome friends back again with another edition of This League Uncut. We are recording on the eve of the twenty twenty two to twenty three NBA Finals and honored to have a Finals participant with us, not exactly an on the court participant, but a key figure in helping the Denver Nuggets reach the NBA Finals for the first time in their NBA history. It is their GM general manager, Calvin Booth,
who I once covered as a player many many years ago. Calvin, Welcome to the show, Chris, and excited to have you here in Congrats on an NBA Finals appearance. You've had several days to think about it, but I'm guessing it still has to be surreal here on some level.
First of all, thanks for having me on. I'm excited to be on as well. And yes, of course it's still settling in and I think it'll be surreal for a while.
So I'm sure you've seen the stat This is Pat Riley's nineteenth NBA Finals as a player, coach or executive. How are you going to neutralize Pat Riley in the GM matchup in this in this series?
Well, I think that one's uh. I think pat one was that one going away. I'm really try to fight that bat well hopefully because before it can get it done.
Ce b and Stein introducing you talking about used to cover you, it was it was a lot of minis. There was a lot of minis you threw out there talking about many many, many many years ago.
Man, when you when.
You look back at your career, does it seem like it was that long ago? Man?
I think he exaggerated a little bit.
Man.
He tried to act like and I was like back in like when you know, world be free in those guys.
It's because I feel that old.
I wasn't really referring to you now.
See.
I want to look first of all, I think congratulations, Like Stein said, Man, what you've done in the first year being the lead executive for the Denver Nuggets. You did a lot, and I want to break down some of the moves you made. But when Tim Conley left to take the Timberwolves job, what was the objective. What was the directive from ownership? What did they tell you that they wanted you to do. I'm talking about not overall, but in this first year coming up, Like, what was the objective?
Well, Chris Man, I don't, honestly, I don't think there was time for that. Like, you know, everything was kind of abrupt, and the transition was very quick, and I kind of took the bull by the proverbial horns. You know, Josh is busy managing the Arsenal and you know, dealing with the Rams and you know the many many sports franchise they have, and obviously it drew his attention a
big time when you know, Tim's transition was happening. But like you know, those first first week or so, I just started reaching out to players and started to like, you know, prepare for the draft and uh prepared as if you know, like the job was going to be mine. But there was no I don't think there was any determination at that point. I think there was eventually a press conference where Josh gave me a vote of confidence
or whatever, but it was just basically to work. You know, you know, from our experience of playing in the playoffs that previous year, is just a bunch of conclusions that I had drawn by watching that series that what we need to do going forward, and that's how I acted.
So when you when you talk about you went just straight to work, was there anxiety from your standpoint as far as just not knowing, like, Okay, what is going to be my role in the short term? How were you able to process that and still do your job?
No, I mean I wasn't thinking about that. It was too much more on to think about that. I was just worried about doing a job to best my ability and showing that I could handle the responsibility as the job. So no real anxiety on my end. I mean, I've been playing. It's not like I have to hit a corner three late in the game, but the shot clock run down or whatever. It's just it's just like you know, organizing, getting prepping for the draft, and pitching your ideas of ownership.
Alvin.
You know Chris knows this because whenever your name comes up, I love to bring up the story that I was there on press row for what I think is the highlight of your playing career when you made the layup to send the Dallas Mavericks. You clinched a game five win in Utah two thousand and one. The MAVs at that point had not won a playoff series for more than a decade, and in those days, five game first round series teams didn't win a deciding game. In Utah,
Mas were down huge going into the fourth quarter. I always call that shot the thirty four million dollars layup because you signed that big deal with Seattle in the following off season. Compare that feeling of what it felt like to make such a big basket and such a memorable basket in maps history too, being in the stands and watching your team clinch a spot in the NBA Finals.
As the guy who runs the front office.
I think you're a comparable one that you know. It was on the forefront of a new air or so to speak. I know Mark had just taken over Dallas and the previous previous year or two, and it made a lot of innovations and tried to make it really exciting around there and to actually see something that payoff and get a first playoff series win eventually lead to them getting in the finals a few years later and then eventually win a championship like that. That was very
exciting and also I feel like the same here. I felt like, you know, playing an integral role and trying to be a steward of this team and putting the team together that can make the finals, potentially win the finals, and then what's on the horizon, you know, once the season is over is an exciting thought.
I want to bring up the offseason.
Last off season, as you said, you were really busy off season their draft. Then it's the summer. First priority is signing getting a Joker to that extension, and after that there are some pieces that you brought to a table that are very very effective pieces this season.
But take me through the Joker process. What was that process like?
Did you have to convince him at all? You know, because there was a new direction going on here with the of the Nuggets and you guys feel short prior. Were there any convincing or was it just an easy process. You went out there, you got them, Like you just walked me through the Joker process real quick.
I think Joker is a very patient person. I think, you know, from my end, I did feel that there need to be some reassurances that we're going to be heading in the right direction. You know, with Joker in a circle, I felt like, you know, meeting with his brothers out here, talking to Excel, talking to him. I think what's important, and I, you know, obviously getting the deal completed, because anytime you can get a god of that magnitude to sign on the dotted line, it's a big.
Deal, especially you being you know again you're a few months in or as the head exec at that point. And then from there, how do you build around Joker now because you're trying to change the trajectory of the team. You're trying to get them to the point where you guys are now. And then you made some moves. You acquire Cantavi, it is Kywell Pope from Washington, trade away Will Barton who's.
Been there for years. You brought on Bruce Brown, and really he.
Took it to another level we didn't see, especially on the offensive, and we didn't see this in years prior. Just tell me, like, once you got Joker, what was in your mind as far as okay, what we need to do to bring the right talent on the cast to make sure we get to a level that we haven't been before.
How did you do that?
Yeah? I mean I'm just big into studying past patterns of champions and the air I grew up in and played in another I've watched the Bulls teams and the Lakers teams and played against them plenty of times. So the prevalain thought always, like, did joke and say that jokers just a walking triangle offense. So just trying to get that kind of person out around them, Guys that have positional size or smart hopefully at least average defensively,
best case a little bit above the line defensively. And you know, I mean you have a basically a seven foot point guard that complain anywhere in the court, and so just getting versatile guys to go around a guy that can make shots and guard. I thought what was important.
You obviously played with Dirk, so there have been you know, sometimes Dirk gets mentioned in, but I think it's more like Jokic more often. You hear that he's, you know, a seven foot, two hundred and fifty plus pound Larry Bird. From your seat, Who is he most like when we try to compare him to something we've seen in the past.
Yeah, I think it's some kind of matching up a Bird, Dirk and Duncan. I mean, obviously doesn't have the the rim protection and stuff that Duncan have, but like I see a lot of Duncan like qualities in him. C B.
When you look at overall with the different Nuggets have you know, people, the narrative is being that everybody's been sleeping on the Nuggets and you guys have just been winning all throughout the year. Mike Blow has some really you know, interesting confidence through the course of the playoffs about respecting this team, and so you're not in the trenches. But I want to know, just from your seat, did
you feel like that as well? Did you feel like the Nuggets were after thought to everybody else where we dismissing or disrespecting or is it a combination of other factors?
Like what are your thoughts behind the narrative of the Nuggets being slept on?
Now? I think it's a two sided coin, man. I think like on one side of it, it's like you have to earn respect and you have to win that first title. You have to make it to the point we're at right now. And I feel like, you know, Goolden State did that at one point in time, right you know, people probably wondered that a twenty eight game winning streak in the regular season, then people still weren't
sure whether a bit or not. And then next thing, you know, they want to tie it on like, oh man, win the title, and then obviously everybody knows what happened after that. So I think getting here and earning the respect by our actions and by getting some results as part of the process. But I do think, like, you know, honestly, like I think coaches are very colorful, and he likes to, like you know, say Mark say say things that are catch grab attention, you know. So I do think there's
a little bit of that. But but the one thing I will support him on is is that like when you look at what our team did throughout the year and you compare it to the lack of you know, accolade so to speak, that our team got, it does seem disproportionately out of whack, you know, Like all right, as Joker, if he's not the m v P, right, if he's a second team All NBA guy and he's not the MVP, then shouldn't Aaron Gordon or Jamal or somebody made an All Star game? Like should Casey p r?
Aaron got more push for All Defense, should our coach got a Coach of the Year, Like, it is a little interesting that we actually got no recognition through the awards process for the kind of season we had, which is I mean, obviously Joker made second Team All NBA and was up there in the MVP voting, but like, outside of that, pretty much nothing.
And you think about it, usually the protocol not protocol, but it's like it's an established protocol over the years that if a team has the number one seed going to the break, typically they get multiple All Star players from the same team in that game.
And it was just Joker.
You know, there was a case made, was is it Aaron Gordon Jamaal Murray?
So I guess you felt that way as well at that time.
Yeah, definitely, I felt like both of those guys deserved and obviously we weren't going to get three All Stars, but I would have been thrilled if either one of those guys would have gotten into the game. And I know Aaron was playing out of his mind thought up until that point it was comparable or maybe even better than what Andrew Wiggins had done the year before, and he made the All Star Game, So you know, yeah, obviously have Nuggets colored glasses on in that one. It's
always there's so many good players in the league. It was such a great year of performances that the these award things are hard, but like but the kind I always thought with great teams success, you know, the individual accolades came after that and didn't necessarily happen this year for our team, which is fine.
So I'll be honest.
I was a pretty staunch Nuggets advocate for the bulk of the year. I thought the fact that you guys had continuity so many teams in the West did not. I thought that was a real advantage for you. But then there was the seven and ten finish, and it just it wasn't. You guys were leading the West forever. It was clear you were going to be the number one seed. But I guess in the regular season the Nuggets didn't run through the proverbial tape, maybe.
As convincingly as it could have been.
How concerned were you during that seven and ten finish to the regular season that something had gone off track?
Honestly, I probably would have been more concerned if we looked like the two thousand and six Spurs or something like that. And we were eighteen OL because that hadn't been who we had been. We had been a team that would eb and flow, and sometimes we play well and sometimes we didn't play well. And we obviously got bored at the end of the season and weren't playing our highest level basketball in it. But I didn't I've never really doubted that when it came time to step
up in the playoffs, so we would do that. So, I mean, Contavious had a rough end of the season, but I think historically if you look at his numbers, he always does that and then bounce back and start making shots, and then in the playoffs, I think I wasn't as concerned as uh as everybody else was in the outside of our locker room and organization.
I mean, there was so much talk in the second half of the season that these playoffs are going to be a referendum on the Joker his two MVPs, even though the MVP is a regular season awards, Like why are we even going there? But he seems completely unbothered by this supposed pressure that these playoffs carried. What do you see, I mean, how much is he even listening to us?
Well? I think he typically tries to block all of it out, but this year was just kind of like unavoidable, especially after a regular season game in Pelly and you know, and then the racing came into it, and I think it was just I think it was a little bit of a distraction for our team and probably a little bit, you know, I took a little bit of a positive energy and mojo away from our team just having to deal with that whole narrative.
Hmm.
Okay, that's a interesting ce B.
When you look at the landscape of the league, how teams are built. If you look at the Nuggets, it's a pretty well rounded team from from top to bottom. You know, you guys are pretty sturdy there. You know, it used to be well, I would say for a period there, teams would try to go after two superstars, sometimes three, and on occasion we had one where where you have four. But what what do you what do
you think the league is headed towards? You know that with the new CVA that is coming in, it's like it's going to make it harder to have that many type of players on the team.
But what what is the ideal when you.
Talk to other executives out there or even just from your perspective, what's the ideal way to build a team?
Is it even efficient? Is it even worth.
It to go after multiple superstars at one time? What's your what's your take?
I just think this is kind of a pop out, But I don't think there's one singular answer. It depends on where the team is at the development art, depends on who your superstar is. I mean our case, we have we have stars. We have Michael Porter Jr. This is, like, you know, the best player in this class for the longest time. He's had a lot of injuries and stuff, and we paid them with max contract and I felt like he's played up to that this year. I mean,
obviously I have Jamal and Joker. I think the thing is it's just that our best players are easy to play with and they have well rounded games, so it's it's easy to like identify guys that will fit with them, and there's a lot of kind of guys that can fit with them. So I think that's why our team seems like it's so seamless in that way. The credit to Joker, Jamal, I mean the job Malone does everybody in at S thirty five, which I think is the best starty five in basketball.
I can't resist asking this because I'm just curious, like, how often in a staff meeting will you guys all just look at each other and say you believe that Yokid slipped all the way to number forty one in the draft, Like, obviously that's not new news. Obviously his career arc has been well chronicled at this point. But I just whenever I hear that number, I still can't get over it. Forty first pick in the draft to two time MVP and.
Style hold up before CB answer that I saw on social media a few days ago that when Joker was actually selected, it was it was during commercial break, so.
You didn't really get to see Joker. There's day call, but go ahead and see me. Go ahead.
No, I mean, I think for me, it's all going back to the Hoops summit and I was there a much a lot of executives, and he was doing all the same stuff he's doing now, and I felt like it was kind of like a funny. It was kind of like a joke. Oh man, like, look he's kind of doing it or whatever. And I'm always remember like I felt like I think Capella was in that Hoops Summit, and I know coming into he was supposed to be
like a lottery picking. Uh. You know, his stock dropped a little bit because of you know what happened to Hoops Summit. But like looking back on it's like, really no shame in being outplayed by Nicola yelpis right, like, but nobody you know, well, obviously the guys in Denver valued him and they got him to stay in the drivet.
But like to your point, Mark, nobody like said, oh man, I believe in this coast to coast layup or you know, him throwing this crazy past there's three point shot so much so that I think he's a first rounder, right, you know, very few people had that kind of foresight.
Give me your initial thoughts now that he's in the league and now that you're deal with the Nuggets, your initial thought on his ceiling at this time, because we knew he was solid, but to see him become.
This player, I don't. I could definitely couldn't say I saw it.
It's kind of interesting, man, because I you know, came from Minnesota and thought the world of Andrew Wiggins and Carltown's upside. I thought those guys were really talented, We're going to do great things in the league. But like having said that, watching one open gym with Joker, I
was like, man, he's he's better than those guys. That was Yeah, that was that was pretty impactful to I think that because I didn't before watching him in person those couple of days, I wouldn't have thought that, like right, you know, because definitely come from the Wolves and having a you know, the Timberwolves like glasses on, you know, think of those guys are going to be the eventual you know, duo that would do great things in the
Western Conference. And seeing this guy that was in Denver, I was like, man, this guy's better than both those guys. And I think that was just starting to at the beginning of people recognizing how good Joker was.
You've been at this for a while.
Now, what point in your playing career did you think, you know what, when I'm done, I want to go to the front office route this is.
This is being part of building teams is what I want to do.
I mean I became interested. I think, you know, as a player, when when you the processes, when you come out of college, you start watching college a lot. The first year, maybe even to the second year, because you still know a lot of guys. But then you get to that point in career where you watch NBA basketball you're playing it or you're price, and you kind of get away from it. And so I han't said that
around the two thousand and eight draft. You know, I think I was playing in two thousand and seven eight. I was actually in Washington, I believe, so no or I could have been enough Philly. I was in Philly. So I remember watching that draft and spent a lot of time scouting and her parent it was a it was a great draft to start off with. Man, there's
so many great players in that draft. I wonder if I would have been as interest in scouting if I'd come in a barren draft, right, But like you know, you're watching Derrick Rose and Beasley and Rustbrook and Mayo and Kevin Love and all these guys, and you know, I just I thought it was a very fascinating thing to try to figure out who would translate and who would.
When you think about this matchup now with the Miami Heat and everybody, I can say everybody, but for the most part, you guys are considered the favorites, but also you've been you had a lot of downtime, and you're going into this series against the Heat.
What is the concern?
Well, I mean the Miami Heat and the culture and what they built, what they're created, and the players they have over there, the coach they have over there, and the belief they have in themselves. You have to respect that, right. If you don't have the proper amount of respect for that, then they're probably in a bad way.
I think we're contractually obligated to bring up rest versus rust, or else they're going to take away our credentials because obviously, you guys, it's been it will have been nine full days without a playoff game by the time Game one tips off Thursday night. What's been the approach in house for you guys dealing with such a such an extended break.
And I think the coaches and players done a fantastic job of like picking the spots when to work and when to take breaks, and trying to do the best you can to stay ready and and rested headed into tomorrow's game.
What's your game watching routine? How hard is it for you to just having played? How hard is it for you to just sit there and watch.
It's not hard at all. I think, like, you know, when the game, when the series get tight and stuff like that, it becomes a lot harder. I like, I remember being in the bubble and uh, you know, the playoffs started. We're playing Utah in the first couple of you know, the first couple of games, and so I'm like, oh man, this is about to be in the playoffs. It's like no, no, no energy or tension or anything
in here. And then by the time it was game seven, it might as well have been like one hundred thousand people on that and that empty, empty arena in Orlando. So I think, you know, when when this theory gets tighter, and you know, the end of games and fourth quarters, especially if the closer you come to approaching the end of the season series or conclusion of it, and that's
when the most tension of pressure comes. But other than that, I think it's pretty It's just I try to enjoy throughout the game and watch it.
And my last thing, see, I want to ask you about your own personal goals.
We talked about your team and how.
They some of them may feel slided by the lack of awards recognition, but I brought up what you did in that short timeframe this past year for a reason. I think you definitely should be up there when you're talking about Executive of the Year awards. I know you don't, you know, probably don't want to get too much into it, but man, just looking at everything you've done, you made a trade.
You made a trade as well too.
You know, the.
Nuggets had some adversity as well. But everything you've done, you righted the ship and you put pieces together and they fit and I don't think the Nuggets have gotten a lot of recognition from that standpoint. So is that something like when you're talking about your peers in the game, it's called the general manager, the president of basketball operations in this lead the personnel. Do you look at that and say, like, man, I want to be mentioned amongst the top, especially this year.
Is that something that you gravitate towards.
I mean, you've seen some of the guys that have been around for a long time, you know, and had a lot of success, and I think you know, following your path and having having a career and having sustability and having your the organization proven you're under your watch, it's much more important than mean than an award, if I'm correct, I don't think Sam Presty's ever won that award, Like you know, He's definitely been an Executive of the Year before, right, and so I don't I don't put a lot of
stock in that in that particular award. You know, I'll give a lot to have Sam's career at this point. You know, I think he's had a great career in the business, and so if he hasn't had awards, who am out to win the award? Right? You know That's why I kind of look at it.
Well, I'm not gonna say that's a cop out, but I get your point. You definitely deserve you definitely deserve to get your recognition, brother, And I wanted to make sure we you know, glad you came on, agreed to come on because I wanted to definitely highlight what you've done behind the scenes and putting together a roster that you know, this is championship building right here. And I know it's not somebody's out on the door, but I know I know that the road is not done.
You still got you get the Miami Heat coming up. So but h c B.
I appreciate you taking the time, brother, best of luck unto you and the rest of the way, and I'll see you down there at some point during the final. I'll definitely see you in Miami on South Beacht.
Yes, sir our, thanks to Calvin Booth for joining us on the eve of the NBA Finals. That will do it for this edition of this League, Uncut, Chris and I back soon with more on the finals, more on the coaching carousel, more on everything else happening around this league. As always, please until next time, rate review and subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods.
Talk soon, everybody, and that'll do it for us. See you next time. This League on Cutage and iHeartRadio Production Christines and Mark Stein