Welcome to this league uncut in the world.
Of twenty four hour NBA news. This's you, Lou.
Chris Haynes. It's so time, Park's time. It's so time. This League uncut is underway and on fire. This should be a good one.
Friends, Welcome in hearty greetings from this league uncut. Half of the squad is in Vegas already. Chris Haynes made it there today. I will be arriving in a couple of days. I have to I got some Saturday radio obligations in Dallas first before I make my way to the desert. But look, the Summer League action already underway this week with a slew of games in Sacramento.
And also Salt Lake City.
That was just the appetizer, all thirty teams in Vegas for the annual Summer League extravaganza that just gets larger and larger and larger every year. Most of free agency is done at this point. Yes, there are a few stray names out there still. On the unrestricted side, You've got a Kelly Ubray, a Christian Wood. On the restricted free agent side, we still have PJ. Washington situation to figure out, So there are still some names on the board,
and that's certainly not a comprehensive list. I'm sure we could talk more about that if we wanted to go in that direction. But let's face it, the whole league right now, the focus even beyond James Harden's future in Philadelphia, it's all about Damian Lillard and what the Trailblazers are.
Going to do. This thing is moving slower.
I'm sure then Damian Lillard would like it too, But you know, this is a complex trade that's probably not gonna happen in an instant. I think everybody knows at this point that Miami is where game wants to end up. The Blazers are naturally dropping hints and whispers that know they're gonna look around and do what's best for the franchise and not just gift wrap him to Miami. You know, my instinct just is a long time watcher of these things.
It's hard for me to imagine a scenario where a game doesn't end up with what he wants in the end. But let's see lots of twists and turns. Chris and I recording this on Thursday night, and just within the last half hour before we finally connected to do this. Damian Lillard tweeted, I'm amazed, which I think I can assume that's his reaction to all the chatter today, all the back and forth, a lot of there's a lot of angst everywhere, honestly, all over the league. Not surprising.
But I turn it now to Chris Haynes again. Fresh on the ground in Vegas are resident Damologists, the world's leading Dameologists.
Where where are we?
Man?
Where are we?
With Dame and his desire to be sent to Miami and the Blazers desire to drag this thing out and try to broaden the field of trade options, what do you see?
Well, to answer you a question about where are we, We're nowhere. That's just where. That's what That's where it is right now. We're nowhere. And honestly, this is what I really expected to happen. I know, I know Dame would probably like to have this thing done wrapped up pretty quickly, but I've always felt if he was going to go down this road that it might be an extended period. The Miami heat right now, you know there they want to get to the table with the Blazers asap.
I know, the Miami Heat and the Blazers have had discussions, but it hasn't been anything to my knowledge, it hasn't been anything substantial or or should I say, the talks haven't gotten to a serious point as far as the Blazers have are concerned. And so for this, for for Damian Lillard, his agent Aaron good good When, I know
they they want to speed this thing up. But spoke with Aaron good When today and you know he's hopeful he's gonna be in Vegas in a few days, but he's hopeful that the Blazers in the Miami in the Miami Heat can't get together and sit down in the room and talk talk this thing, talk this thing through. And you know, it was apparent even from day one that a deal between strictly the Blazers and the Miami
Heat that was not going to get it done. It's going to require a third and most likely probably even a fourth team to get this all squared away where it everybody feels like they got equal value or somewhat equal value in return. So that's the way things are right now. You talk about Dame and that tweet, Mark Stein, I haven't spoken to Dame today. I can say that The last time I spoke with Dame was maybe yesterday, so I haven't spoken to him today, so I can't.
I can't, I don't. I can't say that I know for sure what he's referring to when he say he's amazed. And then somebody asked him why. I think his response was, let me make sure I got here.
I have it right here.
I'm amazed was the first tweet, and then he got a question from Twitter from seven to fifty the game, which I believe is is that a Portland radio.
Station or is that that's that's Portland? Yes?
Why?
And Dame's answer was his quote tweet was at how people could know so much and so little at the same time. And obviously there is tons of chatter out there today, and you know people are naturally Aaron Goodwin, his agent, is doing exactly what any agent would do. This is I mean, this is it's he's not doing anything.
He wouldn't he.
Would stein he wouldn't be doing his job if he wasn't calling teams. It's telling them Dame would not like, would not like to be there.
And also I think teams know, you know, Dame is such a pro that there is that feeling out there that teams would be like, he's not going to come here and cause trouble because I mean, Dame is a hooper. But still that doesn't I think I think the majority of teams, the overwhelming majority of teams, I think they believe that that had if they traded for Dame, that he wouldn't go there and be a guy who stages
a holdout or something. But that doesn't mean that teams out there are going to be sufficiently emboldened to actually trade for you know, someone like Danny Ainge in Utah. I put nothing past Danny Ainge. Would Danny Ainge do it? No? I mean, you know, he just traded Donovan Mitchell to Cleveland when we all thought Donovan Mitchell was going to
New York. But even Danny Ainge has limits, and I think the Jazz have to say to themselves it's not a matter of Danny Ainge or Jazz management being afraid of trading for Dame. The real question is does Damian Lillard fit timeline wise with such a young team? Is that who a team like Utah would want to go all in on with the various chips David Mass But like I said, I, you know, I am not reporting this from as close advantage point as you, but it
is just hard for me to believe. I just think Dame, his stature in Portland, what he's delivered to the Blazers. I just kind of feel like the Lillard Goodwin combination is gonna is gonna find a way in the end. Might take some time, but I think they're gonna get to the finish line of where they want.
And again, I think we talked about this in our last episode, Steyn about somebody like Danny Ings taking that chance and trading for him. Like nobody would knock Danny Aing's for doing that. Nobody would knock Massi. You Massi in Toronto for uh making that trade for Kawhi. For Dame situation, it's a little bit different. He's played eleven years there, He's represented that town, that city, that organization like no other star player has done before.
Can't even compare. And he's given.
Them every opportunity to try to build the Toddle he wanted to do it there. So for him, it's a little bit it's a little bit different of a scenario for him compared to other players. So the onus so people would look at the Blazers for actually trading him to a place that he didn't want to go. Nobody would not the other team you have to look about, like, how are they treating their star player, their franchise player
ar could be the greatest player in franchise history. After eleven years, he finally decides, you know, he wants to leave, and he wants to go to Miami, And how would it look for the like teams, players, excuse me, players are watching to see how this goes down, to see if this is how you're gonna treat a star player. You trade them to a team that he doesn't want to go to. And look, I see, I see Blazer fans and and you know, I don't know, and like I said, I don't want to assume what Dame is
talking about. But you know, I've seen Blazer fans say, hey, we got to trade him to wherever he wants to go because Dame signed an extension. Dame signed a contract. You know, you see national reporters talking about how he signed an extension and and that's that's on him. He shouldn't request the trade, but look at it. Check this out.
Starn I recall other players signing long term extensions requesting the trade the very following summer. I don't even have to name names. You can look it up. And nobody said a word. The star player was just traded. Just trade it.
A year before signing an extension, trade it the very next day, and nobody said a word.
Period.
So why all of a sudden is this any different? And a difference that I would say in this situation is Dame signed that extension with the promise that the team was going to assemble a roster that can compete for a championship. He didn't sign an extension just to sign an extension, say I want to be here five years. He was told they're going to do everything they can in that timeframe to give him the team that he needs.
It didn't happen. It did not happen. So you know, for those talking about, you know he signed extension, now we can you know, we can trade them wherever he wants to go.
He has no right he has. Come on, come on, let's stop that. Let's stop that. The guy gaves a level.
I mean, I guess this is what you know. I do differ with you on some of this. You know, I do understand the criticism. You know, you mentioned it, and it's been very loud. There there is that drum beat that says, if Dame wanted to pick his team, don't do a long term extension. But I think the rub here is and what we need to maybe dig into more what kind of conversations were had at the
time this extension was signed. Was there any sort of promise that, hey, if we cannot get this thing moving in the direction that we hope it goes, would we then work to get you where you want to go because of everything you've done for the franchise and the community, and you know, there's no question I think I think games commitment to the Blazers doesn't really need a lot of a lot of elaboration. How popular he is. There
a an absolutely beloved player. But look that that conversation is out there and there there there are gonna be There are going to be observers and fans who say the Blazers should just do whatever the heck they want. They gave him, they committed all this money, and they should do what they what they think is best.
But again, to me, this.
Stint and that is fine. That rhetoric.
That narrative is fine, but just note this is not some scrub player. This is not an average player. This is your franchise player, arguably the greatest player in French history, who people, even fans were clamoring to request the trade four years ago, probably even further.
Back than that. He gave it as all.
And so now it's to a point where he's asking to be moved now and he has a specific team. So players are watching. That's all you got, That's all I'm saying. Players are watching to see how this thing is handled. I understand it's a business, but this is different. This is different, and that's why.
I do think again, I do think in the end, this is the way it's going to end up, that he is somehow going to land with the team he wants to play for because of all that, because of the history and everything he's given to them. But the reality is the noise is off the charts right now. And look because this thing is moving slower than everybody
wants it to. You know, the trade is requested in that and it's like everybody fans us in the media, NBA, you know, every aspect of the NBA machine everybody, well, why dosn't the trade happen yet, it's been five six days. Well it's you know, I think we do have to bear in mind that sometimes these things do take a
long time to come together. And it's interesting that you brought up the Toronto situation because at the time, I remember, people looked at the Raptors like they were crazy, You're training for Kawhi Leonard when he probably doesn't want to be in Toronto and he's heading to free agency.
But because Kawhi.
Leonard was entering the last year of his deal, it kept the price down. So what the Raptors had to risk to do that was a lot. I mean, it was still substantial in their eyes to lose DeRozan, who you know, is a Raptors legend, and Yaka pertl who his value has only grown as a center in this league. You know, the Raptors were touting him as a top ten center in this league when they just gave him,
you know, when they traded for him in February. And of course they just now resigned him to a new deal that averages twenty the annual salaries in the twenty million range. But that's all Toronto had to give up. Really, I think there was also a pick in there, but you know, the price for Kawhi with only one year left on his contract, that drove the price down, Whereas
this is Dame with years left on his contract. The Blazers are going to be looking for an absolute haul in return when they finally do agree to a trade for Damian Lillard. This is not going to be a Wizard's Bradley Beal situation, where because Bradley Beal had a no trade clause, the Wizards just basically had to accept whatever deal they could get and you didn't even get a first round pick for Bradley Beal. The Blazers probably
ain't getting go bear prices. I don't think they're going to get five first but you know they're going to be going for it.
They're going to be going.
For the most substantial return that they can come up with.
So that's why they should.
It'stine and they should. They should, they should. I think at the end of the day, hopefully both sides get what they want, and you know, that's what they should. I don't really have I'm trying to think. What I'm trying to think? Do I really have a problem what's going on as far as the noise and circulating within the media, not the fans.
I don't, I don't.
I don't care because a lot of it's posturing and all that stuff. At the end of the day, if they're able to get something done where Miami gets Dame and Portland gets from from wherever it's coming from, whether it's a few from Miami, uh, some from Brooklyn and another team possibly Detroit, if they feel like they get adequate, you know, semi adequate value going that route, then go ahead.
That's fine.
But they have every right to try to get as much as they can out of this, and that's I have no problem with that. I just think that again, those teams they want to take that chance, go ahead. But nobody is going to knock. Players aren't going to look at They're not gonna look at Danny Ain's wrong or any other team wrong or in a bad light because they traded for Dame. They're gonna look at Portland. Portland,
the spotlight is on them. Is this the way you're going to treat your franchise player who's done everything in his power for eleven years? And Stein another thing is real cool Dame is in a as you see, Dame is not somebody that that stays quiet. He'll stay quiet for a little bit, but he's always going to weigh in say something, whether it's tweeting or going live.
So he's in the unique situations. And I did some research. I did some digging. So with the Portland Trailblazers releasing that statement last week basically saying we're basically confirming, I should say that Damian Lillarle did request a trade, and we talked about this before. I've never I've never recalled a team doing that, saying a player requested a trade, and that's never been done before. And I talked to the league, it's never been done before. It's unprecedented. Talked
to the player Association, They've never seen it. Never, never, It's never happened before. If a player had publicly.
Mentioned a you know, mentioned that they wanted to be traded before one hundred thousand dollars fine. So what I found out is that a team can publicly announce that a player has requested a trade. Why because it's never been negotiated into the CBA that they cannot. It's only been that way for players and until now it's been one hundred thousand dollars fine for a player if he requested a trade publicly. Meanwhile, a team can. And the reason why a team can because it was negotiated to
the CBA and it's never happened before. So this is unique. But I say all this to say one more point. I want to add. In the new CBA now, a player that publicly requests the trade, it has gone up to one hundred and fifty thousand dollars five. It was one hundred thousand dollars five before. Now it's one hundred and fifty thousand dollars five. But with the Blazers putting out that statement announcing that Dame requested the trade behind
the scenes, Dame is allowed to talk about it. Now Dame is allowed to say what he wants on the trade. I don't know if that wy help the trade situation.
Help Yeah, because he will talk about it.
Yeah, but he lobs in a couple of tweets and everybody loses their mind again.
Yeah, So he will be able to talk about it if he wanted to, and without being penalized. That would be a first, a first that a player will be able to talk about a trade request during like right in the middle of it, without being penalized. The Blazers gave him the green light. They gave him a go free card to do it. I don't think he should. I don't know that he will. But as you see, like if this thing continues to go on and then stuff just get keep getting leaked into the media, especially
when it's shining a false light on Dame. He's the type of guy that might jump out there and say something and he'll and he'll will there will be no punishment.
I just wanted to say that, Well.
Look, it's clearly a massive moment for the Blazers because they you know, you don't see a Dame Lillard every day anywhere. He's obviously, you know, free agency is not really an option for them to replace him. Where they are fortunate is that they've drafted well here in recent times. So they do have Scoot Henderson as the heir apparent.
They've got Shade and Sharp, They've got Anthony Simon's whether they want to keep him or move him for more roster balance, so they already have some very good young players no matter what happens with Dame.
But you know, I can see.
From Portland's perspective that they would want to take their time and try to drag this thing out to ensure that they get the largest possible return because and this is you, this is the story in the NBA. You know, we're Summer League. You know we're we're doing this Thursday night. This will probably be out, you know, early Friday morning. But Friday night is the debut of Victor wen Minyama. Summer League is going to take up the next ten
days or so. We got some things in the works that we can't announce just yet, but we're hoping to have some fun of our own on the strip in Vegas here in coming days. But let's be honest, more than James Harden's future, more than any NBA story you want to name, yes, even more than this Victor webmin Yama Britney Spears headline today that you couldn't have dreamed up a day ago if you tried.
Nothing is more substantial in terms.
Of NBA storylines right now than Damian Lillard and his future. And something tells me we're gonna be talking about it for the next several pods. I mean, unless I don't know you know you said it. Aaron Goodwin kind of gave you the vibe that he's hopeful that Miami and Portland has some face to face discussion. When everybody's in Vegas, I mean, do we think that could spark something and make this go any faster?
I don't know, but it's always good when you get in front of people. That's why I like coming to Vegas because for some oferly because everybody's here and you know, it's just something about doing business or not even business, just congregating in person. It just does something. It further accelerates things, or whether it's accelerating the relationship or accelerating the business deal, so that possibly could happen. I don't know, but stein remember KD requested the trade.
Who was it?
Last summer we went the whole summer, nothing happened. And then later in the summer or head into the fall, he said he's going to go into He's going to go into care.
No, it took Lesson and took me. He reversed himself. It was a matter of weeks that he reversed himself. And the reason I will never forget it is because I was actually in England with my youngest. We were on the dream father son trip, my youngest his first visit to England. We got to watch our beloved Manchester City on the opening of the season. We got to see Earling Hollin score his first two of fifty plus goals in the beautiful blue of city.
We saw it live. He was psyched.
Then the day after a game in London, we took the train to Manchester because he wanted to see Manchester with his own eyes. He was doing all kinds of photography. We're at dinner on a Monday, a sleepy Monday in August, thinking, okay, I mean I can have a couple of days on the couple days.
Of summer travel with my son.
And that Monday, Durant and Joe Si were in London, so they were even in the same country I was. And all of a sudden, Durant rescinded his trade demand out of the blue, and you know, we're sitting at dinner and the you know it starts coming in that Durant had changed his position and look at you know, he wanted to go. I think he wanted to go
to Phoenix. Then in the summer, when he first made the trade demand, last June or July or basically right as free agency was starting, and it took another six seven months for that to happen. It wasn't until February that it finally happened. So these things sometimes do take time to coalesce. I don't think it's going to take that long. Like I mean, it's hard for me to imagine that this doesn't get resolved before the season starts because we're so early in the summer. But that really
is more just guestimations for me. I mean, we really don't have any We don't have any timetable indications yet on how long this is actually going to take. Let's pivot from there to a couple other big news items from this Thursday. A story you've been reporting on quite a bit. The Blazers matisse Tible did sign a three year, thirty three million dollar offer sheet with the Dallas Mavericks.
That the Blazers let it be known rather swiftly that they were and huge disappointment for the fans where I live here in Dallas. They came to terms on a trade to acquire Grant Williams from Boston on Wednesday, sign and trade, and they were just giddy frankly at the prospect of adding both Grant Williams and Matisse Tibele to the wing rotation, to guys who both know how to defend an area that Dallas sorely needs to improve on. But the Blazers again, just let it be known quickly
that they're matching on that offer. And you know what, it's not a huge surprise there.
There was a fair bit.
Of noise in recent days in advance of the Mavericks trying to make these moves. The noise was, you know, Boston was trying to send signals that we'll match on Grant Williams even though the tax bill would have been close to forty million. So I don't know that anybody in MAVs land was really buying that. But Matisse tible that's such a tradeable contract at that number, and it's just too matchable. I mean, they're restricted free agent game.
To really win, you typically have to overpay, and the MAVs only had the mid Level exception available, which only goes up to twelve point four million even if you have the full mL, and the MAVs didn't quite have access to the full mL because the sign and trade for Grant Williams hardcap them.
So, I mean, even though they.
Made the strongest possible offer, but not nearly strong enough to dissuade Portland for matching, the Blazers just simply did not you know, I don't know, I don't know how much Tible is really in their future plans, but they clearly just didn't want to let an asset go for nothing.
Matise is one of the best peruna defenders in the league. And at that number, eleven million a year, that number, that's that's a solid number for a guy like that. It's a three year deal, player option after year or two. But you know, that's to your to your point, that's all Dallas could offer. That was the max they could offer Matise, and so the money wasn't really that big,
that significant to where it caused Portland to pause. But what I will say is that Dallas Mavericks, and I reported this, the Dallas Mavericks, you know, implement a poison peel and they were hoping that would you know, kind of prevent the Blazers from from matching, and so some of the things that were in the contract, obviously the player option. Then I was told also in the contract
was a fifteen trade kicker. Lastly, each year of the tenure of the deal, each year the Blazers have to pay Matise fifty of his annual salary by Alltober first, So you're talking about half of eleven million dollars by October first. So they did what they could to try to put some things into the contract that would get the Blazers off of them. But at the end of the day, the Blazers felt like this was still something they need to do for asset. Maybe maybe they've seen
them in this future. I don't see them in the future. I don't know, but what I can say what it.
May it looked, maybe and maybe and maybe I'm maybe I'm.
Glossing over the tradeability of it, because look, it should be. We have to remind you in year one, uh, you know, Tible will have veto power over any trade in the first season and can't be traded to Dallas at all in that first season. So when you're a restricted free agent, you do at least come away with that. January fifteenth would be the soonest that he could be traded anywhere, and again the Blazers would have to get his consent and so these little wrinkles do make him slightly tougher
to trade. But again, the salary number eleven mil, that is very tradable. And you know, the interesting thing here is, from everything I've heard, and you probably know better, you're closer to this than me, the vibe I've gotten is that Tyble really did want to end up with Dallas. This is something Tible's been wanting even before this summer. Dallas has been talked about as a potential destination. The Mavericks have explored in the past pathways to try to
trade for Tible when he was still in Philly. In fact, I remember whispers about that because you know, the MAVs sorely need a top flight wing defender, and you know they had confidence in Dallas that had they been able to get Tible. Yes he has offensive shortcomings. Yes there are questions about his shooting ability, but when you've got Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving at the core of your offense, you know you can.
Live with that.
They need top flight defenders, and I think had this gone through, both Tibo and Grant Williams would have been starters for the Mavericks. But it was not to be. The Blazers have kept him and will We'll now see where it goes from here.
Stile, let me add this to your point. Yes, Matisse desperately wanted to be a member of the Dallas Mavericks, and Stein I anticipated this situation getting ugly. I anticipated getting getting ugly. I thought there might be they might try to get some type of signing trade going because he did really want to be a member of the Dallas Mavericks. And another thing that people don't know about, the Blazers gave Matisse an initial offer that was well
below what Dallas gave him in the offer sheet. That prompted them to go to Dallas and to get that offer sheet. So at the end of the day, it was sort of a win. I guess I wouldn't on off it's a win win. But Matisse got paid. He got paid more than what Portland was going to initially offer, and so it worked out in that regard. But he definitely wanted to be a member of the Mavericks.
I guess another way you could look at this is that this is an example of the Blazers showing us that they're gonna do what they think is best. If you want to extrapolate that far. Obviously they knew that Tible would have preferred to go to Dallas. And there is a question of if Portland is about to enter a rebuild, what need do they really have for Tible? But you know they matched it. We don't know the full plan they have for him, or how how much
a part of their future he really is. But the Blazers, the Blazers did not blink. This was a pretty quick matching effort.
Also, Stein, I think we have to point out, for those who don't know, Matisa's agent is also Aaron Goodwin.
Damiel Lili is a so uh.
I don't know if what they did with Matisse is an indicator of what they would do in Dame situation. But hey, people may look at that and say, okay, Blazer's will not be they will not be they will not be challenged. I should say, you know they're gonna do what they feel is best for them in the organization. So interesting to see how this thing is going to all play out as it pertains the Dame.
And let's wrap this one up with because I don't think I know you are in Vegas, but am I correct to say that you haven't yet tracked down Wemby or Britney Spears for their latest Well, Wemby did address this with the media today, so Wemby's already he's already talked about it.
So you're saying I should try to track down Brittany and get her side of the story.
Well, she's talked a lot too, so I guess we got their sides. I'm just trying to have some fun with you and just giving you a hard time that maybe you should have just landed, blown this pod off and just gotten right onto the Webbyama Spears beat and I don't mean Mark Spears.
Well, let me tell you this, I did think about once I landed and blowing this pod off. I did think about that, but it wasn't to go check out Britney Spears and went beyond. It was gonna be some other things. I am in Vegas, after all. You know, there's a lot of nice attractions out here. I would say Vegas is probably top seven eight cities I like to visit just for a few days. You get really real bored and tired after two or three days.
But yeah, that's not that I shouldn't it be higher than that.
I mean, I know it's not Miami.
But no, I just get real.
Like Miami, I can stay in Miami for a week, I can't stay in Vegas for a week.
I can only do two, two days, two three days. I still I'd get a little.
Vegas in July.
I don't know that I love I don't know, like I said, yeah July, I'm not loving it. But look, it's so bad in Dallas weatherwise that actually going to Vegas is easier because even though the tempts are higher, the humidity is so much lower. I think that there was a story recently, like a week or so ago, that Dallas weather at this point was like hotter than ninety nine percent of the rest of the world. So it's actually gonna get easier for me when I relocate
to the desert. But no, I mean, I am you know. When I was in college, Vegas was in our conference. So going to Vegas has had a mystical appeal for me. Seeing games at the Thomas and Mac. I mean, this goes back to the eighties for me, and in the early nineties, Man Vegas their team was like like a pro team.
I mean when they had when they.
Had Greg Anthony Stacy Augman, Anderson Hunt, Larry Johnson, George Jackals. I mean that team coming to Titan Jim was like an NBA team coming to Titan Jim. So Vegas has always been a huge part of my basketball life, and as hot as it is in July, I could do a week there easy restaurants alone.
Yeah.
Love. I don't know, there's just I love the place.
I'm ready, well her up and gets.
All right.
I'm working on it. All right.
Let's let's close with your other big story today, de Jontay Murray get a contract extension with Atlanta. There had been a lot of curiosity about that. Would the Hawks actually extend to Jontay Murray? Would they be able to They obviously paid a pretty hefty trade price to get him from San Antonio last summer, but that deal kind of sneaked up on people tonight. There was some thought that it maybe wouldn't happen this offseason. So break that one down.
For us if you could.
Yeah.
So he an extension four years, one to twenty player option on the final year last thirty million a year.
If my math is correct, and I didn't, I didn't. I didn't know if this was going to happen. I could I could not have.
I could not have thought this would be on my radar if you would have asked me a few months ago. The fit with him and Trey, they had some pretty good success and then it struggled in some areas. And you can definitely say it was an adapting type of a season for the Dejohntay and Trey. Both of them are used to having a ball in their hands, being the primary ball handlers, and so they had to share that responsibility and it worked to a certain point, but
you know there was some struggles in it. But thing about the Johntay man, I remember, I would like to say I discovered the John Say. I got to bring the Johntay on this pod STN. The Johntay is awesome man. He came up the pod I used to do back in the day. Stein He's he's a really great He's a really great kid man and I love his story. But if de Johntay staying out, I think that's what
everybody wants to know. We've been hearing how the Atlanta Hawks have been really trying to get in on the Pascal Siakam sweepstakes, and we kind of touched on that in previous pods before. Pascal would like to stay in Toronto. I believe he has a one year left on his deal, so that that's going into that that territory or the similar situation of what Kawhi Leonard went through. So I don't know what's going to happen. But the Jonte man,
that's a really good deal for him. I just don't know if if his future is still there that is then know, is there anything that you've hearsed thid about that?
Yeah?
So, I mean, look, the first the first question was could Dejonte get enough money in an extension that would make him want to sign now, because there was a school of thought that said, you know what, don't be surprised if he opts to wait until unrestricted free agency next summer when he can make more. But in this new CBA, the extension rules were changed to try to give incumbent teams more of a chance to retain their guys. And look, we just we keep seeing this more and
more and more. I recently did a TV essay about this for Bally Sports Southwest about how you know so, and part of that essay was, We're seeing so many
more extensions. It's just extensions, extensions, extensions, So so the number of top stars who make it to free agency anymore, it just get that group seems to get smaller and small, and that's why the trade market has kind of replaced, or one of the main reasons why the trade market has replaced free agency as the big you know, the easiest way to really change your team and change it dramatically. It's amazing when you you know, this summer in free agency,
the only current All Star. Hat tip to my good friend Ben Goliver of the Washington Post. He's the one who first came up with this stat and I have gratefully borrowed it from him about seventeen times since. The only All Star, the only current All Star on this summer's free agent market was Kyrie Irving. It's the only one. The only guy who played in the All Star Game in Salt Lake City who was available in free agency. Fred van Vliet was was an All Star last season,
but not this season. So it just again it just shows you that just fewer and fewer and fewer of the top guy are even making it to free agency and Dejonte was one of those guys who I think during the season, at various points the thought was that he would make it to free agency. But with the rules changing on extensions and the Hawks being able to give him a larger raise than they could have under.
The previous system.
And I believe the cap experts out there will correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they were also able to give him an expert year in an extension because of changes to the CBA, So that enabled Atlanta to get this deal done. Now, as for Siakam, and I'm glad you said it because I need to clarify this. You know, I think you said it right. Pascal Siakam, that's it's on his side. The resistance to a trade to Atlanta has really been on his side, precisely where
the Raptors fall in terms of trading. Pascal Siakam has been a lot harder to pinpoint, as it often is with the Raptors. At the trade deadline, there was so much curiosity, what would the Raptors do? Would Fred van Vliet be made available for trade, would Siakam be would Siakam be made available for trade? What about Ognnnobi? What about Gary Trent Junior. There were trade discussions surrounding all those guys, and in the end Toronto didn't trade any
of them. They ended up making a trade to bring in Yaka pertl. Now fast forward a few months later, Fred van Vliet opts to go to Houston and the questions started new, what are the Raptors going to do? Is Pascal Siakam actually being made available by the Toronto Raptors. That's been harder to gauge. The most consistent rumbles there have been that the Hawks had been very interested in a trade for Siakam and that Siakam has been resistant
to it. The message has been sent whispered, maybe even louder than whispered, that Siakam really wouldn't be interested in a contract extension if the Hawks were to move him, and you know, we'll see.
Now, does you know what you know? We have to gauge.
We have to nail down what impact signing Murray has on that pursuit from the Hawks on Siakam. Hopefully, with Chris and I both in Vegas getting in front of people, we will be able to get more answers to the burning questions because there are still many of course, as we said, it all starts with Damian Lillard, but we also do have James Harden's future.
He's made it known in Philadelphia that he.
Would like to be moved. The Sixers, it appears, are trying to slow play this much like they did when Ben Simmons requested a trade. It looks like the Sixers would love to take their.
Time and maybe even lobby Damian Lillard too.
Come on, man, just play out this last year and then we'll.
See where it goes.
You can definitely it's not hard to picture Darryl Morey taking that kind of stance. Lots of question about those Raptors. Is Siakam available, will they look to make other trades or are they going to try to stay competitive After signing Dennis Shrewder on a two year deal to step in to the Fred van Vliet void, what happens with the Raptors? How much more action do we see from the Hawks, who seem to be involved in a lot
of stuff. What teams out there will have the guts to make a run at Dame not named Miami?
Does a Utah?
Does a New Orleans try to use their considerable trade assets to get in the mix.
There so many many questions to pose.
Chris and I will be in search of the answers, and again not trying to be cryptic, We're only not saying too much because we don't want to jinx anything. We are pursuing some really, really fun projects and get togethers in Vegas, shall we say. We hope to have those details nail down very very soon, and something tells me that you will get at least one and possibly more podcasts from the Haines Stein tag team that you will find lively and enjoyable, emanating from the famed Vegas strip.
All right, that does it for this edition of This League Uncut. Please, friends, please, if you have it already, rate, review, and subscribe to the show via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, wherever you get your pods, because again, if the proverbial chips, if the proverbial chips fall our way, this could be a pretty momentous week coming up in the history of this fledged podcast as we near we're almost six months old.
As producer Ryan Music reminded me recently, we're nearing our six month anniversary and we will try to mark that occasion with as much good stuff as we can. Another good one in the books. Stay tuned for more.
From us very soon. That does it. We will be back with you soon. Everybody be good and that'll do it for us.
See you next time. This League on Cuttage and iHeartRadio production
Chris Haynes and Mark Stein