NBA Betting Slate, Recaps, College Basketball Betting Slate and More

Jared Smith and Ariel Epstein recap last night's NBA and College Basketball games while providing their takeaways. Then, they examine the betting slate for today's upcoming NBA and College Basketball games, providing their best bets and more.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
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(00:27):
I want all of you to get up out of
your chests, go to the window, open it and stick
your head out of here. Helcome to out the window
on this amazing, beautiful Sunday in New York. I'm Ariel

(00:48):
at scene. This is going to be one of the
craziest days I think of the weekend. You've got the NBA,
College hoops, NASCAR. It's going to be fine. I know
that we usually have Jared Smith here in studio, however,
he is at the Vandal Sports Book. Jared, how excited
are you for this Sunday slate of games. I'm really excited. Area.

(01:11):
We just got Penn State Indiana about the tip off
here on FS one. Uh. We need a win today
to get back on track after what happened early this week.
I'm a little nervous. Bloomington is a tough place to play.
Assembly Hall is no joke. So and I've got Kevin
Walsh texting me asking me if Indiana is gonna win.
So that's how my that's how my week is already starting.
My Sunday morning is already starting with smack talk from

(01:31):
Kevin Walsh about the Hoosiers. I thought he'd be talking
some smack about the NBA. But and State big game today,
also big day in the Big Ten for teams like
Ohio State and Maryland facing off. If the NBA going
starting at three thirty, the Celtics and the Lakers. Kevin
Walsh probably excited for Lebron James and the Lakers. However,

(01:51):
it is spring training to Jared. And we saw the
first late of all the games going on yesterday in
Major League Baseball and the Astros again and we're heckled
by fans. Apparently fans posters were taken away when they
were trying to heckle the Astros. What happened to freedom
of speech in this country area? I mean, I think
that it's like a that's a bush league move by.

(02:14):
I don't know if they were home or away yesterday
so if they were in their technically the home team,
but they share the complex though, right with the Nationals exactly.
So when they go on the road to let's say
Yankee Stadium, which I know wasn't gonna happen until September,
but let's say they go to Angel Stadium probably pretty
early on in the season, or Oakland Stadium because their

(02:35):
division rivals, that's not gonna happen. There's no way that
the that the ushers are gonna be taking away signs.
So they are going to have to deal with this eventually.
They kind of got off the hook during spring training.
It's not gonna happen. Once the big boys start to
play during the regular season, They're gonna have to deal
with this. They're gonna have to take it on the chin.
They're they're kind of getting a little bit of kid

(02:57):
gloves during spring training easing into this. None of the
players in the signs signs stealing scandal. Good lord, that's
tough to say. I had to play yesterday. They are
gonna No. I don't think it was a cop out.
I think they have a plan on when these guys
are gonna play, and they'll play when they play because
a lot of these they were all yeah, I mean,

(03:21):
I get it, you know, but you know, the spring
training is weird with baseball. They don't really have a set,
you know, all right, well the you know the starters
are gonna play on this particular day. So uh, it's
it's very regimented spring training. Like none of the none
of the Yankee starters played in their first game yesterday.
So I'm not surprised. You see the Astros getting hit
by pitches in spring training or do you think that

(03:43):
teams wait until the regular season. I personally don't think
there's gonna be as many hit by pitches as you
would think. I think they'll probably have a slightly above
average number. Last year they were only hit by sixty
six or sixty seven, so I don't think it's gonna
be too much higher than that. I know the number
was set at eighty three and a half. I think
that's a little high. Uh, the medal over here were

(04:05):
the number one team. I think it's I think it'll
be close. I don't think it's a lot to go over.
I think it'll be close, But I don't think they're
gonna get hit every game. If that's what you're asking.
I don't think it's gonna be like first batter the game,
boom right in the back, all right, now we can play.
I think it will be more subtle, and I think
it will happen more in the flow of the game
than people think. You too, just because you don't want

(04:27):
to get suspended. And a lot of these pictures might
even not care about risking that if they're in the
middle of a game, knowing that they'll be out of
the game in an inning or so, they might just
do it, get ejected and come in for their next start.
We will talk about this throughout the course of Major
League Baseball season. However, last night the big story was
the heavyweight champ Fury Wilder fight Jared. When you watch

(04:50):
this fight and you got to see the Tyson Fury
beat deyond Wilder and TKO in the seventh round, just
the odds right here. So I Fury closed as a
AT plus once when you five and was five two
one to win by KO or t KO and by
stoppage in the seventh round was forty to one. Where
did you see this match going? I didn't see Tyson

(05:14):
Fury winning by knockout. I certainly will admit that I
thought a Fury was gonna win. It was gonna be
by decision, and if Wilder one, it was gonna be
because he was the aggressor and he made the knockout happen.
So I'm happy for Tyson Fury. I think he is
the better boxer. I think Wilder was the stronger opponent,
more of the bull and and Fury kind of let

(05:36):
that come to him in the first couple of rounds
and then I think it was in the third round
as when he had his first knockdown. You really saw
once once he kind of saw blood. Uh, he really
went in for the kill. And and I certainly credit
your he lived while there's blood. That was like the
that was like the Shakira part of the uh, the
like the Shakira thing with the the you know, the

(05:59):
meme that's going round all over. Uh. It was yeah,
the tongue it was a little gross, um, you know.
And that's that's the thing about boxing, man. These guys,
these guys just don't care, you know. I Mean we
saw we saw Mike Tyson RiPP a guy's ear off
with his bare teeth. So these cuts sport. I would
definitely be a part of Yeah, no, no, no, we're

(06:20):
gonna keep you away from the ring area. You're perfect
right where you are, and especially be in the heavyweight definitely,
that would be my hea would be in the heavyweight.
You would not last long in the heavyweight ring with
Tyson Fury, dett there Walder would you would be running around.
I did see that this match would go five to eight.
That was where the odds had it. The odds said

(06:42):
five to eight um in knockout and it was Wilder though,
that was obviously the favorite according to the odds. So
for Fury, though, the story is really interesting because we're
talking about the last time these two faced off that
Fury looked like he was down, came back to life
in the twelfth round. It was unbelievable to watch him
come back like that. But then he started gaining all
of this weight, so the comeback story was huge in

(07:05):
this one. Yeah, and you know, it'll be interesting to
kind of see where things go from here. They're already
talking about, you know, Tyson now having to defend this
heavyweight title against somebody else. So, uh, we'll see who
they put. I think, uh, they'll they'll probably throw somebody
out there that will be hearing from over the next
few months. But to me, boxing is it's it's unfortunate

(07:25):
that it doesn't take up more of the spotlight. Uh.
You know, we did a great job with the coverage
this week. Scotti Farrell was out in Vegas with the
crew doing his thing. It was glad. I was glad. Yeah, no,
and and and and Scotty's a Vegas guy too, so
you know, he has a lot of connections out there,
so he was able to get some good interviews. So
I'm I'm glad that boxing took center stage. It's unfortunate
that this isn't a regular occurrence. You know, every month

(07:47):
we don't have fights like this. This is a rare thing.
So uh, it'll be interesting to kind of see where
things progress from here. I I don't I wish I
was into boxing more. I wish that there was something more,
there was more meat on the bone to kind of
chew there. But there's just there's just not you know,
we we don't get fights like these, especially heavyweight fights. Uh.
We gets too underfeed the champions very often. I don't
remember the last time. Aside from Wilder Fury, it's been

(08:11):
very exciting so I I don't think it will continue.
I think the momentum in boxing is very staggered and
and we won't see a lot of momentum. I think
UFC is actually taking the mantle of that monthly kind
of card that we look towards, so you know, the
the attention will probably turn towards that before we get
you know, really into boxing again with a with a
with a big time match. But it was fun to

(08:32):
watch Vegas takes center Stage and a heavyweight fight last night.
It really did remind me of those Tyson holy Field
days when I was a kid growing up, when they
used to go at it against each other. So fun stuff.
But unfortunately, I think it's a it's a short lived
excitement until we kind of come back around to some
more heavyweight fights down the road. Well, something that's not

(08:53):
a short lived excitement is now it's the second half
of the NBA season, and I know that we've made
way back. At the beginning of this season, we were
talking about who our favorites were to win the NBA Championship,
and I'm pretty sure on MSG Network, Jared, you took
the Clippers and I took the Lakers. Was that what
we did, or I'm trying to remember. I think so,

(09:13):
so you have good memory. I'm trying especially because when
it comes down to our best bets, I like to
make sure that I remember what we talk about because
I like to use them against you at some point
down the line. So I'm gonna try to use it
against you here. So what are your thoughts on the Clippers.
I'm not loving the pick right now. To be honest
with you, I'll say this. The odds say right now,

(09:34):
don't bet the Clippers because I don't think they're going
to be any less when we get to the playoffs.
So when you're making a future's bet, and we talk
about this all the time, the goal is to get
CLV closing line value. We've done it in certain areas
with my pen Stay futures bet. It's gone from fifty
one thirty to one. That is a good bet even

(09:55):
if Penn State does not win the title. I've made
the right bet because that line has the East almost twofold,
and I think it's going to continue to decrease as
we get closer to the tournament. Others go in the
opposite direction. I think the Clippers are one of those.
I think they could load management their way right out
of a two seed, right out of a three seed,
and maybe even out of a home fuel or home
court advantage in the opening round of the playoffs. You know,

(10:17):
this is a team that's teetering right now between three
and four, and we don't know the health of some
of their key players. And frankly, a ten day layoff
did not help them day exactly. And they laid an
egg yesterday against the Kings. They scored thirteen points in
the first quarter of that game. Granted there was some ross.
They haven't played in ten days. That was the longest
layoff of any NBA team from the All Star break,

(10:38):
which was really like an All Star month. But the
Clippers certainly could use that rest because Kawhi Leonard can't
play in back to backs, Paul George has been hurt
this year. Patrick Beverley has been hurt this year. They're
trying to get a new guy into the lineup with
Marcus Morris. It's it's it's gonna take some time for
them to become a team that we expect. In fact,
I don't think we've seen this year. It's it's hard

(11:00):
to expect a team that's changed their starting lineup twenty
eight out of fifty six games. They're on a three
game losing streak. How much does that affect the team
when you're changing up the line up so much, Jared
A lot. It It affects it A taught, I mean,
and I think that's the biggest problem that the Clippers
are having right now. It's continuity. Basketball's a rhythm sport,
arel and and the All Star Break has disrupted the

(11:21):
rhythm from some of these teams. It's it's fascinating to
see which teams have come back hot. The Clippers have
not been one of them, and I think their odds
will decrease as we get closer to the playoffs. First
NBA Game of the Day starts at three p m. S.
During time, we're gonna talk more about the NBA and
how teams have been climbing out of the All Star
breaks so far. Who's the hottest right now? More here
at the Window Coming up next on Sports Grid Daily,

(11:45):
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(12:06):
one for cash games and turneys learned from the game's
best DFS players joined Daily rodo dot com. Welcome to

(12:33):
at the Window. I'm Arie l Epstein. Jared Smith is
at the Vandal Sports Book in the Meadowlands. College hoops
underway right now. Penn State's at Indiana, Penn State down
fourteen six, Bucknell and Lee higher in action le High
up six to two, and Temple is at yousth Carolina
East Carolina leading thirteen to six. We're gonna touch on
those games as they go a little further into it.

(12:54):
Maybe by halftime we'll start talking more about college hoops. However,
we do have the NBA, which is go. We just
start at three thirty pm Eastern time. It's the Celtics
at the Lakers. Jared, with this game at three thirty pm.
What are you looking at the most with the Celtics
on the road in l A. I really like the
Celtics team. We've been talking about them on on the

(13:16):
Basketball Show for the last couple of weeks. UH surprising
that their odds have actually gone down. Their NBA title
odds have gone I got them at seventeen to one,
they're now down to twenty five. I think it's a
really good price for Boston. Uh in this game today specifically,
I I look again, it's this is a kind of
a mirror image game of what Boston will face if
they make it to the Eastern Conference Finals or the semifinals,

(13:38):
depending on how the seatings shake out against Jannas in
the box, Anthony Davis and Jannae, you know, not the
same players, but similar players. I think obviously Lebron James
is what makes the difference between Milwaukee and n l A.
But in terms of the defensive matchups, keep a very
close eye on how Boston matches up against Anthony Davis
in this game, especially at the top of the key

(13:59):
when run the pick and roll with Lebron, Jayson Tatum,
Jalen Brown, Gordon Hayward, they are very switchable in terms
of their defensive schemes, and if Boston wants to beat
Milwaukee in the Eastern Conference playoffs, they're gonna have to
switch every screen at the top and do what Toronto
did last year with gasol At Sikum and Lowry even
at the top. They were very uh nimble defensively and

(14:23):
job shutting down Janice in that game. Yeah. And the
last matchup between these two teams, Lebron James was limited
to fifteen points and Anthony Davis was limited to just
nine points. So you're you're right on par there with
them being able to limit those two of their leading
scorers for the Lakers. Yeah, Brad Stevens. You know, if
if you want good entertainment area, google search Brad Stevens
out of time outs. I mean, he he's a wizard

(14:46):
and and this is one of the best coaches in
the NBA. And a lot of people I think, and
and I'm a I'm a New York fan, trust me.
The last thing I want to do is praise Boston.
But but I have to give credit. I not cheat.
I respect good things. No, they're not cheaters. I don't think, Um,
I I get I respect what Boston can do. They're

(15:06):
very versatile, and they're very deep and and and they
can switch every screen. And I think that's something that
NBA teams, the good NBA teams can do. Toronto can
do it too, and and the best, the best defensive
teams can do it. The Lakers can do it as well.
I think they're a little bit thinner in the in
the in the guard position than Boston is. I don't
trust like in Avery Bradley or or you know those

(15:26):
guys to really switch screens at the top. But what
Boston can do is they can make life very difficult
for your best offensive player every game. And that to
me is the mark of a good team to take
what you do the best. It's kind of like Bill
Belichick take take your strength and turn into a weakness.
And that's something that Brad Stevens and the Celtics can
do very well. Austin beat l A seven in Boston,

(15:47):
though the last time they played on January twenty, Jared,
what's the difference now with the way that the Celtics
would play on the road in l A would play
in Stable Center. I hate to say it, but the
differences Lebron James is not going to see his son
play and I think it was Atteborough, Massachusetts the morning
of and he's had some time off since then. That

(16:08):
was a big controversial point in that last game, was
that he was I think it was the morning or
the night before the game he went to go watch
his son play basketball is somewhere else in in the
state of Massachusetts. Uh. And and that was kind of
a controversial thing that was talked about. And and and
I don't necessarily think it's why the Lakers lost by thirty,
but it certainly didn't look good. The optics were not

(16:29):
good on that situation. The Lakers have obviously been very arrested.
All of the teams in the NBA right now are
very arrested. And I think unlike the first game back,
I think the second and third games back is when
you'll see the fruits of that long layoff. Usually the
first game it takes some time. We saw that with
a few teams over the weekend. They're not right out

(16:49):
of the gate. Some teams didn't matter. Try Young scored
fifty in his first game back. Who cares. But but
for certain teams, maybe more veteran teams, sometimes you gotta
shake the rust off for a game. As Penn State's
just getting absolutely iterated right now in Bloomington's very sad
about that. But so I wouldn't be surprised to see
teams like Boston in l a veteran teams, Uh. Now
that they're in their second game back there, shake the

(17:10):
rust off. I think we're gonna see a very efficient
performance today. I'm not surprised the totals low to twenty
two and a relatively low total, uh for an NBA game.
I wouldn't be surprised if we saw that game go
over today because I do think what you saw in
that last game this the You know the Celtics scored one,
you know, one forty against against the Lakers. Well, these
are two of the better teams against um opposing offenses.

(17:31):
I know that the Lakers limited opponents to a hundred
seven point three points per game, which is top ten,
and the Celtics are also top ten. I think, yeah,
one was six point four is what the Celtics allowed
per game, which is third best in the NBA. So
it makes sense that this is a low scoring total. However,
what does Kemba Walker do for the Celtics now that
we've seen him for the first half of the season.
What have you like that you've seen him be able

(17:52):
to do for the Celtics. I'm a big fan of
Kemba Walker. I mean I I think if you if
you take Kemba Walker and you pluck him off of
the team he was off on last year, and you
put him on the Celtics team, and you take out
Kyrie Irving. You know, to me, that's a win for
Boston and and I think you know that sounds crazy
on paper. How can you say Kemba Walker is better

(18:13):
than Kyrie Irving. I think he's a better fit for
what the for what the Celtics are trying to do.
I don't think the Celtics are built to be a
team where there's a main scoring guard and everybody else
filters in. I think the Celtics are best fit to
be a balanced scoring team, and we're seeing that a
lot more this year. Kemba Walker has nights where he
goes off, sure, but so does Jayson Tatum, so does
Jalen Brown, so does Gordon Hayward. They're much more balanced

(18:37):
this year, and Kemba Walker is a piece of the
puzzle instead of Kyrie Irving being the overarching main guy
on that team. And we saw in the playoffs last year.
Boston went into Milwaukee last year and they beat the
Bucks in Game one of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, and
then all of a sudden, it just fell apart, and
a lot of that was some controversy surrounding Kyrie Irving
and him not getting the ball and off. That's not

(18:58):
an issue for Boston this year. I think Boston. And
I'm telling you, I was shocked when I saw these
odds drop out in Vegas. There ten to one. When
I was out in Vegas last week, you couldn't find
a ticket for the Celtics at higher than ten to
one to win the title. I'm seeing twenty five to
one on FanDuel right now. That is a monster gap
between what their odds are in Vegas and what their
perceived odds are here back East. I think there's a
ton of value on the Celtics to win the title.

(19:20):
I think they are a team that can not only
beat the Bucks, but also can beat the Lakers. They've
proven it that they can do it this year. Keep
an eye on Boston down the stretch. I would lean Boston.
I would I would certainly lean Boston in this game.
I don't think this game is indicative of where Boston
is long term, because I think the Lakers know that

(19:43):
they got blasted by thirty two points the last time
they played, so they're gonna try to run up the
score in this game if they can, But I think
long term Boston could be a very intriguing play. The
future is odds on them are not right, So you
lean towards Boston in this game, and the over two
need two and a half. So the next game we're
gonna talk about is the six o'clock game. Indiana Pacers

(20:04):
are at the Toronto Raptors. The Pacers getting five and
a half with the total at tune nineteen. However, Pacers
Victor Eladipo is dealtful for this game. How does that
change the way that you look at the Raptors matching
up with the Pacers in Toronto tonight. Yeah, tough tough
matchup for the Pacers. I I think the Pacers were
a very good play on team the first half of

(20:25):
the season. They have a very good record against the
number thirty five and one. I like Indiana as a
team building something that is greater than what we're seeing
today for this game today, very tough matchup. I think
they're kind of getting used to life with Oladipo and
now you're taking it away, which I think is a
hard thing, a hard pill to swallow when you've gone
the entire season without him, then a nice little stretch

(20:48):
with him, and now he's he's going away again, and
and to me, that's gonna be really hard. I think
the Pacers are a very strong team top to bottom.
I think the Raptors, though, in this matchup, match up
much better against Indiana. I really like the depth of
this Toronto team. You've got a guy Chris Boucher. He's
the tenth guy off the bench contributing for this Raptors team.
There are no other teams in the NBA that go

(21:10):
ten deep. Areal Yes, they literally have two lines. They
have they they can play ten players and and I
know they've suffered some injuries as well this year, which
is kind of hampered their their their their expansion of
being able to kind of grow without Kauai. This is
a team that has proven that they can win without Kawai.
They've got the second best record in the NBA. But
I I don't think that long term they can do

(21:33):
it without their guys in tow. Kyle Lowry needs to
be healthy, Marcus Soul needs to be healthy, Pascal Siaka
needs to be in the flow of the offense. But
they've got role players I like, I love what Powell's
brought to the table. I think Van Fleet is gonna
be a free agent in the off season, so he
might be playing for a contract. This is a very
dangerous Toronto team. You're talking about two teams we just
mentioned Boston and Toronto. If you want to pick of

(21:55):
one of those teams that can beat Milwaukee in the
Eastern Conference, those are the two team teams I would
take today. I think Philly is just an absolute train
wreck right now, and I think Miami is still a
year away. With those young guards in the back, Robinson
and None. I think Miami is good. They're improving, but
I think Miami's a year away. If you're gonna ask
me today if I'm gonna pick one team or two

(22:15):
teams to beat Milwaukee in the East, Toronto's one, Boston's
the other. I like the Raptors today to cover at
home against the Pacers. Yeah. I like the Raptors that
actually the lay the five and a half points with
Toronto today. They've won eight of their last home games
straight up. They also, when they're shooting over fifty from
the floor, are sixteen and oh this season, Verzy set

(22:35):
for the Toronto Raptors. So when they're hot, they're hot,
and I can't knock them at home, especially with all
Victor Eladipo on the Pacers. He did leave his last
game early with back spadsums, so now we're probably seeing
him doubtful today against Toronto Toronto at home. Like I said,
h straight, I love Toronto here and the minus five
and a half doesn't scare me at all. Yeah. No,

(22:57):
And and you know, the Oladipo thing I think does
ar me. I'm concerned about his health because he just
can't seem to stay on the floor. And he's a
dynamic player area he's one of the best players in
the league when healthy. You know, there's just some guys
that just can't stay healthy, and and that's a problem.
You know those are you know, I liken it to
Derrick Rose. I mean, when he's on the floor, he's explosive,

(23:18):
but he just couldn't stay on the floor. And that's
the main issue with Oladipo. This is a dangerous Pacers team.
I don't want to take anything away from what Sa
Bonus has done. T J. Warrens a great guard and
this is an Indiana team that can win games consistently,
especially at home. They're not at home today. They have
to go to the six to play this game in Toronto.
I think the Pacers overall are a team that is
a younger team that you can say, all right, this

(23:39):
team has a plan, They have a bright future. Nate
McMillan's on a great job as head coach. But I
just I just don't trust the depth, you know, and
we're starting to see some especially Oladipo continuing Toronto. I
like Toronto in this game. To eight team seems low,
but Raptors are defensive team. I would lay off the total.

(24:01):
All right, We're gonna preview Spurs at Thunder next. We're
also going to talk about the teams that looked really
hot this all after this All Star weekend. There's a
few of them that have actually been coming out of
the woodworks that I've been shocked about. We have more
coming up on at the window. We'll keep track of
those college hoop teams going on as well. In sports,
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Daily Rodal dot Com backslash Dunk to learn more. Welcome

(25:11):
back to at the Window. I'm Arie lf Peniors to
A thirty four in Midtown Manhattan. Jared Smith at the
Vandal's Words Book in the Middlelands. It sounds crowded there, Jared. Yeah,
the Maryland Jockey Club number number one race is going
off right now. Um, Sunday morning Ponies, Ariel. Yeah, it's

(25:32):
crazy over there on Sundays. My grandpa probably loving it. Yeah,
that's kind of the first dose of gambling. I got
into life. My dad's dad in Maryland is obsessed with
it and it's get into it. Yeah. Well, you know,
we're we're the MSG peeps. That's what we do. Um.
You know, I'll get into it when we get to

(25:52):
the Derby. And if we're still doing this show on Sundays,
I guess we'll recap the derby. Um. But yeah, that
I get into the Derby. I get it's of the freakness.
Belmont's fun We should go to the Belmont. We can
do like a segment at the Belmonte, segment at the
Belmont on Saturday and aired on Sunday. We're definitely doing
the Belmont. Will do something funny social media wise. Um,
but tonight we do have the Spurs and Thunder seven
o'clock PM Eastern times. So the Spurs that hung long

(26:16):
road trip coming to an eight game road trip that's
finally going to end. Um. What are your thoughts, Jared
on so the Spurs on back to back wind streak,
they're going now to Oklahoma City to take on the
Thunder tonight. What are your initial thoughts as the Spurs
will get to see the light at the end of
the tunnel of this road trip. My initial thoughts are

(26:39):
the Thunder are much better right now and the Thunder
are one of the best teams in the NBA that
we're not talking about it, and we really should be
because what they've done is incredible. I think Oklahoma City
is way ahead of schedule, way ahead of schedule, and
and Billy Donovan does not get enough credit for the
job he's done. They wanted him out last year, two
years ago, and and now he's taken a team that
you know doesn't have a lot of star power. You know,

(27:02):
Dylan ol Gallinaria, you know, kind of a good player.
I wouldn't say he's an All Star shy Gil, just
Alexander is a really good player, but a very young
player and has a lot of growing to do. Chris
Paul is obviously the heartbeat of this team, and I
think his addition has changed the equation a little bit
for Oklahoma City. He's not the same player that he
was five years ago, even ten years ago, even two

(27:23):
years ago, but he can still run an offense. And
what Billy Donovan has gotten is that extension of the
coach on the floor, and a really good, really young
team has now evolved into a playoff contender. And let's
be real, at the top of the Western Conference, it's
the Lakers, It's the Clippers, The Nuggets are okay, the
Jazz are okay. The Rockets have a really unique lineup.

(27:44):
We don't know what they are. There's an opportunity for
the Thunder to pick their head up and be a
four seed, be a five seed in the Western Conference.
If they continue to play this well. That the best
team against the number in the entire NBA sixties six percent.
You're telling me that if I've been on the Thunder
every game this season, I would have won sixty six
percent of the time. That is about as profitable as

(28:04):
you can be in the association area. So it's not
as much the Thunder or the Spurs in this game
in terms of what their situation is, which I think
is on the decline. But to me, it's the Thunder
and their asset as to one of the better teams
in the Western Conference. How about their reserve point guard
Dennis Schroeder, who for the Thunder has been great along
with Shigillius Alexander and Chris Paul. What has he been

(28:26):
able to contribute to this Thunder team. I absolutely love
what Dennis Schroder has brought to the table. He is
a unique, dynamic player. In fact, I saw a stat
for him that he's he comes off the bench, he's
a six man. He might be the sixth man of
the year, but I think he's led the team. I
think he's led the team in scoring right now, like

(28:49):
about twenty of their games this year. Six man right
now I don't need runner where it is you can
find it Williams that Shrewder is at plus one. And
to be honest with you, if if the Clippers continue
to struggle and lou Williams is forced into the starting

(29:09):
line up at any point because of the injuries, I
think Shrewder is the winner there plus two seventy. I
don't think Harold does enough offensively. I think Shrewder is
straw that stirs to drink a little bit. I do
like Shreder a lot. In fact, if I had to
make a pick right now, I'd say Shrewder is the

(29:29):
six Men of the Year. Woh, So right now you
have the Thunder is five point favorites. You said that
you know sixty six percent of the time they've covered
on the number, which is incredible for being the best
in the NBA. So would you do it here to
laying the five with Oklahoma City? Absolutely, I'm betting on
the Thunder every game until this trend gets bucked. And

(29:51):
I haven't taken a look at what their schedule is
for the second half. I think they're on the road
the next twenty games. You know, I'm gonna pu this
up now, area, because We were looking at this yesterday
during the Basketball Show. The remaining strength of schedule in
the NBA is to me the most intriguing part of
the schedule of the of the optics of the rest
of the season. Uh, let's take a little. Oklahoma City

(30:13):
is basically right in the middle of the pack. So
they I wouldn't lean one way or the other with
them in terms of their schedule impacting where their playoff
positioning will be. But we talked about this yesterday with
Milwaukee Area. They've got the fifth toughest schedule down the stretch.
It's actually been bumped down now to six. I guess
yesterday's the uh, the the game's kind of adjusted the
percentages of the strength of schedule. But right now Milwaukee

(30:34):
has the sixth toughest strength of schedule down the stretch.
I've got a place. They've got to play the Celtics twice, okay,
the Raptors three times. They have to play the Lakers
as well, so the But I don't want to say
the Bucks a vulnerable. They're the number one seed in
the East, and you can lock that in right now.
But we're gonna find out a lot more about just
how much better the Bucks are than the rest of
the field. The most impressive thing with Milwaukee so far,

(30:55):
if you look at the A T. S numbers in
the NBA, I believe it's Oklahoma City, Boston, and then
mill Wlwaukee. And the reason why that's impressive, Oklahoma City
has come from out of nowhere. Their odds have been
very you know, deflated. That's why they've overachieved. Boston plays
a lot of tight games. They're a good defensive team.
Their numbers are and is why that's why they're good
against the number team. Milwaukee has been favored by double
digits in in almost every game. I would say, I

(31:17):
would argue probably in half of their games to see
exactly that's why the fact that Milwaukee is such a
good team against the number is just that much more
impressive because of how big the numbers have been. But
I think those but and I think we talked about
this yesterday. I think the Bucks are a good fade
team in the second half, not from a win loss perspective,
from but from an ATS perspective, because they've overachieved these

(31:39):
big numbers and they're gonna face a much tougher schedule
down the stretch. Oklahoma City could also be a good
regression team. Usually teams that are younger tend to fade
down the stretch, and this has been an Oklahoma City
team that has overachieved the entire season. I like them
tonight against the Spurs because the Spurs have just been
absolutely dreadful on this road trip and they've fallen down
a lot over the last few games. But oklahom the

(32:00):
city to me, very unique team to watch and to
cap because of their youth and because of their athleticism.
Dennis Shrewder you you said it right there, that's the
guy to watch. And he's been a little banged up,
so we'll see if he ends up playing. However, we
have seen the Spurs went back to back games now
on the last two games of this road trip. It
seems a little too good to be true that they
can maybe win three in a road to cap off

(32:20):
an a game road trip, especially you know, on the
road in Oklahoma City. As you're saying, Oklahoma City playing well. However,
we have a few minutes left before we get to
college hoops. The teams that have been playing the best
out of the All Star breaks so far, aside for
the Milwaukee Bucks, who we've talked about. They beat the Pistons,
they beat the seventies sixers. Now we transition into two
teams that are at the bottom of the NBA barrel. However,

(32:42):
the Atlanta Hawks and the Sacramento Kings have been on
fire outside the All Star Break. What are your thoughts
at least first, let's start with the Atlanta Hawks since
the All Star Break. Yeah, you know, I think the
Hawks are a team that's gonna go as far as
Trey Young takes them. I think they're an interesting handicap
with John Hollands in the middle, they get Concapella, will
see how they transition into this new lineup. I don't

(33:05):
necessarily think they're a play on team the rest of
the season, despite their hot street. I think you pick
your spots with Atlanta. The problem is there's teams. I
was actually surprised that Miami couldn't figure out how to
guard Trey Young because they're such a good defensive team.
In fact, I think that game is actually kind of
a microcosm of what you might see the rest of
the season. Miami at times can lapse defensively because their

(33:27):
guards are more you know, focused on scoring and Obviously
no Jimmy Butler in the lineup has an effect on that.
But back to Atlanta, if Trey Young can can can
be that guy, he can win any game and carry
a team on his back any game, any night, Trey
Young can carry you. And he's the more one of
the I would say he's probably the deepest, you know,
with Lillard Hurt, the deepest shooter in the NBA right now,

(33:47):
You've got to check him crossing half court. And I
saw several occasions the other night where bad at a
Bayo was forced to switch on Young and Young was
jacking it up from the logo and they were going in.
So that's something to keep in mind when when Atlanta
face is a team with a stretch center and they
can isolate him on a pick and roll or or
or at the top of the key with Trey Young,

(34:07):
Young contrutter from anywhere on the floor, and usually the
bigs don't like to get up past the three point
line to to to guard you. So that was a
bad matchup for Miami the other night, and that's why
Young went off for fifty points. On the other side
of the coin, Atlanta does not like to defend, so
when you face a team, uh, you know, like a
Milwaukee that just gets up and down the floor with ease,
they are going to struggle to defend that. Miami doesn't

(34:28):
play that type of offense. Miami kind of runs a
little more of an ISO slower paced offense. And then
that's why Atlanta was able to take advantage out the
other night. That was still a very high scoring game.
But the Hawks they can continue to be consistent with
Trey Young. Yeah, exactly, they can. They can. They can
drop one thirty on anybody area. Yeah, and then they
did play Dallas. Atlanta played Dallas the last time out.

(34:50):
They won one eleven one oh seven, beating Dallas at home. However,
Dallas was without their two highest scorers in Kristaps Porzingiz
and Luca don Chick. Actually, though the Mavericks are two
in oh without there too leading scorers. Now I drafted
two in one, Jared, Why is that? I have no idea? Honestly,
I I it's like like to me, that is of

(35:12):
And you know, Rick Carlos is a great coach and
you gotta give credit to him. Uh. And you know
Tim Hardaway Jrs. Played well. I really like what Jalen
Bronson has done in the backcourt for Dallas, the kid
from Nova that won the title a couple of years ago.
He's been a good catalyst for this Mavericks team. Seth
Curry has even played well for them. So Dallas has
gotten good performances from unsung areas. But let's be real,
if it's not Don Check or Porzingis, and and I'll

(35:34):
be the first to admit, I am incredibly surprised at
how well Kristaps Porzingis has played this year. This was
not the same Kristaps Porzingis I saw it with the
Knicks in the previous couple of seasons. Now, granted a
team and we usually see that happen. No, no, don't
get me started on the Knicks. But uh, you know,

(35:54):
I feel like Carlisle has done a good enough job
to where he can get the most out of his
players on any given night. I think Rick a very
underrated head coach. We're gonna talk some college hoops coming
up next year and at the window and Jared Smith
might actually cry on air. Well you know what the
updated lines are. We'll track some line movements in college hoops.
Is the games continue to progress and as we get

(36:15):
to the start up the later games later this afternoon.
I can't wait to watch Jared cry. I think it's
gonna be kind of honey. Thank you next year on
at the Window on Sports Grade, Are you ready for
the nation's first and only free, twenty four hour network
dedicated to you, the betting and fantasy sports enthusiast. Sports

(36:36):
Grade will provide you with real time content, statistics and
gaming intelligence unlike anything you've ever seen before. Located both
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This is Sports Grade. Get off the grid, Welcome back

(37:11):
to at the Window. I'm Ariel Epstein. Jared Smith at
the Middle Ends at the Vandal Sports Book. Jared one
Better put one hundred thousand, five hundred dollars unfeeling to
make the playoffs at minus five thousand odds at the
super Book before the season at thirty five and twenty two,
thirteen and a half games ahead of the number nine
seen Wizards. It looks like they're going to make the

(37:31):
playoffs at chance according to ESPN, so the bet of
a hundred thousand, five hundred dollars is going to make
two thousand, ten dollars. Like really, what, I'm confused? Why
do this? Why? I don't know. That's a great question.
You're better off taking your hundred thousand dollars giving it
to me, letting me buy a stock that I think
is gonna do well, and we can double our money

(37:53):
in the time that it's going to take between now
in the playoffs. I don't understand it. I don't either.
People have this much money lying around. I don't get that.
But what I do understand, all right, we just talked
about the NBA for a while. What I do understand
is that you put down a bet on Penn's day
right now. So they're trailing thirty one eighteen and getting
nine and a half points at Indiana as the first
half is coming to a close with four minutes left. Decision.

(38:18):
Because I am a homer at heart, Ariel and I
I'm a glutton for punishment. I know I got this.
Penn State's a good basketball team. I didn't bet. I
should have bet the money line that was actually a
better bet. Um five and a half is where I
got him at. And I just bet him again at
eight and a half because I'm a glutton for punishment.
Penn State actually has this huge I just and so

(38:40):
it has this huge fundraiser called Than. It's the largest
student run philanthropy in the country. It's going on this weekend.
There's people that are these dancers that are on the
floor that it's not like they're dancing for a full
forty six hours, but they're standing for forty six hours.
So it starts on Friday around three four o'clock and
then it ends today around I think it's four or
five o'clock, um, something like that. So they raised millions

(39:04):
of forty six hours of dancing, so they stand for
forty six hours NonStop. They're not allowed to sit when
you're in the Bright Jordans Center. You cannot sit down.
You have to stand. Even if you're not necessarily a dancer,
you have to be standing in the arena at all times.
So definitely go and donate because it's for pediatric cancer research.
It's an awesome cause they've raised this high. I think

(39:26):
my sophomore year we raised like thirteen million dollars as
a school. It's really an incredible thing. So Penn State
obviously on the road today because of it. But they
do a thing called the line dance. So this is
what my point was. They do a thing called the
line dance, and every year students have to learn this
line dance, which they change it, and it's all about
the current events. It's a song, but they make a

(39:48):
dance up to it. It's a way to stretch everyone
out because they're standing so long. But in the song
it says we're a basketball school today. Basketball school. Yeah right.
I think we're more of a basketball school this year
than we have in years passed. But do I think
we are a basketball school like Duke or Kentucky or
Kansas or even Gonzaga is a basketball school? No, because

(40:11):
we haven't done anything to earn that. We've never been
to a Final four, we've never won a national championship,
and in my generation, which is the last thirty years, uh,
we've never even made it past the first round of
the INC Double A Tournament. They have made it to
the tournament in several times since I've been alive, but
they haven't done anything. Hopefully, this year, however, how far
can you see Penn State going this year? In the tournament?

(40:35):
It's a good question. I I do think we're a
Sweet sixteen caliber team. Now we're down sixteen all of
a sudden. I do think we're a Sweet sixteen caliber team.
I just don't know how consistent we are. And I'm
an idiot because I bet us against a good team
on the road today and then I'm gonna lose both
of these bets five and a half and eight and
a half, because there they look like absolute trash right now.

(40:57):
But I just don't see in my mind them going
past the Sweet sixteen. Oh my god, now they're down nineteen.
Oh really, I'm gonna cry in the air today. Hey,
it's only the first half. They can still get in.
They can still make a comeback in the second half.
We've seen it happen before. But speaking of comebacks, yesterday
a slate of games was huge. So you have Kansas

(41:17):
beating Baylor, you have San Diego State losing for the
first time all season. But amongst all those different games
last last night, what would you say was the game
that stood out to you the most, that was the
biggest surprise. Gonzaga going to b y U and getting
absolutely floored. I mean they got beat in both halves,
pretty convincingly. The San Diego State game was a little flukey.

(41:39):
San Diego State missed a ton of bunnies in that game.
San Diego State should have won that game, I think,
and I think if you played that game again tonight,
they would have won by double digits. Gonzaga going on
the road and being outclassed by b y U, I
think was the fine Luis. We got four at home
and they were one plus one sixty on the money line.
And to me, gans Zaga defensively is where they are

(42:02):
going to struggle uh in in the tournament. I really
like this Gonzaga team from an offensive standpoint, but if
we pull up their Ken Palm numbers, you know this
is a team that's thirty five in adjusted defense. Last year,
Virginia was a top five adjusted defense, top five adjusted offense.
That's why they won the title. Balance Yester not a

(42:24):
great defense, and that is a problem as well. I
think maybe if they played that game on our neutral court,
maybe Gonzaga would be Okay. I watched that game last
night at the Marriotts Center in pro Bo. That place
was rocking, and I don't think gonzagas you and and
this is something we talk about two with Gonzaga when
they go into the big gyms and they're not the
home team anymore. They're not used to playing in these

(42:46):
big gyms there in the West Coast Conference. They're used
to going to Pepperdine and San Diego and very small gyms.
Then they go to a big Marriotts Center that's I
don't know what the capacity is, but it looked like
an NBA arena last night. I have a friend that
works the marketing out there at p y U and
they went all out for that game, as they should.
It was the biggest game at the Marriotts Center since
when Jim or for Nett and B y You took

(43:08):
on Kawhi Leonard in San Diego State to top ten teams.
That was the last time that we saw that kind
of environment at the Marriotts Center in provol So you
can you tip your cap to B y You. They
did a great job yesterday. Spencer Haws one of the
best guards in the country. We don't talk about. B
y U is a very up tempo offense. They can
give some bad defensive teams problems in the n C
Double A Tournament, but their defense is what's gonna cost

(43:29):
them down the stretch of any big time tournament game.
But when it comes to Gonzaga, they're gonna be a
number one seed, I think as long as they win
the West Coast Conference tournament, which I expect them to do,
and I do think they're going to kill their number
one seed. Chances who are the other who are the
other one lines? Well, I bid Kansas and who else?
Taylor Kansas. That's a great question. I'm going to have

(43:51):
to look right now where the number one seeds are? Um,
But yeah, no, I mean I thought in Zag is
a shooing to be a number one seed, to be
honest with you, even even with the law last night,
I think they've done it off in the tournament, are
in the in the in the entire stretch of the
season to warrant that. But I'm curious what Jolan Aardy has.
I mean, I do take his numbers pretty pretty seriously.
So Kansas right now points to be the number one.

(44:15):
And here I'm gonna keep pulling it up over see
last night Kansas be Baylor sixty one. Kansas was plus
one and a half and plus one of five on
the money line. So really interesting that Kansas. There was
a underdog in the game at Baylor. Yeah, and I'm
not trying to pat myself on the back, but I will.
I gave out sixty five sixty Kansas on the show

(44:36):
yesterday and they won. But I got the exact number
of points as as I think it's Kansas right now.
If you had to ask me the ones, it's Kansas, Baylor, Gonzaga.
And then there's an opening. Mary lost and I think, yeah,
I think San Diego State falls off a little bit.
To be honest with you, I think that loss was

(44:56):
a bit I opening last night at home to a
average gu n LV team, Gonzaga went on the road
to a very tough opponent uh and and and they
lost the game that you know, they really could have
won if it was played on a neutral court. But
I think the atmosphere kind of threw them off their
offensive game. You mentioned it, four teen turnovers. That's a
big reason why they lost that game. I think in
Zaga overall is is a one line team. I think

(45:19):
Dayton could could beat their head up into that spot
as well. But back to Kansas and Baylor, I think
we saw the true Kansas team yesterday. Kansas is the
best defensive team in the country. There is no other
team in the country that has a guy like Udaka
as a bookie who can clog up the lane like
that and cause a good Baylor team, This is a
good Baylor team to just go absolutely dead from offense

(45:41):
in the second half of that game as a bookie.
Defensively is the most unique player in the country. There
are no more bigs in college basketball. Everyone's a slash forward. Now.
Gonzaga's got two bigs in the middle that are basically guards,
so nobody does it like in Zaga. In fact, if
you were like like Kansas, if you were gonna ask
me the most intriguing matchup now in the final four,

(46:01):
it would be Kansas against Gonzaga, because I think Gonzaga
has those two bigs and Petra seven Tilly that can
bring Azabuki away from the basket and make him more
of an out an outside guy instead of an inside guy,
And that is the intriguing matchup to me. I hope
we get Gonzaga and Kansas in the Final four because
I think that is a fascinating matchup. But today Kansas

(46:21):
is the best team in the country. They deserve to
be the number one overall seed, and they proved it
yesterday in Waco. Anas and Baylor both seven and o
in road conference games this season. And also we saw
that Baylor has never trailed by more than two points
in their previous twelve home games, so Baylor is a
really dominant team at home as well. With San Diego State, though,
Kansas and Baylor, I think that just because Kansas bet Baylor,

(46:43):
it obviously makes Kansas, you know, have that on their
resume to be the better team. But one seed wise,
I don't think that that would change the way that
the projections would be. I think that Baylor and Kansas
still stay as a one seed because of a loss
for Baylor. San Diego State to me is intriguing though,
because I feel like their loss might have opened up
that one spot, as you were saying a little bit before,

(47:03):
because they're one of those teams like when you're in
college football and let's say a teams such as like
a Big twelve team loses one game in college football,
that could be your chance of losing out on a
college football playoff because your conference isn't considered one of
the power fives. I think it could look the same
here for San Diego State. The undefeated run helped them

(47:24):
get a one seed, but how much does that one
loss help them lose the one seed. Well, when you
look at these teams and and and Ken Palm does
a great job of this. I know we talked about
Ken Palm all the time, but the information in the
analytics are just so prevalent to what we're doing. From
a headicapping standpoint. San Diego State is one of those
unique teams. They are a top ten offense, top ten

(47:45):
defense and adjusted efficiency, but their strength of schedule is
not good and wise, their strength of schedule not good
because they play in the Mountain West Conference. Same thing
with Gonzaga. Gonzaga is the number one team adjusted offense
in the country, top forty adjusted defense, but their schedules
one say thing with Dayton. Dayton is the second best
offense in the country, not as good defensively. I want
to say they're in the fiftiest seven. The schedule a hundred.

(48:10):
Dayton is a fascinating team. Now, I used to work
in the eighten I used to work at LaSalle. I
traveled around all these teams. I've been the Dayton's gym.
I've called a game in Dayton's gym. Dayton is one
of those teams when they're winning, that is a pro
gym that play, and there's a reason why the first
four gets hosted there every year in the n C
Double a tournament. That is a legitimate gym that's hard
to go into and play. That's why teams have struggled

(48:30):
so much to win there this year. But Dayton, to me,
needs to do more defensively. They're the best offense, one
of the best offenses in the country with Obie Tappen
and and they've got a great backcourt as well, but man,
they've got to be better defensively. Eaton hasn't been in
the tournament since two thousand seventeen. We're gonna talk more
college hoops, will update you on some halftime scores and
will assess some in game lines as well. Stay tuned

(48:51):
at the window