Nerd Sesh - Game 6 Reactions: Clippers SURVIVE Nuggets, Knicks CLOSE OUT Pistons

The nerds react to Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and the Denver Nuggets attempting to finish off Kawhi Leonard, James Harden and the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 6. Then, they break down how Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and the New York Knicks finished off Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons in another epic battle.

Timestamps

00:00:23 - Nuggets-Clippers

00:27:34 - Knicks-Pistons

#Volume

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
The volume. No, Oh my god, how could he do that?

Speaker 2 (00:16):
Watch what Charles Darwin? The nerves is where it's at.
Welcome everybody back into Nerd Sash as always, I'm Carson Braborn.
Alongside me is Logan Camden, and you already know the drill.
We got two awesome playoff basketball games to talk about today, Logan.
One team was sent home in the most dramatic fashion

(00:39):
possible and the other victor. Today Logan lives to fight
another day with their season on the line, and now
we get to experience the two best words in the
English language, and that's a Game seven that is coming
in hot in this Clippers Nugget series, which we've been
saying from the start, feels like this one's going seven.
Just such an awesome clash between these two teams, and

(01:02):
la pulls through and gets it done in this one. Logan,
I see a bit of a displeased look on your face,
and I'm wondering if that has anything to do with
the performance of James Harden, does it?

Speaker 1 (01:14):
Why you want that bullshit already?

Speaker 2 (01:15):
Bro, I'm not I'm asking a question. What did you
think of Harden's performance tonight, Logan? And what do you
think of the Clippers win, How'd they get it done?

Speaker 1 (01:22):
Why are you trying to assert that like like the
negative connotation. I was a football game.

Speaker 3 (01:29):
I'm just asking a question.

Speaker 1 (01:30):
Do you want the truth? I'm mad that I didn't
tweet this out. I said before the game today, James
Harden is going to have a big game, like.

Speaker 2 (01:37):
Because every time you run that mouth year is about it.

Speaker 1 (01:40):
I know, I know there's a track record. It was
a great hardened game, but I was expecting it. I
wasn't surprised. Like he pooped his pants last game, he
didn't play well the game before, I talked shit on
him on the pod. It was the perfect recipe. This
is the hardened cycle. The more I talk shit. See,
I didn't go crazy with the talking shits. It was

(02:00):
just a good hardened game. When I talked the craziest shit,
he went for a fifty piece.

Speaker 3 (02:04):
So it's true.

Speaker 1 (02:06):
Maybe that's what I go by like I'm but I'm not.
I'm not. I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna trash meal
is a good game. But the theme of his game
to me, Carson and the reason the Clippers won this
game and are such a great team is because of
how many different good basketball players they have, they can
contribute on any given night, and James Harden is one
of them. I honestly, I thought he was the best

(02:27):
one on the floor on the floor for the Clippers,
like start to finish. But you could also argue Zubots
with how important he was defensively on Jokic tonight, like
that was super impressive. Yokic never looked confident isolating him
one on one were attacking him like I thought. The
reason the Nuggets lost this game was that offensive lull
in the third quarter, and a big part of that,

(02:49):
to me was the fact that nobody wanted to attack
anywhere and Jokic couldn't just manufacture easy offense. So maybe
you go Big Zoo, Maybe you go Kawhi for his
all around impact. Maybe you say Norman Powell because of
his sh wretch in the third quarter, like Nick Batoon
gives you great minutes in the fourth that are really
imperative to this win. There are so many different contributors

(03:09):
that can kill you on any given night with the Clippers,
and that's there. That's one of the reasons why they're
such a great basketball team. Like I think they're big
three are all great, like all star level players, Kawhi, Harten,
and Zubats all of them. But they've got a lot
of guys that can kill you. Man. And uh, they're

(03:30):
a really good team. Man, I'm tired of acting like people,
you know, like they're not. They are a really good team.
They did scare me at the end there. That was
not a good finish to this game. I thought they
really let go of the rope. I thought that should
have been a time where somebody takes over and puts
this game to bed. Nobody looked like they wanted to.
But I thought they were the better team and this

(03:51):
one start to finish and Derek Jones Junior too gives
you like there's so many good contributors man on the
Clippers and this collective defense top to bottom. Man, the
Clippers are a really good team. I expected this one
to go seven, and this has been an awesome series.

Speaker 2 (04:07):
The Clippers are an awesome team, and it was really
good to see them look like the best version of
themselves again because the last couple games they just hadn't
played up to their potential. And part of that was
definitely Harden. But this is a game where you really
have all of the key contributors going, and I thought
that because of that, like they had a good offensive performance.
But where they really win this game and where they

(04:30):
really set the tone and pull apart is on the
defensive end. This was a tale of two halves for
them on that side of the ball, because in the
first half the Nuggets dynamic duo was balling out of control.
Man Jamal Murray came out in that fourth quarter and
he was red hot as a jump shooter again, so
they start blitzing him, they start doubling him, and he's

(04:51):
making all the right reads. He had six assists in
the first half. Jokic gets a couple of easy buckets
off rolls and cuts, and Jokic just had a really
easy first half. He kind of strolled to twenty points,
like had a really easy put back. Was doing a
really nice job of attacking the small ball unit, and
they did a nice job on a couple possessions in

(05:12):
that first half of swarming him. They forced a turnover,
they force a tough miss, but he was also able
to like walk the toom and walk Kawhi to like
eight feet from the basket on a couple of possessions.
So he was super efficient. Those guys were both clicking,
and then the second half was as uncomfortable as I've
seen anybody. Make Jokic and Jamal cool down, and they

(05:35):
were still bringing some blitzes, but they were doing a
better job of actually really taking the Nuggets offense out
of rhythm with them. I always think that it's a
real risk to blitz Jamal Murray when Nikola Jokic is
on the floor with him, because I just don't want
to give Jokic a four on three under any circumstances.
But they were able to actually force a couple turnovers
where Jamal just can't get a clean pass off, or

(05:58):
the Nuggets were playing some off defensive liabilities together. A
big part of that is MPJ having a bad performance
and them not being able to trust him with big minutes.
So you've got Peyton, Watson and Russ out there together.
Like Peyton Watson catches the ball at the free throw
line with a four on three, he doesn't really know
what to do in that situation. So they did a
really nice job on both of the Nugget stars in

(06:19):
that second half, But it's really Jokic where I just
thought they were outstanding of Vitza. Zubats is the best
Jokic defender on the planet. I really don't think it's close.
I said that coming into the series that he's the
best Jokic defender because over the last two seasons, Jokic
had shot thirty eight percent when guarded by Zubats. He
had shot his lowest two point percentage against the Clippers,

(06:42):
he had his lowest true shooting percentage, he averaged his
most turnovers. Like what I said coming in is Yokic
is going to get his in terms of numbers in
this series. There's no question about it. He's just too
great not to. But the Clippers are gonna make him
work harder for it than anybody else. They're going to
force him to operate from the perimeter more because he
can attack Zoo in single coverage like he can ninety

(07:04):
nine percent of centers even in the NBA. Zoo is
that one guy who has the perfect combination of elite strength,
which is the biggest box that you need to check
to be able to deal with Jokic because that's his
biggest advantage physically, and then he's also massive and he's
long as hell. He blocked Jokic three times in the

(07:24):
second half of this game.

Speaker 1 (07:25):
Have you ever seen that happen before.

Speaker 2 (07:27):
Not that I can think of. It was incredible and
also like you're getting some really nice help from Nick Batum,
and Batum did some nice jobs on some Yokic switches,
and they guarded him well as a team. They were
swarming his drives, they were swarming his roles, so it
definitely was a collective effort. But there were a number
of possessions where Jokic stared down Zoo and said, I

(07:47):
am going to try to score on you in isolation,
and he could not do it. I think he scored
one bucket on him in isolation in the second half
in maybe five or six tries. So that's just not
going to be Jokic's path to domin a game seven offensively,
which is crazy because he's been the most unguardable playoff
scorer in the sport for the last few years. But

(08:07):
Zoo is better equipped to deal with him than anybody else,
So I think it's going to have to be more
pick and roll. Yokic is going to have to be
willing to take open threes when they're there, because you
still see a spot or two where he hesitates in
this one and he tries to attack a close out
and the Clippers were just swarming, man. I mean they
were being super physical and super active with their hands.
So Prosta Harden, props, Norm Powell, props to Kawhi. All

(08:30):
those guys did their jobs offensively. But I really think
it was the defensive end where they won this game,
and that was a collective effort. But if there's two
dudes I'm given the most credit, it's Zoo and it's
Nick Batum, who was just incredible in this game. In
every defensive role. If it was dealing with Yoki off
a switch, he was good. If it was as a
back line helper. He has one incredible recovery play where

(08:51):
he blocks a Yolkic almost dunk attempt. It was a
layoup but right at the rim off the roll. And
then also Batoum is blitzing some pick and rolls and
getting hands there and making plays like he's just so
damn good. And then he's such a reliable shooter. I
do think he's their fifth best guy. I really like
Chris Dunn, but but Toom is so reliably good on
both ends.

Speaker 3 (09:10):
Of the floor.

Speaker 2 (09:11):
It's just an elite shooter with great size.

Speaker 1 (09:14):
He's a great player, like he's a really yeah, six
assists in this game.

Speaker 2 (09:21):
He was balling.

Speaker 1 (09:22):
I also, I think it's important to mention too we're
talking about the Clippers defense and also where the Nuggets
lost this game. I also thought in the second quarter
where they have I think eight turnovers in like seven
really early, that was a really ugly stretch of basketball
where they're just wasting possession after possession. Because, like you mentioned, man,
the offense got it going early and I didn't think

(09:42):
they were getting killed on the glass, but they gave
away so many possessions early to the Clippers, where you know,
you just come away with points in any of those situations.
It makes a real big difference late in the game.
And then their offense really stalled out in the third quarter.
But you got to give credit to the collective, man,
And uh, I'm just this is such a good game, man,

(10:04):
This was It was a battle and the Clippers are
so deep, man, that to me is the difference. Like
you just see the redundancy in some of the Nuggets
lineups with Watson with Brown, with Westbrook, like the subtle clunkiness.
And I really like Peyton Watson too, Man. I like
a lot of what Peyton Watson does. I like the
energy that he brings. I like the hustle, the defense,
the rebounding. Like the guy's a grinder, like he's he's

(10:27):
gonna give you everything he's gotten. I never have to
question that with Peyton Watson. But he has flawed offensively,
like you mentioned, didn't know what to do late in
the game, blows some close attempts at the rim that
are really crucial late. I just I think the Clippers
have more guys man, and more guys that you trust
and that are more versatile man that are more impactful

(10:48):
top to bottom. I'm not gonna count the Nuggets out
because I would never count out Yokic and Murray Man.
Like I just I think gave seven's a toss up.
Also another big thing I think for the Clippers to Carson,
you tell me if you feel the same way. I
think the fact that they're not playing at the Staples Center,
they actually have their own home now, has really made
a difference. Like having their own home, It's just like

(11:11):
the environment and energy and like the fact that it
just doesn't feel like they're playing in another team stadium.
I really think it's made a difference, and I think
that's been huge. Like they it just feels like they
go on more runs now that they're in this new stadium,
and I think that was a big part of the
difference too. But this is gonna be a showdown, man.
I'm I'm so excited for Game seven.

Speaker 2 (11:32):
The Clippers definitely brought the energy that they needed to
win this one, especially on the defensive end in that
second half, and like down to the final couple of minutes,
there's just a couple of outright effort plays. Kawhi running
the floor hard to catch up to Russ when he
had a leak out in transition and forcing him to
miss a layup. Nick Batoom blocking Russ on another leakout

(11:55):
in transition, Like those dudes were playing their asses off defensively.
And I want to make sure that Harden gets adequate
praise for what he did offensively, because I was kind
of baffled by his performance in Game five. And I
know there are people who say, oh, Harden's a playoff dropper,
how can you be surprised by it? But it just
didn't really make sense. Now he was exerting more defensive

(12:17):
effort with how much he was matched up with Jokic,
But that still doesn't excuse how uninvolved he was in
the offense. And I talked about the Nuggets were doing
a good job of putting two on the ball and
making him a playmaker and pressuring the ball. But what
confused me is he has been so unguardable in isolation

(12:37):
in this matchup. Why wasn't he turning to that more?
And in this game he did. He was hunting mismatches
off of switches. If that was Michael Porter Junior, who
he blew by early in this game, if that was
Jamal Murray, who he cooked on a number of occasions
early in this game, not so much down the stretch,
which is kind of where the Clippers offense fell apart.
He kept forcing that switch and he just was not

(13:00):
actually beating Jamal off the bouts and he was eating
shot clocks, and then it was kind of just like,
ah shit, I'm passing out of this and we'll see
what happens with three four seconds left in the possession.
But for the most part, Harden has been great one
on one in that matchup, and he's been great one
on one, even against Christian Brown, who's like done a
good job bringing pressure up at the level, But when
it comes to isolation, Harden has been able to get

(13:22):
buy or he's been able to create space for that
step back pretty consistently. So I liked him being more
aggressive attacking in isolation, and he was getting downhill and
he was finishing if that was in isolation, if that
was out of pick and roll, if that was even
in transition, and it's so big when he's actually able
to finish at the rim. It's something we've seen him
struggle with for years in the playoffs, as he's just

(13:44):
lost something athletically, and this is the best he's been
in a long time. And I think part of that
is just that the Nuggets don't have good rim protection.
But I also thought that he was making the right reads.
Like first half he was phenomenal, fourth quarter he was not.
But I'm really happy to see him have this performance
because I thought the discourse got pretty nasty around him

(14:04):
after last game, and it felt like everybody was just
chomping at the bit to be like, oh, James Harden
had a bad playoff performance, because obviously that's everybody's favorite
talking point. But it's like, he's a thirty five year
old guard. He's playing the best basketball he has in years.
Do you understand how historically rare it is for a
thirty five year old guard to be producing at an
all star level to begin with. Like, I've been as

(14:24):
critical of Harden's playoff dropping in the past as any
reasonable person has been. But I thought, like everybody jumping
at that one opportunity was kind of lame, And I'm
glad that he came out and he was like, Hey,
I'm capable of doing this. He just has to be
aggressive and he has to find the right spots to attack,
and he did in this one, and he was great.

Speaker 1 (14:44):
I mean, I thought it was the easiest thing to predict.
That's why I thought he was gonna go for a
big game. He did this exact same thing last year
with Philadelphia, where he goes for a fifty piece and
then he goes for nine. It's like, it's the hardened
cycle at this point, And yeah, it's it's the hardened
cycle at this point as as an older guard, Like
I'm not That's why I don't know, Like I'm very
critical of Harden, but I'm not surprised by his dud games.

(15:05):
I'm not surprised by is. It's just frustrating when he
isn't attacking like that because especially in a matchup like
this where no one can hold him. Murray can't hold
him one on one, Like the only guy that really can,
in my opinion, is Aaron Gordon. And the only time
he's gonna get match up with Gordon is when it's
off of a switch, right, Like he fries everybody else
in this matchup, and Harden's got to bring it tomorrow night. Man.

(15:28):
But there are more guys that I trust on the Clippers, dude,
Like top to bottom, they just have better depth. The
only reason that I'm still gonna ride with the Nuggets
and I'm still gonna stick with my pick is just
because of my faith in Jokic. Like I think he's
gonna be better. I need him to be better. I mean,
Zoo played excellent defense tonight, and that's what I can't predict. Man.

(15:49):
I think that's a wild card too, Like that's such
a special thing for the Clippers in this matchup too.

Speaker 2 (15:54):
Man.

Speaker 1 (15:54):
The fact that it's a big component of the Nuggets offense,
The fact that Jokic can always draw two to the ball,
and he's practical unguardable in single coverage. And if you
have a guy who can neutralize him one on one
to an extent, you know, it really smugs up and
slows down the Nuggets offense. Man. Yeah, and uh, it's

(16:14):
so interesting, man, I really feel like it's fifty to fifty. Carson,
Why do are you still rocking with the Clippers? And
why do you think they're gonna pull it out?

Speaker 2 (16:22):
I do think the Clippers are the better basketball team,
but the Clippers don't have Anikoi Jokic that is the
great equalizers. So I think that we are probably in
for an awesome down to the wire Game seven. But
my logic would be the same that it was coming
into this series, Like the Clippers are a great two
way team, and while the Nuggets have defended certainly at

(16:42):
a higher level in this series than they did throughout
the regular season, they still don't have the sort of
personnel that the Clippers do to make the opposing offense uncomfortable.
So if James Harden plays up to the level that
he should be at in this matchup, then I think
the Clippers are the better team, and I think the
reason that they dipped for those past couple of games

(17:03):
I had a lot to do with him not playing
up to his level. Yeah, I think that in a
lot of ways, they go with Harden because their defensive
foundation is consistently pretty elite. But offensively, he is the
guy who's running the show, like Kawhi is going to
be able to get his pretty consistently, and he's had
some nice games as a playmaker, but the guy who

(17:23):
is consistently manufacturing offense is going to be hardened with
the level of playmaker that he is. So they need
him to be aggressive, they need him to play downhill,
and they need him to play well. And that's exactly
what he did in this one. Also, Norman Powell being
this good was huge because he was struggling early in
this series. He is such a weapons.

Speaker 1 (17:44):
Norms won them guys.

Speaker 4 (17:45):
Man.

Speaker 1 (17:45):
He's got microwave on Hall of Fame like you. If
he sees one go through the bucket and it doesn't
matter if it's a layup or if it's a shot,
like he sees one go through and it's you could
be in for a flurry. Like he can drop ten
on your head in the blink of an eye. He's
so talented scorer. I'm really disappointed they haven't gotten more
production out of Bogie Man, like he I thought was

(18:05):
gonna be a really big difference maker for them in
this series, and he's just he hasn't shot well.

Speaker 2 (18:11):
Yeah, he had his moment in Game four, I mean,
he was a huge part of their comeback in that one.
And he's been pretty active, like on the glass and
defensively on that front, I've been impressed with him. But
norm has a pretty special combination of slashing and elite
three point shooting, Like his ability not just to get
to and finish at the rim as a great athlete,

(18:32):
but to get into the lane and hit those runners
where he just is so impressive, Like he can kill
you going left, he can kill you going right. Certainly,
he's a really really nice scorer. Obviously had a phenomenal
season there. But when that's your fourth best player, man,
that's pretty good stuff. And for the Nuggets, the guy
is supposed to be their fourth best player just was
really really bad in this one. And that's Michael Porter Junior,

(18:54):
who was getting targeted defensively by Harden, by Norman Powell
getting blown by It's unbelievable, Logan. The other Nugget starters
had plus minuses of minus two for Aaron Gordon, plus
one for Jokic, plus two for Jamal Murray, plus four
for Christian Browns. Do you know what Michael Porter juniors
plus minus was in this game.

Speaker 1 (19:16):
I'm gonna guess negative thirteen.

Speaker 2 (19:20):
Negative twenty four. Bro, Oh my gosh, he did it
for Kobe. I mean, we know that single game plus
minus is not to be overly value.

Speaker 1 (19:30):
It felt like this game, it.

Speaker 2 (19:31):
Felt like it felt like it in shout out dude
to Russ again, like stepping up and confidently stepping into
threes and making them and playing his ass off. When
he's been making his shots in this series. He's been
a real positive contributor. Just unfortunately last couple of minutes
isn't able to make the shots that he does get.
That gave the Nuggets an opportunity next game. I think

(19:52):
that the Clippers need to be much sharper with their
clutch offensive process. I do think that game is gonna
come down to the clutch, and certainly the Nuruggets need
Jamal to be going as a pull up shooter because
that just sets so much into motion for this offense.
Like if they are going to start putting two on
the ball and blitzing him, then okay, that's when you
start getting four on threes. And then you need MPG

(20:12):
to be out there because you need an elite shooter
on the floor Jokic can find off the short run.

Speaker 1 (20:17):
I need him to be active, moving, I need Brown
and MPJ. I felt like the Nuggets offense just got
really stale and stagnant, and I need them cutting two,
not just like spotting up and making shots.

Speaker 3 (20:28):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (20:29):
I'm really excited to see what we get out of
both sides in this game seven, but particularly Jokic man
because obviously the box score production is still crazy, right
twenty five point three points, eleven point eight rebounds, ten
and a half assists per game, but only fifty nine
percent through shooting. And that scoring volume is not what
we've seen from him in the playoffs in recent years.
He's been like an automatic thirty a game since twenty

(20:51):
twenty two, since twenty twenty one. Even so for him
to be down at twenty five points per game with
efficiency that is below his standard, I think it's a
testament to the Clippers defense, which is as well built
to guard him as any defense that we've seen.

Speaker 1 (21:04):
I think it is too. He needs to shoot the
three ball more because I think the Clippers if that's
the shot that he's gonna get and the Clippers are
going to concede to most of him. I think he
needs to be aggressive and step into those looks like
just less passivity. But I think I really do think
you saw it reflected how Zoo was playing him. The
fact that I don't know, man, I've never seen Yoke

(21:24):
look like uncomfortable like that, Like he didn't. It just
didn't look. It looks so easy for Yok at every
game and every matchup, but this one it's he's laboring
and can't get to easy looks and just the normal
easy way he can. It's a testament to zubots Man.
Zubats is the mand bro.

Speaker 2 (21:42):
Yeah, what I would say is it's the most I've
ever seen him affected by an individual defender, because there
were definitely stretches in the Wolf last year when he
was really uncomfortable. Well, but that's Gobert is the roamer. Also,
it's not Golberts as you realized. Name was really Gobert,
like Kat was doing a great job being a physical
counter for him. But then he's got one of the

(22:03):
best rim protectors of all time as a back line
defender behind him, like Zoo, defends him one on one
better than anybody else that we've seen, and that was
really really big for them winning this one. So I
do think the Clippers are the better two way team,
and that's why I would give them the slight edge
in a game seven. I do think they have more
good players, like you said, but I do trust Jokic
more than anybody opposite them, and if they don't get

(22:25):
a good Harden game that I think it's going to
be difficult for them to win.

Speaker 1 (22:28):
Give me Jokic, I think he's gonna be the best
player on the floor. I think MPJ bounces back yeah
and shoots better. I think he hopefully is active defensively
on the glass. We get good Brown in Westbrook games
and Jamal Murray does his thing. But this series has
been awesome. Man, it's been a favorite first round series.
Maybe yeah, No, I don't know about ever, because like

(22:49):
last year we got some.

Speaker 2 (22:50):
Uh oh what Nick's Nick sixers was incredible. It's not
my favorite ever, but it's my favorite of this year.

Speaker 1 (23:00):
Favorite, but we got a bunch of good basketball in
the first round, and Nick Piston has been awesome too,
But this is probably my favorite first round. In a minute,
I think my favorite first round ever, I don't was
it was Clipper Spurs a first round series.

Speaker 2 (23:15):
Four twenty fifteen twenty fifteen.

Speaker 1 (23:17):
Was that the one where Chris Paul hit that shot
over Tim Duncan.

Speaker 3 (23:20):
That's a phenomenal choice.

Speaker 1 (23:22):
I will never forget that series. Crazy shot Crazy. That
was an epic series that That's probably number one for me.

Speaker 2 (23:30):
That's a great choice. I always think of twenty twenty
one Clippers MAVs. That was just a ridiculous series. The
level that Kawhi was at, in the level that Luca
was at simultaneously, it was just like one of the
greatest playoff duels that I've ever seen. And that was
an epic first round. And for sure, one super chat
on this game from Jake says, good game from Russ

(23:51):
will win them game seven. I wonder if they've spent
up their good games from Russ in this series. But
I have to give him credit, man, because I thought
that he was so good for so much of the year.
Did such a great job assimilating and had such great
chemistry with Yo Kitchen, like was so good in their
minutes together. And then I thought that he struggled more

(24:13):
in some big games down the stretch of the year,
and when teams treated the Nuggets like a playoff defense
would really roaming off of a non shooter like Russ
really aggressively doubling and tripling Yokic, that Russ's limitations got exploited,
and I was worried that he was going to be
less playable in the playoffs than he was in the
regular season. And instead he's come in and like in

(24:35):
a couple of games, has been essential as a closer
for them above MPJ, and that's been really impressive, So
shout out to us. I do think that he's played
a good series. There's always volatility with the shot. He's
putting up open threes like their shots that he's gonna
be comfortable with. But we'll see how big he comes
in in game seven. I see the other super chats.

(24:57):
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Speaker 2 (27:34):
Logan. You mentioned Nick Sixers as one of the best
first round series ever last year. This one not far
behind it. I gotta say just how consistently tight these
games were. Every single one of the last five games
in this series was decided by six points or fewer.
And we got the elusive, the historically special series winning

(27:57):
shot in this one from Jalen Brunson, which is just
absolutely incredible as he nails a three shake cisar Thompson
to put them up and win this series. What do
you have to say about the Knicks advancing and what
did you make of their performance in this one?

Speaker 1 (28:15):
Well, I thought Brunson did a really good job at
the end of this game, just dragging the Knicks offense along.
They had nine points as a team in the fourth quarter,
and he had eight points in the final like two
twenty two of the fourth like leading up to that,
they had nine points and then he took over and
at eight in the final two minutes, Like, Brunson was

(28:35):
your clutch player of the year. Brunson's been nails in
the clutch all year and he's so good in those
situations and just any individual offense in possession, man, Brunson
is so good at getting you a good look. I
thought really early in this game, the Knicks offense got
rolling Brunson getting downhill, just them getting paint touches in general,

(28:56):
and then working the ball back out to the perimeter
and knocking down shots. But Brunton's the guy that gets
him across the finish line, and he does it in spite. Really,
if Karl Anthony Towns man, I mean, you gotta be
disappointed with what you get out of him. I mean,
he's supposed to be your second best player, and he
goes four to ten. Shout out Bridges, Shout out Anonoby

(29:18):
for knocking down some shots on the wing because they
really needed it. Also, though this is just such a
like Seesaw sort of game, Man, I didn't know who
was gonna come away with it in the end, Dude,
I thought the Pistons were gonna take it. I was like,
for sure we were gonna get Game seven with the
way that Assar Thompson was playing on Jalen Brunson and

(29:40):
the way like it looked like the Pistons had really
flipped a switch and we're just gonna lock them up
the rest of the way, and then Brunson just drags
him across the line. That to me, is the real
difference in this series is the fact that the next
had Jalen Brunson and they had the more reliable offensive players.
But I am excited to talk about the Pistons. I
think the Pistons are like right here, man, They're ready.

(30:03):
They're really close to breaking through. And uh, they didn't
roll over in this one either, man, Like they're I
think Detroit. I don't think this is a hot take
by any means, but I think Detroit is further along
than Orlando in my opinion. Like, I think they're closer
because of kid like and the roster that they have
built around them. Like maybe I like the foundation of

(30:25):
Paolo and Franz more, but like I think that the
Pistons are closer to like winning a series. I guess, like.

Speaker 2 (30:33):
The Pistons definitely have more really young players who I
am confident in being good. But the Paolo plus Franz
factor is pretty damn significant for Orlando because you're like
not looking for another really high level guy'd be nice
to have one as a guard.

Speaker 1 (30:52):
But that's that's what I think the Pistons need. But
I do like a lot of their young assets, man,
like a sar jaylen Dry and I thought had another
really good game in this one punishing the Knicks inside.
Who else, like Ron Holland, I think is jayde n
Ivy because Jade and Ivy's injured. Like, there's a lot
of young guys I really like when Detroit, but specifically

(31:12):
where they're at right now around Cad and where Cade's at.
I do think they need that second guy. But it's like,
if they got him, I think I'd trust the Pistons
to be able to push through. Like they just didn't
get consistent enough help offensively around Kate in this series,
but they battled for sure. Man. I think this is
a step up. I mean, damn man. They hadn't won
a playoff game for seventeen years, like Phistand's been in

(31:35):
the gutter. This is a huge step forward in the
right direction for them.

Speaker 2 (31:40):
It definitely is. But Jalen Brunson put him to bed
at the end of the day, and that's just what
he does.

Speaker 3 (31:45):
Man.

Speaker 2 (31:45):
He has such an insanely high scoring floor. And this
is something that we've been praising about Brunston specifically as
somebody who translates to the playoffs so well for the
last three years. When you can consistently get into the
paint and you can consistently kill teams with that short
range shot making. If it's the short mid range game,

(32:07):
if it's floaters, no defense can take those specific shots away.
And Jalen Brunson is one of the best on the
planet at consistently getting to those shots, and he has
a million different counters in ways to get to those shots.
His footwork is masterful and his shot making is masterful,
so he has some of the best resilience as a

(32:30):
score regardless of matchup, Like he's going to be able
to get to pretty good shot after pretty good shot
over and over again. He's not going to have like
the crazy high efficiency, easy rim attempts of like a
bigger elite athlete. He hasn't shot the three very well
in the playoffs, even though we know he's capable of that.
But even in the regular season he doesn't have crazy

(32:52):
three point volume. But it's that inside the arc scoring
that is so consistent, and he's always going to get
to line at an elite rate, which is also really
big in terms of his reliable scoring. Plus his endurance
is unbelievable. Like I saw somebody in my replies being like, oh,
it took him thirty three shots to get forty points

(33:13):
against a mid defense. Like first of all, when Asar
Thompson is your matchup for a majority of the game,
you're going up against one of the best defensive players
on the planet and a guy who is like built
in a lab to guard Jalen Brunson specifically, and he
struggled with a SAR on him. Like I think that
he shot three of ten in this game when guarded
by a star. He made the big one that counted.

(33:35):
But the ability to just keep coming, to physically hold
up like that, and not just in one game, but
over a playoff run, like he's already proven multiple times
over that he can do that at a level that
is really rare for anybody, and especially for a small guard.
Jalen Brunson has now played thirty playoff games with the

(33:55):
Knick slogan. He's averaged thirty point five points per game
and seven sisper game on fifty five and a half
percent true shooting. So the efficiency isn't great. You do
have to consider the context of just like the load
that he had and the limitations of the offensive players
around him in the first two rust year. Yeah, especially
last year. But the big thing is just like he

(34:16):
hasn't shot the three very well. He's made thirty three
percent of his threes. That's the only thing really keeping
his efficiency down. I think that is dark scoring and
getting the line like that has all still been phenomenal,
which makes it even more impressive because if he shoots
from deep like Jalen Brunson normally does, then the efficiency
is good. With this crazy volume in the playoffs, I.

Speaker 1 (34:36):
Think the biggest difference one. I think this Detroit matchup
is is really hard on him with perimeter shots. But
I think the biggest difference is the fact that he's
not playing as a spot up guy nearly as often,
Like he's a lot more ball dominated in the playoffs
in comparison to like some of the looks that he's
getting that he was getting in the regular season. Like
I don't think he's getting as many of those a night, right,

(34:57):
I think it's a lot more like pull up and
stuff like that. Like he's just not he's because he's
a really good Like he's improved a lot as a
spot up in like catching shooter, but he hasn't gotten
as many of those looks. But I mean to me,
Brunson's tough as nails, and he's as reliable as they come. Like,
he's dependable, He's just reliable. Man. He's one of the

(35:20):
most reliable offensive players in the game today. Absolutely, let
me ask you this ceiling taken away, who's more reliable him?
Are stuff.

Speaker 2 (35:30):
Who is more reliable in terms of their production like
Jalen Bronson in terms of their impact though Steph is
always going to be absurdly impactful, But in terms of
their scoring floor, it's not even a question. It's absolutely
Jalen Bronson. And part of that is just ball dominance,
but part of that also is his ability to consistently
carve out that shot diet in the paint and in

(35:52):
the intermediate area and getting to the line. Like he's
as reliable as a small guard can be offensively, He's
a historical outlier, honestly in that way.

Speaker 1 (36:01):
I also just don't like how some of the people
have been talking about Brunton recently too, like, and I
get it, the foul stuff has been ugly and I
don't like it either.

Speaker 2 (36:09):
But it was really just that one game though, I mean,
sense I know, but it gets you.

Speaker 1 (36:14):
Know what I mean, You have a game like that
and it kind of gets blown and people make that like, oh,
he's a free throw merchant. He's a foul merchant. And
I hate the way that people run with that because
Brunson is so talented, he's such a great guard and
just like I said, man, he's dependable, and especially when
you get a CAT game like this. Man, I was
really disappointed with Cat tonight. Like I just I don't

(36:35):
know how great Kat is as a player. I know
how skilled and talented he is, but he's still a
little inconsistent, man, And it's just it's disheartening.

Speaker 3 (36:44):
Man.

Speaker 1 (36:45):
I really want to like Kat, and I really want
to root for him, and I really just want him
to be more consistent. It's hard, man, when you don't
bring it like this is a really important game, and
Kat left me wanting a lot more.

Speaker 2 (36:56):
A series in which this much physicality is allowed is
not going to be a good thing for Kat, Like
just flat out, if you're allowed to consistently foul him
on drives and post ups, he's not gonna deal with that. Well,
he's not comfortable there. He's going to start to force
some bad, out of control drives and runners. And that's
exactly what happened in the back half. Of this series.
I thought he was still able to have an impact

(37:18):
on the glass. I thought that he was excellent. But yeah,
obviously this is not a good enough performance from kat
as a scorer. But that's what Jalen Brunson can make
up for. He's one of the best clutch shot makers
and scorers in basketball and one of the most reliable
offensive performers in the playoffs, and like, you know, even
when he's struggling, he's going to be able to get

(37:38):
to enough good shots and enough of them are going
to fall. And New York just needed him to step
up and take over this one, and that's exactly what
he did. But shout out to mckel bridges as well
for some huge shot making in this one and great
activity on the offensive glass from all of the knicks.
So like other guys did step up, but it really
was the Brunson show in the biggest moments. On the

(37:59):
flip side, I do want to talk about Caid Cunningham
and how his first playoff run went. How would you
evaluate it, Logan, I'd.

Speaker 1 (38:10):
Give Cad like a seven, and like, I don't know,
I don't want that to feel like a cop out answer,
like a six or a seven. I don't think Cad
played above and beyond, but it's really about what I expected.
And that's why I say the Pistons are close. Man.
I think there's such a large burden on Caid to
generate so much offense, and these games were so close,

(38:35):
Like you mentioned, I really think the outcomes of these
games could have been swayed by Malik Beasley or Tim
Hardaway Junior or Tobias Harris literally just making a few
more three pointers. And there are some things that I
think Caid needs to clean up. I think he's got
to manufacture some more of the easy stuff, if that's
from deep, from behind the arc, pull up threes, stuff

(38:56):
like that. Like you know, guards just have to have
something they can go to reliably score on ball, or
if that's getting downhill all the way, because he's a
good like mid range scorer and off the dribble kind
of guy, but he needs something more reliable. And then
he's got to protect the ball better less turnovers, and
the turnovers I can live with really with Kate, Like

(39:17):
he's just got the ball in his hands so much,
but he does need to get better there, but he
just doesn't have There's so much pressure on him on
a nightly basis, and he's the only real like ball
handler on this team. And they got to get a
number two and the ideal guy, the guy that I
wrote down like the ideal player. Obviously you wouldn't be

(39:39):
able to get this guy because he's locked into the
situation that he is. But like a Pascal Siakam, I
think would be like a really good running mate for
Kate if you could get a forward like that that's big,
that can finish, that's you know, can handle a little
bit too, that can shoot from behind the arc, like
a three level scorer, but a guy who's complimentary really

(40:02):
to Kaid, And that's what I want them to go
out and get. Or maybe we see Jay and Ivy
continue to get better and he can take some of
the ball handling duties, but it's not much of the
ball handling is more so guys that can capitalize off
of that. And you know, I think Duran can play
well off of him. I thought him and Duran had
some really good moments and chemistry in this series and
they're a good pick and roll duo. I think Cad

(40:23):
just naturally makes shooters better. But you know what I mean,
somebody more, somebody better, you know, an actual number two
for kid, because I think right now he's got a
lot of number fours or number three is honestly right now,
and that's just not enough for the Pistons to win
a series. But I really like the Pistons identity. I

(40:45):
love the energy they bring every night. I love the
defensive floor that this team brings you. I love their hustle,
I love their culture. I like what Detroit is building
a lot. It's a talent issue, and I really they
got to get that number two. I think to Caid
and uh, you know, there's no need to rush the timeline.
But I do think the Pistons are close. Man, I

(41:05):
think they're closer to winning. Like I said earlier, I
think they're closer to winning a series than the Magic are.

Speaker 2 (41:12):
They definitely still have a ways to go in terms
of like adding talent to really ascend in some of
these conversations, but also Caid has limitations and flaws of
his own that have consistently been limiting factors for him
that were very much issues in this series. And I've

(41:32):
been talking about these things and people act like I'm
a Caid hater, which I'm not. I defended the shit
out of kid last year.

Speaker 3 (41:38):
I love him.

Speaker 2 (41:39):
Logan, you said it if.

Speaker 1 (41:41):
It is a byproduct of his situation though.

Speaker 2 (41:43):
Right, dude, When you are not comfortable walking into an
open pull up three, that's a you problem. When you
shoot forty eight percent inside of five feet, that's a
you problem. And these are the two things with Cad
that he has always been lacking. The ability to manufacture
high efficiency, easy offense. He is a bucket from the

(42:04):
mid range and with his size it's so fun to watch.
But he is the worst finishing star guard in basketball
at the rim. That's been consistent. That was a big
problem in this series. He doesn't blow by people, and
he's not a great vertical athlete in the rim, so
his finishes tend to be pretty tough in the lane,
and he's just consistently inefficient there. And then down the

(42:26):
stretch of this game, man, he's doing the right thing
consistently bringing Jalen Brunson into the action using his man
as a screener. And what was the coverage that Brunson
did against that all series? They're not gonna give Kay
that switch. So Brunson is going to show and then
he's gonna go recover out to his man who's popping
out for three, and after Brunson shows there's always a

(42:47):
split second where Kate is open if he wants to
shoot a pull up three before Og has recovered, and
Ky goes oh of eight from three in this game.
He's under eighteen percent from three in this series. So
he stops taking those looks and he won isn't making
those looks so like that inability to create that consistent
good offense at the rim or from beyond the arc

(43:08):
is just a limiting factor for an offensive number one
as a guard in twenty twenty five. It doesn't mean
that Kate isn't a star. He absolutely is, but when
people try to start talking about him in top fifteen
conversations flirting with top ten conversations, no, he's just not there.
He has to be able to get easier offense for himself,
and he has to cut down on the turnovers, like
absolutely his usage is a part of it. He also

(43:30):
has more bad turnovers where he loses the handle than
any other starguard in basketball. Five point three turnovers per
game in a series is crazy. So he's still really
fucking good. Dude, and like, this run went basically as
I expected for him. I would just say the ugly
aspects of his game were a little uglier, Like he

(43:50):
really really struggled shooting, He really really struggled.

Speaker 1 (43:53):
He's finishing. I mean, this is also Kate's first playoff series.

Speaker 6 (43:57):
He's is young, yeah, and he's facing a defense that
is like consistently showing aggressive coverages to him and of
course is way more worried about him beating them than
anybody else.

Speaker 2 (44:09):
He's good. He's just a stark caliber player, no question.

Speaker 1 (44:11):
And these are good defensive wings that he's matched up against.
If it's Anonobe Og, if it's hard Like whoever it is.

Speaker 2 (44:18):
It's really Og. I mean against McKellen hart. Those guys
are smaller, but Og did a phenomenal job on him,
and like is one of the best perimeter defenders in
basketball and specifically for k just being able to counter
his strength. But there was a lot of conversation about, like,
who's going to be the best player in this series,
and I thought it was clearly going to be Brunson,
and it clearly was Brunson. Like there's just a gap
between them in terms of the easy offense that they

(44:39):
can create for themselves or in Brunson's case, it's not
always easy offense, but he's just so ridiculously good as
a shot maker that it's going to be more efficient.
So we have a question related to Kaid from Marcus.
What do you guys think Kid needs to do to
take that next step as a top five player? When
I watch him, I feel his hands defensively need work.

Speaker 1 (44:59):
A top like a top five player in the league.

Speaker 2 (45:02):
That's what I think.

Speaker 1 (45:02):
Yeah, I mean, Caid would just have to take a
really massive leap as a scorer like me and Carson
were talking about. Really, I think the easiest is that
pull up shooting. I think that you just got to
make guys pay. And what that would do for Kid
does not only give him something that he can go
to reliably, like out of the pick and roll, out
of isolation, like just getting into that look. But in theory, again,

(45:26):
this is top five kid we're talking about. You know,
he's going to be better as a spot up guy
too in the team context, as you know, off ball
and really protecting the basketball better. I think that's a
huge component of it. Just being more efficient not giving
away so many possessions per game, and he's got to
be a better finished air at the room. Really just
becoming a more reliable score in general, because there's a

(45:47):
lot to love with Caid, his playmaking, the ability to
see over the defense and make passes that other guys
just can't, the defensive ability with Caid, the all around
other impact that you're getting from him. It's really that
reliable scoring that's gonna take him up another level. But
like I said, Kaid's a young guy. I'm willing to

(46:08):
give him some grace with this series because I don't
think he's done growing. I think there's a lot more
that Kate is gonna get better at and it's gonna
come with time. And I mean this is what his
third healthy season. Yeah, so yeah, these are things I
want him to clean up. But I still think it
was an encouraging first playoff series. Not that there's things
that he needs to clean up or get better at,

(46:30):
but it wasn't a disaster. I thought Kate held his
own a lot of moments in this series.

Speaker 2 (46:35):
Look, man, if you put up twenty five, eight and nine, like,
that's never going to be a disaster. It's just his limitations,
definitely were factors in making life harder on him in
this series, and I don't think that Kate has a
top five ceiling. I'm gonna be honest. I just think
like this inability to create that super high efficiency offense

(46:58):
has always been a limitation for him, and I don't
see that getting better. The way for it to get
better would be if he becomes an elite pull up
three point shooter, and for him to reach top five level,
I think he'd probably also have to become like a
really high impact defender. Consistently, I don't really see the
finishing getting better. His burst isn't going to get better,

(47:19):
so it's going to have to be that pull up
three becoming a real weapon, which he improved this regular
season compared to last year, but it still has to
get better, and it certainly wasn't good enough in this series.
We have another question from Gabriel. Do y'all think k
defers too much in the clutch? I would say not really.
I think that there was the one game where he

(47:42):
was pretty passive and deferring to Shrewder. In this game, frankly,
I just thought he lost confidence in the shot that
was there for the taking, and that was the pull
up three, So it wasn't like him deferring necessarily. It
was just him losing faith and losing his aggression, which
was a problem in this game. But it's not like
a mentality, big picture.

Speaker 3 (48:04):
Thing with him.

Speaker 1 (48:05):
I wouldn't say dud Jiji has not lost her aggression. Bro,
she is locked in. She's about to get with somebody
else side the door.

Speaker 3 (48:12):
Good. Oh, somebody's got to do it.

Speaker 1 (48:13):
And I think it's a little Russian dude with the
bet beat me over the head.

Speaker 2 (48:18):
Well, somebody's got to put him in his place. You
were talking about Detroit's future. I do really like where
they're at, and I think if you're looking at the
supporting pieces and the young guys who they really view
as long term pieces for them. This was an awesome
Azar series, like what he was able to do to
Jalen Brunson guarded him as well as anybody could. Brunson

(48:39):
shot twelve of thirty two when guarded by a SAR
in this series. He just has such a special combination
of quickness, length, size, elite vertical athleticism. He and the
men are like truly special Year two defenders, like two
of the best guys for being only in their second
season that we've seen in a long time on that
side of the ball, and then offensively, like he was

(49:01):
great as a cutter, he was impactful in transition. So
I think you feel really good about the series that
he had and how he's developed coming off of the
blood clots and everything. And I thought that Duran was
really good too. I thought that he really improved defensively
this year. I thought that he was excellent on the
glass in this series. I thought he was good as
a finisher. He was really good at the line, and

(49:21):
one of my favorite things about Duran is his passing feel.
I thought his short role playmaking was really good. So
everything you want from that complimentary big to play with kid,
the play finishing, the rebounding, the passing, and then being
an improved defensive anchor, I thought you got all of
that from Duran. So I feel really good about those two.
Like neither of them have star potential that I'm confident in.

(49:45):
I can't say that a star doesn't have that because
of his physical tools, I just don't think he is
the level of offensive talent that a man is, Like,
I'm so confident in a men being an all star,
but I think he's better kind of in every way offensively, handle, touch, passing,
all of that stuff. But they're both really really good,
high impact role player archetypes. And then I thought Jay
and Ivy was playing really good basketball before he got hurt.

(50:07):
And I do think, like you said, he does a
lot to help take pressure off of Kid as another
creator that this team didn't have down the stretch, and
they still won a lot of games. But I think
that he's going to help them long term. The one
guy who I did not like as a pick and
who I still do not like for them is Ron
Holland I just don't understand taking him in the top
five when you have a star Thompson. I just don't

(50:29):
see that for the long term vision. How are you
going to have two complete, non shooting wings as top
five picks.

Speaker 1 (50:35):
I mean, I just like a lot of the young
talent that they have, and I think Ron's in a
very valuable archetype in the league today, a junk.

Speaker 2 (50:42):
One that you can have one of you can have
one of them, you can't have two of them on
the same team. And they drafted two of them and
back then crazy.

Speaker 1 (50:49):
One of them becomes an average shooter, Like they're both playable,
and they're both, like I said, like valuable, Like dude.
I thought Ron Holland's defense this year was excellent. I
thought when he's a doult like, he gave you good minutes.
I think he's a problem still in transition and there's
some things that need to get refined there, don't get
me wrong, but I love his long term upside. I
think there's a lot to work with with Ron. I

(51:10):
think Azar is a really good young asset during two
Ivy and I'm still very very high on Ivy long
term two with his burst, his explosiveness, his gracefulness, finishing
at the rim, like he's a.

Speaker 2 (51:26):
Special shot the ball really well this year.

Speaker 1 (51:29):
Yeah, man, I loved Ivy as a prospect, and I'm
I like a lot of the guys that Detroit's taken,
and I think they have a really bright future with
a lot of these young players. Do they all fit together,
I don't know, but they're all young. Like again, I
think all these guys are going to continue to get
better and better and better. And with teams like that,
it's like if they all get better one offseason, it's

(51:50):
like they could take a really big leap if a
lot of guys put it all together and they've got
good vets man, Like, I really like where the Pistons
are at, and I really like a lot of young talent,
and I think they're all gonna get better. Man. So
I'm I'm really excited for Detroit in their future.

Speaker 2 (52:06):
And I want to be clear, like because I understand
that I was critical of Cad in terms of where
he needs to get better and where he struggles. Like
he's already a guy who was in top twenty five conversations,
who is in all NBA conversations, and like, that's awesome
for your fourth year guy and your foundational piece. And
I do think he will continue to get better. And

(52:27):
then I really like Ivy Duran and a sar all
around him. So what a turnaround in one year for Detroit.
I will say, Logan, I was never out on this
Detroit corp. Go back and listen to the things I
was saying about him last year. As everybody was out
on Cad and shitting on their entire existence, I said, look,
I get it, they're winning fourteen games, but I like
some of the pieces here and I feel good about

(52:48):
this young core and also like this defense is just awesome.
I thought that they were really impressive on that side
of the ball. We have some more chats. Jonathan says
Detroit pistons Asar's ankles missing, kid, get ready to go
fishing because that Nick's just one in six. Let's go.

Speaker 3 (53:05):
Bingbong Yeah for real?

Speaker 2 (53:07):
Why is it bingbong back that died when Julius Randall left?

Speaker 3 (53:11):
I guess that's kind of sad.

Speaker 2 (53:14):
We have another chat from edge Rush. Thank you for
your generous donation. Is Brunson a top five playoff riser?
Also thanks for the stream boys, Thank you for listening.

Speaker 1 (53:23):
H I mean, I don't know. I don't really know
if Brunson gets so much better in the I think
Brunson just kind of does this every game.

Speaker 2 (53:32):
I think his ability to maintain and increase his volume
in the playoffs and to consistently get to those shots
that we're talking about, those bread and butter intermediate looks
like that does give him a uniquely high floor like
I've always talked about compared to Donovan Mitchell. Right, there's
just a different scoring floor with Brunson because he's always

(53:53):
going to get to those reliable shots game after game,
so I do consider him a playoff I do think
that he comparatively gets better in the playoffs, because you
have to think, like the standard for most stars is
life gets harder in the playoffs, Like you're gonna look
a little bit worse, your efficiency is gonna drop a
little bit. Brunston's efficiency has dropped a little bit, but

(54:14):
the production has been outstanding. Yeah, Like, I think his
outlier ability as a shot maker and ability to live
in the paint and live at the line does make
him a playoff riser top five. This is tough because
it's like, what do you do with the Jimmy Butler
who over the years obviously has been Jamal Murray. Sometimes
playoff rising is tough to judge with sample size. The

(54:36):
one dude who I do consider like the playoff riser
of all playoff risers in the NBA right now is
Kawhi Leonard. I normally consider you'll get you a playoff
riser remarkably like as a scorer, at least because he
turns his volume up. So I think Brunson is definitely
one of the guys who is like clearly better in
the playoffs. Anthony Edwards absolutely, I think actually He's even

(54:58):
above Brunson in terms of player off rising. He's been
phenomenal every time that we've seen him there. But Brunson
is really really awesome in the playoffs. Mason big fan,
much love my guys, Thank you. Mason Ethan says Tatum
will continue his dominance in Sweet New York. We're gonna
preview that series and we're gonna preview Cavs Pacers tomorrow.
But yeah, I don't feel very good about the Nicks

(55:19):
chances not to be a bumming in Yeah, we have
one more donation from Kaday Ken love your confidence of
my Clippers, Carson. I'm nervous but excited for Game seven.
Let's go Clips. I think it's gonna come down to
them bringing the same defensive intensity and performance that they
had in this one, and then James Harden giving you
the performance that he did in this one, or at
least something comparable to it. But I do think the

(55:41):
Clippers are really good. Man. I've been drinking that kool
aid all year and I'm not putting it down at
this point.

Speaker 3 (55:46):
I'm riding out with the fellas.

Speaker 1 (55:48):
Who would have thought Clippers went further than the Lakers? Man?

Speaker 2 (55:53):
Well, yeah, they lasted longer at least.

Speaker 1 (55:55):
Yeah, did you see that one thing? Man, I've been
seeing a meme going around where it's like the Mavericks
and Lakers really ended up with the same amount of
playoff wins this year.

Speaker 3 (56:04):
One that's not true.

Speaker 2 (56:06):
It is, oh, we're counting the play in I mean technically, well,
the NBA doesn't count, and actually the NBA doesn't acknowledge
that the plane exists. Fantatistics from it cease to existing game.

Speaker 3 (56:17):
They are phantom games.

Speaker 2 (56:19):
What an awesome couple of very real games we got today, though, Logan,
this first round has just been special, and I really
am excited for Clippers Nuggets Game seven. That was the
one series that from the jump felt like it was
going the distance and has given us some great basketball
and I'm excited. I'm really excited to see what level,
especially the best guys on the floor, get to in
that one. We will be back then, we will be

(56:42):
back tomorrow. We're going to record our preview of those
Eastern series during the day, so that's not going to
be part of our nighttime live stream. But then Logan,
if I'm not mistaken, we are going to be live
reacting to Warriors Rockets. Is that true?

Speaker 3 (56:55):
Oh yeah, yeah, I mean we got to talk about.

Speaker 1 (56:58):
Rockets game six R Thompson's brother.

Speaker 2 (57:01):
We're gonna be talking about a men who, if you
can believe it is even better than us.

Speaker 3 (57:05):
Are What a special guy he is. They are awesome,
They really are.

Speaker 2 (57:10):
I'm telling you man to be this special defensively at
this age. It's really, really, really rare, not something that
you see very often in this league. So we're going
to talk about that game, and if you want to
join us, you know where to find us right here
on our YouTube channel. You can catch us live or
you can listen back after the fact. You can also
find on our YouTube channel all of our video essays

(57:30):
and video breakdowns that we do. I just made a
video the other day about why depth is more important
than ever before in the NBA. If you want to
go check that out. You can also listen to all
of our full episodes across all audio platforms, and you
can check us out across social TikTok and Instagram at
nerd Sesh, Twitter at nerd Underscore Sesh, and if you want,
you can join our discord to be part of our
community there and chat with the gang that is linked

(57:53):
at the link tree across our social media bios. So
with that as always appreciate you guys. I've been Carson Braber,
I'd been lugging Camden and this was nerd Sash