May 16, 2025 • 44 mins
The nerds' react to the Game 6 clash between Nikola Jokic's Denver Nuggets and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's Oklahoma City Thunder.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
The volume. No, Oh my god, how could he do that?
Watch what Charles Darwin?
Speaker 2 (00:20):
The nerves is where it's at.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Welcome everybody back into Nerd Sash As always, I'm Carson
brev and alongside me is Logan Camden, and you already
know the drill. We've got one incredible playoff basketball game
to talk about today in what has been an absolute
peak series, my favorite series of the playoffs so far,
Logan honestly pretty comfortably. It's just been incredible. And after
(00:45):
tonight's result, we are headed for a Game seven between
the Nuggets and the Thunder. We'll talk about what to
expect in what our predictions are for that game seven later,
First we have to talk about how the Nuggets pulled
out this win. Logan back's against the wall, down three
to two, Jamal Murray questionable to even play in this
game with an illness.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
He ends up coming in huge.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
What did you make of Denver's performance and how they
got this done?
Speaker 4 (01:10):
The first guy I want to give props to is
Julian Strowther. I mean, I thought he completely sunned this
game when he came in in the third quarter. And
we've been talking about it all series long, Carson. We
talked about it even last episode. We kind of brought
up his name jokingly as like a guy in that
archetype that could step up and make some shots.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
But he came through huge in this game. I mean, he.
Speaker 4 (01:31):
Powers a ten to zero run at the end of
the third quarter that really put Denver in pole position
to pull away and win this game. It wasn't the
cleanest execution to close out in the fourth quarter, but
they do come away with it, and I thought that
was the really key stretch in this basketball game.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
The other guys that I.
Speaker 4 (01:49):
Think deserve a lot of credit for Denver is Jokic.
I think Jokic really dealt with the coverages well tonight
and really picked his spots throughout most of this game.
I was concerned with the level of aggression that we
had gotten out of Jokic. I wanted him to be
more aggressive, and it's like, right as I felt that,
and I felt like they were teetering on the point
(02:11):
of he's not doing enough, Jokic really clicked into gear
and so I thought he picked his spots well and
was aggressive when he needed to. But I also just
thought he play made and protected the ball better than
he has in most of this series. Christian Brown had
a massive first quarter, and I thought that the Nuggets
did a really good job of turning defense into offense
(02:34):
in that first half, and I thought Jamal Murray had
a really good game and they played really well defensively.
These teams are so close, Carson, I didn't feel like
the margin was that big in this game. I really
felt like it was decided by a few stretches in
this basketball game. And Denver got out to this big
lead in the first quarter, and then we got some
(02:55):
disastrous Russell Westbrook minutes into the second quarter that tanked it,
and then Strawther gives them that big surge in the
third quarter that gets them to pull away. It really
feels like the difference in all of these games, Carson,
one could be one stretch of basketball or who executed
better in the clutch, and I thought in this one,
it was that stretch in the third quarter, in that
(03:17):
surge by Strother, and I thought that Oklahoma City did
act or excuse me, Denver did execute better down the stretch.
And this was a really disappointing game from Oklahoma City
supporting cast and their surrounding shooting, but.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
Shout out Denver. They didn't lose on the home floor,
and we are getting Game seven. Man, I am so excited.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
I'm so excited too.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
I think that this is just gonna be the creamiest
Game seven that we've maybe ever seen.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
Ao.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, I said it, I meant it. I said it
on purpose. I agree.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
Of six games in this series have been absolute bangers,
and the best part Logan Sga and Jokic, both of
whom who were seeing some extremely aggressive, difficult coverages, have
been all series, but we're struggling with it earlier. Now
they have both really found their rhythm. I think they've
both gotten significantly more comfortable. They know how to attack
these respective defenses. I think that they've both just been
(04:08):
phenomenal in these last two games, and I do think
we're going to get two more stellar performances out of
them in Game seven. So it very well may come
more down to what do you get from the surrounding pieces,
And in this one, it was Denver supporting cast who
stepped up and played better. Julian Strawther absolutely massive to
be able to get those minutes out of him, Like
(04:29):
this is a guy who has been on the fringes
of the rotation to come in confidently, knocked down two
threes to make a really smart cut, and then even
into the fourth quarter, he was giving you production. He
hits the three that like effectively ices this game so
so massive, because not only are you getting that production
out of a guy who you weren't expecting it from,
(04:50):
now you're allowing Nikol Jokic to rest. Because I saw
some stat going around, I think the last four games
in which Jokic had played the entirety of the fourth
quarter for the nugg in the playoffs, they had lost
because normally the two periods when he rests in a
game are early in the second quarter, early in the
fourth quarter, But when it gets to do or die time,
they'll play him forty five minutes, and that means that
(05:11):
he will play the entire second half because Denver doesn't
trust more than seven guys generously on this entire roster.
They won the non Jokic minutes tonight, and Julian Strauther
is a huge component of why that was possible. They
went plus three, specifically in that four minute stretch to
start the fourth quarter with Yokich off. We're in the
(05:31):
last two games they had slipped in the fourth quarter,
that's when Okac had taken control of the game, and
instead they solidify their lead without Jokic. By the way,
I just want to give props for like what they
have done with Jokic off the floor throughout this series,
because I continue to think, like, game after game, oh,
that's where Okayc's gonna have an advantage in the non
superstar minutes. They're gonna bludgeon them in the non Jokic minutes,
(05:52):
and like it's been pretty rare that that's the case.
They are minus thirteen with Yokic off the floor, They're
minus nineteen with Yoki on the floor. Obviously in a
lot more minutes with Jokic out there, but you have
to feel good about only being minus two points per
game in the non Jokic minutes considering who you're going
up against. The team that has been so dominant, has
(06:12):
been so successful even with Shay off the floor throughout
this season. Their ability to play those minutes close to
a draw has been really pivotal to keeping them in
a lot of these games and allowing them to have
this at an even series right now. And the guy
who I think deserves a lot of credit for that
is Jamal Murray as well, who I understand frustrations with
his inconsistency, but he has had some massive performances in
(06:35):
these playoffs and I don't think overall you can be
disappointed with the level that he's played at. He's giving
you twenty two and a half points per game on
better than fifty six percent true shooting, and this was
a masterclass out of him. Like I thought that for
most of the game, he was certainly their best scorer,
and he was finishing well at the rim. His shot
making was phenomenal, he was assertive, he was really really
(06:56):
big in that first quarter. I thought that he gave
them just what they need. And it's just in such
dramatic contrast to what OKC gets out of Jada, who
was a complete disaster. But to have the better offensive
number two is a big advantage. And then it was
the collective supporting cast for Denver two.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Christian Brown.
Speaker 3 (07:14):
As you mentioned, this is a guy who was shooting
eight of thirty one from three in this series. Coming
into this game, he was under twenty six percent. The
thunder were more than happy to let him shoot six
eight open threes in a game because they knew that
he was going to make a low percentage of them.
He makes a high percentage of them in this one.
And then he's also impacting the game as a cutter.
He's active on the glass, he makes some nice reads,
(07:36):
he forces some steals. He was just all over the
floor in this game. So it's a really really good
win for Denver. Absolutely, and Yokic was excellent, Like this
wasn't last game where you're just like, oh my god,
this dude is playing one of the best basketball games
I've ever seen from a person. But he was really
in control, and I think that's the keyword. Through the
(07:56):
first four games of this series. Really, in games two
through four, we saw him flustered more by this defense.
We saw him more frustrated with the physicality, we saw
him turning the ball over more. This one, it was
just like, I'm gonna take what you give me. You're
doubling from the baseline, perfect, I'm gonna find a cutter
and I'm going to create for my teammates consistently. I
have a mismatch Briefly, I'm allowed to work in single
coverage for one possession. Great, I'm going to get to
(08:17):
my touch shots and those have been automatic for him
as of late. You give me a little airspace to
pull from three, great, I'll do it. I have an
opportunity to get to the line, great, I'll do that.
But super efficient takes care of the basketball twenty nine
to fourteen and eight, and he had some really good
defensive moments, really good performance from him on the OKC side, Logan,
Where did things go wrong for them to not close
(08:40):
this game out?
Speaker 4 (08:42):
I thought the shooting was a huge problem in this game,
especially in the second half, and like you mentioned, just
Jada at a point in this game, they missed thirteen
straight field goals. Jada really couldn't get anything going tonight.
He goes three of sixteen from the field, four from deep.
And it's disappointing because I thought Shape played a really
(09:04):
really phenomenal basketball game. Like I thought he was great.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
In this one. I think that.
Speaker 4 (09:09):
I thought that he's just gotten better throughout this series.
And I think we're in for a war in Game seven,
and it could just come down to whose supporting cast
plays better. Carson, the margins between both of these teams
are so close, man, I come away. It's like anytime
a team gets a ten point lead. Anytime nothing feels safe,
(09:30):
it doesn't feel like it's gonna get extended. It always
feels like we're gonna rubber band back into place. Man Like,
I don't really feel like either.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
I'm not.
Speaker 4 (09:40):
I know we're gonna talk about the prediction in a minute.
I'm just not one hundred percent convinced either way. I
think these teams are so evenly matched, like truly, but
I thought shooting was a big issue for Oklahoma City tonight,
and I think that led to some other issues for them. Specifically,
I thought Denver did a really good job of getting
out on the break and turning a lot of those
missed opportun unities into points. On the other end, this
(10:02):
was the best transition offense in basketball in the regular
season in terms of points per game. And they got
a lot of easy looks early in this game. And
I do want to give a ton of credit to
Jamal two Man for finishing through traffic for this team,
just flying out and getting out on the breaks, getting
those really easy opportunities. And last thing I wanted to
(10:22):
mention on Denver, Dude, you talked about the non Jokic minutes, Carson,
the fact they were able to buy him even more
time to sit on the bench early in the fourth quarter.
That's just such a huge X factor for them. Man
Yo Kic is never fresh laid in these basketball games,
and it's just huge that you can afford him any
extra time to get some But it really, to me
(10:43):
comes down to the supporting cast, and I think they've
I think, okay, these defense has.
Speaker 1 (10:47):
To be a little more disciplined.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
I was a little bit disappointed with them just in
terms of rotation.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
I didn't think they were as crisp.
Speaker 4 (10:53):
They go on that surge at the end, which was impressive,
but I thought that was more sloppy Denver play then
Oklahoma City really truly being disruptive.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
But to me, it comes down to the supporting cast
pulling their weight on offense.
Speaker 4 (11:06):
Man SGA did his thing like you expect him to,
and they're just clanging all kinds of th reason. It's
like SGA, I feel really similar in this game to
how I felt about SGA throughout the Dallas series, that
he was making good decisions, he was setting his team
up for teammates up for good looks and they just
didn't capitalize on them. And sometimes games are really gonna
be determined by something as simple as that. So I
(11:29):
don't know, man, it's so weird. I don't know who's
supporting Cast. I trust more Man. Both of these teams
feel so inconsistent. Like I feel like I trust Gordon
and I trust Murray, But can I trust Jadub? Can
I trust Chet?
Speaker 1 (11:45):
I don't know, man, I'm so up in the.
Speaker 4 (11:46):
Air about what we're gonna get in this game seven.
But I thought Oklahoma City supporting Cast really let them
down in this one.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
Yeah, it's just an absolute disaster from Jadub in every
possible way off.
Speaker 4 (11:58):
Dude, Like, I felt like that really encapsulated the whole
night for him. Man, Like a wide open fast break
jam late in this game, he can't even convert that miss.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
That one got blocked by Peyton Watson on what was
maybe the biggest swing play of the game. And that's
where we can talk about Strawther and he was certainly
the better contributor overall, but that one play from Peyton
Watson that would have cut it to a five point
Denver lead, and instead that turns into a transition layup
for Denver and then Russell Westbrook is able to put
(12:28):
it back in. So now the lead goes back up
to nine. That was huge, and then Caruso smoked a
layup on the other end that was a costly little
stretch for oksee right there, but it was terrible what
Jada gave you tonight. And by the way, he's shooting
ten of forty three over the last three games. It's
just completely inexcusable stuff from him. And this can be
the concern.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
He is not.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Somebody who creates a lot of easy offense for himself.
He is not a high end advantage creator, and so
he can live on sort of a tough intermediate shot
making diet. At times he can be maybe overly aggressive
and just forcing the issue downhill, and then he's not
super great playing through contact, and so you just end
up with a lot of shots that are like kind
of in and around the paint from him, but you
(13:11):
don't like most of them. And then also, he just
couldn't hit a three, and he's shooting twenty five percent
from deep in these playoffs. That's the one thing that
has consistently been offer him because he was phenomenal against Memphis,
but even in that series, he wasn't hitting the three
and really hasn't been throughout the playoffs, So outside of
his masterclass in game three, which was so impressive, like
(13:33):
OKC won the last couple games.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
Kind of in spite of Jadub and this.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
Game they were not able to win largely because he
was so bad. So he is probably the single biggest
guy who you look at for Game seven and you say,
you just have to be way better. But also the
three point shooting collectively from OKC was really bad. Lou
Dort was way off in this game. I thought that
Chet was great inside the arc. I thought that he
(13:59):
had some great drives. I thought that he was good
finishing off of cuts in the dunker spot, good on
the glass, but still didn't look comfortable shooting from deep.
Aaron Wiggins isn't able to hit a three in this game,
so they end up going eleven of forty from beyond
the arc. That really cost him in this game, because,
like you said, Man, I thought that Shay was just fantastic.
(14:19):
I thought that Shay was at least the co best
player on the floor with Jolkic. I mean, he got
whatever he wanted in this game, and he too has
adjusted and he has found his opportunities to be extremely
aggressive whenever he sees single coverage. Whenever he can clear aside,
he is getting a bucket. He is going right at you,
and he is creating separation and gonna knock down one
(14:41):
of his short range jumpers, which have just been automatic now.
But his finishing at the rim was also phenomenal. He's
just gotten so good at quickly attacking this defense in
semi transition or early in the possession before they can
build the wall and really.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
Set up the zone.
Speaker 3 (14:56):
And he's just gotten better at finding the driving angles
and still carving up the defense, getting all the way downhill,
and he's making good reads, and he's finding dudes in
the Duncker spot, and he's finding shooters like he was
setting up everybody on the top of creating crazy efficient
offense for himself. And guys just couldn't hit an outside
shot in this game.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
Yeah, and I will.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
I do want to give some of the Thunder credit too,
for some of the back cuts in this game. Dude
Hartenstein had a lot where he just got behind the defense,
And I do want to give SGA and JDub credit
for playmaking in this game. I thought this was a
really bad JDub shooting night, but he did playmake well.
That was the one aspect of the Oklahoma City defense
are excuse me offense I was impressed with was their
(15:38):
ability to get downhill.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
Get into the teeth of the defense, beat.
Speaker 4 (15:43):
That initial defender, and then force that Denver defense to
pick and choose their battles because they got a lot
of easy offense along the baseline and near the rim
just off of initial dribble penetration.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
That is something I thought. Okay See did a really good.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
Job of absolutely and Sga has just been lights out
as a scorer for these last five quarters.
Speaker 2 (16:03):
Obviously, what he did in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Was special of last game and then just throughout this one,
I thought that he was absolutely on one and he
does look extremely comfortable against a defense that was making
him extremely uncomfortable at some points early in this series,
a big problem for OKC. In this game, there were
really two stretches that decided things. You mentioned the straw
(16:26):
or one man run. That was the obvious one. The
other one was when Shaye picks up his fourth foul
at the very end of the first half. OKC was
clicking on all cylinders. They had built a twelve point
lead and it felt like they were maybe on the
verge of pulling away, and then Christian Brown hits one
to three, Shay gets stripped by Jokich, goes for the ball. Now, Logan,
(16:49):
we were texting about this. Looked like he got all ball.
But nevertheless, I just don't think he should try to
make that play in that moment because it's gonna look
like a frustration foul and you're playing with three fouls.
Don't give the official and opportunity to make a call.
Don't give Yokich an opportunity to flail. He has to
come out of the game. Then Denver goes on a
nine to zero run and they're able to erase that
advantage entirely with Shay off the floor. I did think
(17:10):
he got all ball, man, It definitely looked like he
got all ball with the hand he was targeting the
ball with. Maybe there was something with the offhand that
I didn't see initially, but he definitely got all ball
with his main hand. But that was a really big
stretch for Denver as well, and Christian Brown again makes
a couple of big shots in that stretch. So those
were two really pivotal runs for them. And I will say,
(17:32):
really the only note I think you can have for
SGA is you have to play more than thirty five
minutes in a game seven, because as good as okc's
depth is, like, you're the dude who was doing your
superhuman stuff, and you're the one guy who I really
trust to consistently get to great shots. I certainly don't
trust Jada to do that right now. You have questions
about some of the supporting shooting. There's always just some
(17:55):
game to game variance with that, like they shot the
ball better last game, but SJA has to be able
to captain this offense for forty plus minutes in a
game seven. I also thought it was weird that Chet
only played thirty minutes in this game, because I did
think that he was clearly their second best player. Also
thought it was kind of weird that Hartenstein only played
twenty five. I thought that he gave you some solid
minutes at least on the glass, and you mentioned the
(18:16):
cutting and finishing was good from him. They're trying to
find some j Will minutes. Of course, he's been good
in this series. He was solid again today, maybe not
as good, but as we look forward to a game seven, Logan,
what are the key factors that stand out to you.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
You want to start with Denver.
Speaker 2 (18:34):
Okase you start wherever you feel, buddy, and I'll follow you.
Speaker 4 (18:38):
I'll start with Denver. I think that you need another
Jamal Murray game like this. I don't necessarily think you
need a Jamal Murray masterclass, but I think you need
him to pull his weight enough. Specifically, I think you
need him to step up.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
In the fourth quarter, and Jamal has been.
Speaker 4 (18:55):
Jamal is like on a handful of players like that
I would take in like a clutch or big spot.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
I really do.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Like I think sometimes that clutch gene can kind of
get overstated, but he really is one of those special
guys I want in big moments.
Speaker 3 (19:07):
I gotta give this Jamal stat because I forgot too earlier.
He's plus twenty eight in this game. Man Halkins is
only plus eleven. They only win the game by twelve points.
So Jamal's ability to captain the offense in those non
Jokins mits and carry them in some of those stretches
was absolutely crucial.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
Yeah, so I think that's huge.
Speaker 4 (19:26):
I think you've got to shoot something similar to this, Like,
you know, if it is just a couple of threes
from an MPG or a Brown. You need to at
least match or get close to OKC, because I again,
that's a key advantage that I think OKAC has over
this Denver team.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Is there a collective shooting.
Speaker 4 (19:44):
And I know it didn't prevail tonight, but traditionally over
a series, in most games, that's going to be advantage OKC.
So you can't get beat too bad from behind the arc.
And then I think that I think you need a
big game from one of your role players, necessarily not
it doesn't have to be anybody specifically, but somebody outside
of Marie and Jokic gets going. And finally, I just
(20:05):
think you have to avoid a disastrous Russell Westbrook game.
I hate picking on the guy. I think Russ has
been overall really good in these playoffs and has been
a positive. I think he's been a positive this season
in general. This is an ugly game from him. I
couldn't believe that Adaman didn't pull him just in the
first quarter when he was like two minutes in.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
I mean, it was ugly. He is just turning the
ball over, not taking care of it.
Speaker 4 (20:29):
He's taking bad, dumb shots, like I don't know, man,
I like Russ's energy.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
I like what he gives you on some nights, I might.
Speaker 4 (20:38):
Give him a shorter leash in game seven and just
be like, I don't know, man, I'd he'd be real
quick to get pulled if he's messing up. Man, I'd
give him a real short leash. And then hell man,
let's give strawthor some burn, dude. Let's see if maybe
we can get him going a little bit earlier in
the second quarter or something like that, Like if he
can give you this kind of a punch off the bench.
You know, Ice Cold hasn't played at all. Well, maybe
(21:00):
give him a little bird early in the game and
see if he can get some easy opportunities. But I
still do feel like OKAC is the team that should dictate,
and I feel like they're the better team, and so
I still feel like more things have to go right
for Denver than for Oka.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
See, I still do feel like they have more margin.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
I would agree with that.
Speaker 3 (21:22):
I think that the aspect that I am most excited
for is the Superstar Battle because both of those guys
are so in rhythm. They've both been so good over
these last two games, and like I said, I think
they know what they're seeing now, they know how to
attack it. I trust them both to play at an
extremely high level in Game seven because they've both done
it and back to back games. Now, if there's one
(21:43):
guy who I am going to say is more capable
and more likely to rise to just like an I'm
single handedly going to win us to win kind of level,
it would be Jokic. But overall, I think we're gonna
get great stuff from both of the superstars. So honestly,
and this is kind of true for any individual basketball
game these days, So maybe it's kind of boring to say,
(22:05):
but the three point shooting you get from the supporting
casts might be the biggest key for both sides because
it's been a roller coaster ride for both teams in
that way. And it's very different because Okasee is a
really good three point shooting team. Denver is an efficient
three point shooting team. But there are a lot of
guys who get into the rotation who the defense is
(22:26):
going to be totally willing to concede open threes too.
If that's Christian Brown, if that's Russell Westbrook, if that's
Peyton Watson, and so those guys were really, really struggling
to make outside shots in this series coming into today,
but in this one, Christian Brown at least shoots significantly
better and they get obviously the three to three pointers
out of Julian Strother, So that's going to be huge
(22:48):
for Denver. Can those more questionable shooters knockdown shots or
maybe do they get a little bit of juice from Strawther?
For what it's worth, I'm not counting on Julian Strother
to be able to give you twenty minutes in a
game seven. Like, I definitely think there's a real chance
that this is not replicated. There were a couple shots
that he took, a couple runners that I didn't like,
Like he made some big ass shots, But I don't
(23:10):
think you can just be like, oh great, Julian Strother's
gonna give us twenty awesome minutes again in game seven.
Speaker 4 (23:15):
Well, I mean I kind of would play him like Russ,
where like early in the game, I'm giving him some
burn and if he's given me good minutes, I'm sure
he can get some more and if he's not, I'll
pull him early. I will say, I think one of
those runners was pretty late in the shot clock, so
I gave him a little bit of slack with that,
but you know, you get that shot going, you start
feeling yourself. It's like, all right, man, I gotta see
if I can hit everything.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
Sure, but also you gotta know your place.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
As Julian Strawther, I don't disagree that they should at
least give him a few minutes and see how he's playing,
but I wouldn't necessarily count on him. And also, obviously
MPJ is a big X factor on the shooting front.
He was able to make a couple shots in this game.
Speaker 2 (23:51):
I thought that he was a.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Little more active defensively. They still only played him twenty
nine minutes. But obviously he has really struggled for the
most part in this series. So how much are you
able to play him is a factor, and then do
you have that reliable fifth guy to close with, because
that's a big question for this Denver team with how
Russ is shooting in this series. He is not that
guy that he was against the Clippers, where he was
(24:12):
awesome and you felt like you could rely on him
in those big swats Peyton Watson. The shot is such
a big concern. Strawther, Again, I'm just not ready to
trust in that kind of moment. So it's going to
be pretty huge that either MPJ or Russ are making
their shots from the three point line for Denver and
then for Okay. See, it's just more of like a
collective thing because most of the shots that they're getting
(24:33):
I like. But Jadab has to be able to shoot
better than he has been chet in this series. It's
been a struggle from beyond the arc lou Dort. Obviously,
it's consistently been a struggle, and there are a couple
guys who have been shooting it better, like Cason Wallace,
who I thought was also really good in this game.
By the way, he's a guy who deserves a shout
out because I thought that he was great turning defense
into offense. He knocks down a couple of corner threes,
(24:55):
he gets a couple of transitional layoffs.
Speaker 4 (24:56):
He finished some of those transition layoups so quick I
thought he missed them.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
He's just crazy.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
He's just the dog. I know how much you love him.
I love him a lot too, But he gave you
big minutes in this one. Wiggins again wasn't shooting, but
he's been a guy they've been able to turn to
for offense. But I'm gonna say again, I just think
we need more Caruso and a little bit.
Speaker 2 (25:14):
Less lou Dort. I thought we just.
Speaker 1 (25:16):
Played the dotal foggling like this.
Speaker 4 (25:19):
I would be again, man, Okac has such a surplus
of guys that can play defense and can do the
complimentary things. There comes a point where I feel like,
in a game, I'm just gonna see who can make shots,
and I'm gonna ride with that lineup. Like I understand
the value that Dort brings and stuff like that, but like,
if he's not gonna hit shots, I don't want to
(25:40):
play him. You need to maximize, in my opinion, the
shooting that you've got around them, and that to me,
is the most important. For Okacs is just a lot
better at everything else.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
As we talked about offensively.
Speaker 4 (25:52):
I get, yeah, the little connective stuff, the positioning, the field,
the cutting.
Speaker 1 (25:58):
Caruso clears in all those areas. He's far off as
a defender.
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Man Like, in terms of he's a better defender, Yeah,
he's a better defender.
Speaker 4 (26:06):
In terms of versatility. I prefer Caruso way more in
terms of like switching on to bigger guys and stuff,
like that, Like, yeah, I would, just I'd give Caruso
more burn man.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
Caruso is clearly the better all around defender when you
consider that he's at least like ninety five percent of
the on ball irritant and elite man defender that Lou is,
while he is a way better off ball defender because
he's like one of a kind disruptive at his position.
In terms of that off ball defense, I think he
should play at least thirty minutes. It's everything that you said,
(26:35):
but the cutting, the playmaking, the finishing, the more versatile
defensive impact, the shooting. He's doing all that stuff better
than Lou, who gave them a massive massive surge in
Game five, but has just been way less reliable. So
as good as the thunder bench is, I don't think
there's anything wrong with riding your best guys a little
bit more. And if anything, listen, if Jadav's off, like
(26:57):
maybe he doesn't need to play thirty eight minutes, you
obviously need him in the non Shae minutes. But he
has not been a very good compliment to Shane, necessarily
because guys have to be able to knock down shots
off the catch to be effective and He's had a
couple nice drives into gaps and he's made some nice reads,
but the shot is a massive, massive problem for him
(27:17):
right now, so that three point shooting is a big key. Ultimately,
I do trust the Thunder shooting more. I think that
a lot of those Denver guys I feel really shaky about,
and some of the Thunder guys are a little bit
cold right now, but they are proven to be better
shooters overall. I also think what you get out of
your second options is a massive key.
Speaker 2 (27:36):
I would be surprised.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
If Jadub outplayed Jamal Murray offensively, just with how he's looked. Also,
I just think Jamal Murray is a better offensive player
than Jaln Williams. What makes Jadub so effective, what makes
him like an all star caliber guy, is that he
is among the ten twelve best defensive players on the planet,
and even there, like tonight, he has a really pronounced impact.
But Jamal just has an ability to get to his spots.
(27:58):
He's such a special shot maker that's more reliable. It's
more like, can okay see from their perspective, keep Jamal
from having one of his big games, and can Jadab
not shit himself can Jadub instead of going three of sixteen,
give me six for sixteen, give me eighteen to twenty points,
like competently guide the ship when Shay is off the
(28:21):
floor and knock down some shots off the catch alongside him.
I think that if Okse can have those number twos
place close to a draw, then you would think that
their collective depth and shooting should be the advantage in
obviously just their defense being as special as it is.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
It's extra key.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
For Denver though, because even though I give them props
for how they've done in the non Jokic minutes, they're
still a part of me that is, like, if Jamal
isn't great, well, that could be a stretch where Yokic
shit's four or five minutes, Okase could build an eight
ten point lead like that. It hasn't happened much in
this series, but they are capable of it. So that's
where I think Jamal is a really, really key performer.
(28:57):
One other key that I I thought Denver was able
to execute well for most of this game. It was
able to help them keep their lead was limiting the turnovers.
Speaker 2 (29:08):
Now at the end that.
Speaker 3 (29:09):
All fell apart because Caruso was just doing his crazy stuff,
and like you said, Denver got a little bit careless
with the ball and Okase he ends up having a
good number of transition points in this game, significantly more
than Denver. Thirty three to seventeen ends up being the
transition point differential. But a lot of that came in
that final stretch and in the first quarter. I thought,
(29:29):
in the second and third quarters, in a good portion
of the fourth, Denver did a good job protecting the
basketball and their transition defense was pretty good. That's massive
because that's where Okaysee does have the ability again to
separate from you. If they're turning defense into offense consistently
getting those easy transition chances. That's where Jadob is going
to be at his best. That's where he's going to
be most comfortable attacking in the full court, even though
(29:52):
he couldn't even do that right tonight. So Denver has
to limit that in my opinion. And then I think
the battle on the boards, it's always been big in
this series. I think that if ok C can basically
keep that to a draw, that's a solid outcome for them.
Although we saw them have the advantage on the glass
in a couple games because they're just so active. But
I do think that Denver as the bigger, stronger team
(30:16):
in the front court, and with the Yolkic factor with
Aaron Gordon like, they should be expected to generate more
second chances in an average game. All those factors and
all those keys considered and weighted out.
Speaker 2 (30:29):
Logan, who do you like in Game seven?
Speaker 1 (30:33):
Man?
Speaker 2 (30:35):
He didn't think I was gonna ask.
Speaker 1 (30:37):
No, I've been sitting over here thanking the entire I don't.
Speaker 4 (30:40):
I could flip a coin, man, I could see this
game really going either way. The reason I want to
take the Nuggets is because a very large portion of
my still still thinks that I trust them more in
the clutch, and I think this game is going to
be very, very close going in to the final stretch
of Game seven, and even though they're on the road
(31:01):
in Oklahoma City, I just trust Denver to.
Speaker 1 (31:06):
Operate better down the stretch. I'm gonna do it. I'm
gonna take Denver.
Speaker 4 (31:11):
I've I thought coming into this show I was gonna
take Oklahoma City and seven.
Speaker 1 (31:17):
I think Jokic is the best player in the world,
and I'm gonna bet on him to win this game.
Speaker 3 (31:22):
Wow, it always does scare me betting against yolkicen a
do or die spot, and like, I don't think that
this is like an obvious no brainer, but I do
think that OKAC is the better team, so I would
pick them to win Game seven on their home floor.
The biggest reason for that is probably how impressed I've
been by Shay in these last couple games, because I
(31:42):
think that when he plays up to his standards or
even exceeds them potentially, that's when OKAC should win these games,
unless they have the sort of exceptional failure from the
supporting cast like they did tonight. But on average, their
supporting cast is better in terms of their two way ability,
and I do trust guys to knock down more shots
than they did tonight. I also think it's really really
(32:04):
big that it felt like they figured out the zone tonight,
like SGA was making the right reads. You mentioned the
cutting that was a big part of it. They were
finding the soft spots in the zone. They generated one
point one points per possession against the zone on twenty
three possessions. That's a better number than they've turned out
in any of the previous games. And they did that
without shooting well, which is like the thing that you
(32:26):
think is going to beat the zone on average, So
I think they have more potential to win the turnover
margin consistently. I do think that they'll be able to
actually play Denver decently even on the glass, just with
how hard they play. I like more Caruso minutes as
opposed to lou Door. I expect that adjustment, and I
think that it's a swing factor. And like I said,
(32:47):
I just expect some of the guys around Shay to
be better. I think both superstars are going to be great.
Maybe Jokic can just be so unbelievable, but I have
more concerns about some of the guys around him. I'm
not confident that Christian Brown replicates this. I don't know
what the hell I'm getting out of MPJ. I don't
know what the hell I'm getting out of Russell Westbrook.
I don't know what I'm getting out of a lot
of guys for Denver. And even though there's been inconsistency
(33:09):
with Oka, see, they have more options to turn to
and they.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Have more talent overall. So I'm gonna take okay.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
See, we do have some super chats to get to
before we get out of here. Indie merchant, Sam, thank
you again for your donation. I'm poorn honey on Strawther
you have to got to it's a career defining kind
of performance.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
Man, Just crazy, dude, I'm empty.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
I need to go to the store and get some
more already emptied, all mine out.
Speaker 3 (33:32):
Yeah, well that could be taken out of context, but
I'm gonna interpret that generously. Say that you're talking about
Poorn Honey on Julian.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
Straw It's what I was talking about.
Speaker 3 (33:41):
And then you mean it quite literally, shout out Adelman. Man,
I mean, like seriously, Yeah, he tested the waters with
him in Game five, he played ten minutes. But to
give him an extended stint in this one and to
have it be like maybe the swing factor, that's just huge.
Calvin Booth, redemption, Calvin Booth. This was the good guy
all along. Calvin Booth was a genius. He knew what
(34:02):
he was doing.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
Find out this low.
Speaker 4 (34:06):
Key that's kind of it's one of the craziest storylines
of these playoffs.
Speaker 2 (34:10):
Well, it's a crazy storyline for one single game. I mean,
let's let's not.
Speaker 4 (34:15):
If they gets to a Western Conference finals after firing
their coach and like that's just ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
Oh that is insane.
Speaker 3 (34:21):
Absolutely, I'm just saying Calvin Booth absolutely deserved to be fired,
and Adaman has done a really good job and the
whole team has just rallied in such an impressive way.
Man to be going into a Game seven against the
sixty eight win Thunder, that's wild considering where Denver was
with three games to go in the regular season. The
(34:48):
NBA eighty two game grind is done, and now the
real fun begins. The NBA Playoffs are here and it's
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Speaker 2 (34:59):
Job dropping plays. I can't wait.
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Speaker 3 (37:19):
Rye Dog says, so tired of dub doing this. Conversations
to be.
Speaker 1 (37:23):
Had, Yeah, I mean.
Speaker 4 (37:27):
He's young, but yeah, there's some conversations that we can
definitely have about jadav Man. I mean, I'm disappointed. I'm
really disappointed what we got out of him in this series.
Like you said, dude, Memphis, I just I thought this
was gonna be a big time breakthrough for Jade. Of
this series, man, I didn't think that Denver could really
do much to disrupt him.
Speaker 1 (37:45):
But I'm very disappointed.
Speaker 3 (37:49):
Yeah, it's been rough from him. Man, he's shooting twenty
seven percent from mid range in this series, he's shooting
forty one percent in the restricted area, and then he's
shooting four of twenty five on above the break threes. Like,
are you kidding me?
Speaker 2 (38:05):
Dude? Are you kidding me?
Speaker 4 (38:08):
I mean, like, if you just gave me those numbers,
I would probably rather play somebody off the bench.
Speaker 2 (38:15):
Like that is horrifying.
Speaker 3 (38:17):
Man. Yeah, it's a real struggle for him. Like, he
does not get easy offense. He does not get easy
offense in the half court, and that has to improve.
I think that there's so much to like with Jada.
But obviously, if there's anybody who's getting blamed on the
OKC side for this series being where it is, Ludord
obviously you would have liked to see shoot.
Speaker 2 (38:37):
The ball better.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
But Jada being this bad over these last few games
is extremely disappointing, especially coming off of the series that
he played against Memphis. Miguel says Nuggets and seven, Logan's
with you.
Speaker 1 (38:49):
I am I'm I'm moved, man, this is gonna be
a war. I agree.
Speaker 4 (38:55):
Coin flip, coin flip is the exact way I feel like.
I'm I don't know who's supporting cast I should trust more.
There's so many complicating factors that you know, like that
make ripple effects with like other keys.
Speaker 1 (39:08):
To the to this game. It's such a fascinating thought exercise.
Speaker 4 (39:12):
I'm very close to fifty to fifty, but yeah, I'm
gonna bet on Jokic, man.
Speaker 2 (39:19):
I understand it. I understand betting on Jokic.
Speaker 3 (39:21):
I do still think that the collective OKC team has
more margin. Also, if there is a world in which
one team wins this game comfortably, I do think it's
OKAC because of their defensive ceiling, just the utter chaos
that they can cause. And then because I do also
think they have the higher three point shooting ceiling, like
that gives them more of a potential to maybe run
away with a game A bit. I wouldn't expect that,
(39:43):
but you never know. In a game seven, I mean,
think about how tight almost every game and Nuggets Clippers
was and then it ends up being a blowout in
game seven. I do think that OKAC has more potential
to pull that out. And they showed me enough with
how they gut it out games four and five for
me to have more confidence in them in the situations
than Shay has definitely shown me enough to be confident
in him. Right now, we have a couple more super
(40:05):
tites before we go. Eli says, what team is Jalen
Williams on next season?
Speaker 1 (40:10):
Right now he's playing for. Right now, he's playing for
the Denver Nuggets.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
Yeah, damn near. When he's on offense, he's playing for
the Denver Nuggets.
Speaker 2 (40:19):
I think they're gonna stick it out with Jadab. Call
me a crazy man.
Speaker 3 (40:23):
I think he plays better in Game seven. Well, hold on,
that's actually not crazy. He can't play worse. I'll say
I think he plays significantly better. Not to say that
we're gonna get what he gave you in game three.
I think that we'll get a solid Jada game. I
think he just needs to settle down a bit, obviously,
and also he just has to find his jumper. Like
some of the looks that he's taking. I do not
(40:43):
like some of the looks. I'm fine with, and they're
just not falling right now. But I believe in the
OKC Corp. I do think that he's certainly more expendable
than like a Chat if they ever were to move
off of somebody other than Shaye. But I still believe
in Jadab as part of this core Light skits. Thank
you for your nation, Strawther dark Horse Finals MVP, let's
talk about it.
Speaker 1 (41:04):
It's having it. Take it at a bank.
Speaker 3 (41:06):
Let's start the narrative. Get the odds on that. I mean,
that's just an incredible value. Bet he's MVP of today. Man,
he's MVP of today.
Speaker 1 (41:14):
I completely agree with that.
Speaker 3 (41:16):
Overperformed his expectations by the most and was maybe the
swing factor in this one. I'm so excited for Sunday.
I wish that we didn't have to wait. I wish
that they could just turn around and give us Game
seven right now. But we are going to be back
before then, Logan, because believe it or not, we got
another Game six, we got another potential opportunity to extend
a series to Game seven. That's going to be the
(41:37):
Boston Celtics fighting for their lives against the New York Knicks,
and Logan, that's going to be tomorrow, and we're gonna
be here.
Speaker 1 (41:44):
Oh yeah, you better believe it.
Speaker 2 (41:46):
Oh yeah. We are both chained to our radiators.
Speaker 3 (41:48):
Sometimes I wish I could get outside, but basketball is
pretty great too, so I can't be that mad about it.
Speaker 1 (41:53):
I don't really mind it, honestly, it's kind of kind
of soothing.
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Well, you start to forget what's in the outside.
Speaker 4 (41:58):
You got tomorrow. Man, I think I'm gonna take Austin
to force Game seven.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
I kind of think I'm with you. I kind of think.
Speaker 4 (42:05):
I'm with you know what, And I'm it's kind of
ironic to me the way the Celtics have done this
little face turn after Tatum's injury, you know what I mean,
Like now that they're the underdone, Like I'm seeing some
people get behind Boston. But like you said, dude, hey,
can I ask you something, even though the Knicks are
up in this series, Like, who do you think is
(42:26):
one more the Celtics have one more quarters?
Speaker 1 (42:28):
Yeah? Like can I get this?
Speaker 2 (42:30):
Yeah? I mean it's way more.
Speaker 4 (42:32):
That's what's kind of crazy to me about this series.
And I get that Tatum was healthy for a lot
of them, but it's like, I just don't think New
York has looked all that great. Like New York's done
enough in every game, but they just haven't looked like
dominant in any of these wins. And so I think
Boston's gon to force Game seven. Man, I think we
got two of.
Speaker 1 (42:52):
Them on the rise.
Speaker 4 (42:53):
I'm super pumped for tomorrow's show too, So uh, thank
you guys for tuning in tonight.
Speaker 1 (42:58):
We will be back if you're in for more.
Speaker 3 (43:01):
Celtics are plus thirty five in this series. Man, that's
crazy to have a plus seven point differential per game
in a series that you're down three two. Truly, if
they do not have generational meltdowns in games one and two,
they could have gotten this thing over and done with already.
That being said, it is a different game without Jason Tatum.
Of course, can they replicate what they did last game?
(43:21):
A lot of it falls on Jalen Brown. He has
to be as good as he was, But I think
that there's a real possibility. I think that they are
very similar caliber teams when Jason Tatum is off the floor,
and in Game five, Boston was convincingly better and offense
was coming a lot easier to them.
Speaker 2 (43:36):
So we'll see.
Speaker 3 (43:37):
I'd say that game is pretty much a toss up
with that. As always, appreciate you guys, hope you enjoyed.
You know where to find if you want more, our
YouTube channel. We do all of our postgame live streams.
Speaker 2 (43:47):
Here.
Speaker 3 (43:47):
You can watch them in the moment, you can watch
them after the fact, and you can listen to all
of our full episodes across all audio platforms. You can
also follow us across social TikTok, Instagram at nerd Sash,
Twitter at nerd Underscore, SESSH and you can in our
discord if you want to be part of our community
there chat with the gang that is linked at the
link tree that is across our social media bios. So
with that, as always, I've been Carson Brabber.
Speaker 4 (44:10):
I have been logging Camden and this was nerd Sash
The volume. No, Oh my god, how could he do that?
Watch what Charles Darwin?
Speaker 2 (00:20):
The nerves is where it's at.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Welcome everybody back into Nerd Sash As always, I'm Carson
brev and alongside me is Logan Camden, and you already
know the drill. We've got one incredible playoff basketball game
to talk about today in what has been an absolute
peak series, my favorite series of the playoffs so far,
Logan honestly pretty comfortably. It's just been incredible. And after
(00:45):
tonight's result, we are headed for a Game seven between
the Nuggets and the Thunder. We'll talk about what to
expect in what our predictions are for that game seven later,
First we have to talk about how the Nuggets pulled
out this win. Logan back's against the wall, down three
to two, Jamal Murray questionable to even play in this
game with an illness.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
He ends up coming in huge.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
What did you make of Denver's performance and how they
got this done?
Speaker 4 (01:10):
The first guy I want to give props to is
Julian Strowther. I mean, I thought he completely sunned this
game when he came in in the third quarter. And
we've been talking about it all series long, Carson. We
talked about it even last episode. We kind of brought
up his name jokingly as like a guy in that
archetype that could step up and make some shots.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
But he came through huge in this game. I mean, he.
Speaker 4 (01:31):
Powers a ten to zero run at the end of
the third quarter that really put Denver in pole position
to pull away and win this game. It wasn't the
cleanest execution to close out in the fourth quarter, but
they do come away with it, and I thought that
was the really key stretch in this basketball game.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
The other guys that I.
Speaker 4 (01:49):
Think deserve a lot of credit for Denver is Jokic.
I think Jokic really dealt with the coverages well tonight
and really picked his spots throughout most of this game.
I was concerned with the level of aggression that we
had gotten out of Jokic. I wanted him to be
more aggressive, and it's like, right as I felt that,
and I felt like they were teetering on the point
(02:11):
of he's not doing enough, Jokic really clicked into gear
and so I thought he picked his spots well and
was aggressive when he needed to. But I also just
thought he play made and protected the ball better than
he has in most of this series. Christian Brown had
a massive first quarter, and I thought that the Nuggets
did a really good job of turning defense into offense
(02:34):
in that first half, and I thought Jamal Murray had
a really good game and they played really well defensively.
These teams are so close, Carson, I didn't feel like
the margin was that big in this game. I really
felt like it was decided by a few stretches in
this basketball game. And Denver got out to this big
lead in the first quarter, and then we got some
(02:55):
disastrous Russell Westbrook minutes into the second quarter that tanked it,
and then Strawther gives them that big surge in the
third quarter that gets them to pull away. It really
feels like the difference in all of these games, Carson,
one could be one stretch of basketball or who executed
better in the clutch, and I thought in this one,
it was that stretch in the third quarter, in that
(03:17):
surge by Strother, and I thought that Oklahoma City did
act or excuse me, Denver did execute better down the stretch.
And this was a really disappointing game from Oklahoma City
supporting cast and their surrounding shooting, but.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
Shout out Denver. They didn't lose on the home floor,
and we are getting Game seven. Man, I am so excited.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
I'm so excited too.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
I think that this is just gonna be the creamiest
Game seven that we've maybe ever seen.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
Ao.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, I said it, I meant it. I said it
on purpose. I agree.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
Of six games in this series have been absolute bangers,
and the best part Logan Sga and Jokic, both of
whom who were seeing some extremely aggressive, difficult coverages, have
been all series, but we're struggling with it earlier. Now
they have both really found their rhythm. I think they've
both gotten significantly more comfortable. They know how to attack
these respective defenses. I think that they've both just been
(04:08):
phenomenal in these last two games, and I do think
we're going to get two more stellar performances out of
them in Game seven. So it very well may come
more down to what do you get from the surrounding pieces,
And in this one, it was Denver supporting cast who
stepped up and played better. Julian Strawther absolutely massive to
be able to get those minutes out of him, Like
(04:29):
this is a guy who has been on the fringes
of the rotation to come in confidently, knocked down two
threes to make a really smart cut, and then even
into the fourth quarter, he was giving you production. He
hits the three that like effectively ices this game so
so massive, because not only are you getting that production
out of a guy who you weren't expecting it from,
(04:50):
now you're allowing Nikol Jokic to rest. Because I saw
some stat going around, I think the last four games
in which Jokic had played the entirety of the fourth
quarter for the nugg in the playoffs, they had lost
because normally the two periods when he rests in a
game are early in the second quarter, early in the
fourth quarter, But when it gets to do or die time,
they'll play him forty five minutes, and that means that
(05:11):
he will play the entire second half because Denver doesn't
trust more than seven guys generously on this entire roster.
They won the non Jokic minutes tonight, and Julian Strauther
is a huge component of why that was possible. They
went plus three, specifically in that four minute stretch to
start the fourth quarter with Yokich off. We're in the
(05:31):
last two games they had slipped in the fourth quarter,
that's when Okac had taken control of the game, and
instead they solidify their lead without Jokic. By the way,
I just want to give props for like what they
have done with Jokic off the floor throughout this series,
because I continue to think, like, game after game, oh,
that's where Okayc's gonna have an advantage in the non
superstar minutes. They're gonna bludgeon them in the non Jokic minutes,
(05:52):
and like it's been pretty rare that that's the case.
They are minus thirteen with Yokic off the floor, They're
minus nineteen with Yoki on the floor. Obviously in a
lot more minutes with Jokic out there, but you have
to feel good about only being minus two points per
game in the non Jokic minutes considering who you're going
up against. The team that has been so dominant, has
(06:12):
been so successful even with Shay off the floor throughout
this season. Their ability to play those minutes close to
a draw has been really pivotal to keeping them in
a lot of these games and allowing them to have
this at an even series right now. And the guy
who I think deserves a lot of credit for that
is Jamal Murray as well, who I understand frustrations with
his inconsistency, but he has had some massive performances in
(06:35):
these playoffs and I don't think overall you can be
disappointed with the level that he's played at. He's giving
you twenty two and a half points per game on
better than fifty six percent true shooting, and this was
a masterclass out of him. Like I thought that for
most of the game, he was certainly their best scorer,
and he was finishing well at the rim. His shot
making was phenomenal, he was assertive, he was really really
(06:56):
big in that first quarter. I thought that he gave
them just what they need. And it's just in such
dramatic contrast to what OKC gets out of Jada, who
was a complete disaster. But to have the better offensive
number two is a big advantage. And then it was
the collective supporting cast for Denver two.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Christian Brown.
Speaker 3 (07:14):
As you mentioned, this is a guy who was shooting
eight of thirty one from three in this series. Coming
into this game, he was under twenty six percent. The
thunder were more than happy to let him shoot six
eight open threes in a game because they knew that
he was going to make a low percentage of them.
He makes a high percentage of them in this one.
And then he's also impacting the game as a cutter.
He's active on the glass, he makes some nice reads,
(07:36):
he forces some steals. He was just all over the
floor in this game. So it's a really really good
win for Denver. Absolutely, and Yokic was excellent, Like this
wasn't last game where you're just like, oh my god,
this dude is playing one of the best basketball games
I've ever seen from a person. But he was really
in control, and I think that's the keyword. Through the
(07:56):
first four games of this series. Really, in games two
through four, we saw him flustered more by this defense.
We saw him more frustrated with the physicality, we saw
him turning the ball over more. This one, it was
just like, I'm gonna take what you give me. You're
doubling from the baseline, perfect, I'm gonna find a cutter
and I'm going to create for my teammates consistently. I
have a mismatch Briefly, I'm allowed to work in single
coverage for one possession. Great, I'm going to get to
(08:17):
my touch shots and those have been automatic for him
as of late. You give me a little airspace to
pull from three, great, I'll do it. I have an
opportunity to get to the line, great, I'll do that.
But super efficient takes care of the basketball twenty nine
to fourteen and eight, and he had some really good
defensive moments, really good performance from him on the OKC side, Logan,
Where did things go wrong for them to not close
(08:40):
this game out?
Speaker 4 (08:42):
I thought the shooting was a huge problem in this game,
especially in the second half, and like you mentioned, just
Jada at a point in this game, they missed thirteen
straight field goals. Jada really couldn't get anything going tonight.
He goes three of sixteen from the field, four from deep.
And it's disappointing because I thought Shape played a really
(09:04):
really phenomenal basketball game. Like I thought he was great.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
In this one. I think that.
Speaker 4 (09:09):
I thought that he's just gotten better throughout this series.
And I think we're in for a war in Game seven,
and it could just come down to whose supporting cast
plays better. Carson, the margins between both of these teams
are so close, man, I come away. It's like anytime
a team gets a ten point lead. Anytime nothing feels safe,
(09:30):
it doesn't feel like it's gonna get extended. It always
feels like we're gonna rubber band back into place. Man Like,
I don't really feel like either.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
I'm not.
Speaker 4 (09:40):
I know we're gonna talk about the prediction in a minute.
I'm just not one hundred percent convinced either way. I
think these teams are so evenly matched, like truly, but
I thought shooting was a big issue for Oklahoma City tonight,
and I think that led to some other issues for them. Specifically,
I thought Denver did a really good job of getting
out on the break and turning a lot of those
missed opportun unities into points. On the other end, this
(10:02):
was the best transition offense in basketball in the regular
season in terms of points per game. And they got
a lot of easy looks early in this game. And
I do want to give a ton of credit to
Jamal two Man for finishing through traffic for this team,
just flying out and getting out on the breaks, getting
those really easy opportunities. And last thing I wanted to
(10:22):
mention on Denver, Dude, you talked about the non Jokic minutes, Carson,
the fact they were able to buy him even more
time to sit on the bench early in the fourth quarter.
That's just such a huge X factor for them. Man
Yo Kic is never fresh laid in these basketball games,
and it's just huge that you can afford him any
extra time to get some But it really, to me
(10:43):
comes down to the supporting cast, and I think they've
I think, okay, these defense has.
Speaker 1 (10:47):
To be a little more disciplined.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
I was a little bit disappointed with them just in
terms of rotation.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
I didn't think they were as crisp.
Speaker 4 (10:53):
They go on that surge at the end, which was impressive,
but I thought that was more sloppy Denver play then
Oklahoma City really truly being disruptive.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
But to me, it comes down to the supporting cast
pulling their weight on offense.
Speaker 4 (11:06):
Man SGA did his thing like you expect him to,
and they're just clanging all kinds of th reason. It's
like SGA, I feel really similar in this game to
how I felt about SGA throughout the Dallas series, that
he was making good decisions, he was setting his team
up for teammates up for good looks and they just
didn't capitalize on them. And sometimes games are really gonna
be determined by something as simple as that. So I
(11:29):
don't know, man, it's so weird. I don't know who's
supporting Cast. I trust more Man. Both of these teams
feel so inconsistent. Like I feel like I trust Gordon
and I trust Murray, But can I trust Jadub? Can
I trust Chet?
Speaker 1 (11:45):
I don't know, man, I'm so up in the.
Speaker 4 (11:46):
Air about what we're gonna get in this game seven.
But I thought Oklahoma City supporting Cast really let them
down in this one.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
Yeah, it's just an absolute disaster from Jadub in every
possible way off.
Speaker 4 (11:58):
Dude, Like, I felt like that really encapsulated the whole
night for him. Man, Like a wide open fast break
jam late in this game, he can't even convert that miss.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
That one got blocked by Peyton Watson on what was
maybe the biggest swing play of the game. And that's
where we can talk about Strawther and he was certainly
the better contributor overall, but that one play from Peyton
Watson that would have cut it to a five point
Denver lead, and instead that turns into a transition layup
for Denver and then Russell Westbrook is able to put
(12:28):
it back in. So now the lead goes back up
to nine. That was huge, and then Caruso smoked a
layup on the other end that was a costly little
stretch for oksee right there, but it was terrible what
Jada gave you tonight. And by the way, he's shooting
ten of forty three over the last three games. It's
just completely inexcusable stuff from him. And this can be
the concern.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
He is not.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Somebody who creates a lot of easy offense for himself.
He is not a high end advantage creator, and so
he can live on sort of a tough intermediate shot
making diet. At times he can be maybe overly aggressive
and just forcing the issue downhill, and then he's not
super great playing through contact, and so you just end
up with a lot of shots that are like kind
of in and around the paint from him, but you
(13:11):
don't like most of them. And then also, he just
couldn't hit a three, and he's shooting twenty five percent
from deep in these playoffs. That's the one thing that
has consistently been offer him because he was phenomenal against Memphis,
but even in that series, he wasn't hitting the three
and really hasn't been throughout the playoffs, So outside of
his masterclass in game three, which was so impressive, like
(13:33):
OKC won the last couple games.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
Kind of in spite of Jadub and this.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
Game they were not able to win largely because he
was so bad. So he is probably the single biggest
guy who you look at for Game seven and you say,
you just have to be way better. But also the
three point shooting collectively from OKC was really bad. Lou
Dort was way off in this game. I thought that
Chet was great inside the arc. I thought that he
(13:59):
had some great drives. I thought that he was good
finishing off of cuts in the dunker spot, good on
the glass, but still didn't look comfortable shooting from deep.
Aaron Wiggins isn't able to hit a three in this game,
so they end up going eleven of forty from beyond
the arc. That really cost him in this game, because,
like you said, Man, I thought that Shay was just fantastic.
(14:19):
I thought that Shay was at least the co best
player on the floor with Jolkic. I mean, he got
whatever he wanted in this game, and he too has
adjusted and he has found his opportunities to be extremely
aggressive whenever he sees single coverage. Whenever he can clear aside,
he is getting a bucket. He is going right at you,
and he is creating separation and gonna knock down one
(14:41):
of his short range jumpers, which have just been automatic now.
But his finishing at the rim was also phenomenal. He's
just gotten so good at quickly attacking this defense in
semi transition or early in the possession before they can
build the wall and really.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
Set up the zone.
Speaker 3 (14:56):
And he's just gotten better at finding the driving angles
and still carving up the defense, getting all the way downhill,
and he's making good reads, and he's finding dudes in
the Duncker spot, and he's finding shooters like he was
setting up everybody on the top of creating crazy efficient
offense for himself. And guys just couldn't hit an outside
shot in this game.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
Yeah, and I will.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
I do want to give some of the Thunder credit too,
for some of the back cuts in this game. Dude
Hartenstein had a lot where he just got behind the defense,
And I do want to give SGA and JDub credit
for playmaking in this game. I thought this was a
really bad JDub shooting night, but he did playmake well.
That was the one aspect of the Oklahoma City defense
are excuse me offense I was impressed with was their
(15:38):
ability to get downhill.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
Get into the teeth of the defense, beat.
Speaker 4 (15:43):
That initial defender, and then force that Denver defense to
pick and choose their battles because they got a lot
of easy offense along the baseline and near the rim
just off of initial dribble penetration.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
That is something I thought. Okay See did a really good.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
Job of absolutely and Sga has just been lights out
as a scorer for these last five quarters.
Speaker 2 (16:03):
Obviously, what he did in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Was special of last game and then just throughout this one,
I thought that he was absolutely on one and he
does look extremely comfortable against a defense that was making
him extremely uncomfortable at some points early in this series,
a big problem for OKC. In this game, there were
really two stretches that decided things. You mentioned the straw
(16:26):
or one man run. That was the obvious one. The
other one was when Shaye picks up his fourth foul
at the very end of the first half. OKC was
clicking on all cylinders. They had built a twelve point
lead and it felt like they were maybe on the
verge of pulling away, and then Christian Brown hits one
to three, Shay gets stripped by Jokich, goes for the ball. Now, Logan,
(16:49):
we were texting about this. Looked like he got all ball.
But nevertheless, I just don't think he should try to
make that play in that moment because it's gonna look
like a frustration foul and you're playing with three fouls.
Don't give the official and opportunity to make a call.
Don't give Yokich an opportunity to flail. He has to
come out of the game. Then Denver goes on a
nine to zero run and they're able to erase that
advantage entirely with Shay off the floor. I did think
(17:10):
he got all ball, man, It definitely looked like he
got all ball with the hand he was targeting the
ball with. Maybe there was something with the offhand that
I didn't see initially, but he definitely got all ball
with his main hand. But that was a really big
stretch for Denver as well, and Christian Brown again makes
a couple of big shots in that stretch. So those
were two really pivotal runs for them. And I will say,
(17:32):
really the only note I think you can have for
SGA is you have to play more than thirty five
minutes in a game seven, because as good as okc's
depth is, like, you're the dude who was doing your
superhuman stuff, and you're the one guy who I really
trust to consistently get to great shots. I certainly don't
trust Jada to do that right now. You have questions
about some of the supporting shooting. There's always just some
(17:55):
game to game variance with that, like they shot the
ball better last game, but SJA has to be able
to captain this offense for forty plus minutes in a
game seven. I also thought it was weird that Chet
only played thirty minutes in this game, because I did
think that he was clearly their second best player. Also
thought it was kind of weird that Hartenstein only played
twenty five. I thought that he gave you some solid
minutes at least on the glass, and you mentioned the
(18:16):
cutting and finishing was good from him. They're trying to
find some j Will minutes. Of course, he's been good
in this series. He was solid again today, maybe not
as good, but as we look forward to a game seven, Logan,
what are the key factors that stand out to you.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
You want to start with Denver.
Speaker 2 (18:34):
Okase you start wherever you feel, buddy, and I'll follow you.
Speaker 4 (18:38):
I'll start with Denver. I think that you need another
Jamal Murray game like this. I don't necessarily think you
need a Jamal Murray masterclass, but I think you need
him to pull his weight enough. Specifically, I think you
need him to step up.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
In the fourth quarter, and Jamal has been.
Speaker 4 (18:55):
Jamal is like on a handful of players like that
I would take in like a clutch or big spot.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
I really do.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Like I think sometimes that clutch gene can kind of
get overstated, but he really is one of those special
guys I want in big moments.
Speaker 3 (19:07):
I gotta give this Jamal stat because I forgot too earlier.
He's plus twenty eight in this game. Man Halkins is
only plus eleven. They only win the game by twelve points.
So Jamal's ability to captain the offense in those non
Jokins mits and carry them in some of those stretches
was absolutely crucial.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
Yeah, so I think that's huge.
Speaker 4 (19:26):
I think you've got to shoot something similar to this, Like,
you know, if it is just a couple of threes
from an MPG or a Brown. You need to at
least match or get close to OKC, because I again,
that's a key advantage that I think OKAC has over
this Denver team.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Is there a collective shooting.
Speaker 4 (19:44):
And I know it didn't prevail tonight, but traditionally over
a series, in most games, that's going to be advantage OKC.
So you can't get beat too bad from behind the arc.
And then I think that I think you need a
big game from one of your role players, necessarily not
it doesn't have to be anybody specifically, but somebody outside
of Marie and Jokic gets going. And finally, I just
(20:05):
think you have to avoid a disastrous Russell Westbrook game.
I hate picking on the guy. I think Russ has
been overall really good in these playoffs and has been
a positive. I think he's been a positive this season
in general. This is an ugly game from him. I
couldn't believe that Adaman didn't pull him just in the
first quarter when he was like two minutes in.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
I mean, it was ugly. He is just turning the
ball over, not taking care of it.
Speaker 4 (20:29):
He's taking bad, dumb shots, like I don't know, man,
I like Russ's energy.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
I like what he gives you on some nights, I might.
Speaker 4 (20:38):
Give him a shorter leash in game seven and just
be like, I don't know, man, I'd he'd be real
quick to get pulled if he's messing up. Man, I'd
give him a real short leash. And then hell man,
let's give strawthor some burn, dude. Let's see if maybe
we can get him going a little bit earlier in
the second quarter or something like that, Like if he
can give you this kind of a punch off the bench.
You know, Ice Cold hasn't played at all. Well, maybe
(21:00):
give him a little bird early in the game and
see if he can get some easy opportunities. But I
still do feel like OKAC is the team that should dictate,
and I feel like they're the better team, and so
I still feel like more things have to go right
for Denver than for Oka.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
See, I still do feel like they have more margin.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
I would agree with that.
Speaker 3 (21:22):
I think that the aspect that I am most excited
for is the Superstar Battle because both of those guys
are so in rhythm. They've both been so good over
these last two games, and like I said, I think
they know what they're seeing now, they know how to
attack it. I trust them both to play at an
extremely high level in Game seven because they've both done
it and back to back games. Now, if there's one
(21:43):
guy who I am going to say is more capable
and more likely to rise to just like an I'm
single handedly going to win us to win kind of level,
it would be Jokic. But overall, I think we're gonna
get great stuff from both of the superstars. So honestly,
and this is kind of true for any individual basketball
game these days, So maybe it's kind of boring to say,
(22:05):
but the three point shooting you get from the supporting
casts might be the biggest key for both sides because
it's been a roller coaster ride for both teams in
that way. And it's very different because Okasee is a
really good three point shooting team. Denver is an efficient
three point shooting team. But there are a lot of
guys who get into the rotation who the defense is
(22:26):
going to be totally willing to concede open threes too.
If that's Christian Brown, if that's Russell Westbrook, if that's
Peyton Watson, and so those guys were really, really struggling
to make outside shots in this series coming into today,
but in this one, Christian Brown at least shoots significantly
better and they get obviously the three to three pointers
out of Julian Strother, So that's going to be huge
(22:48):
for Denver. Can those more questionable shooters knockdown shots or
maybe do they get a little bit of juice from Strawther?
For what it's worth, I'm not counting on Julian Strother
to be able to give you twenty minutes in a
game seven. Like, I definitely think there's a real chance
that this is not replicated. There were a couple shots
that he took, a couple runners that I didn't like,
Like he made some big ass shots, But I don't
(23:10):
think you can just be like, oh great, Julian Strother's
gonna give us twenty awesome minutes again in game seven.
Speaker 4 (23:15):
Well, I mean I kind of would play him like Russ,
where like early in the game, I'm giving him some
burn and if he's given me good minutes, I'm sure
he can get some more and if he's not, I'll
pull him early. I will say, I think one of
those runners was pretty late in the shot clock, so
I gave him a little bit of slack with that,
but you know, you get that shot going, you start
feeling yourself. It's like, all right, man, I gotta see
if I can hit everything.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
Sure, but also you gotta know your place.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
As Julian Strawther, I don't disagree that they should at
least give him a few minutes and see how he's playing,
but I wouldn't necessarily count on him. And also, obviously
MPJ is a big X factor on the shooting front.
He was able to make a couple shots in this game.
Speaker 2 (23:51):
I thought that he was a.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Little more active defensively. They still only played him twenty
nine minutes. But obviously he has really struggled for the
most part in this series. So how much are you
able to play him is a factor, and then do
you have that reliable fifth guy to close with, because
that's a big question for this Denver team with how
Russ is shooting in this series. He is not that
guy that he was against the Clippers, where he was
(24:12):
awesome and you felt like you could rely on him
in those big swats Peyton Watson. The shot is such
a big concern. Strawther, Again, I'm just not ready to
trust in that kind of moment. So it's going to
be pretty huge that either MPJ or Russ are making
their shots from the three point line for Denver and
then for Okay. See, it's just more of like a
collective thing because most of the shots that they're getting
(24:33):
I like. But Jadab has to be able to shoot
better than he has been chet in this series. It's
been a struggle from beyond the arc lou Dort. Obviously,
it's consistently been a struggle, and there are a couple
guys who have been shooting it better, like Cason Wallace,
who I thought was also really good in this game.
By the way, he's a guy who deserves a shout
out because I thought that he was great turning defense
into offense. He knocks down a couple of corner threes,
(24:55):
he gets a couple of transitional layoffs.
Speaker 4 (24:56):
He finished some of those transition layoups so quick I
thought he missed them.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
He's just crazy.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
He's just the dog. I know how much you love him.
I love him a lot too, But he gave you
big minutes in this one. Wiggins again wasn't shooting, but
he's been a guy they've been able to turn to
for offense. But I'm gonna say again, I just think
we need more Caruso and a little bit.
Speaker 2 (25:14):
Less lou Dort. I thought we just.
Speaker 1 (25:16):
Played the dotal foggling like this.
Speaker 4 (25:19):
I would be again, man, Okac has such a surplus
of guys that can play defense and can do the
complimentary things. There comes a point where I feel like,
in a game, I'm just gonna see who can make shots,
and I'm gonna ride with that lineup. Like I understand
the value that Dort brings and stuff like that, but like,
if he's not gonna hit shots, I don't want to
(25:40):
play him. You need to maximize, in my opinion, the
shooting that you've got around them, and that to me,
is the most important. For Okacs is just a lot
better at everything else.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
As we talked about offensively.
Speaker 4 (25:52):
I get, yeah, the little connective stuff, the positioning, the field,
the cutting.
Speaker 1 (25:58):
Caruso clears in all those areas. He's far off as
a defender.
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Man Like, in terms of he's a better defender, Yeah,
he's a better defender.
Speaker 4 (26:06):
In terms of versatility. I prefer Caruso way more in
terms of like switching on to bigger guys and stuff,
like that, Like, yeah, I would, just I'd give Caruso
more burn man.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
Caruso is clearly the better all around defender when you
consider that he's at least like ninety five percent of
the on ball irritant and elite man defender that Lou is,
while he is a way better off ball defender because
he's like one of a kind disruptive at his position.
In terms of that off ball defense, I think he
should play at least thirty minutes. It's everything that you said,
(26:35):
but the cutting, the playmaking, the finishing, the more versatile
defensive impact, the shooting. He's doing all that stuff better
than Lou, who gave them a massive massive surge in
Game five, but has just been way less reliable. So
as good as the thunder bench is, I don't think
there's anything wrong with riding your best guys a little
bit more. And if anything, listen, if Jadav's off, like
(26:57):
maybe he doesn't need to play thirty eight minutes, you
obviously need him in the non Shae minutes. But he
has not been a very good compliment to Shane, necessarily
because guys have to be able to knock down shots
off the catch to be effective and He's had a
couple nice drives into gaps and he's made some nice reads,
but the shot is a massive, massive problem for him
(27:17):
right now, so that three point shooting is a big key. Ultimately,
I do trust the Thunder shooting more. I think that
a lot of those Denver guys I feel really shaky about,
and some of the Thunder guys are a little bit
cold right now, but they are proven to be better
shooters overall. I also think what you get out of
your second options is a massive key.
Speaker 2 (27:36):
I would be surprised.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
If Jadub outplayed Jamal Murray offensively, just with how he's looked. Also,
I just think Jamal Murray is a better offensive player
than Jaln Williams. What makes Jadub so effective, what makes
him like an all star caliber guy, is that he
is among the ten twelve best defensive players on the planet,
and even there, like tonight, he has a really pronounced impact.
But Jamal just has an ability to get to his spots.
(27:58):
He's such a special shot maker that's more reliable. It's
more like, can okay see from their perspective, keep Jamal
from having one of his big games, and can Jadab
not shit himself can Jadub instead of going three of sixteen,
give me six for sixteen, give me eighteen to twenty points,
like competently guide the ship when Shay is off the
(28:21):
floor and knock down some shots off the catch alongside him.
I think that if Okse can have those number twos
place close to a draw, then you would think that
their collective depth and shooting should be the advantage in
obviously just their defense being as special as it is.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
It's extra key.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
For Denver though, because even though I give them props
for how they've done in the non Jokic minutes, they're
still a part of me that is, like, if Jamal
isn't great, well, that could be a stretch where Yokic
shit's four or five minutes, Okase could build an eight
ten point lead like that. It hasn't happened much in
this series, but they are capable of it. So that's
where I think Jamal is a really, really key performer.
(28:57):
One other key that I I thought Denver was able
to execute well for most of this game. It was
able to help them keep their lead was limiting the turnovers.
Speaker 2 (29:08):
Now at the end that.
Speaker 3 (29:09):
All fell apart because Caruso was just doing his crazy stuff,
and like you said, Denver got a little bit careless
with the ball and Okase he ends up having a
good number of transition points in this game, significantly more
than Denver. Thirty three to seventeen ends up being the
transition point differential. But a lot of that came in
that final stretch and in the first quarter. I thought,
(29:29):
in the second and third quarters, in a good portion
of the fourth, Denver did a good job protecting the
basketball and their transition defense was pretty good. That's massive
because that's where Okaysee does have the ability again to
separate from you. If they're turning defense into offense consistently
getting those easy transition chances. That's where Jadob is going
to be at his best. That's where he's going to
be most comfortable attacking in the full court, even though
(29:52):
he couldn't even do that right tonight. So Denver has
to limit that in my opinion. And then I think
the battle on the boards, it's always been big in
this series. I think that if ok C can basically
keep that to a draw, that's a solid outcome for them.
Although we saw them have the advantage on the glass
in a couple games because they're just so active. But
I do think that Denver as the bigger, stronger team
(30:16):
in the front court, and with the Yolkic factor with
Aaron Gordon like, they should be expected to generate more
second chances in an average game. All those factors and
all those keys considered and weighted out.
Speaker 2 (30:29):
Logan, who do you like in Game seven?
Speaker 1 (30:33):
Man?
Speaker 2 (30:35):
He didn't think I was gonna ask.
Speaker 1 (30:37):
No, I've been sitting over here thanking the entire I don't.
Speaker 4 (30:40):
I could flip a coin, man, I could see this
game really going either way. The reason I want to
take the Nuggets is because a very large portion of
my still still thinks that I trust them more in
the clutch, and I think this game is going to
be very, very close going in to the final stretch
of Game seven, and even though they're on the road
(31:01):
in Oklahoma City, I just trust Denver to.
Speaker 1 (31:06):
Operate better down the stretch. I'm gonna do it. I'm
gonna take Denver.
Speaker 4 (31:11):
I've I thought coming into this show I was gonna
take Oklahoma City and seven.
Speaker 1 (31:17):
I think Jokic is the best player in the world,
and I'm gonna bet on him to win this game.
Speaker 3 (31:22):
Wow, it always does scare me betting against yolkicen a
do or die spot, and like, I don't think that
this is like an obvious no brainer, but I do
think that OKAC is the better team, so I would
pick them to win Game seven on their home floor.
The biggest reason for that is probably how impressed I've
been by Shay in these last couple games, because I
(31:42):
think that when he plays up to his standards or
even exceeds them potentially, that's when OKAC should win these games,
unless they have the sort of exceptional failure from the
supporting cast like they did tonight. But on average, their
supporting cast is better in terms of their two way ability,
and I do trust guys to knock down more shots
than they did tonight. I also think it's really really
(32:04):
big that it felt like they figured out the zone tonight,
like SGA was making the right reads. You mentioned the
cutting that was a big part of it. They were
finding the soft spots in the zone. They generated one
point one points per possession against the zone on twenty
three possessions. That's a better number than they've turned out
in any of the previous games. And they did that
without shooting well, which is like the thing that you
(32:26):
think is going to beat the zone on average, So
I think they have more potential to win the turnover
margin consistently. I do think that they'll be able to
actually play Denver decently even on the glass, just with
how hard they play. I like more Caruso minutes as
opposed to lou Door. I expect that adjustment, and I
think that it's a swing factor. And like I said,
(32:47):
I just expect some of the guys around Shay to
be better. I think both superstars are going to be great.
Maybe Jokic can just be so unbelievable, but I have
more concerns about some of the guys around him. I'm
not confident that Christian Brown replicates this. I don't know
what the hell I'm getting out of MPJ. I don't
know what the hell I'm getting out of Russell Westbrook.
I don't know what I'm getting out of a lot
of guys for Denver. And even though there's been inconsistency
(33:09):
with Oka, see, they have more options to turn to
and they.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Have more talent overall. So I'm gonna take okay.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
See, we do have some super chats to get to
before we get out of here. Indie merchant, Sam, thank
you again for your donation. I'm poorn honey on Strawther
you have to got to it's a career defining kind
of performance.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
Man, Just crazy, dude, I'm empty.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
I need to go to the store and get some
more already emptied, all mine out.
Speaker 3 (33:32):
Yeah, well that could be taken out of context, but
I'm gonna interpret that generously. Say that you're talking about
Poorn Honey on Julian.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
Straw It's what I was talking about.
Speaker 3 (33:41):
And then you mean it quite literally, shout out Adelman. Man,
I mean, like seriously, Yeah, he tested the waters with
him in Game five, he played ten minutes. But to
give him an extended stint in this one and to
have it be like maybe the swing factor, that's just huge.
Calvin Booth, redemption, Calvin Booth. This was the good guy
all along. Calvin Booth was a genius. He knew what
(34:02):
he was doing.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
Find out this low.
Speaker 4 (34:06):
Key that's kind of it's one of the craziest storylines
of these playoffs.
Speaker 2 (34:10):
Well, it's a crazy storyline for one single game. I mean,
let's let's not.
Speaker 4 (34:15):
If they gets to a Western Conference finals after firing
their coach and like that's just ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
Oh that is insane.
Speaker 3 (34:21):
Absolutely, I'm just saying Calvin Booth absolutely deserved to be fired,
and Adaman has done a really good job and the
whole team has just rallied in such an impressive way.
Man to be going into a Game seven against the
sixty eight win Thunder, that's wild considering where Denver was
with three games to go in the regular season. The
(34:48):
NBA eighty two game grind is done, and now the
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Speaker 2 (34:59):
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Speaker 3 (37:19):
Rye Dog says, so tired of dub doing this. Conversations
to be.
Speaker 1 (37:23):
Had, Yeah, I mean.
Speaker 4 (37:27):
He's young, but yeah, there's some conversations that we can
definitely have about jadav Man. I mean, I'm disappointed. I'm
really disappointed what we got out of him in this series.
Like you said, dude, Memphis, I just I thought this
was gonna be a big time breakthrough for Jade. Of
this series, man, I didn't think that Denver could really
do much to disrupt him.
Speaker 1 (37:45):
But I'm very disappointed.
Speaker 3 (37:49):
Yeah, it's been rough from him. Man, he's shooting twenty
seven percent from mid range in this series, he's shooting
forty one percent in the restricted area, and then he's
shooting four of twenty five on above the break threes. Like,
are you kidding me?
Speaker 2 (38:05):
Dude? Are you kidding me?
Speaker 4 (38:08):
I mean, like, if you just gave me those numbers,
I would probably rather play somebody off the bench.
Speaker 2 (38:15):
Like that is horrifying.
Speaker 3 (38:17):
Man. Yeah, it's a real struggle for him. Like, he
does not get easy offense. He does not get easy
offense in the half court, and that has to improve.
I think that there's so much to like with Jada.
But obviously, if there's anybody who's getting blamed on the
OKC side for this series being where it is, Ludord
obviously you would have liked to see shoot.
Speaker 2 (38:37):
The ball better.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
But Jada being this bad over these last few games
is extremely disappointing, especially coming off of the series that
he played against Memphis. Miguel says Nuggets and seven, Logan's
with you.
Speaker 1 (38:49):
I am I'm I'm moved, man, this is gonna be
a war. I agree.
Speaker 4 (38:55):
Coin flip, coin flip is the exact way I feel like.
I'm I don't know who's supporting cast I should trust more.
There's so many complicating factors that you know, like that
make ripple effects with like other keys.
Speaker 1 (39:08):
To the to this game. It's such a fascinating thought exercise.
Speaker 4 (39:12):
I'm very close to fifty to fifty, but yeah, I'm
gonna bet on Jokic, man.
Speaker 2 (39:19):
I understand it. I understand betting on Jokic.
Speaker 3 (39:21):
I do still think that the collective OKC team has
more margin. Also, if there is a world in which
one team wins this game comfortably, I do think it's
OKAC because of their defensive ceiling, just the utter chaos
that they can cause. And then because I do also
think they have the higher three point shooting ceiling, like
that gives them more of a potential to maybe run
away with a game A bit. I wouldn't expect that,
(39:43):
but you never know. In a game seven, I mean,
think about how tight almost every game and Nuggets Clippers
was and then it ends up being a blowout in
game seven. I do think that OKAC has more potential
to pull that out. And they showed me enough with
how they gut it out games four and five for
me to have more confidence in them in the situations
than Shay has definitely shown me enough to be confident
in him. Right now, we have a couple more super
(40:05):
tites before we go. Eli says, what team is Jalen
Williams on next season?
Speaker 1 (40:10):
Right now he's playing for. Right now, he's playing for
the Denver Nuggets.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
Yeah, damn near. When he's on offense, he's playing for
the Denver Nuggets.
Speaker 2 (40:19):
I think they're gonna stick it out with Jadab. Call
me a crazy man.
Speaker 3 (40:23):
I think he plays better in Game seven. Well, hold on,
that's actually not crazy. He can't play worse. I'll say
I think he plays significantly better. Not to say that
we're gonna get what he gave you in game three.
I think that we'll get a solid Jada game. I
think he just needs to settle down a bit, obviously,
and also he just has to find his jumper. Like
some of the looks that he's taking. I do not
(40:43):
like some of the looks. I'm fine with, and they're
just not falling right now. But I believe in the
OKC Corp. I do think that he's certainly more expendable
than like a Chat if they ever were to move
off of somebody other than Shaye. But I still believe
in Jadab as part of this core Light skits. Thank
you for your nation, Strawther dark Horse Finals MVP, let's
talk about it.
Speaker 1 (41:04):
It's having it. Take it at a bank.
Speaker 3 (41:06):
Let's start the narrative. Get the odds on that. I mean,
that's just an incredible value. Bet he's MVP of today. Man,
he's MVP of today.
Speaker 1 (41:14):
I completely agree with that.
Speaker 3 (41:16):
Overperformed his expectations by the most and was maybe the
swing factor in this one. I'm so excited for Sunday.
I wish that we didn't have to wait. I wish
that they could just turn around and give us Game
seven right now. But we are going to be back
before then, Logan, because believe it or not, we got
another Game six, we got another potential opportunity to extend
a series to Game seven. That's going to be the
(41:37):
Boston Celtics fighting for their lives against the New York Knicks,
and Logan, that's going to be tomorrow, and we're gonna
be here.
Speaker 1 (41:44):
Oh yeah, you better believe it.
Speaker 2 (41:46):
Oh yeah. We are both chained to our radiators.
Speaker 3 (41:48):
Sometimes I wish I could get outside, but basketball is
pretty great too, so I can't be that mad about it.
Speaker 1 (41:53):
I don't really mind it, honestly, it's kind of kind
of soothing.
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Well, you start to forget what's in the outside.
Speaker 4 (41:58):
You got tomorrow. Man, I think I'm gonna take Austin
to force Game seven.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
I kind of think I'm with you. I kind of think.
Speaker 4 (42:05):
I'm with you know what, And I'm it's kind of
ironic to me the way the Celtics have done this
little face turn after Tatum's injury, you know what I mean,
Like now that they're the underdone, Like I'm seeing some
people get behind Boston. But like you said, dude, hey,
can I ask you something, even though the Knicks are
up in this series, Like, who do you think is
(42:26):
one more the Celtics have one more quarters?
Speaker 1 (42:28):
Yeah? Like can I get this?
Speaker 2 (42:30):
Yeah? I mean it's way more.
Speaker 4 (42:32):
That's what's kind of crazy to me about this series.
And I get that Tatum was healthy for a lot
of them, but it's like, I just don't think New
York has looked all that great. Like New York's done
enough in every game, but they just haven't looked like
dominant in any of these wins. And so I think
Boston's gon to force Game seven. Man, I think we
got two of.
Speaker 1 (42:52):
Them on the rise.
Speaker 4 (42:53):
I'm super pumped for tomorrow's show too, So uh, thank
you guys for tuning in tonight.
Speaker 1 (42:58):
We will be back if you're in for more.
Speaker 3 (43:01):
Celtics are plus thirty five in this series. Man, that's
crazy to have a plus seven point differential per game
in a series that you're down three two. Truly, if
they do not have generational meltdowns in games one and two,
they could have gotten this thing over and done with already.
That being said, it is a different game without Jason Tatum.
Of course, can they replicate what they did last game?
(43:21):
A lot of it falls on Jalen Brown. He has
to be as good as he was, But I think
that there's a real possibility. I think that they are
very similar caliber teams when Jason Tatum is off the floor,
and in Game five, Boston was convincingly better and offense
was coming a lot easier to them.
Speaker 2 (43:36):
So we'll see.
Speaker 3 (43:37):
I'd say that game is pretty much a toss up
with that. As always, appreciate you guys, hope you enjoyed.
You know where to find if you want more, our
YouTube channel. We do all of our postgame live streams.
Speaker 2 (43:47):
Here.
Speaker 3 (43:47):
You can watch them in the moment, you can watch
them after the fact, and you can listen to all
of our full episodes across all audio platforms. You can
also follow us across social TikTok, Instagram at nerd Sash,
Twitter at nerd Underscore, SESSH and you can in our
discord if you want to be part of our community
there chat with the gang that is linked at the
link tree that is across our social media bios. So
with that, as always, I've been Carson Brabber.
Speaker 4 (44:10):
I have been logging Camden and this was nerd Sash
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