06-26-26 Hour 1 of Broncos Country Tonight with Grant Smith and Zach Segars

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome into it.

Speaker 2 (00:01):
Broncos Country Tonight, a Friday edition without our Wet Blanket
Benjamin Albright as he was filling in on KOA Sports
All Week for Ryan Edwards as he was getting a
much needed vacation, Grant Smith alongside Zach Seegers. Zach, we
got to start. You know, we got some Broncos talk
coming up. We got some Nuggets talk coming up, Ryan
Blackburn and Zach Stevens joining us later. Plus a look

(00:24):
around the NFL with the NFL six Pack. But man
tough last second loss for the US men's national team
against Turkey A last night. What were your thoughts on
the game?

Speaker 3 (00:34):
I mean, it's amazing how like five to ten seconds
can make you feel so different, right, because if they
tie that game with the backups, I think the story
coming out of it is very different.

Speaker 4 (00:46):
Right.

Speaker 2 (00:46):
You think you got some depth and you're like, okay, well,
if if someone goes down with injury or a red card,
we're going to be okay, because look how good these
guys played.

Speaker 3 (00:54):
In the final group stage game exactly, and then in
the you know those that last little kick, It's just
it all changed and now it's a loss, and I
think it's a little deflating, and I think I worry
less about anything we actually saw on the pitch.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
Look at me using the vernacular.

Speaker 3 (01:09):
But soccer expert Zach seekers exactly, Hey Koa's go to
or actually that probably be you because soccer analyst. But
I think it's less about that, because really it was
backups and tie game with a team that was expected
to be the second best team in the group.

Speaker 1 (01:25):
Granted it wasn't that though. The glosses to.

Speaker 3 (01:28):
Paraguay and Australia were you know, not terrible. They were
they were plenty respectable. I think the team looked well,
It's just they had such great momentum and energy and
there was this belief that maybe they could win at all.
I remember Pochettino after the Australia win saying, you know,

(01:48):
we'll see how far this team can go. And that
was highlighted by I forget if it was a Tierryan
Ree or Latin afterwards saying, you know, before that win,
it would have been hey, we're just hoping to you know,
represent America well where we're hoping to make it out
of the group.

Speaker 1 (02:04):
Stage or whatever.

Speaker 3 (02:05):
But to just say, hey, let's see how far this
thing can take us. Spoke to the optimism that was
around that team. I'm worried this deflates it some. And
again you heard all these analysts, people who know the
game much more than me, talking about how powerful it
can believe be when the team finally believes we can
really do this thing. And I'm hoping that the Turkey
loss doesn't make that waiver too much.

Speaker 1 (02:27):
Yeah, I mean, it would have been awesome.

Speaker 2 (02:28):
It would have been the first time ever that the
United States would one would have won all their group
stage games in a World Cup, which you know would
have been cool to make history. But like you said,
the game didn't matter in the end, but it would
have been nice for it to end on that two
to two draw instead of a three to two loss
in the ninety eighth minute. I thought you made some
interesting points there. We know that they're gonna play Bosnia.

(02:49):
Here's no Govina. How do you say it, Here's a govinya.

Speaker 1 (02:52):
Here's the Govina.

Speaker 2 (02:54):
Okay, I think I think you got all these countries
changing their names, but I can say Bosnia Bosnia.

Speaker 1 (02:59):
There we go.

Speaker 2 (03:00):
They're going to play their Round of thirty two game
on Wednesday, July first, at six o'clock Mountain time, so
that'll be exciting. But I think this might be a
nice little reset for the US men's team because they
were kind of feeling themselves after those first two wins
in their group stage. Maybe this revitalizes at hunger and realizing, hey,

(03:20):
we need a good couple of days of practice here
leading into that round of thirty two game, because we're
not invincible. We saw the worst team, albeit, like you said,
supposed to be second in the group.

Speaker 1 (03:30):
At the beginning of the World Cup.

Speaker 2 (03:31):
They had won a game against either the other two
teams that US had beat, So maybe this is a
little reset for them. But it does feel like this
US men's national team is different. This was Tyler Adams
on the Pat McFee show earlier this week talking about
the difference as he sees from the last time when
he was twenty three as the captain in the World
Cup for the US team and now twenty seven year

(03:51):
old the captain again not in last night's game, along
with basically every other starter for the US, but this
is what he had to say about the differences between
the team last World Cup and this World Cup.

Speaker 5 (04:03):
We've grown a lot since the last World Cup. I
would say in the last World Cup we were a
little bit obviously inexperienced. I hate to say that word,
but that's probably the truth more than anything, Whereas now
we're just more mature. A lot of us have changed
in our personal lives, becoming fathers, growing up, everything that
comes with life, and now as we enter this World Cup,
I feel the group is more together than ever. We

(04:25):
have a belief that I don't know that we had before,
and we're just continually growing.

Speaker 2 (04:30):
That's Tyler Adams, US men's national team captain, and I
forgot to mention you will be able to hear the
next round of thirty two game for the US on
Wednesday at six o'clock mountain time on Kowa. But it
does feel like just think about the differences and yourself personally.
I do this all the time with myself when I
hear quotes like that from athletes, like the difference in
who you are from four years ago to who you

(04:52):
are now and how much more life experience you have
and what you know changes have come in your life
that have made you view things differently.

Speaker 1 (05:00):
It seems like this team.

Speaker 2 (05:01):
Is at the right time to make an impact and
it looks like they have favorable matchups in the next
two rounds if they can win those games to make
it to the quarterfinals. And just think how crazy this
country would get if the US men's team makes it
to the final eight in the World Cup.

Speaker 1 (05:17):
It'd be outstanding.

Speaker 3 (05:18):
I was actually researching today, like, what's the best the
US has ever done, because it gets talked a lot
about how they, you know, have this one third place
finish that happened in the first World Cup ever in
nineteen thirty and there were thirteen teams played and the
format was totally different.

Speaker 1 (05:32):
So, yes, that's the best they've done.

Speaker 3 (05:34):
But as far as you know, the World Cup as
we know it now, they've made it to the quarterfinals
the round of eight only once, and that's the best
they've ever done in two thousand and two, and it
was in Japan's South Korea, when those games would have
been being played at a time that's not so convenient
for American figures. I really think, you know, a run

(05:55):
to the quarterfinals would launch such great loker development in
this country. I think the next generation of players. Absolutely
you're seeing guys fall in love with it. And I
think part of it too, Yes, this team's more mature.
I love the leadership they have. The coaching is amazing.
I think they're also just a lot more talented, you know,
like you see the things Tyler Adams tries out there

(06:16):
and how often it works and it is awesome. And
you have Polistic who's in one of the major European leagues,
and all these other guys that are starting to go
over and transfer to these European leagues and be these
exciting young projects for a Spanish team here and an
Italian team there. And you know, you go back to
the great team usas that I remember, you know, twenty ten,

(06:39):
twenty fourteen, the star players were like the MVP of
the MLS.

Speaker 1 (06:43):
It's just gotten so different.

Speaker 3 (06:46):
I saw as someone before the tournament, or maybe it
was after the first win mentioning how the USA now
has more players in the top seven leagues than Brazil does,
which is crazy, absolutely insane, and I just it makes
me very excited for you know, hopefully this is just
the beginning of a soccer culture in this nation, right,

(07:08):
a culture that withstands the test of time, that's not
just hey, every twenty years, We've got a decent crop
of young guys, and maybe we can do something in
the World Cup. But being a top ten team in
the world going forward, I mean, that's what the trajectory
feels like right now.

Speaker 2 (07:23):
It's exciting times, man. And it was good to see
Christian Polistic back last night. He only a half hour,
but that's exactly the amount of time I wanted to
see from him. He looked healthy, he created some chances,
got some shots on goal. So I think, you know,
even with the loss last night, I'm feeling very positive
about their next game.

Speaker 3 (07:39):
Absolutely keeps him loose, and like you said, it's Bosnia
in this next game, and then it looks like again
Egypt's probably the most likely matchup after that, or South Korea.
There's some other teams who could maybe land in that spot.
Belgium's probably the only one you're really worried about.

Speaker 4 (07:55):
Yep.

Speaker 1 (07:56):
They're a beatable team too.

Speaker 3 (07:57):
Absolutely, They've kind of had their stops and starts during
this World Cup. So it feels like if the US
just shows up like they did in those first two games,
they've got an excellent chance of reaching the quarterfinals.

Speaker 1 (08:11):
Yep. Yeah, I can't wait for it.

Speaker 2 (08:12):
On Wednesday here at on KOA at six o'clock, Mountain
Time five six six nine zero, the Common Spirit health
text line. If you want to get involved in the conversation.
We've got Ryan Blackburn coming up in the next segment
from Mile High Sports. We're going to talk all things Nuggets.
But I thought this SoundBite from Richard Jefferson talking about
the impact on Jalen Brown and how this might play

(08:33):
into you know what if Jamal Murray's mentioned in a
trade here coming up and it does fall through and
he is back with the Nuggets but knows that they
tried to move him.

Speaker 1 (08:42):
This was him talking about Jalen.

Speaker 2 (08:43):
Brown getting mentioned and the Yawnis trade when the Bucks
ultimately took the deal with the Heat instead of the Celtics.

Speaker 1 (08:49):
This was on the Pat McAfee show.

Speaker 6 (08:51):
Well, I think we always look at Jalen Brown's career.
He always looks at.

Speaker 1 (08:54):
Things as a motivation.

Speaker 6 (08:55):
He is a champion, He's a finals MVP. The dude
this year without Jason Tatum, showed that he is a
top ten player in the league, was an MVY, was
high on the MVP candidate list. But when I look
at him and what he's able to do on the court,
two way player, he's elite. You know, he's in the
mode of Kawhi Leonard, of the young Paul George. He

(09:16):
has all of that. But one thing that I would
say to Jalen Brown is that as your career goes on,
these are conversations that will have you got traded or
potentially got traded for Yannis. This wasn't a packaged deal
and a young all star. This is one of the
all time greats. And it's kind of like Anthony Davis
getting traded for Luca. Hey, it's Luca. You got to understand.

(09:37):
And so what I would if I was Jalen Brown,
I would help him understand that, like, hey, this is
a part of the business. It's a little tough when
it's with your first team, a team that you've accomplished
so much. But your team's job is also the field calls,
and if they can get Yannis, then that's most likely
what they would try to do. Now, they wouldn't give
away everything, right, they wouldn't give away anything, but they

(09:58):
would listen to calls for Yannis and whenever guys like
Giannis or Lebron or Kevin Durant, Lucan, whenever these guys
hit the market. Everybody is available. And just because you
were to go let's say he were to magically go
to a team, let's say Portland right three years from now,
Portland could be feeling calls. There is no loyalty in
our business. There is none. There's a little bit of respect,

(10:19):
there's no loyalty in professional sports. Pat you know that
you've seen handshakes and then the next day they walk
out in the room and trade you. These are things
that are very very normal. Are their emotions involved. But understand,
the grass will not always be greener on the other side.

Speaker 2 (10:33):
That's certainly the truth. The grass is not always greater
on the other side. Richard Jefferson on Jalen Brown being
mentioned and yet another trade for the Celtics but ultimately
not getting traded, and that Janni steal as he goes
to the Miami Heat. But I thought it was interesting,
you know, like Jalen Brown certainly does view himself as
one of the top players in the NBA. I'm sure

(10:53):
Jamal Murray also views himself as one of the top
players in the NBA. It seems like the Celtics are
going to have to move a Brown after the second
failed trade with him. But what if he's traded for
Jamal Murray, or what if that trade falls through and
Jamal Murray ends up back with the Nuggets.

Speaker 1 (11:10):
How do you think they that.

Speaker 2 (11:11):
He handles that If he's mentioned in the trade and
ultimately it doesn't come to fruition and he is back
on the Nuggets.

Speaker 3 (11:19):
I'd hope you get the best version of him. I
do think one thing we've seen about Jamal Murray is
he plays with a bit of a chip on his shoulder,
for sure, and I think that that often gets the
best out of him. And you know, I think the
tough reality we you know, you want to sell high
on Jamal Murray. In this great regular season he had,

(11:40):
the last three postseason runs for him have been kind
of dreadful.

Speaker 1 (11:43):
Right after he was nicknamed playoff Jamal exactly like he had.

Speaker 3 (11:48):
The finals run was okay, but it wasn't like he
rows to some crazy flamethrower level. And since that finals run,
it's it's been cooling off. It's been playoff dropping, the
opposite of what we associate with Jamal, and so I
just hopefully it reignites something in him or something, because

(12:11):
I'm not very optimistic about the Nuggets making some big move.

Speaker 1 (12:14):
I do mean, it feels like a running back right right.

Speaker 3 (12:18):
Everyone keeps talking about moving Aaron Gordon and moving Jamal Murray,
and when, okay, we're having these big deals made, and
it seems like the Nuggets are on the periphery of
all of them, even you know, with the Jalen Brown stuff.

Speaker 1 (12:30):
The conversation is, well.

Speaker 3 (12:31):
The Rockets, and I forget like the Trailblazers are expected
to be the leaders in the clubhouse. And if the
Nuggets aren't getting involved in these moves, now, when are
they going to get involved? What are they going to
jump on? So right now, to me, it kind of
feels likely that Jamal Murray will be back. I kind
of hope I'm wrong there, just because I think they

(12:51):
have to mix something up. I think you saw this
build isn't good enough. And even if it's taking a
step back to get younger or to spread well throwned
and get deeper, I don't know, but I think you've
got to mix something up. I just hope you know
if you are stuck with Jamal coming back, which isn't
the worst thing ever, he's a good player, But if
that is what they land with Hopefully this reignites something

(13:12):
in him and you get back to playoff.

Speaker 2 (13:14):
Jamal, how would you feel about trading let's say Jamal
Murray Christian Brown in a second round pick for Jalen Brown.
Do you think that's too much? Do you think that's
about right? And how would he fit with this Nuggets team?
I'd be elated me too, I'd be elated. I think
he's a game changer and I think.

Speaker 1 (13:30):
He would fit well.

Speaker 3 (13:32):
Now, He's not a primary ballhander and Jamal Murray is,
and that, like, that's an important factor to consult.

Speaker 2 (13:39):
We've seen some young guards on the Nuggets look pretty
good when they've gotten time. I mean, my mind immediately
goes to pick it. I don't know if he's in
their future plans or not, but it seems like you
can plug and play when you have someone like Joker
who also does a lot of the ball handling responsibilities.

Speaker 3 (13:53):
Absolutely, and I fully agree. You look at who their
like backup point guards or secondary players were in this
joone well, last of your tighest Joe or even like
we saw Tim Hardaway do that at times in the
regular season. We saw Bruce Brown do that, and again
those guys are getting older, they might not be back.
It's not even about them, the point being you can
find those guys you don't need. In my opinion of

(14:13):
Jamal Murray, I think you can create a great two
man action with Brown and Jokic, and then if you
need another ball handler to help the offense when Yokich
is off the floor, or you know, just to help
give everyone a breather and take the ball up the court.
I think you can find those guys out there for
a lower level number. I think anything. I really I

(14:35):
love Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon. I think their jerseys
absolutely should be up in the rafters in ball Arena.
One day, you look at the other jerseys that are
up there, I think those two absolutely alongside them. But
I think that time's over, sadly for the Nuggets. I
think if they want to keep going with it, that's fine,
but you're probably going to be a first round exit,

(14:57):
maybe a second round exit. You need to chase things
up if you want to try and capitalize on the
last of Jokic you have, and I think it's paramount
they should. I think this whole city should be, you know,
lighten their torches and getting their pitchforks ready saying like
Jokis is probably the best athlete the city's ever seen.
Most people, I think would have him as a top

(15:19):
fifteen player in NBA history all time.

Speaker 1 (15:20):
Well, that's gonna upset some Broncos. Jo and I love
John Elway, I love Sakic.

Speaker 3 (15:26):
I think if you are Sakic, I think if you
ask uh hockey experts all around, you're gonna be hard
pressed to find guys that put them top fifteen or
in top ten convos. Same thing with John Oway. Maybe quarterbacks,
but we're talking all players. I think you'd be hard
pressed to find the guys who put them there. If
we're being honest with ourselves, Jokic is like a no

(15:47):
doubt top twenty, top fifteen guy all time. Yes, you
need and a lot of people I respect would put
him top ten.

Speaker 1 (15:54):
You need to capitalize on this.

Speaker 3 (15:56):
It's it's your job as an owner of this team,
responsibility to the city to when you hit on a
guy like this, do everything you can to bring a
championship home.

Speaker 1 (16:05):
I couldn't agree more.

Speaker 4 (16:07):
Man.

Speaker 2 (16:07):
We're gonna talk with Zach Stevens later in the show.
I'd love to get his thoughts on that. What you
just said is Joker the best athlete that this city
has ever seen. That's gonna be interesting, But you do
just want to see some moves, you know, even if
it isn't the big flashy one, change things up a
little bit. I mean, we're even seeing the Avs move
Valnachuskin and Jack Drury and getting back some other pieces,

(16:28):
so we'd like to see some action after our first
round exit from the Nuggets. We're gonna get Ryan Blackburn's
thoughts on all things Nuggets. Coming up next on Broncos
Country Tonight on KOA. Welcome back to it, Broncos Country Tonight.
Grant Smith filling in for Benjamin Albright alongside Zach Seegers.

Speaker 1 (16:48):
Two Knights in a row.

Speaker 2 (16:49):
Neither of us has to be behind the board, and
we both get to host, and we get to be
joined by one of our favorites, Ryan Blackburn from Mile
High Sports.

Speaker 1 (16:56):
Follow him on x at NBA. Blackburn, how are you tonight, man.

Speaker 4 (17:02):
I'm doing well. Thanks for having me on. Guys, It's
been an interesting offseason to say the least.

Speaker 1 (17:07):
Certainly has been an interesting offseason.

Speaker 2 (17:09):
I'm sure we'll get your thoughts on the Yannis trade,
and also LaMelo Ball to the Tea Wolves.

Speaker 1 (17:13):
But want to start with the Nuggets.

Speaker 2 (17:15):
What do you think of them trading out of the
twenty six pick and the NBA Draft and then taking
the Arkansas player Brazil and then the Saint John's guard
as well. What did you think of their picks and
what did you think of them trading back?

Speaker 4 (17:28):
Yeah, I wasn't really surprised that this was the direction
that they went. This is an unfortunate situation for Denver
where at the twenty sixth overall pick, they even thought
about trading up and trying to get an additional ball
handler or somebody who could help take some pressure off
of Nikola Jokich, Jamal Murray, those guys in terms of
creating everything, but the price was very high, and instead

(17:51):
of just doing that, they trade back and try to
add some assets to their stash. And it's it's still
pretty bleak because they haly have three future second round
picks now in general, but they get Trevon Brazil, who's
a very athletic pogo stick of a power forward, somebody

(18:11):
who they haven't had that archetype in a while, somebody
who can go above the rim on a consistent basis
and block some shots, dunk the ball on a consistent
basis in lob situations. Now it makes sense to me
that they add somebody like that as well as somebody
like Bryce Hopkins, who both guys are older players, definitely

(18:32):
a little bit more ready in terms of their ability
to contribute. Now, whether they will or not remains to
be seen. Bryce Hopkins more of a wing, somebody who
can go off the dribble on occasion. But both guys
are tough, they're good rebounders. They don't need the ball
in their hands all the time to make an impact.
And Denver, of course, they wanted somebody that could impact
the ball with the ball in their hands, so we'll

(18:55):
see whether they can add that in free agency instead.

Speaker 3 (18:58):
It feels like, you know, really, since the emergence of
Christian Brown, we've been waiting for that next young guy
to step up. Do you think we finally get that
this year with either some of these draft picks Brazil Hopkins,
or do you think it's you know, maybe Deron Holmes
finally carving out a larger role Jalen Pickett. Is there
any chance for or any good chance, I guess for

(19:20):
a youth reinforcement.

Speaker 4 (19:23):
I think there's definitely a chance. Whether the Nuggets are
going to trust those guys with the large role I
think remains to be seen. Peyton Watson, if they do
bring him back, he's going to step into a starter role.
In all likelihood, I would expect him to be one
of those guys that you're talking about that plays a
major impact and that has a good opportunity to do

(19:46):
some good things. Whether that happens or not, though, well,
we'll just have to find out. But I'm curious how
they handle some of these other young guys too, whether
it's Julian Strather or Deron Holmes. Julians Straw played a
role for them in the playoffs before, but this past
year with Tim Hardaway in the fold, both of those

(20:06):
guys play a very similar style of game, and so
it's hard to have multiple shooters that struggle on the
defensive end out there on a consistent basis, And the
Nuggets just decided to commit the Hardaway. So if Hardaway
is gone, I would expect Julian Strather to step up
in a major way. I would actually expect him to
have a very significant role off of Denver's bench. And

(20:29):
then Deron Holmes. They've barely played him at all, so
it's going to be on him, I think, to prove
that he's ready to go in these situations, and that
involves getting into the weight room, understanding the kind of
role that he's going to have to play, being positionally
versatile at the powerboard and center position. Denvers, of course,

(20:49):
had trouble with this backup center stop for a long time.
So if he can do those things, he'll play a
significant role too. But it's going to take a lot,
and I think the Nuggets are not quite sure what
they're going to get from him just yet.

Speaker 2 (21:02):
Talking with Ryan Blackburn here on Broncos Country tonight, you
can find him on x at NBA. Blackburn also does
a great job with Mile High Sports. I want to
stick with the draft just for another another question here.
They traded out of the twenty six pick after taking
Terris Reed junior from Connecticut who looked dominant at times
and his time at Yukon. What do you think the

(21:23):
reasoning was behind that. I mean, you said you kind
of expected them to do that, but I thought he
would be the perfect plug and play as a backup
center for Jokic. Going forward, why did they trade out
of that twenty sixth spot, and what are their plans
at backup center behind Joker.

Speaker 4 (21:39):
Yeah, there are a couple of reasons why. The first
and foremost is that Denver's added these bigs before with
Zeke Naji and Deron Holmes, and players that can play
the four can play the five that they've tried to
pigeonhole into that spot. But using another first round pick,
their only first round pick that they have access to
over the course of the next couple of years on

(22:01):
a backup center, to me, is not the best use
of their resources. They can find that player in a
minimum free agency role, or even in a second round
pick or an undrafted free agent or something of that nature,
and I think that that's the direction that they want
to go when they have somebody like Nikola Jokic who
is going to play those massive minutes anyway, spending a

(22:25):
first round pick on somebody that doesn't get to play
next to Nikola Jokic is not necessarily their best use
of resources, and so that's why they trade back. The
other reason is that they don't have a lot of assets,
They don't have a lot of death flexibility that other
teams have where they can move up and down the
draft board, where they can deploy second round pick capital
at the trade deadline and acquire a piece that is very,

(22:48):
very needed. You saw players like Isaiah Stewarts, even Isaiah Joe,
Kenrich Williams or not Kenrich Williams, Aaron Wiggins from Okay.
See those guys and those really pricey teams trying to
get a little bit cheaper. They're trading those guys for
future second round picks, and so Denver trying to do

(23:08):
the same thing and catch up a little bit in
terms of the amounts of draft pick capital that they
have at their disposal because it's been dry. It's been very,
very dry for a long time for Denver and they
haven't been able to do things that they've wanted to
do because they don't have that draft pick capital. So
they're trying to catch up on that, and so they
move down nine spots in order to do it. And

(23:30):
I think it's a reasonable value deal. Is it a
sexy move? Absolutely not.

Speaker 3 (23:37):
Ryan. I'm also curious you've mentioned Peyton Watson. He's one
of the big, it feels like, pivot points of this
offseason for the Nuggets seems like they're probably going to
sign him to a very lucrative extension. If you were
in that Nuggets front office, how confident in that gamble
would you be?

Speaker 1 (23:56):
Because they've given.

Speaker 3 (23:57):
Big extensions to Zekenology in the past and Christian Brown,
and you know, I think that Christian Brown was maybe
still a little to be determined, but last year was
I think fair to say a little disappointing. Do you
how worried would you be of another case of buyer's
remorse with Peyton Watson.

Speaker 4 (24:16):
That's a great question, and the important thing for Denver
is that Bayton Watson is a different player from each
of those guys. Zeke Naji was given an extension preemptively
by Calvin Booth with the sole purpose of then trading
him in the future as a as a piece of
matching salary, but it wasn't because he warranted it at

(24:37):
that point. Christian Brown. I think a lot of people
were surprised at how bad the season was for Christian Brown,
but part of that was because James Harden stepped on
his ankle in Game twelve of the regular season. He
tore some ligaments there and as a result of that,
really struggled with explosiveness and comfortability and some of the

(24:59):
things that he had done well in the past. So
I hope that this offseason can rectify that at least
a little bit. With Peyton Watson, he's more of a
ball in hand player and somebody that has grown a
little bit over the course of these past few years
from a player that the Nuggets did not want to
touch the ball to a player that can potentially do

(25:19):
some things to take pressure off of Nikola Jokic and
Jamal Murray. He's also an athletic and versatile six foot
seven six foot eight wing and those kinds of players
are very difficult to find, the players that can step
up on the defensive end and step up on the
offensive end at various points. Are you paid? You just

(25:40):
pay a premium for that kind of player. And so
Denver's making a bet here because he hasn't done this
for a prolonged period of time, but that time during
January when he stepped up next to Jamal Murray when
Jokic was out and was averaging over twenty points per
game and winning games for the Nuggets with his ability
to get into the pain helping out Denver accommodating what

(26:03):
the Nuggets needed. I think that the Nuggets are hoping
that he can continue to do that in a larger
role and has a little bit more upside as a
star type player to be able to make that happen.
Whether it's able to or not remains to be seen,
but that's at least the vision of what they're going for.

Speaker 2 (26:21):
Yeah, I mean, we've always known he's been a great
defensive player, but like you said, watching his offensive game
grow this past season, especially in that stretch in January,
was fun to see and it seems like this guy's
the limit for his potential. You mentioned Jamal Murray in
that last answer. What are the thoughts on him around
the Nuggets organization? You know, we've heard his name floated
around as maybe someone that you move also mister nugget,

(26:43):
Aaron Gordon, maybe Cam Johnson who returns.

Speaker 1 (26:46):
Out of that core group from the Nuggets last year.

Speaker 2 (26:48):
Are they just going to run it back and hope
to add Peyton Watson and bring him back as well,
or do you think they make a big splash maybe
a Jamal Murray or an Aaron Gordon trade.

Speaker 4 (26:59):
Yeah, I would lean more towards Denver is going to
trade somebody. The answer as to which of those guys
that's going to be is still to be determined. Denver
at this point is in a really weird spot where
they're trying to get better and cheaper at the same time.
And when you are doing both of those things and

(27:19):
you lose in the first round in a very disappointing way,
you have to look at everything. And the Nuggets are
looking at everything, and they've said that basically everything is
on the table except trading Nikoliokic. So my mind immediately
goes to, Okay, what are they interested in it? Would
they trade Jamal Murray? Would they trade Aaron Gordon? Would
they move these guys because they are the priciest players,

(27:40):
because they are guys that Denver, Yes, they've won a
championship with, but it's also been three years since then.
Are they interested in changing things up and actually trying
to mix some things up around to Kolokish and be
a little bit different going forward. I think there's a
possibility there, but Denver still has to figure out the

(28:01):
kind of value that they could get for those guys
and if it's even worth it. In an ideal world,
they stay pretty close to the second apron in terms
of their finances, and they move either Cam Johnson or
Christian Brown and try to stay just under the second
apron while bringing back Peyton Watson. But I don't think

(28:22):
that they can do the most competitively and the most
financially at the same time. They're probably going to have
to pick and choose a path or else they're not
going to do it very well. In terms of actually
putting together the best possible team for next season. I
think that they're going to try to get cheaper, and

(28:43):
that means trading either your second most valuable contract in
Jamal Murray, your third most in Aaron Gordon, or your
fourth most in Cam Johnson. The all three of those
guys I think are in the crossairs in terms of
being traded at this point, and it's up to the
Nuggets to figure out what the best deal is for
them and trying to make it work as best as possible.

Speaker 2 (29:06):
Just a quick follow up on that purely hypothetical. We
want to get your thoughts on this, but we saw
Jalen Brown's name get mentioned again from the Celtics for
that trade for Giannis, and the Bucks ultimately took the
heats offer instead getting younger and going for a rebuild.
Would the Nuggets you think go into the second apron
if they're able to trade off, you know, maybe a
Jamal Murray and Christian Brown for a Jalen Brown.

Speaker 4 (29:30):
It's possible to me there's other moves that has to
be made in that regard, because if you move Jamal
Murray in a deal for Jalen Brown, you need to
have some other point guard that can play next to them.
Because Jamal Murray was like it or not or for
a lot of folks, he was a very good decision
maker for the Nuggets and somebody who set the table

(29:52):
really well for Jokic, who could run the offense, who
could create good opportunities for everybody else. And if there
is a weakness in jail game on the offensive end,
is that he doesn't really see the floor that well.
He's somebody who wants to go downhill, who's playing bullyball
on a consistent basis. And while that's great, it is
something that Denver would have to manage in terms of, Okay,

(30:16):
was this a good decision that you made? Are you
turning the ball over too much? Are you getting other
people involved? Obviously, when you have Jokic, he's going to
do that too. But the best thing about Jokich's game
is that he adapts to how many creators you have
around him, and Jalen Brown isn't necessarily an elite playmaker
for other people. So I think that it's a decent

(30:37):
move to try to change up the energy of the
team and to try to figure some things out. But
if the Nuggets were willing to go into the second apron,
then yeah, I think it's a decent move to consider
because he just came off of a year where he
was what sixth inn MVP voting somewhere around there. So
that's a really good player and adding him I think
would help Denver in some ways, but it would create

(30:57):
some problems in other factors.

Speaker 3 (31:00):
You talk about kind of the push and pull of
them wanting to get cheaper, you know, mess with the
apron and kind of stay under that as well as
you know, try and maximize this Jokic window and hopefully
get another ring or at least remain a high end
competitive team and hopefully get better. We're at the Yokich comment,
you know recently about how this team wasn't good enough

(31:22):
what do you think wins out in that push and
pull when it comes down to it for this ownership group.
Do you think priority number one, if one has to
win out, is getting cheaper or getting better.

Speaker 4 (31:35):
I think it's getting cheaper. That's my read on the
situation is that the Nuggets would like to continue to
be competitive, but they are mostly happy with one championship
and are okay with the idea of not necessarily being
as competitive as they have been in the past, or

(31:57):
at least if they are going to be competitive, then
what that's going to take is at least getting under
the second apron in order to do so. You see
this around the league. There are very few teams in
the NBA that are willing to go into the second
apron at this point. Only one team, the Cleveland Cavaliers,
went there last year, and we are seeing teams like

(32:18):
the Oklahoma City Thunder actually duck under the second apron anyway,
or at least get closer to that and make their
team maybe not fully worse in the process because they're
trading role players and they have better financial flexibility than
the Nuggets do, but they are accounting for it as well.
It is a very prohibitive feature in the CBA that

(32:40):
actually purts you competitively just as much as it does financially.
So I think that Denver would like to get under
the second apron more so than anything else. I think
that they are pretty uncomfortable with the idea of paying
that much tax for obvious reasons in the repeater because
at this point, if they were to bring most everybody back,

(33:03):
if they were to stay above the second apron, then
their luxury tax bill would be close to two hundred
million dollars, and that's a very important factor when you're
also paying two hundred and forty two hundred and fifty
million in salary. So the Gronkies just don't really want
to pay four hundred to four hundred and fifty million
for this roster. They would rather get closer under the

(33:27):
second apron, reduce that tax bill as much as they can,
maybe even get out of it entirely. And when you
lose in the first round, you open yourself up to
that possibility. And Denver has to figure out what their
priorities are going to be going forward, and if they
are entirely financially motivated or if they can still stay
competitive around Nikola.

Speaker 3 (33:46):
Jokic talking about we got about sixty seconds here, But
how do they you know, strip things down, get cheaper
while also improving the roster. Is there a name or
two that you think Nuggets fans be circling?

Speaker 4 (34:02):
No, there isn't, And it's unfortunate that I have to
kind of be the bearer of bad news here. It's
going to be impossible to get cheaper and get better,
and that's the thing that the Nuggets have to reckon
with at this point. There are some things that they
try to change up with who they are, and for
those reasons, I kind of think that a Jamal Murray

(34:24):
and or Aaron Gordon trade is more likely. Like if
you move Aaron Gordon, people are going to be unhappy.
But Aaron Gordon also played half of each of the
last two seasons in this past year, and so there's
a and at least a possibility there that they could
improve just by having more players that are available on
a consistent basis. And with Jamal Murray, he had a

(34:48):
great season and potentially the idea is to capitalize on
his value at its peak while developing some other players
and adding some other pieces that might fit just a
little bit better for what they're trying to do going forward.
That's at least the theory of the practice. But I
don't think that there's a great name to circle here
for Denver. In all likelihood, I think they are going

(35:11):
to take back less salary, which means they're going to
try to find a team that's willing to take on
their better players for less money.

Speaker 1 (35:18):
Not the news Nuggets fans want to hear.

Speaker 2 (35:20):
But that's one thing we always appreciate you, Ryan, is
that you give it to us straight. Appreciate the time
today and we'll talk to you soon.

Speaker 4 (35:26):
All right, Thanks, guys, I appreciate it.

Speaker 2 (35:29):
Ryan Blackburn from Mile High Sports find him on x
at NBA Blackburn and we'll react to that next on
Broncos Country tonight.