Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Joining us now on the Java House Peel and poor
guest line. He is with ESPN dot com and I
would assume has been busy today, not unlike you folks
who have a Kicker on buy in your fantasy league,
scouring over the waiver wires. And we'll begin with this
Stephen Holder with Spencer Schrader and the news that he
is out now for the year. I had not heard
(00:21):
if there is any development today, and that's why I'm
teeing you up for this, and that is the Colts
in terms of movement at Kicker and if anything has
developed in the last twenty four hours, so I think
we're close.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
We actually just heard from Special Teams coordinator Brian Mason
and he says they have worked out kickers today. They
are still deliberating on who they're going to sign, which
means they probably have but they just aren't ready to
announce it. But anyhow, he says that that is the
(00:55):
decisions forth coming there. And the other interesting little bit
there is that he did reveal that there is a
possibility that the punter Rigoberto Sanchez could potentially do the
kickoffs moving forward. You know, he did that in Strader's
absence on Sunday. And if you recall before he tore
(01:18):
his achilles tendon a couple of years ago, he was
regularly the kickoff specialist. They have decided in the last
couple of years to kind of preserve him a little
bit and not have as much wear and tear on
his leg, to not have him do the kickoffs, because
that's more practice, that's more game snaps, all of that.
So they pulled back, but they're now open to it again.
(01:42):
And the interesting thing there, this is more kicking information
than people care about, perhaps, but the interesting thing there,
I think is that Rigoberto Sanchez was a fantastic kickoff specialist.
And his specialty, as far as I recall, was placing
the ball in the sort of perfect locations as opposed
(02:05):
to you know, having the big leg. He would put
the ball right in the corner. He put it right
on the freaking pylon. And I think with the new
kickoff format, he could be a really interesting option. So anyway,
that's where we're at right now.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
Okay, I wanted to also ask yesterday I saw that
they worked out a cornerback in a safety and this,
you know, this is a position Stephen obviously that has
been a need for the Colts since, you know, just
due to attrition. But it kind of is one of
those positions or areas of the field that you're always
(02:40):
looking for guys when we see things like, you know, hey,
Lewis Klein, the safety worked out with the Colts. When
we see reports like that, does that jump out at
us or is this actually something that is routine and
just seems to be out of the ordinary because of
the fact that they've had attrition at that position.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
Well, it's all all of the above. The Colts do
do this a lot, and let's be flair about that.
They will take a look at a lot of guys
and that is something they do regularly. However, I think
the context here is Mike Hilton is banged up, and
I am not entirely certain what his status is, but
(03:24):
you know, there is certainly an injury there, even if
he misses a week, right, I mean, that's that's an
issue when we still don't have you any kind of
update on Kenny Moore, who, by the way, I did
talk to Kenny Moore recently and what he told me
is like he says, his achilles is gonna be fine,
he says, it was kind of inflamed and it needs
(03:47):
to kind of calm down, is what he said. And
he said that takes a couple of weeks. So he's
missed two games. We'll see if he's back to practice tomorrow.
That would alleviate a lot of their problems. But you
certainly don't want to rush a guy who's you know,
dealing with Achilles pain. Okay, Stevens as we know well
in these parts by the way.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Yeah, no kidding, right, you know, goes to that saying,
you know, with I saw that ESPN dot com right now,
you know you've got it up their power rankings. I
believe they now have Colts the fifth. You did the
right up for it, obviously, and the Colts are fifth,
I should say, in the power rankings. So I keep
(04:29):
going back to this, Stephen and weighing back, and I
think you're on the same page with me here because
of just precedent and maybe just naturally being incredulous, I
think to myself, they're not really a top five team,
are they? And then I'm like, you know what, but
they are because you have to go with the current, right,
(04:49):
You've got to go with the now and you look
around and you're like, you know, nobody else is stepping forward,
and the Colts are doing what good teams do. They're
not winning games, Stephen, They're beating people handily that they're
supposed to beat handily, and therefore they look to me
very complete question I would have for you, Stephen Holder
is what is it that holds them back at this point?
(05:11):
What is their achilles that has yet to be exposed?
Speaker 2 (05:15):
Well, it is the right question, but I would say
before before going on to the specific answer, I think
this is a very interesting season in the NFL. I mean,
we are five weeks in. If I'm not mistaken, no
one's undefeated, and so I mean, what are we even
talking about? Who's even good? Who are the quote unquote
(05:36):
elite teams? The Buffalo Bills sure looks beatable the other night,
the Kansas City Chiefs are sitting here trying to figure out, well,
can they make the playoffs? The Eagles have some issues,
like a few issues they have to deal with, you know,
and they're the holders of the trophy right now. So
(05:56):
the timing of this for the Colts might be a
amazing like for them to have gotten their act together.
It took them a hell of a long time. But
the fact that this is the year they decided to
get their act together is kind of interesting, at least
through five weeks, because we were here. We were sitting
here thinking of the AFC as this murderers row and
(06:17):
it could be you know eventually, but right now, who
are you even scared of? Like, who's the team that
you would say, well, don't want to play those guys?
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Steven? Is it too early to put a fork in
the Ravens?
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Man? It's hard to come back from what they're dealing
with right now. Man, it just really is. I think
I'm starting to think it's not too early. I don't
know that it is, because here's the thing. There are problems. Look,
Lamar Jackson's going to come back, okay, great, but how
has that helped their defense which is a complete disaster.
(06:53):
And I don't know that. I don't know that they
have enough. I don't know. I mean, I'm telling you,
the day out of that hole is going to be
really tough. So I will get briefly to what you
asked me initially, because I should answer your question. You know,
what's going to hold them back? The Colts? I mean,
I think injuries always right, but but I think going
(07:15):
beyond that, I think the the secondary has to hold up,
you know, because if you start hitting these tougher quarterbacks
later in the season, which they will do, uh, they're
going to be susceptible to big plays. So they have
to be able to hold up because right now they're
(07:35):
playing with big leads in many cases. So there have
been some there have been some miscues that have kind
of gone under the radar because you know, when you're
up three touchdowns, what difference does it make? But you're
not going to have that every week. I mean, that's
a that's a you know, that's that's a that's not
a reality of the NFL. You know that you win
(07:57):
by three touchdowns or four touchdowns every week. And so
I think the Rams game is a great example of that.
But that's one thing, right that the defense giving up
big place, and that is you know, that is where
to tell a few times. I also think that uh,
the you know, the defensive line just got to continue
to intensive by that pass rush as those quarterbacks get
(08:21):
tougher on the back of the season as well.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
By the way Eddie, when it comes to the National
Football league. We have breaking news. Is that correct?
Speaker 3 (08:33):
A divisional trade in the AFC West the Cincinnati Bengals
or AFC North. The Cincinnati Bengals are acquiring Joe Flacco
from the Cleveland Browns.
Speaker 1 (08:47):
Hmmm, interesting, Steven, your thoughts on that?
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Ah, that is super interesting. I'm not sure how much
it helps, but.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
It kind of it feels like the Washington Wizards trading
for Gilbert Arenas, doesn't.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
It, right?
Speaker 2 (09:07):
I mean, hey, I guess if you're the Bengals right now,
you'll try anything, right. They were clearly done with Jake
Brown with their current situation, Yeah, exactly. I think they
they had reached a point where they thought they needed
to do something. I mean, I saw a reporter earlier
where Zach Taylor said he's going to retain the play
(09:31):
calling duties. I mean, when when you're at that point,
they're bad, right when you're starting to ask the coach, wait,
you're gonna keep playing? You're gonna keep calling plays? Really?
What that means? You're having a bad week or a
bad month, so you know, desperate times. That's desperate measures,
I guess. But I don't think Slackos the answer man's
being honest with you. I mean, love the guy, but
(09:54):
we'll see look to him, Steven.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Somebody asked me this before we let you go. I
wanted to ask this because it's a good question and
it's one that perhaps I'm premature with it, but it's
going to be a topic. And that is because Daniel
Jones was signed to a one year contract with the Colts.
Is he in the same category as a veteran player
where he can get a contract extension before going into
(10:19):
free agency, or is the one year veteran deal that
he signed one that in order for the Colts to
retain him, they will have to make a wager for
him in free agency like anyone else at the end
of the year.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
So I actually I looked this up or actually tapped
into a source of mind to clarify this, because this
task come up on this show and maybe even another
one lately, and I wanted to make sure I was
one hundred percent right. So it's a complicated answer, but
here's the simplest way to think about it. They could,
(10:56):
in theory re signed Daniel Jones to him or extend
I should say extend Daniel Jones right now. They could
do it five minutes from now if they want. Technically, however,
there are some there are some mentalities that make that tough.
So for example, the player's cap number, So his current
(11:16):
cap number which is like fourteen points something million dollars,
that cannot increase after executing the new contract. So how
would you do this? How would you sign this this
player to a very expensive contract extension without increasing the
current cap number. The only way to do that would
it would be to give him no money up front.
(11:40):
And frankly, if you're if you are, if you're a
Daniel Jones, there's no incentive for you to sign a contract,
you know, signing bonus right if you're if you're having
a great season. So and this isn't going to happen now.
I think this conversation is more a matter of like
January fry, right, they're not going to do this now.
(12:02):
They have plenty of time. They have his rights until
early March, so there's no need to even go there
while you know the meal is still being cooked, if
you will. But but I do think this will become
a conversation for us, you know, as we get to
maybe like the NFL combine around that time, and the
idea of him hitting free agency starts to come up,
(12:23):
you have to start thinking about this. So the other
thing to mention here, the Colts have the secret weapon.
They have the franchise tag. And I think you would
be one thousand percent willing to franchise tag him if
he keeps playing well because at worst you're getting the
market rate for a guy of that production. Right, The
(12:44):
franchise tag is it's a lot of money, but you know,
in a one year situation when you have no quarterback,
it's worth it, right, So I think there they'll be fine,
and they will if they so choose, they will be
able to retain Daniel Jones. I don't think it'll be
a big deal.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
Okay, last question Steven on your way out here, and
that is over the course of today, we are looking
at or anticipating the possibility of announcements from the Colts
of signing players in what position, Well.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Kicker for sure, potentially secondary depending on the status of
Mike Hilton. And you know, we'll see how close Kenny
Moore is. But that's a factor there as well, So
particularly that slot corner because right now you're kind of
down to Makai Beckman, who blacking excuse me who apparently
(13:37):
can't stay on a seat. For the love of God,
you know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
And I'll tell you what. Got a lot of reps,
got a lot of reps last Sunday, no question you
did it. But earned his paycheck and a.
Speaker 2 (13:49):
Great pick on his on his part too. But a
great interception should a score. But you know we're not picking.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
Speaking of speaking, a great pick and picky. Trevor Lawrence
caught with both of them last night before a game
winning drive. You know, if you're watching that game, you.
Speaker 2 (14:01):
Know you know, Yeah, that's right, that's right.
Speaker 1 (14:05):
All right, Steven, appreciate.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
It more more information than you needed.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
That's exactly correct. Yes, Steven Older joining us from ESPN
dot Com, Pacers and Action tonight, taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minnesota,
by the way, the Land of ten Thousand Lakes. Joining
us now on the Java House Peel and poor guest line.
(14:30):
He's a guy that probably you could see working at
the Java House coffee outlet near you. Scott Agnes joining
us from field House Files and Scott, I'll begin with this.
We were talking about the the Pacers earlier, and one
of the things that I'm most interested in so before
I guess, I tip my hand and lead to witness
(14:51):
with my own answer. The player or players that you
are the most intrigued to see what they're able to
do here at the outset of the season and through
the pre season would be who.
Speaker 5 (15:02):
First of all, great gig with Java House, big fan.
But for me, it's all about the center position. Jake,
we got two players coming off achilles tendon injuries less
than a year ago. To me, I'm circling the center
spot and seeing what's Isaiah Jackson, what James Wiseman and
to the bigger point, what Jay Huff looked like?
Speaker 1 (15:20):
That's it. And by the way, the are you a
coffee guy? Are you more the latte guy? What do
you go with? Scott?
Speaker 5 (15:27):
More black coffee? Most of the time I'll mix in
a latte in the afternoon.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
The Colombian is very good because it's amazingly smooth. And yeah,
I'm curious to see how amazingly smooth the pacers bigs
are because and not just Scott, because I think Isaiah
Jackson was so I loved when he would get minutes
in spot minutes and at times significant minutes when he
(15:51):
was healthy. And then he had the achilles injury, and
it goes without saying that, I'm intrigued to see both
he and James Wiseman how much bounce they still have,
because that was what separated both of them when healthy,
even though Wiseman it was elsewhere. I mean, we didn't
see him much here, but you know, just because I'm
(16:13):
so fascinated by the Tyrese Haliburton recovery, and I know
that everybody is different, Scott, I know that, but so
far from what you've been able to see in very
limited exposure to them, does it look like, and you
can go with both of them individually here, how much
step potentially does it look like either may have lost?
Speaker 4 (16:34):
Yeah, I would say just so far, so good.
Speaker 5 (16:36):
I thought at the Fanjam in particular, they both had
had some good minutes, both had some athletic points. Whether
it was jumping, blocking, leaping, forget, whatever the sequence was,
that didn't matter to me. It was more did they recover,
did they hesitate? Did they have a quick first step?
And I was encouraged by what I saw, But it's
also a step above a practice. So that's that's why
(17:00):
starting tonight will be so important, because, first of all,
we were all curious to see what James Wiseman looked
like last year, and it happened in Game one in
the first five minutes. And then to your point, with
Isaiah Jackson, you could really saw him, could see him
carving out like an eighteen to twenty minute backup role
last year, which obviously never really got to fruition.
Speaker 4 (17:20):
And while I.
Speaker 5 (17:21):
Agree with the Pacers that they can find ways to
fill the hole that was left behind it with Miles Turner,
I think one that's going to take some time and
mostly just building chemistry with whatever lineup they decide to
go with, which I believe will start with Isaiah Jackson
followed by Jay Huff at that position. But I do
not want to overlook it, and that's why it's my
number one thing without question.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
Yeah, I think and Scott not to dwell on this.
But when you look at Halliburton and the video that
I've seen, I know that you know he was shooting
the other day and he's done different things, and people,
myself included, get excited by that. But then I have
to timper myself because I'm like, look, he is not
(18:02):
it's certainly no time soon is he coming back? And
I don't know whether or not his. And so this
is my question for you, Scott. With Halliburton, the steps
that he's made to this point, does he seemingly appear
to be above schedule, I mean ahead of schedule or
basically is everything going about what they anticipated?
Speaker 5 (18:24):
Yeah, my sense is he's just slightly ahead of the schedule,
just on the various checkpoints in terms of getting out
of a boot, moving to his shoe part time. The
other night, I think it was Saturday, they had their
Golden Gala.
Speaker 4 (18:35):
He was in dress shoes.
Speaker 5 (18:36):
Doesn't seem like much, but to me, that's an uncomfortable
shoe most time. So that's encouraging that he's able to
do that, that he's able to get shots up and
walk around fine without a limp.
Speaker 4 (18:48):
So I think all signs are encouraging.
Speaker 5 (18:49):
But yes, like you said, I also want to stress,
it's going to take time, and he needs to take
all the time necessary because guys recover from this injury
particular at various speeds, and we've seen several of them
here with Adam and Sumner, with these two lately, and
even go back a decade with Tamika catchings as well.
Speaker 1 (19:10):
The kind of mixed signal Scott because Chad Buchanan had said,
and I can't remember when or where it was, probably
was with JMV, although it might have been at the
end of the year in a presser that he thought
that he was open to the fact or was admitting
to the fact that this year there was the possibility
that the Pacers were going to slow pace a little bit.
(19:31):
We had Aaron Nesmith on a couple of weeks ago
and he said, absolutely not, there's not going to be
any slow pace at all. We anticipate playing fast. And
you know, Eddie was mentioning through what he saw they
so far are doing exactly that. What do you anticipate
for let's say the first month, that the average pace
is going to be for them.
Speaker 5 (19:51):
Yeah, I would say it's probably very similar, if not
just a little bit below what it was last year.
I mean, they've been running out at every opportunity. There's
still going to be pressuring a full court, causing chaos.
They know what their standard is, they know where they
can get ahead of opponents, and those their strengths. These
aren't things they're doing just because they're shorthanded. And I
(20:14):
think those areas are going to continue even without Halivern
in particular, and they brought in guards and maybe the
other thing I'm curious for this first month Jake is
how they work the guard rotation, in particular with Ben
Sheppard being out in the short term with rookie Cam Jones,
who was brought in and drafted and hoped to be available, well,
(20:35):
he's going to miss at least two to three weeks
here to start the season, which I really don't like
as a rookie as he's dealing with an injury, and
so that means he basically misses all of his rookie
training camp.
Speaker 4 (20:46):
So I think the speed will be there.
Speaker 5 (20:49):
I'm very curious how the minutes allocation will be given
the different lineups and such. But I think the most
intriguing thing and fun thing I think Jake will be
that second unit with young, aspiring, hungry guys like a
Jarris Walker, Johnny Furfey, guys that have a lot to
show and still a lot to prove.
Speaker 3 (21:08):
Scott, something that I noticed when you just mentioned, you know,
picking up full court and whatnot during Fangen was that,
and this is something that may have to change throughout
the course of the seasons that last year, Andrew Nimhart
primarily was defending the other team's best score if it
was a guard. I noticed that Bennett Matheren took over
the full court pickup in terms of the defensive you know,
(21:30):
the full court defense rather than Andrewnwmhart. Is that something
that we can see more of, just to kind of
offload some of the work on Andrew Nimhart's plate to
keep him fresh throughout the course of the season.
Speaker 5 (21:41):
Yeah, I think it's just that because you're you're going
from his number one thing was take on the best defender.
Now his number one thing has got to be to
run the team, to get them organized, to get them
into sets. We got to remember too, the fact how
much of Halliburton was setting things up.
Speaker 4 (21:56):
Now, a lot of it was a.
Speaker 5 (21:57):
Free flowing offense, red react and try to cap in transition,
but a lot of it was Haliburton. It's needed to
call the plays or see something that he could take
advantage of from an offensive standpoint, But then defensively, so
many times he was kind of just a free safety
or whatever. So yeah, I think that's going to be
There's so many different points that are intriguing, but That's
(22:18):
another one is how do they handle defensive assignments while
still applying pressure because they got to allow for Nemhart
to get some breathers, to get some breaks given the
heavy workload in higher usage rate that I'm expecting this
upcoming season.
Speaker 1 (22:31):
Scott, you just mentioned a guy that I'm really intrigued by,
and I feel like there's a good way putting it. Scott,
if you ever watched the TV show The Wire.
Speaker 4 (22:41):
I have not yet. That's on the to do list.
Speaker 1 (22:43):
I think we've discussed it before. I personally think it's
the greatest show ever done, but that's neither here nor there.
One of the interesting things about it is at the
end of the series, each character you realize kind of
has the next generation right below it that you can
tell is going to replace in society that character okay, okay.
(23:05):
On an NBA roster the last couple of years, we
have seen Jeris Walker be a young player that has
kind of patiently waited his time, gotten into rotation, then
kind of been out, then back in, and then obviously
the injury right when I thought he was ready to
take the next step. Assuming this year, due to attrition,
he is going to get that opportunity for the next step.
(23:25):
Does Johnny Furfey become the new Jeris Walker. Is this
a guy that we're going to see getting rotation, then
back out of rotation and tease us and then just
have to wait, et cetera.
Speaker 4 (23:38):
Yeah, I do think so.
Speaker 5 (23:40):
If not, though, I think he might be a step
above in terms of having greater opportunity here so quickly.
And I really like the short flashes that we have
seen already from him, starting with Summer League and then
going into this last week because they've only had about
four practices to this point. But Furfree, what he can
do inside and out, I think feel like he hasn't
(24:00):
stopped growing is another thing. And then I think a
lot of it's too, is just learning the game and
learning the league like he was at Kansas for a year,
came as the NBA as a nineteen year old.
Speaker 4 (24:10):
There is so much to absorb.
Speaker 5 (24:12):
And soak in over this process, and then the next
thing is a pregame.
Speaker 4 (24:16):
He always worked with assistant coach Mike Weiner.
Speaker 5 (24:18):
Well that coach has gone, so now there's another adaptation
that you'll have for Johnny Furfey.
Speaker 4 (24:23):
But yeah, I think that's spot on.
Speaker 5 (24:24):
Jake in terms of Johnny's already become a fan favorite,
by the way, which also helps that case, because you
know fans are going to be cheering his name, whether
it's a blowout one way or the other, or there's
an obvious gap for him to maybe slide into the
rotation for an evening.
Speaker 1 (24:40):
Could Johnny Furfey actually move past Jaris Walker in rotation.
Speaker 5 (24:48):
Perhaps eventually, I don't think right away. For a number
of reasons. Jeris leaned more on for his defense, for
his instincts for those type of things, and I think
Johnny has more to come along from that defensive end.
I think Johnny placed better in terms of playing fast,
(25:09):
getting up and down the court, getting into something random
like this thene likes.
Speaker 4 (25:13):
But I think.
Speaker 5 (25:14):
Jerrius is further along in other ways that will lead
to him being ahead in the rotation at least to start.
Speaker 1 (25:20):
Scott Agnes's our guest Fieldhouse Files, where you can read
his work Pacers in Action tonight taking on the Timberwolves
in Minnesota. Scott, what do you as you've been around
it and you've gone into you know, everything from media
day to just you know, observing the shoot arounds, whatever
it may be how do you approach or how do
(25:43):
you how do you I guess decipher the cults or
excuse me, the Pacers like body language, they're approached to
it all. In other words, we as fans in media
are like, okay, gap here, gap year, gap here. It
seems to me like they don't want to hear that, right,
What is their philosophy or approach? What are they preaching?
Speaker 5 (26:01):
Yeah, so, like for example, going into last season, I
think a lot of fans were saying, hey, we're we
want to see you get to another series. And the
Pacers from that standpoint, we're sitting there like, no, we
want to reach the NBA finals And look what they did,
Like that was true, Like that was not They were
not completely full of it. And so going into this year, Yeah,
(26:21):
you're exactly right, they're not looking at as oh, let's
just get by, let's see if we can win forty
games and just stay in the conversation and be relevant. No,
you have a lot of guys that want to continue
to elevate their game. Like I still believe there's a
lot more there for even starters like Andrew Nimhard and
Aaron Neismith to take another level obviously a big question
at center. We know at this point exactly what Siakam is,
(26:44):
but by the way, I continue to praise the front
office from that standpoint because we knew what he could
do on the court, but he has continued to excel
and go above and beyond. And maybe that's just what
he read of this situation and where he needed to contribute.
But no, I think this team it fully expects to
get to the playoffs and surprise everyone.
Speaker 4 (27:02):
And I think they are just fine with that. And
I think in.
Speaker 5 (27:05):
General, like to your T shirt theme, like that's what
this market is about. I think we're in a golden
arrow really of Indiana sports amongst so many different teams
why exactly, And I think they all jake thrive on
being that underdog.
Speaker 4 (27:19):
I mean there's been years pass where.
Speaker 5 (27:21):
The Pacers would if they be favored in a game,
they play poorly. If they're the underdog, they come out
and completely race hell, make things complicated, come off with
the win, and not be surprised by anything. So I
think again they're leaning into that. It's It's not, by
any means a season of discovery with many different parts,
(27:41):
but this first month will be very interesting.
Speaker 4 (27:44):
For those number of reasons. We started out at the
top with but Scott.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
Between Niemid, Nimhard and Siakam, those three, the guy that
is going to be asked to most deviate from the
or vers be more versatile, and the way they've played
before is which.
Speaker 5 (28:01):
My first instinct there is not nem Hard, but rather
because nim Hart's handled the ball, he's been a point
guard before, and in fact, a couple of years ago
going into the season, he's spent his off season planning
to be the backup point guard, but he was just
too good that they couldn't have him out of the
starting lineup. So for those reasons, I'm going to see
Siakam because without Halliburton, his voice, his leadership on the court,
(28:24):
his production, there's going to be needed, more consistency and
different roles than hats worn by Siakam.
Speaker 6 (28:31):
I'm glad you mentioned the tyrese Haliburton not being on
the floor from the voice aspect, Scott, because I've been
starting to think about this lately, like who's going to
have to step up as the vocal leader because no Halliburton,
obviously no Miles Strunner, but I think a secret third
voice that we don't talk about enough this team not
having anymore is James Johnson. He played such a critical
(28:52):
role behind the scenes with the development of some guys
and keeping guys on track. How and who, I should say,
who's gonna have to step up and assume those roles
because those are three things that have to be filled
this upcoming year.
Speaker 5 (29:05):
Yeah and yeah, Miles's voice, especially defensively, was significant. The
one thing with James, while it would be nice if
he would return, the other thing I Eddie felt going
into this season is that he's been around for two
or three years here. It kind of felt like this season.
Speaker 4 (29:21):
Could be a time where you could kind of let
the let the kids.
Speaker 5 (29:24):
Go and do what you've trained them to do, right
like let the nests go out into the real world
and see how the last couple of years have gone
and how you've gotten them ready to this point they're Siakam.
I think Neat Smith's going to continue to elevate what
he contributes in a variety of ways. And then I
think I think we shouldn't undervalue the voice of TJ
(29:45):
McConnell off the bench as well. He's seen a lot,
he's played over ten years in the league, so I
think he can elevate where he contributes as well from
that standpoint, but there will be no replacing James Johnson.
I just think it's it's probably time to let this
team fly on its own, is how I does put it.
Speaker 1 (30:03):
Scott. The following that I'm about to ask is almost
embarrassing because it sounds so ludicrous. Okay, but when you
consider and I know that they won't. They don't want
to talk gap year and that kind of thing. The
reality is this, we know what and who the Pacers
can be once Halliburton gets back, and you know, hopefully
is close to what we have seen from his level
(30:23):
of play, but that's a year from now. They got
so much benefit when they were at their apex from
the energy and the experience down the stretch of TJ. McConnell.
Do they become cautious to not overplay McConnell this year
because of his age, to preserve him if you will,
for when Halliburton is back, And I know that sounds crazy, No.
Speaker 5 (30:46):
It doesn't, but I would say yes, but for a
different reason. I think his superpower is playing a specific
a lotmenttal in it a minute that eighteen to twenty
two to twenty three, and because of how high energy,
how high strong, how much he's laked it on the line,
I think you lose some of that greatness, that pureness,
that ability if you're trying to stretch him beyond his means.
(31:08):
And so for that reason, more than anything, is why
I think they have to be cautious of playing him,
say more than twenty four to twenty five minutes per game.
Speaker 1 (31:16):
If you could have a superpower, what would you pick?
Speaker 4 (31:18):
Fly? Eddie, I like to save time. I am such
an impatient, that's fair.
Speaker 1 (31:24):
I don't know.
Speaker 6 (31:25):
Fly is a really good one. I was trying to go.
It was something different because he stole mine.
Speaker 1 (31:29):
Now, like when you fly, though, Scott, how high are
you flying? And how fast? You know what?
Speaker 5 (31:37):
I haven't thought about that, but I would say as
fast as possible, because I would just be there in
an instant.
Speaker 6 (31:42):
So cloning, yeah, I mean, do we want too of you?
Speaker 4 (31:47):
They teleporting? It would be next maybe?
Speaker 6 (31:49):
Yeah, Well, if you teleport, you don't need to fly, right,
And I'm not saying you would want two of me.
I would want multiple of me. I could be in
multiple places to do multiple different things.
Speaker 1 (31:56):
Ed Sorenson used to routinely say, I'd just claw me.
I just want to get to a me. It was
like a number one line. But for what reason would
you want to clone yourself?
Speaker 2 (32:06):
Eddie?
Speaker 6 (32:06):
There's a lot of reasons, Jake, don't you I mean,
don't you want to be one of a kind. I
would still be one of a kind. There wouldn't be
other people out there if.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
You're not one of a kind. If you're cloning yourself.
Speaker 6 (32:17):
Well, I am one of a kind because I'd be
the only one that can clone myself.
Speaker 1 (32:20):
You imagine Scott having two people with a head that big,
all on the same planet.
Speaker 4 (32:24):
Oh man, I'd go with you.
Speaker 1 (32:29):
Now, when when I say this, you're going to think
that I'm saying it for the tawd repurposes. And there
are toddry benefit don't get me wrong, but I think
one of them that's underrated. And I don't know if
this is an actual superpower, but to make yourself invisible
would be advantageous in numerous situations.
Speaker 4 (32:49):
Right, that would be a really good one too.
Speaker 1 (32:51):
I mean think about it, like, hey, do you have
tickets to the game? I don't need them? Why swalk in?
Speaker 4 (32:56):
Right?
Speaker 1 (32:57):
Go wherever you want to go, right, I mean that's
the number of I mean unbelieved. Now. But if you're invisible,
now this is a disclaimer here. Do you think you
would also then have to what if your clothes are
not invisible but you are, then you're basically still busted. Right,
(33:17):
it's gonna look weird. People can see jeans just walking around, right.
Speaker 5 (33:22):
No, you have like the Harry Potter cloak, so whatever
was underneath it would be hidden.
Speaker 1 (33:27):
Okay, I'm unfamiliar with the Harry Potter stuff.
Speaker 5 (33:32):
Just picture of cape, So whatever whatever is over your
head and under the cape is invisible.
Speaker 1 (33:37):
But the cap, so the cape is also invisible. Correct,
Because I don't know about you. If I'm sitting there,
you know, on the subway, and a cape cart starts
moving towards me, you know what I mean, like like
there's gonna be I'm getting some weapons?
Speaker 2 (33:50):
Right?
Speaker 4 (33:51):
Yeah? No, that's a really good one though, so many usage.
Speaker 1 (33:54):
Who's your favorite superhero and you can't say Superman or Batman?
Speaker 4 (33:59):
Oh I'm not sure. It's always been Superman.
Speaker 1 (34:03):
I think the most under Eddie yours iron Man? Huh
iron Man? Iron Man? Yeah? Okay, that's cool. Now mine
and I think he's underrated, this fella Aquaman. I think
Aquaman's underrated.
Speaker 4 (34:18):
That'd be fun, yeah, be cool, right.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
But everybody tells me that he's terrible on land Is
that true. I'm not into the superhero stuff, but I
just think he's cool. I like anybody that's amphibious.
Speaker 4 (34:29):
Yeah, yeah, no, I think that'd be a good choice.
Speaker 1 (34:33):
Scott. What he got upcoming here on field House Files,
other than talking about amphibious things and invisible cloaks.
Speaker 5 (34:39):
Just a lot more looking ahead to the space of
season with news and notes, and then also still a
lot more to come out of the Fever season that
headlined obviously with these collective bargainings.
Speaker 4 (34:49):
Hey, let me tell you conversations that aren't going anywhere.
Speaker 1 (34:52):
The collective bargaining stuff. And I was I was really
grateful Scott for all of the conversations that Stephanie White
was kind enough to have, kind enough to have with
us over the course of the season. The last one
that we had with her when we were talking about
Kaitlyn Clark and the wa NBA commissioner, and she was
(35:12):
saying that she feels like Kitlin Clark is a pawn
for other people. That. I mean, that got a lot
of traction. There is a lot of discussion because I
think what you have is the WNBA right now still
kind of trying to learn how to now navigate through
with transcendent stars within it, within its league.
Speaker 5 (35:32):
Right this is an entirely new world for them and
something that they were not prepared for because it did
not exist, Like Cathy's talked about. When she arrived at
the league, there was like one or two marketing execs.
Now they have like twenty. Now they have all these
different TV deals. Yeah, and she is certainly spearheaded at
meaning Kaitlyn. And then we've seen the other class this
(35:53):
latest one page backers follow But no, Caitlyn is in
a league of her own in terms of interest and such.
I put her up there with Tiger, with mainly Tiger,
maybe an MJ.
Speaker 1 (36:07):
She said, william She said, Serena Williams. That was the
other one that. Yeah, Stephanie had mentioned to me Scott
before we let you go. I the thing about the
w NBA in general and in Caitlin Clark, there is
no denying Caitlin Clark's talent, star power, all of it. Right,
(36:28):
what I'm fascinated by, and it's a conversation probably more
to be had once the season is getting ready to resume.
But is it unfair of me to say that I
am intrigued by how the Fever reacclimate with her on
the court because of out of necessity, the bond in
(36:50):
which that roster was able to coagulate with one another
without her on the floor.
Speaker 5 (36:56):
I would say that's partially fairic because mostly the reality
is this team could look very different. There were only
five returning players last year. Most of the league are
free agents, Jake. There's expansion teams two coming in, so
we still don't know how many players teams can protect.
It is the wild, wild rest right now that nobody
knows the rules or what's going to happen here. But
(37:18):
I will say, to her credit, she was as involved
as she could have been on the road for all
but one game this season. She found routines with different
teammates to stay engaged in such and they still tried
to play fast and do different things. But yes, there
isn't certainly a period of reacclimating to her being the
(37:40):
focal point. But I also bet she realized two of
how best to utilize maybe my teammates even more to
supercharge what they did this past season without her.
Speaker 1 (37:50):
Nick chimes in on the text that his desired superpower
would be irresistibility to women. I don't know that's a
superpower or not. I don't know that I would. To me,
that feels redundant.
Speaker 4 (38:05):
Cow boy.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
I'm just saying, but what it's worth. All right, Scott,
appreciate the time as always.
Speaker 4 (38:12):
All right, Thanks
Speaker 1 (38:13):
Scott, Agnes field House Files