Dez Gives Out His 2025 NBA Offseason/Free Agency Awards!

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
NBA free agency went crazy since the last episode, so
it was only right for this week's show. I discussed
most of the signings and trades that shoulk the NBA world.
But here's the catch. I will be taking these offseason
moves and giving out awards, pairing them with several of
the categories we often see across shows like the Grammys
or the BET Awards. We've been able to sit on

(00:21):
the latest news and let it marinate for over a
week now, and so I didn't want to just merely
share my thoughts on each situation when shows like Zach
Lowe's and Numbers on the Board, countless team specific podcasts,
and obviously so many major network shows have already done
the exact same thing. So I sat back. How can
I separate myself while still offering my own analysis. Well,

(00:46):
we gotta do it H two DG style. So consider
this my preseason best Hip hop artist or best offseason acquisition,
best producer or best Executive and more, as we're going
to explore just how much the art of can meet
the reality of NBA free agency. Get ready for the
most unique free agency recap so far that you've heard.

(01:08):
Right now on Hip to the Games. Welcome to Hip
to the Games, the podcast for you, the basketball junkie
and the hip hop hit. I'm your host, Desmond and
I too have had hoop dreams and enjoy the beautiful
genre of hip hop and its history. Together, we will
enjoy some of the greatest albums, songs, artists, players, moments, teams,
and so much more, while even mixing the two on occasion.

(01:31):
All in my hope that you remember why you love
both or either of these to begin with. You'll soon
understand that Hip to the Games is more than just
a podcast. It's a lifestyle, and if you were looking
for a platform that combines both basketball and hip hop,
you've come to the right place. They play my kind
of basketball and a lot of layers to this song.
If you're really paying attention, here's a huge shout out

(01:52):
to you for being Hip to the Games. Welcome to
this episode of Hip to the Games. Shout out to
you if you are a loyal listener and are showing
that you are indeed H two DG certified by listening
or tuning in visually for another episode, whether you are

(02:14):
listening on your favorite platform or watching on YouTube, I
sincerely thank you for your support and if you do
happen to be new to H two d G, welcome,
I am happy to have you here. If throughout this
episode you do like what you're hearing, be sure to
hit that subscribe or follow button on whatever platform you're
listening to or watching on to stay tapped in with
all things hip to the Games. And before we really

(02:35):
get into today's show, you already know the drill. I
gotta get my pregame shoutouts out the way. Okay. The
first one always goes to the creative director Jesus Christ
for another H two DG episode, as it's always a
blessing to get in front of this microphone and do
what He's placed in my heart to do. And the
second one goes to my nineteen Media Group family for
the opportunity to represent the home team. You always see

(02:57):
that blue and white logo sitting in the corner, that's
my squad. So be sure to follow nineteen m Group
on Twitter, nineteen Media Group on YouTube, nineteen Media Group
on Instagram to just follow everything going on with the network.
We have a variety of shows around sports, music, education,
culture hosted by some passionate independent podcasters and teammates of mine,

(03:17):
and I'm sure you can find another show to support,
whether it's through likes, comments, reposts, listens, buying, merch any
Trust me when I tell you any kind of support
is seen and appreciate. Now, as we get into today's show,
given the nature of the award show format, the flow
is going to be pretty simple, as I'll usher in
each category with nominees, followed by an overview of the

(03:37):
changes each team made this summer before choosing a winner.
As always, I strongly, strongly encourage you to participate in
the comments if you are watching on YouTube, or share
your reactions with me directly on the socials, whether that's
under the social media clips that I post, whatever kind
of way it is in the DMS, I'm all for it.
You can share your thoughts on there as well, But

(03:58):
without further ado, let me introduce each category because I
think we got a pretty hefty but fun episode today.
You've heard of the Heisman Trophy, the Lombardi Trophy, and
more recently than Michael Jordan MVP Trophy. These awards are
reserved for the best of the best, whether for an
individual or a team, and it's no different for the
first ever hip to the games free agency awards as

(04:19):
I pay homage to arguably the best to ever do
it across MCing and business, arguably the greatest of all time,
Sean Carter akaj Z and virtually hand off the Ovito
Award to the best free agency signing or you could
say best offseason acquisition. But what is hip hop without
the producers that provide the canvases for MC's to paint

(04:40):
extraordinary pictures. It's one thing to craft and instrumental, but
a whole other thing, a whole other skill to be
able to bring out the best of artists, lyrically, challenge
their pen and their delivery, and know how to take
a song from a seven to a ten. Few did
that better than Doctor Dre, and the Doctor Dre Award
will be given to the best executive who orchestrated the

(05:01):
acquisition or acquisitions that made their team better. Speaking of
making the team better, these next two awards may be
similar in nature, but show love to different effects of
the free agency process. This third award is named after
the album that has essentially become the blueprint for success
with hard beats, flawless rhymes, vivid storytelling and no skips.

(05:22):
Nicer Jones changed the game in nineteen ninety four by
checking all the boxes in his debut project. This is
the Ematic Award, which goes to the best team post
free agency. That said, not everybody's first album is iconic.
Some mcs have to recover from an underwhelming debut and
do everything they can to stamp themselves on album number
two after a quiet debut. Respectable but quiet debut, we

(05:46):
saw the Fuji shoot up the charts in a stack
class of nineteen ninety six and create one of the
best albums that year, with the Score taking their stardom
as well as their art to new heights. This is
the Fuji Lyle Award, which goes to the most improved
team and getting back to individual performances. Some are so
memorable that an artist or group is known for one

(06:06):
song for the rest of their lives. Think Sir Mix
a Lot's Baby Got Back or what is likely my
personal favorite, Cali Swag Districts teach me how to dougy
ain nothing Wrong Woul having a track that's always going
to keep that money coming in. The One Hit Wonder
Award goes to the player slash team that could benefit
the most from a one year deal. As always, each year,
we're bound to see some albums and artists that end

(06:28):
up flying under the radar. Just like in the NBA,
there are some deals that you definitely missed if you blinked,
Yet they end up bringing in some of the most
impactful results. Or maybe you saw the headline but didn't
understand just how impactful it would turn out on the court.
The Underground Award shows love to the most underrated acquisition
of free agency. And lastly, in an industry that's always talking,

(06:49):
it's hard to be an artist and not keep a
chip on your shoulder. Oftentimes we see just how the
constant chatter and critique from doubters, haters, and critics affects
an artist, good and bad. Not to mention, hip hop
had to fight to be accepted as a culture and
not merely a trend that would come and go. The
Underdog Award goes to the acquisition who has the most
to prove this season. Now, obviously, just like any award show,

(07:13):
some players slash teams may fit in multiple categories, so
don't be surprised if you hear a name more than once.
But let's tip it off with the nominees for the
Ovito Award go into the best offseason acquisition Kevin Durant
of the Houston Rockets, Cam Johnson of the Denver Nuggets,
Miles Turner of the Milwaukee Bucks, and Jalen Green of
the Phoenix Suns. Now, I would tell you from the

(07:35):
jump that this looks like a fight between Kevin Durant
and Cam Johnson in my opinion. However, I don't want
you to sleep on the other two names in Miles
Turner and Jalen Green. Let's start with the latter. Jalen
Green is the epitome of a Hooper. The athleticism is
off the charts, the handle is reminiscent of prime Bradley Beal,
and the shot creation just continues to grow. And I

(07:57):
believe his time in Houston has turned him into a
better on ball defender. He probably would have been an
All Star this past year if he played how he
did in January, in February, in November and December as well.
He was that good, I think on a team fueled
by defense, he looked to be the scorer on the
perimeter that would likely take them over the edge. But
unfortunately that didn't pan out as his playoff struggles convinced

(08:20):
the Rockets that he wouldn't be the guy that they
needed to get them where they wanted to be, so
they traded him to Phoenix for Kevin Durant. While I
don't think it's the best fit that he's in Phoenix
right now, as of now, you know, it looks like
he's staying put and going to be the co star
to Devin Booker, you know, as it looks like the
Suns are going to retool their core after an underwhelming season,

(08:44):
starting by bringing in some youth and talent in Jalen Green.
I guess I do like that part, right. They get
a little younger and they get somebody who can still
be on the team. Say they were to move on
from Devin Booker, they would still have Jalen Green to
fall back on as a go to scorer for their team.
And like I said, while I may not be the
biggest fan of the fit, at the end of the day,
Jalen Green presents the opportunity to coexist with Devin Booker

(09:06):
as a go to score and forge a dynamic scoring duo,
especially with Brad Beal moving on after the KD trade.
As well, so it certainly sounds exciting given the kind
of player Jalen Green can still develop into, But once again,
I'm curious to see how it fits if the Suns
are all in on this situation. That said, I do
think a lot of people have been very hard on

(09:28):
Jalen Green. I get it, he's number two pick in
the draft and everything like that, but I think a
lot of people have been hard on him as if
every player is supposed to have it all figured out
by their fourth year. I think this new situation can
be good for him and that the trade can inspire
him to develop into the player that the Rockets didn't
have faith he'd become. Obviously, you trade for Kevin Durant

(09:49):
ten times out of ten, don't get me wrong. But still,
if you're Jalen Green, you have to see this as
an opportunity to further extend your skill set and become
the player everybody doesn't think you can become. Now. Next
up is Miles Turner, the face of a big man
would enact to block shots. All eyes were on him
this summer, as it was unclear for most of the
year whether or not the Indiana Pacers were willing to

(10:12):
spend that bread and pay him his well earned money
for ten years of service, ending with a finals appearance.
On the surface, he seemed to check all the boxes
right outlasted trade rumors, spend a decade with one team,
and most of all, finally played a key role in
a near championship for the Indiana Pacers. Unfortunately, I believe
the Pacers were turned off by his struggles shooting the

(10:33):
basketball during the NBA Finals and didn't want that to
become a lingering issue should they make more deep playoff
runs in the future. From what I've seen from Pacer fans,
I feel like that kind of I feel like fans
have a way of speaking things into existence. I've said
this before. I think fans have a lot more influence
than we often think so. I think when you think

(10:54):
about the Pacers situation, I think that was it a
little bit. I think that was it. While Turner was,
for obvious reason, all in on re signing with Indy,
according to Sham's the Pacers didn't want to pay the
luxury tax to keep them around. Now, you can take
that as you wish, right, either the Pacers are finding
an excuse to move on for Miles or the Pacers
are following their longtime values of building really good teams

(11:18):
as cheap as they possibly can. And then even with
that said, it came out from Kevin Pritchett, I believe
he was saying we were ready to pay Miles Turner
and he already signed with the Bucks and didn't give
us a chance to match that offer. So I think
there's a lot of there's a lot of back and
forth with this situation. It's still fuzzy. Obviously, we have

(11:39):
yet to hear from Miles Turner, so that'll be interesting
to see what he says. But yeah, it's just a
weird situation going on with Indy, especially, like I said,
after this successful playoff run that they've had either way,
Miles Turner made sure to get his bread no matter
what uniform he was wearing, and he simultaneously threw a
jab at the Indiana Pacers by joining their division rival

(12:00):
in the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that they've run into
the past two postseasons. So to me, it was a
great decision by Miles Turner because the Bucks had just
lost Brook Lopez to the Clippers, so they needed a
stretch big badly. As the Bucks offense thrives with the
shooting big man next to Giannis and Tetokounmpo. Because Giannis
is such a dynamic player, he can bring the ball

(12:22):
up the floor, things of that nature. He's not always
gonna be in the paint. He needs a stretch big
to balance out his skill set, so they get that
Miles Turner. And when you compare the skill sets of
Miles Turner and brook Lopez, they are indeed very similar.
Neither of them are fantastic rebounders, but both are able
to protect the paint. Although you could make the argument

(12:43):
that brook Lopez is a little more stout, He's a
little stronger in interior than Miles and not just blocking
shots right, just literally stonewalling defenders and altering shots being
an intimidator. But funny enough, as of last season, miles
defensive field goal percentage for shots less than ten and
six feet respectively is lower than Brooks, meaning opponents are

(13:05):
more prone to be affected by Turner's contests around the paint.
So the stats say otherwise, but I just think either way,
you can't go wrong with having these two guys in
the paint. The eye test has shown us for years
now that both of these guys can protect the rim. Additionally,
Miles Turner is more than capable of stretching the floor.
We know this in fact, he actually prefers that as
his bread and butter offensively. But the difference between Brook

(13:27):
Lopez is that he is younger. Miles is a lot
more younger. He's more mobile, so he can do a
little bit more with the ball in terms of step
back jumpers and aggressive drives to the basket. We've seen
him dunk on dudes heads. He brings a little bit
more to the table. But with that in mind, I
think the Bucks breathe a sigh of relief after successfully
replacing the big man that helped them capture their twenty

(13:47):
twenty one championship. So good on Milwaukee, Good on Miles Turner.
He got his bread and they got their big man.
Then we got sharpshooter Cam Johnson, who was traded to
the Denver Nuggets. Many of us thought that he would
have been traded during this past season's deadline, but when
that didn't happen, you just knew the offseason was going
to be the next best chance to get Cam Johnson
and lo and Behold with several moves made this summer,

(14:10):
the Denver Nuggets have made the exact changes I urged
them to make in my Conference Finals preview episode. They
indeed acquired the shooting that is necessary to surround the
Kola Jokic with, so defenses aren't as eager and aren't
as willing to leave their matchups to double or even
triple team him like we saw vers ok See. Cam

(14:30):
has contributed on playoff teams. He's a very wise player,
His interviews are excellent, and his mindset as a shooter
reveals how much of a student of his craft that
he is. He shot thirty nine percent from deep the
past two seasons, with forty percent averages from deep from
twenty twenty one to twenty twenty three, so he has
shown to be an accurate shooter in the league on

(14:50):
a contending team in the Phoenix Suns a few years
ago and a rebuilding team in the Nets, so he's
had pretty much the best of both worlds. No matter
the role their situation, he's able to maintain his efficiency. Additionally,
I think a situation like Brooklyn required him to do
a little bit more with the basketball, so similar to
what happened to me, Cale Bridges I think growing off

(15:11):
the dribble, having to get to the free throw line
just a little bit extra, having to get a little
extra responsibility and experience on a bad team, that's only
going to help the next time he finds himself on
a contender and lo and behold, Cam Johnson is able
to be more than a shooter on this Nuggets team. Like, hey,
I had to put the ball on the floor a
few times in Brooklyn. I can add some of that

(15:33):
to this situation too. Right Unlike Phoenix, where Chris Paul
and Devin Booker did a majority of the ball handling.
In Denver, I anticipate that Cam is going to get
the rock and occasionally have to make a play. So
his stint in Brooklyn should give him some of that
extra confidence to contribute beyond just catching shoot threes, even
in small ways. Cam was one of the highly touted

(15:55):
free agents because shooting is so valuable today, and I'm
really glad that he's able to go to a contender
out West like the Nuggets, where he'll fit seamlessly, especially
with a high IQ player like nikolea. Jokic. I really
think it's a match made in heaven. And lastly, is
Kevin Durant. I mean, what else is there to say?
Future Hall of Famer, the most naturally gifted score we've

(16:15):
ever seen, even in his late thirties. I talked about
it last episode, so I'll keep it brief. But the
Rockets got their bucket getter and still were able to
keep their defensive pieces and young up and coming pieces
around him. We knew that he was set to be traded,
so he was easily the best available piece this offseason.
I don't know where this notion kind of came from
that Katie is not that guy anymore. He can't lead

(16:38):
a team or what have you. But it couldn't have
been further from the truth. He's still putting up twenty seven,
six and four, still over a block of game. I
always said that Kevin Durant has been one of the
most underrated back line defenders since joining the Warriors in
twenty sixteen. I would even go as far as saying
he's been one of the more underrated defenders in general
since twenty twelve. Obviously, these days he isn't as quick

(17:01):
or as spry as he used to be, but he
can still do a decent job, especially in an era
that has fully embraced small ball lineups, still well over
fifty percent from the field, just came off his second
best three point percentage of his career with forty three
percent accuracy. One of the best plug and play players
we've ever seen. The dude is cold and the Rockets

(17:22):
will certainly be looking to defron the Thunder with his addition.
But there can only be one winner of the Ovito Award,
and while I actually think it's a bit closer than
you would think, the Ovito Award for Best offseason Acquisition
goes to Kevin Durant. A pretty easy decision for obvious reasons.
I didn't want to take the whole episode to be
labored the point, but I'm just really excited for Cam

(17:44):
Johnson and Denver Man. He was really a close second
for me, but with a talent like Kevin Durant, that
one was more obvious. The next award is the Doctor
Dre Award for the executive that came through with the
best and most impactful moves for their franchise. The nominees
are as follows. Dever Nuggets, GM, Ben Tenzer, Rockets, GM
Rafael Stone Hawks, GM Onzi salah If I'm pronouncing that correctly.

(18:08):
Probably not, but the Hawks GM and the Clippers GM
Trent Reddin. As I stated earlier, the Nuggets filled a
lot of the holes they needed to fill after their
Semi finals loss versus the Thunder. Not only did they
trade for Cam Johnson, but they also stole Tim Hardaway
junior from Detroit, who had a bit of a resurgence
last season after dealing with injuries and is still an

(18:29):
experienced shooter that should get tons of looks being around
Nikola Jokic. At thirty seven percent from the field, or
excuse me, thirty seven percent from deep, He's not necessarily
an elite shooter as much as he is a streaky shooter.
But I think what sells him is his confidence. He
has a lot of that irrational confidence that makes the
good and great shooters who they are wide open, contested

(18:51):
deep close. He shoots it the same way every time.
You have to respect it. Then, in sudden fashion, it
was previously announced that Russell West wouldn't be returning to
the Nuggets despite a pretty impactful season, so that opened
the door for them to reunite with Bruce Brown, who
was a part of the twenty twenty three championship team.
He's been on three teams since then and hasn't been

(19:13):
the healthiest, So it's a bit of a risk in
that regard. But I think sometimes, especially as fans, we
tend to forget how important culture and fit is. Denver
was the franchise that he won a championship with. He
fit great as a short role option despite being a
smaller wing, because he was able to hit the floater
in the lane or make the pass to the right shooter.
You expect that they are seeking to revive a lot

(19:35):
of that chemistry this season of this upcoming season. Bruce
averaged eleven to four to three and one steal in
twenty twenty two to twenty three, and it led him
to getting paid that offseason when he went to Indy
and put up similar numbers before being traded to Toronto
and then traded again this pass year to the Pelicans.
So again, I think it's a rhythm thing. Bruce Brown

(19:56):
goes into training camp without a learning curve, back in
a more famil filiar, homelike environment because he won a
championship the lone season he was there. You know, he
hasn't been able to stick with a team ever, since
and they're gonna need his services since they lost Westbrook.
It could very well be the move that revives his
career a little bit and helps the Nuggets get closer
to the top again. And they also traded for Jonas Valanciunas,

(20:19):
as I was super excited for his contributions because he's
still a great rebounder in this league, still has the
combination of a face up and back to basket game,
and has stretched his jump shot to the three point arc.
And he was used in dribble handoff actions very well
in Washington and Sacramento, so I felt like he was
a perfect, I mean perfect backup to Nikota Jokic. Unfortunately,

(20:43):
there was some back and forth after he decided that
he was gonna go back and play in Greece and
leave the NBA, so that big man hole kind of reappeared.
But as of now, it looks like the Nuggets are
putting their foot now, like, nah, you're gonna play for us.
You're gonna you know, you're gonna honor this contract and
help us win a championship. So I'm kind of glad
they did that. It was great to see DeAndre Jordan

(21:03):
play some meaningful backup minutes again this past season, but
he still somehow was deemed unplayable during the OKC series
when I felt like they needed him more in that series.
So I'm glad they went after a backup that they
actually planned to use and that they actually should be
able to use come playoff time. But nonetheless, I thought
they made some real nice moves this summer, Like I said,

(21:24):
getting Cam Johnson, getting Bruce Brown and getting Valent and
of course Tim Hardaway Junior as well. You get your shooters,
you get your big man, and you get a Westbrook replacement,
so who is familiar with the offense. So I thought
it was a great job by Denver. Up next is
the Houston Rockets, who made you think that they found
a money tree in Houston. I mean from being able
to extend Steven Adams for three years, trade for an

(21:47):
expensive superstar in Kevin Durant and only give up Dylan
Brooks and Jalen Green and the ten pick pick in
this year's draft, which ended up being a come on right,
the center who's actually in Phoenix now and five second
round picks. Then they extend Jabari Smith Junior to a
five year, one hundred and twenty two million dollar deal.
They signed Dorian Finney Smith for four years fifty three

(22:09):
million and reunite with Clint Capella for three years twenty
one and a half million, and it just seemed like
there was gonna be some investigations going on because they
are these are all players that could easily have looked
for opportunities to get paid elsewhere, and they all on
the same team. Something is a little fishy. They're a
little you know, is there a little under the table
stuff going on? But either way, the trades are official

(22:32):
and they did it legit, okay, you know, And I
think especially when you look at the big man situation. Right,
let's start there, because they were already pretty much well
off with Sengoune and Steven Adams rotating the five, with
a variety of options at the power forward spot, being
able to go small ball if they wanted to write,
or go Jabari who was six y ten more traditional
size wise. But see this is what happens when traditional

(22:57):
lineups get popular again. Right. Notice how old OKC. Despite
the value that Ched Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein can bring,
there were times they both got benched and as a
result they had to play Jalen Williams at the five,
JDub Jalen Williams at the five. So what did they
do in this year's draft? They drafted a big man
and Thomas Orber, So when they find themselves in that
position again, they'll have an extra body to throw out there,

(23:20):
even if it's for no more than eight to twelve
minutes a night. You look at Dallas being able to
play Dereck Lively, Daniel Gafford, and Anthony Davis all different
kind of ways and combinations. You look at the Phoenix
Suns getting Mark Williams, Nick Richards and the draft pick right,
come on, and now the Rockets, who have some of
the best rotations in the league. I think now again,

(23:41):
as NBA fans, we just forget that the game moves
in cycles. In my opinion, while in different ways, we're
seeing the big man become important. Again, Look how many
were chosen in the draft this year. While I would
love for them to have a lot more of a
low post game, you know, that's a whole different episode,
different conversation. I do think that you need these guys
that are gonna be able to guard the Wemby's, the Jokichs,

(24:04):
the Mbiads, the zach Edes and not need help doing so.
You need guys that are going to fight with the Cavs,
the Thunder and the Mavericks on the glass keeping up
with that with those bigger lineups. Small ball might be
great for offensive fluidity, but have fun losing the rebound
battle or getting dominated by the opposing teams inside presence,
the Rockets have done a lot of work in their

(24:25):
front court because they now have quite a few versatile
guards and wings to work with, so kudos to the
front office for getting some real impact players on board.
And then we got the Atlanta Hawks, who similarly continue
to surround Trey Young with shooting and or defense after
trading for Kristaps Porzingis, signing to Keo Alexander Walker, whose

(24:46):
value increased after his three and D kind of impact
in Minnesota, and then sharpshooter lou Kenard, and let's not
forget how dangerous the Atlanta Hawks looked towards the end
of the NBA Cup this past season. Unfortunately, the injury
to Jaylen Johnson kind of change their season for the
worst pretty much, but they made strides in surrounding Trey
Young with versatile defenders and playmakers and Johnson, Dyson Daniels,

(25:09):
Zachary Rissichet through the draft and offseason moves. So if
you're the Atlanta Hawks, it's like, so what our point
guard is six feet and gets picked on when we're
on defense. We got athleticism, we got shooting, and we
got defense to make up for what he struggles with.
That is how you rebuild, that is how you improve.
So this year, when you add Alexander Walker to that

(25:29):
corps and porzingis as a love threat for Trey Young,
someone who can protect the rim and stretch the floor.
If this team can stay healthy, premature predictions see them
as one of the favorites, if not the favorite, to
come out of the Eastern Conference. And even touching on
Luke Canard, I don't think people realized what his brief
time in Los Angeles did for his career. If you remember,

(25:52):
he came to a Los Angeles Clippers team that was
trying to contend for championships, and with him coming from
the Pistons who were still in their dark day a franchise,
he was scared to shoot, he was scared to make mistakes.
He couldn't put the ball on the floor and he
struggled to defend, so he quickly became unplayable. But the
following season, again injuries to Paul George Kawhi other guys,

(26:14):
he was able to find some minutes and he bounced back.
He bounced back with a certain bounce in his step
and a fire a little bit. You know, he got
confident in his shot again. He became the most accurate
shooter in the league. He got comfortable with his handle,
which gave him the ability to shoot off the dribble
as well as play sort of like a combo guard. Again.
We saw flashes of that in Detroit. He returned back

(26:35):
to that and while he still has his defensive limitations,
he transferred a lot of these skills to Memphis and
now will be a great fit in that land of
bringing the same attributes again. I don't think he'll play
no more than twelve minutes, I would say on the
lower end, But those spot minutes he gets where he
can extend a scoring run to end a quarter or
a half, or knock down clutch free throws, or provide

(26:58):
a spark when they start a game. Those are going
to be very important for a team. That wants to
make noise in the East. So the Hawks to me,
were yet another team who expanded on some of their
holes from the past season. And then the last nominee
is the LA Clippers, who cooked a little bit this
offseason all right. First, they signed Brook Lopez in free agency,
and finally, if I hit my Vince Carter, they finally

(27:22):
get a suitable backup big man for Evitza Zubac. He
can protect the rim just as well as Zubac. He
still has solid back to the basket game, but really
turned into a stretch big over the years, so he
also brings an attribute that Zubac doesn't have. That acquisition
was one of my favorites of the summer. Then, more recently,
they traded Norman Powell to the Heat for John Collins

(27:44):
in a three team deal. And I'll admit I hated
to see Norm go because he was such a spark
plug for the Clippers in his tenure there, but I
understand that once Kawhi returned and the Clippers were healthy,
he wasn't as impactful as you'd like him to be.
So the Clippers instead bringing another forward to increase their
front cored depth, and to me, I think it should

(28:05):
allow guys like Kawhi and Derek Jones specifically to play
their natural small forward positions that they weren't always able
to play in different lineups the past year. I do
worry just to tad about John Collins though, and how
he fits next to Kawhi specifically because John likes the
ball in the high and mid post very similar to

(28:25):
Kawhi Leonard, and so when they find themselves on the
floor together, you anticipate that Kawhi is going to get
a lot more of those touches. That was the issue
with Paul George as a Clipper. If you noticed, he
rarely got his touches in that Tamac area unless Kawhi
Leonard was out of the game. That was pretty much
that was the only time Paul George was getting his
team ac touches. Again, growing up in that era where

(28:48):
that was still the style of basketball you played right
where a lot of those wings they love it in
that spot, Paul George didn't get a lot of those,
so he had to find other ways to get in rhythm. Thankfully, though,
I would think for John Collins, obviously playing a different
position a different skill set, he should be able to
excel as a pick and roll man, a pick and
pop man, and a cutter for alley oops and just

(29:11):
easy baskets at the easy buckets by the basket. Excuse me.
I think it won't be a major problem, but it
is just something I'm watching for. But here's where I
think it really gets interesting. Okay, I gotta get a
little ahead of myself. Even though, at least at the
time of me recording this, it hasn't been official, but
this is what the streets are saying. The Clippers, even

(29:31):
with those two moves, they're still in play to get
Chris Paul in what will be a reunion for his
last chance to win a championship. Right. He stressed the
idea of staying closer to his family and so forth.
So when the Clippers acquired John Collins, my first thought
was they had to get another lob threat for CP.
This was a Chris Paul move right here. Yes, Zuba

(29:54):
can catch lobbs occasionally Derek Jones's airplane mode. We know
he can catch lobs. John Collins the way that he
can potentially be used in similar not the exact same,
but just similar ways we saw Blake Griffin be used
in his days with CP three, when they were in
on the Clippers together. This roster has Chris Paul orchestration

(30:16):
written all over it, and still after trading Norman Powell,
there is a hole for a shooting guard and they
will have money to sign Bradley Beal should he get
bought out by the Phoenix Suns Now. Obviously the big
issue with Bradley Beal has been his health, but he's
still a really good three point shooter, still really good
off the dribble, and because he's had experience not being

(30:36):
the number one option before, he fits better in this
starting lineup than Norman Powell, who again had a bit
of trouble finding his flow. Once Kawhi came back and
they had a fully healthy roster. So I think getting Lopez,
Collins and likely Chris Paul and Bradley Beal the Clippers
fill a lot of those holes that they had this
past season. Again, I feel like people are you might

(30:57):
be a little scared of the Bradil acquisition because I
was too. I was to trust me. Like I said,
I really wanted Norman to stay. But I just think
because Norman was so much of an on ball spark
plug at the very least Bradley Beal has experienced being
a catch and shoot guy. He came into the league
as a catch and shoot guy. Let's not forget Bradley
Beal didn't really develop into that go to score until

(31:18):
the late twenty tens, if anything, that twenty twenty season.
If I'm correct, so, I think the brad Beial replacing
Pile situation isn't that bad. But again, they get their
backup big man and Lopez. They get some extra rebounding
and strengthen their front court with John Collins. They potentially
get Chris Paul who is still a mid range maestro,

(31:39):
still a high IQ player, awesome floor general to have,
and they potentially get Bradley Beal, who can operate off
the catch and off the dribble, which will strengthen their
need for buckets on the perimeter when Kawhi sits and
or when Harden is having an off night. If for
whatever reason, Bradley Beal doesn't go to the Clippers, I
still believe the Clippers made some excellent improvements to a

(31:59):
roster that I was already super high on this past season,
even if it doesn't show as much in the standings
due to being in a tight Western conference. But again,
only one GM can get the Doctor Dre Award for
impeccable offseason orchestration not on the soundboards, but the whiteboards
for sure, and that GM, to me is a Rafael

(32:21):
Stone of the Houston Rockets. Listen, I had to think
about this one, Okay, as far as off season targets,
getting who you want, it's a no brainer to me.
The Nuggets and the Clippers were very, very very close,
and the Hawks did a great job. But there's still
some questions with Porzingis's health, although I did see his
post on Instagram where he allegedly said he's been feeling great,

(32:43):
so we'll see. I just thought Houston's acquisitions were more
set in stone, ready to make an impact kind of moves,
and that's why I gave them the slight edge. But
it was close. Trust me, it was close. I know
the first two H two DG offseason awards went to Houston,
but don't you worry. There are still a handful of
awards to give out, and trust me when I tell you,
it only gets more and more interesting as the episode continues.

(33:05):
With the Ovito and the Doctor Dre Awards down, we
get into the Illmatic Fuji La and one Hit Wonder
Awards next. But before we transition, if you're enjoying Hip
to the Game so far, be sure to hit that
subscribe button. I don't know what you keep waiting for.
Hit that subscribe button on YouTube, hit that follow button
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(33:28):
and outside of the podcast. And even after all of that,
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(33:48):
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Let everybody know what it means to be Hip to
the Games by clicking the link in the episode's description
to cop some merch and represent the H two DG lifestyle.
Welcome back to Hip to the Games, where the first
ever Free Agency Slash Offseason Awards continues and will start
this next group of Awards with the Ilmatic Award, where

(34:10):
we'll find out who established themselves as the best team
post free agency. The nominees for this award are the
New York Knicks, the Houston Rockets, the Los Angeles Clippers,
and the Denver Nuggets. You've heard enough about three of
these teams, but we do have a fresh face here
in the New York Knicks, who just made the Conference
finals fair and square. While acquiring Jordan Clarkson off the

(34:31):
buy out market and signing Gershan Yabusele aren't the most
timeline shattering acquisitions, they are indeed two players that give
the Knicks greater depth, something that they struggle with this
past season. Since being traded to the Jazz in December
twenty nineteen, Jordan Clarkson gradually emerged as the j R.
Smith Jamal Crawford kind of six man the actual award

(34:54):
he won in twenty twenty one. He was an absolute
spark plug, a quick and shifty three level score and man,
if you remember that twenty twenty one playoff run, there
were some shots off the dribble that made you just
scratch your head, like, how in the world did that
go in? And while Clarkson hasn't been at that supreme level.

(35:14):
He still is very much an aggressive impact score and
funny enough, I compared him to j R. Smith, I
compared him to Jamal Crawford, and these are also guys
that played for the Knicks at some point in their careers.
Clarkson will give the Knicks some much needed offense off
the bench. One of the weaknesses I believe the Knicks
carried was that they didn't have anyone outside of Jalen

(35:35):
Brunson to consistently create offense off the dribble. The closest
player they had to that was Campaign, and he isn't
on the level of Jordan Clarkson. That wasn't Miles McBride's role.
That darn Shore wasn't Josh Hart's role. It's not the
kind of player og Ananobi is, and neither really is
my Michael Bridges, although I felt like they should have

(35:56):
included him in the offense a lot more in games
down the stretch and the playoffs. Case in point, Jordan
Clarkson should be able to bring the same punch to
New York that he did in Utah and some of
his situations prior. My fear with this acquisition though, is
that while he'll have plenty of exciting moments with the Knicks,
he may not be on the floor as much as
he would like to be due to defensive situations. But

(36:19):
who knows. With Mike Brown in the picture, now, maybe
that changes. Maybe they even close games with Jalen Brunson,
Jordan Clarkson, Mikael Bridges, o Gananobi, and Karl Anthony Towns.
If Tibbs was in the picture, it probably wouldn't happen
like that. But with a new coach, you have to
anticipate seeing new strategies, all right. Last season, it seemed
that they valued Josh Hart's rebounding and defense, yet he

(36:41):
became very non existent on offense at times, and Brunson
seemed to be the only one in attack mode offensively.
Having Clarkson out there as an emergency button may be
better for them while still having defenders out there in
Bridges and Anobe. That's just my thought process, not to
say that there's one right answer or that it's the
apps the best method, but it's just something to look

(37:02):
at come next season. Either way. I love the Clarkson
pickup for a team that just made a deep playoff run.
As for Gershon Yabusele, I mentioned last year how he
suddenly became the Sixers backup center simply because of how
impactful he was on both ends, but definitely on that
offensive side as a small ball center again, despite being

(37:22):
just six seven six eight ish, he is a strong
guy that doesn't get moved easily. He has a more
than respectable three point shot at thirty eight percent. He
can finish strong at the rim, and if you watch
some of them Sixer games, I'll say it again, there
were some games he was the second best player. Granted,
injury certainly played a factor, but trust when I tell
you he earned every penny he was due to get

(37:44):
this summer after being out of the league entirely. Remember,
the NBA has reached the point in its cycle where
higher effort role players matter again. Stars alone are no
longer carrying teams to championships. You can make a lot
of money in this league being a star in your role,
and it looks like Gershan is trying to do that
in the Big Apple. Now, I won't lie. I didn't

(38:05):
think New York was best for him at first. I
felt like his minutes would go down after a season
where he genuinely proved he could stick around in the
NBA this time. But again I had to remind myself
of their added depth and versatility. Now, if kat gets
played off the floor or both he and Mitchell Robinson
are in foul trouble, running a small ball lineup with

(38:25):
y'abusel at the five wouldn't be a new situation for him,
and given his skill set, it might not be a
bad idea to sprinkle that in throughout the season. Given
the state of the Eastern Conference, it's certainly going to
be one of the Knicks' best chances to make the
finals this next season, and adding these two players to
a rotation that was once seven eight guys should put

(38:46):
them in a similar situation, if not what they hope
is a better situation than the past season. Now, I've
spoken about the Rockets a lot already. Again, just after
building a roster of high effort defenders and role players,
they were rewarded with one of the best go to
guys in Kevin Durant, and still Sengoun has plenty of
room to grow as a finisher. We'll see how he

(39:07):
improves this season. Jabari Smith just got paid, so he'll
be hungry to prove that he's worth the bag. And
remember what I said in the playoff preview. One of
the bigger weaknesses that the Houston Rockets had was their
lack of spot up shooting, and while they showed flashes
of success in that area, they had one of the
worst three point shooting percentages despite being one of the
better teams in the league. But this year, outside of

(39:29):
Kevin Durant's ability to catch and shoot, they acquired Dorian
Finney Smith, who shot a career high forty one percent
from deep this past year, opportunity knocks for Reed Shepard right,
who has been known to get up his fare of
shots from beyond the arc. He didn't shoot great at
thirty three percent in fifty two games. Again, rookies always
have to get used to the farther three point line
in the NBA, and of course that's bound to happen

(39:51):
with fluctuating minutes throughout the season, so it makes sense.
And keep in mind though he did shoot a ridiculous
fifty two percent from deep in his loan college season.
And just in case you're wondering, well, Dez, the college
three point line is closer, he should be that efficient
and he came off the bench, he should absolutely be
shooting the lights out, especially if he's getting a lot
of open looks. In three and G League games last year,

(40:14):
he averaged forty two percent from deep, with his first
game shooting three of seven, the second four of eleven,
and then the last game was eight to nineteen. So
at the end of the day, he gonna get them
threes up, and he has the tendency to be more
accurate with it. The potential is there, and I'm sure
he'll be happy to take wide open jumpers courtesy of
Kevin Durant, double teams and the men Thompson driving kicks

(40:35):
all day long. All right. While yet to be proven,
this team has plenty of potential. And similarly, just as
long as the Clippers stay healthy, I think they have
the potential to be one of the best teams in
the West again. If they indeed get Chris Paul and
Brad Beil, an already strong team will get even stronger.
If they can keep the defense first mindset that they
had this past season and combine it with an offense

(40:57):
that should be even more fluid and more dynamic, they're
gonna be a problem too. More so in the playoffs
than the regular season. I would presume, anticipating the hurdles
that they'll have with health, but you know, obviously most
notably with Kawhi Leonard and Bradley Beal, but for the
most part, they should be a legit contender. And lastly,
the Denver Nuggets nearly got past the OKC Thunder, but
they succumb due to lack of shooting and a shorter rotation.

(41:20):
They fix those problems again, they address those weaknesses this offseason.
I would like to see them prioritize that backup center again,
prioritize playing Valentoutis and working him in the offense and
things of that nature. But again, with all their acquisitions
and situations in mind, I fully expect them to present
another challenge to come out the West next year, because
if they can do what they did last year with

(41:41):
noticeable weaknesses and shortcomings this year, if all is well,
then all is healthy, they can be just as good
and hopefully better. And while I wish I could give
the Ematic Award to all of these teams, only one
can get the virtual hardware, and that team is the
Denver Nuggets. The Knicks are I know the Knicks are fun,

(42:02):
but I'm tired of the Knicks always being fun. I
want them to be legit and right now, yes, everything
points to them being the best team out East, but
I feel like some of these West teams are still
better than them. Houston, I've saying their praises all episode,
but they have to show that they have indeed improved
their spot up shooting and that those young guys are

(42:23):
ready to step up in a new year. The Clippers,
the moves at the time of this recording have yet
to fully manifest. But again, their issue may be the
load management that they'll endure throughout the season, so we
may not really see their potential till around the end
of the season post All Star Break, things of that nature.
And I just think after Denver again after they nearly
beat OKC, who went on to win the championship, the

(42:45):
fact that they address their weaknesses gives me every reason
to believe that they are the best and most cohesive
team post free agency. It's not to undermine what Houston did,
but I just think the Nuggets won't need a lot
of figuring out to do. They got a lot of
those plug and plays players that are just gonna know
out the gate what their role is and be able
to commit to it early. So you know, like I said,

(43:06):
some players on Houston will have to adjust to new
roles and opportunities. The Knicks will be adjusting to a
new coach. The Clippers will need their key players to
be healthy for a longer period of time. I just
think Denver will be able to go into the regular
season knowing what is needed from each and every player
on the roster and go full throttle. Again. They just
look like the best team that made moves this offseason,

(43:28):
and so for me, they get the Ellmatic Award. Now, similarly,
we usher in the Fuji Law Award, virtually given to
the team that made the most improvement with the offseason
moves they made. So I understand there could have been
a lot of crossover here between the Doctor Dre Award,
the Ellmatic Award, and this award, But understand I wanted
the fujilaw Award to be more about the leap the

(43:49):
roster made and not necessarily one hundred percent of just
how close they are to contention. So, for example, while
the Rockets have certainly improved, what about teams like Charlotte
or even New Orleans who supplemented key draft picks and
offseason moves. Again, I know those might be more controversial,
but I kind of see that there is a lane
for them. You could in some ways say they improved.

(44:11):
I think it's it's a lot of fuzziness going on,
but you could kind of make the argument that they improved. Obviously,
we'll have yet to see what it actually looks like,
but that's just my point. Think about it more. In
that way, I wanted to show love to some teams
who improved, even if they aren't considered contenders in their conferences.
So that said, I did have to boil the nominees

(44:31):
down to the Charlotte Hornets, the Atlanta Hawks once again,
the Los Angeles Clippers, and the Orlando Magic. Now this
is a very interesting group right here. Okay, let me
start with the Orlando Magic. They successfully addressed two major
holes they had this past year, shooting and playmaking. Desmond
Bane and Tyas Jones are generally both forty percent three

(44:51):
point shooters, which should help improve their dead last three
point shooting ranking. Rookie Jace Richardson, who they drafted, shot
forty one in college. So while I'm not sure how
much he'll be included in the Magic regular season rotation.
They drafted a kid that can help their shooting walls
as well, and just like I said in the previous episode,
Desmond Bain's ability to put the ball on the floor

(45:13):
and be a long ball threat that can attack the
basket also should bring a real nice dynamic to their
offense that often got stagnant in the playoffs because they
couldn't shoot nor have someone to put pressure on the
defense outside of Polo Ben Carrol and Franz Wagner. Desmond
Baines certainly seems like the perfect piece to put opposite
of those two guys. Additionally, Tyas Jones, as a genuine,

(45:36):
more old school floor general, was the exact point guard
Orlando needed. They had a lot of guards that were
either score first or more combo guards. Anthony Black he's
sixty seven and he was heralded more for his defense,
so while they thought he could be the point guard,
it didn't really pan out that way. Jalen Suggs really
started to find his footing more and more in this league.

(45:57):
But to me, and this is just me, he is
a lot closer to an Alex Caruso type of player,
although he's more talented, I just think he's a lot
closer to that than being a true floor general or
like a game manager impact point guard. I think a
lot of his value is in the dirty work, the defense,
things of that nature. Cole Anthony was always more of

(46:18):
a spark plug, yet struggled with forcing the issue a
lot of times, and so it even got to a
point where the Magic were playing Corey Joseph more because
they knew they needed a more traditional floor general on
the court. They were trying to get as close as
they could to a true point guard as possible, and
it was in the former Corey Joseph. And even then,
Corey Joseph was never really elite in that role. He

(46:39):
had a lot of backup roles starting his career in
San Antonio and then going to Toronto, so it wasn't
always you know, the point guard situation was very, very shaky.
So incomes Tyas Jones, who for the last few years
has tried to save teams that had point guard holes.
He's been among the best point guards in the league
when it comes to assist to turnover ratio the last

(47:01):
several seasons. He makes the right plays and rarely turns
the ball over, and in the playoffs, you desperately need
guys who can control the pace, control the tempo, and
take pride in game management. Tias is a traditional point
guard in that regard, and I'm so excited to see
how he impacts the Orlando Magic because they finally got
the kind of point guard they've been looking for. So

(47:23):
while I don't think, I don't even think the Orlando
Magic made this huge quantum leap, Sometimes it is these
simple moves that have major impact. And I think the
Magic made some noticeable improvements to their roster that should
bring greater success, hopefully of this upcoming season. All Right,
let's briefly talk about the Los Angeles Clippers yet again,
who are pretty much in this perfect position to acquire

(47:45):
NBA champion and really good interior defender Brook Lopez, athletic
for John Collins, veterans scorer Brad Beal, and future Hall
of Fame point guard Chris Paul all in one offseason.
That alone is improvement. Okay, Like I said before, this
is a great situation for Brook Lopez and what is
likely the final stage of his career. John Collins is

(48:06):
able to return to a playoff team that definitely needed
his rebounding and athleticism inside. Brad Beal is a real
nice replacement for Norman Pile. Maybe not perfect, but real nice.
Chris Paul is the exact kind of point guard they
need for the playoffs. We saw how James Harden, once
again unfortunately froze up in a Game seven and struggle
to overcome the Nuggets ball pressure defensively. We saw how

(48:29):
Chris Dunn was spectacular for them defensively all season long,
but just couldn't provide much on the offensive end when
it really mattered. And we saw how Ben Simmons just
doesn't have a shot button on his video game controller,
so a secondary playmaker became a glaring weakness during the
most important time of the year. The playoff does that sometimes,
it exposed your weaknesses, and it did that for the Clippers.

(48:51):
So even at forty years old, Chris Paul is still
a great solution for that problem. He can still get
to his spot in the mid range, still put pressure
on the defense and make plays for his teammates as
well as himself. Is just really hard to take a
player and a competitor like him out of a game
because of his skill set, so I expect the Clippers
to have an even better flow to their offense, especially

(49:12):
in the minutes James Harden is not on the floor again.
That was a big problem for them last year. So
and having these guys Lopez, Collins, Beal who can all
shoot threes, gives them so much to work with in
various offensive situations like picking rolls, picking pops, handoffs, and
off ball cutting. Again, and I don't want it to
get twisted either with John Collins, he's coming off a

(49:33):
year where he shot thirty nine percent from three. I
know he isn't on We don't think of him as
this great shooter, we don't think of him as this
great stretch big. But he was a fishing as heck
last year, so hopefully he can bring that to this
situation as well. The Clippers already had a nice rotation
last year, and it'll be nice to see how these
additions make it even better for this next season. Onto

(49:55):
the Atlanta Hawks. I'll keep it brief once again since
I broke down a lot earlier, but for them to
finish as a ninth seed this past season, they should
easily make the highest climb up the standings as long
as they have a healthy season. But I don't want
it to get lost that this team still made some
real nice improvements despite health being the main reason they
couldn't make the playoffs. They strengthen their big men depth,

(50:16):
pairing on Yaka Kongo with Kristaps Porzingis, as they'll be
able to share the court and sub in for one another,
so there's some versatility there when it comes to lineups.
Porzingis gives them multiple options offensively with pick and pop,
pick and roll, mid range game, is a really good
shot blocker. On defense, they add some shooting with Knard
and Nikkeil Alexander Walker an extra defender and Nikkeil Alexander

(50:40):
Walker as well. But he will also now have the opportunity,
I think, to do a little bit more offensively than
we sometimes saw in Minnesota. So that's a plus as well,
especially after them losing Caris Lavert, this is a great
opportunity for him to step in and say, Okay, I
can kind of fill that role too. You know, you
might have slept on that in Minnesota, but I can
bring that to Atlanta. So I think them in Orlando,

(51:01):
they're they're gonna be fighting for that third seed in
the East, maybe the fourth seed as well, and then last,
but certainly not the least. The Charlotte Hornets. Now, how
I feel about them is very similar to how I
feel about the New Orleans Pelicans. Health is a must
to see the true harvest that they are capable of reaping.
But they have a solid, fun group on paper. We
know how electrifying LaMelo ball can be as a scorer

(51:23):
and as a passer. We saw how Brandon Miller showed
flashes of his All Star potential before his injury. We
saw how Miles Bridges can still get twenty a game
as an athletic inside out threat. We saw Trey Mann
improve his scoring abilities after spending a whole summer study
in two thousand and one Allen iverson right. And we
saw the contributions of role players like Josh Green, Seth Curry,

(51:47):
Josha Kog like they had a you know, they had
some solid some solid moments. But again the primary issue
was health. LaMelo missed time. Grant Williams only played sixteen games,
Trey Mann only played thirteen games, Brandon Miller only played
twenty seven games. Only six players played over fifty games

(52:07):
on this Charlotte Hornet's roster, and you can probably only
name half of them, because I know I wasn't able
to until I looked it up. You probably can only
name half of them. If you can name all them, congratulations,
you really know ball. But these guys are Musa Diabatte,
Josh Green, Seth Curry, Miles Bridges, Nick Smith Junior, and

(52:28):
Tidan Jay Salon, the rookie last year. I again probably
butchered his name. I apologize, but those are the six
players that played over more than at least fifty games,
and in fact, they all played at least sixty. Two
of those guys were starters. That can't happen if you
want to win in this league. So I say all
that to say I felt like the Hornets went into

(52:49):
the offseason like, Okay, we need to get role players
that are going to fit in a best case scenario
where all of our main pieces are healthy, but will
also still contribute in a way the worst case scenario
where when we hit the injury bug again, we still
got guys as ready to contribute. And so that's why
I think they bring in Colin Sexton, a guy that
can coexist with LaMelo's up tempo style, but also keep

(53:13):
our scoring charges for short handed. Likewise, here comes Spencer Dinwiddi,
who is capable of starting and coming off the bench.
Then you look at the draft getting klin kannepl fourth overall,
who a lot of people said even after the NCAA
tournament that he probably had the best feel for the
game out of anyone in his class, and even watching
interviews at his kid he sounds like he's got real,

(53:33):
genuine basketball knowledge. He sounds like he's a little bit
of an old soul and has already acknowledged the importance
of him being a player that plays off two feet
to make up for his lack of athleticism. So I
like to pick up there forty one percent from three
in college, but isn't limited to catch and shoot. He
has some craftiness and wisdom to him, which I think
is the exact kind of player that the Hornets were

(53:55):
trying to bring in. It's time for a culture change. There.
We got our athleticism, we got our fun personalities, we
got all this electrifying basketball. Now we need to get
more cerebral gentlemen up in here, and I think kan
Kannepol is one of those players. And that's also why,
after trading almost all of their big men away, they
draft seven footer Ryan Kogbrenner from Creighton who averaged nineteen

(54:16):
to nine and two point seven blocks per game. So
he's another guy that will get some real opportunity to
thrive in Charlotte, initiate fast breaks, protecting the rim, and
serving as a low post option as well. And he's
an older rookie, so since he stayed in school, he's
gonna bring some extra polish and maturity that most older
rookies tend to bring to their team. So I thought

(54:37):
that was a great pickup as well. So overall, while
still a younger team, I like that the Hornets seemed
to lock in on reliability this offseason. It wasn't about
necessarily getting the talent, but more about getting the right fits,
more about changing the culture, and if they can stay healthy,
I'd like to think that they have a chance out
of playing spot. But again, big if here, big if

(54:58):
I know I said it last That's why I'm a
little hesitant. You know, I thought they would return to
the play in spot, but they didn't, so hopefully this
year I'm right. But all of that said, who takes
home the Fuji La Award well. After much thought and consideration,
the most improved team post free agency to me is

(55:19):
the Los Angeles Clippers. Who I mean, that was a
little bit harder than I thought, but hear me out.
I nearly picked Orlando because, similarly to Atlanta, the only
reason they were in eighth seed this past season is
because they had so many injuries throughout the season, but
they definitely improved in areas they needed to improve the most.
I didn't pick the Hawks because so much of their

(55:39):
improvement is reliant on the health of their team, but again,
they brought some really good players in Charlotte is more
on the sleeper side. They are definitely my sleeper pick,
so I didn't have that much confidence picking them to
win the award, especially knowing how much the East will
shift due to injuries to Tatum and Halliburton and the
fact that the Bulls won't be good this upcome. I

(56:00):
don't anticipate my Bulls being that good. A window might
open for maybe a last play in spot or two,
so I would like to see them get that spot,
like I said, but again, they gotta stay healthy. So
I went a bit safer with the Clippers again, assuming
all of these transactions happen the way that it's supposed
to happen. I just think their improvements are are not

(56:20):
just based off the names they got, but the way
each of those skill sets that those guys bring are
necessary for this Los Angeles Clippers team. Again, due to
a stack Western conference, They're probably only gonna jump from
the fifth seed to the fourth seed. With all the
low management and things of that nature. I find it
hard to believe that they'll be better than Okay, see
Houston and Denver. But if they can get to the
playoffs healthy, the roster that they're due to put together

(56:44):
is much better than what they had this past year.
But real talk, I wish I could just give all
these teams the Fujila a ward because that was a
tough group. I may look calm on the surface, but
that was that was tough, all right. You didn't see
me drafting my notes and things of that nature giving
these awards out. There were moments I was just sitting
by my computer just thinking like, man, I could go
this way, I could go that way. It's a lot

(57:04):
even teams that I haven't mentioned. Shout out to the
Detroit Pistons who made some solid moves and things that
nature like. It's a mess, but yes, Fujili award goes
to the Los Angeles Clippers, especially because they came in
clutch before I made this episode. Moving forward, it's time
for the one Hit Wonder Award, where we acknowledge who
could be the best player with a one year deal.

(57:25):
The nominees for this award are Anthony Simons, Colin Sexton,
Tyas Jones, and CJ McCollum. Let's start with CJ mccalum. Now.
CJ is said to be a free agent after this
upcoming season, so with him being traded to the Wizards
this summer, it's set up the perfect opportunity to be
a one hit Wonder this year. He may be turning

(57:46):
thirty four in September, but in twelve NBA seasons, he's
averaged at least twenty points for the last ten of them.
And in case you forgot, he actually dropped fifty points
this past season, funny enough against his new team in
the Watching and Wizards. So he still got plenty of
buckets to give out when necessary. His handle allows him
to get wherever he wants. He's one of the shiftiest

(58:07):
ball handlers in the league, still one of the better
mid range scorers in the league, still can shoot threes
off the dribble and spot up, And regardless of how
you feel about his role in the current CBA, the
Wizards add another great veteran in a locker room that
could surely use his wisdom. That said, all of these
qualities are the exact reasons why you think he would

(58:28):
either find a new home by the deadline or wait
till next summer to help out a contender. With the
Wizards acquiring so much young, exciting talent through the draft
and everything the last couple of seasons, I wouldn't be surprised.
I would be surprised if this becomes a situation where
CJ stays put, especially with Chris Middleton deciding to stick
around and opt in to his deal as well. So

(58:50):
either way, whether he decides to stay put or go
to a contender depends on the kind of season that
he has. And then with that in mind, I actually
want to jump into and Simons because he's essentially in
this situation that seemed a little more ideal for a
guy like CJ. McCollum. While it seemed like Anthony, Simons
was linked to teams trying to take the next step
like Orlando. For instance, the Celtics went ahead and picked

(59:13):
him up as an insurance policy for losing Jason Tatum
for the year. Simons was able to learn a lot
from both Lillard and McCollum during his time as a
Trailblazer mirroring a lot of the go to moves that
Damian Lillard uses and developing a lot of the mid
range game that we've seen from CJ McCollums. So I
think he got the best of both worlds being around
those guys, and it allowed him to turn into a

(59:34):
streaky twenty point per game score that was due for
a bigger opportunity elsewhere, and that place ended up being
Boston now again, Rumor has it that Brad Stevens has
something up his sleeve with Simons. He can try to
flip them for another player either soon or during the
midseason deadline, or keep him and bring him into the
mix of a Celtics corps that is still pretty young

(59:55):
and will look even more dangerous once Tatum returns from injury.
I don't know what all this talk is is that
the Celtics should, you know, kind of retool their roster
or what's the thing with Jalen Brown or trade Simons.
I really think they should keep this so when Tatum
comes back, you're still in a real good spot contention wise.
You know, maybe I'm tripping. Maybe it's the whole second
Apron thing. They're trying to watch the money. It's not

(01:00:17):
even the on court stuff, it's literally the financial reasons.
I don't know, but I think like the Celtics should
really sit tight because, you know, I feel like I'm
one of the few people that actually like what they
potentially can do, especially once Tatum comes back. But no
matter what happens, with one year left on his deal,
we can expect that he will be trying out for

(01:00:37):
other teams around the Association or proving to the Celtics
that he's worth keeping around. So it'll be a big
year for him individually. And the next in line is
Colin Sexton. All Right, Personally, I gotta admit I didn't
like the idea of the Hornet signing Sexton and Spencer
Dinwiddie to go along with LaMelo Ball and Trey Mann.
Those are four guards who love to prioritize scoring and

(01:01:01):
while it sounds fun when you read it off the paper,
I believe it's too many like minded guards in one place. Sure,
maybe it allows LaMelo to focus more on being a
floor general than a thirty point per game score. And
maybe it's Charlotte bracing themselves for potential injuries that they
have been known to experience the last few seasons, and
in that regard it makes sense. Additionally, Dinwitty and Sexton

(01:01:22):
are under contract for just one season, so either one
of them, if not both, can be flipped at the
deadline or move on to better teams next summer should
they garner enough interest from other teams. That said, Sexton
is a guard who plays with a lot of competitive
fire and relentless scoring ability, attributes the struggling Hornets desperately
need in their locker room. They need a kick in

(01:01:42):
the butt, they need a fire and that guy, I
think Colin Sexton is one of the perfect guys for
that kind of environment. It's unfortunate that he hasn't turned
into the defender some of us thought he would develop into.
But in this league, scoring is the main attraction. The
name of the game is basketball. You gotta put that
ball in the basket and gives the Hornets a backup
combo guard that they struggle to acquire in recent seasons.

(01:02:05):
I expect him to provide a much needed boost while
possibly trying out for a contender looking for a scoring
punch as well. Though I may not like the situation
that much, on paper, it is a solid opportunity for
Colin Sexton at this point in his career. He's still
very young, twenty six years old, plenty of career left,
and who knows, if the Hornets can really turn a
corner this year, maybe Sexton will become an important part

(01:02:28):
of their future and culture. But after some years playing
with teams that have struggled to make the playoffs, you
got presume that eventually he's gonna want to be in
a winning environment. So it's gonna be a big one
year for him as well. And then the last nominee,
Tias Jones. He's the one that I am most confident
that if he really helps the Magic, he'll re sign
and stay for a much longer period of time. I

(01:02:50):
really want him to find a home, you know. I
think the other three guys they seem to be exploring.
But Tias Jones, however, has been going to teams that
need his services. The point guard in this day and
age is like the quarterback in football. And understand, before
when we made that comparison, it was from a leadership standpoint, right,
the point guard needs to be as close to the coach.

(01:03:10):
They need to be the on court coach on field,
you know, the quarterback on field coach. Like it's it's
a lot of similarities. But now not only is that
comparison from a leadership standpoint, but it's from a job
security standpoint. Everybody has a point guard now, some teams
even have established backup point guards. So when the Wizards
had an open spot, he went. When the Suns were

(01:03:31):
hoping to fill the void Chris Paul left, he went.
And now with the Magic in need of a point guard,
it just seemed like there's only one. There's a Tias
Jones sized hole for the Orlando Magic, and he went there.
So you know, here he comes, ready to serve. And
like I said, I'm all for players finding homes in
the NBA, because who wants to jump from team to

(01:03:52):
team all the time. This is his third team in
three seasons now. But I'm also not mad at Tias
for running to the first that needs a point guard.
It's the reason why he has the value that he has,
because those jobs aren't as abundant as they once were.
This is a great opportunity once again to find a
home and help a team win. You know the Wizards,
they were losing the Suns, it didn't work out. They're retooling.

(01:04:16):
But Orlando, they're actually on the rise, and like I
said earlier, they have been looking for a floor general
with his exact skill set. Shoot the three, efficiently, run
the offense, make smart decisions, manage a game, keep the
turnovers low. I'm excited to see what he looks like
on the Magic. But of course, while all these guys
are some great one hit wonders, only one can have

(01:04:39):
the virtual honors, and that player is and Simons. If
the Celtics do keep him and he has a nice year,
it's a win win for him. He'll either be a
part of a championship organization long term or have the
chance to pursue that with another team. I know there
are slim chances right now of the Celtss keeping him.

(01:05:00):
We'll see. I know they announced finally announced it officially
that he's with the team, so we'll see how it goes.
But it was my understanding that they were hoping to
shed his salary so they could retain Louke Cornett and
Al Horford. But by the looks of things, they won't
have neither one of those guys. Louke Cornett went to
the Spurs and Al Horford is looking at the Warriors

(01:05:20):
or even retirement. So to me, at that point, well,
you might as well pay Ant Simons. You might as
well keep him around knowing that you won't have Tatum,
just to see what happens, and at least by the deadline,
if anything, if you really want to flip him like,
they could really use his scoring punch while they're superstar rehabs.
So I'm a big fan of the Ant Simons move.

(01:05:41):
I think a lot more than the average person is.
But whoo, already, we are five awards down now and
you better sit tight because there are just two more left.
Thoughts on the Eomatic Fuji La and One Hit Wonder
award selections. Do you agree with those selections? If not,
who would you pick and why? I'm all ears or
to comment your thoughts on YouTube or the socials. But

(01:06:03):
while you do that, I'm gonna take a quick break,
but get ready to dive into the underground and the
Underdog Awards. Next on Hip to the Games. What's Up?
What's Up? I'm Desmond and I'm the host and creator
of Hip to the Games, a podcast from nineteen Media
Group from hot topics across the NBA. How can you
say we done with the eighties or we done with
the nineties? Yet that's who we learn from t album

(01:06:24):
reviews and song breakdowns and everything in between. I take
immense pride and genuinely appreciating the brilliance of basketball and
hip hop's past and present. If you two love the
game of basketball and the game of rap, that means
you're Hip to the Games. But no matter where you
fall on that spectrum, I'm sure you'll find your place
in the H two DG family, and I encourage you
to join the fund. He has a little more Knock

(01:06:46):
If You Buck, if you will, every other Friday on
your favorite podcast platform or YouTube, courtesy of the Home
Team's nineteen Media Group. Welcome back to the home stretch
of this week's episode of Hip to the Games, where

(01:07:07):
we end with the final two awards of the offseason
Free Agency Awards Special and the next award is the
Underground Award, which goes to the most underrated acquisition of
the summer. We all got them underground hip hop artists
and albums that we love. It's time to do the
same on the NBA side. And boy do we have
some good nominees here. George Niang, Cam Whitmore, Luke Kennard,

(01:07:30):
and Gershan Yabusel. Now I want to start with George
Niang because that dude is a Boston Celtic. Hear what
I'm saying. Notice I didn't just announce him as a
member of the Boston Celtics, but he as a basketball
player embodies everything a Boston Celtics should possess. He wants
to win. He plays with grit, He's not afraid to

(01:07:51):
play a little feisty, often getting under the skin of opponents,
and he can shoot the pill. In the last seven seasons,
he's finished six of those seasons with at least a
forty percent three point percentage. And we all know how
much the Boston Celtics value the three ball. George Kniang
fits like a glove. Additionally, the most underrated part of
his game is his ability to attack the basket. It's

(01:08:12):
not anything crazy, not anything athletic, but just the simple
fact that he's not limited to three pointers and he
can fake a handoff or even post up smaller defenders
and finish closer to the basket. It's a necessary skill
set that keeps him on the floor for reasons outside
of being a shooter, because shooters missed, so you got
to bring something else, and he brings, like I said, toughness, grit,

(01:08:33):
and it's nice to know that he can take it
to the hoop on occasion when he knocks down a few,
he can pump, fake, drive, finish, keep the ball moving again.
All of that should fit right with how the Celtics
play basketball. And as somebody who can play either forward position,
this means that thinking big picture, he can play with
both Tatum and Brown or either one of them as

(01:08:54):
they get staggered throughout a game. He's no stranger to
playing on playoff teams, as he's had some control cotributing
minutes in Utah, Philadelphia, and Cleveland prior to this Celtics
role that he should have. So you know, I think
this Boston role is the same one that he's had
most of his career. Anyway, So it's not anything crazy,
just a great pickup for Boston and honestly one of
my favorites of the offseason. The minute he got traded,

(01:09:17):
I said, this dude screams Boston Celtic. They'd be crazy
to move on from him, in my opinion. Next up
is Cam Whitmore. Admittedly I was a bit disappointed that
the Rockets moved on from him. It seemed as if
they wanted their ten man rotation to be Van Fleet,
Shepherd Thompson, Dorian Phinney, Smith, Tari Easton, Kevin Durant, Jabari Smith,

(01:09:39):
Alpern Sangun, Steven Adams, and Clint Capella, which means they're
leaning heavily on their front court depth right. I was hoping, though,
that they would still find a way to sprinkle him
in as a bigger shooting guard, giving him small doses
to provide as scoring spark, but obviously they just didn't
see it that way. So instead they help him out
and they send him to his hometown team team in

(01:10:01):
the Washington Wizards, where there will be greater opportunity to
grow his game and get minutes on a young team
that's quietly on the rise and What stands out to
me is that he can jump out the gym. He's
athletic as heck, he can finish at the cup. But
he's also got a solid three point shot at around
thirty five thirty six. It's not bad, it's more than respectable,
and a decent dribble pull up in the mid range area,

(01:10:23):
which he should have a lot more opportunities to do
in Washington. And again, he's still young, so these skills
are gonna be nurtured and should become even better for him.
But he's an explosive talent. That's the word that comes
to mind. He's an explosive talent and that's the exact
kind of player who should fit well around guys like
Alex sar By, Lyle Kolabai, and of course learn from

(01:10:43):
those veterans like Chris Middleton and CJ. McCollum. The Wizards
have some real talented scores on the wings, like when
you think of Chris Middleton, CJ. McCollum, Bub Carrington has
a real nice mid range game, Cam Whitmore now and
you could throw in AJ Johnson in there too as
a combo guard. There is definitely some spark plugs to
work with in Washington and Cam Whitmore will have which

(01:11:05):
should be his best opportunity yet to show what he
can do in this league in the future. Then we
got Luke Canard. I mentioned him earlier, how he's a
super elite shooter who has hung around forty three to
forty five percent from deep most of his career so far.
Again emphasis on super elite because that is crazy accuracy.
But he's got more confident in his off the dribble

(01:11:25):
game the last few seasons. And again, like I said,
he can be used in pick and roll scenarios, dhos,
the whole nine. And again, the reason why he's a
nominee for this award is because how in the world
did the NBA let Trey Young get one of the
most accurate shooters in the league. I find it hard
to believe Luke will get major minutes on the Hawks

(01:11:46):
with a healthy rotation, especially because of his defensive weaknesses.
But man, with the variety of playmaking they have on
that roster, the versatility they have on that roster, and
how much of that is spearheaded by Trey Young's playmaking,
he and lukenar should have this symbiotic relationship where they
just make each other's lives easier. This is a dope
fit for Lukenar and then last league Gershan Yabusele again

(01:12:10):
just briefly because I went into detail earlier in the show,
but a guy who can play the four and serve
as a small ball five, strong physical guy, can space
the floor and is a dog on boulder going to
the basket. Rarely do you see Biggs try to block
his shot at the rim because he's such a strong
finisher with the head of steam. If you're a Knicks fan,
think energy, energy. This is an energy move while he's

(01:12:33):
real solid and picking pop situations, being able to knock
down the three, but also find a way to pump
fake get to the basket. And keep in mind too,
he thrives best in the open court looking for those
fast break dunks on a team that has really good
perimeter defenders on the wings, guys who can get steals,
having a tight end if you will, like Yabusele, to

(01:12:53):
finish fast breaks is a really nice asset to have.
I know this past year, the Knicks emphasized Josh Hart
so much because of his ability to get out in transition.
They wanted him to get the rebound and go well,
now he has a partner in crime and Yabuselee who's
going to be looking for those opportunities. So again, it's
the small ways in the offseason that you improve your team,
and I really think that Yabusele. I had to sit

(01:13:15):
with it for a little bit, but once I thought
about it, that was a great pickup for the New
York Knicks. It won't be the flashiest and you may
not even see it on an everyday basis, but I
do think he is more than a solid role player
for that team and what they're building. I'm a fan
of all these guys new situations, but I can only
give the award to one of them, and the Underground

(01:13:35):
Award goes to George Niang. I really wanted to go
Cam with more because he just has the highest ceiling
of all the nominees, but I think he was also
the cool pick. If you will, you know he's got
the athleticism, he's got the game and everything. But my
brain just kept going back to George Niang like that
is the epitome of the Underground. Nothing about his game

(01:13:58):
is flashy or highlight matter, but if you watch the games,
you see his impact just the epitome of an underground player,
and such an underground pickup for the Boston Celtics. Trading
Christaps Porzingis for him looks funny if you just go
off names and resumes, but he's exactly the player that
the Celtics could use, so I loved it. Congrats to
George ni Yang for winning H two DG's twenty twenty

(01:14:19):
five Underground Award. And finally we have one more award
to give out, the Underdog Award, which is gonna go
to the offseason acquisition who has the most to prove
this season. I had to end with a good one
because these nominees are all in similar boats if you
ask me, Michael Porter Junior, DeAndre Ayton, Jalen Green, and

(01:14:39):
ty Jerome Al. So let's just go in order and
start with Michael Porter Junior. Michael Porter Junior gave the
Denver Nuggets six solid seasons as a key piece within
their core. His contributions helped them win the twenty twenty
three NBA Finals. He was generally a fifty percent field
goal scorer and a forty percent three point shooter. He
was doing his thing. While often critiqued for having tunnel

(01:15:01):
vision Offensively, he stuck to his role fairly well and
to my knowledge, never complained, never asked for a trade.
He even played through a shoulder injury in the playoffs
this past season, so he was bought into Denver Nuggets basketball.
I commend him greatly for that. That said, I believe
Denver felt it was time to move on from him.

(01:15:21):
While a very solid rebounder and shooter, he seemed to
fall in love with threes very easily. Wasn't great at
making plays off the dribble, and didn't always look to
make the extra pass or the right pass for that matter.
And I kind of get it. When you have a
guy like Nikola Jokic and dynamic guard like Jamal Murray,
it can be easy to feel like it's just not
your job to do those things. But we saw how

(01:15:43):
his teammates like Aaron Gordon, Christian Brown, Russell Westbrook, they
helped keep the Nuggets in games due to their more
all around skill sets. And that is the leap we've
been waiting for Michael Porter Junior to take. And I
think a lot of us knew deep down if he
was gonna take that leap, it isn't going to be
wearing a Nuggets jersey, so lo and behold here he's

(01:16:03):
presented with this new opportunity to play for a rebuilding
NETS team, a team where Michael Porter Junior won't be
held to championship expectations and have more opportunities to score
the ball. But again with another high volume shot creator
on the team and Cam Thomas, I can't say this
is the best blend of a duo because they have
similar attributes. They are high volume tunnel vision scorers, which

(01:16:26):
will look great when they're hot, but when they get cold,
that's scary. And while they picked up a hefty amount
of quality young players through the draft this year, I
fear that this kind of roster is not going to
influence Michael Porter Junior to expand his play making skills.
He may get better scoring off the dribble, but I
believe he has to eventually prove that he can make
the right plays, he can make the extra pass and

(01:16:48):
have an impact on the game beyond threes. I know
he's six' ten and can shoot over, anybody but when
watching him in the, playoffs there were moments where you
wanted him to get an extra rebound here or, there
or make an extra has to the shooter or attack the,
paint make the defense, collapse and then hit the open.
Man and he just didn't do those. THINGS i mentioned
it in The Conference finals preview. Episode it just became

(01:17:11):
clear That michael had a more one dimensional, game AND
i think that's exactly why they traded him For Cam,
johnson a HIGH iq guy who knows how to play
the game the right. Way and by no means AM
i trying to come At Michael Porter junior WHEN i
say that in the spirit of The Underdog. AWARD i
just want to see him improve his game with a fresh.
Start he's been on a, contender he's won a, championship

(01:17:32):
and The Brooklyn nets are going to be eager for
him to apply that wisdom and apply what he's learned
about himself and what he's learned about winning basketball into their,
organization and so he has to come. Correct that's WHY
i believe he has a lot to prove with this new.
Situation and then next up Is DeAndre. Ayton if you
paid attention to my solo YouTube, CHANNEL i made a

(01:17:53):
video early in the regular season WHERE i showed love
to five old school low post, players and he was
on that, list and while he is very, skilled he
can play back to the, basket he can face, up you,
know while not very good at, it not very. Consistent
he can occasionally hit a, three but you can't bank on.
It but it's something that he is capable of. Doing

(01:18:14):
he can catch. Lobs it's just he has all these
tools and he just doesn't always put it. Together AND
i think a lot of, it you, know as basic
as it, IS i just think a lot of it
is his Motor and that scares me a little, bit
especially as A Los Angeles, laker BECAUSE i hate. That
the first THING i thought of WHEN i saw the
news That DeAndre ayden picked The Los Angeles lakers as

(01:18:35):
his next, Team my first thought was it used to
mean something to be A Los Angeles. Laker like, sure
they needed a big man, badly and he will benefit
tremendously playing with a guy Like Luka doncic and Certainly Lebron.
James but there are so many. Questions is he gonna
demand the ball on the, block especially with a. Mismatch
is he gonna settle for being a lob threat just

(01:18:57):
because he's playing With luca And? Bron is he gonna
take pride in his, defense is he gonna protect the?
Rim and quite, HONESTLY i fear that sometimes the answers
to those questions are going to be. No Either DeAndre
ayton is going to be who he's always been or
look to take a step up because he's wearing the
purple and. Gold AND i hope it's the, latter BECAUSE
i don't want anyone to miss What i'm. SAYING i

(01:19:17):
Think DeAndre ayton in some ways is the most hated to.
Be as skilled as he, is he is the most
hated at his. Position he's one of the most. HATED
i think it's easy to clown on him and things
of that. Nature AND i get. It you might, say,
well does he makes it easy on himself to get
clowned because he doesn't display a lot of the consistency
we like to see from. Him but, AGAIN i just

(01:19:39):
think this is a real big situation for. Him and
going back to WHAT i, SAID i think history and tradition, matters.
RIGHT i would like to Think lebron is gonna let
him know what being A laker is all. About these
fans expect, championships and no matter what the roster realistically looks,
like you have to. Play you have to give an
effort like that is the. STANDARD i don't care if

(01:20:01):
we start the season two and. Ten we have to
give an effort that we are trying to chase champions,
championships playing and, simple playing and. Simple now let's look
at this a little bit more, optimistically, Though DeAndre ayden
has averaged a double double every year he's been in the,
league he shot at least fifty six percent from the,

(01:20:22):
field and every season except, one and even that one
season was just under fifty five. Percent the two seasons
he shot over sixty percent was When Chris paul was
his point. Guard so now imagine how he's Got Luka
dancic with, him this time on a team With Luca,
Lebron Austin. Reeves i'm not tripping If DeAndre ayden only
averages fourteen to fifteen points a. Game but my thing

(01:20:43):
is The lakers just don't need his rebounding or his post.
Presence they need his rim protection as. Well and while
the numbers don't reflect him being as strong in that,
area he has shown flashes of being a reliable rim. Protector,
again it's just a, everyday eighty two game basis. Thing
For DeAndre Baten DeAndre, ayton excuse? Me can he lock

(01:21:03):
in and do that for eighty two games wearing the
purple and. Gold The lakers got to find a way
to bring that out of him. Overall LIKE i, SAID
i think a lot of people are hard On DeAndre,
ayten AND i totally understand. It you, know everybody is
not as understanding AS i, am BUT i get where
it comes from to be the number one pick twenty,
points twelve, rebounds two blocks in, college having on and

(01:21:25):
off seasons in THE, nba and raising questions about his
hustle and his. EFFORT i. Understand oh, yeah he Gets
he gets critiqued harder because he had higher. Expectations he
was drafted to be a man among, boys and he
doesn't always show. That but he is skilled and has
what it takes to play better than what we've often
seen from. Him, shoot the fact that The blazers rather

(01:21:47):
bought him, out not, traded but they bought him. Out
they bought out a twenty six year old former number
one overall pick, who in the grand, scheme isn't a
bad basketball, player should be enough motivation For DeAndre eighth
to play with the biggest chip on his shoulder he's
ever had this. Season but it's not about WHAT i.
Think it's more about What DeAndre ayden believes about himself

(01:22:08):
and we will see that this. Season, now the third
nominee Is Jalen. Green you can basically put him in
The DeAndre ayton class of shooting guards at this, point,
RIGHT i guess what was the trend everybody's. Doing he's
The DeAndre ayden of shooting. Guards, LIKE i think you
can do a little bit of that With Jalen. Green
people thought he would have developed at a more rapid
rate than he's. Shown he's been very. Durable he's an athletic.

(01:22:31):
Finisher he's got a crafty, handle real nice shot creation.
Ability but that, said he can be an inconsistent player
as a scorer and struggles to impact the game beyond
putting the ball in the. Hoop that's his biggest. THING
i said this in a previous. EPISODE i think a
lot of people won every athletic shot creating shooting Guard
savage twenty seven to five and five and play good

(01:22:52):
defense because traditionally that's what the best ones. Do the
guys who won championships at some point in their, careers did, That,
Mike Kobe, wade et. Cetera but breaking. News you can
still be an effective shooting guard and not be excellent
in all those. Areas, sure DO i Think Jalen green
could improve as a rebounder for his? Position? Absolutely DO

(01:23:14):
i think he should incorporate off ball movement in his?
Game one hundred? Percent DO i think he can have
more active hands on? Defense oh? Yeah should he look
to improve his playmaking? Skills? Yep you, Know Anthony edwards
has made a lot of these strides that you would
like to See Jalen green. Make it's, possible but maybe

(01:23:34):
maybe getting traded was his wake up call to do that.
Hopefully you, know you would like to think, so because
the fact that it took The rockets one playoff series
to move on from. Him, ouch it's a cold, world.
Y'all it's a cold, world and THE nba is a.
Business it took one playoff series for them to be,
like all, right, yeah we can't do, this like they

(01:23:57):
had to believe that things weren't gonna get better from
this point. On i've seen plenty of basketball fans express
similar sentiments That Jalen green after just four years has
already hit his ceiling as a basketball, player and that
may very well be the. Case you never know as,
optimistic as optimistic AS i like to, be there's also
that lane as. Well BUT i really believe that this

(01:24:19):
trade can be the kind of boost That Jalen green
needed to diversify his game and his skill. Set And
i'm not saying it will, happen BUT i do believe
it can. Happen, again this dude was the second pick
in the. Draft he has all star. Talent to get
traded after the first playoff run has to sting while
The rockets made the right. Move LIKE i, said you
trade For Kevin durant ten out of ten. Times if

(01:24:39):
You're Jalen, green that's got to light a little bit
of a fire underneath. You and so he's got to
prove that he can be more than just a. Bucket
if that's all he wants to be Cool contrary to
the trolls on social, media there is nothing wrong with.
That but as somebody who has the tools to be
even better than, that why sell yourself. Short if he
stays In, phoenix he can learn some of these things

(01:25:01):
From Devin. Booker but if he gets. Flipped you anticipate
he'll have the chance to Show houston that they moved
on too. Soon big year For Jalen, green but for the,
finale we Got Ti jerome of The Memphis. Grizzlies, now first,
Off mad loved To Tie. Jerome he played on three
different teams in his first four seasons and never played

(01:25:22):
more than forty eight games due to. Injuries then in
his fifth, season he only played two games due to
a right ankle. Injury but this past season he played
a career high seventy games for The cavs and averaged
about thirteen two to three on nearly fifty two to
forty four eighty seven shooting splits in just twenty. Minutes
nearly made the fifty forty ninety. Club and it's an

(01:25:44):
impressive fifty forty. Ninety it ain't just just to get
by word To Tala kwallee fifty forty. Ninety this is
a fifty two to forty four eighty, seven, right that's
just crazy, shooting crazy. SHOOTING a tremendous comeback year and
quite honestly a career saving season For Ti. Jerome that
kind of persistence is extremely, admirable and he got paid

(01:26:05):
this summer because of. It that, said Like Jalen, GREEN
i believe his playoff run impacted his job security with
The Cleveland. CAVALIERS i think it's pretty telling that The
cavs decided to trade For Lonzo, ball who hasn't played
more than sixty three games in his career and just
missed two consecutive seasons due to a severe knee, injury

(01:26:26):
solely for his ability to at his best defend multiple positions.
Shoot the three have active hands and make HIGH iq
plays on both. Ends knowing that their biggest flaw this
postseason was a lack of extra shot creation from role
players Like DeAndre hunter And Ti, jerome they still chose
to bring in somebody who didn't necessarily fit that but

(01:26:48):
is going to do a lot of the other things
that is going to bring a major impact to the,
team and they Let Ti jerome sign elsewhere because at
the end of the, day it looked like the playoffs
got to him little, bit which is. Understandable it was
his first playoff run in, general and as a key
contributor on a team that was expected to do a
little bit more contending than they. Showed while the three

(01:27:11):
point shot was still nice at thirty nine. Percent his
field goal percentage went all the way down to forty
percent in the, playoffs especially versus The Indiana. Pacers it
seemed like he couldn't buy a, bucket so much so
That cleveland didn't feel the need to bring him back
despite how impactful he was all regular season. Long they
Kept Sam, merrill even they Kept Darius garland despite chatter

(01:27:34):
that they should move on from. Him and don't get me,
WRONG i was hyped to See Lonzo ball get traded
to The. CALVES i think it's a great pickup for.
Them they're gonna benefit tremendously from. It but if you're Tied,
jerome you now got to prove that your near sixth
man of the year season wasn't a. Fluke, granted he
got his money and he'll have a similar opportunity playing
Behind John Moranton, memphis likely getting time at the two

(01:27:55):
and the one spots as a combo. Guard but The
calves they moved on like it was and apparently it
came out that they didn't even come to him with an.
OFFER i think they were that scarred by his playoff.
STRUGGLES Ti jerome has to be looking to make his
old team pay for letting him walk so freely after
what was an otherwise special and efficient. Season. Man while

(01:28:18):
all these guys are worthy of the, award the winner
of The Underdog award Is DeAndre Ayton Michael Porter. Junior
he has a new role for the first time in
his young. Career we'll cut him some, Slack Jalen. Green
he finished in second here for. Sure Ti jerome had
his first really good, Season so the pressure isn't, BOILING

(01:28:39):
i would, say but he does have a big chip
on his. Shoulder But DeAndre, ayton that pressure is. There
he's back on a team that hopes to be in
the playoffs. Again, again he's playing for a franchise that
is championship or. Bust you, know people already see him
as one of the weakest or more lackadaisical at his.
Position and of course he's On america's bastaketball. Team so

(01:29:01):
if he thought he had pressure, before it's gonna hit
different levels this upcoming. Season. Again he just has a
lot of questions to, answer a lot of things to
prove in this new. Situation and he was a no
brainer to win this. Award he's definitely got the most to,
PROVED i feel, like out of these four, guys and
after all of, that it's a. Rap for the twenty
twenty FIVE h TWO dg offseason, awards just a quick

(01:29:23):
recap of all the. Winners Kevin durant won The Ovito
award For Best. Acquisition The ROCKETS Gm Raphael stone won
The Doctor Dre award For Best executive during the. Offseason
The nuggets won The Ematic award For Best team post free.
Agency The clippers won The Fujili award For Most Improved.
Team Anthony simons won The One Hit Wonder award for
Best opportunity with a one year. Deal George nyange won

(01:29:46):
The Underground award for Most underrated, pickup And DeAndre ayton
won The Underdog award for the player with the most
to prove in the upcoming. YEAR i tried something new,
creatively AND i certainly hope you enjoyed the. Fun please
let me know HOW i, Did let me know how
you enjoyed, it and if you would like this to
return in the, future AS i would greatly appreciate that.
Feedback but with, that we have made it to the

(01:30:07):
end of Another hip to The games episode From best teams,
improvements slept on players and guys with something to, prove
and of course plenty of just general free agency offseason.
Talk this episode was jam packed with analysis of some
of the most intriguing offseason, deals but as, always these
were just my thoughts and now it's time to hear from.
You you can tweet the show At hip to The

(01:30:28):
games or tag me directly On twitter and ig At
Desmond Pile underscore to share your thoughts on any of
the topics discussed today or some of the topics that weren't,
discussed AS i would love to hear or read any
of your thoughts on all the off season moves so.
FAR i simply want to say thank you for listening
to another episode OF h TWO dg all for the
love of the best combo there, is and of course

(01:30:50):
here's a huge shout out to you for Being hip
to The, games peace out And god Bless hope you
enjoyed this episode Of hip to The games and if
you enjoyed this, episode beach to hit up the socials
At Desmond Powell underscore and At hip to The games On,
Instagram twitter and TikTok so you don't miss out on the,
fund and please follow or subscribe to the show and
leave a review on the podcast platform you're on right,

(01:31:12):
now as your support is greatly to appreciate. It

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