Full Transcript for All Things NBA

woman was married or single. You didn't say whether or not it was an employee of the Celtics or not. But you got his business on Front Street ladies and gentlemen. I said it on TV. I say it again. I'm a black man. That offends me. Why because I know plenty of dudes in my years covering the NBA and the NFL and professional sports overall, I know plenty of dudes who was messing around in the office with somebody else who are white and their business wasn't publicized. I'm gonna repeat this again I am not an advocate of whoever you may email. Udoka was messing with to be put on Front Street. It's none of our business. My argument is is none of our business. The details are none of our business. So stephen A, why are you so upset? Listen to what your brother's talking to you about. White, black, Hispanic, Asian. We all brothers and sisters here. Listen to what your brother is talking to you about. You didn't fire him, so you retained his rights. You suspended him, but it's not definitively for a year, because after the year you're gonna review and then determine what you're gonna do. You cut his pay in half according to what I was told. So he's not allowed to coach, and he's not allowed to go elsewhere to coach, and he's not allowed to get his money. And purportedly it was because of a consensual relationship. Why wouldn't not be pissed off? It's bullshit, And by bullshit, I mean how he's been treated. Fire him or keep him. But to do this on Front Street, you realize how you're making him look. He's now not looking like some dude that had a consensual relationship he's looking like a sexual predator, but not so much to the point where you want to fire him. You still want to keep them. What are you scared about, Boston Celtics, You're scared the Nets gonna pick him up. He wasn't an assistant coach of the Steve Nash. He did show in one year he could do what Brad Stevens couldn't do in seven as the head coach of the Boston Celtics before he was upgraded to president of Basketball Operations. And this is a store of no shade on Brad Stevens. I like Brad Stevens, and he is a hell of a coach and he's a good person. They casting Norse spurgs on him and whatever woman that was messing around with email u Doka. I don't want to know who she is. It's none of my business and it's none of yours. But neither was this stuff about email. So we got a guy in a rookie year who got at the Bosston Celtics to an NBA Finals, clearly one of the best coaches in the game, who, by the way, if he had had another successful season, because the Boston Celtics picked up Malcolm Brogdon. You know who can ball. They still got Marcus Smart, They still got Jason Tatum, they still got Jaylen Brown, they still got Al Horford, they still got Derek White, You got Robert Williams. They got a team that could easily go back to the NBA Finals. Do you have any idea how much money email Udoka was in line to get. He's making over three million dollars. He would have easily tripled his salary if the Boston Celtics had had a successful year this year and you took all of that away from him while keeping them. That's imprisonment as far as I'm concerned. He can't go elsewhere to play on me the coach. He gotta stay here. But even though he's staying there, he ain't coaching. And even though he ain't coaching, it ain't definitively for one year. It could be one season, or it could be two because you got his rights. One of my boys mentioned this to me, and I'm attending I'm inclined to believe them. I think they were scared that the nets would gobble him up in a heartbeat, that he would be coaching KD and Kyrie and Ben Simmons instead of chasing Tatum and Jaylen Brown. And could you imagine if he made Udoka was the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets, ladies and gentlemen, we'd be picking them to go to the finals. See right now, we look at them and we say the Brooklyn Nets got the talent to get to the NBA Finals. What we're questioning is their mindset. You got kd signed a four year d with no doubt, but asking to be traded before one day of that contract was on it. You got Kyrie that walked in there after missing about fifty two games last season and being the only team to get swept in the NBA playoffs last year, and he talking about walking in the door fully expecting a four year, two hundred and twelve million dollar extension before he was rudely awakened by the Brooklyn ownership led by Joe Side. You got Ben Simmons that went through his mental health issues but swears he's back and ready to prove that he's an All Star. So people are gonna question the mental toughness of the Brooklyn Nets. Let me tell y'all something. The Brooklyn Nets are no joke. The Brooklyn Nets could easily come out of the Eastern Conference. I will concede that when I think about favorites, I think about the Milwaukee Bucks. Will that I look at the Philadelphia seventy six ers and I see to pick up a PJ. Tucker and de Anthony Melton and Montreals Harrow. I will conceive that Atlanta is interested with the John T. Murray and Trey Younger Tobacco. I will conceive that brook that Cleveland picking up Darius I'm sorry, Donovan Mitchell to go with Darius Garland, to have Eric Mobley, I'm sorry, I didn't mean Eric Mobley, I mean Evan Mobley, to still have Jared Allen, to still have Kevin Love. I will conceive that Cleveland could easily be a top four team in the Eastern Conference. I will concede that we can't ignore Miami led by Jimmy Butler and Bam out of Bayo and Tyler Herro with his new one hundred and thirty million plus contract extension. But I still get back to Brooklyn because they got that brother k D. Kevin Durant. I don't give a damn what I felt about Kyrie Read and his unvaccinated status and his willingness to miss games, and I believe costing the Brooklyn Nets a chance, a real chance at the Chip last year, and all of this other stuff. I'm focused on the future. I'm not trying to go in the past. I'm not trying to go in the past. I'm trying to go to the future.

I'm gonna look past all of that done last year. I'm not gonna be I'm gonna try. I'm strive to the best of my ability, fellas and ladies. I'm aa strive not to be as critical as I was in the past. I'm trying to turn over a new leaf. I'm trying to be a pleasant version of Stephen that I'm trying to get to that point where I want to look to the future and see Rose pedals past. That's avail. I want to believe that Kyrie Irvans goes short up because he's a centervized because he watch Zach Lavine in Chicago and Bradley Beal in Washington get two hundred plus million dollar deals. I want to concede that hey, this brother gonna show up. He playing for New Country. I know he asks every intention of being a Los Angeles Laker next year, joining Lebron and ad possibly in their last year as Lakers next season, because they're the only ones safe in LA. But Kyrie here now, And because he's here now, my mind set is, hey, Okay, Kyrie gonna be on his game. I got him as a leader candidate for league MVP. Honist, That's right, Stephen Ay, He's got Kyrie Irving as an MVP candidate. You know why, because how much more incentive do you need than missing out on two hundred and twelve million dollars. Brother could act like he don't care about money. He cares. He can act like it don't matter what other people make it because he ain't counting the money in their pockets. But trust me, he is. Zach Lavine and Bradley Bill as I stayed at earlier, they got their bag. Kyrie's got to get his. The first order the business is that he has to show a willingness that he's gonna show up to work. Anybody questioning his greatness. We know how phenomenal he is, spectacular box office. The only question you got about Kyrie Irving is is he gonna show up to work? Because he's only played more than sixty games a season in four out of his eleven years in the league. I got him as a leading candidate for League MVP Honis. Of course, you're gonna put them bad and Giannis up there. Okay, we're gonna do that. I'll put Steph Curry up there, Lebron James for a little while, Yes, even at his age. Kevin Durant definitely, But Kyrie's the leading candidate for League MVP Honis, and if Katie don't get in his way, will be surprised. For surprising to me at all if Kyrie won the damn thing. I'm just saying. Ben Simmons don't need to shoot to be an All Star, and he's an elite defensive player as well. KD is KD. I love to pick up of Markie Morris. I love the fact that Joe Harris is returning. I love the fact that Seth Curry is still there too. I like Claxton. I think they need some girth. They need a big body, somebody muscular to go up against those big physical teams. I mean, when you gotta deal with Allen and you gotta deal with Joel Embiid, and you gotta deal with all of these other cats in Milwaukee, like Jannis and Lopez and those gus, you might need some girth, But from a talent perspective, the Brooklyn Nets are the truth. And the real question about them, outside of their girth is their coaching.

You wouldn't have that if email Udoka was there, their former Assistan, you wouldn't have that at all. Maybe that's why the Boston Celtics didn't fire him, because he would have had the freedom to go elsewhere. I don't know whether this is true or not. I'm just speculating, but dannit it makes sense. And that's why all of this makes me so sick. That's why I think it's BS. I'm not saying he didn't do something wrong. I'm not saying he didn't violate company policy. I'm not saying he doesn't deserve to be fired. I'm saying two things. It was an h R issue, it was none of our business. It never should have been publicized. That's number one. And number two, if you felt that adamant about it, then let him go so he could have the freedom to coach elsewhere. I don't think they did it because they scared he would have ended up in Brooklyn. But that's just me. That's just the Eastern Conference. Milwaukee's a favorite, numerous threats, but I think Brooklyn are those dudes. That's just me. That's me in the East. I ain't talk about the West yet, but I will in just a minute. This is no mercy with Steven Agh needless as say, I'm just getting warmed up. Don't touch that dog. 00:19:41 Speaker 2: This is the moment of a lifetime. The clocks sticking like my life line until I flat line. I push it to the red line. Who gonna stop me high? Who gonna stop me high? 00:19:53 Speaker 1: You know? I could have easily brought up some of the other teams in the Eastern Conference, but it was unnecessary. I mean, what do you want me to say? Guys? I mean, I'll mention Chicago, DeMar Deroz and Zach Lavine their threat I understand that, but I don't see them. I see them in the play in I truly, truly do. Toronto. They always make things interesting. Nick Nurses a hell of a coach. They still got Siakam, they still got Fred van Vliet. They still win more games than you ever expect them to. But in the end, what do you want me to say. I didn't bring up the next damnit because I'm in a good mode and I don't want to be depressed thinking about these damn necks. I love the fact that they got Jaylen Brunton, But when you show up at a game in Dallas, sit behind a bench and your highest daddy as an assistant coach a month before you acquire him, and stuff like that, this Saint Kentucky, it came across this bush league. To me, all of that wasn't required to overpay Jayleen Brunton. I give him one hundred and four million dollars. Now a brother can play, here's a chair being a villanova. Damn good play in the NBA. I'm happy he got his money. He's a good dude, good kid, works hard, got herky jerky movements with his ball skills and what have you, he could possibly do some things. I think they've helped at the point guard's why. And I love seeing my brother Derek Rose back in action. And I love the fact that R. J. Barrett got his money and they extended him first time the Knicks extended anybody since damn Near in nineteen ninety nine. I get all of that, but what am I supposed to do? I just gave your Boston, Milwaukee, Brooklyn, Miami, Philly, Cleveland, Atlanta. I gave you seventeens, y'all. What am I supposed to do? I got to sit here and hope the Knicks make the playing. I ain't even count Toronto, who was better than the Knicks last year. I told you I brought up Chicago. They're better ladies and gentlemen. I just gave you eight teams, eight nine teams already. I'm just looking at it. What do you want me to say? Charlotte? I mean they got obliterated again in the playing, which is why their coach got fired and Steve Clifford is back coaching the team. Orlando's got some young thoroughbreds and their future could be bright, but that's the distant future, couple of years down the road. Maybe not right now. The only reason Indiana is relevant in anybody's mind is because they've got Miles Turner and Buddy Hill, and by the way, that's who the Lakers are looking to move Russell Westbrook for, even though Indiana's uncooperative. So I'm just saying, let's pump the brakes, let's make sure that we pay attention to what's going on here. The reality of the situation is clear. Milwaukee, Brooklyn, Philly, Miami, Boston, Atlanta, Cleveland, Chicago, and Toronto. That's nine teams. That's who you think about before you even get to my New York Knicks. How am I supposed to feel? Oh? Can I have one season with these dudes? Ah? I'm just taking a deep breath, you know, because I give the emotional income to my Knicks. Y'all just don't understand the level of misery that I go through. Ladies and gentlemen, y'all think is you know, you think I'm being hyperbolic or you know I'm just joking around when I tell you I'm not going to the Garden this year, I'm not going to the Garden. I'm not going to the Garden. I'm so freaking disgusted with the Knicks. Man, Hey, this is what the Knicks will do. Let me tell you what the Knicks will do to me. So they'll win a few games, right, and they'll be competitive, and they'll get everybody excited, and I'll be like, yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm gonna go to gard and I'm gonna go to garden, you know, and then I'll go to the and they'll stick up the joint or James Dolan will make headlines for doing something stupid and childish and belligerent because that's what kids were born with silver spoons in their mouth tend to do even when they become adults. I gotta guy Leon Rose as the president of basketball operations, Ladies and gentlemen. I've known Leon Rose over twenty years. I really really have love for the man. His son's the agent for Jaylen Bruston. That doesn't bother me. I'm quite sure his son worked hard and deserved and earned the right to be in that position. I've known Rick Brunson, the assistant coach, for years. I covered him as a college reporter back in the nineties when I was working for the Philadelphia Enquirer and he was a star Temple. Very happy for him. I'm not bringing up these names for no reason. I'm bringing up these names because how you do things matter. When we talk about a gold standard, we

don't come close. The Knicks don't even get a bronze medal. The hell with silver gold. They don't even deserve a bronze because of how they choose to handle stuff. You don't go out recruiting Jalen Brunston like this is college. You don't hire his daddy a month before you acquire him. You hire him a year ago. You don't have a guy and Gusha Rojas. They got fired in Minnesota on the phone talking to the Utah Jazz on your behalf. When you are the president of basketball operations, Leon Rose, you can't do that. It gets around and then people look at the Knicks and they say it's a shit show. I'm not cussing, I'm quoting. This is what executives are telling me about how they're doing business. I don't want to speak against Leon Rose. I'm not rooting against the Knicks. I don't look at Leon Rose and saying he's done an awful job. They got to the playoffs two years ago. They were respectable. Now, I got it. I got it. But you cannot be the president of basketball operations. You can't be the president of basket operations and you're given interviews to the MSG in house network that employs you because you're scared to take questions from the media. You can't do that now when you're the Knicks. Why Because James Dolan is your owner, and he's done enough to alienate the media. He's done enough to alienate New York Nick fans. You can't come along and marry his behavior. But think you're gonna galvanize folks with the product that you put on a floor when it ain't even top nine. You can't do that. It's insulting because now we get to focus on all the things that are off the basketball court because the product on the basketball court isn't good enough. Why do y'all think that my colleague at ESPN, who does color commentary for Gains, mister Mark Jackson, is somebody I've religiously wanted to be the head coach for the New York Knicks. Do y'all think it's just coaching? Even though he did a great job in Golden State. Of course, that's not it, y'all, that's not the issue. I did it because the New York Knicks are in desperate need of a voice Thompson. But though but all he is is basketball anywhere else that's suffices not the Knicks. Because with the Knicks, Dolan is such a problem that he's alienated too many folks. And when you bring in a president of basketball operations who is a former agent, and his behavior, meaning his unwillingness to communicate with the media specifically, that's all I'm talking about here. His behavior mirrors that of James Dolan. It makes matters worse. So you need somebody at the Helm that the media is in front of every day that's inclined to provoke a benefit of a doubt from the New York Knicks. Faithful because of his roots in New York, Mark Jackson is from Queen's Mark Jackson's grew up five minutes away from me. Mark Jackson used to play at O'Connell Park. Mark Jackson went to Bishop of Blackland High School. Mark Jackson started at Saint John's University. Mark Jackson came in in the NBA drafted by the New York Knicks. It was

Rookie of the Year. The showtime docuseriies executive produced by Kevin Durant along with the Slewer Point Guards, Rod Strickland, Stephan Maulberry. This goes on and on. Kenny Smith. You know who else, Mark Jackson New York City. He personifies it. That's why I keep pushing for him to be that coach. So we can have somebody that allows us to look at them and basketball instead of paying any attention to James Dolan and how he chooses to conduct business. Y'all don't get it yet, It don't make sense to you. Why do you think I say the New York Knicks are trash. I'm not talking about their basketball. Julius Randall can play. R J. Berry can play, Derek Rods can play, Jaylen Pressey could play. Mitchell Robinson is a big boy that could do some positive things. Evan Foygner shows up every two to every two out of five games, that's true, but damn it, those two games he does well. I'm not talking about basketball. I'm talking about a culture that has infected the city of New York like a damn virus. The only reason I won't extend or expound upon that extensively is because we're still living in the age of COVID and I don't want to be insensitive to that. But I'm talking about the Knicks and the imagery that they disseminate and the culture that they swear they're establishing that we're supposed to have faith in. Well, why you ain't telling us that you damned you ain't showing us. Why should we have faith in that culture as long as James Dolan is at the top and allowing or provoking the kind of behavior that we're seeing. That's the point. That's my problem, and that's what's hard about this. I was supposed to get into the Western Conference, but I'm gonna need a break before I do that, because you see, this is what the Knicks do to me. This is what they do to me. It's hard to take. It's hard to take. Damnit. I'm a native New Yorker and my team that I grew up loving, sweating and dying for ain't been relevant in twenty two years and counting. New York Knicks want a playoff game two years ago, my dumbass was at the garden celebrating like we won a championship. This is what they do to me. Can't help it. I'm trying. I'm trying stick around. I got the Western Conference to get into. No mercies in the house with stephen A back with more in a minute. 00:32:21 Speaker 2: This is the moment of a lifetime. The clocks sticking like my life line until I flat line. 00:32:28 Speaker 1: I'll push it to the red line. Who gonna stop me high? Who gonna stop me? High? That break was well needed. I'll admit it. I need to take a break because the Knicks they just do that to me. They just they make me very very upset, and they depressed me. So I'll focus on bigger issues. One of the things that's happened since the NBA Finals is that the two biggest scandals approaching the sport I shouldn't say scandal. Two biggest things that have invaded our headlines approaching this NBA season are from the two combatants in last and last June's NBA Finals. We've had email U Doka, which I've already touched on, and we've had Draymond Green. Now there are those that would sit up there and say, what about Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver, Ladies and gentlemen, He's not a player, He's an owner, and forgive me, is appalled as I am over the reports and the investigation. The findings of the investigation showed him using the N word, and you know, being misogynistic towards women and all of this other stuff. He clearly needed to go. And props to Robert Sarver, who was originally suspended for a year and fined ten million dollars for ultimately electing to investigate selling or to probe into selling the team because he's somebody that doesn't need to be an NBA owner. Fair enough, ladies and gentlemen, call me what you will. I wish it was James Dolan. I'm not saying I wish James Dolan was found to be guilty of such things, even though we know that the garden has had its history of controversy, Madison Square Garden, that is. That's not where I'm going. I'm simply saying, looking at just the raw reality of an owner that you'd want gone, forgive me, I wish James Dolan was gone as the owner of the New York Knicks. The fact that Sarv's going to be gone, Okay, we don't know, folks, that's gonna behave like that associated with the National Basketball Association. Okay, nobody's here to argue that. I just wish that James Dolan was walking out the door with him. I wish ineptitude was a crime. I wish futility was a crime. I wish childish, belligerent, petulant behavior from a grown ass man was a crime, because James Dolan would have been indicted, tried, and convicted a long time ago, especially for contaminating others to appear to do the same. But I digress. I'll instead go to the Western Conference and I'll talk about Draymond Green for a second sometime and in their future, I'm going to reappears on Dreymond Green's podcast, and he's gonna appear here too. I know him, I got love for him. He's a good brother. He made a terrible and horrendous mistake what he did. Jordan Poole, Jordan Poole could have easily filed charges against him. He damnedar knocked him out, y'all. Y'all saw the video. He gets in Pool's face after fools chirping. I guess Pool shoves him away, and then Draymond leans in with that right and cold cox him. And the only thing that held Pull up was the fact that Draymond had lunged into him with the punch and fell into him, so that kept him up. He could have followed charges. Obviously, most people believe Draymond should have been suspended. And that's my man. And even though he is I'm here to tell you I'm one of those who agree with it. If the Warriors had elected to suspended him, I could not have had a single issue with that. Now I can tell you for a fact that the reason they did is suspend him is because they won the championship and the season opens with a ring ceremony, And because the season opened with the ring ceremony, they did not want to suspend him from being a participant to that in that when he's meant

so much to them ultimately capturing the rinks. There are some people who felt he should have been allowed to be there for the ring ceremony, and then after that gets suspended. They didn't want to tarnish the ring ceremony, and considering his years of service and how valuable of a commodity he is to the team. There you have it. There is no getting around the fact that Draymond Green was wrong. There is no gaining around the fact that he should not have done what he has done. And for those on the outside world, with the benefit of a video at their discretion to look and view it for themselves, we all have a right to feel the way we feel. Here's the thing. NBA players and coaches and people like that got some damn nerve going off and Draymond like this. They know these things happen. It happens in the NBA quite often. Remember spree Well trying to choke PJ Carlyssmo Well, what if that was on video? Try to strangle them. I remember when Charles Oakley and coach Paul Silas got into a fist fight. I mean they would throw it down. I've seen coaches players have to be restrained from coaches. Players get in the fist fights all the time. It's happened. Now. It doesn't look good for Draymond since you're so much bigger than a Jordan Poole. What you got about about forty or fifty pounds and at least about three or four inches in hike, What are you doing but for NBA players to come out. I'm not gonna mention any names because I don't feel like calling them out like that. But I know one former NBA player that went on Twitter and was going off about Draymond Green. This particular player, who I love, by the way, good brother. I just disagree with him on his point about Draymond. Here's the reason why. And he knows who he is. He took a hot bowl of soup and threw it on an assistant coach. A hot bowl of soup and threw it on an assistant coach. Ladies and gentlemen, he could have been arrested. How the hell are you on Twitter talking about Draymond Greenkevon Looney, the teammate of Draymond Green. Well, he's got to regain not trust? Hell? You talking about did he col cock you? What you mean? He gotta regain your trust because you had a good playoffs and you were relevant with some rebounds, and you looked serviceable for a change, and you're clearly adored and loved by Steve Kerr. Suddenly you're gonna get up at a press conference and forget to d'sh your teammate, and you're gonna talk about how he gotta regain y'all trust. Jordan Poole's got a right to say that. Steve Kerr has a right to say that, even though Michael Jordan when he co cocked you years ago, as y'all talked about on Last Dance, there was no video, but I digress. Steve Kerr is the coach. He's got a right to say that. Bob Mine is the coach. He's got a right to say that he's the GM of the Warriors. Steve Kirks coach, Joe Lakers Oder, he's got a right to say that. You Kevon Looney, really, bro Really, I mean, I want to applaud you because you had a hell of a playoff series and you actually showed for a change that you could jump as high you could jump onto a curve. Congratulations. You talking about Draymond Green like he gotta regain your trust? You now you sound Come on, man, y'all gotta be tripping. You gotta be kidding me. Let's be grown ups here, Jordan Poole, if he never forgave Draymond Green, I can't blame him. If he never wanted to speak to Draymond Green again. I can't blame him. If he never trusted Draymond Green in life again. I can't blame him if during his negotiations before he signed his new four year one hundred and four agreed to rather his four year, one hundred and forty million dollar contract and he was sitting up there saying I want Draymond going. I can't blame him because when you cold cocker brother, like that that ain't something we gonna get over too easily. It makes sense, but he's the one that got hit. Now, not that this has anything to do with anything, because I don't know of anything like that with the warry is. But if you had a situation like I've known in years past with other teams, where you got a teammate screwing around with another teammates woman or wife, and that's a different matter because that is a matter of trust. That makes sense to me. But because one teammate got punched in the face by another that means you feel betrayed. That don't make sense to me. I'm sorry, there's a difference. I don't comprehend that. And there were a few other players that had a lot to say that conducted themselves like damn hooligans when they were playing in the NBA. But suddenly, now that we're living in this different age, you want to sit up there and power on Draymond. Draymond was wrong. Draymond had to admit he was wrong. All of that's true. Ain't nobody absolving. I spoke to Draymond and told him himself. I thought he was hellified wrong and he deserved to be suspended and he should have took Tom away from the team. All of that's true, But I'm talking about the cult of NBA players, So now you want to paint him as some dude. We bringing up anger management issues and we bringing up other stuff where it is nothing like this has ever happened in his career. What we're gonna do next, talk about him on medication. That's where we're gonna go next. When y'all know this stuff is happening, Did you talk about the other players in the league that's done this? Did we do that? Do you want me to go into detail about the stuff that I know about? See, some of this is straight bs, and that's all I'm saying. Haven't said all of that. Let me say this, y'all. I said it the day after they won the championship, and I'm gonna say it again. I got the Warriors repeating the champions this year. I got the Warriors repeating I don't expect Steph Curry to get worse. I expect Klay Thompson to be better. Andrew Wiggins the new four year, one hundred and nine million dollar extended man coupled on top of the thirty three million he's scheduled to earn this season. He's staying. Jordan Poole, He's staying. This kid, Moses Moody. I've

been hearing a lot about him. Kavon Looney does have his purpose. Steve Kerr loves the ground the boy walks on. The young man I apologize, loves the ground he walked on. And Kavon Looney can't play. Got a new three year, twenty five million dollar deal. He is happy cominga this brother's athletic freak. By the way, when I said weeks ago that he got to get his act together off the court, might be partying a little bit too much, might be might not be as focused as they would like him to be, even though he's got a very promising future. You just want to reel it in a little bit, and stuff like that, Ladies and gentlemen. I heard what andre Iguodalar said to refute what I was saying, along with Steve current others. I don't give a damn what they said. I'm telling you what I heard, and my sources are pretty damn good when it comes to the streets. It is where I'm from, after all, I didn't say that, brother was committing crimes. I didn't sit up there and say he was violating other people. He did like that. I said he needed to get focused. That's all I'm saying. You see how people get real sensitive and stuff like that. All I said is that he needed to lock in and become a bit more focused like Moses Moody has been doing. Because everybody then loves him. Ladies and gentlemen. They've got Dante Vegent DiVincenzo. They've got Jonathan Wiseman coming back. Okay, let's not forget about him. James Wiseman. I apologized, you got Pooled, you got Moody, and everybody I mentioned. I'm sorry. The Warriors the favorites to win it all. I don't give a damn what anybody says. And their coaches first class. That's why you didn't see the commissioner and the NBA step in with Draymond's situation. They left it up to the Warriors to handle it because their first class organization that has proven they deserve the benefit of the doubt. If this was the New York Knicks, Adam Silver would have stepped in and made decisions. He doesn't need to with the Warriors, because they know what the hell they're doing. So with that being said, who's the number one threat two the Golden State Warriors. I'm gonna tell you it's the Los Angeles Clippers. Kawhi Leonard, I mean load management himself. I mean, my lord, he gives new meaning to it. I mean, you talk about a guy that used to play for Great Popovich, who instigated load management in all of our minds. I mean this duke Kawhi Lennon has been a post child for it because before he got hurt, he was exercise of load management. But him and Paul Georgia back and we know their studs and they could ball. Norman Powells there, Marcus Morris is there, Luke Kenard is there, Robin Covington is there, Reggie Jackson is there, and the pickup of John Wall I like, and I still like Zubak. I'm a Zubok fan. I don't think the Lakers should have ever lost them. But I gotta tell you something. Clipper's got a chance. Let me tell you who else does. Denver. Jamal Murray's coming back, Michael Porter's back, you still got Jokich and that Denver Nuggets crew. I got news for you. I can't sleep on those brothers, not even a little bit. I'm just looking at their roster right now, Aaron Gordon. They picked up Kentavious Carwell, popeh won a championship with the Lakers in the Bubble a couple of years back. We know he could shoot Jeff Green and still there. Bruce Brown over from the nets. He's got a promise in future. I like Bruce Brown, He's got potential. The Denver Nuggets cannot be ignored. So I'm looking at those two teams. Notice I didn't mention Phoenix. I think Phoenix's window is coming going. They'll make the players, they will win fifty games. Chris Paul is still one of the great point guards. But what Dallas did to them in the postseason in that Game seven had him down by fifty. Let me tell you something. I don't know how you recover from that. I think Dallas is still in the mix, but losing Jalen Brunton might hurt them. But they did pick up Christian Wood. They still got Dorian Fitty Smith Spencer did with his dead Tim Hardaway Junior is coming back. Cleebland still did They picked up JaVale McGee. You still got Luca. He's the star. They'll make some noise there. It's possible. I'm just looking at these teams Minnesota with Rudy Gobert. Okay, we'll call Anthony Towns and this brother, Anthony Edwards has arrived. I love that brother. I just I just questioned their depth, and I questioned the smartness with which they play, or the lack thereof. I don't know how they're gonna do. And Rudy go Bear's a liability in the postseason against perimened T because they're gonn pull him out to the perimeter and try to make him defend on that plans. He's out of place. So I don't know how that's gonna work out for them. But we shall see. Okay, how can I talk about this in the West without talking about the Lakers, Ladies and gentlemen. Here's the deal. If Indiana would cooperate, the Lakers would trade Russell Westbrook for Myles Turner and Buddy Hill tomorrow. But and I believe that the Lakers will give up their first round picks in twenty seven to twenty nine two. I really do. There's the only picks they've got for the rest of the decade first round picks. But I give it up. Work out free agency. You could always get somebody to come play intensive time play for the Purple and Gold. But Lebron James, Anthony Davis, they're tired of for the next two seasons, with a player option for a third year twenty four, two twenty five. I believe this year they go with what they go with, unless they can get Buddy Hill, the moles Turner, and then Kyrie Irvin joins the Los Angeles Lakers after next after the season, he joins them in the summer. That's my personal belief. Don't know that for a fact, just my personal belief. But I like the Loneie Walker pick up. I like the Dinnis Shuter return. I like one because it's Conno Anderson coming from the Warriors. I like that. And of course I like Patrick Beverly because he's a Hall of Fame pest. Having said all of that, here's the reality when I look out west, and

especially because my sleeper is the New Orleans Pelicans. I mean, when you got brandon Ingram, when you got CJ. McCullum and his leadership, when we got those young thoroughbreds that they got available to them. I'm a huge, huge fan of the New Orleans Pelicans. David Griffin has done a phenomenal job as an executive. Dan Willie Green is the right coach for that team. Very proud of the job that he did last year. But you got Valentinus in the middle. You got McCullum and Ingram. Okay, Davonte Graham is no scrub. He's coming over from Charlotte. You know what he could do. He's shooting the ball. Okay, this kid Jackson Hayes, I mean I like him. You look at guys like Dyson Daniels, Garrett Linny's boys, you can't ignore them. And Zion Williamson Returns ladies and gentlemen. They've got length, they've got shooters, they've got athleticism, they got power at the basket, they got finishers at the basket. They're well coached. New Orleans can get to the conference finals. So when I look at the Western Conference, I got Golden State, Clippers, Denver, Dallas, New Orleans, I got them. I got at least five. Phoenix is six. I didn't even mention Memphis with John Morant in that crew. If I'm Memphis, don't give up. Jared Jackson Jr. I like him him, He's a defendant, shop locker. I like Darren Jackson a lot. Keep him in. Steven Adams, Tyas Jones a damn good backup point guard. John Moran is a superstar. This brother healthy, He's a superstar, every deserving of every penny he's got. Okay, and I like seeing his daddy caught side chand him on too and his boys. I had the pleasure of meeting them in Dallas. Good dudes. Dylan Brooks last year, his deal, he's motivated. Danny Green is there last night now, his experience and his leadership. Brandon Clark, I've always been a fan of Memphis. I just gave you sevent teams before I even got to the Lakers. So what are we looking at with a healthy Anthony Davis, who's a top seven, top eight player in the game, went healthy, But asking him to be healthy is a lot. Lebron James is thirty seven. That's were in his twentieth year in the league. He's gonna be thirty eight this year. Let me tell you something. Lebron and Anthony Davis healthy Lakers could be Top five, Anthony Davis get injured again, Lakers in the playing which means they go home in the first round. That's how I see it, But I hope I'm wrong because I'm unapologetic about this reality. When it comes to the playoffs. There's no place I enjoy more than being at the Staples Center for a Lakers game. It's just been a while since they gave me one. I hope they changed that. Appreciate y'all tuning in to this latest edition of stephen A's No Mercy with Steven A. Smith coming at you every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Want to give you a sports podcast to jump off this NBA season. I'm glad, proud, and gratified that y'all tuned in to listen to me. I hope you will continue because you never know what I'm going to deliver from podcast to podcast. Whatever the hell is on my mind is what I'm gonna touch on, and I just wanted to do this particular podcast to let you know sports world, I didn't forget about you. Having said that always in by telling you this, you don't have to know sports to know mercy. I'm signing off until next time, Peace, love everybody. This has been a presentation of Caden's Thirteen, an Honesty Company in association with Stephen a Podcast production. Episodes of No Mercy are available now for free wherever you get your podcast. Guess who's got a memoir coming out, Ladies and gentlemen, yours truly stephen A. Smith. It's entitled Straight Shooter, and it's available right now for pre order. I have signed these books just so you know, so you can visit straight Shooter book dot com to order your autograph copy today. In the book, I talk about my life before ESPN, growing up in Hollis Queens, New York, how sports proved to be my salvation. I talk about some of the mistakes I've made in my life and my impact on the world of sports. The book is called straight Shooter, and it's written to help motivate you to overcome setbacks that maybe prevent you from reaching your dreams. So go right now and order your autograph copy of my memoir straight Shooter book dot com. Don't wait. It's entitled straight Shooter. Check it out, don't miss it.