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We Predicted the Entire NBA Playoffs… + City vs Arsenal Preview
14 Plays3 days ago
Episode 71 – NBA Playoff Predictions, Premier League Title Clash & Gan Seans Update
Episode 71 of Who’s Got The Ball? sees Shane on IR, with James joined by friend of the show Michael for a full NBA Playoffs breakdown.
We start with football, as James previews a huge Premier League weekend, including Chelsea vs Manchester United and Manchester City vs Arsenal, giving both his and Shane’s predictions.
For the NBA, Michael joins to break down every first round playoff matchup and give predictions, as well as discussing the final play-in games.
Also in this episode:
Gan Seans continues to heat up, with James now leading by 10 points after back-to-back 5-pointers
Updated Power Rankings combining the top teams across the NBA and Premier League
If you enjoy weekly sports debate, predictions, and analysis across NBA and football, this episode is for you.
🎧 If you’re into:
Premier League, NBA & NFL talk
Weekly predictions & reactions
Underdog picks (Gan Seans 👀)
Power rankings & sports debates
🔁 New episodes every week — follow so you don’t miss one.
🌍 Where football, NBA & NFL collide every week
💬 Connect with us:
📸 Instagram: @whosgottheballpod
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📩 wgtbpod@gmail.com
🇮🇪 Irish-based, talking global sports every week
(0:00) Intro
(1:20) Chelsea v United Preview
(5:03) City vs Arsenal: Title Race Decider
(9:39) Michael Joins the Show
(12:54) LeBron & KD Final Showdown?
(17:28) Joker & the Nuggets Face Ant Again
(24:48) Wemby Will Destroy Blazers
(29:52) Cavs vs Raptors Predictions
(36:15) Can the Hawks Upset the Knicks?
(44:06) Celtics vs Sixers Outlook
(52:30) Which Teams Will Grab the 8th Seeds?
(1:00:23) Gan Seans: Our Underdog Picks
(1:02:50) NBA X Premier League Power Rankings
Recommended
Transcript
Episode Introduction: NBA and Premier League Discussion
00:00:09
Speaker
Alright lads, welcome back to another episode of Who's Got The Ball. It is just me here for the intro, James, lone wolf. um Basically Shane, once again, has injured his back or the same issue as come back up with his back that he had before.
00:00:24
Speaker
So yeah, send him your well wishes because it is not nice and it's causing him a lot of hassle and a lot of pain. So hopefully he can recover very soon and hopefully we'll have him back on here very soon. But Michael does join me for some bumper action on the NBA. We cover every first round matchup and the remaining two playing games that are coming. So a lot of NBA chatter.
00:00:46
Speaker
We'll give our full brackets, mine, Michael and Shane's over on our socials when he's The final two teams are confirmed on Friday night.
Premier League: United vs. Chelsea and City vs. Arsenal
00:00:56
Speaker
But before we do jump into that one, Michael, i want to go a little bit on two key Premier League matchups this weekend and because myself and Shane had prepped to talk about this. So I said I'll put it to use because i think they're really key at this point in the Premier League season um and two games that all four teams involved would really like to win. So first of all, let's start off with the United versus Chelsea. That's in Stamford Bridge on Saturday night at 8pm.
00:01:29
Speaker
It's hard to know how this goes because United don't have Harry Maguire. First of all, the situation there where he allegedly said...
00:01:41
Speaker
some derogatory words towards the fourth official about the decision of him being sent off. He claims he said it in a different way. Regardless, there's been so many events where players have said abusive things towards the referee, and video evidence of it, and after being sent off, and it's never occurred where the player gets an additional game, at least in recent memory.
00:02:02
Speaker
And somehow Maguire gets an additional game suspension, and this only comes to the fore because like three days ago and he got sent off like about a month back.
00:02:13
Speaker
So the additional game suspension is is waited a long time to come and it couldn't come at a worse time because Lizandro Martinez is is suspended as well for a red card that was very contentious as well.
00:02:26
Speaker
So United are in a tricky situation. It's probably going to be Yaro and Heaven. I do like both of them singularly, but I prefer them with the likes of a Martinez Maguire next to them or De Ligt. who has been out for a very long time with an injury, and because it gives them that civility of playing with a more senior player, and you can kind of trust it more. and It's tough for the the two youngsters to play alongside each other. I think they're of a combined age of 39, so it's going to be very, very tough for them to to face off against any team in the Premier League.
00:02:59
Speaker
Maynou, whether he plays or not, is going to play a massive part. They need to dictate the pace early United do, because... Enzo's going to be back in for Chelsea. I think he's going to come back in with a point of proof. I think after the suspension, he's really going to want to play hard. He's going to put a lot of pressure on the ball.
00:03:18
Speaker
i think that kind of ball pressure is something that Ugarte can't handle. i think... He can do one or two things fine. He's just not a Premier League standard player, I don't think.
00:03:32
Speaker
And he showed that in the first half against Leeds last week when when they demolished United. And he was way off it. I think that kind of on-ball pressure by Enzo and by the rest of the Chelsea players is going to cause the likes of Nogarte a lot of hassle. Whereas if Manu is in there, he's going to be able to kind of control the game and slow things down when they need to be slowed down and feed the ball to Bruno and the players who need to be fed.
00:03:57
Speaker
I think both teams are probably going to score here. I think Chelsea are a threat going forward when they've got Palmer on it and Joe Pedro has been quiet for a while, but overall he's had a good season.
00:04:07
Speaker
I just think neither team can defend well enough to keep a clean sheet here. As a United fan, I would like to say that United are going to win, go 10 points clear at Chelsea and really solidify Champions League.
00:04:18
Speaker
But i I can't see that happening based on how they played against Leeds. And Chelsea were very poor in the second half against City. They were cut apart, but United aren't up to the level City are at right now. So I think both teams score. i think both teams score twice and I'm going with 2-2 draw.
00:04:34
Speaker
and Shane did send in a prediction for this one because we had prepped to talk about this and another game. So he said that and his in his in his message, he said the two teams are not having the best of time, but he does think United are better, but he'd rather sit on the fence with this one and go with a 2-2. So same as me. and We both think this is going to be a 2-2. I think a United don't want to won't want to lose this more than anything, and I don't think Chelsea are good enough to win it. So we both got a 2-2 there.
00:05:03
Speaker
Next up... The Premier League could hinge on this City versus Arsenal matchup on Super Sunday. I think if City win, everything goes towards them with their momentum. I think Arsenal really, really, really cannot afford to lose this game.
00:05:19
Speaker
But if they try to sit back and absorb the City pressure and play for a 0-0, which I wouldn't put past them because it may be what they try to do. then City are just going to beat them the same way they did in the f FA Cup. Arsenal, they'll say they tried to play a certain way and remain compact and remain a team that didn't concede too many goals and and, you know, still play their own football against City in that FA Cup game. They didn't. They were playing for a nil-nil. They were playing to get it to penalties or they were playing to score off a corner at some stage from a counter-attack. They weren't playing as a team that was out there to play football the same way that City did.
00:05:58
Speaker
And Man City have looked really good lately. Cherki has looked brilliant. He was brilliant in that game against Arsenal. I think he'll have a very good game again this weekend.
00:06:11
Speaker
Bernardo Silva just announced he's leaving in the summer. I think he'll put in a big shift and he'll want to drive the City team towards a Premier League title in his last season. Haaland is obviously someone you can never look past with his finishing.
00:06:26
Speaker
And then you've got Semenyo. just roaming could pop up anywhere and do anything with the ball. He could score from anywhere. He could set up Haaland beautifully. He could link up with Cherki. He could set off Daku down the left.
00:06:40
Speaker
Daku is someone who's got a lot I just think that City, they just have so much and so much more than Arsenal. The way Arsenal played against Lisbon, I didn't watch a minute of it and I won't watch a minute of it because from what I heard from people who did,
00:06:55
Speaker
it was just putrid and it was the same. i said after the first leg when it was 1-0 they were going to go out and do the same thing in the second leg and hope to get another 1-0 or a 0-0 and that's what they did and the viewership reflected that. You can see Madrid and Bayern on the same night 2.14 to 2.25 xG in that game and it was 4-3 to Bayern.
00:07:18
Speaker
Bayern sorry had the greater xG in that one, no sorry It was an unbelievable game of football. It's exactly what football should be. Both teams going for Both teams doing the best that they can. Both teams wanting to play.
00:07:31
Speaker
And they both had sport teams had superstars. So it was even more attractive for fans to watch it. And then Arsenal. 0-0 with Sporting Lisbon. And...
00:07:42
Speaker
The game was 0.64 to 0.29 xG. Lisbon couldn't get anything going. Arsenal didn't want to get anything going. Less than 5 million total global viewers. One of the lowest Champions League quarterfinal viewerships ever.
00:07:54
Speaker
It speaks for itself. The way this Arsenal team play. They're going to do it again. Nothing is going to stop them from from doing this. This is just the way they like to play. I don't understand how anyone... would like to watch this, even Arsenal fans.
00:08:07
Speaker
I think Arsenal do not have enough of an attacking threat. I think Rice and Zubi Mendy will be all over the place with this Turkey-Semenyo combo, and Bernardo Silva getting involved as well.
00:08:18
Speaker
I think the league will swing this weekend. Turkey's going to time of his life. Semenyu's going time of his life. Allen may pop up with a goal. I'm going with City to win 3-0.
00:08:29
Speaker
I think that the Premier League title swings this weekend and the momentum all goes back to Manchester with City. I think Arsenal... Just the way they've played lately, I think if the football gods are going to get involved, they're going to stop a team like this one in the Premier League because the way they've tried to play the last month or two has just gotten worse and worse from earlier in the season. And the viewership of their Champions League quarterfinal clearly shows that people are not interested in watching this.
00:08:59
Speaker
Shane's thoughts on this one. He had Arsenal are going to try and make it the most boring game of all time. Four centre-backs across the back just sitting in. But City are in form and I think they'll manage to make it 2-0.
00:09:11
Speaker
He's thinking the same way as me. Arsenal are playing for a 0-0. A draw here helps them out a lot. But a draw where they play football would be great. They're not going to do that. It's going to be them trying for a 0-0 and City breaking them down. i just i'm I'm very sure of it. I think City are going to win this one. So...
00:09:27
Speaker
That's my kind of a Rosillo style monologue to start this one off before we get our guest in or our usual contributor in Michael to the NBA space but we've got Michael on so let's welcome him in.
NBA Playoffs: Play-in Tournament and Western Conference Analysis
00:09:39
Speaker
Okay so it's just me and Mike here for the NBA side of things. Shane is out, he's on IR for this week. He's got the the back injury is back again so send him your well wishes but we're gonna hold it down with the the playoff discussion and so the playoffs round one starting this weekend and we've got some games from the play and so we're going to touch on all of that stuff but um firstly how are you and what have you made of this week so far and i'm sure you're looking forward to the weekend
00:10:12
Speaker
Well, firstly, i want to start off with flexing my National League finals medal right here.
00:10:22
Speaker
Helping out with with Limerick Sport Eagles. Went up to Dublin last Saturday, got the dub. Also, shout out to Oren Donlan, one of my under-19s who got named to the under-17s Irish men's squad.
00:10:34
Speaker
Nice one, nice one. over to Scotland in June. But yeah, in terms of this week for the NBA, couldn't be happier. This is the most, this is what Adam Silver dreamed of when he made the play-in tournament. The storylines came out of every game.
00:10:50
Speaker
Chef Curry is at it again. The magic fall apart in glory against the Sixers with Franz Wagner limping off. LaMelo rides the highs and lows of the Melo rollercoaster. I just, it was fantastic basketball. And I actually can't wait for tonight, for for the next play-in games before. Because honestly, the first round might be boring in comparison. Because we might just see some overpowering teams and some four or five game wins, you know?
00:11:22
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. I think the play-in games are probably more... of a contest than we're going to see in some of the first round. You're definitely right about that because the teams are on a similar level, so that makes it kind of interesting.
00:11:35
Speaker
And they all played pretty hard, which you like to see there was no like Chicago Bulls action like we see all the time where it's just like, why are they even in this tournament? But um'm and congrats on the win, of course, with your team.
00:11:51
Speaker
So see you repping the medal and congrats to your boy for the call up. But What we want to start with right here is looking at the first round. So we're going release our full brackets when the play-in is confirmed. So Friday night are the last and two games and we'll know for sure then what the full bracket is. So we're going to release our full brackets confirmed over on our socials at that point.
00:12:15
Speaker
But we're going to touch on the the first round here now. We'll start in the West because I think there's some interesting matchups on the East side that I think are probably closer. So with the West, we're looking, first of all, we've got the Lakers versus the Rockets confirmed.
00:12:34
Speaker
I think... We'll come to a little bit at the end about the Warriors and Suns because they're playing the last play-in matchup on Friday and what that would what that game might look like. But I don't think there's too much time to be spent on Thunder versus anybody because I think they'll blow either of those teams away.
00:12:52
Speaker
it just matters about how many. So let's start with Lakers-Rockets. Regular season record was two and one to the Lakers. Luka, though, had 40, 36 and 25 in those three games. And he will most likely not be playing. They're still stringing it out, and but it's it's not going to happen. He's in Spain, I believe, getting like shots into his hamstring to try and increase the recovery time. But grade two hamstring injury is like four to six six weeks.
00:13:22
Speaker
Reeves is out for four to six weeks. I think all of this lines up for our Rockets win at this point. Yeah, I'm right there with you. I think another big part of this is this is really KD versus LeBron. And I think KD is going to take it so personally.
00:13:42
Speaker
Like, I think the last thing he wants on his resume is 41-year-old LeBron bringing out the 2018 Cavs again, or the equivalent of said team, and beating the Rockets in round one after them struggling to finish this season.
00:14:00
Speaker
I
NBA Playoffs: Nuggets, Spurs, and Cavs Series Predictions
00:14:02
Speaker
see this going one of two ways. It's either the Rockets continue their struggles and really like can't get ant anything going against these Lakers while LeBron completes mastery of basketball at age 41 or LeBron just gets jumped because he might have absolutely zero help around him. Uh,
00:14:27
Speaker
He's very dependent on role players outplaying their usual performance. And that's always very difficult when you're in a playoff setting because if two of those guys aren't hitting, you're getting blown out by 20 because Kevin Durant now has 37 points and Amon Thompson will have 25, you know? And...
00:14:49
Speaker
and I think that lack of being able to deal with the Rockets' athleticism on the wings as well will be a huge coaching point for JJ Redick. And we'll really see now, JJ Redick and Imei Yudoka, how these two coaches match up because they're going to be game planning for each other and that's going to be the real decision is how how do the role players kind of handle this pressure now in this first round matchup?
00:15:18
Speaker
Yeah, I think that is probably the most important part because you've got KD versus LeBron, like you said. But this time, once again, KD is in a situation where he has a much stronger team on paper.
00:15:32
Speaker
And I think this is probably would be like the most outrageous loss to LeBron that he could have because like there's no way that LeBron at this age should be pulling this team through.
00:15:44
Speaker
So if he if they manage to win the first round, I think that would be one of his greatest achievements because it's It's looking like that's very unlikely. Like you said, a lot of players will have to play above their level. And I really can't see that happening against the physicality of the Rockets. I just think they're going to bully the Lakers. I think the Rockets do, just for the fact of it's LeBron and the fact that the Rockets have stumbled a lot this season, I think they do give up a couple of games here.
00:16:12
Speaker
So I have them winning in six. um I just don't think the Lakers can do anything close to winning this season. with Luka and Reeves out.
00:16:23
Speaker
Yeah, I'm right there with you. I have the Rockets winning in six. Ironically, I might change my tune after game one, but I think the biggest X factor is Marcus Smart and ironically sparing Bronny James minutes.
00:16:40
Speaker
Like that point of attack defender... If Reed Shepard hits like six threes in a game, the game's done. you know like If Kevin Durant goes off for 41 in a game, like the game's done. It's really about how this perimeter defense can work. Because at times, in March, they were like third-ranked defense.
00:17:04
Speaker
So that if they can keep that in here, I think they could take it to seven. But I'm still with the Rockets in six. Yeah, I don't trust their... defense enough to stop the physicality is what I will say I do think that their defense is probably a lot better without Reeves and without Luka but it's just a loss on the other side but yeah we're on the same page there I think the next matchup is the one that's most intriguing to me across the board and that's Nuggets and Timberwolves and this is going to be really good I think looking at the regular season matchup
00:17:41
Speaker
The Nuggets were three and one. So you've got some kind of strange look at players missing from these ones. So i think when you see that Minnesota win, it's the most recent. It was on March 1st.
00:18:00
Speaker
But if you look back, there's some times where Ant was out. and So... I think overall, it's hard to judge these regular season matchups on how this one is going to go. Generally, it's kind of close and you can say, OK, it's going to go a certain way. Maybe based on that, you can kind of claim something. But Ant wasn't in the first game that they played in which the Nuggets won. The middle two, we saw there was no Christian Brown. And the last two that they played, there was no Aaron Gordon, which they split.
00:18:33
Speaker
But the thing that sticks out to me is when Aaron Gordon was out, the Timberwolves won one and the other one went to overtime. The other two were pretty comfortable wins.
00:18:44
Speaker
So I think Aaron Gordon is a key to this matchup. That's the one thing that I've noticed when they played through the years. And even last season, when Gordon was injured in the playoffs, it was a huge, huge issue for the Nuggets. When he wasn't at 100% and when he wasn't in the game because of injuries last season and this season, they've been a different team.
00:19:05
Speaker
And a final point before I throw it to you is Jokic had triple doubles in three of these games and one of them he has one assist off including like a 56 point triple double on Christmas Day. So I think Jokic is going to destroy Gobert in this and I don't know how many games it's going to take but I think the Nuggets have it.
00:19:25
Speaker
i I think this is going to be a seven-game series, first of all. And I think, like, you look around the league, there are, like, certain matchups that are must-watch for the first round. There are other matchups you can kind of, meh. I can look at the highlights, like Spurs, Blazers.
00:19:46
Speaker
I'm sorry. i will not be watching that. I'm not going to watch Wemby drop... 36 on Donovan Klingin, who's been so good to me in fantasy all year. Okay. But this matchup is a must watch.
00:20:00
Speaker
Anthony Edwards wants it. That's the thing about this Minnesota team that like everything you said is completely right. Jokic destroys this team normally, but like he wants this matchup. He wants the pressure. He got bounced by them one year, beat them the next year. Like, he wants this back again. i think he feels like, oh, we've done this before with almost exactly the same team.
00:20:28
Speaker
And this new addition, Ayo Desumu, ever since he's got there, their pace have went has went from 21st to, I think, 6th in the league with him and Bones Highland helping push this. I...
00:20:43
Speaker
think this is going to be a really, really close matchup. And I think the biggest thing is, like you said, Aaron Gordon, does does he continue being a superstar in his role? I've got to say, because ever since he dropped 50 for the Nuggets, that man just does amazing things for that team. And i kind of feel like they should have traded Jamal Murray, even though everybody swears he's the playoff guy. But like, I think Aaron Gordon could do a bit more.
00:21:12
Speaker
A Desmond Bain trade a year ago might have been okay, but whatever, whatever. I do not agree with that what whatsoever. i just think Murray is next to Jokic like we've seen it win a championship.
00:21:27
Speaker
But i think i I think this is Nuggets in seven. Yeah. Even still. I think Peyton Watson is back. They've got their whole team back. And Jokic wants to win.
00:21:39
Speaker
I think they've they've got too much on the ropes right now. I think they're going to drag it through. But I think it's going to be a tough matchup. Yeah, I do too. And I think there's a few things that kind of sway me towards what I have here. And I have the Nuggets in six.
00:21:57
Speaker
That is because of the fact that you mentioned Peyton Watson is back. Maybe we'll see how what happens with game one if he plays or if he plays limited. But by the end of the series, he'll be in full flow, I think.
00:22:10
Speaker
Edwards and McDaniels haven't looked 100% since they've come back from knee injuries. And they probably will be fine. But those are things that linger in my mind. And although I 100% agree that Ant wants this and he wants the toughest matchup, there's probably one to one and a half other people on the roster that want it.
00:22:32
Speaker
And that includes Chris Finch because that like these guys are not built the same way that Ant is. And I think this is lining up perfectly for a first round exit after back-to-back conference finals appearances and it being a way thus Ant steps away this summer and he puts pressure on the front office and we see a big move, whether it that be a Giannis trade or something else.
00:23:01
Speaker
They need that second guy who's... got that mentality that Ant does, that wants to push it against the best of teams. And he can't do it all on his own, and the Nuggets are going to be smart about it even though they're not the best defensively. They'll know how to to frustrate him, and they've shown that throughou throughout the years with throwing different things at him. I think Dasomu is a massive addition that will keep this very interesting because his pressure driving down the lane, his pressure on the rim, and then, like you said, Bones Highland often He's completely free on the outside because De Sonneau is just dragging bodies into the paint with his pressure that they can't get from anyone else when Ant isn't on the floor. But now suddenly they can. And Bowens Highland, he can get more stretches on the floor because he's able to knock down shots.
00:23:48
Speaker
So, yeah, I like some of the things that they've got going on, but it still doesn't stop me picking the Nuggets in six. And they finished the season with 12 straight wins. Like they're ready right now, this Nuggets team.
00:24:02
Speaker
I also want to say, if they get bounced within five games or less, if I'm the Minnesota Timberwolves, I'm picking up the phone to the magic. And I'm saying, which one do you want? You want Paolo or France? Because I'll take the other one.
00:24:15
Speaker
Like, I think you got to make a move. If you're not even close to beating the Nuggets, you have to make a move to make something different. Because you're not going to be able to contend next year.
00:24:27
Speaker
I think a Franz and team would go very far. I don't know if Paolo and him would work together, but I would really like to see Franz with him. I think that would be really, really good.
00:24:40
Speaker
But yeah, we'll get on Paolo last night in ah in a short while because that was... Horrendous basketball. But last up, we've got Spurs Blazers. I don't think there's too much really needs to be said on this, but of course we'll cover it off.
00:24:55
Speaker
Spurs won the series 2-1 in the regular season, but Wemby didn't play any of the games. Stephon Castle also missed two. Funnily, he missed the two that they won.
00:25:06
Speaker
So they had no Wemby and no Castle in the two that they won. Then they lost the other one by five. So the fact that Wemby hasn't played a game against the Blazers yet and they won the season series two one shows that this is going to be, I think, a bloodbath. The Blazers did well to get this far. I think they did very well to beat the Suns in what was a very good game.
00:25:30
Speaker
And Danny Avdia went off. But he likes to be physical. He likes to try and run people over. Yeah, good luck running Wemby over when you're trying to get to the rim in this game because it's not going to happen.
00:25:42
Speaker
The Blazers really have little else if they're not hitting threes. I find them hard to watch if they're on a cold streak, which they did go on against the Suns, and I thought the Suns were going to run away with at that point. But credit to the Blazers for coming back.
00:25:55
Speaker
I'm going Spurs in four. There's nothing else I can see happening here. Yeah, i'm I'm with you. I think i think Spurs in four is kind of inevitable.
00:26:06
Speaker
therere they don't Their shooting isn't consistent enough. They hit 11 threes in the first half the other day, and that was wild. like That is not like this team at all.
00:26:19
Speaker
They're a tall team. They have tall lineups, which might further show the Spurs' weakness in their outside shooting. But like they like you said, they have almost no on-ball creativity outside of Danny Avdi. And all that guy wants to do is drive at the rim. yeah like He could drive past Wemby and still get blocked at the backboard.
00:26:41
Speaker
because it doesn't matter for him. He wants to go through people's chests. I feel like he he gets away with a lot as well. he that like He's charging a lot of the time. I have never been super impressed by him. I think that's why the Wizards traded him. And even this year, he's having a great year. I'm more enamored Donovan Klingon than I am with him. And that's going to be the other thing.
00:27:07
Speaker
Donovan Klingon is a great center. I actually think he's one of the better centers in the Western Conference, even right now. But like, What are you doing to Wemby? Like, even OKC, they've got three or four guys that can just keep running at him.
00:27:21
Speaker
Are we trusting Time Lord and and Robert Williams and Donovan Klingon to hold Wemby to under 28? twenty eight Nope. like And that's the other thing that we kind of mentioned before.
00:27:36
Speaker
How many women minutes is Wemby going to play? Because if he plays over 32 minutes, 35 minutes, you're cooked. It's just over. I think the fact that it's the Blazers, they probably don't play them more than like 28 or 30.
00:27:51
Speaker
And I think they still win it comfortably. And the best solution I could see that they might try in the first game, I don't know, is... To put Kamara on him and just try and give him the Lou Door treatment and then get like a secondary help.
00:28:07
Speaker
Because Kamara is strong and he's a good defender. And then once you get inside, you're obviously going to need some help there. But I think that could be something that unsettles him and wears him down a little bit. But outside of that, I don't see what else they do because...
00:28:23
Speaker
Yeah, they're a good defensive team and there's actually players I prefer, like, and I'm more interested Klingen, Kamara, even Scoot Henderson, I'm more interested in than Avdia because I just don't like the way he plays, really. It's just not for me.
00:28:37
Speaker
And yeah, I think that there's some interesting players, but they're a team that I think they did well to get this far. And I think they've they've they've found their place at this point.
00:28:50
Speaker
Yeah. Also, I'm thinking about it now. The Bulls had like 18 guards, it felt like, at the trade deadline. And we've went through this list and half of these teams need a guard that can have some form of like on-ball creation.
00:29:09
Speaker
I just find it shocking that that nobody made a move at the deadline with how low the Bulls were selling on some of them. Yeah, when we look at two teams that, one that just has to win one more game in the Hornets and another in the Timberwolves, that to some the Sumnu and Kobe White are looking unbelievable for those two teams coming off the bench. So that's just two examples right there. But yeah, we both have Spurs in four there. I think that was kind of inevitable. and so That would set up some interesting matchups in the second round. It would be Nuggets, Spurs and Rockets, OKC. But as I get as said, we'll do our full brackets um on the socials so you can get that over there. Let's head over to the East.
00:29:52
Speaker
yeah So first up on the Eastern side of things, we're looking at the Cavs and Raptors. For me, this is an interesting regular season because the Raptors won all three. But in all the games, the Cavs were missing a lot of people.
00:30:05
Speaker
This is all before the trades went down. So this is October 31st, November 13th, November 24th. So pretty much within like a space of three weeks. Cavs in the first game, they had no...
00:30:18
Speaker
Allen, Garland, Merrill, Mitchell or Strews. In the next game they had no Garland or Strews and in the last one no Allen, Garland, Hunter or Merrill and Strews as well. And then if you look for the Raptors they had no Barrett in one game but that was pretty much the only player that they were missing so Clearly there was an injury issue going on in these games. And since kind of after a Christmas and after the trades went down, the Cavs really turned things around. So things are way different right now. They have a different roster. Right now they have a different guard rotation. they've got James Harden, Ellis Schroeder is there as well. and And they've looked really good kind of since they turned things around. So i I can't really read into what happened. And i think...
00:31:05
Speaker
Quickly being injured, possibly not being ready for the first game is is quite concerning because he is a good playmaker for the Raptors. If you look at Brandon Ingram, he's kind of their go-to scorer.
00:31:17
Speaker
And in his games against the Cavs this season, he scored 37, 11 and 20. So not consistent, typically him, the way he plays in in big moments. It's very inconsistent.
00:31:30
Speaker
I don't trust Harden in the playoffs, but I don't trust the Raptors, who barely avoided the playing spots. So this is a really interesting one. Yeah, i think in I think both of these two teams are so happy that they got the other team in this matchup. Because I think they would lose to almost every other team in the Eastern Conference Finals. Neither of these teams give me any sort of confidence.
00:31:53
Speaker
I mean, the Raptors have just slipped so much. And then, like you said, with Quickly not being in, i worry, but also, you never know with... I was about to say with OG Ananobi, but he's not on that team anymore, which exactly tells you how much I think about the Raptors. I...
00:32:16
Speaker
I just... I'm so eh when it comes to this matchup. I think it's going to go to six. Yeah. And part of me wants to say the Raptors just because, like... Is Harden just going to drop under 10 points for three of these games?
00:32:35
Speaker
Because if he does and Donovan Mitchell is doing everything, that's going to be really rough, man. And really rough for me to see the Cavs winning. The other thing is...
00:32:47
Speaker
On the other side, Jakob Pertl, who's been in and out all season, had a crazy, like, had a really bad back injury, came back, kind of played decently at the end of the season. Will Jared Allen and Evan Mobley step up and, like, give him that trouble under the rim? Like, they should.
00:33:05
Speaker
especially with Harden there, like, I feel like there's so many variables that I can't put a pin on, okay, I know this player is going to do this. The only thing I have is Donovan Mitchell is going to ball as hard as he can because the only thing he's ever wanted to do is win, and he's never had a team around him that has helped him do that.
00:33:28
Speaker
And for that alone, it's more or less him or Scottie Barnes and Brandon Ingram. And I'm kind of feeling him. So I'm going to have to go with Cavs in six.
00:33:40
Speaker
Could be seven. But I just think they kind of have too much for the Raptors to handle immediately in the first round. Especially with quickly coming in late into the series.
00:33:51
Speaker
Yeah, I agree with that. I've got Cavs in six as well. I just think that the difference between this and last year is Garland just didn't play i'm at the start.
00:34:04
Speaker
And they had... Basically a a force of Mitchell to do everything. And he couldn't playmake for them and score. And he does give a decent amount of effort on the defensive end as well.
00:34:17
Speaker
Whereas I think this time around, you've got Harden. And even if he only drops 10 or 11 points, he's probably going to get 9, 10 assists. Because Mitchell is going to take that scoring load.
00:34:29
Speaker
I don't think it's a situation where it's like when he was with the Sixers and he flopped on us when we needed it because that was a much bigger matchup. Like we managed to get through matchups before that because of Embiid's scoring ability and because of Maxi's scoring ability. Whereas now I think Donovan Mitchell is good enough for that. And then between Mobley and Allen combined, you're looking at, you know, I think it's a good situation. It's not the same as the Cavs last year for those that are comparing it to them in the playoffs last year.
00:34:58
Speaker
I think even if Harden does go missing on the scoring end, he's still going to play make. And I like Schroeder and Ellis coming off the bench as well. So I don't think there's that much of of a of a big fall off. If Harden isn't playing well, Schroeder is going to give it his all.
00:35:14
Speaker
And you're going to get some good minutes there. So yeah, I've got Cavs in six as well. I do think it's hard to beat Toronto in Toronto. But I ultimately think they're going to lose at least one there because...
00:35:28
Speaker
People going off on the Raptors when they went on their good run, they just played useless teams like pretty much constantly and they beat them. So I just think that they're not somebody that's ready for this moment yet. And they did well to avoid the play in, in my opinion.
00:35:43
Speaker
Yeah, i I actually don't even think I have anything more to say about these two teams. So we can keep a pushing. Yeah, I think it's probably, if apart from the Blazers and Spurs, that it's the least interesting matchup.
00:35:57
Speaker
Yeah, i I think I'd rather see OKC Warriors in the first round yeah over Cavs Raptors. It might get really rough at points in these quarters. Yeah, it's going to be hard to watch Colin Murray-Biles trying to play a make for the Raptors without quickly.
00:36:12
Speaker
Yeah, this going to be tough.
NBA Playoffs: Knicks vs. Hawks and Sixers vs. Celtics
00:36:16
Speaker
Let's move on to the Knicks and Hawks. So you're looking at the regular season record here. it was the Knicks winning twice and the Hawks winning once. The two games at the Knicks one were very close. They won both by three.
00:36:30
Speaker
So in this one, there wasn't a whole lot of um kind of players missing. apart from Josh Hart was out for a couple and Mitchell Robinson was out for one.
00:36:42
Speaker
I think that was pretty much the full complement, but the Hawks team was different for some of the games because you could see the box score and Trae Young is still on one of them. And I'm like, okay, this is a completely different Hawks team right now.
00:36:54
Speaker
But when they most recently played on April 6th, Dyson Daniels failed out. When they played on December 27th, Okongwu failed out and he had four fouls.
00:37:07
Speaker
um in the game on January 2nd. I also saw multiple players with four, three, five fouls against this Knicks team. So the Hogs, while...
00:37:18
Speaker
they do defend physically, Jalen Brunson is such a good foul-bader that you can see from that what happens when the Hawks get overly physical.
00:37:30
Speaker
I think if they don't do that and they play within the limits, because playoff basketball is a year-old be more physical, but if they play within the limits of the game and Dyson Daniels doesn't lose his mind and and get too many fouls, which he's been Seen to do too many times this season. He's a great defender that can sit on Brunson for quite a long time.
00:37:49
Speaker
and So i I think that this is going to be a really, really intriguing matchup. And I have a go on seven games. Yeah, I think this is one of those, like, I feel like a lot of people are going to look at this and be like, oh, it's whatever. It's it's the Hawks first it's the it's the hogs versus the Knicks. But This might... I think it's also going to seven This might be really tough because like you said, there Brunson is a fantastic foul baiter, but this Hawks team is super deep, actually. like And they've got a ton of people to throw out if they do get into foul trouble.
00:38:30
Speaker
The biggest thing is Nikhil Alexander-Walker going to continue this kind of stretch that he's put on in the in the end of the season. Will Jalen Johnson show up? Is his three ball going to fall?
00:38:41
Speaker
But like... There's a solid like nine guys I'm happy to play here in the playoffs. And that that normally shortens down to seven in in extremely close games. But like you've got Kaminga, Gabe Vincent, Mohamed Gay, who's played great in short spurts during the season.
00:39:03
Speaker
You have Corey Kispert who could just hit six threes in one of these games and it would not be out of the norm at all. Jock Landale plays great for them.
00:39:14
Speaker
i I think McCollum is really important in this matchup too. Yeah, I mean, he hasn't had this scoring impact. I was kind of hoping he would when he was traded to the team. But I think he does a lot to help Nikhil, like, get his buckets as well by being an option there on the perimeter.
00:39:36
Speaker
I think the Hawks win in seven for some reason. Like, which would be crazy, which is a wild upset. But, like... I think they have enough to throw out at the Knicks. I don't think the Knicks are fantastic defensively.
00:39:52
Speaker
I think a lot of their problems, a lot of their worries I had for them when Tibbs was there are kind of extenuated here. Their offense isn't supernova enough that like I think they can just get away with how bad Towns and Brunson can be on the off the defensive side.
00:40:12
Speaker
So I think it's Hawks in seven, but I'm hoping if they play the sixes in the second round, they get clipped. But yeah, I'm going with the Hawks in seven.
00:40:23
Speaker
Nice, I like that. I like that something against the grain a bit. i'm I am going with the Knicks in seven, but I am going for it to get to seven games. i'm good Because similarly, I went the same way last season. I said the Pistons and Knicks would go seven. It didn't. It should have.
00:40:40
Speaker
The officiating was horrendous. But then I said that that was going to be the thing that eventually stumbled the Knicks because they'd be worn out from it. Now they did really well against Boston after that. I think this year could be a different story because I think this could be something that wears them out. It's a similar kind of a matchup where it's a team that are still finding their feet and it's their first time as this iteration of the team getting into the playoffs and they're very physical and they're good defensively.
00:41:07
Speaker
So the Knicks might not be so lucky this time around as they were against the Pistons last year. I do think that The Hawks do need to dial in what they're going to do. They can't use everybody like you said.
00:41:19
Speaker
They need to use them for certain, the way certain things are going. They need to adapt. So I hope everybody is ready for that. And I'm sure they will be. But I do think McCollum is important because he's played in the playoffs before. He knows what to do in terms of playmaking and slowing the game down when it needs to be slowed down. i do think he's been very good since he got there, especially with Jalen Johnson.
00:41:41
Speaker
and They look to have a good little partnership going. so I like that and I do think that Alexander Walker you brought that point up if he can continue to be hot I don't see how i don't see any reason why it couldn't be Hawks in seven but if he's a little bit colder I think the Hawks do struggle to have a final option to score for them so ultimately I've got the Nixon seven but yeah i think it's this is a coin toss at this point I just want to say, if the Hawks need someone, if they that little person to score, if Nikkela and Alexander Walken start there, Jonathan Kaminga, I want to believe so bad. i want to believe. I want to talk badly about Steve Kerr. Give me an excuse. Give me a goddamn excuse to come on here and tell me Steve Kerr is a horrible coach and should be fired this offseason.
00:42:35
Speaker
Because... I think that's it. I think... I genuinely think... Okongwu is like a lock to play well this this series. Jalen Johnson's always solid. Like you said, McCollum... ah like Even though he's not that much of a scoring threat, I think he's so good with Nikhil there.
00:42:54
Speaker
Kaminga, if you can come off the bench and just drop 15 points and look above average on defense and you you guys win this playoff series...
00:43:06
Speaker
You have a fat contract waiting for you. You just got lock in here. Okay. You know, I actually had that there and as my final note before we moved on to ask you, should they start coming in? Because I think there's actually warrant, like, like, I don't think they will, but I actually think that there is reasoning behind them doing that.
00:43:25
Speaker
And I think he could cause issues for the Knicks. And I think that, Although it's in limited sample size, he's probably played some of the most playoff minutes out of most of these Hawks players. So it's, yeah, it's an interesting one. He could be the one that turns things around.
00:43:44
Speaker
Yeah, I think a big thing is if Dyson Daniels gets in foul trouble early in this one of these games, I think he will be thrown out there just to kind of see, hey, see how you do out there. And if he plays well, he could and he could start game three year game four.
00:44:02
Speaker
Yeah, I could see that happening. So one to watch. Let's see. Final one. Sixers versus Celtics. Our Sixers made it. and First of all, let's touch on that playing game because...
00:44:15
Speaker
Yeah, it was great to see them win against the Magic. Paolo Banqueiro was really bad in that game. and But the Sixers' defense, I thought, at times was so good. I thought Kelly Oubre was really good. Paul George, especially in the second half, laid locked in defensively.
00:44:32
Speaker
Edgecombe came up with some plays as he does. Bona, those two blocks were like pivotal to the game to keep the Sixers in position. And then Andre Drummond was superb. Maxi, of course, like we we always talk about Maxi, but I think everybody else just did so well and they did everything they needed to do. And I don't think there was any real point in that game that I thought, OK, the Magic are going to get a good run going here because they just couldn't get it going. And the Sixers looked very strong.
00:45:01
Speaker
Yeah, that game last night had me stressed because it felt like we were like up by 10 and then it was 5, then it was 10 again, then it was 5. But it really felt like the Magic, they were playing well, like decent enough, but they just needed somebody to take over and hit two or three buckets in a row.
00:45:25
Speaker
And literally nobody stepped up. It was really sad, actually. Because Paolo, as much as he tried... Holy shit, man. You look looked rough yesterday. Like, you looked really rough. To the point where, like, third quarter...
00:45:42
Speaker
Because, in some context, Franz Wagner was supposed to be sidelined for the season. Like, halfway through the season was said, reported, he's going to be out. Ended up coming back late in the season. So, this is the second time they've rushed him back early.
00:45:58
Speaker
And he's gotten injured early, as we see. He walks off the court after running into Wendell Carter with one minute left in the fourth. After scoring like two buckets for them in the fourth, which felt like huge because it felt like nobody else could could score anything.
00:46:17
Speaker
it It just... Everything... The keys have really been given to Paolo. And... He had the all-star season, and it looked like it was a good choice.
00:46:28
Speaker
But I was always very vocal. I don't know if you remember back when we were working together. And I would say, they should trade Paolo. I prefer Franz. Like, I've always not really been a fan of how he plays.
00:46:42
Speaker
It kind of reminds me of early Tatum, where it's a lot of like, I'm Kobe. I can shoot this. And it's like, please, God, just hit a three or or just take it to the rim.
00:46:55
Speaker
and some of his effort Sorry, I got completely sidetracked on the play-in. No, you're good, but some of his effort is lacking as well. And he just does silly things like turns the ball over carelessly.
00:47:07
Speaker
And so I think if it's mad to say, but I think if they were to trade anyone now, it would be him. And I don't think people would have thought that initially. But yeah, let's let's steer into the Celtics matchup for the Sixers. So the season was...
00:47:21
Speaker
2-2. Obviously, Tatum did not play in any of the games for the Celtics, but no Paul George for the Sixers in any of those four games either. And then Embiid missed two, and then he played 25 minutes in one and 20 minutes in another.
00:47:38
Speaker
So, yes, the Celtics didn't have Tatum, and they have him now, but the Sixers didn't have Embiid pretty much for any of them, and they didn't have Paul George for any of them. I think this is going to be a closer matchup than people think. And if, if a massive if, the Sixers can somehow sneak one in Boston and Embiid is back for game three, I'm going to have massive belief. If it's 2-0 and Embiid comes back for game three, I'm going to say it's too little too late.
00:48:09
Speaker
But if it's 1-1, I'm going to have a lot of hope. Ultimately, I'm going Celtics in six.
00:48:17
Speaker
Okay, i this i can't believe we have the Celtics in the first round. this is like The one thing we we did not want. Some context, me and James have been talking about our schedule and stuff throughout the season because we're both Sixers fans. And we have been talking about the possibility of playing the Celtics in January. We were talking about how we need to win X amount of games to miss the Celtics and have somebody else clip them early because we did not want to play them.
00:48:51
Speaker
And it happens that we play them in the first round, which, like, on one hand, great. I get to decide early if I have any faith at all or not.
00:49:03
Speaker
But on the other hand, ah feel like if we played half of the other teams in the Eastern Conference, I would feel better about our first round matchup. i i Ironically, Andre Drummond is going to be huge in this game. Andre Drummond and Adam Bona.
00:49:23
Speaker
Both of them are going to have to do bits because that is the Celtics weakness. As for Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown, like you said, I think you texted me, you're thinking about BJ Edgecombe guarding Jalen Brown and what's that, PG on Tatum?
00:49:39
Speaker
Yeah. Vijay still clutch as we saw late in the in the game against the Magic, but I'm really interested to see defensively how he matches up with Jalen Brown because this will be a real test for him um to see, like, get his chap sturdy and see if he can take the next step to being a playoff performer as well as just a clutch performer. But I also have Boston in six because I even think six might be...
00:50:09
Speaker
It might be Boston in five, dude. Like, it it could be... The first two games could be nasty. And if that happens, I'm going to be really, really upset. Because i had no faith in this team after the McCain trade.
00:50:24
Speaker
And you've slowly been reeling me in. You've been sending in me memes. And then being like, oh, we had a good win here. Paul George is playing great here. Maxi dropped another 30 points. Kelly Ray's looking great. Andre Drummond's hitting threes. And I don't want to believe...
00:50:38
Speaker
It will hurt too much if we just lose by 30 game one. i i know I just can't. And it hurts even more because it seems like every time the Sixers play at a reasonable hour, Irish time, they get waxed.
00:50:54
Speaker
And it's going to be 6pm on Sunday. And i'm no I just know I'm going to bed on Sunday depressed after this game because we're going to get waxed. And I mean, if we come with the effort and there's a good game plan and, you know, the matchups are correct, we can make a game of it. But Nick Nurse, I don't trust him. I just don't trust him at all. And I just don't think that we're going to make a good enough stab at this. I just do think that I'm going in six because I just think Embiid will drag himself back out there even if he's only half ready.
00:51:27
Speaker
and give us a good chance at home to get a little bit of momentum. and But i just I think overall the Celtics are far too strong. Tatum, since he's come back in 16 games in 32 minutes, he's dropping 22-10-5 with one and a half steals.
00:51:43
Speaker
He just looks great. His shooting hasn't been as good, so I do think that strong defenders like PG and Oubre can upset him. But we really need Vijay to have an unbelievably good series. But I have some confidence because i think he had the best.
00:52:00
Speaker
He forced Brunson to the lowest effective field goal percentage of anybody this season in multiple matchups. So I think he's good enough if he if he really locks in, and I don't see any reason why he won't. But yeah.
00:52:12
Speaker
We said both sides, I just think, yeah, six Celtics and six we both have. and So before we before we go from this portion of things, and we've we've covered a lot, but just quickly, i know we got our last two playing matchups. This comes out on Friday, so they'll be tonight as you're listening to this.
00:52:37
Speaker
Suns hosting the Warriors and the Magic hosting the Hornets. I don't want to spend an overly long time thinking about the Magic and Hornets. I just think there's no way the har the Magic win. I just think they're not good enough.
00:52:51
Speaker
And I like what the Hornets did, and I don't think Lamello has as bad a game as he did. um As long as he's not suspended, the Hornets win. In a very short summary, do you agree?
00:53:04
Speaker
Yes. Okay. that's Very simply. Let's look at the other side then, because I think that one is... I don't think there's any reason to talk about that one. The other side, Suns vs Warriors.
00:53:15
Speaker
Talk to me. Suns vs Warriors. This might be another banger playing game. this This is the game to watch. Because, like, even the Suns against the the Blazers. Like, the one thing the Blazers give up is a lot of long twos. And that's what the Suns have been shooting all a year. And for them, not really, it felt like they didn't have anybody to take him over that, like to keep that lead in the fourth quarter with with Denny dropping, what is it, 14-3-3 with one turnover in the fourth quarter alone. Just crazy stuff.
00:53:52
Speaker
But the only thing about the Warriors, I would have full faith in them. But Draymond was limping at the end of that game. And like I think the big thing is this is another like coaching matchup game again.
00:54:08
Speaker
Mark Williams is getting no minutes on the Suns, which I think he'll have to play more, especially against Chris Stapps-Porzingis for the Warriors. Yeah. I actually have no idea who wins this. I hope the Warriors do because it's always amazing to see Steph in the playoffs and to see him go off for like 45 in one of these games against OKC.
00:54:33
Speaker
But on the other hand, if the Suns win, they could just beat up OKC and cause an injury or two. But I have the Warriors winning. I just think Draymond, whatever Draymond has, he's going to play through it.
00:54:46
Speaker
And they're just going to drag themselves into the playoffs again and get whopped round one. Yeah, I agree you. I think the Warriors have it. I thought the Suns would beat the Blazers, to be honest with you. I thought they'd beat them by maybe 5-10 points, but they just could not get it going. And I just think they're going to regret that because it's going to be prime viewing between Draymond and Dylan Brooks once again out there. um They should just allow both of them to have like unlimited fouls long as it's on each other.
00:55:18
Speaker
Because that would make for a very interesting game. But yeah, I think Draymond will be fine to play. And I think Steph is just too much for for bob Booker didn't have a great game. And I think that the Warriors' defense is probably better.
00:55:33
Speaker
Although it's not as physical, it is better when they have high effort. i Yeah, I just think that the Suns are not the finished article and they're building towards something a little bit more. Jalen Green doesn't drop as many points as he did again. There's just no way.
00:55:47
Speaker
um So yeah, I'm going with the Warriors too. I like it.
NBA Play-ins: Warriors vs. Suns and Season Reflections
00:55:50
Speaker
And the fact that the Warriors beat the Clippers means that OKC now have a lottery pick in the next draft. And if the Warriors beat the Suns, that will give them a 10% chance at a top four pick.
00:56:06
Speaker
So they could be rolling next year with Darren Peterson added to this team or AJ DeBansa added to this OKC team. It's just unfair at this point. It really, it goes to show, first of all, always take advantage of of bad organizations.
00:56:26
Speaker
Like the Clippers. Always take advantage of bad organizations because that is how you get set up like this for the future. I don't know. It just goes to show you how how much of a genius Sam Presti is. That guy... How does he lose from here?
00:56:41
Speaker
His scouting team is phenomenal. His draft process is phenomenal. Their player development is great. The vibes in the locker room is great. Like, he... it's It's difficult to see where the fall-off for this team is in the next six years if he keeps making smart moves like this.
00:57:03
Speaker
I think some other teams should come in and pay him an absolute mountain of money to come in and sort their teams out because so many teams around the league could use him. If, oh yeah, if I'm James Dolan and Sam Presti decides like, you know, I've done what I can here in OKC, I might give him like a $50 million dollar deal. Like, just come save the franchise. If one of these expansion teams opens, like they might offer him yeah the biggest like front office contract in the league. Because they're going to be capped on what they they probably give them like 70% of the cap to spend. So they might as well go all in on the front office. Like, so it could well happen.
00:57:44
Speaker
Let's see him resurging with the with this with Supersonics back in Seattle. I think the the the last thing I want to say on this play-in matchup between the Warriors and the Suns,
00:57:58
Speaker
I've been reading into Suns fans and what they've been talking about about their team over the season and stuff, because I really did also think, like you, that they were going to beat the Blazers. And one of the biggest things is Mark Williams has like, his minutes has gone lower as the season has went on. And their coach has went all in on the small ball lineup.
00:58:19
Speaker
I will make this very clear. If you run a small ball lineup against the small ball lineup team, the Warriors, they will beat you. 99 times out of 100, they will beat you. You cannot play small ball against the team that invented small ball with the guy who is the best in the small ball lineup, Chef Curry.
00:58:41
Speaker
Like, it's not happening. You have to play Mark Williams. You have to play Malawak if it comes to it. Like, and you have to just trust that those guys can do something different because going small with... Just anybody at this point, anyone.
00:58:59
Speaker
i But Iguodaro is part of that kind of small-ish ball lineup, and I don't love it. I don't love it at all for them. I think you have to do something different than you did in the Blazers.
00:59:10
Speaker
And i don't know. It just kind of seems like they're just waddling out of the playoffs right now. i I mean, i think if you're right, I think it's dead if they play Iguodaro, I mean, they need to play him alongside Williams,
00:59:27
Speaker
Or, i don't know, Maluac isn't really going to get minutes, i don't think. I don't think there's that. It's going to be Williams. But they need to, yeah, they need to maximize that. I think you're right, because Horford and Porzingis, yeah, you can get after that. I know Porzingis had a good game, but not defensively and not on the boards. He's a good shooter still, but God knows there could be something wrong with him in the next season.
00:59:54
Speaker
24 hours and you won't play some kind of random illness but uh yeah look we'll leave it there we've covered everything we've we've gonna we're gonna get our brackets out um over on social media so give a look on our instagram and our tiktok we'll get them shared before the the real action starts on saturday but yeah michael thanks for coming on we'll have you get back again next week as you are on every week with us for the playoffs so we'll chat to you then Talk to you soon.
01:00:23
Speaker
Okay, let me wrap up this episode with our bit housekeeping, our gone chance updates and our power rankings updates. and I'll give for both of us because Shane sent his in. But last week i had another five pointer. um When it rains, it pours because I didn't have anyone all season. Neither of us did. Took until week 28 for me to get my first one. And in week 29, I had another. So I'm 10 points ahead of Shane right now. 38, 28. going to need a massive end to the season to claw that back.
01:00:52
Speaker
He's already congratulated me on the win, so some mind games being played there. But last week I had Bournemouth to beat Arsenal. So did Shane. had the Nuggets to beat the Spurs, and I had the Hornets to beat the Knicks.
01:01:05
Speaker
Shane had... Leeds to beat United as well as his Bournemouth pick which also came off but he picked the Hornets to beat the Pistons. He had the wrong Hornets matchup. He only got two points last week while I got five. So as I said the lead is out to ten.
01:01:21
Speaker
This weekend I'm going back to Bournemouth. I think it's madness that they're 11-4 away to Newcastle. and Newcastle have not been good. Palace came back and beat them last weekend. Bournemouth are on very good form. They haven't been defeated in a very long time. So 11-4 is a great price away from home.
01:01:38
Speaker
I think that they're going to get that win. I've also got Sunderland 9-2 away to Villa. That's on Sunday at 2. Villa are 4-6 favourites. I think Villa drew away to Forest. Forest are not good. Villa are just stumbling at the moment. And I think Sunderland are a hard team to break down. So they could nick this 1-0.
01:01:55
Speaker
So I like that one too. And then lastly, I'm going with the Warriors at 5-4 to beat the Suns 4-6 in the play-in, final play-in matchup Friday at 3am. We discussed that with Michael. We both picked the Warriors even though they are underdogs, but that's my last pick there.
01:02:10
Speaker
and And then Shane's gone with Sunderland also to beat Villa, the same as me, but he's also got the Raptors to beat the Cavs in game one of their series. um That would be a huge start for the Raptors and...
01:02:24
Speaker
It would really set the cat amongst the pigeons in in that series. I think that the Cavs would be scrambling and feeling a lot like they did last year if that is what happens. So he's gone with that at 5-2 and the Cavs 2-7.
01:02:37
Speaker
He's also gone with the Sixers to beat the Celtics 9-2 and the Celtics are 1-7. An absolutely massive call and one that both me and Michael can get behind. and So yeah, that's the Shane's three picks for this week.
01:02:50
Speaker
And then looking at the power rankings, we'll go with Shane's first. Last week he had the Thunder, Nuggets, Spurs, City, United and Arsenal. This week he's got the Thunder still at top. He's still got City in there but they have moved up now to number two because of their charge late in the season. The Nuggets are at three so they dropped down a spot just to to get this to get City in where they are.
01:03:13
Speaker
He's brought in a new entry, of course he got in the Rockets, he had to get them in before the playoff started. He said 9-1 run that he could be jinxing them, but they've been on a good run lately. So they're coming in at 4 for him.
01:03:27
Speaker
Arsenal are at 5, so they rise up one spot. And then Brighton are 6th. They're a new entry. I presume it's just kind of moving them in.
01:03:37
Speaker
and So then Arsenal get to bump up a spot. And yeah, Five wins in their last six, three wins in a row. Chances they're looking very solid. And as you'll see in a second, I do agree with him because last week I had Thunder, Nuggets, City, Spurs, Eman United and Arsenal. This week I've got Thunder, Nuggets, Spurs, City, the exact same top four. I think the and NBA teams are putting on much more of a show than any Premier League teams are at the moment. Although...
01:04:05
Speaker
If City beat Arsenal, I'll have to move them up and because they they're looking like they're very good and this this is the the big test for them now. and But yeah, Thunder, Nuggets, Spurs, I think they're the three strongest teams and they're all in the Western Conference because that is the stronger side of things. So they're my one, two, three. City four. Brighton in fifth, as I mentioned, five wins in six and three in a row. They're two points off sixth, so they're really charging for Europe. um Could even push as far as the Europa League. And then I've also got Bournemouth in at sixth. So I dropped out Man United and I dropped out Arsenal because, look, United were really poor against Leeds. They've been up and down the last few weeks and Arsenal have been really poor lately. So Bournemouth, unbeaten since the 3rd of January. Yes, a lot of draws, but they are only three points off sixth. So beating Arsenal last weekend gets them in here for me. So they're in my sixth spot.
01:04:56
Speaker
So that's another episode wrapped. i Hope you enjoyed it. Hope you enjoyed them listening to my to my opening podcast. Football monologue and and all the bits with Michael. Hopefully we'll have Shane back here and hopefully he's and he's recovered for next week. But like, subscribe, share, all that good stuff. Leave a comment, five star review on Spotify if you can at all. That would be much appreciated, as Shane says, on the road to 100k. Hopefully we get there one day.
01:05:22
Speaker
But we will leave it there and we'll catch you again next week. Welcome back to another episode of Who's Got the Ball with Shane and James.