Latest / Small Ball with Kenny Beecham / Which NBA Players Could Be "The GOAT"?

Transcript

Which NBA Players Could Be "The GOAT"? · Small Ball with Kenny Beecham

0:00
SPEAKER_00: Oh my god, we're back, we're back, we're back.
0:03
SPEAKER_00: First of all, right off rip, I do want to apologize to you people at home.
0:07
SPEAKER_00: Some of you may feel hoodwinked, bamboozled, led astray, because when you loaded up this episode of this show, you notice that there's a title change.
0:15
SPEAKER_00: There's a rebranding involved.
0:17
SPEAKER_00: Everything is different.
0:18
SPEAKER_00: For the past couple weeks, haven't any episodes?
0:20
SPEAKER_00: It's been two episodes, three episodes.
0:22
SPEAKER_00: I've been telling you right off rip, this is not an NBA podcast with Kenny Beecham.
0:26
SPEAKER_00: And I'm here to tell you, it is a podcast.
0:28
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
0:29
SPEAKER_00: And I just it's not just a podcast, it is the Kenny Beecham podcast, ladies and gentlemen.
0:34
SPEAKER_00: It's official.
0:35
SPEAKER_00: I decided to go all in.
0:37
SPEAKER_00: You know, some of you are wondering, like, why would why would you even call it not an NBA podcast if you were just gonna rebrand it three weeks into the show?
0:45
SPEAKER_00: The reality of the situation is when I first started this, I never I didn't think about it being something that was real.
0:51
SPEAKER_00: It was like, man, I'm kind of bored right now.
0:53
SPEAKER_00: Let's go talk some hoops.
0:55
SPEAKER_00: And when you start to brand it as a podcast, as a show, there's expectations around it.
1:00
SPEAKER_00: Most podcasts have some form of schedule.
1:02
SPEAKER_00: My other podcasts, the Through the Wire podcast, you know, on Tuesdays and Saturdays, on most days, most weeks, that's the schedule.
1:09
SPEAKER_00: That's a podcast schedule.
1:11
SPEAKER_00: The people that listen over there are looking forward to episodes on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
1:15
SPEAKER_00: So I thought if I come out here and say, man, uh Kenny Beachum got another podcast, that just adds another responsibility to me.
1:22
SPEAKER_00: And then after seeing the reception over the past couple episodes, after seeing how much y'all really, really enjoyed it, I'm okay with it being a podcast.
1:31
SPEAKER_00: Now, don't ask me right now what the schedule officially is because I ain't got that just yet.
1:35
SPEAKER_00: But eventually we will be on schedule.
1:37
SPEAKER_00: So welcome to the Kenny Beachum Podcast.
1:41
SPEAKER_00: And listen, this is a one-man show.
1:42
SPEAKER_00: There's no production team yet.
1:44
SPEAKER_00: I mean, maybe there will be one day.
1:45
SPEAKER_00: There's no production team.
1:46
SPEAKER_00: There's not even no video, but maybe there will be one day.
1:48
SPEAKER_00: You know, just bear with me.
1:50
SPEAKER_00: Enjoy the vibes, because that's what this is.
1:52
SPEAKER_00: This is vibe heavy.
1:53
SPEAKER_00: Now it's been exactly 15 days since the last episode.
1:56
SPEAKER_00: We were the number one sports podcast in the USA, and I just checked it before I hit record.
2:02
SPEAKER_00: Because we went two weeks and a little over that, without an episode, we are falling all the way down to the 22nd podcast in the USA when it comes to sports.
2:10
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's rough out there.
2:13
SPEAKER_00: You're wondering what's taking so long.
2:15
SPEAKER_00: I want to ask you.
2:16
SPEAKER_00: Since the last episode, and right now, as you're listening to this, what has happened in the NBA?
2:21
SPEAKER_00: I I I'll wait.
2:22
SPEAKER_00: What has happened in the NBA?
2:24
SPEAKER_00: Oh, the the Portland Trailblazers don't love the Miami Heat trade package for Damian Lillo.
2:29
SPEAKER_00: We knew that a month ago.
2:32
SPEAKER_00: We knew that.
2:33
SPEAKER_00: Oh, one thing that did happen is Jalen Brown did sign a Supermax extension.
2:37
SPEAKER_00: Shout out to him and his family.
2:38
SPEAKER_00: $300 million is a lot of money.
2:41
SPEAKER_00: Maybe we'll talk about that a little bit later, but it's been a few weeks, so do people even care about my opinion about that?
2:45
SPEAKER_00: My opinion, real quickly, it is what it is.
2:49
SPEAKER_00: Simple as that.
2:49
SPEAKER_00: It is what it is.
2:50
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, he's the highest paid player in the NBA until when?
2:53
SPEAKER_00: Next season?
2:53
SPEAKER_00: Until when?
2:54
SPEAKER_00: Two years from now.
2:55
SPEAKER_00: It's not that big of a deal at the end of the day.
2:58
SPEAKER_00: And maybe we'll talk about that a little bit later.
3:00
SPEAKER_00: But that's all that has happened between then and now.
3:03
SPEAKER_00: And I do want to apologize too because I knew that.
3:06
SPEAKER_00: I knew when I started this not a podcast, now transition to a podcast, I knew that things were gonna get dead.
3:11
SPEAKER_00: I don't know why I anticipated it, but I knew it wasn't gonna be fire after fire, news story after news story, so much stuff stuff to talk about.
3:18
SPEAKER_00: And that's why actually one of the reasons why I wanted to do it to make myself be more creative in the time where you're not pushed to be creative.
3:25
SPEAKER_00: So here we are.
3:26
SPEAKER_00: And as much as I love the game of basketball, as much as I love the NBA and the actual sport, the politics of the sport, the social media of the sport, I do really enjoy the dead of the offseason, man.
3:40
SPEAKER_00: Because things are just different.
3:41
SPEAKER_00: My job for the last five years has been to watch basketball, talk basketball, make content around basketball, and I am passionate about that.
3:50
SPEAKER_00: There is no half-ass in anything around here.
3:53
SPEAKER_00: So when people come for my opinion, you know that even though the opinion is not gonna be right all the time, hell, it's not even right 50% of the time, you know that it's rooted in something.
4:03
SPEAKER_00: Kitty Beachum is not just, oh my god, I'm talking to third person.
4:06
SPEAKER_00: I'm just not out there saying whatever, just because I'm gonna form my opinion based on the things that I've seen on the basketball court, etc.
4:13
SPEAKER_00: etc.
4:14
SPEAKER_00: So because of that, my routine during the season is pretty extensive.
4:18
SPEAKER_00: And because of that, when I'm in season, I'm really in season.
4:22
SPEAKER_00: You might as well give me a jersey too, because I'm out there preparing for these games as if I'm the one playing them.
4:29
SPEAKER_00: Because I value that people listen for my opinion and I want to make sure I'm as right as possible or I'm well thought out as possible.
4:37
SPEAKER_00: So because of that, during the season, y'all, I miss a lot of events.
4:40
SPEAKER_00: I'm I miss a lot of events, whether it be family events, friends events, because I take my job seriously.
4:47
SPEAKER_00: During the regular season, this is the bad part about the regular season.
4:51
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna keep it a buck with you because I think that's what we've grown to do in the last couple episodes of this show.
4:57
SPEAKER_00: During the regular season, it's not a lot of times where I'm sitting at the dinner table with the family because I'm like, hey, I'm gonna take my dinner to my office.
5:05
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna take my dinner to the basement because we got games going.
5:10
SPEAKER_00: And and I'm lucky enough to have a partner that accepts that because she knows how passionate I am about my my craft, and she understands, hey, these lights ain't gonna stay on by themselves.
5:22
SPEAKER_00: So so when he gotta go work, he gotta go work.
5:24
SPEAKER_00: And I'm very appreciative of my partner, so much so that we're getting married next week, um, which is crazy to say aloud.
5:30
SPEAKER_00: You know, been in a relationship for 10 years, 10 years since high school, y'all.
5:35
SPEAKER_00: And it's official tying the knot, whatever you whatever you want to call it, um, next week.
5:40
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, if there's not an episode between then, just know that we are on our honeymoon on some tropical island and we enjoying the little time we have to ourselves, okay?
5:50
SPEAKER_00: Cool.
5:50
SPEAKER_00: Shout out to my significant other.
5:52
SPEAKER_00: Let's get into some basketball talk, though, man.
5:54
SPEAKER_00: I asked people on Twitter what are some things you want to hear me talk about?
5:57
SPEAKER_00: Because, man, I'm grasping for straws and trying to figure out what's worthy of bringing onto the show.
6:02
SPEAKER_00: So I want to appreciate or say I appreciate everybody that sent the question in.
6:06
SPEAKER_00: It was a couple hundred.
6:07
SPEAKER_00: We're not in.
6:09
SPEAKER_00: We're definitely not answering a couple hundred questions, man.
6:11
SPEAKER_00: We might not even get to five, but I do want to say I appreciate it.
6:14
SPEAKER_00: I'm not saying I didn't bookmark some of them for future episodes because we still got a lot of time between now and when the season starts.
6:20
SPEAKER_00: So the first question is gonna come from our guy, Asif.
6:24
SPEAKER_00: And according to his Twitter, he is a Alprin Seng Stan.
6:28
SPEAKER_00: Man, do we need to have a conversation about standom?
6:31
SPEAKER_00: Not fandom, standom?
6:33
SPEAKER_00: Maybe a future date.
6:34
SPEAKER_00: His question is Does anyone that's currently in the league, not counting LeBron James and Steph Curry, have a chance to be challenging for GOAT status?
6:43
SPEAKER_00: Who has the best chance of right now?
6:45
SPEAKER_00: A seaf, I want to say I appreciate you for your question, but I'm not a guy that takes questions at face value.
6:50
SPEAKER_00: Fight me.
6:51
SPEAKER_00: I usually see a question and I re-orchestrate it.
6:54
SPEAKER_00: So instead of talking about who has GOAT status, I I've tempered the expectations just a little bit.
7:00
SPEAKER_00: Because GOAT status, listen, we're talking about LeBron J's, Michael Jordan, uh Kareem Abdul, Jabbar.
7:05
SPEAKER_00: It's it's just hard to fill those shoes.
7:07
SPEAKER_00: And again, I don't know, I don't know what the future holds for the players that are currently in the league.
7:11
SPEAKER_00: I'm not an Ostradamist.
7:13
SPEAKER_00: If I was, I'd be making a lot more money because I'd be putting all of my money on whoever I saw as the champion for next season.
7:19
SPEAKER_00: But thinking about being number one, number two, number three is a little bit tough.
7:23
SPEAKER_00: So I decided to take a step back.
7:24
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna say top 10, top 15, top 20 potential.
7:28
SPEAKER_00: Top 20 potential, okay?
7:30
SPEAKER_00: And who are the top 20 players in the Bay history?
7:33
SPEAKER_00: You make your own list.
7:34
SPEAKER_00: I don't do that type of stuff around here.
7:36
SPEAKER_00: So I decided to just completely get rid of anybody that was like 30 plus um because their legacy is not written, because as long as you're playing basketball, there's room for more things to be added.
7:46
SPEAKER_00: But it's kind of boring to say, oh, if Kawhi Leonard wins another championship with the Clippers, as three championships, three organizations, three potential finals MVPs, boom, that can blossom him up to whatever, whatever.
7:57
SPEAKER_00: So I decided to not add anybody that was 30 plus.
7:59
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
8:00
SPEAKER_00: Here are the list of players individually that have the potential to do the things we're talking about.
8:05
SPEAKER_00: The number one player on my list is, of course, Nicole Jokic.
8:09
SPEAKER_00: Nikola Jokic is a two-time MVP and was the runner-up to the MVP this season.
8:14
SPEAKER_00: And I wouldn't put it past him that he wins one, two, maybe, maybe three.
8:18
SPEAKER_00: Man, that's not that's that's not happening.
8:20
SPEAKER_00: Because voters' fatigue is a real thing.
8:22
SPEAKER_00: Some people may argue that voter's fatigue came to play this season with giving Joel and Beath the MVP.
8:28
SPEAKER_00: I'm not some people, but some people might say that.
8:31
SPEAKER_00: Look throughout history, how many years were LeBron the best player, like on paper and also with his play?
8:37
SPEAKER_00: Same thing with LeBron James, and both of them capped out an X amount of MVPs, but everybody recognized they were the best player in the league by far.
8:44
SPEAKER_00: Well, maybe not by far, but the best player in the league.
8:46
SPEAKER_00: But because things get kind of boring with giving the same award to the same person every single season, it's just the way the voters work.
8:53
SPEAKER_00: Is it fair?
8:53
SPEAKER_00: I personally don't think so.
8:54
SPEAKER_00: I personally believe that if this player is undoubtedly the best player in the league, it shouldn't matter if he's got two in a row, it shouldn't matter that this guy has zero and he's good as well.
9:02
SPEAKER_00: Like you should give it to the best player available.
9:04
SPEAKER_00: And but that just hasn't been the case throughout the course of not just NBA history, but just history of sports in general.
9:10
SPEAKER_00: Everybody wants to crown a new guy.
9:13
SPEAKER_00: This is why we love parody in the NBA.
9:14
SPEAKER_00: We want to crown new people, we want to crown new teams.
9:17
SPEAKER_00: But in reality, when it comes to these type of awards, especially since these awards and these accolades are now um tied to your your contracts and stuff, it is important, it is imperative that we give it to the best player in that best season.
9:28
SPEAKER_00: And you can argue that Nicole Jokic was that and he should have three MVPs.
9:32
SPEAKER_00: Either way, the way he has been performing over the last couple years, he's gonna be in conversations as long as he's healthy to be getting that third MVP.
9:40
SPEAKER_00: The Denver Nuggets just ran through the Western Conference and ended up beating the Miami pretty easily.
9:45
SPEAKER_00: I wouldn't be surprised if they're back holding another Larry O'Brien trophy over the next couple seasons.
9:50
SPEAKER_00: This guy looks like he's not slowing down anytime soon.
9:53
SPEAKER_00: And if you add a three MVPs and you add an NBA championship on top of that, you're in a class with Bill Russell, Will Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Moses Malone, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Mike and LeBron.
10:08
SPEAKER_00: A lot of people would argue those players right there, those two, four, six, eight players, seven of those are already in the top ten right now.
10:16
SPEAKER_00: So if he adds another MVP, and that's only counted for one ring.
10:20
SPEAKER_00: If we decide to throw two rings in there, again, hypothetically they get a second one, then the class gets more exclusive.
10:26
SPEAKER_00: And some of those people get kicked out of the class.
10:28
SPEAKER_00: Like Moses Maloney only has one championship, so he automatically leaves, and then that leaves you with Russell Chamberlain, Abdul Jabbar, Bird, Johnson, Jordan, and James.
10:38
SPEAKER_00: Those players are top ten.
10:40
SPEAKER_00: You know?
10:42
SPEAKER_00: And again, this doesn't account for the seasons where they did not win MVPs but were in conversations or did not win an NBA championship, but they participated in the NBA finals or participated in the conference finals.
10:52
SPEAKER_00: Nicole Jokic undoubtedly is a guy that does these things.
10:56
SPEAKER_00: So he uh he has GOAT status potential.
11:00
SPEAKER_00: Again, uh tinkering GOAT, not necessarily mean number one and number two, but you give me.
11:04
SPEAKER_00: The next guy is Giannis Atheda Kumpo.
11:07
SPEAKER_00: He has two NBA MVPs, as we know.
11:10
SPEAKER_00: He's got a DPOI and he has an NBA championship.
11:13
SPEAKER_00: Uh who fits that criteria?
11:15
SPEAKER_00: It's Michael Jordan.
11:16
SPEAKER_00: It's Akeem Elijah one, it's David Robinson, it's KG, and it is Giannis.
11:21
SPEAKER_00: That's a very select group.
11:23
SPEAKER_00: Now, KG is not teetering top 10, obviously.
11:25
SPEAKER_00: David Robinson's not teetering top 10, but that is an extremely exclusive group of guys, and that's only accounting for one NBA championship or two MVPs, when again, Giannis has been good enough to finish top three a couple times since he's won his last one.
11:41
SPEAKER_00: And he's only 28 years old as of today.
11:43
SPEAKER_00: Like he's got a lot of basketball left to play.
11:45
SPEAKER_00: Nicole Jokic has a lot of basketball left to play, but those are the obvious ones.
11:51
SPEAKER_00: Let's get to some of the younger generation that's not as obvious, but still we can see it happening.
11:56
SPEAKER_00: The first, when it comes to this younger generation of players, is Jason Tatum.
12:01
SPEAKER_00: Jason Tatum is a young 25-year-old, like he won't turn 26 until basically the end of next regular season.
12:08
SPEAKER_00: So he's going into his 25th-year-old season.
12:11
SPEAKER_00: He is a four-time All-Star in that amount of time.
12:13
SPEAKER_00: He is a two-time All-NBA first-team player and also an all-NBA third team player.
12:18
SPEAKER_00: And this doesn't account for his playoff success.
12:22
SPEAKER_00: Now I understand that there has been some very, and I mean very, very stinky series from Jason Tatum.
12:27
SPEAKER_00: One of them being the NBA Finals highest stage.
12:29
SPEAKER_00: He shot like 30 something percent in a series versus the Golden State Warriors, and we can't look past that.
12:35
SPEAKER_00: But he has the potential because he is so young, and because he was voted all NBA team, first team, remember, first team, twice in his career already.
12:45
SPEAKER_00: That is insane.
12:46
SPEAKER_00: I want people to kind of internalize what that means.
12:49
SPEAKER_00: The league voters, whoever they may be, determined that Jason Tatum was one of the two best forwards in the league twice before he was 25 years old.
12:59
SPEAKER_00: I mean, I'm sorry, before he was 26 years old.
13:02
SPEAKER_00: And I think because Tatum has been on the Boston Celtics who have made conference finals run, it feels like every single season, made one finals appearance, it's easy to forget that this this young man is only 25 years old.
13:18
SPEAKER_00: Right?
13:19
SPEAKER_00: It's it's so crazy because I remember before last postseason, there were a lot of conversations about the pressures being on Jason Tatum.
13:27
SPEAKER_00: Because obviously last year in the NBA finals, I'm gonna read I'm gonna read you his stats during the finals because they ain't very pretty.
13:32
SPEAKER_00: It was 21 points per game, it was seven rebounds, it was seven assists, it was 36% from the field.
13:38
SPEAKER_00: That's nasty.
13:39
SPEAKER_00: Luckily he shot 45% from three.
13:41
SPEAKER_00: Maybe it should have got more three-point attempts up.
13:43
SPEAKER_00: Either way, because of his, I don't know, bad performances at the highest stage, people said, hey, the pressure is undoubtedly on Jason Tatum.
13:53
SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa, my brother, let's relax.
13:56
SPEAKER_00: I understand that the the city of Boston wants to win that championship.
13:59
SPEAKER_00: They ain't had once is what?
14:00
SPEAKER_00: Oh, wait, the city of Boston has been in conversations for this year after year after year.
14:06
SPEAKER_00: But how many 25-year-olds?
14:09
SPEAKER_00: How many 24-year-olds are the driving force of an NBA championship team?
14:15
SPEAKER_00: Are the how many of them are the number one option on an NBA championship team?
14:22
SPEAKER_00: Almost none.
14:23
SPEAKER_00: Almost none.
14:24
SPEAKER_00: Here's the list.
14:25
SPEAKER_00: Jokic was 28, Curry was 33, Giannis was 26.
14:29
SPEAKER_00: That's one of the youngest ones, of course.
14:31
SPEAKER_00: Uh LeBron James, 35, Kawhi 27, Kevin Arant, 28 and 29, LeBron 31, Iggy 31.
14:38
SPEAKER_00: It's still crazy to me that Iggy won that.
14:40
SPEAKER_00: Kawhi Leonard at 22.
14:42
SPEAKER_00: And I'm in the process, and we're talking about this a little bit later, I'm gonna add it to my notes, of re-watching um NBA Finals.
14:49
SPEAKER_00: And I'm gonna talk about that series specifically a little bit later.
14:52
SPEAKER_00: Um obviously he's one of the youngest ones.
14:53
SPEAKER_00: LeBron at 28, 27, Dirk at 32, Kobe at 31, Kobe at 30, Paul Pierce at 30, uh, Tony Parker at 24, and Dwayne Wade at 24.
15:02
SPEAKER_00: That those back-to-back years are kind of crazy.
15:05
SPEAKER_00: But you see the sample size, and that's just going back from 2006.
15:08
SPEAKER_00: If we kept going and going and going, anybody under the age of 25, you have Tim Duncan at 22, but Tim Duncan is a top 10 player of all time.
15:17
SPEAKER_00: Like, the you don't normally see this young of a player as the one option on a championship team.
15:24
SPEAKER_00: Has it happened?
15:25
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
15:25
SPEAKER_00: I just read it to you.
15:26
SPEAKER_00: Kawhi did it.
15:28
SPEAKER_00: Was Kawhi the one option?
15:29
SPEAKER_00: We're gonna talk about that.
15:29
SPEAKER_00: But we've seen younger players do it, but it is extremely abnormal, right?
15:35
SPEAKER_00: Everybody talks about the the 27 club, but in the sports world, it's a lot different than the other 27 club.
15:41
SPEAKER_00: Whereas like once you hit the age of 27, 28, that's usually when you win your championship.
15:46
SPEAKER_00: That's usually when you win your finals MVP.
15:47
SPEAKER_00: And when I read you those numbers, it it kind of uh tells you that story.
15:51
SPEAKER_00: So are there pressures?
15:53
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
15:53
SPEAKER_00: I would be a jackass to say that this is no pressure considering the amount of success they had that and this always halted at the conference finalslash one time in the NBA finals.
16:03
SPEAKER_00: But to say this is a make or break season of a guy of Tatum's caliber and of a guy in Tatum who's only 25 years old is Asinai.
16:11
SPEAKER_00: Because what does that even mean?
16:13
SPEAKER_00: Oh, if he don't win the championship, then he he can't be in the conversations with Yada Yadis.
16:18
SPEAKER_00: Bro, how many times have we seen a player get exiled from a certain conversation for him to be like, oh yeah, two years later?
16:25
SPEAKER_00: We were wrong about that.
16:26
SPEAKER_00: We just for we just decided to step out just a little bit earlier than than we thought we should have.
16:32
SPEAKER_00: It's just not, oh, you want to say if he can't do it at the age of 25, we should trade him?
16:36
SPEAKER_00: Sure.
16:37
SPEAKER_00: It'll be 29 of the NBA teams just picking up their phone and say, hey, hey, we want Jason Tatum.
16:41
SPEAKER_00: Again, I understand there's been some stinky ones and some really, really stinky ones.
16:45
SPEAKER_00: Even this year, where he went entire halves in the second round versus was at the 76ers, where he could not score basket.
16:52
SPEAKER_00: He went like four quarters straight without scoring a basket.
16:54
SPEAKER_00: Like, I understand that.
16:56
SPEAKER_00: But again, if we're talking about a player that's gonna play until he's 35, and right now, the way medicine is going and the way these players take care of their body, we're gonna see a lot more players playing past 35, especially if you're really good.
17:10
SPEAKER_00: He's got 10 plus more seasons to add to this already extensive resume.
17:14
SPEAKER_00: God forbid he gets a championship or two in Boston.
17:17
SPEAKER_00: God forbid that.
17:18
SPEAKER_00: Because right now, based on his current play, he's always, and I mean, always gonna be in all NBA conversations as long as he's healthy.
17:25
SPEAKER_00: And I'm not even specifically talking about first teams, second teams, third teams, he's always gonna be in a conversation.
17:30
SPEAKER_00: So he might retire and remember he was drafted.
17:34
SPEAKER_00: I think this was Bill Simmons.
17:35
SPEAKER_00: I would assume it's Bill Simmons because it's the Boston Celtics I'm thinking about, where they nicknamed him Ten Time Tatum because he's gonna make an all-NBA team 10 times.
17:44
SPEAKER_00: Right now, he has been in the league since 2007.
17:47
SPEAKER_00: If I'm doing math, that is six years, right?
17:49
SPEAKER_00: Six years, he has three All-NBA appearances already, and two of them are the pinnacle of all NBA appearances.
17:57
SPEAKER_00: So he's another guy that I'm adding to potentially could end up in the top 10, 15, 20 all time, depending on I think depending on overall team success.
18:07
SPEAKER_00: Uh and I wouldn't put it past him that he's gonna win an MVP at one time in his career.
18:11
SPEAKER_00: And then the last one, the easiest one to talk about, is Luka Doncic.
18:16
SPEAKER_00: This man has been in the NBA since 2018.
18:20
SPEAKER_00: That is a five-year NBA career.
18:22
SPEAKER_00: He has made the all-star game four times, and he's been all NBA first team four times.
18:30
SPEAKER_00: Four times.
18:32
SPEAKER_00: And one of them times, they didn't even make the playoffs.
18:36
SPEAKER_00: They didn't even make the playoffs.
18:37
SPEAKER_00: It was like, no, he's just really that nice, so he's gonna be on first team.
18:40
SPEAKER_00: He's just really that nice.
18:40
SPEAKER_00: It don't even matter that they didn't make the playoffs.
18:42
SPEAKER_00: He's he's gonna do this every single season.
18:43
SPEAKER_00: Not saying he's gonna end up first team every single season because there are a lot of young players and a lot of other players across the league that could potentially take him down to the second team, third team.
18:51
SPEAKER_00: But as far as being an all-NBA caliber player, that is undoubtedly gonna be the thing.
18:55
SPEAKER_00: He has four of them before he turned 24.
19:00
SPEAKER_00: I let I gotta do some research to figure out if there's any other players that even have done that.
19:05
SPEAKER_00: I'm sure there are.
19:05
SPEAKER_00: But that is crazy.
19:07
SPEAKER_00: The greatest player in Dallas Mavericks history, of course, is the legendary Dirk.
19:11
SPEAKER_00: Dirk was a 12-time All-NBA player, 14-time all-star.
19:16
SPEAKER_00: Luka Doncic, when he was named to the All-NBA first team this season when he was 24 years old, tied Dirk's record of first team appearances.
19:26
SPEAKER_00: So as soon as Luca get that next first team appearance, he would have more than the legendary Dirk.
19:34
SPEAKER_00: Think about that.
19:36
SPEAKER_00: That is insanity.
19:39
SPEAKER_00: And he ain't even 25 yet.
19:41
SPEAKER_00: Congratulations to him.
19:42
SPEAKER_00: I saw recently that he got engaged on 7-7 because his number's 7-7 is something like that.
19:47
SPEAKER_00: So shout out to him and his fiance.
19:49
SPEAKER_00: Wish them nothing but the best.
19:51
SPEAKER_00: But he has done ridiculous things already in his NBA career.
19:55
SPEAKER_00: The only thing is, will he ever have the team around him that can help him get past a conference finals appearance?
20:03
SPEAKER_00: Because we know to be true, this man increases his play in the playoffs.
20:08
SPEAKER_00: His first year against the LA Clippers.
20:11
SPEAKER_00: Remember, this is him.
20:12
SPEAKER_00: I think this is this Bubble?
20:13
SPEAKER_00: This might be a year before Bubble.
20:14
SPEAKER_00: All of my years are kind of mixed up.
20:17
SPEAKER_00: This is his he's 20 years old, mind you.
20:19
SPEAKER_00: And uh the Clippers have two of the greater perimeter defenders of this generation on the team, and they were taking turns getting cooked by this man.
20:27
SPEAKER_00: He averaged 31, 10, and 9 on 50-38 shooting.
20:31
SPEAKER_00: Now he shot 66% from the free throw line, which is kind of crazy for Luka Dontage.
20:35
SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's not crazy for him, but it's crazy in general considering how many free throw attempts you get.
20:39
SPEAKER_00: They lose their series uh two to four.
20:42
SPEAKER_00: Cool.
20:42
SPEAKER_00: The very next season, I think this might be the bubble year.
20:45
SPEAKER_00: He plays against the Clippers again.
20:47
SPEAKER_00: This time around, they go all the way to a game seven and they lose.
20:50
SPEAKER_00: And I remember this because Michael Kid Gilchrist was getting minutes for the Dallas Mavericks in an NBA playoffs.
20:57
SPEAKER_00: Michael Kid Gilchrist.
21:00
SPEAKER_00: No disrespect to him.
21:01
SPEAKER_00: Shout out, shout out to him, but this roster had no business.
21:06
SPEAKER_00: This roster had no business playing Michael Kid Gilchrist minutes in the NBA playoffs.
21:12
SPEAKER_00: Actually, who else was getting random minutes?
21:14
SPEAKER_00: Um remember Nico Nico Melli?
21:17
SPEAKER_00: He was getting real minutes, Dan.
21:19
SPEAKER_00: Uh so that that was that was something that happened.
21:22
SPEAKER_00: Um, and in this series, they went all the way to seven, and he averaged 35, 10, and 8 on 50, 40, 50.
21:30
SPEAKER_00: Oh my god, Luca.
21:31
SPEAKER_00: We gotta get those free throw percentages up.
21:32
SPEAKER_00: What the heck?
21:33
SPEAKER_00: Maybe y'all win game seven if you get a couple more free throws.
21:36
SPEAKER_00: Okay, they lose that one.
21:37
SPEAKER_00: And then the run came in 2020, too.
21:40
SPEAKER_00: 2022.
21:41
SPEAKER_00: The first round they go against the Utah Jazz, slight work.
21:42
SPEAKER_00: Luka Donce has only had to play three games of that series.
21:44
SPEAKER_00: Shout out to Jalen Brunson.
21:45
SPEAKER_00: Got that man paid, and now he's in New York doing his own thing.
21:48
SPEAKER_00: He averaged 29, 10, and 6 on that.
21:51
SPEAKER_00: The next series, they go against the Phoenix Suns.
21:53
SPEAKER_00: And we all know the legendary moment against the number one seed at Phoenix Suns.
21:56
SPEAKER_00: They blow them boys off their home court by a thousand points and in that series.
22:00
SPEAKER_00: He averaged 32, 10, and 7.
22:01
SPEAKER_00: And then they get to the conference finals to go against the Almighty Warriors.
22:05
SPEAKER_00: And well, they did not play as well collectively, but he also averaged 22, 9, and 6.
22:13
SPEAKER_00: These are the playoff performances we're getting from at that point.
22:16
SPEAKER_00: He was 22 years old.
22:17
SPEAKER_00: Now he didn't make it last season, unfortunately.
22:19
SPEAKER_00: I think it's bad for ball.
22:21
SPEAKER_00: It's bad for ball when Luka Donch is not in the playoffs because he's one of those elevated playoff players.
22:26
SPEAKER_00: He didn't make it last season.
22:28
SPEAKER_00: But as long as he makes it, you can count on him to increase his play.
22:33
SPEAKER_00: And God forbid they ever put together a roster that's of an NBA caliber around him because he could undoubtedly end up as a guy that we look back on and say, man, he's top 10.
22:45
SPEAKER_00: He's top 15.
22:47
SPEAKER_00: He's top 20.
22:48
SPEAKER_00: And that's my list.
22:50
SPEAKER_00: There are a lot of young players out in basketball that could potentially do it, but those are the guys that I'm, I wouldn't say confident in, but I think have the highest chances, right?
22:58
SPEAKER_00: There are some people that were on the border that I thought about, but I was like, man, it's too early.
23:01
SPEAKER_00: They ain't done enough, whether it be playoff success or whether it be just individual regular season success.
23:07
SPEAKER_00: But as far as potential goals or talent goes, the NBA is as talented as it's ever been.
23:13
SPEAKER_00: And even though Julius Irvin don't think so, that is 100% a fact.
23:19
SPEAKER_00: I'm in my glow, man.
23:20
SPEAKER_00: I'm in my glow.
23:21
SPEAKER_00: That is a perfect segue to the next thing we want to talk about, which is Dr.
23:26
SPEAKER_00: J.
23:26
SPEAKER_00: Dr.
23:27
SPEAKER_00: J was um was asked some questions.
23:29
SPEAKER_00: And you know what?
23:29
SPEAKER_00: I do want to say I appreciate when when people are asked questions and they give their true, honest opinions, even if their opinions are rooted in salt, even if their opinions are, you know what I'm saying?
23:41
SPEAKER_00: But at least you kept it true to yourself instead of BSing and not giving what you fully believe.
23:46
SPEAKER_00: One of the questions he was asked recently was his top ten players of all time.
23:50
SPEAKER_00: Hey, listen, you don't have to give me no order, Doctor.
23:53
SPEAKER_00: You ain't gotta give me and I don't even think you're a real doctor, by the way.
23:56
SPEAKER_00: You don't have to give me your real order, Dr.
23:58
SPEAKER_00: J, but tell me who you believe the top ten players in the history of this great sport are.
24:03
SPEAKER_00: Here's his answers Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, Elgin Baylor, Will Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Car Malone, and Tiny Archibald.
24:19
SPEAKER_00: Those are his top ten players in the history of this sport.
24:24
SPEAKER_00: As you can recognize when I read those names out, there was a significant portion of the history of basketball that were completely excluded.
24:33
SPEAKER_00: Once you get past Michael Jordan slash Car Malone, so we're talking anything from the year 2000 to the year 2003 uh 23, right?
24:41
SPEAKER_00: I almost said 13.
24:42
SPEAKER_00: Jeez, I am tripping.
24:44
SPEAKER_00: No player was at it.
24:47
SPEAKER_00: His list stops.
24:49
SPEAKER_00: History doesn't stop.
24:50
SPEAKER_00: The ball don't stop bouncing, but in Dr.
24:52
SPEAKER_00: J's mind, the basketball hasn't been played since 1999.
24:58
SPEAKER_00: Once Jordan went to the Wizards, that was the end of the NBA.
25:03
SPEAKER_00: And if that was the case, your list ain't terrible.
25:07
SPEAKER_00: You know?
25:08
SPEAKER_00: It ain't great.
25:11
SPEAKER_00: It ain't terrible.
25:12
SPEAKER_00: You're missing some key guys like uh the legend, Larry.
25:16
SPEAKER_00: But teach his own.
25:18
SPEAKER_00: He completely decided to avoid this current generation or even the last generation of the Kobe's of the War, the Tim Duncans of the War, so on and so the Dirks of the War, so on and so forth.
25:28
SPEAKER_00: And he also had some comments that came off as pretty pretty salty.
25:34
SPEAKER_00: Do you observe it came off as pretty salty?
25:36
SPEAKER_00: And I before I read you these quotes and everything, I do want to say that when it comes to the game of basketball, one thing I admire is when a former player gives love to the current generation.
25:49
SPEAKER_00: Because there are so many players throughout history that are just salty about the way things are going.
25:56
SPEAKER_00: And Tizone, right?
25:57
SPEAKER_00: Again, you're you're able to have your own opinions or whatever, whatever.
26:00
SPEAKER_00: But there's so many older players that just can't look past the fact that this league is talented, as talented as when you were playing, potentially more talented than when you were playing.
26:11
SPEAKER_00: And instead of giving love and praises to these this younger generation and so on and so forth, they decide to be petty.
26:19
SPEAKER_00: I guess that's the best word to say it.
26:21
SPEAKER_00: Petty.
26:22
SPEAKER_00: They decide to be petty on alone these things.
26:24
SPEAKER_00: That's why I really like um when Alan Iverson, anytime you put a microphone in front of Alan Iverson, he's going to sing praises of this current generation.
26:32
SPEAKER_00: He loves John Morant.
26:33
SPEAKER_00: He loves John Morant, you know?
26:35
SPEAKER_00: Ask some people maybe slightly but before Alan Iverson about John Morant.
26:39
SPEAKER_00: Their opinions might be significantly different than what Alan Iverson believes.
26:43
SPEAKER_00: Now he did say that he wanted players to finish their careers before we added them to top 10, top 20 of all, or top 10 of all time.
26:50
SPEAKER_00: And you know what?
26:51
SPEAKER_00: Respectable, right?
26:52
SPEAKER_00: So that means no LeBron, no Steph Curry, whatever, whatever.
26:54
SPEAKER_00: But dang, no Shaq.
26:56
SPEAKER_00: No Timmy D.
26:57
SPEAKER_00: Those players are done.
26:58
SPEAKER_00: You know what I'm saying?
26:58
SPEAKER_00: Anyway, he says that it's like the prisoners are running the show and not the warden.
27:03
SPEAKER_00: It's just where a star on the team is like, oh, screw this city, all the support that you're giving me.
27:09
SPEAKER_00: I'm going south.
27:10
SPEAKER_00: I'm going to Florida.
27:11
SPEAKER_00: I'm going to LA.
27:12
SPEAKER_00: I'm going to Texas.
27:13
SPEAKER_00: I'm going somewhere else.
27:14
SPEAKER_00: These decisions and their business decisions, I understand.
27:17
SPEAKER_00: But they have not helped the game.
27:20
SPEAKER_00: They have not helped keep parody within the game when you build these super teams.
27:25
SPEAKER_00: Um, so shout out to Julius Irvin.
27:27
SPEAKER_00: That is the direct quote red verbatim.
27:29
SPEAKER_00: So um, is it taken out of context?
27:31
SPEAKER_00: Is it aggregated?
27:32
SPEAKER_00: Quite possibly, but hey, we're gonna we gonna talk about what we got.
27:36
SPEAKER_00: He also does give his blessing, if that means anything to some people, to a guy like Damian Lillard, because Damian Lillard has played 12 to 13 season one organization, and they haven't done their part to build a championship team around him.
27:47
SPEAKER_00: So if he goes somewhere else to try to win a ring, that is okay.
27:49
SPEAKER_00: But he says that what Kevin Durant did is not okay.
27:52
SPEAKER_00: 26 years old, 27 years old, wanted to hop around.
27:54
SPEAKER_00: How many times has Durant hopped around?
27:56
SPEAKER_00: Look at how many times Durant's hopped around.
27:59
SPEAKER_00: Oh man, he was very passionate about that.
28:00
SPEAKER_00: He said the same sentence two different times.
28:02
SPEAKER_00: No, for real.
28:03
SPEAKER_00: Okay C, then Golden State, and now he's a Phoenix.
28:05
SPEAKER_00: Um, he forgot about the the Brooklyn era.
28:10
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
28:11
SPEAKER_00: All right.
28:11
SPEAKER_00: Um, so let's let's talk about it.
28:13
SPEAKER_00: Let's talk about it.
28:14
SPEAKER_00: Um, because there's some truth to what he's saying, potentially, um, about how the super team could be looked at by some people to have ruined the game of basketball, right?
28:23
SPEAKER_00: We've seen a couple super teams throughout history.
28:25
SPEAKER_00: Depends, I mean, we gotta, I guess, define what a super team is.
28:29
SPEAKER_00: Uh, the 08 Boston Celtics is a super team, right?
28:31
SPEAKER_00: Having KG, Paul Pierce, and Ray Aller with a young Rondo, possibly.
28:35
SPEAKER_00: But I think a lot of people look at Super Team Um and immediately think of the LeBron James Warriors, right?
28:41
SPEAKER_00: The decision was something that we may never see in NBA history again, right?
28:45
SPEAKER_00: The decision was a one-of-a-kind type thing, and we saw LeBron James, Chris Bosch, and Dwayne Wade team up, all of those players in their prime-ish, in their prime ish, right?
28:55
SPEAKER_00: We saw them all team up together.
28:57
SPEAKER_00: Um, even though the Lakers had uh old Car Malone and Gary Payton, a lot of people saw that as potentially a super team, but they failed, so it can't be a super team.
29:04
SPEAKER_00: Or like the Steve Nash, Dwight Howard, uh Kobe team, some people saw that as a super team.
29:08
SPEAKER_00: They failed, so it can be a super team.
29:09
SPEAKER_00: You only can classify a super team is if you win a championship, I guess.
29:12
SPEAKER_00: Um has this ruined the league?
29:15
SPEAKER_00: I mean, you can argue that during that time of when Kevin Durant was on the Warriors, it was completely unfair.
29:20
SPEAKER_00: And guess what?
29:20
SPEAKER_00: I will say to you, you're probably right.
29:23
SPEAKER_00: That that form of basketball, nobody had the talent to really hang.
29:28
SPEAKER_00: It took a a torn Achilles and an ACL for no disrespect to the Raptors because the championship is a championship and they all hold similar weight to me.
29:37
SPEAKER_00: But it took all of that for them to lose with that roster.
29:41
SPEAKER_00: So thank God to uh that that Draymond didn't pass that ball and ended up getting to a fight with Kevin Durant, because I guess there's a world where that doesn't happen and Kevin O'Rant stays the Warriors and the NBA is just no parody whatsoever.
29:52
SPEAKER_00: But I argued, and I have argued for a very long time, because my favorite team was going against the super team, right?
29:58
SPEAKER_00: Here we go, talking about the Chicago Bulls.
29:59
SPEAKER_00: Kenny can't get enough.
30:00
SPEAKER_00: He can't go an episode without talking about the Bulls.
30:03
SPEAKER_00: When the Bulls were at the best post-90s, post-Jordan era, was obviously the years where Derek Rose were the MVP, Joe Kim Noah, Lual Dang, Carlos Poozer, those teams had championship potential and they had championship aspirations.
30:15
SPEAKER_00: But they ran up against the Miami Heat every single year.
30:18
SPEAKER_00: No exaggeration.
30:19
SPEAKER_00: Every single year they ran up against the Miami Heat, and because the Miami Heat were the Miami Heat, they didn't really stand a chance.
30:25
SPEAKER_00: So in real time, I hated it.
30:27
SPEAKER_00: I hated the fact that these players teamed up together.
30:30
SPEAKER_00: I do want to remind people, I'm in high school at this point, and I just I just want to see my favorite team be good.
30:36
SPEAKER_00: I want to see my favorite team win a championship because the last time the Bulls won a championship, my I was sitting on my dad's knee.
30:42
SPEAKER_00: I was that young.
30:43
SPEAKER_00: You know what I'm saying?
30:43
SPEAKER_00: I was two years old the last time the Bulls rang or held the Larry O'Brien trophy.
30:47
SPEAKER_00: And obviously, I don't remember.
30:49
SPEAKER_00: Don't remember that.
30:49
SPEAKER_00: I want to see it again.
30:50
SPEAKER_00: So in real time, I I despised the super team.
30:53
SPEAKER_00: I despise the Miami Heat.
30:56
SPEAKER_00: But now, at the age of uh young 26, I I could see an argument that a super team is kind of good for the league.
31:05
SPEAKER_00: Now, whoa, whoa, whoa, Kenny, what are you talking about?
31:07
SPEAKER_00: What are you talking about how can you say a super team is good for the league?
31:10
SPEAKER_00: I mean, in a sense that there is something, other than just raising the Leary O'Bron trophy, there's a villain.
31:16
SPEAKER_00: And I mentioned this on our other podcast, the Through the Wire podcast, you can find it on all the platforms you're finding this one and on YouTube.
31:22
SPEAKER_00: That having a team that is the team that needs to be beaten, the team that everybody looks at to be juggernauts, to have that across the game of basketball is kind of fun.
31:36
SPEAKER_00: When the Chicago Bulls broke the 27, I don't know, I mean 25-game win streak of the Miami Heat, that one night when Nate Robinson was our starting point guard, that was one of the most fun memories I have as an NBA fan.
31:49
SPEAKER_00: And that was a regular season memory, right?
31:52
SPEAKER_00: When LeBron and Wade fake coughed because Dirk was going through some type of illness and Dirk came out and bust their ass in the NBA finals.
32:00
SPEAKER_00: I love that.
32:02
SPEAKER_00: When the greatest, most fun, free-flowing basketball team of all time, the 2014 San Antonio Spurs, got their lick back.
32:11
SPEAKER_00: I love that.
32:12
SPEAKER_00: You know what I'm saying?
32:13
SPEAKER_00: Now we didn't really get that type of uh closure with the Warriors because the way they ended up losing to the Raptors did stink, right, to have Klay and Kevin Durant both go down in that series sucks.
32:24
SPEAKER_00: But it we people wanted to see them go down.
32:27
SPEAKER_00: Um, and I think that can be good for the league.
32:30
SPEAKER_00: I will say the way the league is right now, for me, has been better.
32:34
SPEAKER_00: And that's why I wanted to talk about these comments about Julius Irvin because he is a couple years too late.
32:39
SPEAKER_00: Over the last couple years, five to be exact, we've seen a different NBA finals matchup every single year.
32:48
SPEAKER_00: 2019, we saw, of course, the Warriors lose to the Toronto Raptors.
32:52
SPEAKER_00: 2020, the bubble year.
32:55
SPEAKER_00: I don't know why I have to preface that every single time.
32:57
SPEAKER_00: The Lakers championship counts, and it's a good championship.
32:59
SPEAKER_00: The Lakers beat the Miami Heat in 2021, the Bucs beat the Phoenix Suns.
33:04
SPEAKER_00: 2022, the Warriors come back and they beat the Boston Celtics.
33:08
SPEAKER_00: They were down 2-1 in their series, and then the Nuggets beat the Miami Heat this year.
33:12
SPEAKER_00: We have seen a stretch of a parody.
33:16
SPEAKER_00: And we have not seen this type of stretch in parody in a very, very long time.
33:22
SPEAKER_00: How long ago, do you ask?
33:24
SPEAKER_00: How long has it been since we've seen five consecutive seasons with a different NBA champion?
33:30
SPEAKER_00: It's been since the 1981 NBA season.
33:36
SPEAKER_00: That's how long it's been.
33:38
SPEAKER_00: In 81, the Boston Celtics won against the Rockets, and 80 the Lakers beat the 76ers, and 79, the Seattle Supersonics, bring them back, please, beat the Bullets, and then the year before that, the Bullets beat the Supersonics.
33:50
SPEAKER_00: So we did see the same two teams go against each other in the finals, but opposite results.
33:54
SPEAKER_00: The Trailblazers beat the 76ers in 77, and the Boston Celtics beat the Phoenix Suns in 76.
34:00
SPEAKER_00: That's how long it's been since we've seen this stretch of this many different NBA teams consecutively holding the Larry O'Brien trophy.
34:08
SPEAKER_00: So, Dr.
34:09
SPEAKER_00: J, if you had these comments six years ago when it was Warriors here, Warriors here, Cavs here, Warriors here, Spurs here, Heat, Heat here, then I understand it.
34:19
SPEAKER_00: But nowadays these go on deaf ears because there is all-time parody.
34:23
SPEAKER_00: You know?
34:24
SPEAKER_00: The Phoenix Suns, as good of an offseason they had as crazy of a team they've constructed with Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, and Kevin Durant, it's they're not the heavy favorite to win a championship this season.
34:34
SPEAKER_00: They're not.
34:35
SPEAKER_00: If they did it, I don't think people would be surprised.
34:37
SPEAKER_00: But on the same token, if they didn't, I don't think people would be surprised.
34:41
SPEAKER_00: When I think about all-time no parody seasons, if the Warriors didn't make it to the finals versus the Cavs, that was catastrophic.
34:50
SPEAKER_00: If the Spurs didn't find a way to be in the conversations for an NBA championship push, that was catastrophic.
34:57
SPEAKER_00: If the Miami Heat didn't get back there a year at four years in a row, that would have been catastrophic.
35:03
SPEAKER_00: That is lack of parody.
35:05
SPEAKER_00: Right now, there's no team like that.
35:07
SPEAKER_00: The defending NBA champions, Denver Nuggets, if they if they don't go back to the finals next season, we're not like, oh, snap.
35:13
SPEAKER_00: They failed.
35:14
SPEAKER_00: If the Miami Heat don't return, it's not a surprise.
35:17
SPEAKER_00: If the Boston Celtics or the Warriors don't return, it's not a surprise.
35:22
SPEAKER_00: So parody, even right now with Kevin and Devin building a quote-unquote super team, parody is at an all-time high.
35:31
SPEAKER_00: And again, I'm saying that without seeing the finished product on the floor for the Suns.
35:35
SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's a world where the Suns are world beaters and they're killing the game.
35:39
SPEAKER_00: But as of right now, I don't look at that team and be like, oh, that is the undoubtable NBA champion as of right now.
35:44
SPEAKER_00: Could they do it?
35:45
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
35:47
SPEAKER_00: But if you were to say, Kenny, you could either bet all your money on the Suns or don't bet any, guess what I'm doing?
35:54
SPEAKER_00: I'm not betting any.
35:55
SPEAKER_00: And the Miami Heat years, bet all your money that the Miami Heat will be in the finals.
36:00
SPEAKER_00: Oh, no problem.
36:00
SPEAKER_00: I'm betting my money.
36:01
SPEAKER_00: They run the East.
36:02
SPEAKER_00: Bet all my money that Kevin Arrentz and Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, Jeremy Green make to the finals.
36:07
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah, I'm betting all my money.
36:08
SPEAKER_00: I'm betting every single penny.
36:09
SPEAKER_00: Because that's how confident I was.
36:11
SPEAKER_00: Nowadays, can't do that.
36:13
SPEAKER_00: And that's parody.
36:15
SPEAKER_00: And I love it.
36:16
SPEAKER_00: I just love it, man.
36:17
SPEAKER_00: The Denver Nuggets had never won an NBA championship in their league in their team history.
36:21
SPEAKER_00: The Toronto Raptors never won a championship in their team's history.
36:25
SPEAKER_00: The Bucks, they had won one, but it had been in the early 70s.
36:28
SPEAKER_00: It's been a very long time.
36:29
SPEAKER_00: So we're seeing teams that haven't been able to raise that trophy, raise the trophy.
36:34
SPEAKER_00: Fan bases that have been tortured for decades at a time.
36:38
SPEAKER_00: Do the thing.
36:39
SPEAKER_00: The Denver Nuggets did the thing.
36:41
SPEAKER_00: Think about it.
36:42
SPEAKER_00: The Toronto Raptors did the thing.
36:45
SPEAKER_00: And I do want to say, all of this does stem from a question from Snowball Life 99.
36:49
SPEAKER_00: My apologies, Snowball.
36:50
SPEAKER_00: I should have given you your love at the top of this.
36:53
SPEAKER_00: He did ask Kenny, do you think we're getting closer to true parody in the NBA or further away from it?
36:57
SPEAKER_00: Of course, my answer is closer to it.
36:59
SPEAKER_00: Also, in his name, he says Joy Boy has returned.
37:02
SPEAKER_00: Shout out to my Straw Hat believers out there.
37:05
SPEAKER_00: If you know, you know.
37:05
SPEAKER_00: You know what I'm saying?
37:07
SPEAKER_00: The next question is a very interesting one, and it comes from Pinada.
37:11
SPEAKER_00: I don't know if I'm pronouncing that right.
37:13
SPEAKER_00: And I honestly I don't even know if I should be saying that because I don't know what it is.
37:16
SPEAKER_00: Could that be a word I shouldn't say?
37:18
SPEAKER_00: Hold on.
37:18
SPEAKER_00: Okay, I Google it.
37:19
SPEAKER_00: And they think I miss uh misspelled Panda.
37:22
SPEAKER_00: So I'm gonna say that I'm I'm in the green to say that name.
37:26
SPEAKER_00: He said, apart from the easy answers like Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul Jabbar, who are some players that you wish you could have seen before your era?
37:33
SPEAKER_00: Or seen them in their prime if you saw them later on?
37:37
SPEAKER_00: This is a very great question.
37:39
SPEAKER_00: Because uh I I don't know if I mentioned this on this show, but I became an NBA fan at like the 2003 NBA season.
37:45
SPEAKER_00: I was born in '96, so the 2003 NBA season means that I am a kid.
37:49
SPEAKER_00: I am eight years old, seven years old or so.
37:51
SPEAKER_00: So though I wasn't, I became an NBA fan there, it's not like I'm out here remembering who was in the lead in the NBA Finals, who had a 2-1 lead or 3-0 lead.
37:59
SPEAKER_00: I didn't go back that far, but it's like when I say I became an NBA fan, that's what that was the time I became cognizant of what the NBA was and start to learn the players and start to learn all of that stuff.
38:10
SPEAKER_00: So even that early era is still a question mark in my brain.
38:16
SPEAKER_00: So when you ask me this question, I'm I'm gonna talk about some players that I've definitely seen before in live action, but I don't remember too much.
38:25
SPEAKER_00: Like a Tracy McGrady type, you know?
38:28
SPEAKER_00: Specifically, I want to I want to watch the players that are not all-time greats as far as like top 10, top 20, top 30 all-time, but all-time type of talent.
38:38
SPEAKER_00: Because right now, there's a lot of conversation around Tracy McGrady on Twitter.
38:41
SPEAKER_00: It is the dead of the offseason, so people are grasping for straws about things to talk about.
38:45
SPEAKER_00: I saw a tweet, um, or maybe it was a Reddit post that was like Tracy McGrady's um published team is an all-timer because he's talked about as one of these great players.
38:53
SPEAKER_00: When in reality, he's never won a playoff series, which again, never winning the playoff series, is actually insane.
38:58
SPEAKER_00: Even though I'm re-watching the 2013 NBA finals and in game two, I want to say it was, he played exactly one minute in game two because it was a blowout.
39:07
SPEAKER_00: So he has been on the finals floor once upon a time in his career, but as the guy, let's just say as the guy, he was never able to get over the hump of just winning a singular playoff series.
39:18
SPEAKER_00: And if I could go back in history and watch stuff in real time, I would go back and figure out exactly why that was the case.
39:25
SPEAKER_00: Because I don't want to fall into the bandwagon of just looking at a basketball reference saying, damn, that's a lot of L's in the playoffs and just say that is what it is.
39:32
SPEAKER_00: Right?
39:33
SPEAKER_00: I want to be there to experience these things because I I feel like when you experience certain things, it hits a lot differently than just looking at box scores or just looking at statistics or just looking at that.
39:43
SPEAKER_00: And the perfect example is 2011, Chicago Bulls, uh, MVP Derrick Rose versus the LeBron James thing.
39:48
SPEAKER_00: Like if you were there, the the MVP of Derrick Rose makes a lot more sense than it does in retrospect when you look at the numbers and stuff, right?
39:55
SPEAKER_00: And I want to be there to watch a T-Mac, to watch a younger Vince Carter, to watch those type of guys that like actually these guys have an archetype.
40:04
SPEAKER_00: The Hoopers Hoopers.
40:05
SPEAKER_00: I want to watch the early 2000s Hoopers Hoopers.
40:08
SPEAKER_00: You know what I'm saying?
40:09
SPEAKER_00: I that that is an archetype that as an NBA fan I I don't love too much, right?
40:15
SPEAKER_00: I like a guy that's a little bit more-rounded, a little bit more defensive-minded if you look at my favorite players of all time.
40:20
SPEAKER_00: Um, but maybe that's because I didn't get to see the prime example of a hoopers-hooper in like a T-Mac or something along those lines.
40:28
SPEAKER_00: Or even, I mean, I remember watching Alan Iverson when I was younger, but if I could relive some of those performances, and I understand pretty much everything is readily available online, but it's just a little bit different when you're there in real time, right?
40:41
SPEAKER_00: The uh the Golden State Warrior shot, the Steph Curry shot against the OKC Thunder Wave pulled up from slightly in half court, you can watch that highlight a thousand, a million times.
40:51
SPEAKER_00: It's not gonna hit the same as if you were sitting on your couch watching, which I was doing that day.
40:56
SPEAKER_00: You know what I'm saying?
40:57
SPEAKER_00: Like, oh, I guess I was laying in bed.
40:59
SPEAKER_00: But regardless, being there in real time just matters a little bit more when it comes to I don't want to say your opinion holding weight, because I I do believe there's a world where looking at numbers are very it's a valuable option when you weren't there for something.
41:13
SPEAKER_00: But being there just matters a lot more in my opinion.
41:17
SPEAKER_00: But I also wanted to see, I want to see some of the players that are deemed to be like the more unique players across the game of basketball.
41:26
SPEAKER_00: Charles Barkley was listed as 6'6.
41:28
SPEAKER_00: He's come on record and say, I'm definitely not 6'6.
41:30
SPEAKER_00: He was the round mound of rebound, he was an MVP of the league.
41:34
SPEAKER_00: He averaged almost 12 rebounds a game as somebody that was maybe 6'4, 6'5.
41:38
SPEAKER_00: And though I could watch every Harwood classic in the world, I would love to experience that in real time.
41:42
SPEAKER_00: Same thing with Yao Ming.
41:44
SPEAKER_00: Um, Yao Ming's prime, I was a little bit older, so I did get to experience it, but I would love to go back and re-watch that.
41:50
SPEAKER_00: Um Luckily, I'm I'm happy that I got to see Braun.
41:53
SPEAKER_00: I'm happy that I got to see Steph Curry.
41:55
SPEAKER_00: Um, I would love to go back and see a younger Shaquille O'Neal and how agile he was.
42:01
SPEAKER_00: But I think this is a good time, man.
42:03
SPEAKER_00: I think this is a good time to be an NBA fan.
42:05
SPEAKER_00: Um, and not saying that the other years weren't, but like there's a lot of diversity in like way you play way you play ball.
42:12
SPEAKER_00: Steph Curry's the greatest shooter of all time.
42:14
SPEAKER_00: We're actively seeing that.
42:15
SPEAKER_00: LeBron James is arguably the greatest individual player of all time.
42:19
SPEAKER_00: You're still seeing that though he's 99 years old, he's still great.
42:22
SPEAKER_00: Um so I don't want to take anything for granted, but if I could go back, those would be some of the players that I would go back to see.
42:28
SPEAKER_00: Oh, also Muggsy Bose.
42:30
SPEAKER_00: Muggsy Bose was a start in the NBA for a decade.
42:32
SPEAKER_00: He was 5'3.
42:33
SPEAKER_00: How the hell that happened?
42:34
SPEAKER_00: How the hell that happened?
42:35
SPEAKER_00: I need to go back and watch it.
42:36
SPEAKER_00: That's all.
42:36
SPEAKER_00: Now, before we get out of here, there's a couple more things I do want to talk about.
42:39
SPEAKER_00: As I mentioned earlier in the show, I've I've decided to go back and re-watch a bunch of NBA finals.
42:45
SPEAKER_00: If you do not know, if you have an um NBA league pass subscription, the NBA had this is not an ad, but NBA, I swear to God, I would I would do an ad for you.
42:55
SPEAKER_00: I would call my phone.
42:57
SPEAKER_00: Call my phone, baby.
42:58
SPEAKER_00: We were the number one sports podcast in the in in America for a couple weeks now.
43:02
SPEAKER_00: Um they have every single NBA Finals game from 1990 to now.
43:08
SPEAKER_00: And obviously, as I mentioned, my NBA fandom started early 2000s, so there was a lot of ball that I did not get to see.
43:14
SPEAKER_00: So now that with the dead in the offseason, I do need my NBA fix, you know what I'm saying?
43:18
SPEAKER_00: I have gone back and decided to re-watch a bunch of different NBA finals.
43:22
SPEAKER_00: And actually, the one I started off with, believe it or not, and I actually might be making a video about this because maybe, maybe, maybe.
43:29
SPEAKER_00: 2013 NBA Finals.
43:31
SPEAKER_00: That was when I was available for.
43:33
SPEAKER_00: That was I was in high school.
43:34
SPEAKER_00: I remember a maybe not everything about it.
43:36
SPEAKER_00: I remember a lot about it, but I also remember it being one of the better NBA finals that we could get in that time frame.
43:41
SPEAKER_00: So I'm like, forget it.
43:42
SPEAKER_00: Of course, if you do not know, this is the year of the Ray Allen step back three to force overtime, winning overtime, go to a game seven, LeBron takes over game seven, boom, boom, boom, Tony Parker hits a game winner in game one.
43:51
SPEAKER_00: But I'm like, okay, I just want to see.
43:53
SPEAKER_00: Um, part of the reason is it's a deck exactly a decade from ago, so I want to see how much things have changed.
43:58
SPEAKER_00: And boy, oh boy, when I tell you the game of basketball in just one decade has changed so much.
44:05
SPEAKER_00: And again, I might make a video about this, so I don't want to spoil anything.
44:09
SPEAKER_00: But I have been going through the archives of NBA Finals to just live something that I wasn't there for in some cases, or relive things that I had I was there for.
44:20
SPEAKER_00: And I would say if you do have the subscription, do it as well.
44:24
SPEAKER_00: And listen, if you don't have the subscription, don't go out of your way to get it because it's expensive as hell.
44:29
SPEAKER_00: Um, but I'm sure there are other ways you could find it.
44:32
SPEAKER_00: But I can I don't think I should say that.
44:33
SPEAKER_00: If I want that sponsorship from the NBA, I probably shouldn't be saying that.
44:35
SPEAKER_00: But I do recommend going back and re-watching different eras of NBA Finals games because boy, you learn so so much.
44:44
SPEAKER_00: Um different broadcasts, broadcasts, the different names, the coachings, the aesthetic of everything.
44:51
SPEAKER_00: It's just so much different from year to year.
44:54
SPEAKER_00: And of course, the ball itself is also so much different.
44:57
SPEAKER_00: So again, just a recommendation.
44:59
SPEAKER_00: If you if you want to take this journey with me, go re-watch some NBA Finals games and years and you know, come back and tell me what you think about certain years.
45:08
SPEAKER_00: There are years that I would completely avoid, though.
45:10
SPEAKER_00: There's been some bad, bad years.
45:12
SPEAKER_00: The one year that the the Cavs got completely swept, it gave us a game out of four.
45:17
SPEAKER_00: Don't go back there unless you want to watch that singular game.
45:20
SPEAKER_00: It's some years that are just completely bad.
45:22
SPEAKER_00: And what I would do is I would Google like ranking NBA Finals series and don't go to the bottom, go straight to the top.
45:28
SPEAKER_00: I would assume 2013 is pretty high on the list, because again, that was a crazy year.
45:32
SPEAKER_00: Tony Parker was doing his thing.
45:33
SPEAKER_00: LeBron and the Heatles were on fire, and of course, they ended up winning.
45:37
SPEAKER_00: And then 2014, even though it may be not, it does, it may not have the game winners that 2013 had, the brand of basketball that the Spurs would play at.
45:47
SPEAKER_00: But I think we talked about that uh last episode, so I don't want to go too far into it.
45:50
SPEAKER_00: Hey man.
45:51
SPEAKER_00: Hey, I right now I got myself a 45 minute minimum.
45:55
SPEAKER_00: If we could get over 45 minutes, I feel great.
45:58
SPEAKER_00: And we did that today.
45:59
SPEAKER_00: So I do want to say I appreciate everybody.
46:01
SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much for listening to the Kenny Beach and Pod.
46:03
SPEAKER_00: If you did sit here for 30 of 46 minutes and listen to me ramble about the game of basketball, I would appreciate a five stars or review.
46:11
SPEAKER_00: Because like I mentioned, we fail out of the top 10.
46:14
SPEAKER_00: And when you do review and stuff, it does help us get up further in the algorithm.
46:18
SPEAKER_00: Um, we're in the process of doing some pretty cool stuff, and the numbers, I'm I'm being transparent with y'all because I think it's important.
46:24
SPEAKER_00: The numbers of this show is uh is really important.
46:29
SPEAKER_00: So I do want to say I do appreciate the support um on the few episodes, and hopefully the Candy Beach and podcast can one day be the best.
46:35
SPEAKER_00: Because I don't even I'm not even looking at the the the number of downloads or something.
46:40
SPEAKER_00: I mean like the quality, the conversations that we're gonna eventually have when we have guests.
46:44
SPEAKER_00: Hopefully, it can be the number one sports pod out there.
46:48
SPEAKER_00: Uh, we're working our way to it.
46:49
SPEAKER_00: I'm still learning how to talk for this long at a time, and hopefully I'm doing all right.
46:54
SPEAKER_00: Appreciate y'all.
46:54
SPEAKER_00: See y'all soon.