Latest / Bleacher Report / Mavericks GM Nico Harrison Addresses Trading Luka Doncic to the Lakers for Anthony Davis

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Mavericks GM Nico Harrison Addresses Trading Luka Doncic to the Lakers for Anthony Davis · Bleacher Report

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  Speaker 1: All right, I'll open it up. Thanks for everybody for coming. Jay,
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  Speaker 1: is it normally this crowd is they don't want to
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  Speaker 1: hear about everybody.
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  Speaker 2: No.
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  Speaker 1: On a serious note, we definitely understand the magnitude of
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  Speaker 1: of what just transpired. It's not lost on us, you know,
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  Speaker 1: definitely would like to thank Luca for his brilliance and
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  Speaker 1: you know over the last you know, four years, since
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  Speaker 1: we've been here, what we've been able to accomplish as
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  Speaker 1: well as uh, you know, MAXI Kleeber, you know, when
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  Speaker 1: he got hurt the other day and I go in
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  Speaker 1: the back and check on him, and the first thing
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  Speaker 1: he says is sorry for getting hurt, you know, but
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  Speaker 1: that just you know, kind of goes to the type
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  Speaker 1: of person he is. And then and then also smooth
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  Speaker 1: like he was such a such a great guy in
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  Speaker 1: the locker room. So I just want to, you know,
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  Speaker 1: thank all those guys for the contribution to get us
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  Speaker 1: to where we're at. Uh. And then as we turn
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  Speaker 1: the page, I think it's important to know that Jak
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  Speaker 1: and I we've had a vision in the culture that
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  Speaker 1: we want to create since we've been here, and the
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  Speaker 1: players that we're bringing in, we we believe exemplify that.
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  Speaker 1: And you know, we think defense wins championships and we're
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  Speaker 1: bringing in one of the best two way players in
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  Speaker 1: the league. A lot of people don't talk about, you know,
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  Speaker 1: what he does defensively and offensively. But you know, if
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  Speaker 1: you guys, you can name first team All NBA players
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  Speaker 1: that are also first team All defensive players, that's a
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  Speaker 1: unique unicorn to try to find, and we're able to
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  Speaker 1: find that. Uh and as well, you look at you
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  Speaker 1: look at Max Christy. You know, he's he was their
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  Speaker 1: starting two guard, got it all the top players in
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  Speaker 1: the league, and he's young and athletic and bouncy and
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  Speaker 1: you know, gets his hands on lots of balls. So
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  Speaker 1: we really feel that they're bringing in they're adding into
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  Speaker 1: the culture that we're trying to create here. We feel
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  Speaker 1: the defense wins championships and we're excited to go. We
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  Speaker 1: feel like we're built to win now as well as
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  Speaker 1: in the future.
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  Speaker 2: Niko, this is obviously one of the most unique is
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  Speaker 2: there's never been a player has accomplished as Luca credited
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  Speaker 2: at this point in his career, especially without asking.
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  Speaker 1: What got you guys to do what you felt like?
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  Speaker 1: Moving on interesting franchise Yeah, I think it wasn't really
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  Speaker 1: like a point. I think it was like, how do
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  Speaker 1: we make our team better? You know, there's some unique
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  Speaker 1: things about his contract that we had to pay attention to.
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  Speaker 1: You know, there's there's other teams that were loading up,
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  Speaker 1: you know that he was going to have. He was
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  Speaker 1: gonna be able to decide to make his own decision
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  Speaker 1: at some point of whether he wants to be here
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  Speaker 1: or not, whether we want a super maxim or not,
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  Speaker 1: or whether he wants to opt out. So I think
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  Speaker 1: we had to take all that into consideration and feel
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  Speaker 1: like we got out in front of what could have
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  Speaker 1: been a tumultuous summer. Did you have any indication from
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  Speaker 1: him or his representation that he was going to opt
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  Speaker 1: out or not take the extension or.
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  Speaker 2: Anything like that.
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  Speaker 1: No, not at all, Not at all, nothing nothing verbally
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  Speaker 1: that would that would lead me to believe that.
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  Speaker 2: Why would the supermax full decision on your end?
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  Speaker 1: Oh no, It's it's not a matter of it being
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  Speaker 1: a difficult decision. It's a matter of, you know, once
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  Speaker 1: you put that out there, they accept or they don't.
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  Speaker 1: And at that point, you're, you know, you kind of
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  Speaker 1: have you're on the clock. Did you have discussions with
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  Speaker 1: any other team's sites the Lakers, So this deal no,
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  Speaker 1: And I'd like to give Rob Polinka a lot of credit.
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  Speaker 1: You know, trades, you guys have been around here. Trades
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  Speaker 1: don't happen at the smallest level without stuff getting out.
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  Speaker 1: And Rob and I were able to have, you know,
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  Speaker 1: really intense conversations over the course of you know, three
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  Speaker 1: or four weeks that started out as a coffee that
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  Speaker 1: you know, it was more Hey would you ever? I
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  Speaker 1: don't know what I let me think of, you know,
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  Speaker 1: and then it it build upon that, and you know,
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  Speaker 1: we kept it between us. We had to. We had
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  Speaker 1: to keep it tight. Jay Kid didn't know about it.
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  Speaker 1: But Jaki and I are aligned and we talk about
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  Speaker 1: archetypes and we talk about the culture that we want
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  Speaker 1: to create. So I know the type of players that
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  Speaker 1: that he likes without actually talking to them. Hey would
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  Speaker 1: you like? You know? So I know that and JK
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  Speaker 1: coached them when they won a championship. So so I
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  Speaker 1: think when you're aligned with your coach like that, I
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  Speaker 1: know the type of players that he likes, and so
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  Speaker 1: I felt good about it making sense to where we're
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  Speaker 1: trying to go.
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  Speaker 2: Pedigree and potentially that he showed them.
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  Speaker 1: So far, this feels like a group that you absolutely
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  Speaker 1: have to be right about.
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  Speaker 2: There can't be any doubt in your mind.
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  Speaker 1: When you pull the trigger on it. I'm just curious
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  Speaker 1: what convinced Vothue that you will not be wrong. Well,
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  Speaker 1: let's be clear, I'm the one making the decision, and
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  Speaker 1: Jay's supportive of it, so it's it's me. I don't
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  Speaker 1: do anything that's scary. I think everything that we do
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  Speaker 1: we put a lot of work into it. We study it,
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  Speaker 1: and we restudy it, and we go back and I
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  Speaker 1: understand the magnitude of it. So the easiest thing for
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  Speaker 1: me to do is do nothing, and everyone would praise
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  Speaker 1: me for doing nothing, But we really believe in it,
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  Speaker 1: and time will tell if I'm right.
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  Speaker 2: You've said it in a number of times.
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  Speaker 1: You mentioned the word culture and how.
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  Speaker 2: Anthony and the other players you bring back that culture.
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  Speaker 1: Are you playing that we could no longer fit that culture? No,
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  Speaker 1: listen one thing about me. I'm not going to talk
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  Speaker 1: bad about any players like that's I mean, it's not
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  Speaker 1: going to do you know us or me any good.
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  Speaker 1: I just say there's levels to it, and there's people
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  Speaker 1: that fit the culture and there's people that come in
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  Speaker 1: and add to the culture, and those are two distinct things.
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  Speaker 1: And I believe the people that we're coming in are
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  Speaker 1: adding to the culture. What would you just say to
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  Speaker 1: fans who are frustrated above this move. I'm sorry they're frustrated,
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  Speaker 1: but it's something that that that we believe in as
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  Speaker 1: a as an organization. It's going to make us better.
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  Speaker 1: We believe that it sets us up to win, not
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  Speaker 1: only now but also in the future. And when we win,
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  Speaker 1: I believe the frustration will go with the conversation. The
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  Speaker 1: first time he laughed at me. No, I mean Patrick,
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  Speaker 1: he's he's the owner. Obviously he's the ultimate decision maker,
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  Speaker 1: but he entrusts in j Kid and I to lead
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  Speaker 1: this team, and he's putting the trust into us. And
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  Speaker 1: then obviously you got to get judged on the performance
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  Speaker 1: that you've done as a as a leader, and it's
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  Speaker 1: on point. If it doesn't work out, then I'll be
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  Speaker 1: judged for that.
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  Speaker 2: Jason, what is your trade? Yeah, I think it's uh,
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  Speaker 2: you know, it's something that as Nicos brought up, we
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  Speaker 2: are are aligned, right and so just understanding Luca, when
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  Speaker 2: I first came here, you know, excited about the opportunity
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  Speaker 2: to coach upcoming star and who became a megastar and
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  Speaker 2: I was just blessed to have that opportunity to coach him.
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  Speaker 1: Uh.
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  Speaker 2: But when you look at the vision of the team
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  Speaker 2: and what Nico wants to build, I truly support that
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  Speaker 2: and I truly believe that the players that we are
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  Speaker 2: getting are the ones that can help us achieve that.
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  Speaker 2: And that's to win a championship. Well, why do they
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  Speaker 2: get that vision better? It's not about better, it's it's
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  Speaker 2: about you know, being able to Again, Nico has talked
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  Speaker 2: about defense. Defense wins championships. AD is the one that
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  Speaker 2: we truly believe fits with d Live and Gaff and PJ.
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  Speaker 2: And so when you look at going forward, uh, we're
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  Speaker 2: looking at the window to win now and uh and
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  Speaker 2: with a D and Christie and not not to figure
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  Speaker 2: about Christy. He's a young wing that we believe that fits.
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  Speaker 2: What are your vision.
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  Speaker 1: You guys?
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  Speaker 2: I gotta be honest with you right now. I'm only
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  Speaker 2: focused on today's game, right like I am. I got
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  Speaker 2: I gotta I got a list of players. I gotta
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  Speaker 2: tell you who are out and uh, we got a
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  Speaker 2: game today, right, and so uh as we go down
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  Speaker 2: the line, I'll be able to answer that question uh
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  Speaker 2: for you. And I'm not avoiding that question, like uh,
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  Speaker 2: as you see the roster's building, he probably will start
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  Speaker 2: at the four. But I can give you more concrete
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  Speaker 2: uh information as we go forward.
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  Speaker 1: Right when do you expect these Uh? Not sure not.
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  Speaker 1: I don't have the perfect answer for that, because, I mean,
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  Speaker 1: everything just happened. I don't even think it was midnight
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  Speaker 1: last night, like two three in the morning. So we're
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  Speaker 1: still trying to get physicals figure out how long that's
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  Speaker 1: gonna take get people in the market. So we don't
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  Speaker 1: have a perfect answer for that.
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  Speaker 2: You have an idea about a needs availability in terms
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  Speaker 2: of the atominal issue that he's dealing.
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  Speaker 1: With, now, No, we'll learn one. It wasn't significant too.
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  Speaker 1: We'll learn more as we go through the physicals.
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  Speaker 2: You think this will work in the short term in
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  Speaker 2: the long term?
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  Speaker 1: Short?
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  Speaker 2: Short term makes great sense.
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  Speaker 1: How do you see this working out well for the
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  Speaker 1: organization in the long term? Well, I think the long
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  Speaker 1: term is the time frame. I think he fits our
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  Speaker 1: time frame. If you pair him with with Kyrie and
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  Speaker 1: the rest of the guys, he fits right along with
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  Speaker 1: our time frame to win now and win in the future.
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  Speaker 1: And the future to me is three four years from now,
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  Speaker 1: in the future ten years from now, I don't know.
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  Speaker 1: I don't think they probably bury me and Jay buddy
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  Speaker 1: or we bear ourselves. Yes, all right, question, Thanks, everybody
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  Speaker 1: appreciate it.