How The Bulls, Pacers, Bucks, Pistons, And Cavs Can Turn Uncertainty Into Wins

Summary:

The Central Division is wobbling between comfort and courage, and we’re calling the shots that actually move teams forward. We start in Chicago, where play-in habits and expiring money collide with a promising youth surge. Josh Giddey’s vision is opening the rim, Kobe White’s value is peaking, and Matas Buzelis looks ready to close. The question isn’t whether the kids can flash; it’s whether the front office will trade from strength to chase real upside and finally fix the rim protection gap.

Indiana faces a different test: how to keep pace without its engine. With Tyrese Halliburton rehabbing and Miles Turner gone, Rick Carlisle leans into defense-to-corners offense, Pascal Siakam’s short-roll reads, and Andrew Nembhard’s point-of-attack grit. The spotlight lands on Benedict Mathurin’s decision making and Jarace Walker’s second-side initiation—because replacing lost threes and paint gravity requires more than hope, it requires habits that scale into 2026.

Milwaukee makes the boldest bet: Point Giannis at speed. Doc Rivers wants quicker decisions, high outlets, and wing sprints on every make. Miles Turner replaces Brooke Lopez with younger legs and pick-and-pop volume, clearing lanes and forcing long closeouts. The third scorer becomes a nightly committee—Kevin Porter Jr., Gary Trent Jr., or a Kuzma cutting revival—while corner threes aim to lift Giannis’s assist totals and calm the half-court.

Detroit pushes for consistency over flashes. Cade Cunningham set the tone; now Jaden Ivey must become the clean No. 2 with point-of-attack stops and corner volume. With Asar Thompson disrupting and Jalen Duren anchoring, JB Bickerstaff’s rotation needs reliable bench shooting from Duncan Robinson and Chaz Lanier to keep spacing honest when the game slows.

Cleveland stares at a rare opening and a heavy bill. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland drive the offense, Evan Mobley must claim more usage, and Jarrett Allen has to translate regular-season dominance into playoff bite. Health and wing depth help, but the verdict comes in May: validate the core or reshape it.

If you’re here for real stakes—windows, role clarity, and decisions that change ceilings—hit play. Then subscribe, share with a Central fan, and drop your boldest prediction in our mentions. We’ll read the best takes on Tuesday’s prediction show.

BE A FRIEND AND TELL A FRIEND!!!

Social Media and Handles:

X - Twitter Handles

https://x.com/frontrunnerpc

https://x.com/Raya_FunchFRPC

Be included in the podcast!!! Drop us a line and the best ones will get read on the podcast!!!

Blue Sky Handles

frontrunnerpc.bsky.social

frpc-socialdept.bsky.social

Be included in the podcast!!! Drop us a line and the best ones will get read on the podcast!!!

YouTube 

https://www.youtube.com/@FRPCVince

Blogs & 2nd Screen exp.

https://frpc.beam.ly/blog

Transcript

How To Follow And Send Feedback

Bulls Overview: Stuck In The Middle

Kids Closing Time In Chicago

Giddey, Kobe, And The Asset Math

Lineups, Defense, And Rim Protection

Pacers Lose Their Engine

Siakam’s Usage And Next Men Up

Milwaukee’s Philosophical Reset

Turner’s Fit And Giannis Speed Plan

Detroit’s Cade-Ivey Era Begins

Depth, Bench Roles, And Shooting Needs

Cleveland’s Window And Allen Question

Pressure Year And Closing Groups

Programming Notes And Predictions Tease

Sign-Off And Community Message

Speaker 0:13

What's good everybody? Welcome to Front Runner Podcast Collective, where we talk as friends, we argue like cousins, and somehow we leave just a tad smarter. I am your host, Vince, your occasional therapist, and sometimes your favorite bad influence. We unpack wins, the mess, the middle ground, with jokes, have receipts, and maybe a hot take will age badly. We also have Sarah, she's producing the show. She will be bringing in some other notes that we're gonna need for this podcast, and today we are in the middle of America. We are in the Central Division where we will be talking about the Chicago Bulls, the Indiana Pacers, the Milwaukee Bucks, and so on and so on. So buckle up, we're gonna have a really good podcast for you today. And uh let's get this thing running, shall we? I want to start with a couple things. One, uh, we are going to be breakneck podcasting over like the next two or three days. We know that we are a couple podcasts short, even though you got a podcast on Tuesday. We know that we are a couple podcasts short. So at some point during this weekend, there will be two more podcasts, and that will have the Southeast Division and also the Atlantic Division. Now, we don't know if we're gonna break it up into two so you it can be digestible for you, and then there'll be correlating blogs that go along with it. And mind you, if you're not getting the vlog or what have you, um, that is on FRPC beam dot ly. The company was bought over the last couple of weeks, or whatever the case may be, so that is where it is, and we'll also put it in the notes in this in this podcast, as far as that's concerned. So you'll have that at the bottom. You can go right to it, and it'll give you a company piece to the podcast. It'll have a lot of things in there. Uh, it'll have like maybe some stats that we left out, it'll have some observations from myself and from Saraya. We are really proud of it, and we hope that it kind of brings you just a little more context into what we do beforehand, and also a little bit more about the podcast that you're listening to now, so keep that in mind as well. Also, we want to talk to you, get with us either on Twitter X, however you want to, I'll still say Twitter, and so it's Front Runner PC, and then the producer of this show, it is at Raya underscore funch f R P C Funch is spelled F-U-N-C-C-H. Make sure that you have those, and also you can send us an email frpcvince at gmail.com. We want to talk to you, we want to get your opinions on the show, we want to get your opinions on maybe what we talked about about your team. So let us know how we can get better. One, and also let us know if we were right on the button about your squad, or is there something else that we should be talking about when we bring up your squad? And speaking of squad, let's get into this podcast, shall we? We are gonna start in Chicago. Ah, Chicago. Chicago is a team that is middling, literally, they're not bad enough to get the draft pick that they probably need. They're not good enough to really contend, so they are in perpetual playing mode. Now, I will say this about Chicago, they put on some really awesome performances when they get to the plan. Uh, they scare the living hell out of like Miami and people like that, but then they always seem to succumb to whoever's they're up against in the plan. Now, this year's iteration of the Bulls is a lot like last year's iteration of the Bulls, which for Chicago fans might be it's another year where you wish you would just have your front office rip off the band-aid, or if you are savvy enough, make a couple you know shrewd trades here and there, and see what you could do and kind of move up within the ranks, especially this year, with how bad the East is. So Chicago still, we still have Chicago as a team that will probably be in the play-in mix, even with all the injury situations that are going on in Philadelphia, in Boston, in Orlando, oh, in Indiana, Milwaukee is not dealing with an injury anymore, but they had Damian Willard who had the Achilles tier, and then they sent they uh bought him out, and he went back to Portland. So there's a lot of teams that Chicago could be way better than, but because of the fact that they have not been in a situation to get that impact player in the draft or what have you, we're kind of in this same situation that we've been in for quite some time. Now the Ryan's Dwarfs are really happy about this because they get an extra gate, okay? So more money for the Ryan's Dors. But let's get to the team itself, shall we? One thing that I do want to say is that I did watch a Chicago Bull game, uh, preseason game lately, and what I did notice is that they did use their athletes way more in that game, and I was wondering if this is a kind of a glimpse into the future of what the Chicago Bulls is going to look like. They played against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the kids closed the game out. It was a 118-117 win over Cleveland. Dalen Terry's chased down block, Jalen Smith with a denial and a seal in a grown-up sequence. Our guy Modest Bucellas, which is kind of the beam of light that's in Chicago, a Chicago-born young man who went home. He scored 19 points, had 18 rebounds in 18 minutes. He showed no fear. He showed Seattle Meadow to Mobley and Jared Allen at the rim. He was he was not playing no games. He's a play finisher, not a heliocentric type of guy, and that scales pretty good if you got a really good point guard. That's could be where the problem lies, or could be where the problem is solved. We will talk about Josh Giddy momentarily. We also saw a Singway who is their rookie, and he shows some defensive prowess in this particular game. I don't know how much he's gonna play this year because he's still very, very raw, and you know, we just got and also he's kind of still uh on the slight side. Chicago has some pieces that they are actually excited about, but they still don't have that impact player, and how do they get it? So hopefully we can answer some of these questions along the way. But the patients must show receipts weekly for this new iteration to catch form. Now in Cleveland, they showcase their wingspan, their motor, and their composure from depth. This year's development first will be something that is going to be prioritized by the front office and by the coaching staff, which is great because if you can kind of get yourself into a situation where you can get yourself a good draft pick, especially in this draft that's coming up, you can start the healing process of having more talent, high-end talent you don't have right now. Now, Buzelis might work himself into that situation, we'll talk about him soon. But if you look at like Kobe White is a really nice player, I love his development, I love what he's turned out to be, and there might be other levels to it because he started to score in bunches last year. Giddy's there, who he did stabilize the offense. I like that piece. He did get his money, and we'll talk about that. But then you have Nikola Vucevic, and there is some of the problem. You also have Patrick Williams. There are still warts on this roster, no doubt, and these things are going to be pushed out with time because Patrick Williams is in the middle of a four-year 90 million dollar contract, which we still think to this day not great, not great, Bob. So let's get to why this all matters. Minutes now shape dollars later, and what I mean by that, what Kobe White and his production, now can Josh Giddy live up to the contract that he just got extended by? Can these dudes lead the Chicago Bulls to better? Now I think with the talent around them, I would have to say not as of yet. The one thing that Josh Giddy brought to the Chicago Bulls this last season, they got really good looks at the rim. Whether it was a pass that he made that nobody would have seen except for him, or it was his a his ability to penetrate the lane and then kick out the shooters. Now, Kobe White plays with his hair on fire, and I love that his energy, I love that he can get hot very quickly. I wonder if Kobe White is going to be a trade piece down the road for a team who needs like a six-man whose instant offense off the bench. Now, Chicago fans will be like, Why are you taking one of our better players away from us? The reason why I would tell you that I would personally want to trade Kobe White is because of the fact that I would be looking, build up my draft assets, and then be able to then parlay those into moving up in the draft or moving around where I can still accrue even more assets. Kobe White is a gem of a piece that you have. He will be somebody that will be sought after at the trade deadline if you choose to move him. Now, you don't obviously choose to move him, you got other pieces. The other piece that's out there that a lot of people are talking about is Vucevic. And you'll say, Well, Vince, we've heard this story three years in a row. Vucevic is gonna get traded. Now he's in the last year of his contract, and you're probably not gonna get a lot for him. Maybe you can get like a second draft guy, somebody that some you know, somebody that an organization gave up on. Maybe if you attach it with something else, you could get somebody better or future draft compensation. I think that the Chicago Bulls should be looking at a at something where it would be future draft compensation. When you got Buzelis, who's a quick low three waiting to happen, he can relocate to the corner. He also loves to crash down and get boards and get Tim uh get tip in dunks and things of that nature. His handle is a little bit better than what you would think it is. He has like a hezzy move that provides instant realm pressure. The guy is somebody you can start building around. He is could be part of your foundation for later. Now, a singue, who was your first round pick this last year, he is a bored man. This dude is active, he gets rebounds, it is amazing. And when they played against the Cleveland Cavaliers, you know, with him, they were a plus 12 on the court in 14 minutes. Io Dusumu is another guy that, yes, I know Bulls fans love him. He went to the University of Illinois, uh, he stabilizes that second unit, pushes the pace, and also provides a basically he gives you that spear, that tip of the spear on the defensive end. He's a point of attack defender, pretty physical, holds up pretty well, and he can go from point guard to shooting guard to sometimes if you have a smaller wing at that three position, he can go ahead and guard that person as well. I like a lot about uh Io De Sumo. I love this kid. I think the one thing that you have to think about if you're the Chicago Bulls is can you turn Ayo Desumu into a pick later down the road? Not necessarily because of the fact that you're trying to get rid of them, just because of the fact that again, you're trying to affect the high-end talent, and I'm gonna continue to preach that throughout the rest of this segment. Now, their cap sheet right now uh is pretty friendly, they have a max space for next year if the time line if the timelines align. Uh, and I got that from John Hollinger of the Athletic. And if you do not read John Hollinger, uh he is very informed and he puts together some thought-provoking pieces. So if you love this podcast, go ahead and jump on the athletic. The athletic has really good uh writers, especially for the NBA, a lot of knowledgeable people, and they provide really good information or jump jump offs to the stories that we're talking about. Now, I will say this after Vucevic, there's nothing, we got nothing, okay, and the problem with that is that Vucevic is going to his contract is going to expire at the end of this season, and what is going to be in the middle? We have no idea, there is no plan for this right now. Now, I'm sure uh Karnishevich will tell us that he does have a plan. I have not seen that plan as of yet, and we'll see how that goes. But if for some reason you're able to go ahead and move on from Busevich and get something back for him, whether it's second-round picks, you know, we never know who is going to be desperate at the trade deadline. This is another piece that you're able to kind of you know move as a chess piece down the road. Now, let's get to some people who have been doing well, have produced for the Chicago Bulls. The before-mentioned Kobe White, his true shooting percentage last year was 0.601. He had a three-point uh attempt rate of 27.4%, and he had a usage rate of 19.5 on ball. That's not very much, but the good thing about that is that you have Josh Giddy, who is pretty much your quintessential point guard. Now, the rookie Buzell is Laird. Well, he was a rookie last year, he's in his second year this year. The true shooting percentage last year was 57.1%. He had a three-point attempt rate at uh oh 47.9, that's great. And then he had total rebounds of 9.6 percent. His usage rate was also 18.7, so he was on ball at a decent amount, and he seemed to value the basketball. He was in a turnover machine, which is great to hear when you're especially when you're talking about a young cat who's at what 6'8, is Montes Bozelis. Really nice, and he also plays with an edge, he plays with a fire, and he doesn't seem to be intimidated by all of the luminaries that play in the NBA whatsoever. It's something that you love to see. He's not gonna back down from your Kevin Durant to the world, he's not gonna back down from like Giannis Antecumpo and people like that. This is a great thing for the Chicago Bulls, especially Buzelez being somebody who was from Chicago, it was a lifelong dream to play for the Chicago Bulls, so that was such a good story last year. Now, why this matters between these three guys is efficiency signals closing vibe. If Giddy's catch-and-shoot attempts are more, and he continues to shoot the ball at the rate that he did last year, you might have something. Because the triumvirant of, and I know I was talking about trading Kobe White, and I'll get back to that in a second, but the triumvirant of Giddy, Buzelis, and Kobe White, as far as productivity, as far as points are concerned, there's your three. There's your three if you're talking about okay, this is my this is our stabilizing offense. We can rely on this every single night, and that's what you want. Now, again, Kobe White, if he's that productive, why would you want to get rid of him? Again, it's not about getting rid of somebody productive just for the sake of tanking, it's what you can get back for him. Can you turn Kobe White into a 20-year-piece and also a draft asset? That's the long-term future focused thinking that you need from the Chicago Bulls at this point in time, especially if you do not want to be 37 and 45, 39 and 43, 40 and 42, and you're just middling in the Eastern Conference, and you're seeing teams like a team that they played in the play-in last year, the Atlanta Hawks. The Atlanta Hawks this year is one of the top three teams in the East. A team that also is ascending is the Orlando Magic, who has a really good young core, and then they added Desmond Bang. So you see how it can change quickly, it can change on a dime. I'm not saying Chicago is that close because they're not. We're gonna need to see a lot more from Guzelis this year, and we're gonna need to see a lot more from Giddy this year to even start to think that we have something that we can start to go, okay. Well, if we add a piece here and there, we can go ahead and start contending. I think we're a long way away from that. I'm not trying to push that on anybody, but what I'm saying is that you can see the um the outline of something good in Chicago, and why I continue to say, hey, well, go ahead and trade Kobe White, because Kobe White is a for a good team, Kobe White is a six-man. Can he start? Yes. Can he start for the Chicago Bulls? Yes. This iteration of the Chicago Bulls, oh, we're around the play in all the time. If you really want to move on and ascend to another level, Kobe White will be a piece that you would go ahead and jettison off, recoup a draft pick or what have you, and then hopefully, with that draft pick andor your own draft pick, get yourself somebody who can provide a better upside than just Kobe White, who is a tremendous scorer. I take nothing away from him on that, but we all know that in the half-court off or the half-court defense, Kobe White will get picked on. He's very slight, he doesn't stand up as far as defense is concerned. You don't have the rim protection that you would need to alleviate whatever Kobe White deficiencies are. So those are the type of things that I want Chicago Bulls fans to think about. I'm not just like crapping on your team, I want you to get better because the Chicago Bulls in the playoffs is a good time for a lot of people, right? I'm just saying that. Now, a couple other things. Have we ever thought about maybe starting Ayu Desumu? He is the half-court cure. Right now, he's a super sub, and we don't know what his value is going to be, but the one thing that you know about Ayu Dasumu is this defensively wise, especially if you have Giddy playing a basically a big guard situation and he's not guarding one of the wings. Here's the guy who can be your point of attack defender, and there's not even a close question about that. This is the problem with Kobe White. Kobe White probably will start for the Chicago Bulls, no doubt, because of the offense is electric, but we know for certain that he will be picked on unmercifully, and the reason why it all matters is that Rose Creep kills efficiency. Yes, it's really nice to make sure that Kobe White is on the court getting you 20 points a game. You know what sucks is that their guard goes out for 28 to 32. I you DeSumo will kind of quell that. Is he the better offensive player? No, he's not. Do you need to put the ball in the basket? Yes, you do. But keep in mind who your center is. If Nikola Busevich is your center, where's the ring protection coming from? Because Buzelis is a weak side rim protector, like he can come off and help, but he's not that guy who's gonna be standing underneath the basket waiting for some wing or guard to come down the chute to go ahead and deter that shot. That is not what Vusevich's job is. He shoots the ball at a decent rate, he'll grab you some rebounds. He's not he's not a great defender, and he never was. He wasn't this in Orlando, and he hasn't been this for Chicago either. So now we talked about Singway a little bit, and what I will say right now is that you what you want to do is you want to get him minutes, but you want to curtail those minutes to a certain group of players. You want to make sure he's on the on the court with Josh Giddy, you want to make sure he's on the court with like maybe Boozelis, or actually, in this case, you want him on the court with Kobe White, so they can get him the basketball, put him in the right situations. It wouldn't be bad to put him in the lineup when Nick Vucevic is in the lineup because he's a decent pocket passer, and the one thing that Asengway does have is raw athleticism, and it has shown itself in the preseason, and it showed itself in the pre-draft workouts. So you might have somebody, it's gonna take time. He is super raw. I'm trying to think of a guy. Old head Chicago fans will know exactly who I'm talking about when I say this name. He never really amounted to what you guys wanted him to be. But do you guys remember Tyrus Thomas out of LSU? Tyrus Thomas was a freak athlete, he was a pogo stick waiting to happen, electrifying dunks. Now, this dude actually had a decent little career, a lot of people loved him, Stro Mile Swift. That's another guy he kind of reminds me of. But I'm hoping that he can put it together a little bit more and understand his role, and I think you might have something because here is a guy who will be able to give you the rim protection that you currently do not have. And if you're talking about having a Singway in Ayo DeSumo to kind of anchor your defense, and then you have Giddy and you have Buzelis and whoever is that third that other starter with those people, then you are starting to form a team that can do something, you know. That's what you're looking for, but we're like years down the road before a Singway can start, at least two or three. I'm telling you right now, discipline preserves builds, so you want to make sure you get this kid and enough playing time, but you don't want to overexpose him where you he loses confidence, and basically the watch list is this is that it is up to Giddy to perform at the level of this contract that he just got. This doesn't work unless Giddy is going to continue to improve. Not saying that he can't, just saying that now that you got your money, make sure that the hustle stays the same. So basically, what are we looking for from Chicago this year? We're looking for the kids to close. We're looking for Buzelis, we're looking for a Singhway, we're looking for Ayu De Sumo, and we're looking to make sure that our guy Josh Giddy continues to improve. Where you have some opportunities to augment your team. Maybe you can get somebody to go ahead and take Vucevic off your hand, especially with him with it having a contract that's about to expire. Because the one thing that you can start selling towards January is expiring contracts, so then you can go ahead and get in the mix for whoever is the free agent du jour in June and July. So Hulk is cheap, stacking proof is priceless. The next checkpoint is simple. Can those minutes survive against starters? Can the rookies trim turnovers and fouls without losing juice? Do me a favor, drop some angles in the mailbag. Let me know what you think of this iteration of the Chicago Bulls. Here is that email again. It's frpcvince at gmail.com or hit us up on Twitter, which is at frontrunner PC, or at Rea underscore Funch FRPC. Hope is the schedule. Meet us there. Now for a team that had a lot of juice going into the end of last year, and it just ended with an absolute thud, and that is the Indiana Pacers. So we're gonna talk about the Pacers and Pacer Nation. They had a great run last year. Uh they played so well, it was pretty just a it was an extraordinary story. They just came out of nowhere, and Tyrese Halliburton was leading that charge, and then you know what happened. And Indiana found itself in full reset mode. Halliburton's Achilles injury is in his rehab situation is going to take all year. Now, do you care? I mean, yeah, because it kind of sucks to be in a situation where you were in the NBA Finals and now you are looking at maybe a lottery pick this year. Now, I know that your coach Rick Carlisle is not about that life, he might should be about that life, and the front office might want to think about a couple things at this point, too. Because that's not the only person they lost, and then you lose Miles Turner to Milwaukee without a signing trade. Here is your starting center, he's gone. Maybe if you had him, you might have been able to keep this thing afloat, get yourself into a play-in situation, and then see what happens. So you will be leaning on Andrew Nimhardt this year. He will be stepping into the point guard role, his defense travels, he was impressive last year in the playoffs and also in the finals. He had a killer mentality when to when he was guarding folks, and it was great to see his development over the year. Now, with his defense traveling, the questions are is that in the middle, if you got a point of attack defender, that means he can slow down your guard a little while. Now, who is going to be at the rim to help? Well, here are the candidates. They signed uh Matt Huff to a deal, he's not a rim protector, but they do still have Isaiah Jackson who came off of a pretty bad injury. James Wiseman also came off a pretty bad injury, and they also have OE Topkin. If you want to play a small ball five. Topkin is your guy. You're gonna see a lot of great dunks. He can block some shots, he's more of a weak side rim protector than he is just right there, just standing in the middle of the paint and going ahead and block his shots. But if you are moving around like banshees and things of that nature, and he comes off one of the wings to help at the rim, you know what's gonna happen. Ring protection by committee means chaos by design. So you know, let's muck it up. Indiana has abandoned its Temblow identity, it just has to find new engines to sustain without Tyrese and Turner's gravity. Why this all matters? Basically, this roles reset now and it shapes the next season 2026 and 2027 ceiling. Because Tyrese will be back, it's what these guys do this year. The habits that are grown this year, telling you exactly what Carlisle is telling these guys right now. Your habits this year are fueling what next year's possibilities could be. I don't know if it's verbatim he's saying that, but I know for sure that's what he's preaching to this iteration of the Indiana Pacers. Is your habits, your work ethic this year will have a lot to do and will show us the insight to what we can be next year when Tyrese Halligurton comes back? I love Soraya's note. She said a sprint team lost its engine, development must draft. Uh, we're just we're killing the Indianapolis 500 references right now. I love it. What are the things that the Indiana Pacers fans should be looking for this year? Well, identity claimed unchanged, but tempo dragged lightly without Tyrese. Obviously, Nimhard will be at the wheel, he will be creating and pushing the buttons to get the ball. Now, also keep in mind, you also got Pascal Siakam. Pascal Siakam is another guy that in a short roll situation people will be panic once he has the ball at the nail. As he starts diving towards the rim, he'll bring attention to the middle of the paint, and then he can kick it out to shooters. And Indiana does have shooters. Ben Matherin is one of them. Nim Hart is another. That you're hoping that can take another leap. You know, without Tyrese Halliburton, you're gonna need some guys to step up. You're gonna need some guys who are gonna go into roles that were not there last year. Because the points are gonna have to come from somewhere. Now, Pascal Siakum will handle some of that, but remember they lost their number one option and they lost their number three option in Miles Turner because he's up the road in Milwaukee. So who is going to deliver the points for the Indiana Pacers this year? Now, Nim Hard will probably step into one of those roles as far as that's concerned. I don't know what kind of upside he has when it comes to his scoring prowess. I'm not saying that he can't get into like the mid-teens and things of that nature, but he's not like a 24-25 point per per game dude. So those points are gonna have to come from somewhere. Where else can we look for to get these points? Is it gonna be points by committee? Is there a diamond in the rough on the bench that we haven't thought about? Well, let's get into it, let's see what we're talking about right now. If Carlisle can preach defense to this team, then another star for them could be their points off transition. And what I mean by that is that if you can get a decently stout defense by using Isaiah Jackson and James Wiseman, you have enough shooting with Nees Smith, Pascal Siakam, Andrew Nimhard, Ben Matherin, where those corners and people getting to those corners is going to be absolutely a must. Because if you're running with pace and they're running towards those corners, guess what's gonna happen? You're gonna get some threes. And then if you're in a situation where somebody crashes down towards the corner, you know, take the ball to the hoop, collapse the defense, a couple swings, and now you got a wide open three. This is the hope for this team. Like if you thought for one second you could put yourself in a situation where you can be really competitive, the problem is that the East is so weak this year that the Pacers might fall into a play-in spot or like the sixth slot where they missed the play-in altogether. Now, I'm not saying 100% that's gonna happen, it just depends on the mentality of this team, and do they have a never say die attitude? Rick Carlisle is no joke as a coach. There were times in Dallas where those teams had no business competing for anything, and he kept them relative. Now, the guy who is looking for more money come the end of the season, who has opportunities just laid at his feet, won Benedict Matherin. The one thing that we've not seen from Benedict Matherin over his time in Indiana is that he scores for himself, and I'm not saying he's a selfish guy, he doesn't see the floor well. You know, he's looking to score at every opportunity, it's just his mindset. Now, the guy who I'm very interested in, and this is another guy who I think could take up some of the uh suck up some of the minutes and some of the productivity, is one Jarrett Walker. We've been waiting two years. He played a lot in the G League this last year. They said the three-point shot is buttery, he's six foot nine, he's 235 pounds, he was a good defender when he was in college. He provides some girth, some strength, so the rebounding is there. He also provides something that Benedict Matherin doesn't. He can be a second sign initiator. If he's sitting at the three-point line in the corner and somebody crashes down on him aggressively, he can put the ball on the deck, he can go ahead and then attack the rim, and if the defense switches over and slides over to him, he can kick it to an open man, and he is adept at doing it. So that might be the other guy that I would be most interested in if I was an Indiana Pacers fan looking at the first 10 to 15 games. What does Jarrus Walker look like? How much time is he actually getting? So, what we're talking about on court takeaways, Nim Hard's offensive growth is required, his defense is gonna be playoff steady and ready at all times, so we don't have to worry about that. Matherin must shoulder some creation, efficiency without Tyrese is going to be monument, it's gonna be paramount. Now, the finishing groups at the five is gonna be a collaboration between Toppin, Isaiah Jackson, Huff, and also Wiseman. That battle royale at the center spot is gonna be crazy. Huff was my he was brought in, mind you, to basically replace the Miles Turner spacing situation. He was not brought in for rim protection. Now, if he can pick and pop with volume and play drop defense, your secondary creation and the people who are playing those spots must deliver if for some reason you think you're gonna do well this year. So, some of the analytic trends that you should look for as well is the three-point attempt rate, they were 21st last season, losing Tyrese Halligar and also Miles Turner, it nukes the attempts because that's where a lot of the attempts were coming from. Matherin, who shot 34% last year, Nimhard, who shot 29% last year, McConnell's a non-threat as well. So, where is those three-point shots coming from? Matherin has to shoot better. Now, Nimhard did shoot better in the playoffs. That is something that is going to be now the norm, or are we gonna fall back to our averages? Fewer deep pulls, fewer hit-aheads, the stretch five, or the rim protection. It is a double-edged sword. Huff will definitely shoot the three ball for you again. Isaiah Jackson and James Wiseman are the guys who are the quintessential rim protectors, but they're not necessarily gonna shoot the three at any rate, they don't do it very well, and you don't expect them to do it. Now, Carlisle's nuisance factor is gonna be high. He will still win and he will scheme and he will have discipline for his teams, he will figure out a way to win games. You know, I don't know how Indiana Pacers fans are feeling right now if they just want to kind of retreat, get a real decent draft pick, and then move on to next year, or you want to try to compete. Now, I mean, when you when I say compete, you're you guys are like competing to just like make the playoffs and kind of just be there. It's like being a vice president of the United States, it's kind of like you're there in the White House, but you don't really make an impact, basically. So I don't know if the Indiana Pacers fans, the euphoria you felt last year when you were making the NBA finals, I don't know necessarily just getting to the playoffs and basically just being a participant of the playoffs is good enough for you guys. Y'all tell me, hit me up on Twitter, Front Runner PC. Indiana's offense will have to slow down without Tyrese. There's no question about that, because of the fact that he can play in the chaos, he can play in the storm. Nimhard is a good guard, but the processing that Tyrese Halliburton has and the and the processing that Andrew Nimhard has are two different animals. More responsibility for Mathering, or is it more responsibility or a new opportunity for our guy Jarrus Walker? I'm hoping that there's opportunity for Jarrus Walker. I was high on him a couple years ago in the draft, and I'm hoping that we see more of him on the court. Also, Siakam is now the number one option. He's better as a number two, but because of the injury and because of everything going on, he's gonna have to slide it to that number one spot. That means that his name is the first name on the whiteboard. You know, you're gonna have to muck it up, maybe put Obi Topman in at the five a little bit for energy, like six-minute energy pushes and things of that nature. That's where maybe you get into the transition game a little bit. But the offense is gonna have to come from somewhere, and it's gonna have to come somewhere with inside the house, unless you're willing or wanting to go ahead and maybe trade off a couple more pieces to make sure you end up in that the low end of the lottery where you might pick it, you're picking anywhere between three and seven. The next team we have to hit is the Milwaukee Bucks. Now, Milwaukee had a pretty strange offseason, so let's get let's get to it. We got Giannis, who's now the point forward, right? Wisconsin's furious online, you know, because of the fact that myself and others are trying to trade Giannis, get him out of Milwaukee. Giannis has even said, Hey, I'm with the team, I support the team, I want to be with the team six or seven months from now, I might feel different, and that's where everybody kind of held their collective breath. So John Horace, who is the Claire personnel executive of the Milwaukee Bucks, made a bold move. He bought out Damian Lillard, he brought in Miles Turner because he was like, I'm not losing Giannis just because we're gonna keep this marriage together, damn it. My hook or my crook, we're gonna keep it together. Giannis has been a top four MVP for like what five, six years now. He averaged 30, 11, and six, and he was he shot over 60 percent twice. He is the system, so make the system faster, and that's what they plan to do. Doc River said, be us, do things quicker. It's not imitation, it's optimization. Quicker means early advantage, it means getting to your spot as quickly as possible. Miles Turner arrival, so you take away from Indiana and you add to your team, especially with the rivalry between these two teams, it is a chef's kiss. What Miles Turner provides for the Milwaukee Bucks is what Giannis absolutely needs. Brooke Lopez was older, he went to the Clickers to back up Eviza Zuvatz. Miles Turner comes in, and there is your floor spacer. Also, pretty good rim protector, and going to be able to play in a lot more games and be on the court a lot more than Burke Lopez at 37 years of age. So he's bringing the spacing, he's bringing the pop. It translates to this the lane is open for Giannis. We're gonna put shooters all around this dude. That's what's gonna happen, and then he is going to get downhill and then kick it out to his shooters. That is the clan. So point forward, Giannis expands the pace and the cist volume, early touches, Doc wants a quicker decision, switchable defenders, and could and he wants controlled angry defense. That's what he wants. Early offense converts gravity into team spec and into team pace. So they're not saying they want to be Indiana Pacers, but they kind of do want to be Indiana Pacers. We talked about Lillard's ruptured Achilles, and then he was waved and stretched, so there's dead money on the books, so they're kind of stuck in limbo a little bit. We talked about Turner replacing Lopez, how good that was. Now, Kevin Porter Jr. is back. Looks like he's gonna be in the starting role. We'll see how it all goes. He's gonna have to shoot the ball at a really good rate to stay on that court. Now, I will say that the on court takeaways that we're looking for early on in the season is the turner fit, the pick and pop, that threat that creates clean lanes for Giannis drives. That's the most important thing with the Milwaukee Bucks this year. Now, the pop forces long closeouts. Obviously, you gotta get you gotta respect Miles Turner when he has a ball in his hand and he's standing behind that three-point line because we all know that three is more than two. But Doc Rivers has talked about high outlets, wing sprints to the corners on every make. Coin Giannis accelerates the inbound to attack pace. KVJ works as a secondary initiator. Those are the things that we're looking for. So Giannis's long-term future persists, and this is the thing that the Milwaukee fans has have always been like real salty with the media and people like me. When is Giannis leaving? Right now, I've never really kind of said that because you know, up until now, I didn't really think it was a distinct possibility. Now I do, and the reason why I do is this is that I understood the move. I understood the move of Dame leaving and you guys waved and stretched down. I understood that move. I even understood why you went after a Miles Turner. I got it. How do you piece the rest of it together? Because say what you want about Dame. We never saw the pick and roll between Dame and Giannis, but Dame is a 20 point per game dude. Actually, if he's right, he's a 20 plus point per game guy. Miles Turner is never gonna hit those those highs. Miles Turner was a number three option at best in Indiana. Now you're asking him to be a number two, and then we are going to basically rotate a number three option because that's what it looks like. Am I not seeing it correctly? Is there somebody on this roster that I'm missing? Are you telling me that Kyle Kuzma is going to bounce back and be uh 18 point per cane dude for you? Because you got a lot of players, you got a lot of dudes on this team who can shoot the ball. Gary Trent Jr. can shoot the ball, Kevin Porter Jr. can shoot the ball. The problem is that there's no one on this team as of right now that I see that really says I can provide that productivity you're looking for. Now Kubernetes' volume may not equal efficiency, but he is the best option you have. Do you really think that Kevin Carter Jr. can also help with this? There's a lot more questions than there are answers in Milwaukee. And when does Giannis say enough is enough? I don't know. That's why you have this scenario where it's early offense. Let's get into it because you don't want to be in a half-court setting, and now these dudes are not pulling the trigger. If Gary Trent Jr. stays at a 40% rate from deep, Giannis assists spike, first side shots are cleaner, and you can go ahead and get everybody in the spin cycle. If Coo's is Coo's with rebounds, he saw your number three gaps for second units. The third score will be by committee. It's whoever's hot, and you pray to God that you don't have multiple guys going to a slump. Because Giannis is gonna score his. Miles Turner is gonna give you a certain amount, and I wonder if they can get him to 20 points a game. They might need it, but he's not been that guy. He didn't have to be that guy in Indiana because Pascal Siakum walked in the door. Now here's a question for Milwaukee fans. You're starting fives next to Giannis and Turner. Who is it? Is it KPJ? Is it Kyle Kuzma? Is it AJ Green? Can Trent Jr. be that sniper that you absolutely need? Does the Kuzma bounce back season equal? Hey, wilt thou take pressure off whoever's gonna be that third guy? Questions. A lot more questions than answers. So today's re today's receipts show philosophical reset. Doc Rivers talks about quicker ethos. Point Giannis is a real thing. And Turner's geometry reshaped in the half court. I'm telling you, it was critical to get him. But again, he's never been a super volume dude. He's gonna have to probably shoot seven threes again. I'm not saying that he's not willing to do it, he's just not accustomed to doing it. Speed, speed on offense, getting the ball. If for some reason your opponent scores, get the ball up court as quickly as possible and start your actions. Movement is going to be a hell of a drug for the Milwaukee Bucks. Who's gonna cut? Are they smart cuts? You know, can Kuzma regain some of the stuff that he had in Los Angeles? Because I'm gonna tell you right now, Kyle Kuzma in Los Angeles when he was playing with the Lakers. That's the one thing he could do. Now he could shoot the ball and all that other stuff too. He was kind of a Swiss Army knight type of guy, but he made critical cuts when people on the defensive end started to kind of just be in a daze and be a little more casual. He would get to the hole and LeBron would hit him with a pass and wide open layup, and that is something that Milwaukee is looking to do. And Milwaukee is not rebuilding, they're reprogramming their team. Every scrint, every early pass, every clean corner is a vote for the future. If you're not using the whole clock and you're helping Giannis, you're helping Giannis. Fast, quick decisions are what this team is gonna need. The ball needs to find energy. Do not hold on to the ball for very long. Kyle Kuzman, you can't do all that stuff that you were doing in Washington. Point blank period, end of story. Speed plus facing scales a superstar. And then what we're looking for in the first week, early offense. Early offense on misses, early offense on makes. Can we can the ball find energy? Giannis will need all the help he can get. Next up, we need to talk about the Detroit Pistons. So, what about the Pistons this year? You made the playoffs, K look awesome. So, what is the story this year? And the story is easy. Jaden Ivy coming out party. Kate already proved to us gloriously. Now it's time for Jayton to go ahead and take that moniker as the second leading score. We're gonna track pace, point of attack stops, and corner threes. That's where the maturity shows for our guy. This is um this is the first cade era season. Obviously, after getting to the playoffs, what is the expectations this year? Obviously, is to get back to the playoffs, and how far you go is the maturity and also the development of Jaden Ivy. Now he had a catastrophic injury last year that quelled him, and we'll talk about all the stuff that's happened to Jaden Ivy since he's been a Detroit Piston over this the time that we're going to be talking about the Pistons. But let me get back to this real quick. The vibes are good, right? The promise of what they put together last year, the proof was in the assignment, and now Ivy returns from a fibular injury, and the reports are that he looks explosive, he looks like himself again, which is great. Asur Thompson, Jalen Doran, what kind of leaps can they take in this year two under JB Vickerstaff? Continuity. Oh my god, think about this. We're gonna have some continuity in Detroit. It's a new flex. All I got is got basically. The likely starters look like it's gonna be K, Ivy, Asur, Tobias Harris, and Jalen Dorn. It's a real rotation. This is what we were expecting last year. We didn't get to see it a lot because of the injury to Ivy. Can Detroit shift its potential to production? And does Ivy's pace and point of attack defense and his abundance of corner three volume doesn't go up? So after excitement of last year, what's the goal this year? Well, let's get into it. The organization won't speak up this year. Postseason is expected. No questions asked. You obviously got Cade who looked like a stud last year. Expectations change, patience, uh rotation, patience. So, really, again, Ivy, who we'll get into momentarily. I understand what is going on with him, but he's gotta have a big year. He's gotta have a big year. So, what is JB Bickerstaffs gonna look to do in year two? What's the carryover scheme? Are there clearer roles for this team, fewer excuses, and again, Ivy must become the clean number two. Second and touch attacker, real threes, and go ahead and play gritty defense for sure. The identity hardens under stakes. Also, they they got uh Kerris Levert from Cleveland. He's one of the most versatile and adaptable players he I've ever coached, said JB Greg Staff. And then they drafted Chaz Lanier, off ball instincts, you know what I'm saying? He shoots a three. We'll see what it what it what it means. Keep in mind there's still Marcus Sasser and other people in this mix. Now, you are coming off the situation. Whoo! Malik Beasley, man, he went through it this this offseason, and I just don't know how that's gonna work. They also got uh Duncan Robinson from Miami, and we'll talk about him in a minute. But the projected starters obviously we talked about who's gonna be starting now, who's coming off the bench? You know what I'm saying? Who is gonna lead that charge? So you got Ron Holland who turns defense into transition identity. You know, can Lanier turn into that movement shooter that we thought that Marcus Sasser was gonna be? Or is Duncan Robinson that guy? Is Duncan Robinson what was promised? And keep in mind, you got bench competition with Mark, you got Sasser, Levert is definitely gonna get his minutes, Duncan Robinson is gonna get his minutes, Holland is gonna get his, and then Isaiah Stewart, which is our guy. So they really have a nine-man rotation right now, so they'll be able to their young legs, they're hungry, they want to win. Ron Holland is an absolute beast, and what I mean by that is that he also seems to be taken under the wing of one Beast Stew, and you know that's our guy, Beast Stew. He's ready to fight, he ready to throw hands at any point in time in the game. You know what I'm saying? B Stew is is is a beast, bro. Levert Duncan Robinson connection that is going to tell us what Detroit can actually be this year. Because Malik Beasley shot, I think he shot his attempts were like T, he shot over 10%, 10 attempts a game, and shot the ball very well, right around 40%. Now, if Ivy is coming back and he's the number two, when they go to the bench, does Ivy become the de facto point guard, or does that fall to Karis Levert? Because Keris can handle that role, but I wonder if Ivy is the guy who actually ends up doing it. Is that where the rotation starts to go? Or does it become a 10-man rotation and the Marcus Sasser era coming off the bench begins? But Detroit has plenty of options and they got plenty of depth, and they got plenty of people. Well, if this doesn't work, we got something else. Now, getting back to Ivy last year, it looked good at the start. It looked like volume scorer, it was streaky efficiency, the three ball was trending upward. You know what I'm saying? Doran looked like an elite rim finisher, top tier rebounder. His usage was modest by design, you know what I'm saying? Just hey yeah, we could catch lobs, my guy. Asur Thompson, he was defensive plus. Now, his three point attempts, still shaky. Also, percentages shaky. He is going to have to. Get better at shooting the three. And it really is gonna come down to Ivy. And what I want to talk about that with Ivy is this is that you know he's had he's been mishandled. You know, he's been mishandled since the get-go. He looks good in practice right now, but let's talk about his first year under Monty Williams. He was in the doghouse, he didn't get the refs that he needed. They were starting uh what was that kid's name from from France and stuff like that? Oh my god, I can't remember his name, but he he sucked. So now J9 comes back, has the injury, loses a lot more time. So now he's learning this year on the fly as Detroit steps up into this contendership role, and I'm not saying like they're contending for a championship, let's not get over our skis as of yet, but it will be critical Ivy's development, and I don't mind a couple losses early in the season if it means that Ivy is getting the reps and also the opportunities that he is going to need to be that number two that Kade needs to lean on. Those are the type of things that are going to have to happen this year. You are gonna have to crack a couple eggs to make an omelet, and you are also going to have to lean on Duck and Robinson. Can Duck and Robinson's um three-point attempts ratio, it doesn't have to reach the Malik Beasley lofty, lofty air that he lived in, but he needs to he needs to shoot probably six and a half to seven threes a game. Somebody is going to have to take up some of the some of the slack that is left by Malik Beasley and all the craziness that happened with him. Now, here's the other thing. Does Doran continue to anchor the defense and provide the ramp protection that you need? I don't see nothing but upside for this kid. He's uber athlete, he's super strong, he positions well for rebounds, uh, he uses athletic his athleticism to win the day sometimes. You kind of wish that it was more uh fundamental, but hey, if you're uber athlete like him, jump over some people every once in a while. I don't, you know, it is what it is. And Asur is gonna be a disruptor on defense, but the problem is that his shooting must come around, it must look more, it has to improve, it just has to. Now, Duncan Robinson and Tobias Harris are gonna provide great veteran leadership. You know, Tobias was much maligned in Philadelphia, but that had a lot to do more with the contract than it did with the way he played. Now, I know he does have a propensity to disappear. I get it, I understand it, but he's not he's not the guy you lean in on as far as offense is concerned. It's like listen, he's really like your fifth dude in the rotation. You're hoping that Ivy and K and Duran are gonna score the basketball. You're hoping that Asura Thompson, because of his playmaking ability, is able to be that connective piece, and also he's such an absolute disruptor on the defensive end that you end up in transition more times than not. Now, the wild card is Chaz Lanier. Now, Chaz Lanier shoots the ball like he shot the ball last year, and he's able to put in a real productive 12 to 15 minutes per game as a movement spacer and kind of take up some of that slack that Malik Beasley left a void in, then you don't need as much as you thought you needed from Duncan Robertson, and really again it's gonna be the the uh the synergy between Cade and Ivy and see how this works and see how it starts to ramp up in November. So, expectations are real in Detroit. Ivy's health healthy Asur and Duran are trending up. JV's con JV's continuity is showing. Growth doesn't mean flashes, it means consistency. In the next two weeks are the tests, Cade and Ivy synergy and the disruptive behavior of the wings and rhythm, the bench spacing stability, and Detroit's blueprint for sustainable offense if they keep the tempo where it was last year. They must defend at the point and trust their spacing rules. They must do that now. Have his cash promises the Pistons leap won't be hinge on youth, it'll hinge on repetition, and also hinge on J9's uh leap this year. Because guess what? He probably wants a contract. So our guy, I think Detroit is going to look good this year, and the thing about it is that if for some reason they decide to pivot, they got some pieces that they could do, they could use. So I look at Detroit and go, they they probably gonna be in that that first half of contenders, like they're probably gonna be a four seed anywhere between you know saying that's probably where they're gonna end up being. So I'm looking forward to all of that. I'm looking forward to Detroit becoming the team that we know they can become. Now, this leads us to Cleveland, and Cleveland is now or never depth, health issues, and the biggest question is the Allen question. So, attention, Cleveland. Y'all know what time it is. Y'all know that the sands of the hourglass are starting to fade away. Now, the East Injuries open a lane for them, and the bracket might never look this friendly ever again. The likes of Boston, Milwaukee is going through a you know a flux as far as that's concerned. The Pacers, you know, obviously Tyrese Halliburton, but in the NBA, windows close fast, having to decide who stays in them. You know what I'm saying? The Calves have gone 51, 48, and then 64 wins over the past three seasons, but only two playoff series victories to show for it. Regular season flex does not equal mate proof. This is a this is the most expensive roster in franchise history, is pushing nearly 400 million with tax dollars, just what sources are saying. Um Garland is still ramping up. Remember that he had the turf toe injury, so they are not playing at full strength right now. They also lost Todd Rome, so Struuss is also shell, multiple knees, constant monitoring, you know what I'm saying, and then there is the other question Is it a final or bust year? Does Jarrett Allen shine in October through April and then fade under the playoff lights and the scrutiny? That can't happen again. The lane is open and the time is now. Again, this is the cleanest path that Cleveland has had to the finals since the LeBron era. They gotta get healthy, and Allen must show up in the playoffs. Because I think this team is gonna they're gonna win high 50s again. I mean, if you just ask me my opinion right now, and this is not knowing what's gonna happen with Darius Garland, but at the end of the day, this this needs to happen again. Boston, Indiana, Indiana, injuries, bucks are retooling, mid, you're just doing it on the fly. The core of the of the Cavaliers is Mitchell, Garland, Hutart, Mowgli, and Allen, and then you got shooters like Hunter, Struuss, and Merrill. Our guy Merrill is still bringing the heat. You know how big a fan of I am of our guy Merrill. Is this the season for Cleveland? Well, the bracket favors them. Early chemistry while injuries heal. Because here's the thing DeAndre Hunter now will have a full season with the Cleveland Cavaliers. We haven't even mentioned Lonzo Ball. Also, are we really sure that we want to lean on Lonzo? Like, how many how many games is he gonna be able to play? And I love Lonzo Ball. I think he's a great connecting piece. He shoots the ball, he shoots the three ball um pretty pretty good for you know, he started off terrible, man. When he was a Laker, he couldn't shoot the three to save his damn life, but he has worked on it, he's worked on his mechanics, and he has become a legitimate productive threat behind that line. Ownership has green let roster finals or surgery. That's what it looks like. If they don't do what they're supposed to do this year, so pressure is on now. Kenny Atkinson did something really awesome. The offense ranked number one last season. The goal is sustaining that tempo when healthy creators come back, tempo via early triggers, not hero ball, you know what I'm saying, and Mowgli as a defensive player of year candidate all the time, his switching, his hedging, the protecting at the rim. Great. Now, Jared Allen during the regular season looks like a stud. Blocking shots, getting rebounds, having a great throw, telling us about the Legos that he's put together, but it's not what you do between October and April, it's what you do after that. Hunter and Merrill, one thing Hunter is gonna bring defense and spacing, Merrill brings shooting. As much as it was hard to lose Ty Jerome with DeAndre Hunter and Merrill and then Lonzo Ball, they're gonna be alright. Now keep in mind they're in the second apron, so that means all of the things are closed off to them, no buyout candidates, you can't aggregate salaries, you can't take more money in than you to than you put out, as far as that's concerned. So keep those things in mind. So if there was uh a trade to be made, they're gonna have to take less money back. So let's say they had a guy who was 22 million and they wanted to bring in a wing or another big or whatever it was, and that guy was 24 million, they cannot do it. They cannot do it. Now, the rookie Proctor from Duke, he could provide some shooting if for some reason they needed it. Did you know that the Cavaliers are 11 and 15 under this current core? Now they did bring in Lonzo Guall and also Larry Nance Jr. These are great vets to have on a team. You know, they got a lot of playoff experience. Uh, they've seen a lot in the NBA. Nance Jr. is one of them dudes. I like Nance, he's he's great. He's gotta stay healthy. Lonzo Gall's gotta stay healthy, and our accounted Dean Wade has to stay healthy. Now, a couple things that I want to see, or some couple things that I want to we might see this year, just depending on those minutes could be a necessity, not a luxury, to downsize, to go ahead and get a more frenetic pace, depending on you know who they want to have in the game. Because you could have a lineup where DeAndre Hunter plays the four, Lonzo Ball plays the three, and then you still have the guards in there. Now, obviously, Garland's not in there right now, but you could have when everybody's healthy, you could play that type of lineup and have a lot of defense on the floor, and it also preserves Darius Garland, because Darius Garland is not the greatest defender, he's smaller, you he he gives you effort, but that was always been the bugger boo. But the problem was, or not the problem was, you always had to lean on Jared Allen and Evan Mowgli on the back end of that. Well, in the playoffs, that has not come to fruition. So I wonder if you'll see maybe a lineup where the wings are a little bit more stingy as far as pointing attack defenders, not allowing people to get in the lane as much, and then you have Mowgli cleaning it up. Now, with the East being as weak as it is, I do expect that the Cavs can coast to the playoffs. I'm not saying that this is a critical year for them for the 82-game season, it's a critical year for the 16-game season. You cannot do what you've done over the last couple years. We will talk about it as we close up shop in a second. Depth is fixed, you got enough dudes as far as that's concerned. They kept all there's a lot of money on this team. So let's get to it. Let's start talking about what we really need to talk about. Could the best closing five be Mitchell, Garland, Hunter, Mowgli, and Allen? Or is it Mitchell, Garland, Ball, Hunter, and Mowgli? And I'll say and I'll tell you why in a second. If Hunters need bulk, who fills in? Well, they got Dean Wade, uh, they got Lonzo Ball, they got enough pieces to figure this out. That's the whole thing. It's like we're gonna get 30 games for DeAndre Hunter. I'm just kidding. But if there's any sort of like nagging the injuries, they do have some, they can go ahead and go on a minutes restriction, they do have enough wing depth to go ahead and cover that. I do not worry about that as much. What I do worry about is this the receipts are in you guys, are an elite core, the Cavaliers are elite core. This is an expensive payroll, but Allen's main history is looming, and what I mean by that is that are you soft, or are you are you gonna be able to handle this, man? Are you going to be able to be a stout defender? Are you gonna be able to handle the bright lights of the playoffs? We can talk about windows being open, wider, and all this other stuff, and whatever the case may be, but the bottom line is that we did see Mowgli step up last year, we didn't see Jared Allen step step step up last year. So the question isn't whether they're talented enough, it's whether they're durable enough, and also how much heart do you got? Because you got an explosive scorer and Donovan Mitchell, Darren Scarland went healthy, is an incredible guard. He can go ahead and break down the defense, get into the paint, and kick it out the shooters, or also create offense for himself. Mowgli is that's the key. Is his aggressiveness going to continue? Are we going to feed that beast? Is this guy's usage rate going to go up? I think that is a critical key for the Cleveland Cavaliers this year. If Mowgli is the guy that we think he is, and the guy that I thought he was coming out of the draft, then we're gonna be okay. And then we'll see about Jared Allen. Because here's the other thing: do the Cleveland Cavaliers just trade Jared Allen by the trade deadline and either kind of reset some of their salary structure and get picks, or do they bring in like a a lesser type of you know, big to back up Mobly and they kind of retool? And I'm not saying like let's trade people before all this gets settled, but I will I want to make sure that people understand this. This is the last season you'll see this Cavaliers team if for some reason they flame out early in the playoffs, and there will be fingers pointed in a lot of directions. Now, I will never say it's gonna be Kenny Atkinson because I think Kenny Atkinson did an incredible job last year. But do you have the same backcourt next year if you flame out? Probably not. You'll have to pick between Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell. Is the fro gonna be in Cleveland when it is all said and done? Or does he move on to different pastures? And does Evan Mowgli's ascension continue to the point where is he a five or is he still a four? And you bring in another like rugged dude that's cost effective and things of that nature. All these questions will be answered, and they will not be answered in October, they won't be answered in January, and they damn sure won't be answered in March and April. They will be answered in May and June. Trust and believe I say that. So, like Saraya just said, windows don't knock twice. So the time, hey, just like John Cena says, the time is now because you got all the pieces you need to get to the finals. There is no narrative, there's no excuses, it is what it is at this point. You don't get it done this year. Think about it this way Boston will be back, and they'll be whole. Indiana will be back. By the way, you got to deal with the Knicks this year. The Pistons. People are already saying the Pistons are tougher than you. People are already saying that. So this is a get right year for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and I think that fan base knows it, and I think there's you know, if you get them in a moment where they were just able to kind of speak about it, you know, pretty bluntly, they're a little nervous too. They don't know because they have not seen the proof of concept. Now I will say this Mowgli's safe. Mowgli's not going anywhere, but there will be choices to be made if this does not go right this season. With that being said, I want to thank my producer Saraya. Thank you so much for what you do, kid. It's appreciated. All the notes that you've given me really helped this situation. Now, keep in mind, programming note, we will be podcasting this weekend. There'll be pods over the weekend. I've already got the uh Southeast Division done. I just we gotta record it, so that's we're gonna work on that. The other thing is this is that Tuesday, I don't care what happens, I don't care if the place is on fire, I don't care if I'm sick, I don't care if I got shot over the weekend, whatever. I'm just I'm kidding. I'm not gonna get shot over the weekend, it's gonna be great. But Tuesday is our prediction show. We will have like MVP predictions, we will have rookie of the year predictions, defensive player of the year, coach of the year, all that. We'll be talking about teams and totals and who's gonna be where and what's gonna happen. Now, I am going to tell you this. We are a podcast that says, hey, we'll get you to the playoffs, and then we'll start making our decisions then on who we think is gonna get to wherever we need to go to get that Larry O'Brien. Okay, so you looking for us to say, hey, we think this team is gonna be champion, we're probably not gonna say that. But we will say, hey, we think these teams will be in the upper echelon competing for the championship. That's what you will get. So hopefully you will hear your squad in that situation. With that being said, the best part of you is you surround yourself with people who give you light, insight, and joy, and accountability, appreciate them out loud. That's your real wealth. And if you're still finding your tribe, know this you got one here with us, with FRPC. Until next time, keep your mind sharp, your heart open, and your circle tight. I'm Vince Force of Rea, we out peace.