All Wizards Talk
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All Wizards Talk
DeMar I say it DeLess I like it
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Bryson Akins and Josh Valdez discuss where the Washington Wizards rank in this tough East, along with the potential signing of DeMar DeRozan thanks to recent reports.
Welcome back to another episode of All Wizards Talk, a podcast covering the Washington Wizards. I'm one of your co-hosts, Bryson Akins, joined alongside as always by Josh Valdez. Henry isn't with us today. He's on vacation. He's enjoying a much deserved break in the Midwest. He could have gone anywhere else in the world. He decided the Midwest. God knows why. But he's there enjoying Chicago, I think, today. And so, but it's gonna be just Josh and I kind of talking about everything that's kind of gone on in the past few days, and there's been quite a bit. There's there's been a decent amount. We had LeBron finally choosing his team, and he ended up choosing the Philadelphia 76ers, which I mean it shouldn't have surprised anyone, I guess, but it did surprise me. I don't know if it surprised you at all.
SPEAKER_01Um a little bit. I I did think it made the most sense in terms of if he's trying to win. I just kind of was surprised he actually pulled the trigger.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's where I was like, you know, if he's trying to win another one or maybe two, it makes the most sense to go to Philly out of the teams that were there. Miami and Cleveland. I mean, Miami and Cleveland, they have decent squads. Yes. You know, they're gonna be, you know, one of the better teams in the East. But you could have gone to Philly where you don't have to be a second or third option for Cleveland or Miami. There, you're the fourth option, and sometimes even the fifth, depending on how Vijay Edge comes doing. It's kind of weird to say.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, well, I I just feel like the Celtics trading uh Jalen Brown kind of opened up the city.
SPEAKER_00That was the yeah, that was the kicker here. If if the Celtics never traded Jalen Brown, if they still have him, LeBron probably doesn't go to Philly, he probably goes to Cleveland or Miami. He might even go to Golden State instead. So it was really Boston kind of solidified it when you kind of look at the grand picture. Which is so crazy, man.
SPEAKER_01Like I think the Celtics will still be a good squad because they always kind of find a way.
SPEAKER_00But they just I was gonna say, I think so too. I have him finishing fourth in the East just because I mean, like, as as much as people hate Tatum, he is a top five player in the he's vulnerable, he's certified, yeah, for sure.
SPEAKER_01Um and yeah, and plus like he already got some reps in last season at the end, so he'll be fine. But I just think it's it's just shocking that this again the Celtics allowed this to happen essentially. Um, they allowed the Sixers to flip Paul George for Jalen Brown and then sign uh LeBron uh you know for basically that minimum a little bit more.
SPEAKER_00But yeah, you know, which by the way, they did not have to send Jalen Brown to the Sixers. They could have sent him to Milwaukee and got Giannis if they just traded Hugo Gonzalez in the package as well. Which if I was Boston, I'm doing that. I'm I'm doing the package of Jalen Brown two first and Hugo Gonzalez for Giannis.
SPEAKER_01What kills me is like, oh, we're we're trying like cost cut because like Paul George will come off the book sooner. It's like okay, the Mario trying to trade for Giannis. Like that doesn't make sense.
SPEAKER_00It doesn't make sense at all. But I mean, like it's still a good squad that they have. I mean, they added Mitchell Robinson, which is a good pickup for Boston when you're considering defense down low, having him back up uh uh Keda. That's you know, that's nice. Baylor Shireman's still a good role player there, where you know, Boston, they're still gonna be a good team. They're they're still gonna be a good team, even with all the moves all these teams have done, it's kind of put the Wizards in like a weird spot of like, okay, where do they realistically finish in the Eastern Conference now in a seat, you know, in a year where they're finally ready to start winning some games? That's that's the big question.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I I like I don't think this you know LeBron and Jalen Brown going to the Sixers necessarily like changes the Wizards' outlook a ton. I just think it's more so a commentary on like how different the East will be this year. It's just that and it and that lines up with when the Wizards are trying to be good, right? Um a lot of it has to do with the uh the uh draft lottery rules uh changing, you know, that there won't be tanking anymore and stuff like that. So last year there was a lot of teams that won 50 plus games that now it's gonna be harder to get that threshold because there's not a lot that you can beat up on.
SPEAKER_00I was talking about it today. This is the toughest Eastern conference we have seen in decades. It's gonna be very reminiscent to what I think was like the 2011 Western Conference, I think is what it was. When you had 45 win teams not make the playoffs, finish as the ninth and tenth seed, you're gonna see something very similar in the East this year where there'll be 500 teams that don't even make the play-in. That that's how good this Eastern Conference is. Like the Charlotte Hornets, yes, they traded Lamell the ball. They're still a very good team on paper. They might not even make the play-in. It's it's just super competitive now.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's crazy. I like I think that the Wiz, um, I still think they can be like the eighth seed. Um, but they're gonna have to work hard for it. This is not gonna be some gimme thing like just because you got Trey Young and AD and and uh AJ that you're just gonna you know go get 45 wins. Like this is gonna be a slot. This is gonna be a good thing.
SPEAKER_00And it's not even that's not the only move that they did either. They got DeAndre Ayton, who's a good backup big. Right. Like he's he's a good big to have as your backup to Anthony Davis and Alex Sard. That's a good addition right there. Chris Middleton is a great veteran leader to have. And if you need to give him 10 minutes, he can give you a good 10 minutes. Now, as a starter, you probably don't want that anymore. But you know, as a backup who's like, okay, he's our you know, ninth man this game, you can he's still gonna be very serviceable, serviceable doing that.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I I think, you know, again, it's like I think the Wiz did what they had to do this offseason. Um, you know, and they they might not be done. We're gonna talk about that later. But I just think that, you know, this episode is more about like when you look at the rest of the picture in the East, I still think that they're gonna have to work so hard to reach that threshold of like getting to 500 for the first time in a few years, you know, just because, right, in addition to what the Sixers did, you know, you've got the Knicks, you've got uh Indiana gets you know Tyrese back. Um, you know, Raptors probably will get Kawaia, assuming the trade goes through.
SPEAKER_00Assuming it goes through. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01You know, but and the list goes on off the Cavs are still better.
SPEAKER_00Didn't even mention Orlando, like it's Detroit. Like there's still so many good teams.
SPEAKER_01Orlando, Charlotte, Atlanta could feasibly all finish ahead of the Wizards. Like, we don't know, you know. I mean, it's possible. I don't I don't think all three of those teams will, but again, it's possible. You know, we didn't even mention the Detroit, you know. I mean, there's there's so many teams that could finish above 500, like feasibly.
SPEAKER_00You know, it's it's very it's gonna be very competitive. I think it's gonna be those like 12 through, you know, like seven spots. That is where you're gonna see the most like kind of bounce among teams because I I honestly think deciding like who is the 10th seed and ninth seed for the play-in, it's gonna come down to just pure matchups, who won their matchup that year. And it's gonna be crazy to kind of look at where it's like you can't go strictly based off record.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think that um, you know, some of these games against some of like the higher tier teams in the conference, like if the Wiz can win like half of those, like those could determine where they go, you know what I mean?
SPEAKER_00Where like it's gonna be weird. It's the series against like the Hornets, the Pistons, and the Hawks are gonna be like the series you want to pay attention to because you win two of two out of three of those, good chance you're gonna be in the play.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. It's yeah, that's what I'm saying.
SPEAKER_01It's like right, it's like some of these regular season games are gonna almost have like a postseason feel to them just because it's like depending on the matchup, you know, like it could determine like the seeding and stuff like that. You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, um, it's gonna be really interesting. Um, I just want to talk about a few of like the other stuff with the wizards before we go on to our free agency stuff here later on. Um right now, ESPN, uh, they did their power rankings, they have them at 22nd on the list, and that's 12th best in the east. Which I mean, I I'm not like flat out disagreeing with it. You know, I think there are Western conference teams that were put ahead of them where I'm like, uh, I don't know about that. Like Golden State, they have them at 19, where it's like, I don't know if Golden State is a better team than the Wizards on on paper, yeah. As it is, same with like, you know, like they had Utah at 17, like, you know, five whole spots ahead where it's like it's kind of hard to justify, you know, on paper a very similar team to have five spots ahead. Yeah. And so, which this is not shade to Utah, they're gonna be, you know, a sleeper team out in the west. They're gonna, I think, surprise a lot of people. But I think 22 is you know, just a little bit too low for them. They're right behind Charlotte. I would have put them at like 18. And so I felt like that would make a little bit more sense.
SPEAKER_01This is just a situation where they just gotta show it. You know what I mean? I I like they're they're not getting any benefit of the doubt just based on their history and everything. Um, you know, and I like I kind of I kind of feel them, you know, these the people making the list to a certain degree, like you you gotta you gotta show us, you know what I mean? Like they made a lot of good moves, you know, in the past few months, but you still gotta show us. Like they they you know, Trey and A B have not played one minute together, same, you know, same with AJ and Trey and A B, right? So it's like we gotta see it all stick, you know, we gotta see them stay healthy, right? You know, shadow AD saying he's gonna play it, play the entire season. We'll see.
SPEAKER_00Which we'll see. We'll see if that happens.
SPEAKER_01You know, I mean, uh SAR hopefully stays on the court, Bilal, the list goes on, right? Like, in theory, this team could be really freaking good, right? I mean, uh they they could be a top six seed in the East if things go their way, but I think I think six is the you know ceiling.
SPEAKER_00I think that's what it is. The floor is that they do finish as the 12th seed just because of how tough this conference is. This is not saying the Wizards are gonna be you know below 30 wins. I have them at around, you know, like right at 40. That's you know, like I think that is a good range for them. And DraftKings put out their uh over-unders for win totals today, and they have the Wizards at 35 and a half. And so and it shows like there is improvement, there is vast improvement, all right. Right.
SPEAKER_01See, but they're still giving them more than double their wins from my team. Yeah, it's not it's not like a diss or anything, you know.
SPEAKER_00No, it's not a diss or anything. It's yeah, it's it's a compliment showing like, hey, you guys have improved. It's just this east, it's like it's tougher than the Western Conference, and you couldn't have said that for the past eight years.
SPEAKER_01And that's what's so crazy is I feel like on the pod we're we're usually talking about like the Wiggs internal stuff, but it's like you have to look at the external right now because it's so crazy that it's it's such a paradigm shift in the NBA where it's like like you said, the West usually clears the East, right? But now it's really OKC in San Antonio on top of that.
SPEAKER_00Denver's kind of faded away. Utah's got to make that jump if they want to be in that conversation.
SPEAKER_01Minnesota's the one that you know maybe can make a jump, you know. But yeah, but we'll see, you know. I mean, they made a couple conference finals last last few years, but again, you know, we we gotta see what happens with ball and all that, you know. So um, but yeah, it's like but with the east, it's like there's several teams that could be in the conference finals. Whereas like it's really hard to see anyone beating OKC in San Antonio on the list right now.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, like it's and there are so many unknowns in the east, like you mentioned Tyrese Halliburton. Like, if he comes back and plays like you know, Tyrese, like we have seen Tyrese Halliburton do in the past, like this is bold for me, and this is just me thinking they do one move before the deadline. I could see him finishing us the third seed in the East. Yeah, that's that's how good that Pacers team is, and they're it's built perfectly for Tyrese Halliburton getting Zubak in there. Like it is, it's a good team.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, 100%.
SPEAKER_00Um you know, and they didn't lose anyone either. It is like they've lost two players from that finals team, um, Miles Turner, which you might argue that Zubok is a better fit for the Pacers than Turner was, and then um Benedict Matherin. But it's not like Matherin is like the only player that you know you kind of you know like you needed for that team. You still have, like I mentioned, Halburn. You have Zubak now, you have Pascal Siakam, you have Nimhardt still, you have Jay Huff off the bench who's a good backup center. Like it's it's a good squad. If all goes well for him, they're the third seed in the East.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. No, and and that's the thing, is like I feel like the one of the main questions now is too like, especially with Braun going to Philly and everything, and Jalen Brown, it's like how many games do you think the Wizards will win against some of these upper tier teams? Because again, that could decide things for them, you know.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's it it like that's what it is. Like, it's gonna be interesting how they do against the Miami Heat. That's a big one. Like, if they if they can split with the Heat, that's a good sign that this team will be in the play-in at at the minimum.
unknownUh-huh.
SPEAKER_00If they can do the same thing with like the Pacers, for example, another good sign that they're at least going to be in the play-in. It's those little how they do against like the six through three seeds in the East. Because the Knicks and you know 76ers, I feel like are the runaway favorites in the East, but it's not one of those things where it's like, oh, well, it's not like anyone out in the West, no one can really challenge OKC or San Antonio at this point. It's still in the East. You still have Boston who can challenge the Knicks and the 76ers. The Pacers, when they're healthy, can challenge the you know, Knicks and 76ers. Like it's you still have a very, very deep Eastern conference. And we didn't even really talk about Miami with adding you know Giannis to that squad. Giannis and Bam is one of the best one-two punches in the NBA.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I feel like if the Wiz can split against like a couple of these different teams, you know, the ones that will be like in the top four theoretically or so, yeah. That would be really good, you know. Um, and you know, and again, we've seen this team, even when they were tanking, play well against some of these better teams.
SPEAKER_00Miami, they played well against now. Granted, they you know didn't really do much last season, but it's the fact like we have seen them play against you know a lot of the same Miami players, where it's like, hey, if they're doing this against them, they can do very well. I remember there were some games they were taking it to Boston for a little bit. Like a bunch of these teams, they have shown already before that they can compete. It just comes down to now can they actually you know dig out a few wins against them?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and that and that's the thing, man. It's just like that's why it goes back to all these things like you know, Trey Young being off ball with you know AJ, AJ and Keyshawn getting reps, you know, everyone getting their looks, like SAR and AD inside. It's gonna be so key for them to get that all balanced because you can't you don't have that much margin for error with when you're facing these teams because they're all so good. And a lot of them do have more experience playing together. You know, granted, like we just mentioned, like um Miami, Giannis, and Ban will have to get used to each other, especially both being inside players. But I mean, you know, Indiana, Cavs, Detroit, Knicks, all these teams have like seasons under their belt together. You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_00Um it's just it is going to be a very fun season at the minimum. It's it's gonna be very fun to watch this team play in a competitive manner, trying to win games, whether they make the play-in or playoffs or whatever they do, this is still gonna be one of the better, which you know, even if they get 35 wins, is one of the best teams that Wizards fans have seen since you know like 2020, which is crazy to say.
SPEAKER_01Wild, I know it's wild.
SPEAKER_00And so if they get 40 wins, it's one of the best teams that they've had since like 2016.
SPEAKER_01Right. Yeah, and I I that's still what I'm holding out for is like that 40 win threshold. Like if you hit 40, it's just like that's a different level because now it's like wow, like about 500. It's like, all right, that's that's pretty good after being the worst. And we've seen teams do it, you know, in the past few years. Like, for example, like uh Charlotte went from the bottom to having a good season last year, right? So um I do think the Wizards can do that despite the competitive East. But you know, these moves like LeBron and uh Jalen Brown going to Philly, like they just underscore the urgent need for the Wiz to like kind of hit the ground running despite all the new, like the new new guys they have on the team. Yeah, um, I mean, even Trey Young is something that are new, you know, because they only played five games, right?
SPEAKER_00So, you know, I mean it's a team hasn't had a full chance to kind of get together, right?
SPEAKER_01It's uh and that's why again the uh camp is gonna be so big for them too, right? Like they gotta decide who's in the rotation, and then the rotation guys gotta play well together.
SPEAKER_00No, 100%. And so, and we just gotta preface this as well. Like, this is not saying, you know, like do they want to start winning games now? Yes, that does not mean win now is not the same as let's win a few games. All right, win now means you're trying to win it all. All right. I see a few people toss out the word the wizards are in win now mode. Right. That's not what they're in, all right? They're in let's be competitive, all right. Right. Win now means you want to try to win the finals this year. That's what it means. That's not what the wizards have planned. It's still kind of not necessarily a development year. I wouldn't call it development, um, but it's kind of it's it's exactly how we'll put it a while back where like the train isn't leaving, but it's starting to, it's starting to take off a little bit. Where this is the year you figure out, okay, which players do we extend, which players of the young ones do we try to keep going forward, which ones do we trade to try to get draft capital return? And there's a few players to have that conversation with a big one's Bub. Um, and we will talk about that in later episodes closer to the season. Um so like it's just one of those things where yes, it is very interesting to watch what's going to happen here. This is not us saying that we think the Wizards are going to be a top team in the East. They have the potential to be like a six seed, but that's kind of the limit I see it at with them.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it man, it's um, you know, I think if if the Wizards do like hit that like uh 35 plus win total, it will it will it will show that what Will said is true, like the trains leaving the station.
SPEAKER_00Because like like you mentioned earlier, that's double the amount of wins you had last year. Right.
SPEAKER_01Right. And it's like, you know, for now, it's like fans, it's all right, we're not gonna believe all like the lip service right now. We gotta see it. That's fair enough. You know, but again, it's like once they prove it, it's okay, that's a huge step. Now, you know, for the 27-28 season, you can start topping some pretty lofty goals, like you know, making a deep run of the east, right? Because the conference finals, right? So now you have some foundation to do that, right?
SPEAKER_00You know, the goal the goal this year, the goal this year is to try to at least be in the play-in because the play-in, it gives you you know a playoff-like atmosphere and kind of understand what it means to play in a winner-go-home situation.
SPEAKER_01And honestly, to just to kind of tie it all together, making the play-in this year is particularly impressive. Yeah, not just because they're coming off of like you know, tanking and stuff, because the East is so good. You know what I mean? So it's like you're coming off of losing seasons and the East is amazing, you know, best it's been in a while. So for you to you know be in that 7-10 range, like I'll I'll give you more, like even more uh credit for that than usual, you know.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, exactly. But one way that you can you know make a deeper run is through free agency, adding some players. The Wizards have one final roster spot available, and there hasn't been a lot of news regarding who that will be, but Seam Strania of ESPN did say something interesting today that the Wizards have had conversations with free agent DeMar DeRosa, which should not be your kind of target in free agency. I think all of us can agree he doesn't necessarily fit what this team kind of needs going forward. There isn't a need for a veteran leader anymore with Chris Middleton on the squad. All right, he is the perfect guy for that role. All right, and you also have Anthony Gill, if you are trying to sign a veteran leader, you can just always bring him back, even though my philosophy is if you have the option to get someone in a positional need that you need that is better, go out and do that. Um and so, and the other thing is positional need-wise, they need a point guard, a backup point guard, not another wing player. They need a backup point guard, and it's not like the free agency you know class is like deep with that right now, it's Russell Westbrook, Gary Payton, and like Gabe Vincent. That's it. Basically, but I'm curious what you personally think about the reports of DeMar DeRozan potentially being with the Wizards.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, I don't know. I'm not really into it. And it's not even that I don't like DeMar. Uh, it's just that, like you said, I just don't think this team needs him. Um, he could probably be a decent scorer off the bench for them if they wanted to, but uh, I'd rather that production go to some younger guys like Trey Johnson, Will Riley, etc. I think that's a lot more valuable to this franchise long term. You know, maybe they'll they won't be as good as DeMar will be, like, you know, for the you know, for the at least for the first few months of the season, just because DeMar has a lot more experience and everything like that. But again, it's a question of okay, I know you're trying to win, you're trying to make the leap, but you want to make that leap with the guys that you drafted to make the leap with, right? It's yeah, you know, you you've got you've got vets already, you've got Trey Young, AD, DeHunter Ayton, like we mentioned earlier. You know, and he's even got you know came mid, so it's like, all right, you've got kind of the end of the bench guy to be a vet leader already. You don't you're not you don't need Damar for that, you know, and then you've got young guys to get more minutes like Riley and Johnston, right? So where does Damar fit?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and he kind of really doesn't.
SPEAKER_01Right.
SPEAKER_00Like I can't I can't remember what player said it, but there was one specific player who went out and said, I don't really know my purpose here regarding their team. And that's what it would be with DeMar.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, well, I remember one time Kuzma said um he didn't say that, but he said, I'm I'm not trying to go with what we're doing here when he was trying to get traded and he was just like basically dropped like a you know 26-point game and didn't pass or something. Yeah, it was right before they traded him to the bus.
SPEAKER_00But it was it was different than what you said, but yeah. For you know, two-time wizard now, Chris Middleton. Right, right. So but like that's just a big thing where it's like he doesn't like check off any boxes of what the wizards need. Now, yeah, is he a great mid-range shooter? Always has been. Maybe he can try to pass you know along some of his moves in the enraged to guys like Keyshawn George or something, maybe. But you don't, once again, you don't necessarily need that because Chris Middleton can do the same thing.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, again, it's like the whole thing with like that and source, it's like, all right, like we don't need to go overboard with it. Like, I understand the value of it. Um, and I think DeMar is probably, you know, will probably be better on a lot of nights than some of the Wiz young guys off the bench right now, but you know, they can develop it, you know, into being him or even better moving forward. And I think that is the more valuable again long term, and you probably will lose a little bit in the short term, but not like a ton, you know. So I I just don't I think the the the risk outweighs the benefit.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, the the risk just it's and the main risk is that he's not bought into being this end-of-inch guy. That's the biggest risk, yeah. You know, going with it. And it's not like the Wizards are the only team that have had conversations with them. Um, the Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Denver Nuggets have all had conversations with them, according to Seans. So it's one of those things where it's like out of all these four teams, the Wizards honestly should be the lowest on his like totem pole, where it's like, I know I'm not gonna get a lot of time here, you know, I'm not gonna have spot starts every now and then. Whereas in Denver, they need depth desperately. Miami too, by the way. Miami too, Cleveland could use some more where it's like he has better odds. And this, you know, even though all these teams, you know, on paper are better than the Wizards, it's just when it comes to wings, the Wizards have players they would just rather play. Justin Champagne, Keyshawn George, AJ DePanza, Will Riley, a bunch of these guys where it's like, you know, I'm missing some that I didn't even name that will play over him that the Wizards would rather, you know, give some time to. Even Chris Middleton, I feel like they would give time to over DeMar DeRozan, where it's like, you know, he's just not gonna play. You know, now, granted, if five injuries do happen, we had this conversation earlier. Like, let's say you have five major injuries and you need him for 10 games. Sure, he can go in and give you a solid 10 games to try to keep you afloat in a playoff race, but you know, outside of that, what else is he gonna do for you?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, again, but it's like this guy's coming off a season with the Kings, just like Russ, where he got some pretty solid minutes still, you know, right? He was still starting. Um, and it's just like, you know, to bring him from that role into like an end-of-the-bench guy or whatever on a team that you know hasn't even made the playoffs recently, that's like kind of a hard sell. I just think he'd fit a lot better on these teams like Miami and Cleveland and Denver, who, you know, have more of a vet core and they're they're trying to win now and they need him more. They don't have the same depth the Wizards have. Um, you know, this and I'm not saying the Wizards have, you know, all five-star players down the roster, but they do have a lot of guys they want to play, whereas these other teams, you know, they're not they don't like emphasize the core so much like the Wizards do. So it just doesn't really make sense from that perspective.
SPEAKER_00No, it it does, it just doesn't make sense for De Rosen or the Wizards to agree to a deal. Um, and like I mentioned earlier, there are just other positional needs that you need at the moment. The biggest one is a backup point guard. Because let's say, you know, as much as Will Riley has shown flashes, let's say he doesn't. Let's say that's just not him. All right, maybe he's more of a point forward instead of a true point guard. All right, and that's fine. That's fine. You can still run with that. Bub Carrington, he still has a ways to go with his passing if he wants to be a backup point guard. And I view him more as like a two guard, a combo guard. And so, and I think I think a lot of people view Bub in that role as well. And so it comes down to like you don't have a true facilitator off the bench. You need someone who can facilitate a ball, you know, the ball and know how to run in offense. And just the bench doesn't really have that.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, like if they want to sign like Aaron uh Holiday, I I I could dig it, you know. Like that makes sense, he would fill that role.
SPEAKER_00It makes sense as much as you know, we tend to disagree about it as well. Russ fits that role better than you know, DeMar DeRozan with this team as well.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, yeah, Russ would make more sense from that perspective, but now I just saw that he might sign like outside the NBA, so I don't even know anymore. I know, yeah.
SPEAKER_00I saw that European teams are contacting him and as a big Russ stand, that would break my heart if that doesn't happen. I mean, that would be crap.
SPEAKER_01I mean, I still think he's an NBA player, but you know, Cities. Yeah, but maybe maybe he could get more money and more and more just better playing time and stuff.
SPEAKER_00I don't even know if he'd get more money, though, is the thing.
SPEAKER_01I mean, well, I don't know. You know, I don't know how much some of these like Euro teams or like Israel wants to pay, you know, like but uh it depends. But yeah, I mean we've seen guys make that make that transition before, you know. But um, but yeah, again, it it's just like I would be totally fine if they just signed, you know, uh Anthony Gill. I know it's not like the safest option nationally, but again, it's a safe option. It's safe, and it's just like you know that he's not gonna like interfere with minutes and stuff. And um, they they just have so many guys already. I understand that you might want to get someone who's a better NBA player for that spot, but it's just like okay, like I just think they have they truly have enough guys, and then and then you haven't even gotten to the two-way guys yet, like Jameer, right? So it's like they have enough guys that they want to play that it's already overcrowded as it is from the wing perspective and stuff, right?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, um, so you know, and you know what I was saying earlier, like my philosophy is you know, Murphy's Law, everything that can go wrong, it will go wrong, all right. You know, so like kind of like anticipate like, hey, let's say you have three major injuries that happen and you need someone for 10 games, all right? That's when it does help to have like you know the 15th man that you sign, and it doesn't even have to be like the 15th man, all right. Like, sure, you might take up the 15th roster spot, he might be the 12th guy off the bench. All of a sudden, three injuries happen, he's the fourth guy to come off the bench here now. Okay, throw him in. Can he give you a solid 10 games? Yes, all right, good addition. Then that that's my only problem with if they do bring back Anthony Gill is like it's hard to justify giving him a ton of minutes when injuries do happen because they're always bound to happen. You're always gonna have injuries, you just don't know the extent of what they're gonna be like. It's hard to justify in a team trying to win and be competitive this year, you know, giving Anthony Gill, you know, you know, a decent chunk of rotational minutes when injuries do happen.
SPEAKER_01It's just I would yeah, I would say like Middleton is kind of that dude. I would say, where it's like they get a bunch of injuries, he he'll kind of step up and play like 18 minutes a game for for two weeks or whatever, you know. Like I can totally see that, right? So it's like if they have that guy already, you know, they got somebody like Whitmore, for example, who could step in, right?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, which is a big question mark going into the season. We don't know what we're gonna get with them after. Right.
SPEAKER_01So it's like I feel like they already have dudes that could like not be taken up.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and it just comes down to, like I mentioned, positional need. The only position they really need is a backup point guard. And you have guys who could theoretically become those kinds of players down the line this season, you don't really have that. Um, and going back to you know, like mentorship, there are a few players that need to learn how to finish around the rim a little bit better. Bub, for example, Will Riley can also learn how to you know be a little bit stronger going through contact, and it comes down to like, hey, who are the best guys on the market that can kind of teach them this mentality and you know, give them some tips and tricks to finish around the rim a little bit. And you just look at it, and this is not me kind of like vying for Russ to be the last guy, because at this point, I would rather just keep it open and then you elevate a two-way guy to a standard contract during the season uh because that's always a good thing to do, especially like for Jameer, for example, or Felix. And so but like you just look at it with stuff that they need to do and teach certain players. They don't have really anyone that can teach Bub and Will to finish through contact a little better. Russ can do that, he can be a decent backup point guard off the bench as well. He just seems like the best option free agency to me at the moment. It's him or Gary Payton, in my opinion.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, he's he's definitely makes more sense than Damar. And you know, I I would rather have him over like Gabe Vincent. You know, I think he's more talented, but again, it's just like you know, I totally understand if they don't want to go in that direction, or even like like you said, like just keep it open and sign Jameer later, that works too.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, um, you know, or maybe Felix really shows out on a two-way deal and you put him to a standard.
SPEAKER_01I yeah, I feel like Jameer is gonna be more likely than Felix just because he's further ahead as a player. Um, you know, but we'll see.
SPEAKER_00You know, uh it's just he plays, you know, he he's a center, he's a big body, and that could be something that they're looking for in the future, and maybe like he just really impresses. And Jameer's position group is just very, you know, it's it's very crowded, is what it is.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. Yeah, that's the thing, right? It's like, like you said, their biggest issue is lack of a backup point guard at this point. I think it's okay to see what happens in camp in that regard for now. Um, if if they did sign Russ for that, I'd understand. But it's like, all right, let's do some trial by fire, maybe with the young guys and just see kind of what happens, right? And if it doesn't work, then they might figure something out at the dead at the deadline or something, maybe. But yeah, and there's still like a couple of like wait-and-see approach, you know.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, there's still a lot of names we have not mentioned. Like I made like a top five free agent list uh yesterday, you know, of guys still available for the wrestler spot and being realistic here, guys that they could actually in theory sign and add to the squad, not James Harden, not those kinds of guys, all right. And like there are still like decent names out there. One name that I kept seeing I was like, I don't know how to feel about it, would be like Nick Richards, where it's like, you know, backup big, maybe DeAndre ain't you know doing too well, maybe he's not working out for you. You have Nick Richards still to try to test out uh Platoon a little bit. I saw someone throw out a name uh the other day, which uh he has some horrible like you know, PR around him, it's Killian Hayes where it's like, but he has shown flashes where he can be an NBA role player. It's just would that happen on the whiz? I don't know. And so, but like it's just kind of highlighting how watered down free agency now is where it's like we're talking Nick Richards and Killian Hayes, for example, for the last roster spot.
SPEAKER_01It's like at this point, you just leave it open and elevate someone, and and that's the thing, it's like you know, the free the free agent class that they could actually get is not that inspiring, so it's like don't break your back trying to sign with just to fill it up, yeah. You know what I mean? Like, you know, it would have to, it would, you know, for it for it to really make sense, in my opinion, it would have to be a backup point. And even then, it's like the options aren't world beating, so it's just you know, uh, that's why I think it could be just as valuable to just see what happens with the young guys, at least in camp in the first few weeks of the season.
SPEAKER_00No, it doesn't hurt with it. So, but is there anything else you want to mention?
SPEAKER_01No, I think um, you know, we're definitely gonna enter a chiller period, you know, other than this like whole DeMar business. Um, you know, not now that now that Braun is settled, uh, you know, we won't see AD get traded to the Warriors or Cavs so that LeBron can go or something. Yeah. You know, we can put that to bed.
SPEAKER_00Um which I still wouldn't rule out a trade. Like just I would always keep an Anthony Davis trade in the back of my mind just because you might get an offer from a team where it's like it's really hard to resist that offer, especially if you get multiple draft picks.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, again, it's like I feel like that can happen just once he plays. Because it's like who right now is gonna offer that before he plays? That's my thing.
SPEAKER_00Because the biggest appeal was if you get Anthony Davis, you're almost guaranteed to get LeBron. That's what it was for a while. And then LeBron just decided it's taking too long. Let me sign with Philly. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, because it's like I you know, I think he realized like this LeBron, this um AD and Kyrie thing is not gonna happen right now.
SPEAKER_00It's a pipe dream, is what it was. Yeah, so so maybe maybe he declined his player option and does one final year with them, you know, somewhere else. Who knows?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, I mean, he did say this was his last decision or whatever, but who knows? He could change his mind. Who knows?
SPEAKER_00He could always change his mind.
SPEAKER_01Uh but yeah, no, I I I do think, like, other than you know, possibly something with this last Rocky Spot, gonna enter a chill period. Um, but yeah, I do think that it's just something to keep in mind. Like the team's gonna be a lot better, but the East is also a lot better. So just that that balance is gonna be really fascinating this season.
SPEAKER_00Basically. All right. Well, thank you guys for tuning in, listening as always, and we'll catch you guys in the next one. Peace.